Chapter 12 - Timing (2)
Timing (2)
Translator : Elizabeth
01.
The Jungle of Legend Frontier was by no means welcoming.
The lush thickets and trees obstructed a player's vision, the squelching mud clutched at one's ankles, and the sweltering heat and humidity soured the mood of anyone attempting to traverse it.
Because the spawn locations of monsters were randomized every time, optimizing a hunting rotation was impossible, and occasionally, one's path would become hopelessly tangled for no reason. Not only that, the constant pressure of not knowing when or where an ambushing enemy might leap out meant that Junglers could never let their guard down for even a second.
— Shaaaaaaaa!
“…….”
A massive Hobgoblin leapt from the bushes, blocking the path of Harim and his supporter, roooobot. Hobgoblins took a considerable amount of time to slay, but they were among the monsters that provided a significant amount of experience and gold.
“Let’s just ignore it.”
“Got it.”
The two passed the Hobgoblin as if they had pre-arranged it. Their current objective was to invade the enemy Jungle as quickly as possible, kill the Speed Swordswoman Gale, slay the Golden Monkey—which was essential for her—and then return. There was no time to be distracted by mediocre monsters in their own territory.
“Supporter-nim.”
“Hmm? What?”
As they continued their trek, Harim called out to roooobot. Once he confirmed that her gaze had shifted toward him, he cautiously asked a question.
“Have you ever run into Gale before?”
He was asking if she had ever encountered Gale in the past. To be honest, he doubted Gale’s true skill. He simply couldn't imagine a player being useful while using a build like the Speed Swordswoman.
Half of the Speed Swordswomen Harim had met in the past had died to Jungle monsters and then quit the game, while the other half failed to contribute even five percent of a normal player's worth, racking up ten or more deaths and getting reported for intentional trolling. No matter how he looked at it, the limits of the Speed Swordswoman build were clear; even with skill, the build's structure made it seem impossible to do more than a basic job.
“Is she really that good? What can someone even do with a build like that...?”
He wondered how Gale had ever become a ranker and if she had actually just been carried by other players. At his most extreme, Harim even suspected the use of hacks. Highlight videos were just a compilation of one or two good scenes from hundreds or thousands of games, so they weren't proof of her actual skill.
Since roooobot was a reasonably well-known player in the top 30, he figured she might have met Gale before or knew the truth about her abilities.
“Pfft.”
At Harim’s question, roooobot let out a smirk. She gave a soft, knowing eye-smile and left him with just one sentence.
“It’s usually best not to look down on the ranker kids.”
“Pardon?”
“...That rank isn't a position you can reach just by using cheap tricks.”
“Hmm...”
Harim frowned at the response. It wasn't the clear answer he was looking for. If she put it that way, how was he supposed to interpret it?
I guess I’ll just have to see for myself this round....
However, according to the scenario Harim had in mind, Gale would die helplessly to their Jungle invasion. Then, after losing the Golden Monkey and falling behind in growth, she was destined to become nothing more than material for his B-Tube channel, failing to contribute even half a person's worth.
Hmm... a good B-Tube title would be... 'Counter-stomping a Ranker in a Promotion Match'... that sounds about right.
“Not bad.”
As Harim moved forward, gripping his katana, his heart was filled with nothing but confidence. He didn't feel even a shred of tension regarding Gale or her Speed Swordswoman build.
02.
“Huh...?”
“……!!”
How long had they been running? At the boundary between the allied and enemy Jungles, Harim and roooobot spotted a woman rummaging through the bushes as if searching for something.
Long silver hair cascading down to her waist. Harmonious features and mysterious, emerald-green eyes. Armor so thin it made one doubt it provided any protection, and a rapier held in her small, pale hand.
...It was Gale.
“Uh...? Huh...?”
Had she never imagined they would attempt an Invade so early? Upon seeing Harim and roooobot, Gale—nickname SION—turned as pale as if she had seen a ghost.
“A-An Invade...? Why, why already...?”
She stumbled backward in a panic.
“U-Uwaaaaaah!!”
After a moment of fumbling, she immediately turned and began to flee. Harim and roooobot gave chase instantly.
“Catch her! We have to catch her!”
“On it!”
By sheer luck, they had run into Gale right away in this vast Jungle. It was still very early in the game; if they killed her now, victory was practically theirs.
“I’ll go ahead!”
Since roooobot was a supporter, her physical capabilities were significantly lower, so Harim took the lead and began to pursue Gale. Tearing through the dense Jungle foliage, he chased her relentlessly, like a predator stalking a deer.
‘She’s slower than I thought...?’
As he chased the Speed Swordswoman, Harim tilted his head in confusion. He had heard she dumped all her starting stats into Agility, but her speed was much slower than expected. She was at a similar speed to Harim, who had balanced his stats—or perhaps even slower.
‘As expected, she was all hype.’
Harim let out a silent snort. Gale’s legendary reputation was nothing more than a hollow fame created by edited highlight reels. Even considering it was the early game before she had the Golden Monkey buff, if her only supposed advantage—speed—was this slow, how could she be called a master or a ranker?
It was clearly a hollow title granted by those who overhyped hipster classes, and her rank was likely the result of being carried by others. Well, maybe she had her own tactics and plans. But they wouldn't work on Harim. He was a skilled streamer who wouldn't fall for a pathetic setup like a Speed Swordswoman.
“Paralysis Blade!”
As Harim swung his katana, a sword wave carrying a paralysis effect shot forward and engulfed Gale.
“Agh!!”
The Rank 7 Speed Swordswoman collapsed to the ground with a solitary scream. The sparks crackling across her slender body indicated that she had been successfully stunned.
“...That was easy.”
The skill had landed perfectly, almost like a critical hit, so Gale wouldn't be able to move for a while. It was more than enough time to finish her off. First Blood was right in front of him.
「 ???? 」 「 Wait, is she caught already?? 」 「 Typical Speed Swordswoman LMAO 」 「 But the host landed the skill well. That stun is gonna last a while 」 「 She's so slow compared to the videos. Was she just overhyped? 」 「 Da- 」 「 I was gonna grab popcorn but this isn't even a fight lol... 」 「 -Ha- 」 「 Is that really Gale...? Even for the early game, there's no way she's that slow... 」 「 -Rim 」 「 I told you, all the rankers are fakes 」 「 Congrats on the promotion, host 」
The broadcast chats scrolling in the corner of his vision were also filled with question marks. Gale had been caught too quickly and too pointlessly compared to her reputation. The viewers mocked her and praised Harim's performance. They were now certain that Gale was indeed overhyped and over-vocalized.
“Did you—did you get her?!”
A moment later, the lagging roooobot ran up to Harim, panting. Harim turned to her with a wide grin and proudly held up a 'V' sign.
“Of course.”
“Oh....”
Looking past Harim at the paralyzed Gale lying motionless, roooobot looked surprised. She clapped her hands in admiration and spoke to Harim.
“You managed to catch her? She must have been incredibly fast.”
“No, she was slower than I thought. I had high expectations, but it was a letdown.”
“Eh...?”
Roooobot’s brow furrowed at Harim’s words.
“Gale... is slow?”
Harim shrugged.
“Yeah, about the same as me? Actually, I think she might have been even slower than me.”
“What...?”
At Harim’s claim that Gale was slower than him, roooobot’s expression instantly soured. She couldn't hide her bewilderment and snapped at Harim.
“What kind of bullshit is that? Does it make sense for someone who went all-in on Agility to be slower than you?”
“She was slow, though...?”
Harim could only shrug again. The Speed Swordswoman lying there stunned really was slower than him.
Roooobot raised her voice even more.
“No, it’s impossible for a Speed Swordswoman to be slower than you. It’s not like she’s a different class or anyth—”
“Huh?”
“...Holy shit.”
Roooobot’s voice trailed off as her face turned pale, followed by a curse. Harim could only look at her with a question mark at her sudden attitude.
“Pfft...”
...However, the subsequent sound of a laugh—one he had never heard before—was enough to turn Harim’s question mark into an exclamation point.
“Pfft! Pwahahaha!”
A thin, beautiful voice pierced his ears. As Harim and roooobot turned their heads in unison, they saw a boy they had never seen before sitting exactly where Gale had been lying.
A black bandana wrapped around his head. A mask covering his mouth. Shuriken and throwing needles hanging at his waist.
...It was the enemy supporter, the Ninja.
“F***.”
This time, Harim had no choice but to curse just like roooobot. Was it instinct? Or intuition? He felt that something was wrong—that things had deviated drastically from his expectations. Why was there suddenly a Ninja here? A foreboding sensation washed over Harim.
“A disguise skill...?”
Beside him, roooobot muttered with a hollow laugh. At her words, a drop of cold sweat formed on Harim’s forehead.
‘D-Disguise...?’
Disguise was a unique skill of the Ninja class that allowed them to change their appearance into another player or a Jungle monster. And the fact that an unexpected Ninja was sitting there smirking where Gale should have been meant only one thing.
They had been baited by the Ninja’s Disguise skill.
‘What... since when...?’
Harim’s thoughts ground to a halt. Then, was the person he had been chasing since the boundary of the enemy Jungle not the real Gale, but the enemy Ninja? And the reason the speed was similar to his—a Paralysis Swordmaster—was because while the appearance was Gale, the identity was a Ninja?
“How...? Why...?”
The streamer on the verge of promotion muttered blankly. Why on earth would the Ninja, who should have been supporting the Ice Mage at the Beach, be lingering in the Jungle, disguised as Gale?
“Don't tell me...”
Could it be they had anticipated an Invade? To buy time...? While they were fixated on chasing the fake, was the real Gale leisurely slaying the Golden Monkey to get her buff...?
“…….”
Of course, Harim couldn't know the Ninja’s true intention. He could only speculate. But one thing he was certain of was that his perfect scenario had begun to unravel—seriously.
“Heh, you morons.”
The stunned Ninja chuckled, mocking Harim and roooobot. The Ninja, whose appearance made it impossible to tell if they were a boy or a girl, stuck out a tongue.
“An early-game Invade? Seriously, did you look down on us that much? You should have just played it safe. Or at least confirmed your target before you started the chase!”
“…….”
“Sigh....”
Harim was frozen, and roooobot’s face was contorted. There was little profit in killing a supporter whose primary role was assisting teammates rather than scaling. Furthermore, by this point, Gale might have already finished the Golden Monkey.
The plan had failed completely.
“...Our Jungler is a ranker, after all.”
The Ninja smiled with total confidence. Simultaneously, their gaze shifted past Harim and roooobot toward somewhere behind them.
“…….”
Harim and roooobot slowly turned around. And there, deep in the Jungle, they saw a beautiful girl walking leisurely toward them, her sophisticated rapier already drawn.
‘Gale...’
Harim knew. This person was the real Gale.
“Has she already eaten the Golden Monkey...?”
A faint golden glow was emanating from Gale’s body. This meant she had already slain the Golden Monkey, and her stats were currently boosted exponentially by the buff. Not only that, her level had also increased. They had only been chasing the Ninja for less than two minutes, yet she had already secured the Golden Monkey in that gap...
— Whew....
The approaching Gale came to a stop. Then, with a deep breath, she raised her rapier. It was a stance that anyone could tell was a precursor to an attack. An aura incomparable to when they faced the disguised Ninja radiated from her.
“…….”
Harim and roooobot also prepared for battle. They didn't know why, but a sudden tension filled the air. They focused every nerve on Gale’s every movement so they could counter-attack immediately—so they could fix this situation that had rapidly turned against them.
‘I can do this.’
Harim constantly brainwashed himself. The Ninja was still paralyzed and unable to fight. Even if Gale had the buff and a higher level, it was still a 2v1 situation; their numerical advantage remained.
— …….
“…….”
All sounds in the Jungle ceased. A continuous stillness and silence.
‘Damn it....’
Just then, a bead of sweat rolled down and stung Harim’s eye. He blinked a bit longer than usual to clear his vision.
“Huh...?”
When he opened his eyes again, Gale was gone.
“Gah—!”
“S-Supporter!!”
...In that instant, she had already passed Harim and plunged her rapier into the throat of the supporter beside him.
“F***....”
Due to the low defense and health characteristic of a buff-type supporter, roooobot was killed in a single critical strike, turning into particles of light and vanishing into the air. Gale’s speed had been so fast that neither of them could react.
Where roooobot had stood, only a curse filled with bewilderment remained.
Subsequently, a feminine mechanical voice echoed across the battlefield.
[First Blood!][roooobot has been slain by SION!]
“Crazy...!”
Harim’s eyes widened, his expression frozen. It was an unbelievable sight. He had only blinked, yet his supporter was dead in an instant. In that split second, less than a single second, they had handed over First Blood. It felt as if he had witnessed a supernatural phenomenon.
How was this possible? Was that really a speed a player could produce?
— …….
Meanwhile, having dealt with roooobot, Gale turned her head and stared at Harim with a blunt expression. No emotion was visible on her pretty face, but Harim felt an indescribable chill.
The words roooobot had spoken to him earlier flashed through his mind.
‘It’s usually best not to look down on the ranker kids.’‘That rank isn't a position you can reach just by using cheap tricks.’
“Ah...”
Rank 7 individual player, Speed Swordswoman SION. Had his assumptions been wrong? Had she reached that position solely through her own skill, without cheap tricks or being carried?
Anticipating the Invade and using the Ninja to buy time, and then that insane speed and control to land a fatal blow in the blink of an eye. Was the highlight reel on B-Tube actually her pure, unadulterated skill?
Had he... underestimated the Speed Swordswoman too much?
‘No...’
But Harim soon shook his head. He didn't want to believe it. To acknowledge a troll build like the Speed Swordswoman would hurt his pride far too much.
‘...I was just careless.’
He bit his lip hard and readjusted his grip on the sparking katana. Yes, he had just been careless because sweat had gotten in his eye. No matter the buff or the level difference, the Paralysis Swordmaster shouldn't lose to a Speed Swordswoman in terms of match-up. A match-up advantage wasn't something even a ranker could overcome easily.
“Come on, bring it!”
Harim threw a taunt at Gale with a smirk.
— …….
She continued to stare at him bluntly. As if looking for the right timing again, she showed no movement, just like before.
“Paralysis Blade!”
...He wasn't a fool who would just wait for an attack. This time, Harim struck first, launching a surprise attack.
Paralysis Blade. A representative skill of the Paralysis Swordmaster; if hit by the extending sword wave, the target takes damage and falls into a long stun. No matter how fast a Speed Swordswoman was, she would be useless if stunned. Harim smiled as he launched the attack.
‘...Got her.’
It was a surprise attack launched at an unexpected timing. The distance between him and Gale was very close; he didn't see any way for her to dodge.
Whoosh.
“Huh...?”
However, contrary to his expectations, the wave of the Paralysis Blade fruitlessly cut through empty air. It only struck the spot where Gale had been.
“W-What...?”
Where the sword wave had passed, only the green leaves of the Jungle fluttered in the wind someone had stirred up.
Thuck.
“Huh...?”
Suddenly, an unpleasant sensation of weight felt in his chest. Instinctively looking down, he saw that someone—a small girl with beautiful silver hair—had already buried the tip of her sharp rapier into his heart.
...It was Gale.
“G-Gale...?”
When on earth had she reached him? Before he could even wonder if she had used a Blink skill, a bright red hologram screen appeared before Harim.
[Fatal Blow!][You have died][15 seconds until respawn]
A screen announcing his death.
‘What.’‘Did I just die?’‘To Gale?’‘She dodged the attack at that range?’‘Does that make sense?’‘What the hell is this...’
Having checked the hologram notification, he let out a silent scream. Without even knowing why, and before he could fully grasp the situation, his vision began to darken on its own.
— …….
But the one who had stabbed him, Gale, was merely staring at the vanishing Harim with a look that wasn't even surprised, as if it were a result she had naturally expected.
“What kind of...”
Even as he was teleported to the respawn room, he couldn't properly understand the situation. Only a miserable, humiliating voice—one that guaranteed he would be roasted by his viewers for a long time—echoed clearly in his ears.
[Double Kill!][Harim has been slain by SION!][SION is on a rampage!]
03.
「 ……? 」 「 What did I just see? 」 「 Holy sht, a Double Kill? 」 「 Did that even take 3 seconds? 」 「 Gale is insane, holy sht... 」 「 Is that speed even real? Isn't it a hack? 」 「 Did she use Blink? 」 「 What kind of crazy speed is that LOL 」 「 THE GALE 」 「 ?? Was that a one-shot? A critical? 」 「 This is fing nuts LMAO 」 「 A 2v1 Double Kill in 3 seconds, what the hell LMAO 」 「 Oh, God of Speed Swordswomen... 」 「 The fact is Harim << knows fing nothing LOL 」
……Meanwhile, unlike Harim, who was waiting for respawn in a daze, his chat window was exploding like crazy.