Chapter 11 – Graduate (11)
[Chapter 1 – Verse 4] Let’s Do This Right
I love swimming.
The sensation of water rushing against my skin feels amazing, and floating on the surface calms my mind.
Plus, swimming is the reason I was born.
“I was young and crazy back then! Not only did I save a drowning man, I married him!”
“Hah! That’s my line! If that hadn’t happened, I wouldn’t have married a swimmer…”
But I hate being a swimmer.
It’s the reason my parents fight so often.
“Your aptitude is something else. How did someone with your brain become a doctor? You begged me to marry you.”
“I never begged!”
“You did! You begged with a bouquet of flowers in front of the women’s changing room!”
“…”
“Am I wrong?”
“…It was different back then. You were a national athlete.”
“There’s no such thing as an eternal national athlete!”
Ordinary jobs get better with age as experience and knowledge compensate for declining stamina.
But athletes? After a short peak, they plummet endlessly!
If you don’t achieve meaningful results before then, it’s even more miserable.
“Try being a swim coach.”
“I can’t, even if I wanted to. My aptitude isn’t coaching.”
“Then at least do the housework more thoroughly.”
“I’m trying.”
If you compete in the Olympics and win a medal, the state provides a lifetime pension.
But if you don’t?
“You should realize how lucky you are. Do you think it’s easy to marry a capable doctor like me? Even now, nurses and patients are trying to seduce me—”
“Enough, stop.”
“If you get it, do better. Stop thinking only about spending the money I earn.”
“How can I do better than I already am…!”
The image of my parents always smiling at each other is now just a childhood memory.
And,
“Sun-young, you see how your mom is, right? Never do sports.”
“Sun-young, no son-in-law who’s an athlete. Got it?”
“…Yes.”
I love swimming.
But I hate being a swimmer.
***
“You’re good at swimming.”
“I know.”
I replied flatly to Kang Moon-soo’s praise laced with awe.
With my mom’s swimmer genes strongly inherited and having learned to swim, it’s only natural I’m good.
“Why not embrace your aptitude and become a swimmer?”
“I’d rather die.”
“That’s definitely not an empty statement.”
“Shaman, we’ve rested enough. Get ready. This time, we’re timing it.”
“Alright.”
I’d taught him all the theory. From now on, it’s just consistent practice to fine-tune habits and posture.
It might seem trivial, but in competitions where 0.1 seconds determines victory, it’s crucial.
My mom, a national athlete who competed in the Olympics, retired without a medal because of a 0.2-second gap.
“Ready—go!”
“Hup!”
Swoosh!
At my signal, Kang Moon-soo dove in, slicing through the water powerfully.
“…”
Watching him swim so earnestly, I felt a faint sense of gratitude. He’s going along with my unreasonable request without complaint.
It feels even more so in contrast to my dad, who finds fault even with how my mom breathes.
Thump.
‘Huh? What was that?’
It felt like a sting in my chest…
“Phew~!”
“Oh, right.”
Beep-
Startled by Kang Moon-soo, I hurriedly stopped the stopwatch before I could dwell on it.
“Ugh… that was tough. How’d I do?”
“Wait.”
Checking his latest time, I was slightly shocked.
‘He got faster again?’
Not long ago, he was a complete beginner, doggy-paddling in an embarrassing swimsuit…
Despite being taught by me, a non-coach, Kang Moon-soo was picking up swimming techniques at an astonishing pace.
“How is it?”
“…Not bad.”
“How many seconds behind you?”
“Four seconds.”
“Gah! Still a long way to go.”
“What? Think about the start. You were 42 seconds behind.”
“Comparing it to when I knew nothing is a bit…”
“You’re still a beginner.”
If I got serious, the gap would be about five seconds even now.
“Harsh critic!”
“So work harder.”
“What’ll you give me if I work harder?”
“Nothing.”
“Nothing at all?”
“Nope. You should be grateful for learning to swim for free from a great girl like me in the first place!”
There are tons of guys who’d trip over themselves to date me.
Thump.
‘Huh? Again…?’
It’s not my imagination. My chest stung again.
“Motivation matters. Promise me. If I beat you, you won’t kill yourself anymore.”
“…”
“Can you promise that?”
“…I promise. By then, my aptitude will have changed anyway.”
“Even if it doesn’t, promise.”
“Alright. I promise.”
No matter how hard Kang Moon-soo tries, there’s no way I’ll lose.
***
Almost no one’s unaware, but before P’s aptitude testing device came along, people wasting their talents were as common as grains of sand on a beach.
Soccer players dabbled in politics.
Doctors tried cooking.
Businessmen played baseball.
Back then, with effort, even if you couldn’t be number one, you could achieve decent success in a lenient society.
In contrast,
“You’re good at swimming.”
“I know.”
“Why not embrace your aptitude and become a swimmer?”
“I’d rather die.”
And she wasn’t kidding—she really did kill herself because she hated her aptitude.
“Shaman, we’ve rested enough. Get ready. We’re timing this one.”
“Alright.”
Now, thanks to P’s aptitude testing device, everyone knows their true talents.
Soccer players stick to soccer.
Doctors focus on medicine.
Chefs cook.
By fully utilizing their talents without waste, society has become perfectly efficient.
In other words,
“This is tough.”
It’s a harsh society where relying solely on talent without serious effort guarantees failure!
“Is swimming tough?”
“All sports are tough. They have the earliest retirement age of any profession.”
“Hm…”
Before the job revolution, athletes didn’t retire so early. Finding talented prospects was hard back then.
Take soccer, for example.
The legendary Argentine soccer player Diego Maradona played for the national team for 17 years. Including youth soccer, that’s 29 years!
But what if thousands of “young Diego Maradonas” debuted every year?
Forget 17 years—three years would be hard to guarantee!
That’s the reality of today.
“It’s hard to find another job after retirement.”
“Probably.”
After retiring, Diego Maradona worked as a coach for 26 years until his death.
But that’s impossible now!
There’s a separate aptitude for “coach,” leaving no room for retired athletes to squeeze in.
“There’s another reason.”
“What?”
“It’s tough.”
“That’s the same reason.”
“No, listen. To become a national athlete, talent alone isn’t enough. Everyone’s overflowing with talent. To avoid being outdone by younger competitors, even backbreaking effort isn’t enough.”
“You know a lot about this.”
“My mom was a national athlete.”
“Oh! Her name…”
“You wouldn’t know even if I told you. She didn’t win a medal, so she wasn’t famous.”
“I see.”
Now I understand why Song Sun-young hates her aptitude.
‘I don’t really have anything to say. I can’t tell her to work herself to death like her parents…’
Still, to break this awkward atmosphere, wouldn’t it be better to offer some comfort or encouragement?
I decided.
“I’ll make sure of it.”
“Of what?”
“If you lose to me, you won’t even make it as a national athlete, let alone win a medal.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“I’ll work my butt off to beat you. When that happens, look for another job, regardless of your aptitude.”
“…Cocky for a beginner.”
“That’s why I’m a beginner.”
My dad taught me a man’s ambition should always be big.
“…Thanks.”
“What?”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“Alright.”
“…”
“…”
My bravado just made the atmosphere even more awkward.
***
“Student Kang Moon-soo, come up and solve problem 3 on page 338—”
“Teacher! I’m really sorry!”
“Student Kang Moon-soo?”
“Today is a very important day for me, so I have to go right now! I’ll explain to my homeroom teacher later!”
“Go? Now? What’s this all of a sudden—Student Kang Moon-soo?!”
Slam!
Instead of explaining, I leaped from my desk, hooked my foot on the classroom window, and jumped out boldly.
“Eek?!”
“Crazy?!”
“What?!”
The shocked screams of my classmates echoed behind me, but having been through this more than once, I ignored them cleanly.
Crack!
The tree branch I’d scoped out beforehand snapped under my weight and impact.
‘Perfect!’
But I didn’t panic. I stepped onto another nearby branch like a staircase.
Creak-
The branch bent, ready to break any moment. From experience, I knew it would snap in one second if I hesitated.
“Hup!”
Before that, I leaped off the bending branch like an acrobat, tracing an arc and landing on the ground.
Thud!
“…Flawless.”
This time, I didn’t get hurt at all.
“Wow…”
“Is this real?”
“Insane!”
I waved casually at the classmates poking their heads out the window, awestruck.
“Don’t ever try this! You’ll break an ankle or crack your skull!”
This was heartfelt advice from someone driven mad by repeated situations.
“You jumped out again?”
“Yeah.”
“You trust me too much, don’t you?”
“Shouldn’t I?”
Even if I got badly hurt, Song Sun-young would rewind time, making it like it never happened. Without such reliable insurance, I’d never have tried it.
“…Shaman, stop saying weird stuff and let’s go.”
“Alright.”
We sprinted full speed to the sports university pool, a 15-minute walk from school!
It wouldn’t instantly improve my stamina or lung capacity, but it was a decent substitute for a warm-up before hitting the water.
‘Today’s the day!’
I quickly changed into the swimsuit Song Sun-young bought me in the locker room and dove into the pool before my body cooled down.
Splash!
“Shaman.”
“Hurry up and get in!”
By the time I’d done three laps, Song Sun-young arrived.
“Aren’t you wasting too much energy when your stamina’s already lacking?”
“It’s fine. I’ve got enough for one lap.”
“No excuses later.”
“Of course not.”
We lined up at the starting line of the pool.
I’d lost to her countless times, but this time, with my record-breaking performance, I was determined to win!
“The rules are the same. We start when the second hand hits 12, on the dot.”
“Got it.”
I glared at the large analog clock on the center of the wall.
Tick, tick, tick-
‘Now…!’
Splash!
My aptitude has nothing to do with swimming—it’s “shaman.”
But I don’t think I’m so bad at swimming that I’d lose to a swimmer who doesn’t even try.
Swoosh~ Swoosh~!
‘Exhale through the nose underwater, arms…’
All the swimming techniques Song Sun-young taught me came to mind one by one.
They were ingrained in my body like habits, so I didn’t need to consciously think about them, but I reviewed each one deliberately.
‘Please~!’
I wanted to win that badly.
Tap.
My fingertips touched the pool wall.
‘Where’s Song Sun-young?!’
And I hadn’t yet heard her smug voice, which always came first.
That meant—
“I finally won~!”
“I won again!”
Swoosh!
Swoosh!
Song Sun-young and I shouted at the same time as we surfaced.
“No way!”
“What?”
“I was faster.”
“What? I adjusted my speed to arrive first.”
“Liar.”
“I’m serious!”
Neither of us backed down, locking eyes in a staring contest.
A few seconds later,
“Let’s say you won. But isn’t it embarrassing for a pro to barely beat a civilian?”
“…Fair point.”
“So next time, let’s have a referee and do it properly.”
“Alright. I’ll do it for real, no holding back.”
We agreed to have a proper race.