Chapter 6
There's no way in this life
Yuchan is my best friend. We grew up together kicking a soccer ball in the alley since we were little.
Yuchan's father ran a clothing distribution business and made good money, so he lived better than my family.
But last year, the IMF crisis hit and Yuchan's father was hit hard.
Yoochan's parents divorced due to debt collectors, and his father fled to a rural area, and his current status is unknown.
Yoochan's mother opened a snack shop to make a living, but sales weren't that great.
"What is it? Is there something you want to say?"
I took Yuchan to the neighborhood park.
I lightly bounced the soccer ball the guy threw at me with my whole body.
Ball lifting is my specialty.
I am not only focusing on my feet, but also on my knees, shoulders, head, chest…
I was able to trap for over 30 minutes using every part of my body.
Because of this ability, he was evaluated as having "good ball touch for a Korean player."
When I bounced the ball leisurely and passed it to Yuchan, he dropped the ball without even bouncing it three times.
"You should quit soccer."
"It was a mistake. A mistake. I trained too hard today and my legs gave out."
"No. Lee Yu-chan. This is not a metaphor. You should quit soccer right now. You have no talent for soccer. No matter how much you try, you will never make money playing soccer."
"…"
Lee Yu-chan was so surprised that he dropped the soccer ball.
He and I have been playing on the same team ever since we were kids.
Actually, Yuchan also had some talent.
Poor talent.
Nothing is as deadly as that.
That clumsiness drags oneself and those around one into endless suffering.
In his previous life, Yuchan went to a prestigious university thanks to my connections.
But that was the end of it.
He was not selected in the K-League draft and became unemployed after graduating from college, becoming a typical loser from a sports team.
It was around that time that Yoochan's mother, who had supported his athletic career his entire life, collapsed.
"How can you say something like that out loud!?"
"I can say this because I care for you like a brother, Lee Yu-chan. Calm down and face reality."
"You. Why are you doing this to me? I got into Myeongseong High School because of your connections. Is that why you're doing this?"
"Calm down, Lee Yu-chan."
"Are you calming down now!? If I give up here, what will happen to my mom? Do you know how much money I've spent on exercising so far!?"
This is the classic sports dilemma.
It costs hundreds of millions to raise an athlete child from elementary school through adulthood.
So, in the end, less than 0.01% of houses make more than the amount invested.
Roughly speaking, the percentage of houses that recover their principal is around 2%?
The rest all lose money.
The scary thing about the sports club dilemma is that even if you don't think it's scary, you can't quit in the middle.
Since there are already sunk costs, I feel it is a waste to go all the way anyway.
Because there's a 0.01% chance that you'll hit the jackpot.
The pointless spending continues.
"Stopping now is making money."
"… what!?"
Director Ji Young-man will be planning a blockbuster hit by the end of this year.
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Also known as [Bundling and Selling Technique].
In my previous life, in 1998, I was at my peak by participating in the national team's World Cup and making it to the semifinals of various national competitions.
My body was completely ruined, but whatever.
Not only the two most prestigious soccer schools, Y University and K University, but also professional soccer teams in the K League were drooling over me.
My father was so busy getting drinks from these people that he was out of his mind.
In this situation, Jiyoungman boldly pushed for the [1+5 strategy] and became the final winner.
They grouped me and five of my classmates together and sent us to a far lower-level, advanced university.
"Geonwoo. Men, you know. Since ancient times, you have to have loyalty. If you just change your thinking a little, you can save those who are about to die. With your power."
I fell for Jiyoung's nonsense like an idiot.
It was also because of his father's recommendation that he was convinced by the guy, but he was guaranteed a starting position starting from his first year.
No beatings, no errands.
I will build a team centered around you.
The same sweet options also played a big role in my decision.
Among those five classmates was Lee Yu-chan.
Yuchan also had a significant influence on the reason I decided to go to a leading university.
At that time, I was naive enough to believe in loyalty.
I felt quite proud when my five classmates shed tears and thanked me.
Of those five, only Lee Yu-chan took care of me until the end when I was ruined.
The rest of them immediately changed their faces and cut off contact as soon as I was ruined.
They even laughed at me when I wasn't there.
Thanks to you, you got into college.
Only Yuchan came to see me, bought me pork belly, and encouraged me.
Even though I was in a difficult situation.
Because of that experience, I was able to trust Yuchan to the core.
In the world I will live in from now on, [trust] was more important than anything else.
Having people you can trust until the end as your closest aides is a fundamental part of business.
"I'm doing this because I want to make you a new offer."
"A new proposal?"
"You will be my manager starting today. I will give you 10% of my income from now on. I am a person who earns 10 billion or 100 billion. 10% will be pretty good."
"… What? Manager?"
"In foreign countries, there is a job called a sports agent who manages professional athletes. You should set that as your goal and work hard. With your abilities and personality, you will be better suited to that than to being an athlete."
"Sports agent…"
At that time, it was an unfamiliar word in Korea, so we just called him manager.
"Like the movie Jerry Maguire?"
"Yes. That's it! You and I will join hands and make a lot of money playing soccer together."
"Can I… do it?"
"You were originally good at studying."
"That was a long time ago…"
"It's not too late. Now that you have a clear goal, if you start right now, you'll be able to catch up in no time."
Fortunately, Yuchan was quickly convinced.
Does this guy know?
The fact that in my past life, whenever he got drunk, he would grab me and complain, "If I had been your agent back then, we would have both hit the jackpot!"
In this life, I decided to make Yuchan's dream come true.
***
The next morning.
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When Lee Yu-chan left the soccer team, there was chaos.
Not only Jiyoung, but also the other third-year students were shocked.
"If you stick with it, you can probably get into a local university. What's going on?"
"I think the director was very disappointed…"
Jiyoung must have been disappointed, of course.
Because 50 million won flew away right before my eyes.
He sold me and the kids and took 50 million won from each of the parents of five students.
Yoochan's mother took out a loan to send her son to college in a difficult situation, but later found herself in deep trouble.
Jiyoung wasn't the only one who received money from her parents.
He also received 100 million won from the advanced university as military funds to bring me here.
My father had no idea about the situation and only received 30 million won in bribes, but he went around bragging about it.
"There's no way in this life."
I prepared a plan to completely bury Jiyoung.
While I was in the classroom, my third-year soccer teammates came to see me.
"Geonwoo. Why is it so hard to look at your face?"
"How are you feeling?"
"Ugh. I'm in rehab. I just have to take this class and then go to the hospital again."
The name of the guy who acts as the leader among the friendly talkers is Han Ki-ryong.
A goalkeeper with a handsome face, model-like body, and neat attitude.
This fucking guy is a devil who has toyed with countless women with that face.
Han Ki-ryong was the son of a pastor at a famous church in Eunpyeong-gu and was a pathological womanizer.
Among the graduates of Myeongseong High School, he was the only one, along with me, to be selected in the K-League draft and played well in the league for a long time.
What made him famous above all else was his handsome looks, and he used that as bait to swindle countless women.
What makes me so angry is that my sister was among those many women.
Jihye fell in love with him, charmed by his gentle manners, and quickly gave him her body.
The reality that Jihye realized after having that bastard's child is that Han Ki-ryong was dating at least 5 women at the same time.
He was not only good at coveting women's bodies, but also at collecting money and gifts, but Jihye was the first to be abandoned because she had no money.
Jihye had an abortion alone and was tormented by guilt, but then…
"Fuck you."
"what?"
I cursed at Han Ki-ryong without realizing it.
The guy was startled and stepped back.
"It wasn't you. I was just thinking about something else."
"Really? Who on earth were you thinking of that you could curse like that? I was startled for a second."
"Yes. That half-assed piece of human trash. You should burn his legs with a soldering iron and turn him into a scorpion."
"Geonwoo. Why are you making such a scary joke?"
"I'm not joking."
I felt sick, so I got up and left the classroom.
I couldn't beat him up for something that hadn't even happened yet.
***
Lee Yu-chan, who quit the soccer club, started studying by going to a language school with me.
When I told Kevin that I was going to raise Yoochan as an agent, he immediately made this suggestion.
"There's a friend of mine who's preparing for that. Should I connect him with you?"
"Really!?"
"He's also a soccer fanatic, so he'll be surprised if I tell him that I know the boy genius Kim Gun-woo."
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"Why are you being so embarrassing?"
I went to Gwanghwamun to meet the person Kevin introduced me to.
[Park & Choi Law Firm]
Who would have thought that he would work at the best law firm in Korea?
"As expected, S University's connections are scary."
The best hospital in Korea, the best law firm in Korea, and even the best(?) language school in Korea.
The building was so imposing that I hesitated for a while before finally mustering up the courage to go in.
As I was wandering around the lobby, a man approached me with a smile.
"Player Kim Gun-woo! This is an honor! Nice to meet you!"
The man's name is Choi Jae-seong.
He graduated from S University's Law Department and was also a member of the S University soccer team.