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Season 3: Chapter 60: Black Death (3)

Compared to last year, the Civil Empire preliminaries indeed had many more viewers. However, not all of them sincerely predicted a victory. They merely hoped for a win, but didn’t expect it.

Even on the very day of the Civil Empire preliminaries, the sentiment on the community forum Embul was extremely pessimistic regarding the chances of winning.

[In the first match, what’s with France…]

[Even if it was against Vietnam, it would have been an even match, damn...]

[They lost all their scrimmages. Should I even watch this?]

[It's been a while since I watched. Is France as strong as before?]

[Just watch without expectations...]

[Newcomers really cheering with the thought of winning are so cute lol]

Embul, a community frequented by actual Civil Empire players, rated the odds of winning low. The more they knew about the game, the less likely it seemed that Korea could win.

[If you lose to France lol, could you even beat Spain or Rome?]

[Wouldn’t it be rather manageable against Rome?]

[How could a knight civilization ever beat a bow civilization?]

Knights were typically strong against ranged attacks like bows. The civilization matchup was an inherent problem.

Then, things began to shift little by little as the match started.

[Maybe the French are old enough to handle]

[Oh. What’s this? lol lol lol]

[Damn, got baited?? France is really washed up]

France displayed a lot of strategic missteps.

[No way, we’re winning this?? lol]

[If we win this, it’s really jackpot]

[Yep~ Even if we win, next up are Rome and Spain~ lol lol lol lol]

[Ignoring matchups and just looking at power, France is really manageable.]

[I told you these guys are washed up?! Damn, Korea is going to win!]

Gradually, hopeful posts began appearing. Although they spoke roughly, these very people had long wished for Korea’s victory. They had been active for a long time in the scarcely populated Embul community.

[Breaking News” Almond and Pang have entered enemy territory]

[Yep~ France is getting trashed less than 10 minutes into the game~ lol]

[Lost all scrimmages, they said!? Lost all scrimmages, they said!?]

[Honorary Frenchmen are dying like dogs! lol]

When Almond and Pang infiltrated the enemy lines, those with a high understanding of the game felt extremely excited. They fully understood how significant it was for two archers to harass the enemy workers early.

Every little thing was critical, especially in an international competition filled to the brim with two hundred physically imposing soldiers.

[Oh shit, is this really happening??]

[South Korea!!]

[Please please please]

At that moment, everyone united with one heart and one mind.

If even one archer managed to harass the gold mines, the production of royal knights would be significantly delayed. If so, Korea would have the capacity to advance to the third era first.

However—

[Ah but the defensive tower ??]

[What about the defensive tower?]

[Damn, a defensive tower is in the way...]

A defensive tower blocked the enemy lines.

[Pressed for royal knights?]

[Look at France's judgment!]

[Who said they were washed up? Their judgment is alive and well]

France started producing royal knights by investing in gold mines at the expense of other resources.

From this point on, opinions became divided.

[Huh? They're ordering an attack on the defensive tower????]

[Are they crazy?]

[Suicide squad lol]

[But still, just go around it, even if you get hit by the tower, you could kill at least five workers]

Some thought the idea of attacking the defensive tower was too reckless.

[Haven’t you seen what Almond can do? This is doable]

[Fact: Solo queue towers and national competition towers have different controls. The commander does it all himself]

[If you don’t do this, there’s no point, might as well try even if it kills you]

Even if it was reckless, only this path would yield benefits.

All of these viewers had sufficient strategic knowledge of Civil Empire, so all their arguments had some merits. It would be the same in real warfare. Some generals would advise against a certain decision while others would encourage it. Ultimately, the chief commander made the decision and bore the responsibility.

‘If everything goes as practiced, everyone will cheer. If not…’

Cookie, always busy with his hands, watched the situation unfold with a stern face.

‘It’s my responsibility.’

He observed the battlefield as Almond and Pang gradually approached the defensive tower. They wouldn't be able to see each other yet.

***

The think tank team also gathered nervously in front of the monitors.

Kimchi Warrior (Kim-Chi Seung), who had personally scouted Almond, looked extremely anxious.

“Please do it…!”

He scouted Almond for a reason.

Not only did Almond demonstrate numerous super plays, but scenes of neutralizing defensive towers accounted for more than half of his highlights. He possessed the precision and concentration to snipe archers inside towers.

Almond always dared to make such decisions on the spot. He was the joker card in the archer squad.

Of course, the defensive towers in national competitions and regular matches differed.

“We practiced this. Please!”

Thump!

Chi-Seung clasped his hands together.

His think tank buddies beside him also prayed.

“Ugh! Please!”

“Do it!”

Water Dumpling and Sharp Sphere hoped the strategy set on the board would work. All they could do now was pray.

Chi-Seung closed his eyes, recalling the practice sessions.

‘The success rate during practice was 75%.’

The chance of Almond hitting an archer inside the enemy tower with a single shot was 75%. This was the probability of completely neutralizing an enemy archer with a headshot. The chance of just hitting the enemy archer was over 97%.

Almond would surely hit as long as it wasn’t an extreme situation.

‘Pang’s chance of just hitting an enemy archer is 98%.’

Squad leader Pang had an even higher chance of hitting because he aimed for the torso instead of the head. However, the probability of hitting the head in one shot was very low for him.

‘It was below 20%...’

Even that could drop significantly if other variables occurred. Considering this was a real battle, it would likely drop even further.

‘So aim for the torso!’

It was okay. Why not aim for the torso?

The archers inside the basic defensive tower were actually workers. They would die with two arrows to the torso.

Almond and Pang didn’t specifically need to aim for the head. The probability of both of them landing two arrows on enemy torsos was over 90%. Considering this was a real battle, it would be at least 85%.

‘Shoot the torso!’ Chi-Seung thought.

If the two of them aimed at the torso of one enemy simultaneously, Cookie’s strategy had at least an 85% chance of success. It was the right decision, but what if they didn’t understand the strategy and both aimed for the head?

What decision would they make if there was more than one worker inside the defensive tower? Would they quickly eliminate the different soldiers by aiming for their heads or safely target one at a time while aiming for the torso? Too many variables existed.

“In the end... the results will show. Only the results will tell…”

All these concerns and training would ultimately manifest as results. If successful, they would be cheered. If not, they would be criticized even if the process was perfectly identical.

[Royal Knight - 23%]

Production of the royal knights had already reached 23%.

[Basic Archer - 91%]

France’s basic archers were almost ready to deploy too.

***

[Attack]

Whiz!

After the attack ping appeared, Almond and Pang received separate messages.

[Target the tower. Do it quickly as practiced. We don’t have time.]

In real battles, it was rare for the chief commander to send messages directly like this. It only happened in important operations.

‘This is the turning point.’

Almond adjusted his breathing as he ran, preparing to hold his breath and shoot at any moment.

“It’s a long-range snipe. Be confident!” Pang shouted, perhaps unnecessarily trying to boost the mood.

It had been a while since just the two of them started running across the field. It had become too quiet. Too much silence in a moment of tension was not good. Thoughts could consume other thoughts, producing more thoughts and making one lose focus.

Perhaps Almond, who had been an ace even among archers known for their concentration, never knew. However, Pang had trained his mind through fishing and still found it hard to endure. They could now capture the elusive France with their own hands.

They were probably just barely holding on to their concentration. It was unusual for Almond to join the conversation in such situations.

"I tried sniping recently."

Almond was referring to Hitman. Although he didn’t know if this would help, he meant it as reassurance since long range shooting was somewhat his weakness.

"How should we shoot?" Pang asked, gradually hardening his expression.

Far away, the fog of war was lifting and the silhouette of the defensive tower began to appear.

"If there's one enemy, aim for the torso. If there are more, each of us should aim for the head."

"Good, you remember correctly."

Pang, being the leader of the archer squad, knew the order well. However, he still asked again. Why? It could have been to check on Almond's state, but it was likely also an attempt to relieve the tension by talking.

Historically, they had never mentioned the importance of this operation to each other. Knowing how crucial it was only increased the pressure.

"It's visible now. Slowly."

[Attack]

As the silhouette of the defensive tower became clearer, so did the reality of the attack ping.

Their pace gradually slowed.

Step. Step.

The sound of their footsteps on the field became more sporadic.

With slightly better vision, Pang took a slight lead and peered at the defensive tower. From his perspective, the number of enemies inside was not visible to the commander. This was a judgment call they had to make on the ground.

'Let there be just one,' Pang thought inwardly. ‘Please let there be only one enemy.’

He honestly didn't feel confident about landing a headshot. He was confident at long range, but not in precise shooting. One could think these two things were the same, but having a sense of distance and having great breath control and concentration were different things.

The enemy's silhouette slowly became visible.

Pang's pupils dilated. The enemy he saw was...

'One!'

Cliick.

He raised a finger to signal Almond.

Almond nodded and moved to line up beside Pang.

Indeed, there was only one enemy.

"There's only one, so it's the torso."

Almond regulated his breathing even more slowly, almost as if he was about to fall asleep. Then, he took in only a slight bit of air.

Creeeek...

He already drew his bow string automatically, the motion occurring during the rhythm of his breathing.

Woooom...

[Focus]

The focus trait of Joseon's archer faction meant that the bow's tension increased the longer they aimed. The range, projectile speed, and damage of the shot all increased.

'This won’t work here.'

However, Almond aimed at the ground instead of the tower. The bowstring was already set. Even pulling with the focus trait to its limit, a short bow couldn’t shoot further than the defensive tower's range. They had to get closer to shoot.

"When attacking a tower, use the focus trait first. Then, shoot as you sprint into range."

They had been repeatedly told this during practice. Indeed, they had practiced this countless times.

"Run on three."

Now Almond was in the lead. It had always been this way when attacking towers.

Pang nodded. He pulled his bowstring to the limit too and raised his focus trait to its peak.

"Twenty paces. Let's run twenty paces," Pang roughly measured the distance and spoke.

Almond nodded. He had a good sense of the distance.

"One."

Almond stared intently at the defensive tower. They would need to react if any variables occurred. So far, everything remained the same.

"Two."

Slowly, a worker inside the tower looked their way. The enemy commander probably spotted them now, but that wasn’t a concern. After all, the enemy archer was still an AI with a predetermined movement pattern.

Still, no other variables occurred.

'Here we go.'

Almond exhaled the breath he had been holding and shouted, "Three!"

Thump!

The two of them dashed like arrows. Their heartbeats echoed urgently. Their rough breaths as they tore across the field could be heard.

From above, it looked like two wild beasts splitting the field as they ran.

"Twenty paces!"

They could pass the intended spot if they ran too much.

Pang shouted once more, "Twenty paces!"

Almond reaffirmed their position.

'I see it.'

Whiz!

The enemy immediately fired an arrow. As expected, the enemy commander was controlling the archer directly and quickly responded.

'Left.'

Almond dodged to the right, letting the attack slide by.

Thud!

The defensive tower's arrow buried itself in the field. It had missed.

Now, it was their chance while the enemy archer was reloading.

Click.

Almond's bow aimed at the enemy.

Keeeiing...

[Focus]

The focus trait reached its maximum. Beyond the tightly drawn bowstring, the enemies' heads could be seen.

Then—

‘Huh? The enemies...?'

Two enemies could be seen. When had another one been deployed? How would this change the plan?

They could either stick to the practice and aim for the head or go for the torso as discussed. If they went for the torso, which one would they decide to shoot?

His bow's aim wobbled.

"Shit, the head! I'll take the right!" Pang screamed.

Almond considered it once more.

'Head. Left.'

In an instant, he finished aiming. Then, his right hand gently released the bowstring.

Fwaaang...

The bowstring trembled at its peak tension.

Shwiiish...

Now the arrow, empowered by that force, split the air as it flew. Next to it, Pang's arrow flew as well.