< -- Opening Eyes in the Past -- > Part One.
Paul Tergat glanced over his shoulder as he surged ahead.
Did they fall behind?
The Korean athletes were nowhere in his sight. He suddenly recalled the day they had run together during practice. I Han, whom he had thought would fall behind easily, had stuck with him until the very end. He had been frightened—terrified—by that tenacity. In the end, he had collapsed and rolled on the ground, but...
That was precisely why he felt a chill at his tenacity. Because it meant he had run, abusing his own body, until he became like that. “Huuhp, huuh.”
The image of I Han writhing in pain flashed through his mind. But only for a moment. Paul Tergat shook off his thoughts and focused on the race.
Pabat.
He increased his speed to further disrupt the pace. Most of the runners behind him were breathing raggedly. Of course, there were some exceptions.
As expected of Haile.
Haile Gebrselassie was completely unshaken by Paul Tergat's relentless attack. The problem was that, apart from him, there were still two athletes who hadn't been greatly affected by Paul Tergat's pace.
Interesting.
This race was truly enjoyable. Because there were three athletes who stoked his competitive spirit. Paul Tergat steeled himself and raised his speed another notch. At this speed, it was close to his limit, even for Paul Tergat. “Huuhp, huuh!”
Even though it was an uphill, the surrounding scenery flew by. Now, if he went just a little further, the peak of the hill would come.
Here it was!
The hill ahead was severely steep. The hills until now had been child's play. Starting from a certain point, his breathing grew short.
“Huu, huu...”
The altitude had risen, making it difficult to breathe. Damn.
Paul Tergat came to his senses and adjusted his pace. Unlike before, he gradually slowed his speed. Even so, his body was far more tired than when he had been running fast. While he was wondering whether to slow down even more, a fierce momentum approaching from behind made him flinch and turn around.
Ah...!
His heart pounded with surprise. The throbbing, thundering beats of his heart instantly flooded him with adrenaline, bestowing a sense of rapture.
This is fun. Truly fun.
A smile formed at Paul Tergat's lips. And the moment I Han pulled up alongside him,
that smile vanished as if it had been a lie.
Pabat.
The two, having acknowledged each other, increased their speed. It was clearly an overpace, but neither of them cared. It was well worth the resolve. A duel with a true powerhouse. The extreme pleasure felt within it. That was the very reason I Han ran forward.
["He's caught up!"]
["I Han, incredible! He instantly closed that vast gap, took the lead, and is now battling Paul Tergat!"]
["Only one kilometer remains until the Hill of Death! Many of the pursuing athletes have dropped out, and only five remain in the second-place group!"]
["Ah, just as I speak, the backs of the lead group are coming into view!"]
["We will temporarily shift the camera to the lead group."]
The screen switched, and the commentator spoke.
["Oh my, the lead group is nearly exhausted."]
["That's right. At this rate, the second-place group will overtake the lead group before the Hill of Death ends."]
["The second-place group is truly amazing. Their current speed is approaching the world record."]
["That they are maintaining such speed even including the Hill of Death is evidence that the current second-place group is running an overpace. If they continue like this, they will undoubtedly tire... but let's wait and see, trusting in I Han's outstanding ability."]
They had climbed all the hills. In the meantime, I Han, having overtaken the first-place group, ran along the flat road while steadying his breathing.
“Huuhp, huuh.”
On both sides, crowds packed along the road were shouting and cheering.
“Hang in there!”
“Korea, fighting!”
Quite a few Korean people could be seen. I Han drew strength from their cheers and perked up. But the moment he perked up, a desire arose. He was thirsty. Just then, an aid station came into view in the distance. Junior athletes were packed around it.
“Senior! Fighting!”
“Win it!”
Hearing their cheers, I Han reached out and grabbed a water bottle.
Tak.
While running, he opened the lid and poured water over his head. Coolness started from the crown of his head and spread throughout his entire body.
“Huu.”
He felt alive. Having regained a bit of strength, I Han took a sip into his mouth and slowly moistened his throat. Just then, a familiar figure fleetingly passed through his vision. Like a flash of lightning, the moment he felt a bright spark, he involuntarily turned his head back.
Ah...!
And he saw her. No, it was someone who resembled her. I Han felt a scorching heat in his chest, a suffocating grip, as if his entire body was being gnawed and devoured by an extreme pain. Choe... Jieun.
I Han soon gritted his teeth and turned his gaze forward.
I will win for you. I will run. I will run forward looking only ahead. For victory, for her, who is watching from heaven.
I Han's speed rose another level.
Pabat.
Four athletes flustered by that speed hurriedly chased after him.
“Haah, haah...”
His breathing grew short. Was this a side effect of the overpace, or was it the beating of his heart from seeing her? “Huuhp, huuh.”
He composed his mind. And adjusted his pace. The rough breathing of the four athletes behind him battered the back of his head. The intense pressure from their gazes weighed on his shoulders, but I Han thought he needed to shake them off a bit more.
Speed up.
But just then, an exceedingly long road came into his view.
A downhill...!
Because he had been lost in thought for so long, he had already entered the second hellish course. The second obstacle of the day: the Death Downhill.
["How do you see the current situation?"]
["Yes. They are now entering the second gate, Hell's Downhill. There are two choices."]
["What are they?"]
["Whether to surrender to the speed and descend quickly, or to struggle and resist to slow down—those are the two choices."]
["Hmm, is there really a need to reduce speed?"]
["Even if you run without slowing down, the body running is your own. In other words, the body generating that speed is his. The downhill is a full five kilometers. If it were short, speeding up would be fine, but at five kilometers, you must control your speed. If you continue running fast along that stretch, the moment the downhill ends, you won't be able to run anymore. Your entire body will be completely drained."]
["That's dangerous."]
["That's right. Some say to widen your stride when running downhill, and some say to keep your stride as short as possible. But both pieces of advice share a common point: minimize the impact on your knees."]
["Ah, over five kilometers, your knees would take a lot of strain."]
["Yes. That's why when the downhill ends, you won't be able to run. So you have no choice but to control your speed. But even then, there is a problem. Since you can't surrender to the flow, your stamina drains even faster. Therefore, you must find a speed that is neither fast nor slow, a very moderate speed, but that is difficult. What must be done on Hell's Downhill is clear. Depending on how much stamina you preserve here, and yet how fast you run, your fate going forward will be decided."]
["We dearly hope that our own I Han finds the appropriate speed."]
["Ah, just as I speak, the speed of the athletes running downhill has increased!"]
He had to increase his speed to the extent that minimized the impact on his knees.
Pabat.
But controlling it was difficult. The moment the desire to speed up arose, his body was pulled by gravity to an unbearable degree.
“Kuh...!”
Veins bulged across his entire body. Forcing himself to slow down to control his speed was an act of overusing his muscles. Even so, because he had to slow down, I Han gritted his molars. Yet he couldn't afford to be caught by the athletes behind him, so he was running down the hill at a considerably ambiguous speed.
“Huuhp!”
His breathing became irregular as well. The pressure of having to speed up so as not to be caught and the effort to minimize the impact on his knees collided with each other, bringing great confusion. Because I Han knew the pain in his knees, it was all the more severe. Damn...!
The four athletes, who had less such concern than I Han, crossed the downhill in an instant.
Whoosh.
Before he knew it, they were quickly passing by his side. But perhaps knowing that speed was too fast, they gradually slowed down. Even so, it was faster than I Han's speed.
Should he follow them?
His worries began. Each decision he made now would manifest as results the moment the downhill ended.
“Huuhp, huuh.”
I Han decided to trust his instinct. He believed that the moment he increased his speed any more than now, an unbearable weight would descend upon him when he ran on flat ground.
Right now was just right.
I Han believed that the current speed, which could be called ambiguous, was the optimal speed. And so, the distance from the lead group gradually widened.
Pabat.
The downhill was five kilometers. That distance was rapidly decreasing. Now, if he ran just a bit further, flat ground would appear. Although he was already at a distance where he couldn't see the backs of the lead group, I Han never gave up.
Opportunity will surely come.
I Han's eyes calmly settled. There was a broadcast car ahead capturing him on camera, and there were citizens watching his figure on screen. Strangely, they all shared the same thought: The possibility still exists.
I Han's gaze, which had been indifferent, sharply flashed at a certain moment.