As I mentioned before, being the leader of a group is a really tough job.
That’s what being a leader or a ruler is all about.
In a situation where everyone is looking at me, if the group is heading in the wrong direction, I need to be able to speak up and be ready to become the bad guy.
I guess you could call it the courage to be disliked. That’s a quality needed in a leader.
So, whether I like it or not, I decided to have the courage to be disliked as I sit in the leader’s seat.
What does that mean, you ask?
“Help me, help me, help me, help me, help me…”
“Mom, I’m scared. Mom, I’m scared. Mom, I’m scared…”
“Wait, are these people all a bunch of idiots? Director?”
“…I have an urgent matter, so I can’t make it to practice today. I’m sorry.”
That means I chose to lightly ignore the minor noise that comes up during practice.
[Is this minor noise really a thing, Teacher?]
[This seems more like noise than minor noise.]
[Oh lol, just think of it as white noise ASMR.]
[So you’ve finally decided to become a demon, huh?]
[These players are so dramatic… It seems easier than when Riri and Nicang were around.]
[Fr, nowadays if it gets a little tough, they act like they’re dying….]
[Did Riri and Nicang train under the Broadcast Host too?]
[Yep, they were treated like dogs.]
[It’s only been a week, will this training even be effective?]
“All authority lies with me, the Director Kayak. If you have a problem with it, become a director yourself.”
The viewers who questioned during the practice were casually ignored.
After the last free rank game, I had roughly finished analyzing the playstyles, tendencies, and issues of the team members.
Having established my own strategies, I instructed each player on the training suited to them, which is exactly what led to the current situation.
“Craaack, I’m so sorry, Shan. To ditch you for this yankee dude…”
“Well, technically speaking, aren’t you a yankee dude as well, Shan?”
“…I’m sorry, Shan. I think I’m at my limit. To pick this weird religious sword-wielding guy….”
First up is the streamer Kazan.
A one-champ guy who only plays the black fighter Shan. In a way, he’s a fellow artisan like me.
But unfortunately, in this tournament, he couldn’t play his beloved Shan. You see, one-champ users are generally vulnerable during the ban-pick phase, and compared to Shan, Alex, the paladin who is a similar bruiser, performed overwhelmingly better in team games.
Seeing him repeatedly apologize to Shan for betraying him kind of made me feel bad as a fellow one-champ user, but it was unavoidable.
I didn’t stick to Camilla exclusively when I participated in tournaments before. If you get hit with a target ban, you won’t be able to show your true strength, so taking precautions is a wise decision in many ways.
It’s wise to prepare since I can’t exert my full strength.
Next up were Chaekyung and Anya.
Both of them were in the support position, a result of my auction blunder that caused their roles to overlap.
Anya was a pure support, and while Chaekyung played as a damage support, I thought even that wouldn’t mean much.
So, what I instructed the two of them was something akin to Kazan, but even more challenging.
“Ugh… eugh…”
“This is hard, my head hurts… Support was easier… There’s just too much to know.”
“Did you just say that the support position is easier to win compared to other roles, in other words, you just ride the bus?”
“Huh? But support just gives buffs and pokes from the back…”
“Hmmm…”
[So true, support is just free riding, it’s comfy]
[Chaekyung really speaks her mind, lol]
[The host seems suspiciously interested in supporter rights]
[Honestly, low-tier supports are easier than other positions, yeah, even newbies start as supports]
[Host isn’t happy]
[Are you going to give another speech like you did for Riri?]
[But can they really switch roles in just a week?]
[Since both are low-tier, there probably won’t be a big difference whether they play their original roles or a new one]
[Isn’t it better to just stick them both in the back to buff?]
Role change. I required both of them to practice a position other than support.
This was a somewhat challenging demand for just a short practice period of one week. The viewers seemed to sense this too, showing puzzled reactions to my order.
However, I was resolute. It was a mission with meaning, even if it was tough. If we didn’t go through these hurdles, our team wouldn’t stand a chance. I wasn’t in a position to say this, given how I constructed the team.
I assigned a relatively easy task to VTuber Nanning and Hye-yeon: rewatching the ACK match.
Perhaps because they had played a lot of solo ranks, they were well-versed in the skills and synergies of heroes, but seemed lacking in understanding team play and teamwork.
So, starting yesterday, they had been analyzing everything from the domestic leagues to world tournaments, contemplating what team play really meant.
[Isn’t it better to just train these two instead?]
[For real, lol, what’s with analyzing ACK?]
[Kayak is a famous Vtuber, yeah]
[This woman just loves VTubers]
[How much can they improve in a week? They might as well remember what they see in the league and aim for similar super plays at the tournament]
[It would be good if they learned to use map calls and backup while watching the match]
[Do you think they’d actually learn that? They’d just be lower-tier players, lol]
[Disregarding lower tiers? They make up the largest portion of the Abyss population.]
“Ignore? We have the largest population in the Abyss!”
And finally, the last remaining player, the team’s veteran, and the ace responsible for the highest tier in the team.
With a dazzling record of being a Season 1 and 2 Challenger, I believe he’s the only chance for our team to win.
Being such a player, I had no choice but to invest my heart and soul into this.
“Taker, are you all rested up?”
“…Yes.”
The voice of Taker, as if sensing the fate that awaited, was unusually quiet.
Hearing that gloomy voice made my heart soften, but…
“I’ll invite you to the training ground.”
It’s unavoidable. He is the ace, after all. I mean, aces usually carry heavier burdens than the other players, right?
And I believe without a doubt that Taker will meet my expectations.
*
“Ugh…”
[Oh no, Gunhee has broken down. I guess he’s been used a lot lately.]
[Professor Ka is tough with the personal training…]
[I thought the two would have a cozy date, but this is a bit much.]
[LOL, it’s your fault for coming to the tournament. Toughen up, Taker!]
[But he does seem to be getting better.]
[It’s strange that such brutal training could actually be effective…]
I was almost gagging. How many times had we gone through sparring sessions? Watching the same scene repeatedly was making me nauseous.
“I’ll go again; that was good just now.”
“Yeah, yeah, come in…”
Taker replied weakly, lost in thought.
How long had it been since I really put my heart into the Abyss?
I recall when I was ruling as a Challenger, standing shoulder to shoulder with the pros. That’s about ten years ago now.
Back then, it wasn’t just passion; it overflowed, and I didn’t want to lose to the pros.
My innate competitive spirit wouldn’t allow me to accept defeat, and if I encountered a player whose style I couldn’t comprehend, I wouldn’t hesitate to send whispers, questioning their plays, “Why did you play this way? Why that way?”—and I would keep it up all night.
The fire of that passion faded after I served in the military, losing two years, naturally causing my physicality to decline.
After that, I didn’t feel the same burning passion for the Abyss. Instead, I focused more on broadcasting. I couldn’t even compete well against the pros or top-tier users anymore.
Yeah, I felt the so-called “wall.” A strange certainty that no matter what I did, I wouldn’t be able to win, like facing a massive wall right in front of me.
Come to think of it, the woman I’m sparring with right now was one of those who made me feel that wall back in those days.
Recalling that fact, Taker shivered slightly.
‘A monster of a person….’
Despite being active around the same time, and being an early user like her, the fact that she has continued to thrive for ten years and is still active made Taker let out a hollow laugh.
Is this what they call true talent? He simply got into the game faster than the talented users back when it wasn’t popular. If Taker truly had skills, he would have remained at the top like Kayak.
“Ah….”
As he pondered this, Taker’s screen faded to black again. Just like before, he had offered his neck to Kayak.
And the respawn time began. Respawn time was also feedback time.
“Hmm… Taker-nim.”
“Yes.”
“You’re doing well, but… it’s a bit disappointing. Is it really hard to see and block? I feel like you could definitely see and block.”
What Kayak demanded was something very different from Taker’s usual gameplay. This was purely physical play.
Unlike Taker’s gameplay, which involved predicting the opponent’s skill shots using the brain and applying pressure, she emphasized a more instinctual approach.
‘Only a talent like you can do that.’
Taker swallowed back the words that rose to his throat. He had said something similar before, but the result was the same. It seemed she was determined to remodel him somehow.
“Hmm… is this hard? I don’t get it, hmm…”
“Could you stop with the ‘hmms’? It’s really annoying.”
“Hmm… But Taker-nim, I really don’t understand…. Hmm… for someone who is a challenger, it’s a bit concerning that you can’t do this….”
[Aha lol I want to teach you a lesson]
[Messy Kayak is here lol]
[Gunhee, let’s educate him ㅇㅇ This is a matter of man’s pride]
[I want to barge in and smash him ah lol]
[Is she deliberately provoking him lol It’s frustrating]
[Let’s succeed and turn the tables]
“If you can’t do it, there’s nothing we can do…. I had high hopes for you, Taker-nim. Hmm, I’ll have to adjust the strategy a bit. The win rate might drop a little but…”
Creeeak-
“No, I can do it. I’ll show you. I’m Taker, the fundamental challenger.”
Even knowing it was a blatant provocation, Taker felt a surge of anger rising within him.
It felt just like going back to that time. A time filled with the fiery desire not to lose, as if everything would end if he gave up.
‘It’s simple.’
Meanwhile, Kayak was subtly smiling at Taker’s reaction.
No matter the circumstances, she was still a long-time fan of Taker, and she had long ago figured out his actions and psychology.
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