Perfect World [EN]: Chapter 77

Pee-eep!

The first round began with the whistle. However, both teams were cautiously observing each other around the city center, refraining from any major attacks. With Loria and Jeremiah having left the formation to deal with Beomseok, the Gods Knights and the Great Hyenas were in a state of equilibrium. A reckless attack could lead to significant losses and potentially hand the round to the opposing team.

“Oh. It seems the outcome of the first round hinges on our little skirmish. How amusing,” Beomseok said.

Across the city, Loria frowned at Beomseok’s sarcastic remark. It sounded condescending.

“Hey. You don’t actually think you can win against us, do you? If you do, you need a reality check. Even a starting gladiator from the World League couldn’t withstand our combined assault.”

“Of course not. But *I* can win. I’ve analyzed all your weaknesses and habits through the replays. If you’re not careful, this will be over in an instant.”

Loria looked incredulous. If they had weaknesses that could lead to a swift defeat, their team would have surely noticed them. The Dark Hyenas team had numerous behavioral analysts and coaches who constantly reviewed their plays, pointing out any flaws.

“That’s ridiculous! If we had such glaring weaknesses, the team would have identified them first.”

“Then that just means the Dark Hyenas team lacks insight. Just because you’re unaware of your weaknesses doesn’t mean they disappear. Heh heh heh. Try attacking me. I’ll show you.”

Loria bit her lip and glanced at Jeremiah.

“It seems we need to teach him a lesson. Show no mercy.”

“Understood, Sister,” Jeremiah replied, a faint smile playing on her lips as she looked at Beomseok. This was it. The transfer [a strategic maneuver or shift in position] she was about to make would be disguised as a weakness only he could perceive. Now, she just needed to act decisively according to the signal.

“Come on. We don’t have all day, so hurry and cross the city. I won’t stop you.”

It sounded genuine, but Loria remained skeptical. If they fell for his trick and carelessly crossed over, she would only look foolish. Crossing the river [the open area between the two teams] had to be attempted when the safety of the landing was as guaranteed as possible.

She gestured for Jeremiah to stay close. If they entered at the same time, they could protect each other and respond appropriately to any surprise attacks.

“Jeremiah, I’m crossing soon. We’re going on three. Be careful; he’s not ordinary. We could get caught off guard.”

“Don’t worry. I’ll watch your back.”

Loria nodded slightly.

“Okay. I’ll count down. One. Two. Three!”

Loria kicked off and crossed the city, nearly ten meters wide, in an instant, her eyes fixed on Beomseok. It was a good opportunity, but it was strange that he was just waiting without attacking. Launching an offensive during the crossing could inflict significant damage on the opponent with a high probability.

She straightened her legs and glared at Beomseok.

“Why? Why aren’t you attacking?”

“Because it’s pointless. I can easily eliminate you by exploiting your weaknesses. There’s no need to stop the crossing. And I don’t have time. Heh heh heh.”

She looked uneasy. She sensed that there was something behind his confident tone. Otherwise, he wouldn’t be so relaxed in front of her and Jeremiah.

“Be careful, Jeremiah. Something’s not right.”

“Yes, Sister. You be careful too.”

Loria pointed her swords at him and slowly began to approach. As if to support her, Jeremiah moved to the side, attempting to encircle him. It was clear to anyone that it was an urgent situation, yet Beomseok took another step forward, positioning himself within their attack range. He intended to face their combined attack head-on.

“How bold of you. To take us on at the same time.”

“I told you, I need to take you out quickly and help the main camp. So, let’s begin.”

“Fine. But you’ll regret it. ?!”

Loria, with her sword tips filled with momentum, quickly moved her legs and rushed at him. Beomseok, seeing her approaching rapidly, straightened his katana and tensed his entire body. He was preparing for the impact that would occur when the swords clashed. With a strength difference of over 20, it was very difficult for him to withstand Loria’s power. Of course, he could significantly reduce the difference by using ‘Great Will’ [a special ability or technique], but he had to save it for a possible decisive battle.

Clang. Clash.

With the first strike, Beomseok’s feet created long marks on the ground as he was pushed back. Amid the ensuing offensive and defensive maneuvers, red-hot metal fragments scattered around.

On the surface, it seemed Loria had a significant advantage. Beomseok was barely able to cope, struggling to maintain his balance against her powerful force. However, looking deeper, the situation was completely different. Even while being pushed back, the tip of his sword exuded a sharp aura, as if it would pierce their throats at any moment. The reason she, who had been active in the World League, was recklessly pushing with only strength, abandoning all her skills and experience, was because if she slowed her offensive here, she would be countered and defeated.

Loria requested help from Jeremiah, who was nearby.

“Jeremiah! Come quickly and attack his flank!”

Jeremiah also joined the attack.

Already being pushed back by strength, Beomseok frantically swung his arms as swords flew in from both sides. He had agreed to cooperate with Jeremiah beforehand, but it was agreed that she would exert some effort until the last moment. If she acted carelessly, the Great Hyenas might notice and exclude her from the starting squad. Then Beomseok would lose a good card to lead this game to victory.

Wow! Wow!

The audience sitting below the stands stood up and cheered in unison. The main camps were hesitating and had almost stopped moving, but the fierce battle between the free-roles [players with flexible roles] was quite interesting. Those in the know were well aware that the team that won this ace battle would likely take the round.

“Gods Knights! Win! Don’t let those bat-like outsiders push you back!”

“Great Hyenas! Sweep away those dirty, western, poor-beggar bastards in one go!”

Instantly, the stands became noisy. The heat of the match escalated into an emotional fight over regionalism. They hurled insults at the opposing team’s fans across the stadium, venting their latent animosity. The organizing committee quickly deployed security personnel to the boundary between the two teams to prepare for any eventuality.

– This match atmosphere is getting too heated. This shouldn’t be happening in an amateur match that emphasizes purity.

– Hahaha. The hot-blooded nature of Rima City sports fans is famous worldwide. The same phenomenon often occurs in derby matches [local rivalry games] in baseball and soccer, which have already turned professional. Until now, the gladiator team was only the Great Hyenas, so it was quiet, but things will be different now that the Gods Knights team has been created.

– But depending on today’s match results, one team will be unconditionally excluded from promotion, right? Then there won’t be any derby matches for a while.

– That’s right. So, I think the resentment will increase. The reason for promotion failure is the opposing team. For reference, the Black Cats team, which played a decisive role in demoting the Great Hyenas last year, is suffering from the jeers of the Great Hyenas team that came to their away game. Hehehe.

As if the commentator’s explanation was the fuse, some of the cheering fans from both teams stood up and walked towards the opposing fans’ zone. Interestingly, they were moving while taking off the spotted uniforms and silver shirts they were wearing.

The security personnel watched their actions closely with tense expressions. However, they couldn’t stop them because they didn’t see any violent behavior.

Then came the cheers. When the fans who had moved tore and trampled on the uniforms and shirts they were holding, the spectators from both teams cheered. It was a scene where some fans from other regions, who were annoyed by hearing shouts like bat-like outsiders or smelly, poor eastern bastards, exchanged cheering teams. Soon, this atmosphere rapidly spread to both teams’ stands, dividing into groups of fans heavily armed with regionalism.

“Gods Knights! Crush those bastards!”

“Great Hyenas! Never lose!”

Amid the enthusiastic jeers and cheers of the crowd, Beomseok swung his sword. Judging by the rough breaths coming from his mouth, he seemed quite tired. Loria, who was relentlessly pushing, aiming for an opening, and Jeremiah’s restrained but occasional sword strikes were enough to make him quite troubled. At this rate, he seemed likely to run out of energy before eliminating Loria.

‘Damn it. I might get caught. I need to stop the deception operation here and finish it quickly.’

Beomseok subtly signaled to Jeremiah. It was time to eliminate Loria. She nodded slightly as if she understood and began to move behind Beomseok.

“Sister! Just face him alone for a moment. I’ll finish him off.”

“Okay! Be careful!”

Loria, unaware of what was about to happen, unleashed her sword at him with all her might. She had no idea that she would be betrayed by a colleague she had been living with in the team for a long time.

Soon, she crossed swords with Beomseok and entered a power struggle. And seeing Jeremiah standing behind him, she smiled faintly. She thought it was over now.

“Die!”

At Jeremiah’s piercing scream, Beomseok quickly turned around. The shout of ‘Die!’ was a signal to dodge because she was about to stab Loria in the chest. He quickly twisted his waist, dodging the direction the sword strike was coming from.

Whoosh! Thwack!

The rapidly flying sword tip struck Loria’s chest accurately. The impact was so great that the suit she was wearing rippled significantly, and she slowly knelt down with an incredulous expression.

Jeremiah acted surprised as she watched this. Beomseok immediately twisted his sword and fiercely slashed her throat.

Wow! Wow!

The Gods Knights fans, who witnessed this scene clearly, erupted in loud cheers. They didn’t know what had happened, but they knew that Beomseok had simultaneously taken out the two aces of the Great Hyenas in an instant. If so, the Gods Knights were likely to take this round.

“As expected! Our ace! Well done.”

“Oh Beomseok! You’re the only one!”

Beomseok, smirking as he walked towards the main camp, stopped briefly as he reached Loria, who was incapacitated.

“Don’t resent Jeremiah. It all happened because of you. You have one very noticeable habit, so I could sense when she was going to attack. Heh heh heh. Then, please take care of me in the next round as well. Thanks to you, let’s get promoted comfortably.”

Hearing his words to the end, she turned pale. Until now, she had thought he was just making things up, but after being defeated like this, she couldn’t help but believe it. No matter how skilled a World League core gladiator was, they couldn’t have defeated them so easily.

“Now. Our master has won. Everyone, cheer up and attack!”

Seeing Beomseok approaching after defeating Loria and Jeremiah, the Gods Knights’ morale soared. There were still five Wide League-level [a specific league tier] gladiators left on the opposing side, but they didn’t think they would be pushed back since they were superior in numbers. No, soon Beomseok would perform as a free-role, so they had to pull at least two or more gladiators out. Then the power ratio would be at least 11 to 8, which was greatly advantageous to them.

As expected, gladiators with numbers 38 and 46 from the Great Hyenas camp came out and blocked his path. Both were Wide League-level gladiators, so the main camp was bound to be greatly weakened.

Erpina, thinking it was an opportunity, shouted to everyone.

“Now’s the time! Everyone, charge!”

Oskar, who was at the forefront, and Matilda attempted to cross the river. The Great Hyenas gladiators rushed forward to stop them, but they were frightened by the huge sword flowing through the air with an eerie sound and retreated.

Soon, the veterans and rearguards, including Erica, succeeded in crossing the river with the support of the vanguard and rushed in all at once.

Clang. Chang. Clang!

The Great Hyenas were unable to properly cope with the rushing Gods Knights gladiators. They were at a disadvantage in terms of numbers and formation, so they couldn’t help it. The current formation was not suitable for blocking the opponent’s offensive.

In the end, they were barely able to hold on, flailing their arms desperately.

“Everyone, block them! Quickly change the formation to a defensive one.”

However, it was already too late. As Oskar wildly swung the huge sword he was holding, the formation they were barely maintaining was also breaking down.

The remaining three Wide League-level gladiators fought bravely and blocked the front, but they had to step back from the sword tips flying in layers.

At this time, filled with the energy of defeat, one gladiator with number 14 was hit in the thigh by Erica’s sword and knelt on one knee. Colleagues tried to help from the surroundings, but Matilda and Raimei blocked their entry, preventing them from achieving their goal. Soon, the 14th gladiator was surrounded by rushing veterans and fell into an incapacitated state as easily as it was futile.

============================ Author’s Afterword ============================

Ah, I need to work on the reserves quickly. I keep playing. It’s hard to match one episode every day. That’s why you shouldn’t rest. ㅠㅠ. I was swept away by the atmosphere that Kingpanworld was over. ㅠㅠ. I think I need to thoroughly arm myself mentally and start keyboarding. Hehehe.

Then have a good day. I’ll see you again tomorrow.