How to Survive Restructuring

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

Chapter 114: Showdown (2)

【The 'External Affairs Department's Rookie' shakes his head, wondering why he had to face an opponent with cloning abilities.】

【The 'Investigation Bureau's Brain' is impressed, calling it a talent specialized for tug-of-war.】

【Numerous observers are curious about how 'Lee Eunho' will counter this!】

A stark difference in the number of members on each team.

I considered using a burst of speed to grab hold of the real body, but at this point, I wasn’t even sure which one was real.

"Hyung! That bastard is smiling!"

To make things worse, every single one of them had that eerie smirk.

They must have noticed.

That I was unsettled.

"Shit, smiling?"

"That bastard used a dirty trick and now he's grinning…!"

The murmur of dissatisfaction grows louder.

The sight of a gruesome corpse, the single-match showdown to advance to the next round, and now, a sudden Korea-Japan rivalry.

Everyone was getting heated.

"Better to finish second to last after winning against Japan than to come in second place by losing to them."

A joke, but one that illustrates just how much Korea-Japan matches fire people up.

"We have to win."

No matter what.

No exceptions.

To do that—

"Yura, hold my hand tight and stay hidden, okay? You can do that, right?"

"Yes! Pretty unni, I like you!"

With the little ninja.

"So, if I hold this little one’s hand, I become invisible?"

"Yeah. If you let go, the effect disappears immediately, so hold on tight."

—I needed the artist’s help.

To execute a Ninja-Style Diversion Tactic—a strategy combining tug-of-war superiority with a way to counter their techniques.

The only issue was—

"Don’t go too far. It’s dangerous."

"Got it. I’ll stay within my ability’s range… It’s just hard to see from here."

Yeon Bora’s ability only works on areas within her direct line of sight.

Meaning, if she wanted to interfere in the enemy camp, she had to be able to see them with her own eyes.

"Are you really okay with just the two of you?"

"Of course! We do this all the time."

"If I go, it’ll be safer, though…"

"Come on, ahjussi, you need to focus on the tug-of-war. Every person counts right now."

Yeon Bora was right.

We were already at a massive disadvantage in numbers, and if I disappeared, those clones tailing me would go on high alert.

"Hyung! Five seconds left!"

"Got it! Oppa, hurry inside!"

Paah!

The two little ladies vanished.

Tadak!

I took position in front of Park Gongchan.

As I gripped the rough, firm rope—

A gunshot rang out.

— Bang!

[The time limit is 1 minute!]

[The tug-of-war begins!]

A battle of strength with our lives on the line had begun.

* * *

"Pull!"

"Yes!"

「01:00」

The intense shouts mark the start of the one-minute match.

Tadak!

Unseen footsteps echo.

I try to track them with my ears, but there’s no time.

"Haah—!"

With a war cry from hundreds of clones—

Fwaaaah!

"!!"

"Urgh…!"

The enemy yanks hard the moment the match starts.

No strategy, no tactics—just sheer numbers and weight.

"Ugh… I can’t hold on…!"

"We’re getting dragged…!"

Even I struggled, my feet slipping multiple times on the dirt.

The others had it worse.

So I clenched my core and shouted.

"Lie back!"

"Ughh…!"

"Just hold on a little longer!"

With my roar, everyone dug their heels in.

I felt a sharp, tingling sensation from my toes up due to the sheer force pressing against me.

「00:50」

Only ten seconds had passed.

Gritting my teeth, I noticed the buzz-cut ninjas frowning.

"You… are more naive than I thought."

"What?"

"You should know when to give up on a losing battle. Korea has a tiring leader."

…Ha?

"Five hundred clones talking nonsense at once does make an impact. Wait, is that why you learned cloning?"

"…How arrogant."

His expression twisted in displeasure.

After glancing at my team behind me, he regained his composure.

"This time, we will take the victory."

It wasn’t just bluffing.

"Ugh… we can’t… hold on…!"

Those behind me were collapsing forward instead of lying back.

"Ahhh!"

"No, we’re losing!"

They stumbled, their bodies folding forward, barely keeping hold of the rope.

"We’re being pushed back!"

And because of that, the crushing weight from behind bore down on me.

I lurched forward.

Sssssssssssssssssk!

Even though my feet were planted, my entire body, holding onto the rope, was being pulled forward.

Everything we had endured so far seemed like a joke.

It was a completely hopeless situation.

However—

"It's fine!"

It was all within expectations.

Tug-of-war is a game of weight and strength.

There was no way we could win by just pulling.

I had realized that from the start.

And yet, we had to keep pulling for one reason.

"As long as we don’t cross the victory line, we’re fine! Just hold on!"

In other words, like an anchor buried deep in the ocean floor, you must plant your feet firmly into the ground and endure.

[First, pull the knot in the center of the rope to your team's 'victory line.']

[Second, if the time limit expires, the team that holds the knot within their area wins.]

As long as the rope knot doesn’t get pushed past the victory line, ending the match immediately, everything will be fine.

Then, in the meantime, the scouts infiltrating the enemy lines...

"Sculpt!"

I'll flip the board.

"You're right."

I immediately opened my mouth to drown out the faint voice of Yeon Bora.

Just in case any of them tried to locate the source of the voice.

"What do you mean?"

The clones raised an eyebrow, questioning.

"You have to give up on fights you can't win."

"What?"

"And win the fights you can."

"...!"

Their expressions hardened as if they were about to charge at me.

It's too early to be frowning.

Because—

"This is a fight we can win."

「00:30」

Thirty seconds before the match ends.

"What are you—"

A deafening roar cut off the clones' words.

Boom—!

The ground trembled.

"W-what is this?!"

"The ground is shaking!"

"Kyahhh! I think I’m going to fall!"

Beyond the sea of clones, glimpses of the Japanese side showed utter chaos.

Like passengers on a ship tossed in a violent storm.

Fwoosh!

An invisible excavator dug into the ground.

Deep.

Even deeper.

"Ahhhh! The ground is rising!"

"E-earthquake! We need to evacuate…!"

And finally.

Fwoooosh—!

The ground surged upward at an angle.

Lifting everything—the people who couldn't hold onto the rope and their terrified screams.

"Aaahhh! I'm sliding!"

"Kyaaaahhh—!"

An artificially created steep slope.

With people clinging to it like dominoes.

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]

‘Yeon Bora… She really does have the artist's touch.’

She must have made it in a hurry.

Yet the slanted ground was sturdy enough that no one sank into the soil, and even the sides had barriers to prevent them from falling off.

'Truly the work of a professional.'

Now, they had no other option.

Ssssssst!

They had no choice but to slide down like a giant slide.

"Aaaahhh!"

"Hey, hey! Stop pushing!"

「00:30」

The situation had changed.

"Pull! Now!"

"Yes, hyung!"

"Got it!"

People tumbled down.

Seizing the chance, we pulled the rope with all our strength.

Srrrkkk!

Unlike before, the rope came toward us without resistance.

"Move back!"

I shouted forcefully and stepped backward.

One step, then another.

Toward our victory line.

"What is this… Ugh!"

Some clones were crushed under the falling mass of people.

Flash—!

A few of them disappeared.

Thud!

Some managed to jump away to assess the situation.

"This bastard was scheming…!"

The rest glared at me, gritting their teeth in fury.

Hmm.

Scheming, huh?

Srrrkkk!

"You counter abilities with abilities."

"You…!"

Whoosh—!

Dust clouds thickened, making it hard to breathe.

"Shit! Just a bit more!"

"We're almost there!"

Through the dust, my teammates’ desperate shouts echoed.

Less than ten steps remained to the victory line.

The Japanese representative, realizing this, wiped all expression from his face.

'…?!'

Clack! Srrrkk—!

He let go of the rope.

All at once, hundreds of clones followed suit.

"Ghk!"

"Shit! Why would you just let go like that?!"

"H-Hyung! They’ve surrendered!"

‘They surrendered?’

"You need to know when to give up a lost battle. Korea has a tough leader."

I did say that.

That you should give up on fights you can't win.

But—

"Does that look like the face of someone who's given up?"

"…!"

Whoosh—!

He vanished.

Leaving behind only the gaze of a predator.

Chills.

"…Pull the rope! Quickly!"

"Yes!"

We tugged harder, shaking off the last bits of resistance.

The rope now coiled toward us like an unraveling thread.

"Just a little more!"

If push came to shove, I'd sprint with it.

Thinking that, I stepped back further.

With that thought, I stepped back.

Clang!

The sound of blades clashing.

Swoosh!

Throwing stars flew toward me.

"!!"

Jet-black blades that could swallow sunlight were coming at me.

From right in front.

From the side.

From above.

From behind.

From the lower left.

From within the crowd...

Hundreds of shurikens thrown by hundreds of people.

"This is insane!"

Before the match started, there had been a clear warning.

A ‘severe penalty’ would be given if anyone from the opposing team was killed.

[[However, for a fair game, please note that if the opposing team dies due to a direct attack, a severe penalty will be imposed!]]

So they didn’t care what happened next, as long as they won this round?

"Su-summon!!"

"Yura…!"

"Acceleration!"

"Ahhhhhhhhh!"

The security guard urgently raised his shield.

Hanul threw himself forward.

Toward the hidden kids, somewhere amidst the incoming shurikens.

But rather than searching for those I couldn’t see...

'It’d be faster to deflect all the shurikens than to find them one by one.'

With that thought, I moved my lips and feet.

"Petrification."

I wrapped myself in the lightest shield in the world.

"Summon."

Then, I swung my sword and shield.

Thunk! Thududududuk!

The sound of the shurikens being deflected by my blade was like raindrops hitting the ground.

Using a sword wind skill would be faster, but Yura and Bora might get hit.

'15 seconds.'

Most of the slow-moving shurikens had been buried in the ground.

Just as I was about to relax and turn around—

Thunk!

A slow, dull sound.

'!!'

Not a swoosh, but a thunk.

Instead of slicing through the air, it had already struck something.

'Who was it?'

Danger.

The shurikens were pitch black, either to avoid reflecting light or because they were poisoned.

If it was poison…

A chill ran down my spine as I hastily scanned the area.

Looking for someone who had a serrated shuriken lodged in their body.

And then—

Thunk!

Another sound.

'Again?!'

Was it the same person?

But no one here had been hit…

'Wait.'

I froze mid-turn.

Because I had just spotted two shurikens floating in the air.

Tick—!

Time resumed its normal flow.

"Y-Yura... huh?"

"Whaaaaat... huh?"

The people started moving again.

The Japanese representatives were checking the shurikens embedded in the ground instead of our bodies.

Time was definitely moving properly.

But then—

"Hyung! Why are those…!"

Why weren’t those two shurikens falling?

Why were they frozen in place?

Like sugar stars stuck in a giant jelly.

"A barrier...?"

Someone muttered.

'So it really was…'

An impossible phenomenon.

Unless it was someone's ability.

Alright, then.

"Who is it this time?"

[Translator - Night]

[Proofreader - Gun]