AECS 43

Chapter 43

National Team Selection (5)

With the team matches over, it was time for the individual matches.

Unlike the world leagues, which run long and finish with a team tournament in the round of 16, the domestic league was a straightforward live league.

There were a total of ten matches.
Winning earned 3 points, a draw 1 point, and losing cost -1 point.
If a match didn’t finish within ten minutes, it was considered a draw.

The top ten players with the highest points would be selected.

This time, Baek Jin-woo employed a different strategy.

He used Hoon-gyo as his main while letting the transparent Dol-dol accumulate stacks from Lamba.

Then?

Once enough stacks were built, Dol-dol would strike multiple times in an instant.

Do you know what that looked like?

It appeared as if Hoon-gyo himself was using Dol-dol’s skill.

• “Ah! No surprises! Player Baek Jin-woo takes another victory!”
• “By the way, you didn’t see that clearly, right?”
• “Yes… I could vaguely make it out, but I have no idea what it actually was! Could it be a hidden skill of the summon ‘Training Instructor’ as the caster suggested?”
• “Whatever it is, it’s incredible!”

Dol-dol had two skills:

[Skills]

• Assassinate: Turns invisible for a short time. The first attack deals 100% critical damage.
• Whirlwind: Spins the Reaper’s scythe in a circle, dealing area damage.

The broken part about Dol-dol was that its normal attack was basically Whirlwind.
No cooldown, passive.

In other words?

The more normal attacks it landed, the more continuous splash damage it dealt.

And with Lamba’s stacks added on top?

‘Simply obliterating everything.’

The moment Dol-dol’s invisibility ended, it struck at lightning speed. The sudden burst damage would instantly wipe out all of the opponent’s summons.

‘And he doesn’t even have proper runes yet.’

Still, it was enough to easily wipe out even the top Korean-ranked players.

• “Player Baek Jin-woo’s approach is both precise and aggressive.”
• “He hasn’t ever gone over a minute! All five matches so far, victories. He’s tied in first place with Kang Geon-ho, ranking number one.”
• “And now! His next match is against Kang Geon-ho!”
• “Yes, this is exciting! The showdown of the two top contenders!”

Finally, the match against the top-ranked Kang Geon-ho.

Arriving at the waiting room, Baek Jin-woo glanced at him.

‘It’s my first time seeing him in person.’

Kang Geon-ho was the vice guild master of the White Tiger Guild, in his early thirties.

[Preparing for Player Battle]

“Good luck,” Kang Geon-ho greeted first, and Baek Jin-woo returned the gesture.
“Yes, likewise.”

As the saying goes, manners reflect character. When the opponent showed respect, Baek Jin-woo reciprocated.

Both stepped onto the square marble floor and summoned their creatures. Naturally, Dol-dol was summoned while invisible.

[Are you ready?]

[Y/N]

Once both pressed Y, the large protective barrier in the middle disappeared.

The match was simple: destroy all five of the opponent’s summons to win.

‘Hmm.’

Baek Jin-woo scanned Kang Geon-ho’s summons.

Two White Earth Dragons, an Earth Fairy, Horned Eagle, and Great Nature Mage.

Rankers usually have a wide summon pool, making it hard to predict what they’ll bring. They might adjust according to the opponent or swap runes.

‘Not bad, the composition is solid.’

The Earth Fairy boosts the Earth Dragon’s damage as a tank-dealer, the Horned Eagle provides attack buffs, and the healer Great Nature Mage ensures sustainability.

He couldn’t know the runes, but the composition alone was balanced.

If Baek Jin-woo didn’t have EX-class summons, this match could’ve been tough.

‘But well…’

He had four EX-class summons.

“Yes.”

No need to second-guess. He immediately pressed Y.

[3]
[2]
[1]

[Player Battle Begins!]

Whoosh!

Immediately, Lamba started stacking Dol-dol.

Vroom!

The White Earth Dragons began charging their Earth Dragon Waves.

Taaat!

Hoon-gyo stepped forward, sword raised diagonally, ready to block everything himself.

The Wind Hawk gave Hoon-gyo a speed buff.

Koo-gu-gu-gu!

Kang Geon-ho wasn’t idle either.

The two White Earth Dragons burrowed into the marble floor.

Buffs from the Earth Fairy and Horned Eagle activated simultaneously.

“Hoon-gyo, same strategy.”

Defend the backline for one minute.

To do that?

Swoosh!

Hoon-gyo raised his sword high, enveloped in white energy.

Blade energy!

The advantage of the White Earth Dragons was that they could strike the backline from underground.

But Hoon-gyo had memories from the previous Battle of Summoners, having accumulated countless experiences with Jinugod.

White Earth Dragons?

Strike underground and they’re done.

“Hugh!”

Hoon-gyo exhaled sharply and brought the sword down. Two streams of blade energy pierced like spears.

Koo-gwa-ga-ga-ga!

The blade energy hit the weak spots of both White Earth Dragons perfectly.

“Kieeek!”
“Kieeeek!”

Unable to withstand the pain, they leapt out of the ground, struggling wildly while shaking off the dirt.

“What the…”

Kang Geon-ho was shocked. Directly hitting the White Earth Dragons underground? He had never seen such a summon.

‘Indeed…’

That summon was incredible.

Watching it dominate three top-10 rankers in the team match with a single summon—he never thought he could win.

‘Still.’

He wanted to give his best. Pride as rank one aside, it was a genuine effort as a player.

“Great Nature Mage!”

Whoooosh!

The summon, resembling a primitive forest druid, swung its staff, sending a cool breeze.

‘Forest Healing’—a wide-area heal, more effective for larger summons.

“Kieek!”
“Kiaaaaa!”

The two recovered White Earth Dragons roared in fury, but Hoon-gyo stood calmly, sword in hand.

No need to strike first. His goal: survive exactly one minute.

Thanks to Lamba with world-class graduate runes, in one minute, Dol-dol stacked absurdly high.

And…

‘Time’s up.’

Kang Geon-ho knew this too. His manager had quickly shown Baek Jin-woo’s match history.

‘Some weird attack will appear soon. Need to end it before that…’

How?

There was no way.

Seeing Hoon-gyo poised with his sword, it was breathtaking.

‘An iron fortress.’

He seemed impenetrable.

But that didn’t mean Kang Geon-ho could relax.

“Charge!”

Koo-gwa-ga-ga-ga!

The two White Earth Dragons lunged at Hoon-gyo.

But Taaat!

Hoon-gyo lightly stepped into the air, running across the dragons’ backs.

“Kieeeek!”

They twisted and collided, trying to catch him but couldn’t match his speed.

And then…

‘1 minute passed.’

Baek Jin-woo glanced at the now-invisible Dol-dol.

He was already at the center of the field, reaping devastation.

With the Reaper’s chilling grin…

Whirr! The scythe spun once.

Whirrr! Twice. Thrice. Fourth spin.

Took only about a second, yet Kang Geon-ho’s summons’ HP plummeted.

So absurdly fast it was ridiculous.

• “What was that just now?!”
• “Didn’t you see something black?!”

The casters couldn’t see clearly. Dol-dol vanished again in invisibility after slaughtering everything.

Only a brief glimpse of a scythe-like figure could be seen.

[All summons of Player ‘Kang Geon-ho’ have been recalled.]
[Player Battle Ends.]

Baek Jin-woo’s clean victory!

Even against Korea’s top player, no surprise occurred.

At that moment, Yoo Ji-ah’s expression was pure ecstasy.

Like Mourinho after a comeback victory with Manchester United.

‘As expected, Jin-woo is truly Jinugod. No more doubt.’

Who else could perform like that?

He wiped out three top rankers in the team match and kept a flawless win streak in individual matches. Even the top-ranked Kang Geon-ho fell to him.

‘How is this possible?’

Yoo Ji-ah couldn’t believe it. Even Jinugod, who had just started, displayed such overwhelming power!

Beside her, Kim Byung-jin, Hwang Tae-seop, and Park Chang-seok jumped up in excitement after each of Baek Jin-woo’s wins.

Park Chang-seok in particular was showing a grin that revealed his white teeth.

Of course. He had crushed Im Hee-soo’s arrogance and humiliated him publicly.

Baek Jin-woo wasn’t just winning—he was dominating. And only Yoo Baek could control him.

“Yoo Ji-ah! I mean, President Yoo! Yoo President!”

Excited, Park Chang-seok wiped sweat and approached.

“Removing Baek Jin-woo for Yoo Baek was the best decision of my life.”
“Hehe, your insight was correct.”
“I told you—my judgment about people is always precise! Hahaha!”
“Now all that’s left is for you to succeed as a congressman. Jin-woo competed under your card, the public will notice.”

A true Win-Win.

Yoo Baek supported Park Chang-seok, who in turn strengthened Yoo Baek’s influence. From start to finish, everything was going according to Yoo Ji-ah’s plan.

• “Player Baek Jin-woo is going wild! Seven consecutive wins! Ten straight victories look possible!”
• “Of course. He finished off the God of Battle Kang Geon-ho in just one minute. No words needed.”

Baek Jin-woo continued his streak.

• “He takes the eighth match, same strategy as before!”
• “There’s no way to counter him! Baek Jin-woo is our hope!”

“Heh… haha…”

Yoo Ji-ah laughed in disbelief.

How many more surprises did Jin-woo have in store?

Nine matches, then the final one.

Baek Jin-woo didn’t falter.

He finished them all in the same way. Overwhelmingly.

As if to say, “This is the level you can manage,” without changing his tactics.

• “Ten wins! Player Baek Jin-woo! He’s making history!”
• “With this, Baek Jin-woo wins! Selected for the national team! And as captain too!”
• “Haha, at this level… we can look forward to the world league next year! He’s definitely next year’s ranker!”

Listening to the excited casters, Yoo Ji-ah closed her eyes.

‘Found it.’

Instinctively, she knew she had finally found the company she would dedicate her life to, just like her grandfather had.

Yoo Baek.

Supporting Baek Jin-woo was patriotic and the shortcut to success.

And most importantly—it was fun.

After the clean victory, Yoo Ji-ah smiled softly as she watched Baek Jin-woo leave with a calm expression.

She vowed to continue supporting him with all her effort, just as she always had.