PUCKD Ch 13

“Hojae! Hojae! Did you hear? Did you hear?”

“What.”

“Our training camp location!”

Yook Doomin and Ji Minchul, who were already in the locker room, stood in front of Shin Hojae, making a fuss. Hojae, who was untying his skate laces, responded indifferently.

“Isn’t it Ulsan?”

It was customary for the Blue Wolves’ summer training camp to always be in Ulsan. The reason was that it was cost-effective since they could use the empty dormitories of a university in Ulsan.

Yook Doomin smirked, raising one corner of his mouth and wagging his index finger from side to side. Next to him, Ji Minchul was making “Ddu-ddu-ddu-ddu~!” sound effects, which was incredibly distracting.

“Don’t be surprised. Our summer traaaaining location is~ Ca to the na to the da!”

“…Where did you say?”

“It’s Canada! Awesome, right?!”

“Shout, God MJ!”

Yook Doomin touched his index and middle fingers to his lips, then raised them to the sky in a cheer. Ji Minchul, with a look of awe on his face, followed suit.

“…”

Shin Hojae stopped untying his skate laces and stared at the two of them.

Only then did he hear the excited voices of the older guys around him. Everyone was unable to hide their excitement at the news of an overseas training camp.

Under the indifference of their former parent company, Daeyang Shipbuilding, there had been countless times when the Blue Wolves received no proper support.

For Shin Hojae, who had played in Canada, the difference was bound to feel even more severe. Not to mention the facilities, even the cafeteria was poor and cramped.

But after coming under MJ Sports Group, many things began to change.

First, the cafeteria menu was completely revamped. Second, the blade sharpening technician was hired as a full-time employee. He had been working there since the Suwon ice rink was built, and it was astonishing that he hadn’t been a permanent employee all this time.

According to the technician, the team had also replaced the old equipment he had been using for almost 20 years. Since skate blades were the most important thing for ice rink athletes, the players were also very satisfied.

And the next thing that changed was the fitness training room. It was expanded, and the latest equipment was brought in. It was the same ice hockey-specific training equipment that Shin Hojae had used in Canada.

Not only that, but the physical coaches Peter brought from abroad began to manage the players’ skating skills, strength, and conditioning, divided by position.

Is it just my imagination? For some reason, it feels like all the changes, including the training camp location, reflect the conversations I had with Kwon Junghyun in the office.

Well, it must be a coincidence. He said they were working hard to revamp Myungjung Group’s image, so they’re probably just pretending to care about the team for a little while.

In any case, it was a very satisfying change for Shin Hojae. Last season, he had been secretly overwhelmed by having to mentor the coaches, but now that experts were systematically managing the players’ bodies, he could focus solely on his own training.

“This is so fucking annoying. The physical coach is saying all the training I did with my personal trainer was wrong. Shit, what am I supposed to do?”

“Ah, I wasn’t sure either. Don’t you think it was more comfortable when we just did it on our own?”

“I’ll just pretend to do it and hire a personal trainer separately. They don’t care about us anyway.”

It seems not everyone feels the same way, though.

“That’s true. Earlier, he spent over 30 minutes just with Shin Hojae.”

“The team and the coaches are openly discriminating against players, huh?”

Shin Hojae lifted his head and looked toward where the voices came from.

It was forward Moon Seungyeol, center Lee Sanggon, and Ahn Dongjoo, a goalie candidate who had been dropped from the starting lineup this season. Ahn Dongjoo wasn’t originally part of that group, but it seemed Moon Seungyeol had pulled him in after he was dropped.

Moon Seungyeol and Lee Sanggon were the only two Beta players on the Blue Wolves.

In the Korean Sports Council, there was a prevalent atmosphere of ostracizing Beta athletes regardless of their ability. Because of this, it was common for those who didn’t present as Alphas in their youth to give up on a career as an athlete, but there were cases like them who continued to play sports even without presenting.

These were the cases with so-called “connections.” Lee Sanggon, who drove a Ferrari to work, was one such case. Moon Seungyeol was a bit different.

Rumor had it that he was a speed skater, but after not presenting, he switched to ice hockey in middle school. The stronger the association’s power, the stronger the atmosphere of shunning non-Alpha players, so for him, it must have been a reluctant change of sport.

He had probably protected his position from a young age until now, overcoming countless prejudices and rejections. In that respect, he was undoubtedly a respectable player, but when he acted like that every time, it was difficult to respect him as an elder.

When Shin Hojae looked at them, they glared back with sharp eyes. As the standoff dragged on, Yook Doomin lightly tapped Hojae’s shoulder, signaling him to stop.

Only then did Shin Hojae turn his head. You avoid shit because it’s dirty, not because you’re scared of it. He didn’t want to create unnecessary trouble within the team.

🏑

“Shin Hojae, Shin Hojae. You absolutely have to buy this. It’s a liquor with maple syrup in it.”

Shin Yeonjae burst into his room. He had just been packing for the training camp.

“They say it’s a bit cheaper if you buy it at a liquor shop downtown, and more expensive at the duty-free shop. I’m supposed to have a pajama party at a friend’s house, and it would be perfect to open it there. Ah, come on, look at it properly!”

“Ugh, what a pain.”

“And can’t you also buy me a mug from the Canadian Starbucks? You broke my cup last time when you were doing the dishes.”

“Yeonjae. Your brother is packing, stop bothering him and come out.”

“Mom, just a second. It’s something I’ve wanted to get since we were planning to visit Canada a long time ago. Just buy me one of each. Huh? I’ll send you everything on KakaoTalk, okay? If you buy them for me, I’ll call you ‘oppa’ for a week.”

Hojae, who had been brushing off the clingy Shin Yeonjae without even looking at her, suddenly turned his head. His face, as he said her full name, was quite serious.

“Shin Yeonjae.”

“Huh? Whyyy…. Nooo. I narrowed it down and these are the only things I’m asking for.”

“That’s not it. You’re not in contact with Yook Doomin, are you?”

“Doomin oppa? No? Why? Does he want to get in touch with me? I’ve been a little interested in YouTube lately. Can you introduce me to him?”

Shin Hojae waved his hand at the bright-eyed Shin Yeonjae.

“Never mind. It’s nothing. Go on, get back to what you were doing.”

“Then you’ll buy me the gifts, right?”

“I’ll think about it.”

“Ah, come on.”

Yook Doomin never did explain the details about his girlfriend. No matter how much Hojae thought about it, there was no good reason for it. Unless he was secretly dating Shin Yeonjae.

He asked because that thought had occurred to him, but the Shin Yeonjae he knew couldn’t possibly be that good at acting, so that definitely wasn’t it.

“I’m so jealous, Canada~”

Shin Yeonjae, who seemed to have no intention of leaving, flopped onto the bed and exclaimed.

“I’m not going there to have fun.”

“Stilll. You get to ride a plane. I wanted to go too.”

Hojae paused from folding a t-shirt and glanced at Yeonjae.

Shin Yeonjae, who was two years younger than him, had never been to Canada.

Originally, two years ago in the summer, his father, mother, and Shin Yeonjae were all supposed to come to Canada for a vacation. However, before spring even arrived, his father suddenly collapsed, so the family trip was naturally canceled.

It wasn’t like Shin Hojae had come to Korea often either. And even when he did, he had never once brought back something as common as maple syrup.

Shin Hojae tossed the neatly folded t-shirt into his bag and said,

“Send it to me on KakaoTalk. If it’s something I can carry, I’ll buy it for you.”

“Really!?”

Shin Yeonjae jumped up and down, shouting “Hooray!” and left the room.

Finally taking advantage of the quiet, Hojae packed all his clothes and toiletries for the training camp into a single duffel bag.

It was a small amount of luggage for a 7-night, 8-day trip, but since he also had to carry his 25kg equipment bag containing his protective gear, stick, and skates, it was best to keep his personal luggage as light as possible.

🏑

On the day of departure, the meeting point was in front of the Blue Wolves’ home stadium.

When he arrived a little early, the three rookie players who had newly joined the team greeted Hojae with a deep bow. A 29-inch suitcase standing next to them caught his eye.

It was large enough to hold at least ten times more luggage than Shin Hojae’s duffel bag. It was their first time, so they must not have known that besides their personal belongings, they had to move their equipment bags themselves and check them in as baggage.

“Hojae! Hojae! What a beautiful day~!”

Yook Doomin arrived boisterously, filming a selfie video. When Shin Hojae dodged the camera, the clueless rookies became his target and were stuck with Doomin for a good while.

“No way. Is that our bus?”

And just as almost everyone had gathered, two large buses slid to a stop in front of the rink, catching everyone’s eye.

They were luxury limousine buses, spectacularly wrapped with the new logo and a picture of the Blue Wolves’ mascot, a blue wolf, roaring with its mouth wide open.

Moreover, behind the team buses, a medium-sized cargo truck bearing the ‘MJ Logistics’ mark was pulling in. The medium-sized cargo truck was for the equipment that the players had to carry themselves during every training camp.

Head Coach Yoo Goohan shouted with a proud look on his face.

“The club has arranged to provide a dedicated bus and handle equipment transportation. Do you have any idea how hard the owner is trying to boost your morale, you guys!”

“Woahhh!”

A genuine cheer erupted from the players’ mouths.

Until last season, the Blue Wolves didn’t even have their own bus and had to borrow one from other sports teams. For away games, if they were unlucky, their equipment wouldn’t arrive on time, and they even had to play matches borrowing other people’s gear.

“What do I do? I’m starting to see our team owner in a new light.”

Yook Doomin muttered, holding his camera. And exactly one hour and thirty minutes later, with a plane ticket in hand, he took back his words.

“I think I love our team owner.”

“No way. I love him more.”

“Minchul, are we finally going to get to eat ramen they cook for you on the plane?”

“Player Yook!”

“Player Ji!”

Yook Doomin and Ji Minchul hugged each other, pretending to wipe away tears.

Hojae lowered his gaze to the ticket in his hand. The class designation, “Business Class,” was clearly printed on it.