MANILA - Kiel "Oheb" Soriano's boisterous attitude has often charmed fans - and repulsed critics.

Beyond the "Filipino Sniper," he has had other nicknames -- "Kiel1," "Demonchild" and even "Oheb666" -- two of which are rooted from the bad boy persona he's had in the past.

That stubbornness stirring inside Oheb, however, landed him the job that would change his life.

At 16, Oheb ran away his home in Tarlac to pursue his dreams. He first revealed this during MPL Philippines' "#ZeroToHero" project, ahead of the M5 World Championships.

When his parents didn't allow him, he had to move mountains, slowly packing his bags in his room in Tarlac before making his way to Manila.

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“Pa-pandemic noon tapos ang paalam ko walang school, mag-online class. Kaso never pa ako nalayo sa bahay, dito pa sa Manila. Hindi pa ko nakakapunta dito. Tapos nagpaalam ako, hindi ako pinayagan. Tapos nagpasundo ako sa service [ng team] tapos nagulat sila na on the way na ako sa Cubao,” he later on elaborated in an interview with ABS-CBN News.

He also amusingly revealed that his older sister got so upset at what he did that she blocked him on Facebook.

At the time, he passed the tryouts of the now-defunct Amihan Esports, where he joined the likes of Eman "EMANN" Sangco, John "Perkz" Sumawan and Howard "Owl" Gonzales.

Oheb kept going until he was discovered by Blacklist International, where he would soon help lead the Codebreakers to their first MPL title in MPL Season 7.

Along the way to his prime, he had someone to guide him -- then Blacklist General Manager Elrasec "Rada" Ocampo, who served as the team's life coach.

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"[Si Oheb ang dating] 'sobrang angas ko, sobrang tigas ng ulo ko, sobrang napaka-patola lang kung patola.' Hindi ko tinigilan si Kiel, hindi ko sinukuan, basta tinutukan ko siya," Rada told analyst Caisam "Wolf" Nopueto in Wolf's "8G Podcast" in October, admitting that Oheb was one of his favorites in the team.

In Season 8, they qualified for the world championships in Singapore, where Oheb later on earned the moniker "The Filipino Sniper." Blacklist won its first championship and Oheb became the finals MVP, as they swept Onic Philippines and ran riot from the lower bracket for the title.

"Pag talagang nag-commit na siya. Pag gusto niyang mag-perform. Yung god mode? Wala ka nang masasabi sa kaniya, as in hahayaan mo na lang siya mag-perform. Pero hindi niya hahayaan na siya lang ang maha-highlight. Hihilahin ka niya pataas," Rada said of Oheb's prime era.

After failing to defend their world championship, Oheb, along with Hadji, rested for one season before resuming in MPL Season 12. Oheb was one of the most pivotal performers in Blacklist at the time, alongside Renejay "Renejay" Bacarse and Kenneth "Yue" Tadeo.

Now, Oheb tops the worldwide list of most kills in the world championship stage, with 271 kills, according to data accumulated from his M3 and M4 campaign.

With all things in the past, Oheb is able to help his family, even revealing that he has already bought his own piece of land, although he did not specify where it is.

The Filipino sniper is grateful now that his family fully supports his craft.

“Nagpapasalamat ako sa pamilya ko, na kahit anong mangyari support pa din sila sa’kin, kahit anong gusto ko sa buhay. At mahal na mahal ko sila,” Oheb said.

Blacklist is once again trying to nab its second world championship, after a failed attempt in M4 in Indonesia.