Chapter 12. Chaotic Draft (2)
"We select third baseman Kim Nahan from Seongsin High School."
Ding.
[Main Quest 2 Complete]
[Reward, "Star Quality I," will be granted.]
The moment I heard the Hawks general manager's words, it felt as though the entire world had stopped.
[Star Quality I, NEW!]
[Category: Passive]
[- You gain the basic qualities necessary to become a star.
·
Plays you make during important moments will leave a stronger impression.
·
·
The following effects are applied.
·
·
Your skin becomes slightly better.
·
·
The probability of videos of your plays being picked up by social media algorithms increases slightly.]
·
The quest window continued displaying information about the reward.
But I was so shocked that none of it entered my head.
Did they really draft me?
As a first rounder?
Was I dreaming right now?
That was how unreal the moment felt.
"Kim Nahan of Seongsin High School, congratulations!"
The people around me pushed my frozen body to its feet.
As I walked toward the stage, the expressions around me were all different.
A scout stared with his mouth hanging open, unable to hide his surprise.
One general manager frowned while searching through his list.
Other players tilted their heads.
Every reaction said the same thing.
Nobody had expected this.
"Seongsin High third baseman Kim Nahan has received the honor of becoming the second overall pick!"
"Kim Nahan possesses excellent power. He hit an incredible eight home runs during this year's Bonghwangdaegi and won the Most Home Runs Award."
"The Daejeon Hawks' first selection is Kim Nahan. General Manager Lee Yangcheol will personally present him with the uniform."
I walked onto the stage and accepted the Hawks cap and orange uniform.
General Manager Lee Yangcheol gave me a small smile as he greeted me.
"Nice to meet you, Kim Nahan."
"Thank you."
My mind had gone completely blank from shock.
Even while the general manager personally helped me put on the uniform and shook my hand, I still felt dazed.
"All right, we'll take the commemorative photograph now. Both of you, please face forward."
I accepted the bouquet and looked ahead.
Click. Click.
The cameras flashed so wildly that my eyes hurt.
Even so, I could clearly see where my parents were sitting.
Father was receiving congratulations from the people around him while clapping with all his strength.
Mother had taken out a handkerchief and was wiping away tears.
Both of them looked incredibly happy.
But Father's emotions seemed especially intense.
He had spent his entire life as a Hawks fan, so perhaps that was only natural.
Even before my regression, I had heard that deep down, he had hoped I would join the Hawks.
"Now, General Manager Lee Yangcheol, please tell us why you selected Kim Nahan."
The general manager accepted the microphone and answered.
"First of all, Kim Nahan has excellent physical tools, so he was a player we had been watching for quite some time. During our pre draft meetings, many of our scouts also strongly recommended him."
He calmly looked across the audience before turning toward the announcer.
"His current ability is already impressive, but we believe he can become a powerful infielder our team truly needs in the future. That is why we selected him."
After explaining the reason for the pick, Lee Yangcheol stepped down from the stage.
I was left alone.
This time, the host began asking me questions.
"We should hear from the player himself. Kim Nahan, how do you feel right now?"
"I'm honestly stunned to have been selected much higher than I ever expected."
"You speak very well for someone who's stunned."
"You might not believe me, but my hands and feet are actually shaking right now. People often tell me that I don't act like someone my size."
I was not lying when I said I was stunned.
I had thought I might be selected in the second round if I was lucky.
I had never even considered the first round.
Being taken in the first round was that unreasonable.
Fortunately, thanks to the Speaking Skill trait, smooth answers came out of my mouth even though my mind was filled with every possible emotion.
I did not even want to imagine what kind of horrible interview I would have given without the quest reward.
The host laughed at my answer and continued.
"Earlier, Kang Jihoon named you as the player he most wants to face in professional baseball. Are you confident you can beat him?"
That was a slightly mischievous question.
Perhaps because I was a first round pick, they seemed willing to give me several questions.
What would the me from my previous life have answered?
Something boring and predictable, probably.
I would have given some safe, standard answer.
I would not have wanted to create unnecessary controversy.
And because I had spent so many years feeling intimidated, I had rarely given confident interviews.
...But do I need to act the same way in this life?
I looked around the room.
Players.
Parents.
Reporters.
None of them seemed especially interested.
You?
Against a pitcher who's going to enter the Hall of Fame?
And that also meant expectations for me were still low.
That's a little irritating.
I knew very well that Kang Jihoon would become a great pitcher in the future.
But I was also confident I would not simply lose helplessly against him.
The people here did not know it,
but I had once been a hitter who dominated the league too.
I suddenly wanted to shake those bored eyes and that indifferent atmosphere.
You could call it competitiveness.
I did not normally enjoy standing in the spotlight.
But this time, I wanted to show them something.
The moment that desire appeared, my mouth naturally opened.
"Since Jihoon and I attended the same school, it's unfortunate that we never got to face each other officially."
My first sentence was safe.
It did not differ much from what people expected.
Naturally, their expressions did not change much.
But then,
"Later, Jihoon will be grateful that we attended the same high school. Thanks to that, he never had to face me and ruin his statistics."
A small smile appeared on my face as I threw out the light provocation.
"When we meet in professional baseball, I'll hit one a long way off him."
At that declaration, people suddenly became interested, looking back and forth between Jihoon and me.
"You aren't intimidated even against the ace from your own high school! Kang Jihoon, you might want to be careful!"
The venue became slightly noisy.
Apparently, nobody had expected an answer like that from me.
The reporters also began typing quickly, smiling as though they had just found good material for an article.
Of course, not every gaze was positive.
He had one good tournament and already doesn't know his place.
There were probably people thinking something like that.
But a true star was someone capable of driving both fans and haters crazy at the same time.
I could physically feel everyone paying attention to me.
Maybe this is the "Star Quality" reward.
It seemed to be an ability that helped me draw public attention when it mattered.
Not merely becoming a skilled player,
but becoming a star who represented the league.
One thing was certain.
Thanks to the quest reward, the way people looked at me had clearly changed.
A moment ago, most of them had been indifferent.
Now,
everyone in the venue was watching me.
Their eyes are practically shooting lasers.
As an extra bonus, Kang Jihoon's stare had become even hotter.
"This will be the final question."
There were still many players to draft, so the questions were already coming to an end.
"Finally, is there anything you would like to say to your parents or the people around you?"
"First, I sincerely want to thank Coach Choi Jaehoon for always giving me generous advice and teaching me so much. And..."
While answering, my eyes met my parents'.
They had always wanted to attend moments where their son stood in the spotlight.
It had taken far too many years for me to bring them to such a place.
This is only the beginning.
Rookie of the Year.
Home run king.
Golden Glove.
And eventually, league MVP.
I would lift any trophy I could.
I would proudly bring my parents to even greater stages than this.
For now, this was only a celebration of my beginning.
But I was certain that greater moments would come soon.
"Mother, Father, thank you for always supporting me and loving me. I love you both."
"Where are Kim Nahan's parents seated? Please stand and greet everyone."
My parents stood and bowed while receiving applause from those around them.
With this, the words written in the diary had probably disappeared.
"His mother and father are smiling very brightly. What a warm family."
A smile naturally appeared on my face.
It felt as though I had fulfilled Father's wish.
And unlike before, I had no intention of hiding my smile.
Looking toward my parents, I smiled as brightly as I possibly could.
Fortunately,
they were wearing the same expression.
Lee Yangcheol was in an excellent mood.
Some might say his personality was slightly twisted,
but he absolutely loved ruining someone else's celebration.
The moment he selected Kim Nahan, two people had visibly stiffened.
The first was the general manager of the Twins, who held the third overall pick.
The second was the Lions general manager, who held the first pick of the second round.
In particular, seeing Lions General Manager Kim Woohyun wearing an expression as though he had bitten into something disgusting made Yangcheol happier than he could describe.
You spent all year making fun of us for finishing last. Been a while since someone hit you from behind like this, hasn't it?
The Lions' draft strategy was obvious.
They would take Kang Jihoon, the biggest high school prospect, in the first round.
Then they had probably planned to take Nahan with the first pick of the second round.
The Lions had weak depth throughout both the infield and outfield.
They've been searching for trade pieces everywhere. How could I not know?
At the moment, the Lions did have clear starters at first and third base.
But both were already approaching their mid thirties.
More importantly, both would become free agents after this season.
There are already widespread rumors that clubs around the capital region plan to offer them long term contracts. Of course they were desperate.
They had probably even considered converting Nahan to left field if necessary.
With Nahan's defense, handling a less demanding position like left field would not be a serious problem.
But what a shame. Kim Nahan belongs to us now.
Just thinking about how he could tease Kim Woohyun over this was enjoyable.
Of course, there was one disappointing aspect.
It would have been better if they could have taken Nahan in the second round.
This year's pitcher pool was famously deep.
But there had been no other choice.
In a draft where good hitters were as rare as rain in a drought,
a physically gifted player had suddenly overcome his biggest weakness.
Expecting him to remain available until the end of the second round would have been pure greed.
"We will now continue with the second round..."
Starting with the second round, each scouting director announced the selections.
The Hawks scouting team steadily selected the players they had discussed during their meetings.
"The Hawks select pitcher Jo Gyumin from Seobuk University."
"With our sixth round selection, we select hitter Kim Minseok from Seongsin High School."
Because their first round plans had been ruined, several clubs were busy changing strategies.
Some even called time several times while debating their next selection.
Watching a fire from across the river really is the most entertaining thing.
The Hawks had prepared for situations like this, so they simply picked the players they wanted one by one.
For them, the chaos was nothing but entertainment.
Eventually, the turbulent draft came to an end.
Yangcheol asked permission from the parents and gathered three players.
Starting with the large framed Kim Nahan, the club's first three selections gathered together.
"Nice to meet you, everyone. I'm Lee Yangcheol, general manager of the Hawks. First, I sincerely welcome all of you to our team."
"Y, yes, sir! Thank you!"
Unlike the second and third selections, who greeted him loudly while trembling,
Nahan simply gave a calm greeting.
Hmm. He's bolder than I expected. He's also fairly handsome, and he's good in interviews. This kid is really something.
Seeing Nahan in person, Yangcheol realized he had stronger star qualities than expected.
He knew how to give people something healthy to debate without crossing the line into real controversy.
His interview skills were smooth.
His face was handsome enough too.
He seemed perfect to promote as the Hawks' next franchise star.
Of course, none of that would matter if his baseball ability were poor.
But Nahan had excellent ability and excellent potential as well.
I wouldn't even be surprised if he made the Opening Day roster.
Yangcheol raised his internal evaluation of Nahan.
Still, he did not reveal it and continued talking.
"There will be an official joining ceremony next Saturday, October 7. It will take place at Hawks Park in Daejeon."
Second round pick Jo Gyumin and third round pick Choi Myeonggil listened with shining eyes.
Nahan, meanwhile, continued listening calmly.
His face clearly belonged to a young rookie.
But his atmosphere was different.
He almost gave off the aura of a veteran who had already experienced every possible hardship.
I'm probably imagining it. Maybe he's just naturally calm.
Of course, a player who had only just been drafted could not possibly possess that much experience.
"You may invite family members and relatives to the joining ceremony, so please tell us their names and how many people will attend. The club will contact you separately with the detailed schedule."
"Yes, sir!"
"Sorry for keeping you. Go do your interviews and spend some time talking with your parents."
The three players scattered in small groups.
Yangcheol also hurried away.
He needed to prepare for rookie signing bonus negotiations.
The day after the chaotic draft,
the online communities exploded exactly as expected.
Far more than I had imagined.
