Chapter 68
Korea-Japan Friendly Match (4)
Gulp.
A nervous Kang Ji-ho swallowed hard.
“Atsuto.”
The player in front of him was a ranking powerhouse from Japan, one of the world’s top summoner nations.
Of course, he knew all about him.
Last year, Japan had made it to the semifinals.
The footage from that tournament had already spread worldwide, and Atsuto’s reputation was echoing across the globe.
Among his summons, the Warrior and Assassin, Soul Hunter (A-rank), was notorious for its overwhelming power.
“Looking forward to this.”
Kang Ji-ho deployed and lined up five of his summons, giving a bow.
“The same to you.”
Atsuto also bowed in response.
The field was set, so there was no reason to waste time.
“Let’s go first.”
Kang Ji-ho sent his DPS-tank summon, Snowflake Berserker (B-rank), charging forward.
Decked in all sorts of expensive runes, the Berserker had a healer, a supporter, and a ranged unit for backup.
In a way, it was pure, righteous formation.
The configuration and deployment were considered the most stable in the industry.
“Hmm?”
Watching the charge, Atsuto’s eyes gleamed.
“Something’s different.”
He sensed instinctively.
The summons’ formation, their running posture, the direction—they were all high-level.
“Is the Korean ranker really this good?”
“But that won’t work on me.”
He had been personally trained in control by the Five Emperors’ Yoshida Hikaru and was considered a key player capable of breaking into the top 100 worldwide.
If he lost to such a setup, it would be humiliating.
Kraaaang!
The charging Snowflake Berserker’s axe was perfectly parried by Soul Hunter’s (A-rank) greatsword.
Thunk, thunk!
Even the arrows from the ranged summon were twirled and deflected by the spinning blade.
“Ha.”
Kang Ji-ho’s eyes widened.
“Is that even possible?”
The Berserker’s charge was brutal.
Even among Korea’s top players, few could withstand such a rush head-on.
Yet Atsuto’s Soul Hunter handled it with ease.
Not only that.
Slash!
While blocking, it spun its body and cut through the Berserker’s abdomen.
Blood spurted.
“Healer!”
Wooooosh!
The healer and supporter continued giving support.
Swoosh!
The Berserker’s flurry of axe attacks churned the snow wind, but Soul Hunter’s movements were beyond imagination.
In no time, the Berserker’s entire body was covered in cuts.
“Insane.”
Kang Ji-ho felt a massive wall in front of him.
The runes and specs mattered, but…
“It’s the control.”
The greatsword twisted to block the axe’s trajectory as if predicting it.
Once blocked, the attacker had to concede one strike.
“Yeah.”
It felt like facing an older brother.
“No.”
Thinking about it, maybe not that much.
“If it were my older brother…”
The Berserker’s head would already be off.
Anyway, it was clear that the opponent was several moves ahead in every aspect.
Even with all the experience Kang Ji-ho had gained since Carpe Diem’s founding, he couldn’t match this level.
“Good.”
His eyes burned with desire.
You can’t always fight the weak.
The more he struggled against a strong opponent, the more he grew.
“He said it’s okay if I lose.”
But that didn’t mean to just give up.
It meant to give his all, aiming to take at least one of the opponent’s summons with him.
“Snowflake Berserker!”
Kang Ji-ho called the injured summon in his mind.
At the same time…
Bam! Bam! Bam!
Ignoring the Soul Hunter entirely, the Berserker charged straight ahead.
If you’re outmatched in size, there’s only one method:
“Take out their supporter, healer, and sniper first!”
It didn’t matter if his own summon fell.
This wasn’t about winning—it was about helping the next player have an easier time.
In a tournament format, Atsuto would have to face the next opponent with the same summons, without HP recovery or swaps.
So even if he died, he would strike as much as possible before falling.
“Charge!”
Kang Ji-ho’s eyes blazed with determination.
He hadn’t made it into the national team by chance.
Being young, he carried a certain ruthless determination.
“Ignore the attacks and just run! Take the hits if you have to!”
“Huh?”
Atsuto was shocked.
Originally, he planned to slowly overwhelm the Berserker with the Soul Hunter.
He wanted a stable fight to ensure the next ranker could also be defeated.
But now, the situation was complicated.
“Block it!”
Ta-a-at!
Soul Hunter turned back to finish the Berserker, but…
Slash, slash!
The Snowflake Berserker’s axe wasn’t weak either.
It swept through the rear, clearing enemy summons one by one.
Atsuto’s ranged attacks left the Berserker at barely 5% HP, yet it managed to cut down foes, roaring through its exhaustion.
- Kuaoooooo!
The opponent’s healer had torn wings, and the supporter’s staff was broken!
Though it lost to Soul Hunter, the Berserker had done its job admirably.
Feeling proud, the Snowflake Berserker roared excitedly.
Then…
Thunk!
Its neck was pierced by the approaching Soul Hunter.
“Phew, it’s over.”
It lost, but fought well.
Against a top-tier international player, it had shown a strong performance.
With the Berserker gone, the situation was quickly resolved.
First Match Result:
Kang Ji-ho – Loss (敗) vs Atsuto – Win (勝)
“Next up, Hong Ah-ri.”
Baek Jin-woo muttered.
“Understood.”
The second player, Hong Ah-ri, stepped forward with a determined expression.
“…Noona, that guy’s no joke. But Ji-ho really weakened him.”
“Okay, good job.”
She received the baton from Kang Ji-ho.
“With Ji-ho having done this much, I have to win no matter what.”
Hong Ah-ri had already seen Atsuto’s strength firsthand.
So she knew exactly how strong he was.
“Normally…”
With Ji-ho’s level alone, she couldn’t have killed a single summon of his.
She wouldn’t even have touched the healer or supporter.
But now?
Kang Ji-ho had grown strong enough to compete against Atsuto.
“All thanks to training!”
Hong Ah-ri took a deep breath, steeling herself.
Her stiffened face revealed just how tense she was.
“Phoenix.”
- Kiiirururururu!
Her B-rank Firebird erupted into flames.
Atsuto was the opponent.
Though a lower-tier version of the A-rank Phoenix, the Firebird was a respected summon in fire-element combat.
Moreover, it had recently undergone intense training under Baek Jin-woo, strengthening its basics.
“I’ll show him.”
Hong Ah-ri glanced briefly at Baek Jin-woo, not Atsuto.
He gave a slight nod.
“See how strong I’ve become.”
Fwoosh!
Hong Ah-ri moved first.
All five of her summons deployed simultaneously, pressuring Atsuto’s remaining summons.
“Ha.”
Even Atsuto, caught off guard, wasn’t easy.
Clash after clash, skirmish after skirmish, the result?
It came surprisingly quickly.
Hong Ah-ri – Win (勝) vs Atsuto – Loss (敗)
She barely won.
The Firebird’s wings were torn, and the HP of her other summons fell below 10%, but…
The opponent, Atsuto, was down to only three summons.
Victory was still victory.
“Aaahhh!”
Hong Ah-ri cheered with joy, stretching her palm toward Japan.
“Next, step up.”
“Not bad.”
The next Japanese player was Ryo.
He wasn’t a world-ranked player, but he was #9 in Japan.
“I can’t believe just two people managed to handle Atsuto.”
Ryo deployed his summons, muttering in surprise.
It was indeed shocking.
Even with clever tactics, defeating Atsuto with only two players?
Before the match, Japanese rankers expected:
“Atsuto should take at least three.”
“If lucky, maybe even a solo kill.”
“That’d be hilarious. If it’s a solo kill by Atsuto, not Shusuke.”
“But well… that’s typical Korean level, isn’t it?”
They expected Atsuto to take three or more, but already, their prediction was off.
“Hmm.”
Folding his arms, Baek Jin-woo showed an intrigued expression.
“Better than expected.”
Both Kang Ji-ho and Hong Ah-ri had applied the basics he taught them well.
It seemed they had learned that control mattered more than summon rank in a battle.
Otherwise, Atsuto would have easily wiped them both before Ryo even stepped up.
“…Master.”
Next to him, Oh Seon-young murmured.
“I’m truly amazed.”
She couldn’t hide her excitement.
After all, who were they facing?
The world’s TOP 5 superpowers!
She never imagined that in such a short time, they’d grow enough to fight alongside Japan’s national team.
“Ah, amazed, my foot.”
Baek Jin-woo chuckled.
“You guys, Japanese players… are still full of weaknesses.”
She was feeling amazed just for this level of improvement? That was petty for her master.
“Anyway.”
He glanced at Gi Jae-hyuk and Oh Seon-young, who were waiting.
“Hong Ah-ri will definitely lose to Ryo.”
Naturally.
She probably wouldn’t even land a proper hit.
Her condition was that serious.
So, one of the two had to step up and face Ryo.
“Who wants to go?”
Since Baek Jin-woo himself would go last, only Oh Seon-young or Gi Jae-hyuk could go now.
This was the chance to gain real experience.
“Let Jae-hyuk go.”
“Noona?”
“…She’s not on the national team. For the world league, Jae-hyuk needs this experience.”
Oh Seon-young recommended Gi Jae-hyuk.
Baek Jin-woo nodded.
Yielding was perfect!
“Instead.”
He grinned.
“I’ll give Oh Seon-young a special gift.”
“…Gift?”
“We’ll see. Jae-hyuk.”
“Yes, sir!”
“Think you can handle Ryo?”
“…Ryo?”
Gi Jae-hyuk’s eyes widened.
Even if Ryo was the lowest of Japan’s national team, he was formidable in Korea.
The clip of Korea’s #1 Kang Gun-ho getting wiped in one minute by Ryo still circulated online.
He was that strong.
And now, he was called “Ryo-level”?
“Why, can’t you win?”
Gi Jae-hyuk swallowed hard.
There had to be a reason his master said that.
Oh well!
He decided to go all out.
“…I will win, no matter what.”
If his master said to win, then he’d just do it.
“Good, that’s the mindset.”
Fwoosh!
The match was already in progress.
Hong Ah-ri’s Firebird was gradually fading.
Even as he spoke, Baek Jin-woo analyzed Ryo’s summons and his control.
The conclusion:
“Jae-hyuk will win.”
Baek Jin-woo saw a genius in Gi Jae-hyuk.
He handled summons as well as he did at a young age.
If he followed what he learned and avoided mistakes, Ryo could be narrowly defeated.
Of course, others would think he was crazy for saying this.
Without even watching, he could roughly predict the outcome!
“But what can I do if I see it?”
It was the same during Battle of Summoners.
Even before player-vs-player matches started, he could tell who would win.
Some time passed.
The match ended.
As expected:
Hong Ah-ri – Loss (敗) vs Ryo – Win (勝)
“Next, Gi Jae-hyuk.”
“Yes, sir!”
Gi Jae-hyuk stepped up to face Ryo, who was smirking arrogantly after defeating Hong Ah-ri.
