Chapter 10.2
Translator: Pineapple
Editor: Isalee
There were many viewers in the stands at the Seogwipo Tennis Courts, but they were all silently watching. You could only hear the sound of the ball getting hit.
Han Woo Jin"s racket hit the ball once again. Although he didn"t use a two-handed swing, his swing was very wide and it was very powerful. Kim Jin Hyun tried to receive the ball, but he stopped.
The ball bounced in a completely different direction two steps away from him. It was a ball that bounced to his side.
Kim Jin Hyun angrily glared at the ball.
"Game Han Woo Jin! 5-0! Switch sides!"
The referee spoke and the two exchanged positions.
Compared to Kim Jin Hyun whose legs were trembling, Han Woo Jin simply wiped his sweat. It was easy to tell who was currently leading the game.
They both walked in totally different styles and pa.s.sed by each other by the net. Han Woo Jin looked over at the other side and was really impressed.
"His body stamina was already past his limit in the first set but he still kept on going…"
Han Woo Jin was able to accurately gauge his opponent"s condition better than anyone else. At this moment he knew that Kim Jin Hyun"s stamina was at its lowest.
[Kim Jin Hyun] [Exhausted]
Strength 48 (-15) / Stamina 52 (-15) / Agility 45 (-15)
HP 350/2080
It wouldn"t be surprising if he suddenly fainted on the court. Yet Kim Jin Hyun still kept on walking. He staggered on over but the direction was straight.
Finally, Kim Jin Hyun arrived at his side.
n.o.body laughed or cursed at his slowness. Rather, people were rooting for him.
But could he even hear it right now?
Han Woo Jin expected Kim Jin Hyun"s five senses to be completely screwed up right now.
His eyesight should be blurry and ears should be ringing. He probably couldn"t feel the pain in his muscles anymore either. It was exactly how he felt during his match with Choi Yeon Hyuk back then.
"Should I end it?"
He mumbled.
His opponent had amazing fighting spirit. Since Han Woo Jin tried to not lose a single game, his opponent ran like crazy all over the court. Kim Jin Hyun"s actions of trying to fill up the gap in skill with his fighting spirit moved the referee and the audience.
However, Han Woo Jin wasn"t the type of person to be moved by his performance. Han Woo Jin decided that it was time to kick things up a notch so as to make him unable to keep up anymore.
Slowly but surely, as the match progressed, Kim Jin Hyun"s stamina showed that he couldn"t take much more. It was the result of him making up for his lack of stamina with his skills. His breathing was completely messed up by the end of the first set and his muscles reached their limits.
If they didn"t stop the game soon, Kim Jin Hyun would not only be risking injury, but he could also suffer from severe after effects that could last a long time. That"s why Han Woo Jin thought that he needed to beat him immediately.
"Han Woo Jin serve! Play!"
If he won this game, it would be over.
Han Woo Jin threw the ball up high because he wanted Kim Jin Hyun to rest. The toss" height wasn"t ordinary.
He was in a ready position and his body twisted diagonally.
You could hear the sound of his hand cracking.
His starting position for his serve was enough for the audience to realize and be curious about his actions.
He must use Sparrow.
That"s what Han Woo Jin thought and decided on it. He thought that Kim Jin Hyun wouldn"t give up unless he saw something overwhelming.
If he kept on using regular serves that were returnable, then he might keep on playing and get a big injury. Then Han Woo Jin might feel guilty.
All in all, Kim Jin Hyun"s skills were almost the same was Lee Yong Woon"s, but their game had already gone on for over an hour. He remembered that his game with Lee Yong Woon didn"t even pa.s.s 30 minutes, so Han Woo Jin thought that Kim Jin Hyun was at least twice as strong as Lee Yong Woo.
He was ready to use the serve that n.o.body could receive except for Choi Yeon Hyuk. As the ball fell down, he twisted his whole body and you could hear a loud snap.
*Pabang!*
The ball immediately hit the court as soon as the racket hit the ball. That serve was as fast as lightning and no one could see the direction that it had gone in.
It was at a speed where it was impossible for Kim Jin Hyun to even react.
"15:0!"
Kim Jin Hyun let his racket drop and he let out a self-deprecating laugh.
He realized that he could no longer go on. Yet he didn"t give up just yet. He wanted to keep on going until the end. He stared at Han Woo JIn"s figure that was starting to serve.
*Pang!*
"30:0!"
It was an ordinary serve. He hit the ball towards the side, but Kim Jin Hyun couldn"t receive it because he couldn"t move his legs. How pitiful was it that he could only blankly stare at the ball as it pa.s.sed by? Han Woo Jin could imagine what he was going through. That"s why he wanted to finish the game as soon as possible.
*Pang!*
"40:0! Han Woo Jin match point!"
It was time to end it. Kim Jin Hyun just waited for the last ball with a despondent and face of acceptance. Han Woo Jin felt a mysterious sense of heaviness on his shoulders as he looked at that man in his thirties.
Was that what he was like in his past? He no longer knew what he was like.
Han Woo Jin finally his last serve.
The ball quickly landed on the other side of the court and pa.s.sed by his opponent. At that moment, the referee waved his arm and signaled the end of the match.
"Game set match! Victor Han Woo Jin! Score 6-0. 6-0!"
The audience"s applause was like roaring thunder as the referee announced the end. It was a tremendously loud sound even though there were only 100 people. Han Woo Jin and Kim Jin Hyun were both very surprised and looked at the stands.
"Player KIm Jin Hyun! You were awesome!"
"Woo Jin~! You need to take it easy!"
"You guys are the best!"
Naturally, the player who played their best would get congratulated.
Kim Jin Hyun didn"t care about his body"s condition and kept on fighting extremely tenaciously against a strong opponent. Additionally, Han Woo Jin played his best without underestimating his opponent. The viewers who were looking at both players had a strange impression and didn"t say anything else.
Now that the game was over, the audience was finally able to open their mouths as they cheered.
The two players walked up to the net and shook their hands without saying anything. The sensation of shaking a sweaty hand wasn"t good, but it wasn"t that bad.
"You"re outrageously good. I can"t believe you"re a newbie."
"It"s nothing much, you were great as well."
Han Woo Jin"s way of speaking was very respectful. It was natural for him to show respect to a player that had given it his all. Even though he tried to use psychological warfare against him before the match, he showed that he was an excellent tennis player on the court.
Han Woo Jin was about to leave, but he suddenly stopped. He thought about the words that Kim JIn Hyun had said to him before that match.
He asked Kim Jin Hyun carefully.
"The words you said earlier, how much of it was true?"
Hearing those words, Kim Jin Hyun"s facial expression turned into one of depression. Seeing his expression, Han Woo Jin"s heart churned. Even if what he said was true, Han Woo Jin still would have won, but there would have been some doubt on his mind and that was different.
Kim Jin Hyun opened his mouth with a face that looked like it was about to cry. His voice was very dark.
"The fact that my daughter is sick is true up to that point."
"Mm… I"m sorry."
"She caught a cold yesterday. It seemed like she kicked off her blanket yesterday and got sick."
"…yes?" Han Woo Jin said in surprise after hearing his words. Kim Jin Hyun laughed.
It was a face that looked very slappable.
"Haha! I thought you were a cold guy! I guess you"re not! You"re pretty funny, Mr. Han Woo Jin!"
"…Haa… you lied?"
"It wasn"t a lie, my daughter is sick."
"His daughter is sick, which is true, so he technically didn"t lie. The problem was that his face looked unhappy and dark as he spoke as if his daughter were a cancer patient that didn"t have that much longer to live.
Han Woo Jin sighed in relief.
Kim Jin Hyun laughed and patted Han Woo Jin"s shoulder before he turned his body.
It looked like Kim Jin Hyun"s Andong Futures was stopping here. Han Woo Jin wanted to ask him one more thing and spoke to his turned back.
"Mr. Kim Jin Hyun, was this really your last tournament?"
At that question, Kim Jin Hyun turned his body around.
His face lifted upwards into a detestable smirk.
"h.e.l.l no! Why would I quit doing something so fun at my young age? I"m going to keep on playing tennis even when I"m in a nursery home."
Han Woo Jin couldn"t help but laugh.
"Puch!"
His laughter traveled up from inside his stomach and it quickly escaped out his mouth. It was a sound that was mixed with happiness and despondency.
"I"m happy you smiled. There were some people who were really angry because of what I said to them before the matches."
"I think it was a good game regardless of what you said before the match."
He scratched the back of his head and spoke. Han Woo Jin stopped smiling and answered seriously. Regardless of what he did outside of the court, he was a competent tennis player without any shame on the court.
Of course, there would be many people who would curse him. Only those who lacked actual skills would try attacking their opponent mentally. However, it was simply Kim JIn Hyun"s desperate struggle because of his lack of skill.
At least, Han Woo Jin couldn"t say anything to him because he also had gone through the same phase.
The two players finally left the court. He saw Shin Sae Yeon who was waiting for him and he waved his hand with a happy look on his face. This was his second match with a perfect score.
On the next day, Han Woo Jin was surprised by something that was out of his expectations.
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