StrawberryShooter's fists were shaking. Normally, a Master should've easily destroyed a Silver player.
He took a deep breath, but it was difficult to calm down.
Meanwhile, the chat was cursing at him. The influx of angry viewers came because of the betting. Ju-Hyeok's move resonated very well with them.
'Damn, who would’ve thought they would enable betting?'
StrawberryShooter ground his teeth. As a Master ranked player, this mental battle was incredibly challenging for him. From his perspective, winning was everything and the current round was a heavy burden with the added betting pressure.
[Choose your champion!]
Regardless, the game began. The world of gaming was, ‘Winner takes all.' If he won, everything would be solved.
“This time, StrawberryShooter gets to choose first! I'm excited to see what he'll pick!”
"Ah, it's Biker Gang Paul! He's an ADC, but is quite tanky and has good mobility."
Strawberry picked Biker Gang Paul. The champion used a shotgun, but unlike typical ADCs, he had high base HP and defense. It was a champion optimized for one-on-ones.
"A great pick, as expected from a Master player. Paul in one-on-ones is an excellent pick."
What would Almond do? It was time for him to pick.
"Now, it's time for Almond to choose. He picked... Ran? He picked Ran?"
Almond picked The Pure Sniper Ran.
'He's brought it out.'
Tako was glad to see it, but said the opposite.
"Ah... Ran has long range, but is very squishy. It won't be easy against Paul."
It was a difficult champion to use in a one-on-one match. From the caster's perspective, seeing it as a good pick was hard. However, Tako had a different perspective.
'If it's Almond's Ran... it's a different story.'
From his perspective, Ran fit Almond more than Raina. However, Almond didn't have much experience with him compared to Raina.
"I'm curious about what will happen."
Tako smiled as if he was having fun.
As soon as Ran was picked, he asked Almond.
What he said next took Almond by surprise.
Almond replied and tried not to hurt either of their feelings, "I thought it'd be good to play with you as well."
As those words were spoken, a strong presence was felt.
Ran appeared before Almond with his radiant blonde hair swept above his forehead. He turned around slightly, smiling at Almond.
[You're going to have to win.]
Almond responded to his words, analyzing the formidable opponent’s pick and picturing how he should play in his mind.
'If I allow Paul to engage me, I'll lose. When the minions block the way, I should position myself at an angle. There's no need to expend all my mana on a single shot...'
Unlike Raina, who could handle any situation if her physical abilities matched, Ran was a deity who required extremely careful handling. In combat, there were many conditions to consider. If he allowed the enemy to attack even for a moment, he would be torn apart more easily than a sheet of paper.
[Welcome to the battlefield!]
They were summoned back onto the battlefield.
Almond bought basic items and headed out.
'I need to position myself before the minions get there...'
He was leaping to a slightly different location than the usual summoner’s path. Engaging Paul head-on would not be beneficial for Ran in any way. Ran wouldn't be able to handle it if Paul approached him using minions as shields and started shooting with a shotgun.
'Attacking from a diagonal position, far to the right, is the most advantageous.'
Ran was a champion with a long range. He could gather and accumulate pure mana to the point of overloading and sniping from a distance. Typically, a concentration of mana disappeared from the world according to the order, but Ran's attack style and his mana purity pushed to the limit could surpass that. It could reach the end of the caster's line of sight. He took advantage of that overwhelming range to unilaterally strike the opponent.
'I need to take advantage of that.'
This champion was a free kill if he couldn't take advantage of that. Almond headed toward the bushes on the right and found a spot.
— Why's he going there?
— Aren't you going to get the minions?
— Are you trying to surprise him?
— If you get caught by Paul here, you're done.
— As expected from Ran, you're doing something sketchy. I knew it!
In this position, he could ambush Paul from the left side. However, it wasn't a pouncing attack like a beast. It was a sniper shot from a very far distance. Almond raised his index finger toward the sky.
It was the cognitive motion of gathering mana at a single point, a technique called Charge.
Initially, the mana gathered and flickered with a blue color until it gradually grew brighter.
It transformed into a pure white mana. Almond cautiously extended his index finger, which held the crystal of purity. Now, he only needed to choose when to release it.
The method of releasing this crystal of purity could be customized differently for each player. Some players threw it like a projectile, while others chose a motion resembling shooting a gun. Naturally, Almond─
He posed as if pulling back a bowstring. White wings spread around the crystal of purity, forming the curvature of a bow. It looked as if a bow had emerged from thin air. It was Ran's signature move.
— You're shooting already?
— Can you even see him?
— You're going to shoot before you even see him?
— Ah! I knew it! It's hard to hit when the minions get there, so he's shooting ahead of time!
Almond held his breath and waited for the opponent to show up.
'He's probably going to show up with the minions.'
The opponent probably had some expectations to a certain extent. In the beginning, wanting to land a skill shot was a common trait among all long-range champions. However, they couldn't anticipate where Almond had hidden.
'I've barely used Ran in solo queue. He won't know.'
Even if the opponent tried to analyze Almond's Ran, they couldn't predict this. It was a tactic devised at the end of the discussion with Ju-Hyeok. Something they were using for the first time today.
[Minions have spawned!]
There was a moment of silence on the battlefield. The only thing that could be heard was the sound of Ran's pure mana burning.
'He's going to be mixed in with the minions.'
The ground trembled as countless minions rushed in. The summoners were depicted as much larger and stronger than the minions. They were designed to stand out and made for a good target.
Spotting the spiked hairstyle of the biker gang wasn't difficult. Although Paul was hiding his body behind the minions, he assumed that Almond was positioned in front.
'There's an opening.'
Right now, StrawberryShooter was full of openings.
If Almond calculated the flying time as well, the moment was now.
He had perfect breath control and unwavering aim. Almond staked everything on a single release and his right hand let go of the virtual arrow.
A burst of white energy exploded, pushing Almond back. Recoiling from the impact, the soaring crystal roared.
A mass of white energy swallowed the wind and surged forward. At that moment, it struck the exposed forehead of the charging tribal warrior Paul.
Under the impact of the white shockwave, StrawberryShooter's head was forcefully pushed back.
Tako subconsciously got up from his seat in shock.
"Wait! He got hit in the head by a full charge crystal of purity from the start!"
Almond's aim and concentration were beyond imagination.
"There were a lot of minions, but he managed to pierce his arrow right past all of them!"
Despite the element of surprise, there were many obstacles. Yet Almond's white projectile smoothly navigated through the minions and precisely hit Paul's head. Accurately threading that needle with the first shot was in another realm of talent. In terms of marksmanship, it was like hitting dead center without adjusting the sights.
"Since it hit the head, it's a critical hit! StrawberryShooter is starting with his HP significantly cut down!!!"
StrawberryShooter backed off a little, taken aback by the initial impact.
"Huh? But StrawberryShooter isn't backing down easily!"
However, StrawberryShooter was Master tier. His decision-making was superior to Almond's. He regained his position and ran toward Almond.
"Ah! If they clash, he'll win! That's the mindset he has right now! If Almond clashes with him, it's quite dangerous!!"
Tako's excited voice rang true. If a fragile champion like Ran were to confront Paul head-on, there would be no chance of survival. To deliver the first shot with full force, Almond kept himself safe from the turret that would protect him. On the contrary, StawberryShooter was closing in, aiming to turn the tables.
The chilling sound of a shotgun's chambering echoed out.
"But right now, Ran isn't trying to run away at all!?"
Instead of running away, Ran was charging mana again.
"What the? If you fight head-on, you’ll lose Almond!"
Almond knew that if he were to try running away, Paul would instantly catch up and fill him with bullet holes. Instead of doing that—
'I'm going to end it here.'
"W-What's he planning to do?!"
Almond continued to gather mana at the tip of his index finger as if to say, 'Try me wherever you want.' After all, Paul took the first hit and had lower health. At this point, Almond was playing the chicken game.
'I've already won one match, and Strawberry is over if he loses this one.'
Almond was determined to play with this psychological advantage. Although he didn't expect Strawberry to jump here, this was the best response he could give. Almond believed in that.
"Almond's shooting now! If he misses, he really has no hope! It's too risky! Paul is dodging left and right as well!"
Because he never missed his arrows.
The white mana spread its wings, taking the form of a bow. With the restless purity of the crystal, Almond released immediately and only specified the direction.
His new form recoiled, and the pure crystal flew with momentum. It struck Paul's head again.
"What the?! He hit him again despite Paul dodging left and right! Now, we don't know what will happen!"
Paul's head bounced back, but his finger still moved. He pulled and the shotgun lit on fire.
[HP has fallen below 30% HP!]
Almond's world turned upside down.
"Strawberry fired back! If the shotgun hits perfectly, it counts as two shots! If the opponent is hit twice, the champion flies away! Especially with Ran, the knockback is even stronger because he's so squishy!"
His HP was instantly cut, and his body was lifted. If he was pushed further back , it was over.
Almond opened his eyes again. He grabbed his back and bounced up. Then he pointed his thumb at the opponent.
"Ran got back up! Is he going to run away or fight?! Paul's HP is below 20%! He needs to decide quickly!"
At the end of his finger…
White mana energy was charging up.
"Huh!? What's that? There's mana already charging! Almond wasn't planning to run away at all! He decided to fight to the death as soon as they clashed! Meanwhile, StrawberryShooter is—"
The gaze of StrawberryShooter, aiming at Almond behind the shogun, flickered intensely. A shining white light twinkled like a gem in his tiny pupils.
Strawberry couldn't react.
"Almond! He's only charged 70% and shot it! Will it be enough damage!?"
Because Almond shot earlier than expected, the white light grew larger and burned their sights. There was nothing visible.
Only this word came up. Almond's damage calculation was perfect.
"Ahhh! 70% was just enough! It was the perfect decision! Meanwhile, Strawberry momentarily hesitated!"
At that moment, the concern that this could be the end overwhelmed StrawberryShooter. It was just a split second, but that tiny difference of 0.01 seconds allowed Almond to emerge victorious.
The microphone volume couldn't handle Tako's excited voice and burst. It wasn't just the microphone that burst that day. The community site, LIL Pro, also experienced a momentary outage. All because of the news that a Silver player defeated a Master player.