1 Yamashiro Masaru
Dec 31st, 8 p.m., XGV Arena, Los Angeles;
It was the last day of the year 2045. Like how the streets of Los Angeles were packed with people while waiting for the new year, a stadium was also packed with more than fifty thousand fans to watch the finals of the 11th edition of Eternal League.
Eternal League is a professional league where people play Dual Persona, the world's most successful MMO running for almost 14 years with an average concurrent player count of 23.2 million and peak touching as high as 50 million.
Such a game that enjoys popularity in several nations sure brings several leagues, some are private while some are recognized by the International E-sports Council (IEC).
If World Championships is considered the most important international tournament between the national teams, then, Eternal League is considered the most important tournament for clubs. Not only does it have absurdly high prize money (50 million dollars) but it is also the only league conducted by IEC directly.
Because of IEC's reputation, the teams will receive sponsorships, players who receive the same amount of attention as global celebrities, media publicity, etc…
And right now, it's the league finals between Team Neutron and Team Everglade.
"Everglade" "Everglade" "Neutron" "Neutron"
The cheerings were almost equal for both of the teams. From one side, the dark horse of the tournament, Team Neutron made it to the league for the first time and still managed to reach the finals, and from another side entered Team Everglade, the defending champions.
All of a sudden, a part of the audience section suddenly fell silent for a moment as their eyes fell on Team Neutron.
"Where is Vice Captain Mika?" Someone yelled in confusion. Every one started murmuring between themselves as the two finalists continued to walk towards the center of the Arena where the host was standing.
Benjamin Hunter was a retired professional gamer and due to his looks and physique, he now works as a model and host.
Seven members with their respective mentor and team manager stood on either side while the screens displayed their in-game information.
"So, how does it feel to be returning to this stage after five years, Mr. Yamashiro?" The host first asked the tall and thin man who is standing in the middle of his team.
Yamashiro Masaru or otherwise popularly known as "Librarian of the East" used to be a member of four times Eternal League Champion, Team Challengers.
After it was disbanded four years ago, Masaru and some of his teammates found a new club.
With his popularity, sponsors came in but the new team was nowhere good as the old. It didn't even make it to top-32 to participate in the tournament for three successive years. Sponsors left and Masaru alone is funding his team alone with his earnings.
Looking at the audience who was wildly cheering up, the twenty-six-year-old felt moved inside like his teammates but he managed to calm himself quickly and answered, "First of all, I want to thank our fans for giving us your love and support. Last year was a hard time for us. But our fans didn't give up and continued to encourage us.
They motivated us to train hard without taking a single holiday. Our fellow teammates who aren't with us now also helped us a lot during our training. Yeah, today is indeed a big day for our team.."
"But, we see that your vice-captain isn't here with us, today." The host casually commented and then, asked whether they were confident about winning the match without their core player.
So, even the fans appeared worried a bit about whether their idols will win against a team like Everglade without Matsuo Mika, one of the best support class users.
Experienced Yamashiro didn't lose his cool at all and continued to answer for his team until it was the opponent's turn to answer.
"So, how confident are you in winning this final battle?" Benjamin continued to ask him the next question.
"Well, we can't say anything outside the battle. We have prepared our strategy and they have their own strategy. Naturally, both of the strategies will clash. It all comes down to how well we take those instant decisions in the middle of battle." The captain of the Neutron team continued to answer calmly every question, unlike his teammates who are very nervous about the upcoming match.
After the brief introductions are over, the two teams entered their gaming cabin, which practically isolates all the sound from the outside so that the players may concentrate on the battle.
Taking their seats, Masaru turned serious, "everyone, we came this far. Just one more match and we will return to our club with the trophy. Let's give the best farewell gift to Mika-chan."
"Let's win this Cap." "Yeah, let's do this for Mika-san." Everyone forced themselves to be in high spirits so that their low morality can't affect the match results.
A ten-minute timer appeared on one of the screens while an empty large platform in the middle suddenly turned into a huge grassland with rocks here and there. While it's just a 3d projection, it appeared very real to the audience.
A hologram of the respective characters appeared on the battlefield. Unlike in the game, here, their characters are synchronized with their bodies and are seen in their real-life appearances.
It's like the gamers themselves are the ones who will battle. Of course, that's for the audience. The eyes of the players were only fixed on respective their screens where almost similar-looking animated characters will fight.
From Team Neutron, the captain went first. His character is a warlock. From the other team, a guardian class player was playing.
The former uses a class that focuses completely on damage while the latter uses a defensive class.
The former is a ranged class while the latter is a melee.
The former can fly with the broomstick while the latter can't.
The former has high agility if uses broomstick while the latter is slow due to the heavy shield.
The most important factor is that the former is an experienced pro gamer while the latter is a rookie.
It is clear that this isn't a good matchup, at least in 1v1. And even commentators think that Everglade is throwing away the first round.
"Your solo winning streak will end today, Yamashiro-san." His opponent tried to provoke the captain of Neutron even before the battle starts.
A rookie not only challenging one of the top gamers but also declaring about the win? It is nothing but an insult to Masaru.
However, Masaru was completely calm and silent. He didn't reply to it.
*Ding!
The timer started. Both of them dashed forward.
Only about 3 minutes later, the opponent's health was downed to 9% and Masaru still have over 77% health.
As the opponent backed away to heal with a level-15 skill, Masaru dashed forward and unleashed the ultimate skill of Warlock. "Pillar of Eminence."
Masaru stabbed the ground at a perfect moment, unleashing a pillar right under the feet of his opponent.
A dark pillar passed through the target, reducing his HP to 0.
The screen displayed the character name, "Albatross"
As the audience cheered on top of their lungs, the host announced, "Ladies and Gentlemen, once again, Captain Yamashiro had proved why he was the best. He ended the tournament with a winning streak of 7."
His co-host, Elizabeth Cobris commented, "It's a pity that he had lost against 'Vulture.' If Mr. Yamashiro had won that one match, he would have a perfect record."
"Well, let's start the second round, I wonder who will Team Neutron send, now that their vice-captain is unavailable."
The second and third rounds were won by Team Everglade and took the lead by 2-1 by the end of solo rounds.
After that, the fourth and fifth rounds are duo battles where Team Neutron won the fourth round with 2-1 while the fifth round was won by Team Everglade by 2-0.
By the end of the fifth round, Everglade is leading the score with 5-3.
"Now, it's time for the sixth and final round." Host Benjamin screamed on top of his lungs, followed by a loud cheer from the audience.
He continued, "To win the championship, Team Neutron not only has to win this round but also has to make sure at least three players standing at the end.
As for Everglade, as long as they kill at least four of their opponents, they win the championship regardless of the group round's results.
Five people from each side appeared.
*Ding!
