The training process wasn’t exactly smooth sailing.
I’ve become quite accustomed to conducting this kind of educational content now. I have a fairly good grasp of what the lower-tier users struggle with based on the tiers below mine.
Nicang, Riri, and Camilla, the students I’ve taught, each have their own unique styles. Just like people have different tendencies, their play styles vary as well.
Nicang is the typical hexagonal style. She’s the highest tier among the three, so perhaps that’s why her stats are overall high. Her physical abilities aren’t bad, and her mental skills are decent too.
She knows how to handle the game to some extent, and when I teach her something, she intuitively understands my intent without needing any further explanation.
If there’s a downside, it might be that she’s too textbook. Once she’s pushed back, she tends to stay on the defense, and her ability to create variability is a bit lacking.
Next up is Riri; she’s strong in mental acuity.
Originally, her mental skills weren’t that impressive, but I forced her to develop them. Her physical abilities are not just lacking; they’re pretty poor, so there’s no room for growth there.
Thus, I focused her training on ways to win the game.
I also taught Camilla, but due to her poor physicality, it’s safe to say she isn’t fit to play Camilla at all.
Finally, there’s Camilla, our Jian.
This player in front of me holds greater expectations compared to the previous two.
Even though her current tier is the lowest among the three, I would say she has potential. She’s an uncut gem, this person is.
If I had to describe her play style in one word, it’d be beastly. Camilla plays not like a person, but like a beast. She plays instinctively without thinking.
Perhaps because of her innate physicality, she dodges when she needs to and charges in boldly when it’s time. This is impressive even though she hasn’t memorized all the skills and traits of the heroes existing in the Abyss yet.
There’s nothing to adjust in terms of physicality. Improving physical skills isn’t something that can be taught; it’s just a matter of correcting the overall gameplay itself.
For example, I wanted to drill into her mind when fighting is advantageous, and when it’s unnecessary or even harmful despite winning. Those are the types of things I wanted to input into her head.
However, this turned out to be more difficult than expected. She has habits and inertia from playing the way she’s always done.
Even when I keep giving her advice, I’d find Camilla launching mindless charges before I knew it.
Yet, it becomes another problem that her win rate is still quite decent.
Even when I play haphazardly and the results aren’t that bad, that’s just how people are. We tend to think in ways that suit us.
But if I keep playing like this, I’ll hit a wall soon. I’m at a low tier now, but as I climb higher, I really need to avoid this kind of playstyle. It’s toxic for me.
“Hmm…”
What should I do? How can I correct this playstyle? It would be great if I could just chill a bit and only get involved when necessary.
Should I just smack them? A request in the chat for Riri to slap me periodically. That’s a method I haven’t tried yet.
They say even a beast listens when you hit them, so it might work, but… I feel like once I start, I won’t be able to stop myself, so I haven’t done it even once.
Riri is an adult over twenty, after all; it’s not like I can treat her like a child and ask for a slap.
I was deep in thought when…
“Um, Teacher… please hold onto this to ease your anger.”
Jian handed me something. It was a Snowflake Queen Camilla figurine, which calmed my heart just by looking at it.
[LOL Kayak looks uncomfortable, so let’s dive straight into some Camilla therapy]
[Quick on the uptake, haha]
[Handing it over like soothing a baby, lol]
[Watching them fidget and sneak glances is hilarious, haha]
[Seriously, just listen when we play the game]
[Saying they’ll listen but not following through makes me want to smack them]
[It’s like they’re a beast, not a person]
[Honestly, just hit them while teaching might be faster, lol]
I took the figurine, fiddled with it for a moment, and then…
‘Figurine?’
An idea suddenly flashed through my mind.
*
‘What do I do, what do I do, what do I do, what do I do, what do I do.’
Jian was currently in a state of extreme anxiety.
The content was progressing smoothly. Viewers were flocking in, and although the content wasn’t finished yet, it felt like it was surprisingly popular.
But none of that mattered. There was something more important.
‘Why isn’t she saying anything?’
Kayak’s silence next to me. She held the Snowflake Queen Camilla figurine, deep in thought.
Jian was scared of Kayak’s silence. This stillness was terrifying. I was starting to deeply regret not listening to Kayak while playing the game.
What on earth was Kayak going to say that made her so quiet?
What on earth could Kayak possibly say that she’s been so quiet?
Up until now, Kayak had been consistently reprimanding others for their mistakes, so this silence felt even more burdensome.
In the midst of it all, after quite a while of silence, Kayak finally spoke up.
“There are a lot of figures, did you buy them all yourself?”
“Figures? Yeah, I’ve been collecting them one by one since a long time ago. Pretty, right? Do you like figures too, Teacher?”
From Jian’s perspective, this was small talk to lighten the mood. However, Kayak’s reason for asking about the figures was not that simple.
“I’ll take a break and explain each one to you. This one with the same white hair as you, Kayak-nim…”
Jian’s explanation went on for a while, but Kayak didn’t seem particularly enthusiastic about listening.
She kept listening to Jian with an unreadable expression.
“Then are all these friends limited editions like Camilla?”
“Um… not all of them are limited editions, but there are many limited ones. I have a hobby of collecting them from way back, and a lot of them are discontinued now.”
[Wow, I’ve never seen someone collect all of those by series before]
[Isn’t Riri in her early 20s? How did she buy all of this?]
[Custom-made figures too, doesn’t that cost close to 200?]
[Showing off her rich kid status;;]
[The broadcast is just a hobby for Riri…]
[Why are these plastic bits so expensive?]
“What do you mean plastic bits! There are people who line up since dawn and even go overseas to buy these!”
Riri then shared some TMI. A short summary of the hardships she faced to collect this collection flowed out, filled with vivid experiences.
With Jian’s tension slightly rising, Kayak only spoke up after all of that was over.
“Since they are figures you worked so hard to get, they must be very precious to you.”
That was a rather meaningful statement. Jian felt a sense of unease and replied.
“Y-yes, that’s right. They’re my cherished belongings, and it’s the hobby I’ve spent the most money on…”
“Good, good… actually, there’s a different reason I brought up figures.”
“…What is it?”
It became clear that something felt off; bringing up the figures seemed to be part of a build-up to something.
“I’ve been thinking deeply about what problem Riri has.”
As Kayak placed the Camilla figure down on the desk, she continued.
“The biggest problem is that you don’t listen to me properly. Even though I’m right next to you, it’s not much different from you doing it alone. We can’t say that education is properly progressing.”
“The big problem is that you don’t listen to me properly. Even though I’m right next to you, there’s not much difference from doing it alone. I suppose the education isn’t proceeding as it should.”
“No, that’s…”
“So I decided to prepare a special measure.”
Jian opened his mouth to make some excuse, but he ended up mumbling and couldn’t say anything.
“The reason Riri doesn’t listen to me is that there’s a lack of desire, a lack of desperation.”
[Desperation?]
[Riri is serious about the game though]
[Just slap her on the head every time she doesn’t listen]
“Would she really have played like that even if there was a bomb collar around her neck? If the collar exploded when she didn’t play right, could she have played so recklessly?”
“No, she wouldn’t….”
Kayak’s eyes were now sparkling. Her sapphire-like blue eyes were fixed on Jian.
Jian found himself overwhelmed by that fierce gaze.
“But there’s no bomb collar in reality. I’m not a terrorist, and even if there was an actual bomb collar, I wouldn’t be able to put such a monstrous thing around Riri’s neck.”
“Instead, shall I say? It’s a bit inhumane, but there’s no choice. If Riri doesn’t play the game properly…”
Kayak had already stood up.
She reached out and grabbed the collection figures Jian had introduced.
“These figures have no lives.”
“What? No! What did they do wrong?”
The reaction was dramatic. Jian wailed while Kayak blocked his approach, placing the figures in a corner of the room like a kidnapper.
[Wow, she’s taking the figures hostage, hilarious]
[LOL, behave well if you don’t want your figures smashed]
[Don’t touch them! 😭]
[Inhumane measures on LOL]
[Well, she should’ve played better, right? LOL]
“Play like a gladiator in an arena, as if death is right before you with a bomb collar around your neck.”
“Defeat means death itself! 😱”
[Isn’t this person just wanting the Snowflake Queen Camilla figure?]
[Looks like the teacher is fulfilling personal desires with this]
[It’s almost like a bomb collar level of chaos LOL]
“Alright, you’ve rested enough. Let’s start the game again, commence.”
“Commence…”
Jian sat back down in front of the computer, looking like he was about to cry.
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