NOVEL WEB Chapter 147 - Interview
Chapter 147 – Interview
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It was a busy time for everyone at KSM.
Viewers were busy relieving stress while experiencing excitement and enjoyment as they watched the non-stop engagements. The hundred professional gamers vying for a spot among the twenty Korean national representatives were busy pushing themselves to their limits.
And that wasn’t all. Numerous engineers were busy performing maintenance, anxious that the servers might crash or fail. Public relations staff, busy contacting and communicating in all directions, were also preoccupied.
Ironically, even Yoo Jin, who had found freedom a bit earlier than others, couldn’t escape the bustling atmosphere.
So, what’s all this about?
“Nice to meet you! Congratulations on being pre-selected as a member of the Korean national team. We’ve been avidly watching your gameplay in Dark Zone and are thrilled to have this interview opportunity.”
“Nice to meet you too. You must have come a long way. I’ll try to answer as many questions as I can.”
An interview.
Not just a preliminary interview, but one carrying the official title of ‘national representative.’
As mentioned several times before, the next match was the Asia preliminary round, and those selected through KSM would represent Korea in engagements against representatives from other countries.
Typically, the interviews would officially start after KSM concluded, when the 20 first-team national representatives and 20 backup members—making a total of 40 users—were officially listed. However, an exception was made for early selection.
Furthermore, Yoo Jin was the only pre-selected user without any scheduled events, except for the event match, with more than an hour left until the second event match.
This meant it was a perfect time for an interview.
Moreover, frankly speaking, if not now, when would there be time after KSM ended? By then, there would be numerous others besides Yoo Jin to interview.
The paper filled with questions and the floating cameras were for an edited video to be uploaded later, not a live stream.
The paper was flipped, and the interview began.
“We’ll start with something light. You’ve broken through KSM with an unbeaten record and were pre-selected in the first cycle. How do you feel about it?”
“Personally, I feel I can now prepare at ease. Having gone through the tournament ranks, scrims, and preliminary ranks, it’s been a tough period, so I think I’ll prepare for the Asia preliminary round more leisurely.”
“Haha, are you implying you’ll continue rigorous training?”
“That’s right. But these days, there are a few more people besides me, so I don’t think I’ll be bored.”
Several faces flashed through her mind.
Dice, who was sweeping through matches over the past few hours; Harmony, who had suddenly evolved into a dark horse, breaking the mold of an ordinary user; and Blooming, a typical SSM pro-gamer who suddenly rose to KSM.
It was as if they were injected with a stimpack before matches, showcasing extraordinary combat prowess surpassing their former selves.
The two hosts chuckled awkwardly and continued.
“Then for the second question. It’s your first time participating in KSM. How was the overall gaming environment? Could you talk briefly about issues like ping, lag, and the players’ resting areas?”
“There weren’t any major issues overall. Even if there were, as long as they weren’t severe, we could anticipate them and play accordingly, so I don’t think it’s a big deal.”
“Wow, that’s amazing. So that’s how Yoo Jin sees it? Given that most people think even minor differences can determine victory or defeat, we were expecting a different answer.”
“Realistically, things rarely go as planned, so personally, I think you should always be aware that such situations can occur.”
Can that really…work?
Of course, they didn’t say it aloud.
As soon as a question was spoken, it disappeared from the paper, leaving only the answers. The hosts were learning more about Yoo Jin as several questions passed.
She had a strangely warm personality. More so when asked personal questions rather than work-related ones. She was thorough in separating work from personal matters.
Or perhaps, Yoo Jin’s vast and professional knowledge of modern combat, which Dark Zone dealt with, made her answers come off as highly professional.
Regardless,
“…Let’s move on to the next question. Many people are enthusiastic about Yoo Jin, who appeared like a comet. Do you plan to continue participating in competitions not just this year, but next year and the year after?”
“Probably.”
“Oh, you’re not sure?”
After a brief thought, Yoo Jin added.
“I think I’ll continue to keep track of the flow of what’s called the combat meta. Whether I’ll go further to actually win, I don’t know.”
“I see. That’s still a bold answer. Do you plan to continue showing such physical prowess?”
“That’s the plan.”
Nodding, they moved on to the next question.
There was nothing about her personal life, but the questions they had to ask were still piling up like a mountain.
“How much do you usually practice each day?”
“Shooting the gun is practice. Whether it’s running main missions, going to the shooting range, or doing AP, it’s all practice.”
But that wasn’t the answer people wanted to hear, and Yoo Jin was aware of that.
“But refining skills through practice…the amount of practice isn’t that important. It’s better to focus on what and how you practice. Skills improve by overcoming limits, which is possible by achieving goals that are hard to accomplish.”
“That’s impressive. Given that not only pro-gamer Dice but others trained by you are excelling, your words carry even more weight. Could you tell us what kind of goals are hard to achieve?”
“Achieving 100% accuracy in moving targets or while on the move, for example.”
“Uh…is that possible?”
“You make it possible.”
Ah.
It was indeed Spartan-like.
As one sheet filled with questions disappeared, the method of questioning became simpler. Questions appeared in the air, and Yoo Jin answered them. If additional explanations or clarifications were needed, the hosts asked.
“It may sound harsh, but I believe the mark of a professional is to approach each engagement without emotional involvement. You need to control yourself even in the most urgent situations to achieve the desired results.”
A response without hesitation.
The nuances of her fluent answers were neither arrogant nor boastful but conveyed certainty. It was like the precision of mathematics, not human responses.
Was it confidence or something else? Yoo Jin’s track record backed up all her answers.
Next question.
“Yoo Jin-ho? Haah….”
Why do these bizarre nicknames keep increasing?
Yoo Jin sighed deeply, filled with human touch, which made the hosts chuckle, of course, due to the numerous nicknames attached to Yoo Jin.
There were already over a dozen, all embarrassingly awkward to say aloud.
Yoo Jin, whose expression crumpled as if biting a lemon, barely managed to smooth her face and added.
“Anyway, I can’t interfere with each team’s coaches. Of course, if someone requests, I can draft a curriculum.”
“Haha, understandable given your track record.”
The host checked the remaining questions and smiled.
“It seems it’s about time for a break. Let’s take a short rest after a few more questions. Is that alright?”
“Yes, that’s fine.”
More questions floated in the air.
“I don’t have any plans at the moment. Even if I do, I’ll likely maintain an external advisory role. If I do, it might not be with SSM but with another team.”
“Oh, really! Any particular reason?”
“Balance must be maintained.”
“Ah….”
What a strange reason.
But understanding the thinking of extraordinary people was for other extraordinary people, so others forced their brains to comprehend and moved on to the next question.
The last one.
“I don’t think I can answer that, but as for the latter, it’s Dice. She’s my favorite student who usually accompanies me, so it would be beneficial for her to advance to the finals and learn more.”
“Haha. That does seem likely. Anyway, thank you for your time, we’ll be back shortly!”
And then, break time.
To avoid disturbing the player’s personal time, the hosts quietly left, leaving Yoo Jin alone again.
As the five-minute timer began, Yoo Jin popped up her watch to check the current time. About twenty minutes had passed since the interview started, so some results should be appearing soon.
She pulled out the paper analyzing movements and popped up the screen to check if the match was still ongoing—however, the screen was not filled with the characteristic fiery scenery of the volcanic island.
Text appeared.
And it wasn’t the end.
[Notification: Atakaya Volcanic Island session terminated.]
[Notification: The winner is .]
[Notification: ‘DICE’ has been selected as the ‘2nd’ pre-selected candidate!]
───Pop!
“Yoo Jin-ssiiii! I got pre-selected!”
“Whoa! What’s going on!?”
Crash!
Before she could grasp what was happening, a physical assault covered her face.
The last thing Yoo Jin felt was a softness.
“…Was it possible to enter here?”
“Seems so. I didn’t know either. Maybe it’s because I was pre-selected. Come to think of it, something similar happened last year. There was a room where pre-selected candidates gathered.”
“Ah.”
Dice, the second pre-selected candidate, barged into what was once Yoo Jin’s private room, changing the structure, interior, and exterior view. The outside changed from a typical city to a snowy Northern European-like forest.
In a quiet room with a fireplace and white marble, Dice and Yoo Jin were conversing.
Of course, they weren’t alone; the two hosts were also present.
“Sorry for interrupting the interview. I’ll leave right away.”
“Oh, it’s fine. Since you’re the second pre-selected, how about we interview you after Yoo Jin? We can get the question list in about 30 minutes.”
“Uh…is that alright? What about Yoo Jin?”
“I don’t mind.”
As Dice sighed, the
host quietly asked.
“How would you describe your relationship?”
“Well, it’s….”
Yoo Jin naturally interjected.
“Oh, right. Take this. It’s the match evaluation. I plan to include it in the curriculum later, so it’s good to know in advance.”
“…Ugh.”
Holding the paper with a bewildered expression, Dice fell silent for a moment, then added while looking at the two hosts.
“Something like this. Do you get it? I live like this, being dragged around. Someone please save me.”
“Anyone hearing would think I only make you do impossible tasks.”
“You don’t make me do the impossible, but you make me do things just shy of impossible!”
Ah, I see.
As the two hosts quickly understood their relationship, the banter between the two continued.
In the meantime, Yoo Jin casually dropped a comment.
“But now that we’ve come this far, we can rest for a few days, right? We need to focus on Blooming next.”
“Ah.”
As they reached their mutual agreement, one host, witnessing Yoo Jin’s antics, asked again.
“So…will Blooming also be evaluated live like this?”
“Probably.”
“Oh dear.”
“…Why?”
“Well, just….”
Thinking about Blooming being evaluated by both Yoo Jin and Dice in real-time, even as an outsider, was enough to feel overwhelmed.
Of course, they couldn’t say it out loud.
It was another peaceful moment at KSM.
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