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Translated By Arcane Translations
Translator: Simzy
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“You want me to join the tournament with you?”
“Affirmative.”
What is this all of a sudden?
At Eve’s out-of-the-blue question, Catherine asked back.
“Why?”
It was a natural question.
No way. Is it because of that?
A thought suddenly occurred to Catherine, and she rephrased her words and asked Eve again.
“Is it because you think there are too many competitors? So you want to interfere?”
If that were really the case, Catherine herself was against it.
…I was forced into this in the first place, anyway.
She even muttered the last part in a voice so small that no one could hear.
To Catherine’s question, Eve shook her head and politely denied it.
“Negative.”
She continued her explanation.
“The increase in organic beings who feel favorable towards ‘Shiun’ is not a major problem. Rather, it can be seen as an efficient situation.”
At those words, Catherine frowned slightly and asked again.
“Then what is it?”
It seemed her frown was born of pure curiosity, not because she was in a bad mood.
Eve began to explain her thoughts as logically as possible.
“The problem is that ‘Shiun’ and the human ‘Julia’ are going out alone.”
“?”
To the uncomprehending Catherine, Eve slowly added to her explanation.
“Because this becomes what is commonly referred to as a ‘date’.”
“…What does that me—.”
“Unless they are going out with a majority of us, this part will become an inefficient element in the relationship. For that reason, in order to interfere with their ‘outing,’ I am recommending participation in the game tournament to the human ‘Catherine’.”
“……”
A moment later.
Catherine, with her eyes half-lidded, asked Eve.
“Isn’t it just that.”
She summarized Eve’s long speech concisely.
“You’re just unhappy that they’re playing outside alone, right?”
“Partially affirmative.”
Ha, Catherine let out a short, hollow laugh and shook her head.
“So because you don’t like it, you want us to join the tournament together and raise hell.”
“This is also partially affirmative.”
I wonder if this ‘artificial intelligence’ thing is a lie.
Catherine thought idly.
But that was that. The fact that her words were persuasive was a different matter.
“That’s a damn good idea.”
Let’s do it right now.
Catherine accepted Eve’s invitation.
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How is it already the finals when I haven’t done anything?
Of course, I hadn’t actually done anything.
Julia had done it all.
I thought as I looked at the tournament bracket, where only two teams remained.
So far, for us, no, for Julia, there hadn’t been a single situation that could be called a crisis.
Since her skill was one that was suspected of being a hack on the net, it was only natural, if you thought about it.
But the problem was from now on.
《Cough, my apologies. The team that has reached the finals! It’s the ‘Strongest Machine and Strongest Human’ team!》
Listening to the caster, whose throat was starting to sound bad, I thought.
“……”
Let’s calmly assess the situation once.
Did they really enter this tournament to beat us?
The answer I came to was ‘no.’
More than anything, they had heard the same explanation from Julia in the same place.
I couldn’t think of a reason why they would go out of their way to take the championship from us.
They’ll probably let us win on purpose.
I inferred based on the facts.
《Then, their opponents are!!》
The caster’s shout once again echoed throughout the stadium.
《The owner of the controversy that heated up net space! Now it’s all about skill! The team with that rumored player, ‘WarriorsAreTheBest’!》
I gave Julia a look.
“Shall we go?”
“…Yes.”
Julia and I moved our feet and stepped up onto the stage.
A hot spotlight decorated the stage.
On the other side, Eve and Catherine were already on stage.
《The atmosphere is incredibly hot!》
Listening to the caster’s commentary, I walked over to the opposite booth.
I offered a handshake and greeted them naturally.
And in a very small voice, I asked Catherine a question.
“…You’re going to let us win, right?”
“Who are you?”
…….
It was here that I realized.
These guys…. They seriously intend to beat us.
Were they that greedy for the prize money?
How much could it even be?
Now that it had come to this, there was only one method left for me.
“Let’s have a fair play match.”
There was no choice but to compete with all our might.
After lightly finishing the handshake, I entered our booth.
I put on the virtual reality headset that I had worn to death on my way to the finals.
The unrealistic landscape of the vast virtual reality filled my vision.
The stage where the battle would begin unfolded in the center.
The final bosses (Eve and Catherine) stood up confidently on the opposite side.
Just like the opponents we had met so far, they were translucent figures before selecting their characters.
I added some words of encouragement to Julia.
[We just need to win this one, so let’s hang in there a little longer.]
It was also something I was saying to myself.
[……Yes!]
Julia, who seemed to have gained a little more motivation, answered in a louder voice than usual.
[…Stop whispering between you two and come at me, will you?]
Just from her words, she sounds just like a villain character.
The vanguard on the opposing side was Catherine.
On our side, Julia prepared for the match.
I watched the slowly starting match.
…Catherine.
I had watched a few of the matches she had fought so far.
Perhaps because her innate abilities were different, she had a skill that was definitely not that of a beginner.
In the first place, if her skills were weak, she wouldn’t have been able to make it this far.
It was the same principle as when I had been continuously defeated by Julia when I first played this game.
Since her physical abilities were good to begin with, it was a great advantage in a virtual reality game where you had to move your own body.
But I, at least, for this ‘game,’ for this ‘match,’ I was confident of Julia’s victory.
Even if it was based on reality, In the end, it was a ‘game.’
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[Agh!]
Catherine let out a furious voice after being hit by a technique you have to experience to know.
As expected, Catherine was Catherine.
I thought it would end in a single pattern, but in every match, there was a section that made my heart sink.
To others, it might have looked like we had won ordinarily with a comfortable score of 3:1.
But in reality, it was a match we could have lost 3:0.
In my view, the reason Catherine lost was simple and clear.
Catherine, who was playing this game for the first time, had no way of knowing the ‘performance’ of the characters.
Because of that, Catherine’s character pick seemed to have naturally been focused on ‘looks.’
For reference, the character Catherine chose had the prettiest appearance in the game.
And at the same time, she was a trash character that had the most users calling for a balance adjustment.
It’s amazing she even won a single round with that.
If Catherine had chosen a slightly more decent character, would the result have been different?
I thought quietly.
In front of the defeated Catherine, this time, the character Eve had chosen appeared on the stage.
【I am ‘A’. A pleasure to meet you.】
The character spoke its intro line and took a stance.
‘A’, huh.
Why did she choose that character?
The character Eve chose wasn’t a very good choice either, when judged from a performance perspective.
Did she choose it because it had an ‘android’ setting?
…At this rate, Julia might actually be able to win.
The match began.
And the battle continued—.
…….
Wow, crazy. That’s a hack. What else could be a hack?
Eve only used two techniques.
‘Jab’ and ‘low kick.’
The most basic techniques in a fighting game.
They were the punch and kick with the weakest damage.
And yet.
Eve’s victory was overwhelming.
She inserted a technique between every single frame.
…She’s really trying hard.
Catherine was one thing, but I didn’t expect Eve to try so hard either.
《The player Strongest Machine! She’s too strong! I can declare it! Today, right here, a god of fighting games has appeared! This is just insane!!》
In the end, Julia lost the match with a score of 1:3.
It was her first loss in this tournament.
[…I lost.]
[No, you did well.]
Winning even one round against a super-AI that does real-time data mining is amazing.
…….
But what do I do now?
《Now, it’s the final match to cap it all off! A powerful player shrouded in mystery, whose turn has not come even once in this tournament!》
I’m not a powerful player.
《A mysterious figure who has gathered everyone’s attention just by being on the same team as the White Rabbit! From team ‘WarriorsAreTheBest,’ it’s player ‘RealMageHere’!》
I didn’t know why I was being called a player.
(Highest Rank Silver, Top 80%)
[…Haah.]
I let out a light sigh and tried to sort out the situation.
In any case, since Julia had lost, there was no reason for me to enter the match.
I had only entered to fill the numbers, to get rid of Julia’s hack controversy anyway.
To be blunt, it didn’t matter if I forfeited right now.
…However.
I have to win, just to spite them.
I secretly resolved myself.
It was time to use that method.
The one I had thought of for Anti-Eve purposes.
[Haha, why don’t you just give up?]
I thought I had to win, if only for Catherine, who was taunting me translucently from the other side.
I chose a muscular male character.
His hairstyle was very unique, and his kiai was as unique as his hairstyle.
His name was ‘P’.
A character famous for having a strong single hit.
『Get Ready For─』
The sound signaling the start of the game was heard.
Eve’s character, which appeared in the air just like mine, blocked my path.
The match countdown proceeded.
In that gap, I quietly asked Eve.
[Eve.]
[Acknowledged.]
[Did you really have to do this?]
[I do not understand what you mean.]
…….
An artificial intelligence that lies so naturally.
The match began.
Eve’s character slowly pressured me.
[I recommend you forfeit toda—.]
[Eve, stop!]
[……!]
It was a reflexive reaction to my shout.
The movement of the character Eve was controlling stopped.
And what I was aiming for was this very gap.
【Tuwoaar!】
My character let out a strange kiai.
A powerful fist cut through the air.
My name is Lee Shiun.
A man who would use any method to win.
[…That’s so damn cheap.]
Catherine muttered in a dumbfounded tone.
I didn’t care.
It was just the rambling of a loser anyway.
In other words, telling her to stop and then hitting her.
A strategy made possible because I was certain that Eve would not refuse my request.
I seized the chance for victory.
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The victory I obtained by letting go of my pride was sweet.
The audience watching from the outside couldn’t hear our conversation, so they didn’t seem to know what had happened.
But that was none of my business.
The management side also suspected a machine malfunction and investigated the virtual reality device.
But of course, the machine was fine.
Since Eve herself didn’t make any protest, the victory naturally became ours.
““……””
Catherine and Eve looked at me with strange eyes.
In their hands, they held the trophies that signified second place.
Because it was a small sacrifice for the greater good, I cautiously avoided their gaze.
Anyway, that was that.
I launched net space and found and accessed the game’s message board.
It was time to check how public opinion about Julia had changed.
《IRON FIST – XII Message Board》
[I told you Rabbit-nim wasn’t a hack lololol]
Wow, the play I saw on the net really came out offline. This is crazy, crazy
ㅡ At least delete your post history before you lie
ㄴ lol mb (OP)
[Is Eve at the tournament really Streamer Eve?]
Why isn’t your stream on? Why isn’t your stream on? Why isn’t your stream on? Why isn’t your stream on? Why isn’t your stream on? Why isn’t your stream on? Why isn’t your stream on? Why isn’t your stream on? Why isn’t your stream on?
ㅡ This guy’s going dark
ㅡ You think it’s really her? You have to make sense. But why is her stream really not on?
ㅡ Come back, master… it’s so cold…
[What was that last match]
Wasn’t it fixed? F*ck, what about my bet
And who are Strongest Machine and Strongest Human?
They were fighting on par with Rabbit-nim
Has anyone seen them before?
ㅡ No one knowsㄷㄷ
ㅡ Gambler OUT
ㅡ Their reaction speed was insane, but they seemed a bit like newbies?
ㄴ A trash game where even a newbie can get second place; (OP)
Thankfully, public opinion had changed a lot.
Julia hadn’t won by herself.
But it seemed possible because Eve and Catherine had also shown overwhelming skill.
[My chest is swelling with pride]
Is this the battle of the strongest in the world?
But what I’m looking forward to even more is since so many people with that level of skill suddenly appeared, I think we can look forward to the Neon City team’s performance in this year’s world tournament? My mouth is already watering lololol
ㅡ fr I’m really looking forward to it
ㅡ Neo Japan team, get ready lolololololol
ㅡ The emergence of a super-soldier-in-a-tank in the fighting game scene for realㄷㄷ I need to save up credits and go see it in person
They’re dreaming a dream that will never come true….
I quietly closed the net space.
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“Huh?”
Arriving home, I discovered someone standing in front of my front door.
Who is it?
There were no message notifications.
I approached the person with a puzzled expression.
As if they had heard my footsteps, the person, whom I didn’t know if they were an uninvited guest or a visitor, turned their head and looked at me.
“Ah.”
I let out a short gasp.
Distinct scenes flashed through my mind.
[You were here, I was looking for you.]
[Even if it’s greed, I don’t care, just look at me. Forever. Always.]
[……Now, kill me.]
And now.
“…Hello.”
It was Maya.
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WE WIN THESE‼️‼️