"Credit...?"
"I'll become a famous footballer and repay you a hundredfold. Okay? Hehehe."
"Ho-young! Where did you even learn that word?"
Startled by the sudden comment, Kim Hee-sun looked flustered, but Lee Sang-woon waved his hand, laughing.
"It's alright, ma'am. I actually like his boldness. Haha. You need that kind of fire if you want to be a football prospect."
Lee Sang-woon knelt slightly to meet Ho-young at eye level.
"You're a very thoughtful son, aren't you, Ho-young?"
"Hehe. Thank you."
"Shall we make a promise then? That you'll work hard at football with me from now on."
"Of course!"
"Great. That's the spirit!"
Then, Lee Sang-woon turned to Kim Hee-sun again.
"Ma'am, our academy has an excellent program called the 'Special Talent Student' system."
"A special talent student?"
"Yes. It's a program for kids like Ho-young who show exceptional talent. You can think of it like a scholarship."
Of course, there was a limited number of students selected each quarter, so not just anyone could be chosen as a scholarship student.
However.
"We happen to have a spot available right now. I'll strongly recommend him to the director."
"Oh... If you're willing to do that, we're very grateful."
"No trouble at all."
Lee Sang-woon didn't stop there. He dug deeper into Ho-young's future.
"To grow into a world-class player, staying in Korea alone won't be enough. These days, studying abroad is practically essential. That's why I'm telling you this..."
Studying overseas, joining a youth team under a professional club, he explained that the academy could provide the best elite path for Ho-young.
That is, if Ho-young demonstrated sufficient growth.
In other words, it was a conditional offer.
"So, what do you think? Ho-young, would you like to learn football at the academy? You'll get to play with other talented kids."
"Yes! I'd love to!"
"Haha. Alright, let's give it our best. Ma'am, would you be able to bring Ho-young tomorrow for the entrance test?"
"Yes, of course."
The deal was sealed.
A win-win for both sides.
Cha Bum-kun Football Academy would get a huge publicity boost just by recruiting Ho-young, so giving him the scholarship spot was a no-brainer.
Everything was going just as Ho-young had hoped.
He hadn't expected to be this lucky on the very first day of filming, but the earlier, the better.
'Now I can focus entirely on football without any worries.'
Professional football training!
Suppressing the excitement rising in his chest, Ho-young bowed deeply.
"I'll work hard, coach~!"
His polite bow made Lee Sang-woon smile.
That's how much he wanted to help Ho-young grow into a top-tier footballer.
After filming, on the way back home.
Ho-young kept glancing around, clearly not ready to leave just yet.
'How come there aren't any talented kids here?'
Despite being part of the well-known Cha Bum-kun Football Academy, there were barely any kids worth paying attention to.
At best, there was only this one.
[Kim Ki-hoon]
[Possessed Talents: Football Prodigy (C+)]
(Talents lower than what you already possess cannot be acquired.)
'Football Prodigy must be an incredible talent.'
It made him realize just how special Yoon Jung-ho really was.
'Well, he was called the next Park Chu-young for a reason.'
There was nothing worth picking up here.
Even though Lee Sang-woon had the talent [Eye for Talent], it wasn't something Ho-young needed.
'I'm sure there'll be someone with great talent once I go to the academy tomorrow.'
That evening.
"You met Lee Sang-woon? I should've taken a day off and gone with you! Argh!"
The biggest reaction came from Ho-young's father.
He was disappointed that he hadn't met Lee Sang-woon in person, but his joy quickly outweighed his regret.
"Ahahaha! My son is the best!"
Woo Hwang-sun immediately grabbed the house phone.
"Hello, is this Domino's Pizza? Yes, I'd like to order that new one you've been advertising on TV. A large, please. My son just joined the Cha Bum-kun Football Academy. Oh, the address? Haha, silly me!"
Pizza!
At the time, it was a treat you could only enjoy when eating out.
It wasn't rare to the point of being unavailable, but unless it was a birthday party, it wasn't something you got to eat often.
Soon, the Domino's Pizza from the Cha Tae-hyun commercial arrived.
"Wow, it smells amazing. Honey! Come quickly!"
"I'm coming~."
"Eat up, son."
"Hehe. Thank you for the food!"
Ho-young's eyes lit up.
When he was younger, he had wanted to eat it so badly, but never asked for it freely.
Even young kids with good instincts pick up on things.
But in this life, he didn't have to be as careful about the family's financial situation.
'I'll definitely succeed and repay everything. Hehe.'
To celebrate taking his first step in the right direction, Ho-young picked up a slice of pizza.
Munch munch!
'What the... why is this so good?'
Had his taste reverted back to childhood?
Or was it the nostalgia of old-Academy pizza enhancing the flavor?
Ho-young's hands and mouth didn't stop.
"It's that good, son?"
"Yeah, it's amazing. You're the best, Dad. You too, Mom."
Nine days later.
The first episode of Kick It, Shoot Dori aired on MBS.
Freshness, humor, and emotion.
Combined with the cuteness of the kids, it hit the ground running and immediately drew attention.
As a result, Happy Sunday's ratings rose to 11.1%, a 0.6% increase from the previous week.
Alongside that came two more pieces of good news for Ho-young.
"Congratulations, son!"
"Huh?"
"Coach Lee Sang-woon just called!"
It was official — Ho-young had been accepted as a scholarship student at Korea's top academy.
Then, Kim Hee-sun came running out of the room, clearly excited.
"Dear! Dear! Can you believe this?"
"What? What happened?"
"Our Ho-young..."
"What about him?"
"He has a... fan cafe!"
"Let me see that!"
Not only Woo Hwang-sun, but even Ho-young looked at the monitor.
A personal fan cafe had been created just a day after Shoot Dori aired.
And it already had over 200 members.
'200 people...'
Moreover, internet forums were already buzzing.
Some posts claimed that a next-gen prodigy had emerged to succeed Park Ji-seok, who was set to join PSV Eindhoven next year.
Of course, not all the comments were positive.
[User: GetRichSoon]
—Did you see that 10-year-old kid on Shoot Dori today?
└I got goosebumps watching while eating dinner with my family, haha.
└At this rate, we might win the World Cup in 10 years.
└Get real... I could've scored 10 goals myself, lol.
└What were you doing in 3rd grade? Picking your nose?
└Lmao ^^
The debate was fierce.
That was natural, considering Korea's football fever was at an all-time high, and national pride was reaching critical mass.
'Let's be honest, 2002 was the golden era for the national team.'
Even though more Korean players later moved to Europe, the overall quality of Korean football declined.
After the 2010 World Cup, things really went downhill.
Perhaps that's why the public was so desperate for a new hero to emerge.
'So this is what it feels like to be noticed.'
Whether people were praising or criticizing him, Ho-young didn't mind.
But just then.
Woo Hwang-sun's expression stiffened as he read through an article and quickly closed the browser window.
There were malicious comments attacking Ho-young.
Some claimed it was just a publicity stunt orchestrated by the show's producer.
Others spread baseless rumors that Ho-young was the youngest son of a chaebol family and had bribed the network.
Enraged by the groundless slander, Woo Hwang-sun's face turned red.
"Those... those punks..."
Still, in front of his son, he held back and swallowed his anger.
Kim Hee-sun chimed in with a cheerful voice.
"Honey, don't read those. They're just jealous of Ho-young. Right, Ho-young?"
"Yeah. Actually, I like it."
"Huh? Why?"
"Because it means people are envious of me."
"What? Hahaha! That's right. My son's got it figured out."
Ho-young didn't let it get to him.
'This is nothing!'
Fame and hate comments always go hand in hand.
Especially for athletes, it's an unavoidable fate.
Ho-young had decided to accept it.
He didn't want to waste energy stressing over what people said.
And more than anything, he was secretly enjoying it.
'But this guy is seriously annoying.'
[User: PowerType]
—It's his first match, so the Cha Bum-kun Football Academy probably went easy on him. He wouldn't score a single goal against a foreign team. I'd bet both my balls on it.
It was a post that subtly provoked Ho-young's competitive spirit.
He made up his mind.
One day, he would shut them all up.
The next day.
Ho-young arrived at the Cha Bum-kun Football Academy for his entrance test and licked his lips.
'Wow. This place really is a buffet.'
[Football Prodigy (C)]
[Stylish Curved Free Kick (C-)]
[Powerful Shot over Precise Passing (D)]
[Outsider's Wing Penetration (C+)]
Talented kids caught his eye here and there.
It was time to choose his fourth talent!
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
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