Season 3: Chapter 250. Trust Us (3)
It was another sea map like the second game.
[Breaking News: Yi Sun-Shin Sets Out Again LOL]
[Heaven has given Joseon a chance LOL]
[Final Game, Sea Map LOL]
Remembering how Joseon decisively defeated Japan in the second game, various online communities felt thrilled. However, those who understood the game on Embul weren't as optimistic.
[WTF, isn’t this rigged? I’m fuming]
[Shit, of all times; can they handle this?]
[Ah... Joseon’s form has dropped; they won’t win this time]
Initially, Japan had an advantage on sea maps as an island civilization. A sea map was practically an island map. Japan’s superior fishing efficiency and rapid ship speed beyond the coastline made everything easier. And then—
“... Ah!”
Thud.
Chi-Seung banged his head against the wall after seeing the map.
“A sea map? Seriously!?”
Knowing Choi Sa-Rang's condition, he despaired far more than the general community worrying about Japan's faction efficiency.
“Why didn’t they tell us in advance!? Huh? They said they would notify us before a sea map came up!”
“Well... that’s for the mandatory sea map. The rest are random,” SharpSphere answered in a gloomy voice.
The selected sea map had just come up randomly. Since it wasn't pre-selected, they couldn’t be notified in advance.
“Haa, shit... we should’ve experienced the main tournament before to know.”
Chi-Seung clenched his fist, but could do nothing more. It was already out of his hands.
“What are we going to do...?”
The commander already needed to delegate as much as possible due to her condition. Now, she faced a situation where she would have to control everything directly instead of delegating.
‘Is this the end?’
Although he couldn’t bring himself to say it out loud, Chi-Seung couldn’t help but think, ‘Well, getting this far is already an achievement.’
Joseon making it to the quarterfinals was like a dream. If someone had told him this two months ago claiming to have seen the future, Chi-Seung wouldn't have believed it.
The other members felt the same. Sitting around, staring at the walls or their phones silently, they had already given up. Their expressions already showed a sense of acceptance that they had done well enough. After all, the think tank could do nothing more.
Such feelings were understandable. But why?
‘I feel regretful.’
Chi-Seung felt regretful. It seemed within reach, yet it was slipping away for various reasons. It wouldn't have been as bad if it had been completely out of reach. It dangled just out of reach, so close that he could almost grab it. Grinding his teeth, he felt the need to do something, anything he could.
“Everyone... Let's analyze this. Gather here.”
“...?”
The entire think tank looked at him in surprise. This was the last game. What was there to analyze?
“Uh... oppa, this is the last game.”
“What do you mean the last game? Have we already lost?”
“... Even if we win, it’s the last game.”
“Then we should prepare for the semifinals. And even if we lose! We’ll come back next year!”
“!”
Everyone froze at Chi-Seung’s words. Few truly believed that they could make it to the main tournament again next year.
“We can’t afford to lose next year.”
Chi-Seung sat down and the others gradually joined him to start their analysis.
***
[Rolling Waves]
Sa-Rang’s mind went blank as the map’s name appeared before her.
Swoosh...
The distant sound of waves, the bright sun, and the white seagulls. However, it didn’t feel like a holiday destination. It felt like being stranded in the middle of the sea. Sa-Rang felt lost.
‘I promised to leave it to the soldiers.’
She had resolved to delegate, but now a sea map appeared. A naval battle would be the primary fight. Could she leave ship control to the soldiers? Although there were modes for that, could they really fight properly that way?
‘I can’t even consult with the think tank.’
Having already entered the game, she couldn’t consult with the think tank anymore. She also couldn’t consult with the soldiers directly.
‘At least...’
At least she could consult the soldiers here in other ways. They couldn’t send a message to the commander, but could somewhat indicate their thoughts like when Almond waved his hand. After giving all the necessary orders, she started typing a message.
***
“Ah. The final game of the Korea-Japan series! It’s a sea map. What do you think, OrangeKing?”
“Ah. Well, Japan definitely has the upper hand on a sea map, but didn’t we all see the second game? Joseon was quite formidable in direct ship combat!”
“Yes, exactly! And since the ships are controlled directly, our commander Best Yi Sun-Shin’s skills came through!”
“Yes! Ringo’s micro-control was honestly lacking, which led to their defeat in the second game. Even if Joseon is tired, they still have a chance!”
— For real
— Perfect
— There must be a god LOL A sea map for the fifth Korea-Japan match LOL
— Honestly, they’ll definitely win LOL
— In a naval battle, the soldiers' condition isn’t as much of an issue, so they have a chance
Contrary to the actual situation, viewers felt quite optimistic. They weren’t simply ignorant or overly influenced by the commentators. The commander had displayed exceptional control in the second game. It wouldn’t be easy for Japan to narrow the gap so quickly.
Moreover, Joseon’s current weakness regarding the soldiers’ stamina would be less relevant in a naval battle. Firing cannons from a ship required less physical strain than running around while shooting arrows and swinging swords.
Additionally, ships were larger and less agile targets than people. This made aiming easier. However, viewers overlooked that the stamina issue wasn’t only affecting the soldiers.
“Alright, Joseon at 6 o’clock and Japan at 12 o’clock. The distance is neither too far nor too close. Will Joseon attempt something in the second era?”
“That’s right. Given that it’s the final game, they’re probably cautious. A mistake early on would be disastrous.”
— True
— A rush here would be reckless
— LOL, everything else failed
— Let’s play it solid
In reality, Sa-Rang judged that an early rush was not viable. It wasn’t because she thought it wouldn’t be effective, but because she couldn’t execute it well enough.
“Ah, and this map is slightly different from The Dawn of Navigation. There are more medium-sized islands in between.”
“Oh, right. There are relatively close islands scattered around.”
“Yes. Although there are areas with just sea in between... look at the eastern waters of Japan. There’s a long island stretching south. The distance from the main island isn’t that far. Similarly, Joseon has an island that’s not too far.”
Although the sea separated the islands, the distance wasn’t too great. It was reachable within thirty seconds of game time by ship.
“Oh. So these islands could be used for multi-bases?”
“That’s uncertain. It doesn’t seem to have abundant resources... islands with abundant resources are generated smaller.”
OrangeKing had a hard time explaining as the map layout changed each time.
“The concept of Rolling Waves is that relatively close islands are scattered like fragments. The waves roll through them, hence the name Rolling Waves.”
“Oh! I get it now. As expected, like a typical sea map! Both sides have started fishing and are preparing for the second era! Ah, isn’t this the first peaceful start today?”
“Yes. But the Joseon soldiers are all gathered... What are they doing? They should be hunting.”
All the Joseon’s soldiers strangely gathered on the shore.
“Huh... what’s that? That formation looks...”
Moreover, the formation looked quite peculiar.
***
Ding.
A message arrived for the two vice-commanders.
[Can the soldiers control the ships?]
They weren’t particularly surprised since they knew the commander’s current state. They just exchanged glances and hesitated momentarily.
“... We can do it, probably?” Bread hesitantly probed Coffee.
“Yes. We can do it.”
Coffee also nodded uncertainly.
“It’s not that hard. After all, it’s just a game.”
Controlling the ships wasn’t particularly difficult for the soldiers. The commander’s question was not really about whether they could do it, but whether they could do it well.
“I’m not sure if we can do it well.”
Coffee scratched his head and pondered his response.
“Let’s gather everyone and ask. We’re not leaving the island anytime soon anyway.”
They gathered the soldiers and posed the same question, explaining the commander’s situation.
“Huh?”
The soldiers, hearing this for the first time, looked puzzled. Only Almond stared at the ground without much reaction.
“Controlling ships is possible. Sometimes we have to in solo rank games.”
“Yeah, we’ve taken control in urgent situations, but have we ever fought completely while controlling the ships?”
Everyone shook their heads. Soldiers rarely controlled ships in battles themselves.
“Hey!”
At that moment, someone raised their hand. It was Carrot.
“We have to do it anyway, right?” she asked the vice-commanders.
“In this situation, it’s not about whether we can do it or not.”
“...”
The two reluctantly nodded. She was right. They couldn’t expect the commander to handle the ships in this situation.
“We’ll do it. It’s the best chance.”
Almond also raised his hand.
“Right.”
“Hey, what do you know?” Pang scolded him but also raised his hand.
“This guy always doesn’t know much but hits the mark.”
As the archery unit pushed their opinion, other units also raised their hands one by one. All the soldiers declared that they would control the ships.
“Then we need to signal the commander.”
Coffee nodded, thinking about how to signal the commander.
“Okay, over here. Yes, that’s right. Over there... here.”
In Civil Empire, communication was one-way. The commander could give detailed orders to the soldiers, but the soldiers couldn’t communicate back. The best way for soldiers to convey their message to the commander was to give a signal that was visible from above.
Coffee felt that a simple hand signal wasn’t enough.
‘She looked uneasy.’
The commander didn’t look well in the waiting room today. She probably wasn’t confident about this strategy either. He glanced at Bread.
‘She was like that too...’
When Bread first joined, she was similar. As a vice-commander, she lacked confidence in her actions. She was more focused on force than strategy. She often questioned why Cookie appointed her as vice-commander, but Cookie gradually instilled confidence in her and showed her why she was needed in this role.
‘A vice commander should do the same.’
Coffee wanted to show the commander like how Cookie had shown Bread. He wanted to instill confidence in her.
“Okay, here. Done.”
Finally, the soldiers lined up so Sa-Rang could see their formation from above.
‘Are they still gathering opinions...?’
While sending out the fishing boats, she glanced at the shore with the soldiers gathered there. Time was of the essence, but gathering opinions took time.
The vice-commanders weren’t giving her any signals either. Then—
“!”
She saw letters.
[Yes.]
Those were letters.
The soldiers weren’t simply standing, but formed different shapes with their formation. They combined and separated again.
Sa-Rang squinted to see it more clearly.
Swoosh...
The waves crashed against the shore, turning it into a white canvas. She finally saw it clearly.
[Trust Us]
It was a message from the soldiers.
“...”
Her lips trembled.