LIGHTNOVELONLINE Chapter 189 - Michael
Chapter 189 – Michael
“The dynamics of this match are significantly different from before. Particularly, the competition between Russia and Japan is intense. What are your thoughts on this?”
“Russia’s grand strategy is progressing in a markedly different direction compared to previous matches. The strategy of securing a good position immediately after the farming phase has ended is proving to be highly effective. For those on the receiving end, the inability to counter effectively must be quite a burden.”
The fifth game was in full swing at the Yongsan eSports stadium.
Numerous LED screens on the walls displayed fast-moving national flags. The rankings were fluctuating. Russia was surging upwards while Japan was declining. Fortunately, Korea maintained a consistent first place.
In the third kill zone, 67 players remained. The ‘camping play’ befitting the Asian preliminary round was occurring repeatedly. The individual movements of the players seemed random at first glance, but ultimately, they were converging towards a single point.
All the users scattered on the map were converging radially towards the final kill zone. In the process, many key terrain features were either passed by or inevitably encountered.
In other words, the paths overlapped.
“Ah, as we speak, another engagement has broken out. Russia’s Zvezda is continuously aiming and firing at the enemies trying to escape the canyon with the turret mounted on the window. The user himself hasn’t even started shooting, but the blockade is already solid.”
“The trapped user is Japan’s Clarity. She looks quite flustered, but it’s not over yet. Another user is approaching from behind. Korea’s Michael is closing in. A quick decision is needed.”
The situation Russia intended to create was precisely unfolding in reality.
The only difference was that the Japanese player under the Russian hammer was about to be crushed by the Korean anvil approaching from behind.
The distinctive avatars of the individual players made it almost instantly recognizable who they were engaging with.
In other words, Clarity realized who was approaching from behind.
“Ah, Clarity starts running immediately! She partially defends against the turret’s attack with suppressive fire and quickly escapes into the inner site without entering the building where Zvezda is waiting!”
“Russia has brought a very sophisticated tactic. Once they secure a position, whether the opponent avoids it or charges in, they can inflict at least significant damage or equivalent pressure. This shows the importance of timing even for ordinary tactics. Japan has been caught off guard several times in this match.”
“But the main point remains. The focus is on how Michael will overcome this situation.”
Simultaneously, a screen unfolded before the eyes of millions of Koreans.
A rather adorable – almost reminiscent of a sugar glider – brown girl avatar was holding a massive folding shield, incongruous with her size. She was steadily advancing through the fierce sandstorm characteristic of the NBV desert base. The building seen through the bulletproof glass was impressive.
How close had she gotten? A long whip of flame erupted from a half-collapsed building window, striking the ground violently, including Michael. The machine gun’s high RPM made it appear like a continuous beam of light.
As the commentator mentioned, whether avoided or not, encountering such a situation inflicted considerable damage or burden on the user.
Michael couldn’t completely avoid it either.
“The two users are engaging. The shield’s cooldown is quite long. If the shield sustains excessive damage here, it could be very disadvantageous in the upper-rank battles later.”
“Michael immediately hides behind a rock. But it’s hard to say he’s safe, as Zvezda’s turret, if given a bit of time, can be converted into a grenade launcher turret that can fire grenades.”
“Ha-ha, it seems Zvezda heard us. Modifications are being made. Can Michael overcome this predicament?”
The screen zoomed in and out, transitioned, and split several times.
Multiple cams simultaneously covered Michael, Zvezda, and the surrounding area. It was hard to say which one to focus on. Amidst the colorful screens, Michael was calmly concentrating on his task, as if he knew exactly what to do.
Occasionally, peeking out from behind the rock, the turret automatically fired. Hearing the buzzing sound and the rain of bullets, Zvezda, adjusting the turret, thought Michael would soon pop out and quickly moved to a vantage point.
This happened a couple of times – Zvezda didn’t realize.
Everything was a calculated move.
‘…So far, so good.’
What Michael was doing was modifying a sticky bomb.
The structure of the bomb wasn’t complicated. The front part was a mixture of thermite and C4, with a magnesium igniter – Michael was separating only the explosive. He was executing one of the many ‘Tochka breakthrough methods’ Yoo Jin had taught him.
He organized the current situation in his mind. He had no flashbang. Even if he had one, throwing it wouldn’t reach the window of the building, which was about a hundred meters away, and charging through the fire net without preparation was impossible. If the grenade launcher turret was completed, it would become an impregnable fortress.
So, he targeted the gap just before its completion.
Yoo Jin’s voice seemed to echo in his ears.
-…In most cases, the operator will directly control the moving enemy through heavy weapons, and if you hide behind rocks or cover, the turret’s grenades will come. In such cases, this method is the best.
The modification was complete.
What remained inside the sticky bomb was only magnesium. Conveniently, this was the main ingredient of a flashbang and would produce a blinding flash upon ignition. Launching this with the sticky bomb would essentially create a long-range flashbang.
Moreover, as mentioned earlier, the distance to the enemy was about 120 meters. A regular sticky bomb couldn’t maintain accuracy or speed beyond 100 meters due to its weight, making the drop unpredictable – offsetting this by reducing weight.
If the distance were closer, he could have simply hit them with the sticky bomb….
But seriously, how did that madman Yoo Jin come up with such a crazy idea? Michael’s thoughts briefly wandered, but it was the most useful thing he had now.
Thus, Michael’s plan was simple.
First, he would hide behind cover for a long time, causing the enemy to convert the turret into a grenade launcher that could hit targets regardless of cover.
Second, he would modify the sticky bomb into a flashbang and hit the enemy hiding in the building. Since the regular turret was converted to a grenade launcher, the probability of the launched bomb being intercepted was significantly reduced.
The enemy’s attack was divided into the area attack using the turret’s grenades and the linear attack using the machine gun. The flashbang could block the latter, which meant – the third step was to dodge the turret’s grenades and escape the enemy’s fire net.
Of course, the most important thing at this point was.
To bluff with the sound of sand rustling, making it seem like he was about to leave cover.
───Tududududu!
“Ouch!”
Bullets poured in immediately as soon as he peeked out.
The pressure felt through the shield was intense. It meant a considerable caliber machine gun was being used. The turret modification was nearly complete. Delaying any further would bring significant risk to Michael.
However,
‘I’ve already identified the position.’
With years of shield handling experience, Michael didn’t close his eyes even when sparks flew and bullets whizzed by right in front of him. During the brief moment he peeked out, the muzzle flash location was already imprinted in his mind.
This would determine the outcome.
The next moment, he peeked out again, aligning the distinctive dot sight of the sticky bomb with his line of sight. Over a hundred meters away, on the balcony of the half-ruined base building, he spotted the enemy user who had simultaneously poked out their gun and head.
The automatically calculated bullet speed and drop. As soon as the enemy’s head was targeted, the green dot on the dot sight turned red, and at that moment, a creaking sound was heard as the trigger was pulled.
-Thunk!
Barely a second had passed.
A flash flickered in the distance.
The voices of the caster and commentator became urgent upon witnessing this.
“Ah! Player Michael neutralizes Zvezda’s vision through an unknown method! He escapes from the cover he had been hiding behind and runs straight towards the abandoned base! I can’t even begin to guess what kind of magic he used!”
“The grenade turret’s vision-linked function has been disconnected. Zvezda’s vision is neutralized. With the accuracy plummeting for a moment, Michael swiftly escapes the kill zone without taking any damage. What incredible sense.”
He ran.
Holding the shield firmly with his arm, he gazed unwaveringly at his target despite the surrounding explosions and flying debris. After about 10 seconds, as the flash’s aftermath cleared and Zvezda reappeared, Michael had covered around 50 meters.
It might have seemed like a long way, but Michael was heading towards the base. Contrary to expectations, there were numerous covers along the way. Thus, Michael reached his target with significantly less damage than anticipated.
With a bang, he charged into the building where Zvezda was positioned, holding the shield in front.
The experience ingrained in him by Yoo Jin started to function like a machine.
He had no reason to flee like Clarity.
And how much time had passed?
“Korea’s Michael, after a fierce battle, finally defeats Zvezda head-on! The number of remaining players drops below 50!”
Michael, who had been tormented by Yoo Jin and Dice, began to spread his wings in earnest.
As a result, Koreans were overwhelmed, floundering in the waves of national pride crashing over them repeatedly like a wave pool.
[General] But did they even play the match today? It was so bright I couldn’t see anything.
Every time I watch the Korean national team play, the screen is too bright, and I can’t even see the match results.
[All Comments][Sorted by Newest]
-LMAO ROFL
-CHIEF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ㄴDamn, just reading it is loud LOL
ㄴAt this volume, everything will shatter, dishes and cups included, you crazy bastard LOL
ㄴI burst out laughing like a madman LOL how excited must he be
-They just keep beating them without giving them a moment to breathe LOL
ㄴAll the faces of the Russian, Japanese, and Chinese teams are a mess, it’s legendary
-I’m losing it LOL I’m getting hammered with day drinking right now, it’s so sweet
-?? : From now on, we’ll call the light Yoo Jin
-Yoo Jin hasn’t missed first place except when she went down with Case, how the hell does she do it?????
ㄴNot human LOL
ㄴShe’s the god of AP!!!!
-I came to watch in Yongsan, and everyone here is reacting the same way LOL
ㄴWhat’s it like?
ㄴEveryone’s overdosing on national pride and is dying from happiness LOL
ㄴROFL
-Ah LOL I can’t see the match LOL
-It’s not just Yoo Jin; everyone is doing well, which makes me really proud
ㄴYeah, but only three will advance to the finals this year~ it’s as tough as last year~
ㄴDamn, what if Yoo Jin and Dice get eliminated early LOL
[General] Damn, I live in Yongsan, and the outside is crazy LOL
I’m watching the match too, but isn’t this too much?
[All Comments][Sorted by Newest]
-LOL
-If you open the window, it’s like forced surround sound LOL
ㄴLOL
ㄴWow, modern speakers can even replicate natural sounds LOL
-If nearly 300,000 people shout at once, it would echo everywhere, is that true?
ㄴ[OP] Yeah, but other people in my apartment also scream like crazy, so it’s similar LOL
ㄴLOL
ㄴIn the end, he screams the same way LOL
-Wow, free broadcast must be sweet LOL
ㄴ[OP] But if it’s noisy until I go to sleep, I’ll file a complaint immediately. Enjoy within limits and then disperse!!!!!!!!
ㄴLOL
ㄴThis isn’t even noise between floors; what kind of noise is this LOL
-Every time someone does well outside, they go “Wow!!!!!” and when they win, they go
“Wow!!!!!!!!” Damn, just imagining it is dizzying
-If you live in a nice place, endure it with grit LOL
Korea was entering an unimaginable frenzy.
Communities dealing with the game, starting with the Dark Zone Gallery, were bursting at the seams with a massive influx of people, and the Korean eSports news section was spewing out new articles by the minute.
Yoo Jin, Dark Zone, AP, Asian Preliminary Round, Dice, and others. Except for names and rough information, nothing was known about a user who, until last year, was in a slump – well, it had only been three years since the professional scene started, so there was no such thing as a slump – but who had completely overturned the Korean gaming scene.
And after that, in other words, after all the national team members were semi-forcibly overhauled by Yoo Jin, they faced the Asian Preliminary Round.
The victories, consecutive wins, and dominance that unfolded there.
When the unimaginable became reality, everyone who functioned properly focused naturally on the eye of the storm.
“We have to ride this wave now! But check everything thoroughly! If the article goes up wrong and we face backlash, the company could be disbanded!”
Proud Korean players swept away all obstructing enemies with nothing but their own skills.
The players themselves didn’t think much of it, but at this point, the viewers were more excited. Every place related to Yoo Jin and the Dark Zone was churning out articles, anyone with a voice talked about AP, and those with eyes looked towards Yongsan.
It was just another typical day in Korea, where the fifth match was successfully concluded.