Duel Invites from Japan
Black-and-white vision.
Kazuki Hiro was flustered.
Normally, he'd apologize to his teammates right away and switch strategies, but he was so stunned that he forgot.
What the hell?
It was because Lee Siwoo's play was too bizarre.
How did he do that?
He'd anticipated Siwoo blocking the escape route with a grenade and pushing straight through the front—that much was expected. That's why he'd set up traps.
The problem came after.
The instant the bullet fired, Siwoo twisted his Force-enhanced body sideways, deflecting it effortlessly. It was unimaginable. How was that even possible?
Overlant bullets might be slower than real life, but they easily topped 500 km/h. Reacting to dodge that? No, had he read the trajectory?
Impossible.
Unnaturally free control, perfect dynamic vision to perceive enemy attacks, backed by lightning reactions and split-second instincts.
Insane mechanics.
And that wasn't all. Siwoo's play had no fixed patterns.
When starting out in a game, learning bit by bit, climbing the ranks—everyone picks up "don't do this" or "that's a bad call" at some point, either from others or themselves.
People get boxed in like that.
But not Siwoo. Not a trace of it.
It felt like he roamed virtual reality utterly free.
...No wonder Hinazugaya suddenly requested a scrim.
Hinazugaya Satoru had always been a weird guy, but he was dead serious about games. Should've known something was up when he proposed it out of the blue today.
Siwoo—this guy's a real monster.
"Kazuki, what happened?!"
"First blood? No way we lost?!"
His teammates' voices rang out. They'd seen the first blood message.
"Sorry. Opponent was just too good."
Kazuki Hiro apologized calmly. He was rattled, but his mentality held firm.
"See? Told you Siwoo's insane! That's why I pushed for this scrim today! So much to learn from him!"
Hinazugaya seemed thrilled.
"Yeah, super creative. Honestly caught me off guard."
"Right?! We gotta learn that creativity!"
Kazuki Hiro was a veteran pro like Hinazugaya Satoru.
These days, he relied more on experience than raw creativity, so yeah—plenty to pick up.
"Alright, let's step it up from the next one. Gotta tweak the strategy."
The Sengoku Gaming captain said.
"Switch to breakthrough."
"Everyone, group up!"
An unexpected variable, sure, but not enough to shake them.
Sengoku Gaming had made it to the Asia Masters semifinals, after all.
Lots to learn from this game.
Kazuki Hiro steeled his resolve.
A long time passed.
The scrim wrapped up smoothly.
Final score: 6 wins, 4 losses.
Kaiserst took the 6 wins.
Thanks to Siwoo never getting outplayed in libero fights across all ten games, securing victory every time.
His combined KDA: 112 kills, 14 deaths, 28 assists.
Siwoo smiled, satisfied. Assists were a bit low, but finishes were clean.
Even overseas teams are manageable.
Truth was, Korea's top league lagged behind Japan, China, and NA. Talented Korean gamers often got poached abroad by bigger money.
Overseas leagues were just higher caliber. Holding their own like this? Solid performance. They'd won six out of ten against a competitive international squad.
"Great job, everyone. Siwoo, you're ready to pull rifle attacker right now."
Out of the capsules, Coach Shin Seung-hyun greeted them with applause.
"Ho-jong, your duels were strong. Yong-taek, healing on point. Even our main healer matches sniper heals now. Soo-hyuk, shields were great. All that scrim grinding paid off."
Rare praise.
The coach usually nitpicked right after. This time? Straight compliments.
Maybe because it was a fresh overseas team they'd never faced.
"Coach, what about me?"
"Chan-seong, we'll hit feedback later."
"Ah...."
Chan-seong hyung was headed to the truth room again, but anyway.
"We can aim higher now. Did well against Sengoku Gaming—Japan's got potential partners."
Beating Sengoku wasn't just a win. It opened doors.
Teams on their level, or slightly below. More scrim options unlocked.
"Praise ends here. Feedback time."
Of course, no skipping review. What's the point of scrims without it?
"Siwoo's rifle works against GZ or A1. Perfect for throwing them off. Downside: too high-risk, high-reward."
The coach continued.
"Siwoo, love the gains from aggressive plays, but think of the team. Not everyone can pull it off like you. Keep spacing with teammates."
Siwoo had leaned personal plays. They succeeded, big gains—but unsustainable long-term. Too risky.
"Got it."
Siwoo accepted it. Still new to pro life; eventually, he'd get read. Fix it now.
"Ho-jong, you follow Siwoo too much. Do your job. You're a carry attacker like him."
"Yes."
"Take more initiative, Ho-jong. Our edge is aggression—lean into power fights."
"Yes."
"Next, Yong-taek...."
The feedback storm raged on. Words that sank in deep, filling Kaiserst's gaps perfectly.
Anyway.
Quite a while later, training ended. Siwoo finally headed to his room.
Plop.
He flopped onto the bed, savoring rest time. Personal practice loomed, but a little rolling around was fine.
Form was on point today.
Siwoo's lips curved up.
Rifle attacker debut: success. Beating Japanese pros leveled him up from yesterday. Satisfying.
More wins ahead.
Maybe even that Grand Slam the coach mentioned.
Worlds championship? Distant, but.
How's the league going?
Before sleep, itchy for action, Siwoo grabbed his smartphone and hit SNS.
League match day—fans were buzzing.
Team GZ won again.
Three straight, topping the league.
"Hmm...."
Siwoo let out a low hum.
GZ.
Top threat right now. Korea's strongest.
But no real worry. Beat Sengoku Gaming—what was there to fear?
Then....
"Huh?"
A post caught his eye.
(Hinazugaya personal stream: message with Kazuki Hiro .CLIP)
Yep, today's scrim.
Hinazugaya must've spilled on his personal stream.
Doesn't he ever rest?
Scrim ended at 9 PM.
Leak at 11 PM.
Stream right after scrim, yapping nonstop.
Leak or not.
Not ideal, but....
Still, sentiment toward Kaiserst was positive. Beat Sengoku Gaming, after all.
Fans' expectations up—good thing, right?
Can't just sit still like this.
Siwoo bolted up from bed.
Watching hype build made him itch.
Grabbed his jacket, headed to training room. Chan-seong hyung was reviewing games.
"Chan-seong hyung, not tired?"
"Oh, Siwoo."
Chan-seong smiled awkwardly.
"Tired, but gotta keep up somehow."
"Working hard, huh."
Siwoo liked dedicated grinders. Sat next to him with a grin.
"What match you reviewing?"
"Today's scrim. Everyone solid, but I lagged. Looping it."
Chan-seong's face hardened.
"...Tons of flaws, but no clue how to fix. Frustrating."
"Didn't ask coach?"
"Drag me to truth room again? Done talking to him...."
Fair. Constant post-scrim interrogations.
"Mind if I check?"
"Yeah? Please?"
"Sure."
"Awesome! Let's watch!"
Chan-seong brightened.
"Hmm...."
Siwoo narrowed his eyes at the replay.
"Yeah, rough spots. SMG use, shield work. Positioning too. You can do better."
"Th-that bad?"
"When clashing their defender, you're ignoring attackers for constant checks. Just tunnel-visioning defender."
Shield defender's edge: SMG access. Short range, but viable mid.
"Keep marking defender but poke with SMG too. Positioning comes with reps—don't sweat it."
"Got it. One step at a time."
"Cool. Rest later."
Siwoo smiled lightly.
"That's enough. Off to practice."
"Asia server again?"
"Yep. Fun there."
Some ping issues, but Asia pros? Worth it.
"Alright. Grind well. Catch ya."
"Yep."
Siwoo dove into the capsule, excited.
Personal practice—bound to hit pros.
High hopes.
But....
Ah....
Got too tangled....