Chapter 81: “Is She Insane…?”

[Hangang: If possible, they’re asking for a little help. They said they’ll compensate you generously.]

It was a message from Hangang.

This evening, I had returned after meeting Si-hyun and experiencing a deep moment of reflection.

As soon as I got home and instinctively turned on my computer, a message popped up on Discord.

After listening to what was going on, this is what I heard.

[Hangang: You know Fusion Gaming, right?]

[Kayak: Uh, no, I don’t.]

[Hangang: You don’t really follow pro games, huh? That’s surprising. Anyway, there’s a team called Fusion Gaming that’s been ranked number one for years now…]

[Hangang: Apparently, they were really impressed by your gameplay. That’s why one of their players reached out to me.]

[Hangang: He’s on the second team, but he’s a promising talent. He’s still young, but he might make it to the first team someday.]

[Hangang: They say you have a lot of fans over there. Well, it makes sense. A lot of pros watch streamers, and you’re a well-known player even outside of streaming.]

To sum up Hangang’s overly talkative explanation—

A pro team is interested in my gameplay and wants to learn my techniques.

‘A pro gamer, huh…’

I fell into deep thought for a moment.

Honestly, the word “pro” wasn’t all that familiar to me.

Back when I first got hooked on Abyss and was obsessed with it, the scene was barely surviving.

It was common to hear jokes like, “There are pro players in this game? Seriously?”

Even I had received offers to go pro. After all, I consistently ranked in the top tier.

But I turned them down.

Frankly, the game was on the verge of dying at the time.

There was even an official server shutdown announcement.

I have no idea how it made a comeback to become a hit again.

The reason I didn’t become a pro was simple.

I thought I’d end up like a prince of a fallen kingdom—

A pro player with no league to compete in, left with nowhere to go.

I was passionate about it, but I guess not desperate enough.

If I had really been desperate, I would have accepted the offer back then.

Now, the game has become a hit, and all the conditions I once wanted have been met.

But still…

The word “pro gamer” doesn’t exactly make my heart race.

It doesn’t excite me anymore.

Living by what my heart tells me in the moment, going pro just doesn’t seem to fit my way of life.

But aside from all that, this proposal was quite intriguing.

A professional team wanted to learn Camilla from me.

It almost felt like I had mastered something to the level of a grandmaster, completely conquering a field of expertise.

Even though most people already associated Camilla with Kayak, this felt like an official stamp of recognition from an authoritative body.

If things went well, I could even advertise my stream as “The place where pros learn Camilla.”

Of course, I’d need their approval for that.

And most importantly—

‘I might get to see Camilla in the league.’

From the early days when I used to follow pro matches to now, three years later—

Camilla has never once been picked in a pro match.

When I first heard about it, it broke my heart.

It felt like Ionix had abandoned the character, and I was even more upset about it.

If things go well this time, and I successfully teach my techniques to the pros,

There might be a chance that Camilla could finally make an appearance in a professional match.

“A grand debut, or perhaps a funeral…”

Top of Form

The first and the last.

A debut match that is also a retirement match.

At this point, without any hotfixes, Camilla’s nerf is inevitable.

If that’s the case, wouldn’t it be better to take her to an official tournament and etch her presence into everyone’s minds?

A so-called honorable death.

Rather than fading away after being nerfed while only shining in solo queue, Camilla would surely prefer to make a grand appearance on the bigger stage before going down.

As a self-proclaimed expert in Camilla’s mindset, I could confidently guarantee this.

Sure, she might get nerfed even harder than she was buffed, but it didn’t matter.

Just like my username suggests, Camilla had always been weak.

No matter how much she got nerfed or weakened, I would never abandon her.

[Kayak: Sounds good.]

I accepted the offer.

“It’s done!”

“What’s done?”

“The thing Jun-hyuk mentioned last time, learning from the master of Camilla. I just got word that they’ll connect us.”

“…Really?”

Tae-wan, a trainee, grabbed a drink from the practice room fridge with a somewhat indifferent look.

His lukewarm response was partly because he hadn’t been around when Jun-hyuk first suggested learning from the so-called master, and partly because he didn’t quite grasp how impressive this “master” could actually be.

‘In the end, isn’t he just an amateur, a regular player?’

Fusion Gaming was a prestigious organization.

They had quickly established a team when Abyss began gaining prominence among gamers a few years ago, and they had consistently delivered strong performances ever since.

Just last year, they had won the ACK championship undefeated and even claimed the World Series trophy.

A reminder of their achievements stood proudly in the corner of the practice room to boost the players’ morale.

As a trainee of such a prestigious organization, Tae-wan took great pride in being part of Fusion Gaming.

Although he was still just a trainee and ineligible to compete due to league age restrictions, he firmly believed that once another year passed, he would dominate the league.

In fact, during the internal scrims within Fusion Gaming, Tae-wan often achieved the best results among the trainees, sometimes even outperforming a few second-team players.

At an age when self-awareness was at its peak—when it felt like the world revolved around him—it was only natural for Tae-wan to look down on Kayak.

‘Jun-hyuk hyung worries about the weirdest things. No way that guy is better than me.’

After all, by the time Tae-wan made his debut, the team would be in perfect shape, leaving no other club able to threaten them.

With that thought in mind, he let out a faint scoff and asked his teammate,

“What did the guy say? When is he teaching us?”

“Uh… he’s coming here.”

“Here? When?”

“Well, Jun-hyuk hyung needs to talk it over first, but he said he’s fine with everything.”

Tae-wan’s expression stiffened slightly.

‘He’s coming here? To the practice room?’

The team’s training facility wasn’t as casual as one might imagine.

They say it’s harder to defend first place than to chase it, and Fusion Gaming embodied that perfectly.

Since they had been defending their number one spot for so long, the atmosphere during practice was nothing short of intense.

On days when internal scrims or starting lineup tests were held, the tension was palpable—like walking on thin ice.

Of course, since the visitor would be an outsider, they would treat him politely, and the atmosphere would be relatively friendly…

‘But that’s only if she proves her worth.’

If they found nothing valuable to learn from the so-called master, their attitudes would turn cold in an instant.

After all, everyone here was truly serious about the game—about Abyss.

‘I hope she comes soon.’

For some reason, Tae-wan found himself looking forward to the day Kayak would visit the team.

Finally, the promised day arrived.

On the day of Kayak’s visit, Jun-hyuk—the one who initially wanted to learn from her—along with a few curious players, gathered at the front of the practice room to welcome their guest.

And they were shocked.

“Hello, I’m Kayak.”

“Uh, y-yeah… Hello.”

The coach, who usually remained composed, was momentarily taken aback.

Behind him, the players murmured among themselves.

“Wow, holy… She’s gorgeous.”

“She looks exactly like Camilla.”

“Did she dye her hair just to look like Camilla?”

“If I’d known a girl was coming, I would’ve cleaned up the practice room…”

Despite the buzz, the team captain, Jun-hyuk, remained calm.

“I’m Lee Jun-hyuk. It’s an honor to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you, Jun-hyuk.”

Even in the presence of a world-class pro gamer known as a living legend, Kayak showed no sign of nervousness.

As the two shook hands and walked into the practice room, the atmosphere remained charged.

It was only natural.

A professional gaming team was no different from a male-dominated workplace.

And now, in this previously all-male territory, a woman—one as stunning as an in-game character—had entered.

There was no way the players wouldn’t react.

Only someone like Jun-hyuk, who was completely absorbed in the game, could remain unaffected.

The rest of the players were visibly excited.

However, among them, there was one more person besides Jun-hyuk who wasn’t thrilled.

‘What the hell… What is this?’

It was Tae-wan.

His eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at Kayak.

‘A Camilla master who looks exactly like Camilla? Did she do it on purpose?’

Her hair, her face—there wasn’t a single feature that didn’t resemble the character.

A person who played only one champion and even looked like her in real life?

There was no way she had been born looking exactly like Camilla.

It was obvious that she must have maintained this cosplay-like appearance all the time.

And so, Tae-wan found himself having thoughts that were a bit rude for someone he was meeting for the first time.

‘Is she insane…?’