Chapter 94
Hanpunman.
It was past 7 o'clock, and although he had already decided what to do about Shaanxi, he kept Seojun’s stream playing on one side of his screen.
He felt he should.
As Seojun chatted leisurely, Hanpunman wondered what exactly he was aiming for.
‘How will they play this?’
Would they attack Gansu and fortify their rear?
In that case, they'd end up losing Shaanxi, and everything would return to the way it was.
Losing Shaanxi was practically a given.
‘Unless they somehow increased the number of rankers playing in Shaanxi and held it...’
Yesterday.
If the Demon Cult had chosen to invest in defending Shaanxi instead of guarding Gansu, it might have become a bit troublesome.
They’d be dug in like a fortress.
If the Orthodox Faction couldn't retake it within a day and the Demon Cult managed to hold the territory, the Orthodox Faction would be dragged around by them.
They could waste a day.
Maybe two.
While that happened, they might lose Gansu, only to reconnect later.
But today, with no additional rankers able to enter and Shaanxi completely surrounded, it was safe to say it was over.
“The stream is even telling them not to defend now.”
It’s said that quite a few people follow Seojun around.
Meaning.
Not the hundreds of thousands of casual users, but the heavy users who never miss a day, playing exactly four games every single day, there were quite a lot of them.
Those users had enough numbers that even when they queued for matches, they ran into players of similar skill, so they couldn't amass huge amounts of fame through win streaks.
However, their absolute numbers were far greater than the rankers, so if they united, they were a considerably large and dangerous force.
‘Hmm.’
An unknown unease spread through his body.
-Did the Demon Cult show up?
-Looks like they're trying to retake Gansu. 4 of them.
News flew in, and Hanpunman's attention snapped to that location.
Four people, well.
They sent four as well.
The reason was that if an angle to defend Gansu presented itself, they were prepared to defend it.
When the enemy attacks, there are usually two ways to respond.
You either match against them at the same time, or you time your matchmaking for after they finish.
The former offers a much bigger reward if you win.
The latter is just a roughly even split.
They chose the former this time because Gansu wasn't a territory they absolutely had to have. If they won, they could drain the Demon Cult's forces further or take the territory, which was good; if they lost, so be it.
-Clashing with the Demon Cult at the Unorthodox Faction's strategic point.
-We're finishing one game in Shaanxi and queuing for the next.
-Check the spots where Jiangxi and Anhui markers appeared.
‘We have to keep the Unorthodox Faction in check too.’
The Unorthodox Faction, which had gained quite a lot of territory by reaping the benefits of others’ conflicts, was currently the unrivaled first place.
If that was the case, they needed the Demon Cult’s help.
Joining forces as the 2nd and 3rd place factions to drag down 1st place was an ancient and honorable tradition on Earth!
But it felt like the Demon Cult was obsessively targeting the Orthodox Faction.
No, more precisely, it felt like they were probing.
‘As if they’re trying to expend as much of our forces as possible...’
That feeling grew stronger as time passed. When the people playing games had just finished about two rounds, Hanpunman typed in the chat.
-Guys, let's conserve our forces a little here.
And he watched a little longer.
Then.
“Huh? Look at these guys.”
He spotted something strange.
He carefully examined the red markers that appeared in the meeting zones between the Unorthodox Faction and the Demon Cult, but names kept disappearing right before the games were matched.
“Crazy.”
Canceling matchmaking was possible.
But both the Demon Cult and the Unorthodox Faction were doing the exact same thing.
“Ah!”
He hurriedly spread the news. He was in a rush.
If the Unorthodox Faction and the Demon Cult had joined hands, their target was blindingly obvious without needing to think.
Only one faction remained: the Orthodox Faction!
“What are they thinking! Damn it!”
A scenario where two sides join hands to kill one isn't easy to create.
Why? Because the ultimate goal isn't to make someone finish last, but for one's own faction to win.
Additionally, the somewhat short period was another obstacle to maintaining an alliance.
To keep an alliance, while pushing down one faction, the gains had to be distributed fairly so one side didn't get too much, and there wasn't enough time to coordinate that precisely.
They only had 10 days left, and if the other side betrayed them, they'd be handing the victory over on a silver platter.
The result would be 2nd place.
A meaningless 2nd place.
In the old days, the Demon Cult's room title had been "Let's at least get 2nd place," but they never actually aimed for 2nd.
They'd rather take last place!
So the fact that they ended up in last place an insane number of times was a secret everyone knew.
That, unexpectedly, was why the Demon Cult users were somewhat likeable.
Wouldn't you prefer a dumb but romantic fool over a cunning, smart bastard?
Not that this meant they didn't tease them, of course.
Anyway.
“Is the Demon Cult in their right mind?”
They were targeting the Orthodox Faction in this situation?
If the Orthodox Faction disappeared here, the Unorthodox Faction would start from an overwhelmingly advantageous position.
If that happened, how many territories would the Demon Cult need to snatch from the Unorthodox Faction to win?
And as seen yesterday, if there were many territories, the Demon Cult, unable to split its 14 members, would be at an even greater disadvantage.
Yet they were trying to kill them off.
“Are they really acting out of spite?”
It didn't seem that way.
And also.
“What was the Unorthodox Faction banking on to think the Demon Cult would hit us...?”
Ah.
The Demon Cult constantly probing the Orthodox Faction and trying to drain their forces.
Seeing that must have given them confidence.
These bastards are serious!
They really intend to take down the Orthodox Faction!
Because the Demon Cult attacking the Orthodox Faction meant draining not only the Orthodox Faction's strength but their own as well.
The Unorthodox Faction could betray them at any point.
‘That would be the best outcome.’
If that happened, the crisis for the Orthodox Faction would pass, and the Demon Cult could face a near-elimination level crisis in the race.
‘Would those Unorthodox bastards save us?’
And he felt there was something more to this, not just that.
-Fortunately, we caught it now...
-ㅅㅂ, what’s wrong with the Demon Cult? Are they seriously suffering a qi deviation?
-This is why demonic arts are dangerous...
-Good thing those glorious Orthodox Easterners attacking Shaanxi earlier stopped their games too.
-...They disappeared.
In an instant, all the flames on the map went out.
A battlefield fell silent.
Just like the sky is calm right before a typhoon hits.
The Orthodox Faction's chat room froze over too.
It was silence.
Meanwhile, as the Orthodox Faction’s members had their nerves on edge...
-Room host ㅋㅋㅋ casually telling daily life stories, also insane ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-How on earth was a guy like that an outcast??? He has a personality that guys would go crazy for ㅋㅋㅋ
-Still, unlike us, he must have been popular with girls...
-You're banned.
-Wait. Guys, look at the battlefield map.
-Oh??
“Haha. Looks like everyone's gone to rest?”
Seojun, who had been chatting with viewers, flashed a meaningful smile.
[Wijeongcheoksapa]
-Looks like the Orthodox guys finally noticed? All their matchmaking dropped, they’re conserving forces.
-The handshake with the Demon Cult today was fun.
-This isn’t the Murim <-- Couldn’t time it right and got stuck in a game ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-You’re a 'Moo-ttak' so you can’t even cancel matchmaking ㅠㅠㅠ
-So, shall we go for it now?
-It’s a bit awkward since the Demon Cult set the table... are you going to betray them?
-That’s good too, but wouldn’t eating the Orthodox main base be tastier? ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-Gotta agree.
-ㅇㄱㄹㅇㅋㅋ
-We’re just doing our normal battlefield stuff, but we look so evil, don’t we?
-Well duh. We’re the Unorthodox Faction? ㅋㅋㅋ
-Shall we slowly get started?
-Let's go.
Red dots began appearing on the map again.
Naturally, they were in the Orthodox Faction’s territory.
* * *
-Oh.
-All-out war between Unorthodox and Orthodox all of a sudden ㅁㅊㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-What? What’s going on?!
-Why are there only two red dots!!!
-Demon Cult! So you've colluded with the Unorthodox Faction! The betrayal is unreal.
Seojun watched the map again with keen interest. Watching was more fun, it seemed.
“Everyone, now the Demon Cult will move too.”
The Unorthodox Faction had begun attacking two territories near Shaanxi that needed only one more region to reach the Orthodox Faction’s main base.
They were relaxed.
No matter how well the Orthodox Faction coordinated, they would inevitably be breached in at least one spot.
Seojun started explaining what was happening to his viewers.
Someone would probably summarize and post it on the community soon, but many seemed curious right now.
-So basically, the Orthodox Faction is screwed right now? ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-Oh.
-Let’s gang up on them!
-Unorthodox Faction, let’s not betray each other.
[‘Elder Sam’ has donated 100,000 won!]
[Did you know? All the Demon Cult’s strategies are devised by the Heavenly Demon himself. Today, he improvised this because the Orthodox Faction’s behavior was so unsightly!]
When did he ever call them unsightly?
And the strategy, too.
Seojun felt a little off.
-ㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋㅋ
-Learned in both literature and martial arts?
-The Orthodox Faction was indeed unsightly ㅋㅋ
[‘By the way’ has donated 30,000 won!]
[If the Demon Cult and Unorthodox Faction join forces, can’t the Orthodox Faction not stop them anyway????]
-Have you seen Battlefield One Day? ㅋㅋ
-There are no friends in this field, you know?
-For now, joining forces is the hard part.
That’s right.
As soon as tomorrow, the Unorthodox Faction would betray them if trying to take down the Orthodox Faction caused them more losses than gains.
For example, what if the Orthodox Faction gritted their teeth and, regardless of their own main base being approached, committed a whole day to occupying Unorthodox territories?
The moment the Orthodox main base fell, all territories they held would become unowned.
In that situation, if the Demon Cult betrayed them again, who knew what would happen, so the Unorthodox Faction would halt their attack that day.
They could regrant trust, but what would the Unorthodox Faction gain by following the Demon Cult’s wishes then?
‘That’s why they needed a bigger bait.’
To summarize the current situation:
Yesterday and today, the Demon Cult had drained the Orthodox Faction’s forces, paying upfront to the Unorthodox Faction, and the Unorthodox Faction had just confirmed they'd shipped the package.
In a used trade, paying upfront is extremely disadvantageous for the buyer.
As soon as tomorrow, the seller could go silent, or a brick could greet you when you opened the package.
So even though they received upfront payment, the seller had to be reminded that completing the deal was in their interest too.
Both sides roughly knew the big picture.
“So for now, we're just showing them the possibility.”
Hold a knife to the Orthodox Faction’s throat to keep them from pulling any tricks.
Let the Unorthodox Faction see the same board as them.
In that sense, they couldn't relax yet.
‘Quite some time has passed.’
As he talked, time flew by.
-What kind of possibility?
-Let’s defend Shaanxi now.
-We can pour forces over there and succeed in defending Shaanxi I think!
-We are waiting, Cult Leader!
-Just give the order!
Defend, my ass.
“No. Let’s attack as well. Into Shanxi.”
If they reached right up to Hebei, the Orthodox Faction would start shitting bricks.