Chapter 67: The Iron Dilemma: Finding the Right Player

[Platform Integration <Eternal World> Tournament?]

“Yes.”

[Suddenly?]

“Yes, suddenly.”

Through the voice chat, Paepae tapped his desk lightly.

He seemed lost in thought.

Paepae quietly asked,

[Is there any reason you want to join the tournament?]

“Do you dislike tournaments, Paepae?”

[I bet you don’t understand how exhausting tournaments are.]

Internet broadcasts are basically structured to make it easy to give advice.

Since you’re watching someone else play.

Even in a casual game of Go, there’s plenty of advice being given, let alone on a broadcast.

But normally, it’s fine.

There’s plenty of things to chat about.

For example, in Moss’s case, something like “Was the lawyer recommended by Malangmabbak also from Gamegal?” or “I already knew. It’s Minttmasal, right?” or “I won the detective contest again, huh?”

Because situations vary, the chats do too.

But a tournament is different.

A tournament is pure competition.

Only one person can win and move on, and in the end, there will be just one winner.

The chat topics are limited.

You find the culprit, complain about the bans and picks, point out mistakes, talk about balance—it’s all like watching a gladiator in a Colosseum, and for a broadcaster, it’s truly hellish.

If tens of thousands of people all send similar messages, no matter how much mental fortitude or alchemy for earning money you have, it’s not easy.

[But I don’t think it’ll matter much to you.]

“I still get hurt if I’m criticized.”

[What kind of hurt? Is it emotional? Say the word for the part in parentheses.]

“I miss Bbangbbang.”

I miss Kim Inho too.

Both were easy to talk to, which I liked.

[You must be missing your toys.]

The reason I was interested in the platform-integrated tournament wasn’t anything special.

It felt like it might help with the game.

Specifically, it seemed like it could help with the current project, a sea exploration game set in the Age of Discovery that’s undergoing a major overhaul.

[I knew it. You’re only interested in game development.]

“People would think I’m a psychopath with no interest in people if they heard you.”

[Wasn’t that the case?]

It wasn’t that bad.

I felt wronged.

[You’re not going to tell me how joining the tournament helps with game development, right?]

“It’s a top secret.”

[Honestly, it’s just that you’re too lazy to explain. If you really needed to, you’d wrap it up in three seconds and explain.]

“I miss Bbangbbang. I miss Inho too.”

[You must be missing your toys.]

Paepae shook his head slowly and said,

[Tournaments are full of variables, but if it’s you, I think you could create a winning team.]

“Did you participate in a tournament before, Paepae?”

[Once, long ago.]

“You must’ve been a runner-up.”

[Shut off the wiki and talk.]

“I turned it off?”

[You’ve already seen it before.]

I really missed Bbangbbang.

[Anyway. Winning feels exhilarating. So, experiencing it once wouldn’t be bad.]

“I know how the runner-up feels. What about the winner’s mood?”

[If the runner-up felt like that, imagine how the winner must’ve felt. But what I’m trying to say is this.]

Paepae slowly continued,

[You won’t win with the team you want.]

“I haven’t even said anything yet.”

[You’ll make a team with the members you see every day in the playground, right? Am I wrong?]

“That’s true.”

The members I wanted included people who often gathered in the Moss channel.

Me, Paepae, Bunnyrun, and Moss, the channel leader.

[With that team, you’ll never win.]

“Why?”

[Let’s calculate the points. You and I are currently first place. Our lane is the urban core and main carry, with the highest score of 63. Bunnyrun is a master, Moss is a Grandmaster, but both are currently in Master rank this season, so they each have 41 points. What’s the total?]

“208 points.”

[The team’s total score maxes out at 210. The remaining 2 points can only be filled in one way. Do you know how?]

“Are you bringing in someone from a lower tier?”

[Lower tier? Don’t sugarcoat it. You’ll need to bring in someone from ‘Iron’ to make the team.]

Iron.

Also called Reverse Challengers, they were at the bottom of the game’s ranking system.

Even high-level players don’t include Iron players when discussing the game’s bottom tiers, like saying ‘Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond, Master,’ but not ‘Iron.’

Iron was the hellish zone where even boosting teams could win.

It was a place only reachable by someone who wasn’t normal.

[It used to be different, but now, to join a tournament, you need to have played at least 100 ranked games. No one leaves a slot open for parking. Well, technically, Moss still does park, but Iron’s a different story. Even if they’ve played over 100 games, if they’re still Iron, they’re just Iron, a native.]

“Isn’t Iron the same as Bronze?”

Paepae sighed at my words.

[You’ve always been too indifferent to lower-tier sensitivities. You’ll regret it if you’re not careful.]

“But you’re the same, Paepae.”

[Iron players! They’re the ones who can’t play the game creatively! In a sense, they’re geniuses. They truly come up with methods no one would ever think of!]

Come to think of it, one of the original and final team members of the Paepae was Iron.

As expected, defeat makes people grow. Who could have predicted that Paepae’s low-tier sensibility would rise so much?

[If you really want to participate in the tournament, change your team. The positions are a problem for us, so it won’t work.]

“Why?”

[According to the tournament rules, if there are more than two challengers on a team, one must change their position. Would Iron play the core city or main carry, which are the key roles in the game? We’d never win.]

“What about other teams?”

[Other challengers take the core city or main carry position. They fill the team with low-tier members to maintain cost-effectiveness. Historically, this approach has had the highest win rate.]

Summarizing Paepae’s words, it went like this:

The combination of me, Paepae, Moss, and Bunnyrun would eat up too many points, meaning we’d have to fill the remaining team member with Iron. But it didn’t end there; one of us would have to take the core city or main carry role.

Hmm.

That seems tough.

[I didn’t tell you to change teams for no reason. I’d be happy if it worked, but there’s no benefit.]

“Paepae, you’re so unromantic.”

[The frustrating thing is that the structure makes it impossible for the team to win, but people still can’t be underdogs. Everyone will be like ‘Two challengers in first place have come together!’ right? So everyone will have high expectations, but when the tournament is a disaster, what kind of reaction do you think that’ll get?]

A festival will erupt.

Is there no way out?

[If you’re confident in carrying with Iron as the main carry and team-fighting, you can stick with the team. But remember, carrying in Iron tier and thinking it’s the same as in high tiers isn’t correct. The opposing team will have high-tier members mixed in.]

“What if Iron takes the core city?”

[Iron playing the core city, the key part of the game. Iron as the main carry. You know which is better.]

“…But Iron will probably hit normal attacks, right?”

[No, they won’t. Give up.]

The answer was so blunt that my fingers almost got cut.

“Or, what if we use Iron as a carry duo, and Paepae plays as the protector and helps me wreck the game?”

[The enemy’s scout will get 10 kills in 5 minutes and head to the core city. Can you handle that? If you try, I’ll have to support you as a backup. Iron can’t even hold out on its own.]

Is there really no way?

“But, if it’s not ‘together’ for the four of us, it’s meaningless.”

[You’re saying the game development would be pointless without the three toys?]

“There must be a way.”

[What way? Unless you find an Iron parking-champion, there’s no answer. Just give up.]

“No. That’s not it.”

[Are you trying to find a Paepae-Champ? If you get caught, you’ll be banned by the rules.]

“It’s simple. We just need to find someone with potential but is still in Iron because they don’t know how to play the game.”

I got goosebumps.

Such a thought.

The hallmark of a super-developer mindset.

[Ha.]

Paepae sighed at my words.

I tilted my head.

“Why?”

[That’s a common approach. It’s usually tried by ex-pro players. But here’s the problem: how many have actually succeeded?]

“Ten?”

[None. Not a single one succeeded. People don’t change.]

“I know that too.”

People fundamentally don’t change.

Even a strong shock can’t change someone. If anyone seems different, it’s an illusion.

They’ve learned, but their essence hasn’t changed.

However, there are some who can change.

“I can read people well. I can tell if someone is Iron or Challenger just by looking at them.”

[You can read people well?]

“Of course.”

[Wait a second.]

Ding!

Paepae added someone to the voice chat.

It was BbangBbang.

As soon as BbangBbang joined the voice chat, he shouted out.

[Hey! What do you mean you can read people well!]

“I’m glad to hear your voice. I missed you.” – BbangBbang

[Uh, uh?]

BbangBbang broke down completely.

Paepae muttered, “Poor guy.”

BbangBbang wasn’t poor at all, so I wondered what he was talking about.

“So, why is that?”

[Oh? Right. You didn’t realize I had mid-lane talent, did you?]

“No? I’ve always thought BbangBbang was good at leading the game, with top-tier physical skills, almost like a pro. I told you this before.”

[Told me? I don’t remember that.]

“You said ‘How about playing as a damage-supporter’.”

I felt tears coming up, as he couldn’t even remember my advice.

Hearing this, BbangBbang muttered in disbelief.

[…Yeah, I think you did say that, but why damage-support? If you told me to go mid, that would’ve been fine.]

“Because once you’re a support… you’ll always be support.”

I left BbangBbang, who didn’t understand such an obvious truth, and declared to Paepae.

“I’ll kidnap someone useful, so you can just prepare for team registration.”

[If it seems hopeless, I’ll quit.]

“The ninja quitter will be found by the dark side. You can’t escape.”