Chapter 61: Betrayal (3)

From the beginning, I wanted to face off against Shout properly.

The emperor of FPS, the god of FPS.

The top streamer Shout with all sorts of amazing nicknames.

At the very least, if I met him in an FPS game, shouldn’t I try to have a proper match with him?

I designed the game to face Shout, and the design progressed without major issues.

Shout seemed to want to face me too.

Upon hearing that I had neutralized all the defenses at the central outpost, he immediately advanced his company.

I had my troops destroy all the defense facilities at the central outpost.

Jin-hyuk probably didn’t know anything about it.

Anyway, Shout started the battle mercilessly and quickly annihilated Jin-hyuk’s company.

[Central Outpost 1 has been taken by ‘Shout’ Company.]

A global notification message appeared before everyone’s eyes, and soon Jin-hyuk whispered to me.

“How’s his shot?”

Judging by Jin-hyuk’s exclamations, even forgetting about my revenge, he must be something.

-I just watched it and honestly, I was blown away.

-If it’s Shout, he could probably pull off that boat shot again, right?

-Reflexes, reaction speed, aim. He’s just insane. Born for FPS.

-No matter how good we are, we can’t beat an FPS master.

-He’s on a different level.

Even viewers who had been watching Jin-hyuk’s broadcast were constantly exclaiming at how impressive his play was.

After dealing with the last enemy left at Shout’s starting point, I played a video sponsored by a viewer.

Shout finishing off five people with his remaining five bullets.

As if he predicted his bullets would hit, he climbed the high ground without even looking at the fallen enemies.

Honestly, that kind of behavior was truly impressive.

Not checking the enemy’s body means he’s confident they’re already dead.

Some might see it as flashy, but anyone could be impressed by it.

[The second elimination has been decided!]

[Company ‘Jin’ holds 5 outposts.]

[Company ‘Jin’ is eliminated from the game.]

Having lost the central outpost, Jin-hyuk’s company was mercilessly eliminated from the game, leaving only our company and Shout’s company to face off.

A speedy progression.

I was worried the game might drag with four companies initially, but the tight 20-minute limit prevented that.

The game tempo was even faster than I had expected.

[The final two companies remain.]

[Special mode is activated!]

[All outposts of each team are reset, and the final battle takes place at Central Outpost 1.]

The finale and climax of mode.

Mortal Combat.

Literally a desperate fight with no retreat for either team.

So far, capturing outposts had been just a means to determine the first and second places.

Jin-hyuk had obediently followed my plan because he knew about .

For the company that secured early victory by occupying many outposts, it was the final hurdle, and for the company pushed to the defensive, it was the last chance for a comeback.

A special mode that kept the tension until the end.

[Prepare for the final battle.]

[All defense facilities at Central Outpost 1 are deactivated.]

[Respawning is disabled from now on.]

[Company ‘Sha’ starts at W-4 outpost, Company ‘Shout’ starts at E-4 outpost.]

With that message, my vision flashed white for a moment, and before I knew it, I was moved in front of 49 viewers.

If the game until now had a conquest nature, from now on it was an all-out battle.

Each life was crucial.

“Chan-sik.”

“Yes, CEO.”

“Well, it seems things have gone well. We’ve secured second place. Isn’t that enough to cover tonight’s dinner?”

The 3 million won second-place prize from the game company was already secured.

I answered with a broad grin at the CEO’s words.

“With the buffet cost, capsule room fee, and convention hall rental… Even winning first place would leave us short.”

“Is that so? If you win first place, I’ll give you a huge discount on the capsule room fee.”

“Great. In that case… Winning first might leave us some profit.”

Capsule room fees were ridiculously expensive.

After lightly loosening up with the CEO, I looked at our company members and exhaled shortly.

“If you’re not confident in your shooting skills, raise your hand.”

About twelve people raised their hands at my words.

“Why aren’t you three public service guys raising your hands?”

“We shot pretty well at the training camp.”

“Hey! Are you looking down on public service?”

“Shut up and raise your hands.”

Reluctantly, the three public service guys raised their hands.

Unintentionally, the public service trio had a very important role in this Mortal Combat.

They just didn’t know it yet.

Thus, a total of fifteen viewers stepped forward in front of me.

The CEO looked at the fifteen volunteers and quietly whispered in my ear.

“It’s certain.”

“Right?”

“Yes, these people will do just fine. Especially those three hefty young men. They might become the hidden card of this game.”

The public service trio, not optimized through customization, was rather a big weapon.

I nodded at the fifteen people who stepped forward, looking bewildered.

Then I began the lines I had prepared in advance.

“There’s an opportunity to be permanently featured on AkTube…”

The Evil Gang could all be considered extreme attention seekers.

The most needed carrot to move them the way I wanted.

I presented them with an attractive carrot.

“Hyung! What’s that?”

“I want to do it!”

The fifteen members of the Evil Gang gathered in front of me eagerly accepted the carrot.

Good.

The final battle, ready to commence.

6.

The battle had begun.

Shout’s company, brimming with morale after annihilating Jin-hyuk’s company, launched an aggressive assault without hesitation.

In contrast, we took a considerably defensive stance to meet them.

Bang!

After the first gunshot, intense firefights erupted everywhere.

-It really feels like a war.

-Finally, a gunfight worthy of a shooting game.

-Shout’s kill log keeps popping up.

-OurEvil isn’t losing either. Just watch.

The kill logs began to scroll quickly from the top right corner.

When I killed one, Shout killed one as well.

In the chaotic melee, Shout and I almost monopolized the kill logs.

Within less than three minutes of the battle starting, the situation changed to 37:35.

I checked the number of troops on both sides and then ordered my soldiers to fall back.

Seeing this, the enemy’s morale soared even higher, and they began advancing relentlessly.

The battle was progressing through the trenches that were dug everywhere.

We attempted to retreat swiftly through the passages between the trenches.

How long had we been retreating?

A whisper came from Shout.

Even though my English isn’t great, I could easily understand that level of English.

A blatant provocation.

And then.

Nod, nod.

CEO Lee, who was standing in front of me, nodded, and I responded to Shout’s provocation.

“Do you know NonGae?”

NonGae? Not knowing that? What an ignorant streamer.

I lightly gestured to CEO Lee, and at that moment, explosions began to resonate throughout the battlefield that had temporarily gone quiet.

Boom!

[OurEvilLoyal1 -> OurEvilLoyal1(Self-Destruct)]

[OurEvilLoyal1 -> Kali(Grenade)]

[OurEvilLoyal1 -> Trashbag(Grenade)]

[OurEvilLoyal1…]

Kill logs suddenly started appearing.

Shout quickly assessed the situation and sent me a whisper.

It’s not Kamikaze; it’s NonGae.

The role of the 15 people I had selected earlier was quite simple.

If we deliberately pulled back the frontline, those 15 would hide in the trenches the enemy was about to occupy and then blow themselves up along with the enemies.

My viewers were generally less skilled at the game compared to other teams.

However, they were the Evil Gang.

They were prepared to sacrifice anything for attention.

-Suicide bombers…

-OurEvil! OurEvil! OurEvil!

-This is insane.

-Who plays like this in an event match? LOL.

-Let’s goooo!

-Look at them panic LOL.

“Fuck!”

“Holy shit!”

The enemies, flustered by the sudden appearance of the Evil Gang behind them, turned their guns around, but it was already too late.

Boom!

Shout’s company, which had advanced vigorously, began to collapse.

Hit by the Evil Gang from the rear, they started scattering in confusion, and the Evil Gang, who had been lying in wait, launched an all-out attack.

With self-destruct soldiers behind them and a barrage of bullets in front, Shout’s company fell apart.

Moreover, the 15 volunteers had handed over their ammunition to the remaining 35 before dying.

Naturally, we had an advantage in ammunition and could shoot without restraint, turning the battlefield into utter chaos in no time.

The melee I had desired.

The enemies were in disarray, but we remained calm.

Under CEO Lee’s adept command, the Evil Gang steadily reduced the enemy numbers.

But then.

Bang! Bang!

Two gunshots rang out, and two members of the Evil Gang standing beside me fell.

I quickly turned my gaze to where the shots came from.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

Shout was standing there, grinning as if he had deliberately spared me.

After finishing his quick shots, Shout moved swiftly, and I followed him, moving quickly through the trenches.

How long had we been running?

Bang!

“Wow.”

A bullet narrowly missed my head.

If I hadn’t shaken my head at the sound, I would have been hit and killed.

Barely surviving, I accurately pinpointed Shout’s location.

Shout had reached exactly where I wanted him to be.

The trench at the highest point of the central outpost.

The best position to overlook the entire battlefield.

Shout instinctively moved to the spot with the highest chance of victory for himself.

Shout was originally that kind of player.

A player who overcomes everything with his physical skills, no matter how disadvantageous the situation.

Someone who, with animalistic physical prowess, easily overcomes difficult situations.

Even if the enemy set traps, he easily overcame them, earning the title of the world’s best FPS player.

The same was true in World of Battle.

Bang!

The three public service guys, who had been waiting nearby, rushed at him with grenades, but Shout, as if he had predicted it, swiftly took them down.

However, one of the public service guys, with his last strength before dying, threw a grenade.

A poorly aimed grenade.

If the grenade followed that trajectory, it would undoubtedly explode past the spot where Shout was hiding.

Watching the tiny grenade, I grinned.

Then, I poked my head out and immediately fired my gun.

A fraction of a second later.

Boom!

An unbelievable event unfolded.

– What the hell, LOL.

– What is this now???

– The grenade exploded from a bullet?

– It’s just a game.

– Someone once experimented with shooting a grenade to see if it would explode in “World of Battle.” It did, but that was from point-blank range, so it’s a different story, LOL.

– Did he even see that?

– Are you crazy, perhaps?

– Wow, I’m seeing this live.

– Legend, LOL.

The grenade, which would have originally passed over Shout’s head, exploded precisely above it.

Viewers began typing question marks simultaneously, with some even shouting “bug” or “hack.”

I looked at the chat and quickly got up from the trench, heading towards where Shout had been.

There, Shout, now gray and lifeless, lay on the ground.

Time to wrap up this long game.

The tide had already turned, and under CEO Lee’s command, the remaining enemies were being cleaned up.

All that was left was the tea-bagging moment.

I looked at Shout’s body, intending to fulfill the promised tea-bagging, but then something unexpected happened.

[Abnormal gameplay detected.]

[Hello, this is ET Corp. Your account is under security review for abnormal gameplay…]

A message with a red border appeared before my eyes.

“Oh, why!”

– Banned ending.

– Perfect plot development, LOL.

– Was this planned too?

– Wow, broadcasting genius, LOL.

– Did the game company step in directly??

– This is my first time seeing this, LOL.

– Again? Are you getting banned again??

– At this point, you need to confess, for real.

Thus, the short yet intense “World of Battle” event match came to an end.