[1st Place]
[You are the most seasoned hunter!]
My vision went dark, and a yellow system message appeared before my eyes.
1st place.
Our team, which had done nothing but lose throughout the scrims, had finally taken 1st.
I had believed it was possible, but after seeing nothing but the number 4 over and over again, seeing the number 1 felt strangely surreal.
"Wow… we actually got 1st place."
After finishing the first game and returning to the waiting room, our team sat there in a daze.
The plan had worked. And not just worked - it had worked far better than expected. That left everyone feeling a little stunned.
"Alright, alright. Get it together, everyone. We still have two more games to play."
As the team sat there absentmindedly, Coach quickly took control and began reviewing the feedback from the previous match.
Since I had been playing independently anyway, instead of receiving separate feedback, I checked the official broadcast.
"With that, the first round has concluded, and the scores are as follows."
As the commentator spoke, the rankings appeared on screen.
[Scoreboard]
Ponia Team - 20 points
Yuruba Team - 10 points
Chilchaek Team - 5 points
Pilip Team - 0 points
For now, we were in 1st place. But with two games still remaining, the rankings could easily be overturned.
The next round. And the one after that. Depending on how our team performed, the standings could change dramatically. The weight on my shoulders grew heavier.
I had already revealed my strategy of moving alone once, so the opposing teams would undoubtedly come up with countermeasures.
'They'll probably bring out something like sticking together as a full five-man squad.'
Thinking back on the fights so far, I had never taken a straight 5 versus 1. Even 3 versus 1 and 4 versus 1 had all been ambushes. And that was under the assumption there was no UR involved.
UR was basically at a professional level. If I faced a 5 versus 1 including a UR, my chances of winning were extremely low.
That was why I had fought the way I did, and they must have realized it.
'If that's the case, from now on I'll have to face five-man teams on my own.'
Assuming that scenario, I began running simulations in my head before the next game. Meanwhile, a staff member came by to check our team's readiness.
After quickly finishing preparations, we moved straight into the next game.
Just like before, I chose the Pierrot Tree and entered the game lobby. The remaining maps were City and Jungle. Either one was optimized for Pierrot to fight in.
'If we fight, I win.'
The anxiety from earlier was a lie. I repeated that to myself, trying to shake off the unease.
At that moment, Yeonju approached me.
"What's up?"
"Nothing. You looked really nervous, so I came over."
It seemed my tension had shown more than I thought. I gave her a bright smile and simply looked at her.
If I admitted the pressure here, it wouldn't just stay with me - it would spread to the whole team. I couldn't allow that.
Even without me saying anything, she just stood by my side. As the silence dragged on awkwardly, I finally asked her,
"Shouldn't you go check on the others?"
"The team leader's with them. And right now, I think this is where I should be."
She answered with a small smile. Seeing her go this far to take care of the team gave me a bit of strength.
And just as I started to feel steadier, the game began.
This time, the surrounding terrain was a forest. A steel forest made of iron, glass, and wood.
"So it's the City map this time."
I muttered that and immediately started moving. The other team members hesitated none either. They split off from me at once and headed in the opposite direction.
I moved straight toward the outskirts instead of the center. Unlike the previous round, I didn't bother stopping by the scattered buildings in between.
'That's the height of inefficiency.'
Rather than looting like that, it would be better to monopolize the items on the outskirts. That was my judgment.
To finish looting quickly, I put more strength into my legs.
The second game has begun! This time, we're on the City map."
Commentator Sung Jinyu smoothly continued the broadcast.
But just as he did, something strange appeared on camera. The teams were splitting apart.
"Huh? What's going on here?"
"I'm a bit taken aback myself."
Yujinhyo, commentating alongside him, couldn't hide his surprise either.
Teams splitting up wasn't unheard of. Even last round, Pilgong from Ponia Team had broken off alone and practically put on a one-man show.
But what was happening now exceeded expectations.
"Right now… every single member of Yuruba Team and Pilip Team has scattered…"
"My head's spinning a bit…"
It wasn't just a few players splitting up - the entire teams had scattered. And not just one team, but two. Meanwhile, Ponia Team maintained the same strategy as last round, splitting into four and one.
That meant there was only one team left moving as a complete unit. At this point, the camera crew was probably clutching their heads.
'It's already hard enough to capture team fights… if individual battles break out simultaneously, it'll be a nightmare to control…'
Since they couldn't capture every fight on camera, the production team would need to choose carefully where to focus. Their heads were probably about to explode.
Margus thought this and silently prayed for the camera team's well-being.
"Margus, why do you think they're moving like this?"
"It's likely to counter the strategy Ponia Team showed last round. They're probably trying to secure items first so that Pilgong, who moves alone, can't gear up properly."
"That could definitely be effective."
"The problem is that their survival rate drops drastically if they run into someone alone."
"So it's a strategy where they risk themselves to completely shut down one team."
Of course, that was only if the strategy worked. It could just as easily turn into everyone getting picked off individually.
"This tournament… it's impossible to predict anything."
"Seriously."
Since even the commentators had never seen a tournament like this, they started watching the screen as intently as viewers rather than analysts.
"What the hell is going on?"
Fifteen minutes after splitting up to loot, I realized something was off.
At first, I could grab items freely. But about five minutes ago, no matter which building I entered, I couldn't find anything.
Statistically, there was no way items would be this scarce. That left only two possibilities.
Either a bug prevented items from spawning, or someone had looted every item along my route.
Naturally, the latter was far more likely.
'Even so… there's no way it'd be this empty…'
I even moved in the exact opposite direction to check other buildings. But those had been looted too.
I couldn't make sense of it.
Then a kill log appeared.
[Peopeongseong has killed Paeririri]
[Survivors: 19]
The first kill suddenly went up. Anticipating follow-up kill logs, I checked more buildings.
Still no items. And no additional kill logs appeared either.
'How is that possible?'
There was no way a single kill would end the encounter. Whether you got the kill or lost a teammate, someone would chase. But no matter how long I waited, there were no follow-up kills.
A thought flashed through my mind. Recalling the current situation and the previous round, I couldn't help but laugh.
"Haha… no way. Did they split their teams just to keep me in check?"
Since only one kill appeared without follow-ups, it seemed likely that they had clashed while moving individually, and someone died alone. It was natural to target the team that placed 1st last round, but I never imagined they'd do it like this.
I had assumed they would group up to respond to my attacks. I couldn't deny I was slightly flustered.
"The problem now is what I do from here…"
If I were strong right now, it wouldn't matter. But I hadn't obtained a single Level Core yet. In this state, charging at weapons with longer reach like swords or spears compared to my dagger could result in an instant death ending.
No matter how good your mechanics are, if you can't get close, they're useless.
"Hm. I'm screwed."
I quickly accepted reality. This strategy had failed. So I adjusted in real time.
'If I can't grow strong and eliminate other teams, I'll hide and wait for them to wipe each other out first.'
The so-called endurance strategy.
Since I was moving alone, if I played it right, at the very least I wouldn't finish 4th. And my teammates were together as four, so the odds of them dying were extremely lo—
[Chilchaek has killed Ponia]
[Survivors: 18]
[Chilchaek has killed Minchojoa]
[Survivors: 17]
[Chilchaek has killed Yeonju]
[Survivors: 16]
[Chilchaek has killed Sohyeop]
[Survivors: 15]
Before I could even finish that thought, our team was wiped out. By a single person.
I didn't know whether that team had split up or was moving together. What mattered was that my teammates had been swept away.
Now I was the only one left, and I hadn't grown at all - practically barehanded. One wrong move and I'd finish 4th.
If we placed 4th and Yuruba Team took 1st, closing the point gap would become extremely difficult. No matter what, I had to avoid 4th place.
'For now, I'll stick to the edge of the safe zone. I can't afford to run into anyone.'
Having decided to endure, I headed toward the outer edge of the shrinking zone. Along the way, I carefully searched buildings I had previously ignored, looking for usable items.
Most had already been swept through by other teams, leaving almost nothing.
Still, luck was on my side. I managed to find one Level Core. The moment I picked it up, I chose Dagger Exchange without hesitation.
It was essentially an extra life. No need to think about it.
After that, I stayed near the outer edge of the zone, enduring as kill logs continued to appear. Eventually, one team was eliminated.
Nine players remained.
Checking the logs, Yuruba Team - the strongest contenders - were all still alive. Pilip Team had three survivors. Our team had one.
'This is hopeless.'
The best-case scenario was to remain undetected while Pilip Team got wiped first, securing 2nd place.
"Of course it won't go that smoothly…"
I muttered that while rolling out of position.
Boom!
With a deafening explosion, the spot where I had just been was gouged deeply into the ground. The man responsible smiled calmly and said,
"Wow. Even if it's you, hyung, I didn't think you'd dodge that."
"It's Furia."
"We're screwed."
"With no proper growth, there's no way he wins."
"Just looking at the destructive power of that greatsword, the growth gap is massive."
The owner of the voice was Furia.
Smiling as if he found this amusing, Furia radiated an overwhelming sense of intimidation.
"You ambushed me from behind. How did you know?"
"I heard your footsteps."
"Wow, that's seriously unfair. How are you in the same tier as me, hyung?"
Grumbling as if dissatisfied, Furia slowly approached me. I stepped back gradually. When my back hit a wall, Furia grinned and closed in.
"I'll make it painless."
Staring at his terrifying expression, I quickly used Dagger Exchange. I returned to the spot where I had originally been and immediately moved, ignoring him as he crashed into the wall.
However, what I hadn't anticipated was that Furia wasn't alone.
"Let's finish this quickly."
The one who greeted me as I descended from the building was Yuruba, the strongest player in this tournament. I had already used Dagger Exchange above, so the dagger was no longer in my hand and was out of range.
And that meant only one thing.
Thud!
[3rd Place!]
[Try a little harder next time.]
And so, Ponia Team finished the second match in 3rd place.