Chick 283
by Cristae283
“Is Team Korea gathering up now? Instead of regrouping at the base, they’re moving toward the center.”
“Personally, I think it’s because they’ve entered phase three. From the third phase onward, every monster defeated grants not only team buffs but personal buffs as well, making it a crucial turning point.”
“Ah, Team Korea—Gidan Hunter, Sergey Hunter, even the drone—all are funneling regular monsters toward Lee Taemin. Like a mother bird feeding her chick, they’re making sure Lee Taemin gets all the resources! Is this a strategic shift for phase three as you suggested?”
“Yes, that’s what it looks like. The idea seems to be to strengthen their overall power by raising the relatively lower-tier Lee Taemin.”
“I see.”
“The better the buffs are stacked in phase three, the more chances they’ll have to turn the tide in phase four. From this point, our hunters need to stay fully focused.”
“Wait… Now Lea Hunter from the German team is buffing her teammates. Then she’s moving to the center as well. What’s happening here?”
Just as the commentators described, Team Korea was feeding regular monsters to Lee Taemin so he could level up.
Gidan beamed.
“Eat up, Taemin~”
[On Gru: Eat lots, Taemin oppa~]
[Lee Taemin: Wah, nom nom.]
[Sergey: You crazy bastard, shut up and just eat.]
[On Joorim: Watch your mouth.]
“No bad language!”
[Lee Taemin: I feel a bit awkward growing this much alone, but I’ll eat well for now.]
“Good boy~”
[On Gru: Good~]
“Nyaong-nyaong~”
[Lee Taemin: Nyaong-nyaong~]
[Sergey: Are you all out here on a picnic?!]
[Lee Taemin: By the way, Dan, what’s the fun thing you mentioned earlier?]
“I’ll show you when you’re bigger. Wait a bit~”
[On Gru: Wait~]
“So cute… huh?”
[Sergey: What is it?]
“I sense something.”
Gidan, who was leading the monsters over, froze.
His sharp intuition caught the presence of someone hiding in the nearby brush.
“Sergey, don’t send any more monsters to Taemin. Eat them all yourself for now.”
At the same time he spoke, Gidan unleashed a skill, sweeping away the monsters he’d brought.
In the now vacant space, Lea’s ‘Boomerang of Light’ whipped around the area before returning to its owner.
Gidan quickly gave chase, but she was already gone.
He bit his lip in frustration at the empty spot.
“Our plan’s falling apart, isn’t it?”
[Sergey: I’ll just grab whatever I can?]
“Yeah, don’t let them steal anything. And Gru, stick with Taemin for now and keep buffing him…”
[On Gru: Okay.]
[Lee Taemin: Ah, damn it! Steal!]
[Lee Taemin: Ugh!]
[Lee Taemin: This is so annoying!]
.
.
.
[Lee Taemin: Why is it always me?!]
“Look at that, German team’s Lea Hunter! She’s completely cutting off the monster supply going to Lee Taemin!”
“She’s shutting Lee Taemin down, that Lea player!!”
“Lea Hunter is outright hunting regular monsters to block Lee Taemin’s growth. If he doesn’t grow, he won’t keep up with Gidan and Sergey. It looks like German team’s Lea is marking Korea’s weakest link to prevent his development.”
“This really puts Team Korea at a disadvantage.”
“Because of Lea, Lee Taemin’s growth has stalled. Isn’t there any chance this could be seen as a rule violation?”
“It may seem a bit underhanded, but it absolutely counts as a valid strategy.”
“I see. Team Korea was playing a bit too gentlemanly.”
“Gidan and Sergey have now shifted back to personal leveling. They’re taking out monsters themselves.”
[Sergey: Taemin, you okay?]
[Lee Taemin: Yeah. But I can’t shake this lady off me!]
“Didn’t expect them to play this dirty.”
Gidan ran a hand through his hair.
For Gru, whose ‘main body’ is the drone, personal buffs were useless, and since Sergey and himself were already top-tier, boosting Lee Taemin was the most efficient approach.
But if they moved to help Taemin now, the German team could move into those open lanes and steal regular monsters.
That would risk slowing the entire team’s development.
[On Gru: Dan oppa, you’re usually best at playing dirty!]
“What? Why do I have that reputation…?!”
Laughter burst out from Sergey and Lee Taemin.
Gidan, pouting a bit, cut through monsters and mumbled,
“Gru, it’s not like I always play like that, but…”
He whispered carefully,
“But maybe this time I will?”
“Lea Hunter’s strategy is paying off. Oh, looks like she’s decided she’s stopped Taemin’s growth enough—Lea is leaving to regroup with her team.”
“Yes, so the German team considers themselves sufficiently powered up. Now they’re gathering, prepping, and heading straight into the boss fight.”
“Lea triggers a mass buff as soon as she rejoins. Phase three boss battle begins! Team Germany starts their phase three boss attack! Team Korea, meanwhile, is still trying to catch up. That block on Taemin’s growth by Lea is huge.”
“They’re way behind!!”
“Korea needs to catch up!!”
“There isn’t much time. Too much of a gap to stack more buffs now.”
“Lee Taemin is regrouping. Looks like the German team will finish soon.”
“If they take the phase three boss and get the buff, the match is almost decided. It’s very hard to overturn. In phase four, teams usually just go straight for the boss and finish, skipping the regular monsters…”
“Is Germany going to clinch the win? …Wait?”
“…Wait?”
The commentators’ surprise was at the sight of the drone sneaking toward the German team’s boss.
“What is it planning? The German team’s phase three boss is nearly down already. Shouldn’t it be helping the Korean team instead?”
At that moment—
The thoughtful analyst began to speak up.
“Could it be… planning to steal the kill?”
“What?”
At that instant.
Fwwwoosh—
From the bushes behind the German team, a railgun fired in a straight line.
The railgun’s slug hit the phase three boss, ‘Zealot Zarath’, squarely in the forehead.
And then—
[‘Team Korea’ has defeated phase three’s ‘Zealot Zarath (Left)’.]
[‘Team Germany’ advances to phase four.]
[Supreme Executor, ‘Demextria (Left)’, appears.]
The caster shot to his feet, pounding the table.
“Last hit! Kill steal! It’s a kill steal! Team Korea just snatched the German team’s boss! The boss buff normally meant for Germany now goes to Team Korea! This is an incredibly rare sight!”
“Normally, you don’t go for this! You risk just helping the opponent take their boss faster—it’s essentially an own goal if you fail! But they pulled it off!”
“Just one hit! A single shot flipped the entire match! Absolutely incredible!”
“Now Germany has no choice but to kill more monsters and rebuild their buffs. ‘You block our growth? Then we’ll take your buff!’ Team Korea pounced like a fierce tiger and devoured the German team’s boss! Only five minutes ago, people were praising their gentlemanly play!”
“It’s actually a classic Orchestra move—starving the opponent with ruthless growth denial.”
“Ah… that’s a dangerous thing to say… But more importantly, Korea has stolen the German team’s boss buff! They clear their own phase three boss and advance smoothly to phase four!”
[‘Team Korea’ has defeated phase three’s ‘Zealot Zarath (Right)’.]
[‘Team Korea’ advances to phase four.]
[Supreme Executor, ‘Demextria (Right)’, appears.]
“In this way, Team Korea secured both phase three boss buffs. The gap has narrowed in an instant. And look—the drone isn’t just a support, it’s carrying a railgun as well.”
The analyst nodded enthusiastically.
“I’ve never seen such a truly complete, six-sided item. It’s truly all-purpose. I can’t wait to see its final rating.”
“That’s right. The German team, after testing the phase four boss a bit, is now forced back to killing regular monsters to stack buffs. The mood is grim.”
“Losing that phase three boss buff is huge.”
“Lea keeps stacking buffs for her team. Now all that’s left is the single phase four boss—whoever takes it wins! Who will the goddess of victory smile upon? The tension couldn’t be higher!”
“That’s right. Who will triumph in this exchange match?”
“Wait—look at Germany! They’re already moving for the boss, ‘Demextria’! They’re faster than Korea! Even under pressure, Germany isn’t making mistakes! Anything can still happen. Team Korea is just now regrouping! But… where’s our drone?”
Gidan raised his clenched fist.
“Shot, shot!”
[Sergey: Nice!]
[Lee Taemin: Nailed it!]
As the drone’s railgun struck down the German team’s phase three boss, a cheer broke out.
[On Gru: Th-thank goodness…]
“Well done!”
[On Gru: Hehe!]
“All right, everyone, regroup! This time, let’s do something really fun!”
At Gidan’s call, the three who had scattered across the field now stood before the giant ‘Demextria’.
“Gru, Gru, you’re ready, right?”
[On Gru: Yep!]
Gidan drew Demextria’s aggro, turning its gaze.
On the opposite side, Sergey and Lee Taemin unleashed damage on the boss.
When Demextria’s HP had been halved—
[On Gru: I’ll do it now!]
At Gru’s signal, Gidan and Sergey grabbed Taemin’s arms and hauled him well clear.
In the spot where Gidan had held aggro, the chick drone now landed, spreading its wings wide.
As if gathering all the light of its body, the drone’s glow intensified.
A palpable tension spread through the surrounding air.
In that instant, blinding light burst—overwhelming, unable to be contained any longer.
Swwwwwoosh—
A gigantic beam of light fanned out, exploding in all directions.
Commentators, the crowd, even the coaching zone—all held their breath as they watched the explosion of light.
Brilliant flashes scattered, engulfing Demextria’s massive form.
[‘Team Korea’ has defeated Supreme Executor, ‘Demextria (Right)’.]
[Match Over!]