Perfect Agent [EN]: Chapter 49

The Butterfly Effect of a Small Flap (1)

My mother was placing dishes on the table, one by one.

As I got closer, I saw the table was filled to the brim, just like always, with barely an empty space.

“You could have just made a simple meal. Why did you prepare so much?”

“How much do you eat when you come home? I can’t just feed you something simple and send you back. Sit down and eat.”

I sat down across from my mother.

“So, you’re leaving tomorrow, right?”

“Yeah. It’s already over.”

Why do vacations always feel so short?

“When will you be able to take a break next time?”

“Once spring training starts, it’s pretty much the start of the season, so I probably won’t be able to rest until this time next year.”

“Is that so…?”

A deep sense of disappointment settled on my mother’s face.

“But there are a lot of away games too, so…”

“Even when you came nearby for negotiations, it was hard to even see your face…”

She seemed subtly disappointed that I went straight back after finishing negotiations with the Jaguars during the last free agency negotiation.

At that time, the negotiations were proceeding urgently, so I couldn’t leisurely stop by home and rest.

“I’ll make time in the future.”

“It’s okay. You need to focus on work when you’re working.”

Despite her words, there was still a hint of sadness in her expression.

“Mom, but… if I could go back to when I was a kid, would you still have let me play baseball?”

“Baseball? Why are you asking that all of a sudden?”

“Well… just wondering. Honestly, I don’t think I had that much talent for baseball when I was young. There was no guarantee of success, and it would have cost a lot of money. So, as a parent, it wouldn’t have been easy to keep letting me play baseball.”

My mother smiled slightly at my words about not having talent.

“Well… I couldn’t *not* let you. Don’t you remember when you were little? You would sleep with your bat every night, and you cherished your glove like it was a precious treasure, cleaning it with such care every day.”

Of course, it was a moment I remembered clearly.

When I was in elementary school, some of the older players who played for the Jaguars came to visit.

They gave us advice while watching us hit and pitch.

It was just one day, but meeting professional players whom I had only seen on TV felt like a dream.

Moreover, I still vividly remember the day they corrected my batting stance with their own hands.

And I even got their autographs on the bat I had at the time.

“I still can’t forget that look in your eyes. You said you enjoyed playing baseball so much, and I could feel that you genuinely enjoyed it.”

“But you knew it would cost a lot of money to play sports. Weren’t you worried about that?”

Our family wasn’t struggling when I was young, but we weren’t exactly wealthy either.

“Of course, I was worried. But what could I do? I had to let my child do what they wanted, as much as I could.”

“…”

“What’s wrong?”

“Well…”

I told her about the concerns that had arisen from the offer I received from Sky Corporation and the thoughts I had after talking with Jung In-gyu.

My mother listened quietly until I finished speaking.

“What do you think, Hyun-woo?”

“Well, I do want to help the younger players.”

“Then give it a try.”

Actually, it was an unexpected answer.

She was really happy when she saw me, the agent, appearing in articles and giving interviews.

So, I thought she would want me to live comfortably now, being recognized by many people.

Moreover, if I became an agent managing world-class players, traveling back and forth between Korea and the United States, I could gain recognition and earn more money.

I thought my mom, who had worked so hard to support me until now, would want that even more.

“Then you might have to give up on being comfortable in the future.”

“What’s wrong with being a little tired?”

“I guess so…”

“Was the reason you wanted to play baseball in the past because it seemed comfortable? You did it because you really wanted to do it.”

That’s right!

I didn’t play baseball because I wanted to be comfortable.

The only reason I wanted to keep playing until the end, even though I knew I lacked the talent to be a great baseball player, was just one thing.

Because I really wanted to do it.

* * *

After finishing the meal, I went into my room and lay down on the bed.

I naturally turned on my smartphone and went to social media [SNS].

There was a live notification on Park Sung-ju’s account.

“He’s really gotten into social media these days.”

It seemed like he was bored because he was just training every day since the season ended.

Now that the number of fans supporting him was gradually increasing, it must have been fun to communicate with them.

I turned over, buried my face in the pillow, and set up my smartphone to be easily viewable.

Then, I clicked on Park Sung-ju’s account and entered the live room.

The first scene immediately caught my eye.

He was suddenly doing deadlifts.

Why is he doing this…?!

Ah! He promised to communicate by showing his training from the beginning.

But I didn’t expect him to really just show his training like this.

I need to help him with content planning.

Park Sung-ju glanced at the camera every time he finished a set.

I was proud that he was faithfully following the program created by the agency.

As expected of a slugger who hits a lot of home runs, the weight he was lifting was enormous.

Just looking at the plates on both sides of the barbell, it seemed to be over 180kg [approximately 400 pounds].

After a while, Park Sung-ju finished the deadlifts, approached the camera, picked up his phone, and moved somewhere.

-That’s it for today’s weight training.

Park Sung-ju took several deep breaths, as if he was out of breath.

-Finally, it’s the batting practice that you’ve all been waiting for.

It’s been a while since the season ended, so my sense might be a little off. But I’ll try my best.

Park Sung-ju placed the camera in a place where the batting cage was visible and moved back and forth to make sure the position was right.

-You can see me standing over there, right?

└Yes, I can!

└We can see you well!

-Then, let’s get started.

Park Sung-ju brought a bat from outside the screen and took his position in the batter’s box.

Then, he talked to someone outside the screen.

The only person who would be in that training facility right now would be Oh Seok-hoon.

Park Sung-ju swung the bat lightly a few times.

That alone caused an uproar in the chat.

└Wow, the swing is crazy. It’s amazing even when he’s just swinging it.

└He looks like he’s not even putting in much effort.

└Look at how the bat turns. It’s no joke.

After taking a deep breath, he properly assumed his batting stance.

The first ball was just let go.

Then, he moved his standing position slightly outward.

-Thwack. Thwack.

Park Sung-ju hit the ball coming from the opposite side with a powerful swing.

The sound echoed coolly throughout the indoor practice field.

From the preparatory motion to the weight transfer, stride, impact, and final follow-through, everything flowed smoothly.

As expected, Park Sung-ju’s greatest strength, his ball speed, was still well maintained.

After seeing Park Sung-ju swing, countless chat messages passed by so quickly that it was difficult to read them.

I tried to read them at least roughly, but my eyes hurt, so I quickly gave up.

It seemed like they were saying things like “cool” and “good.”

Park Sung-ju put down the bat and approached the camera.

-How was it? Cool, right?

After reading a few of the quickly rising chat messages, Park Sung-ju shrugged his shoulders and opened his mouth.

-The swing is good, right? I’ve been feeling really good lately. It’s a shame that I’m not playing games right now.

└Home Run King, let’s go!

└How many home runs will you hit next season?

-Home runs next season… I’ll probably hit at least 30, right?

└Let’s go for 40 since we’re going for it anyway.

└It’s been so long since we’ve had a 40-home run hitter.

Then, he took a swinging stance in the air once more and returned closer to the camera.

└But show us Oh Seok-hoon.

└I think he was passing by earlier.

└Where did Oh Seok-hoon go? Come out, Sesame.

-Ah… Are you asking where Seok-hoon is? Is that important right now? Come on, everyone, focus on me. This is my channel, right? I’m the main character. And that friend is just training hard next to me. He’s not interested in what’s happening here at all.

Park Sung-ju exchanged playful banter with the fans, with a smile on his face and an expression of disbelief.

└It looks like your batting form has changed a bit?

└It’s definitely different from the beginning and end of the season.

-Hyun-woo *hyung* [older brother or close male friend] has been watching me a lot since the second half of last season. I used to swing upwards, but he told me to try swinging horizontally with a level swing like this.

└How can you hit more home runs by lowering the bat angle?

└Can your performance really improve that much just by changing one thing?

-Bingo. I was wondering about that too. He said my biggest strength is my ball speed. He told me that I would hit a lot of home runs even if I just focused on hitting the ball accurately.

└Kang Hyun-woo seems to have some skills.

└What kind of magic did he cast on Oh Seok-hoon and even Park Sung-ju?

-I’m not just saying this, but the problems that were full of question marks have turned into exclamation points thanks to Hyun-woo *hyung’s* advice.

└Can he tell just by looking at the swing?

└Does he have some special skill?

└But what have the coaches been doing all this time?

└Do you still expect Buffaloes to develop players?

-This is an unavoidable reality. I don’t know about other teams, but even in the pro second team, there’s a limit to what the club can help with. You have to do well in the second team games to even play, but I’m not the only player on the team. It’s hard to take care of everyone one by one. There are a lot of things you have to find and do yourself.

└That’s why pros get lessons from other places after the season.

└If that’s the case, is there even a need for coaches in the club?

└If it’s just managing, I could do it.

└Anyway, Kang Hyun-woo saved Park Sung-ju and Oh Seok-hoon, so it’s okay.

-Well, what’s past is past. Instead, you can really look forward to next year.

└Good. Let’s win the championship!

└Let’s at least make it to the fall baseball season. It’s too boring in the fall.

After that, Park Sung-ju’s chatter showed no signs of stopping.

I was lying on the warm electric mattress, and sleepiness was coming over me.

It definitely wasn’t because Park Sung-ju’s live stream wasn’t fun.

I’m sleepy…

My eyes were slowly closing.

The sunlight coming in through the window felt comfortable today.

When else would I take a nap if not today?

I didn’t want to forcibly overcome the weight of my closing eyes any longer.

It was the perfect vacation.

Until I received that call a little later.