Chapter 94: Dancer of the Battlefield

The First Abyss Dome Stadium, Where the Match Takes Place.

And the Exhibition Hall in the Same Building for Spectators.

A peculiar scene was unfolding there.

“That’s not the right pose.

Lenok should look more dignified, a bit indifferent…

Twist your hand back slightly.

Yes, just like that.”

Camilla, the undisputed No.1 in popularity polls.

She was nearly overtaken by other heroes recently, but with the release of her Mythic-tier skin, Snow Queen Camilla, she solidified her place once again.

A woman who bore a striking resemblance to Camilla, dressed as if cosplaying her, was giving various instructions to the people around her.

The people she was addressing were all wearing wigs and elaborate costumes—clearly a cosplay team.

Despite not wearing an actual cosplay outfit, the woman blended in seamlessly with them.

In fact, she looked like their leader.

She was the one speaking the most, while the others nodded attentively at her words.

Passersby assumed that she must be the leader who hadn’t put on her full costume yet and that she would change into it before heading into the stadium.

They watched with intrigue.

Meanwhile, one child had been smiling brightly at first but was now growing increasingly restless.

Sihyeon hadn’t expected her older sister, Moonah, to be this enthusiastic.

Realizing that something was going very wrong, she pushed through the crowd and started tugging urgently at her sister’s sleeve.

“Unnie…”

“So, the most important thing in the cinematic is the balance between heroes.

The director’s intent—hmm?”

Kayak, who had been passionately explaining the Abyss cinematic and the hero concepts to the cosplayers, turned her head at the sensation on her arm.

She was met with Sihyeon’s embarrassed face, a huge crowd that had gathered, and countless curious eyes fixed on her.

Kayak’s face turned red in an instant.

She had started with just a few photos, but at some point, she had become completely immersed.

Before she knew it, she had begun giving direct orders to the cosplayers.

“Aaaaah…!”

Kayak’s sharp mind quickly assessed the situation and determined the best course of action.

Squeeze—

“Ah! Hey!”

“Camilla-nim, where are you going?!”

“Just take one last shot of the final scene!”

Gripping Sihyeon’s hand tightly, Kayak bolted from the scene.

<Live Update: Cosplayers Gather En Masse at Abyss Dome Exhibition Hall ㅋㅋㅋ>

(Image of cosplayers making a V-sign in a group photo)

As expected from Fusion Gaming’s first match of the season—the cosplay quality is insane.

Looks like they’re cosplaying characters from The Origin cinematic series?

The crowd went wild watching them.

• “F*ck, why am I the only one who couldn’t go?!

Why couldn’t I get a ticket?!”

• “So jealous…

I wanna be there too.”

• “My screen froze, and by the time it stopped lagging, everything was sold out.

How the hell did you guys even get tickets?”

• “I left late because I thought I’d make it on time.

Should’ve just come early, ugh.

Looks so fun.”

ㄴ “Even if you don’t have a ticket, there’s a ton to see around the stadium.

The Abyss Dome is owned by Eonix, so there’s a ton of Abyss merch and cool displays.”

• “Who’s the one covering their face?

Are they cosplaying too?

Their outfit is plain, though.”

ㄴ “Honestly, their cosplay is the most insane.

Not sure if they haven’t changed into their full outfit yet or just didn’t bring it, but their face is literally identical to Camilla.”

This Face…

– “How identical are we talking?”

– “Saying she looks exactly like Camilla… hmm… that doesn’t sound realistic.”

– “Is this some kind of viral marketing for a cosplayer? LOL”

<From someone who was actually there>

Not lying, the cosplayer rumors are true LOL.

She looks exactly like Camilla.

Not sure if the cosplayers came as a team or individually, but the Camilla noona is the real deal.

At first, she was just quietly following what the others told her to do.

Then, after a few photos, she started having fun and suddenly took over, directing the entire shoot.

She’s insanely pretty, and her voice is so nice to listen to.

She speaks gently, and the other cosplayers would listen and adjust their poses accordingly.

That made her happy, so she kept smiling—seriously, she was breathtaking.

I’ve been to plenty of matches at the stadium and even big events like G-Star, but she’s hands down the most beautiful person I’ve ever seen there.

If she had an Instagram or was a VTuber, I’d follow her instantly.

– “Damn, this post is dripping with thirst…”

– “Bruh.”

– “Why the hell is this even trending? It’s just a cosplayer, LOL. This is the season opener, can we talk about the league instead?”

– “I liked the post, but not gonna lie, she really did look exactly like Camilla. 200% sync.”

– “Chill, people can talk about the cosplayers too. Why you so mad? LOL”

– “Sounds like you’re just salty because you couldn’t go to the match.”

– “LMAO, should’ve bought a scalped ticket or something.”

– “Just stay home and eat your fried chicken.”

<So, who’s winning today?>

Will Fusion win again today?

Do I have to watch Fusion fans lose their minds and take over the forum again?

– “STFU, Optimus fangirl LOL.”

– “Optimum said they prepped a lot for this match. This might actually be interesting.”

– “Was LFG just slacking off then?”

– “Nah~ Fusion’s winning again. It’s already set in stone. Do we look like a joke after winning Worlds back-to-back?”

– “Look at the comments flooding in LOL.”

– “So that group chat rumor is actually real, huh…”

– “Bruh, the match hasn’t even started yet, and people are already talking about Worlds.”

– “The mods are gonna delete this thread soon, LOL.”

<Fusion might have a secret strategy>

A while ago, they said on stream that we should look forward to it.

Even Junhyeok, who rarely hypes things up, said it too.

– “Bluffing?”

– “Classic Junhyeok.”

– “Damn it, Lee Junhyeok, is it you again?”

– “They always say this, but in the end, it’ll just be the same plays from Lenok, Alec, and Nixon…”

– “Optimum changed their roster and their form’s been looking solid. Could be an upset.”

– “Fusion tends to struggle a bit at the start of the season, so they might actually lose today.”

– “Fusion was practically an invincible armada last season. They literally never lost a game. Of course, they’re confident.”

– “Pre-match win probability: Fusion Gaming 78%, Optimum Prime 22%.”

– “These numbers come from their insane performance last season and the fact that they didn’t lose a single game. But Optimum has to take advantage of the fact that Fusion’s streak has to end someday.”

– “A lot of people are saying it’s about time Fusion loses. No streak lasts forever, not a winning streak or a losing one.”

The match is just moments away from starting.

In a Way, the Match Had Already Begun

Even before the official start, the analysts’ breakdowns served as a kind of prelude—something that made watching the game even more exciting.

Earlier… I did something kind of embarrassing.

I guess I got too immersed without realizing it.

Seeing people who had come fully prepared and dressed up made me think that if we were going to do this, we should do it perfectly.

After entering the stadium while holding Si-hyun’s hand, I kept my eyes locked on the big screen, avoiding eye contact out of embarrassment.

Luckily, Si-hyun seemed to be enjoying the game and wasn’t trying to talk to me.

– “But if we’re being completely objective, Fusion Gaming is undisputedly the best team in the world right now.”

– “They’ve already been recognized internationally and proven themselves on the global stage. There’s no denying it—Fusion Gaming is the strongest team at the moment.”

– “But even the best team can fall at any time. Especially at the start of the season, when new strategies emerge and many teams go through rebuilding, anything can happen.”

As they discussed, the screen displayed each team’s past season hero picks and win rates before smoothly transitioning to the ban-pick phase.

Familiar faces.

Fusion Gaming’s players, sitting with their headphones on, their expressions serious.

– “Optimum Prime won the coin toss and chose the blue side.”

– “That means they’ll be making the first ban-pick… Now, what strategy do they have prepared?”

– “Lenok and Alec are banned. Looks like they’re immediately targeting the heroes that benefited the most from the latest patch.”

One by one, the teams took turns selecting their heroes.

So far, nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

Camilla hadn’t been picked yet.

– “Both teams are sticking to a fairly standard draft so far, aren’t they?”

– “That’s right. They’re playing it safe, taking turns picking heroes they each want.”

– “Everything’s still within expectations. If you look at the players’ faces, they seem to be saying, ‘Yeah, this is going as planned.’ But at this rate, Fusion Gaming won’t have many good picks left for their final selection.”

– “Exactly. What’s left…? Maybe Ian, which Min-hyung likes to use? But that hero hasn’t been rated very highly this season.”

Then, suddenly—

A hero’s portrait appears on the screen.

For some reason, I could almost hear a dramatic du-dun! sound effect.

At the same time, the analysts let out a collective gasp.

– “C-Camilla? Did they just lock in Camilla?”

– “Is this real? Five seconds left to confirm the pick. 5, 4, 3, 2…”

– “They did it! They picked Camilla! The Dancer of War has made her debut in the league!”