Chapter 171

CHAPTER 171

Before the team members arrived, Seojun sat down in a chair inside the gym and pulled out his phone.

The scrims were over, so he wanted to gauge public opinion about the teams.

He opened Trable through a search. Then his finger moved to the Free Board and the "30 Recommended Posts" section.

The screen changed.

Stories that had been exchanged throughout the night filled Seojun's view.

[From what I've seen, who do you think is going to win?]

I guess we'll know for sure after the group stage, but judging from the scrims, it feels like teams of similar strength got matched up. What do you guys think?

==

• Bat

Why? (Post Author)

Because they're the team that beat your streamer. Poverty Gap is winning it all.

ㄴ This lunatic is from the cult again lolololol (Post Author)

• So far, Only One Bite is the only team with three wins.

ㄴ A Challenger ADC is just a massive wall.

ㄴ Spoon diff.

ㄴ But Spoon got absolutely destroyed before the tournament started. That's why it's Poverty Gap.

ㄴ Isn't that because of those crazy cultists? LOL. Back then it was a mid-lane fight, that's why they got stomped.

• What about Heavy Mental?
• They lost, so they're excluded.

Just as the post said, not everyone had faced each other.

Only half the results were available.

Still, even before that, could you really dismiss them just because it was only half?

[Is it basically a battle between Bat, Only One Bite, and Poverty Gap?]

==

It's basically a competition over whose carry player performs the hardest in each role.

==

• Take Poverty Gap out lol. Bat completely crushed them.

ㄴ The streamer was hiding his power.

ㄴ The streamer is a bastard! Our streamer is a streamer too! Is only your streamer a streamer?

ㄴ Nah, those guys are the Streamer Council lololololol.

[If we win, from now on the title of "Streamer" belongs to Streamer.]

==

Got a problem with that?

• Streamer Council -

==

• Sure, whatever lol.
• They're still calling him Streamer here too lololololol.
• Honestly, "Streamer" sounds cooler than Heavenly Demon or Sword God.

There was also a lot of talk about Seojun himself.

His viewership numbers weren't lagging behind anyone anymore.

'Last stream hit thirty thousand viewers, right?'

Lately he'd been streaming a little more than usual.

Starting today, he'd probably drop back to the twenty-thousand range.

Viewers from other streams would no longer need to come to his channel just to watch matches.

It wasn't something that bothered him.

[But Dokkaebi lost to Spoon too.]

Why is Dokkaebi even in this conversation?

Let's just declare Only One Bite the champion!

==

• But Spoon lost to Streamer, didn't he?

ㄴ Rock-paper-scissors hierarchy lol.

• Here they go overhyping the finger again.

As expected.

This place was the wilderness.

A wilderness where people bit and tore at each other.

Still, even the wilderness had its intellectuals.

• Nah, the teams that lost are probably preparing harder now and will win in the main event lol.

ㄴ Then is the favorite to win the team that's 0-3?

ㄴ Definitely not lol.

It was a fair point.

Preparation was what mattered in the end.

The matches from the past five days—

[What's the point of games played right after teams were formed? lol]

[Scrim results have never predicted the actual tournament.]

[The team that uses the next ten days best wins. Seriously.]

[These tournaments always have meaningless early results.]

After all, no team had developed proper teamwork yet.

"So previous tournaments must've gone pretty much the way I'm thinking."

At least it wasn't a professional tournament.

Nobody would be preparing with their lives on the line.

They weren't doing absurdly inefficient training just to take one more step forward.

And everyone's starting point was low.

The default condition was a complete mess.

That was where everyone started.

The more they practiced, the more dramatic the improvements became, and the greater the efficiency of that practice.

"The team that figures out the right path first and executes it better probably takes the trophy."

In that sense, perhaps his team had the highest growth potential.

Weren't they supposed to be the biggest mess and the weakest team?

"We'll see."

Either way, Seojun had absolutely no intention of being inferior to anyone.

He was fairly confident in his ability to teach people.

He also believed he wasn't lacking when it came to identifying weaknesses.

"I'll be doing things my way, at least a little."

As Seojun muttered to himself, a well-built man in shorts and a T-shirt approached him.

"Your way, hyung? Won't everyone just quit and leave?"

It was one of the new gym members whom Seojun had beaten up when Lee Dongsu first arrived.

He was twenty-six years old.

Older than Seojun, but Seojun was stronger, so he was "hyung."

In that sense, aside from the gym owner, nobody in the gym spoke casually to Seojun.

Everyone had crossed fists with him at least once.

"That's why I asked you guys for help, hyungs."

Of course, Seojun always spoke politely with a friendly smile.

But they all knew that smile was simply the confidence of a stronger man.

Make one mistake, and you'd be dragged into the Ring of Truth.

Even the gym owner couldn't stop it.

"Ah, Seojun hyung. Is that why you told us to line up and greet them? To establish dominance?"

"A proper balance of carrots and sticks is necessary."

Exercise was hard.

Training was even harder.

Taewoo was watching the scene from behind and had to suppress the sudden urge to smack Seojun in the back of the head.

For some reason, he just really wanted to hit him.

Seojun turned his gaze back to his phone.

[30 million points lololol. What happens if Joseon's Assassin hits a 6x or 7x multiplier? LOL]

==

The gap between him and second place would become ridiculous lololol.

For reference, second place went from 10 million to 14 million points because he made some insane bets trying to catch up.

But while he earned 4 million points, Joseon's Assassin earned 5 million—and then bet all of that too lololol.

==

• Wasn't second place originally famous too? People called him the God of Betting. He'd show up anywhere and win.
• That's impressive too lololol, but the guy who made 25 million points in one shot is crazier.
• More importantly, Joseon's Assassin seems even better at multiplying points. He turned 5 million into this.
• Luck vs skill lololol.

It was an interesting topic.

What amazed Seojun was how many people on Trable knew about things like this and talked about them.

Well, once you reached first or second place on a ranking list, it was hard not to become famous.

• Joseon's Assassin is just insane lololol. Looks like he's trying to pull off another miracle like last time, but it'll be harder this time.
• Honestly, does Poverty Gap have a chance to win? Sure, maybe. But enough to go all-in? Absolutely not. That's straight-up gambling. Is his heart made of steel?
• Point betting is basically gambling anyway lol.

ㄴ Now that I think about it lol, isn't 30 million points not even all he has?

• A crazy streamer and a crazy viewer. If they win here, it won't just be history—it'll be another myth lololol.
• Hmm... is it really worth going all-in?
• Whatever happens, second place has to go all-in too. He keeps talking about catching up.

ㄴ Even so, second place has the advantage. He can watch the practice sessions and choose afterward.

• And honestly, I don't think Poverty Gap can win the whole thing. Their ace's carry potential isn't enough to overcome everything like Spoon can. They have zero ability to control the flow of the game.

ㄴ Just physical skill merchants lol.

So that's what people thought.

For some reason, after reading the community discussions, Seojun became curious about what the second-place point holder would choose.

'If he ends up choosing Poverty Gap too, then no matter what happens, he won't close the gap with Joseon's Assassin. They can both crash and burn together, but...'

Seojun felt increasingly happy as he gradually became part of the mainstream world of Trable and streaming.

And then—

[5 Seconds (Gym): Hyung Seojun, we've gathered in the underground parking lot and are heading up now.]

One of the athletes Seojun had stationed in the parking garage sent him a message.

Incidentally, "5 Seconds" was Seojun's own way of categorizing people.

He memorized faces and names based on how long they could last against him. If they could definitely hold out for at least five seconds, he labeled them "5 Seconds."

"Hello!"

The team members flinched.

Whether they did or not, the athletes dispersed immediately. That was all Seojun had asked them to do.

They also hadn't forgotten the intimidating expressions he requested.

The goal was to create pressure.

To make the atmosphere a little uncomfortable.

"Hello."

Seojun approached and led them to a corner.

Only then did the tension in the team members' faces ease slightly, though the nervousness from what had just happened remained.

Seojun immediately introduced Lee Dongsu.

"He'll show up on stream later, but this is Lee Dongsu, who'll be exercising with us. Nice to meet you all."

"Oh."

"Wow."

Still unable to fully shake off their confusion, they responded awkwardly but with noticeably more relaxed voices.

Apparently, they found it fascinating.

"I met Seojun hyung here while working out. We became friends, and that's how I got the chance to meet all of you. Please take care of me, hyungs and noonas!"

"We're looking forward to it too."

"Wow!"

"I'm really planning to exercise seriously from now on. Gotta take care of my health."

"You're Streamer Alpaca, right? I heard you don't even leave the house. Guess you'll be coming here regularly now."

"Heh."

Alpaca wore a somewhat foolish expression while Dongsu flashed his friendly smile.

Seojun hadn't instructed him to do that.

The guy was simply happy to have more comrades.

Now it was time for another round of bait.

"Do you know why I called you all here?"

"There was a reason?"

"No?"

"Wasn't it just to give us a chance to exercise together with Player Lee Dongsu?"

Exactly.

Seojun had invited them by saying they could work out with Dongsu.

He hadn't lured them in with promises of training.

Which meant he now had to convince them.

Because training was hard.

"That's certainly part of the reason. But this is also part of your training."

Naturally, everyone already suspected that improving teamwork and training were the real objectives.

Why else would Seojun have called them?

But after witnessing the greeting earlier and seeing Seojun's expression, their instinctive DNA-based warning sensors had begun detecting danger.

"Haha. Then maybe we should go for a run. It's been a while."

"M-Me too! It's been so long since I walked around in real life that it's kind of hard!"

"Lumi, seriously... please go outside."

"It's already too late for all of you. Hehehe."

Ha Yoonho wore the same expression Dongsu had when he first came here.

It was time for the carrot.

"Everyone."

"Yes?"

"You all know that moving around is much easier in virtual reality than in real life, right?"

"If you're heavier, moving requires more energy and strength in reality, but in VR none of that matters. That's what you're talking about, right?"

Alpaca answered, and Seojun nodded.

Everyone knew this wasn't just about body weight.

Most physical limitations disappeared in virtual reality.

Even lost limbs.

"That's right. Movements that are easy in VR can be difficult in reality."

The reason could be flexibility.

Or endurance.

Or strength.

Or simply physical awkwardness.

In other words, poor athletic coordination.

"Of course, the reverse isn't true. If you can do it in real life, you'll fly around in VR. People with great athletic instincts are even better at adapting."

"That is true..."

"In that sense, athletic ability in reality is fundamental. Improvements you make here are reflected directly. That's why I believe anyone who wants to improve their skills should come outside and develop their natural athletic abilities."

To be precise, it was necessary for improving basic movement.

Which made it perfect training for people who lacked fundamentals.

Like his teammates.

"That makes sense."

"So that's why you called us."

Before they knew it, everyone was nodding.

They understood the necessity.

"Also."

Naturally, the harder and more difficult something was, the greater the effect.

And reality was harder and more demanding than virtual reality.

"Lee Dongsu improved a lot because of this too. He strengthened his fundamentals."

Seojun tossed out the carrot.

Dongsu too?

Is that why he comes here every morning to exercise?

If that's the case, maybe we can do it too.

That was probably what they were thinking.

Meanwhile, Dongsu thought:

'That's not really it... Didn't I mostly just get beaten up?'

But he wisely kept quiet, and Seojun continued.

"It's good for your health too. So let's work out together."

"Hmm... okay."

"I don't know exactly what'll happen, but let's give it a try."

"We did need this."

"Why didn't anyone explain it to me like that..."

Ha Yoonho muttered quietly.

Ignoring him, Seojun walked over to a punching bag.

"You all agreed, right?"

Then he grinned and prepared to strike the bag.

"I'll show you what happens if you follow my training."

"No, you're going to show them what happens if they try to run away."

Taewoo, standing on the opposite side of the group, muttered quietly.

Seojun ignored him as well and threw a punch.

BANG!

The moment his fist connected with the punching bag, the metal hook supporting it snapped.

The outer surface caved in with a fist-sized hole, and the stuffing exploded outward.

"HEY! YOU LITTLE—!"

Even the gym owner, who had been watching from afar, was summoned.

'He does have a point.'

Taewoo thought from behind.

Seojun really was an excellent coach.

And if Dongsu helped amplify the entertaining side of the broadcasts, the viewership would be strong as well.

But—

'We've made preparations too.'

Hehehe.

Through Keryl, a professional player had expressed interest in appearing on Rios.

Because of that, Taewoo didn't think they were behind in viewership, entertainment value, or coaching quality.

'Player Kim Hatang!'

For the record, it wasn't Baek Doyul.

"Everyone! We also managed to get coaching from a professional player, just like Poverty Gap!"

Bat.

A pro player had appeared here too.

"It's Player Lee Chaerin!"

And once again, it wasn't Baek Doyul.

It was a slightly oversized snowball that Dongsu and Seojun had set rolling.

Meanwhile—