NOVEL WEB Chapter 129 - Friday
Chapter 129 Friday
* * *
[General] Damn, there are so many ads, really.
Stop the Dark Zone occupation, you bastards. This inferiority complex is insane.
How are people playing crap games like Terra supposed to make a living? Damn it, fight fairly with game quality, not financial power, you jerks.
[All comments] [By order of posting]
Hahahahahahahahahahahahahaha
If you’re upset, why don’t you host a worldwide tournament, too~~~~~~~
ㄴ[Author] You jerk
Wow, so many ads. Is it always like this?
ㄴIsn’t it obvious? Nowadays, all billboards are for Dark Zone occupation.
ㄴI don’t go outside!
ㄴLoser shut-ins, another loss today hahahaha
ㄴReally pathetic hahahaha
Game quality???
ㄴWhat quality in a game where you get stronger by paying money hahahaha
ㄴ[Author] Hahaha, hitting hard
ㄴJust pay for skins and battle pass installments, that’s it hahaha
ㄴHonestly, Dark Zone is cheap, that’s good.
ㄴDark Zone’s game quality might be better?
There’s a ton of ads, though.
ㄴLook at all the billboards in Seoul, they’re all Dark Zone ads hahaha
ㄴThey wouldn’t do it unless they recoup the costs hahaha
With only a day left until the tournament, they have to do their last desperate moves, can’t just sit still.
Isn’t this KSM too tough? How do they only pick 19 people?
ㄴIt’s 20 people, idiot.
ㄴOne spot is already decided, so it’s 19.
ㄴHahahahahahahahahahaha
ㄴGetting excited for no reason hahahaha
ㄴIf you call this excitement, then waiting for tomorrow’s sunrise is also excitement?
ㄴCrazy Yoo Jin fanboys hahaha
If they fail the preliminaries, it’ll be legendary.
ㄴNo matter how I think, I can’t imagine it.
ㄴThey’d need to get hit by a dump truck to have a chance hahaha
ㄴHonestly, seeing what they’ve done so far, even a dump truck isn’t trustworthy.
ㄴWhy are you so harsh on Yoo Jin, you crazy people hahaha
Honestly, if you’re hyped for KSM, upvote.
ㄴ22222222222222222222222
ㄴWeekend is dead, get ready hahaha
ㄴAll incentives are going to be spent on chicken and beer hahaha
ㄴMy heart swells every time I see an ad, for real.
Watching KSM with beer on the weekend… Is this heaven?
ㄴJust thinking about it brings a smile to my face hahaha
ㄴSleeping in late, ordering delivery, gaming while waiting for the match, ah, so excited already.
ㄴSelecting matches on Saturday and Sunday was a godsend, for real.
There should be a pre-briefing today, right?
ㄴYep, according to Xi.
Looking forward to other country’s players getting beaten up in the Asian preliminaries hahaha
ㄴThe China Federation is scared and the Japan Republic is freaking out over Korea’s Yoo Jin.
ㄴIs this… Korea’s nuclear hammer?
ㄴDizzy, so dizzy hahaha
“…Don’t we only need to be here by noon? Why is everyone already gathered here?”
Buzzing.
In real time, it was 11:20 AM. In other words, there were still two hours left until the pre-briefing began in the virtual reality. However, more than 50 participants were already sitting in the comfy chairs of the briefing room, chatting excitedly. A quick glance around showed a sea of familiar faces. It was enough to make one’s head spin.
There were people I could talk to, but for some reason, it didn’t feel like the right time to be here. But even as Dice slipped away, about half of the attendees were chattering away.
The conversations were incredibly diverse.
“Oh, you survived. The air in the top 100 is sweet, isn’t it?”
“Haha, no need to say it. Exactly.”
Pretending to be solemn, they congratulated each other for qualifying for KSM, or,
“As long as we don’t get weird maps, we should be fine….”
“If we avoid unfair matches, we’re in the top tier. I just hope I don’t meet Yoo Jin.”
“I’ll pray you drop right next to her at the start.”
“Hey, come on….”
Such small talk.
Naturally, much of the conversation involved Yoo Jin. Considering the impact she had on AP soloing, it was understandable – to the point where the attendees could be divided into those who had met Yoo Jin and those who hadn’t.
The week of the preliminary rank felt surprisingly long. Specifically, almost half of the participants had encountered Yoo Jin at least once – but with 1600 participants, many had never met her even once.
Despite that, her notoriety was immense.
“I’ve never faced Yoo Jin, but what’s the big deal?”
“Do you think you could beat an armored vehicle in a fight?”
“Is it that bad?”
“Don’t worry, you’ll find out in KSM.”
Of course, this wasn’t said seriously.
Pro gamers were all about analysis and review, and Yoo Jin’s gameplay was the most recorded and dissected. Those who couldn’t gauge their opponent’s strength had long been filtered out through the tournament and preliminary ranks.
This increased the fear among those gathered here. Those who had experienced it knew best. Plus, the nickname ‘Nightmare of Pro Gamers’ was no exaggeration. This synergy, combined with their imagination, pressured each individual.
Some reacted particularly strongly.
“…Hey, you okay?”
“Ugh, honestly, not really….”
A whining sound. Corvus pretended to cry, burying his head in a fellow pro gamer’s shoulder. But it was hard to say there wasn’t some genuine emotion there. His long hair, reminiscent of a raven, fell over his slender shoulders.
Ink glanced at Corvus and shook his head. His silver hair swayed with the movement. He understood the stress. This guy almost got killed by a fire axe in the last match.
Even a sanitized memory was enough to induce tension.
“…Do you think we can win the finals?”
“We should be thinking about that.”
“I don’t know. I’d be happy if even one out of the 19 makes it.”
“19? The Asian preliminaries have 20 participants… Hey! Why are they all like this!?”
Looking around with a baffled expression, only one person shook their head and sank deep into their chair. The others didn’t seem to care much, and it was exasperating, but nothing would change.
Yoo Jin turned pro gamers into crybabies, and this was the result – especially a plague spreading among those who faced her directly. The more brutally they lost, the worse it was.
Time passed as many shared stories, and more people came in. The higher the tier, the smaller and tighter the community. With each new entry, they warmly greeted each other, showing their close relationships.
But whenever unfamiliar faces appeared, the excitement grew, as they were seen as new prospects for the next AP area – though it was worth noting that all of them entered with a mentor from their respective teams.
Then, another person finally appeared.
“Hey, isn’t that Dice?”
“Yeah, it is!”
“Get her! Pin her down!”
“No, what’s happening!?”
The first time, she might have escaped notice, but not the second.
As clumsy as it sounded, a pile of pretty girls stacked on a pretty girl was quite an unsightly scene. Dice struggled through the crowd and barely managed to sit down near a chair, shouting once as Blue Ming, another SSM player, sat beside her.
Of course, within seconds, people crowded around them. The reason was obvious. There were so many questions to ask. The rumor that Yoo Jin had given individual curriculums to SSM players had spread everywhere, and the first question was about that.
But asking and answering were two different things. Dice, playing dumb, added, ‘I can just log out,’ and the situation slowly settled.
“…Why do they have so many questions?”
Even Dice was dizzy.
How much fear and terror did this person spread during the preliminary rank for everyone to be so terrified and in awe? – To be honest, she never faced Yoo Jin during the preliminaries. Not even once in the same game.
Maybe she had met Yoo Jin so often in both personal and professional contexts that she didn’t encounter her in the preliminaries. But it was a relief regardless. Meeting her might have meant more tasks after the game.
Handling questions she could and deflecting others, time passed until it was 11:55 AM outside. In-game time, 15 minutes left until the briefing.
Everyone was curious about one thing – but Dice didn’t answer. She didn’t need to.
‘Worrying about her is foolish.’
She would come if she wanted. It didn’t matter if she didn’t.
But, as always, things didn’t go as the world wanted.
The atmosphere began to change.
Clap.
Clap clap.
Clap clap clap clap clap!
Suddenly, applause erupted.
One person’s clapping turned five heads, and those witnessing the cause and effect joined in. As more responded, soon everyone except Dice and Blue Ming was applauding.
And below, receiving everyone’s respect and fear,
“…Is this that hidden camera thing?”
Yoo Jin’s biggest weakness.
It was shyness.
“Welcome, Apex Predators. This is the place where only the top 100 predators in Korea can reach.”
With bold words, the host opened the briefing.
It was exactly as he said. Those gathered here were among the top 100 of millions, maybe tens of millions, of users in Korea. Although it
was only AP soloing users, considering the game’s motto that only the strongest survive, it wasn’t wrong.
But as there is always a lower bottom, there is always a higher top – so 80 out of 100 would be filtered out.
The host was announcing this coldly.
“Unfortunately, only 20 of you will have the chance to move to a higher place. Sixteen matches over Saturday and Sunday await you.”
Hoo.
Dice glanced around. Not much had changed from last year. Only the number of matches had increased, and new maps were added. The scoring system was similar – but she knew. The KSM, the Asian preliminaries, and the final championship all had fewer matches.
The Asian preliminaries had twelve, the final championship had fourteen.
So the KSM’s motto was….
“Last year’s KSM had twelve matches like the Asian preliminaries, but this year is different. This will push you even harder. Under the motto that true worth is shown only amidst hardship, the number of matches you will face has increased from last year.”
Ambiguous breaths from all around.
Was it because the pre-established plans were disrupted, or for some other reason?
“First, let me inform you of the agreed map order.”
But regardless, the pre-briefing was starting.
It was an afternoon a day before the tournament.
* * *