I Have a Reason to Hate Streamers

[World Championship - Final]
[Battlefield: Mirror Labyrinth Aspectrium]
[Rules: 4-player Elimination Match]
[AT vs Sigma eSports]

When I opened my eyes, I found myself standing alone somewhere in the labyrinth.
In the bright space, the outer walls made of opaque glass or mirrors were visible.

As the name suggests, Aspectrium is a battlefield covered in mirrors everywhere.
Even if you hide, it’s hard to fully conceal yourself, and it disturbs visibility and perception.
Some mirrors were even shattered, causing significant strain on concentration.

This labyrinth was full of gimmicks.
Considering that most other fields have one or two gimmicks, it was fair to say that this one was complex.
But the real task for the players entering this battlefield was, in fact, quite simple.

‘It’s just a place where I walk around aimlessly.’

Carefully, while being wary of ambushes, I explored the labyrinth.
When I found an object, I collected it, and when I encountered an enemy, I fought hard.
In short, it was a battlefield where all I had to do was move well and fight well.

That’s because the design of all the gimmicks was based on that.
Through patch after patch, it was adjusted until the desired scenario emerged.
Now, it naturally led to random skirmishes and local battles.

At the end of the path, I found a green crystal orb.
I poked it with the tip of my sword, and the orb shattered and vanished.
Fortunately, this time, I got lucky.

[‘Rune of the Mirror: Health Regeneration’ object acquired.]
[All allies' health will gradually regenerate every second. The more objects you collect, the stronger this effect becomes.]

The objects in this labyrinth either provided beneficial effects to the entire team or triggered random spatial transfer effects.
Sometimes, it wasn’t even my own position that changed, but that of another teammate.
If luck was bad, you could end up switching places with an ally who was in the middle of a battle.

Suddenly being summoned could feel like having a sword flying right at you.
It was a place where you never knew when, where, or with whom you’d fight, but there was no need to panic.
As long as I could win, I didn’t care who came at me.@@novelbin@@

With my sword drawn, I advanced without fear.

Meanwhile, Rika found herself in a very awkward situation.

The Mirror Labyrinth was vast and enormous.
With constant combat being prompted by the gimmicks, there was enough space to move around.

Well, it wasn’t common.
But that didn’t mean it never happened.

Not even three minutes after the match began,
Rika ended up facing the one opponent she least wanted to meet.
Her only consolation was that the distance between them at the time was considerable.

The ranger, pushing her legs to move faster, clicked her tongue.

‘Why did I have to meet that guy?’

A man in black armor charged at her with fierce momentum.
Compared to the time she dealt with the Dark Knight, his armor was relatively light, but there wasn’t a professional gamer who wouldn’t recognize that appearance.
Kelberos. A monster whose match could scarcely be found even globally.

The champion, having chosen the Weapon Master class, threw a spear with deadly force.
Though the distance was quite long, every shot was perfectly aimed at Rika’s body.
Had she not consciously dodged, every single one would have hit.

Rika was a classic North American-style ranged dealer.
With high survival and utility, she wasn’t at a disadvantage even in one-on-one fights with close-range classes.
But there was nothing she could do against this.
It could only be described as an overwhelming gap in skill.

[Passive: Wind Path]
[Increases movement speed by 10% in combat. The increased movement speed also boosts attack power.]
[Target: Sigma Rika]

She sprinted through the maze without stopping.
There was no way she could outrun that monster just by running away.
If she didn’t push back, she would die.

Rika pulled back her bow at the corner.
As soon as Kelberos came into view, she fired an arrow.
The light of the attack, like a pale green flash, didn’t stop at one shot.

Six beams of light shot out.
Kelberos spun his two blades halfway and deflected the arrows with the blade surfaces.
The few shots fired to hold him back did nothing to bind him.

Rika’s expression twisted in frustration.

‘Am I supposed to not even use a shield?’

It had all been a futile effort.
The traps she had laid on the ground were easily countered, and the long spear’s blade sliced through the booby traps.

It was no surprise.

Usually, close-range classes are faster than ranged classes.
They are given means to control the distance, but none of that worked on this monster of a man.
Such crushing despair had only been felt with Ga-wol.

So, she knew well.
She knew how monstrous top-tier players were.
The more you experience defeat, the more accustomed you become to it. Rika changed her tactics.

She focused on making it harder to deal with, even if she had to reduce her attack’s power.
Instead of physical arrows, she used magical arrows.
As Rika’s hand moved swiftly, beams of light shot out, bouncing off walls and traveling through the maze.

Ga-wol had allowed a few attacks like this, but—
Wait?
Suddenly, blood gushed from Rika’s mouth.

A dark knife had embedded itself into her neck.
Until now, Kelberos had never been recorded using memorization.
As her mana circulation was blocked, her movement slowed, and she had ended up losing distance to Kelberos.

Even as Rika, pulling back her bow in desperation, sensed it—
There was no way to avoid death.
At least, until the system message came through like a savior.

[Teammate has acquired the ‘Rune of Spatial Exchange.’]
[You have been selected for spatial exchange. Your position will be swapped with a random teammate.]

When she came to her senses, she found herself in a peaceful place, almost like a lie.
Rika let out a small chuckle.
There was a sigh of relief mixed in with her laugh.

"Hah... that was really close."

Even though she had just saved her life, there was no time to rest.
Her opponents were still likely roaming around looking for objects.
Rika pulled the dagger out of her neck and began performing emergency first aid.

As she tore a piece of fabric from her clothes to tie around her neck, she muttered a short prayer.
Please, let it be him who got swapped.

This seems like a real swap, doesn’t it?

[Teammate has acquired the ‘Rune of Spatial Exchange.’]
[You have been selected for spatial exchange. Your position will be swapped with a random teammate.]

As soon as the position was swapped, a vicious halberd came crashing down.

No kill log had come up yet.
There was quite a bit of blood scattered on the labyrinth floor... she might as well consider herself lucky.

She blocked the halberd with the back of her sword.
It was heavy. It wasn’t as heavy as Hero’s weapon, but the problem was that it was the perfect distance for her opponent to apply full force.
Rika’s hurried defense made the situation more difficult.

It was an incredibly disadvantageous start.
Had it been me, I wouldn’t have let this situation unfold, but there was no room to complain.
After all, Kelberos had likely missed his prey and was furious about it.

"Finally...!"

Or maybe he seemed to be enjoying it.

Kelberos’s weapon changed.
From the halberd, which was favorable for slashing, to a sharp spear.
Using the sword as a support, he angled the spear down.

[Passive: Thought Weapon]
[Weapon Masters possess weapons that change in response to their will. Each time the weapon changes form, a certain amount of mana is consumed.]
[As the number of form changes accumulates, the cooldown for further changes increases.]
[Target: AT Kelberos]

My defense opened.
At this rate, the spear would pierce either my neck or my chest.

But, well, I knew what was coming.
Since the point of force had shifted, the pressure from the sword lessened.
There was no need to dodge sideways; I could just push the spear aside.

Kelberos stepped forward with one foot.
I couldn’t just let him advance.
With the distance already hard to maintain, I couldn’t let him take more space.

If I couldn’t stop him from advancing, I’d have to go with him.
I stepped on his extended foot and pushed his thigh with the hilt of my sword.
The weapons locked again, and the stalemate continued.

Kelberos stared at me intently.

"You’ve changed a lot. The atmosphere, too. Now, you’re finally looking at me properly."
"So, is that bad?"
"No. You’re the best opponent fit for the finals."
"You’ve changed a lot too. In the arena, you felt a bit more... rigid."
"I thought I wouldn’t win if I didn’t change."

Yeah. We, people like us, know that well.
Defeat hurts and stings, but it’s a great help to growth.
As I matured, Kelberos broke out of his shell and stepped into a new domain.

Growth is not just the privilege of the weak.
In this unfair world, even monsters like Kelberos are allowed to grow.