Chapter 77: A Court Filled With Eyes

The unpleasant smile Yoon Jaeyeon had made earlier while mentioning Won Jitae lingered slightly in Wooju’s mind.

But considering that guy’s usual personality, it might really have been simple excitement about seeing Won Jitae again after so long.

“Kang Wooju, focus!”

“Yes.”

The Yuseong Fire & Marine players entered the court one by one.

The stands were packed with spectators, all looking down at the court with faces full of anticipation.

Some fans were busy filming the players warming up with their cameras, and the place receiving the most lenses was, of course, Wooju.

Most of the spectators sitting in the best seats—where ticket competition had been fierce—were holding Wooju’s jersey merchandise and banners.

“Huh, isn’t that Won Jitae?”

Just then, a spectator sitting near the Baekyoung Construction staff section noticed Jitae and shouted.

Fans of both Baekyoung Construction and Yuseong Fire & Marine turned their heads toward him at once.

When they realized it really was Jitae, the murmuring quickly turned into cheers.

“That’s really Won Jitae! This is insane!”

“I heard the two of them came because they’re filming something?”

Jitae awkwardly smiled and bowed his head toward the audience.

People became even more excited and hurriedly pointed their cameras at him.

The sudden noise in the stadium startled the players warming up on the court, who looked around in surprise.

“Top celebrities really have a different kind of popularity.”

Choi Seokhyun muttered while watching Jitae wave at the audience like a seasoned professional.

Wooju’s gaze also turned toward him.

Of course that face wouldn’t go unnoticed.

Even just sitting still like that, he practically had a halo around him.

Who wouldn’t recognize him?

At that moment their eyes met.

Jitae was smiling faintly.

As usual, Wooju’s heart began thumping loudly.

“……”

Whether it was because of the audience’s cheers, the warmth from warming up, or the energy of his teammates and coach filling the air—it was hard to tell.

“The match will begin shortly. Spectators in the stands, please take your seats according to your ticket numbers…”

Soon an announcement echoed through the stadium.

Coach Kim gathered the players together.

Wooju absentmindedly rubbed his chest.

“Yes everyone, thank you for waiting!”

The announcer’s voice rang out through the speakers.

The crowd erupted into cheers.

“First, let’s introduce the players of Yuseong Fire & Marine Insurance.”

The names of the visiting Yuseong Fire & Marine players were called one by one.

Each player waved to the audience as they walked onto the court.

After the opposing team’s coach was introduced, it was Baekyoung Construction’s turn.

Majestic background music played as the Baekyoung players stepped forward energetically one by one.

Their fans screamed in excitement to welcome them.

“Next, Baekyoung Construction’s No. 3, Kang Wooju!”

“Waaaaah!”

When Wooju’s name was called, a completely different level of cheering swept through the stadium.

Wooju high-fived the team staff as he walked onto the court.

Fans immediately pulled out their phones.

When Wooju smiled awkwardly and greeted them as well, the cheers grew even louder.

As a player with the most popularity and fans in the current volleyball scene, Wooju’s entrance was clearly different from the others.

Some even said that a volleyball player with such star quality might not appear again anytime soon.

Some people criticized athletes becoming too famous, but thanks to Wooju’s popularity, interest in domestic volleyball had clearly increased.

No matter how you looked at it, that was a positive effect.

Jitae sat in the staff section holding his phone.

From the moment Wooju’s name echoed through the arena and he walked out, Jitae captured everything on camera without missing a single moment.

Today, Kang Wooju walking onto the court with overwhelming cheers behind him looked somehow different from usual.

When he had seen Wooju in a neat suit during the magazine shoot before, Jitae had felt wildly excited by the unfamiliar sight.

But in the end, that volleyball uniform suited Wooju the best.

The introduction of the remaining Baekyoung Construction players continued.

The Yuseong Fire & Marine players who had already been introduced clapped mechanically, secretly hoping the match would start quickly.

Yoon Jaeyeon also clapped with a faint smile.

While doing so, he glanced around.

He spotted Won Jitae sitting far away.

Seeing him sitting outside the court filming someone with his phone made him chuckle unconsciously.

A teammate beside him even asked why he was suddenly laughing.

“Alright, now the match will begin!”

The announcer shouted loudly.

The scoreboard lit up with the teams’ names.

Players on both sides took their positions and steadied themselves.

The whistle blew, and a Yuseong Fire & Marine player served.

Libero Baek Yunkwon received it cleanly and passed the ball to Wooju.

Wooju immediately set the ball quickly to Lee Yuseok, the middle blocker.

A perfect quick attack landed successfully, and the crowd erupted in cheers.

Lee Yuseok and Wooju high-fived, signaling the first point.

The Baekyoung cheering section shouted Yuseok’s name in excitement.

The match continued from there.

Because volleyball constantly shifts attacking turns between teams, the points kept going back and forth.

The first set was a fierce battle that went all the way to deuce.

In the end, Yuseong Fire & Marine took the set 26 to 24.

The whistle blew to signal the end of the set.

The break between sets was only three minutes, quite short.

Coach Kim, who had told them not to overexert themselves since it was a friendly match, seemed quite frustrated about losing the first set and began raising his voice while instructing the players.

“Wooju, you looked a little stiff in the first set. I’ve said this many times—you’re not amateurs. Saying you need time to warm up and raise your tension is just an excuse, right?”

Coach Kim pointed directly at Wooju.

“Yes.”

The coach’s words were simple.

In other words, he wouldn’t lecture long—just do your job properly.

Wooju picked up his water bottle, but it was empty.

As he looked around for another, a hand suddenly appeared beside him.

“Thanks.”

Jitae had quietly come over and handed him a new bottle of water.

In the stands, cameras immediately began capturing the two-shot.

“Your serves are weak. And your offense is too predictable.”

“……”

Wooju shot him a sharp glare at the blunt criticism.

It was something he had already realized himself.

Coach Kim had likely pointed it out for the same reason.

The only difference was that the coach didn’t say it as directly as Jitae did.

“Why are you so sharp for no reason.”

Wooju tossed the water bottle back to Jitae just as the timeout-ending signal sounded.

The announcer declared the start of the second set, and the players gathered on the court again.

As Wooju walked outside the court to serve, he steadied his breathing.

Coach Kim had said not to make excuses about slow tension rising, but compared to the start of the first set, his body definitely felt lighter now.

Wooju nodded to himself and clenched and unclenched his fist slightly.

The last match he had played here—the friendly match where the controversy about his personality had erupted—had been nothing short of a disaster.

He had been falsely accused, heavily criticized, and even lost the match.

Meeting Won Jitae had been an unexpected outcome from that event, but as a player he naturally wanted to redeem himself.

Beep—!

The referee signaled for the serve.

Wooju took one more short breath and tossed the ball high into the air.

At the same moment he rushed forward, pushing off the floor and leaping high.

Stretching out his arm, he struck the falling ball with full force.

The ball shot over the net at incredible speed.

The opposing receiver tried to take it, but the sheer power sent it flying out of bounds after touching his hands.

“Waaaaah!”

It was the first service ace of the day.

Just like the Baekyoung fans, his teammates also cheered loudly.

But instead of looking at them, Wooju turned around.

Without realizing it, he stretched out his hand toward where Won Jitae was sitting.

Jitae widened his eyes in surprise, then broke into a grin.

The point gave Wooju the serve again.

As soon as the signal came, he jumped once more.

This time the opposing players positioned themselves farther back, preparing to counter his powerful serve.

But Wooju struck the ball with less force than before.

The ball crossed the net and dropped weakly right near the front.

The unexpected play completely fooled the Yuseong players who had been bracing for another powerful serve.

The stadium heated up again with excitement.

As Wooju shouted energetically, the cheering section began loudly chanting his name.

With the tingling sensation in his hands and the familiar thrill that only this court could bring, a surge of exhilaration ran through his entire body.