BubbleSniper greeted Almond with a smile. They would soon face off in the Arsenal.
Almond’s road to diamond would face a serious setback if BubbleSniper eliminated him here. His chance to instantly rise through the ranks would significantly decrease if he ranked lower than the top 50 in this round.
"What the?! Why's that fucker in there!?" Ju-Hyeok slammed the table and felt rattled because it was like watching his favorite sports team encounter an annoying obstacle. His frustration was understandable since not only was money on the line, but their future was also at stake.
The game just so happened to match them with a Diamond I player fueled by revenge in the last placement round. The heavens truly didn’t favor them.
"Ah..."?Ju-Hyeok softly sighed.
‘Come to work starting tomorrow.’ He could hear his father’s voice at the back of his mind.
Ju-Hyeok shook his head, 'I can't let that happen.'
He was past his thirties already and refused to take orders from someone else. Maybe if it was from a boss, but not from his family. That was the last thing he wanted. He would do anything in his power to prevent that, but everything was up to Sang-Hyeon right now.
'What can I do?' He thought about what he could do as a manager.
Ju-Hyeok was a witty person, but he couldn't think of anything. He felt utterly useless in a crucial moment .
He gritted his teeth, 'Think harder.'
Ju-Hyeok took a deep breath and closed his eyes. At least five seconds still remained before they landed on the ground.
He had to think of something…
A strange word passed through his mind.
Belief? In a situation ? Was the answer to form a cheerleading squad? That didn't make sense. This was a battle between a bronze ranked player and a Diamond I player hell-bent on revenge. Relying on belief in a situation seemed irrational.
Ju-Hyeok tried to dismiss the thought. This was a trait he acquired from his father.
His train of thought stopped and he finally realized his father's perspective.
Ju-Hyeok's father didn't believe in him because he thought his decisions were always better. From his perspective, he was pointing Ju-Hyeok in the right direction.
However, humans naturally had free will and Ju-Hyeok was raised in a better environment with a better education than his father.
Why couldn't his father believe in the results he worked so hard for? It was simply due to the age they were born in. That’s why these people were called boomers.
Ju-Hyeok’s eyes shot wide open.
"Fuck yeah! There's no way Almond will lose!” He shouted and went to a particular website.
He finished registering and headed to the front page.
'There's no way Almond will lose. I can see it clearly now!'
He wouldn’t be able to do anything as the manager if he thought Almond would lose because there were no options left in the worst scenario.
However, what if he believed that Almond would win? Then he started to see a path. His job was to shine a light on Almond's certain victory!
[LIVE: The archer and BubbleSniper have met!]
Tadadak.?Ju-Hyeok felt excited as he quickly typed on his keyboard.
He wasn't thinking rationally anymore.
He used Bubblegum's fan page to attract more attention to Almond using Bubblegum's enemy, BubbleSniper. They would definitely take a huge loss with this tactic if Almond ended up losing. This was madness.
The previous bronze ranked opponents were nothing compared to BubbleSniper. The difference between them was like a yellow belt and a black belt.
Despite that, Ju-Hyeok continued to raise the stakes.
Almond was unaware of the high stakes as Ju-Hyeok spoke to himself like usual, "You have to win."
He didn't think Almond would lose. No, he didn't believe it. He couldn't fathom Sang-Hyeon losing and only placing in the top 90.
[BubbleSniper is one minute away from getting owned!]
"Let's raise the stakes! You're dead, BubbleSniper!"
— Wow... on the last round too...
— On the final round of placements. It's science.
'This is the last placement round. I’ll never reach diamond if I screw up here. I'm aware that the opponent knows that too.'?
— Damn, BubbleSniper. What a little bitch.
— Does he know the developers? Why isn’t he banned yet?
— This just got interesting.
— Please die, Almond!
— Sorry, does diamond mean die-almond?
'I'm aware the opponent won’t be easy. Diamond I...'
Diamond I was BubbleSniper's approximate rank. It was three ranks higher than Almond's goal, which was diamond four.
— Are they going to fight right away?
— Wow, it's been a while since I watched something this interesting.
BubbleSniper’s parachute opened.
Almond began thinking. The enemy probably knew his strategy and attack patterns. That’s why BubbleSniper also descended toward the Arsenal.
[Current Viewers: 4221]
Almond wasn't imagining it. Around 4000 viewers currently watched him. His stream had likely reached the top ten in Battle Large?streams and he already used the same strategy three rounds in a row.
He would be the easiest and most vulnerable target for BubbleSniper.
Veteran gamers stomped on beginners like second nature, especially BubbleSniper with his nasty hobby of bullying other players.
'I wonder what he’s planning?'
The opponent likely had something in mind after targeting him. The stakes were also high for BubbleSniper.
'I'll fight him on the ground.'
He couldn't give his opponent the time to think and follow a plan.
Almond turned to BubbleSniper and soared toward him.
BubbleSniper's eyes widened at Almond's unexpected action.
Their parachutes began to intertwine.
— I saw this in a textbook. Kite fighting!
— A normal play? No way! I'm Almond!
BubbleSniper calmed down and scoffed at him, "Why? Don't think you can beat me fair and square?"
They were so close that they could hear each other.
He tried attacking Almond's pride, but Almond already knew BubbleSniper's ego was much more fragile than his.
"And you think you can do whatever just because you’re diamond?"
Almond and BubbleSniper landed and rolled on the ground.
They kept insulting each other even as they landed.
— Stomp on him! Kill him!
As the chat advised, Almond could win if he started pounding on the enemy. However, he didn’t have any experience with unarmed combat and it would be disadvantageous even if he won because too much time would’ve passed.
'I've got to find some kind of sharp object first.'
Almond quickly headed for the Arsenal. BubbleSniper got up, assessed the situation, and followed him.
The two ran as if competing in a race.
A shiny object caught Almond's eye.
Almond could hear BubbleSniper breathing right behind him.
Almond took a deep breath and dived for it. He slid on the ground and grabbed the hunting knife. It was a rare item among blades.
BubbleSniper ran towards a different knife.
Almond turned and chucked his knife at BubbleSniper without even looking.
Almond would be at a huge disadvantage if he missed.
BubbleSniper tilted to the right and dodged it. Almond was unarmed now.
Not only that, but something even more surprising happened next.
BubbleSniper actually managed to grab Almond’s knife out of the air.
— Wow, his skills are something...
— Diamond 1 is different, for sure.
— Holy shit. He grabbed it perfectly by the handle!?
— I knew he was good from the grenade play, but this is next level.
BubbleSniper felt pain in his hips and shoulders from catching the flying knife in such an awkward position.
However, he simply smiled at Almond because it was just a game at the end of the day. He hadn’t received the injury status and Almond became unarmed now. He had the winning hand.
He spun and chucked the knife right back at Almond.
The blade spun differently from earlier as it flew toward Almond. It was an entirely different way of throwing a knife.
— He must've thrown it like that so Almond can't catch it.
— Wow, the details of his play are something else.
— So this is a diamond 1? Damn...
— I Love Mondays is nothing compared to him.
— BubbleSniper... maybe we were too harsh.
— No! You can't die, oppa!
BubbleSniper threw the knife in a spinning fashion so Almond couldn't grab it, but...
— Why are you running forward!?
Almond ran towards the knife flying at him.
'It's over if BubbleSniper gets the other knife first.'
Another blade sat near BubbleSniper. Even if Almond dodged this one, he would still be unarmed.
Almond needed to defeat BubbleSniper here if he wanted to farm at the Arsenal. He would be at a greater disadvantage if BubbleSniper acquired the Arsenal weapons. That’s why Almond decided to make this play.
To grab the spinning knife.
He reached for the knife and maximized his senses.
The surroundings around him slowed.
He carefully placed his hand around the knife moving in slow motion and caught it in the air.
He held it precisely by the handle.
Then the world around him returned to its normal speed.
— Almond, are you insane?
— The knife was spinning...
— This is also a type of aim.
"What!?" BubbleSniper's shout echoed out and his eyes widened in disbelief.
Almond quickly charged and his shadow loomed over BubbleSniper.
BubbleSniper leaped to grab the other knife and tried to parry Almond's attack. He would have a good chance if he successfully parried it.
Almond tossed the knife from his right hand to his left like a double clutch in basketball.
"What the fuck???" BubbleSniper spoke his last words as he swung and hit nothing.
Almond severed his arm.
A fountain of blood sprayed out after the clean slice.
— Damn, I thought he was Michael Jordan for a moment.
— For real, he's crazy!
— BubbleSniper got fucked.
— What just happened!?
BubbleSniper opened his mouth and tried to say something. However, Almond moved even faster.
As always, Almond's knife struck the center of the enemy’s forehead and their encounter ended.
[Almond → BubbleSniper]