A Strange Record
This kid hasn't updated their match history in days.
Did they quit?
They used to play like their life depended on it every day.
It's kind of worrying that they suddenly stopped.
Did they hit a wall and quit?
They seem fine for this year, but next year is highly uncertain.
Rumor has it their parent company is struggling, so they're going to pull a lot of funding from the esports division.
The contracts for the players and coaching staff all end this year, so next year is going to be a shocker.
2. The competition for rookies is fierce lately.
This is actually the opposite of the first point.
The top-performing teams are expanding their investments and sweeping up all the prospects.
It's especially intense because a lot of current first-string players are nearing retirement.
Anyone with a recognizable name at the very top of the rankings has probably received at least one offer by now.
If someone who used to grind games non-stop suddenly stops logging in, you can assume they got an offer.
3. Mid-season trades are likely to be quite active.
There were several names that made me go, "Wait, they're getting traded?"
I can't give specifics due to potential legal issues.
It seems they're conscious of the overseas leagues increasing their investments.
Maybe they decided to go for a win-win rather than keeping each other in check?
Foreign imports might come in, but I'm not sure about that.
On the flip side, there are rumors of players who went overseas returning.
As always, take it with a grain of salt.
I could be wrong.
There is a law that applies to any game.
No matter how many players a game has, at the very top tier, you keep seeing the same faces.
It is a realm reserved only for those filtered by skill. Seeing the same usernames every day makes them familiar.
Thus, running into someone you know in this bracket is not uncommon.
Na Jia, who was streaming her rank climb as usual, widened her eyes.
Match Found.
Ranked Match: 8,354 (Grand Master)
"Oh? I got matched on the same team as Nabi. I guess she started playing again."
— I thought she stopped playing solo queue.
— I heard she started again since yesterday or so.
— Whoa, but she's already climbed all the way up here?
— What happened in the meantime for her to suddenly...?
"Right? I worked so hard to climb up here, and she's already caught up. Well, she was never meant to stay stuck in Master anyway."
Na Jia smiled.
She already had a good feeling about this match.
To exaggerate a little, it felt like they had already won.
She was quite serious about the game.
While some female streamers treated gaming as a mere tool for popularity, that was certainly not the case for Na Jia.
As her high tier proved, she enjoyed the game deeply.
Playing with someone you liked was fun.
If that person was a reliable, skilled player, it was even better.
Moreover, Na Jia's Saint and Yu Nabi's Berserker had great synergy.
A Berserker, who carried high risk in exchange for massive attack power.
A Saint, specialized in providing powerful healing and buffs to a single ally.
The combination of these two classes scaled exponentially the better the Berserker's skill was.
🏛 Battlefield: Sealed Catacombs
⚔ Rules: 4-Player Deathmatch
⚠️ Geas: None
Fortunately, the battlefield luck wasn't bad either.
The 'Sealed Catacombs' was a scaled-down version of the 'Catacombs', a field that was practically a labyrinth.
Unlike the original, which was fixed as a 6-player deathmatch, this place had a limit of four players.
Still, the narrow, corridor-like structure was the same, making it a battlefield where small-scale skirmishes frequently broke out.
Na Jia was already drawing up a victory plan in her head.
Her top priority as soon as the game started was to find Yu Nabi, then immediately seek out enemies and pick them off.
It felt like they would have half the game won just by grouping up with Yu Nabi.
And about two minutes after the game started.
Na Jia realized her prediction had gone awry in an unexpected way.
DoNotTalkToMe has defeated Limburg.
She had been confident they would win once she grouped up with Yu Nabi.
But Yu Nabi was already tearing through the enemy before even receiving the Saint's support.
Crunch!
My axe blade pierced the Paladin's pauldrons.
Blood erupted from the shattered steel plates. I twisted the axe, gouging the wound.
A gruesome sound echoed as I pulled the weapon from the enemy's body.
As expected of this bracket, there are no easy opponents.
Despite it being a clean hit, a tricky counterattack came back.
Because I had struck the enemy's shoulder, my axe was currently swung high to the right.
Conscious of this, the enemy thrust toward my left flank.
Due to the difference in our physical sizes, from the enemy's perspective, it was a clear low-aimed attack.
There was no way to block that attack with the axe blade.
In times like this, one should just take the damage and set up the next exchange.
Even if I take a 10% loss, if I can force a 20% loss on the opponent, it's a successful trade.
If it were the old me, I would have definitely made that judgment.
"For a Berserker, it's also important to take a hit when it matters."
"Instead of just health consumed as a cost for skills, you pay with your health to pull the exchange in your favor."
"A Berserker's lifesteal effect is given to you for that exact reason."
"But from what I see, Nabi, you're misunderstanding this trait. Do you know what it is?"
"A Berserker takes hits at crucial moments. It doesn't mean you should take every hit just because it won't kill you."
Hero hadn't said my method was completely wrong.
In a one-on-one situation where I only had to deal with the enemy in front of me, my method worked well. In a decisive battle where my victory meant the team's victory, it was effective.
But Infinity Realm was a team game.
There was no guarantee that bullets, magic, or arrows wouldn't fly in from places I couldn't see.
My current method was unstable and had clear limits.
"Classes that use health like a consumable..."
"Paradoxically, they need to manage their health more than anyone else."
"Don't just take a hit because they strike. If that becomes a habit, you won't grow."
It was certainly impossible to deflect that thrust with the axe blade right now.
But my battleaxe was a heavy weapon.
The length of the shaft alone was comparable to a longsword.
Step forward slightly with the right leg.
At the same time, I shifted my grip on the axe.
Supporting the shaft with my left hand, and pressing down on the blade with my right.
Soon, the shaft, filled with my strength, rose upward and deflected the Paladin's sword.
The principle of the lever is usually used to gain an advantage in force, but with enough strength, it could also be used to gain an advantage in travel distance.
And a thrust, as powerful as it was, was also an attack style that was easy to miss.
Especially when swept upward from below like this, it was fatal.
With their body leaning forward, their defense was completely shattered.
There was no reason to give the opponent time.
Before they could recover their stance, I threw myself into a sidekick.
Pushing the enemy back heavily to ruin their balance again, I used that time to grip the axe properly.
With enough distance and time secured, there was nothing holding me back.
Leaping high, I brought the axe down on the Paladin's head.
DoNotTalkToMe has defeated Limburg.
The moment I pleasantly secured the first kill right from the start.
A system message popped up along with a presence behind me.
Startled, I whipped around, but fortunately, it was a familiar face.
All Defense increases by 20.
Caster: Na Jia (Saint)
Na Jia, looking bewildered, gave a small wave.
"Uh... you've gotten a lot better?"
"Th-tha... ah. Thank you...?"
"Pfft. Why are you so awkward? It's not like we're strangers. Shall we move together for now?"
"Y-yes..."
My gaming skills had definitely improved recently.
But it seemed my social skills still had a long way to go.