Perfect World [EN]: Chapter 461

463

– The Avand team is amazing! They won the first round spectacularly against their formidable opponent, the Kellot team.

As the first round went to Avand, the commentators couldn’t hide their surprise. Having lost their home due to the burning of Lima City Colosseum, no one expected them to perform so well against the mighty Kellot team in this flat terrain.

The Avand team is almost invincible at home, but they don’t perform as well on flat terrain like this. Still, you can’t say they aren’t a strong team, but not strong enough to defeat the Kellot team.

With experts predicting Avand’s win rate at around 20-30% today, this result was quite unexpected.

Soon after, the commentator let out a hollow laugh and began to speak. He himself never expected Avand to win.

– Yes. This is so unexpected that I don’t know what to say. When Oscar was defeated, I was sure the victory would go to the Kellot team, but they quickly turned the tables and won. I have nothing to say, even if I had ten mouths. Hehehe.

– Hahaha. No. Who could have predicted Avand’s victory there? I never imagined Avand would win the first round.

The announcer, looking at Beom-seok returning to the dugout with an impressed expression, continued.

– By the way, wasn’t Gladiator Oh Beom-seok’s play truly outstanding? In my opinion, this victory seems to be due to his contribution.

– Yes, that’s right. He single-handedly faced and defeated Prisika and Rakami simultaneously, and with Nikita’s help, he even took down Irolita. Having defeated three S-class gladiators on his own, the Kellot team had no chance to withstand it.

– Hehe. Yes. Today’s match is going to be very interesting. Even though the Kellot team has a significant advantage in overall strength, they suffered a crushing defeat in the first round, so their momentum is bound to be broken. With that, a miracle might happen, right?

– Yes. If Gladiator Oh Beom-seok can perform as well as he did in the first round, there seems to be no problem in expecting it.

As the commentators continued their conversation, Beom-seok entered the dugout. He shrugged his shoulders as he looked at Clark approaching him. He had not only perfectly carried out his mission but also brought the bonus of winning the first round, so he couldn’t help but feel proud.

“How do you like it?”

“Hehe. Yes, I’m satisfied. By the way, did you complete the strategy against Prisika?”

“Can’t you tell by looking? If not, there’s no way I could have performed like I did today.”

Clark nodded. Even for Beom-seok, there was no way he could have achieved such an early victory against Prisika and Rakami.

“I guess so. Well done. You have to fight in the second round, so go and rest quickly.”

“Second round? Originally, I was supposed to rest in the second round and fight in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th rounds, wasn’t I?”

“That’s right. But the situation has changed because we won the first round. Now that we’ve gained momentum, we have to keep pushing forward. If we win in the second round as well, our chances of winning today will greatly increase.”

Beom-seok nodded in agreement. If they proceeded according to the plan, the second round would definitely be taken by the Kellot team.

Then the round score would be 1 to 1. With the game back to square one, the Kellot team could recover from the current shock. However, if Avand won even the second round, the situation would change 180 degrees. If they lost one of the remaining three rounds, the Kellot team would be defeated, and if they drew even once, they would immediately enter a showdown, leading to a 1-on-1 match between Beom-seok and another gladiator.

Of course, there was also the option of winning all three rounds, but that was a very difficult task.

“Hehe. I see.”

“But don’t be careless. The Kellot team is strong even with their second string [second-tier players]. If we take it lightly, we might be the ones who get defeated. You know what that means, right?”

Beom-seok knew this well. He was pushing himself to fight in the second round, and if they lost here, Avand would have to fight with the burden of physical exhaustion from the starting point. A difficult battle was definitely waiting for them.

“I guess so. We have to win the second round for sure.”

“Yes. At least a draw.”

“Then are you thinking of sending out the same main force that played in the first round?”

“No, not really. I’m thinking of excluding Lapine and Jermia, who played a lot in the first round.”

If they only excluded those two, the second round could still be considered almost the main force. Beom-seok didn’t raise the God Knights so weakly that their strength would be greatly reduced by the absence of two people. However, the problem was the vanguard [front line]. With Sheila being drafted into another team and Lapine also being absent, there were bound to be insufficient replacements.

“Hmm. Then, Director, you’re thinking of putting Nikita in the vanguard in the second round.”

“That’s obvious. Right now, we have no choice but to put her up there. Besides, Nikita can cover Oscar’s weaknesses.”

Oscar was easily defeated in the first round, putting the team in danger. It couldn’t be helped because he lacked skill, but they couldn’t just leave it like that. They needed to somehow compensate for his weakness in defense, and the most suitable card was Nikita.

“Then the vanguard will be Oscar, Nikita, and Tiela. What about the rearguard [back line]?”

“I’ll move Seiya to the mid-position to fill Jermia’s spot and put Agelia as the captain.”

At those words, Beom-seok suddenly looked at Clark. Agelia had only recently managed to reach the position of a W3-class gladiator, so she was somewhat unreliable. She was a talented player, but she was far short of being able to face the Kellot team.

“Agelia as the captain? Is that okay?”

“Hmm. Her fast feet are very reliable. Besides, she uses Dual Shields, so her survivability is very high.”

“But she has no offensive ability at all. Even if she’s the captain, if she’s pushed back significantly, you’ll have to send support.”

“That’s true, but you have to make sure that situation doesn’t happen.”

After thinking for a moment, Beom-seok nodded. The top priority for the second round was victory, or at least a draw. To achieve this, the captain should not be involved in the battle, and if she was, it meant that the situation was extremely unfavorable, so it was better to use a draw strategy.

“I see. I understand what you mean. By the way, what happens if they send out their main force as is? As you know, Director, there’s a good chance that the Kellot team will send out their main force again this round.”

Clark closed his eyes and let out a long sigh. Beom-seok’s words were not wrong at all.

The factors that greatly influence the strategy of gladiator matches were the number of cases and probabilities. Accordingly, the director had to decide whether to adopt the strategy that would benefit the team the most or to choose a strategy that would surprise the opposing team. However, Avand wanted to face Kellot’s second string in the second round for victory, but there was a high probability that they would send out their main force again due to probabilistic issues.

The reason was the result of the first round.

Right now, the Kellot team was in dire need of a win due to their defeat in the first round. So they had to win the second round, and the most effective way to do that was for them to send out their main force and for Avand to send out their reserves. Of course, there would be a lot of physical strain if they played two rounds in a row, but when you think about it, it wasn’t that much of a burden.

That’s because the Kellot team’s main force could annihilate Avand’s second string in a matter of minutes. Naturally, the short playing time and the long rest afterward would not cause much physical loss, so the burden was very minimal.

Moreover, the fact that Avand was very likely to send out their main force in the second round also played a part. If they sent out their second string at this time, they could suffer two losses, so the Kellot team would have to play the subsequent rounds with a considerable burden. Also, if the main forces fought each other in the second round, the physical burden would be the same for both teams, so there was not much to lose.

“Sigh~ I guess so. But there’s nothing we can do. Right now, the scenario they want the most is for us to send out our second string.”

“Tch. I guess that’s true.”

“Okay. Then I’m counting on you for the second round as well.”

“Yes. Don’t worry.”

Beom-seok nodded and returned to his seat to rest. Since he had to play two rounds in a row, he needed to conserve his energy as much as possible. And he had to tell Prisika about the God Knights’ summer recruitment funds.

After a while, he frowned as he checked the list of gladiators appearing on the electronic display. He realized that Director Clark’s rock-paper-scissors game was not very successful. After all, it was absurd to expect a world-class team director to be someone who couldn’t even do arithmetic.

‘Tch. This has become boring. I was hoping the reserves would come out.’

Currently, the Kellot team was sending out the same main members who had appeared in the first round for the second round. This was not good news for Avand, who was hoping for a victory in this round, and a difficult battle was expected. Still, the good thing was that Prisika was also on the list.

She must be quite mentally exhausted by now, so there was enough room to attack.

Beom-seok, who had been complaining, picked up his spear and stood up.

“Sigh~ Then, Director, I’ll be going now.”

“Okay. I’m counting on you.”

Beom-seok went outside, and soon after, a broadcast announcing his appearance was heard over the loudspeaker, and he began to walk into the arena. When he arrived at the center, he ordered Seiya to build a formation and then walked to the right to play a free role.

At that moment, a terrifying silence spread throughout the arena. Beom-seok stared at the fans who were not sending any cheers, only opening their mouths.

‘What’s wrong? Why is everyone like that?’

Then, Seiya’s urgent voice came through the helmet speaker.

– Master. Look behind you!

“What is it?”

Beom-seok turned around slightly and widened his eyes. A truly absurd situation was unfolding. Three markers were following him, none other than Prisika, Rakami, and Irolita. In other words, he would be facing three S-class gladiators alone in this round.

– Master. I’ll send Tiela now.

Beom-seok smiled faintly and shook his head. Facing a marker consisting of three S-class gladiators? This was unprecedented, and if he won, he would become a gladiator who would go down in history.

“Hehe. No. I’ll try to handle it alone anyway.”

– But the situation is too unfavorable. The Kellot team is determined to eliminate Master at all costs, even at the risk of their main camp.

“You’re right. But if we add one more free role, they’ll add one more as well. Then the situation will be the same anyway. So leave them to me and try to break through the Kellot main camp as quickly as possible.”

– Bu, but…….

“I have a plan, so do as I say!”

Seiya closed his mouth at his angry voice. Even though it was a team match, he couldn’t disobey his master’s orders. And the director, who was watching this scene intently, didn’t say anything either. In this situation, silence meant affirmation. It was safe to say that he had allowed the confrontation between Beom-seok and the three S-class gladiators.

As he stopped, raising his spear, Rakami, who had been following him, uttered words mixed with ridicule.

“Hehe. Beom-seok. Are you going to fight the three of us alone?”

Beom-seok glanced at Prisika, who was standing behind her. Her eyes, reflected in the face shield, were moist with despair. Then the burden would be greatly reduced. If he did well, he could decorate a page of history today.

With a confident expression, he stared at Rakami.

“Why? Can’t I?”

“Pfft. Are you serious? There’s no gladiator in the world who can win against the three of us. Wouldn’t it be better to get help from your teammates?”

“Well? I wish I could, but if I call another teammate, will you fight us with this number? Anyway, then another support will come, right?”

“Hahaha. I guess that’s true.”

Beom-seok pointed the end of his tightly gripped spear at Rakami’s face. The match would start soon, so he needed to prepare. He had to face three people, so it would be too late to prepare after the match started.

“So don’t talk nonsense and prepare yourself. If you lose here, you’ll be remembered as a disgrace in history.”

Rakami’s expression stiffened. If Beom-seok beat them this time, there would be no greater shame. She soon stood next to Irolita and Prisika and said in a sharp voice.

“You must never make a mistake. If we can’t defeat Beom-seok this time, there will be no greater disgrace. Got it?”

“Yes. I understand.”

Rakami glanced at Prisika, who didn’t answer. Whether she had heard her words or not, she was staring blankly at the ground.

“Prisika. What’s wrong with you? Are you sick somewhere?”

“Ah, no. I was just thinking about something else for a moment.”

“What? Where do you have time for that now! Don’t think about useless things and focus on the game! Got it?”

“Yes. I understand. I’ve come to my senses, so don’t worry.”

Prisika drew her sword and glared at Beom-seok. She couldn’t possibly not know that she had to beat Beom-seok. But that was all, and soon she lowered her gaze and laid it on the floor. She was already hated by him, and she couldn’t provoke him any further here.

============================ Author’s words ============================

Hmm. I guess it wasn’t a cold. I feel better after sleeping well, so it seems like I had a fever due to fatigue. Hahaha. I guess I need to take care of my body now. It’s not a cold, but a fever… Sigh~ Then everyone have a nice day. I’ll see you again tomorrow.