Season 3: Chapter 262. The Big Catch (3)
‘Unbelievable.’
Sang-Hyeon's eyes trembled.
Now that he thought about it, Pang had mentioned frequently visiting Japan before.
“Ah~ It's been a while.”
Pang had acted like he often visited Japan. Moreover, he spoke Japanese quite well even though it sounded a bit awkward. They often used Pang to communicate at restaurants when English didn't work or when talking to Whisky-san.
Many people in Korea spoke good Japanese and frequently visited Japan, so he never gave it much thought.
‘His mother is Japanese?!’
He just learned that Pang's mother was Japanese. This brought back memories of various things Pang had said before.
“Due to the faction, the Japanese soldiers are a bit shorter.”
“Oh, really? I thought they were just short.”
“They really are short though. I didn't mean to say that they were short on purpose. They’re just really short.”
The many careless remarks Sang-Hyeon had made suddenly came to mind. These comments had spread widely on forums. They even became popular catchphrases and parodies mocking the Japanese. It was just playful banter in the context of sports rivalry, but knowing now that the mother of someone he knew so well was Japanese made him uncomfortable.
— lolololol
— Look at Almond's expression lol
— His eyes are about to pop out lol
— lololol
His conflicted feelings were clearly visible on his face and the viewers quickly made fun of him.
‘You all laughed too!’
He wanted to shout this, but held back. The reporter suddenly thrust the microphone toward him.
With a serious expression as if delivering a fatal blow, she asked Sang-Hyeon, “Did you know about this, Almond!?”
Her urgent tone and serious expression suggested that she didn't want to be the only one criticized, so she turned the spotlight to Sang-Hyeon.
— Let's die together lol
— Reporter gets her revenge, lol
— Suddenly turns to Almond lol
Sang-Hyeon shook his head with a complex feeling.
“I knew he spoke Japanese well, but I didn't know this either.”
“Ah~”
The reporter smiled broadly as if to say, 'So that's why.'
— lolololol
— That expression lol
— Amazing back and forth here
— I wasn’t the only one who didn’t know, right?
— Teacher! Punish this kid too!
The reporter had evolved and wouldn’t just take it lying down anymore.
“Ahem! The, the next question... Um. Mr. Spam!”
The reporter asked Spam about his feelings on being MVP for the first game.
“Yes, yes!”
Spam stepped forward, his face flushed, and seemed somewhat shy. He glanced at the reporter, indicating that he was nervous.
“Mr. Spam.”
“Yes!”
“You brilliantly...”
“Yes, yes!”
“... used close-range archery to...”
“Yes, yes!”
“... overcome a crisis.”
“Yes!”
Spam answered before she even finished the sentence. It seemed like he was full of thoughts and answering earnestly.
— ???
— lol
— What is Spam doing?
— He’s in the final stage of the "Yes" disease lol
— Is he a subordinate
— He's shy lol
— Reporter’s expression lol
The reporter, flustered by this new type of villain, blinked her eyes.
“How, how do you feel about that?”
“Yes! My thoughts! Ah... thanks to Mr. Almond teaching me well! It turned out well...! It went well!”
— ...?
— He’s just saying random things lol
— Anyway, it went well lol
— ???
“Ah... Did Mr. Almond...”
“Yes!”
“... teach you?”
“Yes!”
“...?”
“?”
The reporter couldn’t distinguish between Spam’s yes as a filler or a real answer.
“Ah. So, you really answered.”
“Yes!”
“I see.”
The director waved his hands wildly, indicating that the interview couldn't continue like this.
‘Oh no.’
The reporter quickly moved the microphone.
Swish.
The microphone inevitably pointed toward...
‘You again. The demon of interviews...’
It was Almond. He seemed to be smiling subtly as if he knew it wasn't his turn to attack. To the reporter, it looked like he was saying, ‘Is this all you’ve got, hero?’ Of course, that was only the reporter's perspective.
Almost squinting her eyes shut, she barely held the microphone with both hands and asked him, “A... Almond, how did you feel about your performance in the second game!!”
— ?
— Lol what
— Is the microphone 50 kilos?
— No, she’s struggling lol
— What’s this lol?
— The microphone demon used his power to increase its weight
— ??? How... can you endure?
“Ah, yes. My performance in the second game...”
Honestly, Sang-Hyeon couldn't remember. They played five games and he didn't perform well in a few games.
“... What was it?”
— lololol
— Oh
— No wonder he forgot lol
— Feels like his 12893rd girlfriend~
— lol
“The second game was a naval battle. You infiltrated the enemy’s base alone and swept the enemy workers.”
“Ah... Yes.”
“Can you share your thoughts on that?”
“I was glad to kill so many workers.”
“...”
— It's good to kill many workers~
— lol
— Breaking news: Almond felt happy to kill so many Japanese
— lololol
— No way lol
“Is that all?”
“From my perspective, I couldn’t really tell how the second game was going. I couldn’t participate in the naval battle and just killed workers in the base...”
“Okay, I understand...!”
The reporter thought she had gotten through this part smoothly.
‘Was it because I intimidated him earlier?’
She felt that confusing Almond during Pang’s interview helped in getting a normal response from him. Maybe it was true. Sang-Hyeon was still thinking about Pang’s mom being Japanese.
However, the reporter misunderstood something. While focusing on the interview, she momentarily forgot the part that always caused issues. She only realized it after reading the next line of the script.
‘... Ah.’
The words on the paper weren’t questions. They were summoning circles for the demon.
“Next, next...”
Her voice openly trembled.
“Joseon’s opponent in the semifinals has been determined.”
It was about their next opponent.
***
“Indeed...”
Hui-Chul immediately watched the next opponent's match after Joseon's victory. He nodded while sitting on the hospital bed.
“The power ranking was not for nothing.”
He stared intently at the screen as if trying to find a way.
“Mr. Hui-Chul.”
At that moment, a nurse entered and called him.
“Yes?”
“You can be discharged now.”
Hui-Chul packed his belongings and slung his bag over his shoulder.
“I’m glad your condition has improved.”
“Thanks to your efforts.”
Hui-Chul smiled as he looked around the hospital room. He certainly looked much healthier than when he was first admitted, at least for now. He sighed as he took in the scenery of the hospital room.
‘Next time I come...’
He knew that he probably wouldn’t leave as easily next time.
“Uh...”
“?”
The nurse called out to him as he was about to leave the room.
“Are you participating in the semifinals?” she asked since she knew about the national competition. It wasn’t out of concern for his health. Unlike Sa-Rang or Sang-Hyeon, Hui-Chul’s health condition had nothing to do with gaming.
“Ah...”
Hui-Chul hesitated for a moment and tilted his head.
“Well, who knows.”
“Aww, you’re not going to tell me?”
“Haha.”
***
“Who’s the next opponent?” Sang-Hyeon asked, not knowing the result yet.
“China.”
— Shit
— Wow lol
— Korea, Japan, and China, wow
— Neighbor war lol
— Uh-oh;
— Mali would’ve been easier...
China ranked third in the power rankings, following Mongolia and Rome. Historically, they were a significant powerhouse in medieval East Asia. Of course, they wouldn’t be an easy team to face in Civil Empire. The size of their professional market was incomparable.
While Korea’s domestic market had barely formed, China’s market was so large that they actively traded players internationally. China’s esports market was the largest in the world and Civil Empire was no exception.
Even retro fighting games nearly dead in Korea had professional scenes in China with huge money involved. The Civil Empire professional market was quite robust.
‘China...’
Sang-Hyeon, who had aimed for the Olympics, knew the influence of China in sports. Hearing about China gave him a stronger sense of pressure than Japan. Japan had proudly claimed to have defeated the fourth ranked Ottoman Empire, but China was ranked third.
Above them were Rome and Mongolia, practically beyond human reach. In the Civil Empire community, China’s national team had a certain nickname.
‘The strongest in the human realm.’
They were considered the strongest team within realistic bounds.
“Moreover, China defeated Mali 3-0!”
They currently had strong momentum. Mali, considered an African dark horse, was comparable to Japan. And China had defeated Mali 3-0.
“China is considered the strongest team we’ll face yet. Many are saying this, especially...! One of China’s players made this comment!”
“?”
Sang-Hyeon grew curious since the Chinese players had already finished their interview.
“Historically, Joseon has never beaten China!”
— Wow
— Mainland provocation lol
— Mainland pride
— Maybe that’s true
— Goryeo might’ve, but Joseon didn’t
— They don’t know. Joseon never beat anyone!
— Ugh...
“What do you think, Almond?”
“Oh, well... There’s no beating numbers.”
He surprisingly seemed to accept China’s confidence, but then he continued.
“But Civil Empire has a 200 unit limit.”
— Wow
— lol
— What do you have besides human wave tactics~~~!! lol
— To repeat history, China would need 1000 more capsules lol
— True
— Those who win by numbers lol
— Just put Xi Jinping skins on the shields and win
Sang-Hyeon didn’t mean it, but an outburst of cheers resounded as soon as he finished.
“Waaaah!”
“Hoooooo!”
Sang-Hyeon thought it came from the Korean spectators, but realized it wasn’t. It came from the Japanese side. They cheered after seeing the translation.
— Why are they cheering? lol
— Oh lol
— The enemy of my enemy is my friend!
— A bloody triangle among Korea, Japan, and China
— lol
‘They’re still here?’
Sang-Hyeon felt uneasy knowing the Japanese spectators were still around. He remained silent and bewildered. Next to him, Pang made a sarcastic remark.
“China sure is popular! Look at all the cheers!”
The reporter habitually agreed.
“Haha! Really? Everyone loves China!”
She mistook China for Civil Empire’s Chinese civilization. Given China’s strength, she thought they were cheering for the civilization.
Pang, feeling encouraged, added more words.
“Yes! Is there any country in the world that doesn’t like China?”
“Right! The whole world...”
‘Wait?’
The reporter realized something was wrong.
— ??
— lol
— No way lol
— ??? It’s a big catch!
— lol
— ??? The storm is the best!
— lol
— lol
Regardless of her intentions, this became a major headline in Chinese esports media.
[Jealousy toward the world’s best? Ugly ridicule from Korea and Japan]
[Korean players’ national hate speech, even the reporter joins in?]
[Korea oversteps boundaries, shows difference in civility]