183. An Invincible Shield and a Spear That Shatters Common Sense
183. An Invincible Shield and a Spear That Shatters Common Sense
***
Player name: Baekya. Real name: Seo Yuna.
Her shoulder-length silver hair was distinctive, and her cynical expression was practically her trademark.
Depending on who you asked, she could be called a beauty, and with her outstanding skill, she held most of BS's fandom share. Unlike her real-world demeanor, she entered matches with a bright energy, which naturally earned her a large fanbase.
Seo Yuna had worn a cynical expression even as she entered the strategy lab.
Now, watching a video that Coach Baek Seungmin was showing her, she unconsciously let her mouth fall open.
"...Whoa, what the hell?"
An in-house match between G1 players was footage you couldn't see anywhere else. The moment she took in the faces on screen, Yuna couldn't help but let out an exclamation.
The video she was watching was so high-level that she couldn't remember the last time she'd seen a match of this caliber.
Rin was in the video the entire time.
She stood out even among those G1 players.
Yuna knew that talk about Rin had been circulating among the players.
That a new monster had appeared.
Even in a 2v1 against G1's formidable melee-class players, Rin held the front line without being pushed back significantly.
Holding the front line against a Berserker and a Gunner with a Dancer class—something even proper tank-class players would struggle with—was an absurd feat, and she was actually pulling it off.
In the occasional 1v1 situations, Rin's individual skill was so exceptional that she actually gained the upper hand.
'She really is a monster.'
Yuna found herself thinking that as she watched the video.
She didn't get any sense that the G1 players were going easy on Rin or holding back during the scrim.
If they had been, she wouldn't have felt the level of play was this high.
When Minha's sniping supported Rin at key moments, the battle truly became evenly matched.
Even in urgent situations where she faced multiple opponents alone, Rin occasionally managed to land parries, trying to create openings somehow.
"..."
Baek Seungmin watched Yuna, who had become completely absorbed in the video, and quietly waited for her to focus until the footage reached the point he'd anticipated.
Originally, what he'd called her in to discuss was something else entirely, but a better topic had come up, so he'd quickly changed the subject.
'There's no answer except Baekya.'
Right before the playoffs, Seungmin was carving out time from a schedule already precious as gold to give Baekya individual coaching.
A coach who'd only just started the job evaluating the level of a proven player might seem presumptuous, but Seungmin genuinely rated Baekya that highly, even if only privately.
And he believed there was no other answer.
The first international tournament held this year.
—Another Worlds.
Of ACK's three spots, two were already locked in by TSJ and G1, who had proven themselves through results. In the end, the remaining six teams would have to fight tooth and nail for that last spot.
Seungmin believed Baekya still had untapped potential for growth, and that the key to Worlds qualification rested with her.
And to make that happen, she had to prove it in these playoffs first.
Securing a better result and preparing for the Worlds qualifier from a higher position was the most important thing.
......
BANG!!
Hajun ducked low, sliding smoothly across the ground as if sweeping it, and fired his shotgun in an instant.
The moment countless shotgun pellets poured toward Serin, Hajun chained into his next skill.
—Bullet Time.
In an instant, a massive blue line passed through Hajun, and the world transformed.
Within a transcendent sensation as if time had slowed, Rin's slow reaction came fully into Hajun's view.
BANG!
He immediately drew the Desert Eagle from the holster at his waist and fired an additional shot at Rin's leg.
—Bloodstained Constellation.
CLANG-CLANG-CLANG-CLANG!!
Countless massive blood-red points exploded, blocking the shotgun pellets.
Swish!
As if she'd predicted the pistol's entire trajectory, Rin twisted her leg and let the bullet slide past. Hajun couldn't help but let out an exclamation of admiration.
Clack!
But in that moment, he smoothly stopped his slide, kicked hard off the ground, and launched his body into the air.
And just like that, the slowed-down Bullet Time—a mere two seconds—came to an end.
—Earthshaker.
Kang Hyeok gripped his greatsword tightly and stomped the ground with force. The Colosseum itself shook.
RUUUMBLE!!!!
A massive crater erupted around Kang Hyeok's stomping foot, and as the Colosseum trembled, Serin lost her balance and staggered.
Hajun, already airborne, fired an additional shot.
BANG!!
"..."
Rin's indifferent eyes narrowed slightly as she glanced at her side.
She'd twisted her waist urgently, but she couldn't dodge the bullet. A section of her side was torn open, blood seeping out.
BANG!!
In that instant, a massive gunshot rang out, and a black trajectory shot fiercely toward Hajun. Kang Hyeok, as if he'd anticipated it, raised his greatsword and shielded the airborne Hajun.
CLANG!!
......
Click.
Seungmin paused the video right after Rin allowed the attack from Hajun and Kang Hyeok's coordinated play.
"Baekya, how did that part feel to you?"
"How did it feel..."
Yuna, wondering why he'd suddenly stopped the video she'd been enjoying, blinked at Seungmin.
Then she said exactly what she was thinking.
"I mean, Rin's individual skill is outstanding, but she lost out in team coordination, right?"
The G1 players synced their breathing as if it were second nature, creating openings in their opponent and landing successful attacks. They'd even blocked an attack to protect a teammate in that moment.
With Kang Hyeok's Earthshaker, Hajun's airborne movement was perfectly coordinated in and of itself.
"Within G1's coordination... didn't it feel like they were up against someone specific?"
When Seungmin asked in a suggestive tone, as if leading her to an answer, Yuna wondered what he meant—and then a certain woman suddenly came to mind.
A woman who always acted alone, aloof on the battlefield.
"Coach Baek, wait. Are you talking about Jeanne d'Arc?"
Yuna asked, half in disbelief.
Seungmin's lips curved up slightly as he nodded.
"That's right. Didn't it feel like the G1 players were up against Jeanne d'Arc just now?"
"You're saying Rin is on Jeanne d'Arc's level?"
Yuna stared at Seungmin, answering as if the comparison was absurd. As if asking whether he was serious about comparing those two.
Rin's performance in the video was certainly high-level, even to Yuna's eyes.
Her visible mechanics and split-second decision-making were dazzling, and considering the previously released footage of Rin, it was clear her skill wasn't exaggerated—it was real.
But if that same coordinated attack had been used against Jeanne d'Arc, Yuna wondered whether Jeanne d'Arc would have allowed the hit.
The answer came instantly.
No, she wouldn't have.
Jeanne d'Arc would have calmly used Defensive Stance and taken a single step back, taking no damage at all.
When it came to holding the front line, Jeanne d'Arc was like a single massive fortress wall.
A wall that could never be breached.
Seungmin looked at Yuna's expression, let out a soft laugh, and pressed the spacebar to resume the video.
......
CLANG!!
The greatsword was knocked back hard, but Kang Hyeok succeeded in blocking Minha's shot aimed at Hajun.
—Jeolyeon.
Rin swung her Crescent-Moon Weight, drawing a line of blood, and instead of retreating, threw herself forward toward Kang Hyeok.
A wounded Dancer going on the offensive—it was reckless beyond belief.
Kang Hyeok hurriedly brought his greatsword down, trying to recover his disrupted stance.
CLANG!
The moment the greatsword met the blood-red line, it was knocked back hard again.
His stamina had been heavily drained from forcibly deflecting Minha's skill, so all he could do was deflect the attack.
But by then, Rin had already closed the distance to right in front of Kang Hyeok.
BANG!!
Hajun landed and immediately fired at Rin, who stomped the ground with sudden force, shifting her legs.
Swish!
Rin's body, which had seemed to be shooting straight forward, suddenly changed direction and launched along a completely different line.
The bullet sailed uselessly past Rin's movement, cutting through empty air.
Kang Hyeok immediately used a skill.
—Judgment.
Kang Hyeok gripped the knocked-back greatsword with both hands, and his arms swelled massively, veins bulging. A huge slash that seemed to sweep across the entire 180 degrees in front of him.
The pure white light gathered on the greatsword traced a half-moon as it cleaved through space itself, Rin included.
But Rin was a step faster, thrusting her Crescent-Moon Weight toward the ground beneath her once more.
—Explosive Spike.
WHOOSH!!
BOOM!!
The massive greatsword carved through the front, generating a huge shockwave, and the ground exploded with a thunderous roar.
Rin had already launched herself into the air using the explosion's force, dodging Kang Hyeok's attack.
BANG!!
In that instant, a massive gunshot rang out, and a black trajectory pierced precisely through Kang Hyeok's head.
Hajun's eyes went hollow at the sight, but with no room left to retreat, he immediately unleashed his final skill.
—Infinite Blow.
The hands holding the double-barrel shotgun and the Desert Eagle crossed over each other, pouring fire forward without pause.
BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG!!!
—Single Kick.
Rin, airborne, spun her body urgently and lashed out at the empty air with a leg wreathed in red light.
Pop!
With a sound like a small explosion, Serin evaded the space where the indiscriminate gunfire had been pouring.
She'd had no choice but to take the first few shots, and blood was streaming from all over her body, but Rin ultimately succeeded in evading.
......
Click.
Seungmin paused near the end of the first video and looked at Yuna, who was staring at the footage with a surprised expression.
"This person Rin—she's completely different from Jeanne d'Arc, isn't she?"
He said it casually. Yuna nodded blankly.
Aggro play and aggression that tore through the battlefield with a Dancer class.
It was no different from insane acrobatics on a tightrope over a cliff.
One mistake at any moment, and it wouldn't be strange if she plummeted into the abyss below. Every moment was so fraught with danger that Yuna felt a chill just watching.
And yet, Rin pulled it off in the end. Thanks to her, Minha succeeded in sniping Kang Hyeok, breaking the deadlock on the battlefield.
"She's... definitely different from Jeanne d'Arc, but Rin is on Jeanne d'Arc's level in her own right."
If Jeanne d'Arc was an invincible shield that held the formation firm, Rin was like a spear that shattered common sense.
Jeanne d'Arc, whose formation never crumbled. Rin, who broke through 2v1s against top-tier players with aggressive play.
They were fundamentally different types that couldn't be compared on the same axis, but the truth was, facing either one would feel just as hopeless.
"G1 probably ran that scrim treating Rin as if she were Jeanne d'Arc."
Seungmin looked at Yuna and spoke with conviction. Yuna stared back at him with a dubious expression.
"If we win our first playoff match... G1's first playoff opponent is us, though?"
"They probably don't care at all. I believe the purpose of releasing this footage is to show G1's confidence."
Seungmin stared at Yuna as if asking whether that didn't piss her off. Yuna just let out a hollow laugh.
"Shouldn't the rest of our players see this too?"
She asked if the other players shouldn't watch it as well.
Seungmin shook his head.
In a sense, this was footage that only Baekya could handle seeing.
For any other player, it was the kind of match that would make them feel the gap in class and lose their will.
In short, for players who weren't on that level, it would have the opposite effect.