Season 3: Chapter 147: Like Real (2)
[Fake National Team ep.5 Almost Real]
[Premieres in 1 hour!]
It was the long-awaited upload for the Fake National Team.
— Wow
— The start of a legend
— Finally
— So excited
— Nice
— It's here
Viewers surged in like a wave because of the significant interest already due to the main event today. The Fake National Team series hadn’t been updated at all as the team prepared for the match. This made the reaction even more explosive.
[37,000 people waiting]
Thirty thousand viewers joined in a flash as soon as they announced the premiere. Despite the long wait, the team’s popularity was immense.
— Why are there so many people?
— Won't the video lag??
— Can YouTube handle this? lol
— Max out the bandwidth fee~~!
— The telecom companies are smiling...
YouTube wasn't a live streaming platform, so users worried about whether the platform could handle so many live viewers.
“This must have had a significant role in getting into the main event,” Ju-Hyeok muttered while watching the Fake National Team video trend.
As usual, he sat in front of his computer and recorded down various data. The only difference was that Sang-Hyeon wasn’t in the capsule beside him.
Perhaps that was why Ju-Hyeok tapped louder than usual on his keyboard.
“An underdog like Korea making it to the main event is a perfect story for the media, so quite a few articles are circulating.”
Clack, clack, clack.
Ju-Hyeok started searching for more articles on the portal site. While he had seen quite a few, he had never properly recorded how many were posted and how much the major media covered them. ṚάɴȰ₿Ëʂ
“Oh.”
It immediately became clear as the search results popped up. There were thirty-seven articles in total with two being from major media outlets. The portal site prominently featured these two articles and placed them at the very top. The articles had an enormous number of comments.
Ju-Hyeok had already read one of the articles.
[In the Blind Spot of the Gaming Powerhouse: Youths Entering the International Main Event Under "Korea," a “Less Popular Game”]
He recalled this article ranking quite high with comments still being posted.
The context of the articles wasn't much different from the usual ones, but being featured on the front page made a huge difference. It had over a thousand comments, which was an enormous number for a game related article.
Another article from a major media outlet boasted similar numbers and countless other articles also appeared from less prominent sources.
In essence, most people who consumed news became aware of the Civil Empire team.
“Some articles seem to have been influenced by Monster.”
Ju-Hyeok smirked and checked the viewer count.
[139,000 people waiting]
Nearly 150,000 people waited as the premiere of the new Fake National Team episode approached.
[Premiere starts now!]
The Fake National Team premiere finally began.
***
[Joseon vs Rome Day of the Second Match]
[Hui-Chul's House]
The video started at Hui-Chul's house.
— Huh? Why at Cookie's house?
— What's going on?
— Wow, nice house
The think tank team appeared.
“... Ah.”
“What do we do?”
The team despaired after being utterly defeated by Rome. No one could say anything. They could only groan as if in pain.
“Ugh...”
“Sigh.”
A quiet but fierce match had ended in their defeat. No one could stand up.
Crackle.
The screen transitioned to an interview. Instead of the usual formal interview with a white background, the members were being interviewed on the spot.
“The match against Rome? Oh, yes. It was tough.”
Chi-Seung was being interviewed first.
“We already made it to the main event, but we still didn’t expect to lose that badly. It was an issue of theory.”
[When you say theory...]
“Building strategies are based on certain theories like how you need to know basic arithmetic before you can do polynomial factorization. You layer strategies on these basic foundations…”
Chi-Seung shook his head.
“The Rome match changed our entire concept of basic arithmetic.”
— Wow
— Was it that bad?
— Damn
— The second match was intense
— Rome is really good...
“Oh, we realized it wasn’t just about making it to the main event. We thought we’d be eliminated right away in the main event...”
[Do you think the players were deeply affected as well?]
The question arose whether the soldiers, who didn't understand the strategies, would be mentally affected.
“Well, they’re human too. Of course, they would be greatly affected since they faced it directly. It’s much harder than watching it.”
— Noooo
— The Rome match must have been tough. I thought they'd be okay.
— They're looking beyond the main event
Crackle—
The scene suddenly shifted to Almond. Chat messages appeared on the lower side of the screen next to his face. It was a communication stream.
He still had a lot of time before the main event, so he streamed for his viewers.
“Oh... the Rome match...?”
He was answering a question from the chat about the Rome match. Then—
[BigSon has donated 1 million won!]
[Can you transform into the Monster?]
Pop!
Almond popped open a can before the chat could react to the amount.
“Gulp, gulp.”
He chugged the energy drink and raised his hands.
“Graaah!”
Boom!
The screen went dark and the title appeared.
[Fake National Team]
[Fake Athlete]
— lmao
— ??? Oh, the Rome match? 1 million won Graaah!
— lol
— This is really the Fake National Team lol
— Facts. This guy is definitely a fake
— lmao
— His reaction speed is definitely national team level
— What does Chi-Seung's statement even mean? lol
— The Fake National Team is hilarious
Crackle.
The screen transitioned to an interview with Almond. The camera followed him up the stairs as they asked him questions.
“The Rome match?”
He frowned as if the question was absurd.
“I don’t remember.”
— ??
— lol
— lmao
— He just erased it from his memory lol
When was that again? Almond continued up the stairs.
“Hey, Almond!? That was just two days ago... Didn’t it affect you?”
“If I don’t remember, how can it affect me?”
— lmao
— Invincible brain
— Almond's physical abilities have reached the level where he can control his memories and nerves.
— Makes sense lol
— True
Almond continued climbing the stairs and remarked, "Anyway, reaching the main event is what matters."
— LOL, so true
— Exactly
— What more can Korea hope for?
"So what are you doing today?"
"I'm doing a communication stream."
"Isn't that an ad?"
"I don't remember…"
For some reason, Almond's pace quickened up the stairs.
— ?
— An ad LOL
— He did so many ads before the main event LOL
— Oh, I remember that
— Fyi: Nutillions have external walnuts to put in and take out memories.
— "I don't remember" LOL
Crackle.
The screen changed and showed Almond doing a personal stream. Scenes of him chatting and laughing with viewers passed by quickly.
It also showed the period leading up to the departure for the main event, featuring Almond and the daily lives of other members.
The screen transitioned.
[Departure Day]
Finally, the day of their departure came.
A bus stopped at the airport’s entrance and the players got off.
Cookie stepped out first.
“How do you feel right now?” one of the producers following them asked.
“There’s still some time before the main event, so I don’t have any particular thoughts. The matchups haven’t been announced yet. I’m just thinking about how to deal with the matchups once they’re revealed.”
With that, Cookie led the players into the airport.
Flash!
Cameras started flashing.
— Ohhh
— ?
— Ah
— Nice
At that moment, the screen zoomed out. Under the airport entrance, the backs of all the players could be seen. In front of them, numerous cameras lined up and flashed continuously.
Flash!
Flash!
Behind them, a huge crowd cheered loudly.
“Waaaaaahhhh!”
They raised their support signs and waved them everywhere. These fans had come to cheer on the national team.
— Awesome
— Wow
— Cool
— Amazing
— Wow LOL
— This is crazy
The players stopped in their tracks and looked around in awe.
“Waaaaaahhhh!”
“Almond! Almond!”
“Chi-Seung! Confess your love!”
Many fans cheered them on. Cameras flashed and countless phones recorded them. Hands reached out toward them along their path.
“Whoa, this is crazy.”
“What is this? Are they really here for us?”
“No way….”
“They’re asking me to attack them.”
The national team members muttered to themselves and felt overwhelmed by the warm welcome. They slowly started walking forward.
As the scene quieted, Chi-Seung’s voice could be heard.
“It felt like entering a completely different world with each step.”
Carrot’s voice could be heard next.
“It felt like I was floating?”
Then, Pang spoke, “You know, like walking on air? Like in martial arts movies. It felt like that. Oh, I’ve reached a higher state. It felt like that. Of course, it’s just an illusion.”
The scene showed the backs of these three members and slowly rotated to the front.
The camera focused intently on someone. While everyone else moved forward, one person couldn’t move and stood still.
— Oh… what now
— He must be moved
The camera zoomed in on Almond’s face. His eyes were red and his throat bobbed as if he was swallowing something difficult.
“I didn’t want to miss any of it.”
Almond’s voice could be heard over the footage.
“I wanted to hold on to that feeling… I think I stayed there as long as possible.”
The screen zoomed even closer to his eyes. The reflections of countless people could be seen in his pupils.
“What that feeling was…”
His eyes sparkled with each flash. Then, tears began to fall.
— :(((
— Ah…
— This is too much…
— I’m not crying, I’m not crying
— Damn
[Almost… real?]
Whooosh—
With this line, grand music started playing. This kind of music had never been heard in the Fake National Team series before, giving it the sense that something enormous was beginning. It made one’s heart race.
At the same time, the scene changed again. It was no longer the airport, but the stadium.
Almond wore a white uniform and slowly walked into the stadium.
His voice from the last interview played.
“It felt like being on a real national team.”
On the back of his white uniform were large letters that read:
[KOREA]
As he approached the stadium, countless players walked alongside him and they all wore the same white outfits with the same lettering.
A wave of two hundred players clad in white surged into the stadium.
— This is the national team!
— If this isn’t a national team, what is!?
— Korea should immediately create a "quasi-national team" like this!
— I'm crying!!
— I cried so much my phone is soaked in tears. You’re responsible for this!
— Nooo
The music reached its peak as the screen gradually darkened.
[This video is sponsored by Monster.]
— Nice~
— Monster roar
— Monster roar~
— Awesome
After the screen went completely dark, a boom rang out.
[Fake National Team]
[Fake Athlete]
The video ended.
— Wow, that was so much fun today
— I cried too much, my eyes are swollen. How am I supposed to go to work tomorrow…?
— Amazing
— I’m so excited now LOL
— Please win the main event! Fighting!
— I'm so happy that the main event is right after this!!!
Unlike usual, a new phrase appeared after the ending.
[Look forward to the Japan/Dinner Party episode tomorrow!]
Another video was coming out.
— Wow, another one tomorrow??
— Awesome
— Well, it has been a long time
— Dinner party!! Awesome
— This is going to be so much fun LOL
— It was strange that nothing about Japan came out
With this, the premiere of the Fake National Team ended.
[289,000 watching together]
A massive number of viewers had gathered.
Immediately following this momentum, the broadcast started.
[Joseon vs Vikings]
The first match of the main event began with Korea selecting the map.