Perfect World [EN]: Chapter 68

Having finished the second round with a victory, Bum-seok and the main gladiators took off their helmets and leaned back on the bench. Although they had ended the match in just over ten minutes, they looked exhausted from wildly swinging their swords. They wiped the sweat from their foreheads with towels or sprawled out, enjoying a well-deserved rest.

About fifteen minutes later…

‘What? What is this! Why are they out again?!’

Bum-seok stared at the electronic display, utterly disbelieving the list of gladiators for the third round. Their main force was out again to face them. He looked at Diana, bewildered.

“Diana, what’s going on? Why are they out again?”

She looked just as dumbfounded, her face paling. The South Devils were employing an unexpected strategy.

“I don’t know. This shouldn’t be happening.”

“Could it be because it’s one draw and one loss, so they need a win? They must be dead certain that our reserves will come out in the third round. Their main force can beat our reserves, after all.”

“Absolutely not. Their strategy fell apart the moment their main team lost one match in the second round. For their unconventional strategy to succeed, they had to win every round with their main team. Even if the South Devils take this round, our reserves will face their main team in the next round. Then, of course, they’ll suffer another loss and be back to square one. The logical strategy would be to have the reserves clash, secure at least one win and one draw, and then face our main force with their main team, aiming for a draw. That’s a much better approach.”

It made sense, but he couldn’t quite believe it.

“Of course, that’s what they *should* do. But they’re using the unconventional strategy again. Why?”

“I have a rough idea.”

“What is it?”

Looking around, she leaned in close to Bum-seok’s ear and whispered, “They might know which rounds our main team will participate in and are deploying their main force to exhaust us. Normally, I would dismiss it as a strategic error by an amateur team, but given our current situation, it’s entirely possible.”

He grabbed Diana’s wrist and walked out of the dugout. Her words were that serious.

“What are you saying? Are you saying they’re reading our strategy?”

“Yes, that’s right. When they first used the unconventional strategy, I thought it was just a coincidence, but it’s happened twice in a row, so I’m a little suspicious. You know about the lottery incident before, Bum-seok.”

She was referring to the circumstances where the lottery system administrator had received a bribe from Julian. It was entirely possible that the same method was being used again; it was more than possible for something like this to happen. An official from the organizing committee, such as a referee or system administrator, who had received a kickback, might have passed on the list of participants they had sent to the South Devils team.

However, the possibility seemed slim. Unlike the lottery, there were many more people to bribe, and the Black Society [a powerful organization overseeing the games] was watching closely this time, having learned from the lottery incident. They had informants attached to everyone who could manipulate the game and were thoroughly examining their financial transaction history. If Julian committed the same act again, it would be exposed.

“Hmm. It makes sense, but… I don’t think so. There are too many people to bribe for manipulation, and the Black Society is watching closely this time.”

“Sigh~ That’s true, but… I still think it’s a good idea to be careful. We can definitely prevent our strategy from being leaked to the South Devils team through the organizing committee.”

“Prevent it? How?”

“We submit the list right before the deadline, five minutes before. Then there won’t be time to pass on the list, so the opposing team won’t know our strategy.”

The deadline for submitting the list of participants was the same time it appeared on the electronic display. If the list of participants was not sent by this time, the gladiators who had played in the previous round would have to play again. If they made a mistake, the main players would end up playing three consecutive rounds.

Bum-seok looked uneasy and said,

“Are you sure? We’ll be in big trouble if we miss the submission time.”

“That’s true, but we just need to be careful.”

Bum-seok sighed deeply and nodded. It wasn’t a big deal to click on time. He didn’t think Diana would make a mistake that even an elementary school student wouldn’t make.

“Okay. Do as you wish if you’re worried. You’re the coach.”

“Yes, I understand. And let’s have our main team participate in the fourth round as well.”

“Again in the fourth round? Then the main team will be exhausted. Isn’t the point of all this to avoid that?”

“It doesn’t matter. I can pretend to make a mistake and list the reserves.”

Bum-seok looked at her meaningfully. The suggestion she had made a moment ago wasn’t just to avoid the eyes of the organizing committee officials who might have been bribed by Julian. Preventing their tricks was easily done by submitting the list five minutes before.

“What do you mean?”

“You just said it yourself, Master. Julian can’t bribe the organizing committee officials this time. But there’s still a possibility that information could leak out.”

In a situation where the organizing committee officials were not involved, there was only one other way the team’s ever-changing strategy could be leaked.

“Don’t tell me there’s a spy on our team?”

“I can’t guarantee it, but it’s not impossible.”

Bum-seok, his gaze deeply troubled, sighed. Money talks. He couldn’t be certain that one of the team members hadn’t been bribed. If her words proved true, incidents such as information leaks or deliberate team sabotage could occur, which would inevitably disrupt the progress of future tournament matches. It wasn’t a bad idea to investigate, just in case.

“Okay. I understand. Give it a try. But do it without anyone knowing. The team atmosphere could really be ruined if it gets out.”

“Yes. I know that too, so don’t worry.”

After finishing the conversation, Bum-seok went inside and quickly put on his helmet and gear. The match was about to start, so he needed to prepare quickly. As soon as the entrance announcement came on the broadcast, he went out to the arena with the main gladiators. Standing in front of the city in the center of the Colosseum, he glared at the South Devils gladiators.

‘Okay. For now, we need to aim for a draw in this round.’

Bum-seok had no intention of winning this round. In a situation with one win and one draw, there was no need to desperately seek victory at the cost of exhausting his stamina by participating in consecutive rounds. A draw was enough, and he thought it was okay to use this round to figure out the South Devils’ intentions.

If they really intended to win this match, they would try to draw against their powerful main team. If their goal was to exhaust them, they would drag out the round until the end and then launch a full-scale attack.

He went to Oscar and whispered in his ear.

“Oscar, they might launch a full-scale attack across the city towards the end of the round. Be fully prepared and wipe them out in one go before they land. But do it without anyone knowing. Got it?”

“Yes, I understand.”

The match soon began, and both sides entered a state of confrontation. A long, tedious time passed. There were occasional feints, but they retreated as they approached the city, eliciting exclamations from the audience.

Woo-woo-woo. Woo-woo-woo.

The audience’s jeers filled the arena. They were just testing each other and not fighting, so the match was bound to be boring. Fortunately, most of the audience’s anger was directed at the South Devils. God’s Knights was the home team, and they were seen moving left and right along the city, looking for an opportunity to attack, albeit in a meaningless way.

On the surface, it looked like God’s Knights was trying to attack, but they were blocked by the South Devils’ defense and couldn’t dare to cross the river [the boundary of the city].

“What are you doing! South Devils! If you’re not going to attack, let God’s Knights cross the river!”

“South Devils! If you’re going to fight like that, quit right now!”

Fifteen minutes passed meaninglessly without a single sword clash. Bum-seok, thinking that the South Devils might attack soon, stayed close to Oscar, preparing for the worst. It was just a precaution, but if the opponent launched a surprise attack, they could secure a win.

And soon after… A full-scale attack order was issued from the South Devils camp.

“Everyone, attack!”

Bum-seok, watching the opposing gladiators trying to cross the river all at once, thought, ‘That’s right.’ Gripping his katana tightly, he followed Oscar, who was running ahead, and dashed towards the South Devils gladiators who were about to land.

Whoosh. Thwack.

With a chilling sound, Oscar’s greatsword drew a large semicircle in the air. Gladiators number 23 and 28, who were within the attack range, blocked with their shields, but because they were hit before their feet touched the ground, they rolled helplessly on the floor as if they had been thrown away. The veterans who had followed without knowing what was going on rushed in and slashed their swords at them as they fell and couldn’t get up.

“I’ve been waiting!”

Gladiator number 21, who was landing and bending his knees, was deeply cut in the chest by Bum-seok’s katana and slumped down. Because he was aiming for the gap in the landing motion, he was caught off guard without even having time to raise his shield.

The South Devils gladiators, who had suddenly lost three teammates and were completely disorganized, were pushed back towards the city by the God’s Knights gladiators, panicking.

Clang. Clang. Clang.

Sparks flew everywhere as the melee continued. Bum-seok quickly moved to the side and penetrated the gap in the South Devils’ formation, then turned behind gladiator number 39 and slit her throat. Leaving her body slowly stiffening, Bum-seok attacked the captain gladiator who had his knees on the city’s edge.

“No! Stop him!”

The gladiators in the rear blocked him with their shields. In an instant, Bum-seok was in a 3-on-1 situation, and he retreated without hesitation. There were plenty of other targets, so there was no need to take unnecessary risks.

“Bum-seok. Good retreat!”

An arrow flying with a sharp sound accurately hit the side of a gladiator on the left. While the rear was focused on him, Chiria had apparently fired the bowstring from afar. Seeing the rear gladiator kneeling in the middle of the city, gladiator number 35 hurriedly supported him and came out to the land.

He could have attacked enough to end the match, but Bum-seok just watched silently. Because the air holes are blocked in the water, it was necessary to put the incapacitated gladiator on the land. Therefore, the game rules stipulated that the opponent should not interfere with this behavior.

“Take them all down!”

As the captain gladiator put his teammate down on the land and retreated, Bum-seok, thinking this was the time, immediately launched an attack. Because Oscar was following behind, there was no shortage of numbers this time.

Bang. Kwang. Bang.

Swords and shields collided repeatedly in the air. But it was the rear and the captain, gladiator number 35, who were being pushed back unilaterally. No matter how specialized they were in defense, they couldn’t withstand Oscar’s huge greatsword and were being bounced around.

Unable to withstand it any longer, the last remaining rear gladiator called for his teammates.

“Guys, help me!”

However, the teammates were already lying on the cold floor, unable to move. Now, the remaining South Devils gladiators were just the captain, gladiator number 35, and her, just the two of them.

In a gladiator match, once you start losing in numbers, it’s hard to turn the tide. The reason is that the moment one person becomes incapacitated, someone else has to face two enemies. If another one falls like this, the damage will accumulate and eventually lead to defeat.

In fact, when three teammates fell during the initial crossing, the South Devils team should have formed a formation to overcome the numerical disadvantage.

“Let’s go. Let’s go and end this round.”

At the same time as Raimi’s cry, the veterans put their feet in the city.

Gladiator number 35 briefly lowered her sword and shield, then gripped them firmly again. She was trying to run away like in the second round, but Chiria was aiming her bow nearby. If she put down her gear and turned her back here, she would be immediately hit by an arrow and fall into an incapacitated state. To achieve the maximum result, she had to face the God’s Knights gladiators as they were.

The South Devils’ goal was not victory. She looked at somewhere in the audience and nodded, then launched an attack with the remaining rear gladiator.

Clang. Clang. Thud!

Compared to the momentum with which they charged, the South Devils’ captain and rear fell into an incapacitated state without even being able to struggle. No matter how much they were performing the role of sword and shield, it was impossible to fend off all the sword tips flying in from 12 to 2 situations [being attacked from all sides].

Soon after, the message of the end of the third round appeared on the electronic display, and the in-house broadcast came on.

– The third round is over. At first, it seemed to be flowing boringly, but in the end, it ended with a fierce match.

– But this time, the South Devils team made a big mistake. If they had maintained the formation until the end and spent time, they could have gotten a draw, but I don’t understand why they attacked.

– That’s right. I found that point a bit strange too….

Bum-seok, hearing the conversation between the announcer and the commentator, furrowed his brow deeply and returned to the dugout. The fact that even they, who didn’t know the inside story, noticed something strange meant that the possibility of what he was worried about being true was that much greater.

He didn’t know what tricks Julian had played, but it was necessary to find out and prevent them in advance. He couldn’t afford to take on the already difficult quarter-finals with even more anxiety factors.

============================ Author’s Notes ============================

Cough, I ended up being about 30 minutes late. ㅠㅠ. It seems like I’ll be even later tomorrow. I think it will be before dawn or around afternoon. Tomorrow is the peak. But from the day after tomorrow, I’ll be back to normal. ^^;;; Thank you for your understanding.

Then, have a rewarding Liberation Day. Even if it’s not in front of your door, please look at the Taegeukgi [South Korean flag] on the Naver screen on your PC at least once. Then I’ll see you again tomorrow, even if it’s not at the same time. ^^;;;;