Chapter 98: That’s how it happened

“Ji-hoon, pull back a little. You’re too far ahead alone.”

“Oh, got it.”

“Min-hyuk, switch with Ji-hoon. I’ll rotate with Jong-wook. Jong-wook, call the timing.”

“Understood.”

The 1v1 test had ended, and after a short break, they moved on to the team scrim.

Coach Kim Kwang-chul watched with sharp eyes, scribbling notes into his notebook in real time.

“She knows how to make calls… and her gameplay isn’t suffering for it. In fact, she’s making the team function even better.”

“Has she done team-based games before?”

Even high-ranked players struggle to communicate while playing.

It’s not easy to call plays while focusing on the game.

But she was doing it seamlessly.

Either way, it was a good thing.

Kim noted down: “Capable of making calls. Experienced in team play.”

“I knew my instincts were right.”

Despite all the pushback, Kim Kwang-chul had insisted on bringing Molru in for a tryout.

From the moment he first saw her,

he had felt something—

and now, she was exceeding even those expectations.

With a satisfied nod, he closed his notebook.

“Alright, that’s it. Good work, everyone. Molru, well done.”

With a clap, the coach signaled the end of the test.

The players let out deep breaths and stood up from their seats.

Final score: 3-2.

Molru’s team won.

They had played two team matches.

For the first match, the teams were balanced.

For the second match, they intentionally put Molru with weaker teammates.

“The first game ended too quickly, so I thought this would even things out…”

But the result was the same.

Molru’s team won both matches.

And when analyzing the games—

it was clear that Molru played a huge role in securing those victories.

In Kim Kwang-chul’s mind,

a bright future was unfolding.

“With a player like her, getting back to Division 1 won’t be impossible.”

He was sure of it.

Or at least,

he thought he was.

“We’ll have the contract ready soon.”

“Take good care of it.”

“Of course. This was an incredibly valuable session.”

After shaking hands with Molru, Kim sent her off.

As soon as she left,

a voice called out behind him.

“Good match, Coach Kim.”

Kim turned around—

and his face stiffened slightly.

“…Owner Park?”

“Why is he here?”

“He barely even shows up, but today of all days…?”

Park Kyung-tae.

Titan Underrock’s team owner.

A man that Kim Kwang-chul didn’t particularly like dealing with.

It wasn’t just because he was the owner.

It was his personality.

“That girl who just left—she was here for the tryout, right?”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“Haha! Looks like a jackpot just rolled straight into our hands!”

Park laughed heartily.

But Kim didn’t find it funny.

Park never cared about the team.

He barely showed any interest in the players themselves.

He had delegated full control to Kim, rarely interfering.

So if he was this excited now…

“He smelled money.”

That was the only reason he ever showed interest.

To the business world,

he was known as a money-hungry businessman.

To him, Titan Underrock was just another venture.

Kim respected his business acumen.

But to someone who loved the game and had been a pro player himself,

they were complete opposites.

“I should get the front office moving.”

“I’ll tell them to draft the contract ASAP.”

“…Did you watch the match?”

“No, I just got here.”

“Of course you didn’t.”

To Park, what mattered wasn’t the player’s actual skill.

If he truly cared about the team,

his first question should have been about Molru’s performance.

Instead, he took one look at her and immediately started talking contracts.

“Are you not interested in how good she is?”

“Oh, right. How is she?”

“She’s outstanding. She could start as a main player immediately.”

“Well, that’s a relief.”

Park smirked, but Kim could tell.

It wouldn’t have mattered what her skill level was.

Her ability to compete with male players was impressive.

But to Park, that was irrelevant.

“The marketability alone makes her worth it.”

“But if she’s actually skilled on top of that? Even better.”

Kim could already hear what Park was thinking.

“She has a huge potential fanbase.”

“And players with strong fanbases make money.”

“We have to sign her, no matter what.”

Kim knew exactly why Park was so obsessed with Molru.

Esports was a male-dominated industry.

While female fans had increased,

the audience was still majority male.

And yet, the women’s league had barely any viewership.

But now?

A rare outlier like Molru had appeared.

A high-tier female player, competing in the men’s league?

She could absorb fans from both sides.

It wasn’t entirely a bad thing.

There was nothing wrong with an owner valuing a player’s marketability.

Plenty of team owners favored specific players.

But Kim felt uneasy.

Because he had seen this before.

Back when Titan Underrock was still in Division 1,

there had been a player with solid skills and great fan engagement.

Park had ignored the team as usual—

until he heard about the player’s rising popularity.

Then, he demanded that player start doing commercial shoots.

“It’ll be beneficial for both sides,” he had said.

The problem was that when the team was struggling, when practice was far more important than outside activities, the players were still forced to do promotional work.

“Maybe that’s why he left.”

The player who had wanted to reach the top eventually left the team.

Sure, the team’s poor performance played a role, but Kim Kwang-chul believed that Park Kyung-tae’s interference had also contributed.

“This time… please.”

He could only hope that history wouldn’t repeat itself.

“Do you think this will work out?”

On the way back in the car, I turned to Si-young and asked casually.

I wasn’t entirely sure if this was the right decision, and I wanted someone else to give me an answer.

Still focused on the road, Si-young responded.

“The players and the coach seemed fine. As for the gameplay side… well, you’d know better than me.”

Her voice was calm, neutral.

“But you never know. Something might come up. Maybe another team sends an offer. Maybe pro gaming suddenly doesn’t seem appealing anymore. That happens too.”

“What kind of answer is that?”

“That’s just how it is. You never really know until you’re in it.”

Si-young had a habit of not giving thoughtless encouragement.

Rather than blindly agreeing, she would lay out the options and let me make my own decision.

“You still have plenty of time. No need to rush it.”

“Yeah, you’re right.”

Most pro contracts last several years.

It’s not a short commitment, so I needed to think carefully.

There was no need to rush.

I had time.

First, I’d review the contract that Titan Underrock had prepared.

“Who is this?”

“Oh, this is…”

When I arrived at Titan Underrock after receiving the call that the contract was ready, I saw someone I had never met before.

“Apologies for the late introduction. I’m Park Kyung-tae, the owner of Titan Underrock.”

The man cut off Coach Kim’s words and handed me a business card.

So he really is the owner.

As I examined the card, I thought—

“Do owners usually show up for player signings?”

“We worked hard to make the contract as favorable as possible for you. Even the salary is exceptional for a rookie.”

“Let’s go ahead and show her the contract, Coach Kim.”

“…Yes, of course.”

For a brief moment, I noticed that Coach Kim looked uncomfortable as he handed me the contract.

I couldn’t quite figure out why,

but something felt off.

Today, I had come alone.

Si-young had insisted on coming with me,

but she looked exhausted, so I told her to rest instead.

Before I left, she had warned me:

“Read every single clause carefully.”

“If anything feels off, don’t sign it on the spot. They’re the ones who need you, not the other way around.”

Her words stuck with me.

And now, as I flipped through the contract, I was glad I listened.

“…What is this?”

“‘The player agrees to participate in at least one advertisement or promotional video per quarter at the request of the owner or team representative.’”

“Haha, it’s nothing major. Just a win-win opportunity for both you and the team.”

“Ads help promote the team, and you’ll also get a nice paycheck on top of it.”

“It’s not mandatory, of course, but…”

“Hmm…”

Yeah, right.

If it wasn’t mandatory, it wouldn’t be in the contract.

And one per quarter?

Which pro player shoots that many ads?

To be honest, money wasn’t my priority.

I already earned more than enough from my streaming.

I had no major expenses, so my savings were stacking up just fine.

Going pro was something I was considering purely out of interest.

And yet, despite my disinterest,

Park kept talking.

“I’m confident that Ji-eun will become the face of our team.”

“This could even be a gateway to the entertainment industry—celebrity appearances, Instagram fame…”

“That kind of thing is trending these days, isn’t it?”

“I’m not interested in any of that.”

“Hmm, is that so? Well, people’s perspectives change over time.”

His eyes said otherwise.

His expression practically screamed:

“Yeah, yeah. All girls your age say that.”

“You’ll change your mind eventually.”

But he was so wrong.

There was no one who cared about gaming itself more than I did.

Seeing what kind of person the team owner was,

I could already picture my future if I joined this team.

And I didn’t like what I saw.

“Is this really worth it?”

“Do I need to put up with this?”

I had my answer.

“No. I don’t.”

I finished my thoughts.

And without hesitation,

I looked straight at him and said—

“I won’t be signing.”

“I’ve changed my mind.”

Their eyes widened in surprise.

But I stood my ground.

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