Chapter 208: The Finality of Duality Between Two Teams Across Two Tournaments That Starts the Redemption of a Player Who Played Across Two Lifetimes And Carries The Legacy of a Rivalry that Spans Two Generations!
Students from High School 13, the ones that had come to support their esports team at this tournament, pushed through the crowd at the venue. They were on a mission, and they were determined. Their esports team, the one that most of them had ignored and given up hope on, had made it all the way to the finals against all odds. It was one of those moments that movies get made about. An underdog team clawing their way up to the very top. And this was the team from their school! This was their team, their classmates, who pulled it off. So they pushed and shoved through the crowd to find the perfect spot where they could all be seen by their classmates who were playing and everyone else.
The time was currently 6:30 P.M. in Shanghai, China. The Finals for the Shanghai 16 School Tournament would kickoff in 30 minutes. Every seat in the arena was already taken, and there was very little standing room left too. But there were still more people lined up outside, trying to get in. This was a high school tournament. The primary purpose was to provide an event where students could have a good time and compete. So there was no entrance fee for the people that came to support their classmates or have fun at a League of Legends event. And this one was extra special because an underdog team had made it to the very end. Everyone wanted to come watch, and everyone wanted a good view. People shoved and pushed to get to a spot where they could see some of the stage and also watch the game from the large LCD panels hanging from the ceiling.
Pushing and shoving through the crowd in the flashing of the multicolored stage lights were the students from High School 13. But their faces were carved with a relentless determination. This wasn’t just about finding a good spot to watch their classmates play for them. This was all part of an extra special plan that Ren Rou came up with for the Finals. She recruited students from High School 13, and worked with them to create small posters. Each poster had a single boldly painted letter, and each student only had one. When the time was right, they would all stand together in a single line and hold up their letters. Together, it would read “HIGH SCHOOL 13 CHAMPIONS!”.
While all of this was going on at the front of the arena, High School 13’s esports team had gathered backstage to wait out the last few minutes before the Finals would start. Standing with them was Mr. Zhou, the Club Director for High School 13’s esports team. He was there to make sure that the team knew they had the full support of the school. He was very proud of what the esports club had accomplished so far in this tournament. He even sent out an email to every student and teacher at High School 13 earlier that day, telling them about how the team had made it all the way to the Finals of the Shanghai 16 School Tournament and everything they’d been through to get to this point. And he requested that everyone from High School 13 come to the Finals to show the esports club their support.
Mr. Zhou looked at the nine students standing in front of him. I couldn’t be more proud of them! These students… they fought so hard and brought our little esports club all the way to the Finals! He was quite literally beaming with pride and support. This team from High School 13’s esports club had done what no other team in the club’s history had done before. I never thought I’d be here, backstage right before the Finals of the biggest high school tournament with a team that might actually win it all! This team, this generation of the High School 13 esports club, had proven that the school was a force to be reckoned with.
The whole situation was beyond unexpected. No one at High School 13, from Mr. Zhou to the rest of the Faculty to the Principal, thought there was a chance of this happening. The Principal had even taken a brief vacation and left the city for the weekend, so he wasn’t around to email the student body or come to the tournament. This ironic twist of fate was what allowed Mr. Zhou the honor of being the sole representative of the Faculty backstage with the team. And he was more than happy things had worked out this way.
Mr. Zhou smiled proudly and said, “Get out there and do your best! We’re all so proud of you. I’m proud of you! You guys are writing a brand new chapter in our School’s history! Win or lose, we’ll still celebrate how much you guys have accomplished. But… it would be nice to have that first trophy to put in our cabinet. SO GO OUT AND GET THAT TROPHY! YOU CAN DO IT!” As he gave his speech, the normally reserved Mr. Zhou became progressively more and more excited. He was screaming by the end of it, which he only noticed when the organizers and crew backstage had stopped what they were doing to stare at him. He quickly composed himself, and then then bowed to the team. He repeated how proud he was of the team and thanked them for all their effort in finally putting High School 13 on the map. This time, in a much quieter and more dignified tone. He ended his speech with a promise to the team, “If you guys win tonight, I will personally make sure the school properly celebrates the victory! What you guys are doing here is absolutely amazing! Do your best out there!”
High School 13’s team didn’t know how to respond. This was something that they wanted for so long that they forgot that other people could be just as invested. That they were representing more than their esports club. It wasn’t only their dream on the line here. Their dream had become the dream of everyone at High School 13. Their dream was one that was shared by Mr. Zhou. And they needed a minute to process that their dream had grown beyond them. They wanted to respond, but they just couldn’t find the words in that moment. The silence of this emotional minute was unfortunately short-lived and shattered by the audience on the other side of the stage. The students from High School 13 and Shanghai High School, who had shown up to cheer on their respective teams, ended up in a heated competition to show who could cheer on and support their team the loudest.
“High School 13 gonna kick some asses!” “Shanghai High School 3-0 those cocky bastards!” “Shanghai High School are the REAL cocky bastards!” “High School 13 eats DOGSHIT FOR LUNCH!” “LIES! SLANDER! Shanghai High School is so bad they need LIES TO WIN AN ARGUMENT!” “What you gonna do when you LOSE? Huh? WHINE ABOUT BEING UNLUCKY AGAIN?” “SHANGHAI HIGH SCHOOL IS A SCHOOL FOR THIEVES AND LIARS!” “IF YOU GO TO HIGH SCHOOL 13, YOU’RE STUPID AND DUMB!”