Chapter 21

‘Ah, it’s been too long since I’ve felt this way.’

Before the one-on-one duel, Park Chaerin was smirking in the game’s Waiting Room.

This situation was a picture she couldn’t have loved more.

Competing against someone who was thoroughly pissed off.

And on top of that, the loser buys a meal or grants a wish.

A small bet would be the icing on the cake.

To wager something and settle the score with that person through a game.

She had always thought that there weren’t many things in life as fun as this.

But after she debuted as a Pro Gamer, it became rare to find someone who would stubbornly insist on their point to the end, demanding a skill check like in the old days.

Even if some upstart did challenge her, they would usually tuck their tail and run the moment she suggested a bet.

Everyone was like that.

Most people felt immense pressure from her title as a First Division League Pro Gamer.

But today was different.

She couldn’t even remember the last time she’d seen such a fresh catch.

The big fish’s name was Seo Dami, a player who had been in the Third Division until this year and had received an Offer for the Second Division League after showing good results.

‘She even got angry and spoke informally to me.’

Recalling the scene from a moment ago, Park Chaerin started laughing instead of getting angry.

In the game she originally played, Park Chaerin’s standing was by no means low.

No, in fact, it was high.

She had even been on the preliminary national team Entry and stayed at the Athletes’ Village.

Her skills improved, and she gained experience.

Having been in this scene for so long, there were no longer any kids who would look at her with a challenging gaze.

Whatever happened, it was always, “Unni, I’m sorry. It was my fault.”

They were just busy bowing their heads.

‘Geez. Why do kids these days have no fighting spirit?’

In truth, it would be strange for a player to say, “I’m pissed off, so let’s fight!” to a veteran Sunbae who had been through the wringer in the industry… but anyway, that’s what Park Chaerin thought.

But this kid was different.

Not only did she flare up and say she’d do anything if she lost, but she also shrieked that if she won, I had to write an apology.

Park Chaerin was genuinely impressed by that sight.

A kid like this still exists!

She was a raw-feeling player, the kind Park Chaerin hadn’t seen since her amateur days.

‘Now, she just needs one more thing.’

Skill.

She had already confirmed the pretty face at their first meeting.

Seo Dami was a player who could capture the Spectators’ attention with her first impression.

If she had a strong sense of self and the skills to back it up, she was a talent destined for great success.

‘And it’s no fun if she’s bad.’

What if she finally met a talent she liked, but her skills were terrible?

That would be like a hollow shell.

Park Chaerin sincerely hoped that Seo Dami possessed the skills to threaten her.

In fact, over the past few days, while she was testing whether it was okay for her to make a pro debut, this game called Universe Arena didn’t seem difficult at all.

She had always been a Sniper.

Maybe because she had held a gun for so long, but she had no difficulty adapting to UA.

It was just a game of shooting well and hitting targets well, just as she had done her whole life.

‘So show me. Show me if this game is worth getting that angry about, if it’s really something special.’

Having completed her weapon Setup, Park Chaerin stood before the door of the Waiting Room.

The countdown began.

As the match started, the Waiting Room door opened, and she leaped onto the Battlefield.

Her face was a mixture of excitement and joy.

A tiger does its best even when catching a rabbit.

Of course, you have to see for yourself whether the opponent is a real rabbit or not.

When I jumped into the Battlefield, it was the familiar interior of a spaceship.

Starship Enterprise.

A One-on-One rule, a Battlefield where you had to win two consecutive Rounds by scoring first.

‘We’re on the attack first.’

The Enterprise Map, where battles unfold inside a massive Space Battleship, meant the Attacking Team wins by entering the Bridge and capturing the system.

The Defending Team loses if they are breached.

In the process, one had to pass through a long corridor section with a High-Speed Rail, and I calculated that if I could just get through there, I could comfortably take control of the game.

<The opponent’s position is Sniper. Won’t it be tricky to break through?>

As I ran toward the Bridge, Seo Dami showed a worried expression.

Park Chaerin’s position was Sniper.

It was a sub-class of the Attacker position, but unlike a typical Attacker who fights with an assault Rifle, a Sniper mainly focuses on long-range sniping and backup, so they weren’t called an Attacker but were specifically referred to as a Sniper.

It was also a position where the skill gap was particularly noticeable, to the point where it was said that a Sniper with good aim was a grim reaper unto themselves.

The problem was that Enterprise was a long, corridor-like Map.

A long, straight Battlefield was the perfect environment for a Sniper to run wild.

It was a situation that Seo Dami had every right to be concerned about.

<You have to win.>

‘Don’t worry. If by some chance I lose, I’ll figure something out.’

<What are you saying, that’s a bad omen!>

‘During the Off-Season, a lot of players do internet broadcasts. With my Performance and your looks, Dami… we might be able to rake in the cash.’

<Don’t joke around. You really have to win!>

Dami shrieked, saying that I couldn’t make excuses like retiring pathetically after losing.

Of course, I was joking.

Because I fully intended to win.

Whether the opponent was a First Division League player or whatever, this was my Battlefield.

I had no intention of losing, not even as a joke, to someone who just dipped their toes in from another game and said this one was too easy or low-level.

‘No need to worry too much. It might have been a bit tricky in a formal game, but this is a one-on-one.’

No matter how much of a god-like accuracy the opponent boasted, with only one body, it was impossible to block all Routes.

Especially in the case of Enterprise, there was a High-Speed Rail corridor on both the left and right, so there was bound to be a gap in the defense.

If I could rush through the side the opponent wasn’t guarding first, I could smoothly control the game.

<What if I’m unlucky and the opponent reads my direction?>

‘I’ll think about that when it happens.’

<……>

In a One-on-One rule, the Attacking Team has a time limit of five minutes.

If they fail to achieve the victory condition within five minutes, it means an automatic win for the Defending Team.

But despite that, I moved cautiously.

I had to take today’s game slowly.

I had no information on the opponent.

What weapons did she use, what was her playstyle, what were her favorite skills or her proficiency with them?

When you have no information like that, you can’t be too careful.

If I were to lose the first Round to a blind supershot snipe, the rest of the game could become a one-sided steamroll.

‘As you already know, powerful weapons all have their drawbacks.’

In UA, all Skills, weapons, and equipment are balanced.

If one gun has high damage per shot and another has low damage.

Is the high-damage gun always better?

No.

The answer is that it depends on the situation.

If a gun is that powerful, its Recoil might be too strong to control, it might be heavy to carry, or its Magazine Capacity might be low, causing it to lack staying power in an Engagement with multiple enemies.

And in the case of Sniper Rifles used by Snipers.

Since their power is refined to the extreme, there was always a gap between the first and second shot.

‘So in today’s game, it’s best to avoid getting hit by the first shot as much as possible.’

The corridor was silent.

It was impossible to tell by sight or sound whether Park Chaerin was at the other end or not.

Clever.

Instead of advertising her location, she was hiding and waiting for me to charge.

She seemed quite confident in her aim.

Popping out from behind a wall like that to hit a mid-to-long-range shot is by no means an easy feat.

This was especially true for long-range sniping.

The farther the target, the more you need to lie down or kneel to hit it accurately.

You have to steady your posture and control your breathing to increase your accuracy.

But the fact that she chose to hide and adapt to the situation could be interpreted as her shot Balance being so good that she could hit me no matter how she fired.

‘Then let’s see how she comes out.’

I stopped moving, opened a door to the side, and looked inside an office.

It wasn’t just this Battlefield; all of UA’s Maps were like this, with great detail.

The Atika Temple really looked like a temple built on a desert star.

Boundary looked just like a city ruined by war.

And in the case of this Enterprise, it felt like a place that future soldiers somewhere in space would have actually used.

I picked up a pair of spare military boots from the nameless office.

Then I carried them out and stood in front of the rail.

<What are you going to do with the boots?>

‘Do you know why Universe Arena is difficult?’

<So suddenly?>

Even so, Seo Dami listed the difficult aspects of UA one by one.

Shooting proficiency, the Stamina needed for a Prolonged Battle, the vast number of Skills, and the time it took to master them all.

The list of difficulties was endless.

‘Now, I’ll show you one of the reasons why it’s difficult. It’s one of the things you just mentioned.’

As light flashed from my hand, I tied the boots to the handle of the left rail with a lace.

Then I moved to the opposite side and prepared to ride the right rail.

With a whirring sound, the High-Speed Rail activated.

The left side with the boots went first.

I counted the seconds silently as I waited.

‘One second… two seconds… five seconds, now!’

Judging the time was right, I pulled the handle, and the right rail shot forward quickly as well.

The rail’s travel speed was so fast that I would arrive soon.

Now, Park Chaerin had to make a decision.

Which side to block first.

She could run to the left, which seemed like it would arrive first.

But in cases of a Fake, the real one is often the opposite side that arrives later.

In fact, wasn’t I holding onto the right rail right now?

It was then.

The boots on the opposite rail fell from the handle as if they were a real person and started making footsteps, tatatat!

<That sound just now…>

Seo Dami, quite surprised herself, was asking what that sound was when a loud bang pierced through the opposite corridor, echoing.

Along with a gruff curse, “What the fuck is this!”

‘This is why Universe Arena is difficult.’

Who in the world would have imagined there’d be a Skill that doesn’t enhance a weapon or increase Shield power, but simply makes a pair of shoes run while making footstep sounds?

This was the reason people said it was impossible for an individual to master all of UA’s Skills.

While Park Chaerin was baited by the footsteps and wasted her precious first attack opportunity, I reached the end of the corridor.

I came face to face with Park Chaerin, who was looking at me with an annoyed expression.

You’re dead!

Acceleration, and then a charge.

The Acceleration, with Advanced Mode activated, closed the distance at an incredible speed.

There was a considerable distance between the ends of the two corridors, so if it had been a Rifle, there would have been enough reason to counterattack even after shooting the boots, but it wasn’t easy with a Sniper Rifle.

Especially if she was using a powerful weapon like Park Chaerin.

‘There’s a window of at least 0.3 seconds.’

No matter what kind of fit the opponent threw, I could strike first before she could shoot me.

But it was then.

Park Chaerin twisted the Timing that should have been impossible to hit.

In the world of Acceleration, my eyes widened, and I felt a chill run down my spine.

A person who had supposedly only touched the game for about two weeks was using Advanced Mode and starting to increase her acceleration efficiency.

‘Right. So you do have the skills to be so arrogant, huh?’

Tatang-!

As I fired a two-shot Burst Fire from my Rifle, the bullets accurately hit her thigh and Abdomen.

“Kuh!”

Park Chaerin’s concentration, which she had been forcibly creating for a turn that shouldn’t have come, broke.

The Arclight Rifle I used was an incredibly powerful weapon for a Rifle.

It was a weapon that you couldn’t just tank with your body.

Her body swayed from the powerful impact, and Park Chaerin was pushed back.

The shot to her thigh went straight through, while the attack aimed at her Abdomen was blocked by her gun.

“Nice Reflexes-!”

I snarled at Park Chaerin and jumped as if to fly.

With a thud, I kicked her gun away, and Park Chaerin let out a grunt, stumbling backward.

Losing her balance, Park Chaerin staggered.

I used Acceleration once more to charge into her arms, delivering a powerful greeting with a body shot.

‘First hit!’

With a crack, Park Chaerin let out a croak and bent her upper body.

In UA, there was no pain from being shot by a gun or stabbed with a Lightsaber, but unarmed combat was an exception.

Since the liver blow had landed properly, Park Chaerin must be feeling excruciating pain.

Still, UA was merciful.

In Gaia, the game Park Chaerin had mainly played, they said you felt the full pain even when hit by magic.

A punch to the gut is better than being roasted by fire, right?

Park Chaerin, while gagging, tried to cling to me to create some breathing room.

Her grit was good, but that alone wasn’t enough to stop my Chain Attack.

I pushed away Park Chaerin, who was aiming for a clinch, with a kick and rained down punches again.

Under the barrage of heavy punches, she eventually couldn’t hold on and collapsed.

Did she think I couldn’t do Close-Quarters Combat just because it was a gun game?

Park Chaerin, dazed from the pain, couldn’t even use all her Mana before her Health Bar burst.

I was a little surprised in the middle, but the result was as expected.

“Ah! That feels so much better!”

The self-proclaimed expert, Park Chaerin, whose Health Bar was depleted while she just screamed.

It felt like a huge weight had been lifted off my chest.

“You cruel bitch… You could have just used the gun!”

“Well, I was in a bad mood because someone was treating my life’s game like trash.”

“Haa…”

Park Chaerin let out a sigh.

The result of the disciplinary match was my victory, with a Round score of 2:0.

At the start of the second Round.

Park Chaerin had burned with a pro’s fighting spirit, raising her Momentum as if to kill me.

There was certainly a heart-stopping moment when she saw through my Fake and fired a shot that flew at me.

Of course, she was still no match for me.

The battle in the millisecond world, waged with Acceleration and even Blink, was by no means easy.

I displayed the maximum skill possible with Seo Dami’s current body and literally overwhelmed Park Chaerin, putting an end to this Deathmatch.

“Alright, I lost, I lost.”

“Go and write that apology properly.”

“I was going to write it anyway, you know? But your hands are heavy. I thought I was playing against a guy.”

“……!”

“Ah-. The spot where I got hit still aches.”

Park Chaerin said.

She had played an Artillery Master in Gaia because she hated getting hit, but she never thought she’d get hit in UA.

“You said you were in the Third Division League last year and this year.”

“Yes.”

“How is that possible…? Aren’t you exceptionally good?”

Park Chaerin said that no matter how different the games were, there was no way our country was overflowing with so much talent that a player with my skills would be in the Third Division League.

In truth, if I hadn’t entered Seo Dami’s body, Dami wouldn’t have been able to beat Park Chaerin even if she died and came back to life, but I spoke as if it were nothing.

“Our game has that high of a skill ceiling~. So don’t ever look down on Universe Arena again. Got it?”

“Yeah… Sorry for looking down on it.”

Park Chaerin accepted the result of the match cleanly.

She also said she would write the apology and post it online when she got home.

Maybe she wasn’t as bad a person as I thought…?

While I was revising my assessment of Park Chaerin.

Coach Kim Seohan, who had been watching the match, approached.

<Look at the Coach’s face. Serves him right.>

The Coach must have grasped the situation by now.

He had seen with his own two eyes who the superior player was.

With an awkward expression, Coach Kim Seohan told me I’d worked hard and urged me to leave.

It would be strange for him to ask me to reconsider the offer now, and he probably judged that if he did, he might lose Park Chaerin, whom he had barely managed to secure.

Well, I had no more business here either, so I was about to turn and leave when Park Chaerin said something shocking.

“Coach. I’ll be leaving now, too. Please look for someone else for the contract.”

“Excuse me? No, what do you mean by that, Chaerin!”

“I mean, come on. I lost to a player who played in the Third Division this year… not even the Second. What kind of pro can I be?”

Park Chaerin said.

Her spirit was broken today.

If she lost to a young player like Seo Dami, what would the other veteran players be like?

She felt she had looked down on the UA Pro Scene too much.

So she was asking to call off the contract.

At Park Chaerin’s declaration, Coach Kim Seohan staggered and clung to her.

Begging her to please reconsider.

That the only reason you lost today was because Seo Dami has more experience in the Pro Scene, and that you were by no means outmatched in terms of Talent.

“Coach. By the time I’ve gained all that experience, I’ll be thirty. Once I make a decision, I don’t change my mind, so please don’t make me repeat myself.”

“Player Park Chaerin! Chaerin!”

Park Chaerin left the Meeting Room.

She waved at me and said her goodbyes, saying we should see each other again if we get the chance.

Coming and going, she was like the wind.

‘This is unexpected…?’

<I know, right?>

‘Well, whatever. Should we eat out for dinner before heading back?’

<Sounds great!>

Whatever delicious food I ate, Dami could taste it just the same.

Just as I was thinking that I should eat out for the first time in a while and contact Super Sylph to ask what happened with the Order change, Coach Kim Seohan, who had failed to hold on to Park Chaerin, returned to the Team House with dejected steps.

“Uhm. Player Seo Dami. This situation has become quite ridiculous, but….”

<Wow. Surely he’s not going to ask you to join them now, is he?>

‘I think he is.’

With a look on his face like he’d lost everything, Coach Kim Seohan proposed that I reconsider.

He even added that he would somehow raise my Annual Salary to match 500 million Won.

Wait, even after raising it, it’s still less than Park Chaerin’s? How insulting.

Of course, I had no intention of playing for this team even if he had offered 600 million.

I looked at the groveling Coach Kim Seohan and said.

“I’m sorry.”

“Huh?”

“For making you drag this out, unable to make a decision on such an exceptional offer~.”

“……”

“I hope a player more outstanding than I am will take the great contract you’ve proposed. Well then, I’ll be going.”

I got up and left without a second thought.

There was also a message that had arrived while I was playing with Park Chaerin.

-Would you be able to stop by the Team House again when you have a moment? We have decided to change the Order, so I believe we can have a good discussion.

A single text message, looking for me.

It seemed the team that would be taking this year’s most talked-about FA Big Fish had been decided.