When Lin Guanglai hit that double through Koushing Academy's infield, a massive cheer erupted from the support stands at third base in Koshien Stadium; and when he himself ran back to home plate with the help of his teammates, expanding the lead to 2 runs, the cheers became even more fervent.

Under the command of the support leader, the majestic sound of the brass band once again wafted across the skies of Koshien; at the forefront of the crowd, those wearing Waseda Industrial Baseball Club uniforms, along with the old OBs, continuously waved their support items at the broadcasting cameras, shouting loudly.

On the edge of the stands, Lin Guanglai's family sat there too. Neither his parents nor his sister could sit there calmly—over ten thousand spectators were cheering for their son/brother, making them feel a shared sense of glory.

This is the finals, the Summer Koshien finals! Though taking the lead first doesn't guarantee a championship, after three full innings of silence with neither side getting on base, Waseda Real scoring first with a 2-run lead was enough to make their supporters happy for quite a while.

Moreover, when your team takes the lead, and the person standing on the pitcher's mound happens to be Lin Guanglai, how could you not have confidence in your team clinching this game?

Of course, in baseball games, especially ones like Takayama with an amateur nature, a 2-run lead is trivial; perhaps with one defensive error from Waseda Real, the score gap could be erased—just like Nakai Sonoki from Koushing Academy's bench encouraged his players:

"Everyone, don't be discouraged, it's just the 4th inning, and a 2-run gap is nothing—remember, what got this team to the finals!"

"In the next inning, the rotation will start from the heart of the lineup—" saying this, Nakai Sonoki paused and sternly looked at the two second-year players who performed poorly on the first at-bat: "Ryujou and Shuya, in the next half-inning, I want to see your real level, got it!"

Being called out by their coach, Tamura Ryujou and Kitajou Shuya both showed expressions of shame—as the core lineup, they were also dissatisfied with their hesitation and procrastination in the first at-bat, holding back frustration, eager to unleash it.

"Yes, Coach! We'll definitely turn the score around! You and everyone else, just watch!"

As the sides switched offense and defense, at the commentary box, a few commentators and guests responsible for the live broadcast chatted—being the main person last summer leading Japan High School Representative Team's expedition to the United States, Konan's Wakayama Yu naturally had a deep impression of Lin Guanglai, familiar with his technical characteristics.

But even a seasoned champion coach like him, personally coaching Lin Guanglai, was still amazed by the results delivered this summer, continually marveling:

"From that semifinal last summer, I've been thinking, if a player like Guanglai was born in Okinawa, it would've been great! Then he could join us at Konan High School!"

"I was thinking back then, if he were on our side, I'd even be confident in replicating the achievements of the PL Academy KK combo from 1983 to 1986—even surpassing their 5 tournaments, 2 championships, 2 runners-up, 1 semifinalist record!"

"But no matter how vivid my imagination is, I could never have guessed Guanglai could deliver such a performance in Koshien as a second-year student. Such stats, even for a high school student, are outstanding, let alone trying out for professional leagues now?"

"I suppose, maybe this is what we call a monster—after all, as the saying goes, monsters are born to break the norm!"

Wakayama Yu's words resonated with Maeda Masaji, as the two continued their discussion, further heating up the atmosphere of this game through topics surrounding Lin Guanglai.

The duo in the commentary box chatted energetically, yet Tanaka Shuji beside them uncharacteristically stayed out of the discussion; as the commentator who covered the most Waseda games this tournament, he would typically be the first to join such topics, but today he was unexpectedly silent.

For no other reason than this: Tanaka Shuji was poring over the technical statistics of the match so far, and upon confirming the information he wanted to see, an incredible conjecture formed in his mind—this guess was so bold that even just thinking about it seemed utterly impossible, causing his fingers to tremble slightly.

Of course, with just under half the game played, it was still a long way before this idea could materialize—fearful of ruining it due to personal reasons, Tanaka Shuji forcefully pushed this thought to the back of his mind and refocused on the game.

At the top of the fifth inning, it was Koushing Academy's turn to bat, with the lineup rotating from the fourth batter, Tamura Ryujou. This was the second at-bat for the second-year player—the first at-bat in the top of the second inning, he was easily struck out by Lin Guanglai, failing to demonstrate his expected capability.

In this at-bat, facing pitches from Lin Guanglai, Tamura Ryujou became more decisive compared to his previous hesitance. He swung with more intent, delivering a commendable performance.

However, baseball sometimes can be a frustrating sport, especially since batters inherently face disadvantages against pitchers.

Despite battling through six to seven pitches with Lin Guanglai, Tamura Ryujou ultimately couldn't succeed. His grounder didn't challenge Waseda's defense as Matsunaga Kenta fielded the ball and threw it securely into Hagiyama Mitsuo's glove.

Facing a similar situation, after his friend's out, Kitajou Shuya as the fifth batter knew he needed to step up for the team—and he really almost achieved that.

Catching a breaking ball with average control from Lin Guanglai, Shuya Kitajou struck it heavily into the ground, then it rolled past infield defenders toward the gap between first and second base. Seeing this powerful ground ball seemed about to pierce Waseda's infield defense, at first base, Hagiyama Mitsuo stepped up.

Facing a strong incoming ball, and noting pitcher Lin Guanglai quickly advancing for backup, confidently, Hagiyama Mitsuo adjusted his center of gravity, calculated the baseball's path, and swiftly lunged in its direction—his tall, robust body slamming into the ground, raising a cloud of dust in the infield.

"Pop." Hearing this crisp sound, Hagiyama Mitsuo felt a triumph in his heart.

This ball, secure!

Ensuring he securely fielded the ball, still not rising from the ground, he hurriedly adjusted his center of gravity and angle, tossing the ball towards Lin Guanglai who was covering first base—almost simultaneously with Shuya Kitajou stepping onto the base, the baseball landed into Lin Guanglai's glove.

Inside the field, all players' eyes focused on the first-base umpire, awaiting his decision—most remained calm because even if that play was ruled safe, it would only count as a single, not heavily impacting the situation.

However, Hagiyama Mitsuo, and Tanaka Shuji in the commentary box, did not share this sentiment.

Both kept a steady gaze on the umpire, only exhaling relief after seeing him declare the batter out, feeling a massive sense of relief.

But then, Tanaka Shuji's entire body began to tremble once again—that seemingly impossible thought returned to haunt his mind:

"Could it be...?"

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