Chapter 97

When I came to my senses, I was waiting to respawn in the base area.

I had been taken down spectacularly by Seo Dami, who had come in for an Attack with another Acceleration.

In an unexpected turn of events, Kim Seunga had cast a Buff on Seo Dami, allowing her to break through the wall of speed.

As I was replaying the last attack in my head, Kato asked.

<That just now, she Class Changed, right?>

‘Yes.’

The reason Seo Dami was able to accelerate past her limits one more time.

It was because of Kim Seunga’s Class Change.

Something had felt off.

An Attacker can’t use such a powerful Debuff Skill.

If an Attacker tried to raise their Skill power like that, their Mana would instantly bottom out, leaving them an empty shell.

Kim Seunga had momentarily Class Changed to push Seo Dami as the main player and entered the Late Game.

When did she change?

Since everyone had been downed more than a few times, I guessed she must have changed her Class after her last death.

<But isn’t it a little strange? If you stack the same Skill three times, the efficiency should be really bad, right?>

Kato Mikane, who was reviewing the situation with me, raised a question.

It was because of Skill Efficiency.

Normally, when you stack the same Skill, its efficiency drops significantly.

Even Double Acceleration, achieved by receiving Acceleration from a Supporter and then using an Acceleration Skill oneself, didn’t strictly produce twice the speed of a single Acceleration.

In reality, it was used with the expectation of a slight speed boost, since stacking the same Skill lowered its efficiency.

But a triple stack?

The efficiency would obviously drop even further.

And that’s despite the total Mana cost being three times that of a normal Acceleration.

From the perspective of a Pro Gamer trying to shave off Skill and Mana consumption in any way possible, it was an incredibly inefficient move.

That was why Kato had questioned it.

‘That wasn’t Triple Acceleration.’

<What are you talking about? We definitely saw it together.>

‘I saw it clearly. The Skill Kim Seunga used to push Seo Dami at the end wasn’t Acceleration, it was wind.’

<Wind…?>

There was no doubt.

In this Battlefield called Arcfactory, inside this factory where no wind should be blowing, I had clearly felt the flow of the air change.

‘She probably split the wind and attached it to her. You know how it is. When the wind blows from behind, it’s a bit easier to run? It was probably an effect like that.’

As I said this, I started searching the game’s Skill database.

To find the Skill I had just seen.

‘Let’s see. A wind-type Skill that can be split and has a short Activation time…’

As I narrowed down the conditions, the number of Skills dwindled, and I was able to find the Skill in question surprisingly quickly.

The Skill Kim Seunga had granted Seo Dami just a moment ago.

I presumed it was ‘Fragmented Tailwind.’

‘This must be it. Looking at its power and Mana consumption, I’m almost certain.’

My analysis of Seo Dami’s Acceleration Pattern was this.

First, before an Attack, she gets an Acceleration from her team’s Supporter and sets off.

For Double Acceleration, Seo Dami herself uses another Acceleration Skill.

And finally, Kim Seunga, who had secretly Class Changed to a Supporter, gave Seo Dami’s body one more push, completing the Triple Acceleration.

It was a Strategy Korea had never used before (including the time I was selected as a national team reserve), and one I had never taught Dami.

I didn’t know if Seo Dami had come up with that plan or if Kim Seunga had, but I thought it was cunning.

It was a good Strategy, wasn’t it?

There was no way they could have created, practiced, and perfected such a Strategy overnight, which meant they must have been preparing it for quite some time.

But Korea had shown no sign of it in their past matches.

Not even when they lost to Mexico in the Group Stage and were in a situation where they might not even make it to the Main Round.

‘They probably thought that if they revealed their hand early, the championship would be out of reach anyway.’

Either that, or they really wanted to beat Japan…

When my thoughts reached this point, it occurred to me that this Strategy had, with high probability, come from Seo Dami’s mind.

She must have wanted to beat Japan so badly that she dragged the reluctant Kim Seunga along to prepare the current Strategy.

Thinking about it that way, this was a part where Kim Seunga also deserved applause.

She was Kim Seunga, considered the number one Attacker in Korea.

For someone like her to volunteer for a Class Change to complete a Strategy was certainly not an easy decision.

She could have pushed Seo Dami into the Supporter role and taken the Attacker role herself.

For the sake of the Strategy’s completion, Kim Seunga had disregarded prestige and face, focusing solely on probability.

The probability that for this Strategy to succeed, Seo Dami had to be the main player.

A result born from a sheer obsession with victory.

The excellent Strategy created by Seo Dami and Kim Seunga was proving its power in this Set.

<How are you going to deal with it?>

Kato’s voice, asking how I would counter the opponent’s play, lacked conviction.

She didn’t have a correct answer in mind and was testing me; she seemed purely curious about the answer I would provide.

‘Let me think for a moment.’

Korea couldn’t have been the first in the world to use the Strategy they brought out today.

But it was clearly a Strategy with a low frequency of appearance on the pro scene.

Because to use this Strategy, one had to be able to play at a high level while changing positions, and one had to take the drastic step of putting two Supporters on the team.

They were not easy conditions, and because it was such a rare Strategy, I was having a harder time coming up with a countermeasure.

‘It’s difficult due to the lack of data.’

<Surely you’re not brazenly saying you’re going to lose, are you?>

‘Do you have any good ideas? If you do, I’m all ears.’

<…….>

What brilliant plan could Kato have?

It must be the first time she’s seen this Strategy too.

After letting out a small sigh at Kato, who was about to suggest just crushing them with brute force by fully activating the Earth Vein, I ran back out onto the Battlefield.

<What was that sigh just now? It’s annoying.>

I casually ignored the now-displeased Kato’s words and called Haruna over the comms.

“Haruna! When we go back in, stick to my back! We’re going as a pair!”

“Yes, Unni!”

If they were going to pressure me with two people, then we just had to respond with two people.

Until now, Japan’s main tactic was for Kato to handle multiple opponents alone while the rest of the team gained an advantage in other areas, but there was no reason to stick to that Pattern.

‘Even if I take Haruna with me, Japan won’t be pushed back in the remaining 3v3 fight.’

Having finished my calculations, I sought to extract more data.

Even if we were to give up this Set, if we wanted to take the third Set, the more information we had on the opponent, the better.

Weapon change.

Holding the Rifle I was most familiar with, I leaped back into the Battlefield.

“Aren’t we actually going to win?”

Kim Seunga, having repelled Kato at the Central Point, cautiously brought it up.

She had downed the great Kato Mikane in a direct confrontation.

The implications of this were significant.

It meant that Korea now had a chance at victory.

But Seo Dami, saying that complacency was forbidden, did not let down her guard.

“Unni. No jinxing it. They can still come in for one or two more Attacks.”

The remaining Point Gauge was below 10 percent.

This was enough time for Japan to push in one more time, centered around the respawned Kato.

And just as expected, Japan’s Infiltration of the center began with fierce Momentum.

A full-scale assault that called in even the Sweeper.

Among them, Seo Dami focused her gaze on Kato, who was charging in with a Supporter behind her.

‘Here she comes.’

Confirming the opponent’s Movement Path, Seo Dami requested an Acceleration from the team’s Supporter, Oh Yeonseo.

Once the Acceleration was cast, Seo Dami also began her Attack.

Kim Seunga’s position was still Supporter.

In a Domination Battle, the opposing team doesn’t Score when a player dies, so Kim Seunga had asked if she should switch back to Attacker after taking down Kato (by destroying her own remaining Health Gauge).

Since everything from her weapon to her outfit, from head to toe, looked identical, the opponent had no way of knowing what Class she was just by looking.

“If I play as an Attacker again, won’t they be caught off guard?”

But Seo Dami had opposed her Class change.

Considering the remaining gauge and time, Japan would have another chance to Attack, and if Kim Seunga switched back to Attacker and failed to suppress Kato, their side would be in danger instead.

“Unni, we have to secure this Set no matter what. I think it’s better to stay as we are.”

They had already lost the first Set to Japan.

To make it to a third Set, Korea absolutely had to stop Japan here.

To be honest, Seo Dami wasn’t confident she could beat the opponent with a two-person Attacker combination.

In particular, she was more afraid of Han Youngin inside Kato than of Kato herself.

How to use Skills, training methods, the attitude toward the game, how to analyze opponents—everything she had learned as a Pro Gamer.

Most of the elements that made up Pro Gamer Seo Dami were inherited from Han Youngin, so she knew better than anyone how fearsome her opponent was.

The frightening thing about Han Youngin was his adaptability.

He was someone who could quickly grasp an opponent’s information, dig out their weaknesses, and figure out how to win better than anyone else.

That was why Seo Dami was reluctant to fight as a double Attacker with Kim Seunga.

The opponent already had too much information on that.

It was more advantageous to keep pressuring the opponent with a Class Change, which could be called a new phase.

The key was how quickly the opponent would adapt to this never-before-seen Strategy.

The fact that the Win-Loss of the game depended not on how well they played, but on the opponent’s adaptability, made Seo Dami press her lips together firmly as she charged forward.

Kato Mikane.

A player whose specialty was Gun Kata, performed with dual pistols.

So she usually didn’t launch threatening attacks before closing the distance, but it was different now.

The moment she felt a chill, Seo Dami stretched her hand forward and simultaneously gave a signal to Kim Seunga running behind her.

Immediately, a sloped Shield unfolded in front of Seo Dami, recreating the Skill from Jeju Island.

The two had combined their strength to deploy a Slope Shield in preparation for danger.

And at the same time, with a tatatat-! sound of sparks, a flash of light struck the Shield.

A blue flash.

Identifying the source of the sparks, Seo Dami almost broke into a smile without realizing it.

Han Youngin was back.

Wielding the weapon he was most confident with.

Keeping her eyes on Kato, who was holding an Arclight Rifle, Seo Dami surveyed the Battlefield situation.

Since the Japanese team had jumped in all at once, the area above the Control Point was in a state of chaos.

‘If it becomes a 5v5 fight, we’ll definitely lose…’

What’s more, hadn’t Japan, albeit for a short time, rotated their Sweeper to secure an Objective?

Attack Power, Defense Power, Mana Efficiency—Korea had no advantage over Japan in any of these areas.

Not just Seo Dami, but all the Korean players knew that if they couldn’t push the remaining 10 percent of the gauge and end the game now, a Comeback could happen.

“When are you going in!”

Kim Seunga asked Seo Dami for the Buff Timing.

They had to defeat Kato to win this game.

Just as the players from both sides were tangled in a chaotic exchange of Offense and Defense, Seo Dami shouted, “Now!”

It was the instant Kato Mikane landed a Headshot on the Korean Sniper with a mid-range shot.

Seo Dami threw a Smoke Screen, ignited her Double Acceleration, and made her Attack.

And as if she knew she would charge in like this, Kato Mikane laid down a Grenade and took a Backstep.

It was a moment that required a Blink or some other method.

Seo Dami calmly shot the Grenade, forcing it to detonate.

Hitting a spinning Bomb lying on the ground in a single shot in a split second was nothing short of a stunt, but it was the Pro Gamers of UA’s first division who made it possible.

As she closed the distance and got closer to her opponent, Kim Seunga embedded a Skill into Seo Dami’s body.

This Skill, called Tailwind, could enhance propulsion by blowing wind in a desired direction.

Of course, right now it was closer to a gale than a tailwind.

Effectively, it was a situation close to Triple Acceleration.

But the wind didn’t last long.

Because the Supporter Kato had brought with her countered with a Release Skill.

However, the Seo Dami and Kim Seunga Duo had practiced their Strategy with even this situation in mind.

Without a hint of panic, Seo Dami entered into an Engagement with Kato.

A Close Battle unfolded as they dodged the powerful Single Shot attacks pouring from the Arclight Rifle at close range and exchanged blows.

And in the gap while the two were entangled, Kim Seunga and Haruna also continuously exchanged sharp shots.

Sometimes the attacks were aimed at Kato or Seo Dami, and at other times, shots aimed at each other’s heads followed.

This entire flow happened in the blink of an eye.

It all took place in the time it took an ordinary person to take a single breath, and the Spectators gathered in the stadium held their breath, watching their Offense and Defense.

By the time the Spectators’ Cheers, which had been boiling like an active volcano, subsided, leaving only the sound of the players’ gunshots, Kim Seunga once again embedded the Tailwind Skill, confounding the opponent’s nerves.

The principle of the Tailwind Skill was to embed wind.

Unless the entire area was made into a windless zone, there was no way to completely block the Skill’s Activation.

A moment ago, the wind had been scattered by a Release Skill, but that was when she was rushing in from a distance, when there was time to visually confirm and recognize the Skill’s effect.

Now, since Seo Dami was engaged in an ultra-close-range battle with Kato, there was no way for the opponent to stop the Skill from activating.

‘Even if they come up with a countermeasure, it won’t be today!’

Convinced of their victory, Kim Seunga continuously cast Buffs on Seo Dami.

Seo Dami had, at some point, drawn her Lightsaber.

On the arm Seo Dami swung her sword with, on her legs as she advanced to pressure her opponent.

Wind appeared and disappeared repeatedly, perfectly assisting Seo Dami’s movements.

Using a Skill in such short bursts to supplement an ultra-close-range battle like this was no easy feat.

This alone gave a glimpse of how much sweat and effort the two must have poured into mastering this Strategy.

The tide was turning in Korea’s favor.

As Kato’s Health Gauge was clearly burning down toward empty under Seo Dami’s pressure, the Spectator Seats began to stir again.

-Seo Dami!

-She’s taking this game!!

-Just push through!

-Is Korea really going to do it…?

-Is that DamiDami?

Until today’s match, no one had thought Korea could beat Japan.

The Spectators who had come to cheer for Korea chanted Korea’s name, and Seo Dami’s name, rooting for their victory.

But the expression on Seo Dami’s face, the one on the offensive, was not so bright.

The rate at which the opponent’s Health Gauge was depleting had slowed noticeably, and the flow of the ultra-close-range Offense and Defense was stagnating.

It was undoubtedly a picture of the opponent getting used to this ultra-high-speed battle, which could well be called Triple Acceleration.

Is that even possible in such a short moment?

For a second, Seo Dami felt the urge to deny reality, but she soon pulled her Concentration back up, thinking it was a mindset unbefitting a pro.

Then, to figure out the cause, she checked every piece of information coming from her opponent without missing a single thing.

The answer soon became visible.

The cause was a Skill.

On the arms and legs of Kato, who had drawn her own Lightsaber to face her, the same wind was blowing.

What’s more, this was not Support from a Supporter like the Korean team had done, but wind she had generated herself.

Han Youngin was absorbing Korea’s Strategy in real time and attempting a pursuit.