I Have a Reason to Hate Streamers

It was a somewhat difficult statement to understand at first.
I even doubted if I had heard it wrong.

“Are you telling me to play as an assassin in the next match? Not in the final, but in the next third set?”
“Yes, that’s right. I’d like you to do that.”
“Why? I don’t understand.”

This wasn’t the kind of suggestion that should be coming up at such a critical moment.

This isn’t some other tournament; this is the World Championship.
It’s not a group stage where you can brush off a loss and make up for it in the next match.
Even though we’re winning now, every set is crucial in this knockout stage.
The semifinals are the step right before the finals, where victory awaits.

Could it be that something was wrong with my play?
I started to think that was probably the case.

While I did make a significant contribution to the victory by defeating Hero,
it didn’t necessarily mean I played perfectly as a team.
Maybe the situation and luck aligned, and I had made a good mistake after all.

But it didn’t seem like that was the issue.
From the look in Luche’s eyes, and those of the other team members, I could read something.
It was an emotion I had seen several times recently.

I knew too. These were people I had spent months with.
It wasn’t a long time, but it wasn’t too short either to not understand each other.
Luche gave me the answer.

“I can see you’re struggling. This won’t do. I’m against you playing in this condition.”
“I... I’m also against it. Do you know what it’s like when you come back to the room and sleep alone... I can’t stand it anymore. I just can’t watch anymore.”
“Well... I thought you’d handle it, but right now, it just looks like you’re pushing yourself too much. Even for the finals, I think you should stop now.”

Hekate and Outlaw spoke up after her.
Especially Hekate, who was even more vehemently against it than Luche.

I understand why they’re saying this.
Looking at myself in the mirror in the restroom, I certainly didn’t look well.
If I said I was okay in this condition, no one would believe me.

It meant they were watching me closely and worrying about me.
Maybe they were looking out for me even more than I was for myself.
I should be grateful for that.

But I wasn’t sure if I should be entirely happy about it.
We agreed to win together, didn’t we? Isn’t this why they’re doing this?
If I hold on by myself, won’t everyone be happy?

So, I had no choice but to say this.

“I’ve thought about it, but... it’s really hard to beat Hero as an assassin.”

The matchup is just too bad.
While I’ve won in a one-on-one before, that was in ranked games.
Now, it’s a tournament where they’ve come fully prepared. The two are entirely different games.

Phantom and Reaper didn’t go directly against Hero.
They chose to isolate Hero, systematically weakening her from the outside.
As an assassin, I just didn’t have the confidence to take Hero down in time with my small frame.

Some enemies have to be faced head-on.
For victory, there’s no choice.

“I can endure. I’ll overcome it quickly. Won’t you trust me?”
“I trust you. We’ve never doubted you. We know how hard you’ve worked and how serious you are about this tournament.”
“Then... just this once...”
“That’s why we’re saying this. We’ve given you enough trust, but do you trust us properly?”

Huh?
A sharp feeling rose in my throat.
My mind went completely blank, and I froze.

I trust my teammates, of course.
I should say that.
But when I heard Luche’s words, I couldn’t open my mouth easily.

“Sigma has relied on you a lot, Daeun. That’s an undeniable fact. But if you can’t rely on us when you’re struggling, can we really call it a team?”
“...”
“We’ll do our best. Please trust us and lean on us. We’re all in this dream together. Will you just trust us this one time?”

A long silence followed.
It felt like both a short and long pause at the same time.
In that endless and fleeting moment, I finally spoke up.

“I...”

The charged atmosphere reached its climax, and the scheduled time arrived.
The countdown to the next break hit zero.
Caster Hoo Eun started with a joyful tone.

《Sigma fans, and those supporting IKL, must be finding it hard to contain their joy.》
《Sigma has won the second set against the mighty W Titans!》
《With their opponents cornered, the next game is ready to begin.》
《The flames of Sigma eSports are blazing high!》

Is there any team that fits the term "unstoppable" better than this?
Since joining the World Championship, Sigma has never faced an easy opponent.

In the group stage, they met the Dune Sentinels, who gave them their first loss in the Prelude.
Falcon, who eliminated Dune Sentinels, was the biggest dark horse.
Not many people expected Sigma to perform well against these two formidable opponents.

The 16 teams in the finals were handpicked, and the competition was fierce.
They had to face Phantom and Reaper. It wouldn’t be strange if either of them took the championship.
Sigma had the hardest possible path to victory.

Naturally, people predicted Sigma’s defeat with each match.
The result? They demolished the world’s best teams, one after another.
It was as though the golden age of IKL had returned.

However, there was still an element of uncertainty.@@novelbin@@

《Ga-wol is truly showing the prowess of the arena’s strongest player!》
《Yes, he’s rewriting the history of the league, and there’s a lot of talk among the staff about it.》
《However, we’ll have to keep an eye on Ga-wol’s condition.》
《We’ve seen some signs of strain from him while playing the swordsman class.》
《We hope that the team takes good care of him, and that he gets a good result in the final game.》

The term “strain” was a rhetorical euphemism.
Anyone who enjoys esports in InBl could not possibly be unaware of the fact.

Ga-wol, with his sword, was abnormally strong.
However, that sword wasn’t something he could wield at any moment.
It was clear that playing as the swordsman class was a huge burden, even for Ga-wol himself.

The first time Ga-wol pulled out the swordsman class in the championship was in the quarterfinals.
And now, in the semifinals, he was clearly under much more strain.

So, how would he fare in the finals?
Could Ga-wol’s sword endure without breaking?
Many people were debating when Ga-wol’s limit would show itself.

In IKL, this was a bitter topic.
Behind Sigma’s shining victories lay a time bomb, ready to explode at any moment.
Ga-wol’s swordsman class became a challenge for all teams, but his mental issues had become Sigma’s fateful challenge.

Hoo Eun tried to shift the darkening atmosphere.

《However, the current momentum remains strong.》
《That’s right. We could carry this momentum all the way to the finals!》
《This could be the final game of the semifinals. Let me introduce the battlefield and rules!》

The next battlefield chosen was the Proving Mountain.
The rules were a 5-man elimination match.
Interestingly, there was no major change in the rules.

The Proving Mountain was a snow-covered peak, but it was generally an open field.
There were crevices scattered around the field, making it a good place for dealers or supports to hide.
It was hard to say whether this was good or bad for both teams.

This battlefield could be one where both sides had things to say.
In fact, the battles in the Proving Mountain were among the most varied.
In this match too, decisions and skill in the game would determine everything.

As the snowy battlefield unfolded, the team’s choices were gradually revealed.
It was Hwang Yul, sitting next to me, who first noticed the anomaly.
His finger tapped on the class selection screen for Sigma eSports.

《It seems that Sigma eSports has modified their strategy. Camelias has been added.》
《The class choice is the Samurai. If we think of the usual Sigma, this means they’ll play a close-range style, right?》
《It’s likely that Ga-wol’s swordsman and this class will overlap a lot...》
《Ga-wol has switched from swordsman to assassin.》
《After the defeat in the quarterfinals, Sigma eSports has brought back their classic combination.》

On the main monitor,
the expressionless swordsman vanished, and a smiling assassin appeared.

The scene unfolded to reveal the snowy peaks of the Proving Mountain.
The players from both teams slowly opened their eyes.
In the close-up shot, Ga-wol spun a dagger in his hand.

《Now, the match has started.》