Genius Archer’s Streaming - Chapter 805

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————

The Genius Archer’s Streaming Season 3 Episode 275
90. The Current (2)
China truly contained a diverse mix of people, ethnicities, and cultures.
Yet regarding this Civil M international tournament, China’s response was uniform, as if they were all bound by a single bloodline.
[Our China’s lucky streak continues~]
[At this point it might be getting boring]
[The undefeated run is honestly thanks to lucky matchups]
[Undefeated but no fun]
[The matchups are too one-sided?]
They all unanimously acknowledged that their bracket luck had been exceptional.
Some even complained that it was becoming tedious.
The matches had been that overwhelmingly dominant.
Objectively speaking, their opponents weren’t truly weak.
But China had never faced a worthy rival.
For instance, they’d never faced an opponent ranked higher than Persia or the Ottoman Empire.
Their previous opponent was Mali, a civilization loosely imagined based on African history.
Mali’s tournament performance was considerably better than Joseon’s, though they couldn’t reach the elite tier.
And now they faced Joseon in the semifinals…
[Not Japan, but Joseon… boring again]
[Joseon coming off five matches is rough]
[The finals would actually be interesting]
[China’s undefeated streak continues]
[Having Korea take a loss isn’t the worst thing]
Joseon’s underdog legend was creating tremendous momentum both domestically and internationally.
Yet from their perspective, Joseon was merely another fortunate matchup.
The win predictions reflected this reality.
[China 93%]
[Joseon 7%]
This prediction wasn’t made in China alone, but rather integrated expert opinions from around the world.
Some speculated that China had paid off the experts.
But even with money to burn, there was little reason to bribe predictions for a match that wasn’t even close.
In other words, this win rate was a reality that had to be accepted.
Even if Joseon had swept Japan 3-0 to advance, the odds likely wouldn’t have shifted much from this.
Just as climbing a high mountain doesn’t make the sun’s heat more intense.

* * *
“Hmm.”
Crackle.
A man rises from his seat, folding the newspaper away.
Nearly buzz-cut black hair, classic wire-rimmed glasses, sharp eyes.
A refined appearance that seemed to tolerate no margin for error.
He was Youbi, China’s Supreme Commander.
It was an intentional nickname. His two Assistant Commanders were Guan Yu and Zhang Fei, after all.
Of course, initially his nickname was something like Youbi 325, but as he built his reputation as a player, he purchased the ID outright. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei did the same.
He spent a fortune buying the ID, but people say he should have purchased Cao Cao instead.
Whether in personality or appearance, there was nothing about him that resembled Youbi—he was far closer to Cao Cao.
“Not 100%? Those Joseon thugs. Did they take a bribe?”
He muttered this expressionlessly, reaching for a biscuit placed in the waiting room.
Carbohydrates before a match were essential.
“Who would spend money on that.”
Guan Yu, tapping away at a handheld game device beside him, replied flatly.
“They might be trying to salvage some shred of pride.”
“Ha. It’s a total loss anyway. What pride is there? Youbi.”
Zhang Fei appeared and opened the prepared refrigerator door.
It was packed with beer.
Of the three—Youbi, Guan Yu, and Zhang Fei—he was the one who most lived up to his name.
Enormous height, a burly build, and most importantly, the habit of guzzling alcohol before important matches.
“Hands off.”
Zhang Fei’s hand was awkwardly fondling a beer bottle.
“…Really. Against Joseon of all opponents.”
“Hands off.”
“Sigh… We came to Japan. Can’t drink whiskey or beer.”
“Because you’re trying to drink before the match.”
“Even in the previous game…”
“Hands off.”
Ahem.
Zhang Fei, thinking there was nothing to be done, merely rubbed his chin and sat on the sofa.
Watching Zhang Fei, Youbi swallowed his words silently.
‘How much longer will he try to suppress his nerves that way.’
I pretend not to notice, let him believe I don’t know.
But I knew the truth.
Zhang Fei was drowning his tension in alcohol.
Knowing this, I had permitted some drinking before matches up until now.
Especially now, maintaining our undefeated streak, Zhang Fei’s burden had doubled compared to the previous season.
Yet I could not allow him to resort to alcohol against Joseon, our opponent this time.
‘Since an easy opponent has appeared, I need to eliminate them.’
When facing such an opponent, I had to switch up the things I normally held back.
Otherwise, I couldn’t defeat the finalist.
“Player entrance!”
Just then, a staff member outside called for the players to enter.
“Let’s go.”
They donned their uniforms and walked out side by side.
From the adjacent entrance, Joseon’s players also walked out.
‘…Huh?’
Youbi’s neatly groomed eyebrows twitched.
‘What is this.’
The player standing at the very front.
This wasn’t the player he had anticipated.
‘Cookie?’
Joseon, which I thought would continue with the Choi Sun-sin system, suddenly fielded Cookie as their starter.

* * *
“Roooaaarrr!”
Both teams’ players entered, and the game began.
“Alright. The game has started! The map is… a rugged mountain valley! Joseon is blue at 2 o’clock, China is red at 8 o’clock.”
A rugged mountain valley.
A mountain map filled with mountainous terrain over seventy percent.
Simply put, it’s certainly quite advantageous for Joseon, which has a mountain-dwelling faction, but.
The problem is that archers are reluctant to shoot their bows in heavily wooded mountainous terrain.
On top of that, it becomes difficult to ride horses, making it harder to deploy Joseon’s ultimate weapon of the 3 o’clock era—the mounted archers.
“Ah. This map!”
However, King Gul’s expression brightens considerably.
“This is from the Viking match! The map you chose with the map selection option, right!?”
It was precisely the map chosen in the Round of 32, the first match of the main tournament, during the Viking strategy.
In other words, it’s a map with good memories for Joseon.
“Ahhh!?”
The caster, having forgotten, recalls the memory with surprise.
-Oh right, that one??
-Huh? Then they can gather in the middle and do curve shots???
-Wow
-Lucky start lol
-Good beginning and
“This is the map Joseon chose!? No, then they can gather in the middle and do curve shots again! That means this is possible again, right!?”
“That’s correct. As I mentioned before, the central rocky mountain valley, which is the greatest characteristic of this map, has been maintained without any randomness, right?”
“That’s right. You explained back then that each map has such elements to some degree. It seems like it came out the same way this time as well, doesn’t it?”
“Everything else changes, but that place stays the same! However…!”
King Gul uttered the most crucial point.
“Whether they can actually use that same strategy again is something we’ll have to wait and see!”
“Ah…!”
The Viking didn’t know and fell for it, but China could have known about this fact.
“I don’t think China would be unaware of this?”
“Ah… I see. So the strategy has already been leaked. But with the mountainous terrain, wouldn’t that be disadvantageous for Joseon?”
“That’s correct. However, it’s difficult for archers to be effective, and this map can’t be rushed early on?”
“That’s right. Isn’t that good news for Joseon?”
Joseon is a 3rd Age civilization.
It’s a civilization whose peak is in the 3rd Age.
In that era, they gain access to a considerable number of combat factions simultaneously—Gakgung, crossbowmen, mounted archers, Waldo, and more.
The firepower Joseon unleashes all at once during this period is unmatched by any other civilization.
Victory or defeat has always hinged on how well they protect their resources until the 3rd Age.
“Yes… normally that would be the case! But this season’s Joseon has covered many of their early weaknesses through aggressive plays?”
This season, Joseon switched their defensive approach to instead launch sharp, aggressive strikes against their opponents.
Choi Sun-sin’s unconditional 2nd Age rushes, Cookie’s ultra-early game unconventional rushes, and so on.
Many international observers view this season’s Joseon not as a 3rd Age civilization, but rather as a 2nd Age, or even a 1st Age civilization.
In other words, how Joseon will unfold on a map like this remains somewhat uncertain.
“Ah. I see? So Joseon can’t gain an advantage from early rushing in this situation… and now it actually feels like a disadvantage?”
“Exactly. Joseon has always adopted the method of gaining advantages through such rushes to survive the early game.”
“But wouldn’t it be even better if they could just skip the early game without attacking at all?”
“Yes. That would be the correct theory… but there’s a problem even with that approach!”
Of course, being able to simply skip the early game is still a considerable advantage for Joseon as a civilization.
However, that’s only true if the opponent isn’t China.
“While Joseon is a 3rd Age civilization… China is a 4th Age civilization!?”
-Wow
-Late game is insane
-For real
Huh? Lol
-Ah…
“There’s a meme that says ‘China’s 4th Age is the 5th Age!’ If you watch how China progresses through ages, you’ll see it’s not 1, 2, 3 like that!”
“Ah! That’s right! It goes Tang, Song, Yuan, Ming, right?”
“And on top of that, they can also adopt ages like Liao and Jin?”
Chinese territory is so vast and its history so expansive that the ruling peoples were equally diverse.
The game developers pondered how to handle this and ultimately decided to apply all civilizations that arose based on the land.
Because of this, China’s ages aren’t marked with numbers, and even ‘lateral age transitions’ are possible.
They can adopt competing civilizations that existed in the same era.
“These unlock one by one, right? So! Age-up calls become a bit ambiguous. When you unlock all of these, it’s practically the 6th Age! The 6th Age!”
-Wow
-Hahaha
-Since human wave tactics won’t work, they’re going with time-stalling tactics lol
-No seriously lol
-Isn’t Yuan Dynasty just Mongolia? lol
-Chop suey really is the essence of Chinese cuisine
“So we can just jump straight to Ming Dynasty then!?”
“That’s not possible mechanically! But once you unlock them one by one, you can choose and pick later!”
“Ah!”
China’s historical eras also follow a predetermined sequence.
It starts with the Tang Dynasty.
Then you choose between Song, Liao, Jin, and Yuan.
“You pick from Song, Liao, Jin, and Yuan, and unlock other ones too! And this is where it gets absolutely maddening! The player has way too much to manage! And the opponent faces real hell!”
-What kind of UN is this? Even Mongolia’s Yuan Dynasty is lumped into the China civilization
-This is insane lol
-But China’s difficulty as a playable faction is the highest, that’s facts
Song, Liao, Jin, Yuan.
China gains access to four different civilizations.
And choosing one doesn’t prevent you from choosing another.
As long as you build the relevant structures, you can obtain the traits of all nations.
However, only the Ming Dynasty can be unlocked after unlocking one of those four preceding civilizations.
“What makes this really difficult to deal with is that it becomes impossible to pin down exactly what China is! Up through Song Dynasty, it’s somewhat similar to Tang Dynasty’s axis, but once the other traits start unlocking! Suddenly armored cavalry appear! Then it becomes hit-and-run like Mongolia! Or infantry pure combat power skyrockets like Vikings! It’s just chaos!?”
Among the four options.
Three nations besides Song are not Han ethnicity but other peoples.
Yuan of the Mongols, Jin of the Jurchen, Liao of the Khitans.
So their traits are distinctly different.
When the initial traits unlock one or two at a time, it’s not particularly concerning.
But imagine all these civilizations’ traits are unlocked, and then China enters the Ming Dynasty.
China essentially possesses the faction of six eras.
In theory, no civilization becomes as powerful as China if the game drags on.
Even Persia, which is known for being strong in the late game, has to rely on early-game strategies against China.
“So! Right now with this treacherous mountain terrain blocking the way in the early game! I’m not sure how Joseon will utilize it! But fundamentally, we must consider that time favors China!”
-That’s real
-Still, they’ll decide it within 3 eras
-This is gonna be tough though
-How can it not work?
Time favors China.
Mountain valleys drag out the game.
But the map’s inherent characteristics favor Joseon’s basic faction.
On the other hand, there’s the difficulty of utilizing archery effectively.
Favorable and unfavorable factors overlap in complex ways.
“But!!”
In King Gul’s view, the greatest stroke of fortune for Joseon today was none other than this.
“Who is Joseon’s Commander today!?”
“Cookie! It’s Cookie!”
The Commander who started in today’s lineup.
“Yes! Cookie is the very person who selected this map!?”
“Ahhhhh!”
The fact that Cookie had chosen this map and was the Commander who had played it.
This alone was enough to say that fortune smiled upon Joseon.
“Think about how much he must have researched just to make that direct choice! His understanding of this map will be incredibly high!”
Cookie’s current mastery of this map could rival even the most exceptional Commanders.
“What other Commander would spend such an enormous amount of time studying a single map! Only a Commander in Joseon’s uniquely constrained situation would do such a thing!?”
The special condition of being the map selector.
The long preparation period from the preliminaries to the first main tournament.
And on top of that, the Commander who had designed everything from the ground up had been resting and now appeared in the starting lineup.
From the opponent’s perspective, it felt like an almost suspiciously perfect stroke of luck.
“Ah, right now! Joseon! I’m already seeing some unusual movements!?”
Not even having reached the 2nd era yet.
The blue dots on the minimap begin to move in an ominous manner.

—————
This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
—————