[TS] Malicious Sniper

Day 7 of the representative selection tournament, and the semi-finals to determine the teams to reach the finals have begun.

Naturally, my team, Curry Breaker, advanced to the finals after defeating the last team in Group 2.

Now, the only match remaining today was between the team ‘Ohapjijon,’ led by Curry, and the ‘Ceremony’ team.

After the match, I entered the official channel of Tuiichi.

I hadn’t watched the tournament matches so far.

The reason for not watching was simple.

The tournament matches were really boring.

But this time, I had to watch. No, I was forced to watch.

If Ohapjijon lost this match, my goal of targeting the tournament would fail miserably.

I had once targeted Curry in a scrim before, but I knew myself well.

I couldn’t possibly be satisfied with just one scrim target. In reality, I was not satisfied at all right now.

That’s why I hoped even more that the Ohapjijon team would defeat the Ceremony team and make it to the finals.

Not just a tournament target, but a finals target, for crying out loud.

Throughout the tournament, I hadn’t felt nervous even once.

But just thinking about targeting the finals had me feeling excited automatically.

Ah, I wish tomorrow would hurry up and come.

I wonder what kind of expression I’m making right now.

I couldn’t check without a mirror.

I was definitely smiling, that was for sure.

I had never felt this nervous in my life.

So, wishing for tomorrow to come quickly, I watched the match between the two teams.

*

The representative selection tournament held over the past week had spawned a lot of controversies.

The balance of the tournament is off. The match format is too terrible.

Such controversies had been continuously raised but soon disappeared.

After all, the representative selection tournament was, in essence, the process of selecting the ‘representative’ of the platform.

In that process, it was only natural that the best-performing team would become the representative.

Arguing about balance in the representative selection tournament was like proving one’s own ignorance.

At the specific community where the controversy started, such debates ceased as well.

What filled the void of that controversy were predictions of the winner of today’s finals.

Title: Ohapjijon will win. Curry’s form is no joke.

Content: Curry is playing like he’s just awakened. He’s not letting even challenger tops down.

Title: Who would have thought Curry would get a solo kill in the semifinals?

Content: Jumping on the Curry Coin. Let’s soar high from here!

Title: Are those clowns supporting Ohapjijon not watching scrims?

Content: Your Curry was 1/10/5 in scrims, lol.

[Comments]

qwerasdf1234: Feels great~

Menanmin: Stop the fact violence!

Hook Collector: Yup~ The Curry back then and the Curry now are two different people~

rnseofldk: Another delusional one is acting up again.

qudajrdma: Shut it and drink your medicine.

Many community users engaged in fierce debates about today’s match.

Didn’t you guys see the scrims? The Curry Breaker team is definitely going to win and be selected as the representative.

No, the scrims and the tournament are completely different, so Ohapjijon, which has grown during that time, will win.

Opinions divided like this, and endlessly, posts asserting each other’s claims went up.

Not long later, the speed of new posts in the community began to slow down.

Finally, the official Tuiichi channel opened, and the last match of the representative selection tournament began.

*

The Wandering Swordsman fell deep into thought before the finals.

After suffering a gruesome defeat in the scrims, the Wandering Swordsman practiced fiercely, pouring in effort that was almost soul-crushing.

The Wandering Swordsman, who had paid no attention to anyone but Yasuo, practiced and researched other champions solely to defeat Barcode in the finals.

The passion the Wandering Swordsman had when first playing Yasuo was now being poured into forging the weapon to defeat Barcode.

Given the limitation of the number of champions one can master, the Wandering Swordsman overcame that disadvantage and grew once more.

Every player has champions they excel at and those they struggle with. That was the logic of League of Legends.

The Wandering Swordsman broke free from such logic and common sense, showcasing remarkable feats throughout the tournament.

And finally, arrived at the finals.

“Wandering Swordsman.”

“Yes.”

“Let’s get them good.”

At Curry’s calm words, the Wandering Swordsman quietly smiled and replied softly.

“Yes. Let’s do that.”

That was the last time the Wandering Swordsman could smile.

Could it be that their skills had grown a level?

The Wandering Swordsman could gauge Barcode’s level to some degree.

They had felt frustration many times while watching the Curry Breaker team’s matches but never let it show on the outside.

The Wandering Swordsman no longer aimed to defeat Barcode.

Thinking back, that was an unattainable goal.

So, the Wandering Swordsman put down the heavy burden they had been carrying.

Coming out of deep thought, the Wandering Swordsman moved to the official voice channel, following Curry.

*

The finals that were to determine the representative of the platform.

Most streamers may have set their sights on this final.

But my purpose for participating in the tournament was solely to target the loathsome Curry.

I no longer remembered what made me find them loathsome.

Yet, here I was, on the verge of accomplishing my goal, and with that, my condition was at an all-time high.

I had even practiced a specific champion for this final.

It hadn’t even started yet, and I was already feeling butterflies and excitement.

Unlike me, my team members seemed tense and were uncharacteristically quiet.

After entering the private channel, we quietly waited for the game to start.

Silence lingered in the voice channel for a while.

“Are you really going to play that champ?”

The silence was broken by Jericho’s question.

“Yes.”

“Haha, sometimes Barcode truly seems scary. Poor Curry.”

“You don’t have to compliment me.”

Maybe it was because I was happy in anticipation of the long-awaited moment.

Even while talking, the smile on my face never faded.

“Poor Curry…”

Jericho looked down on Curry.

The other team members held their breath, stifling their laughs.

Unintentionally, the previously bleak atmosphere of the voice channel lifted.

Not long after, the finals of the representative selection tournament began.

*

The finals commenced.

The host, caster, and commentators greeted the audience, and the official channel’s screen switched to the waiting room where the ban-pick phase began.

Perhaps due to the overwhelming impact of the first match in the representative selection tournament?

In the subsequent matches, the only champion that Barcode banned was Yone.

Knowing that no matter how much they tried to contain Barcode, who could handle nearly all champions at a high level, they would not succeed.

Thus, most teams that faced Curry Breaker had banned only Yone.

As a result, Barcode’s Yone recorded a 100% ban rate, a record which remained unbroken even in the finals.

“Ah, as expected, they’re first to ban Barcode’s Yone.”

“Barcode’s Yone is famous. I would have liked to see him once, but that’s just wishful thinking.”

After banning Yone, the Ohapjijon team proceeded to ban Jericho’s most used jungle champions, mirroring their strategy during scrims.

In team play, the synergy between mid and jungle is unimaginably crucial; it was the best decision they could make in a situation where targeting mid meant nothing.

On the flip side, the Curry Breaker team targeted the ace of the opposing team, Last.

The ban-pick phase flowed similarly as it did during scrims, with both sides having similar picks.

However, the champions chosen by both teams’ mids were noticeably different from the previous scrim.

The Wandering Swordsman, who had picked Zard in the scrim, now selected Pantheon.

In response to the Wandering Swordsman’s first pick of Pantheon, Barcode chose Rakan.

It was an unexpected choice that no one anticipated.

Why did he pick Rakan after Pantheon was already on the board?

Many couldn’t understand Barcode’s choice, including the broadcast team.

“Mid Rakan. It has come up a few times in tournaments, and has been researched as well.”

“I think it was a choice made to chase Pantheon’s roams; that’s a cautious thought.”

Despite their efforts to explain, the commentary team’s attempts to wrap up Barcode’s choice were in vain.

Because, in essence, Rakan was virtually a lower-tier champion compared to Pantheon.

As anxiety and disappointment filled the atmosphere, the game began.

The Curry Breaker team was purple, while the Ohapjijon team was blue.

The early phase passed as each team checked for invades before moving to their respective positions.

The following lane phase also progressed smoothly without major incidents.

Although Barcode had previously shown a very aggressive style, surprisingly, the Barcode making his finals appearance retained a passive attitude.

It was surely difficult to win against Pantheon with Rakan, yet Barcode had shown many instances of overcoming such challenges, leading his newfound fans to feel disappointed.

The game continued its mundane progression until both mids reached level 6.

At that point, the game took a sharp turn.

“One of Rakan’s strengths is his impressive wave-clear ability, but…”

“After Pantheon goes back home, Rakan clears the wave and heads top!”

“It seems like there’s a dive call with Lilyan nearby!”

Indeed, on the observer’s mini-map, multiple pings were spotted over Curry’s Irelia.

Just as Rakan arrived near top lane, he unleashed his ultimate, sending a tremor through the valley.

From the perspective of the enemy team, it was a tense situation, with barely anything visible in front of them, but the observer’s screen captured the brutal moment when Irelia was dived.

[First Blood!]

“Despite resistance, ultimately! Barcode’s Rakan registers the first kill!”

The dull atmosphere shattered as Rakan’s first blood echoed through the valley.

How would Barcode navigate the game with Rakan?

Viewers watched the tournament with this eager curiosity, but…

“Ah, this isn’t good…”

“Curry’s Irelia has fallen again! This is brutal. Barcode’s Rakan!”

Rakan’s ultimate was focused entirely on Irelia.

Any strategy or tactical considerations went out the window as Barcode solely targeted Curry.

Even the host, who had been highly engaged, said, “this isn’t good…” due to the shocking situation.

Rakan relentlessly hunted Irelia down repeatedly.

Dragon team fight?

– Darkness be!

Another darkness cast upon the valley, leading to the chilling discovery of Irelia’s corpse.

Going bot after the first tower fell?

– You’re all alone now…

With the perfect ultimate line, Irelia met her end without even being able to resist properly.

This was no longer a match; it blurred the lines between finals and a psycho user’s gameplay.

Some viewers clicked their tongues at Barcode’s malice, while others cheered for the performance he delivered.

The commentary team become speechless watching Barcode relentlessly kill Curry.

This was no longer a tournament match; it resembled a broadcast solely focused on Barcode tormenting Curry.

Even though Barcode’s Rakan faced some setbacks while trying to capture Irelia, it didn’t result in any major mistakes that could turn the game.

Ultimately, Curry recorded a more disheartening score of [1/13/3].

The 35-minute contest ended, unsurprisingly, with the Curry Breaker team’s victory.

Naturally, interviews followed with the team selected as representatives, where the only one smiling was Barcode.

Thus, the long representative selection tournament came to a close.

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