Chapter 190: It was Noah! "That wasn’t the same player," the captain said with obvious bewilderment. "His positioning was completely different. Professional level. The way he hid and waited for both of us to appear before killing us both, too, his composure, everything had changed." "His game sense just jumped from amateur to expert mid-match," Ethan added with growing concern. "That’s not normal improvement. Maybe he just got lucky in this round, let’s wait and see in the next rounds." Their coach’s voice carried scepticism. "Players don’t develop tactical understanding that quickly. Something changed." The next round proceeded with Noah’s team executing another variation of the sacrificial strategy. This time, Noah directed a three-person distraction while he and one teammate attacked from an unexpected angle. Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Four quick eliminations followed as Noah’s agility combined with Level 3 tactical knowledge to dismantle the professional defence with relative ease. "This guy is definitely a top player," Ethan declared with frustrated certainty. "No amateur plays like this. I think he is part of the top tier bracket; he is simply insane." Professional players weren’t all at the same skill level. Not at all, they were split into brackets. The team that Ethan was currently debuting for was part of the lowest bracket. "His mechanical skill was always insane," the captain agreed, "but now his positioning and timing are perfect. I think he was just playing normally initially, and now he has decided to finally play seriously." Round after round, Noah’s tactical innovations, coupled with his aim, continued to overwhelm Ethan’s team. Pop! Pop! Pop! 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞 Another flawless round execution as Noah eliminated three defenders while his teammates secured the objective. "We’re getting destroyed, I really can’t wait for the match to end." "Check his account after the match," the coach instructed. "This might be a known professional player testing strategies on a secondary account." Pop! Pop! Noah’s supernatural aim continued producing highlight-reel eliminations that would have impressed tournament audiences, each shot landing with consistency that seemed almost fake in its perfection. The score rapidly shifted from 7-5 to 7-11 as Noah’s leadership transformed his random teammates into a coordinated unit capable of outplaying professional opposition. "New strategy. Forget everything we practised. This guy is reading our standard plays like a book." The captain announced during their brief period of defence preparation. Another ace, five eliminations in a single round, as Noah’s performance reached levels that were the pinnacle of competitive gaming. "This is insane," Ethan said with admiration. The man in front of him was simply insane. As the final round approached, Ethan’s professional team demonstrated exactly why they had earned contracts with a competitive organisation. Despite facing overwhelming individual skill that had dismantled their strategies, they refused to surrender or lose focus. "This is the best learning opportunity we could possibly ask for. Win or lose, we’re absorbing everything this player is teaching us," Their captain declared. "Exactly," Ethan agreed, his frustration transforming into focus. "Watch his positioning, his timing, his utility usage. This is top-level gameplay." Their coach’s voice carried approval through the team chat. "This mindset is why you’re professionals. Turn every challenge into education. We can’t win everything, we win some and we lose some." The team had approached this match expecting normal practice and warm-up exercises before their upcoming tournament preparations. Instead, they’d encountered gameplay that would become a highlight in their personal development—a match they would remember and reference for years. This single game probably advanced their tactical understanding more than weeks of standard practice against normal opponents. Throughout the final round, they continued experimenting with counter-strategies while carefully observing Noah’s responses. Every adaptation he made, every tactical innovation he employed, every mechanical display of supernatural aim—all of it was being absorbed and analysed for future application. "We’ve already recorded everything. This footage will be studied extensively during tomorrow’s review session." The coach confirmed. Professional players didn’t just play and create tactics. They learnt from their mistakes by reviewing the matches they won and lost. They are always trying to find something to improve on. The match concluded with Noah’s team achieving a decisive 13-7 victory that showcased their complete domination during the second half. What had begun as a 7-5 deficit had transformed into an overwhelming win through Noah’s leadership and skill. As the final elimination registered and victory screens appeared, both teams prepared for the traditional post-match analysis that competitive players used to evaluate performance. The moment the match officially ended, leaderboard information became available to all participants. Ethan’s team immediately began checking detailed statistics and player identification, their curiosity eager to find who had just beaten them. "Let’s see who this mystery player actually is," the captain announced as he accessed the detailed match report. The familiar name that appeared on Ethan’s screen made him do a double-take before staring in complete disbelief. The name definitely looked familiar, but he couldn’t believe it; he had to double-check the tag, too. Immediately, Ethan opened his friends list, cross-referencing the revealed username and tag against his cousins. That username... it can’t be. "Noah?" Ethan muttered, his voice barely audible as he finally realised who had just beaten them so effortlessly. He checked and rechecked the information, comparing the match participant data against his friends list to confirm what seemed impossible. The evidence was undeniable—his cousin had just destroyed a professional esports team with a gameplay that made them think he had been hacking. When did he get this good...how? He is incredible. "What did you say?" asked the team captain, having caught Ethan’s confused whisper. "Noah," Ethan repeated, louder this time, but still carrying shocked disbelief. "The player who just dominated us... His name is Noah." "You know him?" His teammate asked with obvious curiosity about their mysterious opponent’s identity. Ethan’s throat felt dry after what he had just discovered. "He’s...my cousin." Silence filled the team chat as his professional teammates absorbed this unexpected connection, their new teammate was related to someone at the level of the top professional players.