Season 3: Chapter 325. Next (2)
[Cookie is out, Best Yi Sun-Shin in? Is this the right choice?]
The appearance of Best Yi Sun-Shin caused an explosion of posts in the community forums.
[Genius move by the think tank!]
[Cookie was in great form today...]
[Best Yi Sun-Shin is good, but... hmm, is she that good?]
The majority of reactions were understandably filled with anxiety. Cookie had just dominated Anto and was benched in the very next game.
[World-class jukes]
[Haha, are they suffering from "genius syndrome"?]
[If they lose here, they’ll only have one chance left...]
Some argued that they were overthinking it and would trip over their own feet.
[If this works, it’ll be legendary.]
[Haha, Anto’s head is probably about to explode.]
[If this goes to Game 5 against Rome, they’re sure to lose. How did they make such a choice?]
[Wow, this is insane.]
Others truly believed the decision to be a stroke of genius. However, no one fully understood how it would work. Confusing Anto was part of the plan and preparing for the next generation was also true, but neither of those was the real factor for victory.
When Hui-Chul persuaded the think tank, he explained, "The person who can bring out a hundred percent of Almond’s potential isn’t me. It’s Best Yi Sun-Shin."
Her skills would be the most critical for Joseon’s upcoming game.
***
"Oh, it’s another mountain map!?"
For the second time, a mountainous terrain map appeared. This slightly favored Joseon. However, OrangeKing seemed to disagree.
"Ah, the Rugged Mountain Ranges and Highlands... It’s a mountain map, but the highlands are the key part."
"The highlands?"
"Yes, on this map, the emphasis is more on the highlands than the mountain ranges."
"Ahhh!"
— Haha, exactly.
— It’s got mountains and highlands, huh?
— More flat terrain than I expected.
While it looked like a typical mountain map, the mechanics were entirely different.
"So, it’s like an island map surrounded by mountains? But the island plays a significant role. Almost fifty percent of the terrain is flat."
"Indeed. It’s quite different from the Rugged Valleys."
"Exactly, it’s actually the opposite."
"The opposite?"
"On the Rugged Valleys map, the flat terrain was at the base of the mountains. But here, it’s flat on top of the mountains."
"Ohhh!?"
— That’s true.
— It’s like they chopped off the mountain peaks.
— Reverse valleys~
Despite the similarities, the maps had opposite dynamics. This created a critical difference.
"The tricky part here is that the attacking side has to climb uphill."
"!"
The attacking side needed to ascend steep slopes, giving the defenders a significant advantage.
"Especially for ranged units, shooting upward is much harder than shooting downward."
"Ah, I see. So the priest assassination strategy... is that impossible here?"
This introduced a disadvantage for Joseon. Priest assassinations required elevation differences, but the reverse elevation made it practically impossible here.
"Exactly. For Anto, who’s already dealing with the confusion of a commander switch, one of his dilemmas has been removed."
In the third game, Anto constantly factored in the possibility of a priest assassination, which slowed his decision-making and allowed Cookie to maintain control. It was like running a massive program in the background while editing videos, which caused a noticeable slowdown.
In the end, humans weren’t computers. This underlying tension frayed Anto’s focus and led to his defeat. This time, no such distractions existed and the commander had changed.
"Honestly, it’s impossible to predict who has the upper hand. I still don’t fully understand why Cookie switched out."
The countless variables made it nearly impossible for the commentators to predict the outcome. Fate alone seemed poised to decide.
***
As the scouting phase for both Joseon and Rome drew to a close in the first era, Almond and a small group of archers received an order to return.
[Return]
Those summoned shared a common thought.
‘It’s starting.’
None of them thought Best Yi Sun-Shin would let the early phase pass quietly. Still, it was remarkable how confidently she proceeded against Rome. While they couldn’t gauge her mindset or emotions directly, Best Yi Sun-Shin exuded an air of composure and familiarity throughout the tournament. It was hard to believe she never had any prior competitive experience.
Doo-dung!
A massive drumbeat echoed when they returned to the Joseon base.
[Joseon - 2nd Era]
Joseon advanced to the second era at lightning speed. The optimal worker routes, perfectly placed buildings, and precisely timed production left no margin for error. It was an idealistic level of efficiency.
"Wow! No way! Their second era timing!?"
"This is the quintessential Best Yi Sun-Shin! Resource locations are often random and can be a huge headache in Civil Empire, yet she always optimizes flawlessly!"
"Exactly! Pulling this off consistently... that’s Best Yi Sun-Shin for you."
Even before the commentators finished their praise...
[Short Bow - Completed]
Short bows finished development and Almond immediately received one. Best Yi Sun-Shin executed every movement with peak efficiency.
"They’re already producing shortbowmen!"
"Is the commander an AI? Best Yi Sun-Shin is practically in ChatGPT mode today!"
— Damn!
— Wow, haha.
— Is she a machine?
— Chat Sun-Shin, lol.
After Joseon produced five shortbowmen, Rome’s second era announcement finally rang out.
Du-dun.
[Rome - 2nd Era]
"Ah... Anto’s usual style could never match this speed!"
"Exactly. Anto’s playstyle is fluid and reactionary. Among commanders, speed isn’t usually considered a top priority!"
— So true.
— That’s how it usually is.
— It’s like how speed isn’t highly rated in StarCraft.
— But this is too fast, isn’t it?
— Feels like today’s pace is even quicker.
Production optimization was not considered significant among the many qualities a commander needed. It improved naturally with experience, and at a certain point, the differences became negligible. The most valued traits for commanders were always creativity, sharp instincts, and adapting to the terrain.
Anto, ranked number one, possessed the pinnacle of these qualities. Perhaps his dominance was why such traits were emphasized. However, even Anto found Best Yi Sun-Shin’s blistering speed hard to believe.
‘I knew about this.’
Anto moved his hands across the controls faster than usual while furrowing his brows.
‘Still, it’s a hassle.’
Perhaps because he had expected to face Cookie, his body felt unprepared for this urgency.
"Even if speed isn’t everything for commanders these days, it’s a different story if it’s this fast!"
The shortbowmen, now numbering ten, were already racing across the mountainous terrain in the center of the map. Meanwhile, Rome had only just produced six legions.
"Rome will probably manage to block somehow. Barbarian units should be able to handle that..."
"Right. But the how is what matters. That’s the key to this game!"
In international matches, games rarely ended with an early rush. The real challenge was how each side recovered from the damage inflicted.
"Joseon isn’t attempting a game-ending rush here! This is just a light jab. Why else would they only send ten archers? If it was for a final blow, all two hundred soldiers would be rushing in!"
"Exactly! So the goal isn’t overextending but maximizing enemy damage while staying cautious."
"Right! And honestly, this cautious approach can be harder to counter! You could respond with counters if it were a full-scale battle, but even Anto can’t counter effectively if the other side keeps jabbing like this!"
"Exactly. Just throwing jabs stops Anto’s famous counter game."
"Correct! But the bigger problem is...!"
The archers encountered Roman scouts and didn’t bother avoiding them.
[Attack]
Almond, leading the group, drew his bow immediately.
"Anto hasn’t even properly put on his gloves yet!"
"Ahhhh!"
Bang!
The fleeing scout’s head erupted in a white blaze.
"Waaaahhhhhhhh!"
— Let’s goooo!
— Straight to the action, haha.
— Charge in!
The archers made no attempt to hide their presence. Instead, they actively sought out and hunted the visible Roman scouts along the mountain paths.
Bang! Bang!
"They’re just clearing out scouts as they go! This is exactly what I meant by jabs! Recklessly climbing uphill to attack the main base would be like an all-in straight punch—dangerous if countered. Instead, they’re gradually pushing into enemy territory and forcing Rome into a corner!"
— So true.
— Ooh....
— A Best Yi Sun-Shin twist!
— This is fresh.
Best Yi Sun-Shin usually targeted the enemy base and workers, but took a different approach. While such attacks often brought massive returns, failure meant outright losing the game.
This time, the archers methodically expanded their area of control. They avoided paths with too many enemy scouts or potential ambush spots, focusing instead on optimized targets. Each of the ten archers was assigned specific scout targets based on their location, ensuring maximum efficiency.
"Wow! The archers are scattering perfectly!"
[Attack]
[Attack]
[Attack]
Although the ten archers moved in the same general direction, their spacing covered a wide area. Roman scouts, trying to avoid the archers, still got hit by arrows more often than not.
"Even hiding behind trees doesn’t help! Rome’s barbarian units are taking heavy losses. They might have to abandon hunting and retreat!"
"Spreading out like this makes it impossible for the enemy to grasp where everyone is!"
From Anto’s perspective, his vision was still shrouded in darkness. Whenever an arrow flew, he assumed a group of archers was nearby. In reality, the archers weren’t grouped up at all. They all acted individually. To Anto though, each one seemed like its own battalion.
"From Rome’s perspective, every single archer feels like an entire battalion!"
"They’re just throwing jabs, but it’s an audacious approach in its own way!"
To Rome, the ten archers felt more like thirty coming from every direction.
"I am not alone! I am... a legion!"
— ??
— Haha, what is this?
— A legion, lol.
Of course, Anto wouldn’t genuinely believe there were thirty archers. However, pinpointing their positions was nearly impossible.
[Retreat]
Unable to determine their exact locations, Anto pulled back the scouts. This also meant partially abandoning animal hunting, which would delay their food supply.
"Excellent! Joseon is covering a vast area while hunting. At this rate, all the wildlife there will belong to Joseon!"
"But wait... this retreat doesn’t feel like Rome is just giving up."
Anto wasn’t the type to give up on hunting so easily. If he gave something up, it was only to take something greater.