Chapter 59

This time, too, Japan won without any upsets.

During the victory interview, Kato Mikane grabbed the microphone and, as if she had a lot to say, unleashed a torrent of rapid-fire remarks.

“Korea? They got lucky. I naturally don’t think they’re a match for us.”

“Then we’d like to hear your opinion on player Seo Dami.”

“Seo Dami?”

“Yes. Some are saying she’s a prospect who will soon join the ranks of the World Class.”

“Who says that? Are they blind?”

Kato Mikane, who had been answering formally, furrowed her brow.

Then, pointing a finger at the camera filming her, she said.

“Player Seo Dami. You have no Talent. Don’t get the wrong idea.”

Seo Dami has no Talent.

It’ll be another ten years before Korea can beat Japan.

The interview concluded with Kato Mikane’s aggressive remarks ahead of the Korea-Japan match.

It was only natural that the Korean UA Community erupted over this.

-Did you see the interview?

-She talks like a fucking asshole.

-To be fair, General Seo threw the first punch.

-Still, saying General Seo has no Talent crossed the line, lol;;

-So saying Kato Mikane is overhyped is okay?

-????

-Why are you taking Kato’s side?

-Wtf, are you a traitor?

-If you’re Korean, let’s cheer for Seo Dami!!!

The community endlessly fanned the flames, splicing together the scene where Seo Dami called Kato Mikane an overhyped player.

And the scene where Kato Mikane belittled Korea’s skills.

The majority reaction was that while it would be tough to beat Japan, they hoped Korea would at least show them something.

While the fans were hoping for a sharp move from Seo Dami, the person in question was being bombarded with an unintentional barrage of questions.

-Why are you so good?

-Just be moderately good and come back!

-Unni, you’re not leaving, are you? Right?

-What the! Another article is out. What the hell is Barcelona GC!

Seo Dami was checking the messages piling up in the Super Sylph group chat.

Her teammates, seeing she had logged in, appeared one after another, flooding the chat.

With Seo Dami remaining silent, Hwang Jua spoke up.

Saying, do you know how anxious the Coach has been lately?

-Our team is doomed without you!!!

-We shouldn’t have sent Dami to Jeju Island.

-I’ll do better….

It had gotten to the point where even the Leader, who rarely got involved in such things, stepped in to say she’d do well.

<You’re so lucky.>

‘About what?’

<All your teammates are telling you not to go.>

‘I guess so.’

Seo Dami smiled and was about to reply that she had no plans to go anywhere else yet.

But Han Youngin stopped her, telling her not to write that.

‘Why not?’

<Hey now. You’ll lower your value.>

Even if she had no real intention of leaving, she had to pretend she didn’t know for now.

Wouldn’t that make them offer a little more?

It was an unwritten rule in this business that a fish already caught was treated relatively poorly.

<Even if you can’t get as much as Shanghai Cheonhwa or Beijing Cheonryong, the team should at least show some sincerity. Don’t you think?>

If she said she would definitely stay, the Front Office would be relieved and her Annual Salary would decrease.

So he told her to hide her true feelings until the contract was signed.

Youngin was passing on his own secret method? saying that during the Transfer Season, it was also effective to go home and rest for a few days before signing on the dotted line.

Only two matches remained in the Event Challenge.

The remaining matches were China versus Russia.

And Korea versus Japan.

China and Russia already had two losses, but they had to avoid last place, so both were very concerned about the result.

And the match drawing even more attention was the Korea-Japan match on the final day.

The winning team would take first place in the Event Match, allowing them to feel great about being the best of the lower leagues.

In truth, the side feeling the most pressure was, of course, Japan.

What would happen if the League, considered unrivaled in Asia, lost to the lowest-ranked Korea?

They would hear things like their fundamentals were weak, or that Korea would catch up to Japan in a few years.

To avoid hearing such things, Kato Mikane once again boarded a plane and left the country.

And the Korean team was logged into the game again today for a final check.

Leaving Han Chaei and the third-division players to train on their own, Seo Dami grabbed Kim Seunga and immersed herself in One-on-One Training.

A pure battle of skill between Attackers.

Exchanging attacks across the bullet line, Kim Seunga seriously felt that Seo Dami’s skills had reached the national team level.

Her own Stamina was still better, but in terms of momentary Performance, Dami wasn’t lagging behind at all.

Considering her age, she couldn’t help but wonder, what is this kid, really?

“Hey, hey! What was that just now!”

“Huh? What was what?”

“That thing you just did! You used Tactical Move to Fake, didn’t you?”

“I did.”

“That’s my trademark!”

Tactical Move.

Unlike Blink, it was a Skill for moving by dodging quickly left and right, one of the skills that could effectively evade enemy attacks with low Mana consumption.

Of course, the Mana consumption was only relatively low; as it was still a spatial movement Skill, it had a certain degree of cost.

Moving left and right in front of the opponent, then closing the distance to tear them apart with Swordsmanship was Kim Seunga’s bread-and-butter Build-up.

But now, in this One-on-One Training, Seo Dami had executed it with a rather high degree of perfection.

Although the finishing blow was a Rifle instead of Swordsmanship, Kim Seunga, who had been honing this one craft for years, knew at a glance that Seo Dami had learned by watching her.

Even with the same Skill, small habits were too similar to her own.

For instance, things like giving more angle to the ankle to turn more sharply, which, from Kim Seunga’s perspective, was a bit creepy.

To take a technique someone had built up over years just by watching them train together?

It was something you’d only see in a comic book.

“Did you really learn it from watching me?”

“I’m sorry if it bothers you. That Build-up just looked so good….”

“No, it’s not that it bothers me. It’s just amazing.”

As she readily admitted to learning from watching her, Kim Seunga was even more dumbfounded.

“When did you start doing that?”

“Doing what?”

“Learning techniques just by watching someone. When could you start doing that?”

“Ah, it hasn’t been long.”

She couldn’t learn from just anyone.

Seo Dami replied that it was better to see it in person like this, and that it was impossible to learn just from watching videos.

“Aren’t I the first First Division Player you’ve practiced with?”

“You are.”

“Well, I’ll be.”

Didn’t that mean she had made a huge contribution to raising Seo Dami?

Until now, even if she wanted to learn, she could only watch and learn from her teammates.

From second-division level players.

“But you said it hasn’t been long?”

“Yes.”

Is it Oppa Youngin again?

Kim Seunga suspected Han Youngin.

But on second thought, she recalled that even Han Youngin didn’t have the ability to copy others’ techniques just by watching.

What on earth is her deal?

As Kim Seunga pondered Seo Dami’s identity, she clapped her hands as a thought struck her.

“What about just watching? Do you have to train like this? Or is just watching in person enough?”

<Looks like Seunga’s caught on.>

The reason Kim Seunga asked this was simple.

It was to find out if Seo Dami had also absorbed Kato Mikane’s playstyle.

Seo Dami said.

It’s not as good as training directly, but it seems to have some effect.

At that, Kim Seunga asked if she could replicate Kato Mikane’s moves.

“I don’t know if it’ll work well….”

“We’ll know if you try.”

Kim Seunga, curious about the result, urged her on.

Seo Dami, as if lacking confidence, changed her weapon Setup first.

A weapon with a huge barrel reminiscent of the Piper Cheliska.

The Muramasa Ignition.

At the appearance of the large pistol that used bullets fit for an anti-materiel Sniper Rifle, Kim Seunga got goosebumps.

Because that gun was the one used in the Russia match, and even the China match.

It was the main weapon Kato Mikane had used when she showcased her Gun Kata.

‘She’s really going to show me?’

Kim Seunga tensed up slightly and got into her stance.

If Seo Dami had absorbed Kato Mikane’s techniques just as she had absorbed her own.

Her Attack Power would surely be terrifying.

If she underestimated her, her head might get blown off by a Headshot in an instant, so Kim Seunga prepared to Counterattack as if it were a real match.

“I’m coming.”

“Bring it.”

At Seo Dami’s Attack, Kim Seunga initiated a Counter-Acceleration and launched a Counterattack.

Kim Seunga opened with the first attack.

As her Rifle spat out Firepower in a three-round Burst Fire, Seo Dami vanished from her Vision.

‘Behind…!’

Kim Seunga intuitively realized that Seo Dami had used Blink to get behind her and likewise used Blink to try and get behind Seo Dami again.

This was a play that happened in less than the blink of an eye, a speed impossible to react to with thought alone.

Kim Seunga was certain she would be able to aim for the back of Seo Dami’s head.

But reality was different.

Gun Kata.

Lowering her stance and rotating her body, Seo Dami’s twin pistols spat fire.

One shot was fired before she had fully turned, so its reaction speed was incredible, and the next shot was aimed properly at Kim Seunga, making it impossible to dodge.

In that moment, Kim Seunga felt a slight sweat break out.

She had almost been wiped out in one second, not by Kato Mikane, but by Seo Dami ‘imitating’ Kato Mikane.

The first of Seo Dami’s attacks, she dodged.

The second shot, Kim Seunga deflected with her Lightsaber, her eyes gleaming as she was about to strike with her sword for the third attack.

Seo Dami’s foot stomped the ground, causing a collision.

Simultaneously, rocks and clumps of earth shot up.

Battered by Earth Shatter, Kim Seunga cursed inwardly.

It was clearly Liu Xuan’s playstyle.

‘What is this hybrid!’

Seeing Kim Seunga covered in dirt and a mess, Seo Dami briefly stopped her attack.

“Why’d you stop playing mid-game? You have to see it through.”

“I don’t think pistols are for me after all.”

“You don’t think so?”

After playing at that Level, what could she possibly mean by ‘not for me’?

As Kim Seunga tilted her head, Seo Dami said that the Rifle still fit her hands best and switched her weapon.

“I’ll stick with the Arclight Rifle for the Japan match, too.”

The one surprised by Seo Dami’s declaration was actually Han Youngin.

The completeness of Dami’s attack that had just pressured Kim Seunga was outstanding.

If she wielded twin pistols and performed Gun Kata, it would be more than enough to fluster even the great Kato Mikane, yet she insisted on using a Rifle.

<You don’t have to insist on the Rifle.>

But Seo Dami shook her head.

‘The only master in my heart is you, Oppa. The other players are just extras.’

She said she would only absorb the strengths from other players and maintain Han Youngin’s style as her main one until the end.

‘I’ll win with the Arclight Rifle.’

Having declared so, Seo Dami urged Kim Seunga on and resumed their practice.

And so, the day of the final match in Jeju Island was approaching.

The final match between China and Russia ended in Russia’s victory.

Liu Xuan boasted a defense as solid as an iron wall, but she couldn’t block both of Russia’s snipers who were pouring in attacks from two sides.

In the end, China’s second and third-division players gave up more points, and China was decided as the last-place team of the tournament.

Of course, although Russia won, they were third, so the atmosphere wasn’t great on their side either.

In the winner’s interview, Svetlana concluded the tournament by saying that although they were returning with a poor result this time, Russia’s first-string team was different.

She vowed to repay this humiliation at the World Championship.

Now, only one match remained.

The showdown between Korea and Japan.

Saying that this time was truly different, Korea’s transcendent interest was focused on the match.

Having already defeated China and Russia, Korea had proven that, at least among the combined teams, they had international competitiveness.

UA says Japan is the strongest in Asia?

But we have a pretty good chance of winning this time?

Then should we give it a watch this time?

In this way, a considerable number of new Viewers flowed in through word of mouth.

UA, which had always been treated as a second-rate game, overshadowed by Gaia, was now on an upward trend.

-Wow.

-So this day has come for UA too.

-This is all thanks to General Seo.

-It’s great that it’s becoming a god-tier game, but getting tickets is so hard….

-I heard this one sold out in 10 seconds?

-There are more people who couldn’t even click because the site went down.

The interest focused on the Korea-Japan match was truly explosive.

Ahead of the match.

Seo Dami managed to get three tickets.

They were tickets so difficult to obtain that only someone of Seo Dami’s stature could barely get them.

She sent two of those hard-won tickets to her parents, and the remaining one she sent to my mother.

It was an unexpected consideration.

I expressed my sincere gratitude to Dami.

My mother had said that she rarely watched UA matches after my accident.

But I heard that recently, with Dami visiting her every week to be her companion, she had started watching at least the Super Sylph matches.

In place of her son lying silently in a hospital bed, Dami had been taking good care of my mother.

Dami also attached a message with the ticket.

Thanks to Youngin Oppa, I’ve been able to come this far. I would be so grateful if you could watch the match with me, Mother—it said.

A reply arrived quickly.

Thank you for not forgetting my son and thinking of him, I’ll definitely go and watch, it said.

After confirming my mother’s reply, Dami’s determination burned even brighter.

It was a strange level of fervor.

And a vivid Energy that even I, watching, could clearly feel was radiating from Seo Dami.

<Thank you, Dami. For taking care of my mom in my place.>

‘It’s something I should do, of course. It’s nothing.’

<It’s not a matter of course.>

Dami seemed to feel a great debt of gratitude for how much I had taught her, but meeting Dami was a stroke of luck for me too.

Thanks to her, I wasn’t trapped in this frustrating body and could see the world like this.

Hearing my words of thanks, Seo Dami gave a pleased smile and clenched her fists.

‘Let’s definitely win.’

<Yeah. Oh, and there’s one thing I haven’t said.>

‘……?’

It was something I had meant to say right after seeing Kato Mikane’s interview, but I had somehow forgotten. I decided to say it now.

<Seo Dami. You have Talent.>

The one who’s blind is Kato Mikane.

If Seo Dami has no Talent, then what kind of player could you possibly call talented?

Of course, she was a bit so-so back in the third division, but the current Seo Dami could be called a completely different player.

The best Prospect in the Republic of Korea.

The player who would soon be knocking on the door of the World Class was none other than Seo Dami.

<You’re the best in Korea, no, the best in the world.>

‘Ah, what are you saying.’

Hehehe, Seo Dami’s lips twitched as she laughed.

She seemed to be in a very good mood.

‘Stop with the compliments for now! Praise me after we win. I can’t get any more hyped up.’

Seo Dami’s breathing evened out, and her eyes sparkled.

A perfect combat stance.

Having honed her Condition to its peak, Seo Dami finished her preparations to face the match.

“The match everyone has been waiting for! If you’re a Korean fan, you must have been losing sleep and counting down the days!”

“This year is different! We will now begin the match between the Republic of Korea, which has declared war on the world, and Japan!”

Waaaaah! A Cheer filled the Arena.

The players from both teams entered the Waiting Room.

Today’s match was somehow different.

Although it was an Event Match, the air in the stadium was electric, as if it were a truly prestigious international tournament.

Today, even the Spectators who came to cheer for the Japanese team were shouting their support at the top of their lungs.

Hearing that Cheer, Kim Seunga gathered her teammates in the center of the Waiting Room.

“Hey. Listen up. Since we started UA, we’ve never once beaten Japan on the international stage, you know?”

“Huh?”

At Kim Seunga’s words, the teammates blinked, wondering why she was saying that now.

“No, don’t be nervous. Even if we lose today, you guys won’t get blamed!”

“Aha. Okay.”

“But! If by some chance we win! You guys will become stars. So don’t leave any regrets and pour everything out!”

“Stars….”

The third-division kids savored the resonance of the word ‘star’.

“A lot? I’m not asking for a lot. Just do as much as you practiced! Just as much as you practiced! Then Dami and I will take care of the rest! Got it!”

“Yes!”

“Alright, let’s get some Fighting Spirit going. Republic of Korea!”

“Fighting!”

Raising their stacked hands, the players from both teams were deployed to the Battlefield.

A space warship.

The first Set began on the One-on-One Battlefield, Enterprise.