In the second round of the Second Half, Fnatic had an Anti-Eco.
With three rifles and two MP9s, Fnatic gave OG no chance at all.
OG, armed with a mix of TEC-9s and Desert Eagles, had just pushed through the smoke at Long when Qin Feng blocked them from behind it, mercilessly mowing them down with an MP9.
The last two players took advantage of Qin Feng's reload timing to rush out and trade him, but Qin Feng's teammates at B Site quickly finished them off.
OG were facing another Full Eco.
The score moved to 12-6.
"Let's pick up the pace. Even if we lose, we'll still have a third map to play." Nexa thought about Fnatic's earlier weapon setup. "Let's take control of Underpass first. Fnatic's guns should be low on this round, so they'll probably have a Submachine Gun holding the close angle in Underpass."
Nexa had already started taking the outcome of the second map lightly.
If mantuu's Sniper Rifle could go toe-to-toe with Aether's, nexa might still have thought about how to counter Aether.
But now...nexa was already considering what tactics they might use on Mirage.
"Fnatic's first Gun Round. Since they still have two MP9s, mezii and KRIMZ have chosen to push Underpass."
"Aether took the Sniper Rifle from mezii and is holding Toilets' Low Wall at A Main."
Watching the livestream, Wan Ji Qi was starting to worry about Fnatic's players.
"Oh? OG are clearing Underpass. The gambler got the call right this time."
"Oh no, there's nobody at Fountain or the middle of Toilets. poizon and KRIMZ are about to get pinched!"
"Two Molotovs force the CTs out of position."
"KRIMZ throws a smoke to extinguish the fire, and poizon follows up with a smoke at Underpass' Iron Door."
"They want to fall back through the Iron Door and return to B Site."
"Can they get out?"
"No chance. The AK holding Underpass is valde, the Danish star. He sprays through the smoke and blows both of them away."
"Trying to outplay the Danes with smokes? They're still too green."
"..."
In Fnatic's practice room, Qin Feng glanced at the kill feed in the upper-right corner, then turned to the IGL beside him, ALEX.
"What do you think? Save?"
"Or should we gamble on a site?"
With poizon and KRIMZ dead in Underpass, Qin Feng clearly had to reposition quickly.
"Hmm...if you want to fight, you can try to catch someone off guard." ALEX looked at Qin Feng's 25-8 KD and decided against telling him to save. "We've got a big lead, so if you can keep your momentum going, that'd be even better."
Qin Feng nodded to ALEX. "I'll check the Underpass exit from Toilets. If I die, you two can save."
OG had already cleared Underpass, so continuing to hold behind A Main's low wall would clearly be unwise.
Rather than do that, he could gamble that OG's players would clear A Short next.
An AWP made no sound when scoped in, so Qin Feng crept up to the front of Toilets without worrying that an enemy hiding by the balloon might hear him.
"Aether, be careful. There's no sound or utility at all from B." ALEX warned him from underwater at B Site.
Meanwhile, Wan Ji Qi and the viewers in the Livestream Room could see OG's movements clearly.
"After clearing Underpass, OG seem to be planning a quick push through A Short. Is that because they think Aether's AWP might be holding B Site?"
"But no one could have expected Aether's AWP to be waiting close to the Toilets exit after his teammates died in Underpass."
"OG are playing it safe and walking in quietly, but they're about to run right into Aether's AWP, holding a direct angle?"
Wan Ji Qi, in the middle of casting, suddenly sat bolt upright, staring at Aether's first-person view.
"Aether scoped in with a low magnification and edged forward. Little niko, holding the default spot by the balloon, didn't hear a thing."
"Little niko jumps down from the balloon just as valde comes out of Underpass. They're lined up perfectly."
"Can Aether make the most of this opening?"
"He does it, Aether!"
"Another one-versus-two! He takes out little niko and valde."
"Nexa is still at Fountain and wants to trade for his teammates. Aether can't afford to give him a chance."
"What? Aether still goes for the REPPEK."
"Nexa's AK can't hold him off!"
"Three kills! Aether's lone AWP at A Site has turned this into a numbers-up Clutch for Fnatic."
Wan Ji Qi looked at Aether's ID, suddenly feeling moved.
He had a feeling that it wouldn't be long before Aether became a superstar on the level of s1mple or ZywOo.
Whether or not Aether could lead Fnatic to the Antwerp Major, this extraordinary experience would surely be talked about again and again in the years to come.
After Qin Feng's three-kill round, the chat in Wan Ji Qi's livestream was naturally flooded with comments from viewers.
[Officially naming the two MVPs of this match: Fnatic.mantuu and Fnatic.Aether.]
[Seriously, that Sniper Rifle gives me 2015 kennyS vibes.]
[OG are completely rattled. Feels like Fnatic have a great chance on the third map.]
For the rest of the match, OG seemed completely dominated by Qin Feng.
16-6. With Qin Feng's AWP, Fnatic took their map pick, Overpass, without breaking a sweat.
The second map was over, but Wan Ji Qi was still too excited to calm down.
"The second map is over, with the score locked at 16-6."
"Who could have expected that after starting 5-0, OG would win just one of the next seventeen rounds?"
"It all started the moment Aether picked up the Sniper Rifle."
"mantuu just couldn't adapt to Fnatic's attacking system. Aether kept breaking through the defense single-handedly with his opening picks."
"We have every reason to believe that OG had thoroughly prepared for Aether's AWP before the match."
"But even with OG targeting him, Aether still put up a perfect 32-9 scoreline with his AWP on Death Amusement Park."
"The camera has also caught Aether in the practice room, celebrating with his teammates and exchanging high-fives."
"He's the undisputed MVP of this map."
"Oh my god, did you see that?"
"Aether high-fived his teammates after every round."
"After one map, ALEX and mezii have practically slapped his hands raw."
"No doubt about it, he's Fnatic's undisputed hero."
"..."
Outside Fnatic's practice room, coach Samuelsson's tightly furrowed brows had finally relaxed.
Qin Feng's performance on the second map had been incredible.
At first, he had been worried that Qin Feng would be affected by the first map.
Now, Samuelsson had every reason to believe Qin Feng could lead Fnatic to victory on the third map, Mirage.
Samuelsson was now extremely glad he had added Qin Feng as a friend on Steam.
But thinking about it also made him feel a little regretful.
Even with his strong recommendation, the team had only signed Aether to a two-month contract.
If they'd signed him to a one-year contract, the buyout fee would surely have been substantial, even if Fnatic eventually decided to sell Qin Feng.
"Ah, I'm afraid the question now isn't whether Fnatic wants to renew Qin Feng's contract." Samuelsson sighed.
He knew that Fnatic simply couldn't compete with the international Tier-1 Teams for Qin Feng.
In two months, Qin Feng might be the one who didn't want to stay with Fnatic.
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