"The matchups are set!"

Murmurs filled the stadium. Everyone seemed to have something to say about their opponents.

“Hmm… the Vikings.”

Hui-Chul stroked his chin and stared over at the Viking commander, Xmaster. Xmaster also looked back at him even though merely looking at each other wouldn't change anything. It was an instinctive behavior of warriors preparing for battle, trying to gauge anything about their opponent.

“What do you think?” Do-Joon asked quietly from beside him.

𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

“They’re not an easy opponent, but…”

Hui-Chul scanned the entire stadium and bitterly smiled.

“There’s no easy opponent here for us.”

“

Ha

, true…”

“The Vikings are probably celebrating internally. They just don’t want to show it.”

“… Do you think it’s that much?”

“Put yourself in their shoes, Do-Joon.”

Reaching the top thirty-two itself had been considered a miracle for Korea. Moreover, they hadn’t beaten Italy even once and only made it as the second-place team. While their underdog story shone brightly against Spain and France, wars were always relative.

Some would argue that Spain and France simply had an off-season. After all, Italy had never been shaken by Korea. Even without such a low assessment, Korea was undoubtedly the weakest team among the thirty-two nations based on data. In terms of appearances and victories in the tournament, no country ranked lower than Korea.

“True.”

Do-Joon nodded. His expression was nothing but gloomy.

‘His pride must be hurt. Understandably so.’

Do-Joon, also known as the vice commander Coffee, had a strong sense of pride both in real life and in the game. He worked hard and, as a result, had a psychological need to protect his ego. At least, Hui-Chul saw it like that.

“But it’s okay.”

“What?”

“I don’t mind being underestimated. It’s advantageous for survival.”

Hui-Chul was telling Do-Joon to let go of his pride.

“I actually find it disappointing that the Vikings are so composed. I’d prefer if they openly celebrated like Spain.”

Do-Joon frowned. Even imagining that seemed to disgust him.

“They wouldn’t act so disgracefully. Not here at the tournament.”

Given the competition between countries, the game company behind Civil Empire always promoted unity among nations. They strictly penalized racist or culturally discriminatory behavior. Even showing a lack of respect for opponents was harshly criticized. ᚱÄ𝐍ǑBƐṩ

The national competition had been maintained like this so far. Hui-Chul knew this, yet humans tended to reveal their true feelings instinctively. However, the Vikings remained completely composed.

“

Haha.

Right, they wouldn’t show it. It won’t be easy, Do-Joon.”

“…”

***

Around ten minutes later, the screen came down.

“Ladies, gentlemen, and mercenaries! You all know your opponents now, right?”

The host came out to wrap up the event and made another announcement.

“Thank you all for coming today! Tonight,

Civil Empire

has prepared a special party for you all! Please attend and light up the event with your presence!”

“Waaaaah!”

With applause and cheers from the participants, the host bowed deeply and concluded the event.

“That ended really quickly,” Pang muttered in surprise as he stood up.

“They must’ve revamped it completely after getting criticized for being too analog.”

During the initial group draw for the qualifiers, many talked about Japan’s method of a robotic arm drawing slips of paper one by one. It took far too long. Today’s ladder game with the commander characters fighting provided a visually appealing and quick digital solution.

“It’s good that it ended quickly,” Sang-Hyeon spoke and headed toward the bus.

He ran into Jessie.

“You’re coming tonight, right?”

“Uh, yeah.”

The dinner party was a privilege for the first group of arrivals. Sang-Hyeon wasn’t used to social gatherings like this, but he thought it would be a good opportunity to attend. It would also make great content for streamers.

“One of us won’t be there for the round of sixteen,” Jessie suddenly made a meaningful comment.

“Right…”

“So this is our last chance…”

She fiddled with her hair for a moment and smiled.

“I’m glad you’re coming to the dinner party. See you there.”

She waved and disappeared toward another bus. Perhaps she was setting boundaries since they would soon be competitors.

Thunk

.

Pang patted Sang-Hyeon on the shoulder and asked, “Hey, maybe she wants to go with you?”

“Huh? Where… to the party?”

“Yeah. You know how they do that in movies.”

“It’s not like it’s prom…”

“Hmm. Is it?”

Pang had a habit of giving advice without really knowing.

“Well, anyway, she’s definitely interested in you.”

Sang-Hyeon chuckled.

“What girl wouldn’t be?”

Sang-Hyeon hadn’t said that. It was Pang who did.

“Huh? What was that?”

“You just said that with your expression.”

“When did I…?”

“Just now.”

Pang left a strange warning for him to be careful and walked ahead.

***

The team headed to a cafe after having a simple lunch together. The think tank members immediately left to analyze the Vikings and took their coffee on the go, leaving only the players in the cafe.

“Let’s sit here.”

Once they all sat, Latte muttered in a solemn voice, “Now the war begins.”

He wanted to talk about the Vikings and the tournament, but Pang asked a strange question out of the blue.

“Why don’t you drink lattes?”

“What?”

“Why don’t you drink lattes?”

“What kind of question is that?”

“Your name is Latte.”

“... Just because of my name, should I drink lattes?”

“You’re completely inconsistent. I knew it.”

“Why are you being so prickly today?”

Latte looked at Sang-Hyeon as if asking him for the reason.

“Ah… maybe it’s because he’s unpopular,” Sang-Hyeon said honestly after some analysis.

At that moment, everyone nearly spat out their drinks.

“Hey, what kind of thing is that to say!?”

Pang’s face turned red as he protested.

“Isn’t it true? You get really angry every time Jessie talks to you.”

Pang couldn’t counter the innocent reply.

“How could you say that out loud!?”

Latte laughed as if he would choke.

“Why? Is it true?”

Carrot pretended not to laugh, but actually giggled.

“Ah, bro. I understand. Yes, I was wrong. I’ll just go order a latte.”

“Don’t! Don’t order it!”

Latte teased him even more. After a long bout of laughter and banter, Carrot changed the subject.

“By the way… did you hear?”

Everyone looked at her.

“A new commander candidate is coming… they’re already registered on the roster?”

“What?”

While news about the commanders wasn’t usually significant to the players, the arrival of a new candidate felt a bit surprising.

“Really? I heard rumors, but…”

“Why? Who is it?”

Latte looked around as he asked. Sang-Hyeon didn’t know either and didn’t react much, thinking it wouldn’t matter even if he knew.

“Best Yi Sun-Shin.”

The name that came out of Carrot’s mouth made Sang-Hyeon freeze.

‘Huh?’

He had definitely heard that nickname somewhere before.

“Almond, let’s play together.”

A voice echoed in his mind. It was the woman who suggested playing a fighting game together. Why did this come to mind?

‘Choi Sa-Rang!?’

Best Yi Sun-Shin was her in-game name.

“Wow… they finally convinced her? But is she still good? When was she last active?”

“Right? No matter how great someone is, they lose their edge over time…”

It seemed that Latte, Pang, and Carrot all knew about her.

“If Cookie picked her, she must still be skilled. Her rank dropped because she played less, not because her win rate fell.”

“That’s the same thing. If you play less, you lose your form.”

Latte didn’t seem very confident in her.

“Well, we probably won’t see the candidate commander in action,” he concluded nonchalantly while sipping his coffee. “But Almond, why do you look so gloomy?”

“… Huh? Me? I’m not.”

“No, I can read your expression exactly because my in-game life depends on you. You look gloomy.”

“I’m not.”

“Okay! If you say so!”

It seemed he had accurately read Sang-Hyeon’s expression even when Sang-Hyeon didn’t want to talk about it.

‘I can’t tell them.’

Sang-Hyeon couldn’t explain why hearing about Best Yi Sun-Shin surprised him.

***

A bit later at the lodging, Pang and Sang-Hyeon dressed up nicely for the upcoming dinner party.

Sang-Hyeon casually asked while fiddling with his bow tie, “So is Best Yi Sun-Sin good?”

“Huh? Well… Cookie has always rated her highly. She was ranked number one before, but that was a while ago. Honestly, players don’t pay much attention to commanders.”

That was true. The players never saw the commander’s appearance or heard their voice.

“Cookie probably didn’t mention it yet to avoid causing any unrest.”

“Unrest?”

“The thought that the commander might change if another candidate is brought in.”

“Ah…”

Most of the team knew about Cookie’s health and already felt anxious. Bringing in a new candidate could increase that anxiety.

“But he’s tough as nails. He might look frail, but he bends without breaking.”

Pang grinned while tying his bow tie.

“So don’t worry.”

Pang focused on his tie as if it were nothing, but his expression in the mirror showed otherwise. He seemed lost in thought for a moment before changing the subject.

“By the way, did no one bring a hanbok?”

“Hanbok?”

“Yeah. They pick the best dressed.”

“…?”

“Did you sleep through that? I explained it before. Anyway, it’s usually not a guy who wins, so it doesn’t matter.”

“Oh…”

Had Pang mentioned that before?

“Does wearing a hanbok help?”

“No, but it stands out. We should’ve at least tried… but we were in such a rush.”

Sang-Hyeon wondered why they’d go to such lengths for the best-dressed title, but soon forgot about it as he focused on fixing his outfit.

He later learned that the prize for best-dressed was beyond his imagination.

***

A bit later at Kansai Airport as the dinner party was about to start.

“Wow! We’re here! Osaka!” a woman excitedly talked to the camera.

She dragged along a large suitcase and wore a comfortable yet stylish outfit that highlighted her tall frame. After all, she was a model.

— Cheerleader has arrived lol

— Wow, she actually came and booked a ticket???

— Miho’s loyalty is awesome

— Balloon Stars all here???

“Yes! Of course~ We planned this assuming that Korea would at least make it to the top eight.”

She came to support Almond.

“Miho, you might get deported if you make too much noise here.”

She wasn’t alone. Her peculiar companions included a big-bellied man, a bald guy, and a muscular dude.

“What? Almond played a match against me yesterday? What are you talking about? I just got to Japan.”

“

Kyaa!

Almond oppa~ Let’s go cheer!”

— Lolol

— So embarrassing

— They’re all just talking about themselves as usual lol

— Embarrassing wherever they go lol

— “K-Suicide Squad”

— The size is not just cute, it’s massive~

— Strawberry lol

— Almond, something big is coming! (not poop)

A peculiar group headed toward the stadium.