Running Man (Team)

“	Players, equipped with special watches and shields, compete against each other and the winner’s tribe would be awarded with Materion, the sacred fruit of the Soul Tree. These brave players, who throw themselves in this fierce fight, we call them the Running Man.	”
—Narration

A 'Running Man' is the title for the players of each tribe competing in the Running Man Championships. It is later used to refer to the main characters of the series. According to the complete encyclopedia, Players who have passed the preliminary round are chosen as representatives for each race and will advance to the finals in Tree City.^[1]

The group is notable for at least having one member coming from each of the seven tribes, as well as being proficient in their tribe's general skills. Because of this, the group is known for being incredibly capable, being able to defeat the DV7 via careful calculation and teamwork.

History[]

Formation[]

Long ago, the God of Earth had emerged from the ground and turned into the soul tree, it's fruit becoming an energy source for civilization. Because of it's energy-giving properties, wars ensued among the seven tribes for the possession of it, eventually leading to a peace treaty to hold a competition instead. One player from each of the seven tribes, armed with special shields and watches, compete against each other for a piece of the fruit of the Materion. These brave players are referred to as the Running Man.

The Games[]

Team Change Battle[]

The Running Men were officially formed during the events of 'Team Change Battle', where Liu and the others had to throw away the game in order to incapacitate Pala, who had suddenly turned on them after retrieving a piece of a red crystal that had fallen from DV2's mask, making him incredibly violent.^[2]

Battle of the Highlands-The Red Explosion[]

Their relationship deepened during 'Battle of the Highlands' where, after getting defeated by the DV7, had chosen to work together to win against them with Liu's guidance. During this game, the Running Men found out about Gai's brainwashed state and lost spectacularly against the DV7, lowering their morale when they returned back to their dorms^[3]. Liu, who was determined to save Gai, went to each one of them in their rooms and persuaded them into working together with him.^[4]

After finally getting Gai out of his brainwashing, the group sympathized and went to comfort Liu, who became distant after finding out about his sister's sudden appearance.^[5]

Battle of the Thrones-The Last Card[]

With Liu's leadership, the group was able to devise a strategy and collaborate to defeat the DV7 and free them from their brainwashing. Despite losing the first round, they hadn't given up and were able to tag them off and remove their masks after careful calculation on Liu's part.^[6]

After removing their masks, the Running Men were confronted by Charming Gold who, as a last resort, decided to fight them himself using a mechanical robot designed to mimic their abilities. During the fight, Liu discovered the robot's weakness and, with the help of the rest of the group, as well as Shan and Makkhan, he was able to disable the robot and defeat Charming Gold.^[7]

They were then shown working together to seal Ulcus, using their skills to assist each other in avoiding its obstacles. When Pala was disintegrated by Ulcus' laser due to inserting the wrong relic, they were understandably distraught, but pushed their emotions aside in order to flee the God, failing^[8], and being saved by Popo, who sacrificed his age to turn back time to save them.

Because of their hope and teamwork, the group was able to convince Ulcus to seal itself and give their world a second chance.^[9]