Chapter 137

In the past few days, news related to the national team hasn't stopped. People were thrilled about Seong Jihan joining the team and his impressive performance during practice.

But that night, the incident of Ha Yoori's assault broke out, and the national team was getting a lot of criticism.

-Yoon Jeonghyun, that crazy person!! How dare he touch our Yoori like that??

-Is Seong Jihan insane? Why invite celebrities to a welcoming party?

At first, there was criticism directed at Seong Jihan because it was called a welcoming party for him, suggesting his involvement in the incident.

-No, Seong Jihan didn't go. It was the other guys who did it, lol.

-I saw interviews with celebrities, they were told that Seong Jihan was coming soon and started drinking. But wasn't Seong Jihan on the BattleNet until then? lol

-Seriously, those damn warrior players... They've lost their humanity...

Since many people saw that he was playing BattleNet during that time, the criticism against Seong Jihan quickly faded away.

And When Coach Noh Youngjun decided to send all the first-team warriors away because of this incident, public opinion was divided.

-Good riddance. How long were they going to keep them around, lol.

-But cutting off all the first-team players is going too far, isn't it? Just kick out the guy who caused the accident.

-Ha Yeonjoo said she'd leave if they didn't kick everyone who participated.

-Well, what can we do? Archers are the only ones left, yeah?

-Still, without warriors, how will they handle the Russians?

-They'll just lose like usual, lol.

-The Nationals are not just simple games. They're a matter of national importance. But cutting off all the first-team players because of a simple mistake... Is the coach insane? They should bring the players back immediately!

-Are you Yoon Jeonghyun?

"Ah, damn it. Yoon Jeonghyun is in prison."

Kim Dongwoo, who had been kicked out of the national team, cursed while replying to the comments.

All because of that Yoon Jeonghyun...

"Ha YeonJoo is really unbelievable. Even if she demanded kicking out Yoon Jeonghyun, why'd they kick us all out?!?!"

Lee Yoongi, who had come to Kim Dongwoo's house, set up the drinks and sat on the couch.

"They should have just cut the guys from the second team. Oh, and did Seong Jihan say he was going to cut all of the first-team players? That person is the worst."

Kim Dongwoo swore while watching Seong Jihan's face on TV.

They prepared for his welcoming party so lavishly. Why would he tell them to kick us out?

Despite being like brothers, they felt betrayed.

"That's right. They're second-rate anyway, and they want to try without us."

"When are the girls coming?"

"They should be here soon. Let's drink while watching the Russia match."

Just a few days ago, they were the Korean national team, but now they wished for Korea's defeat more than anyone else.

Let them realize the void we've left behind.

At that moment.

Beep-beep-

"Oh, they're here."

Four women entered Kim Dongwoo's house.

"Oppa! They said the national team got cut. Is it okay to drink like this?"

"Keep it down. Give me some soju."

"His temper... Wow, Seong Jihan is so cool!"

As one of the women praised Seong Jihan while watching his interview for the Russian match on TV, Kim Dongwoo scowled.

"If you're going to praise that guy, Get out of my house!"

"Why?"

"He told them to kick all of us out."

"Huh... really? No way, how will they fight without you all, oppa?"

"Well... that crazy guy said so. So we're here to watch them get humiliated."

"Hehe~ But in the interview, he seemed really confident?"

"Jihan oppa is always confident."

"Really?"

Kim Dongwoo ignored the girls as they chatted amongst themselves and continued to watch Seong Jihan's interview on TV.

-This time, Seong Jihan, there was an unfortunate incident involving the national team. The lineup has changed dramatically. Do you believe it will be successful?

-Yes. It will work well. And the result will be the same.

-The same...?

-Yes. Winning 3:0 is confirmed.

-Wow...!

Seong Jihan remained unfazed, confidently predicting a 3:0 victory. Kim Dongwoo couldn't help but be irritated.

"What 3:0? The Russians should beat them 0:3 to bring them back to reality."

With all the first-team warriors gone, is that even possible? He eagerly awaited the match, drinking heavily.

*****

The atmosphere in the Russian national team was festive due to the scandal in the Korean national team.

"They said they cut all the first-team warriors? Because of an accident before the game."

"I can't understand. They should've just cut the guy who caused the accident."

"They probably won't win anyway. Maybe it's to instill discipline?"

The Russian warriors had already won several games, and their spirits were high.

"Don't underestimate them. Don't forget that Seong Jihan is there."

Vladimir Gorskikh, the leader of the Russian team, cautioned his teammates.

"Vladimir, what can that guy do? He's just a gold."

"That's right. He was blabbering about winning 3:0 in the interview, but let's show him reality this time."

In their mind they had already won this game.

[Northeast Asia League Match Begins.]

[The first match is Southgate.]

As the game began,

"Divine Bless."

"Absolute Shield."

The warriors, buffed by their supports, formed their formation. Unlike the Korean national team's turtle formation, the Russian warriors started forming a triangular shape.

At the forefront of this triangular formation stood Vladimir.

- 'Berserker' Vladimir is at the forefront.

Vladimir possessed the SS-rank Gift 'Rampage,' a simple Gift that greatly boosted stats for a certain duration, with a focus on enhancing attack power.

- Ranked 6th among all warriors, he's evaluated to be even higher in terms of attack power.

-The buffs from the triangular formation are concentrated on the vanguard, so it will show significant destructive power...

The triangular formation, also known as the Wedge Formation, is one of the warrior formations. This formation focused buffs on the vanguard in front.

With Vladimir, who possessed Rampage, further enhancing their strength, the Russian team aimed to disrupt the opponent's formation with explosive attack power.

"Let's go! For our Motherland!"

"Uraraaaaa!"

Led by Vladimir, who held a massive axe, the Russian warriors began to charge.

"Target Elya first!"

The leader of the Korean national team's archers, Ha Yeonjoo, identified the weakest target among the warriors and directed focused shooting.

However, rather than idling, the other Russian position players actively supported the attack.

Bang! Bang!

The Korean team on the wall, shooting from a dozen meters above, and the Russians below engaged in a fierce battle of long-range firepower. Spells erupted in all directions, and support units' debuff and defensive spells collided chaotically.

A fierce long-range firepower battle unfolded between the two teams.

"Ugh...!"

"I'll go first!"

In the early stages, the atmosphere favored Korea. Korea had stronger firepower than Russia, so some of the Russian warriors fell despite their efforts to interfere.

However, Ha Yeonjoo's expression was dark.

"Only three...?"

Before they could break into the fortress, they had to take down as many enemy warriors as possible. However, the speed of Russia's charge with the triangular formation exceeded her imagination.

Even though they concentrated sniper fire, only three of the weakest Russian warriors had fallen.

"If they break into the fortress, there won't be any way to snipe them anymore!"

Southgate Map.

There are typically two ways to win on this map. The first is a showdown between long-range positions to determine the outcome.

The attacking team's warriors focus on protecting their own long-range dealers, rather than entering the fortress. They exchange long-range attacks, and the number of player deaths is counted. In such battles, the main actors are the long-range dealers. This situation occurred when the warrior levels on both sides were similar.

However, Russia believed that their warriors would always win when they clashed in combat.

The second winning formula is to break through the warriors guarding the fortress. This was a fairly risky tactic. If the number of warriors was the same on both sides, and the warriors guarding the fortress received support from the wall above, it was difficult for the attacking team's warriors to match the firepower.

The warriors of the attacking team would be vulnerable if the warriors guarding the fortress held out a little longer. As a result, unless there was a significant difference in warrior level, most teams preferred the first winning formula.

Russia's charge implied that the Korean national team's warriors were of a lower caliber. That viewpoint was shared by Ha Yeonjoo.

"No matter how impressive Seong Jihan was during practice... The real battle is different. We'll be penetrated. We need to take down at least one more before that happens!"

"The next target is Sergei! Aim for the blue armor!"

"Yes!"

With Ha Yeonjoo's first shot leading the way, a concentrated volley of arrows rained down. Korea's unique skill of focused shooting allowed them to decisively take down one target at a time, making it their greatest advantage.

Puk! Puk!

As a result, two more Russian warriors fell before they could reach the fortress.

"Captain, five of them are down!"

"The efficiency of the triangular formation dropped around 180%!"

"It's fine, this should be enough! We can win even though we're just 5 of us left!"

Vladimir, the Russian Team's leader, chuckled. His sweaty face and swollen muscles showed that he had already entered a state of frenzy.

"Blood Rage!"

With a shield in one hand, he lunged toward the bunched-up enemy and swung his bloodstained, massive axe.

Kwaaang!

In one strike, the formation of the Korean national team was shattered.

"They're weak!"

Are these so-called national representatives unable to withstand even a single blow? They're incredibly weak. Did they really have to expel the first-team warriors over an incident like that?

Vladimir sneered and swung his axe horizontally.

Chaaak!

With another single blow, the bodies of five enemy warriors were cut down like logs. The numbers were now even.

"Hahaha! This is too easy!"

"Where's Seong Jihan?"

The warriors following Vladimir laughed cruelly as they slaughtered the Korean national team.

"Why was the formation breached so easily...? What was the point of this?"

They formed a defensive formation, but did it really get broken through so easily? Despite the defensive formation, this was way too easy...

But when Vladimir heard the term 'defensive formation,' he raised an eyebrow.

"Defensive formation...?"

Wasn't it supposed to be a defensive formation?

While they had their shields up facing each other to form a defensive formation, the placement of personnel seemed strange. To form a proper defensive formation, the numbers should be arranged to fit a square formation.

Strangely, there were many warriors in the first row, but after that, the number of warriors decreased. It was as if...

"Was this... not a triangular formation?"

Reverse triangular formation.

If Vladimir was at the top vertex of the triangle, then the 1st row of Korea was at the bottom line.

Then, at the Korean vertex.

The one who received all the buffs from this strange formation...

"He's here."

As the Korean national team was being slaughtered, Seong Jihan's figure began to appear. He was smiling in the back, receiving the buffs from the reverse-triangular formation.

* * * *

The Korean national team's performance after being reorganized with the second team warriors was dismal. Even the first team was initially weak, so the level of these players was far from impressive.

"The efficiency of the defensive formation... It's not even 150%."

"Indeed, the difference between the 1st and 2nd teams seems unavoidable."

No matter how much Seong Jihan improved the efficiency of the defensive formation, the other 29 players couldn't support it, creating an insurmountable gap with the 1st team.

"Moreover, all of them are below level 225."

"At this rate, I'm not sure if they can withstand Vladimir's blow."

Vladimir, known for possessing the most formidable attack power among the warriors other than the Sword King, was using Berserk to swing his massive axe. Could the low-level 2nd team warriors withstand his blow?

The coaching staff was in despair as there seemed to be no solution to the situation.

Then, Seong Jihan suggested something unexpected.

"Why don't we try this?"

Having observed the situation, Seong Jihan proposed giving up on the defensive formation. Instead, he suggested a triangular formation, a charging formation that strengthened the player at the forefront. It didn't match the current situation where they needed to defend, but given the significant difference in levels, putting everything on Seong Jihan might be the better choice.

"Maybe you should stand at the front?"

"No. I'll stay at the back."

"At the back... But if the warriors in front all fall, the buff effect will disappear."

"No, I'll be able to handle it on my own."

Despite the crumbling formation and the massacre, the triangular formation maintained a buff effect, albeit reduced to 110 percent.

And then...

"As the enemy formation widens, I'll try finishing it with a single strike."

"A single strike... Can it work?"

"Let's give it a try."

As the Korean national team fell apart, the Russian warriors began to scatter, thinking the game was already over. In response, the formation collapsed in an instant.

Seeing this, Seong Jihan raised his spear.

"Let's begin."

At that moment, a powerful aura began to emanate from Seong Jihan.

"W-What is this power...!"

Startled by the unusual aura, Vladimir hesitated for a moment.

"You fool...! What can you do alone?"

Denying his own surprise, he shot toward Seong Jihan like a cannonball.

The distance between them closed in an instant.

"Blood Rage!"

Vladimir's blood-red axe surged with intense energy as if he were about to split Seong Jihan in half.

But, with a calm demeanor, Seong Jihan unleashed a power he hadn't used before, his third awakening.