The Ed Cup has concluded. After a month-long journey, this year the owner of the throne has been revealed.
There was no surprise. It was China. BEG, with Richao, won the Ed Cup again this year.
The winning team has not changed from last year.
What has changed is the runner-up.
This year, opinions were divided about BEG and VIX7 sharing the spots for champion and runner-up, but XBD from Korea unexpectedly took second place instead.
There were Koreans celebrating an unexpected achievement and Americans groaning in response to unexpected underperformance.
In a turn of events, Yen Sunny has decided to officially retire after this Ed Cup.
If the performance had been good, he might have reconsidered. Third place is not a low rank by any means, but his primary goal was to win.
If coming in second is a step away from the championship, it is understandable that he felt dissatisfied.
There was an option to retract the statement and attempt a comeback next year, but perhaps he felt it was too shameful, or maybe he was just too tired and wanted to rest.
Despite fans’ pleas, Yen Sunny chose retirement.
What had become a mere last dance of words turned into a true final struggle.
China was very pleased to have retained the throne once again. The lofty shoulders raised to the sky were a bonus.
It has already been four years in terms of years, marking the number of consecutive wins for the Chinese league in the Ed Cup.
The fact that previous Chinese teams had won or that there were Korean mercenaries within BEG did not offer much comfort to Korean fans.
They desperately wanted to see the Korean league performing strongly in international competitions and wanted to witness a Korean team winning the Ed Cup.
Therefore, typically, the community should have been ablaze for 24 hours straight. Because the Korean team did not win.
Day and night. It was clear that disputes would arise across the internet.
In common terms, it was the “Gald Cup” and “finding the culprit.” Starting with analyses of why they didn’t win this time, who underperformed, who played below their usual standard, who was just awful, and thus XBD couldn’t do it. Words couldn’t do it. VIX7 couldn’t do it. Regarding the level of the fans. Don’t manufacture drama, etc…
Rather than criticisms based on rational analyses, it was a cascade of accusations stemming from pure malice.
However, this year, contrary to expectations, the community was quiet. No, it was more than quiet; it was surprisingly cordial.
It was an exceedingly strange sight in a place where personal insults had frequently occurred. A longtime member of the community felt compelled to hit the back button, wondering if they had entered the wrong place.
<XBD, if you love these kids, upvote! lol>
First of all, me lol
ㅇㅇ: Where’s the shame in coming in second? I’m genuinely feeling like kissing them.
ㅇㅇ: I didn’t think VIX7 would lose. Haha.
ㅇㅇ: At least we didn’t end up in the quarterfinals like last time, so this is good. I can at least say I’m an XBD fan somewhere.
ㅇㅇ: Last year, it was embarrassing to the max, right?
The reasons varied widely. This year, it seems our players really came out with grit; their gameplay was sharp, second place was still commendable, and at least they beat North America, etc.
However, the main reason they received this exemption from criticism was the satisfactory performance.
The achievement of coming in second in an international event was something fans couldn’t hide their excitement about after a long time.
Fans, who had faced lackluster performances previously, had been parched for a long-standing international achievement, albeit they didn’t show it.
They tried not to get their hopes up. Yet, this time it turned out to be a significant success. There was no way they wouldn’t be satisfied.
Defeating North America’s renowned Yen Sunny also amplified their joy.
And there was another massive reason. This was also a substantial reason for fans to become satisfied with this performance, making them feel that Eo War still had strength in Korea.
<Mollu <<< The wall even pro players cannot surpass>
The one and only master of the Korean server, certified by Richao ㅇㅇ
ㅇㅇ: Is the teacher your friend?
ㅇㅇ: I never thought I’d hear that she’s better than the pros.
ㅇㅇ: Richao thought Mollu was a male ㅇㅇ Of course, he said that after seeing her face.
ㄴ ㅇㅇ: Info) Richao only found out during the interview that Mollu was female.
ㅇㅇ: When he lost in solo ranking, he made all sorts of excuses about how Richao was holding back, but now he’s admitting it.
ㄴ ㅇㅇ: If Richao himself acknowledged it, that changes everything.
Another reason was, in fact, the presence of Mollu.
She is the queen of the Chinese league and is currently recognized as the best in the world for Eo War by Richao.
She is Korean, holds a Challenger rank on the Korean server, and recently defeated Richao in a ranked match.
This fact brought a sense of national pride to Eo War fans in Korea.
No matter how much Korean fans insulted Richao, calling him a piglet or saying he looked like Ping Ping, they had to acknowledge his skill.
Richao is at the peak even among pros, and all Korean teams have been defeated by him. He is indeed a master.
How incredible is Mollu, who wants to face him again? Korean fans felt considerable pride in her being Korean.
These two factors combined caused the community to maintain a heated atmosphere without any unusual flames. For others, it was quite prolonged.
*
“So, what’s going on?”
“Yes, well…”
The Ed Cup had successfully concluded after the finals. It was a journey of about a month.
Ignoring the stares from people that felt sharp after Richao’s comments, I commented for a few days. After fulfilling the set number of commentary sessions, I was finally able to rest in peace.
Then the league called me back in.
The man from the sales department, whom I’d met previously, was carefully choosing his words in front of me. Was it now the sales manager?
Whenever the league has something to say to me, this guy always comes up and does this. It has become a familiar sight now.
“Um, there’s a proposal for an event match. Are you interested?”
“An event match?”
An event match. It is a special exhibition match occasionally held after such massive events.
But it is usually filled with pros. It’s typical for them to enjoy a light game to signal the end of the event.
Why would someone like me, who is not a pro, participate?
Suddenly, something flashed through my mind.
“Is it Richao by any chance?”
“Yes, initially the proposal came from the Chinese side…”
It was indeed something that piglet initiated. The desire to face me clearly reached this side.
He could have just requested a 1v1 separately. Well, he probably wouldn’t have accepted that anyway.
While I was thinking over it, the manager opened his mouth.
“They want to hold a friendly match gathering pros who wish to face Mollu. It’s the idea of ‘Beat Mollu’.”
“Beat Mollu…? What is this, a family game show?”
I said that out of disbelief, and the manager coughed lightly.
“But if we’re talking about pros who want to play with me, it’s only Richao, right? Why not just do a 1v1, I wonder if we even have enough for a 6v6.”
“Um… I did a survey among the players beforehand. Surprisingly, many are interested. In fact, we might not have enough spots.”
“What?”
Michael and Yang Jun-hyuk from VIX7, Richao and Bingbing from BEG. And among them, many players wanted to join a game with me.
“The attention is focused on this. Many will be curious about how Mollu, who was so highly praised by Richao, plays. A lot of players who haven’t met Mollu in ranked also want to see her performance.”
“The lure was quite strong…”
I clicked my tongue softly and contemplated. I didn’t have a particular aversion to it. Playing a game isn’t a big deal.
When else would I get to team up and compete with such top-tier players? For some, it’s an experience that they would pay a fortune to have.
“Even if it’s just a friendly match, it’s being held after the Ed Cup. Would people even care if someone like me participates? The people coming to watch likely paid good money.”
“They would probably enjoy it.”
The manager mentioned that not only domestic fans but also overseas fans are curious about the famous Korean Samurai’s playstyle.
“Especially from China. Not just because of Richao, but they might have wanted to see it at least once. It seems they got the idea to schedule the event during the downtime. Additionally, just two years ago, a famous overseas streamer also participated in the event match, so it should be fine, right?”
China’s financial strength holds great significance in international leagues. There are even claims that the eSports industry remains profitable due to the overwhelming capital continuously being injected.
So a proposal from China was not bad; it was even intriguing, making it hard to find a reason to refuse.
Of course, whether the event takes place or not is entirely up to me. If I want to do it, I can, and if I don’t, that’s fine too.
The manager knows this well, so he neither pressures nor lures me. He simply finishes all explanations and waits.
I had already made up my mind from the midpoint of his explanation.
“Sure, let’s do the event match.”
There was no reason to refuse.
It was an opportunity to legally put that annoying Richao in his place. How many times a day have I heard the term “Korean Samurai” because of that guy?
Just bring it, you bastard. It’s probably going to sting more than you think.
