Chapter 199: Singer (9)
“Does this even make sense…?”
A dream interfered with reality and toyed with someone who had been thoroughly preparing. By my common sense, this was completely impossible.
“You got hit too, huh, son?”
“Yeah. What the hell is this…”
“I told you. The 7th knows how to do it.”
“But it’s a dream, isn’t it?”
This was different from when Senior got me. Back then, he did it directly with my own body. Yet my mother, who had been expelled before me, just shrugged as if there was nothing to be done.
“I used the word ‘banished,’ but the principle is similar to the young son willingly boarding a plane and entering the Empire on his own two feet.”
“So the 7th just incited us to leave for reality of our own accord?”
“Yes.”
“Hmm…”
Ever since I awakened to my talents, I’ve never forgotten a technique I’ve seen even once and can imitate it well—but this one, I couldn’t even get a feel for.
“Come on, son, hurry to the airport. I’ve already packed all your luggage.”
“Ah! What’s the situation now?”
“You can hear about that on the way to Sun-young~”
“But the patient…”
“I’ll go back in and clean up the rest on that side. You sometimes forget, but Mom is a witch too, you know?”
“A witch who ran away from home because she didn’t want to work…”
“And thanks to that, she gave birth to an amazing son, right? Now, now, hurry and go~!”
Pushed from behind, I got into the car waiting in front of the official residence and headed to the airport.
Vroooom~
“Um…”
“Yes, sir?”
The guard in the front seat immediately responded to my call.
“Where is Sun-young?”
“She finished her personal schedule and is scheduled to join us at the airport lounge.”
“Ah, yes. Thank you.”
I checked today’s date and time on the smartphone in my pocket.
‘Whoa! Only two days until the opening ceremony? That was really cutting it close!’
Once the opening ceremony ends, the winter Olympics begin with skating, and I have to plow through a total of twelve events without a break.
It seems like there’s no preparation at all, but since my mother has been going back and forth between dream and reality to coordinate with me, there shouldn’t be any major variables.
…What about sports toto?
I opened the smartphone app I’d set up to place bets anytime, anywhere.
“……”
My heart wanted to throw every penny in my account onto dogsled racing, but a sliver of anxiety held me back.
The current odds were 481x!
The app calculated my chance of winning gold in dogsled racing at 0.02%, regardless of distance.
‘This is tough!’
If I failed, I’d lose my entire fortune—a dangerous gamble. I could end up becoming a live-in boyfriend sponging off Song Sun-young.
Tap, tap-tap, tap, tap-tap…
In the end, swallowing my tears, I safely divided my entire bank account into twelve equal parts and spread the bets evenly across all twelve events.
“…Mr. Kang Moon-soo.”
“Yes.”
“Are you confident? I haven’t seen you practicing at all.”
The guard’s question was perfectly reasonable. A national representative competing in the Olympics without any visible practice would make anyone anxious.
“Did you guys place bets too?”
“A little… ahem!”
“I did. Ahem!”
To keep the odds high, it’s better to hide information as much as possible, but maybe it’s fine to loosen up a bit with people close by.
Having thought that far, I checked the odds placed on my victory for each event one by one, then smiled and said,
“I’m very confident in dodgeball and weightlifting. The most uncertain ones are dogsled racing and equestrian, just like the experts say.”
The sports toto app had a lot of interesting features, one of which was opinions from sports experts.
Taking archery as an example,
「Expert A: Archery isn’t a sport you brute-force with strength. Kang Moon-soo’s participation is nothing short of recklessness. (Predicted win rate: 3%)」
「Commentator B: Kang Moon-soo won gold in every event he entered at the summer Olympics. He must be confident in archery too. (Predicted win rate: 62%)」
「Bookmaker C: He’s the greatest athlete to cap off this year. To some he’ll look like an angel, to others a devil. (Predicted win rate: 27%)」
‘Heh~’
Unlike the summer Olympics, the winter Olympics were heavily affected by the fact that I hadn’t done any practice or preparation in reality at all.
Lack of information!
Since it was practically a blank slate, people weren’t rashly betting on me. Thanks to that, the odds weren’t bad at all.
Of course,
「Commentator D: If Kang Moon-soo pulled the sled himself with his own two feet, there might be a chance. (Predicted win rate: 12%)」
「Bookmaker Q: We already know the answer. (Predicted win rate: 1%)」
「Expert K: Outstanding sled dogs cannot be raised in a short period of time. (Predicted win rate: 0%)」
Dogsled racing and equestrian were evaluated so harshly that they practically crushed my reputation. The odds shot up accordingly, but having only this barrage of negative comments relay one after another made even my own confidence plummet.
“……”
“Mr. Kang Moon-soo. We’ve arrived at the airport.”
“…Ah, yes. Thank you.”
Lost in the sports toto app without realizing how much time had passed, I got out of the car absentmindedly.
Click! Click! Click…!
Reporters who had gotten advance information that I was heading to the airport had packed the parking lot densely.
This country does have portrait rights, right?
The fact that they snap photos nonstop without paying me a dime has always been incredibly annoying.
“Kang Moon-soo! Are you confident?”
“Isn’t participating in every event pushing it too far?”
“Are you aiming for the P-medal?”
“Kang Moon-soo! Please give us a word about your resolve as a national representative heading to the Olympics!”
“Are you planning to immigrate to the Empire?”
Whoosh—
The guards and staff who had arrived at the airport earlier pushed back the swarm of reporters and onlookers, clearing a path.
‘…This is tough.’
I couldn’t understand politicians and broadcasters who actually enjoy this kind of attention and spotlight.
“Kang Moon-soo!”
“This way!”
“Yes.”
I pushed through the crowded throng toward the lounge where Song Sun-young was waiting…
“Welcome back. Even from far away, it was obvious how noisy it was.”
Song Sun-young, who had arrived earlier, came out all the way to the front of the lounge to greet me.
“Long time no see.”
“For real?”
“Hm?”
“There were rumors that you had a really fun time with someone younger than you…”
“…….”
Do I have to kneel again? Right here in the middle of a crowded airport?
“I’ll understand.”
“Huh? Really?”
“You did it so I wouldn’t be able to date any other guy, right? How could I not understand?”
“Ooh!”
The same-age Song Sun-young I hadn’t seen in a while looked dazzling, like a fairy!
“Let’s go.”
“Yeah.”
We hadn’t pre-booked flight tickets, but first class is almost always empty, so getting seats was no problem.
“Kang Moon-soo! We’ll be cheering for you!”
“Thank you.”
Thanks to consideration from the government and airport staff, we breezed through immigration without waiting in the long lines!
Everywhere I went, people’s attention followed me so I couldn’t move freely, but once inside the secure area where the general public couldn’t enter, I finally felt like I could breathe a little.
“You look tired.”
“And you?”
Song Sun-young didn’t even blink.
“Me? I don’t care at all what the mannequins are doing.”
“Ahh!”
This part of her personality has always been so consistent.
‘I finally feel like I’m back.’
The aegyo-filled young Song Sun-young was cute too, but her strong tendency to rely on me sometimes felt burdensome.
On the other hand,
“…Why?”
She didn’t pay attention to the surroundings at all, yet she was keenly sensitive to my gaze.
The same-age Song Sun-young handled everything on her own without needing to be told! When I made things hard for her, the way she dealt with it calmly sometimes made her feel like an “older sister.”
“Just because.”
“What’s with you all of a sudden? Did you learn something weird in the dream again?”
“No. Not at all.”
“Suspicious…”
“…We still have some time left, but not enough to really relax. Let’s browse the duty-free shops near the gate.”
As the Olympics approach, flight schedules increase and waiting intervals drop below one hour. Thanks to that, even someone like me—who has zero interest in shopping—ends up noticing the duty-free shops…
“Huh? It’s you.”
At the tip of Song Sun-young’s slender finger was a photo of me prominently displayed.
A sunglasses shop.
I remembered the photographer praising me, saying that the dark lenses covering an ordinary face made me a great model.
“…All the way to the duty-free shop…”
“What’s so surprising? The clothes you’re wearing right now are all sponsored—you got paid for them.”
“Huh?!”
That’s the part worth being shocked about!
“Didn’t they sell those sunglasses in that duty-free shop too?”
“I thought I wouldn’t have any use for them, so I put them in my bag.”
“Then that’s a breach of contract. The deal was that you’d wear them while departing.”
“No way… Is there a penalty clause?”
“Of course there is. Ten times the amount.”
“…Wait.”
A penalty?! Valentine or someone must have signed on my behalf, but there’s no way “I didn’t know” would fly as an excuse.
What’s left?
There’s no way to retrieve the sunglasses already loaded in the plane’s cargo hold, so the only option is to buy new ones here.
‘It’s a shame, but…!’
It’ll still be cheaper than the penalty.
“You’re going to buy them?”
“Yeah.”
“Wait. You’re trying to pick the cheapest one, aren’t you?”
“Yes. That’s the plan?”
“You really are the same even when you make money. Just stay put. I’ll pick for you.”
“……”
Treating me like a clumsy little brother, Song Sun-young scolded me lightly and began carefully selecting sunglasses.
She’s an active model.
Even though stylists handle her outfits, trying on and taking off so many clothes naturally builds up know-how and knowledge.
“Try these.”
“Oh… These are pretty good?”
“I’ll buy them for you as encouragement to do well.”
“Thank you! Madam!”
I do like the understanding Song Sun-young, but I like the Song Sun-young who buys things for me even more!
“Really?”
“Oh my gosh… It’s Song Sun-young!”
“And next to her is Kang Moon-soo! I saw them in that game video before.”
“They really are dating.”
Was it that fascinating to see us shopping in the duty-free shop? More and more people started sneaking glances at us while pretending to browse sunglasses, whispering among themselves.
“Mr. Kang Moon-soo.”
As boarding time approached, a staff member informed me.
“Let’s head in soon.”
“Yeah.”
Slide—
I put on the newly purchased sunglasses and boarded the plane.
(A little while later, but) the temporary sunglasses I bought just to avoid the penalty actually started a trend.
A woman giving her fiancé sunglasses as an engagement gift?
It’s so weird, but since it’s my fault, I had nothing to say.
***
The opening ceremony is practically a promotional event for the host country of the Olympics.
The winter Olympics, filled only with athletes I didn’t even know, felt cold and sterile. No—more than that, I could feel outright hostility from those burning with competitive spirit against me.
Of course,
“Nice to meet you, Kang Moon-soo.”
“Likewise, please take care of me.”
There were differences depending on the event. In individual competitions, everyone is a rival regardless of nationality, but in team events like dodgeball and jousting, we’re allies who have to cooperate.
“I was really impressed by taekwondo. I thought I was going to wet my pants watching it.”
“You flatter me.”
It wasn’t me—it was Senior. He rewrote the history of taekwondo using nothing but pure technique disguised as “talent violence,” plunging every opponent into despair and self-loathing.
Unlike me, who overpowers with brute force, Senior rewrote taekwondo’s history with genuine skill alone.
Final match time: 1.34 seconds.
A record so absurd that even if the two fighters colluded, it would be nearly impossible to achieve. The opponent was knocked out in one hit and couldn’t get up, forfeiting.
Senior himself is a walking cheat.
“Kang Moon-soo. The ice isn’t a swimming pool.”
First rule: anyone who doesn’t call me “athlete” is automatically unlikeable. It means they don’t acknowledge me as a proper competitor.
The “hyung-nim” of the national skating team was the same.
“I know that very well.”
“We’re not expecting first place in the relay. Just get us third. We’ll handle the rest.”
“Got it.”
The original purpose of the P-medal was to select the ultimate all-rounder athlete who excels in multiple events regardless of aptitude.
But now?
It’s become a loophole for baggage who sneak into team events just to snag a P-medal.
The first event is skating.
They seem to think of me as a swimmer who can’t do anything on frozen water.
(Kang Moon-soo. Please proceed to the waiting area…)
“Oh! It’s already time to go out. See you at the venue.”
From this moment…
I will claim every single gold medal of the winter Olympics!