Chapter 8

For Kim Harim, it was a level of intense training she had never experienced in her life.

I had her practice plays that required us to be in sync.

These were pre-arranged moves, like sticking close behind me and leaning out to shoot the moment the enemy stopped firing, or splitting left and right at the same time as me to create confusion.

‘What in the world did the Coach even teach them?’

If Coach Kim Hakseong had taught the kids properly, they should have mastered these basics long ago.

After all, the main reason for using a Defender was to improve the Attacker’s offensive efficiency and timing.

It was in the middle of this seemingly endless training.

“Hiek!” Kim Harim shrieked, her body trembling as she said the Unnis were here.

It seemed a request had come in for her to exit the Capsule.

“Ignore it. If they really have something to say, they’ll come in.”

The Virtual Reality Capsule for running UA is a product of cutting-edge science.

It was structured so that the door couldn’t be opened recklessly from the outside, nor could the power be cut.

And it was ridiculously sturdy.

There was once a famous incident where a user inside a capsule survived unharmed during a massive fire in a US building.

This meant that if we just held our ground and kept playing, there was no way to forcibly stop us.

“But I can’t…”

“I said, ignore it.”

“Okay…”

In the end, Kim Harim didn’t go outside, and no visitors entered this space.

If they were truly pissed, they would have logged into the Waiting Room to confront us.

It seemed they didn’t want to run into me.

They must have seen that I was with her.

While continuing Kim Harim’s training, I asked Seo Dami.

‘Dami, you think you can beat those girls without me?’

Even while living this life, I subconsciously thought I had to prepare for when I would disappear.

If I stirred up a bunch of trouble and Seo Dami didn’t have the ability to handle it, problems would arise immediately.

Sure enough, Dami muttered, lacking confidence.

<By myself, it’s a little…>

‘So frustrating. I showed you myself how to punch them. Is that so hard?’

<……>

‘This won’t do. From now on, let’s train after practice on weekdays too. I’m too worried to leave you be.’

<Ah! I can do it! I’ll do well on my own!>

At the mention of weekday training, Seo Dami was horrified and argued back, but I felt the need to train her more harshly for the time being.

Maybe I came into this body for this very reason.

To save the life of a pitiful girl with the talent of a pro gamer on my way out.

By the time we finished training, it was past ten in the evening.

<You’re ruthless…>

‘Stay sharp. If you don’t do this, you won’t make it to the First Division League either.’

Dami, who was now directly experiencing my training regimen, kept her words to a minimum.

Naturally, Kim Harim was completely drained, which stemmed from mental fatigue.

The physical fatigue felt while playing inside UA vanishes in an instant as if it were nothing once you log out.

But mental fatigue didn’t evaporate so easily.

I dragged the gloomy-faced Kim Harim to the first-floor cafeteria.

Just as she had predicted, there were no decent main dishes left.

“Are you really going to eat?”

“I don’t say one thing and do another.”

I immediately ordered two chickens for delivery.

Weren’t we athletes in the middle of training?

One wouldn’t be enough, so my plan was to eat until we were full, even if it meant having leftovers.

The menu was olive chicken, on Seo Dami’s recommendation.

Since I had no money, Dami had to pay.

Of course, if she complained, I had a comeback ready.

I’m personally raising your annual salary with this win streak!

Isn’t it okay to spend this much?

But Dami said nothing about me spending her money.

She was a friend who knew what was right.

“I’ll pay for half.”

“Deal.”

While looking forward to the secretly eaten chicken, Kim Harim kept glancing at the cafeteria entrance.

She seemed worried about running into the other players, the Director, or the Coach.

Of course, once the chicken arrived with the sound of a motorcycle, she ate deliciously as if she’d never had such a worry.

“So damn good… How long has it been since I’ve had chicken?”

“It’s good.”

<It’s delicious.>

The two chickens we thought would be too much disappeared in the blink of an eye.

I casually spoke to Kim Harim, who was patting her full stomach.

“Did you know?”

“What?”

“Lee Seyeon saw us eating chicken just now and left.”

“Gasp. Really? Why didn’t you say so?”

“It would’ve ruined your appetite if I did.”

“Aren’t we in big trouble…? What if Unni tells the Coach?”

“She probably went to tell him. She went straight up.”

Kim Harim’s pupils quaked.

But I was perfectly calm.

No matter what Lee Seyeon said, Director Hong wouldn’t scold us.

At that time, while Seo Dami and Kim Harim were deliciously eating chicken.

Lee Seyeon, with a “caught you red-handed” look on her face, went to find Director Hong.

Something had been strange.

She couldn’t find Kim Harim, who was supposed to be doing the meal setup, and it turned out the brat was training with Seo Dami.

Not only Lee Seyeon but also the Leader, Kim Yujeong, were furious about this.

Kim Harim had betrayed them and sided with Seo Dami.

‘Kim Harim…! You must think you can look down on your Sunbaes, huh?’

Seo Dami, who had suddenly started flying through matches as if she were on drugs, was difficult to mess with, but Kim Harim was a different story.

She was just bad at the game.

It would be a different matter if she were a player inserted through her parent company’s connections, but so far, there were no such rumors.

So, if she found even a small fault, the Director wouldn’t let her off the hook.

Thinking this, Lee Seyeon knocked on the door of the Director’s office with a grin.

“Coach!”

“What is it?”

“Guess what Kim Harim is doing right now?”

“I heard from Coach Kim Hakseong that she’s training with Dami.”

“No, not that. They’re eating chicken in the cafeteria right now!”

Lee Seyeon protested strongly, as if to say, how could this be?

Director Hong Jaewoo was a coach who used food as a whip for his players.

If the team’s performance was bad, he was the type to not even allow a trip to the convenience store.

Of course, their momentum had been picking up a little lately, but that was entirely due to Seo Dami’s carry, not any influence from Kim Harim.

Considering Director Hong’s style, who always emphasized a hunger for victory and habitually said, “The reason you guys are bad at the game is because your bellies are full,” Kim Harim had committed a major offense.

Lee Seyeon’s eyes sparkled with an expression that said, “Hurry up and scold them.”

But what she expected did not happen.

“I get it, so you can go.”

“What? Coach, I’m telling you they’re eating chicken right now!”

“Whether they eat chicken or pizza, I’ll handle it!”

When Director Hong snapped, Lee Seyeon’s eyes narrowed.

“This is discrimination…”

“Discrimination? Are you talking back to me right now?”

“If you’re not going to say anything to Seo Dami and Kim Harim, then let us eat chicken too!”

“And what have you done to deserve it?”

“Kim Harim hasn’t done anything great either!”

Unable to say that Seo Dami hadn’t done anything great, Lee Seyeon latched onto Kim Harim.

At that, Director Hong shot back.

“Then you guys should apologize to Dami and ask for forgiveness like Kim Harim did.”

“For-forgiveness?”

“You think Dami would be training her for no reason? A kid who doesn’t even have enough time for her own training? Now that you mention it, how much have you all been tormenting Seo Dami? This team is only functioning because she’s still putting up with it. Do you have any idea what would happen if she lost her temper and beat you up or reported it to the media!”

Then you all would be unemployed and unable to set foot in the industry, and I’d become a garbage director and have to take off my suit.

So shut up and get the hell out, Director Hong spat fire.

Faced with Director Hong’s volcanic rage, Lee Seyeon couldn’t even talk back and, with her eyes welling up, stormed out of the office.

“That, that idiot.”

Director Hong clicked his tongue as he watched Lee Seyeon leave without even closing the door.

It was just the day before yesterday.

A director from the parent company, Wooju Chemical, had personally visited him, said he was enjoying the matches, and told him to keep things going just like this.

It was a situation where, if things went well, he could even aim for re-signing by adding to their performance in the remaining second half.

And all of this began when Seo Dami started her monstrous performance.

So, from Director Hong’s perspective, he had no choice but to center everything in the team around Seo Dami.

To put it coldly, without her, this team was nothing.

That’s why he hadn’t interfered at all, even when he heard that Seo Dami had started training Kim Harim separately, as if she were a coach.

Although he was on the verge of being fired until just recently, Director Hong still had the eye to recognize a player with outstanding skill.

‘That Seo Dami kid is a gem.’

Not a rough stone, but a real, already-cut gem.

It was just that since she was still young, it was unknown how big the gem would grow, but it wasn’t hard to guess that she would soon leave the Third Division League and go to a higher place.

It was a sorry thing to say to Coach Kim Hakseong, but with that level of skill and talent, Seo Dami’s development knack might actually be better.

No, it was probably a sure thing.

Coach Kim Hakseong had been a gamer in a different field, not UA, before drifting here.

Compared to him, he had no choice but to rate Seo Dami, who was beginning to show her talent as a UA Pro Gamer, more highly.

‘But I wonder, just how much talent does that kid have for development…?’

Monday.

The day matches resumed.

The team we had to face today was Echo Highway, currently ranked 6th in the League.

Universe Cat’s current rank was 7th.

Even if we won today’s match, we wouldn’t overtake them in the rankings, but it was clear the gap would shrink significantly.

And Director Hong seemed to be secretly looking forward to today’s match result.

He kept saying, like a mantra, “Dami, I’m counting on you.”

“Don’t be nervous, just play like you always do. Just like you always do.”

Anyone could see his blatant expectations, but I just let it be.

It was natural to receive this kind of expectation when you became the Ace.

‘I’m going to play a little differently today. Watch how I do it and learn well.’

<How is it going to be different?>

For the past week.

To forget my chaotic situation, I had just run wild on the Battlefield.

I clung to scoring as if I would die if I couldn’t carry.

Of course, it ended up being a huge benefit to the team, but if you were to ask if it was a playstyle befitting the Defender position, it would be hard to give it a good score.

It was like a goalkeeper in soccer trusting his own skills and dribbling all the way to the opponent’s goal.

In the lower leagues where the skill gap was wide, it might be fine, but it was a play you shouldn’t make as you went higher up.

‘So today, I’m going to play strictly according to the basic playstyle of my position.’

A player with solid fundamentals doesn’t collapse.

Even if a slump comes, they can get over it quickly, and if she masters these fundamentals well, they will always be a pillar of support for Seo Dami.

<Fundamentals… I’ll work hard to learn.>

A play faithful to the basics.

If I played like a Defender, protecting teammates and paving the way, my scoring ability would surely decrease.

Then the probability of winning today’s game would drop significantly.

Last week, the reason we could achieve a good record of 4 wins and 1 loss was thanks to my insane performance and scoring.

Well, so what if we lose.

Director Hong would foam at the mouth if he knew…

I didn’t care even if we lost every game this week.

I had now organized my thoughts to some extent and had come to prioritize what would help Seo Dami’s growth.

And there was no rule that said we had to lose.

Because today, as I played the role of a sturdy shield, I had created a candidate to help with the scoring.

With that thought, I gestured for Kim Harim, who was standing a little distance away, to come closer.

Kim Harim then ran over as if she had been waiting.

“You called?”

“When the game starts, stick right behind me. You know what I mean, right? Let’s do it like we did in training.”

“Okay!”

And so, the game began.

“The 2074 UKL! We will now begin the 4th match between Echo Highway and Universe Cat!”

-One, two, three! Universe Cat, fighting!

-One, two, three!

-Echo Highway, fighting!

The first set was decided as One-on-One Mode.

A Battlefield where you had to take down the opponent with only one life and no respawns.

The Battlefield was decided as the Space Battleship, Enterprise.

The space battleship, over a kilometer long, was summoned before us, having finished its preparations to greet a fierce battle.

We had the first strike.

The Attacking Team’s Starting Point was at the very rear, where the ship’s Engine was located.

The defending team’s starting point was the Bridge, located in the bow section.

“Breaching.”

Following my signal as the Defender, we opened the first bulkhead door and advanced.

One-on-One Mode had a peculiar sub-rule called the Deuce Rule.

The game would repeat, and you could only win by creating a 2-point lead over the opposing team.

And we were currently the attackers.

If we couldn’t capture the Bridge within 5 minutes, it was an automatic loss.

“Faster!”

I urged the players on, increasing our speed to cut down on travel time.

Not long after we started running, a High-Speed Rail came into view.

From here on, it was a Zero-Gravity Section.

A long groove was carved into the battleship wall, and there were handles installed to grab onto.

It was a device designed to allow for rapid sliding movement in the opposite direction of the battleship by grabbing onto these.

As we held onto the high-speed rail and advanced toward the Bridge, there was a flashing light in the far distance.

“They’re coming!”

The enemy Sniper’s shots began to pound the Shield with heavy force.

Since it was a distance where they could only harass us with a Sniper Rifle, I pushed forward more.

The remaining distance to the Bridge shortened in an instant, and soon it was 300 meters.

Then, the attacks poured in differently than before.

Attackers with Rifles joined in and began to pour on the assault.

A Shield is not omnipotent.

If we took a concentrated attack like this, a hole would be blown right through it, and death would be certain, so I ordered them to duck into a side passage.

“The enemy is openly concentrating their firepower. Rushing one way is suicide, you know that.”

The Enterprise had a total of two high-speed passages.

They were located on the left and right sides of the battleship, so we needed to split our movement.

“What’s the plan?”

I demanded a decision from Kim Yujeong.

It was a formality.

After all, on the surface, Kim Yujeong was the Leader.

But Kim Yujeong, in this busy moment, couldn’t make a decision and just twitched her lips.

‘Tsk, tsk.’

Seeing that, I clicked my tongue inwardly.

I could roughly guess the reason.

It was because the number of spectators had increased.

Thanks to the overwhelming games we showed last week, an exceptional number of over 2,000 fans from both teams combined were watching in person at the arena today.

Most of them had come after hearing rumors of my performance, though.

Anyway, the increased number of spectators seemed to have put quite a bit of pressure on Kim Yujeong.

Strategic decisions are mainly the Leader’s responsibility.

But what if she made the wrong decision and lost?

Kim Yujeong would be torn to shreds by angry fans all day.

The forums were already buzzing daily with comments about her holding Seo Dami back, or that if she wasn’t going to do anything, she should at least pass the armband to Seo Dami.

The round time limit for One-on-One is 5 minutes.

As precious time was flowing away uselessly, I opened my mouth again.

“Is it okay if I decide?”

A hesitation of about 3 seconds.

Finally, Kim Yujeong nodded her head.

“Good. Just have Harim Unni stick with me, and the rest of you take B-rail. Whichever side breaks through first takes the Bridge. Simple, right?”

“……”

I pushed the three silent members to get going.

And so, the three, led by Kim Yujeong, headed for the passage with somewhat unconfident steps.

‘They’re going to die soon.’

I knew it too.

This Battlefield called Enterprise was considerably advantageous for the defending side.

It was because it was easy for the defenders to take positions first and hit the approaching enemies.

If this wasn’t the Third Division League but the First Division League.

Acceleration, Shield, Teleport, and so on.

We could have attempted a breakthrough by rapidly cycling through various skills.

The only problem was that the Third Division League’s level was nowhere near enough to use that method.

Shield Deployment.

Kim Yujeong wrapped herself in a Shield and began her breakthrough.

As soon as the engagement started over there, I also started running, pulling Kim Harim along.

“Breaching!”

At my signal, Kim Harim stuck close and moved like a shadow.

“Hold on tight!”

At my signal, Kim Harim practically clung to me.

And then, Acceleration Deployment.

As I kicked off the wall of the zero-gravity passage, the distance began to shrink rapidly.

The speed was so fast that I could clearly feel the opposing team’s flustered reaction.

<How is this a basic skill!!>

‘Normally, if you don’t do this, there’s nothing for a Defender to do on this map. Anyway, luck is on our side, isn’t it?’

<Luck?>

Three of them had flocked to the B-rail where Kim Yujeong’s group was headed, and there were only two people checking this side.

Since the Shield was on this side, and their opponent was me, it was impossible for Echo Highway to stop us from the start.

“Break! Through!”

Finally, having reached the end of the rail, I used my Shield to shove an opposing player with all my might, slamming them into the wall.

“Kegh.”

Just as I felt gravity return, Kim Harim, who had jumped onto my back, unleashed Rapid Fire from her Rifle at the remaining enemy.

With a clattering sound, shell casings poured onto the floor.

No matter how trash Kim Harim’s aim was, she wasn’t bad enough to miss an attack at this close a range.

Two taken down in an instant.

However, the Vital Signs indicating our players’ survival status showed that three were already out.

Kim Yujeong, Lee Seyeon, and Song Yuri.

All the kids who had gone to Rail B were dead.

“A has been breached!!”

The players from the Echo Highway team who had been blocking Rail B noticed the Breakthrough on this side and turned their muzzles.

A torrent of attacks poured down, a mix of optical and Live Round weapons.

In an instant, my Shield started to get tattered.

To reduce the Damage my Shield was taking, I lowered my body, creating an incline with the Shield.

This would effectively reduce the Damage my equipment took.

As I did so, I slid to the side, and I could feel the attacks following me.

About four seconds after the attacks began pouring down…

A resting Tempo arrived with the silence.

The enemy had run out of ammo.

“Now!”

And as soon as I gave the signal, Kim Harim, who had been crouching behind me, shot out and ran toward the enemy.

It was an Attack made with my Support fire, while she simultaneously fired her Rifle.

If this were the first division, one or two would have laid down Suppressive Fire while another covered the gap, but it was hard to expect that kind of veteran skill in the third division.

“Uwaaah!”

The Echo team players screamed, surprised to see Kim Harim charging at them at a fierce speed, her gun blazing.

Of course, screaming wasn’t going to make their defense any sturdier.

‘It went perfectly.’

Just as we practiced, Kim Harim took down two opposing players with Headshots and then slammed into the last one with all her might.

I briefly recalled yesterday’s practice session.

“Unni. Since your Reflexes are crap, you need to at least get your aim right.”

“My aim…?”

“Always at this height. Most female players are in the 160cm range, right? If you always keep that in mind when you aim your Muzzle, it’ll help you zero in for a Headshot even a little bit faster. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

“But… the Coach said it’s better to aim for the torso since the head is a smaller target…”

“Just do as I say.”

“Yes, ma’am.”

With a thud, Kim Harim began to tumble with the opposing player.

I quickly ran over to provide Support for Kim Harim.

I soccer-kicked the opponent tangled up with Kim Harim.

With a shriek, the opposing player went limp, not moving an inch.

“Dami, did you see that? I took down two of them!”

Kim Harim couldn’t contain her excitement and clenched her fists.

“Stop getting excited and go capture the Bridge. That’s how this ends.”

“Ah, right.”

The timer was still counting down.

Kim Harim regained her composure, ran to the Bridge, and pressed the switch to end the Round.

We scored the first point.

It was a pretty good start.