Chapter 91 - Championship (9)

"Could it be their tank? Do you think CEO UNRIVALED is activating the EXP crest? Maybe she abandoned extra defense boost and go for the benefits of her team instead," William murmured loudly as his character finally teleported to the top lane. He crossed both of his legs and adjusted his sitting position to a more comfortable one.

In the game, it was too common for the tank or support role who usually use EXP crest. Hence, the boy was quick to point fingers towards the tank.

"It could be?" the other teammates did the same. They nodded their head and crossed their legs.

Since their movements were mostly synchronized when they crossed their legs and leaned back to the chair, some audience who noticed this could not help but giggle. 

The players even twisted their necks from side to side just to make sure that their bodies won't feel stiff.

However, after a few more minutes, they noticed something that does not fit with their guess.

"I don't think it's the tank. The item in her inventory is mostly to sustain damage," the fighter user of the Lee Gaming squad furrowed her brows while taking a peek of the inventory list and saw shield and armor there. She was not convinced that CEO UNRIVALED was using such type of of special crest.

"That's right! It's not the tank. Maybe it's the assassin or support?" the mage user suggested.

"Based on her item build, it's not her too. It should be their marksman," Brent immediately comprehended who among the five opponents was using the EXP crest.

On the inventory list of Stephen's marksman, he saw only swift arrows which provide extra attack speed on the character. There was no item that would give his attack extra damage.

"This might be the reason why they were able to contest the giant mutant. The marksman was prioritizing the attack speed rather than his damage!" Brent added.

"Alright, then our goal is to eliminate the marksman or the support first. If the marksman won't die then they would surely catch up with us!" Brent's sister suggested right away.

The rest agreed and made a humming sound before they concentrated back on their characters.

Brent looked calmly on his screen. Then his mind drifted to Sofia,

'This girl is so hard to predict! What is the strategy that they are using?' 

Now that they know about the special crest, the felt at ease.

However, it was rather unusual for the marksman to use a special crest. Most of the players would prefer for extra damage boost or an extra attack range boost when playing this role.

It was more fitting for the role to get this crest and the majority of players used it all the time. It was something that pro players would not use in the tournaments.

As half a minute passed, the system finally announced that the giant mutant was summoned by the Chronos squad.

"It's here. Prepare your skills and we will intercept this giant!" Brent's sister reminder the group to sit properly and be ready for the incoming products.

The NPC easily strode from the base of the Chronos side following to the top lane. While it was marching towards the cemented ground, the background sound had a faint drumroll giving the tense setup.

The Lee Gaming squad was completely prepared for the arrival of this giant NPC. They constantly took a peek at the map and then the location of their enemies.

On the side of the Chronos squad, most of them had also teleported back to the base to restore their HP and MP. Only Claire's assassin can be seen roaming around the jungle territory of her opponent. Because of the giant mutant,  farming the buff of her opponent became so easy. 

This new NPC ally of the Chronos squad was the strongest among all the NPC monsters of the game. 

Its bulky body and large HP bar above its body were enough for any enemy to know how tough this monster was. But, the ally won't be controlled by players.

It has only one dynamic, to attack the territories of their opponent until it reached the base. It would not collaborate with the movements of the Chronos squad. Instead, it would go straight to one single lane.

This NPC would focus on destroying the base and would not mind attacking the players. It would only attack enemies if the character would provoke it or if it would be blocking its path. 

If the player gets out of its attack range, the giant mutant would just proceed to charge forward and attack the tower until it reached the base.

While the giant mutant arrived on the top lane where the Lee Gaming squad was the situation, the players were confused. They have anticipated the Chronos squad would follow this NPC however, there was not a single shadow from them around.

"Ohh, they are not here! It should be easy for us to tackle this giant mutant and end its life!" the mage user happily announced. She finally felt at ease that the Chronos squad was not pushing to charge together with the NPC.

"Yes, it is. But be careful of your positioning. They might sneak attack," Brent murmured as he started to fire all the bullets on his guns. He pressed all his skills and displayed a beautiful combo.

But at the back of his head, Brent could not help but asked something. 'What is really the plans of the Chronos squad?'

There was no way for Sofia to let the NPC charge the top lane alone without any plans. Somehow, he knew that his opponent was up for something yet he could not see through their plans. He started to felt agitated and glanced at his members.

"Ohh, why are the Chronos squad players not helping the NPC? It should be a great opportunity to get an upper hand against their opponent!" the younger commentator curiously asked. It would seem that the squad had deliberately abandoned the opportunity granted for them to get the advantage. After the hard work and effort, they have done for killing this NPC, they just ditched the giant mutant!

"Hehe, I can only think of one thing. The Chronos squad was also flexing their skills against the Lee Gaming squad. The message was clear!" the older commentator clapped happily as he looked at the player's movement on the map.

"What message is clear? I just don't have the proper insights behind their movements right now!" the younger commentator probed further feeling a deep hole of emptiness was forming on his chest. 

"The message is simple. They will win without any advantages of NPC and upgrades. Just early in their match, we have seen that the Lee Gaming squad had flexed the map and their skins. This time, the Chronos squad was also flexing their skills!" the older commentator answered right away.

"Ohh, isn't it a bit too risky! What if they don't win at the end of this match, then they will end up being embarrassed?" the younger commentator stated after realizing what was going on.

"Of course, that could also happen. It's how this game became more interesting! Would this be worthy for the Chronos squad to declare their skills and showed to the audience their dominance? Or would it be a waste of opportunity that would make them fall eventually?" the older commentator spoke loudly.

On the large screen, the audience could see that the Chronos squad had started to gather on the bottom lane. No one really went to the location of their enemy.

As the Lee Gaming squad got the open spot to fight the NPC, it only took another half of a minute for them to slay the giant mutant. It did not even supply any damage to their territories as they intercepted it before it could attack.

When the giant mutant was gone, Brent also felt that the Chronos squad was toying them around even before the start of the game.

"Ohh... really? Hehe, we are not your toys!" Brent grumbled as his eyebrows lift as if he was completely pissed for realizing this late.

"What are you saying? What toys?" William who heard his random remark quickly asked. He had not yet realized the deliberate movements of the Chronos squad as it seemed done randomly.

"Our enemy is toying us! I have analyzed it properly now! Look, at first, we thought that they would ambush us in the bottom lane. But when we arrived at the bottom lane, they switched positions easily teleported away instead of fighting at us! Now, they have killed this giant mutant but they did not attack us. Do you know how insulting this is?" Brent tightened the grip of his hand. 

If his phone was not a high-end brand, its screen would have cracked open by now. The feeling of being toyed greatly affected his momentum. But it also provided him great stimulation on our body after eating it.

"So, they are actually manipulating our gameplay? Wow! I admit, I did not see it that way!" the mage user admitted and her face turned sour.