Chapter 33

“Wow. A pro who gets mentioned a lot is definitely different.”

“I’ll enjoy the stream.”

“Good luck with your climb!”

Normally, in a Rank Game, everyone would just disappear without a word after a match, but today was a little different.

My teammates seemed satisfied with the victory, and each of them offered a word of blessing before leaving.

Chen Sui watched them with her arms crossed.

Her face looked somewhat dissatisfied.

‘A kid’s a kid.’

It was a face that screamed, ‘Why aren’t you praising me?’

Why, you ask?

Because you didn’t do anything particularly well.

No… Still, was her charge in the second Round not bad?

She did get credit for finishing off Kim Seunga, who was floundering after getting caught in a Trap.

Good game today. Have fun.

I was about to say a light goodbye and leave when Chen Sui stopped me.

“Hey…!”

“……?”

“Add me as a friend.”

Ah.

It seemed she was so impressed by my amazing Order that she wanted to Duo with me.

But what to do.

I’m more comfortable playing alone.

In reality, my score increases faster in Solo Rank.

That’s because playing in a Duo lowers your Contribution Score.

I was about to apologize and say we could play together next time, but something completely different came out of Chen Sui’s mouth.

“How long have you been playing with your current team?”

“My current team?”

It’s only been a little over a month since I started living with Super Sylph.

When I told her I had just transferred, Chen Sui showed a hint of disappointment.

“What about your contract period? Ah, by the way, I’m streaming, so filter out any sensitive information yourself.”

“It’s not really sensitive since everyone knows from the news articles, but… why are you curious about that?”

Are you perhaps making me an Offer? I asked playfully, and Chen Sui nodded with a very serious face, saying yes.

For real?

Not a joke?

When I asked if she was being serious, Chen Sui nodded her head vigorously.

At that, both I and the Chat fell into a moment of confusion.

-What’s the situation right now?

-Isn’t Chen Sui on Shanghai Cheonhwa?

-Cheonhwa made an Offer to General Seo?

-Oh no, you can’t!

-If we lose our Dami, the Second Division League is doomed!

-It’s not the League that’s doomed, it’s Super Sylph lol

-Anyway, don’t go!!!

-We’re sorry. We’ll do better….

The ones making the biggest fuss were the Super Sylph fans.

Thanks to my recent Climbing Game, my standing in Super Sylph was solidifying day by day.

Although I was a Second Division player, I had showcased overwhelming skill and reached the Upper Bracket of Grandmaster in one go.

It was only natural, as I had planted the expectation that I might actually achieve the Legendary Tier.

No fan would want to lose such a Talent who had appeared as if dropped from the sky.

But the problem was that the team that made the Offer was Cheonhwa.

I wasn’t an expert on women’s teams, but Shanghai Cheonhwa was at least one of the top five teams in Asia.

Although their performance fluctuated as players came and went, in their prime, they were a team that reached the UA World Championship Main Round as if it were nothing.

They were one of the few teams in the world that could be called prestigious, and a team like that had made me an Offer.

“You might say, ‘What is a kid who just became a Starter talking about,’ but this is just how our team is.”

Chen Sui said.

The Cheonhwa team, when recruiting new players, apparently placed great importance on people their current team members knew, on personal recommendations.

She said she herself had joined after being recommended by a now-retired player and taking a test.

“I’m saying this because I think someone of your level would do well enough in the Chinese League. You said you just transferred, so we can’t play together right away, but… if the opportunity arises, I hope you’ll remember that you had an Offer like this.”

-Wow, I heard Chen Sui’s Annual Salary is 1.5 billion?

-A kid who just became a Starter has an Annual Salary of 1.5 billion?

-The market size in China really is on another level.

I was a bit surprised by the 1.5 billion figure.

I was well aware that China had a large market and paid high salaries, but spending 1.5 billion on a player who would be a Starter for the first time next year was unexpected.

To think that Chen Sui, who was just debuting, had the same Annual Salary as my last one.

‘Well, the market has been pumping up more recently…’

It hadn’t been long since the UA market had started to gain momentum rapidly.

A few years ago.

UA, at a time when it had just started running the League, was a market lacking in everything, from the number of Users to its recognition.

Players who started their pro careers early in such a period often retired without ever touching big money, despite having more than enough skill.

In that respect, the players active now were blessed.

The League was now self-sufficient enough, and they could enjoy the benefits of an expanded market.

I was, strictly speaking, a case caught in the middle.

It was only two years ago that my Annual Salary had surpassed 1 billion Won.

And after that, it grew more to reach 1.5 billion.

If I had played this Season well, there probably would have been another raise.

Considering the Magnus team’s situation, it wouldn’t have been enough to jump past 2 billion in one go, but there would have been a definite increase.

Thinking about that made me feel quite regretful.

Now that I was lying in a hospital bed like an unfilial child, I thought I should have earned a lot of money while I could.

<Oppa.>

‘Hm?’

<You can take my Annual Salary. I only got this far thanks to you…!>

Perhaps because my regret was so strong for a moment, Dami suddenly told me to take her Annual Salary.

Being able to share our inner thoughts without speaking was sometimes troublesome in moments like these.

Because sometimes, things I had no intention of saying would get conveyed.

‘I was just thinking about it because Chen Sui’s Annual Salary is the same as mine. Don’t take it seriously!’

<You can really take it though…>

I waved my hand, saying that wasn’t it, why would I take her Annual Salary.

Then I replied to Chen Sui.

I thanked her for the good Offer.

I said I would not forget and would consider it if the opportunity arose.

Seemingly satisfied with my answer, Chen Sui smiled and nodded.

“Then since this is fate, wanna Duo?”

Oh, dear.

Surely she wasn’t aiming for this, was she? I thought.

Tiring- A notification sound for a friend request popped up.

I thought Chen Sui had sent it, but it wasn’t her.

A P Mark.

A friend request from a Verified Account, signifying a Pro License.

‘Why you, too?’

The one who sent the friend request was none other than Kim Seunga.

The atmosphere on the stream that day was incredibly heated.

A public Offer made during the broadcast.

From the Chinese First Division League team, Shanghai Cheonhwa.

And from the domestic First Division League team, Artemis. It was all thanks to receiving recruitment proposals from both at the same time.

-You have Talent.

That’s what Kim Seunga, the National Representative, said to me.

And her words were enough to set the Chat on fire.

In what world does a League’s National Representative publicly praise a Second Division player, saying they have Talent?

No, of course, she could have said it as lip service.

But after that, Kim Seunga even asked if I had any intention of joining Artemis after my contract ended… At this point, it couldn’t be dismissed as a simple joke.

-What the ;;;

-There’s a Second Division player getting Offers from both Cheonhwa and Artemis at the same time?

-I’m so anxious…

-I wanted Dami to do well, but I didn’t want her to do this well…

-You’re not going to abandon us, right? Right?

-Came here after hearing the news.

-I hear you have a fine Prospect here ^^7

-Is this the successor Seunga has her eye on?

-She’s pretty.

-She looks like she belongs in Artemis.

-General Seo is ours! Get lost!

Kim Seunga, who had thrown so much fuel on the fire, also said she had something to ask me.

I had a rough idea of what she was going to say, and as expected, I was right.

-Why did you Rush the center earlier without even leaving a backup?

To be honest, the second Round earlier wasn’t a very normal game.

It was closer to an all-or-nothing gamble.

As any pro player would be, most of them absolutely loathed it when a game was blown because of such a gamble.

They couldn’t easily accept losing ridiculously when they could have won with a proper fight.

But I was a bit different.

I believed that if you demand perfection in a game, you shouldn’t look for the cause in others but first exert everything you can do yourself.

If, in the previous game, Kim Seunga had requested a Trap check before approaching the center.

Or if she had paid more attention, she could have handled it.

Of course, that didn’t mean Kim Seunga was an unskilled player.

If this game had been a match played as the Artemis Team instead of Solo Rank, Kim Seunga wouldn’t have fallen into a Trap.

But Solo Rank isn’t a place where only meticulous people like pros gather.

I aimed for that point and judged that I had a good chance of winning.

The different gaming tendencies between Korea and China also played a big part in this.

As soon as she heard my all-in Rush idea, Chen Sui supported my opinion, saying it sounded good.

If Koreans demand perfect play in a game, the Chinese prefer to push their strengths rather than bothering to compensate for their weaknesses, especially favoring aggressive play.

“They already lost the first Round. They’ll play more defensively, so this Strategy will definitely work!”

Chen Sui said, as if she had read my mind.

This is why who gets the first Score is so important in every game.

The side pushed to the brink has nowhere to retreat, making it difficult to use bold moves or launch an aggressive offense.

On the other hand, the winning side has a surplus of Life, allowing them to aim for a wider variety of moves.

Just like today.

“Unni, I saw you play during the Asian Games.”

As I started to speak, the Chat jumped as if struck by lightning.

They must have thought I was about to bring up that incident in front of Kim Seunga.

No, am I a psycho?

Would I really say, ‘So this is why the National Representative is no good!’ here?

I snorted once and gave Kim Seunga the answer she wanted to hear.

“I felt like I couldn’t win if I didn’t do this.”

-You couldn’t win without making a gamble?

“That’s how it usually is. The longer the game goes, the higher the Win Rate for the side with solid fundamentals, so wouldn’t I naturally be at a disadvantage in a Prolonged Battle?”

I subtly embellished Kim Seunga’s skills.

I saw her at the Asian Games and knew she was a good player from the start.

When I said I did it because I didn’t think I could win easily without using such an unreasonable move, she readily agreed.

This person is so transparent.

We were talking through Chat, so I couldn’t see her face, but I had a feeling Kim Seunga’s lips were curling up into a smile.

“I also thought it would be physically draining if it dragged on longer.”

This wasn’t an embellishment; it was the truth.

I could overpower her in a Short Battle, but in Seo Dami’s still-incomplete state, fighting a Prolonged Battle with Kim Seunga was a burden.

That’s why I tried it.

A powerful punch that I thought had a pretty high chance of success, taking into account Kim Seunga’s original play style and the Solo Rank environment.

-That might have been a difficult question to answer, so thank you for telling me.

“Not at all. Thank you for the good Offer.”

-Ah, right. Can I ask just one more thing?

Hm? Is there something else to ask?

I told her to go ahead, and a question that made me jump flew in.

-What’s your relationship with Youngin Oppa?

<……!>

I was surprised, and Dami was surprised too.

On the other hand, the Viewers watching the stream were suddenly full of question marks.

-Who is Youngin Oppa?

-A hidden boyfriend?

-Who is Youngin…!

As the Viewers were murmuring, Kim Seunga added.

-Magnus team’s Han Youngin. You don’t know him?

Then, a player who recognized the name appeared in the Chat.

-Ah, there was a guy like that.

-Isn’t he the player who’s in the hospital after an accident?

-But why bring up Han Youngin all of a sudden?

-The Magnus team sometimes talks about it. That General Seo’s play is similar to Han Youngin’s.

-fr?

-Is there really something between them?

Magnus had been shitting the bed so much during the Season that I had stopped visiting their forums, so I had no idea such talk was going around.

Well, even I could see that there were many aspects of our play Patterns that could be felt to be a bit similar.

It would be strange to imitate another player by abandoning my own playstyle.

When I played with Dami, I unraveled the game with what I could do best, the things I had been practicing all along.

So it didn’t seem that strange for people to connect the current me with Han Youngin.

I answered Kim Seunga.

That we didn’t know each other personally, and that I was just a fan, so I watched his plays a lot and practiced.

-Really? It’s not really a Level you can imitate just by watching and practicing…

Kim Seunga seemed to feel that it wasn’t a clear answer.

But since I said I didn’t know, there seemed to be nothing more to say.

-Okay. Anyway, keep working hard at the game. I hope we only meet as allies next time.

“Yes. Unni. Take care~.”

After exchanging such a warm greeting, Kim Seunga ended her stream first.

It seemed she was planning to play again tomorrow, since she had stumbled a bit in her promotion match anyway.

And… as she ended her stream, my Viewer count instantly surpassed 50,000.

It became the hottest UA stream of the moment.

As I blinked and checked the Viewer count, the Chat exploded with laughter.

-lolololol

-The host is flustered?

-Look at all the people coming in.

-Kim Seunga pushed them all in before she left.

-Row the boat while the tide is in, let’s play a Rank Game quickly, shall we?

-PLAY QUICKLY!

After checking the atmosphere in the Chat, I started a Duo with Chen Sui.

Chen Sui had been watching me talk with Kim Seunga from the side, and knowing that another team was coveting me made her want to recruit me even more.

Listening to her boast about Shanghai Cheonhwa, we went on a 3-Win Streak.

It was truly a triumphant advance.

Thanks to my help, Chen Sui achieved the feat of hitting the Legendary Tier.

Chen Sui was so happy that she jumped up and hugged me.

-To think such a Talent was in Korea.

-Thank you, great hero!

-I won’t forget this help!

Thanks to that, I could see the rare sight of even Chinese people coming into my stream and making Donations.

End of Day 7 stream.

The collected Mission Donation funds surpassed a whopping 100 million Won.

It was a night where I gained a great many things in just one day.

The previous day’s stream must have been quite impressive.

It’s rare for an article to be written about a player’s stream unless it’s causing some kind of trouble, but today, an article about me was on the portal’s main page.

「Second Division Team Super Sylph’s Seo Dami Receives Recruitment Proposals from Shanghai Cheonhwa, Artemis.」

「Who is the Domestic Player Who Received a Public Offer from Asia’s Prestigious Team, Shanghai Cheonhwa?」

The news that a top domestic team and a top Chinese team had simultaneously made an Offer to a Second Division player spread in an instant.

And my teammates.

From the Leader to Yunseuli, they came to me before the articles even came out and begged me not to go.

“Dami-yaaaaaak! Don’t go-! We’ll do better!”

Hwang Jua, who must have watched my stream, mimicked the Viewers.

And Yunseul clung to me, saying to take her with me if I was going to go.

“I feel like I say this every day, but let’s just eat first.”

“DamiDami. Do you have any plans for a team broadcast appearance? You couldn’t even do the interview last time because the Coach said no.”

“I’m actually thinking about it. Streaming together.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. I think it would be fun to stream all together. And wouldn’t it be good for promoting the team?”

“Jua. I’m touched…”

Hwang Jua was the happiest at the news of being able to appear on a stream.

When I asked if she was that happy, she replied that she loved getting attention the most.

The peak Viewer count on yesterday’s stream was a whopping 50,000-plus.

Among the Viewers who came in through the stream, not a few said they would watch when the Season started.

Regardless of whether I achieved the Legendary Challenge, the stream was already a success.

The Coach also took this reaction very encouragingly.

To the extent that he mentioned several times that even the Front Office told him to make sure I was taking good care of my stream.

“Should I prepare a special talent or something?”

“You’ll be a riot just by being your usual self.”

“My usual self what?”

Kim Dain replied to Hwang Jua’s talk about a special talent.

“You just look like a foreign mercenary to anyone. Just introducing yourself as Jessica is enough.”

“That’s just to be funny!”

“The best special talents are the ones meant to be funny.”

“…Is that right?”

It was when Hwang Jua was seriously contemplating, as if persuaded.

The Coach, who had come to the cafeteria, said that a guest would be visiting in the morning.

“Everyone. Attention! We’ll have a guest in a little while.”

“What kind of guest?”

“A reporter?”

“Probably a reporter coming to interview Dami since her stream is doing so well~.”

“Not a reporter. The CEO.”

“……?”

The Parent Company’s CEO.

A guest that broke everyone’s expectations.