Chapter 39: Within the Buddha’s Palm

The match caster, Lee Hyukjin, was most looking forward to was, naturally, the game involving Kayak’s team.

As someone responsible for commentary, such bias could be seen as unprofessional.

Still, as long as he didn’t display partiality during the broadcast, it wouldn’t matter.

This was inevitable.

On the tournament’s opening day, when he watched Kayak’s highlight reel, he became an instant fan.

That night, after the day’s schedule wrapped up, he found himself playing ranked games until dawn, a nostalgic indulgence prompted by those old videos.

Though the results were dismal, Hyukjin didn’t feel bad about it.

It merely reinforced his belief in separating nostalgia from reality.

After all, that’s just how it is.

Nostalgia is called nostalgia for a reason.

Even if one basks in the warmth of past memories, there’s no returning to those times.

It had been years since Hyukjin had been an active heavy gamer.

But there was someone here who could bring nostalgia into the present— a gamer who lived in the same era as Hyukjin.

This person had taken a break but returned, maintaining their unshaken skill as a hardcore player.

“Both teams have completed their bans and picks.

At first glance, it seems like neither team has deviated much from expected choices, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct.

However, while the Decal team has gone with mostly standard traits commonly used by most players, Kayak’s team’s traits stand out as unusual.”

“This is… wow.”

As expected, they didn’t disappoint.

Hyukjin couldn’t help but exclaim in admiration.

“Individually, the traits aren’t that strange.

There’s Dawn Shield, Resurrection, Persistent Sniper, and Blessing of the Forest…”

“It feels a bit off, though— like they’ve distributed them unevenly, almost awkwardly, among the heroes.

At least on the surface, it looks that way.”

“That’s true.

However, if you look at one of Kayak’s team members, Hakchu, on their cam feed, you’ll notice their expression, while tense, also looks resolute.

This suggests there’s no issue here— in fact, the selection of these traits must be part of a pre-planned strategy.”

“‘The Goddess of Camilla is different,’ as the chat is saying.

From what I’ve heard, not only does Kayak lead the team as captain, but she also oversees the trait selections and builds.”

“I’m not sure what Camilla has to do with the diverse traits, but one thing’s clear: Kayak has been diligently steering her team.”

“The uniqueness of the build makes it all the more intriguing.

It’s something we’ll only understand as we watch the game unfold.”

Not long after the game began:

“What is this?

What is Kayak’s team trying to do right now?”

“It’s hard to counter.

No one would’ve expected them to come up with a strategy like this.

If you don’t know, you’re bound to fall for it!”

“Oh, it’s exploded!

It’s blown wide open!

Kayak has completely broken the game!”

Exclamations erupted among the commentators.

“There’s Cassia, Bigdin, and Nixon on the frontline!”

“The backline has Calliope.

Oh, wait, what’s that?

A hammer…?

She’s holding something weird!”

“It’s Mace Calliope.

What about the others?

Do you see anyone else?”

“Um, hold on a second…”

Listening to his teammate’s tense voice, Decal’s captain, Choi Jongbin, cooled his head.

Think.

He had to think.

The opponent wasn’t to be underestimated.

Still, it wasn’t as if they were unbeatable.

Who held the key to victory?

That responsibility lay with Decal, their captain.

Since practice, his teammates had faithfully followed his directions.

For the lower-tier players especially, it must’ve been grueling and demanding training, yet they had complied without complaint.

He could only feel gratitude for their dedication.

The moments they endured would have been impossible without the trust and confidence in their captain, Decal.

Now was the time to repay that faith.

“Uh, I don’t see anyone else.”

“Two of them are missing, huh…”

Hearing the allied archer’s words after using Eagle Eye to survey the central area, Decal’s mind began working furiously.

Typically, all players would gather in the center for an early clash of strength.

Yet, the opposing team was already deviating from the standard strategy.

An unpredictable team— that was the general consensus among viewers after observing Kayak’s team.

No one could guess what they would do, and it made them difficult to deal with.

While many believed their overall strength was inferior to Yoo Hye’s team, Decal found them much trickier to face.

“If anything, I’d rather have drawn Yoo Hye’s team.”

Look at this— they were already forcing a mental battle right from the start.

Decal’s brow furrowed involuntarily.

He had always preferred straightforward team fights over intricate strategies or tactics.

The two unseen heroes were Camilla and Shan.

Both being out of sight was concerning, but Camilla was naturally the bigger threat.

What should he do?

Should he ignore them and rush mid?

Or should he at least try to find out where they were?

The decision didn’t take long.

“Lin, could you do a quick search along the sides?”

There was no need to leave potential threats unchecked.

This was a tournament, and caution was paramount— especially against Kayak’s team, which was known for using unconventional strategies, including surprise tactics.

“They’re split between the top and bottom. Oh… one of them is in the creek.”

“The creek?”

“Yes, they’re moving around there.”

Moving, were they?

That likely meant they were farming the neutral monsters in the creek.

So, they were trying to quickly grow stronger by clearing those mobs.

If unchallenged, they would likely target the mobs on Decal’s side as well.

The other one would push an empty fortress with the soldiers.

Decal had a rough idea of what the missing two were trying to do based on the search results.

However, he couldn’t determine who had gone where.

Unlike Eagle Eye, which revealed the exact appearance of the enemy, the mage’s search spell only indicated their location on the map, like a radar.

Leaving them unchecked didn’t sit right with him.

Pushing mid with all six players was an option, but if the enemy holed up in their fortress to defend, it would become a tough fight.

“I’ll head to the creek. Dandan, go to the lower fortress.

If Camilla is there, try not to engage and focus on defense.

If it’s Shan, you can go ahead and fight.”

As Decal gave his orders, the team began moving in perfect coordination.

Though this situation wasn’t entirely predictable, they were already accustomed to following his commands.

Even Decal felt uneasy about leaving his teammates in mid while moving independently, but he headed for the creek.

He was the only one capable of responding in real-time to such an unconventional strategy.

And so, he arrived at the creek, situated between the allied and enemy territories.

In the quiet place, where only the soft sound of flowing water could be heard, Decal held his breath and stayed silent.

“If I get taken out, the game is as good as over.”

Even if he didn’t die outright but was forced to retreat, it would effectively mean the same.

Thus, the thing he needed to be most wary of was an ambush.

He had to avoid dark, blind spots without vision at all costs.

Moreover, it was highly likely the enemy had already arrived at the creek and secured vision there.

Still, he couldn’t just sit back and farm mobs idly.

At the very least, he needed to identify which hero was here and what they were doing.

It was then that urgent news came from Dandan, who had gone to the lower fortress.

“The one down here is Shan! Our tiers are about the same, so I think I can aim for a solo kill!”

Hearing this, Decal swallowed hard.

That meant the one here in the creek was Camilla—the enemy’s captain and ace.

“Even in a direct fight, I’d barely have a chance to win. Against an ambush? Forget it.”

Decal’s steps grew even more cautious.

It was cumbersome, but he had to advance while methodically illuminating blind spots to avoid an ambush.

While his team relayed updates through briefings, Decal continued to explore the dark creek alone, eventually reaching a safe point near where enemy mobs might spawn.

At the first creep spawn location, a kobold camp, the kobolds were all still there, untouched.

“So, they weren’t planning to rush through the creek and clear all the mobs?”

It was unexpected. Camilla wasn’t the type of hero who would take long to clear creeps.

If she had focused on farming, she could have cleared both the wolves and the kobolds easily.

Remaining wary of an ambush, Decal quickly moved to the second creep spawn location.

“Huh?”

This time, he couldn’t help but let out a puzzled sound.

The second creep camp, the specter camp, was also untouched.

“What have they been doing all this time?”

Camilla had arrived at the creek long before Decal did.

Initially, he thought she would either clear the mobs in the creek and even invade his side or use the farmed resources to regroup with her team.

But neither had happened.

For some reason, all the mobs were still intact.

There were no signs of her doubling back toward Decal’s side, nor any reason for her to do so.

Confused, Decal left the specter camp alone and pressed on, feeling it was better to suffer some inefficiency to locate Camilla.

After all, if the opponent was leaving the mobs untouched, his team wouldn’t fall too far behind in terms of farming.

However, when Decal arrived at the third camp, he found the creeps there just as untouched.

Momentarily dumbfounded, Decal suddenly realized something and shouted in alarm.

“Mid! Watch out in mid! Camilla is—”

His words were cut off.

“Ah! What is this?!”

“Behind us! Look behind us!”

“Their frontline is diving with Kali’s ult…! We need to stop—!”

“It’s already too late.”

The dying screams of his teammates echoed in Decal’s ears as he stared blankly at his screen.

He moved his mouse cursor to check mid.

There, his teammates were being slaughtered, and standing among them was Camilla—the one he had been searching for so desperately.

“So, this was the plan all along?”

Did they predict Decal would come to the creek?

Or had they intentionally lured someone to the creek before launching a sudden mid-lane assault?

It was a reckless yet straightforward deception, and Decal, their captain, had fallen for it completely.

“I was playing right into their hands from the start….”

Decal let out a dry sigh, running his hand down his face as he resumed farming the creeps.

In the desolate creek, the lonely howls of wolves echoed in the silence.