Chapter 58 – Swimming Emperor (2)
The first-string athletes—all top talents from domestic sports universities gathered together—are selected as national representatives if they hold their first-string spots until the Olympics, held every two years.
Yet even considering that, only the swimming events receive exceptionally good treatment among all sports…
“There’s a lot of investment.”
Coach Jang Seo-yeon explained the reason while checking my condition.
“Why?”
“Because the man called the Emperor of Swimming, Nam Hae-soo, sends enormous sponsorship funds to the International Swimming Federation every year.”
“Aha!”
Nam Hae-soo, Emperor of Swimming.
The legendary figure who won the most Olympic medals among swimmers.
“That’s why Nam Hae-soo is also called the Emperor of Pensions.”
“Makes sense.”
The more Olympic medals, the higher the pension!
What an enviable life.
“But if that were all, he’d get more jealousy than respect, right?”
“Now that you mention it, yeah.”
“Nam Hae-soo uses all that pension and wealth to nurture juniors. This luxury cruise ship is his property too.”
“Wow… He really is an amazing person.”
I felt ashamed for only thinking of saving my pension bit by bit for retirement funds.
“Moon-soo, is your body fully rested?”
“Yes.”
More accurately, I wasn’t tired to begin with.
“…Your stamina is truly incredible. Normally, after a marathon, people sleep for days.”
“Even athletes?”
“Of course! To shave even a little time off, you pour out all your stamina.”
The difference between pros and amateurs is just the finishing time—both find it equally grueling.
In other words,
“I don’t like it.”
It means swim another 10 km without proper rest.
If I were an ordinary athlete, not only would my record suffer, but it could be life-threatening mid-marathon.
“Should we postpone?”
“Can we?”
“Nothing’s impossible. Just ignore the parrots repeating ‘manipulation’—the athletes and coaches.”
“Hmm… It’s unpleasant hearing it every meal, so I’ll just do it.”
“You sure you’re okay?”
“Yes.”
“Don’t push yourself. Overconfidence ruins your health—ends up like me.”
Advice from a former national athlete who missed a medal by 0.1 seconds.
“I’ll keep it in mind.”
Splash! Splash! Splash!
All first-string athletes, including me, lined up in the water.
‘Twenty-five including me… everyone’s here.’
Even short-distance swimmers—100 m, 300 m freestyle—participated without exception.
Vroom~
A coach on the rescue boat shouted through a megaphone.
“Anyone not feeling well, don’t be stubborn—speak up now!”
That advice was for everyone, but why stare only at me…?
I disliked every coach except mine.
‘Just wait!’
The two-per-event rule made it impossible for all to stay, but I vowed to send half the athletes and coaches packing to second-string.
“…”
“…”
“No one, huh. Ready… Go!”
Splash! Splash! Splash!
The moment the signal dropped, all athletes shot toward the island.
“Pwah!”
“Phew!”
From the start, gaps widened—I quickly fell to last.
‘It’s fine.’
Expected. Even top second-stringers were faster than me.
How much more the first-string?
The best of aptitude-endowed geniuses, plus endless effort, competition, top support, and training!
Dolphins in human skin.
But,
“Hoo…”
“Phew…”
Female athletes, seeing no need to compete with a different-gender swimmer like me, slowed to conserve energy.
Whoosh~
Maintaining constant speed from the start, I overtook them one by one.
‘Strange.’
Yet the distance to the male athletes showed no sign of closing.
Do they have stamina like mine?
Worry about dropping back to second-string crept in.
Vroom!
The rescue boat watching from afar approached.
“Hurry!”
“Over there!”
Splash! Splash!
Safety officers in wetsuits waiting on the rescue boat dove into the sea.
‘What’s going on?’
The urgent atmosphere felt off, but I reminded myself it was mid-race.
Swish, swish!
I pushed through the rough waves and currents caused by the rescue boat.
For the first time, I felt my stamina dip.
“Pwah!”
But this much couldn’t stop me—the one revered as the “Sea God” in the world of <I Became the Youngest Daughter of a Count’s Family>, even honored with a statue.
Float.
One by one, male athletes appeared, barely moving forward, drifting in the sea.
“…”
“…”
They could only helplessly watch me overtake them.
‘Reckless.’
Failing to pace themselves, they couldn’t finish 10 km and ended up waiting for the rescue boat.
If the boat didn’t find them or arrive, they were as good as dead!
An unprofessional mistake.
Splash—!
“Arrived…!”
Reaching the designated beach, I shouted brightly.
The coach waiting there alternated between me and the stopwatch, asking,
“A… human…?”
A very rude question.
“What’s the time?”
“…Did you collapse mid-race, board the rescue boat, then get off?”
“Would any coach allow that?”
“You expect me to believe this absurd record?”
“If you don’t want to, quit. Reality won’t change.”
“Insolent…!”
‘That’s my line.’
I stared down the fuming coach and fired back.
“Nameless Coach. Can you take responsibility for what you just said? What if I immigrate and become another country’s national rep because of you?”
“T-that…!”
“You think I can’t?”
The country’s choice between an Olympic gold medal and one coach was obvious.
“…Athlete Kang Moon-soo.”
“Yes.”
“I misspoke. I’m truly sorry.”
The coach’s face turned ashen as he bowed in apology.
“I’ll pretend I didn’t hear today.”
“T-thank you!”
I’d stuck to a humble stance to keep things smooth.
But after seeing the reality of first-string and their excessive treatment, my mindset completely shifted.
‘Medals are everything.’
First-string was a group of people obsessed only with that.
Friendship? Camaraderie? Trust?
In swimming—unlike team sports like soccer or baseball—same-gender athletes were nothing but eyesores and rivals!
So they didn’t even think about getting close.
Vroom~
About an hour after I arrived, rescue boats began appearing one by one offshore.
“…”
“…”
Athletes transferred to the boats disembarked on the sandy beach slowly, heads hung like criminals.
Then, another 30 minutes later,
“Hoo-ah!”
“Pwa!”
The female athletes who had slowed early to conserve energy safely completed the 10 km.
Coach Jang Seo-yeon, responsible for their safety, also arrived. Her reaction to my record? ‘As expected.’
Of course,
“As expected of my son-in-law!”
That didn’t mean she was unimpressed.
“Coach, saying things that’ll make Sun-young mad in front of everyone…”
“It’s fine, it’s fine. There’s a saying—mother-in-law’s love for her son-in-law, right?”
“Ahem!”
Until now, I’d been obscured by the “shaman” prejudice.
Now, I was starting to get noticed.
“Section Chief, didn’t you say you were going home to rest?”
“I wanted to.”
With a deep sigh, Section Chief Seo Hye-joo explained the call with the International Swimming Federation.
“Drug accusations again?”
“You went too far. Shaving an hour off the world record—anyone would suspect.”
“Do such drugs even exist?”
“No. Even athletes and coaches often misunderstand—drugs don’t strengthen the body; they fool it. Like how painkillers mask pain but don’t make you healthy.”
“Aha!”
Drugs temporarily trick the body to push past limits and boost performance.
But they can’t create stamina that isn’t there, so there are limits…
“Even with drugs, a normal athlete couldn’t do what you did. They’d collapse and die without feeling fatigue.”
“Scary.”
“Endure the sting.”
“Yes.”
Prick—
The needle pierced my arm, drawing a small amount of blood.
“Bear it even if it feels bad. It’s because you’re unique.”
“There could be exceptions.”
“No. Athletes excel beyond average in non-aptitude sports too.”
“Hmm…”
“Hard to link a ghost-chasing shaman with swimming.”
“To catch water ghosts, stamina and swimming skill are key.”
Coach Jang Seo-yeon’s theory.
“Oh! That’s plausible? Drug test results… as expected, all negative. If they still don’t believe, sue for defamation.”
“No need…”
“Compensation’s decent?”
“Then let’s do it!”
“Um…”
The federation official quietly observing interrupted.
“Found foul play?”
“No, but…”
At Section Chief Seo’s question, the official frowned.
“Talking defamation against a federation striving for fairness and common sense to prevent illegality… isn’t that too dismissive?”
“You treated him like a criminal.”
“…I meant don’t feel burdened by this.”
“Satisfied now?”
“Of course. The International Swimming Federation recognizes Kang Moon-soo’s record despite drug suspicions. Athlete Kang Moon-soo, we apologize for the inconvenience.”
“Hmm… yes.”
I decided not to mention the official’s polite apology further. It was a problem caused by my record being too good.
I’d leave it as a debt in my heart to the federation.
“The federation classifies medal-favorites as 0-string and grants various privileges.”
“Aha!”
To prevent top talents from being poached.
“However… a case as certain as Kang Moon-soo is a first, so internal discussion is needed.”
Not likely—guaranteed!
As long as I’m healthy, the 10 km freestyle marathon gold is mine.
“Makes me nervous.”
“We’ll tailor privileges to you as much as possible. Ah! We can replace your coach immediately.”
“I like Coach Jang Seo-yeon.”
She feels more like an understanding big sister than a coach. The only flaw? Being Song Sun-young’s mom!
“I see… Ah! Dr. Seo Hye-joo. We’ll meet separately when the Emperor arrives.”
“Yes.”
The official left quickly after finishing.
And I asked,
“Section Chief, the Emperor’s coming to this island?”
“That’s what I was going to tell you.”
“To me? Suddenly gives me chills…”
“Nam Hae-soo, Emperor of Swimming. You’ve heard the name?”
“Yes.”
Recently from Coach Jang Seo-yeon.
Thanks to the Emperor’s sponsorship, swimming gets better treatment than other first-string sports…
The cruise buffet turned me into a happy pig.
‘I must thank him when he arrives!’
I was excited.
“When?”
“Hard for him to move, so it’ll take a while.”
“Huh! Is he sick?”
I worried hearing a great man was ill.
“We’ll know after diagnosis… but brace yourself.”
“No way…?”
“Curious? What dream does the Emperor of Swimming have?”
“Not at all.”
“Maybe reborn as a dolphin…”
“Section Chief, please stop with the ominous talk. How do you persuade a dolphin?”
I prayed not.