READ NOVEL ONLINE Chapter 64 - Ouverture
Chapter 64 Ouverture
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Apex Predator.
Among them, the solo division could be simply described as a maverick.
To discuss the reason for this, one first had to mention the commonalities shared by Dark Zone and most other PVP categories.
Team games.
The commonality of most PVP systems serviced by Dark Zone, and the reason why Apex Predator — abbreviated to AP — was called a maverick.
As always, the whole was not merely the sum of its parts.
Therefore, a team game was not about many individuals playing the game independently at the same time, but rather, it was designed to produce results beyond what individuals could achieve alone through organic communication.
This was precisely why the position of a director existed in this field.
Their role was to point out and fill the gaps in team play that the actual players might overlook, fitting the five — or four, six, etc. — pieces of different shapes perfectly into the last piece of the puzzle called victory.
However, AP soloing was different.
This didn’t mean that tactics didn’t exist, but there was no guarantee that they would work. To put it freely, everything that happened after landing could be called improvisation, and that would be half correct.
The various structures and terrains existing within a few square kilometers created more variables than any other PVP could offer, so in simple terms, weaving the tapestry that led to victory depended on the player’s own abilities.
Even coaches, players, and viewers all said that winning AP soloing wasn’t something that could be achieved by practice and tactics alone.
Although tactics became as important as physical skills at the top level, this ultimately meant that physical skills were inevitably the main focus.
Thus, unlike other professional PVP players who played in teams, those who specialized in AP soloing were both a player and a coach themselves and, assuming they belonged to the first division, had strong individual voices.
Additionally, since solo play inherently meant there was no team, the situation was different from other FA markets where players naturally moved rigidly between teams after long periods of working together.
In other words, a single player could move freely during the FA period, freely express their opinions about trainee selection to their team, and it was relatively likely that these opinions would be accepted.
Hence, the culture that developed in the AP soloing area was a kind of ‘pickup season’ during the scrim period.
Users aspiring to be professionals could get a chance to catch the eyes of enforcers, managers, or pros by participating in scrims, even outside the trainee recruitment period, and teams could effortlessly acquire excellent trainee prospects.
In a way, this could be said to be quite an attractive outcome for everyone, and almost all teams and pros became accustomed to this method.
Dice, who had been active solidly in SSM for three years since pros appeared in Apex Predator, was no exception.
Not “was,” but “had been.”
“…Um, uh, Yoo Jin? Please think about it just a little, just a little bit more… Our SSM entertainment facilities are great! It’s right next to Yongsan-gu, and you can get here easily with just one bus ride…”
“Hmm….”
“You can continue streaming! Or you can work as a mercenary or something; you can be active to that extent. Ah, I want to go back! This person is weird…!”
Yoo Jin.
It seemed she had little interest in being a pro gamer.
Dice felt like crying.
[General］Ahhh Yoo Jin, you b****, turn on the stream!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Aren’t you afraid of us lazy bums who stay in bed all day playing Dark Zone and watching streams? Turn on the stream right now. I’ll scold you with donations, so please, stream!!!
I’ve become a person who dies of boredom without an Apex stream!!!!
[All Comments］[Sorted by Registration］
Idiot lol
Is this… the level of unemployed bugs that live on the gallery…?
ㄴ[Author］I’ll get a job soon
ㄴAnyway, look at the lack of empathy from those who go to work and school. They are really terrible.
ㄴIsn’t that because you’re an idiot?
I’m not unemployed, but I admit I’m pissed off that Yoo Jin isn’t streaming
You idiots, she’s doing a scrim, can’t you read the announcement? lol
ㄴ[Author］We can’t watch it, moron
ㄴThis is a severe case of Yoo Jin addiction
Tsk tsk, now she will get crushed in the scrim lol. I hated it when she acted so smug just for hitting Tier 2. Burp~
ㄴThese guys usually have a Tier between Bronze and Silver
ㄴSure, like I would believe you if you told me your Tier
ㄴShow us your in-game nickname, idiot lol
ㄴShe hit Tier 2 in just ten days of hardcore playing. That’s Guinness-worthy, and it’s disgusting to see you forcefully criticize her.
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[General］Am I the only one curious about Yoo Jin’s scrim?
I know Apex scrims are super tough, but given what she’s shown so far, I can’t imagine her losing lol
Since Zaiga shouldered the responsibility and donated in-game, it seems likely she’ll play there, but who knows?
If she performs as she has been, she’ll get a recruitment offer in no time, right?
[All Comments］[Sorted by Registration］
If she performs as she has been, even at 30% of her skill, she’ll do well. There are Grandmasters and Challenger pros, though lol
Do you think scrims are a joke?
[Most Recommended］Speaking seriously, there’s no reason for her to fall behind in scrims. From what I’ve seen, she didn’t struggle in Tier 2, and she kept winning. With that, she can easily break into the top 500.
ㄴ[Follow-up Reply］My in-game nickname and code are ‘SquareCheesePatty#9-13-215-1’, and I’ve been defending the Medal of Honor for the last and current season. If you’re curious, send me a message in-game. Verification is possible.
ㄴOh, damn, there really is a guy brave enough to reveal his in-game nickname lol
ㄴWin rate is exactly half lol Excellent skill
ㄴHave you done many scrims?
ㄴ[Most Recommended］I’ve participated in various tournaments and am currently a trainee. I won’t reveal where I’m affiliated.
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ㄴ[Most Recommended］If I had scrimmed in the same room, I would share stories, but unfortunately, I’ve never been in the same room. But one of the trainees I share a dorm with said Yoo Jin received five wildcards.
ㄴHoly crap lol
ㄴNo way
ㄴCrazy b****…crazy b****…crazy b****…crazy b****…crazy b****….
ㄴWhat the hell did you do, Yoo Jin, you crazy b****!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ㄴIf you’re a trainee, you must have seen Yoo Jin scrim. Tell us stories
ㄴWait, it seems long, so I’ll write a separate post
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[General］I’m a current trainee in the third division, and I’ll share some stories about Yoo Jin that you guys have been curious about.
I’m a trainee preparing for debut, having been luckily picked up by a pro last year. I, of course, asked my mentor if I could share stories, and they allowed it, so I’ll speak in detail.
Surprisingly, the scrim rooms do not strictly limit participants. In other words, pros from other teams can join Xi’s scrim rooms and vice versa.
Of course, they don’t use hidden tactics there until the end, so it’s divided into internal practice games and rooms where Tier 2 and above can participate.
There are surprisingly many scrim rooms, so I didn’t scrim in the same room as Yoo Jin, but it seems some of my dorm mates participated with her.
So, some of the stories I’m sharing might include unverified ones, but I’ve cross-checked the game-related ones with the scrim scores I just checked.
It seems Yoo Jin participated in Xi-hosted scrims, so if you’re curious about her record, it should be posted on the official team website tomorrow.
Below are the stories I heard and some personal questions I received. If true, T; if false, F; if unverified, a question mark.
1) Today’s Xi-hosted scrim lasted 13 hours and 37 minutes in-game, with a total of 23 sessions. In other words, 23 games were played, and Yoo Jin placed first 14 times. (F）
I counted myself, and it was 15 times, not 14… Is this person even human? I couldn’t believe my eyes, no lie.
2) After the scrim, all the pros there sent pickup requests, and a third of them were wildcards. (?)
I’m not sure, but looking at the game content, I think it’s entirely possible. If I were a pro, I would’ve used a wildcard for this.
3) Is Yoo Jin a joke in scrims?
Earlier, I hadn’t seen the scores and thought she would perform decently and commented accordingly, but after checking, that’s just nonsense. Judging by what my peers said, she crushed everyone regardless of who they were.
4) In the first game, did she get 11 kills at the research facility and even take down the Juggernaut? (T）
I verified it, and it’s true. I still don’t understand why, but I heard she threw an EMP grenade and then swept them with a Barrett. Seriously, I have no idea who this person is
. Maybe a high-level manifestation user is playing the game.
I’ll write more if I hear more news.
[All Comments］[Sorted by Registration］
Damn, this crazy b**** lol
She fired a Barrett in rapid succession? That’s not what that gun’s for.
But if Yoo Jin is really a high-level manifestation user, isn’t she a real person, not an avatar?
ㄴOh….
ㄴIt’s crude, but I just got hard.
ㄴ??????? I was secretly drawing lewd pics?????
ㄴThere’s a possibility!
ㄴOh, come on, how is this real lol
ㄴAll those jerks harassing VR avatars sexually will end up in jail lol
ㄴDamn, my hands are shaking. I once asked for her avatar’s measurements;;;
ㄴYou crazy b**** lol
ㄴIt’s like donating to a streamer to ask for their measurements lol
ㄴEveryone, hands off the keyboard lol
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“….”
SSM Entertainment, the team dormitory.
As the game platform transitioned from computers to VR, the common keyboard sounds and mouse clicks were buried in history — only silence and darkness enveloped the corridor.
Among them, there was one room with the light still on.
The light sparkled from the hologram floating above the phone screen. It wasn’t a colorful edited video, but a live POV video that viewers had to check in real-time.
It was Yoo Jin’s broadcast.
Under delicate eyelids, golden eyes sparkled. The screen reflected above them. The emotions escaping through her elegant lips were close to admiration.
Dice, a pro gamer belonging to SSM Entertainment’s first division.
She was known to be one of the few female pro gamers in Dark Zone — specifically a child of two foreigners who immigrated to Korea, essentially a Korean in all but appearance.
Ironically, the existence of in-game corrections meant that the keyword gender became blurred in the realm of pro gamers, and as eSports increasingly leaned toward meritocracy, this trend became unstoppable.
Dice quickly adapted to this trend.
Although her identity remained undisclosed in reality due to the team’s efforts to prevent issues arising from her gender, this wasn’t just her story.
The existence of avatars easily separated reality from the virtual world, and many players wanted to keep their real lives secret, regardless of gender.
Anyway, back to the point.
She was currently watching Yoo Jin’s broadcast recordings and scrim play videos from the day, losing track of time.
Connections between people were made by chance, and Dice created that connection through an explosion.
The more intense the first meeting, the longer it stayed in memory.
Moreover, it wasn’t just a one-time encounter — today, Yoo Jin seemed to feel something as well, choosing Dice among many wildcards and pointed cursors.
Of course, the result of that first meeting wasn’t exactly promising. Yoo Jin appeared to have little interest in the pro world.
Naturally, those who already had some of the benefits a team could offer were the hardest to attract.
However, Dice’s intuition whispered quietly.
‘…This can’t be the end….’
Perhaps this was a grand beginning.
With such thoughts, Dice aimlessly wandered through the deepening night.
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