In This Life, The Greatest Star In The Universe - Chapter 201:

Translator: MarcTempest

Editor: Rxel

Chapter 201

As the first half was nearing its end, the ‘Zi Zone Basketball’ Team, who had suffered an unexpected blow, gritted their teeth and went out.

“Pass!”

“Here! Here!”

With that momentum, they continued to counterattack, and soon they scored several times.

“Nice!”

They all high-fived with happy faces.

 

Listening to the cheers of the fans, they fiercely continued their offense.

 

Especially Jun of Daydream, who showed off his amazing dribbling skills and earned offensive points.

But the score difference did not easily shrink.

Every time they scored one, the other team also scored one.

“Wow-!”

Han Taehyun of TNT showed another layup shot, and the fans screamed.

Jun of Daydream wiped off the sweat dripping down.

‘What’s going on? Where did we go wrong?’

He had been active in the basketball club for quite a long time, and the ones who became his teammates this time were also the lineup of last year’s winning team.

Looking at each individual’s skills, they were one step ahead.

As soon as he saw the other team’s lineup, he thought he would save some energy for the semifinals, and give his all in the finals.

But the actual result was…

-‘The Left Hand is Just a Decoration’ Team is doing great.

-What will happen in the second half? Will they keep the flow? Or will the Zi Zone Basketball Team show a miraculous comeback?

A miraculous comeback.

As the commentators said, the probability of them turning the game around in this state was almost miraculous.

After the first half ended.

Jun, who was gulping down water, looked at a rookie idol.

‘…Was his name Woojoo?’

He was a member who left an impression with his witty New Year’s remark at last year’s TBC year-end music festival.

He narrowed his eyes as he watched him drink the water handed over by Teen Spirit Hwiyeon like a commercial.

‘He’s the key.’

He was the most threatening and annoying player.

‘…What do I do? Seriously.’

He had no answer.

If he looked away for a moment, he would suddenly appear out of nowhere and shoot a three-pointer, and cheer by himself.

If he marked him, he would suddenly throw a pass that pierced through the gap and assist his teammates.

He was cutting off the passes diligently, but he was overwhelmed.

‘How can he pass so well?’

He was amazed by his accuracy in shooting three-pointers, but what he admired the most was his passing.

His posture was stable, and more importantly, he aimed and poked at the gaps precisely.

‘I wish he was on the same team.’

He would rather be on a team with someone who could pass well than someone who could shoot well.

That was why Woojoo was the core of the other team.

He supplied the ball naturally like water, and his teammates were running with ease.

Then how should he deal with him?

As he pondered, the coach seemed to have the same thought and called the players.

“This won’t do.”

The coach gave instructions.

“Keep marking him. Don’t let him pass to the others. One person should be in charge of marking him.”

“Yes.”

“The game is not over yet! Do it with fighting spirit!”

The players ran back to the basketball court with the encouragement of the coach who patted their shoulders.

“Hoo…”

As he let out a long breath and headed towards the half-line, Jun spotted Woojoo stretching his body with the national gymnastics near him.

‘Should I talk to him?’

He was curious about him as a person, not as a team.

“Hi.”

“Hello, Sunbae-nim.”

He asked Woojoo, who greeted him politely, “Do you play basketball often?”

“…Yes?”

“You pass well.”

“No, I’m not good at it. It just happened.”

He waved his hand as if he was really embarrassed, not being modest, and he tilted his head.

“Why are you so good?”

“I just got lucky. I don’t usually do much exercise.”

“…”

“But…”

The other person hesitated and asked, “Do I look good at it?”

“Yes.”

He nodded and seemed very happy.

While he was thinking that he was a strange kid, the second half of the game started.

“Block him!”

“Run, run!”

The second half proceeded with the same heat as the first half.

The difference from the first half was that now there was someone who openly marked Woojoo.

And…

-The Zi Zone Basketball Team is starting to fight back!

-Daydream Jun! He’s not dead! He’s the MVP of last year! Will he challenge for a comeback victory?

The strategy of marking Woojoo was effective.

After blocking the occasional passes that pierced the gaps or the three-point shots, the game became much easier.

It might be too much to spend a lot of resources on blocking one person, but it was worth it.

Bang!

Woojoo, who had a frustrated expression on his face after his shot was blocked, appeared.

A worried face.

Then he called the captain, Han Taehyun.

‘Is he trying to change the strategy?’

Jun’s eyes followed the opponent closely.

They covered their mouths with their hands and whispered to each other alternately.

Soon Han Taehyun nodded, and Woojoo nodded too.

They seemed to agree and lightly clapped each other’s hands and then moved away.

Jun also called his teammate, the ace Hojin.

“Hojin.”

“Yes, Hyung.”

“Keep an eye on him for a while. He seems to have something up his sleeve.”

The teammate ran straight away.

The game resumed.

The mark was more thorough than before.

-They’re really tying up Woojoo! It’s the beautiful love of the senior singers for their junior.

-That’s like a one-mind level.

The commentators joked at the sight of him clinging to the opponent like a second self.

Meanwhile, Jun stared at Hanjo.

The rookie idol with a serious expression looked around and threw the ball.

Nearby was Hwiyeon.

As the attack started, the other players also started running. And Woojoo also started to move forward.

“…?”

He was puzzled.

The opponent had been active outside the three-point line until now.

He was like a commander who quickly passed the ball to a suitable position and scored points.

Or he would shoot a three-pointer himself.

But it was strange that he went inside the line.

‘Block the others!’

He gestured to his teammates.

The opponent who was outside was threatening, but the one who came inside was not a very threatening target.

It was hard to poke a hole in the place where the players were crowded.

And it was hard to succeed with a big motion like a three-point shot because of the defense that stuck to him right away.

That was what he had to do…

-Yes, Taehyun! Pass! The ball goes to Woojoo.

-It’s empty!

Han Taehyun, who was blocked by two people, quickly passed the ball to Woojoo, who was in the diagonal direction.

The defense ran right away.

It was a quick defense because he was nearby. He tried to block the opponent’s movement.

“…?”

Jun blinked as he checked the possible pass directions from there.

A familiar move.

‘…Is that?’

He ran with a sense of urgency.

But in the meantime, Woojoo dribbled with his back to the defender, then lightly turned his body.

Fade away shot.

He shot a fadeaway jumper while looking at the basket and falling back.

All the players widened their eyes at the trajectory of the ball flying in a high arc.

‘What the.’

As Jun felt a nervous feeling, the ball bounced lightly on the rim of the basket.

‘Please!’

Cruelly, the ball got stuck in the net.

“Wow!”

The audience, who looked surprised as if they were amazed, were caught on camera, while the commentators shouted in excited voices.

-It’s a fadeaway shot!

-Wow, I see this in the Olympics!

A fadeaway shot is a difficult shot that is hard for the defender to block because you jump and shoot at an angle.

But it also requires a great sense of balance from the shooter.

He was speechless.

‘…What is he doing?’

As he stared blankly at the ball bouncing on the spot, he saw Seon Woojoo smiling and high-fiving with the other teammates.

He laughed bitterly and incredulously.

‘He was good at everything?’

He thought he was only good at long-range shots because he stayed outside the three-point line, but that wasn’t the case.

He smiled wryly.

Then he realized that there was someone else who was more surprised than him at this place.

Seon Woojoo, who was waving his hands to the fans and members, covered his mouth with both hands and muttered, “…Wow, it worked.”

He was amazed and impressed by himself.

‘What the.’

He thought he was a weird kid.

***

At the same time.

When Woojoo succeeded in a difficult shot, the cheering section where the idol members were seated was a cauldron of excitement.

“Woojoo Hyung!”

“Wow! Woojoo’s color!”

“Did you see? I’m the closest with that Hyung!”

The New Black members, who were shaking their slogans and crying, made the people around them laugh.

‘They must really like him.’

They made a face of ecstasy and put their hands on their cheeks.

The youngest boasted his flushed cheeks.

“Hyung, I’m so happy. What should I do? I shouldn’t feel this way, but I feel so proud of Woojoo Hyung.”

“That’s a natural feeling.”

The member with the furrowed eyebrows nodded.

“Woojoo Hyung is our slave.”

“Pfft!”

Another idol member who was drinking a beverage nearby burst into laughter with a snort.

Meanwhile, they heard pleasant voices.

“It’s nice to have a slave who makes songs, but sometimes it’s nice to have a slave who uses his body.”

“Isn’t this how the nobleman who looks at the stone pot feels?”

“It’s a stone hammer, Hyung. The stone pot is bibimbap.”

“Oh, right. Should we eat that for lunch tomorrow?”

“Ugh, I have to take a picture of that… I have to take a picture of Woojoo Hyung scoring…”

They each said their own thing, which was like a scene of collective monologue.

Then, the sharp member who was conscious of the surrounding eyes made a loud noise.

“…Stop calling him slave, everyone is looking at us. Let’s call him Dobby when there are other people around, how many times have I told you?”

“Oh, right. Let’s call him Dobby.”

Then, the four of them started to dance with their shoulders and sing a cheer song, ‘Dobby Dobby give me more’.

The New Black fans who were seated above were also happy and didn’t know what to do.

And as they looked at him, who was receiving the attention of everyone, the other idol members felt a strange feeling.

‘What kind of character is he?’

It was amazing.

Seon Woojoo had such a good athletic sense that he could write Taereung Athletes’ Village as his address.

He didn’t miss a 10-point shot in archery.

He also showed off his individual skills while showing fantastic teamwork with his teammates in basketball.

Someone asked the New Black members, “Hey… by the way, does Woojoo always do sports well?”

“Yes.” The youngest answered with a happy face, “Our Hyung is really good at everything except wearing clothes and playing games. Oh, his personality is a bit bad though…”

“He once made a shot from one end of the basketball court to the other.”

“I wrestled with a black goat, but I could never have done it without Woojoo Hyung.”

From then on, for almost 10 minutes, they bragged about him with an attitude of ‘look, that’s our Hyung’.

“Ah, yes. That…”

“What else happened last time?”

“Ah, yes…”

“Woojoo Hyung was like…”

While a rookie idol who asked the wrong question was suffering, the people sitting in the front row were shocked.

“Uh…”

The people who were making finger gestures in the air and had blank expressions on their faces every time Woojoo scored a goal.

They were mostly the ones who knew trainee Seon Woojoo from his TJ days.

As one of the largest agencies in the country, TJ alumni were everywhere and they all had similar reactions.

‘…That guy?’

The person who was called a log from space because he couldn’t dance, regardless of his visual or singing skills.

-Yes, Player Woojoo scores another shot!

-He’s dominating the game today.

…He was good at sports.

‘What the hell happened?’

The infamous worst klutz among the trainees was now moving like a basketball player possessed.

“What the hell. Seriously.”

“Wow, my heart is pounding.”

Among them, the TNT members who had known him the longest were the most shocked.

Drip.

The leader of TNT, Gu Seonwoong, who was watching the game, spilled the drink he was drinking on his mouth.

Another member who was making a narration of ‘Yena Seonjeong is his daughter’ next to him got a slap on the neck from the leader.

“Do you still have jokes in this situation? Look. Woojoo…”

Gu Seonwoong swallowed his saliva and said, “He’s handling the ball safely.”

“…”

“Isn’t it a shocking sight?”

They all nodded.

“He used to joke that his horoscope said he should avoid round objects.”

“What the hell? He’s the kind of person who breaks his nose even if he falls backwards.”

Woojoo was amazing in a different way for how absurdly he used his body.

He was playing badminton and threw his racket and then hit the ball with his face, making his nose swell like Rudolph.

He was climbing the stairs and suddenly got his steps tangled and grabbed the railing and took a deep breath, making everyone confused.

When he was young, he went to a taekwondo gym and kicked with both feet, and got a full refund from the master that day, which no one was surprised by.

That was why when he went to the Han River with the trainees and had to ride a bike, he always had to get a bike with training wheels.

Of course.

-Hey! Seon Woojoo! That’s a tree!

-Ouch. He hit it. He hit it again.

-Does he have an instinct to charge when he sees a bush? What, is he going to catch a Pokemon?

…That wasn’t easy either.

It wasn’t a surprise that everyone was surprised when he made it to the debut team because of his terrible athletic ability.

But he had amazing talents in other areas, such as visual, composition, and singing skills.

“…What the hell?”

The one who had such a past was now running around nimbly and doing well in sports, no, showing amazing skills.

“I was okay with the dance…”

The TNT members all grabbed their heads and tore their hair with a ridiculous expression.

“Am I the only one who doesn’t understand? How does this make sense…”

“We’re the same. Hyung.”

“How can a person change that much?”

But no matter how much they racked their brains and worried, they couldn’t find an answer.

It was just a mystery.

“Those New Black members don’t seem to know, do they?”

“It seems like it.”

They didn’t seem to know what he was like in the past, and the New Black members were just smiling happily.

After the second half ended.

A little later, until the team with Woojoo won the final, they smiled outwardly but felt confused inside.

‘It’s not bad, but…’

It was a happy thing that he was no longer suffering from his athletic ability, but honestly, it was inevitable that it was absurd.

Soon after, the trophy ceremony.

-Yes, we have voted for the MVP among the players who participated in today’s game.

-Congratulations! New Black Woojoo!

Meanwhile, as Woojoo was called out with a nervous face to receive the MVP award, someone pointed to the entrance.

“Huh?”

A person who was secretly watching the game.

“Isn’t that the President of Lemon Entertainment?”

“I guess so.”

“…Why is he crying?”

They put aside their complicated thoughts for a moment.

Seeing the middle-aged man who was sobbing with a handkerchief in his hand, as if he was overwhelmed by his emotions, they all burst into laughter.

***

“Good job, everyone!”

They clapped and cheered in the player’s waiting room.

“Victory! Victory!”

“Wow, shall we hear it one more time?”

They all held up the trophy and smiled happily.

It was just an amateur tournament among idols, not professional players, but that didn’t mean the joy of victory was any less.

As they shouted and cheered without a care, Hwiyeon exclaimed, “Picture! We have to take a picture!”

“Who’s going to hold the trophy?”

“Well, of course, our MVP Hyung has to hold it.”

Immediately, everyone’s eyes turned to Woojoo and the trophy was handed to him. The team members gestured to him.

“Come to the center! The center!”

“But you’re all my seniors, I shouldn’t be in the center…”

“Don’t say that and hurry up!”

Woojoo smiled and took the center spot.

He bent his body and made a V sign with the trophy handle in his hand.

The hands of the same team members were placed on his shoulders.

Some of them were the first ones he met, but they all looked at him with a warm and friendly expression.

This was the power of sports.

Woojoo finally understood what the feeling of youth sports was like, which he used to see only in comics.

“Good job, everyone!”

After taking a selfie with the director, they parted ways with applause.

Han Taehyun put his arm around Woojoo’s shoulder and said, “You did a great job today.”

“So did you.”

“Hyung, you’re the MVP. Can you believe it? You used to be neither VP nor P, our Woojoo…”

“I know, right. It feels so weird.”

Woojoo smiled as he looked at the mini plaque he received for being the MVP.

It wasn’t as much as when he achieved something in his main job, but he was happy to be a help to someone.

It was really a change of perspective.

He wasn’t the only one who felt that way. Han Taehyun looked at Woojoo with curiosity in his eyes. He must be very curious from his point of view.

But Woojoo couldn’t answer him.

When he felt a bit awkward, he opened his lips.

“Well, I have a lot of questions, but…”

He smiled and said, “Congratulations. I don’t know how it happened, but.”

“Thank you.”

“Oh, and…”

Han Taehyun, who had something to say, looked at Woojoo. Then he turned his eyes to Hanjo and snapped his fingers.

“Listen up, you two.”

“…?”

As they brought their ears closer, he whispered something with a smile.

“…!”

It was a story that made Woojoo and Hanjo widen their eyes at the same time.