Chapter 30

# 30 < New World (4) >

Jin-hyuk, who had been silent, finally spoke.

“Teacher, can I roll down the window?”

“Sure, let the kids in the back get some fresh air too.”

As the window rolled down, a gentle breeze flowed in.

It was a welcome gust of wind, symbolizing freedom.

‘What was I doing around this time in my past life?’

It was May.

The time just before the spring picnic.

The kids had bought new clothes with their moms and were showing off their new sneakers.

Sigh-.

Jin-hyuk stopped trying to remember.

All he could recall was suppressing his curiosity, reading books, or wandering around the corners of the playground.

Vroom-.

The van carrying Jin-hyuk turned onto the outskirts of the military road, and the engine roared as it picked up speed. The green barley fields in the distance looked refreshing. The peaceful scenery ahead seemed to reflect his changed life, and Jin-hyuk took a deep breath.

‘So refreshing!’

The speedometer showed 80 kilometers per hour.

He stretched his arm out the window and cupped his hand.

The wind caught in his rounded palm.

Jin-hyuk furrowed his brow, his eyes tightly shut.

‘I just don’t get it.’

Irritated, he turned the window handle and rolled up the window.

Teacher Kim Young-tae, who was driving, glanced at him with concern.

“Jin-hyuk, are you feeling carsick?”

“No, I’m fine.”

The condition of the ace was important.

Yeom Byeong-taek, who had been rummaging in the back seat for motion sickness medicine, put it back.

***

The day before the competition.

They arrived at the inn, unpacked, and did some light stretching and jogging. They also ran on the public stadium track with their spikes on. For Jin-hyuk, who was new to urethane tracks, this was a necessary process. In fact, although he had run on such tracks many times in his past life, this was his first time participating as a young athlete wearing spikes.

‘Well… this is fun.’

Jin-hyuk was immersed in the same kind of excitement as a child. This wasn’t a rural sand playground with trees, benches, and occasional small stones. It was a proper stadium with an athletic track, a grass field, and seating for 20,000 spectators.

Yeom Byeong-taek and Jo Seol-chan were wide-eyed at the size of the stadium.

“It opened last fall.”

“Wow-.”

Jin-hyuk took his starting position.

Teacher Kim Young-tae and the other kids’ eyes sparkled.

Pah-pah-pah-pah-pah!

Jin-hyuk’s body, leaning forward, sprinted through the 20-meter section without hesitation.

“Wow-. Jin-hyuk, what was that? It looked way faster to me!”

Jin-hyuk shook his head vigorously and tapped Jo Seol-chan’s shoulder in response.

‘It seems like the daily training is paying off, and the solid ground helps reduce energy loss.’

Jin-hyuk also realized something else while running on the track: the importance of maintaining an optimal body weight for balance. When running on the track, you need to push off with your ankles to lift your body, but if you’re too heavy, it puts strain on your ankles. Not only that, but the elasticity needed to lift and propel yourself forward gets absorbed by the track due to the weight.

On the other hand, if you’re too light, you can’t push off the track strongly. That means a lack of power. Right now, he felt like his body was a bit too light. His legs were strong enough, but the lack of weight made it feel like he wasn’t getting enough bounce.

‘I need to gain some weight. I heard that just increasing muscle mass can lead to injury risks? Maybe I should add some fat?’

He wasn’t familiar with this area, so he didn’t know for sure.

‘For now, let’s focus on running.’

He placed his hands on his hips, regulated his breathing, and rotated his shoulders. He kept reinforcing what he had learned. Like a formula, he memorized it in his head, repeated it, and let it become second nature, as natural as breathing. Having nothing else to do but study, Son Jin-hyuk’s heart pounded with excitement for this new challenge.

***

The school had no dedicated coach, no nutrition team, and no official track and field club, so the budget wasn’t generous. Even the expenses for accommodation and transportation for the competition were tight.

Sizzle-.

‘Can we eat pork belly?’

Lacking experience in sports, he didn’t have much knowledge about it. He was curious if eating meat was okay. Jin-hyuk found it strange but didn’t bother asking. If the teacher in charge had chosen the menu, it must be fine.

“Ji-hey, um, eat-.”

Jo Seol-chan mumbled with his mouth full of wraps.

They were young athletes with strong digestion, and it was a time when diet programs didn’t exist, so what did it matter? Above all, seeing his friends eagerly stuffing themselves with meat made Jin-hyuk’s appetite grow.

He placed pork belly, green onion salad, chili, and garlic dipped in ssamjang on a lettuce leaf, wrapped it up, and shoved it into his mouth.

‘Ugh-, it’s so good.’

The spicy-sweet green onion salad was especially delicious.

The perfectly balanced flavors were so mesmerizing that Jin-hyuk almost teared up.

At this age, having a meal like this with friends was a first, making it even more special.

“Auntie! More pork belly and green onion salad, please!”

A man at the table across from them shouted loudly. They were teachers and students from another region who had come for the athletics competition. The black athletic tops with the white print “Daesung” caught his eye. Seeing them eat pork belly too, it must be fine.

“Eat well for dinner, digest, wash up, and go to bed early. Tomorrow morning is the 100-meter prelims, and in the afternoon is the relay prelims.”

Teacher Kim Young-tae, who didn’t seem to have much of an appetite, sipped his beer while briefing them.

“Teacher, there’s also a 200-meter race?”

“Oh, right? There’s also a 400-meter?”

Park Ji-beom and Yeom Byeong-taek looked at the schedule in the teacher’s hand, reacting as if they were hearing about it for the first time.

“The 200-meter is for kids who eat well and train every day. Especially in elementary school. The 400-meter is for middle school.”

Kids without great stamina would feel sick and suffer from muscle pain for days after just one 100-meter race. Of course, for track athletes, fatigue would fade in half a day, but the 200-meter was still a tough event even for kids like Park Ji-beom, who trained after school for sprinting. If your body isn’t used to the 200-meter, it’s hard.

“Teacher, can’t we do the 200-meter?”

“You can. You just need to get a confirmation stamp tomorrow morning.”

The participant list was essentially the entry list. Stamping the events you wanted to participate in was the same as registering, and if you didn’t stamp, you automatically withdrew. It was a consideration by the organizing committee for rural schools without professional sports programs.

“Running the 100-meter and then the 200-meter two hours later is possible, but the relay is 30 minutes after the 200-meter.”

“I want to run the 200-meter too.”

Pfft-!

Kim Young-tae spat out his beer at Son Jin-hyuk’s words.

Why was this kid, who could speak so decisively and at length, usually only saying yes or no?

***

Are boys the same, whether they’re kids or adults?

Yeom Byeong-taek and Jo Seol-chan, leaning against the inn wall, were having a serious conversation.

“Hey, isn’t Im Hee-jin from class 3 pretty?”

“Nah-, An Ji-yoon from our class is prettier.”

“Jo Seol, you think every girl with big boobs is pretty.”

“Well-, that’s true. Hehe.”

With four boys in one room, the conversation naturally turned to girls.

Jin-hyuk, without realizing it, perked up his ears. It wasn’t by choice but by instinct. However, he couldn’t get any detailed information.

‘Guess they don’t know much either.’

He shook his head as he headed to the bathroom.

Still, he liked these friends who seemed pure and untouched by the world. They’d probably meet again in middle school soon.

*

“Byeong-taek, my grandma says a man needs strong thighs-.”

“Jo Seol, you idiot, your tongue is the strongest.”

Click-.

Even after washing up, his friends showed no intention of doing the same and were still chatting away. If they had smartphones, they’d probably be playing games, but sharing their primal interests made them seem more like kids.

Yeom Byeong-taek gasped at the sight of Jin-hyuk’s naked body. Even the usually reserved Park Ji-beom couldn’t help but look. Their eyes were drawn to the same spot, as if by agreement.

“Whoa-, look at Jin-hyuk. It’s huge.”

“Eek-! Is it because he’s tall?”

“Jin-hyuk, you’re a joker, joker-.”

Oops, he forgot to bring his change of underwear to the bathroom and ended up becoming a spectacle. Come to think of it, he hadn’t had the chance to go to the bathhouse with these friends before. But how did these little guys know that bigger was better? Having never had any curiosity about the opposite sex in his past life, Jin-hyuk found their reactions intriguing.

“If you’re done digesting, wash up and go to bed. You need to rest if you’re going to give it your all tomorrow.”

At Jin-hyuk’s words, the kids started moving sluggishly. Even though they were tired and could have been lazy, as athletes, they knew the importance of managing their condition.

“Jin-hyuk, you’re like an older brother, so it’s hard to mess with you, huh?”

Jo Seol-chan grumbled as he headed to the bathroom, making Jin-hyuk chuckle.

‘Not an older brother, more like an uncle, you punk.’

***

They had a hearty breakfast of soybean paste stew and headed to Gongju Public Stadium. Athletes from other schools were already there, stretching or doing light jogs to warm up.

“Ah, please understand! This is our first time organizing something on such a large scale!”

It was the competition’s organizing committee member.

The person asking for understanding was so confident that they drew everyone’s attention. They were receiving complaints about the disorganized event schedule, insufficient break times, and the lack of an advance participant list, which was causing difficulties for the athletes and coaches.

Tap-tap-, beeeep-. The microphone screeched.

[We will soon begin the boys’ elementary 100-meter prelims, followed by the high jump, -, athletes, please prepare.]

Teacher Kim Young-tae was busy going back and forth between the organizing committee and the athletes’ waiting area. It was because of Son Jin-hyuk. He wanted to participate in the 200-meter race too, and if not now, when would he ever get the chance? The teacher didn’t feel like stopping him. He also hoped that all the kids would make it through this experience without getting hurt.

“Jin-hyuk, since you’re at it, do you want to try the long jump too?”

How hard could it be?

Just run and jump with all your might, right?

“Sure.”

It was just a casual suggestion, but he agreed. Kim Young-tae sighed inwardly and stamped one more confirmation on the participation form.

‘Such participation would only be possible at a national competition.’

100 meters, 200 meters, long jump, and the boys’ elementary 400-meter relay.

Four events. It’s true that some track athletes participate in multiple events. But for an elementary school athlete to compete in multiple events in such a short competition period was almost abnormal.

The 200-meter is considered a sprint, but it’s not the same as the 100-meter. The 200-meter requires both stamina and speed.

‘Thanks to those pencil-pushers, we got a good opportunity.’

This competition was held over two days. Although it was an official event, the claim that it was organized separately to promote basic physical education didn’t make sense. It was ultimately a rushed job.

“Ji-beom, are you doing the 200-meter too?”

“Yes.”

Park Ji-beom had some experience in track, so the teacher allowed him to participate. Thanks to the organizing committee’s lax management, the kids were given unexpected opportunities.

Yeom Byeong-taek, who had once been Park Ji-beom’s backup, and Jo Seol-chan, who was competing for the first time, were too busy admiring the female athletes in their uniforms to pay attention to anything else.

“Wow-, those city girls have such fair skin-.”

“Seol-chan, that girl is really pretty-.”

“Where, where?”

“Over there, that one. From Bongeun Elementary.”

“Hey! Byeong-taek, you idiot! That’s a teacher! You can’t drool over just any woman! You’ll get in trouble!”

“Ah, now that I look, she does resemble Miss Kim.”

What a time.

If Jin-hyuk had lived his first life normally, he might have been gaping along with his friends. He smiled at the thought. His friends were so cute.

‘Is that what pretty looks like…?’

He had no idea.

Compared to his mom or Executive Director Hong Soo-jung, they just looked like regular humans walking upright.

He glanced at them briefly before focusing on his stretching.

Jo Seol said it’s bad to stare like that.

‘Is it because of hormones?’

He felt like he was gradually becoming more like his peers.