Nirvana Top Laner, Reborn Tokyo Girl

Chapter 270, Section 267: Entering the Top Eight —
After returning to the hotel that evening, Shimamura Yuna searched for "the first snow of the Thousand Islands".

The result was surprising.
This person, in many ways, is very similar to my own experience.

She debuted about four years ago, when she was a Japanese prodigy.

At that time, she used the name "Archangel of Holy Light" and reached the top of the Japanese server using her signature hero "Kayle".

And then he started a live stream.

Because of her cute appearance, great personality, and outstanding skills in Japan, there were many voices online at the time hoping that she would go pro.

However, due to various considerations, she ultimately did not go.

She explained it many times during the live stream.

On the one hand, playing League of Legends professionally in Japan is really unstable, so it's better to rely on one's looks and skills as a gimmick to stream.

On the other hand, he personally believes that his hero pool mainly consists of heroes like Kayle, which are not well-suited to the competitive scene, and he may not be able to perform well in professional matches.

In conclusion, after considering all aspects, she ultimately chose to give up.

This choice was a great pity for the Japanese League of Legends community for a long time.

The reason is...
She had actually reached the Challenger rank in the Korean server at that time.

It's worth noting that at that time, there were only two players in all of Japan who could reach the Challenger rank in the Korean server.

It's not the kind of game where you can rank up anytime you want, but you're just too lazy to do it.

At that time, very few Japanese League of Legends players could achieve high scores on the Korean server.

As one of the few players with a thousand points in the Korean server in Japan, Chishima Hatsuyuki is a truly rare find.

Her champion pool might be a problem for other leagues, such as LCK and LPL.

But for Japan, a place with a shortage of talent, this is not a problem at all.

EVI even suggested that she come to DFM to train with him and be personally trained by him.

But
In the end, she rejected EVI's offer and chose to stay in her comfort zone and continue streaming.

Before Shimamura Yuna, she was always considered one of the most regrettable people in the Japanese League of Legends community.

Until a year ago, people kept speculating, "If Hatsuyuki Chishima had chosen to play in competitions instead of streaming back then, would the Japanese League of Legends scene be different now?"

This argument only subsided after Shimamura Yuna appeared.

Both debuted as masters of the French nuclear weapons and both became famous through live streaming.

This person's start is indeed very similar to that of Shimamura Yuna.

However, the difference is that in the end, Chishima Hatsuyuki did not choose to go pro, but Shimamura Yuna did.

From then on, the two people embarked on different paths.

Upon seeing this, Shimamura Yuna couldn't help but think, "Life is truly unpredictable."

"Is it possible that in some timeline, I was actually the one who chose to stream instead of continue playing professionally, while she was the one who made a name for herself by playing professionally?"

Thinking of this, she couldn't help but smile and shake her head.

"Forget it, there's no point in thinking about this kind of thing."

"Compared to this."

"Let's focus on the games we're playing now."

That's right.

That so-called "possibility" never actually happened.

Right now, I am the only female athlete in Japan.

He himself is the hope of LPL and the hope of Japan.

therefore
"In the end, I will be the one who shines."

Yuna Shimamura is full of determination for the upcoming matches.
-
The first day of the competition ended quickly.

However, the so-called Swiss wheel is a stage that never stops.

The audience is looking forward to a new stage.

The same applies to the contestants; they need to keep moving on to the next stage without stopping.

The Swiss round of matches passed by in the blink of an eye.

So, let me give you a brief overview of the competition.

First, there is the first round of matches, consisting of a total of 8 BO1 games, with the win/loss records as follows.

WBG vs T1, WBG wins.

GEN vs FNC, GEN wins.

CFO vs BLG, BLG wins.

FLY vs PSG, FLY wins.

G2 vs 100T, G2 wins.

HLE vs MKOI, HLE wins.

TES vs TS, TES wins.

KT vs VKS, KT wins.

In short
There were no upsets.

The teams that everyone thought were more likely to win before the match actually did win.

Even teams that seemed evenly matched ended up winning because the team with the slightly higher winning percentage won.

No miracle occurred.

BO1 is already a format where unexpected events are relatively easy to happen.

However, this Swiss round of the competition fully demonstrated what it means for "the strong to humiliate the weak".

After the first round of the Swiss tournament, WBG, who was already a favorite to win the championship, saw their championship index rise even further.

As the saying goes, those who are considered favorites to win before the competition aren't favorites, they're just CJB (a derogatory term for a team that has been criticized for its poor performance).

From ancient times to the present, countless times, there have been teams that were favored before the competition, but ended up being just average or even disappointing in the actual competition.

And this is especially true for strong teams like WBG, which suddenly became stronger in just one month, and only by strengthening one player.

People emotionally want to believe that WBG is very strong and want to see Shimamura Yuna prove herself.

However, reason tells them that the probability of this team being a CJB team is as high as 100% or even 90%.

It's all too common for teams to dominate the LPL league but then falter at the World Championship.

The way to dispel doubts is simple.

That means letting the results and content of the competition speak for themselves.

WBG, on the other hand, clearly delivered a convincing performance.

In the first round of the competition, they defeated T1 in a fairly solid manner, if not overwhelmingly.

Then in the second round, they faced TES from the same region.

Then came another exhilarating game of spinning tops.

Moreover, it is worth mentioning that on the same day, the CFO, who was also Yuna Shimamura's former employer, suffered a very unpleasant defeat.

When Shimamura was with her former team, she dominated TES, almost to the point of abusing them. She completely overwhelmed the team, allowing TES to make history.

After that, he went to BLG and then took down BLG.

It's clear that regardless of which team Shimamura Yuna plays for, neither BLG nor TES poses a significant threat to her.

As a result, after Shimamura Yuna left, the CFO team returned to an all-Chinese lineup.

then
Then they were retaliated against and defeated by BLG.

Of course, BLG's victory wasn't exactly easy either.

The current CFO team can actually be considered a strong team outside of China and South Korea, with strength approaching that of the third seeds from China and South Korea.

However, compared to the scene during the Pioneer Tournament where CFO utterly destroyed TES, the difference is obvious.

CFO is currently a team that can barely keep up with the level of the major regions and is still considered the only hope in the LCP.

However, compared to that once invincible CFO, he is still far from being the best.

Seeing this situation, CFO's fans couldn't help but lament on the forum: "Without Shimamura, there's still a huge gap."

Yes, the difference is huge.

The control variable is too obviously controlled.

Anyone with a discerning eye can see just how strong the previous CFO was.

So why is WBG so strong now? When the CFO was interviewed, he was asked, "Was Shimamura's departure a huge blow to you? How do you view this issue?"

Faced with this somewhat pointed question from the reporter, Junjia replied helplessly, "From the team's perspective, after Shimamura left, we did seem to have temporarily lost our direction in the game, and our performance has declined somewhat compared to before. However, we respect Shimamura's choice, and there are no conflicts between us."
Well, we even went out for Peking duck together in Beijing and had a get-together, so from a personal perspective, I hope we can always be good friends.

But from a competitive standpoint, I also want to prove that even without Shimamura-san, we are still a strong team, and... well, I'll just work hard towards that goal.

Junjia's words were rather tactful.

It's natural that Shimamura Yuna had no conflicts with the CFO and the others.

Given her personality, she is indeed unlikely to have any conflicts with anyone.

However, it would be difficult to say that the CFO and others were completely unconcerned about Shimamura Yuna's departure.

The current relationship between the two sides is similar to that they still have a good personal relationship and haven't completely fallen out.

However, some players on the CFO side still had some complaints, feeling that "we actually have a chance to compete for the Golden Road all year round. It's just the last game, so why not go all the way and switch teams next year?"

He said he understood Shimamura Yuna's choice.

But not everyone understands this.

It's just human nature, I guess.

Even though I've already gained a lot, I still want more.

Even now, when the two sides are playing together, their relationship is still very good.

But the atmosphere was a little awkward and subtle.

When I first arrived in Beijing a couple of days ago, Shimamura Yuna had dinner with her CFO teammates. They went to eat Peking duck, and everyone had a great time chatting.

However, everyone tacitly avoided mentioning the competition at the time; they were just friends in life, friends with no vested interests.

Perhaps with time, they will gradually understand Mura Yuna's choice and let go of their current dissatisfaction.

In time, everyone will be at peace.

Only, not now.

Alright
Let's leave that aside for now.

In short, after Shimamura Yuna left, CFO was completely outmatched by TES.

However, while everyone was wondering whether the decline in CFO performance was more significant or the rise in TES performance, the real issue was the lack of a clear direction for the team.

In the second round of the Swiss round, TES was quickly eliminated, ending in a 1-1 tie.

So everyone understood that it wasn't about the CFO or TES.

Leaving aside Shimamura Yuna, the changes in these two teams may not be as significant as people think.

They may still be the same two teams, with some changes, but not many.

The truly decisive change lies in where Shimamura Yuna went.

Therefore, the results in the second round are as follows:
First, the score is 1:0.

WBG vs TES, WBG wins.

GENGvsFLY, GEN wins.

G2 vs HLE, HLE wins.

BLG vs KT, BLG wins.

On the other side, the score is 0:1.

T1 vs 100T, T1 wins.

CFO vs MKOI, MKOI wins.

TS vs PSG, PSG wins.

FNC vs VKS, VKS wins.

Here's a quick summary.

In the second round, the result was slightly more unexpected than in the first round, but not by much.

In the second round of matches, the strength of the two sides was not that different, and it felt like either side could win or lose, so there was naturally no sense of a major upset.

However, the CFO's performance remained consistently solid.

The biggest impression this team gives right now is that they are stable.

The players performed consistently.

The team's performance was consistent.

Their record is also very stable.

They didn't have the same impactful performance as some teams when playing against other teams at 15-5-7.

They also lack the drive to always outpace others.

It's simply about being able to win.

Every game, I could clearly understand why they won and what their strengths were.

And so, WBG entered the crucial round that would determine whether they would advance, with little suspense whatsoever.

According to the rules of the Swiss system, the team with three wins advances and the team with three losses is eliminated.

It doesn't matter how many rounds are played.

Anyway, we'll play until we have 3 wins or 3 losses.

In other words, some teams have already qualified by now.

These teams are WBG, GENG, HLE, and BLG.

The presence of two LCK teams and two LPL teams has maintained the long-standing rivalry between China and South Korea in this game.

Meanwhile, several teams are on the verge of elimination.

These teams are 100T1, CFO, TS, and FNC.

Let's not discuss those teams on the verge of elimination yet.

Let's start by talking about WBG.

In the crucial third round, which could determine elimination, WBG needs to win another BO3 match to advance to the top 8.

It looks simple, but it's actually not easy.

Because in this round, WBG will be drawn against teams that have won both of their previous two rounds.

These teams are located in HLE, GENG, and BLG.

They certainly look like some of the strongest teams in this World Championship, and there's not much controversy about it.

WBG and GENG appear to be the strongest teams here.

It shouldn't make much difference for WBG to draw any other team.

Everyone has plenty of information about WBG and believes that "WBG can beat any of these teams."

Therefore, rather than worrying about which team is more likely to advance, people actually hope that WBG will draw two LCK teams instead of having an internal battle with BLG.

In this way, both teams would have a chance to advance, instead of one team having to go to the 2:1 group and continue competing.

However, sometimes, what you fear most may actually happen.

LPL viewers are worried about being drawn against BLG.

As it turned out, WBG actually drew BLG.

then
Then, unsurprisingly, in the third round, BLG was once again swept 2-0 by WBG.

It demonstrates what a strict hierarchy looks like.

In this BO3, it's clear that BLG, even after so much time since the third stage finals, still hasn't figured out how to beat WBG.

Almost using the same old trick of mid-to-high range player selection to avoid being targeted by Shimamura Yuna, and using the same old trick of slowing down Shimamura Yuna's development, they can win.

A month has passed.

Now that BLG is facing WBG's taxation, they're dying even faster.

What countermeasures, what tactics?
I don't know if it's because they haven't figured it out or if they simply haven't researched it.

Anyway, he died even more quickly than before.

WBG is now almost certain to defeat any team in the league.

LPL teams were almost entirely countered by WBG in terms of style, leaving them with absolutely no chance.

Ultimately, WBG became the first team to secure a spot in the quarterfinals of this World Championship.

(End of this chapter)