Chapter 126

“Super Sylph! After a fierce battle, they have taken the first Set against Kamui!”

“What an incredible sight. Look at the Kamui players now. They look completely dumbfounded.”

The stadium roared at the completely unexpected turn of events.

And Kato, who had to accept the loss of the first Set, clenched her fists tight and screamed toward the sky, “Aaargh!”

‘You damn! Damn! Damn! Damn ghost bastard-!!!’

Until the very, very end.

Han Youngin had tormented Kamui by moving back and forth between Jung Yunseul and Seo Dami.

Especially when they used the Double Buff strategy, he had stayed with Seo Dami, drawing out the Power of the Ley Line to boost her destructive power to its absolute maximum.

So from Kato’s perspective, he couldn’t have been more detestable.

A completely unpredictable ghost was helping the opposing team.

While Kato Mikane was fuming.

The Super Sylph Waiting Room was in an absolute uproar.

“We won the first Set!”

Director Lee Gangseon was even more excited than the players.

Of course, the players were jumping up and down as well.

They had taken the first Set against none other than Kamui.

Although the score difference was only 5 points, not a huge margin, what mattered was the result: they had won.

Whether the score difference in a Deathmatch was 5 points or 50.

In the end, the result of winning the first Set was the same.

Now, only one Set remained until victory in the Semifinals.

Jung Yunseul said excitedly.

“Are we really going to win?!”

“Yeah. We’ll win.”

In this atmosphere, Han Youngin was also greatly encouraged.

After all, they had achieved victory on the Deathmatch Battlefield, which he had predicted would be the hardest, and perhaps even a loss.

He felt that in a Domination Battle or a One-on-One, where strategy played a bigger role, they could definitely take the second Set as well.

But that thought was fleeting.

The moment the second Set began, that hope was extinguished.

‘This is a Foul!’

‘Your very existence is the Foul.’

The second Set Battlefield was the Garden of the Gods, a Domination Battle.

Here, facing the ghost once more, Kato extended her hand forward and launched an offensive, as if to say she wouldn’t hold back anymore.

Kato Mikane, extending her hand into empty air.

Watching her, the Spectators couldn’t help but tilt their heads.

She wasn’t using a Skill.

What was the meaning of that pose, extending her palm toward an opponent?

Was she firing some kind of invisible energy blast?

Well, since it was Kato doing it, it must have some meaning.

That was the extent of the Spectators’ thoughts.

But in reality, its power was completely different.

Every time Kato extended her hand, a scene unfolded where Seo Dami’s movements would slow, and she would be beaten down repeatedly.

<Wh-what do we do?>

‘I didn’t expect this either…’

Unlike the first Set, Super Sylph began to crumble whenever they entered a one-on-one Engagement.

The reason was simple.

Every time Kato moved her hand, Han Youngin’s Power of the Ley Line would scatter.

He guessed it was something shamanistic, but Han Youngin didn’t know how to counter a technique he had never seen before.

Even in an equal situation where they could both use the Power of the Ley Line, they were barely holding their own, but now that his power was sealed, the gap had widened once more.

‘Ugh.’

And that wasn’t all.

That hand, invisible to the Spectators.

Every time Kato Mikane’s hand was extended, Han Youngin would break out in a cold sweat, feeling pain.

The power tormenting him was undoubtedly contained in Kato’s hand.

“Puhehe. How does it taste!”

Excited, Kato unleashed a continuous barrage of attacks on Han Youngin, who was powerless like a sick chicken.

This hand gesture contained the art of Exorcism, a technique that left Han Youngin, in his ghost state, completely helpless.

‘Do I have to give up the second Set like this…?’

The tide had already turned.

In this moment, Han Youngin was searching for any way to win.

Giving up the second Set just like this was not the right answer.

It was true that it would be difficult to turn this Set around, but if they could at least drain the opponent’s Stamina as much as possible, they could try to induce a slip-up in the next Set.

Didn’t they still have the chance of a third Set?

He had no intention of backing down before he had poured out everything he could.

“Let’s try to retake the Point Gauge one more time. Their Mana levels are a bit down too.”

“One more time…?”

“It’ll be tough for them too. From now on, it’s a battle of mental strength.”

Encouraging his sweating teammates, Han Youngin prepared for another Attack.

If they could push Kamui, who had a firm grip on the Control Point, back to their base one more time, they could drag the game on for at least a few more minutes.

<Oppa. Will you be okay?>

Seo Dami asked cautiously.

She was worried about Han Youngin.

Sharing one body and its senses, Seo Dami was also feeling the pain Han Youngin was experiencing right now.

Every time Kato made a move, she was shouldering the pain inflicted on his Spirit Body as well.

And that pain was so intense it was enough to drain a person’s very soul.

Seo Dami felt it keenly.

Just how much he was struggling right now.

This wasn’t just a physical burden; the mental anguish was also at its peak, making it incredibly difficult.

<If it’s too hard, let’s just give them the second Set. We can aim for the next one.>

‘No. We won’t win that way. We have to do it here.’

<…I understand.>

‘I’ll go in for the final Attack with Yunseuli. We just need to push them out of the Control Point, anyway.’

If he couldn’t use the Power of the Ley Line, playing the game with Jung Yunseul was strategically stronger than running with Seo Dami.

Seo Dami had absorbed almost all of his know-how, but Jung Yunseul hadn’t had enough time to learn.

<Oppa.>

‘Yeah?’

<Don’t overdo it. Okay.>

‘Got it.’

Preparing for the final Attack, Han Youngin let out a shout of Fighting Spirit.

Let’s just take down Kato, no matter what.

The Attack began with that single-minded focus.

If they failed here, given the remaining Point Gauge, Super Sylph would have no more chances this Set.

The final Attack, bringing in even Park Chaerin who had been out on the perimeter as a Sweeper.

However, as if they knew Super Sylph would come out like this, Kamui formed up to meet them, leaving the Control Point and charging out to run rampant.

They launched a First Strike, as if to deny them even the chance to enter the Control Point.

“No, you don’t. No, you don’t. You little amateur ghost.”

Kato Mikane charged forward with a terrifying smile.

At that demonic grin, both Han Youngin and Jung Yunseul.

The moment they felt a slight chill, Kato used Blink to close the distance.

‘Blink here?’

<She shouldn’t have the Mana!>

Han Youngin and Jung Yunseul were greatly surprised.

The reason Super Sylph hadn’t given up and had decided to try one more Attack on the Control Point was because of the opponent’s remaining Mana.

The Kamui players had already used up a fair amount of Mana in the last Engagement.

Naturally, they shouldn’t have had enough Mana to leisurely attack while also using Blink, yet Kato Mikane had exploited that assumption, closing the distance with a Blink.

‘I don’t know what she’s thinking, but I’ll take her down right here!’

Han Youngin dodged Kato Mikane as she rushed into his arms, taking a Backstep and aiming his Rifle.

Considering Kato Mikane’s Mana state, she wouldn’t be able to put up a Shield to block.

As he pulled the Trigger, the Arclight Rifle shot a blue beam of light toward Kato.

Kato Mikane, with no Mana to deploy a Shield, could definitely be taken down here.

At this range, it would be impossible to dodge, no matter if the opponent used the Power of the Ley Line.

Han Youngin thought.

But that was also fleeting.

The Spectators rose to their feet like a swarm of bees, chanting Kato’s name.

-Woooooah!!!!

-Kato!

-Kato!

-Kato!

-The Great Emperor Kato!

-As expected! You are the strongest in UA!

It was the first time.

The first time Kato Mikane had wielded her Lightsaber in today’s match.

No, even looking back through Kato Mikane’s entire career since her debut as a UA Pro Gamer, it was a sight rarely ever seen.

Drawing her Lightsaber from her hip like a bolt of lightning, Kato Mikane deflected the Rifle shot and launched a Counter in return.

Her Lightsaber was unique, with a blade extending below the hilt as well, so with the long beams of light extending up and down, it looked as if she were wielding a spear.

With a sound of the air being menacingly displaced, Kato Mikane swung her Lightsaber, imbuing it with the power of Exorcism and striking Jung Yunseul’s body.

“Uwaaack!”

With a loud bang, Jung Yunseul was sent flying.

It was the moment Super Sylph’s final Attack ended in failure.

‘Damn it.’

It was an excruciating pain.

A pain comparable to when he was hit by the fan Kato had wielded on Jeju Island long ago.

‘She’s really determined to send someone to the afterlife.’

He wondered if his Soul itself was about to be shattered.

He even thought that maybe a crack had actually formed somewhere.

If a Soul could crack, he was sure it would have.

That’s how terrifying Kato’s attack just now had been.

The final Attack had failed.

I had no choice but to tell Yunseuli that we’d do better in the next Set.

“Buh-buh-.”

Hmm?

But something was strange.

The words wouldn’t come out properly.

I had been communicating my thoughts just fine, so why was this problem suddenly happening?

Sensing something was wrong, I focused my consciousness more on my surroundings.

Then, my eyelids fluttered, and at the same time, my closed ears opened.

“Kamui completely suppresses Super Sylph’s Momentum and takes the second Set!”

“It seems the shock was huge for the Super Sylph players. They look completely out of it.”

“But what’s wrong with player Jung Yunseul? She’s holding onto player Seo Dami and urgently discussing something.”

“I’m not sure. Are they reviewing what went wrong with their strategy?”

The voices of the Broadcast Team, reporting on the situation in the Arena, came through clearly.

But those voices weren’t supposed to be audible to a player in the Waiting Room.

In other words, the very fact that I was hearing the Broadcast Team’s commentary was something that shouldn’t be happening.

‘What in the world…?’

My fluttering eyelids gradually calmed, and I found myself facing a white ceiling.

It was a somehow familiar ceiling.

Where have I seen this ceiling before?

Ah, I saw it when I came to the hospital with Dami.

Uh…?

On the wall-mounted TV in the hospital room, our game was being broadcast.

And sitting next to me, watching it, was my father.

‘Father?’

My surprise at this situation was brief.

My father slapped his knee, lamenting Super Sylph’s defeat.

“Aigoo, our Dami… What’s she going to do, losing like that. Kamui really isn’t easy.”

My father let out a deep sigh.

I already knew from Dami that our family had become Super Sylph fans.

But what my father said next was something completely absent from my data.

“Youngin, you, when did you get such a pretty girlfriend…? Huh?”

My father turned his head, and our eyes met.

A moment of silence flowed between us.

I hadn’t moved my head, but I had clearly moved my gaze to meet my father’s.

And my father, as if unable to immediately comprehend the situation, rubbed his eyes and checked my face again.

A moment later, with a cry of “Aaargh!”, my father grabbed my cheeks.

“Youngin! You’re awake! Uheong!”

“Ue-eh…”

I tried to say ‘Yes,’ but because I hadn’t spoken for so long, my pronunciation was all garbled.

“Doc, Doctor!”

My father pressed the call bell, calling for a doctor.

The hospital room erupted into chaos.

My father cried while looking for the doctor and made calls here and there.

‘Why of all times…?’

It had been a long time.

From that summer of ’74 when I happened to meet Dami, until now.

Roughly two and a half years.

I had finally awoken from a long sleep and returned to reality.

Not as a ghost who had to share a body with someone, but as the UA Pro Gamer, Han Youngin.

But why now, of all times?

“Mr. Han Youngin. Are you conscious? Look at this.”

“It, it’s moving! I’m sure of it! He’s regained consciousness! He’s fully awake!”

“It’s a miracle! A miracle!”

“Younginaaa-!”

The doctor waved a finger left and right, checking my consciousness.

And the nurses, unable to contain their amazement, saying how could such a thing happen.

And my father, still sobbing.

Amidst this chaos, all my attention was focused on the TV.

The game wasn’t over yet.

If only I had been given a little more time as a ghost.

If so, I would have somehow bolstered my will to fight alongside the kids!

Hey. You’re blocking the view, move aside!

I mentally raged at the hospital staff who were forming a human wall and constantly blocking the TV.

On the TV.

Dami and Yunseuli were facing the third Set with grave expressions.

Their faces, unable to hide their bewilderment.

To my eyes, they looked like sailors who had lost their way, adrift on the vast ocean without a captain.