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Player Association’s Satellite Management Team, research institute.
About ten minutes after the first alarm.
In the satellite lab, holograms with warning messages floated all over like red lights.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
The sound of alarms constantly going off meant one thing.
The gaps of the otherworlds are widening and increasing.
Im Jihwa, head of the satellite management team, was in a hurry as she rushed from her office to the research room.
Based on the numerical changes that Im Jihwa remembers, the number of otherworlds occurring is now more than ten times than usual.
Ten times as many otherworlds are spawning on the Korean Peninsula.
Im Jihwa asked the researchers.
“Are all the pro-player teams dispatched?”
“The only available team is…”
“Contact all the top 30 teams in Korea that have good records in dealing with otherworlds.”
“Huh? Oh, even the teams on standby are… Ah, yes, the team on the list earlier, right? I sent them a carrier pigeon, but…”
“They didn’t answer? We don’t know what’s going to happen now that the number of otherworlds isn’t decreasing.”
The researcher stammered and Im Jihwa finished the thought for them.
That researcher wasn’t in charge of contacting outside, but they were temporarily given the job.
Although they used emergency utility items, their resources are limited and the researcher has no prior experience.
‘But it’s fortunate that they didn’t completely panic in this emergency.’
When an otherworld occurs, it’s automatic that the satellite calls a professional player team on call.
At first, they sent a request to player teams to assist in evacuation, but communication within the association wasn’t smooth.
Although the news was reported outside using emergency items, communication problems occurred all over the association.
Satellite information is being received through their own line though, so at least the situation isn’t more severe.
‘If we hadn’t rebuilt the satellite communication system to enable reception of information from the Moon Palace, we might’ve never known what’s happening on time!’
In the association’s library, a network was established through energy waves to receive information through the Moon Palace and existing satellite information at the same time.
There was no problem with receiving satellite information.
The problem was the content itself.
“It’s not just broken, is it?”
“The numbers have been strange since earlier! Another otherworld spawned!”
“Impossible… Where is it?”
“We’ve been informed that all the on-call player teams are on their way!”
The association has a team of professional players on standby to target two or three times the size of otherworlds.
If it wasn’t for this situation, their standby manpower would be sufficient.
In fact, some even suggest that the association’s standby team should be reduced.
But in the current situation, it was not enough.
“On Christmas Eve of all days. The satellite team is working, but there’s no one in the association!”
“Which department is working today? I don’t think the satellite team alone can solve it.”
“I heard from the PR team…”
There’s tension in the satellite lab at the mention of the PR team.
In their heads, they thought about PR Team 1 and 2.
PR Team 1 was led by the good and talented workaholic Hong Gyubin.
Team Leader Park on the other hand, who feels inferior to PR Team 1, leads the other team.
When asked who they wanted to work with on any crisis, the answer was obvious.
If they were to work with the latter, this situation was likely to worsen.
That team would take credit if things went well but put the blame on others if things went wrong.
And it’s more likely that things will go wrong.
One of the researchers asked urgently.
“It’s Team 1, right? Please say yes, Team Leader Im Jihwa!”
“It’s Team 2. I ran into Team Leader Park on my way to work.”
“Ah…”
Some researchers lost their morale.
Im Jihwa didn’t show it, but she was also hurt.
There’s a high possibility that TL Park would rush into the lab, saying that he would reexamine the satellite system to deal with the situation.
TL Park, who was trying to dig up the work of PR Team 1 and the Regulatory Enforcement Department, recently talked to Im Jihwa while wandering around the lab.
‘I have to stop him. Crisis or whatever, I can’t believe it.’
Im Jihwa recalled the association employees who worked on the Hwanmong Auction case.
How cleverly they stole association information and played tricks.
Im Jihwa became more vigilant after that.
The only reliable ones in the association now are Im Jihwa’s own researchers.
Among them was Song Daesok, who now has his head on the screen and is moving his hands frantically.
He was using all his knowledge to analyze what was going on in Eungwang High.
Song Daesok wouldn’t answer even when he was talked to, only murmuring unknown figures.
Im Jihwa didn’t intervene and let him do what he wanted to do.
‘The first otherworld occurred in Eungwang High. I’ll let Daesok analyze what’s going on there.’
Song Daesok was bothered by the unnatural disconnected phone call with Min Geurin and the abnormalities observed in Eungwang High.
A photo of a cloud covering Eungwang High was taken by the Player SAT-K.
A convection phenomenon and air indicators were observed around it.
Various observations outside the allowable range of error from the normal figures.
On top of that, the output value shown in the program that indexes the concentration of energy poison was high, indicating that frozen otherworlds have spawned.
Putting everything together, Song Daesok came to a conclusion.
When he finally looked up, it was fifteen minutes after the first warning.
“…”
“Daesok found something.”
“…Energy poison comes from frozen otherworlds.”
“Yeah.”
“Based on the changes in air quality and temperature on the surface detected by the Moon Palace…”
Song Daesok explained as if he couldn’t believe what he was considering.
It was difficult to understand that he murmured with rapid-fire, but all the researchers who were accustomed to Song Daesok’s unique words understood him.
Although the explanation was lengthy, Song Daesok finished in a short time.
“The energy poison is freezing Eungwang High’s boundary.”
After hearing Song Daesok’s conclusion, Im Jihwa hurriedly expanded the display that showed Eungwang High.
She thought it was taken incorrectly because the boundary of Eungwang High as seen through the clouds was unclear, but perhaps she was wrong.
What could be seen beyond the cloud was pure white frost.
It was freezing at Eungwang High.
“I don’t think the energy poison will be able to penetrate the boundary, but the school is still exposed to this strange weather.”
Song Daesok’s words got faster and faster.
Even so, his mind seemed to be all about Min Geurin.
As he said, Eungwang High’s boundary prevents unauthorized entry, but not the weather.
There is wind, rain, and snow in Eungwang High.
In other words, the boundary is affected by external weather changes and temperatures.
If so, the impact of the frost that covered the boundary was obvious.
The frost will be directed to Eungwang High.
“Are the people behind this intending to freeze Eungwang High?”
If the entire boundary is frozen, a huge ice dome will be created.
Who knows what would happen to the students inside?
Not only would they suffer from the cold, but it would make entering from outside even more difficult.
Song Daesok spoke in a trembling voice.
“How many teams are dispatched to Eungwang High now?”
“…”
Im Jihwa couldn’t answer the question properly.
The teams on standby were assigned primarily to areas with many civilians.
In other words, non-players.
Eungwang High, home to many excellent players, usually responds to otherworld occurrences on their own.
If such otherworlds occur simultaneously in different places, the priority of sending teams to Eungwang High is low.
Song Daesok knew this, but he still asked.
Im Jihwa decided to answer honestly.
“…Not a single team.”
“…!”
Song Daesok jumped from his seat, but Im Jihwa moved faster and blocked him.
“Where are you going?!”
“The school of course!”
Song Daesok tried to shake off Im Jihwa to go outside, but the latter didn’t allow for it.
It seemed impossible to escape her or to use brute force.
Im Jihwa was smaller than Song Daesok, but she was a veteran player in charge of an important position in the association.
On the other hand, Im Jihwa felt like dying inside for blocking the young student.
‘It’s useless sending Daesok there when we don’t know what’s going on! Another victim is just gonna be added. But if this situation isn’t resolved, especially if something happens to Geurin…’
Their standoff lasted for a few seconds when…
“T-team leader! There’s something you need to see!”
The researcher temporarily in charge of outside communication spoke.
Im Jihwa almost shot back that she didn’t have the luxury of doing that, but her eyes opened wide when she saw the item in the hands of the researcher.
When Im Jihwa saw the seal on the wings of the carrier pigeon, she forgot that she was holding off Song Daesok and immediately checked the contents.
Seeing his chance, Song Daesok tried to run out of the lab.
“Professional player teams! Three of them are around Eungwang High!”
Im Jihwa’s voice made Song Daesok stop immediately.
‘Three? Isn’t that too many in this situation? No, just three can’t cover the entire school!’
Song Daesok still wanted to go, but the team leader’s next words made him think.
“The teams are Red Lion, Lake of Eternity, and…”
Im Jihwa mentioned two of the world’s leading professional teams.
And finally, the last one was a team that Song Daesok knew very well.
“The Han River Cycling Team. Iron Arm Song Manseok sunbaenim’s.”
The message that Im Yeonhwa showed was engraved with three professional player team logos.
What reassured Song Daesok wasn’t the red and blue teams.
He couldn’t take his eyes off the team logo that showed a fist firmly holding onto a bicycle handle.
The anxiety that eroded his rational thinking gradually faded.
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