Chapter 169 – Silver vs. Master (2)
After Tako’s declaration Sang-Hyeon surpassed Level 30 and began playing ranked games. He was able to quickly climb up to Silver. Today five days later the day of the match against StrawberryShooter had arrived. Sang-Hyeon was doing push-ups and breathing heavily.
“Huff puff.”It can be hard to make great work when its stolen from “p𝑎wread.com”.
At that moment Ju-Hyeok subtly asked him “Hey you’re working out a lot these days. Did something change?”
“If I work out I just blank out.”
“Yeah so…” Ju-Hyeok scratched his head and couldn’t understand him. “More than usual?”
“… Shut up. Don’t talk to me.”
Ju-Hyeok giggled at Sang-Hyeon’s reaction.
Sang-Hyeon bit his lips frustrated. He did eighty push-ups in total and finally collapsed.
“Phew!”
Thankfully his right arm could endure these workouts. Doing push-ups using his left arm alone would be a difficult task.
“You have a lot of money. You should get some home gym equipment.”
“Archers don’t need that. We just need to work out a lot” Sang-Hyeon said to him while lying down.
The sunlight warmed up his wet t-shirt.
‘Four hours left now?’
His match with StrawberryShooter was at 6 P.M. The peaceful sunlight at 2 P.M. seemed like it wasn’t aware of the intense match that was bound to happen just like Sang-Hyeon’s blank mind.
“… Has Manager Oh said anything since last time?”
“Why?”
“You said he wants you to be Miho’s manager.”
“Hmm. I still haven’t decided on that.”
“… Still? Then what’s Miho going to do?”
Ju-Hyeok unnecessarily scrolled his mouse even faster.
“They’ll be fine. I bet Bubblegum’s company will have some backups.”
Sang-Hyeon was surprised to see Ju-Hyeok talk that way.
‘Is he not going to grab this opportunity?’
He wasn’t sure what Ju-Hyeok was thinking. For Sang-Hyeon it was a no-brainer to be Miho’s manager.
‘He’ll be fine since he’s smarter than I am.’
However Sang-Hyeon wasn’t the type to pester either and left the matter alone.
As Sang-Hyeon went silent Ju-Hyeok asked him. “Hey aren’t you nervous at all? The 1 vs. 1 is today.”
To someone like Ju-Hyeok who would tense up and practice endlessly when there was something important Sang-Hyeon seemed like a fascinating person. One might think that the phrase ‘Peace under heaven’ was coined for him.
“What’s the point of getting nervous? It’s just the ADC position.”
“StrawberryShooter will be upset if he hears that. Just give it to him then.”
“I can’t do that. I’m better than him.”
“Pfft!” Ju-Hyeok burst into laughter.
Sang-Hyeon was truly a witty guy. Just because he finally reached the Silver rank… How could he confidently claim to be better than a Master rank with such pride?
“I need to upload this on YouTube.”
“We’ll probably get good views for it.”
Sang-Hyeon responded with a calm tone and took out a bag of almonds.
Crunch.
He crunched on them focusing on chewing one at a time. It was a kind of meditative routine for him. As an archer he had to polish his mental management skills by repeating certain actions to find inner peace. This tranquillity showed that it wasn’t just a natural disposition or talent but a result of his constant efforts to manage his mind.
‘I know it’s an important match.’
The 1 vs. 1 battle was a match where there would be no excuses. Who wouldn’t be nervous?
If he lost Sang-Hyeon would feel a blow to his pride. It would only be amusing to others if he lost to a Master player as a Silver player but it was still a matter of personal pride for him. It didn’t mean he didn’t care about the match’s outcome. On the contrary he belonged to the group more obsessed with winning and losing. He only knew how to win which was the difference.
‘You have to focus on the arrow not the score.’
When falling behind in an archery match inexperienced players often found themselves glancing at the scoreboard frequently. This only further uneased them. Nothing would change no matter how much they stared at the scoreboard.
That was when they should focus solely on the bow and arrow. The same applied to LIL. Instead of fixating on the outcome of victory or defeat players should concentrate on a simpler truth. Avoid the opponent’s attacks and land their own. In a one-on-one duel this principle held true in LIL. It doesn’t matter if the opponent was StrawberryShooter or anyone else. Regardless of the match’s increased attention Sang-Hyeon’s task remained the same.
‘Dodge and hit.’
He repeated it as if he was brainwashing himself.
***
A Silver player was playing against a Master tier player. Every community user would be intrigued by that title.
[Kya silver vs. master today. Isn’t that crazy?]
[What’s StrawberryShooter going to do if he loses?]
[Tako is so brutal…]
[Almond Milk vs. Strawberry Milk!]
Posts about Almond and StrawberryShooter started pouring in early in the morning and grew steadily as the afternoon approached. Even a hashtag #MilkBattle was created.
[I mean isn’t it obvious Strawberry will win it all?]
[I met a master tier player when the ranks reset last season. They’re seriously on another level]
[But since it’s a 1 vs. 1 we can’t say for sure. Purely by mechanics Almond might have the upper hand.]
[A 1 vs. 1 match makes it a little iffy. Mechanics are the most important for an ADC so it might be a fair fight.]
[Didn’t Tako plan this tournament to shut up Almond? He never listens to him lol]
[It’s true. Almond doesn’t listen at all]
Everyone expected Almond to completely lose. Of course who would bet on a Silver player facing off against a Master tier player?
“Tsk tsk. These guys don’t know anything.”
Ju-Hyeok shook his head as he browsed the community forums.
“Since it’s like this should we try to get something out of them?”
Sang-Hyeon was curious. What could they get out of them?
“… What are you talking about.”
“I’m thinking of setting up a betting system.”
“Betting? Like sports gambling?”
Points gambling was a system of placing bets with accumulated points while watching and was supported by Treevy. Although the chat window often became messy and it wasn’t widely used it received a positive response when occasionally used during broadcasts with a competitive format.
“If we don’t use it now when else would we be able to use it? Let’s use all this attention and blow it up.”
“… That’s not a bad idea. Sounds fun.”
This was Sang-Hyeon’s strength.
‘It might be overwhelming for other players…’
It seemed like Sang-Hyeon was immune to pressure and nervousness. What about his opponent?
‘Obviously StrawberryShooter is going to feel pressured.’
If the mental battle was drawn out it was obvious that StrawberryShooter who lacked professional experience wouldn’t be able to compete.
Ju-Hyeok knew that Sang-Hyeon was in good shape and everyone already expected Sang-Hyeon’s defeat. He decided to raise the stakes and create an explosion. This way Sang-Hyeon’s win rate would increase along with the viewership ratings.
Ju-Hyeok would probably earn a lot of points as well. Of course these Treevy points were just currency with no real value and only usable for buying emoticons or virtual goods. Still having a lot of them made one feel good. Losing a lot would probably feel bad too.
“We’re going to use this as an opportunity to shut the mouths of your haters.”
“… By taking their points?” Sang-Hyeon asked him dumbfoundedly.
What was the big deal with losing points? Sang-Hyeon couldn’t understand.
Ju-Hyeok frowned. Did Sang-Hyeon not understand how much these points meant to viewers?
“It’ll do the trick. They’ll face utter defeat from this.”
“U-Utter defeat…?”
Even until the end Sang-Hyeon couldn’t understand as Ju-Hyeok immediately went to work. Sang-Hyeon agreed and thought it’d be fun anyways.
[Announcement. Almond vs. StrawberryShooter will have a points betting event. Make sure to bring lots of points!]
The announcement came out thirty minutes before the match began.
— Really?
— Almond’s pure channel is going to do points gambling?!
— Hell yeah
— I’m so excited
└ I think if we bet on Almond we’re going to get so much back
└ But it’s Almond’s channel. Wouldn’t a lot of people bet on him?
└ Who’s going to cheer on a silver? This is reality…
└ Damn…
— Wow! Thank you Almond! You’re saying you’ll give us free points if we bet on StrawberryShooter right?!
└ Get outta here
└ Almond’s going to win!
└ Hey hey this is fraud.
As soon as the announcement went up the reactions were hot. This content was definitely provocative.
***
“Hey Treevy! Tako here!”
Tako tapped on his head and greeted them.
— TaHa~
— TaHa~~
— Tahahaha
— Are you going to cast today’s 1 vs. 1?
“Alright. Today I’m going to cast the 1 vs. 1. But…”
Tako looked at his own chat window with a suspicious look. Even though the broadcast had started not too long ago the viewers weren’t gathering as expected.
‘What the? There should be more viewers since today is game day.’
Anyone would want to watch a 1 vs. 1 match between a Silver and Master player. There should’ve been more viewers.
— Almond’s gambling on his stream right now
— I just came back from betting
— Almond’s gambling?!
— Damn he must be confident
— Breaking news: Almond’s manager pooled all of his points and betted on Almond
— Damn. Right now Almond has a 5% bet rate.
The answer was in the chat.
“Oh Almond started betting in his stream?”
Tako scratched his head. He had a feeling that he caught an opportunity. The more he saw the more he realized that Almond wasn’t just good at playing games. He knew how to handle broadcasting. Betting content was a double-edged sword but it was a perfect starting point for Almond as an underdog. Almond had almost nothing but advantages in that regard.
‘He’s got a great sense’ Tako thought and focused on the match again.
“Alright everyone. Good luck betting! The game’s going to start in five minutes so buckle your seatbelts!”
***
Almond and StrawberryShooter met in the waiting lobby.
[Mode: Abyss Battle]
The mode was abyss battle. In contrast to siege mode it was a mode specifically for 1 vs. 1. It was also a mode where players could focus on learning a champion without facing other obstacles.
“It’s my first time seeing you.”
“… Yes.”
Their avatars were portrayed as their real selves since it was a custom waiting room. StrawberryShooter was almost twice as big as Almond. Almond walked up to him and shook his hand.
“Good luck.”
“Yes but… do you play some kind of sport?”
StrawberryShooter glanced at Almond’s body and asked after immediately noticing his well-trained physique built over a long time. It was a strong and resilient physique that anyone who tried exercising would recognize. Moreover it wasn’t just for show with fashion muscles built through weightlifting. It was a practical body developed through functional training and quite rare among ordinary people.
“Ah I’ve worked out for the past week to get myself in shape.”
A week? That didn’t make sense. It only took a week to rediscover the diamond inside such a body?
‘I think he’s been doing it for at least ten years.’
Right as StrawberryShooter was about to say something…
[The game is starting!]
Slam!
With a loud noise Almond and StrawberryShooter were separated.
[Choose your champion!]
Tako raised the mood by casting “Alright! It’s begun! You may choose the champion you’re most confident in for this one-on-one battle!”
The most confident champion…
Almond already decided who to play before coming into this match. He chose right away.
Slam!
With a loud sound effect a light descended.
[Finally you’re calling for me.]
The blonde woman approached from behind him.
***
[Current Viewers: 23k]
[Winner Predictions]
[Almond 13%] [StrawberryShooter 87%]
