Chapter 190: Chapter 190

After Sigma advanced through the group stage

No, maybe it had been a topic long before that.

There was one subject that had been the talk of every team participating in the Championship and every esports professional involved.

That subject was Ga-wol's swordsmanship.

The sword that even brought down Cerberus.

It was too powerful to be dismissed lightly.

But if anyone tried to analyze it, there was not enough data.

The only official footage available were two matches from the arena.

Ga-wol had never appeared in personal streams or IKL.

Some skilled teams tried to dig into Ga-wol's background.

The result was an astonishing waste of effort.

No one was able to provide more than a report stating, “No information found.”

The task, which had been brushed aside, reemerged once again today.

World Championship - Quarterfinals.

Ga-wol, participating as a swordsman, wasn’t satisfied with a single victory.

He picked up his sword again in the third set that followed.

“It’s unbelievable what’s happening right before our eyes!”

“Acid Gaming’s lines are falling apart like autumn leaves…”

“If you’ve ever seen the European league, you’d understand how shocking this is!”

“The paladin from the opposing team, Smite, is using the shield that was prepared for the likes of Cerberus and Hero!”

The sword was pulled out from the paladin’s neck.

It was clearly a fatal wound, but the paladin, with the priest’s support, wouldn’t die so easily.

So, it wasn’t over with just one strike.

A beautiful horizontal slash.

The paladin’s sword desperately tried to block Ga-wol’s blade.

Or, at least, that was the intention.

The blades met, but instead of meeting force with force, Ga-wol slid the sword along the paladin’s, using his strength against him.

The defensive movement lost its purpose and exposed a weakness.

Before the paladin could regain his senses, Ga-wol’s sword left a wound on his body and was already on its way out.

It was clear that neither defense nor evasion had worked properly.

From a distance, it looked like the silver-haired swordsman was toying with his opponent completely.

“Krrgh!”

It took only two moves.

In those two moves, the paladin’s throat was slashed, and now the sword nearly cleaved his heart.

Blood dripped from the wound as Ga-wol’s sword passed through his chest.

The fear of almost dying caused him to instinctively clutch the wounded area.

It was a fatal mistake. His body tilted forward, and the attack came from below.

With logic as simple as that, Ga-wol’s sword cut through his ankle and calf.

Ga-wol moved his sword nonchalantly.

The healing spell that was meant for the paladin was cut in half, losing its effectiveness.

An ice spear that flew from the blind spot was deflected with Ga-wol’s scabbard, barely grazing his clothing.

The only thing that worked was the area debuff that altered the build… but…

In the previous set, Ga-wol had never relied on speed or stats to overpower his enemies.

Suddenly, the paladin’s mind seemed to dull.

How could that sword be here?

With that thought, the ‘Cleave’ judgment was made on his neck.

[‘Sigma Ga-wol’ has defeated ‘Acid Gaming Smite’.]

At that moment.

Outside the arena, a wild cheer erupted.

Not only the fans but even the commentators were too stunned to comment.

It couldn’t be helped.

Even they, having seen Ga-wol’s sword once, couldn’t understand it.

Only former players at the analysis desk replayed the footage over and over, trying to find the right words.

Detailed commentary became impossible.

So, the broadcasters allowed the viewers to soak in the atmosphere and the excitement.

The World Championship is being broadcast globally,

and the commentators who reached this conclusion were swept up in emotion.

Those who couldn’t do so were stumbling over their words, forgetting even their profession.

“Ga-wol’s sword has once again defeated the enemy’s paladin!”

“Some may wonder why Acid Gaming brought the same composition as before.”

“But upon closer inspection, it’s completely different.”

“They’ve lowered their pride and come with a defensive build, one that could target Ga-wol specifically.”

It might sound humiliating to the individual players,

but that was the reason they managed to endure a few hits.

If the composition hadn’t changed in the last set, Sigma would have won even more easily.

“No matter what they do, the battle just can’t work!”

“How could a player like this even exist? It’s horrifying, and we’re lucky he’s on our team!”

“I’ve been commentating esports for years, and I can confidently say this…”

“No player in league history has shocked us like Ga-wol does right now.”

“This match will be talked about for years, even after the league ends.”

[Posted by: SigmaIsAwesome]

[Title: Ga-wol’s Swordplay Compilation from the Quarterfinals Set 1]

(Attached Video Compilation)

At first, I just planned to collect clips of what seemed insane,

but every time I watched, there was another super play,

so it ended up being all the footage from the match.

It’s not just random praise, you really need to see this.

If you haven’t watched it yet, turn off the community and find the match later.

You’ll be missing half of your life.

I knew Ga-wol’s swordsmanship was good,

but even knowing that, I’m still speechless right now.

[Comments]

“So this is what it means to be a swordmaster.”

└ “If Ga-wol’s the standard, no one in the world can be a swordmaster.”

“I’m a swordmaster too, but do assassins always feel this wall?”

“After watching this, I deleted all the funeral video edits I had made.”

“This isn’t even normal human play…”

[Posted by: ㅇㅇ(750.226)]

[Title: Now Viewing with the Eye of a GOAT]

(Attached Image: Phantom looking smug)

(From Phantom’s MVP Interview)

Q. By the way, I’m curious about your opinion on Ga-wol. After all, you’re one of the world’s top three assassins. Reaper seems to have a high evaluation of him.

A. It’s an embarrassing nickname. I do agree that his skills are already complete, but I’d like him to prove that by debuting as a pro. If he reaches out to me, I’d be willing to help.

I had been trying to get him to reach out even before Ga-wol’s pro debut.

He was the one who found that perfect Korean apocalypse scenario.

Had he succeeded back then, he would’ve dominated both North America Summer and the Championship.

He’s just a god of movement.

Praise GOAT ‘Phantom’

[Comments]

“HAHAHAHAHAHAHA”

“Looking back, it’s really shocking.”

“It wasn’t losing in the round of 16. It was losing to Ga-wol.”

[Posted by: SigmaFan]

[Title: Light]

(Attached Image: Luche)

(From Ga-wol’s IKL Debut Interview)

Q. Honestly, with Ga-wol’s skills, he could have joined any team. Why did you choose Sigma?

A. Well… it’s because of Luche. I’ve been a fan of hers for a long time and she’s helped me a lot.

Did you know?

Luce means “light” in Italian.

[Comments]

“I’ve definitely seen this template before.”

“Praise.”

“Praise.”

I felt nauseous.

It wasn’t that something was physically coming up, but I felt queasy.

“Ugh, ew. Ugh… haa, haa.”

Only sticky saliva came from my mouth.

After washing my face a few times, I felt a bit better.

When I wiped my face with a dry towel, my eyes were a bit bloodshot.

I didn’t look very healthy.

I know it’s not convincing to tell me not to worry, but I’ve definitely improved compared to before.

Still, I didn’t really throw up.

There’s nothing wrong with my body.

‘It’s probably just stress expressing itself in another way.’

If I think of it like that, it’s actually a good thing.

Until recently, I couldn’t forgive myself, and I even wanted to harm myself.

That’s why I kept scratching my neck or feeling the urge to self-harm.

But now it’s different.

I decided not to be bound by the past anymore.

I’ve convinced myself of that.

My parents wouldn’t blame me.

Whether that’s true or not doesn’t matter.

What matters is that they would be more upset seeing me suffer.

This alone proves it.

I didn’t come out of the game before because I feared I’d really harm myself.

If I’m just feeling nauseous, I can handle it.

And, honestly, after bearing this disgusting feeling for a bit,

I actually felt happy.

“Phew… my sword, it’s not dead yet.”

Of course, it wasn’t 100% satisfying.

After a long time holding it, the sword wasn’t as perfect as I hoped.

But for now, this was good enough.

Once the mental issues are solved, it’ll improve.

If not, I’ll just keep forcing myself to hold the sword…

“Ugh, ughh…”@@novelbin@@

Maybe not yet?

The stomach that had just calmed down was causing trouble again.

This time, it felt sour and painful in my throat.

But it’s fine.

I can handle it all by myself.