Never Lose in 1v1
Choi Woo-jin.
The core attacker of Hanhaseong, one of OCK's three pillars, and a pro gamer tearing through League Force.
He used to compete with Ryu Jin-seok for second and third in the league, but this season he's dropped to fourth.
Part of the reason is that it's still only Round 1, and not everyone's in top form yet.
'Lee Siwoo.'
There was also the emergence of a new prodigy in OCK.
'Can't let my guard down, not even for a second.'
Choi Woo-jin narrowed his eyes as he dashed toward the objective zone in Hibana Museum.
Lee Siwoo had burst onto the scene, sweeping through the league.
He'd already finished analyzing Siwoo's play videos.
Siwoo had plenty of strengths worth noting, but the two that demanded the most caution were clear.
'Monstrous mechanics and innate instincts.'
Reaction speed and dynamic vision like he'd implanted an AI in his brain, plus a mind built solely for combat—reading situations and calculating outcomes on the fly.
His base intelligence was off the charts. Operations, execution—everything was flawless.
This was the type you had to be most wary of in a matchup.
'Too bad they didn't pick a sniper.'
If it had been a sniper, he could've countered hard as a close-range attacker. What a shame.
Anyway.
Tsssk!
Choi Woo-jin arrived at the objective spot and slammed on the brakes.
He slid smoothly across the floor, ducking behind cover.
"……."
He peeked out cautiously, scanning the surroundings.
No sign of Siwoo yet.
No rustling sounds either.
'Hasn't arrived?'
No way. His libero play screamed rookie at first, but it was improving daily. He should've been here by now.
Choi Woo-jin pressed his in-ear comm.
"I'm at the objective zone. I'll try to avoid engagements if possible."
"Copy that."
Briefing done.
Now he just needed to grab objectives casually and link up with the main squad as planned.
Cutting off Siwoo here was an option, but Siwoo topped the league solo kill charts. Charging in blindly was too risky.
'No need to step into his home turf.'
Choi Woo-jin focused on securing the most crucial blue and red buffs in Contention. They boosted sustain, which was key.
Contention matches were about sustained fights, not quick skirmishes like other modes. Fewer all-ins and pullbacks meant endurance mattered most.
Rustle.
That's when it happened, as he grabbed an objective. A noise from the cover ahead.
"……."
Choi Woo-jin held his breath, sharpening his hearing.
Rustle.
The sound grew louder.
Getting closer.
Shing.
He gripped his katana hilt tight. Plan was to burst in with a dash ambush, then chain into kunai combos.
But—
Roll...
"……!!"
What rolled in front of him wasn't Siwoo, but a tiny flashbang.
Lee Siwoo ambushes Choi Woo-jin!
Choi Woo-jin threw up his forearm to shield his eyes.
Boom!
The flashbang popped. His ears rang with a piercing eeeee—but vision loss lasted only a second.
In that split instant, Siwoo kicked off the ground, leaning back. He slid smoothly across the floor, scoped in, and shouldered his weapon.
Click.
Perfect stance. Center of gravity low for recoil control. Pull the trigger now.
Rat-tat-tat-tat!
Six bullets streaked in a dead-straight line toward his head.
But in that moment, Choi Woo-jin's katana pulsed red. The razor-sharp blade arced in a curve, trailing crimson afterimages.
Ting-ting-ting-ting!
Choi Woo-jin deflects them all!
Not a single hit landed. Siwoo judged it wouldn't work and sprang up, kicking off to widen the gap.
Siwoo's brow furrowed as he dashed away.
'His reactions are sharp, alright.'
Ambush at an unpredictable timing, and he still reacted. Mechanics far superior to the other attackers he'd faced.
Ryu Jin-seok was close, but purely on mechanics, Choi Woo-jin felt a cut above.
Choi Woo-jin closes in desperately!
The gap's narrowing—now's your chance!
Siwoo glanced back while retreating. Choi Woo-jin was gaining fast.
'The ambush didn't pay off big.'
A gauntlet close-range attacker would've taken real damage. Shame.
Still, katana had upsides. Less pressure in close quarters.
Gauntlets meant combo hell on a single hit; katana topped out at lethal wounds.
'Time to force close range, then.'
Tsssk!
Siwoo, accelerating full tilt, twisted his ankle sharply. Brakes engaged, body spun smoothly 180.
Lee Siwoo halts!
Opening combat?!
In that instant, Choi Woo-jin's brow twisted.
'He actually wants to fight?'
Didn't make sense. Not the main squad clash—just liberos. A rifle attacker picking a fight with a close-range specialist?
"Must be pretty damn confident!"
Whoosh!
Choi Woo-jin braked mid-dash and hurled kunai forward to cover the offbeat timing.
Whirr!
Siwoo tilted his head casually. The headshot kunai whiffed harmlessly.
Thud!
But it bought enough time. Force Enhancement activated, body buffed—Choi Woo-jin kicked off, swinging his katana.
The crimson-laced blade curved, scattering red sword beams.
Choi Woo-jin unleashes Force-enhanced strike!
That instant.
Siwoo's body leaned back, torso twisting diagonally.
Whoosh!
The red blade sliced past his nose by a paper's width.
It didn't end there. Choi Woo-jin's blade whipped around relentlessly.
Slash-slash-slash!
One, two, three, four...
Four slashes scattered crimson beams.
But right before contact, Siwoo twisted his entire body, dodging each by a hair's breadth. The katana whiffed completely.
"……!!"
Choi Woo-jin's face twisted in shock. He couldn't fathom dodging Force-accelerated slashes. Let alone chaining them!
And for good reason.
Force-boosted slashes weren't assassin gale strikes, but still blindingly fast.
Too quick to track visually.
Even elite athletes or pros struggled to react.
Yet he not only reacted—but dodged?
'This is bad...!'
Alarms blared in Choi Woo-jin's head.
No time to respond.
Siwoo, having thrown himself back and twisted diagonally, used his collapsing momentum to kick off and leap high.
Aerial flip.
His rising heel uppercut Choi Woo-jin's jaw.
Crack!
Lee Siwoo dodges Force-accelerated attacks in succession!
And lands a counter!
Choi Woo-jin's vision flipped upward from the hit. A moment of stun followed.
That split-second stun was plenty for Siwoo to land a solid blow.
Thud.
Siwoo landed his flip on one knee, scoped in, and shouldered.
Click.
Through the sight: Choi Woo-jin's head.
Pull the trigger.
Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat!
Eight bullets rocketed out. Recoil shoved his body back, arms shaking wildly. But the trajectories were flawless—no deviation.
The instant the barrage hit.
Choi Woo-jin gritted his teeth. Every sense heightened, focus maxed. Sound faded; vision tunneled to a point.
Only the incoming headshots in view.
Shing.
His katana glowed red. Arm blurred, scattering crimson beams.
Clang-clang-clang!
Afterimages like he'd shredded the air; bullets ricocheted to the floor.
Choi Woo-jin deflects every bullet!
Lee Siwoo—this is dangerous!
Thud!
Choi Woo-jin kicked off again to close the gap. Force maxed out, body wreathed in red.
A max-accelerated close-range attacker's speed: roughly 178.9 km/h.
By the time you see it and try to dodge, they've covered 5-10 meters already.
Too short for perception, judgment, muscle response.
You either overshoot or collide.
In short: visible, but unavoidable.
Even the user often can't control it fully.
Choi Woo-jin knew this. But he was certain: at this range, max accel would catch Siwoo.
But.
If you can't react, predict and preempt. As Choi Woo-jin charged full speed, Siwoo had already sidestepped.
Whoosh!
Red and blue afterimages crossed perfectly, barely grazing.
"……!!"
Choi Woo-jin's eyes bulged.
'Dodged?'
This speed was uncontrollable even for the user—impossible to react to.
Especially at this range.
'How?'
It defied logic.
AI reading code to puppet the avatar? That'd be hacking. But impossible—capsule security unbreachable, arena ironclad. Siwoo cheating? Absurd.
Only one conclusion.
'No way...'
He predicted it from the start?
That tracked.
Preempt a speed too fast to react, and you dodge.
"Insane."
Choi Woo-jin whipped his head around in disbelief.
Click.
Siwoo was already shouldered, in firing stance.
His finger moved.
Trigger pulled slow.
Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat!
Dead-straight bullet paths. Aimed at the head. Zero margin for error.
Dodge? No—post-accel action committed, backlash stiffness. Impossible.
Deflect? Need to pivot, but recoil hinders. No.
That means—
Bang-bang-bang!
Death.
"……!!!"
Choi Woo-jin's head snapped back from the hits, health bar plummeting.
Thud.
His avatar collapsed forward as HP hit zero, slamming the ground.
And—
Click.
"I never lose 1v1s."
Siwoo smirked and pressed his in-ear.
"Got their libero. Choi Woo-jin."
What is this?! Lee Siwoo lands a perfect solo kill on Choi Woo-jin!
Unbelievable! He dodged a max-Force close-range attack!