[MATCH READY IN 3…2…1…GO]
The game flashed black before it divided the six players into two random teams and dropped them off on the map.
Olivier looked at his display screen to see who else was on his team. He also unmuted his mic so that he would be able to communicate better with his team. The mic was only team exclusive after all.
'Let us see. I have the healer on my team as well as the sword master. This should make things easier depending on the other two's skill level.'
Olivier considered himself lucky that he had the healer on his team. But their overall-team skill average was a lot lower than the other team's.
"Hey, can you all hear this awesome king? Now listen peasants and I shall take you all to victory."
The first person to speak in their team channel was Aqua. Despite being a healer, Aqua seemed to be holding his own and leveling up.
On the other hand, the sword master was already lvl 5 somehow while the other two still had to start farming. The more Olivier watched the sword master play, the more he was sure about this theory.
"You talk too much. Farm more if you want to prove your worth in this team. I will not come to save a healer like you."
Olivier's heart skipped a beat when he heard the sword master's voice. It was familiar and confirmed all his theories about this person's identity.
"That voice. It is so familiar to me. Wait, aren't you Allen, the pro player? Oh god, my chat is going wild over here."
For the first time, Aqua's voice was filled with awe as he spoke up. The streamer seemed to be at a loss for words.
Olivier knew he needed to pretend to be in awe as well. But he could not pretend to act like a fan since it made him cringe.
As someone who had lived with the pros closely and trained them for so many years, Olivier had lost his awe of the pro players.
Even now he was more concerned about the match than having Allen play in his team.
"Should we meet somewhere and then plan an attack? Or should we fight the other team individually?"
Olivier's mic quality was trash so it was even a wonder the other two understood what he was saying.
Despite this setback, the other two players on his team were shocked by how young Olivier sounded. They knew he was fourteen, but the reality of that situation had not settled in for them until they heard him speak.
"Oh shit, you are a kid. I can see it now. The protagonist of this world, that is I, was sent here to guide you through your future journey. Together we both shall…"
"You sound familiar kid. Have we met before? Or players together before? I can see you from my farming place and something about your moment strikes me as familiar."
This was the time when Olivier should have told Allen his identity and what happened to him. But he had never been close to Champion's sword master so Olivier kept his secrets close to his heart.
"I do not think we have met or played together before. Also, be ready. The first boss will be here in the next 3 minutes. Should we go after the boss or the other team?"
Olivier was not much of a conversationalist and he also felt uncomfortable having so much attention on himself.
So as soon as he could point out a way to change the topic, he changed it.
"Shouldn't we focus on the boss? That is the whole objective of this game, right? But we only have 2 lives each so we will need to be careful."
Olivier should not have felt as shocked as he did now. He knew that Aqua had to have some skills to even get acknowledgment out of Allen.
But since Aqua had not spoken normally until now, this behavior came as a surprise.
"We can try to go after the boss but we lack damage. Chances are, we will end up helping the other team out if we go after the boss."
Allen either did not feel shocked after hearing Aqua talk normally, or he was already over the shock at this point. But Allen's words seemed to have decided their team's next action.
"Well, killing the opposite team it is. I will help you out in any way I can so go wild. I am a support healer so I have a lot of useful skills."
Aqua seemed to be full of surprises. A support healer was something not many people played due to the difficulty and lack of healing it provided the team.
But in this situation, somehow it was the perfect fit for their team.
"Then, let's process this way…."
...
The first boss monster had already appeared on the map. Allen's eyes noticed the signal and he could not help but feel his excitement rise.
Something about this match felt so nostalgic. It reminded Allen of when he had been a fresh player and everything had been new for him.
"Oi Allen, what are you doing? It is time for training so you should come out now."
There was a knock at Allen's door but he ignored the other person. He was busy finding a way to win this match.
The other team's strategy was simple - kill the boss with their higher DPS and then go after the opposite team before the timer runs out. And even if the timer did run out, the opposite team had the advantage.
"Allen, that is enough. I am coming in."
The door opened and Allen's manager stepped into the room. The young man looked annoyed as he watched his assigned player not even look in his direction. He seemed absorbed in his game.
The manager walked over to his PC with annoyed footsteps. He could not allow Allen to be late for practice today as well.
"Allen, can you not hear me? Practice is about to start. Just whom are you playing with? Let me see this match as well."
The manager was surprised to see Allen playing a casual match. There seemed to be nothing shady about this match which surprised the manager.
Usually, Allen liked to play high-stake games where you could either win a lot or lose a lot. This habit of his player had been carefully hidden so far by their company.
Still, Allen's manager was required to keep an eye on the player so that nothing unusual happened to him.
"Are you playing a casual match? How long has it been since you played like this? Hey Allen, are you even listening to me."
The manager asked Allen but he did not try to touch him. He was surprised to see that Allen had sunk into a deep concentration during this game. So, there must be something about this game that caught his attention.
"This match is so interesting. Sorry manager but I will not be coming to practice today. Apologize to the captain for me."
The manager sighed as he looked over, he looked the screen. He could still not believe the fact that Allen was playing a normal match without any stakes.
'I should go and report this to Captain Henry and the chairman. If this is some new trick Allen is trying to pull then the team needs to be aware of this.'
The manager knew his duty well. He knew that he should not be here, encouraging Allen to play this match.
Instead, he should be disciplining Allen and making him go to practice.
The only thing that stopped the manager from doing all of this was the players who participated in this match.
The manager recognized the big boss and Boss Xiao since he had dealings with the in-game guild. He was also sure he knew about the third player on the big boss's team named Terry.
But the other two players on Allen's team interested the manager. He knew about Aqua, the famous streamer. So far, the man had rejected any agency offer he got so it was a surprise to see him in a match.
And the other player was the infamous 'Controller' himself. The manager had heard about him from the scouts who visited Winded Gliding's tournament. It was said that this kid was young but talented.
"Alright, let's do what you said."
So once the manager was certain Allen was not going to move, he sat down as well and decided to watch this match.
But as soon as this match would be over, he would drag Allen to practice.
On the PC screen, both teams got ready to contest for the first boss of the match. But both had their agenda.
Allen licked his lips when he watched his prey, Boss Xiao come to notice. The opposite mage would be the first one to go down.
"Ready…set…give me the support."