Pagi-pagi sekali, persis setelah kereta pertama berangkat, menjelang fajar, hari baru bagi Guild Mir pun dimulai.
“Hei, hei, apa kamu sudah memasukkan data penjualan Lair Café yang aku minta tadi?”
“Pemeriksaan data artikel sudah selesai. Dan ini draf jawaban untuk pertanyaan wawancara yang kamu sebutkan kemarin.”
“Apa?? Ini sudah pukul 05.30, kenapa kamu tidak mengangkat telepon? Kamu yakin? Guild gila mana yang mematikan telepon pada jam segini padahal musim sudah dimulai? Telepon lagi!”
Tentu saja, suasana sebuah guild sangat berbeda 180 derajat antara saat jeda musim dan saat musim pertandingan.
Saat jeda musim, dasarnya adalah jam masuk dan pulang kerja yang teratur. Dengan adanya liburan, kerja lapangan, tamasya, dan acara lainnya, semuanya berjalan dengan suasana yang cukup santai. Namun, begitu musim dimulai, semuanya berubah total.
Tidak perlu penjelasan panjang: cukup hapus kata “teratur” dari pikiranmu dan ganti dengan “selalu.”
Selalu masuk? Selalu pulang? Apakah jam pulang bebas? Ya, bebas.
Karena mereka tidak membiarkanmu pulang ke rumah.
Jika kamu tidak pulang, maka datang dan pergi menjadi bebas. Bagaimanapun juga, kamu harus berada di guild.
“Uuuuh~ ngantuk sekali…”
Ketua tim PR yang mengantuk keluar dari ruang piket malam dan memasuki gedung aneks.
Memakai sandal Crocs, pakaian olahraga, dengan rambut yang diikat asal-asalan demi mendapatkan tambahan tidur selama sepuluh menit (disebut “cepol kotoran” di dalam guild—alasannya tidak perlu diceritakan), dia menekan tombol untuk lantai 7 tempat kantor PR berada.
Selama jeda musim lalu, Guild Mir tidak hanya membangun sebuah stadion.
Asrama 7 lantai tempat ketua PR baru saja keluar, gedung utama dengan kantor CEO, dan gedung aneks untuk memisahkan departemen-departemen yang berdesakan—semuanya dibangun ulang selama jeda musim lalu.
Dan darah segar disuntikkan ke dalam bangunan-bangunan yang baru dibangun kembali ini.
““Ketua tim, Anda sudah datang!!””
“Ah, kalian juga sudah datang.”
Ketua PR, yang masih merasa canggung di dekat 12 anggota baru yang muda dan penuh energi, berjalan cepat ke tempat duduknya.
Sampai tahun lalu, departemen kecil itu memiliki anggota kurang dari delapan orang. Tim PR, yang membenci “neraka telepon,” biasa bergelut dengan puluhan telepon di sudut gedung utama.
Sekarang, mereka memiliki total 20 anggota dan lantai 7 gedung aneks, lantai yang paling terang matahari, sepenuhnya untuk diri mereka sendiri.
‘Mungkin aku sudah meraih sedikit kesuksesan?’
Pada saat itu, sebuah suara terdengar dari belakangnya. Itu adalah juniornya, yang sudah bersamanya sejak dia menjadi ketua tim.
“Ketua tim, apakah kamu sedang mode besar kepala lagi?”
“Yang ini, mode besar kepala? Apa yang kamu bicarakan?”
“Tenangkan bahu itu sebelum kamu mulai bicara. Berapa lama kamu akan terus bergoyang dengan bahu seperti itu?”
“Begini?”
“Puhaha!”
Sambil tertawa, keduanya memasuki ruang rapat.
“Suasana tim PR kita sangat bagus saat hasil pertandingan bagus.”
“Tentu saja. Kamu dan aku sangat gugup sebelum musim dimulai. Saat diputuskan bahwa guild kita akan mengadakan pertandingan pembuka, wajahmu tak ternilai harganya. Pucat pasi.”
“Hei, posisikan dirimu di posisiku. Aku harus memikirkan kemenangan dan kekalahan.”
Pertandingan pertama mereka setelah naik dari Liga 3 ke Liga 2 menjadi pertandingan pembuka, seolah-olah pihak kantor liga terang-terangan berjanji untuk mendorong mereka.
Dengan stadion yang baru dibangun dan lebih dari 100.000 penggemar, itu adalah pertandingan yang monumental… suasana di sekitar benar-benar meriah, tetapi dia tidak.
Departemen yang secara langsung menyerap umpan balik penggemar berdasarkan hasil pertandingan adalah tim PR. Dan dialah ketua tim PR.
Menang adalah sebuah keberuntungan, tetapi bagaimana jika mereka kalah?
Bagaimana dia akan menghadapinya?
Ingatan tentang 13 kekalahan beruntun di Liga 4 masih sangat jelas.
Botol-botol api beterbangan di mana-mana…
“Uih, sial, memikirkannya lagi membuat tanganku berkeringat.”
“Kikik, tapi kita menang dengan sempurna, bukan? Ronde 4 masih berjalan lancar.”
‘Ronde 1 <Guild Mir> VS <Guild DP>’—kemenangan sempurna.
‘Ronde 2 LV6. Pabrik Golem Ilmuwan Gila’—peringkat pertama di bawah komando cemerlang Raja Gunung.
‘Ronde 3 <Guild Mir> VS <Guild Carrot>’—Yoo Rira, yang sempat goyah di Ronde 1, bangkit kembali dengan garang, mencetak pentakill pertama musim ini sekaligus yang termuda di Liga 2.
‘Ronde 4 LV6. Istana Kanibal Orc Vampir’—Park Su-bin menjadi bintang utama. Membuktikan kenapa dia disebut “jenius monster sekali seumur hidup,” dia menahan serangan bos yang mengamuk secara 1:1 dan mengamankan peringkat pertama.
“Lihat? Karena hasilnya bagus, artikel-artikel hanya memuji kita, tidak ada pertemuan canggung dengan wartawan, para pendatang baru merasa nyaman, kita nyaman—semuanya hebat.”
“Tepat sekali. Jika ini terus berlanjut, kita tidak akan punya keluhan.”
“Tidak ada masalah. Melihat mereka, sepertinya kita akan mempertahankan rekor tak terkalahkan musim ini juga.”
“Yang ini.”
Hahaha.
Kantor PR penuh dengan tawa dan kebahagiaan.
Persis kebalikan dari kantor analisis strategi satu lantai di bawahnya.
“Apakah ini batasnya?”
“Kita tidak bisa terus seperti ini.”
________________________________________
Ruang rapat Kantor Analisis Strategi.
Suasana serius menyelimuti saat Wakil Direktur Chae Dong-ha memimpin presentasi oleh kepala analisis strategi.
“Saat ini, Guild Mir telah mencapai batasnya.”
Hanya selisih satu lantai, tetapi situasinya sangat berbeda dari tim PR yang optimis di atas.
Penggemar menangis, para ahli terkejut—bukankah itu Guild Mir? Buka YouTube dan isinya penuh pujian untuk Guild Mir, namun mereka berada di batas kemampuan mereka?
Ya. Di batas kemampuan.
“Dalam raid Ronde 4 terakhir, selisih waktu dengan peringkat ke-2 hanya 31 detik.”
Peringkat 1 <Guild Mir>
60 jam 02 menit 40 detik
Peringkat 2 <Guild Dynasty>
60 jam 03 menit 11 detik
Di bawah komando pemimpin yang tak tertandingi, Raja Gunung, takhta raid—yang sebelumnya tidak pernah terancam—kini berada dalam bahaya.
“Ini bukan masalah mendadak. Tanda-tandanya sudah ada secara diam-diam. Contohnya, masalah di Liga 4 tentang penurunan performa yang cepat karena kurangnya pengalaman di paruh akhir musim terjadi persis sama di Liga 3—itulah tandanya.”
Sebagai catatan tambahan, saat itu adalah Lee Shin dan Kim Jong-pil. Mereka memutar otak untuk menambal lubang-lubang tersebut.
Tetapi bahkan dengan mempertimbangkan hal itu, sekarang ini adalah batasnya.
Tim analisis strategi diam-diam berharap akan ada perekrutan Lee Shin yang luar biasa lagi…
“Tapi dia sudah bilang tidak ada perekrutan lanjutan, jadi benar-benar tidak ada yang bisa kita lakukan sekarang.”
“….”
“Semua orang tampaknya terlena oleh hasil. Guild Mir menyelesaikan skuad ini kembali di Liga 4. Sungguh mengesankan para hunter dua level di bawah bisa datang ke Liga 2… tetapi untuk mendominasi Liga 2 seperti biasa? Itu hanya tindakan gegabah.”
Tidak ada satupun kata yang salah.
Tentu saja, setiap anggota berbakat. Namun seiring meningkatnya level lawan, beban di setiap pertandingan menjadi luar biasa.
Sebelumnya, itu adalah masalah tekad atau kurangnya pengalaman. Tapi sekarang? Mereka sudah dioptimalkan.
Jika mereka terus mendominasi Liga 2 tanpa penguatan, baik Guild Mir maupun kantor liga akan menghadapi situasi darurat.
Itu akan menunjukkan masalah mendasar pada level liga itu sendiri.
Oleh karena itu:
“Kita perlu mempertimbangkan untuk melepaskan rekor.”
Chae Dong-ha, yang sedari tadi mendengarkan dengan tenang, berbicara.
“Pertama-tama, kita tidak akan melepaskan rekor.”
“!!”
Semua orang sedikit terkejut, karena Chae Dong-ha biasanya mengkritik obsesi terhadap rekor.
Tetapi sebagai Wakil Direktur, dia memiliki posisinya sendiri.
“Kalian tampak penasaran, jadi akan kujelaskan secara singkat. Skalanya sudah menjadi terlalu besar.”
Semua karena Lee Shin.
Efek dari “strategi gelembung” miliknya, yang dibangun dari karier dua tahunnya, sangat luar biasa bagusnya.
Perhatian pada Liga 2 menyaingi Liga 1, dan guild-guild yang terjebak dalam strategi Lee Shin menggeretakkan gigi mereka, mengawasi Guild Mir.
‘Guild Mir vs Liga 2’ adalah rencana Chae Dong-ha, tetapi tingkat kebencian dan frustrasi jauh melampaui harapan.
“Kita sekarang berada di titik tiada balik. Kita harus mempertahankan rekor dan tetap berada di peringkat 1. Bukan sekadar peringkat 1—tetapi peringkat 1 secara telak.”
“Tapi seperti keadaan saat ini…”
“Tidak apa-apa. Masalah ini sudah diantisipasi, dan langkah-langkah penanggulangannya sedang berjalan.”
Baik Lee Shin maupun Chae Dong-ha tidak cukup tidak kompeten untuk mengabaikan masalah yang sudah diantisipasi.
—
Chapter 91
Early in the morning, just after the first train has departed, closer to dawn, Mir Guild’s morning begins.
“Hey, hey, did you put the Lair Café sales data I asked for earlier?”
“The article data check is complete. And here are the draft answers for the interview questions you mentioned yesterday.”
“What?? It’s 5:30, why didn’t you pick up the phone? Are you sure? Which crazy guild turns off their phone at this hour when the season has already started? Call again!”
Naturally, the atmosphere of a guild is 180 degrees different between the off-season and the season.
During the off-season, the basics are regular clock-in and clock-out times. With vacations, field work, outings, and other events, it’s operated with a fairly relaxed atmosphere. But the moment the season begins, everything changes completely.
No need for a long explanation: just delete the word “regular” from your mind and replace it with “always.”
Always clock-in? Always clock-out? Is commuting free? Yes, free.
Because they don’t send you home.
If you don’t go home, then coming in and leaving is free. Either way, you have to be at the guild.
“Uuuuh~ so sleepy…”
The sleepy PR team leader came out of the night duty room and entered the annex.
Wearing Crocs, a tracksuit, hair tied up in a bun traded for ten minutes of sleep (called a “poop bun” in the guild—reason omitted), she pressed the button for the 7th floor where the PR office was located.
During the last off-season, Mir Guild didn’t just build a stadium.
The 7-story dormitory the PR leader just came from, the main building with the CEO’s office, and the annex to separate the tightly packed departments—all were rebuilt during the last off-season.
And new blood was injected into these newly rebuilt buildings.
““Team leader, you’re here!!””
“Ahh, you guys are here too.”
The PR leader, still feeling awkward around the 12 young, energetic rookies, walked quickly to her seat.
Until last year, the small department had fewer than eight people. The PR team, hating the “telephone hell,” had wrestled with dozens of phones in a corner of the main building.
Now, they had a full 20 members and the 7th floor of the annex, the sunniest floor, all to themselves.
‘Maybe I’ve had a bit of success?’
At that moment, a voice from behind her could be heard. It was her junior, who had been with her since she became team leader.
“Team leader, are you in big-headed mode again?”
“This one, big-headed mode? What are you talking about?”
“Calm those shoulders down before you start talking. How long are you going to keep dancing with those shoulders?”
“Like this?”
“Puhaha!”
Laughing, the two entered the meeting room.
“Our PR team’s mood is great when the results are good.”
“Absolutely. You and I were super nervous before the season. When it was decided that our guild would have the opening match, your face was priceless. Completely pale.”
“Hey, put yourself in my shoes. I have to think about winning and losing.”
Their first match after rising from League 3 to League 2 became the opening match, as if the league office openly promised to push them.
With the newly built stadium and over 100,000 fans, it was a monumental game… the surroundings were literally festive, but she wasn’t.
The department that directly absorbed fan feedback based on match results was the PR team. And she was the PR team leader.
Winning was lucky, but what if they lost?
How would she handle it?
The memory of 13 consecutive losses in League 4 was still vivid.
Flaming bottles flying everywhere…
“Ugh, damn, thinking about it again makes my hands sweaty.”
“Kikik, but we won perfectly, didn’t we? Round 4 is still going smoothly.”
‘Round 1 <Mir Guild> VS <DP Guild>’—perfect victory.
‘Round 2 LV6. Mad Scientist’s Golem Factory’—first place under Mountain King’s brilliant command.
‘Round 3 <Mir Guild> VS <Carrot Guild>’—Yu Rira, who had faltered in Round 1, came back fiercely, achieving the season’s first and League 2’s youngest pentakill.
‘Round 4 LV6. Vampire Orc Cannibal Palace’—Park Su-bin was the showcase. Proving why he’s called a “once-in-a-lifetime genius monster,” he 1:1 tanked the rampaging boss and secured first place.
“See? Because the results are good, the articles only praise us, no awkward encounters with reporters, the rookies are comfortable, we’re comfortable—it’s great.”
“Exactly. If this continues, we’ll have no complaints.”
“No problem. Watching them, it seems we’ll maintain the undefeated streak this season too.”
“This one.”
Hahaha.
The PR office was full of laughter and happiness.
Exactly the opposite of the strategy analysis office one floor below.
“Is this the limit?”
“We can’t go on like this.”
________________________________________
Strategy Analysis Office meeting room.
A serious atmosphere hung as the Vice CEO Chae Dong-ha led the presentation by the head of strategy analysis.
“Currently, Mir Guild has reached its limit.”
Only one floor difference, but completely different from the optimistic PR team above.
Fans crying, experts shocked—wasn’t that Mir Guild? Open YouTube and it’s full of praise for Mir Guild, yet they’re at their limit?
Yes. At their limit.
“In the last Round 4 raid, the gap to 2nd place was just 31 seconds.”
1st <Mir Guild>
60 hours 02 minutes 40 seconds
2nd <Dynasty Guild>
60 hours 03 minutes 11 seconds
Under the command of the unparalleled leader Mountain King, the raid throne—never threatened before—was now in jeopardy.
“This is not a sudden problem. Signs were quietly there. For example, the issue in League 4 of rapid performance drops due to inexperience in the latter half of the season happened exactly the same in League 3—that was the sign.”
As a side note, back then it was Lee Shin and Kim Jong-pil. They twisted themselves to plug the holes.
But even considering that, now it’s a limit.
The strategy analysis team secretly hoped for Lee Shin’s unbelievable recruitment…
“But he’s already said no further signings, so there’s really nothing we can do now.”
“….”
“Everyone seems deluded by the results. Our Mir Guild completed this squad back in League 4. It’s impressive that hunters two levels below came to League 2…but to bombard League 2 as always? That’s just reckless.”
Not a single word was wrong.
Of course, every member is talented. But as the opponents’ level rises, the burden in each match becomes extraordinary.
Before, it was a matter of will or lack of experience. But now? They’re already optimized.
If they continue to bombard League 2 without reinforcement, both Mir Guild and the league office would face emergencies.
It would indicate a fundamental problem with the league’s level.
Therefore:
“We need to consider giving up on records.”
Chae Dong-ha, who had been quietly listening, spoke.
“First of all, we won’t give up on records.”
“!!”
Everyone was a bit surprised, as Chae Dong-ha usually criticized record-keeping.
But as Vice CEO, he had his position.
“You seem curious, so I’ll put it simply. The scale has become too large.”
All because of Lee Shin.
The effect of his “bubble strategy,” built from two years of his career, was overwhelmingly good.
League 2’s attention rivaled League 1, and the guilds caught in Lee Shin’s strategy were grinding their teeth, eyeing Mir Guild.
‘Mir Guild vs League 2’ was Chae Dong-ha’s plan, but the level of hatred and frustration far exceeded expectations.
“We are now at the point of no return. We must maintain the record and remain 1st. Not just 1st—overwhelmingly 1st.”
“But as things stand…”
“It’s fine. This problem was anticipated, and countermeasures are in motion.”
Neither Lee Shin nor Chae Dong-ha are incompetent enough to miss anticipated problems.
—“Two years of career wasted? Not at all. That career can be leveraged anytime. I intended to shake things up around now anyway. So many eyes were watching before, it was hard to act.”
—“We’ve removed all the annoying, tangled minor issues, so now we can move freely.”
“The countermeasures are already in motion.”
________________________________________
A tile-roofed house nestled among a field of swaying reeds.
The name on the massive mansion’s signboard, as grand as a nobleman’s home in a historical drama: Choi Family Pharmacy.
According to Lee Shin, it was a prestigious establishment unmatched by anyone in Korea when it came to poisons.
And the long-haired woman closing the jar where the medicinal liquid was aging was none other than Choi Yeo-shim, the 14th head of the Choi Family Pharmacy.
“The most important part of any medicine is the selection and combination of ingredients. Even the tiniest difference can change the quality. You must always be delicate and cautious.”
The young apprentices busily scribbled notes under her guidance.
“This applies to potions as well—they’re no different from medicine. In fact, potions require an even more delicate process.”
As Choi Yeo-shim approached the next jar, one of the following apprentices quickly popped forward and opened the lid.
She then immersed her hand, infused with magic, into the liquid.
A subtle medicinal fragrance spread, and a magical glow flowed like an aurora.
“That said, we cannot say potions and medicine are completely alike. Who wants to answer? You there, raise your hand and speak.”
“If medicine must be taken continuously, a potion must work immediately upon consumption, so we artificially stimulate ‘magic.’”
“Good. Then what ingredients are needed to stimulate magic? You there, answer.”
“Magic herb, white Ent root, purified oak’s blood, moonlight forget-me-not……”
Two years ago, Choi Yeo-shim and the Choi Family Pharmacy had been driven to the brink.
The sudden death of her parents and betrayal by someone she trusted.
All long-standing clients from previous generations had left, and the servants and apprentices who once filled the mansion turned their backs.
Everyone said the Choi Family Pharmacy was finished. Some opportunistic merchants even offered her a bundle of gold to sell the family’s secret recipes but Choi Yeo-shim did not flinch.
Despite all the humiliation, she held her head high.
Even when lacking money made it hard to maintain the vast estate, she stayed up nights cleaning the jars filled with medicine by hand, 365 days a year.
This is what a prestigious family is.
Pride.
Never compromising, never bending.
Even when faced with hardship and all kinds of temptations beckon, she did not even glance aside, walking the path handed down by her father, her grandfather, and the generations before.
Even if she were to fall and sink along the way, the pride of a noble family is to sink with the ship to the very end.
As a member of this prestigious family, Choi Yeo-shim worked desperately so as not to bring shame to her proud ancestors, and in just two years, she managed to recover part of the pharmacy’s former glory.
After class ended and the apprentices left, the elder approached carrying a basin of water, and she washed the medicine off her hands while bringing up something that had been bothering her.
“Elder, the ‘White Ent Root’ and ‘Magic Herb’ that came in this time are in poor condition. Even a month ago, they weren’t like this. Has something happened?”
“They said the season has started. The White Ent Root is hard to obtain, so it must be requested from the guilds, but recently the guilds have been fully focused on the season.”
“Do they handle the league alone? Then why is the Magic Herb in such bad condition? That comes from low-level gates too.”
“I will make a request.”
“Warn them. If nothing changes next time, cut off the deal. I will see it personally. And next……”
Handling her duties, Choi Yeo-shim entered the inner quarters and checked the time, quickly preparing to receive a guest.
“Are all afternoon appointments cleared?”
“Yes.”
“Make sure the apprentices don’t see—control access to the inner quarters.”
“Yes.”
“As the family’s benefactor, please take extra care, Elder.”
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