《Classmancers - A MOBA Esport Story》


 1 Searching for a Team Spor

    "Hey," Yuel called out. "Could you move to the center?"


    "Huh?" John cocked his head.


    "I''ll pass you the ball," Yuel explained. "Then, you pass it to Robert."


    "Wut?" John raised an eyebrow. The heck was Yuel talking about? He didn''t even have the ball right now.


    On the other side of the court, far away from both of them, Alex was in the middle of dribbling through the enemy defenders. That''ll likely turn into a goal, and neither John nor Yuel will play any role in it.


    "It''ll work." Yuel insisted, sticking to his alien reasoning. The kid was a weirdo alright.


    "Well, okay." John shrugged. It''s not like he had anything better to do anyway, so he might as well head toward the center. [Alex gonna score soon anyway... or not?]


    The enemy defenders surrounded Alex on all sides. Breaking through with a dribble was no longer an option, even with his skill. The only option was to pass the ball to somebody else, but even that was difficult. The enemy defenders were prepared to intercept any pass.


    "Over here." Yuel raised his hand. He was in an unguarded area, which was perfect for receiving a safe pass from Alex. With enemies about to steal the ball, Alex had no choice but to pass to Yuel.


    [Perfect.] Yuel got the ball and passed it toward the center, toward John. At least, that was the intention...


    "Huh, the ball''s really here." John nodded to himself. Did Yuel predict this? Nah, probably just a lucky guess. Either way, according to the "plan", Yuel was going to pass the ball to John next.


    "Wait, what!?" John exclaimed. The ball did sorta roll in his general direction. As in, a VERY GENERAL direction. It actually rolled way past the center, toward the enemy side of the court! ["Move to the center" he said, "I''ll pass you the ball" he said.] John cursed internally as he chased the ball.


    "Huh." Yuel knotted his brows as the ball roll in an awkward direction, missing its target. [Well, to deceive the enemy, you first have to deceive your allies, right? So, it''s all part of the plan! Yeah...]


    Thankfully, John reached the ball before it was snatched by the enemy. Phew, that was close. The whole plan nearly went down the toilet.


    [Okay, what''s next?] John looked around after securing the ball. Yuel said something about passing the ball after getting it. [Pass it to who, again? Oh, right. To Robert.]


    For some reason, Robert was completely unmarked, even though he stood so close the enemy goal. Well, John didn''t complain. It was an easy and safe pass, so he kicked the ball toward Robert.


    The ball effortlessly cut through the enemy defenses and reached Robert. A moment later, it was inside the enemy goal. They scored!


    [Yes!] Yuel pumped a fist. He barely touched the ball in this whole play and he wasn''t even the one who passed to the kicker. Nevertheless, it felt amazing. The plan he weaved was executed to perfection, minus his lousy pass.


    Back then, when all enemy defenders were leaving their posts to surround Alex, Yuel spotted the fatal opening in the enemy''s formation. He deduced that, once all defenders gather around Alex, they''ll leave the other side of the court completely open. That''d leave Robert unmarked and in great position to score.


    So, if Yuel could quickly get the ball to Robert, it was assured to be an easy goal. For that, he found a safe position for receiving a pass from Alex. In addition, he arranged a middleman in the center for passing the ball Robert.


    With that, the chess pieces were set in place. Before the enemy defenders even got to surround Alex, Yuel already visualied this sequence of plays in his head. He perfectly calculated that goal.


    "Great pass!" Robert grinned and raised his hand for a high five. But, it wasn''t meant for Yuel.


    "No problem." John high-fived Robert and returned a smile.


    "Man, that was close," Alex shook his head as he approached Yuel. "You almost lost that ball. What''s with that shitty pass?"


    "Ah, that''s-"


    "Hey, guys!" Alex grabbed everybody''s attention. "Yuel can''t handle the ball for shit, so don''t pass to him unless you''re in deep shit. And even then, I rather not pass to him, haha!"


    "W-Wait, I-" Yuel''s words drowned in the wave of replies.


    "Yeah, Yuel sucks."


    "I think he''s playing for the other team, haha."


    Yuel clenched his fists, but didn''t utter a word. He wanted to tell them about the amazing plan he crafted, about how he found a weaknesses in the enemy''s formation and exploited it to let Robert score an easy goal. But, nobody was going to listen.


    It''s nothing new. They were all kids, it was just grade school soccer. There''s nobody here to appreciate Yuel''s sophisticated tactics. The other kids simply couldn''t comprehend the finer strategies of soccer.


    They only saw how well somebody sprinted, dribbled, passed or kicked. Alex was considered the "ace", because he penetrated through enemy defenses with his masterful dribbling and fired blazing shots. He was on a junior soccer team, so he stomped everybody at school through sheer strength. All the boys looked up to him.


    As for Yuel? He had the fitness of a slug, dribbled like a three-legged frog, passed like a drunk and his shots were as strong as a todder''s. Indeed, he was a kid of many talents.


    Because of that, his achievements in sports always went unnoticed, overshadowed by his poor performance on court. He understood soccer strategies better than anybody, but it meant nothing to the other kids. He was just dead weight, a "weak player".


    Whenever the kids decided on teams for a match, Yuel was always picked last. Nobody really wanted him on their team.


    At first, he had the freedom to play anywhere on the field. However, over time, everybody learned how bad he was and "demoted" him to play as a defender or a goalkeeper. For them, soccer was about chasing the ball and scoring goals, so the passive backline positions were boring. Nobody openly stated so, but these positions were effectively reserved for the "useless players".


    Yuel didn''t share the same view, because calculated defense created chances for counters and those led to goals. But, that''s only in coordinated teams, way above the level kids played at grade school. Nobody bothered cooperating with Yuel in the backline, so he was completely useless most of the time. And, even when he achieved something, the credit usually went to somebody else anyway.


    The same thing repeated in every other team sport he tried. In basketball, he was too weak to stop aggressive players, his throws barely reached the basket and a single sprint exhausted him to death. In volleyball, his arms were nearly torn apart whenever he did a receive and his knees constantly threatened to buckle over after a jump.


    No matter what team sport he tried, he was always a weak player. A useless player. Dead weight.


    Still, Yuel wanted to put his skills to practice, to compete against others and win. Since none of the sport clubs worked, he turned to chess. There, his talent was quickly recognized.


    Chess had no execution bar, so any idea he came up with could be immediately executed. There''s no need to sprint, dribble or kick in order to move a chess piece on the board.


    Also, chess was a 1v1 game, so anything Yuel achieved was directly associated with him. There was nobody in the middle to take credit for the tactics he devised.


    "Wow, did you see that move?"


    "Man, Yuel is legit genius."


    Praise like that became commonplace. Yuel deconstructed his opponents'' strategies, predicted their moves and struck at their weakest spots. With enough experience, he learned how to stomp most opponents his age. He even won the regionals once, topping every other kid from the region. He couldn''t quite win the national championship, but he finished as a runner-up.


    Dominating in chess felt empowering and fulfilling, but only at first. Classmates called him "genius", which was a welcome change from being called "useless" all the time. However, eventually, he soon grew desensitized to such praise


    With that sense of fulfilment gone, Yuel started questioning why he even played chess so much. Everybody considered chess a game for "intellectuals", contrary to soccer which was a game for "hyperactive brats". But, Yuel disagreed.


    Chess was indeed a deep and complex game, allowing for countless possible developments and interesting situations to analyze. It required reading the opponent''s plans, predicting their future moves and finding the optimal moves in every situation. There was a lot of fun to be had with it, for sure.


    But ultimately, it was a 1v1 game. It had many pieces on the board, but they were all controlled by a single strategist. In other words, Yuel had only one enemy to analyze during a match. Either Yuel was stronger, or his opponent was stronger. That''s what most matches boiled down to at his level..


    Compared to that, strategy in soccer was much more dynamic. Each individual player had his own strengths, weaknesses, quirks and thoughts. Predicting the movements of so many different players was way more interested than deconstructing a single opponent.


    Therefore, despite his success in chess, Yuel felt unsatisfied. In team sports he was a useless player, whereas in chess he didn''t get to deconstruct an entire team of players. Wasn''t there anything else? Wasn''t there any team sport which was both challenging and accessible for somebody like him?


    During his last year of elementary school, an unexpected possibility presented itself. Special lessons were scheduled for his class, teaching about a new "sport" which had been on the rise: Classmancers. It was a MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) video game, which had been turning into an official team sport in many countries recently.


    "Unlike other MOBA games out there," The teacher explained. "Classmancers is recognized as a sport even in schools. No matter which middle school you''re going to attend next year, it''ll surely have a dedicated Classmancers team which represents it in tournaments."


    [A video game as a sport? Really?] Yuel had his doubts, but it piqued his interest.


    The popular video games among his classmates were mostly braindead as far as he was concerned, so he didn''t hold video games in high regard. But, the idea of a video game team sport was a spark of hope. Even though action video games required a certain degree of mechanical skill, they weren''t nearly as physically demanding as real sports. A team sport without a fitness barrier was exactly what Yuel yearned for!


    "Before a match begins, each player selects which class they want to play as," The teacher explained. "There are classes like Warrior, Archer and Wizard. Those of you who like role-playing games will feel right at home. It''s very important to pick the right combination of classes to form a strong team, but we''ll cover that topic later. For today, pick any of recommended beginner classes"


    Following the teacher''s instructions, the students split into trios. Yuel formed a team with John and Jim. He wasn''t particularly close to either of them, but John was a pretty reasonable fellow and Jim... well, he was John''s friend.


    For their first taste of the game, each team was told to play against computer-controlled enemies on the lowest difficulty. Yuel wanted to play against others right away, but he understood the importance of mastering the basics.


    [Do we really need to start from "Easy", though?] Yuel made a face. To his knowledge, the "Easy" difficulty in video games was usually meant for incompetent players. It''s like an insult. His team could surely do better than that, right?


    Yuel glanced at his teammates and the teacher. Nobody was paying attention to his monitor. He was in charge of configuring the game room, so he sneakily dialed up the difficulty to "Intermediate". He considered going even higher, but decided that''d probably be too obvious. Besides, with all things considered, it was still his first time playing this game, and MOBA in general.


    After logging into the game room, the "Class Selection" screen appeared. Each teammate had to pick the class they''ll play during the match. Duplicates weren''t allowed among teammates and it''s impossible to change one''s class after the match begins.


    John picked Archer and Jim went for Warrior, both were labeled as "Easy" classes. The teacher recommend these beginner-friendly classes, since they were easy to pick up and learn. Of course, Yuel also followed that advice... NOT!


    [Let''s see what "Intermediate" has to offer.] Yuel messed around with filter. When he pressed "Intermediate", the list of generic RPG classes was replaced by a much more interesting roster. It featured more complex-sounding classes like Pyromancer, Cryomancer and Aeromancer. Seriously, the game had "mancers" for days.


    Based on class tags, Jim''s Warrior was a physical bruiser and John''s Archer was a physical damage dealer. So, their team lacked in the magical department. Yuel applied another filter to show only "mage" classes and started reading each class''s description.


    "You done yet?"


    "C''mon! Everybody is already playing!"


    "Just a moment..." Yuel sighed. He wanted to read some more, but he realized everybody else already started their games. So, he went with Pyromancer, the first mage on the list.


    Before locking-in, Yuel disregarded the teacher''s advice once more by unchecking "Auto-Buy". The teacher warned there were many items to buy in Classmancers and that a new player would be confused by the variety But, Yuel didn''t fancy leaving such important decisions to an automatic system. Besides, he had a little experience with RPGs and strategy games, so how hard could it be to buy items by himself?


    Finally, the match began. He and his teammates spawned inside blue team''s base, behind a giant Colossus.


    Likewise, the enemy bots (AI-controlled players) started off in the red base, located on the other end of the map. At least, that''s how it worked according to the teacher''s explanation. The mini-map was shrouded in a fog of war, so they couldn''t see what was happening in areas without allied forces.


    The goal in Classmancers, and MOBAs in general, was to invade the enemy base and destroy the main objective. In Classmancers, said objective was the Colossus inside the enemy base.


    The spawning point inside the base doubled as an item shop for players. John and Jim kept Auto-Buy on, so they dashed out of the base without even checking what was sold there. On the other hand, Yuel had to manually spend the 1,000 gold he started with.


    Thankfully, there''s a 40 seconds countdown until the action begins. He had enough time to check out the shop and figure out-


    [W-What''s all this stuff?] Yuel flinched. There were items, consumables, items, utility skills, items, items and even more items! The variety was staggering!


    [A-Alright then. No problem. Easiest purchase of my life.] Yuel gulped. 40 seconds? He''d need at least two hours to figure all this out! It was nuts!


    Demonic Arm, Necronomicon, Staff of Ages, attack speed, cooldown reduction, magic penetration... So many names. So many stats. So many effects. By the time he figured out one item, he nearly forgot everything about the previous one.


    "Yo, Yuel!" Jim called out. "The game''s starting! Get over here!"


    "Coming..." Yuel sighed. He barely went through four items and didn''t even understand how to compare them. Did he need more magic power or more cooldown reduction early on? How was he supposed to know!? Ugh...


    In the end, he found the option to filter items by "recommended" and picked the first item on that list: Demonic Arm. It provided 20 magical power and 10% attack speed. Was that good? Heck if he knew!


    He had 200 gold left after buying Demonic Arm, but there was no time to find anything else spend them on. The countdown hit zero and a message appeared at the top of the screen:


    ¡ºMinions have spawned!¡»


    A gate opened in front of the base and soldiers charged out of it. The teacher called them "minions" or "creeps". They were weak AI-controlled allies who fought for his team.


    The way Yuel understood it, they were the disposable pawns of this game. Their whole purpose in life was to push toward the enemy base until they die. It sounded like a suicidal game plan, but it''s not a big deal because new waves of minions will keep periodically spawning throughout the whole game. No matter how many of them die, there will never be a shortage. If only chess pawns worked that way.


    As soon as the minions came out of the gate, they charged straight ahead along the paved road. Their destination was the center of the map, where they''ll collide with enemy minions. Yuel hurried after them and effortlessly outran them.


    [Look how athletic I am now!] Yuel chuckled. It''s a childish reaction, but for him this meant a lot. After being constantly held back by his poor athleticism, moving freely like this in a "team-sport" was huge. Finally, a game where he started on equal footing with everybody else.


    Before long, Yuel approached the center of the map. It didn''t take long, since the map was small and straightforward. It had only one main road, stretching all the way from the blue base to the red base.


    The teacher referred to this road as a "lane". In order to reach the enemy base, Yuel''s team had to push their minions forward along the lane.


    In addition, there were two curved paths stretching on the sides of the lane. Based on the mini-map, these routes had various obstacles and narrow passages. They''re probably difficult to maneuver in and their curved shape made them less efficient for traveling.


    The teacher only briefly mentioned these side paths were called "jungle" and advised to stay away for now. Yuel was still recovering from the traumatic shopping experience, so he decided to heed the teacher''s advice this once. He ignored the jungle and ran along the lane like a good boy.


    Before long, he arrived at the center of the map. John and Jim, the Archer and Warrior, were already waiting there.


    The enemy team also gathered near the center. Their group consisted of three characters: Warrior, Archer and Wizard. In a normal match, the enemies would also be player-controlled characters. However, in this practice match, they were mere bots. Hopefully, they''d pose at least a little challenge on intermediate difficulty.


    "Yo! Let''s hit these guys!" Jim grinned and charged straight at the enemy team.


    "Wait," John objected. "Teach said it''s best to wait for the minions before attacking."


    "I agree," Yuel nodded. "Let''s play it safe for the first minion wave and get used to our classes."


    "Boo." Jim made a face as he retreated.


    The same way allied minions spawned from the blue base, enemy minions spawned from the red base. The two minion waves were identical to each other in every way, except allied minions wore blue uniforms and enemy minions wore red. It''s like the two sides were fighting over their fashion statements.


    After crossing half the lane, the two minion waves collided into each other in the center. Each side consisted of three swordsmen and three bowmen. The swordsmen took the front line, whereas the bowmen stayed behind and fired arrows from a distance.


    Both minions waves used the exact same battle formation and it''s impossible to manually order them around. Therefore, if left to their own devices, the two sides will wipe each other out and no minions will remain on the lane. In other words, neither blue team nor red team would gain any advantage. The same would repeat for any subsequent waves, maintaining a status quo.


    Players had to actively interfere with these fights to break the deadlock. As soon as the minions clashed, the enemy team advanced forward and attacked the blue minions. Likewise, Yuel''s team attacked the red minions.


    Yuel slightly advanced his Pyromancer to get the enemy swordsmen within attack range. The Pyromancer''s basic attack fired a small fireball, its long-range allowed Yuel to stay in the backline while shooting. John''s Archer had the same advantage. Only Jim''s Warrior had to move to the frontline to hit enemies with his sword.


    Each class in Classmancers had one passive ability, unlocked from the beginning of the match. For Pyromancer, it was the Warmup ability. On top of the standard health and mana gauges, it gave Pyromancer the heat gauge.


    Heat was filled up by hitting enemies with basic attacks and gradually decreased over time. The more heat the Pyromancer had, the more damage his spells dealt.


    [It''s weird to build attack speed on a mage, but it works well with this passive.] Thanks to the recommended Demonic Arm he purchased, the Pyromancer''s basic attacks were 10% faster. This allowed to charge heat faster.


    In RPGs, and apparently in MOBAs too, magical classes usually had weak basic attacks. Therefore, they didn''t benefit much from increasing their attack speed. Point in case: John''s Archer dealt way more damage than Yuel with basic attacks.


    However, due to the Warmup passive, the Pyromancer had an unusual benefit from attack speed. Attacking faster charged heat faster, which allowed to cast stronger spells faster. It took about 20 hits to max the heat gauge, so it seemed pretty much mandatory to build some attack speed on Pyromancer.


    [Intermediate class, huh. N-No problem. Easiest thing I ever played.] Yuel twitched. On top of being a mage, he also had to focus on landing his basic attacks and maintaining his heat. This implied his combat tactics and item build will have to be unconventional for a mage, and he had no idea yet what''s even considered "conventional" for a mage here in the first place. Great.


    Oh, and that''s just the passive. Pyromancer had four more abilities: three active skills and one ultimate ability. These abilities were locked at first and required SP (Skill Points) to unlock. Each player began the match at Lv.1 and gained 1 SP with every level.


    At Lv.1, Yuel already had 1 SP. He spent it to unlock the skill Flame Wave. Based on the skill''s description and parameters, it was the Pyromancer''s main damaging spell. It sounded like an AoE (Area of Effect) attack, so it should be able to hit multiple minions at once.


    But, Yuel didn''t use it right away. Activating a skill spent mana and put the skill on cooldown for a while, making it unusable. He couldn''t carelessly shoot the only damaging spell at his disposal.


    To make the most out of Flame Wave, he first had to fill up his heat. The more heat he had, the more damage Flame Wave will deal. In addition, when the heat bar hits 80%, Flame Wave will also burn its targets, making them lose HP over time.


    With all that considered, it''s best to grind some heat first. Thus, he only spammed left-clicks on his mouse to repeatedly fire basic attacks.


    Contrary to him, the enemy Wizard had no qualms about casting his AoE spell. A fierce gust of wind shot through the blue minions, hitting all of them in one fell swoop. That''s bad. At this rate, it''s only a matter of time until the blue minions are wiped out.


    Nevertheless, Yuel stuck to basic attacks and didn''t respond with a spell of his own. Soon. 49%. 54%. 59%. Very soon.


    "Say, Yuel," John called out. "You don''t have any skills you could use? They gonna push us back at this rate."


    "I need to charge it first. Any moment now." Yuel was almost there. 73%. 78%. 83%. That''s it! It''s time! He activated Flame Wave and directed it toward the enemy minions.


    The Pyromancer charged flames in his palms and shot them forward in a form of a wave. The flame torched all the enemy swordsmen... but that''s it. The flame died out before reaching the enemy bowmen.


    [I see. So, hitting a whole minion wave from afar is a privilege of "easy" classes, huh. I''m sure you''re very proud of yourself, Wizard. ]Yuel cursed. The bot controlling Wizard was playing cheap!


    The Wizard''s wind spell had the perfect width and distance for hitting an entire minion wave from afar. Compared to that, the Pyromancer''s Flame Wave only had decent width. Its poor traveling distance prevented it from reaching all the way to the enemy''s backline. What a pain.


    If Yuel wanted to hit a whole minion wave, he''d have to advance to the frontline and cast Flame Wave from there. That''s incredibly risky for a squishy mage. Pyromancer was an intermediate class alright.


    Due to Yuel''s failure to wipe out the enemy bowmen, the red minions won the clash. All blue minions fell , while the enemy still had three bowmen standing. With no blue minions to fight anymore, the red bowmen targeted the closest blue player.


    "Yo! They''re shooting at me!" Jim exclaimed. He was the only one with melee attacks, so he was the closest to the enemy forces. Fortunately, Warrior was a frontline bruiser, so he had more HP and defense than Pyromancer and Archer.


    Even so, Jim was only Lv.2. He wasn''t strong enough to endure many hits from minions. And, if that wasn''t bad enough, the enemy bots also focused their attacks on him.


    "I''mma show them!" In this grim situation, Jim decided it was a brilliant idea to charge straight at the enemy. He clearly forgot to equip his Common Sense item.


    "Retreat!" Yuel called out. "You can''t fight them right now. Run back. Me and John will take care of the bowmen."


    "Yeah," John tuned in. "Don''t be stupid, Jim."


    "Bah, okay!" Jim turned around and dashed like his life depended on it.


    The bowmen and bots chased him down, shooting his back. Meanwhile, Yuel and John shot down the bowmen. Yuel synchronized his attacks with John, to ensure they were focusing the same target every time. The faster they take out each individual enemy, the less damage Jim would eat overall.


    ¡ºLevel Up!¡»


    A message popped up after the first bowman collapsed. Yuel hit Lv.2, which granted him 1 SP. This was his chance to clean up the mess he created!


    He spent the SP to unlock his second spell: Pillar of Fire. It was another damaging spell, which should help them defeat the bowmen faster.


    Without further ado, Yuel cast Pillar of Fire in the bowmen''s direction. Fire erupted from the ground, wrapping the bowmen in flames. However, they didn''t actually receive that much damage.


    Pillar of Fire was a DOT (damage over time) ability, which dealt continuous damage in small doses. A circle of fire stayed on the ground where Yuel cast the spell, slowly burning the enemies inside.


    [But, this position...] Yuel realized his aim was a little off. He created the fire around the bowmen''s current position, but that wasn''t optimal. The bowmen were busy chasing Jim, so they didn''t stay in one place for long.


    The bowmen shortly escaped the circle of fire, after getting hit by only three ticks of damage. Yuel should have summoned the flames further along the bowmen''s route, but his usual clumsiness struck again. Even in a video game, his reaction and coordination were poop.


    The extra damage from Pillar of Fire still helped defeating the bowmen a little faster, but not fast enough. Ultimately, Jim''s Warrior was shot down.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "Weeeeelp."


    "Pft, great job. 10/10."


    John and Jim laughed at the result. The whole incident was wrapped up as Jim''s blunder. And well, that''s really the case for the most part. Had Jim retreated right away, he would have survived.


    But, much of the blame laid with Yuel too. It all started when he failed to hit the enemy bowmen with Flame Wave. As a result, the red minions received far less damage in total, which allowed them to outlast the blue minions. So, his poor Flame Wave was the beginning of the domino effect which led to Jim''s death.


    "Heh. Haha." Yuel didn''t feel bad in the slightest. In fact, he rejoiced. Yes, he was glad Jim died! That was the best outcome!


    Just by casting his spells a little ineffectively, Yuel caused a teammate''s death and put the whole team at a disadvantage. That proved mistakes could be heavily punished in this game.


    This time, Yuel got punished. Next time, he''ll punish his enemies twice as hard. He was really glad, because Classmancers turned out to be far from a braindead video game.


    Even though the match barely started, Yuel could already tell: this game will suck him in. The complexity of the Pyromancer''s kit, the staggering variety of items, the punishable mistakes and the importance of coordinated teamwork - he wanted to learn them all! He wanted to master them all!


    His heart raced in excitement from a match for the first time in ages. Maybe, just maybe, he finally found the team sport he had been looking for.

 2 Learning the Basics

    Due to Jim''s death, Yuel and John were put in a 2v3 situation and had to retreat. Thankfully, JIm respawned in blue team''s base after a couple of seconds and arrived at the lane alongside the blue minions. It was a positive development for a change... or so Yuel thought.


    "Yo! I''mma show ''em! Watch me go!" Jim charged forward. He got to the frontline, as expected of the Warrior class, but he didn''t stop there. He dashed all the way to the enemy Archer and smacked that bot in the face. He did all of that, right in front of the red minions. Dear lord.


    [Is he for real!?] Yuel barely stopped himself from shouting. The teacher clearly explained what happened in these scenarios, but Jim just... ugh!


    The red minions immediately reacted to the assault. Instead of clashing with the blue minions, the red minions focused all their attention on Jim. This situation was even worse than last time! Jim was attacked not only by bowman minions, but also by swordsman minions!


    "Jim, pull back!" Yuel called out.


    "Pft, the heck are you doing!?" John was torn between laughter and anger.


    "Yo! I''mma take out this guy!" Jim didn''t listen. His Warrior was slashed by swords and pierced by arrows, but he kept hitting the Archer bot. Once the enemy Archer started retaliating, Jim''s HP plummeted at the speed of light.


    "Ugh." Yuel gritted his teeth. He didn''t know how to rescue Jim. Taking out the enemy minion wave would help a lot, but Yuel''s Pyromancer didn''t have any convenient long-ranged spells with burst damage.


    Yuel cast Pillar of Fire around the red swordsmen, but it sapped their HP very slowly. He had to hit the minions with Flame Wave to finish them off, but that required throwing his squishy Pyromancer into the frontline. That''s too risky. Once Jim fell, Yuel would be the next on the list.


    John didn''t have any tools to deal with this situation either. Through combined effort, Yuel and John quickly shot down the enemy swordsmen. But, they weren''t fast enough.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "Gah! Yo! I almost had him!" Jim waved his fists. He had just returned to lane and he was already dead. Now, Yuel and John were forced into a 2v3 situation. Again. Sigh.


    The only good news were that Jim soaked a lot of minion damage, which meant the blue minions were largely uninjured compared to the red minions. The healthy blue minions helped balancing out the 2v3 situation. At the very least, Yuel and John had a decent chance to hold the lane this round.


    [Still, we''re lagging behind. ]Yuel frowned at the Lv.3 enemy Archer. Even though the red minions dealt the most damage to Jim, the one rewarded for the kill was the enemy Archer. The Archer gained lots of exp and gold from Jim''s death, reaching Lv.3 before everybody else. Jim was feeding the enemy with a spoon. This had to stop.


    [There must be a way to exploit this situation. ]Yuel analyzed the state of the battlefield. Blue team had the advantage in term of minion numbers. Thanks to Jim''s foolish efforts, the squishy enemy Archer was down to 30% HP. If Yuel could get closer and hit the Archer with Flame Wave, he could shave off at least 15% of that HP. But, who would remove the remaining 15% HP?


    One option was to charge forward, Jim-style, and assault the Archer with both Flame Wave and basic attacks. A terrible idea. If Jim''s beefy Warrior died so quickly, then Yuel''s squishy Pyromancer would be crushed in an instant. The same applied to John''s Archer. They wouldn''t last even two seconds on the frontline.


    The only remaining source of damage was the blue minion wave. Sadly, unlike in strategy games, Yuel couldn''t order the blue minions to attack the Archer. In Classmancers, Minions automatically attacked enemy minions. They''d only attack enemy players once no enemy minions were in range, or when an enemy player was attacking an allied player.


    [If only their Archer was a goof like Jim and attacked me... wait.] Yuel was hit with by a sudden realization. The enemy Archer wasn''t as reckless as Jim, so he wouldn''t attack Yuel on purpose. But, what if it happened by accident!?


    [I got this! ]Yuel ran toward the frontline. It looked like a Jim-style suicidal play, but this one was properly calculated.


    Instead of going all the way to the front, Yuel hid behind a blue swordsman and waited for the enemy Archer to take aim. When the next arrow was about to be released, Yuel stepped in front of the targeted swordsman. The Archer''s arrow was a projectile which flew in a straight line. By standing in the arrow''s way - the arrow had no choice but to hit Yuel! The Archer "attacked" him!


    [Yes! Get him!] The blue minions went to lynch the offender. The Archer took his sweet time to retreat, realizing he was in danger only after dropping to 20% HP. At that point, it was already too late. Yuel came close enough to cast Flame Wave. The enemy Archer was consumed by the flames.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    ¡ºLevel Up!¡»


    Taking advantage of the spell''s width, Yuel made sure to also hit the enemy Warrior and minions. Surprisingly, Flame Wave erased a sizeable chunk of the Warrior''s HP. Apparently, the Warrior''s magical defense was considerably lower than his physical defense. With all the red minions gone, there was a chance to defeat the Warrior as well!


    "John, shoot the Warrior." Yuel instructed as he started hitting the Warrior with basic attacks. Both of his spells were on cooldown, but a mage''s basic attacks also dealt magical damage. They were weak, but proved effective against the Warrior.


    In addition, now that Yuel hit Lv.3, he unlocked his last skill: Burning Spirit. It was steroid ability which temporarily buffed the Pyromancer''s attack speed and movement speed. For a mage, that kind of powerup seemed odd and inefficient. But, since both Flame Wave and Pillar of Fire were on cooldown, Burning Spirit was the only way Yuel could boost his damage right now.


    Through combined effort, Yuel and John barraged the enemy Warrior to death.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºLevel Up!¡»


    This time, John landed the last hit and scored the kill. Nonetheless, Yuel received a decent amount of exp and gold for assisting. They completely turned the tables around, going from a 2v3 to a 2v1!


    They focused on the enemy Wizard next, but he was already in the middle of fleeing. They chased him down, but were forced to give up. The Wizard safely reached the red team''s Turret.


    The Turret was the first defensive structure on the lane, which prevented enemies from pushing forward. Once a player got close to an enemy Turret, they''d be bombarded by arrows. According to the teacher, low level characters would be killed in two hits. The Turret sounded dreadful.


    To keep chasing the Wizard, Yuel and John would have to step into the Turret''s fire range. That was out of question. They''d both be eliminated before they''d get to do anything.


    Their only choice was to wait for the next minion wave. The teacher explained that minions were crucial for demolishing Turrets, since Turrets prioritized shooting minions over players. In other words, minions should be used as a meat shield against the Turret.


    To do so, minions first had to survive long enough to reach the enemy Turret. Yuel and John focused their attacks on the incoming enemy wave and cleared the path for the blue minions. Once the blue minions invaded the Turret, Yuel and John would be able to demolish it.


    However, things didn''t go that smoothly. Once the blue minions came close enough, the Wizard created a quicksand on the lane. It was a damage-over-time spell, similar to the Pyromancer''s Pillar of Fire. All the minions which entered the quicksand had their HP gradually sapped.


    But, that wasn''t all. The quicksand also slowed down the minions'' movement, delaying their progress and forcing them to stay longer within the damaging area. While Yuel had to carefully plan where to place Pillar of Fire so that enemies stayed within its range, the Wizard''s hax spell just forced enemies to stay in range by slowing them. That seemed fair.


    After the minions finally passed the quicksand, what awaited them next was the Wizard''s ultra beginner-friendly wind spell. Not only did it hit the whole minion wave, but it also knocked back the swordsmen, further delaying their arrival at the Turret. Great! Amazing! Much skill!


    By the time the blue wave reached the Turret, only two swordsmen were left standing. Yuel and John hurried after them and started shooting the Turret as soon as the minions got its attention. However, that offense didn''t last long. The Turret ravaged the blue minions with arrows and blue team had to retreat. John was a bit too slow and got hit by one Turret shot. That instantly deleted 60% of his HP.


    In the end, they barely got to graze the Turret. The damage they dealt was almost unnoticeable on the Turret''s HP bar. The enemy Warrior and Archer soon returned to the lane, forcing Yuel and John to retreat to the center. Jim also returned from the dead, turning the situation into a 3v3. It felt like they were back to square one.


    "John, go back to base." Yuel suggested. "I''ll hold the lane until then."


    "Yeah, that''s a good idea." John nodded. His Archer was missing over 60% HP thanks to the Turret shot. Healing up at the base sounded like a very appealing idea. "You sure you can hold the lane against them?"


    "Yes, no problem. In the worst case, we can turtle at our Turret like the Wizard did."


    "Got it." John turned around and began running back to base.


    "You can press ''B'' to teleport back."


    "Oh, right! My bad." John stopped running and pressed ''B'' on his keyboard. Magical aura formed around his Archer. After channeling for three seconds, the Archer vanished from the lane and spawned back at the base.


    "Jim, be ready to retreat to the Turret if our minions lose." Yuel gave a warning long before the minions even began clashing. By now, it was obvious Jim had to be warned five minutes ahead of time, or else it''d be too late.


    "Don''t worry, yo. I''m not dying again this game!"


    [Yes, I''m 100% sure that''s true.] Yuel mentally retorted.


    Despite the situation being a 2v3, he defended the lane well with his Pyromancer. Even with all the peculiar traits the Pyromancer possessed, he was still a mage with burst. With fully charged heat, the AoE damage of Flame Wave was nothing to sneeze at. Thanks to that, the clash of the two minion waves nearly ended in a tie.


    Only two red bowmen survived, but that still meant red team held the upper hand in the lane. With red team The enemy bots saw this as a cue to turn aggressive.


    "Jim, we''re retreating."


    "Sure thing!"


    Yuel and Jim returned to their Turret. Even in a 2v3, the enemy bots were wary the Turret. Instead of hitting the players, red team attacked the Turret and retreated once all red minions were gone.


    Yet again, the lane was back to square one. The only difference was the slightly lower health of both Turrets.


    After John returned to the lane with full HP, it was now Yuel''s turn to back. His Pyromancer was running low on MP. A mage who couldn''t cast spells was as good as useless.


    "Make sure to use the Turret if you''re pushed back." Yuel repeated the advice and teleported back to base. Standing at the spawning spot quickly restored him to full HP and full MP.


    In addition, he could now buy new items from the shop. He had accumulated a fine sum of gold by taking out all these minion waves.


    [So, now what?] Yuel frowned as he examined the shop''s selection. He could go for many different options with the amount of gold he had: buy two new items, buy three cheaper items or upgrade Demonic Arm. He had never thought being rich could make life so difficult.


    His teammates were definitely struggling to hold the lane without him right now, so he didn''t have the time to think. He opted for what seemed most reasonable and upgraded Demonic Arm to Lv.3. He confirmed that the Auto-Buy function also upgraded John''s starting item to Lv.3, which made Yuel confident in his decision.


    The deal-sealer was the passive effect which Demonic Arm gained at Lv.3,. On top of providing more magical power and attack speed, Lv.3 Demonic Arm also made Yuel''s basic attacks shred the target''s protections. Each hit would lower the target''s magical defense by 10% for 3 seconds, stacking up to 4 times on one target.


    [This adds even more utility to my basic attacks. Interesting. ]Yuel had grown accustomed to the Pyromancer by now, so this new layer of complexity was a welcome addition. His basic attacks were no longer just a last resort for when all his spells were on cooldown. Now, the best tactic was to hit an enemy with 4 basic attacks in order to lower their defense, then finish them off with spells.


    [This will be useful, but is it enough? ]Yuel pondered while running back to lane. Taking out the enemy Wizard and Archer was the top priority. As long as either of them survived, the status quo at the lane wouldn''t be broken. The tricky part was how these two always stayed at the rear and ran away as soon as things went south.


    [If only I could flank them somehow. Maybe I can use this "jungle"? ]He scanned the mini-map. The "jungle" consisted of two unexplored paths, which sandwiched the lane. Tall walls separated the lane from the jungle, so It was impossible to freely walk back and forth between these areas.


    There were three passages between the jungle and the lane. One of them was deep inside enemy territory, but the other two were very accessible. The first passage was close to blue team''s base, whereas the second passage was near the center of the map.


    Instead of going along the lane, Yuel could venture into the jungle from the first passage and arrive at the center of the lane via the second passage. That''d take longer than running straight along the lane, but Yuel would stay hidden inside the jungle. The enemies wouldn''t see him coming until he appears right behind them.


    "I want to flank them by going around." Yuel drew his planned route on the mini-map and the information was transmitted to his teammates'' maps as well. "If it works, we can kill both the Wizard and Archer. Think you can hold the lane until then?"


    "Sounds like a plan." John nodded. "We should be okay for a while as long as we keep hugging this Turret."


    "Alright." Yuel ventured into the jungle. He activated Burning Spirit, which granted him a temporary movement speed buff.


    Along the way, he came across camps inhabited by monsters: hyenas, wraiths and ogres. These monsters weren''t marked as either blue or red on the mini-map, which meant they were "neutral". They most likely existed to let players farm additional exp and gold, beyond what minions provided on the lane.


    [Reaching Lv.5 will really help my flanking. ]Yuel was already halfway to Lv.5, so clearing one of the neutral camps would hopefully get him there.


    The Hyenas Camp was the closest to the lane, but hyenas looked like generic mobs which only granted exp and gold. They were displayed on the mini-map as simple white dots.


    The Ogre Camp was different. It had a large sword icon on the mini-map, which suggested that defeating the ogres would grant some special benefit. The Wraith Camp also had an icon, that of a potion, but it was too far from the lane to be considered.


    Thus, Yuel headed toward the Ogre Camp. It consisted of only three ogres: two small ones and one big boss guy. He stepped into the camp and shot each of the ogres multiple times to lower their defenses with Demonic Arm.


    Once the ogres got close to hit him, he cast Pillar of Fire in front of himself. The circle of flames continuously damaged the ogres, but they just kept standing there and smacking Yuel in the face.


    [Oh, this also gives me power? Not bad.] Yuel realized he got buffed while standing on the flame generated by Pillar of Fire. There were so many fine details to learn about the Pyromancer. It was amazing.


    After he shredded enough protections from the ocs and his heat gauge reached 70%, Yuel unleashed Flame Wave and wiped them out. The ogre leader dropped a sword, which was coated in a magical aura. Once Yuel touched it, the sword fused into the Pyromancer and vanished.


    [I see. It''s a power buff. ]Yuel confirmed that his power value increased on the stat screen. The buff granted +20% power and lasted for 3 minutes. Not the longest buff ever, but long enough to be put to good use.


    Clearing the camp also brought him to Lv.5. He gained access to the Pyromancer''s ultimate ability: Blaze of Inferno. It was a damaging spell, with a... peculiar hit range. He wasn''t entirely sure what to make of its potential yet, but it should be prove useful in the upcoming flanking attack.


    With all these tools in hand, he headed toward the lane. While he was busy with the Ogre Camp, red team had pushed blue team all the way to the Turret. A red swordsman and three red bowmen invaded the blue Turret''s area.


    While the red minions tanked the Turret''s shots, the red bot players barraged the Turret with basic attacks. All enemy players extended so far into blue team''s territory. They were so far from their own Turret. This was the perfect opportunity to flank them!


    [They will react as soon as they notice me, so I better move fast. ]Yuel activated Burning Spirit to boost his movement speed and swiftly approached the enemies from behind. As he drew closer, the enemy bots... didn''t react. Huh? Why?


    The intermediate bots had done a great job playing safe until now, so what changed? A player sneaking up from behind should had rung some alarms. Yet, the bots didn''t even turn around to acknowledge Yuel''s presence... wait.


    [Oh! They can''t see me!?] It finally hit him. Classmancers was a third-person game, which meant players couldn''t know what was happening behind them until they turned around. Even bots had to follow that rule to feel like real players.


    With the enemies'' backs turned to Yuel right now, he could leisurely optimize his positioning for the flanking. He snuck up behind the enemy Wizard, cast Pillar of Fire in front of himself to boost his power and fired basic attacks at the Wizard.


    After getting hit, the Wizard finally realized the danger. But, it was too late. The Pyromancer''s fast attacks shredded the Wizard''s protections within moments. While the Wizard had just started the casting for his spell, Yuel had already finished unleashing his Flame Wave.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    "Ha... haha..." Yuel couldn''t believe his eyes. The Wizard was deleted. Completely wiped out. Eliminated. Just like that, with one hit from Flame Wave. All the preparations Yuel had made paid off big time with this one play!


    Realizing the danger, the enemies fled toward their Turret. But Yuel wasn''t going to let that happen. After the Wizard, his next target was the Archer. He hit the Archer with four basic attacks, then unleashed his ultimate ability.


    [Ugh, this is such a weird skill! ]Yuel messed up the process. Blaze of Inferno required him to draw an area on the ground. Fire erupted along the path he drew, damaging all enemies in range.


    It was his first time casting such an odd spell, so the path he drew was far from optimal. Part of the attack hit the enemy Archer, but it wasn''t enough. The Archer was about to get away.


    "I''ll try to finish him off." John said. His Archer crouched and took aim at a distant target. Was this the Archer''s ultimate? Yuel hadn''t seen this move yet.


    After a second, John released his arrow. It flew all the way from the center of the map up to the enemy Turret. Even though the fleeing Archer changed his running direction at some point, the arrow pursued him without fail.


    [What is this? A guided missile? These easy classes... ]While Yuel had to draw his ultimate''s hit area like some Picasso, the Archer''s ultimate simply locked onto a specific target and pursued them to the ends of the earth. So fair.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    The broken ultimate made it feel like a cheap kill, but it warranted celebration all the same. With this successful flanking, Yuel had finally punished his enemies for a misplay. The thought of repeating this against human players made him giddy.


    With both enemy damage dealers gone, it was the perfect chance to push forward!


    "John, focus on the Turret. Ignore the minions." Yuel ordered as they invaded the enemy Turret. He took care of incoming minion waves with spells, while John barraged the Turret with swift basic attacks. This was the optimal arrangement, as Turrets were immune to damaging abilities. All of Yuel''s spells were useless against it.


    After wiping out the minions, Yuel also attacked the Turret. His basic attacks were way weaker than John''s, but they were about as fast. This allowed him to deal sizable damage to the Turret, despite being a mage.


    [Try to top that, Wizard.] Yuel smirked. Pyromancer lost to Wizard in many ways as a mage, but the high attack speed allowed Pyromancer to fulfil additional roles, which the Wizard could never dream of. Yuel was convinced that, with the right handling, the Pyromancer was superior to the Wizard.


    ¡ºAn enemy Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    After that, blue team became unstoppable. They won every team fight by luring red team away from safety and flanking them. Respawn times for players became longer and longer as the match progressed, so every won team fight gave blue team a lot of time to push forward.


    Before long, they defeated the enemy Golem, the second objective on the lane. This temporarily empowered blue minions, making them trample all over red minions. Together with these powerful minions, blue team invaded the enemy base and destroyed the enemy Colossus.


    ¡ºVICTORY¡»


    This match was just a little taste of what Classmancers had to offer. The enemies were mere bots and this was just a small 3v3 practice map. Nonetheless, Yuel was already sold. The map, abilities, items, strategies and team fights. He was totally hooked by the complex combination of all these factors.


    It was decided that day: Classmancers was the team sport he wanted to play!

 3 Playing Online

    Ever since the first Classmancers lesson, Yuel became obsessed with the game. He wasn''t much of a gamer before, but now he spent all his free time playing Classmancers. He practiced many different classes, studied items and experimented how various effects interacted. As a result, his game knowledge quickly surpassed the material taught in class.


    As the other kids learned more about Classmancers and its classes, Rogue became an infamous pick due to its notorious Stealth ability. It allowed the Rogue to turn invisible and sneak up to enemies. To make things worse, Rogue''s passive, Backstabber, made its basic attacks deal extra damage from behind. Combined with its high attack power as an assassin class, Rogue could murder any squishy target with a just few stabs in the back


    Most of the time, the Rogue''s prey was dead before it even got to react. None of the kids had any idea how to deal with this cancer class, so many of them picked the class to wreck their opponents. When the final Classmancers lesson came around and a 3v3 competition was announced in the class, almost every team had a dedicated Rogue player.


    However, Yuel''s team didn''t have a Rogue. He advised John and Jim against playing Rogue, for it was a "weak class". Yes, despite how highly everybody regarded Rogue, Yuel claimed it was weak. Even though they didn''t share Yuel''s opinion, John and Jim followed the advice and played the classes they were most comfortable with: Archer and Viking.


    Already In the first match of the competition, Yuel''s team played against a team with a Rogue in it. John thought they were screwed for sure, but things didn''t quite turn out as he expected.


    "Huh? How come we can see their Rogue?" John raised an eyebrow. For some reason, his mini-map showed the stealthed enemy Rogue sneaking through the jungle. There was an allied Ward placed in the jungle, a deployable which granted vision to the whole team for limited time. However, that didn''t explain the current situation. "I thought Wards don''t show Rogue when he''s stealthed?"


    "That''s a Stealth Ward." Yuel explained. "It''s the same as a normal Ward, except it also exposes stealthed enemies. It costs more and doesn''t last as long, but it''s great when you play against a Rogue."


    "Oh, cool, I didn''t even know that kind of thing existed. I wonder how I missed that during lessons."


    "It wasn''t covered in the lessons." Yuel said. "We only learned about normal Wards."


    After learning of the incoming attack, Yuel''s team ambushed the Rogue and eliminated him. Rogue was indeed strong when he had the element of surprise, but he was an easy kill without it. By using Stealth Wards, Yuel shut down the Rogue of every team and effectively turned every match into a 3v2.


    "And we have our winners!" The teacher announced the end of the class competition. "Good job! These game controllers are for you. Now, you can keep playing Classmancers even from your tablet!"


    With that, the final Classmancers lesson came to an end. As the members of the "best team" in class, Yuel, John and Jim received game controllers as a prize. Like most kids these days, Yuel owned a tablet. So, now that he also had a controller, he could play Classmancers anywhere and anytime.


    Lunch breaks lasted an hour at his school, so some kids gathered to play Classmancers after eating. Despite the special lessons, only seven classmates expressed interest in playing Classmancers. Most kids found the game slow, confusing or unrewarding. They preferred playing soccer or braindead video games.


    Out of the seven interested kids, only five had controllers. Classmancers was a 5v5 team sport, but it was impossible to host a real match with the numbers they had. Not to mention that, even among these kids, many considered the 5v5 mode slow and complicated. In the end, they only played 3v3.


    Yuel found this arrangement disappointing, because he was interested in Classmancers as a team sport. Nonetheless, he wanted to make the most out of it and always played Classmancers with others during lunch breaks. After all, it was like a dream that came true. He could finally play a team sport in which he wasn''t a weak player.


    In fact, he was the ace. Every classmate came to the same conclusion after playing on Yuel''s team: Yuel was the strongest Classmancers player in class. Each and every victory was earned thanks to Yuel''s tactics and plays.


    "John, buy Teleport and use it on the Ward I placed here." Yuel pinged the location on the mini-map.


    "Huh? Since when I can teleport to Wards?"


    "It''s a Checkpoint Ward, so you can."


    "Oh, cool." John complied without any further questions and purchased the utility skill Teleport. After channeling it for two seconds, he instantly teleported from the base to the other side of the map. He had no idea what he was supposed to do there at first, but it soon became apparent.


    "Gotcha!" John shot down an injured enemy, who was in the middle of recalling back to base. Next, he effortlessly flanked two injured enemies who fled in his direction.


    ¡ºANNIHILATION¡»


    He got a whooping Triple Kill. All enemy players were dead.


    "Yo! Cool play, bro!" Jim praised his pal for the amazing achievement.


    "Haha, yeah we got this now..." John smiled wryly. "Cool play", huh. Just whose play was it, really?


    If not for Yuel, John wouldn''t had teleported to that Checkpoint Ward. If not for Yuel, he wouldn''t had found himself in that convenient position. If not for Yuel, he wouldn''t had scored all these kills so easily.


    Sure, John finished off the enemies with his own attacks, but said attacks were just a part of Yuel''s plan. John merely danced to Yuel''s tune. The Triple Kill was handed to him on a silver platter.


    How did Yuel know anything and everything about the countless skills and items in this game? How was he so sure that the injured enemies would flee in John''s direction? Why did he place an expensive Checkpoint Ward instead of a normal Ward? Was it all for this play? Just how many moves ahead could he see!?


    "You''re really scary sometimes..." John mumbled.


    "Hm? You said something?"


    "No, it''s nothing." John shook his head and focused on destroying the enemy Golem. Shortly afterwards, this push led to victory. The Triple Kill arranged by Yuel was the checkmate of this match. Everything played out exactly as he planned.


    Even though none of them voiced it, everybody felt like pawns whenever they played with Yuel. He gave them instructions which didn''t make sense at first, yet somehow always led to victory. Thus, even if they didn''t understand, they complied because they wanted to win.


    As the one who played with Yuel the most, John was the first to become fed up with this routine.


    "Yeah! We got this!" Both of Yuel''s teammates rejoiced after the team assignments were decided by random rolls. John found himself on the opposing team for a change, forced to play against an unbeatable enemy.


    "On second thought, I''ll pass." John stood up. "I feel like playing soccer today."


    "But you''re the one who called us here" Yuel said.


    "Meh, not feeling it anymore. Besides, we all know how it gonna end."


    "What do you mean?"


    "You''re really asking?" John rolled his eyes. "As if any of us can win against you."


    "What kind of logic is that?" Yuel frowned. "I know some of you consider me the best player, but I''m just one person. Classmancers isn''t chess, it''s a team vs. team game."


    "Heh, ''isn''t chess''? Right back at you." John sneered.


    "What does that mean?"


    "Forget it." John shrugged and left. The way he acted was far from admirable, but the other kids shared his sentiments.


    Ever since John expressed his dissatisfaction, others started following his example. When they weren''t teamed with Yuel, they quit. It became harder and harder to host a 3v3 match during lunch break. Eventually, they stopped playing altogether.


    Yuel had mixed feelings about this development. Local multiplayer, with real humans right beside him, was a fun way to play Classmancers. Players rejoiced whenever they made a strong play and ranted whenever they got punished for a mistake. As the tactician who arranged such scenarios, Yuel enjoyed watching others'' reactions. It recreated the feeling of a real team sport, in which he played important role for a change.


    However, he wasn''t quite satisfied with the 3v3 matches. He avoided saying that to their faces, but the rest of the kids he played with were lacking. They saw Classmancers as a way to pass lunch break, nothing more and nothing less. They didn''t care for mastering the game or polishing their technical skill. They just wanted a quick and rewarding fix. Once the game stopped being rewarding, they lost interest.


    [Seems like I''ll have to play online.] Yuel concluded. He occasionally played the 5v5 mode via online multiplayer and even got his account to Lv.10, However, he hadn''t invested much time into it until now, because it lacked the "team sport" feeling that local multiplayer provided.


    There was barely any interaction between Yuel and his online teammates. Each player did their own thing without paying attention to the rest of the map. This led to many frustrating matches.


    Sometimes, Yuel pinged an objective on the map and told his allies to secure it via in-game voice commands, only to find himself alone once he got there. Other times, he asked his teammates to group up and push a lane to victory, but they all thought it was the right time to farm jungle camps.


    Reaching Lv.50 with his account would unlock Ranked, a mode in which players supposedly played Classmancers more competitively and actually cooperated with each other. He had no choice but to trust that information, as Ranked sounded like he only place where he''d be able play meaningful Classmancers matches. Thus, he grinded exp every chance he had, both at school and at home.


    Sadly, he had to queue into matches alone. None of his classmates were interested in the 5v5 mode, especially now that they no longer played Classmancers during lunch breaks. Winning multiple matches in a row granted bonus exp, but it was impossible to do with an uncoordinated teams. As a result, Yuel''s grind was slow, painfully slow.


    The 5v5 map was much larger than the 3v3 map. It had three lanes: Top Lane, Middle lane and Bottom lane. They were usually abbreviated to simply Top, Mid and Bot. Minion waves spawned on all three lanes simultaneously and each lane had its own defensive structures: a Turret and a Golem. All the lanes connected the allied base to the enemy base, so it was possible to push any of the lanes all the way to victory.


    Big jungles spread between the lanes: a Top Jungle below Top Lane and a Bot Jungle above Bot Lane. These jungles were much wider than the ones in the 3v3 map and had many camps with neutral monsters. They also had two "boss" monsters, which granted huge benefits to the whole team upon being defeated: Dragon and Overlord.


    With five players on the team, it wasn''t immediately clear where everybody should go. Who should go to which lane, how many teammates should be on each lane, when to clear jungle camps and so forth. As a result, many of Yuel''s teams were as organized as a bunch of headless chicken. He did his best to teach them the general strategy he learned at school, but it was a miracle when somebody actually listened to him.


    As he leveled up his account and got matched with more experienced players, he met more people familiar with Classmancers'' "metagame", or "meta" for short. Like in any other team sport, there were recommended team formations used by pros. The existence of a meta greatly improved Yuel''s online experience, as it dictated which roles the team needed and where each role should go. It was far from enough to make the teams "cooperative", but it was better than nothing.


    For Top Lane, the player usually had to pick a bruiser or tank type of class, such as Warrior, Knight and Viking. Both types were hard to kill due to their high defense, but in exchange they were slow at clearing minion waves. Therefore, Top Lane was the slowest lane in the game and the Top Laner was usually stuck there alone until halfway through the match.


    Yuel excelled in Top Lane due to its prolonged 1v1 nature. He had more than enough time to study his lane opponent and figure out their weaknesses. In addition, he had better game knowledge than the average newbie, so he farmed exp and gold more effectively than his opponents and built items which countered them. This often allowed Yuel to dominate the lane. If he also managed to get a few kills on his opponent and snowball from there with a bruiser class, he could single-handedly carry the team to victory against disorganized enemies.


    Mid Lane was also a 1v1 lane, but it much more hectic. It was the shortest lane, which meant it was the easiest lane to push all the way to enemy base. As such, it was always highly contested. To effectively control Mid, the Mid Laner had to play a mage class with fast wave clear, such as Wizard, Pyromancer and Warlock.


    Yuel was decent at this role. He wasn''t the best at landing his spells during chaotic team fights, but he made up for it with his great map awareness. Mages were squishy and Mid Lane was surrounded by jungles from both sides, making it prone to flank attacks. To stay alive in Mid, it was mandatory to place Wards in strategic locations and predict incoming flanks. Unlike most newbies, Yuel was an expert with Wards and purchased them every time he returned to base. Sometimes he even bought too many and had nowhere to place them.


    According to the meta, one team member had to be the Jungler. This was the only role without a lane of its own. As the name implied, the jungler''s domain was the jungle and he primarily farmed exp and gold via clearing jungle camps. He also roamed across the map to flank enemies and set up ganks (gang kills). Classes for this role were usually bruisers or assassins with the ability to lock down enemies and quickly execute them, such as Rogue, Werewolf and Shadow Walker.


    This was another role Yuel excelled with, for it required a combination of game knowledge, map awareness and exploiting enemies'' weaknesses. He memorized the respawn times of all jungle camps and maximized his farm by taking optimal routes through the jungle, often outleveling the enemy Jungler. He wasn''t mechanically skilled enough to flawlessly execute ganks on the spot, but he made up for it by carefully studying his opponents and striking them at right time.


    The last two roles, Carry and Support, had to start off together in Bot Lane. Carry classes were long-ranged damage dealers with consistent high DPS (Damage Per Second), such as Archer, Trickshooter and Headhunter. Their main role was to quickly demolish enemy structures with their basic attacks. They started out weak, but transformed into powerhouses around mid game. For that reason, the Support player was assigned to "babysit" the Carry during the early game.


    As a Carry, Yuel was... alright. It was the role which demanded the most mechanical skill, as it was critical for the Carry to land each of his basic attacks. Many Carries also had kits which required high skill, such as skillshots which demanded scoring a headshot, bullets which ricocheted off walls and many other absurd things. No matter how much he practiced, he couldn''t pull of such stunts in the heat of battle. Therefore, whenever he was stuck playing a Carry, he always picked an easy one like Archer.


    Overall, no matter which role he had to play, Yuel performed decently. He preferred certain roles over others, but he was fine with all of them. That is, except for Support. He hated that role.


    Supports were all about protecting allies and hindering enemies. They were usually either fortliner tanks like Paladin, or backline mages with heals or CC (Crowd Control), such as Cleric and Cryomancer. After babysitting the Carry in early game, the Support roamed around the map to set up ganks with hard CC like stun. The Support usually lacked the means to deal damage, so he had to rely on his teammates to finish off a stunned enemy.


    Support was a complicated role which required a combination of vast game knowledge and fast decision-making. The Support had to initiate team fights, save his allies from pursuers, ward around the map, build the right support items against the enemy team and much more. Yuel really... hated that role.


    Yes, it was a terrible role! The absolute worst! Support classes were "weak", they could hardly do anything on their own. They didn''t have any damage to speak of, so they couldn''t kill enemies, clear minion waves or destroy Turrets. No matter how good the Support player was, he had no way to carry the team on his own.


    Whenever he played Support, he felt like he returned to the soccer field. He was the "weak player" who had to rely on his teammates to carry the team. No matter how much he learned about the game or how much he polished his decision-making skills - it was pointless when nobody listened to him. He was a useless team member all over again.


    When he told the Carry to retreat, the Carry thought it was smart to chase the enemy all the way to the Turret and get killed. When Yuel had his CC ultimate ability ready and told the Carry to attack so they could get an easy kill, the Carry instead returned to base for no reason.


    The same miscommunication problems occured in team fights as well, with even severer consequences. Yuel initiated a team fight when his side had the advantage, only to lose the fight thanks to a scaredy-cat ally who ran away. As a result, four out of five team members were annihilated and the game was pretty much over.


    As Yuel was matched against higher level players, communication became noticeably more frequent. However, it... wasn''t the kind of communication he was looking for.


    ¡ºOMG NOOB QQ¡»


    ¡ºStop ***ing feeding!¡»


    ¡ºsuka blyat pidaras¡»


    ¡ºyou''re so bad. uninstall game¡»


    The community was filled with toxicity. Players flamed whenever things went south, blaming each other for the team''s downfall. Yuel also came under fire from time to time, as nobody was immune to having a bad game.


    [Relax. Focus on the game. We can still win this.] Yuel took a deep breath whenever he was flamed. It was easy to give in to the temptation and argue back. In fact, he had committed that mistake a few times before. However, he soon realized that bickering only dragged the team down and destroyed its already low chances of winning.


    ¡ºPlease focus on the match instead of flaming¡» He tried to wrap things up as politely as he could, regardless of who was flamed. It was the best he could do to stop the team from falling apart, but it rarely worked. Most of the time, the flamers just started attacking him as well if they weren''t already.


    The toxicity was twice as harsh against whoever played Support. The Carry died while chasing a kill under an enemy Turret? The Support''s fault. An ally was ganked from an unwarded region of the map? Obviously the Support''s fault.


    No matter how well Yuel played Support, he was hit by criticism due to others'' mistakes. It was even worse than when he played soccer, as there everybody ignored him and treated him as irrelevant. Nobody expected anything from him, so they weren''t angry when he messed up.


    But, when he played Support, people expected the world from him and blamed him for their own stupidity. Every little mistake his teammates made was somehow his fault. It was a thoroughly frustrating role to play.


    [If only I had people to play with... ]Yuel sighed. The more he played online, the more he appreciated the times when he played with his classmates during lunch breaks. None of them was a particularly strong player, but at least they communicated like rational human beings and listened to Yuel''s advice.


    But, in the online world he was alone. None of his classmates wanted to play with him and he had to suffer through one toxic team after another. How could he change this depressing reality? He kept thinking and thinking, all the while grinding more exp for his account and hoping that Ranked mode would be filled with more reasonable players.

 4 God of Trick Shots

    ¡ºDEFEAT¡»


    Yuel sighed as he put down his controller. Another match, another team that fell apart due to flaming. Everybody instantly locked their picks during class selection, then blamed each other for how the team lacked the necessary meta roles. Yuel went out of his way to fill in as a Support, but of course nobody thanked him for that.


    In fact, half the team blamed him for random things and made him feel like the only player with a brain. Truly, Support was such an unrewarding role. He hated it.


    [Maybe there are Classmancers players in other classes? ]Yuel sighed again. He could play two more matches before lunch break was over, but he was no longer in the mood. He packed his things and left the classroom.


    Supposedly, all sixth graders at his school received Classmancers lessons, so maybe some kids from other classes got into Classmancers as well. He wasn''t exactly the most social kid, so he didn''t know anybody from other classes. Nevertheless, he went out of his way to take a look. That''s how frustrating it was to play online alone.


    "Gah! I hate this dumb squid ult!" A girl''s cry caught Yuel''s attention.


    "Khaha, Kraken is mah bro!" A boy grinned triumphantly.


    [Are they playing Classmancers!? ]Yuel almost broke into a run toward their table. Ultimate ability + Kraken = somebody was playing the Pirate class.


    A 2v2 Classmancers match was in progress, with two pairs sitting opposite of each other across the table. The only girl in the group played Cryomancer and her partner played Trickshooter. Their enemies were Pirate and Cleric.


    They played on a map that was even smaller than the 3v3 map, with the only lane objectives being Golem and Colossus. Both pairs had a Carry and a Support, so this match was similar to the early game of the 5v5 mode''s Bot Lane. Were they practicing this specific scenario?


    The girl''s tablet happened to be closest, so Yuel followed her point of view of the match.


    [Let''s see if they can make this combination work. ]The pairing of Cryomancer and Trickshooter had some synergy. It wasn''t the most practical combo, but it was exciting to watch when it was successfully pulled off. Sadly, the girl''s supporting was... abysmal.


    [Ugh. Don''t just run!] Yuel barely stopped himself from shouting at her. Whenever the two teams exchanged blows, the Cryomancer was the first to distance herself from the fight. She left the Trickshooter alone on the frontline to 1v2 the enemies and soak all the damage. That was the first big no-no of supporting.


    Trickshooter was the Carry class, the one dealing all the damage. Only he could bring victory in this 2v2. The Support should be ready to die for the Carry if push came to shove. There were Support classes which had a legit reason to prioritize their own survival, such as Cleric, but the Cryomancer definitely didn''t belong to that category.


    Granted, Cryomancer wasn''t a tanky Support and didn''t have any reliable escape skills, so maintaining some distance from the enemy was important. However, she had to position herself in a way that''d allow her to hinder her enemies. By running away at the first sight of conflict, she wasted the important supporting tools in the Cryomancer''s kit.


    For example, the Cryomancer''s passive, Frostbite, made her basic attacks slow down the target''s movement speed and attack speed. That was a great way to weaken the enemy Carry during a team fight, as most Carries relied on high attack speed for their damage output. Alas, by running away as soon as the fight broke out, she never made use of Frostbite.


    She probably thought her playstyle made sense because of her ultimate ability: Cryo-Freeze. That''s a common newbie mistake among Cryomancers Yuel met online. Cryo-Freeze allowed her to freeze an ally to make them temporarily immune to all sources of damage and rapidly restore HP. By hitting the Trickshooter with Cryo-Freeze right before he died, she saved him from death and restored him back to full health, allowing him to continue the team fight. That meant she had a very good reason to prioritize her own safety, right?


    Wrong. Cryo-Freeze definitely provided a lot of healing, but it froze the Carry in place. While the frozen Carry was healing up, the enemies had all the time in the world to retreat. Even though the Carry eventually returned with 100% HP, the team fight was already over. He merely cheated death, he had no way to finish off the enemies he injured. Cryo-Freeze didn''t help him win team fights in the slightest.


    After retreating, all the enemies had to do was restore themselves to full health and start a new 1v2 team fight. Since Cryo-Freeze was an ultimate ability, it had a long cooldown and was usually be unusable during the following team fight. In other words, the Cryo-Freeze strategy only delayed the inevitable, it didn''t provide a way to actually win any of the fights.


    [In the first place, Cryomancer is all about the CC. You play Cleric if you want a healer.] Yuel sighed. It was frustrating to watch. He knew all these Support classes like the palm of his hand. He knew them so well, that he even understood why the girl was making all these common newbie mistakes. Truly, he knew everything about the Support role, that''s how much he hated it.


    Beyond her poor handling of the Cryomancer, there were many other issues with the girl''s playstyle. She didn''t set up last hits on minions for the Trickshooter, she built too many offensive items and so much more.


    Compared to her, the boy playing Trickshooter was impressive. Yuel only caught snippets of the Trickshooter''s plays via the girl''s tablet, but everything he saw was awe-striking.


    The Trickshooter''s main damaging skill, Trickshot, fired a bullet which bounced off walls. Each time the bullet bounced, its total power was doubled. It was an attack with incredible damage potential, but it was extremely difficult to land a hit after a bounce. Yuel practiced this skill a lot, until ultimately concluding it was too unreliable for team fights.


    [... is this guy hacking? ]Yuel couldn''t believe it. The Trickshooter on the screen landed the bouncing shots, each and every one of them. It was unreal.


    Instead of taking the easy way out and firing Trickshot straight at the enemy, the Trickshooter always fired at a nearby wall and made the bullet bounce toward the enemy. And it always hit. Always. Without fail. Sometimes it even hit both enemies at once! What!? How!?


    Even without any support to speak of, the Trickshooter held his ground in a 1v2 against the enemy Pirate and Cleric. No, that''s wrong. He was WINNING against them.


    He juked the majority of their shots while perfectly landing each of his attacks. After enough hits, the Cleric ran dangerously low on HP and was forced to retreat to the backline, leaving the rest of the fight to the Pirate.


    The fight became a 1v1, but the Trickshooter was still at a grave disadvantage... in theory. He only had 30% HP left, while the Pirate was at full health. Nonetheless, the Pirate was stomped on.


    Was that Pirate just a bad player? No, it didn''t seem that way. It''s the Trickshooter who was too amazing. He was abnormally nimble and accurate, making it insanely hard to kill him in a duel.


    "Now! Place a wall!" The Trickshooter shouted. In response, the girl activated the skill Ice Wall and erected wall ice on the lane.


    Ice Wall was normally used to obstruct enemy movement, but here it served a different purpose. It was a wall for all intents and purposes, so Trickshot could bounce off it. This was the well-known combo between Trickshooter and Cryomancer. As expected, the Trickshooter aimed his pistol at... what?


    "Hu-!?" Yuel quickly covered his mouth. Huh? What? The Trickshooter didn''t direct his pistol toward the ice wall. Instead, he fired Trickshot at a nearby wall. The bullet bounced off the wall and flew toward the ice wall, from which it bounced a second time.


    [A double bounce!? That makes the bullet four times stronger! ]Yuel trembled from shock. Both the base power and the power scaling of Trickshot were pretty high for a Carry''s skill, so quadrupling them allowed the bullet to erase 70% of the Pirate''s HP in one-shot. That is, if it miraculously hit.


    [But, there''s no way it''ll hit... right? ]Yuel was glued to the screen. Landing a hit after a single bounce was already hard and doing so after two bounces was exponentially harder. The Trickshooter didn''t even spend more than a second to take aim, so there was no chance this bullet would-


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    [Y-You''re kidding me... ]Yuel''s jaw dropped so hard he couldn''t close his mouth for at least a minute. The bullet wiped out the Pirate after bouncing twice. Twice! It bounced twice! And it hit! What were the odds of that happening in the middle of a fight!? What would happen next? A meteor would fall from the sky and wipe out humanity!? Anything was possible at this point!


    [H-He''s amazing.] Yuel gulped and clenched his fists. Despite having no support and effectively fighting 1v2, the Trickshooter didn''t give up and didn''t blame anybody. He fought his best and grasped victory. He was amazing, he was a god. He definitely deserved to win this.


    Alas, the kill he scored was just the beginning of the fight. The Cleric cast his ultimate ability, Arise, on the dying Pirate. A ball of light traveled toward the Pirate''s collapsed body and refilled it with energy. It was a revival skill which brought the Pirate back from the dead with full HP.


    While the injured Cleric was busy casting his revival spell, the Trickshooter used the chance to assault him.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed! Double kill!¡»


    Two kills in a row in a 1v2 situation was nothing but amazing. However, that was the end of the line for the Trickshooter. The Pirate stood right behind him with full HP, ready to exact revenge. No matter how amazing the Trickshooter was, he couldn''t possibly win with just 10% HP. He didn''t even have enough MP to fire Trickshot or flee with Trickslide.


    The Cryomancer realized it became a 2v1, so she finally mustered the courage to step into the fight and attack the Pirate. However, her damage was lackluster and she was way too late.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    The Trickshooter fell. He fought well until the very end and left the Pirate with 60% HP, but it was a defeat. Both teams lost one member, but the team which lost the Carry lost the whole 2v2. Even if she wanted, the Cryomancer had no way to fight back against the Pirate. She immediately retreated back to her Golem to avoid getting killed, a good move for a change.


    Winning the team fight allowed the Pirate to push lane hard and bring the Golem''s HP down to 60% in one go. The rest of the match progressed in a similar fashion, with the Trickshooter and Cryomancer getting pushed back. No matter how well the Trickshooter played, he couldn''t beat the enemy duo. Every time he killed the Pirate, the Cleric used Arise and the fight went south from there.


    ¡ºDEFEAT¡»


    "Hah, git gud, bro." The Pirate laughed.


    "Bah, I almost had you in the last one!" The Trickshooter held his head. Based on the back and forth between the players throughout the match, his name was Lars.


    "You''re a way better player than him." The Cryomancer, Julia, was quick to console her partner. "We only lost because they''re playing these cheap classes."


    "Yeah, right."


    "Huh? And who are you supposed to be?" Julia turned around and shot a nasty glare at Yuel.


    "A-Ah, I just watched the match for a bit..." Yuel realized he just blurted his thoughts. What a great way to make a first impression.


    "You also play Classmancers?" Lars asked.


    "Yes, I do."


    "And you watched the match, right? Dude, can you believe we lost that? I was so sure we''d turn things around at end game! I just don''t get why we lost."


    "Well, about that..." Yuel threw a glance at Julia, who was still giving him the evil eye. "Can I be blunt?"


    "Sure, go ahead and hit me with any criticism you got, dude."


    "Then, first I''ll say you played Trickshooter very well. You nearly beat them in 1v2." Yuel tried to soften the incoming blow. "But, you didn''t have any support. Frankly, that Cryomancer played terribly."


    "Huh!? What''s that supposed to mean!?" Julia glared at him so hard that he felt like he was stabbed with a knife. Sigh, what a wonderful first impression he made.


    "Haha, you were blunt alright." Lars laughed while scratching his head. "I gotta agree, July isn''t the best Support, is she?"


    "Eh?" Julia turned meek all of sudden. "I-I only picked it up recently, so I''m still learning. S-Sorry if I''m still making newbie mistakes." She wore puppy dog eyes while addressing Lars, but she didn''t fail to somehow shoot another murderous glare at Yuel at the same time.


    "Are ya any good as Support?" Lars asked.


    "I can do better than her, at least." Yuel affirmed. If Julia''s glares could kill, he''d be a dismembered corpse by now.


    "Then let''s play another round, with you as my Support." Lars said.


    "Fine by me." Yuel answered without hesitation. He hated Support so much, that he had an uncontrollable urge to fix the defeat caused by Julia''s lousy supporting. Not to mention that Lars clearly deserved to win this match. "I''ll go bring my tablet."


    "Nah, there''s no much time until the bell." Lars waved his hand. "Just play on July''s."


    "H-Huh!?" Julia cried.


    "Hm? Is that a problem?"


    "N-No, of course not. Please, go ahead. Be my guest." Julia smiled like an angel and offered her seat to Yuel. However, as she passed by him, she clicked her tongue and cursed him to death with her glare.


    [She sure likes me.] Yuel shrugged and took Julia''s seat.


    "Okay, let''s go with the same combo!" Lars picked Trickshooter again and locked in before Yuel could even react. "Pick Cryomancer so we can make savage plays with the walls."


    "Hmm." Yuel didn''t comply right away. The combo of Ice Wall and Trickshot was rewarding to pull off and could help the Trickshooter in some scenarios. Based on how the previous match went, Lars could be trusted to perfectly land each and every bouncing Trickshot, even after two bounces. He was quite literally the god of trick shooting.


    However, precisely because of that, it seemed like Ice Wall wasn''t really necessary for Lars on this small map. The lane was surrounded by walls and he flawlessly utilized them to land his bouncing shots. Throwing Ice Wall into the mix would sometimes allow Lars to land a super powerful double bounce Trickshot, but these scenarios were bound to be rare due to their insane difficulty.


    "C''mon, what takes ya so long?" One of the opponents complained. Both enemies must had locked in their classes by now. The game room displayed a 0-3 score in the enemy''s favor, so they must had been playing against each other throughout the whole lunch break.


    "Do they always play Pirate and Cleric?" Yuel asked.


    "Yeah, they''ve been picking them the whole day." Lars nodded.


    "Then I''m going with Paladin."


    "Eh? But the synergy, dude! The sick combos, dude!"


    "Let me ask you something." Yuel turned to Lars with a serious expression. "Do you play to make cool combos or to win?"


    "Oh." Lars blinked for moment, then grinned. "To win, of course."


    "Then Paladin it is."


    "Why? It has some secret synergy with Trickshooter?"


    "No." Yuel shook his head. "Synergy is good to have, but sometimes it''s more efficient to counter the enemy instead. Paladin can do much more work than Cryomancer in this matchup."


    "I''m really not seeing it, dude. Paladin is melee, we gonna get zoned by their long range, yo."


    "There''s some truth to that." Yuel was impressed by Lars''s keen observation. Ranged classes had a great advantage over melee classes while fighting on the lane. "But don''t forget that Paladin is also a tank. He can soak some damage."


    "Hrm. Hrmmm." Lars still had his doubts. "Say, what level are you?"


    "32."


    "Oh! You sure play a lot, dude!" Lars''s attitude made a 180. "I''m only Lv.26, so guess that makes you the expert here. Okay, let''s roll with your plan then!"


    [Grinding levels doesn''t make you an expert, but sure.] Yuel stayed quiet and picked Paladin. The match finally started loading.


    [Lv.26, huh. ]Yuel felt stupid. Just what was he been doing all this time? He had been playing online alone for so long, even though there were such passionate Classmancers players right next door.


    At first, he wanted win in order to show how proper supporting could decide games, but now he had an even more important goal. He had to prove his worth as a fellow Classmancers player so he could join this circle of friends. If he showcased his ability here, the days of playing online alone would be finally over. He had to win, no matter what.

 5 Hateful Suppor

    The match against the Pirate and Cleric duo began. Yuel played Paladin and his partner, Lars, played Trickshooter. As much as he hated it, Yuel had lots of experience playing Paladin, so it was a familiar pick for him. Nonetheless, once his character spawned on the map, he needed a few seconds to adjust to it.


    [This almost feels like playing a whole new character.] Instead of a manly knight clad in white armor, he was controlling a woman in a frilly dress. All classes in the game supported both genders and, since he was using Julia''s tablet right now, his Paladin was forced to be a female.


    However, that alone didn''t explain the frilly dress. Unlike in many video games out there, Classmancers'' female counterparts were usually well dressed. Just like the male Paladin, the female version wore a thick metal armor that covered her whole body. At least, that''s how it was supposed to be.


    For the better or the worse, the player could customize the appearance of their characters by purchasing skins. If he recalled correctly, this princess skin was released last week as part of the Fairytale Bundle. Yuel didn''t care for any of that in the slightest, but this knowledge was literally beaten into him via the countless in-game ads.


    [Learn to play the game before you spend money on cosmetics, seriously. This isn''t a dress up game. ]Yuel sighed. At least this Paladin''s shield was as big as that of the male counterpart, meaning the character models had roughly the same width. This might had sounded irrelevant to most people, but for him it was an important consideration during class selection.


    The first step toward countering the enemy was denying last hits. Scoring a last hit on a minion rewarded the player with bonus exp and gold. On top of that, the Pirate''s passive, Plunder, granted the Pirate even more gold upon scoring a last hit. More gold meant the Pirate would build his items faster, allowing him to outpower the Trickshooter.


    To prevent that, Yuel positioned himself on the frontline. Whenever the Pirate was about to last hit a minion, Yuel stepped in and blocked the bullet with his body. Thanks to the Paladin''s relatively wide character model, this was an easy task even for somebody with poor reaction time.


    On top of denying last hits, Yuel''s body blocking also made the blue minions attack the Pirate. Unable to endure such a harsh punishment at Lv.1, the Pirate was forced to temporarily retreat and miss even more last hits in the process.


    Only a tanky Support could use this strategy at Lv.1 without getting destroyed by the Pirate''s attacks, though tankiness alone wasn''t enough. The player also had to specifically build Mistmail first for maximum effective health and to buy HP potions. Otherwise, an adept foe could easily shoot down the Paladin with a few more basic attacks.


    Of course, Yuel knew exactly what to build for this scenario. He knew everything about playing Paladin, he knew everything about playing Support. That''s how much he hated this role.


    As Lars pointed out, Paladin had to compensate for his tankiness by being a melee character, thus hurting the team''s wave clearing efficiency. But that''s fine, because Trickshooter balanced things out. On top of gaining damage boost from bounces, Trickshot was a line shot ability that pierced through units and had decent base power.


    In other words, firing Trickshot in a straight line hit most of the minion wave for lots of damage. As such, during the early game, Trickshot was on par with the wave clearing abilities possessed by mages. Once the red minions started running low on HP, Lars positioned himself in front the wave in order to pierce it with a straight Trickshot... or so it should had went???


    "Wha-!?" Yuel was aghast. Instead of standing in front of the minion wave, Lars approached the wave from the side and aimed his pistol diagonally. What? Why!? That kind of shot would only hit the swordsmen on the front! It won''t even graze the enemy bowmen!


    "You should-" Yuel''s words were cut short, he was too late. Lars fired his Trickshot from that weird angle without batting an eye. As expected, the bullet hit all the red swordsmen on the frontline and scored a last hit on them, but that''s all. The bowmen at the back were untouch-


    [You''re kidding..]. Yuel was wrong, completely wrong. Once the bullet passed through the swordsmen, it bounced off a wall and hit the bowmen as well, dealing increased damage and securing last hits. Amazing, absolutely amazing. It was a play which didn''t even cross Yuel''s mind.


    It''s one thing to pull such a stunt on an undisturbed lane in practice mode, but here minions moved all over the place due to Yuel''s body blocking. Getting hit by the Pirate''s shot triggered the blue minions and made them chase after the Pirate, which in turn made the red minions chase after the blue minions. Frankly, the lane was a mess. Even so, Lars found the perfect position and timing to fire that kind of bouncing shot. It was a godly play that Yuel could never dream of executing.


    "Man, I missed!" Lars complained.


    "Missed...?" Yuel couldn''t believe it. Lars''s shot definitely failed to hit one of the red bowmen after the bounce, but was that enough to call it a "miss"? The damage increase from the bounce made the shot secure more last hits than a straight Trickshot ever could. Yet, Lars wasn''t satisfied. Did he seriously intend to hit the whole wave with that complex shot? Insane! Absurd!


    [He''s... He''s insanely good. Once I shut down the Pirate and Cleric, I''m sure he can finish the job. ]Yuel''s heart pounded. What was this feeling? Had he ever felt this way while playing Support online? Something about cooperating with Lars excited him.


    The enemies maintained their distance and avoided team fights until they reached Lv.5. That''s to be expected, as both Pirate and Cleric were classes which relied on their ultimates. Lars had been poking them as hard as he could until that point, but the Cleric''s heals made all that damage void.


    Ultimately, both sides stood on even ground as they headed into the first team fight. Unbeknown to others, this was the moment for which Yuel picked Paladin. Everything would be decided there.


    "When the team fight starts, focus on the Pirate first." Yuel instructed.


    "Isn''t that kinda bad, though?" Lars asked. "Cleric just gonna revive him."


    "I''ll deal with that part. It''s best to remove the enemy''s damage first. Also, make sure to stay within my ult''s range for when the Kraken comes around."


    "Okay, let''s see how it plays out." Lars grinned and began exchanging blows with the Pirate. Same as before, Lars showcased superior mechanical skill and combat sense.


    He rolled aside to dodge a shot, then fired back at the Pirate without wasting any time on aiming. He also used Trickslide, a skill which allowed to quickly slide across the ground while retaining the ability to shoot. It was difficult to aim during the sudden burst of speed, yet Lars somehow nailed it every time. Sometimes he even fired a Trickshot while sliding and made it bounce off a wall before hitting. It was as if his Trickshooter had no restrains. He could move however he wanted, whenever he wanted.


    Alas, he couldn''t simply 1v1 the Pirate. The enemy Cleric body blocked some of Lars''s shots by walking in front of the Pirate, like expected of a proper Support. The Cleric also fired some basic attacks at him, forcing him to dodge even more shots than he already was.


    That''s where Yuel came into the picture. He couldn''t contribute much in term of damage due to being melee, but he body blocked the Pirate''s and Cleric''s shots and pressured them by charging at them. His main priority was to chase away the Cleric and allow Lars to 1v1 the Pirate as much as possible. With Lars''s godlike mechanical skill, he''d stomp the Pirate for sure.


    "Khaha! You done goofed, bro!" The Pirate grinned as Lars slid toward him with Trickslide. Getting this close to the Pirate was a fatal mistake!


    Pirate cast his ultimate ability: Release the Kraken. The legendary sea monster erupted from the ground and smashed everything in range with its giant tentacles. It was a devastating AoE attack with a knockdown CC. From this range, even if Lars used his ult, he wouldn''t be able to dodge the attack. He was doomed.


    Yet, the Kraken didn''t faze Lars in the slightest. He fearlessly shot the Pirate, without making any attempts to escape. And he really didn''t need to, for he was within the range of Aegis, Paladin''s ult. Yuel activated it right as the Kraken was about to strike, granting Lars invincibility against damage and immunity to CC. The gigantic Kraken didn''t even tickle Lars.


    "Bah! My Kraken went down the toilet!" The Pirate hung his head. Not only did he waste his Kraken, but he also allowed Lars to barrage him while he was casting the ult. Defeat was imminent, the Pirate''s only option was to flee.


    Pirate activated Backfire Cannon, summoning a cannon in front of him. Normally it was a damaging ability, but here it was used as an escape tool. After firing from the cannon, the Pirate was pushed backwards by the recoil. He was now outside the reach of Lars''s basic attacks, so he should be able to-


    "Keep dreaming, dude!" Lars fired Trickshot at a nearby wall. The bullet bounced and gained increased flight distance, reaching all the way to the fleeing Pirate.


    It landed perfectly. Just as Pirate was pushed all the way by Backfire Cannon, the Trickshot hit him. He didn''t even have chance to try dodging it.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    [Unbelievable. he instantly found the perfect angle for that shot. The push from Backfire Cannon is pretty fast, but he hit the Pirate without batting an eye. I... I don''t even... ]Yuel''s world was turned upside down. He thought he knew Classmancers like the back of his hand by now, but Lars completely destroyed that belief with this impossible feat. Classmancers was way deeper and way more complex than Yuel imagined! He almost fell in love with it all over again!


    But he didn''t have time to be awestruck, the most important part came next. Cleric was about to cast Arise to revive the Pirate.


    Yuel activated Justice Strike to shut down that play. A large magical sword formed above the Cleric''s head, then crashed down on him. This was the Paladin''s one and only ranged attack.


    Justice Strike both slowed and silenced the Cleric, making him unable cast Arise for three seconds. It was a rather soft crowd control effect compared to others in the game, but with this precise timing it proved fatal for the enemy team.


    Arise could only be used on a fallen ally before their dead body vanished, which was a time frame of two seconds from the moment they dropped to 0 HP. By being silenced for three seconds, the Cleric was forced to miss said time frame. The Pirate''s body vanished without a trace, he was dead for good.


    "Now, attack the... heh." Yuel realized he was late. Lars was already on the job, drilling bullets at the fleeing Cleric. Thanks to Justice Strike''s slowdown, Cleric had trouble escaping. Nonetheless, he reached all the way to his team''s Golem.


    "Dive in, I''ll tank"


    "Okay, let''s go let''s go!"


    Yuel approached the edge of the Golem''s area, drawing the Golem''s attention to himself. Right after, Lars slid into the area and finished off the Cleric.


    "Woohoo! We did it!" Lars grabbed Yuel''s shoulder and shook him. "You''re awesome Support, dude!"


    "I-Is that so..." Yuel trembled. Why? What was this weird feeling swirling inside him? His heart pounded, his body shook and his eyes turned moist.


    [Oh, so that''s how it is. ]He finally realized why he hated Support so much. It''s because he... he loved it. He really loved this demanding and complex role. It was the weakest, yet it could orchestrate the strongest team plays.


    When Yuel played soccer, he was a weak player and had to compensate for that with brainwork. The Support role in Classmancers was the same, except it was [designed] to be that way for the sake of game balance. Support was weaker than other roles, but it wasn''t inferior to them by any means. In fact, it arguably had the most important role in the team


    Even though the team needed a Carry to take down objectives, it also needed a Support who''d keep that Carry safe. Perhaps the Support didn''t get to secure objectives or to score impressive kills, but it was the backbone of the team that enabled teammates to achieve all these feats. Truly, Support was exactly the kind of role Yuel had been striving to play from the beginning!


    "You okay, dude?" Lars asked.


    "Ah, yes... I''m fine." Yuel rubbed his eyes. "This match is so easy I started falling asleep."


    "Haha, we sure owned them! Let''s push Golem while we have the chance!"


    "No. It''s too early for that." Yuel objected. "Let''s take the power buff instead."


    "Sounds good! Let''s go!" Lads dashed into the jungle.


    [Heh, he''s so hyper. ]Yuel sighed with a smile. A cooperative and skilled Carry was a blessing for any Support. Lars was a bit reckless and inexperienced, but he was always quick on the uptake and listened to Yuel''s advice. If they play some more together, they''d definitely become a powerful Bot Lane duo.


    Even though the match had barely started, Yuel was already thinking ahead. He wanted to play more like this, to play more with Lars. Above anything else, he wanted to play more Support.

 6 Team Carry

    From the first time Lars touched a basketball he got hooked on the sport. Learning how to dribble, breaking through defenders and scoring goals were the most exciting times of his early childhood. He picked up the basics way faster than other kids and always established himself as the best player on any team.


    "Haha, you like it?" His dad grinned while showing some cool dribbling moves. "I used to play basketball back at school, we even went to nationals! Think you got what it takes to beat me, young man?!"


    "Heh, I won''t lose to some old dude!" Lars grinned and charged at his dad. He had always stolen the ball without breaking a sweat against other kids, so he was clearly the best player in the world! He wouldn''t lose against any- "Gah!?"


    "Haha, too slow, kid!" His dad dodged without any trouble. He dribbled the ball from side to side to keep it out of Lars''s reach. "What''s wrong? That''s all you got?"


    "Just you wait!" Lars charged again, but his fingers didn''t even touch the ball. He tried over and over, but the result was the same. How the heck was that possible!? That''s not the basketball he knew! He was supposed to be awesome at this sport, but he was so lame right now.


    "Need a break?" His dad asked.


    "Hah, ugh, no..." Lars panted. He was about to collapse any moment now. yet he was smiling and his eyes were locked on the ball. Despite how many times he was beaten, he wanted to fight some more! His dad looked way too cool right now, so he had to become even cooler! "Just a little more! I almost got you!"


    "Good, that''s my boy!"


    They kept playing until Lars could barely stand on his feet anymore. He wobbled all the way home, but he was grinning. Even if it was a fluke, he did it. Just once, he stole the ball from his dad! "Next time I''mma get the ball on the first try!"


    "Haha, I''d like to see that, young man!"


    Since then, Lars played basketball every day. He played with his classmates during school time and practiced with his dad in the afternoon. His dad also taught him various advanced techniques, which he absorbed like a sponge.


    Before long, he became an unbeatable ace. No matter what team he played on, his teammates always relied on his strength. Their job was to pass him the ball and his responsibility was to score goals. Once the ball was in his possession, he blasted through enemy defenses like an typhoon.


    "Great pass there, dude!" Lars gave a thumb up after scoring a goal.


    "Cool shot!"


    "Good work, as always."


    His teammates smiled and it felt awesome. They fulfilled their part by getting the ball to him and he carried them to victory with his own two hands. Basketball was a blast when the whole team came together for a common goal like that!


    The more Lars played with his dad, the more used he became to the physical abilities of adults. He always pushed himself beyond his limits to match his dad''s swift moves. Even though he never truly matched his dad''s sick skills, he came closer and closer with every passing month.


    His agility, reaction speed and coordination evolved far beyond that of an average grade student. That became especially clear when he tried out other sports at school. In soccer, his tricky yet accurate shots always caught the enemy goalkeeper off guard. In volleyball, his powerful spikes broke through the enemy''s wall of defense.


    Everybody praised him as an insane beast in every sport, he was the ace in all of them. As such, it became his role to carry the team in whichever sport he played. It was a duty he was expected to fulfil at any cost.


    But, Lars wasn''t the only one growing up. As the years passed by, his classmates also showed great progress. Once they began grasping more advanced team strategies, they developed ways to pressure Lars.


    "No way!" Lars was sure only two opponents marked him, but once he broke through them... a third blocker appeared! He wasn''t fast enough to react to this unexpected development and lost the ball. From there, the enemy team delivered a fast attack and scored a goal.


    "Gah, my bad." Lars smacked himself on the forehead. That was so lame! It all happened because he failed to break through the enemy defenders, the blame for these scored points fully laid with him. Gah!


    "You should have passed to me instead of trying to break through all these guys."


    "Yeah, I was open too. They all marking you, so it was suicide to charge in. Even you can''t get through that many blockers."


    "Nah, don''t worry!" Lars waved his hand. "I was just a little careless. Next time I''ll break through for sure!"


    "Just remember that we''re here."


    "Got it!" Lars gave them a thumb up. That stolen ball was just a tiny careless mistake, he was sure he could even break through the whole enemy team if he had to. It was just a fluke! Yeah, a mistake that wouldn''t happen again! This time, he was going to break through-


    "Gah!?" He failed again. Just when he thought he was safe after passing three enemies, a wild fourth blocker appeared! The heck was going on!? Hard as he tried, he couldn''t protect the ball against so many people. It was bonkers, yo!


    [You can''t stop me! ]Lars tried again. And again. And again. Each time he successfully broke through, he was blocked during the next two attempts. One step forward and two steps back. Gah!


    The heck was he doing!? His buddies worked so hard to secure the ball for him, yet he gave it up so easily. That was beyond lame, yo!


    He was the strongest player on court and his teammates trusted him to carry. Alas, he betrayed their trust by surrendering the ball they worked so hard to secure. And with each attempt to make up for his past mistakes, he ended up making things ever worse. Gaaaah! It was maddening!


    "Lars! Over here!"


    "I''m open too!"


    His teammates waved for a pass. Yet again, the whole enemy team ganged up on him. Jeez, these guys were sure fun.


    As much as he wanted to believe in his strength and that this time he''d make it through, he had to admit... it''d hard. Like, super duper freakin'' hard. He''d most likely lose the ball again if he charged in. Gah.


    [Should I... pass? ]He gritted his teeth. Passing was a super important aspect of the game, he understood that much. And it''s not like he sucked at passing or anything, his passing technique was top-notch like the rest of his basketball skills. When there was no good opportunity to score a goal, he''d pass the ball to others like any other player.


    But this situation was different, it was a great opportunity to score, Lars merely had to defeat the blockers in front of him. Just a little further and he''d score for sure! Passing to somebody else meant giving up on this golden opportunity.


    What would happen after the pass? Would the next dude be able to keep the ball safe? Would he get the team closer to scoring? It''s not like Lars didn''t trust his teammates, it''s just that he wasn''t as confident about their ability as he was about his own. He had a 200% chance of scoring a goal from this position, but there was no telling what''d happen if he ran away from the challenge and opted for a pass.


    No, there was no way in hell he''d pass here. He was the ace, the one carrying the team. He had to settle this with his own strength, or otherwise he was meaningless.


    [If I can''t break through, then I''ll shoot from here! ]Lars raised the ball over his head and aimed at the basket. He was standing behind the 3-point line, attempting a 3-pointer shot.


    The basket was far, too freakin'' far. For most kids his age, that kind of shot would be impossible. He only ever saw high schoolers and adults pulling it off reliably.


    Nevertheless, he had to do it. Right here, right now. He carefully took his aim and threw the ball.


    The blockers were all fazed by this development, none of them reacted in time to the ballsy throw. The throw was untouched, so it''d land inside the basket for sure!


    ... but it didn''t. The ball didn''t even reach the basket, as if this throw wasn''t a shot attempt at all. What a joke, Lars missed yet another great opportunity. Yet again he failed to score for the team and put their hard work to waste.


    Luckily, one of his teammates caught this random ball and finished the job. Lars''s team won by a mere 1 point thanks to that final goal. It was a close call, but the whole team celebrated the victory all the same... except for one player who just stood there petrified.


    "Man, that pass was slick!" The scoring boy gave Lars a thumb up.


    "Huh? Pass...?"


    "Yeah, you totally fooled them into thinking you were going for a 3-pointer! But then it was like ''You got pranked, yo! It was a pass all along!'' Haha!"


    "Ah, haha... I told you I''ll find a way to break through." Lars forced a smile and hid his trembling fists.


    Pass? What freakin'' pass!? There was no pass. He just failed, miserably so. He couldn''t carry the team at all. Rather, he only dragged it down. He had never felt so useless in a match before.


    But, nobody blamed him. They kept trusting their "ace" to the very end, even after he had failed them so many times. As such, he had neither the time nor the right to sulk. As the ace, he had to keep doing his best and live up to their expectations. Even though he fared poorly in this one match, next time he''d surely make up for it!


    Alas, similar incidents kept happening and not only in basketball. Whether it was soccer or volleyball, the defenders focused on Lars and blocked his attempts to score. He couldn''t single-handedly break through the enemy defenses anymore. His status as the all-powerful ace was crumbling apart.


    "Gah, give me a break already, will ya?" Lars slowed down in front of the enemy defenders to keep the soccer ball out of their reach. Damn, it was bad. These scums had blocked him countless times today. Just thinking back on all the golden opportunities he had missed gave him a headache.


    Breaking through them was as likely as winning the lottery. Shooting toward the goal was pointless too, the goalkeeper would easily block it from this distance. Everything was hopeless, he couldn''t do shit here.


    [There''s no other way, is there? ]Lars clenched his fists and glanced to his left. There were two teammates he could pass to, both of them were left unmarked. Passing to them would be easy. So easy. Yeah, easy. He just needed to pass and they should be able to score, probably.


    [We''re going to blow this game if I don''t do it now... ]He hit the ball and hung his head. There was no need to watch, really. With his coordination, he was 200% sure the pass would reach its destination.


    Based on the cheers that followed, the pass led to a goal. It seemed like Taison got the job done, or maybe he passed to somebody else along the way. Whatever.


    "Yeah, we tied it up!"


    "We can still win this one!"


    [Yay, we scored... ]While everybody rejoiced, Lars just stood there with his head hanging. His time had stopped. From the moment he passed the ball, he was completely disconnected from the game. He was unnecessary, there was nothing else for him to do once he let go of the ball.


    It''s not like he insisted to score each and every goal. Sure, that was his favorite part of every sport, but he was fine with helping his teammates to score. But not like this, not when he should had been able to get the job done himself. Making that pass was as good as admitting defeat.


    Why did it have to be this way? When Lars faced the defenders, why couldn''t his teammates help him somehow? Why couldn''t they distract the defenders? Or stun them? Or blast them away? Or temporarily buff Lars so he could break through?


    All these cool things were possible in video games, but not in any of the real life sports he played. When he played shooters with his dudes, everybody stayed active throughout the whole match. When Lars charged into a swarm of enemies, he knew his teammates could support him. They''d either provide cover or flank the enemies.


    Granted, most of his dudes were uncoordinated derps and weren''t around when he needed them the most. He often died from taking on multiple enemies alone and looked like a reckless idiot, but that''s beside the point. At the very least, his teammates always had a way to help him and he had a way to help them. Everybody maintained an active role throughout the match.


    Compared to that, all the sports he played had only one ball. The only player who mattered at any given time was the one holding the ball, as only he could score points. It was like only one player on the field carried a gun, so only he could shoot. If he couldn''t shoot down the objective, he had to toss the gun to a teammate before it got stolen.


    Basically, sports were like some sort Gun Tossing Online nonsense. Once you tossed your gun, you were left empty-handed. You had nothing. It was freakin'' annoying.


    Lars was forced to accept this reality for soccer and volleyball and started passing around more often. However, in basketball he refused to give in. It was the first sport he had gotten into and the one he had played the most. If only in basketball, he desired the strength to pull through any situation no matter what.


    [I''ll get as far as I can and then shoot. It''s just you and me, basket! 1v1 me, bro! ]Lars raised the ball and threw it from the 3-point line. He missed. He threw again. He missed. He threw. He missed. Threw. Missed. Threw. Missed.


    "Yes! Nailed... it..." He raised his fist in triumph, then his body buckled over. At some point it became night time. Just how long had he been at it anyway? He started right after school ended and had been throwing since then without rest.


    Well, who cared. There was only one important fact: he did it! He actually scored five 3-pointers in a row! He started getting the hang of it!


    The euphoria robbed him of all his strength. His stomach rumbled like a freakin'' helicopter on steroids. Gah, maybe it was a good time to head home. He somehow got up and dragged himself all the way home.


    That was just the beginning. After practicing 3-pointers from different positions, he simulated real game scenarios. He asked some dudes to act like blockers while he tried to score 3-pointers through them.


    He maintained this intense training regime for over a week, without taking a single day off. By the end of it, he was a master of 3-pointers.


    "Heh, try to stop that, dudes!" Lars grinned in front of the enemy blockers. He couldn''t possibly break through them, but what of it? Before any of them could attempt a steal, he threw the ball toward the basket


    It smoothly went in. Woohoo, three points! A piece of cake! These defenders were nothing!


    "You kidding me..."


    "Khaha, what a lucky shot..."


    "Heh, lucky shot you say?" Lars smiled. "Okay, okay. Keep thinking of it as a lucky shot while I score three million points of ya!"


    They soon realized it wasn''t a joke. The 3-pointers kept coming without end. For the rest of the match, Lars trampled all over the enemy blockers with flawless 3-pointers. There was nothing they could do against that sick stuff!


    The unstoppable ace was back! No matter how many defenders marked him, his 3-pointers pierced though. Nobody in class, or even in the whole freakin'' school, was a match for him.


    With Lars''s strength, the school''s basketball team made it all the way to the finals of the elementary school regionals. But, that was the end of the road.


    "Are these dudes even the same age as us...?" Lars''s smile twitched. Most of the enemy lineup was filled with absurdly tall black players. These dudes could easily pass for high schoolers, yo! This match was bonkers!


    Despite their size, they were unbelievably agile as well. Breaking through even a single blocker was freakin'' hard even for Lars. He had to rely on his 3-pointers more than ever.


    Alas, even that didn''t quite work against these titans. Combining their height and agility, they blocked over half of his throws. It was like trying to throw a 3-pointer over the freakin'' Everest.


    What the actual heck? All the matches he had at school looked like toddler league compared to this. These dudes were on a whole different level, yo!


    Still, Lars was probably a little better than most of them. With just a little bit of help, he could break through their defenses and score his prized 3-pointers. Alas, such help was nowhere to be found. HIs buddies had their hands full with just getting the ball to him.


    Once Lars got the ball, it was him alone against a gang of giants. If only somebody could shrink them a little, or slow them, or blast them away. But no such magic existed on the basketball court. He had to face all of them by himself. No matter how much he perfected his 3-pointers, it was impossible to do shit when he was cornered by this many giants.


    In the end, his team was stomped 21-86. Could he had played that match better? If he passed the ball instead of going for desperate 3-pointers, would his team had scored more points? Nobody knew and so the questions kept eating away at him.


    Ever since that defeat, Lars stopped his one-man show. No matter how much he itched to take on the enemy defenders, he passed the ball instead of facing multiple defenders.


    However, at the same time he also started drifting away from basketball. It was no longer the same. He was no longer the undefeatable ace who could carry a team, he was just a nobody.


    Instead, he got more and more into video games, mainly the action-packed ones like shooters. His good muscle memory, quick reaction speed and pinpoint aim all shined in these games. Same as in sports, he was a wild beast in shooters.


    ¡ºTRIPLE KILL!¡»


    "Whoa, you seriously took them all out!?"


    "Holy moly, that was a 1v3 there!"


    "Haha, these guys are nothing!" Lars grinned. "We got this game in the bag, yo!"


    Video games somewhat filled the void left by basketball. He pwned enemies nonstop, without ever letting go of his gun. There was no "ball" to pass around between teammates. They all actively fought toward the same goal and everybody stayed relevant throughout the whole match. That''s how he wanted all games to be.


    Alas, none of these games lasted long for him. Once he mastered all the mechanical depth a shooter had to offer, there wasn''t much for him to do there. He became so powerful he could stomp literally anybody, but that''s all. There wasn''t anything else there, it felt hollow.


    "Gah! C''mon dudes, where are you at?" Lars facepalmed after getting killed. He faced multiple enemies believing his friends would cover him, but somehow each of these derps was on a completely different part of the map. Gathering ammo, chasing a low HP enemy and etc. They were painfully far from an organized team.


    That didn''t really surprise, since most of them got into these games via the solo mode. Playing solo geared them to think only about themselves. Everybody just wanted to do sick plays and score a shit ton of kills, that''s where the fun was at.


    Therefore, they had no idea how to really play as a team. Even though Lars understood all of that, he had no idea how to organize his teammates. He wasn''t much of a strategic. Down to it, he was one of them dudes who just enjoyed shooting enemies.


    These games were sure fun, but they weren''t real "team games" for him. That''s probably the only reason he kept playing seriously in the basketball club. It was the only place where he could get his "team game" fix.


    [Can''t some game just force us to play like a team?] He tried a couple recommendations, mainly MOBA games, but he a hard time getting into them. He had no idea how the heck to play these games.


    Killing enemy players should had been the key to victory like in any other game, but chasing them down in a MOBA only got Lars killed by Turrets. Grinding exp in the jungle seemed important, but meanwhile his lane got overtaken. Regaining control over his lane was his job, but meanwhile the rest of his team was eliminated on the other side of the map.


    No matter what he did, it was wrong and screwed his whole team. None of his buddies wanted to play such punishing games, so he had nobody to learn with. These MOBAs had the potential to be some sick team games, but they were literally unplayable for him.


    That changed when his class went through special Classmancers lessons. Not only did they teach the overall strategy of the game, but they also covered the game''s meta and objectives. Finally, Lars felt like he had some idea how to play MOBAs. Classmancers was a fun and interesting game, designed purely as a team game. That''s exactly what he wanted!


    The lessons exposed everybody to Classmancers, so Lars found some dudes to play with. Now that they all understood the basics, MOBAs didn''t look as scary anymore. It''d be the blast of his life! He''d finally get to play a team sport which had the sick features of a video game! ... or so he thought.


    None of his dudes actually understood the game''s tactics. Well, he was no different himself. They picked up the basics from the lessons, but these basics mostly covered the first part of the match, known as the Laning Phase. Once the match got to mid game, it transitioned into its Team Fighting Phase and that''s where everything started falling apart.


    Same as in all previous games, they were hilariously uncoordinated. They were destroyed like a bunch of scrubs when they played online. After giving Classmancers a few shots, most dudes gave up on this harsh game.


    Nevertheless, Lars believed they''d figure things out... eventually. Someday. Hopefully. Anyway, he kept playing Classmancers whenever he could. He spent all his lunch breaks playing with friends, mainly with Taison, Gregory and Julia.


    Taison was actually a hella smooth player, probably because his bro was a competitive Classmancers player at high school. He hanged out a lot with Gregory, so Gregory also picked up some stuff from him. They were really good, but even they didn''t play online much. Guess they had more fun stomping classmates than they had getting rekt online.


    Julia was the only one willing to consistently play online with Lars, but she was... welp, anyway he played online alone most of the time. It was a rough experience, but things should get smoother in Ranked mode. Classmancers was the one game he didn''t want to give up on.


    But, everybody had a limit and he was no exception. The more he played online, the more it wore him out. He reached all the way to Lv.26,, but the people he played were still terrible. Instead of working together, they found it more fun to blame each other for random crap. Where was their sportsmanship? Where was their burning desire for winning the match!?


    [Meh, maybe that''s as far as these video games get. ]He had to admit that the much simpler ball games made it easier for the team to come together. Taking possession of the ball and scoring a goal were intuitive plays to understand. Only one player at a time could do any of that, so everybody knew where to focus on.


    That was a whole world apart from a complex game like Classmancers, where each player had his own lane and everybody worked simultaneously across the map. There was never telling where the next center of attention would be, where the team should focus pushing or even where they should group up. It''s like each of them possessed a piece of the ball and they had to combine these pieces to form the real ball that could score goals.


    That was as far as he saw himself getting. He had mostly stopped playing online and only dueled with classmates from time to time. He was about to give up on the game altogether... until he met Yuel.


    "Woohoo! We did it! You''re awesome Support, dude!" Lars shook Yuel like crazy. They did it! They actually freakin'' did it! It was bonkers how easily they won that team fight, yo!


    Taison and Gregory were the strongest players in class, yet Yuel completely shut them down. And it wasn''t like he showcased any pro techniques. He didn''t execute any cool dodges or landed any sick shots.


    Nah, it wasn''t anything fancy like that. Dude just played them for fools with some genius plays. It was awesome!


    "Haha, we sure owned them! Let''s push Golem while we have the chance!"


    "No. It''s too early for that. Let''s take the power buff instead."


    "Sounds good! Let''s go!" Lads followed the order like a good soldier. It was clear that Yuel knew the game way better than him. He was the type to charge at the first shiny opportunity that presented itself, so it was great Yuel could stop him from derping.


    Yuel also methodically lowered the HP of enemy minions, so that Lars could easily secure last hits with a single Trickshot. On top of that, Yuel persistently body blocked shots to deny the Pirate''s farm. And if all that wasn''t enough, Yuel countered each and every enemy skill: Aegis against Kraken, Justice Strike against Arise and Divine Shield against Backfire Cannon.


    In short, dude took care of all the pesky stuff that got in Lars''s way before. Lars felt as if the perfect stage was prepared for him. The enemy no longer held any advantage over him in terms of numbers or synergy.


    He only had to fight his best to secure kills, that was his job this match. There was no need to worry about secondary stuff anymore. He charged in and annihilated his enemies with his polished shooting skills!


    ¡ºDOUBLE KILL¡»


    "Woohoo!" It was a freakin'' blast! That''s exactly what he had been missing all this time! With this sick support, he could break through any defense!


    ¡ºVICTORY¡»


    Classmancers was a sick game after all! He loved every part of it! He decided, he''d keep playing it until he became the best!


    "Yo, dude! You and me!" Lars grinned and pointed at Yuel. "Let''s conquer the world of Classmancers together! We''ll form the strongest Carry and Support duo!"


    "Quite the ambition for somebody who still uses Auto-Buy." Yuel shrugged and averted his eyes. He refused to admit it, but he was overwhelmed by Lars''s enthusiasm. He also wanted to play more with Lars, that guy was the god of mechanical skill. With such a powerful Carry by his side, Yuel was sure he would play his best Support ever.


    "There''s still a lot you need to learn, but fine Let''s do it, heh." Yuel ended up showing a smile. That day, a terrifying Classmancers duo was born.

 7 Those Who Keep Playing

    "Yo! Let''s play, dude!" Lars dropped his stuff on Yuel''s table and grabbed a nearby chair.


    "When did you get here?" Yuel stared at the grinning goof in disbelief. The bell just rang a moment ago, yet Lars was already here. "I haven''t had lunch yet. Heck, I haven''t even taken it out of the bag yet."


    "You can do that while playing, yo!" Lars stuffed a sandwich into his mouth and picked up his controller.


    "You gonna choke like this."


    "Nfo prwoblemf!" Lars produced something that vaguely resembled language while munching on the sandwich. He was holding the controller with both hands, which meant he was... eating without hands! And the sandwich didn''t fall off! It was a truly godly skill! Lars definitely had a bright future... in the circus.


    [Heh, I just can''t keep up with this guy. ]Yuel sighed and took out his things. He refused to show it on his face, but he was giddy as well. Ever since they started playing together, Classmancers became a blast of a game, more than ever before!


    They played in Bot Lane most of the time, as a pair of Support and Carry. A cooperative and skilled Carry was a godsend for Yuel. He could carefully analyze his lane opponents and discover their mistakes, without worrying about the Carry doing something dumb-


    "Wait, don''t 1v2 them!" Yuel exclaimed. "Retreat, you can''t win th-"


    ¡ºDOUBLE KILL¡»


    "Woohoo! That was close as heck! Look at that HP!" Lars finished off both enemies by himself, with less than 1% HP left.


    "... that was suicide."


    "No problem, dude! I told you these guys were noobs, haha!"


    [Seriously, this guy... ]Yuel sighed. Despite how many times he saw Lars pull crazy stuff, he couldn''t wrap his head around it. No matter how highly he evaluated Lars''s skill, it was never enough. Lars always proved he was at least ten levels above what Yuel expected.


    [So that''s a real genius, huh.] As much as Yuel hated using this misleading word, there was no other way to describe Lars. Yes, Lars was truly a genius. His godlike mechanical skill allowed him to stomp enemies without relying on any complicated tactics. He was a savage beast unrestricted by common sense.


    Sadly, sometimes the line between "genius" and "idiot" was unexpectedly thin.


    "Don''t chase that kill."


    "But that HP, yo! I''mma finish him off real quick!"


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "Gah! So close!" Lars fell prey to a Turret. "Quick! Revive me!"


    "Sure, just wait a moment while I hack the game and make Arise work across the map." Yuel made a face. "You totally deserve to rot there. I hope you had fun chasing that kill, just look how much you achieved."


    "Ouch. Okay, okay! I got it already! My bad!"


    "Have fun watching from the sidelines without being able to do anything."


    "Gaaaaah! I wanna back already! What''s with this 40 seconds respawn time!? I wanna play!" Lars threw a tantrum.


    [Heh, perfect. ]Yuel secretly smirked. He had already figured Lars''s weak points and took nasty jabs at them. It was a necessary evil for educating this goof, who was somehow both a genius and an idiot at the same time. Explanations never worked with that thick-headed goof. Lars had to learn everything the hard way by experiencing the consequences of his mistakes on his own flesh.


    "Geh, d-do I chase this one?" Lars forced himself to ask.


    "No, too risky. Come back to Mid and take down the Turret."


    "Gah, okay." Lars looked unsatisfied, but he obediently turned his back to the inviting opportunity. As much as he wanted to score that kill, he knew a terrifyingly long respawn time awaited him in case he failed. After getting burnt enough times, even a fool learned to not carelessly play with fire.


    There were many things Yuel had to teach Lars and it was always a challenge. If the other kids Yuel played with were like easy-to-use handguns, then Lars was like a rampaging machinegun. Difficult to handle, but extremely powerful once mastered.


    "I told you, don''t buy lifesteal early on."


    "But the self-sustain, dude! I wanna stay longer in lane!"


    "Lifesteal is a percentage-based stat, so it''s best to buy it at mid or late game."


    "But why? It gives me the lifesteal, so what''s wrong with that?"


    "Do you even know how percentages work?"


    "S-Sure, yo!!"


    "Then how much is 10% from 100?"


    "It''s... umm... ah, wait, isn''t that like 10? Haha, you totally had me there for a second!"


    "Good, now how much is 10% from 300?"


    "It''s... ehh... Let''s see, how do I calculate that crap again..."


    "Just how often do you sleep during math classes?"


    "200% of the time, haha!" Lars announced with pride. "See? I''m a master of percentages!"


    [This goof will be the end of me.] Yuel sighed for at least the millionth time since he started coaching Lars.


    "Alright, then how about I put it this way." Yuel changed his approach. "You poked that Pirate a few times by now, right? If you bought a power item instead of lifesteal, you would have scored a kill by now. With the gold earned from that kill you could buy the lifesteal item you wanted so badly. So, you''d have both the power item and the lifesteal item by now."


    "Oh! That''s sick!" Lars nodded vigorously. It took a few more games until these words truly sank in, but he eventually stopped building lifesteal early.


    "You better stop playing with Yuel before you become a bot." John sneered as he passed by them.


    "A bot? What''s that about?" Lars titled his head.


    "That''s... nothing." Yuel clenched his controller. His hands trembled.


    "He uses his teammates like chess pawns." John said. "He''s a genius chess strategist alright, but keep following his orders and you''ll become a bot. You may be thinking you''re good at Classmancers, but that''s actually all because of Yuel''s instructions."


    "Yeah, dude is legit a genius." Lars nodded. "But hey, I rock too!"


    "Sure, I also thought I was pretty decent at first. But after playing with him for a while, I realized I was only decent when I was following his orders."


    "Hmm, welp." Lars rolled his eyes. "If you''re only good when Yuel feeds you from a spoon, doesn''t that mean you''re just... ya know, suck at the game?"


    "Wha!?" John''s face contorted. "I don''t mean to brag, but I''m the best Carry player in our class."


    "Oh! That''s cool!" Lars turned to Yuel. "Is this dude strong?"


    "He''s... Well, I agree he''s probably the best Carry in our class." Yuel dodged the question. Out of all the kids in class, he played Classmancers the most with John. They weren''t exactly "friends", but Yuel didn''t want to say out loud how John compared to Lars in terms of skill.


    "Okay, then 1v1 me, dude!" Lars challenged John. "If you win, I''mma quit Classmancers."


    "Huh..." John was taken aback for a moment. "And if you win?"


    "You''ll admit you gotta git gud."


    "Fine by me." John nodded. He brought his tablet over and they began the duel.


    "Pft, you''re using Archer?" Lars barely held his laughter during the loading screen.


    "What''s wrong with Archer?" John scowled. "Oh, let me guess: Yuel told you it''s a D tier class, so you automatically assume it''s bad."


    "Nah, never heard of that. I just played Archer enough to tell it doesn''t have anything on other Carries."


    [I''m sure I told him Archer is D tier... oh well. ]Yuel shrugged. Lars probably forgot all about tiers right after Yuel taught him. Typical Lars.


    [So Archer is "bad", huh.] John clenched his controller [We''ll see about that.]


    First Yuel, now Lars. What''s so wrong with Archer? It was a simple and effective class. It''s the first class John picked during the Classmancers lessons and the one he had played the most since then. He tried some other Carries, but most of them required landing some difficult shots. Archer was the best way to go.


    [I''ll make him eat his words. ]John was uncharacteristically tilted. He simply couldn''t understand: how could Lars play so much with Yuel and still smile as if it was fun? He had to wipe that stupid smile off Lars''s face!


    "Huh!?" John nearly fell off his chair. His Archer fell from 100% HP to 60% HP from a single hit! How!? Trickshot gained bonus damage after bouncing off a wall, but was it that strong!?


    [Starting with a power item, good. ]Yuel nodded to himself. Even though Yuel wasn''t there to give advice, Lars overcame his bad habit of buying lifesteal early on his own.


    [Tch, he was sure lucky hitting that shot from a bounce. ]John gritted his teeth. [I need to lower his HP as well. ]He initiated a fight to get some damage on Lars, but soon realized it was a grave mistake.


    "Huh!?" John was overwhelmed. His shots... they didn''t connect! Lars sidestepped and rolled around, dodging everything John fired his way. What''s with these movements!? Was it even possible to move so quickly in this game!?


    [Wait, calm down. ]John took a deep breath. [He''s just mashing buttons.]


    Right, of course it was possible to move this quickly by spamming buttons. It''s just that nobody did it because it was impossible to aim-


    [No way!] John was hit. And hit. And hit. His shots missed Lars, yet each of Lars''s shot perfectly connected. Why? How!? John''s HP fell down to 20% in a matter of seconds!


    [I''m outta here! ]John turned around and dashed toward his Golem.


    However, Lars had no intention letting this opportunity slip. He slid forward with Trickslide and barraged his prey. John fell all the way to 10% HP!


    [I-It''s fine. ]John tried to convince himself. [I''ll have a chance once he gets into the Golem''s zone. I''m sure Yuel would advise against such a dangerous pursuit, but that guy is playing on his own right now. He''ll chase me all the way for sure. Heh, now you''ll see how bad you really are!]


    [This is bad! ]Yuel covered his mouth, he almost blurted a retreat order. A Lv.3 Trickshooter wouldn''t survive more than two shots from the Golem. Chasing after John was suicide!


    "Hmm, looks risky." Lars stopped right at the edge of the Golem''s area. "Heh, go ahead, Run back to your base, dude. I''ll take good care of the lane meanwhile."


    The old Lars would had definitely charged in, but the current Lars knew it''d end in a tragedy. Bit by bit, he learned from his mistakes. He definitely didn''t need Yuel to hold his hand at all times.


    [Tch, he didn''t fall for it.] John clicked his tongue. [I can''t give him lane advantage so early. Guess I''ll stay and farm under the Golem for a while.]


    Instead of returning to base to restore HP, John advanced so he could shoot the incoming minions. He had a rough idea of Trickshot''s maximum range, so he stayed far enough to not get hit. If Lars wanted this kill, he''d have to invade-


    "Haha, gotcha!" Lars grinned and fired Trickshot. However, he didn''t aim it straight at John because that wouldn''t reach. Instead, he fired it toward the lane''s wall. The bullet bounced and gained extended range.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Ah... huh...?" John''s controller fell from his hands. His jaw was hanging. What. How. He just advanced a bit forward. It all happened in an instant. Before he even registered the situation, the Trickshot bounced off the wall and killed him.


    [That skill is so hard to aim, but he... in an instant... ]John''s hands trembled. [A monster. This guy''s a monster.]


    John fought until end, but the difference in their skills was obvious from very beginning. He lost the match without killing Lars even once. Heck, he barely grazed Lars at all. It was laughable.


    "C''mon, say it! Loud and clear!" Lars grinned.


    "I... I need to git gud." John mumbled.


    "Okay! Now that that''s out of the way, wanna play with us? You''re not half bad!"


    "I''ll pass. You two are monsters." John walked away with his head hanging. His eyes were dead.


    From the very first lesson, John really liked Classmancers. It was a fun game to play with friends and he was pretty decent at it. He didn''t tell anybody, but he even tried playing online. However, his teams always got trashed and his teammates raged at him, so he quit after just three matches.


    His brief experience playing online completely shattered his self-image. How come he played so well in class but sucked so hard online? That''s when he realized the truth: it was all thanks to Yuel. John made strong plays when he followed Yuel''s orders, but he was nothing without them.


    In other words, he was just a pawn in Yuel''s design. None of his achievements really belonged to him. He felt cheated and used, that''s why he took it out on Yuel. Looking back on it, that was really immature of him.


    The duel with Lars forced John to face the truth: he simply wasn''t good enough. Yuel was just helping the team win. The one who turned John into a pawn was none other than John himself. It''s so dumb.


    [Ah. I can''t take it anymore. I''m through with this shitty game.] John sighed. He was going to uninstalled Classmancers. Forever.


    [Is it my fault? ]Yuel bit his lip. The way Lars stomped John looked like a pro going serious against an amatuer. It was only natural for John''s spirit to be crushed.


    Was that how everybody felt when they played with Yuel? They were all the same age, so he never considered himself above the rest. He took the matches seriously and did his best to win, that was only natural for him.


    He... crushed them. None of them took Classmancers as seriously as him. They enjoyed the game, but they didn''t feel like reaching Yuel''s level yet. It''s like they were played completely different games.


    He never realized any of that because his playstyle didn''t overwhelm his opponents with raw strength the way Lars did. He merely advised his allies how to punish the enemy''s mistakes, but the effect was the same. Everybody he played against were overwhelmed and dispirited.


    Yuel and John weren''t exactly friends, but they had been playing Classmancers together ever since the first lesson. John definitely liked the game, but he must had grown to hate it because of Yuel.


    No, it wasn''t only John. Just how many of Yuel''s classmates quit Classmancers because of him? They all played casually, but they were by no means bad players. By destroying them with everything he got, Yuel murdered their chances of ever taking the game more seriously.


    "Sorry..." Yuel mumbled as John passed by him.


    "It''s fine." John answered without lifting his head. "I just suck at Classmancers, that''s all there is to it."


    "That''s not true. You can become much better if you take your time to learn the game."


    "Become better, huh. No way I can keep up with monsters like you."


    "At least play with us sometimes."


    "If I feel like it." John left. Based on his expression, he most likely wouldn''t touch Classmancers ever again.


    "Hey, dude. What''s with the long face?" Lars smacked Yuel on the back.


    "Agh. It hurts." Yuel frowned. "Say, is it fun playing Classmancers with me?"


    "Hmm. Welp." Lars scratched the back of his head. "You sure can get bossy. ''Do this'', ''don''t do that''. Sometimes I feel like punching yo face."


    "Eh? Seriously?"


    "But it''s fine, ya know? You''re right on the money most of the time." Lars smiled and gave a thumb up. "You saw that duel just now, right? I scored that sick early kill because I started with a power item and didn''t dive the Golem. That''s stuff I learned from Professor Yuel himself."


    "Heh, is that so." Yuel smiled wryly. "But don''t you sometimes feel like I''m deciding all your actions for you?"


    "Hey, hey! Don''t ya steal my glory, yo! I''m the one landing all the shots, you''re just there to give me some tips. I''m Batman and you''re Robin, let''s be clear about that."


    "Heh, not sure I agree."


    "Deal with it, dude."


    "Haha." Yuel breathed in relief. He was glad at least Lars was resistant to his habit of bossing his teammates around. If a prodigy like Lars were to quit Classmancers because of that, Yuel would never forgive himself.


    "Anyway, let''s play already!"


    "Sure."


    They queued into yet another match. Even though they were a party of just two people, it made the online experience completely different from playing solo. Their win ratio rocketed all the way to 68% and they chained long winning streaks, gaining huge amounts of exp for their accounts.


    Most of the time it was just the two of them, but sometimes other kids joined in as well. Among them were Taison and Gregory, the Pirate and Cleric whom Yuel and Lars defeated on their first meeting. These two didn''t play online much before and were content with stomping weaker classmates, but being utterly crushed by Yuel and Lars apparently made them change their ways.


    The one who joined Yuel and Lars most often was Julia, the girl who played terrible Support for Lars before. After Yuel magnificently shut down Taison and Gregory, even Julia had to admit he was somewhat decent. Though, her attitude toward him remained as nasty as ever.


    "Can I play Support for you this time?" Julia asked Lars with a pretty smile.


    "Hmm. Yuel, what do you say?" Lars titled his head.


    "She''s not fit to play Support." Yuel gave it to her straight.


    "What''s that? You''re saying I''m a bad player!?" Julia raised her voice and glared at Yuel. Her angelic smile vanished without a trace.


    "No, you''re not a bad player." Yuel shook his head. "You''re a decent Mid Laner, but you''re not fit to play Support."


    "And why''s that, exactly? Mid and Support even have some classes in common."


    "That''s true, but you need to play Mid Cryomancer and Support Cryomancer very differently. You play Support the same way you play Mid, which a no-no."


    "Hmph, I just need to practice it." Julia refused to give up. "How do you expect me to get any better if you''re not letting me play Support?"


    "It''s pointless. You won''t learn the Support''s mentality just from playing a lot of Support."


    "How do you even know that, you reta-" Julia barely stopped herself. She threw a nervous glance in Lars''s direction. Phew, he wasn''t bothered by her outburst. She adjusted her attitude and swallowed her pride. "T-Then teach me how to play Support."


    "No."


    "You dumb- Geh. I mean, why not?"


    "It''ll be a waste of time. I can teach you about Mid if you want."


    "Gah! You''re really such a...!" Julia gritted her teeth to stop herself from raining a thousand curses.


    "Okay, okay." Lars clapped his hands. "July, you mind playing Mid? Dunno whether you''re fit to play Support, but I agree you''re a great Mid."


    "T-Thanks." Julia blanked out for a moment and her face turned pinkish. "Sure, I like Mid more than Support anyway." Her attitude made a sudden 180. Seriously, this girl...


    But that wasn''t the end of it. Once in a while she pestered them about playing Support, only to be shot down by Yuel. Why was she so eager to play Support anyway? It didn''t suit her at all.


    She was a scaredy-cat who ran away at the first sign of danger. It wasn''t exactly a great attitude, but it worked fine for a Mid Laner. Mages were squishies with bad escape tools and Mid Lane was the most prone to ganks. Therefore, playing safe was important in Mid. But the same mentality didn''t apply to Support Mages, who more often than not had to be in enemy''s face.


    "Hey, Yuel! Let''s play- ah." Lars barraged into the class, only to realize that Yuel''s seat was empty.


    "He has a chess tournament today."


    "Oh! Right! Completely forgot about that thing!" Lars smacked himself on the forehead.


    "Then, how about I play Supp-"


    "Meh, guess I''ll practice my jungling today." Lars shrugged and turned toward Julia. "You''re playing, right?"


    "Sure..." Julia answered with a wry smile. Even when Yuel wasn''t there, she simply couldn''t win.


    Nevertheless, she kept playing Classmancers with them more than anybody else. At least on the surface, she looked as passionate as them about the game. Even once the school year ended and the summer vacation began, she kept playing online with them. They used voice chat to communicate and steadily climbed up the levels.


    "Meh, this isn''t the same." Lars complained. "Let''s all meet up!" Ever since he suggested that, they start meeting twice a week to play together in the same room.


    "But why Yuel''s room?" Julia pouted.


    "Because of you." Yuel answered. "You acted weird when we played at Lars''s place. Your performance suffered and we lost some very easy games."


    "Geh." Julia averted her eyes. Her cheeks turned pink.


    "Haha, sorry about all the mess in my room." Lars laughed. "Bet it wasn''t comfortable to play there."


    "N-Not at all!" Julia exclaimed. "I-It''s just what I''d expect from a boy''s room! Compared to that..."


    Yuel''s room was tidy and organized, eerily so. No decorations and no color, it hardly even looked like a room somebody lived in. Julia never thought her room was particularly messy, but compared to Yuel''s - hers looked like a jungle.


    "We can always play at your place." Yuel smirked. "That is, if you''re fine with inviting two boys to your house."


    "No thank you." Julia shot him a glare. "If it were only Lar... then..." Her face gradually transformed into a tomato.


    In the end, meeting in Yuel''s room became their routine for the summer break. In these two months, Yuel and Lars planned to reach Lv.50 and conquer the world of Ranked mode. They both began the vacation at Lv.46, so Ranked was just around the corner. Oh, and Julia was also there, lagging behind at Lv.38.

 8 Friends

    The closer Yuel and Lars drew to Lv.50, the harder the matches became. To balance out their party, they were matched against strong pairs and trios. There were even times when the whole enemy team was premade, meaning all the enemies were coordinated.


    To maintain a good win ratio at this high level, Yuel and Lars had to execute finer plays than ever.


    "Let''s go, dude!" Lars charged toward the enemy. His HP was low, but he trusted his partner to follow up with the appropriate CC.


    "Eh!? W-Wait!" Yuel flinched. Weren''t they going to retreat!? Sure, the enemy Pirate was fleeing, but he was healthy with 50% HP. Lars barely had 10% HP, there was no way he''d survive more than two hits from the Pirate. Attacking was suicide!


    [Wait, I think I see it.] Yuel took a moment to analyze the recent events. The Pirate had just used Backfire Cannon, which meant he didn''t have any escapes right now. The angle at which he fired the cannon was far from optimal, so for a brief moment he found himself in a bad position. If Yuel took a couple of steps forward and froze the Pirate with Ice Coffin, then Lars could barrage the frozen Pirate to death. They''d make a huge comeback in the match!


    Alas, by the time Yuel finished processing all of that - it was too late. He missed the brief opportunity for executing that play and couldn''t keep up with Lars''s pace. In other words: Lars was charging alone to his death! Ugh!


    [If he dies here it''s all over for us...!] Yuel had to prevent the worst case scenario by all means! Therefore, he froze Lars with Cryo-Freeze. Lars was rooted in place, unable to pursue the enemy any further. But, at least he was alive.


    "Gah, he got away!" Lars pouted.


    "My bad." Yuel apologized. "I figured out what you were going for, but I didn''t make it in time. You made the right play there."


    This wasn''t the first time it happened. By playing with Yuel every day, Lars also learned how to punish enemies'' mistakes. On the large scale, his ability to punish mistakes paled compared to Yuel''s. However, when it came to small fights, he could make amazing split-second decisions which even Yuel missed.


    In the end, they lost that match. If Yuel acted faster, they could had taken out the Pirate and would had swung the match in their favor. He truly missed a golden opportunity there.


    "Sorry, I don''t know how I missed that play." Yuel bit his lip. Even though nobody blamed him, knowing that the team lost because of his misplay was depressing.


    "Hey, look over here for a second." Lars said.


    "Hm? Wha- AH!?" Yuel flinched. A fist! A fist came flying straight into his face!


    He raised his arms and retreated, nearly falling off his chair. He closed his eyes and braced himself for a strong impact... which never came.


    "Eh?"


    "So slow, dude!" Lars''s punch stopped right in front of Yuel''s nose. "If I tried to hit ya for real, your nose would be inside yo brain by now."


    "What was that for?" Yuel frowned.


    "Just testing your reaction time. You''re real slow as hell, yo."


    "Sorry for not practicing self-defense." Yuel made a face. "But I admit, reacting quickly isn''t exactly my strongest point. Everybody have a weakness or two."


    "Tch, it must be because you''re too used to chess. They give you like 5 years to make a single move, right?"


    "No, there''s actually a time lim-"


    "And what''s with all these games?" Lars flipped through Yuel''s drawer as if he owned the place. "Almost everything you got is turn-based! Don''t you have any action games? Where are your shooters, dude?"


    "I don''t play shooters."


    "Huh? Why''s that?"


    "Because... I always die without achieving much." Yuel averted his eyes.


    "Heh, lemme guess: You''re one of ''em noobs who spray bullets all over the place once they run into somebody, right?"


    "Yeah, my aim isn''t that good."


    "Dude, please. That''s not a problem of aiming, you''re just startled and don''t react fast enough. It''s like how you took a freakin'' millennium to react to my punch just now. I could have scored like fifty headshots in that time."


    "Isn''t it common sense to be surprised by an unexpected attack?"


    "Sure, but you''re supposed to brace yourself before the attack hits you, not after."


    "Well sorry, but that punch was too fast for me."


    "Nah, I''m tellin'' ya it''s your reaction that''s slow. Hmm." Lars crossed his arms. "Oh, I know! It must be because you''re holed up at home the whole day!"


    "Excuse me? We both spend most our time on Classmancers."


    "Yeah, but I work out in the mornings and evenings."


    "Seriously?" Yuel was taken aback. "I thought you''re playing Classmancers first thing in the morning."


    "Nah, I begin my mornings by jogging two kilometers."


    "Is that so. Well, you''re a basketball ace, after all." Yuel nodded to himself. "Of course you''d keep yourself in shape."


    "Nah, that''s not it." Lars shook his head. "We didn''t even jog in the club, we always sprinted like crazy. The coach even told us to not jog too much because it develops the wrong muscles or some shit."


    "Guess that makes sense." Yuel vaguely remembered reading something like that while researching basketball. "So why jog then?"


    "It''s a good way to keep myself in shape. And when you''re in shape, you do literally everything better. You can even react to punches faster, yo! You should totally try jogging too!"


    "I''ll pass. I''m not athletic enough for that." Yuel had enough bitter memories from trying sports at school. Now that he had Classmancers, he didn''t want anything to do with physical exercise ever again. He was playing an esport, not a sport.


    "Don''t worry! Jogging is easy! You did that in PE, right?"


    "You mean walking? Sure did."


    "Geh, you''re on of these lazy bums, aren''t ya?" Lars made a disappointed face. "Betcha didn''t even try running."


    "I tried a few times. Always ran out of breath and almost collapsed."


    "Lame! So lame! And you call yourself a man!?"


    "You know, being a boy doesn''t immediately turn me into a Hercules like you."


    "Pft, haha! At least the reaction speed of your tongue is pretty good!" Lars took a deep breath after laughing for a whole minute. "Anyway, remember that pro match you showed me the other day? Remember that cool play by the Carry and Support? The one you said was a split-second decision."


    "Yes, of course." Yuel nodded. It was a brilliant play which was stuck in both of their heads.


    The Carry and Support, Elf and Knight, were running away with low HP. But then, they noticed how the Warlock pursuing them got a little too close. It was just for a moment that the Warlock''s positioning was poor, he was definitely going to correct that right away. It was just a matter of a couple centimeters, really.


    Nonetheless, the Elf and Knight immediately turned around to punish that tiny error. The Knight used Blink to instantly teleport behind the Warlock, which was only possible thanks to the Warlock''s slightly poor position. If the Warlock were just two steps behind, Blink''s range wouldn''t had reached all the way behind his back.


    Right after teleporting, the Knight activated Shield Bash without giving the Warlock any time to react. He rammed his shield into the Warlock''s back, stunning and pushing the Warlock closer to the Elf.


    On the other side, the Elf was already prepared with Elven Sight, a skill which changed his POV to first person. It granted him a zoom in and extended the range of his shots just enough to hit the pushed Warlock.


    This was a potentially game swinging moment, so the camera switched to the Elf''s first person view for extra drama. Needless to say, the commentators and the audience were going wild.


    To take down the Warlock, the Elf had to quickly land 5 shots. Was that even feasible considering the relatively short stun of Shield Bash? The Elf didn''t waste a single moment! He fired the first arrow while the Warlock was sill in the middle of being pushed.


    The first arrow hit. The second arrow also hit. The third hit. The fourth hit as well! That was it! One more arrow and the Elf would finish it! He nocked the arrow and was about to draw-


    The Warlock broke free of the stun and rolled toward the Elf! He performed that roll the very instant the stun ended, he undoubtedly spammed that command the whole time he was stunned. This roll was a smart play which threw a wrench in the Elf''s plans!


    Knowing that he had no chance of escaping, the Warlock chose to roll straight toward the enemy. The Elf was so low on HP that a single basic attack would prove fatal. If the Elf''s next arrow missed, the Warlock would be able to land the finishing blow! It''d be over!


    After firing four arrows in a row into the same exact spot, would the Elf commit the mistake of firing the fifth arrow to the same place?! With the arrow already nocked while the Warlock was rolling, nobody could tell how this fight would end!


    The Elf didn''t misfire. Even under such pressure, he wasn''t tempted to release the winning arrow too soon. He carefully watched the Warlock''s movements and shot down the Warlock in the middle of the roll. In such a tight spot, the Elf and Knight turned the situation around and swang the game in their team''s favor!


    Lars shouted like a fanboy during the Elf''s last shot, but Yuel was more impressed by the how this whole engagement started. The Knight''s decision to teleport behind the Warlock was simply genius. It was a split-second play which required an inhuman reaction speed. It was also extremely risky, as even the tiniest mistake would had offered the enemy a double kill on a silver platter. All these factors combined to create a breathtaking high-risk high-reward play.


    "Doesn''t that kinda remind you the play I tried this match?" Lars asked.


    "That''s true, I guess." Yuel averted his eyes. Even though the circumstances were quite different, Lars also attempted a high-risk high-reward play which was based on the enemy''s mispositioning. [I see, so that''s where he got the idea for that risky play.


    Even though Yuel also watched the same pro play and even analyzed it in detail, he failed to execute a similar play himself. It wasn''t like he lacked the game knowledge to notice that play. No, he [did] in fact notice the play. But, unlike Lars, he wasn''t fast enough to execute it.


    "Now tell me for real." Lars stared deep into Yuel''s eyes. "Think you could ever pull such a sick play the way you''re now?"


    "Who knows. These pros are adults with lots of experience. Once I get that far, then surely..."


    "Really? Even though you said that play requires ''inhuman reaction speed''?"


    "Practice and experience help with executing plays faster."


    "You really think they practiced this one super specific scenario? Dude, please."


    "That''s..." Yuel bit his lip. More experience would definitely help him execute common plays faster, but it wouldn''t help with crazy plays which were born in the heat of the moment. That kind of brilliant play might had been forever impossible for Yuel.


    "Remember I told you how Tai''s brother plays Classmancers competitively in high school?" Lars asked. "You know Ivy High, right? It has the strongest high school team in the region. I actually heard a little about their training regime from Tai."


    "Oh?" Yuel''s eyes lit up. "They do anything special?"


    "They jog, among things."


    "Eh?"


    "They must work out regularly to stay in shape, yo. They even have two coaches: a Classmancers coach and a fitness coach."


    "You''re kidding..." Yuel thought he left physical exercising behind when he discovered Classmancers, but it returned to haunt him again in the worst way possible. Ugh.


    "For the dudes on the main roster the training is like seriously strict, yo." Lars explained. "They gotta jog at least two kilometers every day."


    "Oh, so that''s why you..."


    "Yup." Lars grinned. "I wanna join the strongest team when I get to high school, so I''m getting ready for that day!"


    "Is that so." Yuel hung his head, unable to handle how dazzling Lars looked right now. While Yuel was busy leveling up his account the whole day just to get into Ranked, Lars was thinking far beyond and was preparing himself for the competitive scene. Yuel felt completely beaten.


    "If the best team values exercising so much, then it must be truly important..." Yuel mumbled. "But, unlike you, I''ve always been bad at sports."


    "Bad at sports? And who exactly decided that? Anybody can jog."


    "Did you ever see my PE grades? They''re abysmal."


    "And what exactly did you do about it, yo?" Lars sneered. "Lemme guess: You read some dumb manuals to make up for brawn with brains, right?"


    "I... yeah." Yuel hung his head. That''s exactly right. Whenever he faced a difficulty with sports, he consulted books and online articles. After running out of breath during a jog, he studied how to improve his running form and how to breathe correctly. When he performed poorly at soccer, he researched positions, roles and team strategies.


    "That''s all shit, yo! You gotta exercise if you want results! You think I was born holding a basketball or something!?" Lars grabbed Yuel''s collar. "Just look at me! I bet you thought I''d never learn how to play smart in Classmancers, right? But I kept playing and playing and playing, always listening to your freakin'' advice! I may not be smartest dude in the world, but even an idiot can learn stuff if you drill it into him!"


    "That''s true..." Yuel bit his lip. Indeed, Lars barely made any glaring mistakes these days. He built the right items, retreated when necessary and sometimes even made sophisticated plays. He was a completely different person compared to the Lars from one month ago.


    "So don''t give me that shit, yo! Don''t just give up without trying anything!" Lars shook Yuel. "I wanna play on the strongest high school team. But, even more than that, I wanna play on that team with YOU!"


    "With me...?" Yuel''s eyes went wide.


    "Yeah, dude! We gonna form the strongest duo! The strongest combo of Carry and Support, yo!"


    "Ah." Yuel trembled. Why? How was he supposed to react? Something about Lars''s words set his insides on fire. "But why? Why me?"


    "Huh? Isn''t that obvious?" Lars smiled. "Your Support is sick and you taught me tons of stuff about the game. But most importantly: we''re friends!"


    "Friends..." Yuel stared at Lars with a dumb face. "Friends"? What exactly were "friends"? He realized the word felt alien to him.


    Was there ever anybody Yuel truly called a "friend"? There was none. Nobody at all. He wasn''t exactly a loner, but he was alone.


    He talked to some of his classmates from time to time, they even played Classmancers together. But were they friends? No really. In the end, they gave up on him and he gave up on them.


    He always thought they''d become friends by playing a team sport together. Right, he... he wished for that, that''s why he was so drawn toward team sports. Even more so than competing against others or outwitting them, what he really wished for was to play with other kids, to play with friends.


    That''s why he felt so terrible when John gave up on Classmancers because of him. He played lots of Classmancers with John and they shared some hobbies. He was sure they could become friends, but John gave up on him. Everybody gave up on him.


    But Lars was different. Even when Yuel was trying to run away, Lars didn''t give up on him. Lars kept reaching out, no matter what excuses Yuel gave. A true friend, huh. Perhaps.


    "Whoa, what''s with the silent treatment?" Lars blinked. "Don''t tell me I''m the only who thought we''re friends!?"


    "H-Heh, who knows." Yuel forced a sarcastic smile while averting his eyes. His heart squeezed and his eyes turned glassy.


    "Hey, are ya crying, dude? Sorry if I yelled too much..." Lars scratched his head.


    "No, it''s not that." Yuel covered his eyes. "I was just thinking of the hell awaiting me."


    "What hell?"


    "The hell that is exercising." Yuel smiled. "I don''t promise anything, but I''ll give it a shot."


    "Really!? Cool! Let''s run two kilometers right away!"


    "Wha-!? W-Wait!" Yuel was dragged outside. [Two kilometers!? Is he trying to kill me!?]


    It was absurd! Even so, Yuel secretly smiled because he wasn''t alone anymore. With such a trusty friend by his side, he''d surely be able to endure anything... or so he thought.


    "Haa... ugh... I''m... I''m dying." Yuel panted and wobbled as he tried to run. All his muscles screamed from pain.


    "What the heck? We barely covered 400 meters, yo! Lame!"


    "That... That''s it... I''m done for... Ah!" Yuel''s shaky legs gave in.


    "The heck ya doing, dude?" Lars grabbed Yuel''s shoulder before Yuel crashed into the ground. Phew, that was close.


    "Haa... I... I can''t keep up with this pace..." Yuel was about to pass out. "I can''t do this after all. I quit."


    "Hey, you just started! You gonna run away again!?"


    "Heh, just kidding." Yuel smiled. "I just need to lower the pace because I''m not a sports beast like you. But I''ll do it properly... starting tomorrow." He added after barely getting back home by leaning on Lars''s shoulder.


    Exercising was going to be hell, but he promised to stick with it. He, too, wanted to attend Ivy High and play on the strongest high school team in the region. And more than that, he wanted to play on that team together with Lars. He couldn''t allow himself to fall behind.


    For the first time, he felt like he was working hard for more than just his own sake. He had a friend with whom he shared the dream of climbing to the top of Classmancers. If they kept working hard, they''d surely reach the high school competitive scene and the pro scene that laid beyond it.


    One day, they might even become the kind of pros who made breathtaking plays and inspired younger generations. But until that day, Yuel first had to defeat his greatest enemy yet: jogging! Ugh.

 9 Third Wheels Feelings

    After miserably failing his first attempt at jogging, Yuel consulted online fitness articles again. However, this time he didn''t do so to run away from exercising. He researched how a scrub like him should go about exercising, since running 2 kilometers at Lars''s pace was an olympic feat for him.


    Apparently, there was no problem with starting slow. As long as he maintained a jogging routine, he should improve with time. He couldn''t make it through 2 kilometers right now, but he somehow survived a half kilometer jog by running at his own pace.


    "Gah! So slow!" Lars ranted while running beside Yuel. "Geh, running at your turtle speed also somehow makes me more tired than usual. You were a freakin'' turtle in your previous life, weren''t ya?"


    "And I''m sure you were a missile." Yuel retorted. "Just go on ahead, no need to stick around me."


    "Yeah, sure. Who knows what you gonna do once I take my eyes off ya?"


    "Don''t worry, you don''t need to babysit me. I''m not going to quit, not this time."


    "Hoh." Lars was taken aback by Yuel''s determined look. "Okay, I''m going ahead then. If you''re not half-dead by the time you finish, then I''mma know you''ve been slacking off, yo!"


    "Deal."


    The first week was literally hell. Yuel jogged at a snail''s pace for a mere half kilometer, yet he felt like he sprinted through a whole marathon. He always returned home beaten and barely standing. The thought of quitting tempted him every day.


    "Hey, dude! You slacked off today, didn''t ya!?" Lars interrogated Yuel.


    "No. I ran the whole thing." Yuel examined himself in wonder. He had just finished the usual hellish jogging routine, yet he wasn''t about to collapse and his breathing was somehow stable. He was tired, but that''s all. "I think I''m getting used to this."


    The second week was much easier. Did his body adapt to his hellish routine? It was baffling. He knew the brain could adapt to things via repetition, but he had no idea his muscles were installed with such a function as well.


    As jogging became gradually easier, he started extending the distance and raising his pace. Any increase in difficulty was torture the first few days, but he soon got used to it. At this rate, he should be able to survive a 2 kilometers jog by the end of the summer.


    To further improve Yuel''s reaction speed, they also played some hectic shooters together. Yuel was skeptical of this idea, but he gave in after Lars nagged him to no end. Besides, as much as he hated to admit it, Lars was kind of right about the whole jogging thing. Even somebody like Yuel could jog with enough practice and he felt more alert ever since he started working out. As much as he disliked the genre, there was no harm in trying out shooters as well. Who knew, it just might work.


    [Oh, I scored a kill.] Yuel blinked in front of the screen. Weird, had he always been this calm during action packed situations?


    He scored that kill on a chaotic battlefield where plasma shots flew left and right. He was used to be confused by these situations and took too long to analyze everything. But, after playing this shooter for two days, he learned how to quickly spot enemies and shot them down. Of course, he received a headshot right after scoring that amazing kill, but at least he did something for the team! He wasn''t completely useless!


    In general, he found himself way more level-headed in shooters than he was used to be. Running into aggressive enemies still startled him, but he reacted faster and more efficiently. Instead of randomly spraying bullets all over the place, he took a moment to adjust his aim and ensure his shots would actually hit somebody. He still died a lot in embarrassing ways, giving Lars some good laughs, but he actually scored some kills as well. Shooters didn''t feel nearly as frustrating as before.


    After a month of this routine, Yuel felt like he was reborn. The results soon started showing themselves in Classmancers. After getting used to all these fast-paced crazy shooters, Classmancers almost felt like it moved in slow motion.


    "Gah, he got away!" Lars exclaimed as his prey escaped into the jungle. He could still deliver the finishing blow with a bouncing Trickshot, but there weren''t any good walls-


    "Here''s your wall." Yuel erected a wall of ice. It was placed hastily, yet its location and angle were just perfect. The wall was so amazing it literally begged Lars to shoot it!


    "Awesome!!" Lars fired a Trickshot at the ice wall. The bullet bounced once and darted into the jungle.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Sick play, dude!"


    "You too."


    By the time they reached Lv.49, they were a pair of monsters. Now that Yuel could keep up with Lars, their teamwork and synergy were top-notch. Whenever they played together as Support and Carry, their team usually ran over the enemy.


    In particular, feeding Lars by letting him score kills was the most devastating strategy. A fed Lars was an unstoppable Lars, he single-handedly carried the whole team and couldn''t be defeated even in 1v3 fights. Heck, he even won 1v5 a couple of times.


    Yuel''s job was to orchestrate the situations which allowed Lars to feed on enemies. He analyzed opponents, figured out their tendencies and found the best time to strike. Of course, all the spoils of war went to Lars. Yuel was like a tamer responsible for feeding a baby tiger, until that tiger grew into a savage beast and annahaliates all their foes.


    However, while the two of them were making such an outstanding progress, somebody was completely forgotten...


    "Hah... Aaah... I... I''m dying! I can''t take this anymore!" Julia complained without end as she tried keeping up with Yuel''s jogging pace. "How are you so fast!? Go slower!"


    "Go slower if it''s too much for you." Yuel said. "There''s no need to compete with me."


    "I won''t let a dumbass like you pass me! Grrr!" Julia gritted her teeth and sprinted forward. She successfully reached Yuel, then ran out of breath and lagged behind again. This comical routine repeated every ten seconds throughout the jog. Sigh.


    When JulIa learned about Yuel jogging with Lars, she immediately signed up as well. However, this routine proved to be much harsher than she expected. Not only did Lars and Yuel jog at entirely different paces, but turned out she couldn''t even keep up with a slowpoke like Yuel. Despite her slender figure, she wasn''t very athletic.


    In truth, even during her first run, she already did way better than how Yuel started out. He only achieved his current speed after weeks of training, but she couldn''t possibly know that. All she knew was that, here and now, she was lagging behind someone who was supposed to be a total slowpoke.


    "You''ll get injured if you keep this up." Yuel said. "Jogging is all about running at a steady pace. All these random sprints are going to wear you out."


    "Sh... Hah... S-Shut up, dumb- Wah!" Julia tripped and crashed into the asphalt.


    "You okay?" Yuel stopped and turned around.


    "Do I look okay to you, idiot!?" Julia hissed and slowly got up. Her right knee was scraped and had some blood on it. Thankfully, it didn''t look serious.


    "That''s as far as you go today." Yuel said. "Go home to have somebody look at it."


    "Shut up, retard! I know!" Julia''s eyes were teary and she clenched her trembling fists. Even though he was just worried about her, Julia''s attitude toward Yuel was as lovely as ever. Sigh.


    She turned around and "Agh!" knelt down, holding her ankle.


    "Did you sprain it?"


    "I''m fine! This is noth- agh!" Julia cried out with each step.


    "If it hurts, just say so."


    "Shut up! What do you know!?" Julia glared at him. "You two always hang out together, treating me like some third wheel! Just when I finally learned to play this stupid game and got to support Lars, you came outta nowhere and kicked me out of the picture!"


    "Ah, that wasn''t really-"


    "Shut up, idiot!" Tears ran down Julia''s cheeks. "And... And now I learn you two have been jogging together all this time without telling me anything! And somehow you''re better than me even at jogging! Just who do you think you are!?"


    "That''s..." Yuel was speechless. What should he say? What [could] he say? Julia treated him like an enemy from the first day they met. From her point of view, Yuel butted into her relationship with Lars and kicked her out. It was by no means his intention, but that''s how it played out in the end.


    "I''m not your enemy." Yuel stated.


    "Shut up! Get lost!" Julia sat down on the asphalt and wiped out her tears. "Ah, seriously. I must be dumb. What was I even doing all this time...?"


    Yuel knew the look in Julia''s eyes, this dead and empty look of defeat. John wore the same expression after he was stomped by Lars. After that incident, no matter how many times they asked John to join them in Classmancers, he never did. He completely gave up on the game.


    Julia was about to give up on everything as well, she was going to quit Classmancers. Yet another person was going to quit Classmancers because of Yuel. And, yet again, he was going to lose a potential friend. Julia maybe hated his guts, but he believed that, with time, they could become friends.


    "Sorry." Yuel had no idea how to patch things up. There was no response to his apology, Julia just continued sitting on the asphalt and holding her injured leg. It''s like she refused to recognize Yuel''s existence.


    [Is that all I can do?] Yuel bit his lip. His apology fell on deaf ears, just like it was with John back then. Both then and now, all Yuel did was stand there and watch in silence. Was that really all he could do?


    No! Not this time! Just like Lars didn''t give up when Yuel tried to escape from physical exercise, Yuel wouldn''t give up on Julia either. Even though she''d definitely reject him, even though she hated him - he wanted to reach out to her.


    Yuel approached Julia and grabbed her arm. He wouldn''t give up. Not here.


    "What are you doing!? Let go!" Julia tried to shake him off, but he only tightened his grip. "Agh! Let go! Just what are you trying to pull, you dumbass!?"


    Yuel remained silent and dragged Julia across the street. Words were useless right now, Julia was too agitated to listen to anything he had to say.


    "Here you go." Yuel dragged Julia all the way to a nearby bench,


    "I... I didn''t ask for help." Julia muttered, but sat down on the bench anyway. Her expression softened somewhat, so perhaps now she was ready to listen.


    "I understand you feel like I stole your spot as Lars''s Support, but that wasn''t my intention." Yuel said. "Still, it''s a fact you were hurt because of me. For that, I apologize."


    "Hmph, as if your apology gonna change anything now. If you really feel sorry about it, then teach me how to play that stupid Support role and let me play Support for Lars! I''ve already asked you a billion times by now, but you never listen!"


    "I could do that, but as I told you: you''re not fit to play Support." Yuel spoke in a matter-of-factly tone. There wasn''t a single hint of doubt in his voice. "Your playstyle fits Mid much better and I''d gladly help you improve as a Mid Laner."


    "Tch, here you go again acting like a know-it-all." Julia shot him a glare. "How am I supposed to get any better at supporting if you never let me play it!?"


    "I''m sure you''re aware of your shortcomings as a Support." Yuel had been avoiding the specifics until now because he didn''t want to hurt Julia with the truth. But maybe that was a mistake and he should had confronted her a long time ago, before they got to this breaking point.


    Therefore, this time, Yuel explained everything: How Julia was too much of a scaredy-cat to put herself on the frontline, how she was reluctant to join team fights unless her team had a clear advantage and how she always built power items because she felt useless without any damage.


    "For a Support, these are all glaring flaws." Yuel explained. "However, for Mid, these are acceptable, or even positive, traits."


    "So that''s why you''re always such a jerk about it." Julia hung her head, but she accepted everything more easily than Yuel expected. "I agree, I kinda suck at supporting. It''s annoying, but I gotta admit I''ll never reach your level. But, if you teach me just a little, I''m sure I can become much better at it!"


    "I could do that, but is that what you really want? Do you think playing shabby Support will help you winning Lars''s heart?"


    "W-W-W-What!?" Julia''s cheeks turned red. "Y-Y-Y-You knew!?"


    "Everybody know you like Lars. He''s probably the about only one who hasn''t noticed yet, because he''s so popular with everybody."


    "T-Then, if you know so much already, then let me play Support!"


    "If you plan on maxing out his ''Affection Points'' or whatever before confessing, then you''re being very narrow-minded about it. Instead of showing him some mediocre Support, impress him as a strong Mid. I know you like Mid more than Support anyway."


    "Maybe you''re right..." Julia mumbled. True, she liked playing Mid more than Support because it was easier to kill things and feel useful. Would Yuel''s idea really work? If she became an outstanding Mid Laner, would Lars praise her? She wouldn''t get to play on the same lane as Lars early into the game, but they''d still cooperate during team fights and he''d see her achievements. Perhaps she was truly narrow-minded until now.


    "I really should have explained all of this a long time ago. For that, again, I''m sorry." Yuel apologized. Because of the way he kept rejecting Julia until now to avoid drama, he ended up looking like a total jerk and caused even more drama. "To prove that I bear no ill will toward you, I''ll give you a special service."


    "Special service?" Julia raised an eyebrow.


    "You''re going to like it." Yuel took out his phone and called Lars. "Julia sprained her ankle. Can you help her get home?"


    "W-W-Wait!" Julia''s face turned into a tomato. Gaaa! Injuring herself on the first day was so embarrassing! Facing Lars right now would be the end of world! She wanted to stop Yuel, but a fierce pain shot through her leg the moment she stood up.


    "He''ll be here shortly." Yuel put away his phone.


    "You! How could you!? He gonna think I''m some clumsy girl who can''t exercise! Idiot! Jerk! Dumbass! Retard! Die!"


    "Don''t worry. I nearly passed out on my first day of jogging, but Lars helped me out. He''s not the type to give up on his friends like that. He''s the boy you like, so have some faith in him."


    "Um, well..." Julia had no idea how to retrot against that. In the end, she simply nodded and quietly waited for Lars to arrive.


    "S-Sorry for being so clumsy." Julia apologized to Lars.


    "Nah, don''t worry." Lars smiled at her. "You just gotta run go slower next time. Yuel legit collapsed on his first day, haha."


    "Seems like she can''t walk at all." Yuel explained. He was immediately stabbed by Julia''s glare, but he ignored it. "The best option is to give her a piggyback ride."


    "E-Ehhh!?" Julia''s brain short-circuited . "B-B-B-But... Ah... Eh..."


    "Okay, sounds good." Lars turned around and offered his back. "Get on!"


    "A, A, A, Alright!" Julia pressed herself against Lars''s back. Her cheeks probably generated more heat than the sun at this point.


    [I hope that''s good enough.] Yuel prayed that he successfully convinced Julia to not give up on Classmancers. Unlike that time with John, Yuel properly confronted Julia and they got to exchange their thoughts. This had to work. [Please, work!]


    A few days later, once her leg recovered, Julia visited Yuel. Her cold attitude toward him didn''t change much, but her determination was on a whole different level..


    "Teach me... please." Julia averted her eyes, clenching the hem of her skirt. She took a deep breath and gazed into Yuel''s eyes. "Teach me how to improve as a Mid Laner."


    "Gladly."


    Since then, Julia came over to Yuel''s place about as often as Lars. The three of them played Classmancers from morning to evening nearly every day of summer break. Julia lagged behind them by nine levels at first, but she gradually closed the gap. By the time they reached Lv.50, Julia already hit Lv.46. Before long, she also hit Lv.50 and joined them in Ranked mode.

 10 Junior High Entry Exam

    After being coached by Yuel, Julia became an adept Mid Laner. She learned when and where to place wards, which class matchups were favorable, when to rotate to other lanes and much more.


    She also left Yuel in the dust when it came to jogging. After her embarrassing injury on the first day, she started from slow jogs and gradually raised the pace. By the end of the summer, she could jog at Lars''s pace for one kilometer.


    Contrary to her, Yuel didn''t feel his fitness improved much after the first couple of weeks. His stamina definitely increased over time, but he was still a laughably slow runner. He was definitely a turtle in his previous life.


    Nevertheless, maintaining a jogging routine sharpened his senses and improved his reaction speed. He even grew to enjoy shooters somewhat, as he learned to not freak out during tense situations. That was an important skill which carried into Classmancers as well, allowing him to stay composed when ganked and amidst chaotic team fights.


    As for Lars, he absorbed lots of wisdom from Yuel throughout the summer. His game knowledge and decision-making skills reached a decent level, but he eventually hit a wall. It''s not like he reached a very high level, especially not in the game knowledge department, but he didn''t show much growth from there. That must had been the current limit of this muscle brain goof.


    Ranked mode had a "draft system", which allowed players to ban classes during the class selection phase. After the first time Trickshooter was banned by the enemy, Lars realized he couldn''t play any other Carry class on the same level. Therefore, instead of studying the game, he practiced many different classes.


    With his mechanical skill, he was naturally good with every class he picked. However, "good" was far from "godlike", which best described Lars''s insane mastery over Trickshooter.


    Yuel was secretly relieved, since he finally discovered something sensible in Lars''s superhuman skill. Even somebody as talented as Lars needed time to master new classes, just like any other human being. That proved Lars wasn''t some alien from planet GodlikeSkills.


    However, it was still mind boggling how quickly Lars produced results. He practiced, practiced, practiced and then practiced some more. He learned to perfectly land headshots with Headhunter, to rapidly snipe targets with Elf and to deliver timely counters with Punisher. Even though he picked classes which demanded acute mechanical finesse to be effective - he mastered all of them.


    By the time summer break was over, Yuel, Lars and Julia were all Platinum tier in Ranked mode. Julia lagged behind them by two ranks, being Platinum IV, but she was recognized as a strong member of the team all the same.


    When the new school year began, the three of them attended Riverstock Junior High. Yuel and Lars were set on joining the Classmancers club, but Julia was reluctant. None of her girl friends were interested in Classmancers.


    "But you''re good at Classmancers! You should totally do it!"


    "Um, t-then I''ll give it a shot..."


    In the end, Julia couldn''t resist Lars''s overflowing passion. She came this far already, so she decided to go all the way.


    And so, the three of them attended the entry exam for the Classmancers club. Based on the number of kids who took Classmancers seriously back at grade school, Yuel didn''t expect much competition. He was wrong, completely wrong.


    [Where did all these guys come from? ]Yuel looked around in disbelief. The hall was stuffed with over 50 freshmen, all eager to join the Classmancers club. The vast majority were boys, but, to Julia''s relief, there were some girls as well.


    "Yo, yo, yo! Who do we have here?" Taison emerged from the crowd and strode toward Lars. He came dangerously close, but didn''t slow down in the slightest.


    "Long time no see, dude! Heh!" Lars met his pal head on, literally. The two banged their foreheads, like bulls locked in a duel. Everybody was startled by this act of violence, but it was like a handshake for these muscleheads. Yuel suspected they both became idiots after receiving serious brain damage from repeated headbutts.


    "So? Did ya ever reach Ranked, scrub?" Taison wore a smug. "Me and Greg got to Gold!"


    "Pft, lame! All three of us are Platinum, yo!"


    "Wha!? Even Julia!?" Taison''s jaw nearly hit the floor.


    "Obviously." Julia crossed her arms and lifted her chin. "Don''t compare me to losers like you. Gold? That''s so yesterday."


    "The heck? You don''t even like the game, yo!"


    "Hmph. Who are you to tell me what I like and what I don''t, dumbface?"


    "Tch, you''re as cute as always."


    "Don''t get so worked up, Tai." Gregory appeared behind Taison. At first glance it looked like he wanted to put out the fire, but Yuel knew better than believe that. "Obviously Yuel and Lars carried her, even a monkey can get to Platinum that way."


    "Khahaha! Yeah!" Taison burst into laughter.


    "What did you just say, four-eyes!?" Julia''s eyes emitted a murderous glint.


    "C''mon, we all know the truth." Gregory smirked while touching his glasses. "Admit it, you''re just a third wheel for these two. The sooner you face the truth, the better."


    "Big words for somebody who leeches off Taison''s skill." Yuel couldn''t stand this anymore. In the past month, he watched Julia''s hard work and growth more than anybody. Perhaps she wasn''t on par with Yuel and Lars yet, but she wasn''t weak and she definitely wasn''t a third wheel.


    "Now, now. Let''s play nice, my dudes." Lars wrapped his arm around Gregory''s shoulder in an overly friendly manner. "We gonna have a Classmancers exam or something, right? Let''s settle it there."


    "Heh, sure. Let''s do that." Gregory shook off Lars''s arm. "That is, if you guys pull through this exam. It''s going to be quite different from what you expect, kek."


    "Hoh? You know something about this exam?"


    "Who knows." Gregory shrugged. "Here''s my prediction though: Yuel will be eliminated in the first round and you''ll be eliminated in the second."


    "Heh, sounds like fun!" Lars grinned. "We''ll see about that."


    Their chit-chat was eventually interrupted when Howard, the vice-captain of the Classmancers club, took the stage. He and the captain briefly introduced themselves, then he proceeded to talk about the entry exam.


    "I know what some of you are thinking." Howard smiled. "You want to join the Classmancers club because it sounds like a fun place where you can play video games, right? Haha."


    Some of the audience laughed along with Howard. The school demanded all students to join a club, so it was clear some applied to the Classmancers club to dodge that obligation. As long as they were gamers, playing a video game for club activities sounded like easy life even if they weren''t genuinely interested in Classmancers.


    "For those who are thinking that way, the door is over there." Howard pierced the audience with a sharp glare. "Like it or not, but our Classmancers club is strictly competitive. The school allows the club only 15 members in total. To be fair about it, we always maintain 5 members from each year. You see where I''m going with this, yes?"


    In other words, out of the 50+ freshmen gathered in this hall, only five would be admitted into the club. The shocking reveal invoked exclamations and whispers throughout the crowd. Everybody began realizing that the Classmancers club wasn''t all sunshine and rainbows.


    "Interesting." Yuel smiled. "We may be in for some real challenge, like Gregory said."


    "Heh, that''s how it gotta be!" Lars grinned. His reaction stood in complete opposite to everybody around him.


    "Seriously, you boys." Julia threw a look at Yuel and Lars, who were both pumped for the this dumb challenge. Sigh, what a pain.


    "The entry exam will have three rounds." Howard explained. "In the first round, we''ll test how serious you are about Classmancers. We''ll have you run five kilometers."


    "Eeeeh!?"


    "F-Five kilometers!?"


    The crowd was in an uproar.


    [Five!? How exactly is that a Classmancers exam!? ]Yuel turned pale. He barely lasted two kilometers even after all the training he had during summer break! It was insane!


    "Yes, yes." Howard nodded. "I know what you''re all wondering: ''How the heck is this a Classmancers exam!?'' After all, most of you are here because you hate physical exercise, right? Haha."


    "But, too bad." Howard''s voice turned cold. "We''ll have you run. Even if you can''t jog the whole way through, you can always walk. Crawl for all I care. If you don''t reach the finish line, you''re out. If you''re in the last 15, you''re out. If you have any medical certificates which forbid you to jog, bring them later and we''ll figure something out."


    "This is dumb!"


    "I''m not doing this shit!"


    A few students left the hall and Yuel almost wanted joining them. As much as he wanted to play competitive Classmancers, running 5 kilometers was insanity.


    "Somebody shaking in his boots?" Gregory wore a smug. "You better quit before you die out there, kek."


    "I-I''m fine." Yuel tried to convince himself. "As long as there are less than 15 people here who can run all the way, I can pass this round by walking."


    "You? Pass? And here I thought you were a realist." Gregory shook his head. "But surely you''re quitting, right July?"


    "Sounds rough." Julia cocked her head and turned to Lars. "You think I can run it?"


    "Easy!" Lars gave her a thumb up. "Remember that time we jogged to the beach and back? That was about five kilometers."


    "Ouch, that was a harsh run. But I survived it, so guess I can pull it off and stuff?"


    "You can run five kilometers...?" Gregory''s glasses almost slipped down his nose.


    "I guess? Anyway, what about you, four-eyes?" Julia lifted her chin. "Gonna crawl your way to the finish line?"


    "Kek, don''t think I''m the same as before." Gregory adjusted his glasses. "I trained quite a lot during the summer. Look, I even built some muscles."


    "You trained? Interesting." Yuel eyed Gregory. "Were you preparing for this very exam, perchance?"


    "Who knows." Gregory dodged the question.


    "Very well." Howard continued after everybody made up their minds. "Rejoice, those who left also count toward the 15 dropouts. Thanks to them, only seven of you can fail the first round now. How nice of them, right? Haha."


    [My chances went up a little. ]Yuel nodded to himself. Now, he only had to outpace seven competitors. Five kilometers was a huge deal, but he had a decent chance.


    "Oh, and I joked." Howard grinned. "Don''t worry, we won''t make you run that much. We''re not the track club, yes? Haha. One kilometer will suffice, but the rest is still effect. Fail to reach the finish line and you''re out. Finish among the last seven and you''re out."


    Howard called it a joke, but 8 students actually left after hearing about the 5 kilometers. Was that part of the test? If so, it was definitely effective at eliminating weak-willed players, even though it didn''t quite feel fair. Good thing Yuel didn''t take the bait.


    "There are also some good news to hype you up." Howard announced. "If you finish the race in first place, you''ll be excused from the rest of the exam. You become a club member right away."


    "Oh! Cool!" Lars grinned. "Welp, this gonna end on the first round for me. Good luck at the rest of the exam, my dudes!"


    "Tch, aren''t ya a modest one?" Taison retorted. "Don''t forget I''m also here. If ya think this gonna be a sneeze, think again."


    "Oh? You trained during the summer or something? Because I don''t remember you ever beating me at sprinting."


    "This time will be different, mark my words."


    "Looking forward to it!"


    The two sports maniacs eyed each other, both confident in their upcoming victory. Unlike them, Yuel wasn''t as enthusiastic about this announcement.


    He raised his hand and posed a question to Howard. "Is it really a good idea to select a Classmancers player based on nothing but their running speed? I thought the club was geared toward winning competitions."


    "A good question." Howard nodded. "I''m sure at least half the audience shares your sentiment. Tell me, you have any athletic pals who play Classmancers?"


    "Yes."


    "Are they any good at Classmancers?"


    "Yes, they are." Yuel had to admit. Lars was a god and Taison was quite skilled as well.


    "And what do you think makes them so good?"


    "They''re mechanically skilled, for one." Yuel took a moment to think about it. "They''re also used to practicing and playing as a team, since they were in a sport club before."


    "A full marks answer." Howard clapped once. "It''s exactly as you said, the athletic fellows usually come from sport clubs. They''re used to training and maybe even played on a team. So, whoever wins the race may not be an amazing Classmancers player right now, but they should have a solid foundation to molded into one."


    "I see." Yuel frowned. He essentially answered his own question via Howard''s lead. Howard definitely already had the answer ready when he announced that rule, Yuel felt like he was baited into asking about it. Ugh.


    "If that''s all, you have half an hour to gather at the building''s entrance." Howard announced. "If you need to warm up or change into a PE uniform, do so now."


    The crowd dispersed. Yuel and Lars headed outside, but Julia first went to get her PE uniform. "No way I''m sweating in these clothes."


    And so, the entry exam was about to begin. The opportunity to play in the competitive scene was right in front of them, they just had to grasp it. The junior high competitive scene wasn''t nearly as popular as that of high schools, but it was the first step. Before advancing to larger scenes, they first had to conquer the junior high competitive scene!

 11 The Stars Shadow

    The entry exam for the Classmancers club was about to begin. Everybody gathered in front of the building as instructed. They had to run one lap around the campus, which covered about 1 kilometer according to Howard.


    "Welp, I''mma go full gas to win that first place." Lars declared.


    "Yeah, I''m sure you can do it." Julia smiled. "No way anybody here is as fast as you."


    "Hah, I beg to differ." Taison approached Lars and stood shoulder to shoulder with him, full intent on winning the race.


    "Pft, are you serious?" Julia sneered. "What a second-grade basketball player got on Lars?"


    "Keh, second grade?" Taison''s face contorted. "Tch, we''ll see about that."


    "Welp, good luck, dude." Lars said.


    "You too, bro. You''ll need it."


    Once the race began, Lars and Taison darted like bullets ahead of the pack. A few runners tried to keep up with them, but soon fell short. By the time Lars and Taison finished half of the track, there was nobody nearby. It was clear the winner would be one of them.


    "You''re really keeping up, yo!" Lars grinned. "Sure you don''t need a break?"


    "Right back at ya." Taison grinned as well. "Aren''t ya pushing yourself?"


    "Nah, it''s easy peasy! I can keep going like this for twenty more laps!" Though Lars claimed so, he actually pushed himself to his limit. He sprinted at full speed, as if this was a 100 meters race. But, this track was 10 times longer than that.


    "Oh? What''s that?" Taison sneered as he looked behind him. "Someone''s running out of fuel?"


    "H-Heh, no idea what you''re on about!" Lars forced a smile, but his breathing became noticeably ragged. His body wasn''t trained to sprint over such long distances, so his legs and lungs complained without end. The distance between Lars and Taison grew bigger and bigger with every passing second.


    "So much for getting first place, khaha!" Taison got farther and farther away and his fast pace didn''t drop at all. How? Why? When did Taison become such an amazing runner?


    "Just... Just what kinda crazy training you''ve been doing?" Lars forced the question through his labored breaths.


    "What was that? Can''t hear ya, bro. You''re too far, khaha." Taison looked over his shoulder with a cocky smile. The image of Lars panting and struggling to keep up was delightful. [Serves you right, bro!]


    Same as Lars, Taison was on the basketball club in grade school. He was a key player on the team and an accomplished athlete in general, but nobody took notice of him. He, and pretty much everybody else, were overshadowed by Lars.


    The "basketball" his team played was a joke, it was basically Lars''s one-man show. No matter how much Taison practiced, his role on the team never changed. All team members existed for the sole purpose of passing the ball to Lars.


    That''s why he rebelled. He gathered bros who shared his frustration and practiced defense with them. Even though the cool part of basketball was scoring points, Taison sucked it up and trained as a blocker.


    The results started showing themselves after a month of training. Taison and his bros finally shut Lars down. They surrounded and cornered Lars, making it impossible for him to charge through all the defenders. Finally, they kicked him off the high horse... or so they thought.


    A week later, Lars overcame that hurdle. Taison and his crew locked him down as usual, but he didn''t care. They didn''t let him get any closer to the basket, so he shot from where he could. In just a week, Lars mastered throwing 3-pointers.


    How was it possible? Taison and his crew trained for a whole month to be able to block Lars, yet Lars overcame them in a single week. That bro had an Olympic level talent, yo! Nobody could rival Lars at basketball anymore, there was no point even trying.


    So, instead of wasting his time on basketball, Taison played Classmancers. His older brother played on the Classmancers team at Ivy High, so Taison learned a lot about the game. There weren''t many classmates who played Classmancers, and even less who played it well, so it was easy for Taison to stand out.


    "So you''re good at some video game. So what?" Julia lifted her chin. "Is that what you wanted me to watch? It''s boring."


    "It''s not just any video game, yo!" Taison insisted. "It''s a game that''s officially recognized as a sport in schools and stuff!"


    "Sure, sure."


    Sadly, there weren''t many who appreciated Taison''s skill and he failed to impress the ones he wanted to impress the most. Any scrub who stood out even a bit in basketball or soccer was insta-cool, while Taison didn''t get attention no matter how strong he became at Classmancers.


    One day, special Classmancers lessons were announced for their class. Awesome, yo! Finally all these scrubs would get into the game and realize how amazing Taison really was! He could already imagine the future where he was the topdog!


    But, in the end, not that many got hooked on Classmancers. Freakin'' casuals. Still, there were a few bros who played with Taison. For some reason, one of them was Lars.


    "Khaha! You suck, bro!" Taison laughed after crushing Lars''s team. It felt soooo damn good, yo! Taison released all his pent up frustration by beating the shit outta Lars at Classmancers. He finally stood above Lars! He was the king! Khaha!


    But, turned out Lars''s hax talent wasn''t restricted to basketball. Even though Taison was the king of the hill, Lars grew stronger and stronger with every defeat. What a freak, dang it. And that wasn''t even the most irritating thing about Lars.


    "Let me play too." Julia requested.


    "Huh? You?" Taison blinked. "Didn''t you say it''s boring?"


    "What, I can''t change my mind? I played it a little when we had these lessons and it''s alright."


    "Khaha, so you realized how amazing Classmancers is? Sure, join in!" Taison''s heart raced. At long last, it was happening! He was going to show off his skill for real!


    "Alright then." Julia sat down... opposite of Taison. She sat beside Lars. Beside Lars. Beside... Eh? Huh? What?


    "Khaha... there''s an available seat right here, ya know?"


    "I learned to play Support, so I''ll team with Lars."


    "Huh?" Taison blacked out for a moment. With Lars? Why? Why the freakin'' hell!? Taison was the strongest Classmancers player in class! Everybody wanted to be on his team! Why Lars!? Why was he more popular again!? Why!?!?!?!?


    "B-But Lars is weak, ya know?" Taison''s lips trembled. "You better play on my team, yo."


    "You already have Greg for Support." Julia shrugged.


    "It''s okay! You can take his place! Right, Greg?" Taison smiled toward Gregory.


    "... sure." Gregory nodded.


    "You see? No problem! So come over here and I''ll carry you to victory!"


    "Don''t wanna." Julia crossed her arms. "I''ll play with Lars and help him beat you, it''ll be more fun this way."


    Until the very end, Julia didn''t budge. Keh, what a stubborn chick!


    It was Lars. Even though Taison was the stronger player, it was Lars. Even though Julia finally expressed some interest in Classmancers, it was Lars.


    "Help me destroy them, bro." Taison requested.


    "Huh? Bro?" Gregory snorted. "Weren''t you ready to throw me away like yesterday''s trash a moment ago?"


    "Ah, about that..."


    "Kek, just kidding." Gregory slapped Taison''s shoulder. "I think you''re wasting your time with that girl, but I''ll help as much as I can"


    "Thanks, bro! You''re the best!"


    "Just don''t fall for me."


    "I love ya bro, no homo!"


    As Taison requested, that 2v2 match was entirely one-sided. Julia knew the basics of the game, she had no idea how to play Support and left everything to Lars. It was so damn easy to crush them.


    Yet, no matter how thoroughly Taison destroyed Lars, Julia refused to switch sides. It didn''t even look like she was interested in winning, she just wanted to play with Lars. With Lars. With Lars! Dammit!


    Okay. It was okay, Taison was still at the best Classmancers player in class. With time, he''d convince Julia that he was the amazing one. At least when it came for Classmancers, Taison would forever stand above a loser like Lars... or so he thought.


    "Frankly, that Cryomancer played terribly." Everything went downhill when that guy, Yuel, showed up. He kicked Julia out of the picture and replaced her as Lars''s Support. And his Support was some scary stuff, yo! There was no better way to describe that shit!


    Taison felt like he was naked when he played against Yuel. All his flaws and weaknesses were exposed. It was some serious shit, dang it!


    Until that point, Taison and Gregory had been stomping Lars with their superior game knowledge and decision-making skills. Lars had the mechanical skills of a beast, but he was one hell of an idiot. And that''s coming from Taison, whose grades never pass the 50 points mark. Really, it was so laughably easy to beat Lars when Taison and Gregory coopearted against him.


    But, Yuel single-handedly put an end to that with his Paladin. During the first team fight, he shut down both Taison and Gregory, leaving them to be ripped apart by Lars. It was one hell of a tilting experience, yo! That scrub really did it, dang it!


    Even so, Taison and Gregory thought they figured out how to combat that pesky Paladin after their first defeat. But they were wrong as hell. Yuel knew exactly what they expected from him and changed his tactics for the second team fight.


    Yuel started the second team fight by hitting Taison with Justice Strike outta nowhere. Taison couldn''t do shit while silenced, neither escape with Backfire Cannon nor unleash the Kraken. Lars immediately followed up on that by activating the Trickshooter''s ult: Trickshow. Even though it was Gregory''s job to support Taison, he couldn''t do anything against this sudden development. Taison was forced to fight against Lars''s Trickshow all by himself.


    Trickshow sounded like a pretty damn weak ult on paper. For three seconds, it reduced the cooldown durations of Trickshot and Trickslide to absolute zero, allowing the Trickshooter to spam them nonstop. It was cool and all, but it was just three seconds, yo. Taison never got to do any cool plays with that shit.


    But Lars was different. In his hands, Trickshow was the most OP broken hax ult in existence. Taison couldn''t land a single damn hit. Lars spammed Trickslide nonstop to blitz from side to side like a bullet, all the while firing Trickshots. And they were all hella accurate too.


    A Trickshot straight in the face, a Trickshot in the shoulder from a bounce, a Trickshot straight in the back, a Trickshot in the face from a bounce. There was no damn end to them! Taison was locked in a cage of flying bullets and he couldn''t do shit!


    Taison was proud of his mechanical skill. Even his brother, a competitive high school player, told him he had da skills. But, even so, Lars mopped the floor with him like it was nobody''s business! What the actual hell!? How was Lars so damn strong!?


    Facing Lars''s Trickshow all by himself for the first time, Taison had to admit the truth. It was frustrating, so damn frustrating, but it was true: Lars was getting stronger than him in Classmancers. Needless to say, Taison and Gregory lost the second team fight as well. Shortly afterwards, they lost the whole match.


    Ever since that day, the power balance in class had gradually changed. Lars evolved with every passing day by playing with Yuel. Before long, he became a monster who stood a league above Taison.


    Yet again, something was stolen from Taison. First basketball, then Julia and now Classmancers. And it was always Lars, always that same scum! Goddammit! Why was he getting in Taison''s way all the time!?


    That''s why Taison swore to get revenge. He was gonna reclaim everything he had lost to Lars!


    He worked out throughout the whole summer vacation. Every day, without fail. He sprinted one kilometer every morning and every evening, for the sole purpose of building his body for this one important race. Everything was for the sake of this entry exam at Riverstock Junior High, the same middle school his brother attended before.


    By beating Lars in this race, Taison would reclaim everything! He''d secure his spot in the Classmancers club and show that he''s more athletic than Lars! Even Julia would have to admit he''s better than Lars in every way!


    A dumbass like Lars was gonna fail the second round of the exam for sure. Therefore, he''d never debut in Classmancers'' competitive scene during middle school. And, he wouldn''t get in Taison''s way for the next three years.


    He''d be a nobody by the time he reached high school, a point at which competitive Classmancers was taken seriously enough to be noticed by pros. Lars was doomed for- HUH!?


    "W-What!?" Taison nearly tripped, but managed to balance himself in the last second.


    "Don''t... Don''t think you''ve won just yet!" Lars was there. He was right there, running beside Taison! How the hell!? He was lagging behind by two meters the last time Taison checked!


    [The hell!? Wasn''t he running at full speed until now!? No way! ]Taison was running at his top speed, yet Lars caught up to him! It was bonkers, yo!


    Lars was pushing it, there was no question about it. He panted like crazy and every step he took ripped his muscles apart. Yet, he wore a smile.


    What''s oxygen? What''s pain? Who needed these stupid things? Winning the race was all that mattered, yo!


    Compared to him, Taison''s face contorted. He had his hands full with just maintaining his current speed. It was the speed he gained after training for two damn months, for the sole purpose of beating Lars in this race. Yet, he was gradually falling behind.


    "Agh! Shit!" Taison cursed. Pain shot through his body each time he stepped on his right foot. Did he twist his ankle? Now, of all times!? It probably had happened when he nearly tripped a few seconds ago. Shit!


    No matter how much strength he pumped into his legs, the pain forced him to slow down. Meanwhile, Lars got farther and farther ahead.


    The finish line was less than a hundred meters away. It was over. With this leg, Taison couldn''t run anymore.


    [Is that all I''m worth? ]Taison gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. So what if he trained hard every day? Did he really think he''d easily defeat a beast like Lars with just that? Bullshit.


    He knew better than anybody how Lars overcame every hurdle. Even now, with his body on the brink of falling apart, Lars pushed forward in full throttle with a smile on his face. The ecstasy of the competition allowed him to surpass all his limits.


    It was the difference in willpower. Lars put his everything on the line to win this race, while Taison expected to be carried to victory with just the results of his training. As soon as Taison injured his leg, he gave up and started crying like some chick. It was so damn pathetic.


    [Keh! T-This shit doesn''t hurt at all! ]Taison refused to let things end like this! He didn''t train so hard just to be beaten here! Who gave a shit about some pain, yo!


    If anything, that injury was great! Only like this he could defeat Lars in the truest sense. A victory received on a silver platter was no victory at all. This was a real clash between men, a clash between fighting spirits! He had to prove that his determination didn''t lose to Lars''s! He''d win this race and secure his spot in the Classmancers club!


    In the last 50 meters of the track, Taison and Lars sprinted toward the goal shoulder to shoulder. Both of them panted and were about to break down, but both of them smiled. Nothing mattered but the goal in front of them, yo!


    "Gah... haah... shit..."


    "Heh... hah... yo..."


    Both of them were floored and couldn''t move a single muscle. The race was over. The winner was... Taison.


    [Yeah! Eat shit, yo! ]Taison wanted to laugh, but his lungs hurt like hell. This was the moment he dreamed about! At long last, he defeated Lars! [How does it feel, bro? How does it feel, yo!? Taste the same despair I''ve been experiencing for years!]


    But, there was no despair or frustration on Lars''s face. Instead, he turned toward Taison with a smile and raised his fist. "Heh, good race, dude. Let''s do it again sometime. I won''t lose again!"


    "... heh, we''ll see about that, scrub." Taison snorted and locked his fist with Lars''s. Yeah, what was he thinking? The word "despair" didn''t exist in Lars''s dictionary. No matter whether Lars won or lost, he always remained the same upbeat idiot. That''s why he was so popular with everybody.


    And that''s why Taison too... yeah, it was frustrating to admit, but he also admired Lars. He looked up to Lars just as strongly as he hated him. In truth, despite how damn salty he always got from losing to Lars, he always wanted to challenge Lars over and over again.


    When Taison was the strongest and nobody was there to rival him, it was the best feeling ever. But, it got boring fast. If Lars didn''t appear to kick Taison''s ass, Taison might had quit Classmancers by now. It was thanks to their rivalry that Taison remained so passionate about Classmancers all this time.


    By winning the race, Taison successfully secured his spot on the Classmancers club. However, by pushing himself beyond his limit to defeat Lars, he felt like he earned something way more valuable that day.

 12 The Search for Knowledge

    Yuel and Julia finished the one kilometer race without any trouble. Surprisingly, Gregory passed it with flying colors as well. Yuel and Gregory were among the least athletic kids in the world before summer break, yet they both finished this race within the top 10.


    "You sure can run." Yuel squinted his eyes.


    "So can you, kek." Gregory smirked.


    "Looks like your prediction for the first round was off. I''m still in the game."


    "Yeah, so it seems. Where did you learn of this exam anyway?"


    "Nowhere. Lars dragged me to jog with him during the summer and that''s the result. But you trained because you knew about the structure of this exam, didn''t you?"


    "Who knows." Gregory shrugged and averted his eyes. Yuel wanted to pursue this topic further, but Julia''s high-pitched voice interrupted him.


    "Eeeeh!? You lost!?" Julia nearly fainted from shock.


    "Haha, yeah." Lars scratched his head. "I was so close too! Tai did some super special training in the summer, I''m tellin'' ya."


    Lars lost? To Taison? That''s all the proof Yuel needed. Taison and Gregory definitely knew about the structure of this exam. Taison trained to steal first place, whereas Gregory trained to not get eliminated.


    "It''s thanks to Taison''s brother, isn''t it?" Yuel deduced. "I heard he''s playing competitively in high school. Assuming he also attended this school before and tried to join the Classmancers club, he surely remembers the unusual structure of this exam."


    "Yes, yes. You''re so smart. Much genius, such amazed. Jeez." Gregory got fed up with the interrogation, falling right into Yuel''s trap.


    "So, you know what''s coming next, don''t you?"


    "I don''t remember."


    "Didn''t you predict Lars will fail the 2nd round? I''m sure you have some idea."


    "You really like nitpicking, don''t you?" Gregory sighed. "Okay, I''ll tell you. There''s nothing you can do about it anyway. It''s a quiz."


    "About Classmancers?"


    "Mhm. You pick a role and they give you a quiz about it. Like the first round, you''re out if you score low. Good luck getting that idiot thought this one, kek."


    Once everybody gathered in front of Howard again, the results of the first round were announced. A total of 15 players were eliminated. Taison won first place, so he instantly passed the entry exam.


    "We''ll do the second round tomorrow." Howard announced. "You must be pooped from all this outdoor activity, right? Get some rest for today. You''ll be given the details tomorrow, but here''s a small hit: you better come prepared for some intense brain work."


    From the hint, it was almost certain Gregory didn''t lie. The next round was going be a Classmancers quiz or something similar. The questions would probably test game knowledge and decision-making. Terrible news.


    "Can you two come over today?" Yuel asked Lars and Julia.


    "I planned to, but my freakin'' body is falling apart, haha." Lars produced an awkward laugh.


    "I''m not coming either." Julia said. "I wanna take a shower and stuff."


    "It''s important." Yuel explained the situation. "It''ll probably be similar to the quizzes we get at school, except about Classmancers. I''m confident about passing, but what about you two?"


    "Depends on how hard it is." Julia shrugged.


    "L-Like a school quit?" Lars twiched. "H-Heh. Haha. Hahahahaha! No problem, yo!"


    "Really?" Yuel squinted his eyes. "How much do you usually score on exams?"


    "Heh. Welp. Ya know."


    "No, I don''t."


    "Haha! No problem!"


    "So it''s that bad. I see." Yuel frowned. Gregory was Lars''s classmate before, so if he evaluated Lars like a lost case... sigh. "I''m not sure how much we can cover in one day, but we should study some basic Classmancers material. According to Gregory, you can pick a role to be quizzed about, so let''s study about Carr-"


    "See ya tomorrow!" Lars was already all the way at the school gate.


    "Huh, you sure got there fast. I thought your body was falling apart or something?"


    "Haha, how weird! I feel amazing all of a sudden! Agh, y-yeah! All recovered!"


    "Great, it means you''ve lost your reason for not coming over."


    "Geh! Oh, I totally forgot! I had something to do today-"


    "Come on." Yuel dragged Lars away.


    "Nooooooooo! Anything but studying!!!"


    "What about you?" Yuel turned to Julia.


    "I''ll think about it after I rest a little." Julia answered. As expected, she came over an hour later. Good, everybody were assembled for a studying session.


    "First, let''s go over all item stats and effects." Yuel opened a web page listing all the items in Classmancers. "After you memorize this, we''ll-"


    "H-Hold on!" Lars cried. "I can''t do that! Memorize all that stuff? Dude, I''ve never got more than 40 on an exam! My brain isn''t made for these things!"


    "Surely you jest. Nobody could possibly be [that ]stupid."


    "Actually, I think that''s not far from the truth." Julia averted her eyes. "At least, I''ve never seen him score higher than 37."


    "That''s..." Yuel rubbed his eyes, taking his time to process this mind boggling reveal. "How is that even possible? Just what have you been doing during class?"


    "Doing Class... mancers! Haha."


    "Hilarious." Yuel sighed. He already knew Lars was the type who could only learn things via practical experience, but he had no idea things were this grave. Ugh, if only Yuel could load the web page onto a disc and shove it into Lars''s brain.


    "So anyway, let''s forget about that boring stuff and play some Classmancers!" Lars grinned and took out his tablet.


    "No." Yuel snatched the tablet. "We need to figure out how to teach you these things, or else you''re going to be eliminated this round."


    "Hey, give it back!" Lars latched onto the tablet and pulled it.


    "Ugh, let go. You won''t be able to focus with the tablet beside you."


    "You let go, dude! It''s my tablet!"


    "I''m doing this for your sake!"


    "Thanks, but no thanks!"


    The played tug of war with the tablet, both refusing to yield.


    "Seriously, are you five or something?" Julia stared at them.


    "You''re right, this is stupid." Yuel let go of the tablet.


    "W-Wah!" Lars crashed into the floor.


    "If you don''t want to study, then you can leave. The door''s over there."


    "C''mon, dude. Stop being such a stuck up." Lars forced a smile. "You wanna play too, right, July?"


    "I..." Julia paused. Her eyes shifted back and forth between Lars and Yuel, each expecting a different answer from her. It was tempting to support Lars so she could look good, but she wanted to do the right thing. "I''m... I''m going to study. W-We may be able to play later, though!"


    "Eh? You too? Stop being so boring and let''s play, my dudes!"


    "Play solo if you want to play that badly." Yuel retorted. "Unlike you, we''re trying to get into the Classmancers club. If you''re fine with failing the entry exam, then go ahead. Go play to your heart''s content."


    "Of course I also wanna get in." Lars insisited. "Who knows, maybe the exam is actually real easy and I''ll ace it. Yeah, I''m feeling it, yo! I gonna score full marks for the first time in my life!"


    "But, if it''s not an easy exam, you''re going to fail hard."


    "Welp, can''t do anything about that." Lars shrugged. "If that happens, I''ll just wait until high school to get into a club."


    "Oh, right. You wanted to get into Ivy High to play on the strongest team in the region, didn''t you?"


    "Yup, that''s the plan."


    "I hope you know they only accept students with an average grade of 70 or more."


    "Eh?" Lars blinked. a dumb smile hanging on his face. "N-No problem! If I study from now on, I''ll eventually make it!"


    "Yeah, I''m sure." Yuel sneered. "If you can''t even sit down to study Classmancers, you''ll never bother studying anything else. You''re a lost case."


    "Don''t worry, I''mma study. There''s just no point doing it today, nothing gonna change in a single day anyway."


    "You sang a very different tune when you practiced Headhunter''s headshots from morning to evening. You told me that every single day of practice made a huge difference, remember?"


    "Welp, that''s... ya know..."


    "To think you were such a quitter. Honestly, I''m disappointed." Yuel turned away from Lars. He couldn''t stand looking at that idiot anymore. "If that''s as far as you''re willing to go for Classmancers, then just leave."


    "C''mon, dude. Don''t give me that. Who knows how the exam gonna turn out! I may pass with flying colors!"


    "Or fail miserably, which is more likely. Then, you won''t be able to play in the competitive scene for the next three years."


    "Welp, that''ll suck, but it''s okay. The middle school competitive scene isn''t a huge deal anyway. Only in high school things get serious for real."


    "Ugh!" That was the last straw. "Just get the hell out!" Yuel roared.


    "Eh?" Lars froze. "H-Haha. C''mon, no need to be like tha-"


    "GET THE HELL OUT!" Yuel tossed Lars''s bag across the room. Heavy silence descended on the room.


    "Tch, okay." Lars picked his bag and stomped out of the room. The silence persisted until Lars passed through the exit and slammed the door with all his strength.


    "Dammit!" Yuel dropped on his chair and slammed on the table. Even he didn''t knew he could snap this hard. But seriously, what was that idiot thinking!? The middle school competitive scene "wasn''t a huge deal"? What happened to the Lars who always pushed forward and overcame every obstacle in his way!?


    ["Yo, dude! You and me! Let''s conquer the world of Classmancers together! We''ll form the strongest Carry and Support duo!"]


    These words were burned into Yuel''s mind and had been driving him to work his hardest. Despite how terribly unathletic he was, he exercised every other day for the sake of achieving their goal. Weren''t they practicing so they could play competitive Classmancers on the same team? How could Lars quit so easily just because of some stupid quiz!?


    ["Conquering the world of Classmancers"? What rubbish. ]He didn''t feel like it anymore. What quiz? What Classmancers? What competitive scene? Screw all that.


    Tap. Tap. Tap. Yuel noticed to the tapping sounds coming from the sofa. Julia was still sitting there, typing away on her smartphone as if nothing happened.


    "You didn''t leave?"


    "You want me to?"


    "No, I didn''t mean that."


    "Is that so." Julia didn''t even spare him a glance. She was absorbed in her phone, switching throughout a multitude of deep and complicated expressions.


    "Thanks for sticking up for me back then." Yuel said. "It must have been hard for you to oppose Lars like that."


    "Hmph, it''s not like I did it for you."


    "I know. But thanks anyway."


    "So, you chilled out?" Julia put down her phone and looked at Yuel. "You sure blew a fuse there."


    "Yeah, I... went a bit overboard." Yuel averted his eyes. Now that he thought back on it, the way he snapped was so uncharacteristic and embarrassing. "But you agree with me, right? He''s the one in the wrong,"


    "You also weren''t exactly a shining example of righteousness and stuff., you know"


    "Yeah, I''m aware. Yelling and kicking him out was immature."


    "That''s not it. You gave up on him too easily."


    "Too easily? I tried to convince him for over an hour."


    "Let''s get something straight, okay?" Julia said. "Not everybody can sit in front of a text scroll and study for hours. I''m an okay student, but even I find your suggestion dumb. Sit down and read all item descriptions? Like, are you stupid or something?"


    "That worked fine for me."


    "Wanna hear a little secret? Not everybody is like you. Instead of forcing him to do something that wouldn''t work, you should have figured another way to go about it."


    "Another way? Like what?"


    "I dunno. You''re the ''genius'' here, remember? Figure something out, dumbface. For example, there are apps like this." Julia flipped her phone, showing a Classmancers quiz app. She cleared 16 questions in a row on her previous run, pretty impressive. "You can even win some gold and skins if you link your account. It''s really dope."


    "Yes, that really sounds neat." Yuel nodded. "But, you saw how he is. How long do you think this app can keep him motivated?"


    "Not for too long, I guess." Julia shrugged. "But that''s just an example, I''m saying there are alternatives and stuff. You just gotta figure something that works for Lars. Didn''t he pull your sorry ass when you tried quitting jogging?"


    "That''s... Yes, you''re right." Yuel completely forgot about it. When he just started jogging, it was exhausting and painful. He wanted to quit so many times. But, Lars was always there to pull him back. No matter how much he ranted or tried to run away, Lars never gave up on him.


    Because of that, Yuel upheld his jogging routine to this very day. That''s the only reason he passed the first round of the entry exam, with flying colors no less. He only passed because Lars refused to give up on him, no matter.


    Everybody had an Achilles'' heel or two. For Yuel it was exercising and for Lars it was studying. What kind of friend would he be if he abandoned Lars now!?


    Yuel jumped from his chair and rushed toward the door. "I''m stepping out for a moment, please look after the house for me."


    "If I feel like it." Julia shrugged, already absorbed in solving more quiz questions.


    "Thanks, for everything. I almost commited an unrecoverable mistake there."


    "Hmph. Just go already, dumbass. If you don''t bring him back, I''mma kick you in the balls."


    "Heh, deal." Yuel darted out of the room. Lars left a few minutes ago, so Yuel would have chase. Hopefully, Lars didn''t get too far-


    "Ah." Yuel was dumbfounded after opening the door. Lars was right there, he never left.


    "Y-Yo! Haha..." Lars waved with an awkward smile on his face. "Long time no see, haha..."


    Silence lingered for a while. They avoided looking into each other''s eyes, both embarrassed about their earlier conduct. In the end, it was Yuel who broke the standstill.


    "Sorry, I snapped back there."


    "Nah, I also acted like a prick." Lars scratched his head. "I talked all big about playing competitively, but look how I bailed out. So lame."


    "It''s fine. Everybody have a weakness or two." Yuel stretched his hand. "We''ll just need to figure something out together."


    "Y-You..." Lars raised his hand for a handshake, but his whole arm trembled. "You... You''re the best dude ever!"


    "Ugh!?"


    "Thanks for sticking around with an idiot like me!" Lars wrapped his arms around Yuel and gave him an intense hug.


    "Y-Yeah, I got it already. You can let go now." Yuel tried to wiggle his way out, but he failed to free himself from Lars''s strong arms. His ears burned. Ugh, it''s so embarrassing! And his bones were going to be crushed at this rate! Uuuuugh!


    "... what are you two doing, exactly?"


    "Ugh! N-Nothing!" Yuel pushed himself away from Lars. "W-We just made up, right?"


    "Yep, we''re best buds again." Lars grinned and wrapped his arm around Yuel''s shoulders.


    "Hmmmm." Julia squinted her eyes and stared at them. She stared at Yuel in particular, as if saying "I''ll kick you in the balls for this, retard!"


    After they made up, Lars returned to Yuel''s room. However, the main problem was still unresolved: How was Lars going to study for the quiz?


    As Julia pointed out, no matter how much determination Lars mustered, it wouldn''t matter as long as the studying method wasn''t right for him. For Lars, learning things by reading wouldn''t do anything. It''d be a miracle if he didn''t fry his brain after just 2 minutes.


    Things had always been this way with Lars. No matter what Classmacners advice Yuel gave him, it always went in one ear and out the other. Words alone didn''t mean much for Lars, he was all about practical experience.


    Therefore, whenever Lars got killed due to something silly, Yuel poured salt on his wounds by pointing out his mistakes. Likewise, whenever Lars made a strong play thanks to prior preparation, Yuel mentioned the fine details which made that play possible. Only like this, step by step, Lars gained his current level of game knowledge and decision-making in Classmancers.


    "Let''s go into practice mode." Yuel said. "Instead of reading about the items, just try them out yourself."


    "Oh, that''s smart! I''ll het to both study and play Classmancers! You''re a genius!" Lars grinned and grabbed his tablet.


    The three of them prepared for the quiz until late into the night. They played around with item builds, simulated interesting combat scenarios, tried quiz apps and much more. As long as Lars was stimulated by the activity, he managed to pick up new things.


    In the end, they mostly studied material related to the Carry and Mid roles. Yuel didn''t have any time to go over anything related to Support, but that''s fine. He was certain he''d pass the quiz, so his top priority was to pull Lars and Julia through.


    On the next day, the quiz was announced just as Gregory informed them. Each candidate picked a role to be tested on and had an hour to answer 20 multiple choice questions. The 15 candidates with the lowest score would be eliminated, whereas the candidate with the highest score would immediately pass the entry exam. In case of a tie for first place, the tied candidates would have to duke it out in a 1v1 Classmancers match.


    "I hope you studied well." Gregory smirked as he picked up a quiz sheet for Support. "You won''t beat me If you don''t get a perfect score, kek."


    "I assume so." Yuel shrugged as he also picked a quiz paper for Support. "What matters most is that Lars and Julia survive this round."


    "Kek, trying to play the nice guy? I know you only care about getting first place yourself."


    "Is that so." Yuel turned away and took his seat. He had no intention competing with Gregory here. Of course, he wanted to get first place if he could. But, that wasn''t the most important thing on his mind right now.


    [What''s with him?] Gregory grumped as he dropped on his chair. The Yuel he knew from before summer break would had grabbed any opportunity to compete in Classmancers'' game knowledge. Yuel knew virtually everything there was to know about the game and always found it necessary to shove his superior knowledge into others'' faces.


    Gregory wasn''t a mechanically skilled player, so he relied on strategy and game knowledge to get results. He learned various strong synergies between classes and played them with Taison. It worked great. Taison was a skilled Carry, so Gregory only had combo with him to win.


    Even after Lars surpassed Taison in mechanical skill, Gregory and Taison kept defeating him, no matter who was his Support. That is, until Yuel came into the picture. Even though Cryomancer had good synergy with Lars''s Trickshooter, Yuel opted for Paladin. An unremarkable pick, at first glance.


    However, said Paladin shut down Gregory''s Cleric and Taison''s Pirate. Single-handedly, thoroughly and without mercy. They were stripped of all their advantages and were handed to Lars on a silver platter. It was so triggering,


    "The hell was that shit!?" Taison raged hard. "You totally fell for his crap, yo!"


    "And so did you, when you summoned Kraken into his Aegis, kek." Gregory sneered.


    "Damn! What we gonna do against that shit!?"


    "Relax, man. Don''t lose your shit over a cheap trick like that." Gregory shrugged. "He caught us off guard, but now we know how he plays. We just gotta kill him before the next team fight, or at least bait Justice Strike outta him."


    After agreeing on their countermeasure, Taison focused on Yuel while clearing minions. Yuel already went out of his way to tank Taison''s shots to prevent last hits on minions, so he was an easy prey. Taison merely had to play a little more aggressively than before and land more hits on that pesky Paladin.


    "Alright, I almost got that bastard!" Taison grinned once Yuel''s HP fell below 20%. "Now I''mma make him retreat with one cannon shot, yo!"


    "No, wait-"


    It was too late. Taison fired Backfire Cannon to finish Yuel off, except it didn''t work out as he planned. As if waiting for this exact moment, Yuel activated Divine Shield and absorbed the cannon shot. Not only did Divine Shield completely negate the absorbed skill shot''s damage, but it also restored HP proportionally to the the absorbed skill shot''s power.


    With that play, Yuel regained a large portion of his missing health and continued harassing them on the lane. No matter how hard they tried, they couldn''t chase him away. He retreated to his Golem a few times, but soon returned after healing up with potions and his high HP regeneration stat.


    That pesky Yuel was prepared for anything they threw his way. It''s as if he knew from the begining how they were going to fight him. Nah, that was impossible, right? Gregory refused to believe such nonsense at the time.


    The second team fight started outta nowhere, with Yuel hitting Taison with Justice Strike. Shit! They didn''t play around it at all! They were so sure Yuel was gonna keep Justice Strike as a counter for Arise after how the first team fight went down.


    "Damn! What the hell!?" Taison roared. He found himself right in the enemy''s face, with his escape tool sealed. And if that wasn''t shitty enough, Lars followed up with Trickshow and totally owned Taison.


    "Wait, that''s actually good for us." Gregory pointed out. "You died, but you baited Justice Strike out of him. Now I can just revive you like usual."


    "Oh, right! Yeah! Do that, bro!"


    "Sure." Gregory activated Arise and fired a magical ball of revival toward Taison''s dead body. This team fight started with a hiccup for them, but they could still turn it around once Taison returned. He still had Kraken, so they could... wut?


    For some reason, Yuel stepped in front of the approaching ball of revival. What, he tried to bodyblock it or something? Pft, that shit didn''t work. What a scrub, any noob knew that... Huh? Divine Shield? Why did Yuel waste his Divine Shield here, without any damaging skill shots flying his way?


    Then it happened. The magical ball of revival hit Yuel''s Divine Shield... and got absorbed into it!? The freakin'' hell!? It actually worked that way!? Sure, Arise was technically sorta kinda a "skill shot" in a sense, but... but it wasn''t a damaging skill shot or anything! Why was it blocked like this!?


    "You gotta be shitting me..." That''s when Gregory lost it as well. Yuel played them for fools twice in a row, as if they were some nobodies who tried Classmancers for the first time.


    Gregory studied tons of shit related to Classmancers, but most of it was about the strongest class synergies. Classmancers was supposed to be all about class synergies and teamwork, or so he thought until now. But it''s wrong, he was forced to learn that the hard way. Countering enemy classes was just as, if not more, important.


    Gregory''s whole world view was flipped on its head that day. There was much more to the game than he initially thought and Yuel realized that way sooner than him. As a fellow player who relied on game knowledge to deliver results, Gregory felt inferior to that walking encyclopedia in every way.


    That''s why he planned to win against Yuel by getting into the Classmancers club. Yuel was supposed to be eliminated in the first round, while Gregory was gonna ace the quiz and get instantly admitted into the club. Kek, it''d teach that know-it-all scrub a good lesson.


    However, shit didn''t go as planned. By a stroke of luck, Yuel survived the first round. To get first place, Gregory now had to beat Yuel''s score in this second round. What a pain in the butt.


    But, it actually wasn''t all bad. It was Gregory''s chance to show how much he improved over the summer. He researched counter picks, counter builds, farm denial tactics and every goddamn counter bullshit that existed in the game. Everything for the sake of surpassing Yuel''s level of game knowledge.


    And if all that effort wasn''t going to do the trick, Taison''s brother also printed him some quiz examples for this second round. On top of everything else, Gregory thoroughly studied the topics covered in these quiz examples.


    Therefore, there was no chance he''d be beaten. Rather than running away from the challenge, he wanted to test himself against that walking encyclopedia. That''s why he tipped Yuel about the quiz. He was certain that, even with one day of studying, Yuel wouldn''t be able to ace this quiz.


    [Kek, I''mma win this shit for sure. ]Gregory finished the quiz before everybody else and handed it over, brimming with confidence. Most of the questions appeared in the prints he received from Taison''s brother, this shit was a walk in the park.


    On the following day, the results of the quiz were posted. As expected, Gregory grabbed first place. Nobody rivaled his perfect score of 100 points, so he instantly passed the exam. He did it, he surpassed everybody. He surpassed Yuel!


    "Kek, I take it you''re second place?" Gregory asked.


    "Yes." Yuel nodded. "It seems I''ve made two errors."


    "Huh, you even had a whole day to prepare. The heck you''ve been doing?"


    "I didn''t have time to review things myself, had my hands full with teaching Lars and Julia."


    "Huh? Lars? You seriously think that monkey can pass this quiz? I''m telling you, dude hasn''t gotten a passing mark from the day he was born, kek. You wasted your time."


    "Yeah, he was a handful alright." Yuel nodded with a wry smile. "But, we''ll see whether it was really a waste of time."


    "And you''re okay with that?" Gregory frowned "You may have tied me for first place if you studied more."


    "Perhaps, but it''s alright." Yuel said. "I''ll just pass the rest of the exam and the result will be the same."


    "Kek, don''t tell me you were too scared to go up against me."


    "Go against you? Never even crossed my mind. No matter how much I study, it''d be difficult to beat somebody who prepared for this exam for months.".


    "Making excuses now?"


    "Not really. I''m just saying that even a monkey could ace this exam if it had all the answers ahead of time."


    "Wha-!?" Gregory''s face contorted. That shithead was totally looking down on him! And, worse of all, Gregory found it difficult to retort. After all, he really solved most of these questions before he even got the quiz. He really had a shit ton of advantage in the quiz.


    "Tch." Gregory clicked his tongue. "So, you aren''t tilted at all after losing to me, is that what you''re saying?"


    "Yes, because it doesn''t matter. We''ll know for sure who is the superior Support once we compete for the role in the club."


    "Heh, that''s fair." Gregory found himself genuinely smiling, not just sarcastically smirking like usual. Even though he originally wished for Yuel''s elimination in the first round, he realized that wouldn''t had given him a true closure. Even after beating Yuel in the second round, he still felt hollow due to his unfair advantage. That wasn''t what he really wanted.


    "Heh, make sure you pass the next round then." Gregory said. "Otherwise, we can''t settle this shit."


    "Of course." Yuel nodded. "Anyway, I''m off to see how Lars fared."


    "I''ll tag along. Wanna see how hard he failed, kek."


    They found Lars in the crowd and approached him. His head was hanging and his shoulders trembled. Oh man, he totally blew it, didn''t he?


    "I... I got last place..." Lars mumbled. After all his hard work yesterday, that''s as far as he got. "I... I got last place outta everybody who passed! I did it, yo! You''re the best teacher, dude!"


    "Alright, I got it already." Yuel dodged an incoming hug with an irritated look, but he secretly smiled. He may had missed the opportunity to secure his place in the Classmancers club, but he didn''t regret it. More so than just playing competitively, what he truly wanted was to play competitively together with Lars. Lars''s success in the exam far outweighed Yuel''s failure to score first place.


    With that, the second round was over. Yuel, Lars and Julia proceeded to the third and final round of the entry exam.

 13 Unexplained Tactics

    The third and final round of the entry exam was announced. If not for Taison and Gregory cheating their way through the first rounds, Yuel and Lars could had already passed the whole exam by now. Alas, they and Julia had to survive yet another round in order to be pass.


    "Rejoice." Howard grinned. "In the last round, we''re letting you play some Classmancers. ''About damn time'', right? Haha."


    "Heh, really about damn time." Lars nodded. "Bring it on, yo!"


    "You''re too loud." Yuel retorted. However, despite his calm facade, Yuel shared Lars''s enthusiasm. Bring it on, yo! ...he wasn''t the type to go so gang-ho, but right now he had the urge to blurt such silly words as well.


    After all, this was going to be the first time they''d test themselves against other strong players. They were about to fight face-to-face with others who aimed for the competitive scene. It was time to see how strong they had grown throughout summer break. How much stronger would their opponents be compared Platinum division in Ranked? He couldn''t wait!


    "You''ll be randomly divided into pairs." Howard explained. "In each pair, the two players will be playing against each other in the 5v5 draft mode, just like how it''s done in Ranked and competitive matches. Aim for the win, but keep in mind that winning doesn''t guarantee anything on its own. You''ll be playing with members from our club on the same team and we''re going to closely monitor your performance. We''ll grade you for every little thing you do, so no pressure, haha. The top three players will pass the exam."


    Due to the large amount of remaining candidates, the third round was scheduled to take place over a couple of days. Yuel was scheduled for the first day, whereas Lars and Julia were scheduled for the second day.


    Before long, Yuel''s turn came around.


    "Welcome." The club''s captain, Aron, greeted him.


    "H-Hi." Yuel gulped. Sweat formed on his forehead. He was invited into a room with four upperclassmen, one of which was the very captain of the Classmancers club. All of them were going to monitor his performance, like predators eying a defenseless prey. Each move was going to be analyzed, every twitch was going to be judged. Gulp.


    "Relax, we don''t bite." A cheery guy threw Yuel a smile. "You''re playing Support, right? I''m your lane partner, Trever." He jumped from the chair and shook Yuel''s hand. " Nice to meetcha!"


    "Likewise." Yuel''s trembling stopped. Something about Trever''s demeanor was oddly relaxing.


    "If you''re ready, let''s begin." Aron said. "We''ll be playing in the draft format, the way it''s done in Ranked and official matches. Any experience with that?"


    "I''m Platinum II." Yuel stated boldly.


    "Wow! That''s sick!" Trever jumped, nearly falling off his chair.


    "That''s indeed rare." Aron nodded. "Not many come to middle school with that level of experience. In fact, that''s why the first two rounds exist. I remember you questioned the first round, right? Long story short, it helps us discover inexperienced players with potential."


    "I see." Yuel nodded. It didn''t even cross his mind that he and his friends were "irregulars", or that applying to the Classmancers club without experience was more common. Though, thinking back on it, that should had been obvious, considering how few kids took Classmancers seriously in grade school.


    Yuel sat down where he was instructed, sandwiched between Aron and Trever. The rest of the team briefly greeted him as well, but it was clear Aron and Trever were going to be responsible for monitoring and grading him. Gulp. [No, relax. Breathe.]


    "Alright, we''re starting." Aron announced as he finished inviting everybody to a custom match. The enemy team had a similar lineup: one examinee and four club members. In order keep the exam as fair as possible, Yuel wasn''t given any information about the enemy examinee. He only overheard that the guy''s name was Mark, but that''s all.


    "We''re starting the banning phase." Aron turned to Yuel. "Who do you recommend banning?"


    Obviously, this wasn''t Aron asking for advice. The test had already started and this was the first questions. However, Yuel didn''t feel much pressure. He was always responsible for deciding the bans for the team when they played Ranked, so he was confident about this.


    "Do I have any information about the enemy team?" Yuel asked. "I know you said this is supposed to be a blind match to keep everything fair, but can I at least know what to expect from the enemy''s level? Are they Gold? Platinum? Or, maybe Diamond?"


    "You''re saying your ban choices will change depending on the ranks of your opponents?" Aron asked.


    "Of course, the meta varies across ranks. The difference are more subtle on higher ranks, but they''re still there."


    "Wow, wow." Trever nodded repeatedly, wearing an amused smile. "You''re really taking this stuff super uber seriously, kid."


    [Who are you calling ''kid''? You''re only two years older than me, at most. ]Yuel pouted.


    "And that''s how it should be." Aron shot a glare at Trever. "Smart banning and class selection go a long way, you''re about the only one who never bothers with it. I''d appreciate it if you didn''t infect our rookies with your stupidity."


    "Haha, I got scolded~" Trever rolled his eyes and scratched his head. "I dunno, man. Just gimme something I can play and I''mma wreck these guys!"


    "You''re a lost case." Aron sighed.


    [Oh, he''s just like Lars.] Yuel finally realized why Trever''s goofy demeanor helped him relax. Lars went about drafting exactly the same way: ["You decide what we play and I''mma smash these dudes, yo!"]. And so, drafting became Yuel''s responsibility in their party. Trever played Carry as well, so there must had been some unwritten rule saying that strong Carries had to be idiots.


    "Back on topic." Aron said. "You may assume the enemy team has a combination of Platinum and Diamond players."


    "And that they''re a full team premade, correct?"


    "Yes, that''s fair."


    "Whoa, even that matters?" Trever made a face.


    "Of course it matters." Yuel answered. "I need to be wary of different types of strategies, depending on how organized the enemy team is. Premades of duo and trio tend to pick specific classes which synergize with each other, because they want to execute combos together. On the other hand, full team premades generally go for more global team strategies. I have to ban accordingly for each case."


    "Ugh! My brain! It''s fried!" Trever dramatically held his head.


    "Ignore that idiot. You have the right mindset" Aron said. "So, who are we banning?"


    "Since we''re banning first, there''s only one option really." Yuel said. "Ban Shadow Walker."


    "Haha, didn''t see that one coming." Trever laughed.


    "A good start." Aron noded and banned Shadow Walker. It was currently the only tier S class in the game, so it was an instant ban in effectively every match.


    The banning proceeded smoothly, with Yuel shutting down strong options for the enemy team. He gathered all the drafting experience he accumulated throughout the summer and unleashed it on the enemy team.


    "They seem to going for an early game comp." Yuel explained. "They haven''t picked Top yet, so I consider banning Dark Knight and Viking."


    "Sounds good."


    "Also, I''ll go with Druid to compensate for Ranger''s shortcomings. The shield will allow him to play more aggressively and the ult will help him push. And, not to mention the ''pull into trap'' combo."


    "Makes sense. Not bad." Aron nodded for the hundredth time. So far, he didn''t have a single word of objection against Yuel''s draft choices. In fact, he even picked up some new things by listening to Yuel''s in depth explanations. Honestly, it was hard to tell who was the examiner and who was the examinee right now.


    "Pft, poor Aron." Trever chuckled. "Taking jabs at people is about the only thing he enjoys in life, but you totally shut him up, kid."


    "I don''t take jabs at people for fun, you know." Aron frowned. "I point out my teammates'' mistakes so they can correct them, that''s what a captain does. It just so happens that you''re one big walking mistake."


    "Ouch, rude. Haha."


    Once drafting was over, the match began. Yuel played Druid Support in Bot Lane together with Trever, who played Ranger Carry. Aron played Lionfolk, a humanoid lion, as a Jungler. The three of them started off in the same portion of the jungle to clear some jungle camps, then went separate ways. Yuel and Trever headed to Bot Lane, whereas Aron went to Top Jungle.


    Yuel laid low during the first couple of minutes. He closely observed both his lane partner and his lane opponents: Pirate and Paladin. Both his allies and enemies were likely in the Diamond division, if not higher. Since this match doubled as a test, he didn''t want to pull anything rush before properly assessing everybody''s skill.


    He only warded around and helped Trever clearing minions. Whenever the enemy Paladin aggressed on Trever by silencing him with Justice Strike, Yuel countered by casting Gaia''s Protection on Trever. The spell provided Trever with a temporary, but sizable, shield. It soaked a lot of the damage dealt by the enemy Pirate, rendering the aggression void..


    As the enemies were forced to first chip away at Gaia''s Protection to actually damage Trever, the battle became unfavorable for them and they disengaged. In this manner, Yuel forze the enemy''s progress on the lane.


    However, Trever took these situations a step further. While his shield was still on, he stepped into the frontline and oppress his lane opponents. There was no need to worry about being a squishy, because Gaia''s Protection soaked all the damage for him.


    [I didn''t even need to say anything. He''s good. ]Yuel nodded to himself. Bossing a senior around was going to be awkward, but Trever spared Yuel from that. Trever knew exactly how to take advantage of Gaia''s Protection. He approached close enough to harass the enemies, but also stayed far enough away to quickly flee once the shield ended.


    The enemy Pirate never dealt well with such aggression. Whenever Trever went on the offense, the Pirate haphazardly shot at him instead of retreating, a fatal mistake. Trever had a clear advantage while the shield was on, so the Pirate got boxed hard.


    Even though Trever didn''t showcase any godlike mechanical skill like Lars, he was definitely a strong Carry player. His decisions were swift and his moves brimmed with confidence, telling of his vast experience. Despite how absurdly strong Lars was in fights, there was a good chance Trever could hold his ground against that mechanical god. Perhaps Trever would even win, considering the large gap in experience and decision-making skills.


    "Do you play Carry on the main team?" Yuel asked.


    "Heh, impressed?" Trever grinned. "I used to be the main Carry, but now I''m just a substitute."


    "Really?" Yuel blinked. "Someone of your skill doesn''t cut it to be a starter?"


    "Haha, you sure know how to flatter your seniors, kiddo! I like ya!" Trever smacked Yuel on back.


    "Ugh..."


    "But yeah, turned out I don''t quite cut it. Seems like everybody think I''m no match for our goddess."


    "Goddess?"


    "Heh, you''ll see if you get into the club." Trever smiled wryly. "But yeah, what can I say? All these scums stole the roles I can play, so I''m just a substitute now. Howard plays crazy Support and Aron is the boss, so he gets to play Jungler even though he sucks-"


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Who you said sucks?" Aron asked.


    "Haha, nice kill, bro."


    "If you want to be a starter again, you better stop fooling around and practice one role seriously. There''s a mountain of problems with how you play each role."


    "Yeah, yeah. But hey, at least Yuel here appreciates my skill, right?"


    "I''m having second thoughts after hearing this conversation." Yuel said.


    "Geh! Damn you, Aron! Don''t ruin my image in front of the newbie!" Trever waved an angry fist. "Here, I''mma show you what I can do! Don''t fall off your chairs from shock! Quick gimme a shield!"


    "Here you go."


    "Okay, let''s go!" Trever dashed toward the enemy Pirate. He wasn''t going to just harass the enemy this time, he went straight for the kill! The Pirate was slow in reacting to this overwhelming aggression and got trashed.


    However, Trever failed to finish the job. The Paladin did an extraordinary job protecting his partner. He stepped in between the fleeing Pirate and Trever, body blocking arrows and drawing Trever away.


    "Gah! Damn you too, Howard!" Trever waved a fist at the Paladin on the monitor.


    "No problem, I''ll pull him back." Yuel expected the Paladin''s interference, so he positioned himself just right for using Nature''s Grasp. Branches stretched from the Druid''s arm and darted toward the fleeing Pirate.


    Nature''s Grasp was a narrow skill shot, which was difficult to confirm amidst chaotic action. However, this Pirate''s sloppy movements were easy to predict. Yuel had thoroughly deconstructed the Pirate''s playstyle by now, so landing Nature''s Grasp was possible via prediction.


    The branches were aimed a bit ahead of the running Pirate, to where he was going to be in just a second. It was definitely going to hit. The Pirate ran straight toward the incoming branches-


    "What!?" Yuel couldn''t believe his eyes. His perfect shot... it was blocked?! For some reason the Paladin was right there, with his Divine Shield active. Why? How? When did he even get there!?


    Nature''s Grasp could pass through most obstacles, even walls, but it still counted as a "skill shot" for the Paladin''s Divine Shield. Therefore, it was stopped it in its tracks once it rammed into Divine Shield. Yuel was shut down.


    [So, this is Howard. ]Yuel bit his lip. Based on what Trever blurted, Howard was the team''s main Support player. In other words, he was the rival Yuel had to surpass in order to get a spot on the main team. And, he was strong, Very strong.


    If that''s the level expected from club members, Yuel couldn''t only play by the book to passing the exam. Putting on a "decent Support" performance by playing safe wasn''t necessarily going to cut it. This wasn''t the time to lollygag.


    "Forget the Pirate for now, let''s wear out the Paladin first." Yuel suggested. "Just go full damage on the Paladin whenever you can."


    "Focusing the tank? I''m not so sure about that." Trever cocked his head.


    "Suppose you draw away the Paladin, what''s next?" Aron asked in a businesslike tone. He turned Yuel''s suggestion into a test question without batting an eye.


    Giving the wrong answer would cost Yuel dearly, but he had to trust his analysis. This wasn''t just an exam, it was also a match for all intents and purposes. Right, it was a match. Just a match. No reason to be nervous. None at all. None!


    "Alright." Yuel took a deep breath. "Correct me if I''m wrong, but that Paladin is Howard and he''s a starter on the team."


    "You shouldn''t know this, but I suppose it can''t be helped when there''s a bubbling idiot on the team." Aron made a face as he eyed Trever. "Alright, let''s say you have this information. What''s next?"


    "Howard is good enough to be a starter, so it''s hard to compete against his supporting head on." Yuel explained. "However, that Pirate is the other examinee, right? I believe his name was Mark."


    "Why do you think so?"


    "He''s kind of sloppy. I''ve been watching the whole enemy team, and, out of everybody, only the Pirate doesn''t strike me as a high level player. Hard to believe somebody like him got into such a serious club."


    "Hmm, you''re using a lot of metagaming that''s based on knowledge you''re not supposed to have. Not sure how to feel about it." Aron frowned. "It''s precisely because of things like this that we wanted to keep the information secret."


    "Ah, that''s..." Yuel gulped. He blurted all his findings without thinking things through, like an excited child who wanted to show off to his parents. "N-No problem. I figured everything based on what I''ve observed throughout the match. If this were Ranked, I''d say instead that the Pirate feels like a Silver player who got matched with Diamonds."


    "Alright, fair enough." Aron nodded. "Then, what''s your plan?"


    "While Trever has a shield, he can safely harras the Paladin and wear him out. Once we drive away the ''Diamond rank'' Paladin, the ''Silver rank'' Pirate will be left alone on the lane. That''ll create a great opportunity to finish him off, considering the skill difference I''ve observed between the Pirate and Trever."


    "Interesting. It''s not conventional, but it has some thought behind it. You''re free to try it, but keep in mind: we''ll deduct points if this doesn''t work out. Willing to take the risk?"


    "Yes, please." There wasn''t a speck of hesitation in Yuel''s eyes.


    "Very well. Play along with it."


    "Roger!" Trever saluted with a grin. After listening to Yuel''s convincing analysis of the situation, especially the part where his skill was super duper highly evaluated, Trever found himself excited about this play. "This kid sure knows how to recognize talent, I like it!"


    As instructed, Trever prioritized attacking the Paladin, Howard, whenever he had the chance. To not be too obvious about it, he first shot the Pirate and that ''naturally'' lured Howard toward the frontline. Then, he barraged Howard without rest while wearing a crazed grin. [Ha! That''s what you deserve for getting in the way of my kill, bro!]


    When struck enough times, even a tank was bound to crumble. At 10% HP, without potions or healing skills, Howard was forced to leave. He and the Pirate first retreated back to their Turret, then Howard teleported back to base.


    "Now, please place a bear trap at the entrance to the jungle, right here." Yuel pinged on the mini-map.


    "There?" Trever cocked his head. "I don''t see anybody ganking us from there anytime soon, kid. I didn''t level Bear Trap to Lv.2, so I can only place one trap at a time. The trap that''s placed right now should protect us way better."


    "It''s not for defense, it''s for offense. The Pirate will soon pass through here on his way to the Hyena Camp, so the trap will stun him. That''s when you finish him off."


    "What makes you believe he''ll go into the jungle any time soon?" Aron took a peek at Yuel''s screen to assess the situation. "From what I can tell, he''s already running low on health. Once he finishes the next wave, it''ll be a good time for him to return to base. Why are you so convinced he''ll take the risk to clear hyenas afterwards? It''s not a camp with particularly high rewards."


    "He... well..." Yuel stumbled over his words. He was confident in his reasoning, but he struggled to explain it. If the plan to drive away the Paladin was considered "unconventional", then this one was outright "random". He couldn''t explain it with something straightoward like "difference in skill level".


    He had to think back. Why was the Pirate going to head into the jungle through that entrance? How did Yuel reach this conclusion in the first place? The answer was on the tip of his tongue, but he failed to draw it out.


    "He''ll go there, I''m sure. Because... Err..." Yuel began sweating. The curious gazes locked on him forced him to remember a dreadful fact: this was an exam! He wasn''t going to get away with plays only he understood, every twitch he made was going to be questioned. And, if he couldn''t answer properly, that''d reflect poorly on his evaluation. It might even cost him the chance to join the club! "A-Actually, nevermind. I-"


    "It''s okay. Relax, kid." Trever patted Yuel''s back. "Here, I placed the trap where you want. Don''t pay attention to that scary demon on your left, haha."


    "Oh... thanks." Yuel was dumbfounded. It was so unexpected, he didn''t even know what to say. All this time he felt awkward asking seniors to follow his plans, but apparently Trever didn''t mind that much. That helped Yuel relax.


    "Why did you agree?" Aron turned to interrogate Trever. "Unless there''s a very convincing reason to place the trap all the way out there, you''re right in your assessment - it''s be waste of the trap."


    "I know, I know." Trever nodded. "But hey, it''s not like anybody gonna gank us from behind anytime soon anyway."


    "You''re right, it''s not a risky play. But, that doesn''t mean it''s a [good ]play."


    "Well, hasn''t this kid been pretty smart so far? I''m sure he has a good reason for suggesting this move." Trever shrugged. "You''re just stressing the shit outta him with all your questions. May as well ask him why he''s breathing and what''s the meaning of life."


    "Hmm, I see." Aron frowned and turned to Yuel. "Sorry if I came off too forceful. It''s just that many of your decisions are difficult to evaluate, so it''s not immediately clear where you''re coming from. I don''t meant to complain, but you''re one tough examinee to grade."


    "It''s alright, you''re just doing your job." Yuel said. "It''s my fault for not being able to provide a satisfying explanation. I just always think a few steps ahead, my chess teacher beat that mentality into me. The moment I come to a convincing conclusion, I move on to analyze other things."


    "So, once you''ve convinced yourself of something, you no longer find any need to recall what convinced you in the first place? Is that what you''re saying?"


    "Yes, something like that. I know it sounds a bit silly, but that''s how it is for me." Yuel smiled wryly, thinking back on all the times this habit caused communication problems with other kids. "I can feel the explanation on the tip of my tongue, I just can''t draw it out."


    "Hmm, interesting. I take it you''re used to having others follow your instructions without asking too many questions?"


    "Yes, you could say that. I''ve been playing with friends who trust my strategies, so they generally do as I ask..." Yuel fell quiet. Lars and Julia always unquestionably followed Yuel''s advice, so became used to not explaining anything. Now, that he was surrounded by a team of strangers, that habit fired back.


    "I see." Aron said. "Work on fixing that habit, especially if you plan to be a shot caller for the team."


    "Bleh, here comes the nitpicker again." Trever made a face. "Give the kid a break already."


    "It''s fine." Yuel said. "Aron is right, it''s hard to get others to cooperate when I can''t convince them with a good reason. I need to work on that."


    "See?" Aron turned to Trever. "Not everybody is a delicate flower like you. This rookie here is already a more mature player than you."


    Trever planned shooting a snarky retort, but a metallic sound interrupted him. That was the sound of his bear trap going off. The Pirate tried going into the jungle and got trapped, just as Yuel predicted.


    "Hey! The kid was actually right!" Trever darted toward the trapped Pirate, like a predator leaping on a defenseless prey. Getting caught in the trap stunned the Pirate, lowered his defense and buffed Trever''s attack speed. Therefore, Trever barraged the Pirate without fearing retaliation.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Heh, easy!" Trever grinned. "Good call there, rookie!"


    [Did he just promote me from "kid to "rookie"?] Yuel made a face.


    "So it worked." Aron stared at Yuel''s screen with a complicated expression. "Just wondering, have you perhaps recalled your reasons for making this play?"


    "Actually, I''ve just remembered the gist of it." Yuel said. After he watched his plan play out in action, he finally managed to reconstruct his earlier deductions. Or, perhaps he already knew the explanation this whole time, but was afraid to share it before it was proven correct. Either way, he no longer felt any mental blocks, so he was ready to lay out his reasoning.


    At the basis of his reasoning stood major assumption: the Pirate was going to clear the Hyena Camp instead of returning to base. Yuel deduced so after closely watching how the Pirate behaved while running low on HP. Three out of three times, instead of returning to base, the Pirate first cleared the nearby Hyena Camp. Yuel saw it each and every time, because he always renewed the Ward near that camp.


    Thus, it became clear that the player playing Pirate hated losing farm. When it came to base stats, Pirate was inferior to other Carry classes and had to make up for it by earning gold faster with his passive, Plunder. As such, maximizing gold income was very important for Pirate players. However, sometimes, this a mentality turned into a habit, and habits could be exploited.


    In addition, that Pirate was most likely the examinee. In other words, he wasn''t a very experienced player, his sloppy plays attested to that. Therefore, there was no chance he''d consider the possibility he was spied on with a Ward, or that a bear trap awaited him along his favorite jungle route.


    "The ''gist of it'' my ass. You gave us a full lecture here, haha!" Trever laughed. "No wonder you wanted to wipe all that crap outta your brain, even a supercomputer can''t hold that much data, I''m telln'' ya. Well anyway, I hope that''s enough ''reasons'' for ya, Mr. Explain-the-Universe."


    "It''s alright." Aron said.


    "Bleh, will it kill ya to give a little compliment sometimes?"


    "The plan played out well, but the reasoning is a tad shallow. There aren''t any logical flaws in the reasoning itself, but neither does it feel decisive. At the very least, I wouldn''t gamble on it."


    "It''s not a fluke, if that''s what you''re implying." Yuel argued. "But, I understand where you''re coming from. Many of my arguments don''t sound very convincing on paper. Therefore, let me convince you through results."


    He felt way more relaxed and confident now. So what if this was an exam? So what if his opponents were competitive Diamond players? His usual analysis and tactics worked just as well as ever. He could do it, there was no reason to stop here.


    "The Pirate respawned by now." Yuel announced. "And, he''ll definitely pass through the Hyena Camp on his way to lane." He explained as he placed a Ward deep inside the Hyena Camp. It was an inefficient warding spot, as walls blocked most of the Ward''s vision and not much of the enemy jungle was exposed. However, the Ward provided full vision of what was going on inside the Hyena Camp itself, down to the position of each individual hyena.


    "Please place your trap near the wall here." Yuel pinged on the map, marking the wall separating between the lane and the Hyena Camp.


    "Roger." Trever nodded and placed a bear trap right beside the wall. "Hehe, let''s see what gonna happen."


    As Yuel predicted, the Pirate rushed to the Hyena Camp before heading to lane. It wasn''t a bad play per se, since Howard was already on the lane, dealing with minions. However, it was a predictable play, and Yuel was going to exploit said predictability in order to turn the play into a fatal mistake.


    Once the Pirate started fighting the hyenas, Yuel approached the jungle wall and took aim. He activated Nature''s Grasp, shooting his branches through the wall. The unsuspecting Pirate''s exact position was revealed by Yuel''s Ward, so he was like a sitting duck.


    "Got him." Yuel announced as he pulled the Pirate toward himself through the wall. The bear trap Yuel asked to prepare laid right at his feet, and the Pirate was forcibly shoved into it. For the second time in three minutes the Pirate found himself trapped, unable to retaliate in any way. It was over.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    Howard arrived on the scene to rescue his partner, but he didn''t make it. To be more precise, he [couldn''t] possibly make it. Paladin didn''t have any way to support allies from afar except for Justice Strike, which Yuel tactically baited out of Howard a few seconds earlier. As a fellow Support main and an avid Paladin fan, Yuel knew exactly what weaknesses the Paladin had and how to exploit them.


    This play impressed Aron more than the previous one, but still not enough to make him cough up a praise. Getting on Aron''s good side was crucial for passing the exam, so Yuel wasn''t going to hold back. He was going to do everything in his power to secure victory.


    "Heh, this Druid really did it this time."


    Little did Yuel know at the time, that his bold plays grabbed the attention of his worst nemesis. The third and final round of the exam was just about to begin for real.

 14 The Antithesis

    Once the laning phase of the match came to an end, Yuel left Trever alone in Bot Lane and roamed around the map. At this point of the game, the Support''s role became similar to that of the Jungler''s: he traveled across the jungle and ganked lanes. Except, as a Support, Yuel didn''t have the burst damage of a real Jungler, so his job was to set up kills with his CC.


    "Their Warlock is going to rotate to Top after clearing this wave." Yuel said. "Aron, can you help me gank him?"


    "And you''re sure he''ll rotate?" Aron asked. "He may try pushing the lane."


    "Deduct points from my grade if I''m wrong." Yuel answered boldly. That was his new way of dealing with Aron''s interrogations. Attempting to explain his reasoning in real time only made him needlessly nervous and confused. So, instead of dealing with that stress, he decided to sidestep that problem.


    "Very well." Aron invaded the enemy jungle to cut off the Warlock''s predicted rotation path.


    Just as Yuel said, the Warlock showed up. Yuel pulled the Warlock close with Nature''s Grasp, then Aron leapt on the victim and rent him asunder.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    Flawless execution. Time and again, Yuel proved his ability to predict the enemies'' movements and to strike their weakest spots. What started off as Yuel harassing the enemy Pirate soon developed into him terrorizing enemies all across the map. The ones who actually scored kills and made impressive plays were his teammates, but the mastermind behind many of these plays was none other than Yuel.


    Aron told everybody to follow Yuel''s suggestions as part of the test, effectively turning Yuel into the team''s shot-caller. Aron still handled the big strategic decisions, but everybody were obligated to follow Yuel''s tactics as well. This allowed him to easily move his allies around as he saw fit. Of course, it also came with the pressure of being graded for each important decision he made, but he got used to that by now... sort of. For the most part. Yeah, no problem. Gulp.


    With his authority as the shot-caller, he made his teammates catch predictable enemy gankers off guard and turn the tables on them. In addition, he told his allies to ambush enemies who farmed jungle camps at predictable times. And, on top of all that, he predicted the escape routes of injured enemies and pulled them through walls with Nature''s Grasp.


    He didn''t simply punish misplays, he also exploited the predictable habits of his enemies. The higher he climbed in Ranked, the less and less obvious mistakes his enemies made. Therefore, only punishing "mistakes" was no longer enough. He had to analyze and deconstruct every little move his enemies made, all for the sake of catching them off guard in one important play.


    As expected, his current opponents were as bulletproof as the enemies he met at high ranks online. In fact, they were possibly the strongest opponents he had ever faced so far. Catching them commit an outright mistake was nigh impossible, but exploiting the weaknesses in their playstyles was still within Yuel''s expertise. As long they were humans, he could find flaws in their plays.


    "Wow! You rock, bro!" Trever grinned as he scored yet another kill off the Pirate thanks to Yuel''s advice. At some point, Trever promoted Yuel from "Rookie" all the way to "Bro". That was the top respect title, apparently.


    After killing the Pirate three times, Trever gained a huge advantage in Bot Lane. He was two levels ahead of the Pirate and the enemy''s Turret was about to crumble. But, that''s all. Despite the huge advantage in the lane, that''s as far as he progressed.


    It was understandable, considering Ranger was, at its core, an assassin class meant for jungling. "Ranger Carry" was an unconventional built, which worked relatively well because of the Ranger''s basic attacks: long-ranged arrow shots befitting a real Carry.


    When built with enough attack speed and critical chance, Ranger functioned similarly to a Carry. Nevertheless, its ability to push lanes still didn''t quite live up to that of a real Carry class. That''s one reason why Yuel picked Druid.


    "Let''s take down the Turret." Yuel advanced toward the enemy Turret. The Pirate was dead and the Paladin was off helping another lane, so the Turret was defenseless. However, there were no allied minions in range thanks to the Pirate''s efforts, so attacking the Turret was suicide. That is, unless they somehow "created" minions to tank the Turret''s shots. The Druid''s ultimate ability did exactly that.


    Yuel activated Awaken the Ents, summoning a giant living tree. With the closest "enemy" in sight being the Turret, the Ent fearlessly invaded the Turret''s area and slammed it with giants fists. Naturally, the Turret retaliated against the invader and shot back at the Ent. While the Turret was focused on the Ent, Yuel and Trever approached the tower and attacked it.


    Since he was playing Druid Support, Yuel built defensive items which raised HP and defense. The Ent''s stats scaled based on the Druid''s stats, so the Ent benefited from similar increase in HP and defense. As such, the Ent didn''t deal much damage to the Turret, but it could tank shots for a while, just long enough to allow Trever to take the Turret down.


    ¡ºAn enemy Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    With this, Bot Lane was one step closer to being dominated by Yuel''s team. From picking a synergistic Support class and up to outwitting enemy players - Yuel showcased his skill all across the board. As hard as Aron tired to nitpick, he found virtually no faults with the way Yuel played.


    If there was one thing that could be called a "weakness", it''d be Yuel''s mechanical skill. During some chaotic and unpredictable situations, he struggled to land his skill shots. He missed more than a couple crucial Nature''s Grasp shots during team fights, putting the whole team at a great disadvantage. Nevertheless, his mechanical skill was overall at a satisfactory level, especially since he had enough brains to make up for it. He knew how to avoid difficult situations and how to create favorable ones, ensuring that his medicore mechanical skill wasn''t going to be a hindrance.


    In addition to Yuel terrorizing the enemy team with his tactics, Aron and Trever also put on a strong performance.


    To make up for being an inferior Carry, Trever took advantage of the Ranger''s true purpose as a Jungler. He roamed across Bot Jungle and stole camps from the enemy''s side of the map. Thanks to his passive, Beast Hunting, he dealt +20% damage to jungle camps with his basic attacks. On top of that, the multi-purpose skill, Wolf Companion, allowed him to summon a wolf that clawed a group of creeps with an AoE cone attack. Thanks to these factors, he cleared jungle camps swiftly and effectively,


    In addition, Trever used Ranger as an assassin. After Yuel predicted that the enemy Warlock was about to head toward the Ogre Camp, Aron and Trever both darted to the destination. Aron got there first and leapt on the Warlock, but he failed to finish the job and allowed the Warlock to escape into the jungle.


    However, that was actually part of the plan, since the Warlock was forced to flee a in direction which led straight to Trever. It was a pincer attack. Trever easily deleted what little remained of the Warlock''s HP.


    Despite the constant bickering between Aron and Trever, they cooperated surprisingly well. They barely exchanged any words to arrange that pincer attack.


    "I''ll scare him from above."


    "Roger."


    That''s all. With just that short exchange, both of them knew exactly what to do. It was clear they had plenty of experience playing this unusual "Two Junglers" composition. Each of them farmed on a different side of the jungle in order to maximize total farm, but they still often ganked lanes together from opposite directions. It was a truly high level teamplay.


    With Yuel''s precise predictions and the strong combo of Aron and Trever, their team dominated the flow of the game. The momentum Yuel started by setting up two kills on the Pirate hadn''t waned since then.


    "Shit! Why it''s always me!?" Mark slammed on the table. It was already the fourth damn time he died this match! His KDA (Kills/Deaths/Assists) stood at a lousy 0/4/0, he was a goddamn feeder at this point! He was making the worst impression possible on the examiners!


    He thought picking Pirate would allow him to play safely. His plan was to freeze enemy progress on the lane by quickly clearing minions, so he could then farm nearby jungle camps at leisure. With the gold bonus from Plunder, he planned building his items faster than his opponents and start murdering everybody at late game. It''s not like he had any chance beating veterans from the club on even grounds, so it was best to avoid fights until he got the stats advantage.


    Alas, all he achieved was a terrible 0/4/0 score. Not only that, but many of his chances to farm jungle camps were stolen from him. The enemy Ranger counter-jungled way too damn hard, clearing most of the camps on Mark''s side while Mark was dead. It was bullshit.


    Based on the stats, the rest of his team wasn''t doing much better. None of them was feeding as hard as him, but they all had negative KDA scores. Only the Paladin, played by Howard, had a passable 0/0/2. They were getting rekt so hard it wasn''t damn funny!


    "Is this match even balanced!?" Mark cursed. "You sure you didn''t put the best players on that team? This shit is unfair!"


    "Chill." Howard commanded. "Being tilted will only make you commit more mistakes, right?"


    "Yeah, but..." Mark clammed up in front of Howard''s icy glare.


    "I get where you''re coming from. You think you gonna leave a terrible impression by feeding so much, right?"


    "Yeah, exactly! How am I supposed to show my skills when my whole team is getting rekt!?"


    "You''re right, this match feels kinda skewed, doesn''t it? Maybe the way we decided the teams wasn''t entirely balanced." Howard smiled wryly, then his eyes turned sharp. "Anyway, are you really gonna let this situation get to you? Like it or not, but you gonna play on the losing team many times in the future. Hundreds of times, maybe even thousands. What you gonna do about it? Cry like a little bitch each time?"


    "Eh!? I... I... no." Mark trembled. Why did he deserve any of this? He was trying his best this whole match, yet everything crumbled around him. Nobody was there to tell him "It''ll be alright" or "It''s not your fault". The full weight of the responsibility was placed on him, his poor performance directly contributed to the whole team''s downfall.


    But, precisely because of that. he wanted to win! He wanted to pass this damn exam and play competitive Classmancers! He wasn''t some whining little bitch! He''s suck it up and keep fighting! "No matter how shitty things get, I''ll try to win!"


    "Good, that''s the spirit." Howard smiled and smacked Mark on the back. "Playing from behind is also an important skill to have. You can still make plenty good impressions by showing us how good you''re at that. Heck, maybe you can even help us make a comeback!"


    "Right! I''ll do my best!" At some point along the conversation, Mark''s frustration was replaced with a burning fighting spirit. So what if he died four times? He could still do it! He just had to farm jungle camps faster and to push Bot Lane to reclaim it!


    "I only hope you aren''t planning to farm more camps or to aggressively push your lane."


    "Wha...?" Mark was dumbfounded.


    "Working toward a comeback is fine and dandy, but don''t forget you''re lagging behind by three levels already. I''m sure you hate math as much as the next guy, but you can''t argue with numbers."


    "Wait, so you''re telling me to hug the Golem?"


    "Don''t get killed, defend the lane and farm enough to stay relevant in team fights. How you gonna achieve all that is up to you."


    "Okay, got it." Mark clenched the mouse and returned to lane with renewed determination. He wasn''t passionate about playing defense, but that''s what he had to do right now to score points. "I''ll hug the Golem for a while and slowly push forward. I can outclear the Ranger, so I should be able to overtake the lane eventually."


    "I trust you." Howard nodded. [Though, try as you may, I don''t see you passing this exam.]


    Howard provided airtight Support the whole time, but Mark still somehow got himself killed four times. The first two times were real shockers, even Howard was caught off guard. So, he didn''t count them against Mark. However, the next two deaths were clearly Mark''s own fault.


    After dying twice, Mark should had played more cautiously. The enemies figured out his greedy mindset as a Pirate player, so he should had steered clear of jungle camps while enemies were still around. In addition, he should had avoided direct confrontations with the fed Ranger.


    Alas, Mark kept repeating these same mistakes. It took him two more deaths to finally wake up and start thinking about his situation. And what was his conclusion? The match was rigged! The teams were unbalanced! He didn''t do anything wrong!


    Yeah, that rookie was no good. All Howard could do now was give him advice and pointers, in hope he''d learn from them and become a better player in the future. But, as it stood, Mark didn''t cut it.


    [That Druid, though. ]Howard squinted his eyes as he went over the match''s stats. The Druid had a 0/1/6 KDA score. The enemy team had 8 kills in total, so it meant the Druid was involved in 6 out of 8 kills. On top of that, as expected of a Support, he didn''t steal any kills from his teammates and only scored assists.


    [He sure plays airtight Support. What was his name again? "Yuel", I think? ]Now that Mark was no longer of any importance for the exam, Howard shifted his attention to the other rookie. In fact, he had been waiting for Mark to be rendered irrelevant for quite a while now, ever since the two shocking kills Trever scored on Mark in under three minutes.


    Placing a bear trap in that jungle entrance to trap Mark wasn''t Trever''s idea. Howard could claim so with confidence, he had played numerous games with Trever by now. Even though Trever had decent decision-making skills, he wasn''t exactly what one would call "smart". There was no way he''d ever go for such a roundabout play. In fact, he must had been baffled by these plays himself, even though he was the one who technically executed them.


    In other words, somebody else advised him to play that way. Was it Aron? Possible. Aron was good at nitpicking others'' misplays, so he could had arranged that kind of move to punish the rookie. After all, he knew Mark was an examinee.


    But, that couldn''t be right. Even though Aron often came off as cold and merciless, he wouldn''t bully an examinee like this, especially not in the early game. After all, that''d kill the whole purpose of testing rookies in the first place. Nah, it wasn''t Aron.


    But then, who came up with that impressive bear trap play? There weren''t any other club members on the enemy team who fit the bill. As such, only one option remained: Yuel, the other examinee. It was unthinkable, but there was no other option.


    "Man, they''re wrecking us!"


    "Them traps, yo! Since when Trever is so smart!?"


    "He and Aron are seriously tryharding! It''s like they forgot this is an exam."


    The whole team was in a disarray. They were struck at unexpected times from unexpected directions and were overwhelmed.


    [None of them even realizes what''s going on right now. ]Howard rubbed his eyes. [The only one tryharding is that rookie over there. He''s totally running over us. It''s not even funny anymore.]


    Mark was wrong in his earlier accusations. The 4 veterans on each team were carefully picked to balance each other out, while taking into account the role each rookie played. Therefore, the teams were balanced. Or rather, they [should ]had been balanced, provided the two rookies were roughly of the same skill level and balanced each other out.


    Despite all that, the current match was almost like a one-sided massacre. Howard''s team looked like a bunch of noobs playing against pros, it was beyond humiliating.


    [That rookie must be full of himself right now. Time to teach him a lesson or two. ]Howard smirked. [I''m sure Aron has seen enough by now, this exam is as good as over. He wouldn''t mind if I get a little serious, would he? Right? Yeah, let''s just do it.]


    The two teams were meant to be balanced. That is, as long as Howard didn''t exhibit the full extent of his power. Until now, he was nothing more than a "decent Support" for his teammates. He didn''t make any obvious mistakes, but neither did he make any impressive plays. Now, this was going to change.


    "Heh, you''re right, guys." Howard grinned as he addressed his teammates. "Aron and Trever are tryharding too much, so let''s return the favor. I''ll get serious now."


    "That''s alright? It''s just an exam."


    "No problem." Howard said. "Besides, we can''t host a proper exam unless both teams are balanced, can we? I''m sure Aron and Trever are just trolling us, trying to make us look bad in front of the newcomers."


    "Damn, these two!"


    "Let''s get them back, yo!"


    The team switched gears. Their irritation was replaced by a burning desire to crush their enemies. This change in atmosphere was soon going to become apparent for the other team as well.


    "The Warlock is rotating to Bot." Yuel pinged the mini-map to show the route he predicted. "Trever, can you cut him off?"


    "Roger!" Trever activated Wolf Companion, summoning a wolf mount, and rode to the destination at full speed. It was going to be yet another easy kill for sure! Yuel''s predictions rarely missed the mark, each and every one of his plans was amaz-


    "Gah!? The heck!?" Trever jumped. He flanked the Warlock as planned, but the Warlock wasn''t alone! At some point, the Pirate stopped hugging his Golem and entered the jungle as well. Instead of ambushing the Warlock, Trever somehow found himself ambushed by both Warlock and Pirate!


    "Shit shit shit agh!"


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    Despite being overleveled, Trever couldn''t handle this 1v2. It was the first time the Pirate scored a kill on him. Gah, so frustrating!


    "Don''t fuss so much over it." Aron said. "Just get him next time."


    "I know, I know. Grrr." Trever growled and tapped on the table, watching his respawn counter sloooowly ticking down. He made that one death look like the worst catastrophe that ever befell humanity.


    "Sorry, it was my miscalculation." Yuel said. "I didn''t expect the Pirate to be there, he should had been busy clearing the minion wave."


    "Nah, don''t worry, bro. That shit was impossible to predict."


    [It was indeed... strange. ]Yuel couldn''t wrap his head around that play. His tactics were certainly not without flaws, but he was very confident about that specific flanking play. There shouldn''t had been any factors that could had foiled that play, yet there was...


    Why did the Pirate change his mind all of a sudden? He had been hugging the Golem for a while, defending the lane and avoiding deaths. Yet, for some reason, he headed deep into the jungle at the worst timing possible.


    Was it a fluke? Perhaps the Pirate went for a jungle camp and accidently ran into Trever. No, that didn''t make sense. Considering he wasn''t spotted by any of Yuel''s Wards, it meant the Pirate skipped all the good camps on his way. Nobody saw him coming.


    Maybe the enemy team saw Trever''s movements via a Ward and prepared an ambush? Impossible. Yuel warded that whole area with Sentry Wards, which exposed all nearby enemy Wards within its field of vision. There shouldn''t had been any enemy Wards anywhere along Trever''s flaking route.


    Then how!? How did that absurd play came to pass!?


    "What are you doing? Retreat!"


    "Eh? Ah!" Yuel failed to react in time. He was surrounded by multiple enemies, but he was totally out of it. That cost him dearly.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "What''s wrong? That was a noobish mistake." Aron said with a stern voice.


    "Sorry, I just..." Yuel bit his lip. First, Trever died because of his miscalculation. Now, he himself died due to not paying attention. Ugh, one disaster after another. His team started losing the momentum it had maintained for so long.


    [Calm down. Overthinking this won''t get me anywhere. ]Yuel took a deep breath. He wasn''t completely over it, but he had to move on. He''d just have to make up for his mistakes with the next play.


    The opportunity to redeem himself soon presented itself. Aron flanked the enemy Viking, but failed to finish the job. The Viking escaped at the nick of time with almost zero HP. Chasing him into enemy territory seemed hopeless at first glance, but Yuel thought otherwise.


    "I''ll pull him through the wall." Yuel announced. There was an allied Ward along the Viking''s escape route, so his movements were visible even through the jungle wall. Grabbing him would be-


    "Eh!?" Yuel blinked. Suddenly, that area of the map went black. The Ward should had had one more minute left, so it didn''t vanish because it ran out of time. No, it was actively destroyed by an enemy player, right at this critical time.


    "Seems like grabbing him isn''t going to happen now." Aron shook his head.


    "Yeah, sorry..." Yuel bit his lip. Due to his shot-call, Aron rushed over there instead of pushing the defenseless Top Lane. They could had taken down the Turret if not for this wasted time. By the time they returned to Top, the enemy Warlock was already there to defend it.


    [How did this happen? Why would they go out of their way to destroy a Ward in such a niche spot? ]Yuel couldn''t wrap his head around it. He purposely placed that Ward in a very ineffective location to avoid detection. The Ward''s sole purpose was to expose fleeing foes, allowing Yuel to grab them and pull them back.


    Yet, despite how niche the Ward was, the enemy team went out of their way to deploy a pricey Sentry Ward, just so they could destroy Yuel''s Ward. It was absurd, he didn''t understand anything anymore. It''s like somebody was trolling him.


    And, that wasn''t the end of it. Weird things kept happening left and right, throwing Yuel''s predictions off . Enemies didn''t rotate as he expected, didn''t push where he expected and didn''t go for jungle camps when he expected. It felt as if all the pieces on the board were breaking their rules. All the data Yuel accumulated about the enemies until this point was rendered useless.


    "There''s nobody here, bro!" Trever announced as he arrived in Bot Lane, following Yuel''s advice. "Oh, shit! Look, they''re all pushing Mid instead! Damn!"


    "Why..." Yuel couldn''t believe it.


    ¡ºAn allied Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    Why was this happening?


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    Nothing went Yuel''s way. The few weaknesses he discovered in his enemies were no longer effective, he couldn''t pierce through their defenses anymore. Did he lose his touch? Or, did the enemy team transform into an entirely different beast? He couldn''t tell.


    "Hey, what''s wrong, bro?" Trever asked. "You ran out of brain juice or something? Haha."


    "I... I don''t know." Yuel bit his lip. Everything was going so well until recently. What changed? He now looked like an idiot spouting nonsense, none of his predictions came true.


    "Brain juice? Don''t be stupid." Aron sneered. "Nothing changed. At least, nothing on his side."


    "Then, something changed in the enemy team? Please, tell me!" Yuel begged. He couldn''t bear this situation any longer. What was going on? Why was this happening? Where did he go wrong? It drew him mad!


    "It seems that bastard decided to get serious." Aron stared at his screen with a complicated expression. He considered his words for a while, but ultimately decided to share the information. "It''s Howard. The one who changed the team''s rhythm and shut down your tactics, it must be all Howard''s work. That''s what happens when he gets serious."


    "Eh? But it doesn''t make any sense! I''ve been targeting each player individually!" Yuel cried. "I''m making my plans based on each player''s individual patterns, but that stopped working now. Sure, sometimes the Paladin just gets in my way out of nowhere. But, most of the time, the players themselves outplay me!"


    "Put yourself in the enemy''s shoes for a second. Tell me, do you think they realize that, most of the times, they get royally screwed because of your tactics?"


    "That''s..." Yuel never bothered to think about that. What did the enemy team think of this match? Did they realize Yuel called most of the shots? It never mattered before.


    "The way they see it: they''re getting outplayed by all players from our team, especially me and Trever who scored the most kills." Aron explained. "But, in practice, there''s only one main shot-caller on our team. Sounds familiar?"


    "Then, you''re saying my feeling of being outplayed by the whole enemy team is wrong? That I''m only being outplayed by Howard? But that''s... absurd."


    "You thought you''re special?" Aron sneered. "A good shot-caller is necessary in every serious team. I have to admit, you''ve showcased ability that goes beyond standard ''shot-calling'', but you''re not the only in the world with such talent."


    "Then, you''re saying Howard is like me...?" Yuel trembled. It was the first time he ever faced a player like that.


    "Yes, he''s a lot like you." Aron nodded. "But, at the same time, he''s nothing like you. He''s like your antithesis, if you will."


    "Antithesis..." Yuel mumbled as he stared at the Paladin on the screen. Suddenly, his understanding of the map changed entirely.


    Above the map itself, there was another invisible layer. It was a layer only Yuel and Howard played on, a chessboard which decided the fates of both teams.


    Until now, Yuel had been toying with the chessboard as he wished. However, now he had a fearsome opponent sitting on the other side. Their true battle had just begun.

 15 Impenetrable Shield

    The rhythm of Howard''s team completely changed. At first glance, it seemed as if each individual member became stronger, by patching out the weaknesses Yuel had been exploiting until now. However, in truth, the huge change was caused by just one person.


    "Mark, go meet Gil, the Warlock, in the jungle." Howard said.


    "Huh?" Mark checked the mini-map with a puzzled expression. Gilbert, the team''s Warlock, was on his way to Bot Lane in order to help pushing. What''s the point of leaving that very same lane just meet him halfway there?


    Not to mention, Mark hasn''t even finished clearing the minion wave yet. It felt like a terrible time to leave the lane. Was it some kind of test? "Shouldn''t I push the lane until he arrives? It sounds like a waste to go all the way to meet him. Besides, there are still minions here."


    "Just to be on the safe side." Howard said. "With the Ranger and Lionfolk, the enemy team effectively has two junglers, so we can''t let our guard down. If you don''t stick together, one of you may be picked off. You don''t wanna feed them any more, do you?"


    "O-Of course not!" Mark gulped. Questioning Howard''s order was yet another error for the huge pile he already accumulated, he was totally blowing this exam. Damn!


    "Heh, don''t worry about it." Howard patted Mark''s shoulder. "You''re right, I''m being pretty cautious here. But, our next wave already spawned, so it can deal with the remaining minions without letting them damage the Golem. Even if you don''t stay on lane, the Golem will be safe for a while. Besides, the plan is to push hard with the next wave anyway, right?"


    "Oh, yeah." Mark nodded. Phew, what a relief. It didn''t seem like Howard was angry with him at all. "I thought I''ll farm the Hyena Camp while waiting for the Warlock, but guess that''s still too risky."


    "That''s actually a great idea! Once you meet up with Gil, you two should do the camp together. Good thinking there!"


    "T-Thanks!" Mark clenched his mouse. Hell yeah! He finally scored some points! He still had a chance to make a comeback in this exam! WIth renewed determination, he headed into the jungle to rendezvous with Gilbert.


    "Hey! The Ranger is here!" Mark exclaimed. Just as he arrived at his destination, he spotted the Ranger trying to gank the Warlock. With how fed the Ranger was by now, he was going to wreck the Warlock in 1v1 without breaking a sweat. But, thanks to Mark arriving on the scene, the situation changed into a 2v1! They had a chance to turn the tables on that pesky Ranger!


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    "Yeah! Eat that!" Mark clenched his fist and grinned. They took down that damn Ranger! Mark finally scored his first kill this game!


    "Good play, keep it going!" Howard said.


    "Yeah! We can do it!" Mark was on fire. With this kill, the tides began turning in their favor! The irritating Ranger wasn''t there to defend Bot anymore, so it was a great chance to push hard! Making a comeback wasn''t impossibile! This exam wasn''t lost for him yet!


    "Good call there." Gilbert said.


    "Yeah..." Howard was deep in thought. He didn''t actually expect anybody to try ganking Gilbert with such perfect timing. His advice for Mark was merely a "just in case", yet it resulted in getting a kill on Trever.


    "Roi, you''ve been holding onto that Sentry Ward like it''s your baby." Howard said. "Use it already."


    "Oh, totally forgot about it, lol!" Roi laughed. "Our side looks pretty warded, though. Man, you do such a good work that there''s nowhere for me to put it, lol."


    "Then place it here." Howard pinged on the map.


    "Here? Eh? You sure?"


    "You already bought it, so may as well use it. Or what, you''re so rich that you can toss money away?"


    "That''s fair. Okay, here goes... oh!?" Roi''s eyes went wide after he placed his Sentry Ward. "Lol, they actually had a Ward here! I''mma get rid of it. Good guess there, man."


    "Yeah, haha..." Howard faked a smile. He knew it was possible for a niche Ward to be placed there, but he didn''t really expect it to be there. The enemy Druid must had placed it there to get vision on fleeing targets, so that he could pull them with Nature''s Grasp. With that enemy Ward gone, yet another one of the team''s weaknesses was dealt with.


    In this fashion, Howard kept tweaking the plays of his teammates. He advised against risky rotations, gave timely retreat orders and determined which jungle camps were safe to clear. As a result, the team''s defense was strongly reinforced and the enemy failed to push, gradually losing the momentum they maintained until now.


    ¡ºAn enemy Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    "Lol, I took Mid so easily! Where are these guys even at, lol!" Roi laughed as he demolished the enemy Turret. He originally planned to rotate to Bot, but Howard advised to keep pushing Mid. For some reason, nobody came in time to stop him.


    "They all went Bot." Gilbert pointed out. "Good thing you didn''t rotate there."


    "Lol, true that. Man, Howard you''re on fire today! You''re usually such a worrywart, but today we''re actually scoring big thanks to you!"


    "Heh, maybe now you''ll learn to respect me a little." Howard smirked, but then averted his eyes. The whole team was excited about turning the tables thanks to Howard''s advice. Of course, he was also happy that his shot-calls were effective.


    However, he had conflicted feelings about it. His advice worked well, too well. Things usually didn''t turn out like this just from Howard''s advice. He understood better than anybody why it was happening this game and what it meant.


    Nevertheless, he had no choice but to keep providing his team with that flawless defense. When they were about to make a risky play, he proposed a safer alternative. When they found themselves in a sticky situations, he immediately arrived for the rescue. He left no openings.


    "You see his in-game name?" Aron asked Yuel. "He decided to call himself ''Aegis'', the shield of gods. Just like you find weaknesses in your opponents to organize a strong offense, he finds the weaknesses of his teammates to put on a strong defense. It''s like he puts an impenetrable shield in front of his whole team, therefore ''Aegis''."


    "An impenetrable shield..." Yuel bit his lip. Indeed, every offense he attempted was shut down, he couldn''t pierce through enemy defenses anymore. They truly were protected by Aegis, the shield of gods.


    Howard patched out each and every hole Yuel spotted in the enemy''s formation. It was impossible to pierce through anymore. The harder Yuel''s tried to exploit the enemy''s weaknesses, the harder his team was punished by defensive counterplay.


    "The Pirate is going for the Hyena Camp." Yuel said. "Trever, can you gank him?"


    "Hmm. Are ya sure, bro?" Trever cocked his head.


    "Eh? Ah, well..." Yuel stumbled over his words. Was he sure? Really? Was the Pirate really heading to the Hyena Camp? According to Yuel''s analysis, that must had been the case, but...


    "They destroyed all our Wards there, so we can''t see shit." Trever shrugged. "If I get there and Pirate rotates to Mid meanwhile, you guys will have to fight 4v5."


    "You''re right..." Yuel bit his lip.


    "I mean, if you have a good reason to believe the Pirate is going after the camp, I can give it a shot."


    "Forget it." Yuel shook his head. "Let''s focus on Mid then."


    Doubt was seeded among his teammates. Even though Aron told them to follow Yuel''s tactics, they started questioning Yuel''s shot-calls. It wasn''t surprising, considering his suggestions led them into misplays, time after time after time.


    At this point, even Yuel lost faith in his own analysis. What''s the point? Every weakness he discovered was covered up by Howard. Yuel was battling an invisible enemy, on a chessboard that existed on an invisible higher plane.


    The "Paladin" playing on the map and the "Aegis" who provided absolute defense - they were two entirely different enemies. The Paladin could be analyzed by watching the map, but how was Yuel supposed to overcome an invisible chess opponent like Aegis? Yuel had no way to investigate what weaknesses Aegis had as a player, there''s no way to win against such an elusive opponent.


    [Is he trying to play god? ]Yuel bit his lip. All players were flawed, that''s what made team sports interesting. Finding said flaws and exploiting them was Yuel''s forte.


    However, against Aegis, that didn''t work. Under Howard''s leadership, all his teammates became "flawless" players. They left no holes in their formation, there wasn''t anything for Yuel to exploit. In order to get to them, Yuel first had to defeat Aegis on the chessboard.


    [I thought I left this frustration behind when I quit the chess club. ]Yuel''s hands become sweaty. This agonizing feeling was familiar, it was the same as when he played chess against a superior opponent. There weren''t any weak spots to strike, the enemy was simply stronger, that''s all.


    The more he insisted on striking the enemy''s weaknesses, the harder his team got outplayed by Howard''s defense. His shot-calls were clearly dragging the team down at this point. Therefore, it was best to just shut his mouth and let his teammates do their job.


    Yuel fell silent and reverted back into being merely an alright by-the-book Support. He warded, set up basic ganks and helped in team fights, but that''s all. HIs sophisticated offensive tactics were unnecessary, and that''s fine. His team still maintained the lane advantage in Mid and Bot. It''s fine, they could win as long as he didn''t suggest any ideas that backfired. Right, it''s fine.


    "So, that''s your solution? Running away?" Aron fronwed.


    "That''s..." Yuel averted his eyes. "That''s the safest strategy. We gained the advantage in the early game, so we can let it carry us to victory. My shot-calls just get in the way right now."


    "Then, let me ask you this: what would you do if this were a real match? We only gained the early game advantage because Howard didn''t play seriously from the beginning. What would you do if we didn''t have that advantage?"


    "I... I don''t know." Yuel bit his lip. What was Aron expecting of him? How was Yuel supposed to beat something like Aegis? It was an impregnatable shield, all enemy players had perfect defense and didn''t even feel like flawed humans anymore. Honestly? It was terrifying. He couldn''t fight against something like that.


    "So, you''d throw the match?" Aron eyed Yuel intently. "You''d give up because you''re too scared to face your opponent? Is that your answer as somebody who''s striving to become a competitive player?"


    "That''s..." Yuel hung his head. That''s right, he was aiming to become a competitive player, even a pro eventually. Didn''t he seek the competitive scene to play this team sport on the highest level? To play against the strongest opponents?


    Yet, he caved in. He couldn''t beat Aegis, so he gave up. All his tactics were torn asunder by the enemy''s absolute defense, it was frustrating, painful and demoralizing. He felt like he was trying to pierce through Howard''s iron defenses with nothing but a twig in his hands. And yet...!


    "I... I want to win against him!" Yuel gritted his teeth. "I want to break through Aegis and defeat him! But, it''ll cost us the game if I fail."


    "Forget about winning this rigged match. Forget about the exam." Aron said. "Pretend this is an official match and we didn''t get any early game advantage. Everything is riding on your ability to defeat Aegis."


    "I want to face him, really. But, is that fine with all of you?" Yuel scanned his teammates. "We may lose because of me. Is that really fine?"


    "Heh, no worry, bro." Trever grinned and smacked Yuel on the back. "Just between you and me, we all wanna see somebody break through that damn ''Aegis'' at least once. Can you imagine how it feels practicing against that shit everyday? We wanna wreck him, yo!"


    The rest of the team was on the same wavelength.


    "Yeah, I''m down with that. You''ve been doing a great job earlier, so you may actually pull this off."


    "Agreed. Let''s show Howard that his defense isn''t as perfect as he thinks."


    "And there you have it." Aron wore a faint smile, which was eerily uncharacteristic. Or rather, it was a smirk. Just like the rest of the team, he definitely wished to see Aegis broken through. "None of us expects a rookie to succeed against Aegis on the first try, but you''ll never get anywhere without trying. A competitive player isn''t somebody who only fights in matches he can win. A true competitive player knows how to grit his teeth and struggle through frustrating matches, grasping at anything he can for the smallest chance of attaining victory. You''ll do well to remember that."


    "And we''re all competitive players like that!" Trever added with a smile. "You can trust us to pick up the slack whenever you fail!"


    "Hey, don''t encourage him to make mistakes."


    "And you stop making him shit his pants from all that pressure, okay?"


    "Thank you." Yuel regained his smile. Despite how poorly he was faring, he had the support of his whole team. No matter how badly things would turn out, he wanted to play this match without any regrets. He wanted to face Aegis and win! "I can''t make any promises, but I''ll do the best I can."


    "That''s the spirit." Aron nodded. "Everybody, keep following Yuel''s suggestions to the best of your ability. Keep in mind that the enemy may counter them, so use your own brains as well."


    "Roger."


    "Got it."


    "Aye aye, cap." Trever shrugged with a smile, then leaned toward Yuel. "Just between you and me, I think Aron really likes you."


    "Hm? Likes? Me?" Yuel raised an eyebrow. No way that was true, considering how harsh and imposing Aron was.


    "Heh, you just gotta know the guy. The harsher he is with ya, the more he likes ya. He''s a natural sadist, I''m telling ya. Haha."


    "Haha..." Yuel pretended to laugh along, unsure what to make of this information. He should had been glad that he (probably) made a positive impression on the key examiner, but that didn''t matter right now. All Yuel cared about was defeating Aegis.


    Once again, he began analyzing his enemies in-depth, seeking weaknesses his team could exploit. However, unlike before, he didn''t jump at every opportunity that presented itself. He formed countless attack plans with lightning speed, only to drop 90% of them without sharing with anybody. He wasn''t running away, though.


    Against an opponent who could strengthen the defenses of the whole team, Yuel had to be more cautious. Whenever Yuel discovered a hole in the enemy defense which seemed too obvious, Howard most likely covered it up by now. Pursuing that angle would only lead to Yuel''s team getting outplayed


    Therefore, he focused on the more complicated and advanced plays. He struck the enemy from unexpected angles, leaving little room for counters. Even when he failed arranging the optimal scenario due to Howard''s interference, his team wasn''t punished much by the outcome.


    "Trever, the Warlock is rotating to Bot. Try cutting him off." Yuel drew the most likely route on the mini-map. "But, don''t spend your mount to get there faster. There''s a chance you''ll have to retreat."


    "Roger!" Trever dashed toward the destination, ready to score an easy kill. However, when he finally caught up with the Warlock, the enemy Pirate was also there. It was a 1v2 situation.


    "Haha, we got him!" Mark laughed. "Let''s finish him off!"


    "Agreed." Gilbert nodded. "With this kill, we can start turning things around."


    The Pirate and Warlock rushed at Trever, confident that they''d take him out. The ganker become the ganked, it was a delicious development, all thanks to Howard''s suggestion!


    "Geh, so there were really two of them." Trever clicked his tongue. Despite outleveling his enemies by two levels, he couldn''t 1v2 them. He summoned a wolf mount and rode away. "Catch me if you can!"


    "Heh, look at him running!" Mark grinned. "Let''s chase! We can finish him off!"


    "Sounds good." Gilbert nodded. "Looks like we can catch up to him if we cut through the middle of the jungle. He chose a terrible escape route."


    [Or did he? ]Howard frowned as he scanned the mini-map. Trever wasn''t exactly the sharpest tool in the shed, but he had more than enough experience to avoid such basic mistakes. Was he so surprised by the 2v1 situation that he made a wrong turn while escaping?


    [Actually, why wasn''t the mount on cooldown? It means he didn''t use it to get faster to Gilbert. It''s as if he kept it in case he''d have to escape. ]None of that sat right with Howard. And, if that wasn''t corcerning enough, the enemy Lionfolk and Druid were currently missing from the mini-map. Judging by the areas where Howard''s team didn''t have vision, and considering Trever''s escape path...


    [Am I overthinking this? Getting a kill on Trever will allow us to turn things around, but... ]Howard hesitated. His team thirsted for this important kill. If Howard''s suspicion was just a false alarm, telling Mark and Gilbert to retreat would make his team give up on a game-changing play.


    [Damn. It''s driving me nuts! Anything is possible as long as it''s that rookie!] Unlike everybody else on the team, Howard didn''t rejoice much when the enemy got outplayed by his defensive tactics. For that kind of outplay to happen, the enemy had to target the exact same weaknesses Howard noticed and covered up. This usually happened only a handful of times in a match, but here it was a consistent routine.


    Time and again, that damn rookie found one of the holes Howard patched. Even though Howard always came on top as a result, he didn''t feel like he dominated the mental battle against Yuel. On the contrary, he was pressured and couldn''t let his guard down for even a second. The moment he relaxed and opened the tiniest gap in his team''s defense - Yuel was going to immediately sneak an attack through that gap.


    [Dammit! Better safe than sorry!] Howard refused to be defeated by some rookie. He played Classmancers more than anybody here, he even trained with his sis'' pro buddies. His defense was absolute, there was no way some newcomer would be able to pierce through it! "Mark! Gil! Retreat! There''s a good chance you''re running into a trap!"


    "But we almost caught up to him." Mark insisted. "Just a little more and we can turn things around-"


    "Do you wanna get killed and feed them even more than you already have!?" Howard shot a glare at Mark.


    "Ugh, got it." Mark hung his head and retreated. Gilbert didn''t raise any objections and quietly retreated as well. With that, a potential disaster was prevented.


    "Sorry, my bad." Howard noticed that Mark was shaken by his earlier outburst. "I got a little heated up because there was no time to explain. They probably planned to ambush you at the Dragon with two more members, the Lionfolk and Druid are missing right now. It sucks that we gotta let them have the Dragon, but we gotta defend our lanes first. Don''t worry, there will surely be another opportunity for a comeback. You''ve been doing a great job so far, so just keep it up"


    "Alright, we''ll get him next time!" Mark nodded.


    "That''s the spirit!" Howard secretly sighed. Ruining a teammate''s moral was the last thing he needed at such a difficult part of the match. He felt his concentration slipping away, restlessly providing his team with defense gradually wore him out. Just when he thought he was finally going to catch a breather because the attacks slowed down, the enemy delivered a tricker attack than ever.


    [Heh, I don''t even remember the last time I had to work this hard on the defense.] Howard smiled wryly. He didn''t want to lose, not to this irritating rookie. Countering so many perfectly timed attacks was taxing, but it was also fun, in its own way. It was a direct challenge for Aegis, on a scope he had never experienced before. He wanted to win this, no matter what!


    [So they didn''t bite. ]Yuel sighed when he saw the Pirate and Warlock halting their chase. The plan was to lure them toward the Dragon, where Yuel and Aron waited to ambush them. But, as expected, Aegis didn''t fall for this trap.


    However, that''s fine. Once Trever arrived, the three of them killed the Dragon without being contested. Even though the ambush strategy didn''t come to fruition, they still secured an important objective. They wasted some time, due to Trever going the long way for that gank, but otherwise they didn''t lose much. They made a slightly inefficient play, but they weren''t "outplayed".


    In this fashion, Yuel kept fearlessly challenging Howard over and over. He promised himself that, by the end of this match, he''d break through Aegis''s defense.

 16 Teams Suppor

    As the match went on, Yuel improved at managing the risks of his tactics. Even though each and every one of his plans was shut down by Aegis, the team didn''t receive harsh punishment.


    In addition, following Aron''s advice, everybody added their own twists on Yuel''s plans, making them even more failsafe. All his teammates were skilled and experienced, with their own ideas and playstyles. Therefore, there was no need to babysit them or worry about their performance. It was amazing, Yuel had never played on such a high level team.


    Since everybody was able to care for themselves, Yuel challenged Aegis over and over without fearing the consequences. Even if he was playing chess against a superior opponent, nothing was going to change unless he made the next move, and the following move and the move after that. No matter how many times he was countered, he kept pushing forward, one step at a time. Frustrating as it was, that''s the only way he could win this chess match.


    Despite the lead his team gained during the early game, they had a hard time sealing the game due to Aegis''s defense. To make things worse, the team started losing its advantage as the match approached late game. Once all players finished their item builds, any early game advantage was going to be rendered null.


    To prevent that from happening, Yuel''s team had to push through, right here and now. Out of the myriad of options, he picked the most unconventional attack plan he could come up with, while staying cautious of possible backfire. After tackling Aegis so many times, he was definitely getting closer to cracking Howard''s defenses.


    He was certain that, with the next play, he''d finally get through Aegis. After countless defeats, he''d claim victory!


    "Trever, go push Bot." Yuel said.


    "You don''t need me in the team fight?" Trever was taken aback. "If I join ya, we can steamroll these scrubs!"


    "I don''t believe that''d happen. Don''t forget we''re playing against Aegis, I''m sure they''ll retreat before you even get there."


    "Heh, that''s fair." Trever shrugged. "So Bot Lane, right? On it!"


    "Oh, and buy a Checkpoint Ward." Yuel added. "Place it as close as you can to their Golem, somewhere around here." He pinged the map.


    "Oh? Oh!? Sounds like another crazy plan is on!" Trever grinned. "Honestly, your shot-calls have been kinda conservative lately, but now you sound like you''re ready to give a real fight! Gotcha, a Checkpoint Ward it is!"


    "You sure look confident." Aron said. "Found a weakness in their defense?"


    "I won''t go as far as call it a ''weakness'', but I believe I found a way to break through." Yuel nodded. "Aegis definitely provides solid defense, but that makes him predictable at times. With the next move, we should be able to break through the defenses he''s going to set up."


    Yuel shared the gist of the plan with Aron and Trever, making sure they were in the loop. As Trever guessed, it was indeed an ambitious plan. Nevertheless, both seniors approved it.


    While Trever was heading to Bot, the rest of the team was locked in a 4v4 fight. To divert the enemy''s attention from Trever, the team pressued the enemy as hard as they could. In particular, Aron''s Lionfolk did a splendid job disrupting the enemy''s formation by leaping on squishy targets and shooking enemies with roars.


    [Bot? Trever isn''t joining the fight? ]Despite the diversion, Howard didn''t fail catching wind of the enemy''s movements. Even though he was locked in an intense team fight, which even forced him to use Justice Strike and Aegis to keep the team alive, he still noticed Trever advancing through the jungle toward Bot Lane.


    [Split pushing with a Ranger in this situation? Heh. they''re really desperate, aren''t they? ]Howard sneered. "Mark, defend Bot as soon as you respawn. Their Ranger is going for the Golem."


    "Got it!" Mark answered.


    Just as Howard predicted, Trever arrived at the Bot Golem along with the next minion wave and attempted destroying it. However, with Mark guarding the spot, it was impossible for a Ranger to pull off this split push. Even though Trever had a full Carry build at this point, Ranger lacked the necessary DPS to quickly finish off the Golem. That split push was a dead end.


    [So, he sent the Pirate to defend. As expected. ]Yuel nodded to himself. "Trever, place the Checkpoint Ward. I''ll be right there."


    "Roger!"


    The second phase of the plan started. Once the Checkpoint Ward was placed, Yuel retreated from the team fight. He purposely soaked a lot of damage for the team, so it didn''t seem odd to return to base with such low HP.


    However, he had no intention returning to base. Once he entered the jungle to escape the enemy''s vision, he activated the utility skill Teleport. He wasn''t teleporting back to base, but rather to the Checkpoint Ward set up by Trever!


    "Alright, that pesky Druid finally returned to base." Gilbert sighed in relief. "With their Ranger at Bot Lane, this is now a 4v3. I know me and Roi are running low, but I think we should get aggressive with them here."


    "Yeah! Let''s do it!"


    "We can make a comeback here!"


    [Weird, why hasn''t Trever retreated yet? ]Howard frowned as he examined Bot Lane on the mini-map. Trever''s split pushing attempt should had been shut down the moment Mark stepped in to defend the Golem. Yet, Trever was still there, fruitlessly trying to push the lane. It was as if he was waiting for something to happen.


    [Actually, since when they had a Ward all the way out there? ]Howard noticed a stray enemy Ward placed right outside their base. It was only barely caught in the line of sight of an allied Sentry Ward, which he placed there to counter enemy teleportation attempts.


    [And, it''s a Checkpoint Ward too. Did Trever place it there? Don''t tell me they''re going to...! ]Howard flinched and scouted the area, verifying that the Druid was nowhere to be found. Did the Druid really return to base? Dammit, there was no way to confirm it!


    [And, their next minion wave is about to arrive too. Dammit, the timing is way too perfect. ]Howard would had told Mark to retreat to be on the safe said, but that was impossible. The moment Mark was going stepped down from his post, Trever would easily erase the remaining 20% HP of the Bot Golem. Howard''s hands were tied.


    There was a crack, Howard felt it forming in his absolute defense. If the enemy was really going for the elaborate play he had in mind, the result would be disastrous. He''d normally dismiss such a far stretched idea, but he couldn''t put anything past that irritating rookie.


    [I won''t let them! ]Howard gritted his teeth and retreated from the team fight. "Gil, handle the rest from here. I have to return to base."


    "Eh? But we have the advantage here-"


    "They''re going to take Bot at this rate!" Howard barked. There was no time to explain! He had to act fast, he had to act right now!


    He began recalling to base, it was the longest three seconds of his life. Could he make it in time? The Teleport utility skill took five seconds to cast, so he had an advantage of two seconds over his opponent. He had to make it, no matter what!


    "Mark, make sure you move all over the place!" Howard ordered. "They probably gonna pull you through the wall. Since you can''t retreat right now, at least make their lives harder. Spam that WASD like your life depends on it!"


    "Eh? G-Got it!" Mark nodded.


    [Heh. Haha. Hahaha! This is rich! ]Howard wore a crazed smile, his heart raced. Who would have thought a fight against a mere rookie could excite him this much? For him, who played Classmancers longer than anybody here and even practiced with pros, such an exhausting clash of decision-making was a rare occurrence when he played with others his age.


    And, precisely because of that, he couldn''t bear to lose, not to some random rookie! Even though he shut down each and every tactic Yuel tried so far, it wasn''t over yet. Until the very last second of the match, Howard wasn''t going to let even a single attack through! Against a rookie, he wouldn''t be satisfied with anything less than a perfect shutdown!


    "Oh, snap! Howard returned to base!" Trever announced.


    [Amazing, he figured it out so quickly. ]Yuel''s hands trembled, not from fear, but from excitement. Indeed, his opponent had an unbreakable defense. However, right here and now, he was going to pierce through it!


    "It doesn''t matter, he won''t make it." Yuel claimed with confidence. Paladin had no way to boost his movement speed. So, despite how quickly Howard got back to the base, he had no means to cover the necessary distance in such a short time span. It was settled.


    [Ugh, stop moving so much! ]Yuel carefully aimed his Nature''s Grasp at the zigzagging Pirate. It felt like the Pirate was mashing the WASD buttons at random, so locking on him was a pain. Was this also part of Aegis''s defense?


    Nevertheless, that much wasn''t enough to foil Yuel''s plan. Even if the Pirate thought he was pressing buttons at random, they still had a distinct pattern. By taking a second to analyze the Pirate''s moves, Yuel predicted the next one.


    [Caught you. It''s over. ]Yuel shot his branches through the wall. They were going to hit for sure, nothing could stop them now. Aegis''s absolute defense was about to crumble.


    [Tch, run faster! ]Howard gritted his teeth as he dashed toward Mark. His Paladin was slow, way too slow. Without any movement speed buffs, he couldn''t close the necessary distance in time by foot. The Druid''s branches already pierced through the wall, but Howard was nowhere close enough.


    What a frustratingly delightful play. Even though his shield was supposed to be impenetrable, he felt Yuel''s attack breaking in through the tiniest of cracks. Any other day, this level of play could had screwed Howard. But not today, not in this match!


    [Not under my watch, rookie! ]Howard poured his everything into countering Yuel, nothing else mattered. He couldn''t lose here, even if he had to outdo himself! In this match, in this very instant, he was going to surpass himself!


    Sure, Paladin was a slow tank with no mobility boosts, but that didn''t stop Howard. Just as Nature''s Grasp was about to grab Mark, Howard blitzed forward. He closed the distance in a blink of an eye and activated Divine Shield, deflecting the branches.


    "Yes!" Howard couldn''t contain himself. He couldn''t believe he just executed such an absurd play, but he did it! He shut down Yuel yet again!


    "Wow! You saw that!?" Trever''s jaw dropped. "I''m clipping that shit! It''s gonna go into Top 5 Plays for sure!"


    [Blink? But that''s... ]Yuel bit his lip. It was impossible. It was absurd.


    Howard used Blink to close that distance in an instant. It was a utility skill, which allowed a player to instantly teleport a short distance forward. Being a utility skill, it was available to every class, so it wasn''t unthinkable for a Paladin to use Blink. Except, Howard didn''t have Blink until now.


    [He... He bought Blink as soon as he returned to base. He realized right away that he wouldn''t make it, so he bought Blink on the spot. That''s just... ]Yuel hung his head. To think Howard could make such a split-second decision to invest gold into a costly utility skill, just so he could block Yuel''s play. It was brilliant defense, Yuel was thoroughly crushed yet again.


    "Focus! It''s not over yet."


    "Eh...?"


    "Tank the Golem." Aron ordered.


    "Eh? Ah, sure..." Yuel acted on instinct and stepped into the Golem''s area. He made sure to cast Gaia''s Protection on himself, to mitigate the incoming damage.


    "Now, Trever. Finish off the Pirate."


    "What about the Paladin''s ult?" Trever asked.


    "It''s on cooldown. I made sure to bait it out in the previous team fight."


    "Sweet, okay then!" Trever grinned. "Too bad Aegis can''t use his Aegis, haha!"


    "But even without his ult, they still got the advantage here..." Yuel mumbled. What was even going on? What was Trever trying to do? They failed to make this push, they got thoroughly shut down by Aegis. There was nothing else for them to do here, they just failed hard and that''s all. Yuel''s careful planning resulted in nothing more than an embarrassing blunder.


    "Wha!?" Yuel gasped at what unfolded next. While he was drawing the Golem''s attention, Trever fearlessly rolled into the Golem''s area! It was so reckless! Yuel had no tools to support such an aggressive right now, so Trever literally leapt into the lion''s den!


    Before his opponents got the chance to react, Trever performed a quick roll cancel and activated Wolf Companion, sending his wolf to knock down the Pirate. While the target was rendered immobile, Trever followed up with his ult, The Hunt is On, marking the Pirate as his "prey". Now, each of Trever''s attacks was going to deal huge damage to the floored Pirate.


    "Dammit!" Howard cursed. Of course! They could easily get away with such a straightforward power play while Howard''s ult was down! Considering the skill difference between Mark and Trever, it was an obvious play! How did he miss it!?


    [That damn Aron, he pressured me into using both Justice Strike and Aegis in the last fight. Was it all for this play!? ]Howard gritted his teeth and charged at Trever.


    While The Hunt is On was active, all of Trever''s shots pierced through enemies. Therefore, Howard couldn''t even body block the arrows to save Mark. The most he could do in the meantime was striking Trever as much as possible, drawing the intruder away.


    "You little!" However, even that option was denied to Howard. The enemy Druid stepped in front of Trever, blocking Howard''s path. That Druid. That damn Druid! Everything was falling apart because of him! Howard''s perfect defense was shattered in the most pitiful of ways!


    Even though it was pointless, Howard bashed the Druid with his blade. Over and over, unleashing all his pent up frustration. How could a mere rookie push him this far!? It was unacceptable! Senseless! Ridiculous!


    "Look at that brat throwing a tantrum." Aron sneered and turned to Yuel. "So much for his ''absolute defense''. As you can see, as long as you keep struggling, you can get results even against the most impossible odds."


    "But, I didn''t really..." Yuel bit his lip. Even though they ultimately gained the upper hand in Bot Lane thanks to Yuel''s teleportation plan, it wasn''t truly his achievement. Diving under the Golem to kill the Pirate wasn''t part of his script, and it wasn''t him who baited Justice Strike and Aegis out of Howard in the previous team fight. In the end, Yuel just lost to Howard yet again.


    "You two are so similar it''s almost sickening." Aron spat a sigh. "Get off the high horse, rookie. You think you''re playing this game alone?"


    "Eh? No, I..."


    "I told you to keep challenging Aegis, but when did I say it''s your responsibility to beat him? The two of you became so engrossed in your little back and forth that you''ve completely lost track of the match. You both knew how Trever''s skill compared to the Pirate''s, but, for some reason, neither of you saw the tower dive play."


    "That''s..." Yuel had nothing to retort with. Seriously, how did he miss such a straightforward play? Earlier this match, he even used Trever''s superior strength as a supporting argument for some of his plans. Yet, at some point, he grew so obsessed with exploiting the enemy''s weaknesses that he forgot all about this advantage. It was such an embarrassing blunder.


    "You have four other members on the team, remember that." Aron said. "I admit, you and Howard see the game differently and come up with great strategies. But, we''re all players here, we''re not just pawns for your little chess game. Trever is skilled enough to beat a rookie under tower and I can come up with a strategy or two myself. Or what, you thought my captain title is just for show? Know your place, runt."


    "Hey, hey! Hold your horses!" Trever intervened with an awkward smile. "No need to be that harsh with a rookie, is there?"


    "Keep your babysitter mentality out of this. I''m saying this for his own good."


    "C''mon, you''re totally being an ass-"


    "No, it''s fine." Yuel shook his head. "Aron is right. I... I disregarded the team while trying to beat Aegis. That was wrong of me."


    That''s right, Classmancers wasn''t chess. It was a team sport, with five players on both sides. It didn''t just mean there five enemies, it also meant Yuel had four allies. Whenever he made a mistake or couldn''t beat a tough enemy on his own, the rest of the team could pick up the slack. He was so used to playing with weaker players that, at some point, he stopped relying on his teammates. Lars was the only skilled player he wholly trusted until now.


    However, in this match, all his teammates were strong. They were all competitive players, with way more experience than him. Even if they couldn''t directly touch the "chessboard" Yuel and Howard played on, they could still polish every move Yuel suggested. With Aron''s help, Yuel''s tactic even broke through Aegis''s defense. It was amazing, he truly wasn''t fighting alone.


    "You''ll do well to remember this feeling." Aron said.


    "Well, guess there was no reason to worry." Trever shrugged and focused on the match. Soon after the Pirate was killed, the Bot Lane Golem followed suit.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºAn enemy Golem has been destroyed!¡»


    With the Golem''s fall, Yuel''s team now spawned super minions in Bot. They were already spawning super minions in Mid, so now they dominated two out of three lanes. However, their advantage didn''t end there.


    Soon after the Golem''s collapse, an unexpected message popped up on Howard''s screen.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "Wha?! Who!?" Howard jumped. Mark already died a few seconds ago, so who else could die right now!?


    "Sorry, we couldn''t handle them." Gilbert averted his eyes. While Howard and Mark intercepted Trever in Bot, the remaining members attempted to 3v3 the enemy team. Alas, they were crushed and forced to flee.


    "Idiot, you should have retreated as soon as I left!" Howard roared. Just what the heck was everybody doing!? First that useless rookie got himself killed again, now Gilbert messed up big time. Was he playing with Bronze players or something!?


    "Heh, haha..." Howard''s arms dropped. Who was he kidding? Keeping track of all these things and guaranteeing his teammates'' safety was his job. Yet, this whole time, he had his hands full with just deflecting Yuel''s attacks.


    At some point along the way, he completely lost track of his teammates and focused solely on whatever bullshit Yuel was going to pull next. "My bad, I did us in with that last play. Good game, everybody."


    The match came to a swift end. Tried as he might, Howard couldn''t stop the enemy''s advance on his own. All the teammates he was supposed to protect were dead, only he remained standing. Some amazing shield he was.


    ¡ºVICTORY¡»


    "Yeah! We did it!" Trever grinned and smacked Yuel on the back.


    "Ugh, yeah." Yuel forced himself to smile. Was this really a victory, though? Howard didn''t take the match seriously during the first half, which is how Yuel''s team gained early game advantage. If not for that, could they had won?


    On top of that, Yuel felt like he didn''t settle the score with Howard yet. Despite what Aron said about teamwork, Yuel still wanted to defeat Aegis with his own two hands at least once. Next time, he was going to win for sure...!


    "So, what are my chances to pass?" Yuel asked once they got out of the examination room.


    "Hmm, let''s see." Aron pondered. "You couldn''t beat Aegis even once, even though you disregarded everything else and focused solely only on that. In addition, you tried playing the game all by yourself without relying on your teammates. Quite the trash tier player, if you ask me."


    "Ugh, I see..."


    "All in all, one day you may get somewhere in the competitive scene." Aron turned around and left.


    "Eh...?" Yuel was puzzled. "Does that mean I have a good chance?"


    "Haha! You betcha, kid!" Trever rubbed Yuel''s hair.


    "Would you mind not treating me like a kid?" Yuel pouted.


    "Anyway, Aron is treating ya like shit because he really likes ya. That''s how he is with everybody, he''s like that with me as well, haha."


    [Are you sure he doesn''t just hate your guts?]


    "We gotta see the other candidates first, but I''ll be damned if we find somebody better than you."


    "I see." Yuel sighed in relief. He was worried his weak performance during the late game completely overshadowed the positive impression he created earlier, but apparently everything was going to be fine.


    [As for the other candidates, I guarantee there''s at least one who''ll amaze you even more than I did. ]Yuel smiled to himself as he left.


    On his way to the stairs, he ran into Howard.


    "..."


    "..."


    They just stood there, staring at each other in silence. Just a few seconds ago, they were sworn enemies who poured their everything into crushing each other. They clashed using their ideal playstyles, each trying to prove his was superior. It was a conceptual battle, in which they tried to vehemently deny each other.


    What kind of conversation could they possibly hold after going through something like that? Howard was the first to break the standstill. He walked toward Yuel, wearing a fierce look. He was one year older and quite taller, which made Yuel flinch. W-Was he going to get hit or yelled at!?


    "Heh, good game." Howard smirked and stretched his hand.


    "L-Likewise." Yuel sighed in relief and mustered a weak smile.


    "Where did you learn to play like this? Got any pros in your family?"


    "I wish." Yuel smiled wryly as he shook Howard''s hand. "I just research the game a lot and play daily with friends."


    "So, you''re saying it''s all self-study?"


    "How curious." Howard squinted his eyes. "You sure gave a good a fight."


    "Ugh! Wha!?" Pain shot through Yuel''s fingers. His hand was being crushed!


    "But, don''t get carried away, rookie." Howard glared at Yuel. "A toddler like you can''t break through my defense. You''re one year too young to even try!"


    "Ugh, just you wait." Yuel ignored the pain and glared back. "Next time, I''ll leave your precious defense in the dust."


    "Heh, that''s the spirit." Howard grinned and finally released Yuel. "It may be a bit premature, but welcome to the Classmancers club. I''m expecting great things from you." He turned around and left.


    [Next time I''ll get him for sure. ]Yuel promised himself. Neither of them got the closure they desired from this match, so they yearned for another opportunity to settle things.


    Was such opportunity going to present itself while they''re in the same club? Nobody could tell. But it''d definitely come, someday, somewhere.

 17 Afterword

    @@


    This is the end of the first volume. It was mainly an introduction for the main cast, exploring their motivations for playing Classmancers. To spice it up, the finale had some action which gave a taste of how a competitive match looks like.


    The second volume will continue with the entry exam, showing how Lars and Julia fare and who ultimately makes it into the club. The draft for the volume is already done, so it''s all about proofreading and editing now. Starting with the chapter release tomorrow, I''ll resume my usual schedule of releasing one chapter a week.


    Meanwhile, you''re welcome to give some criticism, rate the fic or even leave a review. This is a very niche type of web novel, so I''m sure I did some things right and some things terribly wrong. It''ll be helpful to know what you think works and what doesn''t, so I''ll learn how to execute this story better.


    If you got any spare power stones, please consider spending some on this novel if you''re enjoying it? ¤Ä ?_? ?¤Ä@@

 18 Romeo and Julie

    The second day of the entry exam''s final round was about to begin. Lars and Julia were scheduled to be tested on this day, but the examiners ran into a problem.


    "My, how bothersome." Ellen ran her fingers along her hair. "And I begged you so much to not get me involved in this."


    "Believe me, I didn''t want you to take part in this either." Aron said. "But, Howard is staying home today and you''re the only replacement we have."


    "My, he''s skipping school? What a bad bad boy." Ellen giggled.


    "He said he''s feeling under the weather, probably a cold."


    "Poor Wardy. That''s what happens when you push people too hard, you evil slave driver you."


    "Hmph." Aron shrugged. "If he wants to be the captain next year, he must be able to deal with this much. Besides, I''m pretty sure it''s not due to overwork."


    "Hmm~? You know something?"


    "... not really."


    "My, how suspicious~ I heard people complained about his performance yesterday, I wonder if that''s related."


    "Ask him yourself." Aron cleared his throat. "Anyway, let''s get down to business. I won''t ask you to do much during the exams, just play the game... casually."


    "Sugarcoating doesn''t suit you, darling." Ellen giggled. "Just say it straight: you''re afraid I''ll break our promising rookies."


    "As long as you understand."


    "No worries, Ronron. I''ll be a good girl and only toy with the rest of you." Ellen smiled like an angel. "You went out of your way to drag me here, on a day I didn''t even plan visiting the club. So don''t worry, I''ll make sure you all have a f~u~n time today~"


    "... great." Aron sighed. "Anyway, here''s the briefing of the first match. The rookie on your side is Lars, a Carry player."


    "Like I care." Ellen shrugged. "Just tell me who''s the poor guy on the other team, so I won''t bully him."


    "The rookie on my team is Julia, playing Mid."


    "Oh, my!" Ellen covered her mouth. "Julia? A girl?"


    "I don''t know about you, but I''ve never met a boy named Julia. Yes, it''s a girl."


    "My, a girl actually survived the first two rounds? So, it means she isn''t a chub and she knows a thing or two about Classmancers., what a delightful surprise~ Wait, don''t tell me there are even more girls who made it?"


    "No, she''s the only one. There were three more girls initially, but they were eliminated in the earlier rounds."


    "How tragic." Ellen shook her head. "This entry exam is so mean to us girls. Most girls only start playing Classmancers around my age, no way they can pass this Spartan exam on the first year. And. I don''t even want to touch on how they must physically compete against boys in the first round. Did you ever see what PE lessons girls get? It''s like they''re designed for 80 year old hags."


    "You''re welcome to become the next captain and change the rules as you see fit."


    "Nah, I''ll leave that hassle to Wardy." Ellen crossed her arms. "Alright, I decided. Let me on girl''s team, I''ll examine her."


    "Excuse me?" Aron raised an eyebrow.


    "My, suffering from hearing loss at your age? I said I''ll test the girl."


    "What game are you trying to play here?" Aron frowned. "Plan to cheat her through the exam?"


    "Heh, as if." Ellen smirked. "Honesty, I do think you could just let the gal join after she''ve come this far. But, I''m not gonna bother working for that, I''m not that sweet of a person."


    "Then what''s your interest?"


    "I just wanna check her out, as a fellow girl who went through this circus you call ''exam''. You''ve already dragged me into this nonsense, so the least you can do is let me have some fun."


    "Sorry, can''t do." Aron declared. "I''ve been adjusting the teams the whole day due to Howard''s absence. The lineups finally look balanced, so I''m not changing them."


    "My, how deligent you are, cap." Ellen clapped her hands and smiled. "But, please change it. Like, right now. Or, maybe I''ll also feel ''under the weather'', teehee~"


    "You''re insufferable sometimes, you know that?"


    "You know you love it, sweetie."


    "You really put me on the spot here." Aron sighed deeply as he checked his notes. "Hrm, maybe I can trade you for Trever and have you play Carry on the girl''s team."


    "Nope, rejected." Ellen crossed her arms. "I told you already, I don''t wanna play Carry if Wardy isn''t supporting. Keep me a Jungler, ok thanks."


    "You''re sure making this difficult."


    "A difficult woman is a good woman, remember that." Ellen smiled. "Also, I like it how you''re fine trading me for someone like Trever, but you won''t trade places with me yourself. You''re playing Jungler on that team, aren''t you?"


    "That I do."


    "So what, that''s your way of saying I''m not your match as a fellow Jungler?"


    "There''s a reason I''m the team''s Jungler, you know."


    "Yeah, of course there is." Ellen nodded. "It''s because you''re the captain and decide everything. Oh, and because all our Carries are trash, so I''m stuck playing Carry to make up for it."


    "Hey now." Aron frowned. "Trever is a better Carry than you when he''s at his best."


    "Yeah, sure. And he''s worse than a Bronze V at his worst, please Ronron." Ellen shook her head. "Oh, now I get it! You''re abusing your authority to hit on younger girls, aren''t you? That''s why you want to play on the girl''s team so badly, how shrewd~"


    "I have no interest in that..." Aron started developing a headache.


    "Right, of course you don''t. For a serious guy like you, about the only girlfriend you''d ever have is Trever."


    "Sorry to disappoint, but I don''t swing that way." Aron sighed deeply. "Alright already, I''ll switch places with you."


    "My, aren''t you a charmer. Thanks, darling~" Ellen blew him a kiss.


    "You better take this seriously, the girl''s fate is in your hands now."


    "Yes, sir." Ellen saluted . With this, it was decided Ellen and Trever were going to supervise Julia, whereas Aron and Gilbert were going to supervise Lars.


    A short while later, Lars and Julia learned their exams were scheduled for the exact same time. To be more precise: they were going to face each other as enemies!


    "What we gonna do? This is the worst." Julia hung her head.


    "Nah, don''t worry, dude." Lars shrugged. "According to Yuel, it''s not about winning. We just gotta do our best and it gonna be A-okay!"


    "I sure hope so." Julia bit her nails. How could this happen? Of all the opponents that were left, they just had to pit her against Lars. How could she play her best now? If she were to get in Lars''s way during the match, it might result in him failing the exam. He''d never forgive her for that, it''d be the end! Game over! AGH!


    "My, what''s going on here? Enemies exchanging information? Suspicious~"


    "E-Eh!?"


    "Whoa! Where did ya come from!?"


    Lars and Julia jumped when a girl popped up beside them.


    "My, treating me like a ghost? How rude." The girl made an offended face, but quickly switched to a playful smile. "July? I can call you July, right?"


    "Um, sure." Julia instinctively took a step back. [What''s with this girl?]


    "Nice to meet you, I''m Ellen." The girl, Ellen, grabbed Julia''s hand and shook it, Julia didn''t even have a chance to resist. "I''m in charge of your exam, so let''s get along~"


    "Oh, o-okay." Julia nodded like a robot. It was hard to believe this weirdo was gonna be the examiner, but Julia tensed up regardless. She had no idea what was going on, but for now she had to stay on Ellen''s good side.


    "Sorry, but I''ll be stealing your girlfriend for a while~" Ellen winked at Lars as she casually placed a hand on Julia''s shoulder.


    "A-Ah, w-w-we aren''t really d-dating or anything." Julia trembled and her cheeks burned.


    "Is that so? My bad, teehee." Ellen playfully stuck out her tongue.


    "Is Lars here?" A senior peeked out of a nearby room.


    "Coming!" Lars turned around and lightly jogged toward the senior. "Good luck, July!"


    "Y-You too!" Julia did her best to muster a smile, despite being overrun by dread. Oh god, she SO didn''t want to take this exam! Until the very last moment, she hoped somebody would pop up and say the schedule changed, so she wouldn''t have to play against Lars. Alas, reality was a cruel bitch.


    Once the door closed and Lars disappeared from view, Ellen turned to Julia with a gleeful smile. "You''re head over heels for him, aren''t you?"


    "T-That''s not your business, hmph." Julia turned away and crossed her arms.


    "My, so once your boyfriend is gone, you stop acting like a good girl? How cute~"


    "Just what''s your deal anyway?" Julia shot a glare.


    "How aggressive~ Don''t get me wrong, I''m not trying to pick a fight." Ellen clapped her hands. "Finding a girl who plays Classmancers at your age is harder than finding a unicorn, so let''s get along, as fellow Classmancer Girls."


    "That sure has a sad ring to it."


    "I know, right? Imagine this: I was the only girl in the club during my first year, the other fourteen were all guys."


    "My condolences." Julia lowered her arms. Ellen was an oddball, but it didn''t seem like she meant any harm.


    "As your senior in life, I''ll give you one tip: don''t suck up to the man you wanna get. Play hard to get and make him beg for your attention."


    "Uh-huh..." Julia made a face. [What "senior in life"? Aren''t you like a year or two older than me?]


    "Now that I think about it," Ellen placed a finger on her lip. "You''re going up against your boyfriend in the exam, aren''t you? Talking about bad luck, you''re like Romeo and Juliet."


    "D-Don''t jinx it please!" Just when Julia finally managed to forget about that dreadful fact, it got shoved into her face all over again. "Just to make sure: losing the match doesn''t mean failing the exam, right? Please tell me it doesn''t!"


    "My, what a worrywart." Ellen giggled. "Relax, winning and losing don''t matter, you just gotta put on a good show. If you both do well, you and your boyfriend can pass the exam together."


    "Thank goodness." Julia sighed in relief. "Also, I told you he''s not my boyfriend."


    "Not your boyfriend [yet], right?"


    "Heh, well." Julia smiled.


    "My, you finally smiled." Ellen smiled from ear to ear. "I was wondering what kind of weird girl plays Classmancers seriously at your age, but turns out she''s quite a catch. A maiden in love is a truly beautiful thing."


    "Heh, would you stop teasing me already?" Even though Julia said that, she couldn''t stop herself from smiling along. Something about Ellen''s feisty attitude was infectious.


    "Alright, alright." Ellen winked. "Let''s get started with the exam before they yell at me~"


    Ellen led the way to the examination room. Three boys waited for them there. According to Ellen, they were members of the Classmancers club and were going to be Julia''s teammates. As she feared, they were going to play a match against Lars''s team. Brrr.


    "Hey there, I''m Trever." The boy sitting besides Julia stretched a hand. "I''m in charge of your exam together with Ellen."


    "You can just call him Trash." Ellen added with a shrug "Also, hands off." She slapped his hand. "She already got a boyfriend, so go dig somewhere else, loser."


    "Ahaha, our goddess is as lovely as ever..." Trever smiled awkwardly. "I didn''t mean anything by it, really. Was just trying to help the rookie relax."


    "How about you help her relax by shutting your mouth?" Ellen smiled like an angel.


    [Holy shit, that''s harsh]. Julia gulped. [Note to self: never get on Ellen''s bad side.]


    "The banning started." A teammate announced.


    "My, already?" Ellen gasped. "July dear, do you have any idea how the drafting system works?"


    "Of course." Julia nodded. "The teams take turns banning and picking classes."


    "My, you sure know your Classmancers!" Ellen smiled. "You play Ranked?"


    "Yeah, I''m Plat-" Julia stopped herself. Should she spill the beans about being Platinum IV? Platinum was considered a pretty high rank for somebody her age, so it''d tell everybody she had quite the experience and they might expect the world from her. If she failed to live up to these high expectations, that''d reflect poorly on her score.


    ["Obviously Yuel and Lars carried her, even a monkey can get to Platinum that way." ]Gregory''s mocking words ate away at her. As strongly as she wanted to deny them, deep down she was worried. Without Lars and Yuel beside her, was she really a Platinum player in her own right? She never played Ranked alone, so she had no idea how she compared to other Platinum players.


    "I played Ranked a little." Julia averted her eyes as she answered Ellen. It was best to play safe here, there was no reason to blurt unnecessary things.


    "My, how impressive. This makes things easier." Ellen took out a checklist for the exam. "Let''s see, let''s see. You can take charge of the banning to earn some points, or you can leave everything to me. What do you say?"


    "Do I lose points if I ban poorly?"


    "Yes, you do, my dear." Ellen answered. "In case you decide to take over the reins, I''ll have no choice but to grade you for it. If you aren''t up for the challenge, you can always leave it to me."


    "Can I take a moment to think about it?"


    "Of course, take your time. There''s no rush."


    "Thanks." Julia took a deep breath. [Banning, huh?]


    While playing Classmancers with the boys throughout the summer, Yuel always handled the banning for them. He was the most knowledgeable in the group, so they left everything to him, he sometimes even picked their classes for them. Thus, Julia never had a chance to ban anything herself.


    However, that wasn''t to say she was clueless about banning. She always closely watched Yuel''s banning and asked questions when something didn''t sit right. She even swallowed her pride and asked him to coach her about drafting, all for the sake of eventually surpassing him and becoming Lars''s main partner in Classmancers.


    Thus, she had robust theoretical knowledge about banning, but zero practical experience. Was that enough to take the risk and try her hand at banning in this exam? There was the danger of losing some points, but she should be able to deliver an "alright" impression at least, especially since the examiners had no idea she was a Platinum player. To pass this final round, she desperately had to get her hands on any points available.


    Only three candidates were going be selected from the final round. There was no chance in hell they''d pick her over Lars or Yuel, so, in truth, there was only one spot left for her. There were like 20 other candidates and she had to beat them all. Was she really going to surpass them by merely showing her skill in the match?


    On top of scoring points via smart banning, there was another point of interest. The point of the match wasn''t to win, it was to "put on a good show", as Ellen put it. By taking charge of the banning, Julia could ban all the pesky classes she had trouble dealing with, thus increasing her chances of having a smoother game. In addition, she''d be able to indirectly help Lars, by not banning his best Carry classes. That''d give him maximum flexibility in his picks and allow him to play his best.


    "My, no need to worry your pretty little head so much about it. Just leave it to-"


    "I''ll do it." Julia stated. "Please let me do it."


    "Hmm." Ellen examined Julia for a moment. "Alright, sweetie. You look confident, so go ahead."


    Julia started by banning Shadow Walker, the most dangerous assassin class in the game. From there, she continued by banning mage classes she had no intention of picking herself. She focused on the Mid Lane mages who had no obvious counters she was aware of. Her goal was to corner the enemy Mid Laner into picking a class she knew how to counter, so she could pick said counter and do well against them in lane.


    Making bans which benefited only her was probably going to make things harder for the rest of the team, but she couldn''t care less. This exam wasn''t about winning as a team, but about Julia''s ability as an individual player. Besides, they were all club members, right? So, they were way more experienced than her and should be able to deal with it. In fact, she was the only one on the team with a huge disadvantage, since her lane opponent was most likely going be a superior competitive player. She needed these calculated bans if she wanted to have any chance at all.


    "Hmm~ I see what you''re doing there, girl." Ellen giggled. "You''re only banning Mid classes to get an edge on your lane opponent, right?"


    "Eh!?" Julia gasped. Oh god, her plan was completely exposed! "Um, t-that''s..."


    "Atta girl!"


    "Eh?"


    "You know that your enemy is going to be strong, so you outsmart them. That''s a smart girl." Ellen smiled and patted Julia''s head.


    "T-Thanks." Julia smiled awkwardly. Phew, she was safe. In a real competitive match, this sort of banning was probably going be frowned upon, but Ellen was very supportive. Ellen gave the impression she was a big shot in the club, so having her as an ally was very reassuring.


    Eventually, Julia''s lane opponent picked Beastmaster. It was a quirky class, which relied on spawning minions instead of using high damage spells. By applying the knowledge she absorbed from Yuel, she easily countered Beastmaster by picking Pyromancer.


    "My, you picked it without batting an eye." Ellen blinked. "Why Pyromancer?"


    "Pyromancer struggles against class that can outrange it, but otherwise it has some of the strongest spells in the game." Julia explained matter-of-factly. "Beastmaster doesn''t have any good ranged damage or zoning tools, so Pyromancer is a safe pick here. Also, our Carry picked Pirate, an ability-based Carry who takes longer than most to start doing some real carrying. So, Pyromancer can help in that department if I invest a little into attack speed."


    "Such an elaborate explanation, it''s like you were reading from a textbook."


    "Haha, thanks..." Honestly, it stung. Julia knew all too well she just parroted information she received from Yuel. Yeah, she used a textbook answer alright. But, was that bad? Everybody had to start somewhere. Right now, the best she could was to to parrot Yuel, but one day she''d be able to come up with her own answers.


    [Focus, focus! ]She shook her head. She couldn''t let small things like that distract her right now, she was in the middle of an important exam. All that mattered was that she got an edge over her opponent, regardless of the means she used. To beat the other 20 candidates, she had to put on her absolute best performance and awe all her seniors.


    Once all the classes had been selected, the match which was going to decide Julia''s and Lars''s fates was about to begin.

 19 The Cocky Rookies Greeting

    Lars''s exam began. First, he was given the option to decide which classes to ban during the drafting phase. It was a great opportunity to earn himself some points before the actual match, but he didn''t care all.


    "Nah, I don''t like banning, dude." Lars shrugged. "Just ban whatever, I''mma beat anything they pick. The stronger they are, the harder they fall, yo!"


    "I see you''re quite confident." Aron frowned. "You know you''re about to play against members from our club, right?"


    "Yeah, no biggie." Lars grinned and raised three fingers. "I''m Platinum III, yo,. Let ''em at me and I''mma knock ''em out!"


    "You said Platinum?" Gilbert''s blinked.


    "That''s sure rare." Aron nodded in agreement, but he was far from impressed. Lars wasn''t their first Platinum candidate this exam. And, more than anything, he couldn''t stomach Lars''s attitude. "Just so you know, Platinum III is currently the lowest rank among our members. Most of us are at least in Diamond."


    "Oh! Cool!" Lars wasn''t fazed at all. Rather, his eyes lit up and his grin only grew bigger. "Finally some real challenge! To tell ya the truth, the grind in Platinum have been kinda stale lately, so this is awesome! Let me at ''em already!"


    "Alright, I got it. I''ll handle the banning." Aron sighed. This kid resembled a certain idiot in the club a bit too much to his liking. Based on his experience, words didn''t work much on these simpletons, they had to experience everything on their flesh. There''s no doubt Lars was going to sing a very different song after facing his lane opponent, who happened to be the very idiot Aron had in mind.


    After the first banning phase came to an end, it was time to pick classes. The enemy team got to ban first, so Lars''s team got to pick a class first. During such an important exam, it was the smartest to wait until your lane opponent picked their class first, so you could counter-


    "Okay, gimme Trickshooter please." Lars requested right away.


    "You want to pick first?" Aron frowned. "Don''t tell me Trickshooter is the only class you can play?"


    "Nah, ya think I could make it to Platinum playing just one class? But Trickshooter is still my number one dude, yo."


    "Alright, so you''re sure you want to pick first?"


    "Yep, lemme grab dat Trickshooter."


    "If their Carry counters your pick, you''ll have a very hard time showing us your full strength. Of course, we''ll have to factor in the fact it was a bad matchup for you, but you''ll most likely leave a negative impression."


    "Heh, worrying about me? And I thought you were some stuck up jerk."


    "Whoa, he went and called his examiner a jerk." Gilbert concealed a muffled laugh.


    "Worrying? No, I..." Aron averted his eyes. Right, what was he doing? It''s his policy to be ruthless with newbies. It''s just that the resemblance was so strong, that he mistook Lars for that other idiot for a moment. "Anyway, what were you saying about a ''stuck up jerk''?" Aron wore the usual stoic expression, but his eyes emitted death rays.


    "A-Ahaha, I just heard some nasty stuff from others." Lars rolled his eyes and scratched his head. "Like, how you''re a ruthless mastermind examiner who manipulates newbies and stuff."


    "And, I take it you heard it from Yuel?"


    "Yeah, he- GAH!" Lars slapped his own mouth. Gah! GAAAAAAH! He wasn''t supposed to reveal that! He silently stared at Aron for a few seconds, then gave up. "... how did you figure?"


    "It''s hard to believe two Platinum newbies would pop out of thin air like that. I take it you''re been grinding ranks together?"


    "Yeah..." Lars kept staring at Aron, awaiting judgment. According to the rules, Yuel wasn''t supposed to discuss his exam with others.


    "Well, I suppose it''s fine." Aron said. "Knowing him, he was selective about what he told you. He didn''t strike me as the type to unnecessary take risks."


    "Yeah, he just told me to behave myself around ya, because there''s like 120% chance you gonna hate my guts or something, haha."


    "And, it seems like that advice was completely wasted on you."


    "Yeah. I mean, we''re totally best buds already, right? There was no reason to worry at all."


    "Huh." Best buds? Aron felt like throwing up from disgust. "Anyway, what else Yuel told you? Was there anything concerning the skills or playstyles of our members?"


    "Hmm." Lars genuinely tried recalling Yuel''s words, he gave up on hiding anything from Aron. "Oh, right! He also said there''s some guy with a shield."


    "A guy with a shield?"


    "Yeah, something like that. Or, maybe the guy himself is the shield? I don''t really remember, but he said if I play well, I may awaken the final form of this shield boss dude and get some serious fight going."


    "A ''shield boss dude'', heh." Even Aron failed to maintain his composure against this one. The rest of the team laughed out loud, as everybody understood who Lars was talking about.


    "Okay, from now on we gonna call Howard the Shield Boss Dude." Gilbert announced, then turned to Lars. "Sorry to disappoint, but he''s not playing today. So, no ''final form boss'' action for you, pft. Though, if you draw too much attention to yourself, you may awaken the goddess-"


    "That''s enough."


    "Ah, my bad." Gilbert nodded and quit his blabbing.


    "What goddess?" Lars looked at Gilbert, then at Aron, then at Gilbert, then at Aron, but they pretended to not hear him. "Hey, I asked what goddess? What god-"


    "Trickshooter, here you go." Aron selected the Trickshooter on Lars''s screen. "Let''s move on.".


    "Hmph, so that''s how you gonna play it." Lars smirked. "Okey dokey, then I''mma trash yo boys one by one, until I awaken that goddess dude of yours."


    "Heh, I don''t recommend it, but good luck." Gilbert said. "I''m going to be your Support, so anything you''d like me to pick? I''m more of a Mid player, so I prefer mages if possible."


    "Anything''s fine as long as you''re good with it." Lars shrugged. "If you don''t care which mage, then maybe go for Cryo so we can pull some wall bounce combos."


    "You really think we can pull that off without any practice?"


    "Yeah, no problem. Just set up a wall when I ask and I''mma figure out the rest from there."


    "Huh." Gilbert wore a complicated look. This kid was sure entertaining, but his baseless confidence bordered on stupidity at this point.


    Landing a bouncing Trickshot with the help of Ice Wall was by no means an easy feat. The burden laid not only with the Trickshooter, but with the Cryomancer as well. It''s true it''s the Trickshooter''s job to make the bullet connect. However, the Cryomancer was equally responsible, as he had to place the wall at the right place at the right time to make the play even possible in the first place. It was mandatory for both players to be coordinated, so there''s no chance Lars and Gilbert would smoothly pull this off the first time they play together.


    "It''s his exam, so let''s entertain his request" Aron said. "Pick Cryomancer and do what you can."


    "Alright, but I''m not promising anything." Gilbert shrugged and selected Cryomancer. Shortly afterwards, the rest of the team composition was decided and the match began.


    Lars, Gilbert and Aron started off in the jungle to clear camps together, then split ways as Lars and Gilbert headed to Bot Lane. Their lane opponents were Pirate and Druid, a nasty duo. On top of that, they were controlled by veteran members from the club, who both passed this exam before. These dudes might actually be kinda strong, this was gonna be fun!


    [Okay, first I''mma take out this Pirate. ]Lars nodded to himself.[ Their "goddess" is probably that Ranger chick, but sounds like I hafta put on a show to make her take me seriously.]


    After exchanging a couple of blows with the Pirate between minion waves, Lars went for the kill. He dashed toward the Pirate and activated Trickslide, sliding forward to quickly close the distance. While still in the middle of sliding, he fired Trickshot at a nearby wall.


    By hitting the Pirate with this sliding Trickshot, Lars was going to gain two stacks of his Attention Grabber passive, granting him extra power and speed for a short time. With these buffs, he was going to finish the job after getting closer to the Pirate. No matter how many times he executed this before, he never grew tired of it. It was one of the sickest Trickshooter plays, yo!


    "Wha- Wait, don''t just charge in like that!" Nobody saw this reckless attack coming, not even Gilbert who was supposed to be Lars''s Support. To fool your enemy, you first had to fool your allies... or something, yo!


    Of course, the enemy didn''t expect this aggression either. The Druid was low on MP and the Pirate''s Backfire Cannon was on cooldown, so he had no way to dodge or flee. It was 120% over for him! That is, if he were alone on the lane.


    "Gah!" Lars cried out. A moment before his perfect Trickshot connected, the Druid cast Gaia''s Protection to grant the Pirate a shield. The Trickshot did land on the Pirate, but over half of its damage was wasted on destroying the shield. That''s not how it was supposed to go!


    Even though things didn''t go Lars''s way, that hit still granted him two stacks of Attention Grabber. His attack power and attack speed were boosted by 20%, enough to turn him into an immediate threat and make the Pirate retreat.


    "Gah, he got away!" Lars growled.


    "I''m still in shock he actually landed that one." Gilbert blinked as he turned to Aron. "That would''ve been a kill If not for the shield, right?"


    "Hard to say..." Aron squinted his eyes as he stared at Lars''s screen. It was unbelievable, this rookie fired a Trickshot out of Trickslide with pitch-perfect speed and accuracy, even Trever was caught off guard against that absurd play. It must had been a fluke, there was no other way to explain it. "Anyway, regardless of what it could or couldn''t have been, it didn''t convert into a kill in the end. It ended up as nothing more than a reckless misplay."


    "Yeah, I got it, I got it." Lars grumped. "Just you watch, I''mma get him next time!"


    "You know," Gilbert said. "I [really] wouldn''t mind if you informed me next time before charging in. I can''t support you when you''re on the other side of the lane."


    "Oh, sorry, dude." Lars scratched his head. "I''m so used to playing with Yuel that I forgot people can''t read minds, haha. I swear dude is a telepath, yo!"


    "As long as you understand."


    With this, Lars''s first assault ended in failure. By Aron''s harsh standards, it counted as nothing more than an uncoordinated reckless misplay. However, another examiner didn''t share that opinion at all.


    "Wow, I... I just died, right? Ha. Haha." Trever produced a hollow laugh after retreating to safety. As a fellow Carry main, he understood the consequences of the Trickshooter''s play better than anybody.


    It all happened in an instant. As soon as the Trickshooter started sliding, the Trickshot was also already locked on Trever, there was no escape. In the split second he found himself fazed by the Trickshooter''s play - he doomed himself to death. The timing was perfect too, since Backfire Cannon was on cooldown.


    "Bro, you really saved me there." Trever thanked Allen, the Druid. "Good job reading that one, I''d be totally screwed without that shield."


    "I... didn''t read it." Allen''s grimaced.


    "Huh? What are you on about? You totally saved my ass there."


    "Yeah, but I was already going to cast Gaia anyway." Allen explained he was low on MP, so planned to cast Gaia''s Protection one last time before returning to base. He barely even had the necessary MP for casting Gaia''s Protection, so the Trickshooter might had assumed he was out of juice at that point.


    "Heh, so you think he rushed in because he miscalculated your MP and thought you were out of gas?"


    "Yeah, probably. Honestly, I only had enough MP because I didn''t level Gaia yet. Casual players usually level it up right away, but thing is: Gaia''s cost goes up with each level, so I kept it at Lv.1 to not burn MP too fast. If not for that, I really wouldn''t have been able to cast it in that situation with such low MP."


    [And then I would have died.] Trever added silently. That rookie sure pulled a fast one on them. His attack came off as a reckless charge at first glance, but apparently he thought things through.


    ¡ºNo need to go easy on our Carry. Rather, crush him with all you''ve got. Don''t you dare holding back.¡»


    "Heh, so that''s what he meant." Trever grinned as he went over Aron''s instructions again. He received this private message as soon as the match began, but he didn''t take it seriously. Bullying rookies wasn''t among his hobbies so he wanted to play nice. However, now it was clear: against an opponent of this caliber, Trever had to get serious for real!

 20 Bipolar Player

    After missing his first chance to kill the enemy Pirate, Lars couldn''t get an edge over the Pirate ever since. Each and every time he slid toward the Pirate and fired a quick Trickshot, the Pirate reacted fast and dodged. It was so close! It almost hit! But, it didn''t.


    On the bright side, the Pirate couldn''t get an edge on Lars either. They exchanged countless blows, but neither of them gained the upper hand in the lane. Whenever Lars hit his opponent, he was struck back right away. Whenever Lars was hit, he immediately counterattacked. Any progress in the lane was frozen while the two of them duked it out in heated duels.


    Lars slid aside to dodge an incoming shot, then fired a straight Trickshot at the Pirate, who used Backfire Cannon to quickly dodge it and fired back at Lars, forcing him to roll to the right and shoot back and get shot and dodge and shoot and roll and slide and shoot and and and... it had no end!


    "Yo, this Pirate rocks! Hahaha!" Lars''s laugh was filled with ecstasy. It was a while since he faced such a strong lane opponent, it''s the best! Rather than feeling frustrated or overpowered, he was totally raring to go! More! MORE! He wanted to fight this Pirate more! It''s so thrilling! It''s the best! He couldn''t let his guard down for even a moment!


    [Just how long is Trever planning to mess around? ]Aron frowned. The neverending back and forth started getting on his nerves. What was Trever doing?


    It was already the fifth face-off between these two idiots, but Trever was yet to deliver any results. Not to mention, the rookie didn''t look intimidated in the slightest, despite facing a senior from the club who used to play Carry on the main team. Trever was the best person for putting this cocky rookie in his place, but that just refused to happen for some reason. [I swear, if he''s going easy because he''s fighting a rookie...]


    "Do you think Trever is holding back?" Aron asked Gilbert, the one who saw these fights up close in Bot Lane.


    "Hmm, I don''t think so." Gilbert made a complicated expression as he whispered behind Lars''s back. "I''m not 100% sure, but I think this kid here is actually holding Trever down."


    "You serious?"


    "Yeah, hard to believe, I know. Trever makes better decisions overall, but Lars balances that out with absurd reaction speed and coordination. He makes hitting Trickshots look like a child''s play, he even somehow hits them off the random walls I''ve been placing."


    "Is that so." Aron knitted his eyebrows. If Gilbert''s observation was to be trusted, then Lars had enough skill to match Trever in a fair fight. Aron claimed Lars was just a cocky greenhorn, but he was going to eat his words at this rate.


    Even suppose that Lars played Trickshooter better than any other class, was it really possible for an examinee to beat Trever? It actually happened before, but that was last year and there were special circumstances in place. Trever improved a lot since then, so it shouldn''t happen again, especially not in a fight dominated by technical skill.


    [Seriously, what is it with rookies these days? ]Aron sighed. First Howard and Ellen, now Yuel and Lars. Aron had to watch players with monstrous talents apply to the club one after another, threatening to leave players from his generation in the dust. Back in the day, when he took this very exam, he believed he and Trever were among the strongest rookies to ever attempt this exam. But now, he felt like an old-timer who barely kept up with the younger generation. Sigh.


    "Wow, this rookie sure holding his ground, haha." Trever laughed awkwardly, lost somewhere between enjoying the challenging battle and feeling weak for allowing a rookie push him around like that. That kid was one heck of a mechanical skill prodigy, no two ways about it. Trever had no choice but admit he was inferior in that department, since that''s literally the only reason Lars held up for so long.


    However, that was coming to an end. Trever didn''t spend the last two years in the club sitting on his butt doing nothing. He was already mechanically skilled when he joined, so he worked hard on improving his decision-making skills and gaining as much experience as possible. A true competitive player didn''t simply bash heads with his lane opponent, he also studied them and their playstyle. That''s the most important lesson he learned during the past two years, and he was going to put it to practice right here and now!


    [Welp, it was fun while it lasted, kid.] Trever smirked once the effect of the Trickshooter''s ultimate, Trickshow, came to an end. Surviving though that crazy Trickshow was hard as hell, but now that Trever made it through - he had the upper hand!


    [Sorry to break it for ya, but mechanical skill isn''t everything. ]Trever fearlessly advanced toward the Trickshooter, despite being at 30% HP after surviving through the Trickshow. He already played out the next few steps in his head, there was no hesitation in his movements. Combining his natural mechanical skill with the decision-making skills he acquired in the club, he was going to settle this duel for good!


    "RELEASE THE-"


    "Oh snap!" Lars exclaimed in response to the loud sound cue accompanying the Pirate''s ult: Release the Kraken. Damn, the huge squid dude was incoming!!!


    The casting time for the ult was like a second, so there was no time for anything! Lars instantly slid away from the Kraken''s range with Trickslide. He pressed the skill button on instinct, it was as natural as breathing for him. That''s not surprising, considering how many Krakens he faced by now. If he got a dollar each time he dodged a Kraken, he''d be filthy rich by now.


    [Sorry, but no dice, dude! ]Lars grinned as he turned around to face the Pirate, satisfied with his dodge.


    [Heh, a fast bastard like always. ]Trever grinned. [Good job reacting so fast, damn wonder boy. But, that was just bait! It gonna be the end of you!]


    [Okay, now that both our ults are down, I can wreck- huh!?] Lars froze. Wait, where''s the squid dude? Where''s the freakin'' Kraken he just dodged!? It never showed up! Did the Pirate cancel his ult in the last moment!?


    The only upside to the Kraken''s long windup animation was the option to cancel it before the Pirate finished yelling "Release the Kraken!". It was an advanced trick which Yuel taught him before, but he never had the chance to actually play against it. Nobody did that shit in Ranked, yo! It was a sick play!


    [I''mma beat into ya what it means to be a competitive player, kid! ]Trever turned his back to the Trickshooter and fired Backfire Cannon. Players usually used this skill for one of two purposes: as a ranged damaging ability or as an escape tool. However, veterans knew of a third way to use Backfire Cannon: to chase enemies!


    Backfire Cannon always pushed the Pirate backwards, so by turning his back to the enemy - he could quickly close the distance to them! In addition, the knockback from Backfire Cannon had roughly the same travel distance as the Trickshooter''s Trickslide. In other words, by closing the distance with Backfire Cannon, Trever effectively cancelled out the whole distance his enemy created! Yet again, the Trickshooter found himself within the Kraken''s range, Except, this time, he had no escape tools available.


    [I''m dead. I''m so dead, haha! ]Lars''s eyes darted across the screen, desperately seeking a way out of this situation. That Pirate was sick! Lars was totally played for a fool by that Kraken bait! [So, this is the level of a competitive player, huh? It''s awesome!]


    Nevertheless, he refused to give up. There had to be something, anything! There was still a bit time before the Kraken was going to hit the stage. FIrst, there was the time it took Backfire Cannon to finish pushing the Pirate. Then, there was the casting animation for the Kraken''s attack. Yeah, he had plenty of time! There was a total of a like... like 2 seconds or something! Yeah, that''s more than enough!


    Lars''s heart accelerated as he absorbed every little details in his surroundings. He had to find something, anything! He refused to fall here! He fought so hard against the Pirate until now, he refused step down in defeat!


    For starters, dodging seemed out of question. His best bet was rolling straight ahead and hoping the Pirate wouldn''t cast the Kraken in the most optimal spot, allowing him escape the Kraken''s AoE by a hair breadth. But c''mon, what were the odds of this Pirate messing up like that?


    The whole bait-and-switch Kraken play was clearly something the Pirate practiced a lot, so there was no way he''d conveniently screw it up at the very end. Still, there was no telling what''d happen unless Lars tried, so... no, wait.


    ["When it doesn''t seem like you can dodge the Kraken, don''t bother trying." ]Yuel''s words echoed in his mind.[ "When in the hands of competent a player, the Kraken''s damage itself is rarely used as the finisher. Instead, it''s more likely they''ll use the Kraken''s CC to floor you, then they''ll finish you off with basic attacks. You''ll be able to freely shoot at them until the CC hits, so go all out instead of retreating. Worst case, even if you die, others will be able follow up on the damage you dealt. Also..."]


    Yuel''s teachings were burned into Lars''s mind. Just how many different versions of this explanation he heard by now? The information was literally hammered into his brain by Yuel. Dude was like some preaching cultist, no joke.


    But, thanks to hearing the same thing a bazillion times and practicing it with Yuel, the knowledge surfaced naturally when he most needed it. His instincts screamed he should flee, but he stood still and continued analyzing his options. Running was useless. It was pointless. It wasn''t going to cut it. The right choice was to stay and fight. He repeated that in his head like a mantra, until his body accepted it like a fact.


    Maybe Lars was less experienced than his opponent and his decision-making skills were still lacking, but he wasn''t some clueless scrub. He had a trustworthy friend, who also happened to be a walking encyclopedia. Even if his bird brain only absorbed 1% of what Yuel taught him, that was enough to make him a hundred times stronger, yo!


    Since he decided to stay and fight, the best move was to fire Trickshot at the Pirate. But, how should he go about it? The safest choice was firing Trickshot straight at the Pirate, without bothering with any wall bounces. With Lars''s skill, that had like 120% chance of hitting. However, it''d only delete about a quarter of the Pirate''s HP.


    The second option was to fire Trickshot at the nearby wall, making it bounce once before hitting the Pirate. That normally had a chance to miss when fired in such a haste, but in this case his enemy was going to be stationary while casting Kraken, so locking on the Pirate was going to be a piece of cake. Alas, even this shot was nowhere near enough to turn the tables around, it''d only delete about half the enemy''s HP.


    Then, there was the final option: Lars could request a hasty Ice Wall and attempt a double bounce Trickshot. Even though it was just one extra bounce, it was going to be infinitely harder to land, thus incredibly risky. However, if the shot connected, it should wipe out the Pirate for good., that was the only way to win this duel!


    [Heh, Yuel won''t let me hear the end of it if I told him I''m seriously considering this right now. ]To most people, Yuel would tell to shoot a straight Trickshot without taking any risks. Knowing Lars''s abilities, Yuel [might ]suggest going for one bounce. Anyway, there was no way in hell Yuel would approve of the all-or-nothing double bounce Trickshot.


    However, that was just a good decision according to Yuel''s understanding of Lars''s ability. Yuel was a smart dude and all, but nobody understood Lars''s ability better than Lars himself. Even if hitting a double bounce Trickshot on the spot was impossible for others, Lars was gonna do it! It was a decision only he could make for himself by knowing the full extent of his shooting skill, it was the ultimate level of decision-making, yo!


    "Create a wall!" Lars shouted.


    "Huh?" Gilbert flinched. "Wall? Where?"


    "No matter! Anywhere''s good as long as I can bounce off it! Hurry, yo!"


    "Er, sure." Gilbert formed a wall of ice wherever, he didn''t have the luxury to pick a proper spot. Was that going to help in any way? This fight was already over as far as he could tell, Lars was as good as dead. Even if he used the ice wall to bounce-


    "Huh?" Gilbert raised an eyebrow. Lars fired Trickshot at a nearby wall, before Gilbert''s ice wall even finished forming. What gives? Wasn''t he planning to use the ice wall for a bounce? What a waste of mana- wait. Wait wait wait! Seriously!? "A double bounce!? In this situation!?" Gilbert gasped so hard he ran out of oxygen.


    [Yeah! Good! ]Lars grinned once his Trickshot made contact with the nearby wall. From there, it ricocheted toward Gilbert''s ice wall, which was still in the middle of being constructed. It was a shot with absurdly risky timing, but Lars didn''t have a choice. He burned way too much time picking this move, so by the time he got to shooting - the Kraken''s tentacle was already right above his head! It was now or never, so he bet everything on this hasty bullet!


    [C''mon, wall! ]Lars gritted his teeth. His Trickshooter was smashed into the ground by the Kraken, but there was still hope. He had more than enough HP to survive the Kraken''s damage. As Yuel said, the real danger laid with the Pirate''s follow up attacks while Lars was CC''d. If this Trickshot was going to connect, the Pirate would be removed from the stage before achieving anything!


    [Not the best wall in the world, but it should work! Let it hit, yooo! ]Lars gulped. Gilbert didn''t have much experience placing walls for him, but they had used the Ice Wall + Trickshot combo a couple of times by now, with varying degrees of success. Lars got a pretty good feel for how Gilbert placed walls, so he should be able to land this shot! He simply had to! Yoooooo!


    ... and he did! The Trickshot ran into the ice wall and bounced for the second time! All that remained was for the shot to connect with the enemy Pirate! It was going to take him out for sure, yo!


    This was normally the hardest step of the double-bounce Trickshot, but not quite in this case. The Pirate was effectively a training dummy, what with all the windup required for casting Release the Kraken. Lars practiced too many double-bounce Trickshots to miss in this situation!


    Even though Yuel forced him to practice many other Carry classes for Ranked, Lars never neglected Trickshooter, not even for a single day. Even if it was just in Practice Mode, even if it was just for 10 minutes from the whole day, he never let himself lose his touch when it came to Trickshooter. Therefore, there was no way he''d fail here!!!


    ... gah! The bullet barely grazed the Pirate''s shoulder! It was a clutch hit, which the Pirate could easily dodge by turning aside. But, in Classmancers, that was enough. It was a hit. It was a freakin'' hit! The Pirate''s HP got deleted!


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    "Woohoo! Yeah!" Lars threw fists into the air and jumped on his seat. Even though his Trickshooter was still pitifully crawling on the ground due to the Kraken''s CC, he was actually the winner! That Pirate was one tough cookie, but Lars finally gained the upper hand! Woohoo!


    "That''s... I mean... yeah..." Gilbert couldn''t words. He had no idea what he just witnessed. All this time, he was convinced Lars was doomed and that he couldn''t do anything to help, because Cryo-Freeze was on cooldown. But, that rookie just... holy moly.


    "That was... a rather reckless play." Aron''s voice was shaky. "If you missed that shot, you''d end up dying without dealing any damage to the Pirate. He could easily push the lane afterwards."


    "Heh, yeah I know. But I got him, so there''s no problem, right?"


    "I... suppose so." Aron, of all people, forgot how to talk back. Frankly, that play was mind boggling. Even if it wasn''t something Lars could reliably hit 100% of the time, he was capable of hitting such a tricky shot more often than not. His performance until now, combined with Gilbert''s positive impression, proved that beyond a shadow of doubt.


    It was frustrating to admit, but that shot was no fluke. Lars defeated a club member in a 1v1, fair and square without any handicaps. And it was Trever of all people, who had two years of competitive experience under his belt and used to play Carry on the main team.


    Honestly, there was nothing Aron could say after this. Any mistake Lars was going to commit from here on out would be overshadowed by this unbelievable achievement. Unless there were more examinees with such monstrous talents, Lar''s victory against Trever effectively earned him a free ticket into the Classmancers club.


    "Wow..." Trever stared at his screen with a blank expression.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "You gotta be shitting me, haha..." He had no idea how to react to this bullshit. The shot that killed him just now, it was a double bouncing Trickshot, wasn''t it? It totally was, right? How the hell... he didn''t even...


    "My, you can''t even hold your own against a rookie? How pathetic." Ellen sneered. "Really, if that''s all you''ve got after spending two years in this club, maybe you should just quit Classmancers?"


    "Nah, this rookie is just... He just got real lucky! Yeah, that''s all it was! Haha..."


    "''Lucky'', you say? If memory serves, something similar happened to you last year as well, didn''t it?"


    "... let''s not go there." Trever averted his eyes.


    "Running away, are we? I think it''s about time you came to terms with how much of a trash tier player you are."


    "Gh." Trever gritted his teeth and hung his head. His fists trembled and his breathing became ragged. "I''ll get him next time."


    "Hmm, I wonder about that." Ellen rolled her eyes. "You better pull yourself together, because I was ordered to not mess with the rookie. Though I''ll say, this rookie sure looks like fun." She licked her lips.


    "No problem, I got this. Yeah, no big deal." Trever took a deep breath and returned to the match. He couldn''t let that defeat eat at him, or else things were only going to get worse. That double-bounce Trickshot was just a fluke! Just a lucky shot! That rookie was sure tough, but he wasn''t above Trever''s level by any means! Yeah!


    "Oh, cool. Here he comes." Lars grinned once the Pirate returned to lane. "Let''s see who comes on top this time!"


    Even though Lars won the previous fight, he understood better than anybody it was one heck of a clutch. That Pirate was hella strong, there was no telling who was better. To prove he was stronger, Lars had to win the next fight, and the next next fight, and the one after, yo! Facing such a strong rival was so sick!


    But, something was wrong this time. The Pirate was pretty strong, but he failed to excite Lars like before. It''s not like he was weak or anything like that, he still showcased decent mechanical skill and sharp decision-making befitting a veteran. But, that''s about it. He was strong, but he didn''t feel unbeatable.


    [Did he seriously just spend Backfire? ]Lars tilted his head. He pressured the Pirate pretty hard, but it didn''t feel like the Pirate was so cornered that Backfire Cannon had to be used this early. [Welp, it''s over then.]


    Lars activated his ultimate, Trickshow, and assaulted the Pirate. With the Pirate''s one and only escape tool being on cooldown, there was no getting away. Lars swiftly slid around the Pirate, firing Trickshot in every direction. The Pirate was caged in a bullet hell, there was no escape.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    "Welp, guess that''s that." Lars shrugged. It was a nice fight, but nothing more. Unlike the first time, this victory didn''t feel like an Olympic achievement. Really, what''s going on with that Pirate?


    "Again!?" Trever slammed on the table. He allowed himself to be defeated by a rookie! Again! It was the second the second time already! The hell was he doing!?


    "My, my." Ellen shook her head. "I believe somebody said he ''got this''?"


    "I-I''ll get him next time!" Trever insisted. No way he was gonna lose, not to some rookie! He didn''t work his ass off the past two years to be stomped on by rookies! He wasn''t going to allow himself become a laughingstock!


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Ah..." The third time. He was speechless. How was he even supposed to react to this bullshit? This time, he was thoroughly trashed by that rookie. He, a veteran from the club, was completely destroyed by some rookie. What the actual fuck.


    "My, did you decide to switch sides?" Ellen giggled. "Because I have to say, you''re doing a really good job feeding their Carry. Seems like even trash can be useful to others."


    "I..." Trever hung his head and covered his eyes. That was too much. it''s not like he wanted to get killed, dammit! Fuck! Fuck it all!


    "It''s because you can''t keep your shit together that you''re so useless. Just do us all a favor and hug your Turret before we lose because of you, okay thanks."


    "... got it." Trever answered with a muffled voice. As much as he wanted to lash at Ellen, there was nothing to retort with. Three deaths in a row was basically feeding, no way around it. He was far behind the enemy Trickshooter in both level and gold, so his only option was staying beside his Turret and playing defensively.


    [So that''s all I''m worth, eh. How dumb.] Trever bit his lip and grabbed the mouse with his shaking hand. He used to be such a strong player in grade school, but look at him now. Even with so much competitive experience under his belt, he allowed a rookie to walk all over him. And it was the second year in a row! Disgraceful didn''t even begin to describe it.


    [Just let it end already... ]He didn''t give a shit anymore, he just wanted this torture to be over with. There was no point even trying anymore, so he just quietly farmed minions without leaving his Turret.


    "Boo, I changed my mind about that Pirate." Lars made a face. "Dunno what''s his deal, but he became crap."


    "So it seems." Aron frowned. "He seems to be under the weather today, so just ignore him."


    Of course, Aron knew it wasn''t anything simple like that. Trever was a skilled player, but also a fragile one. When things were going well for him, he was a beast. However, even the smallest mistake could trip him, making him lose himself. Even though he was strong enough to play on the main team, he was too unreliable for competitions.


    Trever used to be an extraordinary player in grade school, but that made him into a cocky show-off. Upon entering junior high and facing strong seniors, he was forced to realize he wasn''t nearly as special as he thought. He had always been a moody player, but that part of him became much worse since then, such was the tragic tale of a promising Classmancers player.


    As someone who witnessed the whole story unfold from up close, Aron couldn''t help but worry. Lars''s greater than life attitude was the spitting image of Trever''s younger self. For Lars''s own sake, it was best if somebody kicked him off the high horse as soon as possible. Learning his limits now would be merciful compared to discovering them from a devastating defeat in a serious match. Alas, with Trever performing poorly, that seemed impossible to achieve during this exam.


    There was now only one player on the enemy team who could teach Lars the necessary lesson, but Aron would be damned if he allowed [her] to take this job. That was only going to do more harm than good.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Welp, he went down again." Lars shrugged. "Man, I''m so fed right now I can even kill him under tower. So, I basically already passed the test, right?"


    "Who knows."


    "C''mon, I totally passed, right? C''mon, you can tell me, dude!"


    "Shut up and keep playing."


    "Geh, okay".


    [This is really bad. ]Aron frowned. With four kills, Lars completely dominated Bot Lane. Allowing the enemy Carry to snowball was going to prove fatal mistake, anybody knew that. At this point, it was difficult to insist on Ellen not intervening.


    When an enemy snowballed, the most most straightforward solution was to gank them, which was usually the Junger''s job. Aron ordered Ellen to stay away from the rookie, but the lack of ganks in Bot was difficult to justify in this situation. Even though this was an exam, it still strived to simulate a real match. To keep the match at least remotely fair, Ellen had no choice but to gank Bot Lane and stop Lars''s snowballing, she surely understood that. Things were about to get ugly.


    "My, what an interesting rookie we got on our hands."


    Defeating Trever was just the beginning for Lars. His strong performance piqued the interest of the "goddess", who was going to teach him a lesson he''d never forget.

 21 Immortal Goddess

    "Are you for real?" Ellen stared at Trever in disbelief. "I have no words, really. Even hugging a Turret is apparently too much for trash like you."


    "He''s too fed... not my fault..." Trever mumbled, staring at his screen with dead eyes. He didn''t care anymore, neither about the match nor about Ellen''s words.


    "Tch, what a useless fellow. Seems like I have to gank Bot before things get out of hand." Ellen sighed as if it was a pain, but she secretly smirked. [My, a rookie who can break Trever like this? How delightful~ I''ll make sure to treat him re~al good, teehee.]


    "Sorry dear, it seems I''ll have to bully your boyfriend a little." Ellen winked at Julia.


    "Bully?" Julia raised an eyebrow. "No way that gonna happen."


    "My, you think the world of him, don''t you? How lovely~" Ellen smiled from ear to ear. [You only tempt me more and more to mess with that kid. Oh dear, I hope this doesn''t get out of hand, teehee~]


    While she was heading to Bot Lane, her prey was busy pushing the lane Trever left unprotected.


    "Okay, let''s go!" Lars grinned as the enemy Turret collapsed. This was usually a good time to retreat, but Lars kept pushing full throttle. He was hella fed at this point, what could possibly happen? He was unstoppable, yo!


    Meanwhile, the enemy Ranger was exposed by one of Gilbert''s Wards in Bot Jungle. He was coming to gank Bot Lane, no doubt about it.


    [Okay, come at me, yo! I hope you gonna be more fun than that crappy Pirate. ]Lars didn''t even consider dodging this obvious flanking. He kept pushing the lane as if nothing was going on, inviting the Ranger to come here and fight.


    Suddenly, the Ranger appeared right behind him! What a surprise! Well, not really. He heard the sound cue for Wolf Companion and immediately rolled aside, dodging the wolf. The wolf CC was the standard opening for Ranger ganks, so Lars knew how to handle that stuff.


    "Oh!" Lars was hit by an arrow while recovering from the roll. Hey, that Ranger wasn''t half bad! He came here fully prepared for the possibility his wolf would be dodged, so he fired another shot right away! Rather than being fazed by Lars''s quick dodge, he... he?


    [Oh, it''s a chick? ]Lars realized the enemy Ranger was a woman, it was literally the first time he saw her this match. Except for Julia''s Pyromancer, he was sure the rest of the enemy lineup was filled with males. That''s when it hit him.


    "Wait, is that the ''goddess'' you mentioned!?" His eyes lit up.


    "Who knows." Aron dodged. "Just... Just don''t do anything rush."


    "Heh, what''s that? Worried about lil'' ol'' me?"


    "You wish. I Just gave you some advice to keep the exam fair."


    "Heh, is that so?" Lars kicked his lips. "Okay, let''s see what this ''final boss'' of yours got for me!"


    His duel with the Ranger began. With Wolf Companion on cooldown, the only other skill Ranger had was Beartrap, but it didn''t do shit in fights. There was also the ult, The Hunt is On, but a Ranger would usually activate it at the beginning of the gank, so it was probably on cooldown too.


    Therefore, the only tool the Ranger had right now was her basic attacks. Lars had both Trickshot and Trickslide available, but there was no reason to be hasty here. His opponent didn''t have any tools anyway, so he decided to keep his skills in store for when the Ranger was gonna flee.


    Thus, the fight boiled down to basic attacks. It was a clash of pure mechanical skill, just how Lars liked it! [Let''s see how good this goddess can shoot!]


    He shot, she dodged to the right and fired back, he sidestepped and hit her, she fired but missed, he shot and she dodged to the right again. It was a back and forth of rolls, bullets and arrows. That Ranger was sure good at dodging, making Lars miss almost half the time despite his 200% accuracy. But...


    [Is that all? ]Lars pouted. Like, she was decent and all, at least a Gold player. But, if that''s all she had, then the Pirate he faced at the beginning was leagues beyond. So much for the "final boss" he was waiting for. Boo.


    It didn''t help that her shots barely dealt any damage even when they connected, probably because Lars was way too fed. Still, even without that advantage, he landed more shots than her. While she brought him from 80% HP to 60% HP, he barraged her all the way from 100% to 20%. The fight was as good as over.


    That''s when the most predictable thing ever happened: the Ranger began retreating. She summoned her wolf as a mount and rode it toward the jungle. Lars was prepared for this scenario from the moment they started fighting... or so he thought.


    [Oh snap! I didn''t realize we were this close to the jungle! ]Their fight originally started deep into the lane and Lars watched out for escapes the whole time. But, at some point, the fight moved to the edge of the jungle, without Lars even noticing.


    [Welp, doesn''t matter. You''re not getting away, yo! ]Lars activated the Trickslide he had been saving this whole time and chased the Ranger.


    The wolf mount provided increased movement speed, which allowed traveling a longer distance over time. On the other hand, Trickslide was a like sudden burst of supersonic speed and stuff! There was no escape! He was gonna close the distance in an instant-


    "Gah!?" His Trickslide was interrupted!? He found himself standing in place, stunned. A Beartrap awaited him right at the jungle''s entrance and he slid straight into it! Dang it!


    The stun from Beartrap was a really nasty CC. Its stun duration scaled with its level, reaching all the way to 3 seconds at max level. That freakin'' Ranger had all the time in the world to get away!


    ["When there''s a Ranger, you better buy Cleanse against Beartrap"] that''s what Yuel always said. Lars never liked spending gold on this costly utility skill, but this game he had enough spare cash thanks to being fed.


    [Good thing I bought this thing. You''re not getting away so easily, yo!] Lars acitaved Cleanse, freeing himself from the stun. He wasn''t done yet!


    The Beartrap''s stun was cancelled, but it didn''t change the fact his Trickslide was interrupted midway and was now on cooldown. The Ranger only got farther and farther away on her mount, soon getting out of the range of Lars''s basics attacks.


    Nevertheless, Lars refused to give up just yet. Aside from Trickslide, he also saved up his other skill for this sort of situation. His basics attacks couldn''t reach anymore, but Trickshot could still make it!


    [Wait for it. Wait for it.] Lars carefully scanned the available walls in the jungle. Unlike the open and straightforward lane, the jungle was a messy area with many walls and narrow passages. Even the almighty god of trick shots needed a moment to take aim.


    [There! Probably! ]He fired Trickshot. While the Ranger was fleeing deep into the right, his bullet flew to the left. A straight Trickshot wouldn''t finish her off and it was unlikely it''d even reach her. As such, there was no point shooting straight at her, it had to be a bounce shot!


    The bullet hit a wall on the left side, then bounced and darted to the right. The angle was great! His bullet looked like a homing missile! It was gonna hit for sure! It gotta hit! C''mon, hit!


    It... didn''t hit.


    "Gah! Crap! It was so close!" Lars smacked his forehead. It was so freakin'' close! The bullet reached all the way to the Ranger, but it strayed a little too much to the right. It missed by like a centimeter! No, a millimeter! A fraction of a millimeter! If she took just one more step to the right - he''d finish her for sure!


    That wasn''t just Lars''s exaggeration. With the bullet passing right beside her, Ellen realized this as well.


    [Eh? My. My my. My my my!] Ellen blinked repeatedly as she stared at her screen. Her index finger was just about to press ''D'', she was just about to turn right. If she were to press it a split-second earlier - she''d be dead by now. She totally would had been killed, by the hands of a rookie!


    [My, what a cute little rookie we have on our hands! ]Ellen''s eyes emitted a dangerous glint. [How do they expect me to sit here and not bully this cutie!? Forgive me Aron, for I''m about to sin! Teehee~]


    She went easy on the rookie the first time, trying to abide by Aron''s rules. However, that was a terrible understatement, this adorable little rookie didn''t need any handicaps. He was a dangerous beast, which Ellen had to tame with an iron fist.


    "July, sweetie, can I borrow a bit of your time to clear these camps?" Ellen pinged two jungle camp in Bot Jungle.


    "Hm? Okay, just a moment." Julia joined Ellen in the jungle after clearing the minion wave.


    "My, aren''t you a doll. Thanks."


    "I don''t mind helping, but why didn''t you clear these camp on your way to Bot? They were along the way, I could''ve helped you back then as well."


    "Oh, nice map awareness. Hmhm, I wonder why I didn''t~" Ellen stuck out her tongue. "Guess I''m a cute ditz like that~"


    [Welp, so much for that ''goddess''. ]Lars shrugged and returned to Bot. He failed to kill the Ranger, but she didn''t impress him in the slightest.


    Her mechanical skill was that of a Gold player at best, and she didn''t achieve anything special during the fight. He still had 60% HP left, so she didn''t even force him to retreat from the lane. Therefore, he kept pushing without a care in the world, nobody could stop him at this point anyway.


    Just as he returned to pushing, he was ganked again. It was that Ranger again, back with... full HP? Huh? That''s weird. How did she restore her HP from 20% to 100% so quickly? Did she recall to base and rode here on her wolf? That didn''t sound right, considering she popped out of the jungle behind him.


    So, she... eh... returned to base, healed up, entered the jungle, circled around and came out behind him? All that in less than a minute? It sounded bogus, but maybe the wolf mount was fast enough to achieve that. Anyway, he just had to beat the crap outta her again. No problem, yo.


    So, they fought again. Just like before, it was mostly a one-sided exchange of shots. But, something felt different from last time.


    The Ranger''s mechanical skill now felt a league higher, something that''d befit a Platinum player rather than a Gold one. Did she underestimate him last time? Or, maybe she got used to fighting him?


    Welp, it didn''t matter. Even though he called it "Platinum tier" mechanical skill and he was Platinum himself, that didn''t mean her mechanical skill came anywhere close to his. Hers was just the average skill level he was used to fighting in Platinum. However, in pretty much every Ranked match, Lars always stood above the rest when it came to mechanical skill. Therefore, when it came to 1v1, he wouldn''t lose to another Platinum player, yo!


    Lars fell from 65% HP to 40%, whereas the Ranger fell all the way from 100% to 20%. It was an undisputed victory yet again. This "goddess" was fine and all, but she wasn''t anything special. He had this in the bag!


    ... or so he thought.


    [Wha!? Another trap!?] He slid into a Beartrap during the chase, for the second time now. All his attention was locked on his prey, so he forgot to look out for traps. Cleanse was still on cooldown, so he could do nothing but stand there and watch his prey getting away. [Dang it! Next time I''mma get her! 200%, yo!]


    Less than a minute later, the Ranger returned to pester him again. And, yet again, she was fully restored. How was that even possible!? It''s like she flew back and forth between her base and Bot on a freakin'' rocket! Speed hax!


    "Just what''s the deal with this Ranger?!" Lars gritted his teeth and steeled himself for another engagement. This Ranger was seriously getting on his nerves, yo! She poked him for almost no damage, ran away and returned a second later with full HP. By the time he restored from 40% HP to 45% HP, she somehow went from 20% all the way to 90%! Screw her, yo!


    "Heh, she''s pretty annoying to deal with, right?" Gilbert chuckled. "Just look at the items she built, then you''ll understand."


    "Her items?" Lars made a dumb face and opened the stats menu. He played enough Ranger in Ranked, as both as Carry and Jungler, so he knew the gist of Ranger builds. What could possibly be so special- "Huh!? What''s this crap!?"


    First she built Ninja Tabi, boots which provided both attack speed and power. So far standard, no problem there. But then, she built... Bloodedge and Devourer''s Mask? Huh? What the actual heck?


    Bloodedge was a lifesteal item with at least some power attached to it, but Devourer''s Mask was a completely defensive items. Who even built Devourer''s on a Carry!? No wonder her shots dealt less damage than bites from a toothless bunny, she barely had any attack power!


    She could at least buy Samurai Tabi instead of Ninja Tabi to get more power, but nooooo. Why the heck did she buy a heavy lifesteal item like Bloodedge before buying any power? Lars couldn''t count how many times Yuel lectured him about the importance of buying power before lifesteal. Was that chick a noob or something!?


    And again, who''d even build Devourer''s Mask on Ranger!? It provided HP, defense and HP5. That was clearly an item for a bruiser, not an assassin! What was going on!? He didn''t even.


    "The hell is wrong with this girl?" Lars didn''t even know how to react to this madness. "Her build is crap! Crap, I''m tellin'' ya!"


    "Crap, eh." Aron sneered. "This is actually a good question for the exam. Tell me, what do you think the goal of that build?"


    "No freakin'' idea, dude. That build is trash, that''s not how you build Ranger. With Ranger, you go hard or you go home, yo! You don''t build twenty defensive items like some pussy."


    "Yes, if you consider meta builds, then this is definitely unconventional. But, now that you saw her build, can you guess what she has been doing?"


    "Nope, no idea, dude. This build is weird and I don''t like it."


    "... alright then. Maybe you need a little refresher on the item effects, considering your terrible score in quiz." Aron cleared his throat. "Bloodedge gives +50% lifesteal for 5 seconds when you drop below 20% HP, that can occur once every 60 seconds. Devourer''s Mask restores 20% of your MaxHP over 5 seconds after killing a camp boss. Now you see where this is going?"


    "Nope, this build transcends my understanding of the universe."


    "... really now." Aron frowned. Was this kid 100% brawn and 0% brains? Sigh. "Alright, I''ll enlighten you: It''s a defensive hit-and-run build."


    "Huh? How can a hit-and-run be ''defensive''? You''re supposed to charge in, CC them and burst them with yo ult. You need maximum DPS, not defense."


    "But, what if your plan isn''t to finish them off on the first try?" Aron''s asked.


    "Wait, are you sure you should discuss this?" Gilbert asked. "Aren''t we supposed to keep these things secret during the exam?"


    "It seems she''s about to get serious against him and I can''t rotate to help." Aron explained. "It''ll be more fair if he knows how she plays."


    "If you say so." Gilbert shrugged.


    "Anyway, she doesn''t kill you the first time." Aron turned to Lars. "She pokes you, fights you until she''s at 20% and then escapes. That''s how she plays."


    "Huh? You telling me she [allows ]me get her down to 20%?"


    "Yes, you could say that." Aron nodded. "That way, the first jungle camp she visits can get her below 20% with just a few hits. That''s when Bloodedge procs and gives her +50% lifesteal, which allows her restore about 30% HP with attacks. Then, once she kills the camp boss, Devourer''s Mask restores another 20%."


    "Okay okay okay, I totally lost ya there with all these percentages." Lars shook his head. "So basically, ya tellin'' me she''s fine with losing HP, because she can restore a shit ton of HP in the Jungle? Is that it?"


    "Yes, that''s the gist of it. By clearing two jungle camps, she quickly gets back to full HP and returns to poke you again."


    "Well screw her then." Lars was uncharacteristically grumpy. Until now, he was sure he held the upper hand in all his fights against the Ranger. But what, it was just a part of her script all along? Did she simply let Lars beat her down to 20% HP because she knew she''d immediately restore back to full HP? Gah! Who played Ranger like that!? Seriously, what was that chick''s problem!?


    "Heh, okay then!" Lars wore a twitching grin. "She can have all the heals in the world, but it won''t help her once I kill her for good!"


    "Yes, but wai-"


    "Just you watch! I''ll shut her down for sure this time!"


    [... did I just make things worse? ]Aron frowned. Anybody with at least half a brain should had realized that Ellen wasn''t an opponent to tackle without CC, but this kid... things might turn ugly. Without realizing it, Lars was already caught in the spider''s web.


    "I''ll try rotating there to help him." Gilbert said.


    "Please do." Aron nodded.


    "Come at me, yo!" Lars faced the Ranger for the third time. She was one heck of a pesky opponent to deal with, but the challenge ignited a flame in him. That chick was totally sitting there wearing a smug right now, but he was gonna wipe it off her damn face! He had no plans losing to some underhanded tactics, yo!


    [Geh, was she this good last time? ]Even though it was their third duel, Lars still couldn''t get a proper read on the Ranger''s skills. It felt like she became stronger and stronger each time they fought, that always threw him off at the beginning of the fight. Was that also part of her evil plan? Welp, it didn''t matter. He just had to beat the heck outta her!


    As much as he hated to admit it, the way she fought right now... she was good. Kinda. Like, not THAT amazing, but definitely nothing to sneeze at.


    It took him a while to adjust himself to the speed of her dodges and shots. In particular, she did a great job evading Lars''s shots by side stepping and rolling to the right. Her aim wasn''t half bad either, but her attacks lacked a punch due to her trashy build. Rather than receiving serious blows, it felt more like he was dodging mosquito bites.


    Still, he dodged everything that came flying his way. Even if these attacks didn''t deal much damage, they still registered as "attacks" in his brain and his body instinctively reacted. This duel was a joke, really.


    Once Lars got used to the Ranger''s pace, he easily pressured her. Even if she was in her "Super Saiyan 2" mode or whatever, she had nothing on Lars. He was faster, stronger and more accurate, no way he''d be beaten by somebody who didn''t even try winning for real. Players who didn''t go all out should go home, yo!


    Lars fell from 45% HP to 20%, while the Ranger fell from 90% to 20%. Even though they were roughly matched in remaining HP, the Ranger followed her precious script and mounted her wolf. She was gonna flee again, without even trying to settle this. What a pesky freakin'' Ranger.


    But things weren''t gonna go her way this time, yo! Lars intentionally engaged her as far as possible from the jungle, there was nowhere for her to esca-


    "Wha?! Again!?" Lars''s cried out. The jungle was somehow right behind the Ranger! They began their fight so far away, but at some point it dragged all the way out here before he noticed. Was that also part of the Ranger''s ploy? Gah! [Seriously, this freakin'' chick...!]


    "Wait, don''t chase-"


    "I''mma finish her off, yo!" Lars darted after the Ranger. He wasn''t gonna let her get away again! He won every battle so far and he was gonna win the war as well!


    [I.]


    [Caught.]


    [You.]


    Ellen smirked. Their waltz was electrifying while it lasted, but it was time to put that rookie in his place. Brute strength was cute and all, but it couldn''t defeat superior smarts.


    [It''s okay, I pressured her harder than ever. ]Lars kept chasing the Ranger. [I can still catch up!]


    Chasing after an enemy with just 20% HP was risky, but Lars didn''t care. That Ranger had no intention facing him anyway, so he''d just shoot her in the back. One successful Trickslide would allow him to close the distance in an instant, then it''d be game over for that chick. He only had to be wary of the bear trap, because there''s always a bear trap.


    Where did she place it this time? Was it right at the jungle''s entrance like the first time? Or, was it a little deeper like last time? The trap was semi-transparent and blended well with the jungle''s terrain, so it was twenty times harder to spot inside the jungle. But, it wasn''t impossible. He''d just have to concentrate 200% after stepping into the jungle-


    "Wha!? It was outside!?" Lars jumped. He just triggered the freakin'' trap! It awaited him right outside the jungle! He was 200% sure it''d be further ahead, but nope! Gah! That Ranger played him for a fool!


    [Geh, she gonna get away. ]Lars clicked his tongue. Not once, not twice, but thrice! That''s how many times he let his prey slip away! [Yeah, run back home you puss- huh!?]


    "Say what!?" Lars was dumbfounded. The Ranger... she didn''t run!? She turned around and headed straight toward Lars! Was she was gonna fight him after all? Awesome! They''d finally settle this once and for all! ...or not.


    [Gah, how long is the stun on this thing? Did she spend all her SP on it!? Daim, woman! ]His enemy was right in front of him but he was still stunned, unable to do anything. And of course Cleanse was still down, because it had a cooldown of five billion years. Gah! He was like a sitting duck right now!


    But it''s okay. Yeah, it should be fine. With her low attack power, she wouldn''t be able to kill him fast from 20%-


    "The hunt is on!" The Ranger shouted. Oh, crap. OH CRAP! Crap crap CRAAAAP! Her ult was available all this time?! Why didn''t she use it at the beginning of the gank like any reasonable Ranger!? Gaaaah, this chick was seriously bonkers!


    Making up for the lack of power, Beartrap lowered Lars''s defenses and increased the Ranger''s attack speed. And, if that wasn''t enough, her ult now gave her a shitton of extra damage against a marked enemy. She was gonna destroy Lars before he''d even get a chance to act! Well ain''t that just 200% fair!?


    That''s when it finally hit him: the three battles they fought, were they just a preparation for this one decisive moment? She let him win time and again, intoxicating him with a sense of superiority. As a result, he got overconfident and commited a careless mistake, a fatal mistake. He was playing into her hands all along! Gah!!!


    Lars turned numb. His body felt like lead and his breathing became ragged. It was the first time he experienced such despair while playing Classmancers.


    There''s nothing he could do, he couldn''t even twitch. His Trickshooter just stood there like a manquient, offering himself to be ravaged by arrows. All his skill and strength were useless.


    This sense of dread was crippling, yet weirdly familiar. Where did he experience this before? Oh, yeah... the finals of the regional basketball tournament, when his precious 3-pointers got shut down by the giants on the enemy team. He practiced these 3-pointers to death until he regained his status as the unstoppable ace, believing himself to be at the top of the basketball world. But, he was proven wrong, terribly wrong.


    That''s when he gave up basketball. He felt so powerless, so useless, just like now. He thought he was hot stuff in Classmancers because everybody praised his "sick mechanical skills", but he was so lame right now. Just look at him, getting his ass handed to him by some smartass chick after playing like a legit dumbass.


    Was this the level of competitive Classmancers? Was he actually just a scrub when it came to playing competitively? It hurt. It hurt a lot. Was he... going to run away from Classmancers as well?


    [Heh, so lame. ]He smiled in self-mockery. Somewhere deep inside, he never got over the feeling he "ran away" from basketball because it became too harsh. It didn''t help that Taison often laughed at him on the matter, despite also being a quitter.


    Lars quit basketball because it didn''t let players be active throughout the whole match, at least that was his excuse. But, what about this situation? Classmancers was definitely a game where all five teammates stayed very active throughout the whole match, but here he was: alone, stunned in the middle of nowhere.


    Where was his team? Where was this so-called "cooperation" he quit basketball for? Yet again, he found himself banging his head against an impassable wall, alone. There''s nothing he could do in this situation, he lost.


    [So what, I just gonna quit again? Don''t screw with me!] He slammed his table. The heck was he mopping about? Didn''t he aim to play on the highest competitive level? Didn''t he plan on going to Ivy HIgh and play on Venom together with Yuel? This was just a Junior High exam, it was still a stage for scrubs compared to what he dreamed of! Who was gonna give up so early into the game, yo!?


    So what if his defense was lowered by Beartrap? So what if the Ranger dealt a shitton of damage with The Hunt is On? Her damage output was way below average for a Ranger, she might not kill him in time before the stun ends! There might still be a chance!


    It wasn''t over yet! He returned his hands on the keyboard and mouse. All he needed was a second, even a millisecond would do. He just had to dodge roll to throw the Ranger off, then fire Trickshot while she''s busy readjusting her aim. A single bounce Trickshot would be enough to finish her off, there was even a great wall for him to use. He already figured out the exact angle for the shot, all he needed was to get out of this freakin'' stun!


    He held a finger on the ''A" key and smashed the spacebar button like his life depended on it, because it literally depended on it! Roll! Roll! Roll! He had to roll aside right as the stun was going to end, he couldn''t waste a single moment! [Let me out already! OUT I said!]


    One after another, the Ranger''s arrows pierced his Trickshooter. His HP percentage rapidly slipped away.


    10%


    7%


    4%


    1%


    "Okay!" He got out! He finally rolled to his left! He was still alive! Woohoo! 1% HP, yo! He had a chance! There was a faint light at the end of the tunnel!


    He pointed his gun at a faraway wall and activated Trickshot, there was no hesitation. Jungle walls had curvy shapes, so it was difficult getting proper bounces off them. However, he had more than enough time during that stupid stun to figure the best angle for the shot. He was gonna land this shot and defeat-


    An arrow happened. It pierced his Trickshooter straight through the skull, delivering the finishing blow. He collapsed before he even got to fire Trickshot.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    It was over. The faint ray of hope he saw was just an illusion, it was brutally crushed by the Ranger. Despite struggling to the very end, he was powerless against her.


    A "goddess"... maybe she really was. From beginning to end, everything followed her script as if it was fate. Lars couldn''t do anything against it, he was stripped of all the strength he believed he had, it was so lame. He was powerless, completely powerless...


    "That''s why I told you to not chase." Aron said. "If you judge her build only by the meta, then yes it''d be considered meme. But, the competitive scene is where metas are born in the first place, so... hey, are you listening?"


    "Huh? Ah..." Lars opened and closed his mouth like a fish. His back was crooked and he stared down on this keyboard with empty eyes.


    [Not good. ]Aron frowned. This was the outcome he feared most, perhaps he should had stopped the match before it got to this point. "Hey, are you alright?" He shook Lars''s shoulder.


    "Huh? Ah..." Lars gave something that vaguely resembled a response. It was just another defeat, he suffered hundreds of those in Ranked. However, none of them was as crushing as this one.


    Where was his sick mechanical skill? What happened to his awesome trick shots? None of them worked against this Ranger. Why did he lose? What was he lacking? What was he missing?


    It''s as if he hit a wall again, just like in basketball. No matter how hard he trained or how many matches he won, was he just a nobody in the end? Just another scrub among the millions playing Classmancers? A speck of dust which couldn''t achieve anything?


    "Hmm, I don''t think I can finish her off." Gilbert said. Huh? What was he doing? Lars threw a glance toward Gilbert''s monitor. It showed the same spot Lars just died at, the Ranger was frozen and Gilbert''s Cryomancer shot basic attacks at her.


    For a moment, it looked like Gilbert would finish her off. Alas, Support Cryomancer didn''t build much power, so his attacks barely inflicted any damage. Once the freeze duration ended, the Ranger summoned her wolf mount and dashed the heck outta there.


    "Tch, so close." Gilbert clicked his tongue. "Well, I can''t do much with my damage." He turned to Lars. "If you waited a little longer, I would''ve frozen her for you."


    "Oh." Lars blinked, it finally hit him. Yeah, that''s what was missing: Yuel wasn''t here to support him. He was so used to Yuel being around, setting up the perfect stage for kills, that he forgot he even needed that kind of supporting.


    If Yuel were here, he''d find the perfect opportunity to CC that Ranger long enough for Lars to finish her off. They wouldn''t even need to discuss it, it''d just happen. Their teamwork became as natural as breathing for Lars, they almost communicated telepathically, yo.


    But Yuel wasn''t here, Lars''s Support was Gilbert right now. Gilbert seemed like a decent dude, he nearly got there on time before Lars was taken down. If they were perfectly synchronized, they could had turned the tables on the Ranger without any trouble.


    But Gilbert wasn''t Yuel, so he couldn''t read Lars''s mind. They had to discuss their plans ahead of time to cooperate well. It was something so simple and obvious, but it completely escaped Lars''s mind.


    And there was Aron too, who warned Lars and issued a retreat. If that was Yuel''s warning, Lars would had automatically complied, since he had 200% trust in Yuel''s judgment. But, did he even bother listening to Aron? Nope, he just charged in like a madman.


    Aron even went out of his way to explain the Ranger''s strategy, to give Lars all the tools to deal with this situation. Did Lars listen? Nope, he just got triggered because the Ranger played stupid, even though the only one being stupid was actually him. He had reliable teammates right beside him, yet he tried winning the match all by himself and drove himself into a corner in the process.


    "Heh, haha." Lars smacked his forehead. Seriously, what was he doing? He complained his teammates lacked the means to help him in basketball, yet here he was, rejecting the help his teammates COULD provide him in Classmancers. He didn''t heed Aron''s warnings and he didn''t wait for Gilbert''s support. Instead, he got carried away after defeating the Pirate, thinking he''s on the top of the world. How lame.


    "Welp, that one is on me." Larrs scratched his head. "Should have retreated like Aron said, or at least waited for Gilbert. Derp."


    [He''s already back on his feet? ]Aron was taken aback. "... good, as long as you understand. She''s an opponent you need to tackle with CC."


    "Yeah, learned that the hard way. I was really lame in that fight, haha."


    "You shouldn''t feel too bad about losing to her" Aron wore a complicated expression. "She may not look like much at first glance, but she rips you apart before you realize if you underestimate her. You can win countless battles against her, but she''ll win the war. That''s how her nickname was born: Athena, the goddess of war."


    "Whoa, are ya trying to console me, dude?"


    "Hmph, just stating facts" Aron sneered, but a faint smile creeped onto his lips. Deep down, he was glad Lars didn''t lose spirit from that crushing defeat, that Lars didn''t become another Trever.


    In the end, that defeat served as a much needed lesson for Lars. It taught him to not overestimate himself and to cooperate with his teammates. All in all, it was a great outcome.


    "I take it you can keep playing?" Aron asked.


    "Huh? Of course, yo!" Lars grinned and waved a fist. "Next time I fight that Athena dude, I''mma mop the floor with her!"


    [... did this kid really learn anything from that fight? ]Aron sighed.


    With this, Lars''s long war with Athena came to an end. He lost this one, but next time he was gonna get her for sure, yo!

 22 The Determination to Play

    Ellen finally caught her prey. The enemy Trickshooter was stunned by her Beartrap, unable to fight back. It was the grand finale, all their previous fights led to this one decisive moment. Now, she was going to put that rookie in his place by teaching him his limits.


    One arrow. Two arrows. The Trickshooter''s HP plummeted. 10%. 7%. 4%. 1%. It was over. The next arrow would- No! He broke away!


    "Ah!?" Ellen gasped. Her prey was about to slip through her fingers! The Trickshooter rolled aside as soon as the stun ended!


    [My, how persistent! Accept your defeat already...!] Ellen''s face contorted. Why couldn''t he just give up like a good boy? This was the point where her prey was supposed to behave themselves and peacefully go down, that brat didn''t know any manners!


    [Shit, is this really happening!? ]She didn''t account for this development. At this rate, her next arrow was going to miss!


    But it''s alright, no sweat. She still had 20% HP left, whereas her opponent was an injured kitten with just 1% HP. Even if he were to dodge the next arrow, she''d finish him off no problem... or was it too naive?


    [... can I really do it? ]A sense of dread filled her. By studying and facing many strong players, she could sense it with every cell of her body: she was going to die, the reaper''s scythe was already pressed against her neck.


    Her prey was injured, but he was no kitten. He was a vicious tiger, ready to rip her apart at the first chance he gets. If she were to waver for even a moment, the Trickshooter would break through her trap and turn the tables on her. With just his superior strength, he''d crush Ellen!


    She had to hand it to this kid, maybe he was the real deal. Unlike the show-off trash, who pretended he was a skilled player but turned out to be a fragile crybaby, this rookie had the strength and fortitude of a real beast. Honestly, it sent shivers down her spine.


    However, she refused to yield to this terror. Until she got to her current position, she struggled through neverending humiliation, constantly ridiculed by the show-off trash. Her current playstyle was crafted for one purpose only: to crush those stronger than her!


    Therefore, she couldn''t give up the next shot. This had to end right here and now, just as she planned it. Her next shot wasn''t allowed to miss, it''d be game over. If she were to fall here, she''d be yielding to the very mechanical monsters she trained herself to defeat. She couldn''t give up, not here!


    "Ha!" Ellen swept her mouse with all she had, making a sharp turn to the right. Perhaps she wasn''t the goddess of mechanical skill, but even she could land a fast shot in a pinch! Right as the crosshair reached the Trickshooter - she fired.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    "Yes! Ahahaha!" Ellen thrust her hands into the air, startling her teammates. "Oh, ahem." She cleared her throat and put on her usual foxy smile. "That rookie sure put on a fight, be in the end he was no match for me."


    "You actually defeated Lars in 1v1...?" Julia blinked.


    "Yes, my dear. I did it. I did it!" Ellen took a deep breath before excitement got the better of her again.


    "B-But he''s strong right? It''s not like he''ll fail because of it." Julia was nervous, as this was Lars''s first death this match.


    "Don''t worry, sweetie. We don''t expect rookies to actually beat veterans, so he''ll be just fine." Ellen smiled. [That is, if this defeat doesn''t haunt him. My, I''m such a terrible person sometimes. Please, don''t break down like a certain show-off trash, or I''ll never hear the end of it from Aron.]


    "Speaking of rookies, how are you faring?" Ellen peered into Julia''s monitor. She was so obsessed with trapping the Trickshooter this whole time she completely forgot about monitoring Julia''s performance, which should had been her main job as the examiner. Oopsie~


    "My, you''re killing it, girl." Ellen nodded in approval.


    From the beginning of the match and until now, Julia had been strongly pressuring her lane opponent. As a Pyromancer, she had incredible damage potential at close range as long as she maintained her heat gauge. She''d be at a disadvantage at long range, but her lane opponent was a Beastmaster, which didn''t have any longer ranged shots. Good thing Julia banned so many pesky Mid Lane classes during the drafting phase, Beastmaster was one class she knew how to counter well.


    Beastmaster was a peculiar Mid class, considered a "specialist" rather than a "mage". Instead of dishing out powerful damaging spells, the Beastmaster relied on minions to push lanes. Its passive, Whipping into Shape, buffed the stats of all nearby allied minions by 30%.


    The meat of the Beastmaster''s kit was the skill Tame the Wild, which "captured" jungle monsters after their HP fell under a certain threshold. The captured monsters could later be released with the skill Let the Dogs Out, summoning them as allied minions on the lane. Jungle monsters, and especially jungle bosses, were much stronger than normal minions, so adding them to the minion wave allowed the Beastmaster to push hard. On top of all that, the summoned jungle monsters counted like normal allied minions for the Beastmaster''s passive, meaning they were 30% stronger than in the jungle.


    Relying on powerful minions to push lanes was very effective, but therein laid the Beastmaster''s greatest weakness. The Beastmaster''s push power was great when it had jungle minions, but it was nonexistent without them.


    Just like Yuel always instructed her, Julia bought high power items early on and invested most of her SP into Flame Wave. Combining that power with the buffs from Pyromancer''s Warmup and Pillar of Fire, she reduced the Beastmaster''s minions to ashes within seconds, even when the wave included jungle monsters.


    Outclearing her lane opponent allowed Julia to pressure the Beastmaster at all times, preventing him from venturing too often into the jungle. Once she cleared a wave, she pushed the Beastmaster all the way back to his Turret, threatening to murder him if he were to step out.


    While the Beastmaster was busy clearing Julia''s minions under Turret, she sneaked into the enemy jungle and cleared nearby jungle camps. Without any monsters to capture, half of the Beastmaster''s kit became kinda useless.


    At some point, the enemy Lionfolk noticed this routine and started helping the Beastmaster secure jungle camps. However, that didn''t stop Julia from stealing the camps in the last second. She placed Wards around the important camps and went as far as using her ultimate, delivering a finishing blow on the jungle camp from behind a wall. Spending her ult like that felt like a waste, but Yuel recommended this tactic, so it must had been fine. To thoroughly defeat a Beastmaster, she had to deny him any jungle camps at any cost.


    In response, the Beastmaster placed Sentry Wards around the jungle camps and took out Julia''s Wards. However, in return, Julia just countered him by placing Sentry Wards of her own, destroying the Beastmaster''s Sentry Wards. She wasn''t gonna let him rest for even a moment!


    The Beastmaster was forced to farm under Turret most of the time, so he gain reduced gold from minion waves. That made him way poorer than Julia, so there''s no way he could win a war of Wards. After contesting Wards for a while, he was forced to give up on that approach if he wanted to build any new items at all.


    Beyond that, Julia also used her gold advantage to place Wards in many intersections throughout the jungle, in the key points Yuel taught her. This helped her catch wind of incoming ganks and deny them. Whenever a Ward revealed the enemy Lionfolk nearby, she immediately retreated to a safe spot. She wasn''t gonna let anybody gank her and ruin her chances of passing the exam.


    "You''ve been showing them who''s boss the whole game, but you haven''t scored any kills." Ellen tilted her head. "You haven''t even destroyed the Turret yet. What''s up with that?"


    "There weren''t any good opportunities." Julia answered.


    "Hmm, then what about now?" Ellen asked while peering into Julia''s screen. Julia was in the middle of pushing the Beastmaster all the way back to his Turret. She already cleared the whole enemy wave, while hers remained fully intact. In other words, it was her and a full minion wave versus an underfed retreating foe.


    "He''s hugging the Turret, not much I can do." Julia shrugged.


    "Hm? Nothing you can do? Why not tower dive him?"


    "It''s too risky." Julia shook her head. "If he hits me with his cripple then I''m dead."


    "But you''re at full health and he''s below 30%, why so worried?" Ellen insisted. "You''ve done a fantastic job outleveling him, so you should take advantage of that and dive him."


    "There''s a chance their Jungler will come here next. Like, last time I saw him, he went for the Wolf Camp and he gonna be done with it soon. He can quickly get to Mid from there."


    "My, you sure like stalking the mini-map~ Good girl, that''s an important skill to have." Ellen smiled, though one thing bugged her: who put so many Wards in Top Jungle? Back when she left to fight the Trickshotter in Bot, there were like three Wards in Top Jungle. But now, there were seven of them. "I gotta say, our team is really overdoing it on the warding department... wait, don''t tell me you placed all these new Wards?"


    "Yeah, I placed most of them." Julia puffed her chest, no doubt expecting to be praised.


    "Warding is important and all, but that''s an overkill, sweetie."


    "It''s okay, I got gold advantage because the Beastmaster farms under Turret."


    "Gold advantage isn''t meant to be wasted on Wards, you know." Ellen sighed and examined Julia''s item build. Thanks to the gold advantage, Julia''s build was ahead of her opponent''s. However, considering Julia had been dominating Mid Lane the whole game, the lead she gained was quite tiny. "Alright, listen, girl. You gotta stop hoarding Wards and start building items. You''re wasting away your advantage like this."


    "B-But the Wards help me maintain the advantage." Julia fidgeted, recalling a similar conversation with Yuel. Ever since he taught her how to effectively ward and maintain lane control, she prioritized these elements above everything else during the laning phase. As long as she warded, there was no danger of being ganked. As long as she maintained lane advantage, her lane opponent wasn''t a threat. Easy game, easy life.


    "Is that how you always play?"


    "Um, more or less..." Julia gulped. Agh! She was gonna lose points like crazy right now, wasn''t she!? Oh god!


    "It''s like you''re investing your whole advantage into maintaining the advantage, you aren''t using it to get ahead of your opponent. You gotta take the initiative at some point."


    "I-It''s okay!" Julia knew it wasn''t okay, but it was okay anyway! "His Turret is already down to 15%, while mine is at full health! It gonna fall apart like real soon!"


    "My, aren''t we stubborn." Ellen sighed. Julia was like a kitten who cornered the mouse, but was too scared to attack. The image was adorable, but it came off as a newbie''s inability to push when given a golden opportunity. Based on how Julia had been playing so far she was clearly no newbie, so such a basic mistake gave a terrible impression of her ability.


    It seemed like Julia''s playstyle was all about creating a "safe zone" for herself. She protected herself from literally every direction and focused on outclearing and outleveling her lane opponent by knowing her matchups. At least in these these departments, her performance was extraordinary and deserved hugs.


    Julia''s "strategy" for winning was apparently all about maintaining her "safe zone" and slowly, veeery slowly, wearing down her lane opponent and his Turret. It would eventually achieve the goal of winning the lane advantage in Mid, which was the most important lane advantage to have. However, it felt like such a waste, Julia could had achieved way more if she didn''t play so safe.


    Then again, considering Ellen''s unconventional hit-and-run tactics, maybe she had no right judging Julia too harshly without seeing more.


    "Well, with all said and done, you''ve been dominating the lane so far." Ellen said. "That''s impressive enough for a rookie, so I''ll turn a blind eye on these other things I mentioned, but just this once~" She winked.


    "R-Really? Thank you very much!"


    "My, aren''t you just adorable~" Ellen smiled fuzzliy while stroking Julia''s hair, as if petting a kitten. "We''re heading into the team fighting phase anyway, so we''ll see how well you fight real soon."


    "Yeah, fight..." Julia averted her eyes. God, that sucked. The team fighting phase was considered the most important part of the game... and the one Julia hated the most. Fights were gonna happen left and right, with everybody being in each other''s faces. Everywhere on the map was gonna become dangerous and stuff, it was so damn stressing. Like, that''s totally the worst part of this game.


    Before long, the first major team fight broke out in Mid. The enemy Turret fell down to 5% HP, so Lars and the Cryomancer rotated to support the Beastmaster. In response, Ellen and the Cleric rotated to help Julia. It was an important 3v3, which was going to decide the fate of Mid Lane.


    "What about their ults?" Julia asked. "The Beastmaster''s is still up."


    "I believe Cryo is still down." Ellen said. "Trickshow is probably up again."


    "I see." Julia frowned. It was bad, both Ellen''s and Julia''s ults were down. Only the Cleric''s Arise was up, but it was wasn''t gonna help the team''s offense. Depending on how the Beastmaster was gonna use his ult, this fight could go south real fast.


    More than anything, Lars''s Trickshow was terrifying, Julia knew better than anybody how dangerous Trickshow was in Lars''s hands. He was an unstoppable force, scoring triple kills with ease! It was so amazing, so cool- ah, it wasn''t the time to be impressed by that. [Focus. Focus]


    "So, isn''t it best to play this one defensively?" Julia conveyed her worries to Ellen, keeping the brags about Lars''s Trickshow to a minimum.


    "My, here you go again, playing like a cute little scaredy-cat."


    "T-That''s not..." Julia''s cheeks burned. "As I said, they have a big advantage in their offense."


    "And we got the lane advantage thanks to your efforts. Their Turret is almost down, so we got them cornered." Ellen winked.


    "If you say so." Julia wasn''t convinced, but she decided to follow Ellen''s lead.


    Julia stayed behind Ellen and the Cleric, allowing them to soak most of the damage from the fight. Staying in the back wasn''t the most effective way to deal damage with the Pyromancer''s medium range, but getting any closer was way too dangerous. She only occasionally moved forward, to renew the debuff of Demonic Arm via basic attacks and to poke the enemies with Pillar of Fire. But other than that, she just stayed in the back and fired Flame Wave at incoming minion waves.


    The enemy had to defend their crumbling Turret, so Julia''s team managed to pressure them for a while. However, the flow of battle changed once the Beastmaster cast his ultimate, Legendary Beast, to summon a Drake.


    [Tch, so they decided to go on the offensive. So annoying. ]Julia clicked her tongue. The Beastmaster''s Drake was a hyper aggressive dragon which pounced at nearby enemies. Unlike normal minions, the Drake prioritized attacking enemy players, making him a headache in teamfights.


    Agh, that was the worst. Julia prayed that the enemy team would keep defending, with the the Beastmaster summoning something like Mammoth. But that retard had to ruin everything, damn him.


    "They''re planning to kill us. We should retreat." Julia advised.


    "Hm? I don''t see why." Ellen tilted her head. "Sure, they got a Drake and everything, but we''ll force them to retreat once we take their Turret. Don''t worry, girl. We got this."


    "Huh..." Julia gave a vague answer, her mind was already set on retreating. Continuing this fight was way too dangerous, it was suicide! She pretended to stick around and help fighting, but she secretly waited for the right moment to get the hell outta there.


    ¡ºAn enemy Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    That was her cue. Julia turned around and activated Burning Spirit, gaining a movement speed buff to dash the heck outta there. "We should retreat now."


    "What are you talking about? We finally got their Turret, they''ll have to retreat- hey!" Ellen noticed that Julia was already on the other side of the lane. "What are you doing all the way out there!?"


    "Retreating."


    "Idiot! You left us in a 2v3! Ah!" Ellen gasped as the enemies charged at her and the Cleric. As expected, Lars activated Trickshow to finish them off. He darted toward the Cleric first to prevent revivals, then he caught up to Ellen with quick slides.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    [See? That''s why I said we should retreat, hmph. ]At least Julia got out of that mess- or not!?


    "Kya!" Julia jumped. The enemy Trickshooter slid right beside her!? Lars was already here!? He must had chased her hard with Trickslide, oh god! This was the worst!


    "Kill that brat, he doesn''t have much health!" Ellen said.


    "Agh, ah." Julia trembled. Lars only had 20% HP, so she could wipe him out with a single Flame Wave. It was a wide AoE, so it''d be easy enough to hit Lars in the middle of a slide. Really, she had a great opportunity to kill him... but should she?


    Leaving such a huge opening was the worst mistake ever. If Julia were to struck him down, all the examiners would focus on Lars''s mistake. They''d surely grind his grade into oblivion, he might even fail the exam because of it! And it''d all be Julia''s fault, he''d never forgive her! Agh!


    "Don''t just stand there like a scarecrow, do something! Don''t let him get a triple-"


    It was too late. Lars finished the slide and assaulted Julia with a combination of Trickshots and basic attacks. Lost in her dilemma, Julia failed to react to any of that in time.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "What was that!? You literally handed him the triple kill!" Ellen roared, her demonic expression made Julia''s hair stand on end.


    "S-Sorry." Julia hung her head. Oh god, what a blunder! She was so preoccupied with thinking about Lars that she couldn''t act at all! This misplay was gonna destroy her score, she even made Ellen angry! Oh god! She was so doomed!


    "Don''t tell me you held back for your boyfriend." Ellen pierced Julia with a sharp glare.


    "Eh? N-No, I just..." Julia desperately searched for an excuse, but nothing came up.


    "Bull''s eye, huh." Ellen sighed. "I''ll be honest: I''m disappointed. Are you even seriously trying to pass this exam?"


    "O-Of course!"


    "And yet, you prioritized your boyfriend over the exam. So rather than passing, it''s more important for you that he passes, isn''t it?"


    "W-Well..." Julia knew she should lie here, but she quivered in front of Ellen''s piercing glare. Honestly? Yeah, it was way more important for her that Lars passes this exam. She didn''t exactly burn with passion to join the Classmancers club in the first place, she was just dragged along by Lars and Yuel.


    "Wait, don''t tell me you''re only playing Classmancers to appeal to your boyfriend?"


    "A-Agh!" Julia nearly fell off her chair. Oh god! She had to deny it! Like, right now! That''s the one thing she wasn''t allowed to reveal to the examiners! "A-Ahaha, o-of course not! I-I like Classmancers! Yeah!"


    "I see." Ellen shook her head. Damn, she wasn''t convinced at all. It was over. "Seems like I misjudged you. I thought you were a fellow girl who really liked the game, enough to grind your way to Ranked. But what, it was all to earn some points with a guy? How dumb."


    "That''s, err..." Julia''s cheeks burned. She gritted her teeth and clenched her fists, fighting off the trembles assaulting her. Wouldn''t Ellen just stop already? Please, just stop already!


    "Really disappointing." Ellen sighed and turned away from Julia. "If that''s all your determination amounts to, you better just quit. Sorry, but our club isn''t for wooing guys. Try the cheerleading club instead, guys really dig the short skirts."


    "Guh." Julia couldn''t retort, she just trembled as she fought back her tears. What did Ellen mean by "That''s all your determination amounts to"? She had no idea how hard Julia worked to get this far! She knew nothing!


    To keep up with powerhouse like Lars and Yuel, Julia made many sacrifices. Her lunch breaks, her afternoons, her evenings and even her whole summer break. She had to play as much Classmancers as she could together with the boys, or else she''d be left behind. She even swallowed her pride and asked Yuel to tutor her, just so she could play better.


    Just how many times she dismissed invitations from her classmates to hang out during the summer? Instead of spending the summer on the beach, she was stuck playing Classmancers in Yuel''s room of all places. She played and played and played, fighting her best to stay relevant for Lars and Yuel''s party.


    And Ellen said all of that was dumb? That none of Julia''s determination was worth anything? Just what the hell did Ellen even know!?


    Julia wanted to yell all of that into Ellen''s stupid face, but she couldn''t. In the end, Ellen had a point. It wasn''t the first time Julia questioned her own actions, and it surely wasn''t going to be the last.


    Was there really any point to all of this? Would Lars really like her more if she were to play better? Was that worth sacrificing her daily life for? Wouldn''t it be easier to just confess her feelings and get shot down? At least it''d release her from all this hassle.


    [Maybe I should really just quit. ]Julia sighed. It was all so dumb. Like seriously, why was she even struggling so hard? She didn''t even like this stupid game, she was so fed up playing this crap every day.


    Yeah, screw it all. Nothing mattered anymore, she should just quit after this. It was decided: this was gonna be her last Classmancers match. She was going to play until the end out of good manners, then she''d forget all about this stupid game.


    Playing safe, giving a good impression, appealing to Lars and yada yada yada. For this final match, she was gonna ignore all that annoying shit. She was gonna go all out and smash her enemies with her pent up frustration!


    Even if they were gonna kill her for sure, she was gonna leave the stage with a boom! They were gonna get a taste of everything she wasted her time to learn! She was quitting anyway, so might as well destroy as many of these Classmancers-loving bastards as possible!

 23 Berserker Maiden

    "Die. Die. Die all of you." Julia muttered while swinging back and forth in front of her table, as if chanting a curse. Enough mulling over her past actions. Who even cared about this stupid game anyway? She was going to quit Classmancers after this match, so the exam didn''t matter anymore. All she wanted was to unleash her pent up frustration, to shut up the bastards who made fun of her efforts.


    Thanks to one of her many Wards, she spotted the Beastmaster trying to clear a Wolf Camp. Oh, how nice. he took advantage of Julia''s death to go clear some camps. Who the hell gave him permission to do that, huh? Huh!? Julia warded that whole damn area! It was her zone! If that dumbass thought she''d let that pass, he had another thing coming!


    As soon Julia respwaned, she purchased Teleport. She was loaded with gold thanks to her consistent lane advantage, so she was gonna spend every last penny to crush the enemy team! Hell was gonna rain on these retards!


    Julia instantly teleported into the Jungle, to a Checkpoint Ward set up by the Orc, their Top Laner. It was located right above the Wolf Camp the Beastmaster farned at right now, how splending. With both the Orc and Pirate all the way down in Bot Lane, the Beastmaster certainly didn''t expect anybody to be here right now. Surprise surprise! Julia was right here, you brainless imbecile retard!


    She sneaked up behind the Beastmaster and assaulted him with the perfect Pyromancer combo. Starting off with Pillar of Fire for damage-over-time, followed by four basic attacks to lower the Beastmaster''s defense with Demonic Arm''s passive. Finally, the coup de grace: Flame Wave straight in his stupid face! Ahahahaha!


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    "Yeah, that''s right, bitch! Ahahaha!" Julia laughed as if possessed. Her teammates threw confused glances at her, but she didn''t give a damn, she no longer had any reason to look good in front of these randoms. It was her last Classmancers match, so she''d have the blast of her life!


    Her playstyle turned more and more aggressive with every passing moment. She fearlessly pushed Turrets, even without any Wards around to warn about incoming ganks. Not matter how persistently her opponents hugged their Turrets, she applied pressure until they were forced the hell outta there! She was gonna destroy all their objectives! She was gonna run these fuckers into the ground!


    "Ah! I done goofed!" Ellen cried out. She was fleeing from the enemy Lionfolk with just 13% HP. "I seriously done goofed! Halp! Send halp, somebody! Get that lion off me!"


    "Bring that idiot to the Checkpoint Ward." Julia pinged the map with a crazed smile on her face. "I''ll murder his stupid face, haha."


    "... got it." Ellen finally replied, after sizing Julia up for a few moments. If Julia made that request like five minutes ago, Ellen wouldn''t had trusted her to pull off that play. However, right now, something about Julia was... "off", to say the least. Ever since Ellen roasted her, Julia''s playstyle made a 180. [My, I may have been a bit too harsh on her. This girl is more interesting than I thought, heehee.]


    As planned, Ellen lured Aron, the Lionfolk, toward the Checkpoint Ward. Getting away from a Lionfolk was no easy feat, especially without her wolf mount. Actually, even with Julia''s help, it seemed unlikely Ellen would survive through this, she was just one breath away from death. Well, at least Julia should be able to finish off Aron''s remaining HP.


    Ellen sighed and prepared herself for the lion man''s decisive claw attack... which didn''t come. Oh? Ellen threw a glance behind her.


    Aron was running over burning ground, the result of Julia''s Pillar of Fire. That girl sure got here fast, but that alone didn''t explain why Aron didn''t catch up to Ellen yet. He definitely had the superior speed and Pillar of Fire just dealt DOT damage, it didn''t have a slow- oh, wait!


    [Could it be? ]Ellen opened the status screen. Yes! Julia built Chains of Infinity! It was an offensive item, best suited for focusing targets without allowing them any escape!


    Chains of Infinity added a stacking slowdown effect to the user''s magical spells. Pillar of Fire applied multiple ticks of damage, so it became sinking sand that pinned Aron in place! His leap skill was on cooldown as well, so he couldn''t reach Ellen!


    [H-How!? ]Aron exclaimed. He wasn''t surprised by the slowdown, he already saw Chains of Infinity in the Pyromancer''s inventory. It''s the Teleport that didn''t make sense. The Pyromancer used her Teleport about two minutes ago, so it should had been on cooldown still, considering a Lv.1 Teleport had a cooldown of 3 minutes.


    [She upgraded it!?] Aron was agasp. The Pyromancer''s Teleport was Lv.3 right now, which meant its cooldown was shortened by one minute!


    When a utility skill was upgraded from the shop, its cooldown duration difference was factored right away, even if that skill was on cooldown at the time. Therefore, upgrading a Lv.1 Teleport to Lv.3 while it was on a one minute cooldown - immediately reset the remaining cooldown to zero. It was an niche mechanic only few remembered to put to good use, so it was hard to anticipate this sort of development.


    Did the Pyromancer plan this misleading play? Or, was it just a coincidence it worked out so well? Either way, the situation was what it was: him against the Pyromancer and Ellen. It was technically a 2v1, but Ellen was running too low to retaliate and the Pyromancer shouldn''t be too hard to scare away.


    Based on Dan''s analysis as the Pyromancer''s lane opponent, she was a defensive opponent who avoided danger at all cost and ran away at the first sight of danger. Aron developed the same impression as well, as someone who tried ganking her lane many times to no avail. It was like she barricaded herself with Wards from all sides and camped in the lane, waiting for her teammates to push the game forward for her. At the first sight of danger, she left everything behind and fled back to her Turret.


    At first, her camping strategy truly foiled Aron''s ganks, his attempts at Counter-Warding were thwarted as well. However, over time, he realized there''s no point struggling so hard to pull a gank on her, because the one who felt the most pressured this whole time was the Pyromancer herself.


    She was going to self-destruct on her own by playing so defensively, Aron just had to lightly push her toward that end. He used her own camping strategy against her by faking ganks, making it look like he was going for Mid every once in a while, without any intention to actually do so. The mere possibility of a gank immediately made her retreat, stalling her progress time and again.


    With all that considered, there''s no way this Pyromancer was going to fight Aron head on. He still had 60% HP and she was down to 40% HP, a scaredy-cat like her wouldn''t take such a huge risk- wha!?


    [I''m still slowed down!? ]Aron just realized the enemy''s Pillar of Fire was placed peculiarly. Rather than being placed with Aron in the center, making it the hardest for him to escape in every direction, most of the burning ground stretched between Aron and the Pyromancer, forcing him to crawl toward her. That''s bad, he couldn''t reach her with Mighty Roar just yet...!


    Once he finally got close enough, the Pyromancer activated Burning Spirit. Was she going to retreat? Good, that saved him- No! She didn''t retreat! She kept staring straight at Aron, while backpedaling and shooting him. She just barely kept herself out of the range of his Mighty Roar while bombarding him with quick basic attacks. [Am I seriously going to die here?]


    "Die. Die. Die! Ahahaha!" Julia laughed maniacally as she fired nonstop at the Lionfolk. She was gonna kill that dumbass! He stood no chance!


    [Ahahaha! Die, worm! You thought I don''t know how to fight, right? Think again, sucker! ]She maintained distance from her foe and bombarded him with fireballs, just like she practiced against Yuel. Yeah, that''s right: contrary to what these idiots probably thought, Julia practiced her fighting skills quite a lot.


    Yuel nagged her so much about her tendency to avoid fights, she legit wanted to murder that jerk a thousand times over. He taught her many combat tactics and forced her to practice against for HOURS. She even slept over a few times because their practice lasted all the way into midnight. It was such a pain in the ass, the only fun part was using Yuel as a practice dummy and beating shit outta him. Yeah, that felt good!


    Yuel drilled countless fighting techniques into her brain, like this weird "Blitz Pyromancer" tactic which used Teleport. Apparently, it was used by the best Pyromancer player in the world or something. There were many other techniques as well, Yuel tried too damn hard to find a fighting style Julia would want to use in matches.


    However, she refused using any of that in real combat. Why? Because fighting was risky and dying was lame, okay? It made her look like a total noob, Lars was gonna think she''s the worst player in the world. Playing safe was best way to leave a good impression.


    But screw all that! For her final match, she wanted to go all out! She channeled the fighting techniques she learned, recalling the sweet moments of beating the crap outta Yuel during practice. Maybe she wasn''t strong like Lars or a walking encyclopedia like Yuel, but she watched how they played, practiced with them and played with them on the same team! She wasn''t some trash who didn''t know how to play Classmancers!


    Relying on the fruits of her practice, Julia shaved the Lionfolk''s HP with basic attacks while staying out of his range. Once he fell down to 40% HP, she burned him with Flame Wave and immediately followed with Blaze of Inferno.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    "Yes! Die!" Julia trembled from the ecstasy. What a rush! Crushing that retard felt so goooooood Ahahaha!


    "My, July, you saved me~!" Ellen jumped on Julia and gave her a hug.


    "A-Ah, w-we''re still playing!"


    "My, aren''t you just the best~ Please let me have your babies~"


    "Creepy." Julia retorted coldly, but a faint smile formed on her lips. Ellen''s attitude made a complete 180 after that play. Was it because Julia saved her ass? Huh, what a pretentious bitch. Nevertheless, after falling out of favor once, being praised again felt good.


    [My, she''s singing a completely different tune now. ]Ellen released Julia and returned to the game, as her Ranger finally finished recalling back to base. [She''s like a kitten who evolved into a lioness, I didn''t think she had it in her.]


    "So, what changed?" Ellen asked. "You''re like a completely different person. Where were you hiding all this hot stuff until now, girl?"


    "I just decided I don''t care anymore." Julia shrugged. "I figured you''re right, you know? I shouldn''t play Classmancers anymore if I don''t even enjoy this stupid game. So, this gonna be my last game."


    "Your last game?" Ellen blinked.


    "Yeah, I''m quitting after this. And if I''mma quit anyway, I just gonna do whatever I want this game."


    "I see." Ellen smiled meaningfully. [I thought she was triggered because I criticized her, but that''s not it. She just stopped being the frightened kitten she was before because she stopped caring about her image. That allowed the lioness inside her to leap into the open. I may have been a little to harsh with her, but... heehee, this is so interesting~]


    With her awakened fighting spirit, Julia unleashed everything she had on her enemies. She assaulted them out of nowhere, destroyed their Turrets and ravaged them in team fights. The enemy team was thrown into a disarray against this unexpected threat.


    [It''s like she''s a different person. ]Aron frowned. He and Dan already finished profiling the Pyromancer as a player with decent game knowledge and decision-making skills, but severely lacking in mechanical skill and assertiveness. She had been playing like a camper the whole match, so that''s how these conclusions were reached.


    However, as the match approached the late game, Aron was forced to toss away everything he knew about the Pyromancer. There was a need to reevaluate her from scratch, both as an examinee and as an enemy to deal with.


    [Did they let somebody else take control over the Pyromancer? No, that''s stupid. ]Aron chuckled. The Pyromancer''s change was so sudden and so mind boggling that he couldn''t help considering the silliest possibilities. From a campy and calculated player, she transformed into a brute and reckless fighter. She was like a berserker whose switch was flipped.


    Normally, it wasn''t hard to punish a rampaging opponent, since they left many holes in their defenses. However, this Pyromancer was well "fed" during the early game. Usually, a player became fed through scoring many kills, but she never took that initiative. Instead, she dominated her lane so hard she managed to outlevel and outbuild most players through minion farming alone. Thus, even when there were opportunities to punish her, it was difficult to kill her due to her superior stats.


    However, that only applied during the mid game. The match was already entering its late game, with most players about to reach Lv.20 and finish their builds. The lead she had until now was about to be become moot. As a class, the Pyromancer''s power curve was geared toward mid and late game, so she''d still have that going for her. Nevertheless, soon enough it was going to become much easier to take her down.


    "Lars, take out their Pyromancer in the next fight." Aron ordered.


    "Okay, got it." Lars nodded with a smile. "Gotta say, July is putting some real work. Never seen her play this aggressively, it''s pretty sick."


    "Hm, is that so. I hope you''re not planning to let her get away with this just because you''re friends."


    "Nah, no way, dude." Lars grinned. "I''mma crush her with everything I got! No mercy, yo!"


    "That''s what I wanted to hear." Aron secretly sighed in relief. Arranging a match between friends was a blunder, but it couldn''t be helped because he didn''t know the examinees personally. He just had to pray that Lars and Julia knowing each other wasn''t affect their performance too much.


    On Lars''s end, there didn''t seem to be any problems. He was a competitive brat and wanted to test his mettle against Julia, treating her like any other tough opponent.


    But, what about Julia? She seemed to avoid Lars throughout the match and even let him get away with a risky offense that should had been punished, but that was before her berserk switch was flipped. Was she going to fight him this time? The situation wasn''t exactly fair for her, but observing how she was going to cope with it would give Aron some insight regarding her mental fortitude. Specifically, how serious she really was about passing the exam and becoming a competitive player.


    A major 4v4 team fight broke out in Mid Lane. Its result was going to heavily swing the game, possibly deciding the winner. For Julia''s team, which was currently lagging behind, winning this team fight was of utmost important, as defeat would spell imminent doom.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "Gah! You degenerating piece of shit!" Ellen roared at Trever. "Are your aiming to become a chef? Is that why you feeding them so hard, huh!? Well, you sure have talent, because they''re LOVING your free treats! Jesus, at this point an AFK would carry us harder."


    "Tch." Trever''s face contorted, but he didn''t say anything. Yeah it was true, he fed the enemy team pretty hard this game, he couldn''t even argue against that anymore. Sigh, why couldn''t this stupid match just end already? Really, that''s all he was asking for.


    However, not all hope was lost for the team fight. Julia aggressively assaulted the enemy team, ignoring their number advantage. She got severely injured in the process, way more than she should had, but her efforts paid off. Her relentless attacks disrupted the enemy''s formation and turned them into an easy target for her Blaze of Inferno.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºDOUBLE KILL¡»


    "You''re amazing, July! Marry me!"


    "No way."


    "My, how cruel." Ellen pretended to be offended. "Atta girl, keep going! We drew them into our territory, we can still turn the tables around!"


    "Sure, no problem." Julia nodded. She was so absorbed in bombarding her enemies, that she didn''t even notice when the team fight moved all the way to her team''s Golem. Did Ellen pull the strings behind that relocation? Well, whatever. Regardless of how this favorable situation was created, Julia just had to kill, kill and then kill some more! Ahahaha!


    "It''s time for a trick show!" The sound cue hit Julia like a bucket of cold water. It was the cue for the Trickshooter''s ultimate: Trickshow. Lars fearlessly charged ahead of his team, despite being at 40% HP.


    Julia knew this pattern, she saw this play a hundred times by now. Lars was coming to murder them, all by himself!


    No matter how heated up Julia became or how little she cared about her actions this match, there was still one thing she was reluctant to do: fight Lars. The way she played right now, she easily scored kills against anybody as long as luck was on her side. With her current momentum, if she were to fight for real... she might even kill Lars. Even though she gave up on her exam, she had no right getting in way of Lars''s exam.


    "What are you staring at? Attack him!" Ellen called out, but Julia''s mind was elsewhere. She just stood there, watching Lars slide toward the Cleric and tear the guy apart.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    A typical start. Next, Lars was probably gonna slide toward Ellen and kill her. That was his favorite method of rending asunder the enemy team, Julia witnessed countless teams fall prey to his strength. Ah, he was just too cool. All these retards were already dead.


    "Don''t tell me you gonna cover your boyfriend again!?" Ellen grew restless as she intercepted Lars''s assault. This was the third time she faced Lars''s Trickshot, but she still couldn''t handle it, her trademark poke-and-run tricks weren''t effective in the middle of an ongoing team fight. Facing Lars''s Trickshow was like challenging a raging typhoon, there''s nothing one could do against that terror. She somehow dodged instant death, but her defeat was imminent.


    "Listen, I get that you don''t wanna shoot your boyfriend, but this goody-two-shoes act not gonna get you anywhere!" Ellen argued, while doing everything she could to survive Lars''s bullet hell. "Tell me, you think he gonna like you for going easy on him? You think he''s a loser who runs away from challenges?"


    "No! No way!" Julia yelled. "He''s strong and he likes challenges, way too much even!"


    "Exactly, muscle heads like him wanna compete and come on top. You know who they respect the most? Other strong players, the ones who can give them a run for their money!"


    "Strong players..."


    "You know, I already killed your sweetheart three times this match. I bet he''s head over heels for me at this point, teehee~ My, I can already see his love confession coming after the match~"


    "T-That not gonna happen! No way!" Julia trembled. T-That''s nonsense! B-But, there was some sense in Ellen''s words. Whenever Lars was defeated by a strong opponent, he got tenfold more pumped about the game and showered his opponent with praise... probably more praise than he ever gave Julia, honestly.


    "Ah! You little...!" Ellen ran out of time, she couldn''t stall Lars much longer and his allies were about to catch up. "Okay, listen and listen well, sweetie! You said it''s your last game, right? Then finish it in a blaze of glory! Show him you''re not some chicken, show him how strong you really are! He''s going to love you more than ever! Just kill him! Kill him and earn his love! Geh! Just kill him already! Kill him with fire, girl!"


    "Kill him... to earn his love..." Julia''s mind was a jumble. She never considered such a drastic move before. But, maybe it was really going to work!? If she were to defeat Lars at least once in her life, he was bound to see her as strong player. He''d shower her with praise and become obsessed with beating her, obsessed with her! Yeah, he''d be totally into her!


    That''s it! Here and now, she was going execute the play that''d steal Lars''s heart! It might be the dumbest and most absurd shit ever, but absurdity never sounded so logical before! It was the way!


    [Watch carefully. Where is he going to slide next? That''ll be my chance...! ]Julia observed Lars''s moves like a predator eying a prey. Even though she really wanted to go ahead and shoot Lars already, it wasn''t that simple.


    While using Trickshow, Lars had access to an infinite supply of Trickslides. He blitzed from side to side without any breaks, while mixing in a few early cancels to throw his enemies off. Landing even a single shot on him was going to be as hard as smacking a fly on steroids. Honestly, it was above Julia''s skills.


    However, Julia saw Lars''s Trickshow a billion times by now. Really, it was like magic playing out in front of her very eyes. But any magic, no matter how magnificent, would stop being awe striking after being observed so many times. Yuel even made her practice specific tactics to enhance Lars''s Trickshow, ensuring she and Yuel could back Lars up to the best of their ability. Not only that, but she was even forced to practice countering Lars''s Trickshow, that was Yuel''s way of teaching Lars about its weaknesses.


    Therefore, with all of that experience combined, Julia knew both the strong and weak points of Lars''s dazzling Trickshow. A slide to the left, a slide to the right, canceled into a slide to the left, then... next was going to be a cancel to the right! There was no doubt!


    [Please, accept this burning love! ]Julia summoned Pillar of Fire and fired four basic attacks in its direction, toward a spot currently devoid of targets. That should do the trick [Please die, for the sake of our love!]


    A moment later, Lars slid straight into the burning ground. Pillar of Fire slowed him down thanks to Chains of Infinity, so he couldn''t dodge the basic attacks Julia sprayed in his direction. Only three out of four attacks landed, but it was more than enough. Now that her prey was weakened, she unleashed a Flame Wave filled with all her love! She was gonna prove her strength right here and now! He had to be killed for their love!


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    She did it. S-She freakin'' did it! With her own two hands, she wiped Lars out! Unbelievable..


    "Whoa..." She had no idea how to react. One part of her wanted to celebrate this victory, while the other part wanted to crawl under a rock and die. Did her intense love reach Lars? Did she impress him? Was he gonna hate her for killing him during such an important exam? Did she mess up!? Oh god, which was it!?


    "No freakin'' way!" Lars jumped from his chair. "Julia just wrecked me, yo!"


    "Yes, that''s what usually happens when you charge in alone." Aron stated matter-of-factly.


    "No, but like, I had no idea she could even play like this. This is bananas!" Lars stared at his monitor, dumbfound. He mixed feints and cancels into his Trickslides during Trickshow, yet Julia cornered and executed him. Dude, it was... it was so sick, yo! When did she become so freakin'' strong? He should totally play 1v1 against her sometimes. "Dude, Julia royally kicked my ass this fight. I bet she insta-passed the test with that shit."


    "We''ll see about that." Aron stated in his usual indifferent tone. He put a swift end to the enemy''s celebration by leaping on the Pyromancer.


    Even though she managed to kill Lars, which was no easy feat, that put her in a vulnerable position. She had to go out of her way to secure all these shots on Lars, making her an easy prey for Aron''s Lionfolk. In the end, all she achieved was exchanging one death for one kill, nothing impressive.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    With the Pyromancer out the picture, the only remaining enemy was Ellen, who quickly got away. Aron''s team should be considered victorious in this fight, but both teams'' Carries were dead. Before long, Ellen returned with full HP to guard her Golem, forcing Aron and Gilbert to retreat. They won that tough team fight, but without a Carry they didn''t get to do much pushing, what a shame.


    That Pyromancer proved she had some fighting in her, she even scored a fair share of kills recently. However, her fighting style was reckless and she overextended too often. Honestly, at this rate, she... probably wasn''t going to make it. She''d have to put on some truly fascinating performance before end game to change Aron''s mind.

 24 Each Girls Drive

    Lars and Julia''s exam was long and tiring, but it approached its conclusion. It was already the late game, all players were Lv.20 with full item builds, except for Trever. Golems crumbled all over the place and super minions dominated lanes, so it wasn''t going to be long before the victor is decided. The first team to gain momentum now would undoubtedly emerge victorious.


    However, both teams refused to yield. They bashed heads over and over, but none of the team fights had a decisive result. Julia killed two enemies, then died. Lars rampaged and dealt a shit-ton of damage to the whole enemy team, but then got shot down.


    Julia and Lars were the game''s DPS tycoons right now, so whoever of them survives a team fight was going to gain momentum for the team. However, they were methodically focused on and eliminated. They both played too recklessly, painting a target on their backs. They never faced such experienced opponents before, so they had no idea how to deal with being marked like this.


    "Die! Die! Ahaha!" Julia, in particular, disregarded defense and recklessly charged at every enemy. She simply didn''t care, she was gonna quit Classmancers anyway.


    Due to Trever''s poor performance, Julia was forced to play two roles: wave clearer and Carry. Thankfully, Pyromancer was a rare mage breed with the power to carry via fast basic attack, it was even a niche Carry pick for Bot Lane in the pro scene. With Julia''s hybrid build, which combined magical power with attack speed, she demolished structures nearly as fast as a real Carry during the late game.


    However, Julia didn''t pay much heed to how important her role was for the team. Instead of prioritizing her survival so she could keep carrying the team, she recklessly charged in to score kills and secure objectives. Basically, she just wanted to murder some tards and blow shit up. She played without a single care in the world, which was the source of her strength as much as it was her Achilles heel.


    "Everybody, keep our cute rookie alive at all cost." Ellen ordered. Putting this much responsibility on a rookie wasn''t exactly fair, but there was no other choice if they wanted win this 4v5 match. With that trash tier Pirate being dysfunctional, only Julia could carry right now.


    Ellen played Ranger, so in theory she could also double as a Carry. However, her early item slots were filled with lifesteal and regeneration, whereas the rest was geared toward a Jungler build. There wasn''t nearly enough power in her build to even consider carrying, simple as that. If the game were to drag for like 20 more minutes, Ellen might earn enough gold to overhaul her build and become a Carry herself, but that''s unlikely.


    In the end, everything was riding on Julia. It''s a lot of pressure, but it''s also a great opportunity for her. If she were to prove herself in this clutch situation, she''d leave a much better impression on Aron. Sadly. as things stood, Julia''s exam evaluation was worrisome. Even though she made some great plays, she also made many terrible mistakes, Aron wasn''t nice enough to let these slide.


    [We got a glimpse of her potential, but it hasn''t bloomed yet.] Ellen wore a wry smile. [Aron hates reckless plays more than anything. That Trickshooter brat may get away with it thanks to his alien tier mechanical skill, but dear July doesn''t have the same excuse. My, I can already see Aron tearing her apart during the evaluation, even putting on puppy-dog eyes won''t help me persuade him.]


    During the early game, Julia pressured her lane opponent via matchup advantage. She outfarmed the Beastmaster and protected herself from ganks with excessive warding. Then, during the mid game, she became a berserker and ripped enemies apart with her superior stats and unconventional Teleport tactics. It was called "Blitz Pyromancer" or something? Ellen was sure she heard of it before...


    Anyway, there was a huge contrast between the playstyle Julia showed in the early game and the one she was using right now. It''s like Julia had two polar opposites living inside her: a cold and calculated Julia versus a blazing and reckless Julia.


    Both the calculated Julia and the reckless Julia delivered some great results in their own ways, but each of them alone was half-baked. The calculated Julia played too safely and failed to grasp opportunities, whereas the reckless Julia disregarded everything around her and overextended while chasing objectives. The ice and fire inside her were both impressive, but the ice was too cold and the fire was too hot.


    Nevertheless, it didn''t change the fact she had both ice and fire inside her. If she were to find the right balance and combine these two polar opposites into one, she would develop a strong and dynamic playstyle. How long was it going to that take mastering that, though? Would Aron welcome her into the club while her two playstyles were still so flawed and so far apart from each other?


    [Poor girl. It''s so annoying when you have the talent but nobody recognizes it unless you show results right away. ]Was Ellen still talking about Julia? She wasn''t even sure anymore.


    Anyway, all Ellen could do right now was cover up Julia''s weak points and set her up for some impressive plays. Honestly, this match was pretty much lost, but Julia still had a way to turn this around. That is, if the rest of the team could hold the enemies down long enough.


    "July, dear, go for the Overlord." Ellen said. "That''s our only chance at this point."


    "Alright, got it." Julia nodded and headed deep into the jungle. She never faced the Overlord all by herself like this, but she felt unstoppable today! [C''mon, emo scum! I''mma blow you to bits!]


    With the Pyromancer''s late game strength, accompanied by the Cleric''s heals, taking out the Overlord was possible... probably, she had no idea actually. She just trusted Ellen on this and really wanted to give it a shot, because it sounded like fun.


    Defeating the Overlord was going to grant a powerful buff to the whole team, allowing them to push all the way to victory. Dead teammates were rewarded with immediate revival instead of a buff, which was no less impactful. In short, defeating the Overlord had huge benefits all across the board.


    However, the Overlord was a tough cookie. It was going to take some time to defeat him, especially with just one person''s worth of damage. The Cleric couldn''t hit for shit, so it was all up to Julia.


    While she was busy fighting the Overlord, Ellen and the rest had to keep the enemy occupied.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºDOUBLE KILL¡»


    Frustratingly, there was one untamed beast on the enemy team who refused to be stopped. Even fighting that beast in a 2v1, Roi and Trever were swiftly eliminated. Well, to be fair it was more like a 1v1, Trever was just a useless feeder at this point. Anyway, nobody could hold down the Trickshooter.


    "Man, that guy means business. Sorry about that." Roi sighed. "He''s down to about 40%, though."


    After clearing the super minions at Top Lane, it was clear the Trickshooter was heading to the Overlord next. He had to be stopped. Like, right here and now. Otherwise, he''d deny them the Overlord buff and shut the only ray of hope they still had.


    Stopping the Trickshooter was of utmost importance, but the team''s last line of defense was... Ellen. Only Ellen.


    [My, how troublesome. ]Ellen frowned. She killed that Trickshooter three times so far, but it was always through indirect tactics. Not even once did she fight him face to face from start to end, she knew she wouldn''t win.


    However, that applied only during the early/mid game. Players were judged by many different criteria: mechanical skill, decision-making, game knowledge, teamwork and so on. But, there''s one criteria often forgotten: adaptability. What separated a strong competitive player from a weak one, was their ability to adapt to their opponents and to difficult situations.


    Perhaps adaptability didn''t get much attention because it was such a "basic" skill. All humans were naturally adaptive to one degree or another, that''s what allowed humanity to progress so far. While beasts had superior strength, agility and stamina, humans possessed the ability to study their adversaries and adapt.


    Mechanical skill, decision-making, game knowledge, teamwork... Ellen was decent in all these categories. However, adaptability was the one department where she truly shined.


    She poked the Trickshooter countless times throughout this match. It wasn''t just for pressure and shaving HP, she also studied her prey with every exchange. How he reacted to ganks, how hard he chased enemies, how well he fought at various distances - she needed to know anything and everything. The more information she had, the better she could adapt to that beast.


    Truth to be told, that rookie was a typhoon of raw talent. However, everybody had weaknesses and he was no exception. After exchanging countless blows with him, Ellen picked up his tendencies and patterns. He was strong, even powerful, but not invincible.


    "His ult is down?" Ellen asked.


    "Yep, we baited that much outta him at least." Roi replied. "I believe his Cleanse is also down. He hasn''t leveled it, so it has a long cooldown."


    "Good. I''m off to finish him then."


    "You sure? You don''t have your ult either and you''re injured pretty hard. That guy is nothing to sneeze at."


    "I can handle it." Ellen declared. So, it was her 60% HP vs. his 40% HP, huh. Based on their previous exchanges, she was going to die for sure. However, by playing her very best and utilizing all the information she gathered - she had a shot at victory. That was her verdict as the one worthy of being called Athena, goddess of war.


    Ellen couldn''t keep running away from that monster, not after Julia bravely confronted her adversaries and showed such strong fighting spirit. Now, it was Ellen''s turn to fight. It was time to teach that Trickshooter brat what it took to be a strong competitive player! If he thought Ellen was a fragile flower who couldn''t hold her own, that insolent brat had another thing coming!


    She intercepted the Trickshooter on his way to the Overlord''s camp and a fight broke out immediately. This was it, the fight that could very well decide the fate of this whole match! No pressure! None at all!


    Throughout the match, Ellen gradually raised her skill level to throw the Trickshooter off. Every time they exchanged blows she played little bit better than before, forcing him to adapt to her anew. However, this time, she no longer held anything back. She absolutely had to squeeze every last ounce of skill to overtake this beast. It was the grand finale, there wasn''t going to be a next time!


    Her shots had peak accuracy and her dodges were nimbler than ever, that was the full extent of her mechanical skill. She swiftly dodged to the right, fired back, sidestepped to the right, fired, dodged, fired and the cycle repeated itself, with some fakes and cancels thrown into the mix.


    Ellen poured her everything into the fight and held her ground... nevertheless, she was overwhelmed by the Trickshooter. He dodged more shots than her and landed more hits than her. He was like a rampaging typhoon, there was no way to pin him down.


    [Tch, is this kid for real? ]Ellen clicked her tongue. Even when she fought her absolute best, that brat was still a level above her. But, she already knew that. She didn''t come here just to complain.


    [There! Didn''t see that coming, did you? ]Ellen smirked and activated Wolf Companion, setting the Trickshooter as the target. She caught him in the middle of a predictable roll, an aggressive roll he occasionally performed to pressure the opponent. He surely knew the risk of this play and was prepared to be hit by once or twice by Ellen''s basic attacks, which didn''t dish out the scary damage one would normally expect from an assassin Jungler.


    But, he certainly didn''t expect to be assaulted by a wolf, did he? Against this infuriating brat, Ellen only ever used Wolf Companion to summon a mount. It was always an escape tool, nothing more. After the two of them exchanged so many blows this game, the Trickshooter was bound to treat her Wolf Companion as a last resort she used for disengaging, despite its other functions.


    For this last fight, Ellen took advantage of the false impression she seeded into his mind. It was a trap she had been setting up for a while and it finally paid off! Her wolf leapt on the easy prey and pinned the Trickshooter to the ground! The intellectual overtook the brute!


    "Gah! No way!" Lars exclaimed. "Is she gonna finish me with her ult!? Crap!"


    "No, her ult should be down." Dan pointed out. "She used it less than a minute ago against me."


    "You serious?" Lars blinked. Then... what? Athena didn''t have her ult to finish him off and she just spent her one and only escape tool. Sure, being pinned to the ground and receiving shots to the face hurt like hell, but he was gonna live through it.


    Was it really happening? Was Athena finally gonna fight him to the death!? This was sick! "Yeah, that''s more like it! Let''s rock then!"


    Once the annoying wolf disappeared, Lars jumped on his feet and resumed the duel. Athena was pretty damn strong, he had to hand it her. The way she fought now was completely different from how she fought in the early game, she no longer was a disappointment. A Platinum player... no, maybe even Diamond? Anyway, she was just strong!


    But, even with just 15% HP, he was gonna smack her from 30% HP to -200% HP! He was the stronger one, yo!


    [Geh, this is more clutch that I thought. ]His grin twitched. They both ran low on health, everything came down to one decisive shot. Whoever was going to land the next shot would be the winner. That was some intense stuff, yo!


    But, he was gonna win. He already saw it in his mind: himself standing over Athena''s collapsed body. After she played him for a fool time and again throughout the match, it was finally payback time!


    Athena took three steps back, so a roll to the left was coming for sure. She was a skilled fighter, but she had one glaring flaw even Lars noticed: whenever she rolled, it was always to the left side. Throughout their many battles, not even once did she roll or sidestep to the right.


    Therefore, this time too, she was going left or sure! 200%! Lars aimed his pistol to the left without thinking twice, there was no time to hesitate. He fired the final shot, bringing down the curtain on their duel. He was gonna win this!


    Indeed, across their many battles, Ellen always dodged in one direction. Each and every time, without fail, she dodged to her right side, which was left for her opponent. She always rolled and sidestepped to the right, so obviously that even a brainless brat would notice it.


    Truly, adapting to opponents was an important skill for competitive players. The way the Trickshooter fired to Ellen''s right without hesitation proved how well he adapted to her movements. She had to admit, he had the makings of a strong competitive player. However...


    [Thank you for being as strong as I hoped~ ]Ellen smiled while dodging. Being a master of adaptation didn''t only mean she was good at adapting to her opponents, she also understood how her opponents adapted to her. Every player, no matter how strong, had quirks and weaknesses their opponent could learn to exploit, especially when those were very obvious. But, what happened when said quirks and weaknesses were artificially planted by the player?


    From their very first fight, Ellen recognized Lars as a dangerous beast. Therefore, each time they clashed, she tamed him bit by bit. She repeatedly showed him how well she dodged to her right, forcing the beast to be conscious of that quirk. It was like teaching a circus trick, except it was actually a carefully laid out trap. Because now, during their very final confrontation, Ellen dodged... to her left!


    "Gah!?" Lars jumped, it''s like the ground collapsed from under him. It couldn''t be! Why!? Why did she dodge to the other side!? Suddenly, everything he was confident about was flipped on its head! Every time he thought cornered Athena, she found a way to turn the tables on him! What the actual heck!?!?!?!


    [I won''t make it. I won''t... I won''t make it!. ]Lars''s eyes darted from side to side, jumping back and forth between his Trickshooter and the enemy Ranger. To catch up with Athena, he had to make a sharp turn to the right and immediately fire a bullet. However, he was in the process of missing a shot, so his Trickshooter was locked in a recovery animation which couldn''t be attack cancelled. And, once he can shoot again, it''d be too late! He''d be already dead, yo!


    He was suffocated. The more he fought Athena, the further he drowned into a bottomless ocean. She applied insane pressure on him at all times, forcing him to carefully consider his moves instead of acting on instinct. It''s like he danced to her tune the whole time.


    Every time he thought he figured something out, it got subverted. Every time he thought he overwhelmed her, she activated some trap card. The harder he tried, the more he got wrapped around her little finger. Ah, how easy would it be to just give up and bow down before this goddess.


    [No! Not yet! ]Lars gritted his teeth. He wouldn''t yield! No matter how deep he was inside the suffocating waters, he was gonna swim toward the surface! No matter how many times his struggles were gonna end in vain, he wasn''t gonna quit! Every time he failed, he had to believe that next time he''d succeed!


    [I can''t attack, but how about dodging!? ]Attack cancel was impossible, but roll cancel worked! Instead of turning toward the Ranger, he turned aside and rolled as far away as he could.


    [S-So fast! ]A jolt ran through Ellen. That roll cancel happened right after the Trickshooter fired the missing bullet, it was inhuman reaction speed! Time and again, this rookie showcased absolute superiority in terms of mechanical skill.


    However, as infuriating as it was, Ellen expected it to happen. It was so tempting to fire her finishing shot right away, to steal victory as soon as possible. But she didn''t give in, she knew her opponent was a beast in human''s clothing. She had to retain her patience until the very end if she wanted to outplay this Trickshooter.


    After finishing her dodge roll, she took a moment to adjust her aim. Without rushing, without panicking and without being greedy. The Trickshooter executed an inhumanly fast emergency roll, but it was a hasty and sloppy one. As long as Ellen was focused, it''s an easy shot to land.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    ¡ºSHUT DOWN¡»


    "Goodnight." Ellen sent a flying kiss toward her screen. Ah, she did it. She actually did it! Through patience and perseverance, she triumphed over a beast way stronger than her. And, this time, the beast she defeated was the real deal, not some trash tier loser who only knew how to show off.


    No matter how many times she was called weak or incompetent, here and now she proved her ability. She didn''t have the mechanical skill or reaction speed of the likes of Lars and Trever, but she had her own weapons. Using her own playstyle, she stomped on those who were "stronger" than her! It was so electrifying~!


    "Damn..." Lars slumped on his chair, all his strength drained. In the end, he couldn''t reach the surface. He kept drowning and drowning and drowning, until he died. But he had no regrets, because he fought his best until the bitter end.


    Athena was an annoying opponent because she employed all sorts of alien tactics. Building Devourer''s Mask on Ranger? The heck yo, it was bananas. Even after she killed Lars three times in a row, he still refused to accept her as a strong opponent. None of these kills resulted from a fair face-to-face duel, she always used some underhanded trick to take him out.


    However, this last kill was different. Athena finally honored him with a real duel to the death and... he fudged it up. She was strong and... yeah, she was also cool as heck, yo! Was this the level of the opponents awaiting him in the competitive scene!? He couldn''t wait to beat the heck outta them, yo!


    [Well, I did all I can. ]Ellen sighed in relief and recalled back to base. The only enemy player currently alive was Aron, but he respawned only a couple of seconds ago. Even if he were to dash straight to the Overlord, he wouldn''t get there in time before Julia finishes-


    "Ah!?" Ellen gasped. She was wrong! Aron was already there! He closed the distance from his base to the middle of the map in seconds!


    [He bought Teleport for this, huh. Smart bastard. ]Ellen twisted her lips. Even after players finished their item builds, it''s not like they stopped earning gold. It was common to buy utility skills and potions with that extra gold, exactly what Aron did by purchasing Teleport.


    [Just when did they place a Checkpoint Ward there? We even have two Sentry Wards around the Overlord. ]There''s no doubt, that Checkpoint Ward was strategically placed ahead of time. It was somewhere close enough to the Overlord, yet far enough from the the Sentry Wards. It was definitely prepared to counter an attempt on the Overlord, in other words: to counter this exact situation! This had to be Aron''s work, that smartass.


    "Agh! Shit!" Julia cursed as the Lionfolk leapt on her outta nowhere across a wall. Where did that dumbass even come from!? Freakin'' degenerate! [You want a piece of me!? Die!]


    Julia unleashed Flame Wave on the Lionfolk, but her screen trembled and her Pyromancer wobbled. As a result, her spell missed its target. [Agh! How I hate that stupid roar! He just had to use it right when I''m casting! Die, retard!]


    Julia''s partner, the Cleric, tanked the Overlord this whole time. Therefore, he ran low on HP, low enough to proc the Lionfolk''s passive: Superiority. It granted the Lionfolk''s skills additional effects against prey with low HP, allowing the lion to feast on the weak.


    While Julia was only lightly CC''d by the Lionfolk''s Mighty Roar, the Cleric''s fate was much more brutal. With the effect of Superiority, Might Roar terrorized the Cleric with a "fear" state, forcing him to uncontrollably ran away. He couldn''t do anything against this sudden attack, the Lionfolk swiftly executed him without even giving him a chance to retaliate.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    Then, the Lionfolk turned his attention to Julia. God, it was the worst! She almost finished the Overlord, but now she had to deal with this lion idiot instead! And, the Overlord just had to switch his focus from the dead Cleric to Julia, how great! No no, it was great! Really! [Sure, why not! Everybody should just come here to bully me! No balls to fight me fair and square, is that it!? Die, loser!]


    "Retreat from the Overlord." Ellen said.


    "I know, dammit!" Julia gritted her teeth and did as ordered. She really didn''t want to waste all the hard work she poured into lowering the Overlord''s HP, but there was no other choice. There''s no way to deal that stupid Lionfolk while being bombarded by the Overlord''s beams.


    "Agh! Shit! No no no!" Just as Julia was about to step out of the Overlord Camp, lions leapt on her face outta nowhere! She found herself surrounded by a pack lions from all side, with no way to escape.


    That was the Lionfolk''s ultimate: The King''s Dominion, a prison with lions as walls. Getting close to the edges made the lions claw the prisoners. The only way to pass them was via jumping over them with a leap skill, which the Pyromancer didn''t have.


    It was possible to kill a few lions to create a hole in the cage, but they were sturdy beasts with high HP. Julia needed Flame Wave to deal with them, but it was still on cooldown after her unsuccessful attempt to hit the Lionfolk.


    So, Julia had no choice but to fight the Lionfolk inside the Overlord''s area, with the Overlord craving her death. Goddammit, could this situation get any worse!? That Lionfolk royally screwed her!


    "Die! Die!" She roared as she shot fireballs at the Lionfolk. She set up Pillar of Fire underneath her feet, to boost her magical power and draw the Lionfolk away. If he wanted to get closer and hit her, he''d have step on the burning ground. Her one and only advantage in this fight was her range, so she had to utilize it as much-


    "W-Wah! Shit!" Julia cursed as the Lionfolk leapt on her and knocked her away. Shit! Majestic Leap normally didn''t have a knockup CC, but the Lionfolk''s Superiority was now in effect against Julia too, after the Overlord shaved off nearly half her HP.


    She was forced out of her Pillar of Fire and bumped into one of the lions, earning a claw in the back. Gah! Shit! Damn! Couldn''t they just leave her alone and all die!?


    [Damn, that scum is strong- wah! ]She didn''t even have time to recollect herself! The Lionfolk instantly closed the gap between them and slashed her with his claws. It was bad. Like, real freakin'' bad!!!


    Each of the Lionfolk''s attacks hit like a truck due to Superiority. As long as his HP percentage was much higher than Julia''s, all his attacks dealt additional damage. On top of that, while inside this lion cage, the Lionfolk benefited from increased power, speed, defense and even CC immunity.


    [Gaaaaah! Screw that bastard! ]Julia fired left and right, trying to land as many hits as possible on that bastard. God, he was so damn fast! Slash, slash, slash. He maneuvered around her while clawing her from every possible direction! [Gah! Just die already!]


    Why couldn''t she land half her hits!? How was she supposed to deal with this shit!? No idea! Did she ever practice close combat with Yuel before as Pyromancer? Slash, slash, slash. Ugh, she couldn''t concentrate while that retard assaulted her from every side!


    Unable to focus her thoughts, Julia kept attacked blindly, praying her fireballs would connect. Her HP was almost entirely deleted, but there were finally some good news: her Flame Wave came out of cooldown!


    [About damn time! Alright, now that Flame Wave is up- agh! ]Her screen shook as she started casting Flame Wave. It was Mighty Roar again, empowered by Superiority! How was that shit already up again!?


    [Damn, right! It has shorter cooldown when it hits low HP targets! It''s all because he hit that stupid Cleric last time! Grrrr! ]Julia hissed. The Mighty Roar cancelled the casting of her Flame Wave and instilled the Pyromancer with fear, making her uncontrollably run away, Julia couldn''t do shit anymore. God, Lionfolk was so bullshit...


    [My, this is painful to watch. ]Ellen shook her head. Between being sniped by the Overlord and getting overwhelmed by Aron, Julia was clearly doomed. Her miserable attempts to retaliate resembled a child throwing a tantrum.


    Julia exhibited some interesting fighting techniques earlier, but now it was clear they were specific plays she practiced before. She probably spent most of her time playing as the "careul Julia", so the "reckless Julia" had little to no practical combat experience. That made itself clear from the clumsy way she handled an aggressive melee opponent. Instead of creating distance between herself and Aron, she tried to match his pace and hit him with basic attacks from melee range. Foolish, to say the least.


    [So that''s your verdict, Ronron? How sad. ]Ellen sighed. Aron must had realized the "reckless Julia" didn''t yet possess the necessary experience to back up her aggressive playstyle. His dismiss of Julia''s playstyle could be felt in every slash he lashed at her. He was merciless with the pressure he applied, leaving Julia no openings at all.


    [My, what a blunder. ]Ellen shook her head. [I should''ve realized we won''t get away with an Overlord against a late game Aron. ]


    During the early/mid game, Aron was just a methodical and consistent player. He played decently, without really standing out. However, once the late game hit, he suddenly transformed into a terminator. After collecting enemy data throughout the match, during the late game he finally finished compiling it and started using it against his foes.


    The current situation stood testament to Aron''s strong late game, he crafted everything about it. He placed a sneaky Checkpoint Ward ahead of time, teleported to it at the worst timing possible, swiftly executed their Support and caged Julia inside the Overlord''s area. From beginning to end, Aron made one flawless play after another, leaving his enemies zero openings.


    That''s the kind of scary player Aron was in late game, it completely escaped Ellen''s mind until now. As a fellow player excelling at adaptation, Ellen recognized him as a strong competitive player. Therefore, she could tell: Julia didn''t stand a chance at this point.


    "Gah! So close!" Julia gritted her teeth. She almost figured how to handle that rampaging cat man, but her HP ran out.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Shit! Couldn''t you just die, dumbface!? I''ll get you next time!" It was so damn infuriating! If she had just a little more time, she''d figure out how to deal with that bullshit! [Just you watch! Next time I won''t lose!]


    "Next time? My, didn''t you say this is going to be your last match?"


    "Huh? Yeah, what of it?"


    "Heehee~" Ellen giggled. "For somebody who claims she hates the game, you sure seem to be enjoying yourself."


    "Huh? What are you... talking... about..." Julia blinked. Huh? It was weird. Her right hand clenched the mouse, while her left hand restlessly danced on top of the keyboard. Not to mention, her head was filled to the brim with thoughts about getting revenge on that Lionfolk idiot. Right now, at this very moment, what she desired more than anything was to respawn and return to these thrilling fights...!


    "In the last ten minutes or so, you haven''t been playing to woo some guy. You played purely for yourself."


    "For myself...?" Julia was speechless. True, she completely forgot about looking good in front of Lars and all that crap. Hell, she even murdered him! Holy moly, that was some extreme shit right there!


    "If you insist you hate Classmancers, then you''re lying to yourself, girl" Ellen smiled meaningfully. "You wouldn''t have gotten this strong if you really hated the game. Maybe it didn''t grab your heart right away, but at this point you''re a total Classmancers geek."


    "I... not really..." Julia trembled. She couldn''t deny it, this match wasn''t exactly boring. She died a lot, but she also killed a lot. The fights were packed with all sorts of thrills and they... they were fun! Classmancers... was actually fun!


    "Aw, you''re such a cute crybaby~"


    "W-Who''s crying!?" Julia wiped her eyes and averted her red face.


    "Ah~ Please, someone! Kill me so I can snuggle this cute little kitten~"


    "S-Stay away and focus on the damn game! You gotta defend until I respawn!"


    "Aye aye, Ms. Classmancers Geek."


    "Shut up! Hmph. Pft, hahaha!" Julia couldn''t hold it back, she laughed to the point of tears.


    "Teehee." Ellen stuck out her tongue. "Don''t quit Classmancers. You clearly like the game and got more than enough talent."


    "Hmph, I''ll think about it." Julia shrugged, but a soft smile formed on her lips. She already realized the truth: she couldn''t quit after coming this far, it just wouldn''t feel right.


    When she picked up Classmancers, her sole goal was getting closer to Lars. However, that''s not the only thing that kept her going. The frustration she experienced after losing her Support spot to Yuel, the challenges she endured to keep up with Lars and the secret training she undergone to achieve her current level. All these defeats, struggles and victories were what pushed her to keep playing Classmancers.


    She wasn''t going to quit, not like this. Of course, her main goal remained the same: show her good side to Lars and kick Yuel out of the picture to become Lars''s Support. But, on top of that, she just wanted to keep playing this dumb game, which grew on her at some point.


    Despite Ellen''s best efforts, the team lost their Mid Golem and their Colossus collapsed soon afterwards. The long match finally came to an end, and with it Lars and Julia''s entry exam.

 25 Exam Results

    At long last, Julia''s exhausting entry exam came to an end. She left the room, accompanied by Ellen. On the way out, they ran into members from the other team.


    "My, he sure looks scary." Ellen whispered while pointing at Aron. He glared in their direction and strode toward them.


    [I had a feeling this''ll happen. My, what a pain. ]Ellen sighed and braced herself. Aron ordered her to not bully the rookie and she completely failed that mission.


    She originally planned to stay put like a good girl, avoiding the rookie during the early game. Then, Trever decided it was smart to degenerate into a trash tier feeder and everything went to hell. She had no choice but to gank the rookie at that point, to keep the game at least remotely balanced.


    That''s when she learned what a delicious prey that rookie was. From there on, she couldn''t stop herself anymore. She had to bully that adorable rookie with everything she had! Honestly, she got carried away and deserved to be scolded...


    "H-Heya, what''s up?" Ellen forced a smile as Aron approached. [Oh my, he looks terrifying.] Aron was normally a stoic and rational guy, but once triggered - he became a demon. There''s no telling what he gonna do. Scary.


    "I know what you wanna say, but- eek!?" Ellen quivered and protected her face. Aron raised his hand! He was gonna to hit her! He''s mad!


    SLAP! A loud sound resounded throughout the hallway. But, it wasn''t Ellen who received a slap across the face, it was Trever.


    "Y-You...!" Trever staggered back while caressing his red cheek. "It hurts, dammit!"


    "I''m disappointed in you." Aron said, his sharp eyes looked like they could stab somebody to death. "What''s with that miserable performance? I thought I told you to take it seriously."


    "Tch, what''s the big deal?" Trever averted his eyes, "It''s just an exam, no need to make such a huge damn deal outta it."


    "Just an exam? I see, then you''re saying in a real match you''d hold yourself together? Is that it?" Aron''s face twisted. "Don''t bullshit me! It''s [because ]this is ''just an exam'' that I expected you to do your job! I didn''t put you on that team so you can feed the rookies!" He was practically yelling, none of his usual calmness was present.


    Trever was shaken and retaliated with his own dose of anger. "Well, excuse me that I couldn''t beat a freaking miracle rookie! I tried my best and he owned me! What else do you want from me!? Leave me alone, man!"


    "You gave up! He killed you once and you decided to throw the game! Just because you lost one fight doesn''t mean your opponent is stronger. You''re supposed to be a competitive player, so act like one!" Aron grabbed Trever''s collar and shook him.


    "Fuck off!" Trever pushed Aron away and walked off with wide strides.


    "Where do you think you''re going?"


    "Home."


    "You know we have more exams today, right?"


    "I don''t give a shit. Deal with that yourself, captain." Trever stomped down the stairs, vanishing from view.


    "That idiot..." Aron sighed and stared at the ceiling.


    "Ah, err..." Julia twitched, trying to find the right moment to get the hell outta this suffocating atmosphere. The awkwardness level of this scene was over 9000. None of that drama had anything to do with her, so she wanted to pretend she wasn''t even there. She was just air, nothing to see here.


    "My, you ended up seeing a really nasty lovers'' quarrel." Ellen put a hand on Julia''s shoulder and winked. "Don''t worry, our club isn''t usually like that."


    "Sure..." Julia didn''t care, she just wanted to get the heck outta here. Really, just that. Please, somebody, just say it was fine for her to leave already!


    While Aron was heartbroken over his lover''s incompetence, this was the best time for Ellen to sneak in an apology. "I''m also sorry, Ronron. I know you wanted me to stay out of the rookie''s way, but I ended up bullying him a little~"


    "It''s alright." Aron sighed with a tired expression, which made him look like he aged twenty years. "You had no choice, considering Trever threw the game. Though, I have to say you focused the rookie more than necessary."


    "Teehee, my bad~" Ellen stuck out her tongue. "He was just so cute I couldn''t resist teasing him~ I hope he''s alright."


    "Yes, he seems fine. He was a bit shaken at first, but he didn''t crumble under pressure."


    "My, what a promising little brat."


    "All in all, it was probably a good experience for him. He needed an enemy who could show him his limits."


    "Always glad to help~" Ellen saluted with a wink. "Anyway, what we gonna do about the rest of the exams? Doesn''t look like Trever is coming back."


    "So it seems." Aron sighed deeply, as if the whole world collapsed on him. First, Howard called in sick. Next, Trever ragequit. Sigh, one trouble after another. "I rather not postpone the exams, the deadline for submitting club applications isn''t that far off. Sigh, I need some time to figure this out. Dan, can you please tell the examinees to wait a little before the next match? Tell them we apologize for the inconvenience."


    "Roger." Dan nodded and set out to the waiting room.


    "Considering our numbers, we''ll have to do something like 4v4." Aron sighed for the millionth time. "Or maybe 3v3, that''s a more popular game mode."


    "My, sounds terrible." Ellen twisted her lips.


    Classmancers techncially had 4v4 and 3v3 casual modes, but they weren''t the meat of the game. They were played on different maps, had different metas (if at all) and sometimes even had unusual rules and objectives. Despite technically being part of the same game, the knowledge and skills required there were a world apart from the 5v5 mode.


    Therefore, testing rookies on these modes was unfair and uninformative. There was also the option of hosting a custom 4v4 match on the usual 5v5 map, to retain at least some level of familiarity with the competitive mode. Aron seemed to like that option best, but it''s still awkward for an entry exam. If only they had one more player to fill in for Trever... oh, wait. The perfect replacement was right there!


    "I have a great idea~" Ellen smiled playfully and wrapped herself around Julia. "How about we let lil'' July here fill in for Trever? If memory serves, we aren''t testing any more Mid Laners today. We can keep Gilly as Support and let July play against Danny in Mid for the rest of the matches."


    "Eh? What?" Julia exclaimed and tried shaking off Ellen''s arm. "Wait a second, I haven''t agree- agh!" She was silenced! Ellen''s arm wrapped itself around Julia''s neck like a snake, choking her! It was a murder attempt! In plain sight!


    "Be quiet, girl. I''m doing this for your sake." Ellen whispered in a cold commanding tone, then turned to Aron with a warm smile. "What do you say? She''s totally up to it~"


    "Is she really?" Aron raised an eyebrow. "Anyway, you seriously suggest to ask an outsider to help us with the examination? And a rookie to boot?"


    "Yeah, why not? You saw her skill, she''s a decent player. She even gave Danny a run for his money in the lane. I know he''s not maining Mid, but that''s still impressive."


    "Yes, she did well against him. That is, if I ignore how she spent too much on warding and how she failed to push despite her lane advantage."


    "My, you''re so nitpicky. That''s why girls don''t like you~"


    "As if I care." Aron shrugged.


    "Always so serious~ Give her a break, the girl was just a little tense during the exam. Maybe she''s not up to your super duper high standard, but she''s an obedient and calculated player, just the way you like your soldiers, cap."


    "Calculated? I remember her rampaging all over the place for half the game."


    "Agh." Julia gritted her teeth and lowered her face. Gah, remembering how she played back there was so embarrassing! She spouted lots of nonsense like "Die! Die!" and went all gung-ho like some battle maniac! [Someone, please make me disappear! Like, right now!]


    She tried wiggling her way out of Ellen''s arms, to no avail. There''s no escape, Ellen was gonna force her into this nonsense and she had no say in the matter. What bullshit was this even?


    "Oh, yeah. About that rampaging stuff." Ellen took a moment to choose her words. "Weeeell, that was just a little hiccup, honest. I pushed some buttons and that''s what happened, teehee~" She winked and stuck out her tongue.


    "Don''t you ''teehee'' me." Aron frowned. "You''re saying it''s your fault? You ruined her chances of delivering a good impression?"


    "Weeeeell, you can say so. Right, July?" Ellen wrapped herself even tighter around Julia, signaling the girl to play along.


    "Yeah, that''s right. She''s the absolute worst." Julia nodded. It looked like she was playing along, but she wasn''t really. It was all true, everything was Ellen''s fault. Julia kept her aggressive side buried deep down for all this time, but Ellen forced it out of her. Yeah, Ellen was the absolute worst!


    "Great, that''s yet another problem dropped on my shoulders. Thank you, Ellen.." Aron sighed yet again, his lungs were going to run out air at this rate.


    "Sorry, sorry." Ellen joined her hands in apology. "So, that''s why I''m saying: we should let her play some more. That way, we get to see more of her skill and can judge her better. We''ll be killing two birds with one stone~"


    "Giving her more than one chance isn''t exactly fair for the other rookies. Then again, ruining her one chance isn''t exactly fair for her either. Alright, fine." Aron gave up. Problems came crashing down on him like an avalanche, he no longer had the strength to argue against suboptimal solution. Anything that worked and could be put to use right away was welcome.


    "You''re alright with this?" Aron asked Julia.


    "No, I-"


    "Listen, you not gonna make it if you give up this chance." Ellen whispered. "As you can see, Aron doesn''t hold a high opinion of you right now."


    "O-Okay, I''ll do it. I''ll help out." Julia found herself nodding, playing along with this nonsense. Wait, the heck was she doing!? She just wanted to get back home and take a shower! Both she and Aron got completely wrapped around Ellen''s finger!


    "Alright, I''ll need some time to adjust the lineups... again." Aron sighed as he left to review his precious notes. He spent the whole morning deciding the teams for the exam, but now he had to redo everything from scratch. Sigh.


    "Phew." Ellen sighed in relief. "My, that was a tough one to get through."


    "Just what the hell did you sign me up for?" Julia grumped. "I don''t wanna do this shit, I wanna go home."


    "Hey July, are you coming?" Lars waved to her from the other side of the hallway.


    "O-Oh! Y-You waited for me all this time?" Julia was moved.


    "Yeah, of course. Let''s tell Yuel how we did, I bet dude fell asleep in the waiting room by now, haha."


    "Sure, coming." Julia nodded and ran toward him. These guys and their stupid exam could be damned, she wanted to get outta here and spend some time with-


    "Hello!" Ellen waltzed in, blocking Julia''s escape path. "Larsy, right?"


    "It''s Lars, actually." Lars made a face. "You''re Athena?"


    "Bingo~ Good game." Ellen smiled impishly and stretched her hand.


    "Yeah... good game. You gave me a lot of trouble, haha." Lars forced a smile and shook her hand. She pretended to be friendly, but her "good game" sounded more like "easy game" to him.


    "You''re quite talented, I hope you pass"


    "No problem, I''m sure I gonna pa- geh!" Lars flinched as nails dug into his flesh. Gah, that damn chick! She''s picking a fight!? "H-Haha, I heard you play Carry on the team? Once I get into the club, I''mma take your spot for sure." He paid her back in kind by clenching his hand.


    "Ah! You brute!" Ellen pulled her hand out before her slender fingers were crushed. Seriously, what a rascal. "Don''t get ahead of yourself, brat. I shut you down, fair and square, in that last fight."


    "Hah! Let''s see you pull that again. Come at me, yo!" They glared at each other, then both smirked. He hated her sneaky playstyle and she hated his brute strength, they were each other''s bane. But, that''s precisely why they grew to respect each other''s talents.


    "So, you coming, July?" Lars asked again.


    "Oh, yeah. I''m-"


    "Actu~ally." Ellen wrapped herself around Julia like a snake. "July here said she''d stay to help us with the other exams. You saw the soap opera that just happened here, right? We''re now short on one person, so July volunteered to fill in for him. What a good girl, isn''t she?"


    "Oh, really? Cool. It gonna take long?"


    "Hmm, about two hours? There are four more exams."


    "Welp, guess me and Yuel gonna head home then." Lars scratched his head. "Good luck out there. Beat all these other guys to show them who''s da best, yo."


    "Ah, wait! I''m also going- geh!"


    "Go ahead, I''ll take good care of her~" Ellen leaned on Julia with all her weight. [My, July is such a handful. And to think I''m doing it all for her sake. If only I could find a good motivator for her... oh, wait. My, ain''t I just evil? Teehee~]


    "Say, Larsy." Ellen wore a foxy smile. "Do you remember that one time July killed you in match?"


    "A-ah! Wah! Gah!" Julia trembled like a rocket about to launch off. [Oh god, don''t remind him of that! I was totally bonkers back then! He gonna hate me for life! Please, somebody! Just erase me!]


    "Yeah, of course I remember." Lars nodded and turned to Julia. "That was sick, yo! When did you get so good at fighting? You totally owned me there, haha! We should fight 1v1 sometimes, Yuel really sucks at that stuff."


    "Ah... eh... err, of course..." Julia was petrified. Lars wasn''t angry at all. Rather, he praised her? He even said she surpassed Yuel in something! Oh god!


    "The poor souls she gonna play against in the exams have no idea what''s coming, heehee." Ellen added to the hype.


    "Damn straight." Lars grinned. "I''d totally spectate these matches just to see July wreck them."


    "Spectating is against the rules, but it''s the feeling that counts." Ellen smiled meaningfully. [Good boy, now July has nowhere to run. My, sometimes I''m just horrible~]


    "Welp, I''m off!" Lars announced. "Good luck, break a leg and stuff, haha!" He disappeared from the hallway. That finally released Julia from her petrification.


    "I''ll do it." Julia stated, her eyes burning with determination. "I''ll help you with these stupid exams and outdo all these other shitheads."


    "Good girl, that''s the spirit." Ellen smiled from ear to ear and caressed Julia''s hair. Everything went according to plan~


    With newfound determination, Julia sticked around for the rest of the exams. It didn''t take her long to start regretting her hasty decision, she was totally baited into this crap. Ellen was the devil confirmed.


    According to Ellen, Julia had to earn some extra points with Aron if she wanted to pass her own exam, so she sucked it up and kept working. She wanted to get into the club together with Lars, but she also just wanted to keep playing this stupid game and keep improving, until she could leave idiots like Yuel in the dust.


    Two days later, all the matches of the final round were over and it was time to decide who passed. All members of the Classmancers club gathered for the meeting, even though most decisions were going to be handled by Howard and Aron anyway, they were the vice-captain and captain. Ellen, Trever, Gilbert and Dan were there to share their opinions as secondary examiners, but their role mostly consisted of nodding or shaking their heads to whatever Howard and Aron had to say.


    "Alright, I''ll start with the easy ones." Howard announced as he went over the list of candidates. "First we got Yuel, the Druid we tested on the first day. Heh, I suppose those who were there don''t really need a reminder, right?"


    "Oh man, that guy was THE shit." Trever nodded. "10/10 would accept into club again."


    "Well then, I don''t think there''s anything to discuss here?" Howard scanned everybody in the room, they were all silent. "Alrighty then, moving on. Next we have Lars, he played Trickshooter on the second day. I wasn''t present that day, but Aron and Gilbert evaluated him highly and you know how hard it is make them sing praises. Looks like another closed case to me."


    "No way." Ellen pouted. "He''s just a brute who doesn''t know his place, we should totally fail him."


    "Are you being serious?" Aron made a face.


    "C''mon, just kidding~" Ellen winked. "I fought him the most that match. I can attest he''s not complete trash, unlike a certain other mechanical brute we already got in the club."


    "Give it a rest, Elly." Howard ordered. "I remember you came to cry on my shoulder because of that rookie''s skill, saying how the unfair the world is and all sorts of crap."


    "I wonder who actually cried on whose shoulder in the end~" Ellen playfully stuck out her tongue. Nobody else in the room had any idea what these two were talking about, so they just stayed quiet.


    "Anyway, that''s two." Howard returned to the list. "As for the third spot, things aren''t quite as clear cut. Me and Aron discussed the options for a while and decided on Jaiden, the guy who played Lancer on the third day."


    "Say what?" Ellen asked. "My, Wardy is such a scatterhead~ That''s not how you read that name, it''s pronounced Ju-li-a."


    "She''s the next one on the list." Howard said. "I know you think the world of her, but I can''t vouch for her since I wasn''t there during her exam. So, I left this one to Aron. It was a close one between Jaiden and Julia, but he said Jaiden''s playstyle is more airtight. Julia''s is apparently ''all over the place'', as he put it."


    "My, Ronron is such a bully." Ellen puffed her cheeks.


    "I just put things as they are." Aron said. "She appears skilled and experienced enough, but you surely agree her playstyle is a mess."


    "May I remind you how she dominated the lane during the early game? And how she scored lots of kills during the mid game? She did all that with her ''messy playstyle''. Just imagine how strong she''ll become once she polishes it."


    "Hey now." Dan intervened. "She only dominated Mid during the first game, because she knew how to counter Beastmaster with Pyromancer. That didn''t happen again."


    "And who do you think cornered you into picking Beastmaster in the first place? She purposely banned the harder Mid classes, to force you into picking something she can counter. Not to mention that she gave you enough trouble even in later games."


    "Yeah, she''s not bad, that''s true." Dan nodded. "I actually gave her a high score, but she''s not perfect. I also think Jaiden is overall a better player."


    "You guys just don''t get it." Ellen sighed and shook her head. "My, how evil you all are. The girl volunteered to help us with the exams and that''s how you reward her?"


    "Sure, ''volunteered''." Aron sneered. "You forced it on her. Sigh, I had a feeling you''d use that as a bargaining chip. I regret to inform you, but lending a hand got nothing to do with passing the exam. She gained valuable experience from playing with competitive players, we''re even."


    "Boo, heartless scum."


    "That''s called being fair."


    "C''mon, Wardy." Ellen turned to Howard with puppy dog eyes. "You have the final say in this, right? Can you just let the girl pass? Pretty please? You watched the replays, you know what she can do."


    "That''s not how this works, Elly." Howard said. "I analyzed the replays, but it''s not the same as being present during the match. From what I can tell, she got the skill and everything, but there were also many holes in her plays."


    "Did you analyze all the games? She played better in the next ones. I pushed her buttons too much in the first game, that''s why she looked bad. C''mon, just let her pass~ You know you want too~ You even praised her defense during the early game, remember? I know she has some faults right now, but don''t you agree she looks very promising? Forget what she lacks right now, think about what she can become in a year with more experience"


    "You''re not going to let go, are you?"


    "Nah ah."


    "Give me a break, woman." Howard sighed. He knew the bottomless depths of Ellen''s persistence better than anybody, what a pain. "How about this: we''ll host a voting. If Julia gets at least 5 votes, we''ll take her over Jaiden. Is that alright?" He turned to Aron.


    "Do as you wish." Aron shrugged. "She''s going to be your responsibility next year, I''m not going to stop you."


    "Alrighty then." Howard addressed everybody in the room, including those who spent the whole meeting fiddling with their phones and paying zero attention. "Those who think we should choose Julia over Jaiden, raise a hand."


    "Oh! Me! And me too!" Ellen raised both arms.


    "That''s one."


    "I guess it''s fine." Gilbert raised his hand. "She played a pretty convincing Blitz Pyromancer, I liked it."


    "Alright, that''s two. Anybody else?"


    No reaction. Some exchanged glances, others scratched their heads.


    "My, you really gonna let this chance slip by?" Ellen addressed the indecisive bunch. "You don''t want another cute girl in the club? She doesn''t have a boyfriend by the way."


    "Alright, that''s four votes now... You''re a real snake, huh." Howard smiled wryly.


    "Teehee~" Ellen smiled innocently. "Then it''s settled, right? Because obviously you gonna be the fifth vote."


    "Nah, I''m abstaining." Howard declared. "If I vote, it''s like giving you two votes. That''s not fair."


    "My, you''re so cold, darling. Aren''t you supposed to support me and everything?"


    "I already went out of my way to arrange this voting. Sorry Elly, but I can''t play favorites here. This is an important decision and I''m letting the club decide."


    "Hmph, meanie." Ellen puffed her cheeks and pouted.


    "I''ll give you one more chance to persuade somebody. If you can''t, then it''s game over."


    "Aren''t you a doll, darling." Ellen made a face and scanned the room. What were her options? Howard already declared he wasn''t gonna help, that big bad meanie. Aron and Dan were out of question, they were set on picking Jaiden and she had no idea how to sway them. Sam didn''t even pay attention, he was absorbed in his phone. It''s unlikely he''d go against Aron''s decision, so it was a lost cause.


    The only one left was... [that guy]. She didn''t like it, but that''s the only option she had left. Things were about to get ugly for real..


    "My, I''m impressed you haven''t voted yet." Ellen addressed Trever. "Weren''t you aiming to become a professional skirt chaser?"


    "I... I''m not gonna vote just because she''s a chick." Trever averted his eyes. Just recalling that dreadful match made him feel sick. Besides, didn''t that chick have a boyfriend? At least, he had the impression she was into that Trickshooter rookie.


    "Then don''t vote because she''s a girl, vote because she played well." Ellen said.


    "I was kinda out of it during the match, so I don''t remember how she played, haha..."


    "Then let me remind you." Ellen insisted. "Remember how you were killed by the Trickshooter and fell into a slump like a crybaby?"


    "Ugh."


    "Well, guess what? Julia also got killed by him, but she didn''t throw the game. She pulled herself together like a responsible player and went on a killing spree, she even killed that Trickshooter once. Pretty impressive, don''t you agree?"


    "Yeah, I guess..."


    "You ''guess''? I''m saying this girl is a thousand times better than trash like you. Not to mention that you''re responsible for ruining her exam, since your feeding destroyed the balance and turned match into 4v5. The least you can do is help her pass-"


    "Enough already." Aron interrupted. "What Trever did or didn''t has nothing to do with Julia''s skill. You''re exerting the vote out of him."


    "Tch, always quick to defend your boyfriend." Ellen clicked her tongue. "Why don''t you two just marry already?"


    "Enough, Elly." Howard said.


    "Okay, okay. I got it, jeez." Ellen made a face. "It''s just, if you ask me, I don''t think it''s fair to reject July when she''s clearly better than one of our current members. Why do we even keep that tra- I mean, [that guy] in our club? He lost his spot on the first string and he can''t even properly help with rookie exams. So, we can just kick him out and welcome both July and Jaidy into the club, don''t you think?"


    "You really like running your mouth." Aron glared at her with a terrifying expression.


    "A-Ahaha, I just-"


    "You''re implying we should kick out a senior? Just who do you think you are? Trever has been a member way longer than you and he''s always willing to contribute, unlike somebody who refused to participate in the exams because she''s lazy."


    "B-But I helped in the end, didn''t I?"


    "Yes, because there was no other choice and I begged you death. Maybe I should kick you out instead? Want to take a hit for your favorite rookie?"


    "Sorry, my bad. I got carried away." Ellen joined her hands in apology. She miscalculated, getting on Aron''s bad side was a huge mistake. She failed, or so she thought. "Oh my?"


    Trever''s hand... it was raised. He voted for Julia.


    "You don''t have to do this." Aron said. "She''s trying to make you feel guilty."


    "Nah, it''s cool, bro." Trever waved his hand. "I know I messed up in that match, but that''s not the point. I just remembered how desperately that chick fought, even though..." He took a deep breath. "Even though I dragged the team down, she didn''t give up. Chick had one heck of a fighting spirit, it was something else."


    Trever wanted to forget everything about that dreadful match, burying it at the deepest depths of his mind. However, Ellen''s words made him recall one important detail: while he was busy sulking about his shitty performance, the girl sitting beside him poured her everything into the match. He remembered hearing lots of "shit!" and "die!", but that''s besides the point. The point was that, no matter how rough the match became, she never gave up, she kept fighting her best till the very end.


    "That''s why I think she deserves it." Trever smiled wryly. "That unyielding fighting spirit makes her a competitive player, at least that''s what I think. Besides, she''s a chick. I''ve been saying for ages we need more girls in the club, haha."


    "My, I see you can say good stuff sometimes." Ellen nodded in approval and turned to Howard. "That''s five, right? Here you go, bully."


    "Alright, it''s decided then." Howard put down the list. "Along with Taison and Gregory, who passed the first rounds, the three who passed the final round are: Yuel, Lars and Julia."


    With that, the meeting came to an end. After lots of hard work: Yuel, Lars and Julia finally made it into the club. They took one step closer toward Classmancers'' competitive scene.

 26 Club Tour

    "Yeah! We did it!" Lars exclaimed. "Good job, my dudes!"


    "Phew." Julia sighed in relief. [I somehow made it in.]


    "Good." Yuel nodded, not really surprised by the results of the entry exam. He and Lars were pretty much guaranteed to pass, they left great impressions on the examiners. Julia was the only one in a rough spot, it was impossible to tell how the examiners perceived her skill. Thankfully, she made it into the club as well. All three friends were now part of the Classmancers club! It was a small, but important step. They got just a little closer to Classmancers'' pro scene!


    The new members were told to visit the clubroom after school for their first day of club activity. Unsurprisingly, they ran into Taison and Gregory on the way.


    "Hah, you really all made it." Taison grinned and glared at Lars. "Good, now we can settle who''s really da best Carry, yo!"


    "And who''s best Support." Gregory added. "I heard the final round was some serious shit, you must''ve fought real hard to ace it. But too bad, you''re not getting your favorite roles on the team while we''re around."


    "Welp, we''ll see about that." Lars shrugged.


    "We won''t know until we compete for them." Yuel said in a matter-factly tone.


    Their reactions were lacking somehow, even indifferent. Until recently, they thought of Taison and Gregory as strong rivals. However, that changed during the entry exam. Now, there were bigger fish for them to deal with: Howard and Ellen, Aeigs and Athena. Until they can beat these two, competing against Taison and Gregory was of secondary importance.


    "Welcome, gentlemen. And lady." Howard greeted the newcomers at the entrance like a butler. "You''re going to be the future of our club, so we''re expecting great things from you."


    "Kek, what''s with this ''school principal speech''? Lame." Gregory chuckled.


    "That''s just my way to tell you that you have no chance of becoming a starter until your seniors graduate." Howard smiled, but his glare was sharp. "You are the [future] generation. Remember that, rookies."


    "We''ll see about that." Yuel retorted with a glare of his own.


    "Heh. Anyway, come in." Howard led everybody into the room and introduced the club members. Yuel met most of them during the exam and some of them left quite the lasting impression, such as Aron, Trever and, of course, Howard.


    He also heard a lot about a girl named Ellen, Lars couldn''t shut up about being outplayed by her during the exam. Her playstyle sounded unconventional, but it managed to beat a beast like Lars. Interesting, to say the least. Yuel wanted to look into her tactics in more detail.


    "My, freshmen~ How cute~" A girl circled around the group, scanning everybody from head to toe. Based on process of elimination, that had to be Ellen. She''s supposedly the strategic and calculating type, but she... she wasn''t quite what Yuel expected.


    "Oh, July~ Long time no see~" Ellen wrapped herself around Julia.


    "What do you mean ''long time''? We played like twenty games literally two days ago." Julia tried wiggling her way out of the embrace, to no avail.


    "Oh, you''re here too, Larsy." Ellen''s expression changed somewhat. She still technically smiled, but something about the smile was disturbing. "And here I thought you''d quit Classmancers after losing so badly to me. Oh, wait, don''t tell me you actually enjoy that kind of abuse and came for more? My, what a maso~"


    "No freakin'' way!" Lars proclaimed and pointed a finger at her. "I came here to beat the heck outta you! Me and Yuel gonna take the Carry and Support roles from you regulars, just you wait!"


    "Oh, so this is the other golden rookie I heard about. Hmm," Ellen shifted her attention to Yuel, ignoring Lars''s provocations. She scanned Yuel from head to toe, wearing a thin smile that was impossible to read. What was she thinking so hard about? He didn''t have the faintest idea. After staring at him for a while, she finally spoke again. "Let''s get along, Yuyu~" She stretched her hand.


    "Yuyu?" Yuel raised an eyebrow, reluctantly accepting her handshake.


    "Yeah, that''s gonna be your nickname. July, Larsy and Yuyu." She pointed at each of them in order, as if naming her pets.


    "Huh, is that so." Yuel frowned. ["Yuyu"? Seriously? It sounds like a nickname for a toddler. She''s looking down on us, isn''t she?]


    "Hey, what about us?" Gregory asked. "Surely you heard about us too, we''re way better than these losers."


    "Oh, sorry. What were your names again?" Ellen cocked her head and blinked.


    "Wha... tch." Gregory clicked his tongue, clearly upset his name wasn''t as widespread as Yuel''s in the club. While he was busy sulking, Taison stepped in.


    "I''m Taison, and this scrub here is Greg."


    "Your mom is a scrub."


    "Khaha."


    "My, aren''t you close? How lovely~" Ellen smiled. "So, Taison and Gregory, right? Let''s see..." She put a finger on her lip and tilted her head from side to side. "Tai? Nah, that''s too generic. Taitai? Yes, perfect! I name you Taitai."


    "Geh. I mean, thanks, I guess." Taison forced a smile.


    "And, let''s see..." Ellen tilted her head as she turned to Gregory. "Hmm. Gregy? Yeah, that''ll do."


    "Gregy? Are you for real?" Gregory made a face. "Can you stick with either Gregory or Greg? To be honest, your naming sense sucks."


    "My, how rude. In that case, I''ll call you G."


    "Please don''t."


    "No, wait. ''GG'', that''s even better! From nowforth, you''ll be called GG~"


    "Khaha, GG on the nick, GG." Taison laughed out loud while pointing at Gregory.


    "That doesn''t even make sense." Gregory sighed, no doubt regretting his rebellious acts. Ellen had the authority here, so making an enemy out of her was going to screw him over, he must had realized that now. The carefree and confident way she carried herself radiated the aura of a queen, especially against this pack of newcomers. No matter how disagreeable her actions were - nobody could oppose her.


    "Just ignore her shenanigans." Howard returned. "Don''t worry, she''s the only one who gonna call you these stupid names"


    "My, Wardy, how rude." Ellen pouted and pinched Howard''s cheek, but he didn''t care. He just rubbed her hair and she peacefully retreated, it was pretty amazing. Everybody felt like they were wrapped around the queen''s finger, but Howard brushed her off like she was nothing. Were they all going to master that level of Anti-Ellen Resistance after spending enough time in the club? Yuel sure hoped so.


    "Speaking of names, you gotta decide on your IGNs, your in-game names." Howard said. "Club members are registered as official competitive players, with unique static IGNs and everything."


    Unlike most online games, Classmancers didn''t force players to pick a permanent display name. Players could change their IGN at any time, so only their player ID was truly unique and was always shown beside their IGN. It was a nice degree of freedom for those who changed nicknames often, but it also felt like each player was represented by a number, not an actual name. They were all random numbers in a huge pool of nobodies.


    However, that wasn''t the case for those recognized as "competitive players". They were granted the privilege to register a unique static IGN, which no other competitive player would be allowed to use from there on. They transcended being a mere "number", becoming distinguishable individuals. On top of that, their names were painted gold and no longer had an ID beside them, Yuel faced a few such players in Ranked. He was jealous, no lying.


    Naturally, all pro players had this privilege, so Yuel already knew about this feature. However, he didn''t expect it to be given to middle schoolers as well. Just by joining this club - he was already recognized as a strong and distinguishable individual within Classmancers'' community. Though faintly, he felt like he got closer to grasping the dazzle of the pro scene. It was a huge step forward, it was great!


    "You also get some rewards for your account," Howard continued. "You get enough gems to buy at least one skin and receive some premium skins for competitive players. You''ll also often get extra rewards during events and all that jazz. We tell everybody the number of club members is restricted because the club is ''super competitive'', but I bet these freebies are the real reason they don''t allow many members. ClassSoft is such a generous company, am I right? Haha."


    "ClassSoft? More like CashSoft." Taison corrected.


    "We''ll give you a couple of days to decide on your nicks." Howard explained. "It''s an important decision, especially for those planning to go pro in the future. You can''t register an IGN more than once and it''s pretty much impossible to change it after it''s decided. Think of it as a homework assignment. If you can''t decide on a name by Friday, we''ll borrow Elly''s eccentric naming sense and roll with it."


    "God help us all." Julia retorted, drawing out a few chuckles.


    "Next, let''s go over the club''s schedule." Howard continued. Club activities were held after school almost everyday, from Tuesday until Friday. "You''re free to come here on Monday as well , but it''s just such a depressing day, right? Haha."


    Club activity was three hours a day, a rather intense schedule compared to the average junior high club. Freshmen had to attend the club every day, but juniors and seniors were allowed to attend as few as thrice or twice a week respectively. "You rookies got a lot to learn, so you gonna work your asses off. The first year is when you''re molded into real competitive players."


    Despite how intense the training was, the club didn''t have a coach. "There''s a teacher responsible for the club, but that''s just a formality. His only job is to make sure there are no problems in the club. Me and Aron organize the schedule and all that."


    The club offered a variety of activities: playing practice matches among members, playing Ranked as a premade team, practicing specific lineups, theorycrafting, analyzing pro matches and so on. "Aron is disgustingly organized, so he prints the whole schedule at the beginning of the week." Howard showed them the printed timetable hanging on the wall. It was indeed very organized, with each and every single hour accounted for. Yuel approved of how well thought out it looked, but something bugged him.


    "I only see activities directly involving Classmancers." Yuel pointed out. "What about physical exercise for maintaining optimal condition?''


    "Heh, you''re sure hardcore." Howard chuckled. "We''re not some prestige team that''s expected to win the nationals. I agree that exercising is good and all, but we not gonna force it on you. If you recall, the first round of the entry exam filtered out lazy bums who couldn''t exercise for shit, so those of you who made it are expected to be in good shape."


    "It''s unfortunate." Aron added. "The school doesn''t give us enough club activity hours, so I can''t fit exercising into the schedules. In other words, I expect you to exercise of your own volition in your free time. "


    "Haha, don''t scare them too much. It''s not like they [must ]exercise, we''re not some hardcore school like Ivy. You gonna make them quit if they take your jokes seriously."


    "That wasn''t a joke, I''m quiet serious." Aron squinted his eyes. "Don''t tell me you stopped exercising again."


    "Haha, no way!" Howard replied instantly, with a laugh that sounded hollow somehow. "Anyway, don''t be scared off by Aron''s high expectations. Not everybody have it in them to exercise regularly, so no need to push yourselves too hard."


    "No problem, yo." Lars said. "We all work out anyway, right, my dudes?"


    "Yes, sadly." (Yuel)


    "Like, it''s a pain, but yeah." (Julia)


    "Hell yeah! I sprint dat one kilometer every day, yo!" (Taison)


    "I actually planned to drop it, but guess I have no choice..." (Gregory)


    "Huh, so you''re all doing it. How great, haha..." Howard produced a dry laugh.


    "Seems like these rookies have more willpower than you." Aron said. "At this rate, you may lose your spot as a starter-"


    "Anyway! Let''s move on." Howard continued the club tour by force. Aron sighed and dropped the topic, for now.


    "And here, I present you the most impressive part of this club." Howard grinned and theatrically spread his arms. "We got 15 computers in this clubroom! 15 of them! Hard to believe the school arranged all that for some video gaming club, right? Haha."


    "These monitors look so last gen, though." Julia said.


    "Ack."


    "Yeah, and these units look ancient." Yuel added. "They even still support floppy disks."


    "Geh."


    "Floppy disks? The heck is that even?" Lars asked.


    "Alright, alright!" Howard raised his voice. "Yeah, I get it! The comps are pretty old, I''m aware, thank you. You know how generous schools are about these things , so that''s the best we can get, alright? You should be thankful we got any computers at all, you spoiled brats."


    "By the way, two computers are broken, teehee~" Ellen smiled like a fox.


    "Agh... yeah, that''s true." Howard sighed in defeat. No matter how hard he tried, nobody was going to get excited over a pile of relics.


    "Broken?" Yuel asked. "They don''t boot at all? Or, they just don''t work well?"


    "They turn on." Howard answered. "But, they work at a snail''s pace and sometimes crash when you run Classmancers."


    "Even when you run it on the lowest settings?"


    "Yes, I tried that." Aron said. "For some reason they can''t handle it, even though they seem to have the same specs as the rest."


    "You tried editing the configuration file?"


    "Configuration file?" Aron raised an eyebrow.


    "Yes, you can edit the file to set some settings below what the game offers in the settings menu."


    "Interesting, I didn''t know that." Aron was dumbfounded. "Won''t it break the game or anything?"


    "No, it''s safe as long as you know what you''re doing." Yuel said.


    "Honestly, even booting these PCs is such a pain." Ellen said with a long face. "They just make so much noise. They sound like an airplane when we run the game, it''s maddening."


    "Airplane? Sounds like a ventilation problem." Yuel deduced. "The ventilators probably got dusty, so cleaning them should help."


    "You''re saying you can fix them?" Howard asked.


    "Possibly. If I open them up and-"


    "Awesome!" Howard exclaimed. "Listen up, rookie! Your first mission is to make these PCs run Classmancers without hiccups! Get to it!"


    "Wait, I need a screwdriver first." Yuel sighed. How did things come to this? "I''ll bring one tomorrow."


    "Alright, tomorrow it is! Fix that thing, kid!" Howard was overly excited about this whole affair for some reason.


    "My, Yuyu is such a geek~" Ellen giggled.


    "Not sure how I feel about that word, considering we''re all in a video gaming club here." Yuel made a face. "But yes, I know a thing or two about computers. I have a potato PC at home, so I can''t run most things these days. Had to tinker around with the settings to make Classmancers run."


    "Yeah, dude is legit genius." Lars grinned. "He even installed all these extra custom modes, like that sick training mode where you can edit tons of stuff on the map!"


    "Classmancer Trainer, I take it?" Aron asked.


    "Yes, that''s the one." Yuel nodded. "The default Practice mode is very limited, so we''ve been using Trainer."


    "Agreed. It''s a useful plugin, we''re also using it here." Aron said. "Though, we only have version 2.3, because anything beyond that isn''t supported on these operating systems."


    "2.3? That''s ancient." Yuel said. "I believe there''s an unofficial release for version 4.5 that can run on older OS. You should try downloading that."


    "Unofficial release? I didn''t'' know they had such a thing." Aron was dumbfounded.


    "Alright everybody, it''s settled!" Howard announced. "If you run into any technical issues, turn to Yuel for help."


    [How did it come to this? ]Yuel made a face. "Sure, I''ll accept the job. I expect to be paid at least 10$ an hour, though."


    "Haha, snarky brat." Howard laughed.


    After a bunch of random tasks were forced on Yuel out of nowhere, the tour came to an end. There weren''t any specific activities scheduled for today, since the whole day was reserved to welcoming the new members. Therefore, anybody could do whatever they wanted now.


    "Cool." Lars smiled like an excited kid. "Then, I wanna challenge everybody to a 1v1! Starting with you!" He pointed at Ellen.


    "My, how rude. Your parents didn''t teach you to not point at people?" Ellen shook her head. "I''ll pass. I''m not a fan of 1v1, find some other brute to bash heads with. Me and July rather play together, right, sweetie?"


    "Eh? W-Wha-!?" Julia was dragged away.


    "Heh, I''mma take you on any time, bro." Taison challenged Lars.


    "Nah, dude." Lars shook his head. "I wanna fight someone from the club. We''ve dueled like a hundred times by now, I want some fresh challenge."


    "Heh, running away? What a wuss. I still gotta rek you like 20 times to beat your damn score, so c''mon!"


    "What score?"


    "We''re at 43-25, remember?"


    "Wut? You legit counted our duels?" Lars blinked with a blank face.


    "Damn straight I did! I ain''t gonna lose to some scrub like ya."


    "You wish, dude." Lars said. "But not today, I wanna play someone new. Hey! Dudes! Anybody here wants 1v1? I''m no noob, I promise. I got Platinum III in duels and all."


    "Heh, you sure sound confident, kid." Trever appeared behind them. "I''ll take you on."


    "You''re late." Aron frowned. "I told you we''re welcoming new members today."


    "My bad, my bad." Trever smiled apologetically. "I was kept busy. I''m such a popular guy, haha."


    "And, by ''popular'', you mean you hit on girls who like you as much as they like cockroaches."


    "Ouch, rude." Trever turned to Lars. "So, what were you saying, kid? Platinum in duels? That''s cute, I''m Diamond though. Don''t worry, I''ll go easy on ya, heh."


    "Diamond? Sick!" Lars''s eyes lit up. "Let''s do it, yo!"


    "I don''t believe you''ve been introduced." Aron interrupted. "This is Trever, he played Pirate during your entry exam. And this is Lars, he played Trickshooter back then. I''m sure you remember?"


    "Uh, huh." Trever''s smiled faded.


    "Oh, you''re that Pirate dude from back then!?" Lars asked.


    "Yeah, I am..." Trever averted his eyes, looking troubled.


    "Dude, you were so strong back there! You almost got first blood and all!"


    "Eh? Me? Strong? In that game?" Trever blinked with a dumb impression.


    "Yeah, that Cannon Kraken combo really got me. I heard you were sick that day or something? Real shame, I wanted to play you for real."


    "Yeah, you could say I was under the weather that day, haha..." Trever''s smile twitched a little. "Anyway, let''s do it then! I''ll show you how competitive players really play!"


    "Come at me, yo!"


    "Hey, I also wanna be a part of this, yo!" Taison said. "I''mma rek both of you at once!"


    "Heh, kids don''t know how to respect their elders these days." Trever shook his head. "Okay, we got a special map that supports 1v1v1. Let''s do dis boys!"


    "You''re on!"


    "I''mma mop the floor with yo ugly faces!"


    The wild bunch departed to play together.


    [I''m feeling sick. ]Yuel sighed. The overdose of hyperactivity he just witnessed was radioactive for sure, he''d develop cancer if he was going to be exposed to that on a daily basis.


    Anyway, everybody were free to do whatever they wanted and Yuel knew exactly what he wanted. It was something he had been wishing for ever since the entry exam: to fight Howard again. Last time, Yuel was thoroughly shut down by Howard''s counterplays. Howard was truly worthy of the name Aegis, the impenetrable shield of gods.


    However, that was just the result of their first match. Yuel never faced such an opponent before, so he was at a grave disadvantage. He did a lot of thinking since then and rewatched the match countless times The meat of the match was the part where Howard got serious, that''s when the match transformed into a sophisticated chess match. Yuel exploited holes in the enemy''s formation, while Howard countered by covering up said holes.


    Sadly, requesting a "revenge match" against Howard wasn''t quite simple. Unlike the mechanical beasts, Lars and Trever, Yuel and Howard couldn''t settle things with a simple 1v1. Their strengths laid in their ability to craft team strategies, make smart shot-calls and counterplay the enemy team. Therefore, they had to fight in a team to exhibit the full extents of their talents.


    On top of that, said teams had to be balanced enough to not tilt the odds in anybody''s favor. Not only that, but Yuel also had to be familiar with his teammates to craft the appropriate tactics. None of that was possible to arrange right away, so a proper revenge match against Howard was impossible.


    But, Yuel had the perfect alternative in mind.


    "I challenge you to a game of chess." Yuel eyed Howard intently. If there was a playground where both teams were perfectly balanced, excluding the unproven possibility of first move advantage, it was chess. Therefore, playing chess would allow them to face each other as team strategists and determine who was superior. There weren''t many chess players at Yuel''s age who gave him a real challenge, so he was excited to see what sort of chess Howard would-


    "Chess?" Howard raised an eyebrow. "Where that came from? I don''t even know the rules."


    "Eh?" Yuel blinked. All this time, he imagined the Classmancers match against Howard as an sophisticated chess game, but that picture crumbled to pieces now. "I-I can teach you how to play then-"


    "Not interested, it''s a game for nerds." Howard shook his head. "Why chess anyway? We''re a Classmancers club, you know."


    "I suppose that''s right." Yuel averted his eyes, feeling stupid. He was so convinced an amazing strategist like Howard would be into chess, but he was completely wrong. "Then, how about we play 5v5 with four elite bots?"


    "That''s just dumb, we not gonna practice much of anything that way. You''re sure pushing hard for a match." Howard smirked. "Oh, I get it. You''re still salty about losing to me in the entry exam, right? Haha."


    "You just had the advantage back then." Yuel insisted. "I''m sure I can defeat you if we have a rematch."


    "Heh, don''t get ahead of yourself, kiddo." Howard sneered. "You still got a long way before you should even think of challenging me. Anyway, I''m pooped after this whole tour, so I''m off to take a break, play with somebody else." He turned around and left.


    [Just you wait, I''ll surpass you for sure. ]Yuel glared at Howard''s departing back. He came this far after overcoming many obstacles, now all that stood between him and the competitive scene was Howard. Once he were to prove himself as the superior Support, he''d get his spot on the main team for sure.


    "You''re sure obsessed with that guy." Gregory said while touching his glasses. "You better not forget who you [really] gotta beat to secure the Support role, kek."


    "Oh, you''re here too." Yuel rolled his eyes. "You haven''t seen Howard play, right? He''s on a whole different level."


    "Heh, implying I''m a scrub? Running that stupid one kilometer isn''t the only thing I practiced over the summer, ya know."


    "Oh, how exciting." Yuel replied with an indifferent tone. Gregory was a decent Support, until recently he even was Yuel''s rival, or at least something along these lines. However, after playing against Howard, Yuel lost all interest in competing with Gregory. Well, at least it might be worthwhile to see how much Gregory improved over the summer. "Fine, I''ll take you on. We need to arrange a team, though."


    "I can help with that." Aron said. "A 3v3 is good enough?"


    "Sure."


    "Bring it on, kek."


    With that, the club tour came to an end. Yuel made a huge step toward the competitive scene by getting into the club, but he wasn''t quite there yet. His next challenges were to decide on his competitive nickname and to take the main team''s Support role from Howard''s hands.

 27 Competitive Nicknames

    Soon after Yuel joined the Classmancers club, people pushed all sorts of menial tasks on him. Or, rather, he always somehow found himself volunteering after learning the circumstances. Watching others do things inefficiently or struggle with something that''s so easy to resolve - it''s aggravating, he couldn''t stay put.


    Thus, he methodically and thoroughly resolved every request to the best of his ability. He opened up the dysfunctional computers in the club and cleaned their fans, resolving the overheating issue. In addition, he edited the Classmancers config file on all computers, lowering the quality of graphics in favor of better performance, something these potato PCs really needed. On top of that, he installed a newer unofficial version of Classmancer Trainer, which worked on the older OS of these computers.


    It came as no surprise everybody started treating him as the "technician". Whenever they faced a technical problem or question, no matter how small, they always turned to him first. Even when it had absolutely nothing to do Classmancers, they still turned to him. Ugh.


    "Say, Yuyu." Ellen creeped up behind him. "How can you record videos on PC?"


    "Videos? What kind of videos?"


    "You know, game footage and stuff."


    "Not sure, there are probably some programs for that. You should google it."


    "My, you really don''t know?" Ellen whimpered like an abused puppy. "Or, you just don''t want to help lil'' ol'' me?"


    "Ugh, alright I''ll look into it."


    "My, aren''t you a doll~"


    [And aren''t you a snake.] Yuel sighed, but accepted the job anyway. With each passing day, the amount of random tasks thrown his way seemed to increase. It came to the point he helped others install, update and fix random smartphone apps. None of that had anything to do with him or Classmancers! It was a huge pain, but feeling useful wasn''t all too bad.


    When he wasn''t providing technical support, he played practice matches with the other members, grinded rank points online in a party, theorycrafted, discussed the meta and basically participated in whatever the club felt like doing at the moment. The daily schedule Aron printed was very specific, but the atmosphere in the club was more laid back than expected. It wasn''t uncommon for a large portion of the club to just do whatever they wanted and drag the rest into that activity, regardless of what was written in Aron''s schedule. Naturally, Aron frowned upon that, but then just sighed and played along.


    The training regime was a bit lacking too. They only played and discussed Classmancers for about three hours a day, they didn''t even exercise to stay in shape. Compared to how intense was the entry exam, the club''s regime was very casual.


    Nevertheless, it contributed immensely to the members'' growth as players. Everybody on the team were skilled players, so playing with them and against them was an efficient way to improve. There''s no comparing that to playing Ranked with only Lars and Julia, which is how Yuel trained throughout the summer. Even with this casual regime, just by being around these high level players - he was going to improve immensely.


    Still, not being given any specific challenges to overcome was a bit disappointing for a rookie. The greatest "challenge" freshmen faced early on was deciding on their competitive IGNs. They were going to carry these names all the way to the pro scene, so it''s an important and difficult decision. At least, for some...


    "I''mma go with Gunz." Lars said.


    "Let''s see if it''s available." Howard typed "Gunz" into the textbox. "Seems good. You sure you don''t want more time to think?"


    "Yep, 200% sure." Lars gave a thumb up. So, why did he pick "Gunz"? Simple, he just loved playing first person shooters, there''s no deeper meaning to it. He literally went with the first thing that crossed his mind, as expected of the goof.


    "Alright. It''s simple, but effective. Actually, I should give you all a little advice." Howard addressed the rest of the newbies. "It''s best to keep your nick at one or two simple words. Just think about the poor commentators who''ll have to pronounce your names in the middle of a team fight. You don''t want them go ''And now, watch Mr.CoolShadowKnightTopPlayer go for the kill!''. Sounds silly, right? It should be obvious, but pick a name you won''t be embarrassed to be called by."


    That was valuable advice, Yuel didn''t even take commentators into account during his brainstorming. Some of his ideas contained uncommon words that sounded intelligent, such as PerfunctoryAid, ScintillatingTactic and QuintessentialVictory. The image of a commentator going "And now, QuintessentialVictory goes for the kill!" was hilariously sad.


    Reaffirming Howard''s advice, the nicknames of senior members were indeed simple and concise. Howard was Aegis, Ellen was Athena, Aron was Frown and Trever was WildDragon. In that sense, "Gunz" was a decent name as well, even though zero thought was put into it.


    "Okay, I decided on mine too!" Taison announced. "It''s DaBestBro!"


    "... did you even hear anything I just said about two to three words?" Howard frowned.


    "Who cares about that crap, yo. This is da best nick, bro! They can just call me ''DaBest'' for short, khaha!"


    "Alright, it seems available. You sure about it?"


    "Totally."


    "Here, done. Just don''t come crying to me later when commentators gonna make it sound silly." Howard shrugged. "You''ll receive a notification inside the game in a few hours, so make sure to open it and confirm,."


    "Roger."


    "Got it."


    "Now, that leaves the three of you." Howard turned to Yuel, Julia and Gregory. "You still have until tomorrow to think about it, but make up your minds already. If you don''t, we gonna pick something silly for you. I heard that''s how Aron got stuck with ''Frown''. You don''t want that, do you? Especially since we got Ellen, the number one ''Terrible Name Generator'' in the world."


    "U-Understood." Yuel answered with a shaky voice, the Ellen threat was surprisingly terrifying. After Gregory was reduced to GG, there''s no telling what else that girl could pull out of her deviant mind. Gulp.


    Theoretically, they were given more than enough time to decide on something like a nickname for a video game. However, in truth, they didn''t have any time at all! A week was too short!


    Especially, for Yuel this was a huge decision. He wasn''t just deciding on some arbitrary name he could change later, the IGN was going to stick with him all the way to the pro scene. Therefore, this decision was as critical as naming a newborn. His parents said they spent months brainstorming ideas for his name, yet now he had to decide something of the same importance in less than a week! Ugh!


    "My, why not just go with Yuyu? A cute and simple name~" Ellen giggled.


    "No thank you." Yuel retorted.


    "And what about you, July?" Ellen asked. "If you need help, you can always consult your sis~"


    "Sorry, but I''m a single child." Julia said.


    "My, how cold~" Ellen wrapped herself around Julia and snuggled her. "Let''s see, what name will suit a cute girl like you? Oh, I know! How about MaidenInLove?"


    "W-Wah!?" Julia jumped out of Ellen''s embrace and scanned the room. Phew, Lars already went to play. "W-Who would go with such a dumb name!? Idiot!"


    "My, how adorable~" Ellen smiled fuzzily, as if watching a barking puppy. "Then, how about Aphrodite, the goddess of love? Or, maybe Venus?"


    "Venus doesn''t sound too bad, actually." Julia pondered.


    "Okay, it''s decided then: VenusInLove!"


    "Go die in a hole!" Julia roared. "But well, I guess Venus is kinda dope. I was waiting for Lars to pick something first, but ''Gunz'' is... like..."


    "Oh, you wanted to match his name? How cute."


    "M-Mind your own business, hmph." Julia crossed her arms and turned away.


    "Then ''Venus'' it is." Howard submitted the name application. "It always amazes me how these simple names aren''t in-use already. Kinda makes you feel like the competitive scene hasn''t spread around enough yet. Sad."


    With Julia''s name decided, only Yuel and Gregory were left. Perhaps they were overthinking this, but they just really wanted to come up with the right names. By the end of the day, Gregory finally decided on something. "I''ll go with DaBestSupport, kek."


    "You too with this nonsense?" Howard sighed. "You better consider this carefully, who knows if you keep playing Support your whole career."


    "I''m sure I will. I''ll prove that by beating you scrubs first, kek." Gregory touched his glasses as he challenged both Yuel and Howard.


    "Well, whatever. As long as you''re happy with it. Four down, you''re the only one left."


    "I... still need more time." Yuel mumbled. He already got a few solid idea in mind, such as ''Rook'' and ''Bishop'', but Gregory''s nickname threw him off.


    [DaBestBro and DaBestSupport, huh. ]Yuel had complicated feelings about that. It''s like the two of them were announcing to the entire world: "We''re going to be the best duo in the world!". Wasn''t that what Yuel and Lars promised to become? And yet, Lars went ahead and picked a stupid nickname like ''Gunz'' without waiting for Yuel.


    How was he even supposed to find something that matched ''Gunz''? Should he call himself Sword? Shotgun? Sniper Rifle? Impulse Grenade? Ugh, so stupid! He now understood why Julia was so irritated about that name. To make things worse, Lars already confirmed the name in his account, so there''s no going back. [Seriously, that brainless goof...]


    On the way home, Yuel developed an unstoppable urge to lash at Lars about the topic.


    "Did you hear what name Gregory picked?" Yuel asked.


    "Yeah, DaBestSupport or something." Lars replied.


    "So, now Taison is DaBestBro and Gregory is DaBestSupport."


    "Haha, these dudes really think they''re all that. Welp, we gonna show them who''s ready ''da best'' around here, yo."


    "That''s not my point." Yuel sighed. Being roundabout never worked with Lars, he was too dense to read between the lines. "They picked names that synergize with each other. It''s like they''re declaring they''ll become the best duo in the world."


    "Yeah, these dudes sure dream big, haha."


    [Says the guy who made me pursue the exact same dream!!!] Yuel was at his wits'' end. He had come out and say it straight, didn''t he!? Goddammit, that dense goof! "We could''ve done something like that too, come up with names that work with each other."


    "Heh, yeah that''d be cool." Lars nodded.


    "Yes, it sure would''ve been. But, a certain goof came up with a stupid name nobody can follow up on."


    "Hey, how was I supposed to guess? You didn''t tell me you wanted to do that kind of stuff, dude. I just wanted to get it over with. "


    "Well, that''s true." Yuel mumbled. He was mad at Lars the whole time, but it''s also his fault for thinking of this idea only now.


    "Besides, Greg''s name feels like he''s just copying Tai." Lars shrugged. "You don''t wanna use a name like ''Gunz'' just because it sounds cool to me, right? I also don''t wanna be named after some chess piece or some stupid complicated word like ama-gama-something-something."


    "It''s ''amalgamation'' and it''s a cool word."


    "Yeah, whatever." Lars waved his hand. "Anyway, Greg''s name sounds like he''s just stalking Tai and hoping Tai gonna carry him into becoming ''da best'' duo. Is that what you want, dude? To be in the strongest duo just because I''m a sick player?"


    "Of course not."


    "Right? Before we become ''da best duo'', I first gotta become da best Carry and you gotta become da best Support."


    "You''re right." Yuel realized he was too hasty. Lars was right, they first had to hone their individual skills before they could dream of becoming a powerful duo. Their experiences in the entry exam made that clear.


    Right now, Yuel''s tactics couldn''t beat Howard and Lars''s power couldn''t win against Ellen. Therefore, even when banded together, they couldn''t beat the duo of Howard and Ellen. First, each of them had to get as close as possible to beating their respective rival.


    "Yeah!" Lars exclaimed. "Then, together, we gonna be da super ultimate bestest duo, yo!"


    "Heh, didn''t you just say Gregory is ''dreaming big''? Your dream is even crazier."


    "Haha, I said he''s dreaming big, but I never said that''s bad! We just gotta dream even bigger to beat them, yo!" Lars grinned and stretched a fist. "Let''s do it, dude! If they gonna be da best, then we gonna be da best of da best, yo!"


    "I''m already sick of this ''da best'' nonsense." Yuel sighed and bumped fists with Lars. Things were fine this way, there''s no need to force himself into pickiing a matching name with Lars''s. Yuel would first focus on bettering himself as an individual player, then he''ll band with Lars to form the ultimate duo.


    "I decided on a name." Yuel announced the next day. "I''ll go with Rook."


    "Short and classy, alright." Howard nodded and inputted the name.


    ¡ºError: The name is already in use.¡»


    "Eh?" Yuel blinked. "Then, Bishop, maybe?"


    "Worth a shot."


    ¡ºError: You can''t use the name of a class from the game.¡»


    "Excuse me?" Yuel couldn''t process the nonsense happening right now. Bishop was indeed a class in the game, but that wasn''t what Yuel tried to reference. Besides, what''s with this discrimination? "They allow you to use Aegis, even though it''s also Paladin''s ult, but not Bishop? Seriously?"


    "Go figure how these things work." Howard shrugged. "You should spice up the names a little. Say, how about DaBestRook?"


    "I''d rather die."


    "Haha, figured." Howard laughed. "What else do you have?"


    "Err, I''ll have to think about it all over again..."


    "Hey now, I warned: you only got until today. Seems like I need come up with something myself."


    "W-Wait, I-"


    "What, you rather leave it to Ellen? Hey, Ell-"


    "Please no! Anything but that!" Yuel begged. Any name was going to be better than whatever Ellen would pick!


    "Alright, then how about Chessboy? Sounds professional."


    "You''re messing with me, aren''t you?"


    "Oh, you figured?" Howard chuckled. "Actually, I have a decent one. How about Chessmaster?"


    "That sounds a bit... pretentious, I think" Yuel mumbled, unable to fully dismiss the suggestion. It indeed sounded cool, he had to admit. Not to mention, he already considered Chessmaster during brainstorming, Howard probably knew that.


    However, despite all that, Yuel felt reluctant picking Chessmaster. It sounded so pretentious, as if claiming he''s smarter than everybody else.


    "Pretentious? Suits you perfectly then." Howard sneered. "You always act like some know-it-all, pulling ideas out of your ass while pretending they make perfect sense."


    "Well, that''s..." Yuel frowned. Pretentious? Was he? Really? He crafted his tactics based on data and the situation at hand, that''s just the natural thing to do. But, for some reason, the tactics that came naturally to him were sometimes difficult for others to grasp.


    Even so, it was never his intention to pretend he was smarter than his peers. He merely suggested the tactics he deemed best, regardless of others'' opinions. Though, admittedly, he found some joy in making his plan work when nobody else believed in it. Ugh, was he a little pretentious after all?


    "Look, the name''s available too." Howard said. "We gonna go with Chessmaster then, like it or not. Unless you prefer Chessboy, haha."


    "No chance." Yuel made a face. "I don''t particularly hate Chessmaster, but it sounds so... bombastic."


    "Heh, me and Elly went with mythological names and they sound fine, right? I''m the shield of gods and she''s the goddess of war. Actually, putting it like that is kinda embarrassing, isn''t it? Haha."


    "It sure is." Yuel nodded, but he didn''t feel like laughing at these names. Back during the entry exam, Howard was indeed the "shield of gods". No matter how many times Yuel tried piercing through Howard''s defenses - it never worked out. The name Aegis might had sounded a bit cheesy, but Howard''s skill lived up to the grand expectations set by that name.


    The same applied to Ellen. According to Lars, she always came on top whenever they fought. No matter how close he got to killing her or how many fights he won against her - she ultimately won the war. Truly, the goddess of war in the flesh. In the few practice matches Yuel played with her over the week, he was deeply impressed by the craftiness of her tactics.


    Then, what about Yuel himself? Wasn''t he also capable of feats that could live up to a bombastic nickname? He had the ability to analyze his opponents, discover their weaknesses and prepare the worst possible situations for them. That''s the skill which discouraged others from playing with him in grade school, but it''s also the skill which allowed him to pass the club''s entry exam.


    "Do really think Chessmaster suits me?" Yuel asked with a serious expression, leaving no place for jokes.


    "Nah, it''s obviously too good for you. Chessboy suits you way better." Howard joked anyway.


    "Ugh..."


    "At least, for now." Howard smirked. "Last time we played seriously, I shut you down for good. But I''ll be honest, it wasn''t exactly a walk in the park. There were a few times, like really few, when I actually felt pressured by your pesky offense. If you improve even more, then who knows? Maybe one day I''ll consider you worthy of a name like Chessmaster."


    "Then I''ll go with that." Yuel said. "Consider it my declaration: I''ll become much better and find a way to break through your shield of gods."


    "Heh, I''m amazed you can spout such nonsense with a straight face." Howard sneered, then his eyes turned cold. "Don''t get carried away, kiddo. If you think you''re the only one who gonna improve, you have another thing coming. It''s not like I gonna sit on my ass do nothing. If you think you can catch up with me, think again."


    "Even so, I''ll definitely do it." Yuel insisted.


    "Heh. Anyway, here you go." Howard finished submitting the nickname. "I hope you''ll live up to your name, Chessmaster."


    And so, the first week of club activity came to an end, with all freshmen obtaining competitive names. The next step was debuting in the competitive scene and spreading these names far and wide across the Classmancers community!


    Yuel - Chessmaster


    Lars - Gunz


    Julia - Venus


    Taison - DaBestBro


    Gregory - DaBestSupport

 28 Parrying

    Weeks went by since the freshmen joined the Classmancers club. Everybody had a lot to learn in this competitive environment.


    Lars spent most of his time playing with and against Trever. As the more experienced mechanical beast, Trever taught Lars many techniques by simply showing them off.


    "Gotcha!" Lars activated the Pirate''s ult: Release the Kraken. His target was deep inside the Kraken''s range, there''s no chance of dodging-


    "No chance in hell!" Trever rolled aside and activated Seraph''s Angelic Grace, leaping into the air right as the Kraken erupted from the ground.


    Angelic Grace allowed the Seraph jump a short distance forward and take off toward the sky, then levitate for a while. It was useful for dodging non-vertical attacks and gaining the high ground, but the leap wasn''t high enough to escape the Kraken''s vertical reach.


    However, combined with the the momentum of Trever''s previous roll, Angelic Grace made him quickly leap along the roll''s direction. Still, despite the speed, a fully horizontal leap wouldn''t had gotten him out of the Kraken''s range., Fortunately, Angelic Grace also made Trever fly toward the sky, slipping away from the sea monster''s reach before it finished popping from the ground.


    "Wha!? You can do that!?" Lars''s jaw dropped. "This is sick, yo!"


    "Haha, I know, right?" Trever puffed his chest. "And now you''re a goner, kid!"


    "No way! I gonna- gah!"


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    Yuel sighed. "That''s what you get for overextending and betting everything on your ult, without even knowing everything about your matchup."


    "Just you wait, dude! I''mma get him next time for sure!" Lars speared the respawn counter with his glare, as if that''d make it tick faster.


    Lars experienced many such defeats in the past few weeks, they were good lessons for him. Explanations never quite worked with this goof, so destroying him in battle with unfamiliar "sick techniques" was the best way to burn them into his mind. It''s a rather sadistic version of "monkey see, monkey do", but it''s the perfect training regime for Lars.


    As a mechanical flop, Yuel could never provide Lars with such lessons on his own. Therefore, he was glad this competitive club finally created the perfect environment for Lars.


    As Lars and Trever faced each other more and more, it became apparent Lars was more mechanically skilled. Nonetheless, Trever came on top most of the time thanks to his superior understanding of class matchups and honed decision-making. Also, for the better or the worse, he was a very emotional player. Sometimes he was hit by a slump and performed poorly for the rest of the day, but other times he was on a roll and became unstoppable. In fact, he''s possibly the strongest player in the club during these times.


    In general, Lars usually held the upper hand against Trever when he played Trickshooter. However, with any other Carry class, his win ratio below 40%. He still had a lot to improve on. Which was good, since it meant he could grow much stronger still.


    "Hey, don''t forget about me, bro!" Taison shouted as he charged at the weakened Trever. Oh, right. He also spent most of his time fighting Trever, apparently the custom 1v1v1 mode with Lars vs. Taison vs. Trever was their favorite pastime. He probably greatly improved as well, but who cared about that guy anyway.


    As for Yuel''s training regime, there wasn''t any specific player from whom he could learn how to become a better Support. His best bet was Howard, the one regarded as the best Support in the club. However, it was quite the disappointment.


    "Checkmate." Yuel declared as he placed his Queen.


    "The heck is this?" Howard facepalmed. "You literally just won in 4 turns."


    "This is called Scholar''s Mate. It''s one of the fastest checkmates possible in the game, you should keep it in mind."


    "Nah, I''m done with this crap." Howard left his chair. "This game is trash. Look, you won the regionals at like age 5 or something, right?"


    "No, I won the regionals at 5th grade."


    "Anyway, you know the game way better and maybe you''re even some chess prodigy. No way you''re having fun playing like this, unless you''re doing it just to spite me."


    "You''re right, this doesn''t provide the challenge was I was searching for." Yuel sighed. He nagged Howard about chess to no end, until Howard agreed to at least try the game. However, even after learning the basics, Howard found little interest in the game and was nowhere near Yuel''s level. In the end, it wasn''t the type of face-off Yuel wished for.


    He faced Howard from time to time during the club''s practice matches, but it wasn''t the same. The tension and dread he felt during the entry exam weren''t presented during practice. He used offensive tactics as usual and Howard blocked them as usual, but they couldn''t go all out.


    In the end, practice matches were exactly that: matches for practicing something. They were usually about testing team compositions, trying out counters, gauging the performance of members using specific classes and so on. Therefore, practice matches weren''t the right stage for an all out war between Yuel and Howard. In fact, Yuel went all out during the first practice match and was scolded.


    The only times he had absolute freedom to play his best was when he queued into Ranked with other club members. However, there he faced unknown online opponents, not the rival he wished to surpass. What he truly wanted was to get the Support spot as soon as possible and debut in the competitive scene. The goal was right in front of him, but he couldn''t quite grasp it yet.


    So, while waiting for an opportunity to present itself, he absorbed as much knowledge and experience as possible from practicing with seniors He already had robust theoretical knowledge about most aspects of Classmancers, but veteran members possessed knowledge which went beyond that. It was the type of knowledge gained via experience, something akin to "street-smarts".


    "Their Ranger is going for the Ogre Camp." Yuel said.


    "Roger, I''mma ambush her." Trever nodded and dashed into the jungle. "Aaaand she''s not there."


    "Seriously?" Yuel frowned. He definitely saw the Ranger go for the Ogre Camp every time she left Mid, this pattern already repeated itself three times this game. Yet, she wasn''t there the fourth time. In fact, she soon popped up on the opposite side of the map.


    "Heh, I think you were played, kid. You know how Elly is."


    "So it seems." Yuel sighed. Besides Howard''s ability to block Yuel''s offenses, there was also Ellen who messed around with her opponent''s minds. She mixed fake patterns into to her playstyle, throwing off Yuel''s analysis. And, if that wasn''t bad enough, the more they played together - the better she became at fooling him. As a result, he became more and more cautious of drawing any conclusions about her playstyle, to the point he could barely touch her with his tactics at all. She was simply too much of a wildcard.


    On top of that, Ellen used weird item builds on every class. Despite playing Jungler and Carry roles, she always equipped herself with lifesteal or regeneration, sometimes both, early into the match. Buying power items first was objectively the most efficient, or so Yuel thought until now.


    Ellen''s builds looked baffling at first, but they weren''t a mish-mash of random items. Their core strategy centered around fast regeneration, which enabled Ellen''s infamous poke-and-run playstyle. Despite being off-meta, her builds always had just enough meta components to stay viable. According to Ellen, she took her build ideas from some less known pro player, who happened to be a friend of Howard''s older sister.


    Yuel couldn''t for the life of him approve of the numeric inefficiency of her builds, but he still took mental notes and closely analyzed them. Regardless of what he thought about these builds, Ellen showcased great results while using them. In fact, she even held the team''s Carry spot while playing in such an alien way. There''s little chance Yuel would ever use these builds or recommend them to anybody, but at the very least he wanted to learn how to counter them.


    Naturally, Yuel also closely analyzed Howard''s builds and playstyle, to learn how to beat him and learn how to improve as a Support. Unfortunately, their playstyles were polar opposites, so there''s a limit to what Yuel could learn from Howard. There weren''t any other impressive Support players in the club, so Yuel didn''t have any good examples to follow.


    So, to not waste this precious time in the club, he also honed his knowledge and skill as a Top Laner and a Jungler, the next two roles he was decent with. Club members were advised to learn how to decently play at least two different roles, so there was no harm in Yuel trying other things.


    For Top Laner training, Yuel primarily examined Roi, a mechanically skilled junior. At first glance, it didn''t seem there''d be much he could learn from Roi, due to the different approaches they had to playing Top. Roi relied almost exclusively on his mechanical skill, paying little heed to the many other factors involved in playing Top. In fact, Yuel was pretty sure he''s superior when it came to counter building the lane opponent and efficiently farming nearby jungle camps, both of which were crucial for the Top Laner''s success.


    Roi made up for that by being a strong aggressive player, which was a world apart from how Yuel believed Top should be played and was a style he couldn''t imitate as the mechanical scrub he was. Nevertheless, there was one particular skill Roi possessed which Yuel was interested in mastering as well.


    "Heh, think you gonna hit me?" Roi grinned as he faced Taison head on, despite running low on HP. Taison''s Ranger was going to seal the deal with just a couple basic attacks. That is, if he could hit Roi. "C''mon, shoot me all you want. I''ll hit ez homeruns off you!"


    "You''re going down, yo!" Taison roared and fired basic attacks at the approaching Roi. Taison only had to land three hits, or just two if one of them was critical. From such a close range, there''s no way he''d miss. Alas, "not missing" was exactly what Roi wanted.


    Just as the arrow approached Roi, he swung his blade and struck the arrow. It fell onto the ground, without inflicting him any damage. He repeated it over and over for the next arrows as well, while moving closer and closer to Taison.


    "Damn! Every damn time!" Taison ranted as Roi''s Warrior almost reached him. The fight would be over once it turns into melee, so Taison had to do something! Anything! He activated Wolf Companion, sending the wolf to attack-


    "Too slow!" Roi rolled forward during Taison''s casting animation, getting right next to Taison. Roi immediately followed up with Fearless Charge, ramming into Taison and pushing him deeper into the lane, preventing any chance of escape.


    "Damn! You think you got me!? I''mma kick yo ass!" (Taison)


    "Lol, think you can still have a chance?" (Roi)


    Taison relentlessly fired arrows, but it was futile. Roi maneuvered around Taison, dodging arrows while slashing Taison with his blade.


    In short range fights, long ranged weapons had the disadvantage of being fired in a thin straight line, They were easy to dodge from up close, even a tiny sidestep would suffice. The same didn''t apply against the Warrior''s wide blade, whose swings covered a lot of horizontal and vertical space.


    The battle was settled, with Roi coming on top. It was a splendid display of how to fight melee vs. ranged, showcasing a level of mechanical skill Yuel could only dream of achieving. Still, there''s one niche technique Roi used which piqued Yuel''s interest: parrying enemy shots.


    Parrying was a relatively less known mechanic, which allowed some melee classes deflect ranged attacks on the go. While the Warrior was in the middle of his basic attack animation, his sword could deflect an incoming arrow by connecting with it at the right time. On top of that, a successful parry "cancelled" the Warrior''s attack and allowed him to attack again right away. This way, Warrior''s basic attacks had a chance to keep up with the fast basic attacks of Carry classes. In theory, it''s possible to parry all incoming shots and approach the Carry unscratched.


    Even among pros, this technique wasn''t seen much due to the acute timing it demanded. The Warrior''s sword had to slice the thin and fast arrow just right during the swing animation. On high levels of play, where all opponents were mechanically skilled, pulling off such a stunt was nigh impossible.


    Against a mechanical flop like Yuel, Roi could parry most shots without trouble. However, against Taison, his success rate went down to 70%, and that''s after getting used to Taison''s shooting patterns. Furthermore, against a beast like Lars, Roi outright prioritized dodging, since parrying was almost impossible.


    If all that wasn''t harsh enough, the ability to parry was very matchup dependent. Not all melee classes could parry well and not all long ranged shots could be effectively parried. For example, Warrior wielded a big sword and swung it wide, so parrying was very much possible. On the other hand, Monk attacked with his bare fists, so his basic attacks had a short and narrow reach, making parrying impractical.


    There were also variations among the long ranged basic attacks. For example, Ranger''s arrows were relatively long, so there were more opportunities to hit them in the middle of their flight. On the other hand, Pirate''s bullets were tiny projectiles, requiring perfect timing to be parried. Roi showed off he could parry those as well, but his success rate was too low to be practical in real matches.


    All in all, parrying was an advanced and circumstantial technique, which a mechanical scrub like Yuel had no chance of mastering. He couldn''t even dream of parrying multiple shots in a row to aggressively approach the enemy like Roi did. Nevertheless, if he were to surprise his opponent with just one or two successful parries in a match, that could make the whole difference between winning or losing a team fight.


    Parrying was most common in the Top role, since it had classes with big or nimble swords, like Warrior, Knight and and Dark Knight. However, the technique itself wasn''t restricted by lane. Paladin was another sword-wielding class with the ability to parry, albeit his one-handed sword was smaller than Warrior''s and his swings were stiffer than Knight''s. Yuel was fine with starting from Top classes, but his ultimate wish was to incorporate parrying into his Support plays.


    "You''re really good at parrying." Yuel struck a conversation.


    "Lol, you just noticed?" Roi laughed.


    "Could you please tell me how you practiced it?"


    "Hmm, I dunno." Roi crossed his arms. "I already knew about parrying when I started playing, so I''ve been using it from day 1."


    "What, just like that?"


    "Yeah, lol. Well, I played baseball before and was the fourth batter and everything, so maybe that''s why."


    "Fourth batter?"


    "Lol, do you even know baseball, bro?" Roi shook his head. "The fourth batter is the cleanup hitter, the best batter on the team!"


    "Is that so." Yuel tilted his head. So, Roi could parry shots in Classmancers thanks to his batting skills in baseball? It sounded bogus, but there''s no denying there was some similarity between the two. Yuel never played baseball so he didn''t know the specifics, but the idea of swinging at an "incoming shot" was indeed similar.


    "Could you give me a few tips about parrying?" Yuel asked. "I''m not expecting to parry as beautifully as you, but I want to be able to parry as well."


    "Beautifully? You sure know how to suck up to your seniors, lol." Roi grinned. "Okay, I can give you a few tips. Though, I guess they''ll be more like batting tips than parrying tips, lol. Just some general stuff to keep in mind."


    "Thank you very much."


    "No need to be so formal, lol." Roi entered Practice mode. "I''mma play Elf. He has the longest arrows in the game, so should be easy to hit. I recommend starting with Warrior for the batting, he has a pretty big fucking sword."


    "Will do." Yuel nodded and logged into the practice match.


    "Okay, first let''s see what you got. I''mma fire a few shots and you try parrying. I haven''t bought any attack speed yet, so this should be ezpz."


    "Alright, I''m ready." Yuel positioned his Warrior in front of Roi''s Elf.


    "Okay, here he comes." Roi grinned. "Bases loaded, no outs!"


    "What?"


    "Lol, don''t mind me."


    "Sure..." Yuel shook his head and focused all his attention on the Elf.


    "And he throws!" Roi fired an arrow.


    "Ugh!" Yuel swung his sword... and completely missed. The arrow dug straight into his chest.


    "Lol, why did you swing at that?"


    "Eh? Didn''t you want to test how well I can parry?"


    "Yeah, but did ya ever try parrying Elf before? Do you even know the timing?"


    "No, I don''t..."


    "Lol, so how did you expect to make contact? Think you''re a prophet or something?"


    "Well, I thought I''ll just do what I can..." Yuel''s cheeks burned. Ugh, so embarrassing! Seriously, why did he just swing at that without thinking? That was so dumb.


    "Okay, so lesson number one: figure out the timing." Roi said. "If you''re playing against an unknown pitcher, let him throw a few times and watch closely. You know how in baseball the pitcher gotta throw three strikes to beat the batter? It''s to give the batter a chance to nail the timing."


    "So, I should just stand and watch first?"


    "Sure, if ya wanna be a punching bag, lol. Don''t just stand there, dodge the first few shots without trying to parry."


    "I understand." Yuel nodded. Against the next couple of arrows, Yuel sidestepped instead of parrying. Honestly, he wasn''t exactly a master of dodging, so many of the arrows hit him anyway, drawing a few lols from Roi.


    But, that wasn''t important right now. He had to focus his everything on watching the arrow and figuring out the timing.


    "Think that''s enough?" Roi asked. "You should''ve figured it by now."


    "Yes, I think I more or less got it." Yuel nodded and readied himself for the next shot. He carefully watched, focusing his entire field of vision on the Elf''s body.


    It came! The arrow flew straight at him, with a speed he mostly got used to by now. He swung his blade, this time he''d hit for sure! ... or not.


    "Lol, it''s okay." Roi said. "Next, you gotta get used to your batting speed. Each class has its own swinging style, so you gotta get used to it. Also, consider buying items that increase or decrease attack speed, whatever suits your style the best. For now, just try swinging at my shots to get your timing right"


    "Understood." Yuel kept swinging and swinging and swinging, aiming at the incoming arrows. Getting the timing down was much harder than he expected. He lost count how many times he swung by now, but he could easily tell how many times his sword made contact: absolute zero.


    "Lol, you really suck at this." Roi laughed. "Are you watching how the Elf moves as I''m about to shoot?"


    "Yes, I''m focusing as hard as possible on the Elf." Yuel said.


    "Wait, waitwaitwait. You''re saying you''re super focused on the Elf from the get-go?"


    "Yes, of course."


    "That''s no good." Roi shook his head. "If you keep yourself alert about every little twitch the pitcher makes, no chance you gonna react in time to a sudden shot. It''s a mistake lots of new batters make at first, I was there too. You''re not supposed to focus on the pitcher''s whole body, only on the hand with which he throws."


    "Um, so..." Yuel used all his brain power to decode Roi''s baseball analogy. "You''re saying I should focus on something more specific? Say, the Elf''s bow?"


    "Yep, exactly. Try something like this: keep the Elf in your field of vision, but don''t focus on every little movement too much. Concentrate on the bow and try predicting the timing and direction of the shot."


    "Understood." Yuel nodded and cleared his mind. This approach was a bit unusual for him, as he was used to watching every little move his opponents made. However, that apparently made it harder for him to catch the specific motion he was looking for. Maybe if he were a mechanical god like Lars, he could parry while watching everything the Elf did. However, for a mechanical scrub like him, there''s apparently no hope of ever parrying anything unless he were to pour all his attention into that one specific task.


    He ignored everything else and concentrated on the Elf''s bow. The motion of nocking, the direction of the arrow and the speed of the release. He saw everything much more clearly now. Adjusting the timing and angle of his sword swing to that information wasn''t easy, but after about ten more attempts - he finally did it!


    "Yes!" Yuel exclaimed.


    "Oh finally. Only took you a year, lol." Roi chuckled. "Let''s see if it was just a fluke."


    Against the next arrow, Yuel... missed. He got the feel for the shots, but his coordination wasn''t perfect, he couldn''t consistently parry the same shot right away. However, he now successfully parried once in every three shots. It was progress!


    "Seems like you more or less get it." Roi said. "Then, let''s see if you can hit the next one!"


    "No problem." Yuel cleared his mind of unnecessary thoughts and concentrated on the bow like before. He already got a good feel for the arrow''s speed and the Warrior''s swing. All that''s left was to nail down the arrow''s release angle and adjust the swing to it.


    [Alright, it''s going to my right. ]Yuel nodded to himself as the Elf nocked the arrow. The Warrior''s swing was from right to left on the first attack, so he had to delay the attack a little. Swinging too early would only make him miss the arrow. With that in mind, he waited a little more than usual-


    "Wha?!" Yuel jumped. The arrow came flying to his left side!? Just as the arrow was about to be fired, the Elf turned his bow to the other side! What was going on? Yuel didn''t even... The arrow hit his left shoulder, but he just stood there, confused. He didn''t even get a chance to swing the sword.


    "Lol, at least try swinging." Roi chuckled. "Well, now you see why parrying is so damn hard? Any little movement can throw off your timing. In a real match, your enemies not gonna stand there like a scarecrows, they gonna move around while shooting. Each shot gonna come at ya from a different distance and angle, and you gotta be able to deal with all that shit. Gotta watch them until the very end."


    "I-I understand..." Yuel was still fazed. He thought he finally started getting the hang of it, but that couldn''t be farther from the truth. All he achieved was a 40% success rate against a standing opponent, with whom he had been practicing for half an hour now. That''s a far cry from the results he had to produce for his parrying to become practical. In real matches: enemies constantly moved around, a single mistake could cost the game and there was usually less than 20 minutes to adapt.


    Did he even have a chance of making his parry useful for the competitive scene? There''s no telling until he practiced much more. At one point in time, he thought it was impossible for somebody like him to jog a whole kilometer. However, after exercising on a daily basis, he could now run even two kilometers with relative ease. When it came to mechanical techniques, there''s no telling what was or wasn''t possible right away, so he had to train harder and-


    "Well, that''s all for me." Roi stood up.


    "Eh? But we just started." Yuel blinked. "I''m still terrible at this, so I need loads of practice."


    "Yeah, ''terrible'' doesn''t even begin to describe you, lol." Roi laughed. "Well, I taught ya the basics like you wanted, that''s about all the tips I can give ya. From here on you gotta work your ass off, but don''t expect me to stick around as your practice dummy. I wanna play and practice my own stuff."


    "I see." Yuel had no choice but give up. "Thank you very much for the help."


    "Yeah, yeah. Good luck out there." Roi waved and left.


    And so, Yuel had to find somebody else to practice parrying with. One thing for sure: he wasn''t going to give up just yet. It was an advanced and difficult technique, but at its core - it relied on figuring out the enemy''s patterns and reacting to them in a timely fashion. That''s something Yuel excelled at.


    Even though he was still far from getting into the competitive team, he intended to use every moment in the club for bettering himself. He believed that, with time, his efforts would pay off.

 29 Scrimmages

    Since Roi refused to stick around and help Yuel practice parrying, there was no choice but to find somebody else.


    "Why me?" Julia grumped.


    "You''re not busy right now, so why not?" Yuel asked. "You can think of it as target practice."


    "Well, whatever." Julia shrugged and sat down. "May as well practice my aim."


    "Thanks."


    "Hmph, I''mma shoot you so hard you gonna regret wasting my time."


    [Why does she always seem eager to practice when it involves shooting me? ]Yuel smiled wryly and logged into the practice match. "Can you pick Elf? It shoots long arrows, so they''re easier to parry."


    "Huh? But I don''t play Carry. You said it''s like target practice for me, right? So, I''mma go with Pyro."


    "Eh? But-"


    "Deal with it. Rather, you should be thankful I''m wasting my time on you at all, hmph."


    "Alright, got it..." Yuel sighed. Pyromancer''s fireballs were also susceptible to parries, so it wasn''t the worst pick in the world. However, the fireballs were nowhere as long as the Elf''s arrows, so hitting them was going to be even more difficult. As if Yuel didn''t already have enough trouble parrying the "easy" arrows. Sigh.


    In this fashion, whenever he had some free time in the club, he practiced parrying with another club member. He tried recruiting Lars as his permanent practice partner, but that goof got bored after just 2 minutes and started shooting wildly. Even Roi was reluctant to parry against Lars''s swift shots, so Yuel had no chance. Getting beaten to a plump wasn''t much of a practice.


    Thus, most of the time, he ended up practicing with Julia. She usually had some free time on her hands, because she didn''t have any particular training regime to follow. Similarly to Yuel, she absorbed knowledge from seniors and polished on her basics.


    "Stop dodging already, idiot!" Julia barked. "Weren''t you gonna parry my shots? Stand still so I can shoot you!"


    "Sometimes it''s better to dodge." Yuel rolled aside, dodging another fireball.


    "Gah! Die already!"


    [You''re aware this isn''t an actual match, right? ]Yuel sighed. Julia was a bit heated up for the practice, so he was forced to parry against an opponent who genuinely sought his death. Perhaps it was good practical experience, but it was harsh on somebody with poor mechanical skill. Learning anything from this practice was rough while being constantly shot in the face. Somewhere along the way he was forced to improve his dodge rolls to cope with her, which wasn''t all bad.


    But really, Julia took this too seriously. As the practice progressed and Yuel got more used to parrying and dodging her shots, she grew increasingly irritated. At some point, that unleashed her aggressive side, which Yuel only ever witnessed when they practiced alone.


    It also happened back during the summer vacation. Whenever he taught her new offensive techniques and made her try them out on him, she went full gas and bombarded him as hard as she could. She definitely had the makings of a strong aggressive player, but she never used that style in real matches, or even in practice matches.


    Apparently, Ellen worked on drawing out that part of Julia. They did special training to get Julia more comfortable with playing aggressively, in hope to incorporate that aggressiveness into her otherwise passive playstyle. They couldn''t practice it too often though, since Julia was reluctant to show that side of herself when Lars was nearby.


    So, how did Yuel know all that? Well, he was forced to help with Julia''s special training. According to Ellen, the easiest way to draw out Julia''s flame was to make her compete against Yuel. In fact, at some point, it felt like Yuel''s parrying practice transformed into Julia''s aggression training. It''s Ellen who repeatedly pushed Julia to help Yuel with the parrying practice, so there''s no doubt that fox planned this transformation from the get-go. It wasn''t bad though, since it meant they both gained something from these sessions.


    Before long, the pre-tournament season began for junior high school teams. The club''s main team, referred to as the "first string", had scrimmages with other schools every other week. The schools competed for points which determined their seeding in the regionals later this year. Schools with the highest scores would have to play less matches to reach the finals, a major advantage.


    The same way players picked their competitive nicknames, each school''s team had its own competitive name. Inside the game, that doubled as the name of the guild to which all club members belonged. For Yuel''s club, the guild name was StormBlitz.


    Unfortunately, he didn''t get to debut as part of StormBlitz in any of the scrimmages. In fact, none of the freshmen were picked for the first string. The seniors said it''s only natural for rookies to not be picked during their first year, but it was still frustrating. The competitive scene was right there, right in front of him! Yet, he wasn''t allowed to touch it.


    Even so, Yuel kept practicing hard every day. Aside from parrying, he also got many jungling tips, mainly from Dan. Along with Support and Top, the third role Yuel could play well was Jungler.


    Dan prided himself in being able to play any Jungler, even unconventional ones like Cryomancer Jungler and Druid Jungler, which utilized the CC of Support classes to function as Junglers. Contrary to Yuel''s theoretical knowledge, many of these weird ideas were surprisingly viable as long as the player knew what he was doing.


    Aside from that, he also researched and analyzed many pro games with Aron, who was arguably the most similar player to him in the club. Just like Yuel, Aron closely analyzed the patterns of his opponents and formulated how to efficiently take them down. The main difference between their playstyles was the point in the game at which they put their research to use.


    Yuel preferred exploiting enemy weaknesses as early as possible, whereas Aron waited until late game to finish processing the data. Therefore, while Yuel''s tactics were put to use throughout the whole match, Aron''s tactics only came online during late game. On the other hand, said tactics were more bulletproof than Yuel''s, because Aron collected more data before drawing any conclusions.


    For example, Aron usually saw through Ellen''s tricky plays and wasn''t fooled by them. The more Yuel got outplayed by Ellen, the more he realized the value of waiting longer before forming his offensive tactics.


    "Taking your time to analyze the enemy more can be a good thing." Aron explained. "But, the way I see it, one of your strong points is your ability to make fast and accurate deductions. I don''t know how well it''s going to work in the pro scene, but at least against opponents your age it''s plenty enough."


    "Unless said opponent is Ellen." Yuel grumped, coming out from another match where she played him for a fool.


    "Yeah, Ellen is a tough customer." Aron nodded. "But, opponents like her are rare in my experience. Also, I hope you don''t think she''s outplaying you without putting any effort. Your presence forces her to play her hand earlier into the match, which leaves her fewer tricks for late game. That really helps me figure her plans."


    "I see." Yuel never considered this interaction before. From his point of view, he simply got outsmarted by Ellen. Therefore, he never thought about the lengths she went to to achieve that result. It felt good knowing he also indirectly pressured her, that it wasn''t a one-sided bullying from her side.


    Nonetheless, he didn''t like this reality. Howard had the ability to shut down his tactics and Ellen had the craftiness to outsmart them. They were only middle schoolers, so Yuel''s opponents were bound to become stronger and stronger as he grew up. There''s no telling for how long his quick deductions would stay effective against competitive players.


    Therefore, he took some time to practice late game deduction, similar to how Aron did it. He and Aron watched and analyzed some pro games, sharing their deductions and how they reached them.


    They also analyzed recordings of enemy players for upcoming scrimmages. Even though Yuel never got to play in any of StormBlitz''s scrimmages, he studied their opponents just as thoroughly as the first string and offered some insights during strategy meetings. He ensured he''s ready to play whenever the team needed him, doing everything he could to better prepare himself for his eventual competitive debut.


    Half of the school year gone by. Yuel, and all other freshmen, only worked on honing their skills and gaining experience. In Ranked, Yuel, Lars and Taison reached the Diamond division by playing premades with other club members. Julia and Gregory weren''t too far behind, sitting at Platinum I and Platinum II respectively.


    Despite these achievements, none of them got to play in a scrimmages even once. They apparently didn''t even climb high enough to become reserves for the first string. One time, Ellen got sick before a scrimmage and had to be replaced. Lars was excited about the possibility of replacing her as the Carry, but Trever was picked instead.


    This reality was frustrating but not too surprising, considering the first string was composed mostly of third year students, save for Howard and Ellen. The next players in line were juniors and seniors who didn''t make the cut, so freshmen had no business playing in official matches yet, not even as reserves.


    Taison and Gregory voiced their frustration with this reality every other day, believing themselves worthy of debuting right away. Lars was also quite restless about it, spouting something like "I wanna play an official match! Let them at me, yo!" at least once a week. Yuel shared their sentiments, but simply continued practicing, believing his efforts would eventually pay off.


    As if answering the rookies'' prayers, Howard made a special announcement regarding the upcoming scrimmage against the Leopards team.


    "They got a first string and a second string over there." Howard explained. "According to scrimmage rules, both teams can pit their second strings against each other to earn extra points. None of the other teams we faced so far were confident about their second string, so they never brought up the idea. But, the Leopards are different. They requested to challenge our second string as well."


    "Wait, we have a second string?" Lars exclaimed.


    "Not an official one, but we can form a temporary second string for this scrimmage. From those who aren''t in the first string, we''ll pick the best player in each role and form a team out of them."


    "Oh! Oooh!" Lars''s eyes sparkled. "Did my time finally come!? I''mma do this, yo!"


    "Khaha, no way it''s you, dumbass." Taison sneered. "They gonna pick da best Carry! You all know that''s me, right?"


    "You think you''re better? Fight me, dude!"


    "I''mma 1v1 yo ass!"


    "Alright, that''s enough." Howard clapped loudly, returning order to the club room. "Sorry to inform you, but none of you made the cut. You didn''t forget we have Trever, right? So, guess who is getting the Carry role."


    "Geh! That dude! Every. Single. Time!"


    "Damn, just graduate already, you scrub!"


    "Haha, too bad for ya." Trever grinned and rubbed their hairs. "Try again next year, kids!"


    "Alright," Howard continued. "Here are the players me and Aron picked for the second string: Trever as Carry, Gilbert as Mid, Roi as Solo, Dan as Jungler and Yuel as Support."


    "Eh?" Yuel was dumbfounded. What did Howard just say? Who was playing Support? In an official scrimmage? In an actual competitive match!?


    "Ah..." Yuel''s lips trembled as he faced the other freshmen. Everybody had been working hard these past six months, they all thirsted for comeltive scene. Yet, in the end, only Yuel made it. He overflowed with a mixture of joy and guilt.


    "Great job, dude!" Lars gave a thumb up. "Go show them what you got!"


    "Eh?" Yuel blinked. Lars wasn''t frustrated? Even though he didn''t make it? Even though Yuel''s first debut was going to be with Trever as his lane partner?


    "Don''t worry, I''mma follow ya real soon!" Lars clenched a fist and bumped it into Yuel''s chest.


    "Heh, you better do." Yuel smiled softly. They both pursued the same stage, so they were going to meet there eventually. It just so happened Yuel got there a little earlier, that''s all.


    "Good job." Gregory smirked and pretended to clap. "Now, go out there and mess up real hard, so next time they pick da best Support, kek."


    "Keep dreaming." Yuel retorted.


    "Officially," Howard continued. "The captain of the second string team gonna be Trever. But, you all know he''s not exactly the sharpest tool in the shed, right?"


    "You mean he''s an idiot, right?" Taison laughed.


    "What was that?" (Trever)


    "Gah!?"


    "Anyway," Howard turned to Yuel. "I trust you all to support him when it comes to shot-calling and team strategy. Especially you two, Gil and Yuel. Consider yourselves ''very influential vice-captains'' in this second string."


    "Got it." (Yuel)


    "Fine by me." (Gilbert)


    "We don''t have any data on their second string." Howard explained. "We can only assume they''re good, considering their coach thinks they''re ready to play in a scrimmage. Work on polishing your teamwork as much as possible until the match, you have a week. That''s all for this meeting."


    And so, an unofficial "second string" was formed, with the intention of beating a second string of unknown potential. This was going to be Yuel''s first debut in the competitive scene, he couldn''t help but feel giddy! It wasn''t as impressive as playing on the first string, but it was going to be his first taste of the competitive scene all the same!


    First, he''d exhibit his skill in the second string. Then, he''d overtake Howard''s spot and debut in the first string. Finally, he''d get to the nationals and make a name for himself as Chessmaster. The path ahead never looked clearer!

 30 The Stage of Those Who Didnst Make I

    The StormBlitz vs. Leopards scrimmage was a week away. As the second string, Yuel, Trever, Gilbert, Roi and Dan spent that time practicing together as much as possible. They played Ranked as a team, practiced against the first string and strategized team compositions.


    By Howard''s order, Lars was also mixed into the second string''s core training. This allowed the second string to hold intense 3v3 matches, helping them polish their teamwork in team fights. Even though Lars didn''t get to participate in the scrimmage, he had no problem sacrificing his free time even after school, all for the sake of the second string.


    "I gotta make sure you win your debut match, dude." Lars proclaimed to Yuel. "If you dudes can improve by playing against me, then I''m available anytime."


    "Thanks." Yuel smiled wryly. How did Lars feel as he played with the second string? Yuel couldn''t even imagine.


    Lars thristed to play competitively as strongly as Yuel, maybe even more. Yet, he didn''t make the cut this time. It took real strength to be able to help the second string around the clock despite that. Yuel wasn''t sure he could had done the same in Lars''s shoes. Lars was truly amazing.


    As the second string practiced together, it became apparent that Trever, despite being nominated as the captain, couldn''t lead the team at all in the strategic department. "Just pick your best classes and we''ll stomp these guys." That was Trever''s typical response whenever team strategy was brought up. Thus, Yuel and Gilbert handled most of these matters, Trever was just there to provide moral support or whatever.


    Before long, the important day was here. The scrimmage took place in ProCenter, a game center which also hosted various Esport tournaments. Some came here to play casually with friends, whereas others came to fight to the death in serious tournaments. Since Yuel barely played video games with others before Classmancers, he had no idea such places even existed until this year.


    ProCenter hosted tournaments for a myriad of game genres, such fighting, racing, battle royale and, of course, MOBA. Since Classmancers was an Esport recognized in schools, it received extra attention. Huge halls and well-kept rooms were reserved for both teams today, even though the upcoming matches weren''t even part of a tournament.


    The halls were designed to satisfy any competitive needs, coming with cutting edge computers, a large stage, huge monitors, tons of crowd seats and literally everything. There were even larger and flashier stadiums deeper into the center. These were reserved for the regional tournament and pro matches. Yes, even some pro matches were hosted here.


    This wasn''t the first time Yuel came to ProCenter in the past year. Most of the first string scrimmages were hosted here and the whole club accompanied the team for these matches. However, this was the first time he came here as a fellow participant, not just as part of the crowd.


    Shivers danced across his skin. For the first time, he felt pressure as he stepped inside. This was the competitive stage he was yearning for, the one he trained so hard for. Even though it was only going to be a scrimmage and he was merely on the second string, he was definitely here - on the same stage pros played on.


    "Hey, what''s up, kid?" Trever asked. "You look like a zombie."


    "Nothing, just a little tired." Yuel wobbled, barely keeping himself on his feet. His brain ran game simulations the whole night, so he barely got any sleep. He somehow managed to pull himself together until now, but the fatigue started getting to him.


    "Haha, so nervous you couldn''t sleep?"


    "Something like that."


    "There are some nice sofas in the back, you should lay down a little. We still got like an hour until the match anyway."


    "That sounds greaaaaaaa- ah." Yuel almost collapsed as he imagined himself relaxing on comfy sofa. With Trever leading the way, they went to the private room arranged for the second string team.


    It was a mere scrimmage, yet each team got a personal room. At the back of his head, Yuel understood the rooms were just built side-by-side with the stage, so it was a no-brainer to let teams borrow these rooms. Nevertheless, he couldn''t help but feel like a VIP. He was almost like a pro! A pro who was about to pass out... ugh.


    "You look like shit." Howard appeared beside them, coming from the first string''s room. "Sure you''re good to go today? I can switch you out, there are plenty players here raring to go.."


    "I''m perfectly fine." Yuel mustered a serious expression.


    "Pft, you look like some zombie lord." Howard chuckled. "But, these are good eyes. From the moment you accepted your spot on the team, you''re no longer playing just for yourself. You''re obligated to put on your best performance for those who didn''t make the cut. So, I don''t wanna hear excuses like ''I was tired''."


    "I understand. I''m here to win, nothing less."


    "Good, because their first string is pretty strong. It probably gonna be a close one for us, so the second string better do its job." Howard wrapped his arm around Yuel''s shoulder and lowered his voice. "If you mess this up, everybody gonna be on your ass later."


    "I-I got it." Yuel gulped, a shiver jolted through his spine.


    "Good, I trust you." Howard smacked Yuel on the back, then left. His words put quite the pressure on Yuel, but it was understandable. Even though the second string match wasn''t the main event, it also played a role in determining today''s overall winner.


    Each string was scheduled to play five matches and the team with the most points by the end of the day was going to be declared victor. Each won game in the first string granted the team 2 points, whereas a win in the second string granted 1 point. In case the first strings were going to have a close match like Howard anticipated, the performance of the second string could determine today''s winner.


    For example, if StormBlitz''s first string were to go 3-2, the points were going to stand at 6-4. In case the second string were to be crushed with an embarrassing 1-4, the final score would be 7-8, resulting in StormBlitz''s loss. In other words, StormBlitz would lose the scrummage despite the first string winning more games, just because the second string sucked hard. No wonder Howard was so serious about this.


    At the minimum, the second string had to win two out of five matches. As long as they went 3-2 or 2-3, the result of the second string matches would be rendered irrelevant for the total score. In this case, everything would be riding on the first string''s achievements and the second string wouldn''t be a liability anymore.


    At first glance, the requirement to go at least 2-3 didn''t sound that scary. However, 2-3 was just one loss away from 1-4, which could spell a disaster. They couldn''t relax until they scored the two wins they needed.


    But, that''s just the bare minimum. Yuel wanted to put on a strong performance during his debut, so he needed to win at least four matches today. Not only would that showcase his skill and bring him a step closer to the first string, but it''d also provide backup for the first string. In case the first string were to stumble and go 2-3, the second string''s 4-1 would transform that into a win for StormBlitz.


    Not good, I''m getting lost in numbers again. Yuel shook his head. It''s small thoughts like that which robbed him of his sleep last night, he always turned them into a full session. Right now, he had to use what little time he had to rest before the scrimmage, so he tried emptying his mind.


    There''s no need to worry so much about whether the team could win two or four matches today. Of course, if they could win 4 out of 5 and that''d be the reason StormBlitz won today, that''d put him in a great spot and- Ugh! Enough already!


    He set up an alarm for 45 minutes from now and laid down on the sofa. After he finally defeated the nagging thoughts, he shut down his eyes and succumbed to slumber.


    When he woke up, it was already time to head to the stage. As a custom, the two teams were to greet each other on stage before the match started. Trever was technically the "captain" of the second string, so he went ahead, dragging Yuel with him. Gilbert was more of a vice-captain than Yuel, but he shoved the job on the freshmen after calling it "a pain".


    The representatives from the Leopards were a tall girl, most likely a senior, and an even taller guy, who looked like he didn''t even want to be here.


    "ComboBreaker, captain of the second string." The girl introduced herself and stretched her hand.


    "Heh, a chick for captain? Pretty hot." Trever grinned and shook her hand. "WildDragon, nice to meetcha, sweetie. I don''t have a girlfriend, in case you''re wondering."


    "I don''t remember asking." Breaker made a face and pulled her hand. "And you?" She turned to Yuel.


    "Um..." Yuel flinched. Apparently, the tradition was to introduce themselves using their nicknames. Ugh, how embarrassing. "It''s Chessmaster..."


    "Chessmaster? Pft, you''re sure modest. Then again, WildDragon isn''t exactly tame either. Might as well call yourself TheBestPlayer."


    "Believe it or not, we actually got somebody in the club with a nick like that"


    "Say what?"


    "You don''t want to know." Yuel sighed with a wry smile. It was a weird interaction. The girl standing in front of him was the captain of the enemy team, the one Yuel was about to fight against. Yet there they were,casually chit-chatting like it was the most natural thing in the world.


    Were competitive matches normally like this? The image of cold and ruthless battles began crumbling in his mind. He was stiff like a statue at first, but the conversation helped him relax.


    "Don''t just stand there." Breaker turned to the guy accompanying her.


    "Ah, what a drag..." The guy sighed and stepped forward. "The name''s Freezer, let''s have a good game and all that crap."


    "Haha, someone sure looks hyped up." Trever laughed.


    "I know, right?" Breaker shook her head. "Guess he doesn''t expect much from you. Honestly, neither do I."


    "Hoho, confident, aren''t we?" Trever grinned. " Then, how about we make a bet? If we win more matches, you''ll give me your phone number."


    "Is this clown really your captain?" Breaker raised an eyebrow.


    "Yes, at least on paper." Yuel shrugged. "He''s the senior, so we make him feel good by calling him ''captain''."


    "Haha, you little...!" Trever smacked Yuel on the back.


    "So, you also got seniors in second string." Breaker nodded to herself. "I see why you agreed to this match. Maybe you won''t be a total bore after all."


    "What do you mean?" Yuel asked.


    "Our club is pretty big compared to others in the region." Breaker explained. "We got 28 members, so the second string is filled with seniors who didn''t make the first string. We''re all aching for some action, you know?"


    "I-I see." Yuel flinched. Even though they were still chatting casually, he could sense burning determination behind Breaker''s words. More specifically, the determination to mop the floor with StormBlitz''s makeshift second string.


    "That''s why I''m glad you also got seniors on your team." Breaker said. "Otherwise, this rare opportunity to play an official match would be a total waste. This is our last year and probably the last chance we get to play in ProCenter, so we wanna make it count. Just imagine if you came at us with a bunch of freshmen, haha!"


    "Yes, that''d be hilarious..." Yuel forced a smile.


    "Speaking of which, which year are you, midget? You look pretty fresh."


    "Err, that''s..." Yuel averted his eyes.


    "A freshman, of course!" Trever smacked Yuel''s back. Gah! That goof had to come and say it! "He''s a total rookie, so please go easy on him. Haha."


    "You seriously put a freshman against us?" Breaker''s smile vanished"And he''s your vice-captain? Are you for real?".


    "Let''s just get this boring stuff over with." Freezer sighed. "I heard they don''t even have an official second string, they literally put that team together for today''s match."


    "Are you serious? You guys didn''t even practice as a team?"


    "Hey, hey!" Trever exclaimed. "We did a bunch of training over the week, we''re good to go!"


    "A week..." Breaker mumbled. "Tch, I got up my hopes for nothing. You''re right, let''s just get this farce over with. Get ready to be styled on, scrubs." Breaker and Freezer turned around and strutted away.


    "Heh, we''ll see who gonna cry by the end of it!" Trever shouted their way, but they ignored him. They were confident they had this match in the bag, so they didn''t feel like chatting anymore. Before the match even started, Yule''s team disappeared from the enemy''s radar. Ugh, such humiliation!


    But, it was understandable. Even though he was just a freshman, he related Breaker''s frustration as a senior. She and her teammates had been training for the past two years with the goal of making it into the first string, same as Yuel right now. Alas, even though this was now their last year of middle school, they were left to rot in the second string.


    Not only that, but most teams in the region didn''t even have a second string, so Breaker probably didn''t get to play many official matches, if any. And now, when a rare opportunity to play in ProCenter finally presented itself, turned out Breaker was playing against a makeshift team that was a formed a week ago. It''s only natural to be upset.


    Right now, on this stage, gathered everybody who didn''t make it. His opponents were the spitting image of his greatest fear: What if he also wasn''t going to make it into first string during middle school? The mere thought of it depressed him to the core.


    Fortunately, today was his first chance to destroy this grim future. Even though he was just a freshman, he already set foot on this stage. If he were to surpass the second string seniors today, it''d prove he was at least as good as them in his first year. From there, it''d take just one more step to get into the first string.


    "Hey kid, what''s wrong?" Trever called from the other side of the stage. "We gonna start warming up. Come on!"


    "Coming." Yuel returned to earth and shook off the stressing thoughts. To achieve his grand ambitions, he first had to focus on the match at hand. He was going to conquer the stage of second strings, no matter what!

 31 Combo Player

    "Hey! Break a leg, dude!"


    "Huh?" Yuel examined the audience, spotting Lars and Julia. Everybody else went to watch the first string match, but Lars said he''d be here to root on Yuel. Julia probably just tagged along.


    ["From the moment you accepted your spot on the team, you''re no longer playing just for yourself. You''re obligated to put on your best performance for those who didn''t make the cut."] Yuel recalled Howard''s words.


    Even though he and Lars both wanted to play in the competitive scene, right now Yuel was on the stage while Lars was in the audience. Only Yuel made it this time. It was merely the fault of circumstances, it just so happened the Carry role was occupied by a talented senior and the Support role happened to be available. Nevertheless, as the one standing on the stage right here and now, Yuel had the responsibility to put on his best performance, to make it up for those who couldn''t play here today.


    Ironically, even though Lars came here to support Yuel, he only made Yuel more nervous. And, it didn''t help there were some other unfamiliar faces in the audience. What were these people doing here? The scrimmage matches were open to the public, so anybody had the right to come and watch. Still, even if they were interested in watching a scrimmage between middle schoolers, why didn''t they head to the first string''s stadium? Did they come here to laugh at the second string or something?


    All these random thoughts occupied his mind, refusing to give him rest. His body felt like lead as he wobbled across the stage. He finally got to relax a little when he dropped on his chair and focused on the monitor in front of him.


    Following Trever''s instructions, he scanned the QR code on the monitor. After confirming the login, all his account data was carried over to the PC in front of him. This included key bindings, skins and, of course, his IGN: Chessmaster. Ugh, he still couldn''t believe Howard roped him into picking that nick. Sigh.


    "Enter the practice room." Trever said. "You gotta warm up before we begin. Get used to the controls and everything."


    "Got it." Yuel nodded and did as he was told. Even though his key bindings were carried over via the login, he still was going to operate unfamiliar mouse and keyboard. From his experience in the club at the beginning of the year, he already learned the importance of getting used to the equipment.


    Fortunately, the equipment here was top notch, unlike the relics in their club. The keys struck perfect balance between being hard enough to feel every press, yet responsive enough to make pressing effortless. The mouse was comfortable to grip and the mousepad was smooth. Truly, this was equipment suitable for gaming, unlike the poor excuse in their club.


    After a few minutes of warming up, the "referee" announced the beginning of the match. Like, that young man announced himself the "referee" and everything, but he looked like a regular staff member in the center. He didn''t look like some qualified expert or anything of the sort. A bit disappointing, but not surprising. Unlike real life sports, Classmancers was a video game, so all the rules were already enforced by the game itself. There wasn''t much for a "referee" to do here.


    The drafting phase proceed smoothly, with Yuel and Gilbert handling it from start to end. Trever was the captain on paper, but his response to everything was "Just pick your best classes and we gonna win!". A very Lars-esque attitude, sigh.


    "Wait, they have no Carry?" Trever cocked his head, as if only now realizing he should [maybe ]pay some attention to the drafting.


    "It''s most likely going to be Carry Pyromancer." Yuel explained. The enemy team didn''t pick any marksmen, the long-ranged DPS classes meant to be played as Carry. Instead, they had two damage dealing mages: Pyromancer and Warlock. Out of the two, only Pyromancer had the aptitude to be played as a Carry. In fact, upon release, Pyromancer was a broken tier S Carry who dominated the meta, Yuel watched some older videos covering that.


    Fortunately, Pyromancer was hammered by nerfs multiple times since then. It retained the qualities which allowed it to be played as a Carry, most notably its high attack speed, but that build fell out of favor in the meta. While Mid Pyromancer was considered tier B, sometimes even tier A, Carry Pyromancer was put around tier C on most tier lists. Based on Yuel''s brief experimentation and theorycrafting, these tiers seemed fairly reasonable. Carry Pyromancer had its niches, but it was a rather risky pick. Their Carry must had been very confident in their skill to make this pick.


    Then again, Yuel''s team didn''t exactly have a standard Carry either. Trever picked his favorite Ranger, a Jungler who only passed as a Carry thanks to his long-ranged basic attacks. Carry Ranger was also along tier C, but at least it was much more common in the meta than Carry Pyromancer.


    To cover up for the Ranger''s early weaknesses as a Carry, Yuel picked Druid. It was the same duo composition they played during Yuel''s entry exam. For the second time now, he was heading into an important match with Trever as his lane partner.


    On one hand, he was disappointed it wasn''t Lars by his side. But, on the other hand, he was glad he didn''t have a partner who required high maintenance. Both Lars and Trever were goofs, but Trever was the more knowledgeable and experienced one, Yuel didn''t need to hold Trever''s hand much during practice matches, so he could focus on doing his job as a Support. This was very reassuring when playing on such a grand stage.


    As arranged: Gilbert played Mid, Dan played Jungle and Roi played Top. Once the drafting phase ended, the real battle began. They started off by clearing the Ogre Camp and Wolf Camp together with Dan, then Yuel and Trever headed to Bot Lane.


    As expected, their lane opponents were Pyromancer and Cryomancer. Pyromancer was played by ComboBreaker, the female captain they met during the team greeting. Her demotivated companion from that time, Freezer, played Warlock in Mid.


    [Since their team is full of seniors, I better take my time studying them. ]Yuel was wary of rushing things. He thirsted for gaining an advantage as early as possible, but such desires could lead to disaster, he learned that on his flesh in practice matches. If the enemy team had at least one fox like Ellen, Yuel''s tactics could easily backfire.


    Therefore, he laid low for the first minutes of the match and quietly observed his foes. He provided by-the-book support, without making any risky shot-calls. By the end of the first five minutes, he got a rough idea of how the enemies carried themselves.


    The Pyromancer, ComboBreaker, was an all-around strong player, as expected of a captain. She showcased decent mechanical skill by landing most last hits on minions and elegantly blocking most of Trever''s attempts at aggression. Also, she maintained great positioning through the laning phase, standing far enough to avoid being punished too easily, yet close enough to punish her enemies if the opportunity presented itself. This attesting to her solid decision-making and experience. On top of that, she seemed to have acceptable game knowledge, based on her Carry Pyromancer build, which properly combined power and attack speed.


    All in all, she was a tough cookie. Trever couldn''t get an edge on her, no matter how many time they exchanged blows. Her partner, the Cryomancer, was also contributed to that, showcasing impressive mechanical skill for a Support. In particular, the way he swiftly and accurately cast his Ice Coffin put a lot of pressure on Trever. Even while protected by the Druid''s shield, Trever didn''t have much leeway when going on the offensive. Getting too close to the Cryomancer would result in Trever being frozen in place, becoming a sitting duck for the Pyromancer.


    To make things worse, the Cryomancer bought Blink to expand his reach. He could now instantly teleport forward and freeze his target. It''s a popular Cryomancer trick, which Yuel had trouble executing in real matches.


    At one point, the Cryomancer caught Trever off guard by blinking through a wall and freezing him. This almost resulted in Trever''s death. Yuel barely saved the day with a timely Nature''s Grasp pull on Trever, getting the goof out of danger.


    "Man, I swear this Cryo is after my ass." Trever exclaimed. Ever since, even the battle-hungry beast became cautious of going aggressive. He was completely zoned by the Cryomancer''s mere presence, that''s how much pressure Blink + Ice Coffin could apply in capable hands. This Cryomancer definitely warranted a ban next game.


    The rest of the enemy team was composed of solid players as well, giving both Roi and Dan a ran for their money. Their Top Laner clashed face-to-face with Roi, refusing to give in. They were like two beasts fighting for territory. It was a brute and unsophisticated face-off to Yuel''s taste, but it''s undeniable both players exhibited impressive mechanical skill.


    As for jungling, the enemy Jungler farmed and ganked about as effectively as Dan. They were both textbook players and It didn''t feel like either team had a superior Jungler.


    All in all, the forces seemed quite evenly distributed across the board. The only one who had an easy time was Gilbert. His enemy was Freezer, the unmotivated fellow they met during the team greeting. It was difficult to properly discern Freezer''s playstyle while he was pushed back, but it seemed he was a very defensive player. He rarely ever advanced to the frontline, preferring to bait the opponent into overextending.


    Unfortunately for Freezer, Gilbert was a rational and methodical player. He wasn''t some aggressive beast hungering for blood, so he had no problem slowly grinding his opponent to dust. Therefore, instead of falling for Freezer''s baits and pushing further along the lane, Gilbert rotated out of lane to farm or gank whenever he gained lane advantage. That put Freezer''s defensive plays to waste and turned them into a weakness.


    It''s difficult to judge whether Freezer was a relatively weak member of the Leopards or he simply had a terrible matchup against Gilbert. Either way, he was the enemy''s weakest link right now. As a result, Gilbert outleveled Freezer via farming jungle camps between waves and helped other lanes gain the upper hand. Thanks to repeated ganks from Gilbert, the deadlock in Top was broken and Roi managed to push the enemy Top Laner all the way to the Turret.


    That''s about all the information Yuel gathered so far about the match from observing the mini-map and others'' monitors. Was this enough? Did he properly figure out his opponents and was ready to counter them? He wanted to shout "Of course!" and go ahead, but he hesitated.


    His opponents were seniors, they trained for the the last two years to get this far. There''s no way some newbie could deconstruct them this easily, right? Or, maybe he was overthinking it? Bitter memories of being outsmarted by Ellen played over and over in his head, warning him.


    [I''ll wait just a little more. ]Yuel nodded to himself for about the millionth time this match. He was going to begin soon, real soon. He just needed to observe his foes a little longer, to be 100% sure about their playstyles.


    "Man, this chick is sure a hard nut to crack." Trever sighed as he exchanged blows with ComboBreaker. "Got any idea how to take her out?"


    "I''m not sure yet." Yuel answered as he cast Gaia''s Protection on Trever, granting enough shield to soak all the damage from this fight.


    "You know, you''ve been awfully quiet this match. Wait, I know. You''re still nervous, ain''tcha?"


    "Maybe a little, but that''s not it. I''m not sure I got all the data I need about our enemies, so I don''t want to pull anything reckless."


    "Data? You sound like Aron." Trever laughed. "Well, I dunno how you ''data people'' do your magic, but don''t leave us hanging until late game like Aron does. Dude doesn''t tell us anything until it''s too late, haha."


    "Got it." Yuel nodded. His increased caution was definitely the result of Aron''s influence, but he had no intention waiting until late game. "I almost got them figured out, I just need a little- wha!?"


    The battle between Trever and Breaker took an unexpected turn. The Cryomancer blinked forward and froze Trever with Ice Coffin, turning Trever''s Ranger into a cube of ice.


    It was an unexpected assault, but wasn''t it a waste? Trever still had the shield he got from Yuel, so it was going to soak some damage. The freeze of Ice Coffin was pretty short on low levels, so there''s no way the Pyromancer would have enough time... eh?


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    It happened in an instant. Flames engulfed Trever''s Ranger and wiped him out of existence. He was at 70% HP + shield, yet he was eliminated in an instant.


    "Wow, what the actual heck?" Trever stared at his screen with a dumb face. "What did I just see? What the hell happened!? You saw that shit!?"


    "Yeah, I saw it." Yuel frowned as he was forced to retreat back to his Turret, escaping the 1v2 situation. "I believe it was a combo play. Yes, Spellbook of Doom, as I thought."


    Until this point, Breaker''s build followed the standards of a Carry Pyromancer build. However, over the last couple of minutes, there had been a missing item slot in her build. She should had had enough gold to buy one more item by now, probably even upgrade it to Lv.3. Yet, nothing showed up in her third item slot. That is, until now.


    That fourth item was a Lv.3 Spellbook of Doom, which enabled a niche "combo" playstyle. She must had purchased it a while ago, but kept it "cloaked" all this time. Then, after finding the right moment, she equipped Spellbook of Doom in the heat of battle to strike with the element of surprise.


    Ugh, such a high level of play was unexpected from middle schoolers. If they knew she built Spellbook of Doom ahead of time, they could had played around it. She caught them completely off guard here.


    "So, she''s going for a combo build? Chick is crazy." Trever laughed.


    "That''s really rare." Yuel nodded. He didn''t expect to meet a combo player in an official match of all places. It was mostly considered a meme in the Classmancers community, despite having some representation in the pro scene, primarily in Asia. DimensionShift was a well-known Korean combo player and was considered among the top players in the world. So, calling combo a "meme" didn''t do it justice.


    Nevertheless, it was an unpopular playstyle, especially in the west. It revolved around building a niche stat: Casting Speed. The same way Attack Speed raised the speed of basic attacks, Casting Speed increased the speed of skill animations. It sounded strong on paper, as it allowed to quickly chain multiple spells in succession. However, in practice, most items with Casting Speed had subpar stats and paled compared to other meta options.


    The one exception among them was Spellbook of Doom, which had an interesting passive: after landing a hit with a spell, all subsequent spell hits within the next 2 seconds dealt +100% damage. The effect could only be activated once every minute, so it was unlikely to proc it more than once in a fight.


    In other words, it was a glass cannon effect at its finest. It provided a tiny window of time to dish out tremendous damage via chaining spells. +100% damage sounded absurd on paper, but it was difficult to take full advantage of this effect within mere 2 seconds.


    First, it was necessary to hit an enemy with a damaging spell, so that Spellbook of Doom could be proc''d. After that, they had to quickly dish out their other spells and land them on the target within the span of less than two seconds, all the while taking into account the spells'' casting animation, the skillshots'' travel time and the enemy''s movements. The execution bar was maddening.


    Yet, ComboBreaker perfectly pulled that off and killed Trever from 70% HP + shield, in under two seconds. First, during her fight with Trever, she lowered his defense with basic attacks thanks to Demonic Arm. Then, she opened her combo with Pillar of Flame, a low damage spell which proc''d Spellbook of Doom. For the finishing blow, she chained Blaze of Inferno into Flame Wave, taking advantage of her increased Casting Speed. So many fine details were squeezed into a matter of seconds, it was astonishing.


    Regardless of how the combo playstyle was viewed in the meta, it was a terrifying weapon in Breaker''s hands. After witnessing Trever''s instantaneous defeat, everybody in StormBlitz now knew they had to be extremely cautious around Breaker. Just one kill put the whole team on their toes.


    Was she going to consistently dish that combo? Or, was it a one-time fluke? There''s no telling until they saw more of her playstyle.


    [Ugh, just when I thought I got them figured out. ]Yuel bit his lip. He took so much time during the early game to carefully analyze his opponents, only for everything to crumble during the mid game. Did other players in the Leopards also hide such surprises? No wonder Aron always waited until late game before drawing any conclusions.


    Was there even a way for Yuel to foresee that combo playstyle ahead of time? If it were Howard, could he had predicted this possibility and found a way to protect Trever? There was no way to tell, but the thought didn''t give Yuel rest.


    After ComboBreaker got rid of Trever and pushed Bot Lane forward, she left the lane. Did she head to Mid? That''s the most likely scenario, considering Freezer struggled against Gilbert there. Taking into account her cooldown reduction and how long had passed since she last used her combo, everything except her ult was definitely out of cooldown by now. Once the one minute cooldown on Spellbook of Doom were to end - she could dish out tremendous damage yet again.


    [I better rotate to help Mid, but...] Yuel frowned as the Cryomancer insisted on zoning him. His hands were tied, all he could do was call missing. "The Pyromancer left Bot, most likely heading to Mid."


    "Got it." Gilbert nodded and began retreating. However, that''s when the unexpected happened. Freezer, who had been playing defensively until now, went on the offensive! He chased after Gilbert and activated his ultimate: Eldritch Nightmare.


    Darkness erupted from Freezer''s Warlock, spreading throughout Mid Lane. Gilbert''s screen was consumed by blackness, painted by visages of eldritch abominations. While within the range of Eldritch Nightmare, Gilbert''s Electromancer was slowed and disoriented, wobbling as he ran. That''s on top of Gilbert being robbed of his vision, unable to tell what was happening around him.


    However, it wasn''t fatal. Eldritch Nightmare had a limited range, so everything was going to be fine once Gilbert were to step out of it. He activated Thunderclap, dissolving into a could of electricity and crashing from the sky a short distance away. That created enough distance between himself and Freeze, or so it should had been.


    For some reason, that wasn''t enough. He was still suck within the darkness, unable to tell his position.


    "Jesus, just how much did he level his ult?" Gilbert ranted. "You''re playing Mid, not Support."


    Was Gilbert already back at his Turret? Was it still ahead? Did he pass it? It was impossible to tell with his vision robbed. None of his teammates could help him either, as Eldritch Nightmare stained their mini-maps with black ink. He had to brave through this darkness all by himself.


    "I think the Turret is still a little ahead." Yuel said, restlessly shifting his attention between his and Gilbert''s monitors. It''s frustrating, because he should had been there to support Gilbert. Yet, he was stuck under tower in Bot, dealing with minions and the Cryomancer. All he could do right now was throw some advice in Gilbert''s way, to at least somewhat make up for the lack of proper support.


    "Man, I really can''t tell anymore." Gilbert frowned. Was the Turret really still further ahead? Even though he already blinked forward with Thunderclap? Well, there''s no way to tell. He simply kept running, hoping he hadn''t reached the Turret yet.


    "You sure he didn''t pass it already?" Trever also peeked at Gilbert''s screen, bored while waiting for his respawn. "He even blinked and everything, so I say he totally passed it."


    "I wouldn''t be so sure." Yuel said. "Look at the range of that ult, he leveled it up quite a bit and the slowdown gets stronger with each level. He also built Chains of Infinity, which slows down even more."


    "Holy shit, Chains actually stacks with that? Shit is nasty as heck."


    "Heh, just look at us. Three pros sitting here and can''t solve this thing." Gilbert chuckled. "Well, with that much slow, I''m probably screwed anyway if that Combo Pyro is coming for me. I''ll just roll dice here."


    Gilbert activated his ult, Thunderstorm, and randomly targeted the area to his left. He couldn''t see anything there, but that''s the direction the Pyromancer was bound to appear from. With some luck, he might scare her off.


    Thunderstorm turned a big area into target practice for lighting strikes. Any enemy stepping into the area was going to be repeatedly struck by lighting, receiving massive damage. On top of that, these strikes applied Electric Charges, which Gilbert could detonate for further damage.


    This electric danger zone was an effective zoning tool, as one would have to think twice or thrice before even considering to chase somebody through it. Unfortunately, in this darkness, it was effectively a die roll. There''s no telling whether Gilbert even cast the ult in an area which truly threatened the Pyromancer. In fact, it was arguably a waste of an ult. However, Gibert knew all too well the importance of not feeding this Pyromancer so early into the game. Wasting an ult was a small price to pay for surviving through his gank.


    But, it didn''t work. Fireballs came flying at Gilbert from within the darkness, shredding his protections. Then, the ground under his feet was set ablaze. Pillar of Fire, it was the signal that the Pyromancer''s combo was about to follow.


    In a span of a second, his 90% HP dropped to 5%. Just as death was about to claim him, the darkness of Eldritch Nightmare finally cleared up. He now saw ComboBreaker clearly, with her 20% HP and multiple Electric Charges. Gilbert''s gamble was spot on, Thunderstorm hit Breaker multiple times. But, even that wasn''t enough scare off this mad combo chick. She pushed forward for the kill, despite the immense danger.


    [Wait, maybe I can...! ]Gilbert pressed Q, activating Electrical Explosion. Breaker was at 20% HP with three Electric Charges on her, so there''s a good chance he''d be able to-


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    Too late. His Electromancer collapsed by the time he hit the Q button. If he just reacted a spit second earlier, he might had turned the tables on his assaulter. Alas, it wasn''t meant to be. Oh well.


    "In hindsight, I probably should have just aggressed on the Warlock." Gilbert said.


    "Yes, that might have ended better." Yuel nodded, then turned to Trever. "By the way, I was right. He still hasn''t reached the Turret."


    "Heh, cheeky brat." Trever sneered. "If you''re so smart, how did you let both of us die without doing shit, eh?"


    "Ah, that''s..." Yuel hung his head and clenched his mouse. He felt so powerless during both situations, he failed to provide any support. Just where did he misplay in all of this? What was the wrong move he committed that led to this disaster? Was there any way to defend against Breaker''s plays? Could Howard had done so?


    "Hey, relax, bro. I''m just kidding." Trever smacked Yuel on the back. "They pulled some serious shit outta nowhere, of course you couldn''t see that coming."


    "He''s right." Gilbert agreed. "The combo chick and the Support-like Warlock were quite unexpected. They were probably going for that surprise element from the get-go, so no much you could do about it. Now we know what aces they got, so we gotta figure how to beat them. Don''t hang up on past mistakes, or you''ll blow the rest of the game."


    "You''re right, thanks." Yuel took a deep breath. It didn''t matter what he could or couldn''t had done in these two unfortunate situations. Whatever happened, happened. Right now, his job was to figure how to deal with these enemies from here on out. He wasn''t going allow these terrible misplays repeat themselves.


    The team had shaky start. However, now that the enemies played their hands, Yuel started preparing his countermeasures.

 32 Tactical Sacrifice

    After ComboBreaker scored two kills in succession, the Leopards gained a huge momentum. Worse still, said kills were on Trever and Gilbert, who were considered the team''s key players. Even though everybody in StormBlitz managed to keep themselves together and focus on winning the match, it was quite the mental blow.


    Both teams were fairly even until now, but this incident tilted the odds in the Leopards'' favor. During the mid game, Breaker became way more active than in the early game. She rotated across the map to gank Yuel''s teammates, almost as if she''s a second Jungler. The absurd burst of her combo build allow her to eliminate enemies in a flash, so she was even scarier than the actual Jungler. She was like an unstoppable Queen piece, who zigzagged across the board to snatch pawns and pieces.


    In these situations, everybody hoped to borrow the help of the Jungler. It was the role with the best global presence, so it was most fitting for countering the enemy''s global presence. Alas, Dan couldn''t do much when his own turf became a danger zone.


    He ran into Breaker once in the Jungle. That ended in an instant, he was torched in a blink of an eye. Not only he failed to stop her incoming gank, but he also fed her further.


    After finishing Dan, Breaker continued her rotation as planned. She went after Roi in Top, but thankfully he wiggled his way out of her dangerous gank. He had no HP left and was forced to retreat, but at least he survived.


    "Great job making it out alive, bro!" Trever gave a thumb up.


    "Easy." Roi grinned and lightly punched Dan''s shoulder. "Your sacrifice wasn''t in vain, lol."


    "You''re always welcome." Dan made a face. Thanks to Dan getting eliminated in the jungle, Roi was alerted early about the incoming gank. On top of that, Breaker had to use her combo to kill Dan quickly, so it was still on cooldown by the time she arrived in Top. Thus, most of the gank came down to being barraged by the Pyromancer''s fast basic attacks, which Roi''s sturdy Knight managed to survive.


    "You didn''t even swing at her shots." Dan pointed out. "What''s wrong? Scared to take her on?"


    "No way I gonna swing against her on the first try. She''s like a pitcher who gets strikeouts by strength. That''s not something you can deal with in your first at-bat."


    "How the mighty cleanup fell."


    "Shut up, lol. I''ll hit her shots all the way to the back screen next time."


    Despite the dire circumstances, the team maintained a positive atmosphere. Joking around distracted them from the gravity of the situation. It was a simple, but impressive, technique.


    Nevertheless, despite the positive attitude, the team couldn''t recover from heavy blows it received during mid game. Breaker''s ganks followed by swift kills, which followed by big pushes. StormBlitz members fell behind, in both exp and map control.


    Even when a gank didn''t result in a kill, it had devastating implications. After chasing Roi away, Breaker pushed the Top Turret together with the Viking. They took the Turret down uncontested. Despite being a mage, Breaker was the enemy''s Carry in this composition, so leaving her alone with a tower resulted in losing the tower.


    The Turrets in other lanes were in terrible shape too, due to Breaker''s earlier ganks. Mid Turret fell down to 20% and Bot Turret was at 50%. With how much Breaker traveled across the map, one would think it''d be easy to push the lanes she was absent from. Alas, that approach was shot down by Freezer, of all people.


    Just like Breaker, Freezer''s playstyle undergone a drastic change during the mid game. He still maintained a defensive playstyle like before, but he extended his defense to all three lanes. Whenever StormBlitz planned to push an undefended lane, he always showed up to stop that idea. His style was similar to Howard''s, except he always handled the defense himself, rather than instructing teammates how to defend better. So, he was like a dumbed down version of Howard. A Mini-Howard, if you will.


    Was it even possible to come back from this? It looked like a winning position for the enemy. Breaker assaulted players and pushed lanes, whereas Freezer halted StomBlitz''s pushes. With the two of them, the enemy had a mobile combination of offense and defense which covered the entire map. It was difficult to make any progress against this global shut out.


    After every StormBlitz member got burnt by Breaker at least once, they all learned to steer clear of her. While her combo was online, getting within its range spelt immediate demise.


    "Make sure to announce if you see her using her combo." Gilbert instructed.


    "Yeah, be loud and clear!" Trever commanded like a drill officer. Everybody understood the importance of this, so there were no objections. The difference between Breaker with combo and Breaker without combo was like the difference between a leopard and a cat. One was definitely much scarier than the other. They only had a chance to strike her down while Spellbook of Doom was on cooldown.


    Playing defensively around Breaker showed some results. It hindered her ability to score kills via ganks and allowed StormBlitz to fight back. Trever even scored a couple of kills by suddenly switching from defense to offense once Breaker''s combo went on cooldown. The fact he had solid defense despite being an aggressive player really helped the team out.


    Unfortunately, this wasn''t enough to get the upper hand. The defensive strategy proved effective, but it was a reactive approach which failed to steal the initiative. The Leopards already had a huge momentum and they kept pushing, while StormBlitz had their hands full with defending.


    Before long, the match transitioned into its team fighting phase. This is where things had a chance to change for the better, since Breaker''s combo couldn''t hit an entire team. After one teammate was bursted down, the rest could focus on Breaker and take her out.


    But, things only changed for the worse. Freezer became an even more prominent threat than before, due to the utility his Warlock brough to the table. Warlock''s Eldritch Nightmare single-handedly disoriented the whole enemy team during a fight, tilting the odds in the Leopards'' favor as soon as a team fight started.


    The intensity of the disorientation got weaker with more enemies inside the ult''s range, so it wasn''t too oppressive in full blown 5v5 fights. However, these were relatively rare until late game. Most of the clashes between teams were 2v2 or 3v3 right now, in which Eldritch Nightmare was super effective.


    Things couldn''t go on like this. Something had to change. Something, anything.


    By now, Yuel grasped how his opponents played. Breaker and Freezer''s sudden playstyle shift during mid game threw him off at first, but now his analysis was back on track. Unfortunately, he was late, possibly too late. The team lagged behind on gold, exp and map control, with enemy super minions spawning in Mid.


    Following Gilbert''s shot-calling, the team prioritized defense. Everybody had their hands full fending off the enemy''s pushes. this was no time to conjure offensive counters.


    Countless ideas naturally formed in Yuel''s mind, but he didn''t voice them. This wasn''t some practice match or a personal entry exam, so he couldn''t suggest any experimental tactics. This official scrimmage emulated a real competitive match, so winning at any cost was a must.


    By sitting on this stage, he carried the wills of those who didn''t make it into the second string. Therefore, he wasn''t allowed to put on a sloppy performance. Reckless plans, which could backfire, had no place in this situation.


    They had to play safe and wait for their opportunity. There''s always a chance the enemy would misplay somewhere down the line. A single misplay in late game could flip the situation on its head, Yuel experienced countless turnabouts like that in both Casual and Ranked.


    Alas, this was neither Casual nor Ranked. The enemy team was made of coordinated competitive players, who were all experienced seniors on top of that. They knew how to correctly play every phase of the game. Early, mid or late game - it didn''t'' matter. They refused to commit glaring mistakes that could be exploited. With every passing moment, the chances of mounting a comeback seemed slimmer and slimmer.


    "Hey, bro." Trever called out. "You''ve been awfully quiet the whole match. What''s wrong? Still sleepy?"


    "No, I''m awake." Yuel answered. "Though, I wouldn''t mind if turns out I''m still napping and this is a nightmare I''m having."


    "Haha, I feel ya. So what''s wrong? Pressure?"


    "I believe I got over it by now." Yuel shook his head. "I just don''t have anything to add. Gilbert''s shot-calling has been solid."


    "Yeah, Gil''s calls are tight and all, but it''s just the basic stuff. We need DA STUFF, ya know?"


    "Are you asking me to come up with an aggressive counterplay? In this situation?"


    "Yeah, use your tactics shmactics or whatever. Isn''t that what you''re here for?"


    "I''d like to believe I''m here because I''m a good Support player."


    "Nah, it''s all about your crazy tactics."


    "Ugh." Yuel grumped.


    "Just pulling ya leg." Trever smacked Yuel on the back. "You''re a good Support, sure. But, it''s your crazy ideas we need right now."


    "There''s a place and time for everything." Yuel said. "I use aggressive tactics in practice matches and Ranked, but this is an official match and we''re behind. I can''t suggest plays that can easily cost us the game."


    "You think too hard about the consequences." Gilbert said. "That just proves you''re nervous."


    "Yeah, relax, bro." Trever patted Yuel on the shoulder. "This is just the first game, we got four more afterwards. If you don''t start playing your usual game now, when will ya? You''ve been picked for the team because on how you usually play, so just do your thing, bro."


    "Just do my thing..." Yuel mumbled. Looking back on it, what did he even do this whole match? Warding, rescuing allies and setting up ganks - these were all textbook Support plays. He didn''t perform poorly, but neither did he achieve anything of note. He spent most of the game studying his opponents, but he didn''t put much of that data to use. He only suggested little plays here and there, when they had low risk.


    He was overly careful with every little thing he suggested, he spent too much time analyzing enemies and he did everything he could to avoid messing up. It took him a while to realize, but... Yes, he was nervous after all. Anxiety ate away at him and constrained his actions. In a desperate attempt to not mess up this match, he ended up putting on a subpar performance, which ironically only hurt the team''s chances. How stupid.


    "I got some ideas." Yuel announced. "But, they don''t mesh well with how we''ve been playing the late game so far." He turned to Gilbert. "Your game plan is to defend until the enemy make a mistake, right? I don''t think this approach is wrong in itself, but my ideas prioritize going on the offensive. Is that fine?"


    "Going on the offensive in this situation?" Gilbert raised an eyebrow.


    "Haha, kid is crazy!" Trever laughed. "I like it!"


    "Well," Gilbert smiled wryly. "If you got an idea how to get us out of this mess, you''re welcome to apply your magic. You''re right that I''ve been doing the ''defend and wait'' strategy, but I wouldn''t call it a ''game plan''. It''s just a desperate attempt to not look bad going down. I can''t really picture us winning here."


    "I see." All this time, Yuel was sure Gilbert confidently issued orders with some sort of winning strategy in mind. But, Gilbert just clung to the only option available, without showing any signs of doubt. Thanks to that, the team didn''t lose morale and kept fighting hard, no matter how harsh the circumstances got.


    This was the complete opposite of what Yuel did. He doubted his own strategies due to their risk factor and stayed quiet. It was that much easier following Gilbert''s confident lead instead of voicing his own ideas. Yuel ran away from the challenge and pushed all the responsibility on Gilbert. That''s so low.


    No more. As everybody said, Yuel should just play his usual game. He was picked for the second string, it meant Aron and Howard believed in the skill he showcased in the club. They didn''t put him on the team just to fill the Support spot, they also expected the rest of the package from him, like his usual counterplay tactics.


    "Alright, I understand." Yuel steeled himself. "I''d like to take over the shot-calling for a while, if possible."


    "Go ahead." Gilbert nodded.


    "Thanks." Yuel took a deep breath. Was this match still winnable for StormBlitz? Enemy super minions pushed Mid and the rest of StormBlitz''s Golems ran low on HP. The enemy pushed aggressively in both Top and Bot, aiming to take out these remaining Golems.


    The situation was grim, but Yuel had to craft a plan. One by one, he pieced data and ideas in his head like a puzzle. There''s no time to formulate the whole winning strategy, but hope wasn''t lost. There''s a sequence of plays which could lead them closer to victory. Whether it''d convert into a victory from there remained to be seen, but he didn''t have the luxury to ponder about that right now.


    "First, their Pyromancer is going to rotate to Top." Yuel stated.


    "How do you figure?" Gilbert asked. "Both Top and Bot look like perfectly fine options."


    "Um, well..." Yuel clammed up. Why was it, again? He concluded her next destination the moment she showed up in Mid, but he couldn''t for the life of him recall the steps toward that conclusion.


    "Hey, hey." Trever exclaimed. "Don''t pressure him, bro. We don''t have anything better anyway, so let''s play along with his tactics shmactics. I bet it''s something simple anyway, like seeing her rotate from Mid to Top a lot or something."


    "Did she really do that often?"


    "Hell if I remember."


    "She did, actually." Yuel stated. "I just remembered. There are other factors too, but the biggest is how she has a tendency to rotate upwards. She usually starts in Bot, goes to Mid and from there to Top."


    "Hmm, I see." Gilbert was only partially convinced, but that''s nothing new. Their shot-calling styles were simply too different. Gilbert always went for the best play at any given time, whereas Yuel suggested unconventional plays, which had a chance to either tank or pay off big time. Nevertheless, Yuel often brought results with his style. Therefore, Gilbert surrendered the shot-caller role, trusting Yuel''s ability.


    "As I said, the Pyromancer will rotate to Top next." Yuel repeated. "I''d like to take her out first. Dan, can you please return to base to heal? Then, head into the jungle to intercept her. Her rotation path should be something like this." He drew on the map via pings.


    "Well, I don''t mind" Dan said. "But, I don''t think I can take care of her myself. Lancer just doesn''t have the burst for that, her combo will screw me over."


    "It''s alright, I only need you to slow down her rotation." Yuel said. "I recommend selling your Piercing Spear and Fury Knuckles to buy Deus Shield, so you can last longer and bait out her ult."


    "Huh? Two items for one? Even though I already got a full build?"


    "Yes, that''ll counter her better." Yuel said. "Especially, the stun of Deus Shield will help buying time."


    "Buying time? Sounds like you''re sending him to die, lol." Roi laughed.


    "It''ll be great if he kills her, but that''s unlikely." Yuel said. "You can think of this play as sacrificing a piece to take the Queen."


    "Lol, calling that chick ''Queen''. Did she woo you with her combos or something?"


    "I meant chess Queen, the strongest piece-"


    "Yeah, Yeah, I know. Don''t be so serious, lol."


    "So, you''re literally asking me to sacrifice myself? Nasty." Dan frowned.


    "Of course he does, he''s the Chessmaster after all. Lol."


    "Well, I kinda get why I''m the only one for the job." Dan said. "Gilbert is stuck guarding Mid, Trever must push Bot and the rest are dead. But, suppose I buy some time before dying, what''s next?"


    "Trever will rotate over there, right after finishing the next wave." Yuel explained.


    "Wait, what?" Trever was taken aback. "I''m the last line of defense in Bot, I can''t leave. Our Golem is half-dead, they''ll push it all the way the moment I rotate."


    "Yes, you''re absolutely right." Yuel nodded


    "I know, right? So, no way I can rotate any time soon."


    "No, it''s precisely BECAUSE of that that you CAN rotate."


    "Wut?"


    "The enemy also know you must stay to defend." Yuel explained. "Pushing a wave against a Carry is hard. With that in mind, they''ll try pushing Top next. That''s also where the Pyromancer is headed next, so everything falls into place."


    "Heh, that''s some advanced reverse psychology shenanigans right there." Trever chuckled. "So, you telling me they won''t bother pushing Bot any time soon, because they know I must stay here to guard. Therefore, I''m actually free to rotate? I''ve never heard such genius nonsense before in my life. I swear only you could come up with something stupid like this. I like it!"


    "Still , Gilbert insisted. "What do we do if they go for Bot anyway?"


    "No problem." Yuel answered. "You''re already guarding the base and I''ll be able stall them once I respawn. There''s definitely risk involved, I won''t claim otherwise. That''s why I''ve been quiet all this time in the first place."


    "Risk shmisk!" Trever exclaimed. "It sounds fun, so let''s do it! It''s not like we got any better ideas anyway.


    "Hmm, that''s also true. Fine." Gilbert reluctantly approved.


    "Then, we''re really going with this?" Dan confirmed one last time. Everybody seemed supportive of the idea, to one degree or another. "Heh, guess I should have expected absurd stuff when Yuel is calling the shots. Okay, I''m off to die then."


    "Good luck, bro!"


    "Break a leg, lol."


    Following Yuel''s instructions, Dan sold Piercing Spear and Fury Knuckles to buy Deus Shield. Normally, it''d be unthinkable to break up a finished build like that. However, Yuel suggested this play without batting an eye, so there it had to make some sense in this specific situation... right? Well, at the very least, Deus Shield wasn''t an uncommon item for Lancer.


    Lancer was a bruiser, making his builds rather flexible. He could prioritize either offense or defense, depending on the situation at hand and the role he was going for. Dan already built an Assassin Lancer, going down the offensive route to execute swift ganks.


    Nevertheless, Yuel judged that Dan would be more useful for the team as a bruiser right now. It felt odd switching styles this late into the game, especially at the cost of losing his full build, Still, Dan really wanted to know how deep the rabbit hole went, so he played along. Yuel must had had greater plans for him later down the road, right? Something more than suiciding on enemies like a freaking kamikaze, right? There was definitely going to be something bigger... right?


    Just as Yuel predicted, ComboBreaker left Mid and headed to Top through the Top Jungle. One of Yuel''s wards briefly exposed her, so Dan knew exactly where to find her. All that''s left was to assault her, and pray he wasn''t going to be wrecked on the spot.


    "Oh, I ran into their Lancer." Jennir reported to the team. "I think his ult is still down?"


    "Yeaaah, probably." Alex replied with a yawn. "Just ignore him and get to Top already. Let''s push all the way to their Colossus and get this snoozefest over with already."


    "Yep, I hear ya." Jennifer nodded. "No need to waste my combo here. Not like he has the balls to challenge me any- oh?" She blinked.


    The Lancer darted toward her, what a freak. It''s like getting destroyed three times already wasn''t enough for him. A scrub who couldn''t take a hint, huh.


    There''s no way he could 1v1 her. She knew it, he knew it, everybody and their mom knew it. Yet, he insisted to fight. What a scrub. The enemy team proved itself a little more competent than she originally expected, but this was just sad. In the end, they were just a bunch of freshmen and juniors, they had nothing on the Leopards'' lineup of seniors.


    "Well, seems like the fool wants to suicide on me." Jennifer licked her lips. "I''mma accept the free kill, thanks in advance."


    "Yeah, whatever." Alex shrugged. "Just get here already so we can close the game."


    But, Jennifer no longer listened. All her attention was concentrated on the enemy in front of her. For a combo player, even the tiniest inaccuracy could result in disaster. Therefore, unrelated crap had to be filtered out.


    The world around her ceased to exist. Only the jungle displayed on the monitor was real right now, the entire universe was compressed into that small space. That was her entire world, the only thing that mattered right now.


    The Lancer charged straight at her, no doubt preparing to leap. [He''s seriously going for Lunge? This scrub just refuses to learn, huh. Seems like he wasn''t burned enough!]


    Jennifer answered the telegraphed attack by casting Pillar of Fire under her feet. Then, she immediately rolled aside.


    The Lancer came down crashing from the sky, but all that awaited him was burning ground. Too bad, sucker! Ez game ez life.


    But, she wasn''t done yet! She activated Burning Spirit to boost attack speed and barraged the Lancer. The attacks weren''t only lightning speed, they also hit like trucks. She was empowered by the Pillar of Fire she cast earlier and her attacks shredded the Lancer''s defense, thanks to Demonic Arm.


    Right before the Lancer left the burning area to continue his offense, she activated Spellbook of Doom. A single tick from Pillar of Fire was enough to proc the powerful combo effect. Here came some real damage!


    "Hasta la vista, baby." Jennifer grinned triumphantly as she unleashed Flame Wave, deleting her target from existence... or so it should had went. "Eh? Wha?" She blinked.


    Something was wrong. Very very VERY wrong. The Lancer somehow retained over 20% HP. Not only that, but his armor fired a shockwave, stunning Jennifer.


    [Wha, when did he-!?] Jennifer instinctively hit the TAB button, confirming her suspicion.


    Deus Shield, a defensive item which granted protections and HP. At Lv.3, it also released a stunning shockwave when the player dropped below 30% HP. When did he buy it? Didn''t he build an Assassin Lancer!? Last time she checked, this guy had a finished build! What gave!? He ruined his full build, dropping from 5 items to 4, to afford the pricy Deus Shield. The heck was going on!?


    "Oh, crap!" Jennifer realized her foolishness and shook her head. Even the slightest distraction was poisonous for a combo player, she was no exception to the rule. Focus! FOCUS!


    While she was stunned by this unexpected mess, the Lancer closed the distance. He struck her with a sweeping attack, lowering her defense and mobility. Right after, he followed with a barrage of basic attacks. They packed a punch, even though he traded two offensive items for a defensive one. The rest of his build still provided more than enough power to pressure Jennifer, a squishy combo mage who couldn''t afford any defensive items in her build.


    [There''s no escape, I gotta take him out. NOW! ]Jennifer made a fast judgment and activated her ult, Blaze of Inferno. Wasting it in a 1v1 like this was regrettable, but it was either the ult or her life. With respawn times clocking at half a minute at this stage of the match, she couldn''t afford to fall here!


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    Phew, safe. Amidst the whole mess, she missed the 2 seconds window in which Spellbook tremendously buffed her spells. Nevertheless, even a vanilla Blaze of Inferno was enough to delete what little remained of the Lancer''s HP. She dropped to 40% HP in all this commotion, but at least she survived through it.


    "Alrighty," Jennifer exhaled. "This fight turned out way crazier than I expected, but at least it''s over now."


    As a result of the whole mess, both her combo potential and her ult were now on cooldown. But, she only needed basic attacks to push Top anyway, so everything was A-OK. With the pesky Lancer out of the way, she headed toward Top as planned-


    "Ack!?" A wild enemy appeared! The Ranger! The hell he was doing all the way out here!? Wasn''t he defending Bot last time she saw him!?


    "Agh, he got me..." Jennifer couldn''t put on a real fight with her spells on cooldown. She attempted to flee, but it was probably futile. Burning Spirit was on cooldown, so no mobility buff for her. Flame Wave wasn''t ready either, so she couldn''t even smack that schmuck with any serious damage. It was a game over.


    While his wolf pinned Jennifer to the ground, the Ranger rekt her with bolts from his crossbow.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Man, they pulled a fast one on me." Jennifer bit her nail, still processing what the flipping heck just happened. "The heck was that Ranger even doing all the way out here? Wasn''t he defending Bot? I didn''t hear any missing calls."


    "Well," Alex shrugged. "Everybody probably assumed he''ll keep pushing Bot after clearing the wave." He knitted his eyebrows as he examined Jennifer''s monitor, showing uncanny interest in the match for a change.


    "I should have refreshed the Ward in Bot, my bad" Albert admitted. "Their Druid keeps taking it out, so I got tired of renewing it."


    "Nah, don''t beat yourself over it." Jennifer shook her head. "That rotation was some serious BS. Like, how he even considered leaving Bot unprotected when the Golem is almost dead? I swear, these guys are worse than Bronze players sometimes."


    "Or are they?" Alex questioned.


    "What''s that supposed to mean?"


    "What if the two plays are connected?"


    "Wut?"


    "The Lancer''s suicide attack and the Ranger''s rotation. Individually, each of them looks like a poor misplay. But, if you look at the combined result they produced - it''s not half bad, actually."


    "Huh? What are you on about, man?" Jennifer raised an eyebrow. "He left Bot totally open, we can invade it right away."


    "Except, do we actually have anybody in Bot to who can push right away?"


    "Oh, shit." Jennifer crossed her arms and tilted her head. "Well, this blows."


    "In other words," Alex said. "We can''t punish that ''misplay'' of the Ranger. We were sure he won''t leave Bot any time soon, so we focused on Top instead."


    "Yeah, okay. But, how does that make his stupid rotation a good play? Please, you''re drunk."


    "As I said, by itself it''s pretty shaky. But, if you also take the Lancer''s suicide attack into account, then they basically traded a Jungler for a Carry there."


    "Hah, you''re saying they planned this from the get-go?" Jennifer sneered. "Please, who plays like that? They''ve been playing pretty standard so far, no way they planned that kind of nonsense."


    "Don''t forget their Lancer changed his build right before this happened. This whole thing stinks."


    "Nah, you''re making shit up, man."


    "Yeah, probably." Alex shrugged, already regretting he took this match seriously for even a second. "Anyway, what now? The plan was to help you push Top, but that''s down the toilet now."


    "No problem, just push it all the way yourselves!" Jennifer pumped a fist.. "Cody tanks, Joey smacks the Golem and you clear minions. We''re still pressuring these scrubs hard, we got this!"


    "But, my clear speed is... Well, whatever." Alex shrugged. "Sucks that we can''t push all the way without you, I want this borefest over with already. Just the thought that we''ll have to fight these guys four more times puts me to sleep."


    "Hey now, stop being a lazy fuck and do your job."


    "I know, I know. What a pain." Alex sighed.


    At the time, they had no idea. The peculiar play by the Lancer and Ranger, which led to Jennifer''s death, was just the first step in Yuel''s turnaround strategy.

 33 The Sacrifices True Meaning

    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºSHUTDOWN¡»


    "Hell yeah, that went smooth!" Trever pumped a fist after killing ComboBreaker. "Okay, since I''m already here, I''mma go defend Top."


    "No, push Mid." Yuel said.


    "Huh? Why? They gonna to push Top next, we gotta defend."


    "I know, but you better push Mid." Yuel insisted. "I suggested trading a Jungler for a Carry to give us the push advantage. The only way I see us winning right now is by taking Mid, even at the expense giving up Top and Bot."


    "Heh," Roi chuckled. "First you sacrificed poor lil'' Dan, now you sacrifice lanes. You''re a Chessmaster alright, lol."


    "I''m not sure I like this." Trever objected. "They gonna bring a mage, bruiser and assassin to push Top. I''m sure we gonna lose the Golem if I don''t help right now."


    "Don''t get me wrong," Yuel was quick to defend his tactic. "Even though I said ''give up'' the lanes, I didn''t mean we''re going to just sit and watch them take Top. Me and Gilbert will keep them at bay."


    "2v3 sounds like a disaster. They gonna take the Golem."


    "Yes, most likely." Yuel nodded. "But, it''ll take them some time. Meanwhile, you can push Mid. You killed their Carry, so we can push faster than them for a while. The only way I see us winning this game is by pushing all the way through Mid. So, everything is riding on you, Carry."


    "Riding on me..." Trever blinked and scanned his teammates. Everybody''s eyes were on him. He was the captain and the Carry, and now the responsibility for securing victory was also dropped on his shoulders.. "Heh, ain''t that cool!? I got it! I''ll carry us to victory, guys!" He dashed to Mid right away!


    "Heh, what simpleton." Gilbert whispered to Yuel. "Good job roping him into that one."


    "Hm? I just said the truth." Yuel rolled his eyes. "A lot is riding on how far he can push Mid."


    "Heh, I see. Well, now that you finished tricking him into doing your bidding, I hope you got an actual plan for defending Top."


    "Not really." Yuel admitted. "We just defend, that''s all."


    "You serious? We can''t hold them long just the two of us. Our minions will be pretty useless too, since the pushers are coming at us with a mage."


    "A hybrid mage." Yuel corrected. "His push potential is nowhere near what you expect from a proper mage, especially now in late game."


    "We''re finally going to punish that? Great." Gilbert nodded in approval. "It''s rather irritating how he''s been getting away with a hybrid build for so long. He somehow manages to both be a huge pain in team fights and still clear waves fast enough."


    "Yeah, he sure knows how to play that off-meta build." Yuel agreed. "But, he can''t fool the math."


    Warlock was a mage primarily played as Mid, but he had enough utility to be a viable Support too. Same as with any other flexible mage, the build for a Mid Warlock greatly differed from a Support Warlock build. While Mid Warlock focused primarily on building power and penetration, Support Warlock prioritized defense and utility


    However, Freezer''s Warlock didn''t fall under either of these categories. He built a Hybrid Warlock, combining items from both Mid Warlock and Support Warlock. Thus, he had just enough power to push lanes and also greatly impact team fights with his utility. Truly, he had the best of both worlds.


    However, no matter how great the hybrid build sounded, there''s a reason why only the specialized builds were considered meta. Players could only build 5 items throughout a match, so a hybrid build had to split said 5 slots between offense and utility. As a result, Hybrid Warlock couldn''t reach the same damage output as a pure Mid Warlock, no matter how well he played. That''s just simple math, there''s no beating math.


    So, even though the Mid Laner was usually only second to the Carry in term of push potential, Freezer''s clear speed didn''t live up to that expectation. It was difficult to punish this build during the mid game, but the late game is where the difference was going to be critical.


    [Combo Pyromancer and Hybrid Warlock, huh. ]Yuel smiled. Breaker and Freezer played off-meta builds, yet they were the most impactful enemies this match. He didn''t approve of these builds by any means. Yet, he couldn''t help but respect the players for mastering the builds enough to make them competitively viable.


    With that being said, he was going to exploit the weaknesses of these off-meta builds as much as possible. There''s no place for sentiments in a competitive match. There''s only one goal: to win at any cost.


    As expected, he and Gilbert managed to keep the three pushers at bay. Gilbert''s Electromancer was built like a textbook Mid, so his ability to outclear Freezer played a huge role. Thanks to Gilbert wiping out enemy waves faster than Freezer cleared allied waves, the enemy couldn''t get any minions into the Golem''s range.


    Compared to that, Yuel barely affected the progress of minions on lane due to his low damage output. Instead, his job was to shield Gilbert with Gaia''s Protection, denying any opportunities to burst Gilbert down. He also occasionally pulled an enemy into the Golem''s range with Nature''s Grasp, making them receive sizable damage from the Golem.


    Unable to make any progress, the enemy team must had gotten agitated. The Viking rushed into the Golem''s range without any minions accompanying him, he planned to tank the Golem all by himself. A bold move, considering they had no Carry.


    With no enemy minions in the Golem''s range, the Golem''s attack and defense were at their highest. The Viking was tanky enough to tank the Golem for a while despite this handicap, but his efforts were overshadowed by the enemy''s lack of Carry. The Warlock''s basics lacked a punch and the Vampire only dished out high damage against players, not structures. It came across as a desperate push, they probably thought it''d pass because they had been dominating the game so far.


    "Let''s focus the Vampire first." Yuel said.


    "Prioritizing kills over defense, huh." Gilbert smiled meaningfully. "Got it. Let''s see where this goes."


    If they wanted to put on the optimal defense, they''d need to go after the Viking tanking the Golem. Once the Viking was out of the picture, the Golem would shift its attention to one of the squishier enemies. The enemy would be forced to retreat right away.


    But, instead, Yuel wanted to use this opportunity to score as many kills as possible, even at the expense of losing the Golem. Saving a tower was usually considered more valuable than scoring a kill, but in the late game it wasn''t as clear cut due to long respawn times. Also, StormBlitz were playing from behind, so every kill they scored was a huge deal.


    [Alright, here goes. ]Yuel exhaled and concentrated straight ahead. [Blink and pull him. Blink and pull. Just along this line, no need to aim.]


    He repeated the scenario multiple times in his head to build confidence. The play he was about to perform was mechanically demanding, not something an all-thumbs player like him could pull on a whim. To make make things easier for himself, he aligned the enemy Vampire in a straight line ahead. This way, he''d just have to move in a straight line and wouldn''t need to especially aim at the Vampire.


    "I''ll blink and pull the Vampire." Yuel announced and activated Blink, teleporting a short distance ahead. He immediately followed up with Nature''s Grasp, hitting the Vampire with the stretched tree branches. The Vampire didn''t even get a chance to react to this assault. It was a quick and slick play, which Yuel could only execute by preparing ahead of time and making the conditions easier for himself.


    As soon as the Vampire was pulled closer, Gilbert fired a basic attack to apply one Electric Charge on the Vampire and followed up with Chain Lightning. The lightning struck the Vampire for high damage, made even higher by the Electric Charge on the Vampire. On top of that, it applied yet another Electric Charge on the Vampire.


    But, it wasn''t done yet. The lightning bounced toward the nearest enemy with Electric Charge: the Viking. It dealt lower damage, but it applied another Electric Charge and bounced yet again!


    Viking and Vampire were the only enemies around with Electric Charge and they were close enough to each other. Thus, Lightning Chain ping-ponged between them for a total of 6 times. The Vampire almost escaped the Golem''s area in the meantime, but it was futile.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    The Vampire blew up. Regardless of distance, Gilbert''s Electrical Explosion set off the 4 Electric Charges inflicted on the Vampire. There was no chance of escaping in the first place.


    Good, that''s one important kill. Optimally, the next target would be Freezer. Unfortunately, he positioned himself too well. Yuel had no idea how to pick Freezer off without putting Gilbert at risk. Therefore, they had no choice but to focus the Viking next.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºAn allied Golem has been destroyed!¡»


    In the end, the enemy took down the Golem. However, they had to pay for it with the deaths of their Vampire and Viking. Only Freezer got away, despite Yuel and Gilbert''s attempt to chase.


    One Golem for two deaths. Was it worth it for the enemy team? In the long run, it would certainly pay off. However, Yuel had no intention dragging this match to that point.


    While the enemies were busy pushing Top, Trever took down Mid Turret and kept pushing all the way to Mid Golem. There was nobody around to halt his progress, so he blitzed through the lane with ease. In the time it took three enemies to finish off the Top Golem, Trever destroyed Mid Turret from 70% HP and brought Mid Golem down to 40% HP. That''s how good a Carry was at pushing during late game.


    Only now, that the Cryomancer respawned and the Freezer returned to base, Trever was forced to retreat. He couldn''t destroy the Golem in time, but this push turned the tides in Mid.


    "Phew, can''t believe this really worked." Trever exhaled once he retreated to safety. "Can''t believe they let me get away with this. Their defense was so tight until now, the heck happened?"


    "It was tight thanks to the Warlock and Cryomancer." Yuel explained. While ComboBreaker was the core of the enemy''s offense, Freezer was the team''s shield. And, both of them were often supported by the Cryomancer, who knew both how to enhance Breaker''s aggression and to solidify Freezer''s defense.


    StormBlitz tackled Freezer''s defense multiple times so far, to no avail. He always knew the right place and time to be at. So, instead of breaking through his defense, it was smarter to dodge it altogether. Based on how passively he played during the laning phase and that he went for a hybrid build instead of full damage, it''s clear he was more comfortable defending than attacking. Therefore, as long as StormBlitz could sidestep his defenses, they didn''t have worry about his offensive potential.


    Back when Trever pushed Mid, the Cryomancer was dead and Freezer was stuck in Top. In other words, the key defender and his backup were both missing, That''s why Yuel ordered to push Mid with that timing.


    "Wow, that''s some deep thoughts right there, bro!" Trever laughed and smacked Yuel on the back. Ugh, it hurt.


    "It isn''t over yet." Gilbert pointed out. "Our Top Golem is out and the other two aren''t exactly healthy either. It was an interesting plan, but I don''t quite see what we gained from it."


    "Pushing all the way through Mid is the only way I see us winning this." Yuel explained. "I know it doesn''t look like we gained much from this, but that''s the only path I saw to victory."


    "Hmm, alright then. What''s next on the menu?"


    "There are multiple options, but... Yeah, I think this one is the best." Yuel nodded to himself. "Dan is about to respawn, so he, Gilbert and Trever should go kill the Overlord together."


    "Wow, wow!" Trever exclaimed. "Ain''t that dangerous as heck? They still got two players alive, soon three."


    "I know there''s a huge risk, I believe I said my plan was risky from the beginning." Yuel sighed. Honestly, justifying every little play he suggested was getting tedious. Gilbert''s shot-calls weren''t questioned much, so why only Yuel?


    Sigh, whatever. He had to keep the plan rolling if he wanted the team to grasp victory. To make the discussion short and simple, he brought up his usual argument. "I don''t see us making a comeback if we can''t take the Overlord here."


    "Okay, gotcha." Trever nodded, satisfied with this overly simple explanation. Well, he was a simpleton, after all.


    "You sure like busing the ''this is the only option'' argument." Gilbert pointed.


    "Ugh, well...." Yuel had nothing to say back. Thankfully, Gilbert kept his voice low, so only Yuel could hear that remark. There''s no telling how the rest would react upon hearing that, so he was thankful Gilbert didn''t call him out on this. It''s clear Gilbert harbored some doubts regarding Yuel''s game plan, yet he kept giving Yuel chances to prove it was going to lead to victory. Yuel couldn''t tarnish this trust, he had to make his plan work no matter what.


    "Anyway, you three do the Overlord while I occupy the enemy team." Yuel explained. "Dan, buy Teleport so you can get to the Overlord faster."


    "Wait a minute," Dan made a face. "You want me to spend gold on a utility skill? Even though I lost my full build for Deus Shield?"


    "Yes. Getting to the Overlord as fast as possible is top priority."


    "Is that so." Dan rolled his eyes. "But, if it''s just me, Trever and Gil, who gonna tank the Overlord? I don''t think Trever''s lifesteal gonna cut it."


    "You will."


    "Eh?"


    "You have Deus Shield and you can buy a Lv.1 Mistmail after buying Sprint, thanks to the gold we got when Trever destroyed the Mid Turret."


    "Heh, so your plan all along was to turn me into a bruiser."


    "Yes, that''s the idea." Yuel nodded. That''s a decision he made after evaluating Dan''s worth as an assassin this match.


    As an assassin, Dan''s job was to pick off key targets, namely the Carry and Mid. However, said key targets, Breaker and Freezer, were irregularities this match. Hybrid Warlock built more defensive items than the typical Mid Laner, so it was harder to burst him down. On the other hand, Combo Pyromancer had such an absurdly high burst that getting close to her spelt immediate doom.


    With all of that considered, it wasn''t worth keeping Dan as an assassin. Even though he had to sacrifice his finished build to make the switch from assassin to bruiser, a half-baked bruiser was going to be more impactful than full-fledged assassin right now. Especially, since the bruiser build allowed him to tank the Overlord''s destructive attacks.


    "Hmm, so the Deus Shield idea wasn''t just to stall their Pyro." Gilbert nodded to himself after hearing the gist of Yuel''s reasoning.


    "Aha! I knew it!" Dan exclaimed. "That kamikaze was just the prologue. I knew I was meant for greater things!" He happily followed Yuel''s instructions now, without raising further objections.


    [Phew, it went through.] Yuel sighed in relief. Dan wasn''t a simpleton like Trever, so it was harder to convince him play along with tactics he found questionable. Fortunately, Yuel managed to eloquently present his reasoning in a way that resonated with Dan. He should really practice this skill some more.


    "He bought it, huh." Gilbert smirked. "You sure know how to excite them about your unconventional plays."


    "It may have become a habit." Yuel shrugged. "I spend too much time with a goof who has to be excited about doing things he doesn''t fully agree with, otherwise he''ll throw a tantrum."


    "I see." Gilbert chucked. "So, destroying the Mid Turret gave Dan just enough gold to buy both Teleport and Mistmail. And, we got a convenient Checkpoint Ward not too far from the Overlord. Then, there''s also me and Trever being close to the Overlord, so we can start right away. Was that all part of the plan?"


    "Yes, I considered your future positions and gold after the ''kamikaze'' play." Yuel nodded. "Are you saying I missed something?"


    "No, not at all. On the contrary, you thought everything so thoroughly I can''t find anything to nitpick. Your plan started off on the wrong foot with me, but it''s coming together now.."


    "Oh, thank you." Yuel smiled. He felt awkward for taking away the shot-caller role from Gilbert and suggesting plays which GIlbert couldn''t agree with. But, it seemed they were finally on the same page.


    "So, we''re seriously going for the Overlord? In this situation?" Trever asked. "This is risky as hell, guys."


    "But hey, it''s ''our only way to win''." Gilbert parroted Yuel''s cheap excuse. "I agree, it IS one hell of a risky play. But, let''s give it a chance anyway. If we take the Overlord here, I can see us actually winning. That''s already way better than anything we had before."


    "Heh, so we''re going all in because we got nothing else? That''s ballsy. I like it!" Trever grinned and dashed toward the Overlord. The strike team consisting of Trever, Gilbert and Dan was finally in agreement. The next and most critical step in Yuel''s plan was about to begin.


    "Roi, join me in Mid when you respawn." Yuel requested. "With just their Warlock and Cryo, they don''t have enough offense. I want to lock them in their base."


    "Roger. Let''s imprison these scrubs, lol." Roi grinned. "Though, their Pyro is coming back soon."


    "No problem, there''s still twenty seconds." Yuel said after examining ComboBreaker''s respawn timer. Twenty seconds was a good number. There was much they could achieve in that time, such as taking out the Overlord. That''s exactly how Yuel envisioned this situation, all the way back when he ordered Dan to commit "kamikaze".


    Dan''s suicide attack on ComboBreaker looked like simple a 1-for-1 on surface, but it was more than that. Dan died some time before Breaker, so he respawned before her as well. In addition, Breaker was on a killing spree at the time, so her respawn time was extended upon being shut down. It''s a comeback mechanic in game, which Yuel abused to the fullest here.


    Thanks to that, Yuel and Roi had plenty of time to push Mid and force the enemy to react. While the enemies were busy defending Mid, Trever, Gilbert and Dan met up near the Overlord''s camp and started their raid. Everything proceeded smoothly, just as Yuel envisioned it. The remaining question was how well his diversion, that of him and Roi being in Mid, would work on the enemy,


    "Okay, I''m back, boys!" Jennifer announced as her Pyromancer FINALLY respawned. Jeez, that only took forever. "Let''s get these guys dead and push Mid all the way!"


    "Something is wrong here..." Alex mumbled.


    "Heh, conspiracy theories again?" Jennifer chuckled.


    "I just don''t get it." Alex titled his head. "They pushed Mid all the way to the Golem and had a 5v2 situation. Why switch back to defense so soon? I don''t see what the Paladin and Knight are trying to achieve in Mid alone. It''s like they''re buying time..."


    "Meh, no point overthinking how potatos play." Jennifer shrugged. "I also think they should''ve went all out in Mid while they had the chance, maybe then they''d actually get somewhere. Though, I''m sure we would''ve crushed them anyway."


    "I haven''t seen the rest of their team for a while now. Maybe they''re doing Overlord?"


    "No way." Jennifer shook her head. "Both their tanks are here. Their Ranger didn''t build enough lifesteal to tank stuff, so they don''t have anybody else to soak damage."


    "Yeah, you''re right..." Alex answered reluctantly.


    "C''mon, enough with the conspiracy theories already. Just focus on what''s in front of you."


    "I wonder, how do you explain their recent absence?"


    "Easy. Their Electro and Ranger were injured, right? So, they retreated to base. And, the Lancer respawned just a little before me, so he didn''t get anywhere yet. Relax, nobody is doing Overlord-"


    ¡ºAn enemy defeated the Overlord!¡»


    "SAY WHAT!?" Jennifer jumped.


    "Told you so." Alex sighed.


    "But how!? Who tanked it!?"


    "Hmm. Their Lancer, probably?"


    "How does that even work? He has an assassin build, he can''t- Oh. OOOH!" Everything clicked in Jennifer''s head! Last time she faced the Lancer, he had a Lv.3 Deus Shield and an empty item slot. Right! He must had discarded his assassin build and went for a bruiser build! If he bought at least one more defensive items, tanking the Overlord was possible. Rough, but possible..[ Shit, that''s how they did it! Dang it!]


    "They totally had us there. Grrrr" Jennifer hissed. "I bet they''re planning to go full gas in Mid."


    "Most likely." Alex nodded. "With the Overlord buff, they actually got a chance to break through."


    "Nah, not happening! Not under my watch!" Jennifer proclaimed. "The 3v5 at the beginning gonna be rough, but once we stop them - the game is ours! Let''s do this, boys!"


    "Yeah!"


    "Go go go!"


    Everybody roared along with Jennifer, except for the lazy bum. "Yeah, let''s go and all that..."


    Losing the Overlord was a nasty blow, but so what? They were still a hundred thousand percent gonna win this thing! No question about it! Without losing any spirit, the Leopards prepared to hold their ground in the game''s most critical moment yet.


    "We''llt push Mid once everybody gets here." Yuel explained.


    "No shit, Sherlock." Roi chuckled.


    "Let''s go, boys!" Trever howled.


    "This is probably our first and last chance to win this," Gilbert said. "Don''t mess up."


    "Huh, turns out my kamikaze may win us the whole game." Dan smiled wryly. "What can I say? Awesome."


    They had a real chance at winning now, everybody felt it. Through a sequence of unconventional plays, Yuel turned this hopeless match around. The whole time, he doubted whether such high-risk high-reward tactics would work in a competitive match. Fortunately, they were were plenty effective. Now that he came this far, he was going to trust his tactics until the very end!


    "First, we should take out their Warlock." Yuel said. "Trever, can you set a trap? I''ll pull him into it."


    "No problem."


    The most dangerous player on the enemy team was ComboBreaker, with her scary burst potential. However, the one who influenced team fights the most and made life difficult for everybody - was Freezer. His hybrid build allowed him control team fights via enhanced CC effects, while still dishing out decent damage. Each time StormBlitz faced Freezer directly: they either lost the team fight, or were stalled for so long that they had no choice but give up on.


    Therefore, Freezer was the first objective. Until they eliminate the enemy''s defensive key player, there''s no chance of moving forward.


    "Let''s pretend we''re going all in right off the bat." Yuel said. "Move forward aggressively, but don''t spend any of your important skills yet."


    "Roger." Trever saluted.


    "Sounds good." Gilbert nodded.


    "Lol, let''s do this, bois!" Roi shouted.


    "So, we''re baiting, huh. Sounds like fun." Dan smiled mischievously.


    This was it, the decisive fight. They were either going to push through or fal. Either way, the game would be decided by the outcome of this final assault.


    "Here they come!" Jennifer announced. "They''re going full force, don''t hold anything back! We''ve beaten the crap outta them like twenty times already, so let''s do that again!"


    "Right!"


    "No problem!"


    "Of course."


    "Whatever..."


    Despite the recent losses, the Leopards'' morale was at an all time high. No matter how bad things got, Jennifer never doubted their victory. Her mental image hadn''t changed even once throughout the match. It was the image of her team, trampling over a bunch of inexperienced scrub. Maintaining this positive image was "50% of the victory", according to their coach. Among everybody on the team, and maybe even among everybody in the whole club, Jennifer excelled at crafting an unwavering mental image better than anybody.


    "Heh, look at these amateurs." Jennifer shook her head. "They''re going all out because they got the Overlord buff, thinking they''re all that. We gonna stop them here! Alex, use your ult! Quick!"


    "I got it already, no need to yell in my ear..." Alex cracked his neck and sighed. This gung-ho atmosphere was so not him. Couldn''t this chick play quietly for once? Well, whatever. "You sure you want me to ult right away? That''s usually our trump card for team fights."


    "Yeah, let ''em have it! Just look how hard they''re pushing, we got this fight in the bag once we hold them down."


    "If you say so." Alex wasn''t as convinced, especially considering the enemy''s recent movements. They played aggressive, but smart. Therefore, risking everything on one reckless push didn''t sound like them. Well, either way, this hyper aggressive play put Alex between a rock and a hard place. He didn''t want to spend his ult before confirming the enemy''s game plan, but he also couldn''t possibly allow them push the Golem as they pleased.


    There was no choice here, not really. He activated Eldritch Nightmare, wrapping the whole area in darkness. The effectiveness of the CC was greatly mitigated compared to its full potential, because all five enemies were caught in its range. It didn''t entirely rob their vision and didn''t slow them that much, but it did its job of disorienting them. It should be enough to thwart the enemy''s hyper aggressive push... That is, if they really planned to push this aggressively in the first place.


    As soon as Alex activated Eldritch Nightmare, the whole enemy team fell back. Their reaction was smooth, as if they planned to retreat like that from the get-go.


    "Wha!? How did they get away so fast?" Jennifer exclaimed.


    "They baited us. What a pain..." Alex rolled his eyes. He suspected the enemy''s hyper push was a trap, but there''s no way their idiot captain was going to listen to him anyway. Whatever. The match was probably already decided, it''s just a matter of time now...


    "Watch out for the pull!"


    "Huh? Ah!" Tree branches stretched in Alex''s direction. He had to dodge! Roll aside! Quick... Shit.


    The Druid''s branches pulled the Warlock right into the center of the enemy team. They ripped Alex apart like a pack of hungry wolves. It was over. Oh well.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "How the hell ya didn''t dodge that!?" Jennifer ranted.


    "Yeah, my bad." Alex averted his eyes and sighed. That pull wasn''t hard to dodge, he understood that in his head. But, for some reason his body failed to catch up with his thoughts. How annoying.


    "Behold, that''s what happens when you slack so much! If you bothered showing your damn face more often in the club, you''d dodge that kind of stuff no problem."


    "Yeah, yeah. Whatever." Alex shrugged. Seriously, this chick was such a pain. Well, none of that mattered anyway, they pretty already lost. At least, he left the stage early and could take a break now.


    "Okay, this one went smooth!" Trever said. "Good pull on that Warlock, man. You totally caught the guy off guard."


    "Thank you." Yuel smirked. He cooked up that calculated pull after observing how Freezer reacted to various combat scenarios.


    Freezer was on the top of his game when his opponents played aggressively. However, his movements turned strangely sluggish the moment his enemies made a defensive play. Whether it was due to a lack of experience or a lack of practice, Yuel couldn''t tell. Either way, this glaring weakness in Freezer''s defense was something Yuel couldn''t ignore.


    As soon as the team switched from hyper aggression to playing defense, Yuel took advantage of Freezer''s momentary confusion. It was risky, since a telegraphed Nature''s Grasp was easy enough to dodge from this distance. Luckily, the play paid off big time.


    With the Warlock out of the picture, StormBlitz gained extra breathing room. The key enemy defender was out, so nobody was going to punish them too hard for playing greedily.


    Nothing was 100% guaranteed yet, but everybody in StormBlitz felt they were about to settle this. They had unstoppable momentum right now and were going to push with it all the way to the enemy Colossus.


    Regardless of how the push was going to turn out, this is where the match would be decided!

 34 Destroyer of Optimal Plays

    After eliminating Freezer, their greatest obstacle in team fights, StormBlitz pushed Mid Lane with full force. With the Overlord''s buff providing defense and regeneration to the whole team, they were unstoppable.


    "Man, they''re so persistent!" Jennifer clicked her tongue. Due to that stupid Overlord buff, her combo burst couldn''t wreck enemies as quickly as before. It was still explosive enough to wipe out squishy targets, like the enemy Ranger and Electromancer, but that pesky Druid got in the way.


    Somehow, that damn Druid always put a shield on Jennifer''s next target, right as she was about to start her combo. The heck with that perfect timing? It''s hard to believe a freshman could make such smooth plays. "Dang it, must be beginner''s luck. We''re so getting styled on right now."


    Despite the overwhelming disadvantage, the Leopards did a good job protecting their Mid Golem. They body-blocked many of the Ranger''s shots, giving up their lives for this noble cause.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    After a grindy battle, only Jennifer was left to guard the Golem. But, she was gonna pull through! The Leopards'' super minions pushed Top this whole time, they were about to invade the enemy''s base. The enemy team was running out of time, they''d have to retreat if Jennifer were to stall them just a little longer.


    No matter what, Jennifer was gonna make sure this defense operation was a success. Albert, Cody and Joey - their deaths won''t in vain! Alex''s didn''t count though, that idiot got himself killed first like some Bronze V scrub.


    Unfortunately, the enemy still had their Ranger, Knight and Druid, That sucked. Hard. The good news: these three were running low on HP and the Druid just recently used Gaia''s Protection, so no more pesky shields for at least 15 seconds.


    Jennifer''s ult was about to come online, so she''d be in a great position to finish off these dying scrubs. This match wasn''t decided yet! She was gonna destroy these cucklords!


    "What we gonna, man?" Trever asked. "She''s zoning us real hard."


    "This is rough." Yuel bit his lip. "I didn''t expect such tight defense without the Warlock. That was a miscalculation on my part."


    The team was stuck in an awkward position. The enemy Golem was down to 20% HP, an amount Trever could wipe out in a matter of seconds. However, they exhausted a lot of resources to get this far, including their HP. Normally, this late into the game, Druid and Knight could tank the Golem long enough for Trever to seal the deal. However, neither Yuel not Roi had enough HP to pull that off right now. The enemy insisted to stall StormBlitz''s push at any cost, so they didn''t pull any punches even against tanks.


    The enemy showed unrelenting determination and perseverance, that was the core of Yuel''s miscalculation. Based on the individual performance of each enemy so far, Yuel estimated there''s a high chance StormBlitz would successfully push through. However, the enemy players shattered this prediction to pieces. It''s like the idea of losing didn''t even cross their minds, they gave their all until the bitter end.


    In fact, the Leopards even went on the offensive a couple of times during their defense. That put immense pressure on StormBlitz. The tiniest misplay could result in the enemy stealing the initiative. StormBlitz were supposed to be the predators in this situation, yet their prey was ready to pounce at them at the first opportunity.


    That''s how Dan and Gilbert were eliminated. Even though Yuel always predicted who ComboBreaker gunned for, he failed to keep his allies alive. With Breaker as the vanguard, the enemy displayed relentless retaliation. Yuel never faced such overwhelming aggression from a cornered enemy before.


    Such intensity, such strength. So, this is how a real competitive match felt like. It was so thrilling! Even after he analyzed and deconstructed every opponent, the enemy continued to surprise him and overwhelm StormBlitz. Honestly, he probably wasn''t even going to feel too bad about losing to such strong opponents.


    Nevertheless, his brain didn''t stop racing. After coming this far, he wanted to win. There had to be a way! The enemy only had one defender left!


    Option 1: Yuel and Roi would occupy Breaker, while Trever would destroy the Golem. At best, Yuel and Roi would be exchanged for a Golem. Trever might or might not escape alive.


    A bad idea. There were more enemies who died before StormBlitz''s players, so they were going to respawn first. Considering how long the respawn times were at this point, the respawned enemies would easily push all the way to the Colossus before StormBlitz can regroup, especially with Breaker still in the game.


    Option 2: Retreat and wait for the team to regroup, then try settling the match with one final 5v5. Better than option 1, but still shaky. Judging by how much trouble they had pushing Mid with 5v4 and an Overlord buff, they were going to lose that 5v5. Not to mention, the enemy was going to regroup faster thanks to their earlier respawn, so StormBlitz would start the fight at a disadvantage.


    Option 3...


    Option 4...


    ...


    Option 27...


    [Think! Think! There has to be something! ]He searched and searched, simulating countless scenarios in his head. The best ideas led to facing Breaker here and now, but how could he break through her? Was there anything she lacked? Anything she was bad at? No matter how many times he went over the data in his head, he pictured Breaker as a bulletproof player with abundance of skill and experience.


    In fact, thanks to Breaker playing so optimally, Yuel successfully countered a few of her assaults in the recent fight. She gunned hard for Trever and Gilbert, the two damage dealers. That''s the optimal tactic in virtually any team fight, so Yuel always withheld Gaia''s Protection until Breaker made her move, then countered her.


    Repeating this routine, he successfully kept Trever alive. However, he wasn''t as lucky with Gilbert, who got rushed down by the enemy team after Breaker injured him. So, even when Yuel knew how Breaker was going to play, it wasn''t possible to thwart her plans 100% of the time.


    The same applied to the current situation. Even though he had a good idea how Breaker was going to play against each option Yuel came up with, that didn''t help him find a decisive move to strike her down with. If such a checkmate existed, he wasn''t able to read the necessary moves toward it.


    "Lemme handle this chick." Roi said. "I''mma send her balls flying all the way to the stand!"


    "You want to parry her attacks?" Yuel was taken aback, surprised both by Roi''s sudden suggestion and by the fact he somehow understood Roi''s nonsensical baseball lingo.


    "Yeah, lemme at her. You two focus the Golem, I''mma cover your asses."


    "Can you actually hit her basics, though?" Gilbert asked. "You better not be making things up, this is a critical moment."


    "Heh, who do you think you''re talking to?" Roi grinned. "I''m the cleanup hitter! There''s no ball I can''t hit!"


    "Yeah, very convincing from someone who couldn''t parry a single attack the whole match." Gilbert made a face. "You think I didn''t see you try? Your swings missed beautifully."


    "T-That was just warm up! Don''t worry, man! I got a good feel for her timing, so I''mma hit her pitches when it counts!"


    "Can''t say I''m convinced." Gilbert shrugged. "But, at the same time, I don''t see what else we got. What do you think, Yuel?"


    "Eh? Me?" Yuel blinked.


    "Yes, you. You''re the shot-caller right now, remember? I''ve run out of ideas a long time ago. Their Top minions almost reached our base, so we don''t have much time. If you got anything good, you better speak up. Now. "


    "I... don''t have anything at the moment." Yuel admitted.


    "That''s sad, we came so far too." Gilbert sighed. "Alright, then what do you say about entrusting the match to this baseball geek? I''m not a fan, personally. I think our best bet is to retreat and regroup. The odds won''t be in our favor, but we may have a chance to beat them in one final 5v5."


    "I... I need a moment to think." Yuel requested a timeout. Roi''s suggestion threw him for a loop, he needed a moment to process this new data. The countless tactics he crafted so far didn''t factor this new input, so he had to put them aside for a moment and rethink everything from scratch.


    Roi was amazing at parrying. Yuel knew that first-hand, since he learned the art from the guy himself. While Yuel couldn''t even dream of parrying a single attack from Breaker with his current skill, Roi might actually pull it off. If so, it''d be a huge play for the team. But, what if he were to fail?


    That didn''t matter, since all of Yuel''s ideas so far involved risk. There''s no dodging risk while aggressively pushing from behind, so, there''s no point worrying about the "worst case" scenario. No matter which tactic he was going to pick, its "worst case" wasn''t going to look pretty.


    Therefore, he only had to consider the "average" and "best" cases. Suppose Roi was going to parry at least some of Breaker''s shots, what new doors would that open? What kind of new play could be born from there?


    Judging by all the skills currently cooldown, considering Breaker''s optimal plays, taking into account the Golem''s remaining HP and..


    [It''s possible. ]Yuel nodded to himself. A lot was going to ride on Roi''s ability to hold his ground against Breaker for at least a couple of seconds. But, if successful, there were multiple sequences of play which would led to Breaker''s defeat. Despite the many uncertainties, it was most likely the best play they had available right now. At least, the best out of everything he could come up with on the spot.


    "Let''s do it." Yuel said.


    "You see a victory beyond that? Just curious." Gilbert asked.


    "Yes, it can get us all the way to the Colossus." Yuel nodded. "But, everything is riding on Roi''s ability to parry at least some of these fireballs."


    "Leave it to me!" Roi gave a thumb up.


    "I really hope he''s not making shit up." Gilbert sighed. "Anyway, if you really believe this can convert into a victory, then I got nothing to say. We''ve already done crazier stuff under your lead, no point stopping now."


    "Let''s stay crazy until the end, guys!" (Trever)


    "Yeah! Let''s goooo! I''mma show that combo memer she got nothing on my batting!" (Roi)


    "You better score a home run here. Focus on the batter, Sir Cleanup." (Dan)


    "We''ll probably lose if you screw this up," Gilbert said. "But, we''ll [definitely ]lose if you don''t even try. So, good luck."


    It was a critical moment, the next play was going to make or break the game. The pressure should had been maddening, yet Yuel felt strangely calm. The two loud goofs shouted all sorts of encouraging nonsense, while Gilbert and Dan balanced them out with rationality. Yuel was surrounded by strong and reliable teammates, they knew how to maintain a high morale at all situations. No matter how much they struggled this match, they refused to give up. That''s what it meant to be a competitive player.


    "Before we begin, I need a trap." Yuel addressed Trever.


    "Hm?" Trever tilted his head. "Who do you expect to step on it? Meh, screw logic. Where do you want it?"


    "Around here." Yuel pinged the map.


    "Wut? This close to the Golem? Dunno what you got in mind, but sounds spicy. Here ya go."


    With this, preparations were set. Yuel, Trever and Roi invaded the Golem''s range, opening StormBlitz''s final attack. Yuel and Trever stopped shortly in front of the Golem and started attacking right away. Meanwhile, Roi proceeded ahead, covering them front the frontline


    [If you wanna touch mah bois, first you gotta go through me! ]Roi faced Breaker head on. This was it. The other team was in the lead and it was the bottom of the ninth inning. With two outs and no runners on bases, the cleanup hitter entered the batting box!


    These pumping clutch situations, when everything came down to wire, were Roi''s favorite stuff about sports. The whole team''s fate was riding on his bat, he had to pull this shit off! After taking a deep breath, he filtered out the noise around him. Only the pitcher in front of him mattered.


    "So, they finally came to die. Heh." Jennifer licked her lips. She thought their makeshift team was filled with nobodies, but they sure knew how to make things exciting. They had been making one interesting play after another and this attack was no different. She was sure the Druid and Knight were going to rush her, buying time for the Ranger to destroy the Golem. So, she already mentally prepared to blink through them and combo the shit outta the Ranger, winning the game on the spot.


    But, only the Knight rushed her. The Ranger and Druid stayed behind and focused the Golem.... Wait. the Knight also stopped? He just stood there, a little ahead of his pals, as if saying "Come at me, bro!". What the actual heck? Was it some desperate dumb move?


    Wait, no. She thought the same about their last couple of plays as well, until they worked out in ways she couldn''t even fathom. Was it yet another one of these freakish plays? What were they going for here?


    ["Don''t think too hard, it won''t do you any good anyway." ]Coach often told her that, basically calling her dumb. "[Focus on the situation and on what you have to do."]


    Right, it didn''t matter. Thinking too hard about these things was never Jennifer''s forte anyway. She simply couldn''t combine thinking and acting into one package, maybe she was really a little dumb or something.


    Anyway, it wasn''t all bad. Combo players needed pitch-perfect execution to do their job, which required unbreakable concentration. She wasn''t good at thinking and acting at the same time, but as a result - she excelled at separating the two and concentrating 100% on one at a time. This granted her flawless combo execution, which many tried and failed to achieve.


    There was probably something hiding in the enemy''s play, but so what? She''d simply crush them through sheer strength! That''s how she played until now and that''s how she gonna keep playing!


    First, she''d weaken the Knight with her basic attacks, to set him up for an easy kill. Next, she''d finish off the remaining scrubs with her ult. Simple, strong and effective. That''s all her plans ever had to be.


    She took a deep breath, filtering out the world around her. For the first step, only the Knight in front of her mattered. Equipped with the mental image of her inevitable victory, she fired basic attacks at the Knight.


    [Here comes the first pitch! ]Roi clenched his mouse. This was the decisive moment, here and now! He already faced Breaker''s pitches before, but he was always struck out. However, thanks to these bitter experiences, he picked up on Breaker''s pitching style. [Always right in middle, it gonna be a meatball for sure!]


    Roi swung his blade and... it connected! The parry was a success! It insta-cancelled his attack, allowing him to swing at Breaker''s second fireball right away, despite her superior attack speed. The second swing made contact too, destroying the fireball! Two home runs in a row!


    "Eat that, lol!" Roi grinned. Finally, he also contributed something valuable to the team. Trever was the team''s pusher, Gilbert handled shot-calling throughout most of the match, Yuel came up with crazy plans and Dan made a sick kamikaze play.


    Compared to these fine plays, what cool stuff did Roi achieve this game? None, really. But, now was his time to shine! His parries were about to make the whole difference between winning and losing the match!


    In a world separate from the rest, he faced the enemy pitcher as a batter. All his attention was concentrated on her moves, on her reactions. Thanks to watching her so closely, he parried the third shot as well. Ez, lol.


    Honestly, it''s not like Breaker''s shots were bad or anything like that. On the contrary, she aimed right in the middle of his character model, making her shots as difficult as possible to dodge. However, when it came to batting, there''s nothing easier than a meatball!


    "A parry player!?" Jennifer exclaimed. What were the odds!? Nobody bothered learning parrying in Classmancers! It was a meme, dang it!


    "Heh, seems like they also got a memer on their side."


    "Must be your soulmate, Jenny. Haha."


    "Oh shut up." Jennifer gritted her teeth. Parries were the bane of combo builds which relied on basic attacks, such as her Combo Pyromancer which relied on the debuff from Demonic Arm. Nobody took parrying seriously in her club, so she didn''t have much experience facing it. Nevertheless...!


    [Don''t underestimate me, damn memer! ]Jennifer roared internally and altered the angle of her next attack. It''s true she didn''t have experience fighting a real parry player, but she studied counters and practiced them on other club members. No matter how niche parrying was, it''s still the bane of her playstyle, so she couldn''t possibly ignore its existence. Being prepared to every situation, no matter how unlikely, was the only way combo players could thrive on the battlefield!


    "Whoa! A breaking ball!?" Roi swung his bat against the usual meatball, but his sword sliced through empty air. Breaker slightly altered the angle of her shot right before firing, it was just enough to throw off Roi''s timing. The fireball hit his shoulder, which spelled doom.


    "Shit! Sorry, I done goofed." Roi already knew what was coming. The Pyromancer''s attack speed was leagues ahead of his, so without insta-cancelling - his bat couldn''t keep up with her pitches anymore. There''s no second chance for him, it was a strikeout.


    [Yes! That''s it! ]Jennifer grinned. Her first face-off against a parry player and she won! Hell yeah! Her training wasn''t in vain!


    Her first hit followed up by three more hits, which the Knight wasn''t even fast enough to challenge. After four full hits, Demonic Arm''s defense debuff was in full effect. Now, she just had to combo the Knight and Ranger to death and it''d be over.


    Taking into account the skill''s casting speed, she started off with Blaze of Inferno. She drew a trail of fire leading from the Knight to the Ranger, ready to unleash a blaze on both of them.


    But first, she had to proc the effect of Spellbook of Doom. Before Blaze of Inferno actually started hitting the targets, she scorched the ground underneath them with Pillar of Fire. The timing was just right. As soon as Pillar of Fire proc''d Spellbook of Doom, the flames of Inferno emerged from thin air to burn her opponents.


    The follow up was instantaneous, leaving her enough time to blink and add Flame Wave to the combo. That''s gonna settle the match once and for all!


    "Right!"


    "Left!"


    Trever and Roi shouted, confirming they were going to dodge in opposite directions like they planned. Yuel already foresaw Breaker''s most likely play for this situation, so the team was well prepared.


    With Trever and Roi dodging in opposite directions, they put Breaker on the spot. She had to decide which them she was going after, since the range of Flame Wave wasn''t enough to reach them both. At least, not with ease.


    It was possible on paper, but she had only about a second to make her move. Could she find the best spot to blink to? In such a small window of time?


    "Tch, don''t mess with me!" Jennifer roared. Her enemies started rolling in opposite directions, trying to throw her off. Thanks to the slowdown from Pillar of Fire, it was like her prey moved in slow motion. She could see every move! They weren''t getting away!


    Rolling in opposite directions was a natural counter for such situations, so of course Jennifer knew about it. To become a competitive level combo player, she had to study not only the optimal combo plays, but also their best counters. She practiced countless sceneries with her teammates, imprinting all the optimal responses onto her brain.


    Therefore, her body reacted without even thinking. It didn''t matter she had only one second, her body was wired to make the optimal play in every situation. There was no hesitation or calculation, simply action.


    She blinked forward, placing herself diagonally to both targets. From this position, with this angle - she could destroy them both! It was the only spot from which Flame Wave had enough range to hit both the Knight and Ranger. Yeah, it was the stuff! Her body reacted perfectly!


    "Ah!?" She gasped. Her fingers already inputted command for Flame Wave, everything went smoothly. But. But. But, there were branches. Branches. Branches! BRANCHES!? They were getting closer and closer, about to devour her.


    "N-No! No way!!!"


    Indeed, she made the optimal play. She blinked to the best spot for hitting both her targets, the ONLY spot available for that. But, precisely because it was the one and only optimal move for her - it was predictable.


    [Thank you for playing your best even in this tough situation. ]Yuel smiled. Truly, Breaker deserved respect. She reacted to everything with speed and efficiency, always aiming for the best plays.


    And, because of how highly he regarded Breaker, he put his faith in her in this critical situation. He trusted her to move to the best location available, which is why he confidently fired Nature''s Grasp toward that spot ahead of time.


    Nature''s Grasp was a thin skillshot, so landing it quickly on a blinking enemy was nigh impossible, especially for a mechanical scrub like Yuel. But, since he perfectly predicted her position after the blink - he made perfect contact! The tree branches reached Breaker and pulled her toward him, before she even got the chance to fire Flame Wave.


    At his feet laid a Beartrap, which he asked Trever to set up. Breaker was pulled right into it, getting stunned. Trever seized this opportunity, switching his focus from the Golem to Breaker. It was over.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºAn enemy Golem has been destroyed!¡»


    From there, the push was smooth. They invaded the enemy base and fought the Colossus, destroying it before the enemy team got to respawn.


    ¡ºVICTORY¡»


    "Yeah! We did it!" Roi pumped a fist.


    "That pull was hot, kid!" Trever rubbed Yuel''s hair, which was annoying to say the least. But, Yuel couldn''t bring himself to say anything back. His heart still raced from the events of the past minute. Everything happened so quickly, as if in a flash.


    "We really did it, huh." Gilbert took a deep sigh of relief, still processing the ¡ºVICTORY¡» on the screen.


    "Heh," Dan chuckled "Turns out Suicide Lancer is the new meta, guys."


    It was just the first match out of five, but they celebrated as if they already won the entire thing. Hard to blame them, considering how impossible comeback they made against such a strong team. Even Yuel started losing hope toward the end, until Roi suggested that brilliant parrying idea. If not for that, there''s no telling how the match would had turned out..


    While everybody rejoiced they won this impossible match, Yuel also celebrated a personal victory. It''s the first time his skills were put to test in a competitive match and they passed with flying colors. Facing strong opponents like Howard and Ellen on a daily basis made him questions the limits of his tactics, but they proved themselves plenty effective even on the real stage. Of course, this was still just a second string match, but it was a huge achievement nonetheless.


    After each game, the teams were given a 10 minutes break. Everybody left their chairs at once, joking about "Dan the Kamikaze God" and what not. However, Gilbert stayed behind, still staring at the match''s statistics.


    "Is something wrong?" Yuel asked.


    "We really won this, huh." Gilbert still couldn''t quite come to terms with this reality. "When I made you the shot-caller, I was sure we''re already doomed. I''ve been making the best calls I could come up with, but it didn''t get us anywhere. So, I pretty much gave up."


    "You didn''t make any mistakes, at least not from what I can tell." Yuel said. "Your calls were solid, it''s thanks to them that we lasted for so long."


    "But, they were nowhere near good enough." Gilbert shook his head. "I was sure the only we can win is by playing defensively and waiting for the enemy to mess up. But then, you came around and turned everything on its head, starting with Dan''s kamikaze. That suicide play was so mind-boggling, I could never come up with something like that. Seriously, just what are your and Howard''s brains made of?"


    "Well..." What could Yuel possibly say? It''s not the first time he''s told by others they couldn''t understand how he came up with his strategies, and it surely wasn''t the last. Even after coming all the way to the competitive scene, he still couldn''t escape this curse. So annoying.


    "Well, whatever." Gilbert shrugged and stood up. "You''ve proved yourself this match, so be ready - you''re the shot-caller next game too."


    "R-Really!?"


    "Of course, why the surprise? You totally owned the late game. Everybody will agree you''re the better shot-caller."


    "But, you also did a good-"


    "No, no need for that." Gilbert tapped on Yuel''s shoulder and smiled wryly. "I''ve been hanging long enough around Howard to realize I''m nothing special. If handing you the shot-caller role is going to increase our chances of winning, I''m fine with that. I''ll do what I do best, so you do what you do best. Simple as that."


    "I understand." Yuel nodded. "I''ll make sure to not disappoint."


    "No big deal, I''ll just take the role back if you mess up." Gilbert chuckled. Was it just a joke? Or, perhaps what he truly wished to happen? After all, despite everything Yuel said to console Gilbert, he actually wanted to hold onto the shot-caller role and never let go of it. Their feelings must had been mutual on the matter, but Gilbert was mature enough to surrender the role for the sake of the team.


    Just half a year ago, Yuel was a mere examinee applying for the Classmancers club. Since then, he climbed all the way to the second string and became its shot-caller. It was arguably the highest position on the second string, right beside the captain. In a sense, he was closer to the first string than anybody else here. Soon, he''d definitely climb to the first string and take Howard''s position for himself! The closer he got to his goal, the stronger his spirit burned!


    But, before any of that, there was still a long fight awaiting him in the second string.


    "You gotta be shitting me..." Jennifer just sat there, staring blankly at her screen. How? Why? Didn''t she make the best moves available for her? Didn''t she play that last move perfectly?


    "Man, can''t believe we lost this..."


    "These guys are actually pretty strong, dang it."


    The morale of the Leopards was at an all time low. They dominated the whole game! They were going to win for sure! These confident thoughts blew up in their faces, delivering a heavy blow to their high spirits. Only one player escaped that, since he was at low spirits in the first place.


    "Well," Alex shrugged. "They got us the moment they took the Overlord."


    "That''s bullshit!" Jennifer slammed on the table. "You gave up, didn''t you? I saw that shit! You stood there like a damn scarecrow when the Druid pulled you! We could''ve won if you just got your ass outta there in time!"


    "Big words for someone who also lost by being pulled." Alex sneered. "Very captain-like of you to shift all the blame on your teammate."


    "You little shit...!" Jennifer''s fists trembled, she ached to leap on that lazy idiot and tear him apart. But, she knew he had a point.


    The momentum really shifted in the enemy''s favor after they took the Overlord. That was a huge oversight on her side, Alex even warned her about that possibility. It didn''t excuse him from being a quitter, but it proved she shared some of the blame too.


    "Alright, no big deal!" Jennifer produced a loud clap, echoing throughout the hall. "They caught us a little off guard in the end there, but we''ve been kicking their asses the whole game. So, we''re clearly better than these scrubs. Change gears and be ready to get revenge, boys!"


    "Yeah!"


    "They won''t get lucky next time!"


    The whole team was psyched. Despite the devastating defeat, not a single member of the Leopards thought they were going to lose again today. The captain''s enthusiasm spread throughout the team like an infection, even Alex wasn''t entirely unaffected.


    [Heh. She has the brains of a monkey, but at least she can talk big.] Alex sneered. [That''s literally the only reason Coach made her the captain. As long as the enemy don''t break her, everybody gonna keep fighting hard. Sigh, what a drag.]


    After tasting defeat in the first round, the Leopards were more pumped than ever. They gonna pay back the favor next game! The StormBlitz vs. Leopards scrimmage was just getting started!

 35 Afterword

    -------- RELEASE SCHEDULE --------


    This is the end of the second volume. I''ve maintained a decent writing pace this time around, so there won''t be a break between volumes. New chapter next week, as usual.


    Releasing more than once a week is sadly not an option right now, but I''m considering shortening chapters to release more frequently. Many readers apparently prefer shorter chapters, so I''ll see if I can do that in the future. Will be glad to hear opinions about that.


    -------- CLASSMANCERS WIKI --------


    I want to announce the Classmancers Wiki: https://classmancers.wikia.com/


    Even though I always try to convey the necessary information in the scenes, sometimes you may want to go back and re-read what a certain class or ability can do. That''s what the wiki is for.


    It''ll be regularly updated as the story progresses. To avoid spoilers, it doesn''t feature classes you haven''t seen much yet. For example, you saw Warlock use Eldritch Nightmare, but nothing else was revealed about its kit yet. Therefore, Warlock isn''t on the wiki at the moment. It''ll be added after you get a closer look at it in the story. Stay tuned for that in volume 3!


    I may expand the wiki further over time, adding items, utility skills and what not. Feel free to drop any suggestions about the wiki and tell me what kind of information you''d like to see the most.


    -------- WHAT''S NEXT --------


    This volume ended with the first match of the scrimmage, but there are four more to go. Will StormBlitz keep on winning? All I can say: the road is still long. The next volume will focus almost entirely on the rest of the scrimmage.


    Yuel went through quite the impressive sequence of promotions this volume. From a mere rookie to the vice-captain of the second string, and at the end he even became the shot-caller. Will he climb even higher!? Next time, on Classmancers! Stay tuned.


    -------- REVIEWS & FEEDBACK --------


    After two volumes, I''m sure all of you formed some opinions about the novel by now. You''re welcome to share them, both the good and the bad. Feel free to talk about how much you hate Ellen and wish her whole family dead LUL


    Reviewing the novel, or even just rating it, will help its growth immensely. It''s a niche type of story which doesn''t get much attention right now, so every little bit of support will go a long way. Share with everybody how much you love the novel! (or how much you hate it, lol)

 36 Strong, but Familiar

    The first StormBlitz vs. Leopards game in the second string ended with a clutch victory for StormBlitz. However, over the break, Yuel learned the first string lost their first match. These were shocking news, considering the first string had juggernauts like Howard, Ellen and Aron.


    "Don''t worry," Howard reassured. "We''ll turn things around next game. You guys focus on your matches and make sure you don''t blow them."


    Despite his words, there was a reason for concern. If somebody of ComboBreaker''s caliber only made it to second string in the Leopards, there''s no telling what monsters inhibited the first string. Even if Howard''s team pick themselves up and do better in the upcoming matches, it''s hard to imagine anything better than a 3-2 or a 2-3 score. And, if things were to come down to the wire like this, the performance of the second string just might decide the overall winner of the scrimmage.


    For starters, the second string had to win at least one more match. That''ll ensure they won''t become a burden for the first string, but that''s just the bare minimum. Yuel wanted to go at least 4-1 to support the first string. A 4-1 in the second string would grant StormBlitz victory even if the first string were to go 2-3.


    Was a 4-1 possible against such a strong team? They had to make it happen somehow. With Yuel now promoted to being the team''s shot-caller, the responsibility for making that possible laid with him.


    After a 10 minutes break, the scrimmage resumed for the second round. First, there''s the drafting phase to deal with. Along with inheriting the shot-caller role, Yuel also was put in charge of the drafting. He already strategized a lot with Gilbert during the previous drafting, but this time he had the final say. That is, provided the whole team wasn''t against his decisions...


    "We really need to get that Pyromancer out of the picture." Gilbert said.


    "Yeah," Trever nodded. "Her combos are such a pain in the ass."


    "Agreed," Dan said. "It''s bad news when the only way we can beat a player is by sacrificing one of ours."


    "Lol." Roi chuckled. "If we take her out, how you gonna use your secret kamikaze technique?"


    It was just the beginning of the drafting phase, but the whole team already agreed on the idea of banning Pyromancer. Yes, the whole team wanted that... expect for Yuel.


    There''s no denying Breaker piloted her Combo Pyromancer exceptionally well, she was the playmaker for the Leopards. Much of the Leopards'' momentum was gained thanks to Breaker''s kills, so she was the biggest threat. Nonetheless, Yuel was against banning the Pyromancer.


    "I... I think we should leave the Pyromancer be." Yuel gulped. His body shook and he felt sweat forming on his forehead, but he refused to stay quiet. He was entrusted with the shot-caller and drafter roles, so he had to make his stance clear. E-Even if it meant objecting against a whole team of upperclassmen.. Gulp.


    "You serious?" Trever cocked his head. "You wanna let her get away with her combo shenanigans like that?"


    "Yeah, I also don''t see the point." Gilbert joined in. "Banning exists precisely for this sort of situations. Judging by how well she played, there''s no way Pyro isn''t her best class."


    "It may be her best class, but it''s a class we''re already saw her play." Yuel argued. "If we ban Pyro, we''ll force her to play something new and we''ll have to study her from scratch again. Combo or not, I''m sure there are other classes she can play just as well. So, banning Pyro won''t necessarily change much for her. It''ll only put us in the dark about what she''ll be playing this time around."


    "Hmm." Gilbert pondered. "So, you rather face something familiar even if it''s strong? An interesting approach. You sound confident, I assume you know how to counter her?"


    "Yes, of course." Yuel nodded. "Now that I learned how she plays Pyro, there are many ways to counter her. Last time, she caught us off guard by cloaking Spellbook of Doom and that generated huge momentum for her team,. But, now that we know what to expect, it won''t happen again."


    "Heh, that''s some balls, kid!" Trever laughed and smacked Yuel on the back. "What a man! I like it!"


    "Ugh, thanks..." Yuel massaged his broken back.


    "Fine, let''s try it." Gilbert nodded. "You managed to get us a win last time, so it''s clear you figured them out pretty well. Worst case, we''ll learn we can''t handle her Pyro and adapt accordingly next time."


    "Challenging her head on? Lol, that''s great!" Roi grinned. "I still gotta pay her back for that nasty breaking ball she threw at the end there. This time I''mma hit all her pitches!"


    "I can''t believe we''re really doing this." Dan sighed. "Well, if you ever need help dealing with her, just call Dan Kamikaze Co.."


    Thanks to Trever and Gilbert''s approval, the rest of the team went along with Yuel''s decision. Phew. He felt stiff like a statue the whole time he fought for it, but now he could finally breathe in relief.


    Though, new pressure dropped on his shoulders instead: after saying so much, he had to prove he could really counter the Combo Pyromancer. But, it should be fine. It had to be. Now, that they were aware of the Combo Pyromancer ahead of time, there were countless ways to prepare. Everything was going to be fine, he was going to lead this team to yet another victory with his shot calls.


    "Let''s ban their Warlock then." Trever suggested. "The guy is annoying as hell with that hybrid build of his."


    "Yeah, I''d rather not deal with him if possible." Dan nodded. "He always messes up our formation during team fights."


    "Oh, definitely!" Roi added. "Get dat boi outta the picture pls."


    "Actually, I disagree on that one." This time, it was Gilbert''s turn to object. "He gave us some trouble in team fights, but he didn''t strike me as a particularly component Warlock. He made some good decisions, but he didn''t pilot his Warlock very skillfully."


    "I agree with Gilbert." Yuel nodded. "Freezer plays his Warlock very defensively, even too defensively. There are countless ways we can exploit that. Not to mention, if he builds Hybrid Warlock again, their Pyromancer will have no choice but to play aggressively, to compensate for the lack of damage coming from MId. So, we''ll have even more ways to punish her."


    "I didn''t even think that far." Gilbert admitted. "You really like getting deep into your enemy''s head, huh. Anyway, I second everything he said. That Warlock plays too defensively, even during laning phase. I took advantage of that a lot last game, so I''ll gladly do that again."


    "Well," Trever shrugged "If the two smart guys agree, I got nothing to say."


    The rest nodded in agreement. As long Trever and Gilbert approved of something, the rest approved as well. That was the power of the captain and vice-captain. Yuel was also technically assigned as a vice-captain, but as a freshman he was clearly below Gilbert in everybody''s minds. He hadn''t earned their full trust, not yet anyway. He was definitely going to change their perception by the end of this scrimmage by proving himself via his shot-calling.


    The whole discussion about Breaker and Freezer being counterable seeded the feeling the Leopards weren''t that scary. Yes, they dominated throughout most of the previous game, but most of the credit went to Breaker and her unexpected combo playstyle. As long as they kept the threat of her comob in mind, they had a decent chance of winning. The moral was at an all time high.


    Apparently, the sentiment on the other team was the same. Even though the Leopards lost, they didn''t feel inferior to StormBliz. They proved that by not banning any classes StormBlitz used last match, except for Druid. Between setting up an easy kill on Freezer and stealing victory right out of Breaker''s hands, it seemed the enemy didn''t appreciate the way Yuel played Druid. Or, maybe it was just out of spite, who knew.


    Either way, it didn''t matter to him. Thanks to the enemy wasting a ban on Druid, Yuel was allowed to pick Paladin, the secret tech he had his eyes on. With the silence effect of Justice Strike, he was going to shut down the Combo Pyromancer.


    Once drafting ended, the match began.


    The early game started about the same as last time. Without Spellbook of Doom, Breaker didn''t have access to her combo yet, so she played defensively. She went head-to-head with Trever a couple of times, but she never overextended enough to be punished. It didn''t help she was Trever''s match in term of mechanical skill, which allowed to her to stand her ground even when he aggressed on her first.


    This was the second time Yuel played the early game against her, yet he couldn''t find an opportunity to break through her defense. He tried some ideas, like using a low HP Trever as bait, but she refused to bite. Same as with her polished combo plays, her early game defense was airtight, no doubt the fruit of much practice.


    As a combo player, Breaker clearly understood the importance of the early game for her. It was alright for a combo played to not achieve much during the early game, so long as she didn''t fall behind. For a combo player, falling behind was the worst nightmare. It meant they might not be able to burst down enemies fast enough, which was the whole point of playing combo in the first place.


    Therefore, her top priority during the early game was to stall until mid game. Once she gets her hands on Spellbook of Doom, the party will begin for real. Scoring a couple of kills would quickly make up for a mediocre early game.


    Yuel understood all of that, yet he failed to interfere with Breaker''s game plan. It was regrettable, but there''s no choice but to wait until the mid game. Once she turns more aggressive, she''d undoubtedly show some weakness.


    The teams were mostly matched during the early game, just like last game. Roi fought the enemy Top Laner on equal footing, both trying to aggressively knock the other out without much success. Dan and the enemy Jungler delivered about the same quality of ganks and support, so neither side gained the upper hand from that.


    Just like last game, the only one who gained substantial lane advantage was Gilbert. His lane opponent, Freezer, went for a Hybrid Warlock build again and played too passively for a Mid Laner, trying his best to bait Gilbert into overextending. However, Gilbert was too rational of a player to fall for that. Instead of pushing harder, he capitalized on the enemy''s passiveness and relied on his lane advantage to safely leave the lane.


    While Freezer was busy clearing the remaining minions, Gilbert farmed jungle camps or ganked other lanes. He was even bolder than last game with these actions, since now he knew how passive of a player Freezer was. To better prepare for mid game, where the game will start for real, he had to gain as much advantage as possible from exploiting Freezer''s weaknesses.


    At some point, Freezer realized his fault and tried playing more aggressively, to pressure Gilbert into staying in lane. However, that clearly wasn''t his forte. Most such attempts ended with Gilbert turning the tables on Freezer and chasing him out of the lane.


    All in all, the favors were in StormBlitz''s favor so far. But, that''s also how things went in the first game, until Breaker single-handedly swung the momentum in her team''s favor. The fast-approaching mid game will be the decisive point, which will prove whether allowing Breaker play Pyromancer was the right call. Yuel''s skill will be tested there.


    "Their Pyro most likely got Spellbook, so be careful." Yuel warned after calculating the enemy''s gold in his head. Spellbook of Doom didn''t show up in Breaker''s inventory yet, but it was most likely cloaked for the right moment, just like last game.


    "Whoa, she''s totally going for me!" Trever exclaimed amidst a heated duel with Breaker. It''s the first time Breaker went all out in a fight, disregarding her retreat options. It was a sign Spellbook of Doom was about to come into action.


    Trever and Breaker were normally evenly matched in combat, but with her combo added to the mix - she was going to destroy him! Yuel was out of the lane, so it''s the perfect opportunity for Breaker to finish Trever off... or so she probably thought.


    In truth, Yuel was right there, waiting behind a jungle wall for this very moment. He knew Breaker wouldn''t miss such a golden opportunity, she always seized an opportunity when she saw one. Therefore, he created one such fake opportunity for her, baiting her into offense. A slight shudder ran through him as he realized this tactic was probably something he adopted from Ellen. Ugh.


    After Breaker cast Pillar of Fire, Spellbook of Doom finally showed up in her inventory. It was confirmed: she was going to finish Trever with her combo, right here and now. Everything was going to be settled in a second, that''s how fast combo plays were.


    Just as Breaker was about to follow up with Flame Wave, Yuel blinked through the wall and used Justice Strike. A white blade formed above Breaker''s head, ready to come down crashing.


    "Wha!?" Jennifer exclaimed. Where did that Paladin come from!? Didn''t he rotate to Mid!? Crap! Craaaap! There''s no time to think! She had to dodge! Being silenced by Justice Strike right now would be the end of her!


    She rolled the hell outta there, as far away as possible from the Paladin. But, she still kept the enemy Ranger within range. Huh! They thought this much would scare her away? No freaking chance! She was gonna finish-


    "Agh! Shit!" She cursed. Didn''t she just dodge Justice Strike? The white blade was right above her head a moment ago and she rolled away. But, it hit her anyway! Did that Paladin cancel and retarget it? That damn scrub! What''s with this reaction speed!?


    [Phew, this was rough.] Yuel sighd in relief when his Justice Strike connected. In truth, he didn''t have full confidence in this move, considering he didn''t have the necessary reaction speed for these situations. The only reason it succeeded was because he predicted where Breaker was going to roll, before even he started this gank.


    There weren''t that many good dodge roll options for Breaker if she wanted to continue her assault on Trever. She had to roll away from Yuel, while keeping Trever within her range. There weren''t many spots that granted both these benefits, so it wasn''t hard to narrow down Breaker''s position post the dodge roll.


    After spooking Breaker by forming a white blade above her head, Yuel immediately canceled Justice Strike. Then, he cast it anew, targeting the spot where he predicted Breaker would be after the roll. The blade crashed right on her head.


    Too bad for her. If she gave up on killing Trever and retreated, she would had thwarted Yuel''s plan and would had safely gotten away. But, Yuel knew she was a confident, perhaps overconfident, senior. There''s no way she''d run in this situation, not after starting her combo and getting one move away from scoring a kill. Because of that - she lost.


    "Finish her off." Yuel said.


    "No need to tell me twice!" Trever didn''t waste any time charging at the silenced Pyromancer. He pinned her to the ground with his wolf, then barraged her to death.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Hell yeah! We did it!" Trever smacked Yuel on the back. "Good play, kid!"


    "Ugh, thanks." Yuel put on a pained smile while massaging his back. This was a good start, it was the exact opposite of how things went last game. Last time, Trever was instantly eliminated by Breaker''s combo, but this time they defeated her out instead. StormBlitz gained momentum first!


    Continuing from this successful play, Yuel and Trever rotated to Mid to gank Freezer. That''s exactly how Breaker played last time after killing Trever, so they aimed to generate the same amount of momentum with a double kill.


    Alas, Freezer was a tough nut to crack. He was a defensive player through and through, so they failed to take him by surprise. After stalling them for a while, Freezer judged he had no chance of holding the lane much longer without sacrificing his life, so he retreated to base. His retreat left the lane undefended, but at least it prevented StormBlitz from gaining even more momentum with a second kill.


    Making the most out of the situation, Trever and Gilbert aggressively attacked the unprotected Mid Turret. It went all the way down to 20% before the enemy Jungler appeared to defend the lane. One kill + 80% damage on Mid Turret, not shabby. Not as impressive as Breaker''s momentum from last game, but they definitely gained the upper hand here.


    The match continued in a similar fashion, with Yuel exploiting the weaknesses and patterns he disocvered last match. In particular, he focused on shutting down Breaker at every opportunity he had, preventing her from snowballing. The silence from Justice Strike was deadly against a combo player who had to rely on perfect timing, positioning and execution.


    Despite all that, the match wasn''t exactly what one would call "easy". StormBlitz gained advantage all across the board, but every play they made was stressful. Just one mistake and the tides would turn around, that''s how everybody felt.


    "We got them this time, guys!"


    "Easiest game of my life, lol."


    Trever and Roi were loud, probably trying to reassure the team and perhaps reassure themselves as well. Some reassurance didn''t hurt, considering how the game progressed. No matter how well Yuel countered Breaker, she found ways score kills. No matter how much Gilbert exploited Freezer''s passiveness during the laning phase, Freezer''s hybrid build swung team fights hard during mid game.


    Yes, StormBlitz were winning, but it wasn''t a walk in the park. As much as a single misplay could lead to devastating results against enemies like the Leopards, especially since most of them were most likely playing their strongest classes. Yuel allowed Breaker and Freezer to pick their Combo Pyromancer and Hybrid Warlock, knowing all too well what they were capable of. Nevertheless, he couldn''t help but be amazed by the enemy''s fortitude. Even though he figured most of their playstyles, patterns and team strategies - he couldn''t shut them down. They persisted, fighting hard till the bitter end.


    Both teams refused to yield, this was the tenacity expected of the competitive scene. This wasn''t just another Ranked match where losing merely cost the players some points. This game was a simulation of a real tournament match, where a single defeat could mean immediate elimination.


    Even though both teams were second strings - this match was great! Yuel wanted to deconstruct them more! To corner them more! Playing full force against such high caliber opponents was something he couldn''t get anywhere else! He could only imagine how amazing the Leopards'' first string was and he so wanted to play them right now!


    [Stop, focus. ]Yuel pinched his cheek. StormBlitz''s current advantage made him lax, too lax. This match wasn''t over yet. Nothing was decided until the very end, so he couldn''t let his guard down for even a moment.


    21 minutes into the match, StormBlitz managed to kill four out of five enemies. Before the enemy team respawned, StormBlitz stormed the Overlord and got his buff. From this position, they threatened checkmate in a couple of moves. They had super minions spawning in both Mid and Top, so the game was as good as settled.


    Yet, even in this obvious losing position, the Leopards didn''t show any signs of giving up. Well, maybe except for Freezer, who was easily picked off right as the decisive team fight broke out, Thanks to that, the enemy lost their most valuable team-fighting asset right before the game''s most critical moment.


    "Would you mind not standing there like a tree!?" Jennifer roared.


    "Yeah, yeah. Whatever." Alex shrugged. "We lost this anyway. We should just surrender." He pressed F6.


    ¡ºA surrender vote has started for your team.¡»


    ¡ºYES: 1 NO: 0¡»


    "Wha the-!? Are you for real!?" Jennifer really ached to leap on that idiot and beat him to a pulp, until his stupid quitter mentality is fixed.


    "Just admit it: we lost. Let''s get this over with and try next time."


    "You bastard...!" Jennifer gritted her teeth and shook like an atom bomb about to go off. "We never surrender! Always F7, just F7!" She followed her own advice and pressed F7, voting against the surrender. The rest of the team soon followed.


    ¡ºThe team refused to surrender.¡»


    ¡ºYES: 1 NO: 4¡»


    "Whatever. Have fun wasting your time." Alex shrugged and laid back on his chair.


    "Goddammit, why did Coach put this loser on our team!? He doesn''t even want to be here!" Jennifer tried shifting her focus back to the game, but she simply couldn''t quit ranting.


    "Relax, Jenny." Albert said. "Alex, could you please not provoke her? Keep your pessimistic opinions to yourself, please. We''re still trying to win here. You know she can''t play her best when she''s distracted."


    "Fine, I''ll just take a nap." Alex closed his eyes and crossed his arms. "Don''t worry, I''ll wake up by the time I respawn... if I respawn."


    "Geh, fuck this guy." Jennifer cursed.


    "I know he can be hard deal with, but please don''t lose it." Albert said. "You''re the captain, so you have to act like one. If you lose it, everybody will lose it."


    "Yeah, you''re right." Jennifer inhaled deeply, as if trying to absorb the whole room. Then, she exhaled with all her strength, as if blowing away every trace of Alex''s existence. "Okay, let''s do this, guys! 4v5 sounds like shit, but at their Electro and Knight are low! We can still do this!"


    Energy returned to the team. For a moment, they were about to be devoured by the enemy. But now, they stood their ground and fought until the bitter end. A 4v5 was rough to come back from, especially considering the enemy had the Overlord''s buff. But, imagining their own defeat wasn''t an option.


    "Remember what Coach always says! Imagine yourself winning and you gonna win! It''s all about the mental image! We gonna beat these trash kids and push all the way to their base in one go!"


    Even those on the brink of losing hope had no option but to fight their best. Their coach always lectured them about the importance of a maintaining a positive mental image and there''s nobody on the team better than Jennifer at that. Maybe it''s because she was kind of an idiot, but she simply could never the team lose, no matter the circumstances.


    In fact, her mental image was so strong, she could imagine everybody''s victory for them. Even when somebody knew the team was doomed, hearing Jennifer''s unwavering voice made them regain hope. They were going to win! They could still pull this off! That''s the mental image painted in their minds by Jennifer.


    With this unyielding determination, they achieved the impossible and reduced the enemy team to just two. They fought with every last ounce of their strength, refusing to believe defeat was possible.


    In the end, it was just Jennifer against the enemy Ranger and Paladin. Everything came down to Jennifer''s ability to eliminate the Ranger, as the Paladin had no way to push on his own. It was the decisive showdown.


    [This is bad. ]Yuel bit his lip. They had such a great advantage at the beginning of this push, but it was reduced to a 2v1 against the enemy''s Queen. Things could go either way.


    "Lol, sorry." Roi scratched his head. "Totally blew that one." He rushed this push too much, eager to grab victory as soon as possibly. That cost him dearly. The enemy Lumimancer blinded and slowed him on the spot, turning him into a sitting duck for Breaker''s combo.


    But, the blame didn''t lay only with Roi. The others misplayed here and there as well. For example, Gilbert''s Chain Lightning didn''t land on the optimal targets and Dan''s Lunge was telegraphed too much. Everybody felt victory was right around the corner, but they couldn''t quite grasp it yet. Not only that, but it felt like a single misplay could lead to disaster, the pressure was unbearable. So, they wanted to seal the deal and get out of this pressure as fast as possible. Ironically, rushing the push was exactly the misplay that opened the door for a turnaround.


    "Man, these guys don''t know when to quit." Trever shook his head. "They should just give up already. For a moment there, I thought they decided to quit. But then, they came at us full power outta nowhere! Crazy shenanigans, I''m tellin'' ya."


    "Yeah..." Yuel had a stiff expression. There was indeed a brief moment in which the Leopards stumbled, making one mistake after another. Yuel thought the pressure of the situation finally got to them and suggested going all in. Perhaps he, too, felt pressured by the enemy''s resilience and wanted this stressful situation over with.


    Unfortunately, the momentarily vulnerability of the Leopards was either a brief hiccup or a calculated bait. The enemy soon snapped out of that state and played strong again, more tenaciously than ever. This sharp shift was mind-boggling.


    Since everybody''s minds were preoccupied with the idea of rushing to victory, StormBlitz had trouble adapting to this sudden shift. One thing led to another and many inefficient plays were made. The enemies didn''t miss their opportunity to punish the poor plays, leading to the current situation. What started off as a beautiful and advantageous push got reduced to a fragile 2v1 against Breaker, of all people.


    The desire to win fast was seeded in everybody''s minds throughout the match, but it was Yuel''s call that set off the flames. He spotted the brief crack in the enemy''s formation and rushed to strike it, without considering the consequences or the team''s mindstate. What a blunder. Most of the responsibility for this failure laid with him.


    [It''s alright. We can still do it. ]Yuel took a deep breath. They came this far, so he had to do his absolute best until the very end. [I have to clean my own mess. There''s still a way to deal with her, I prepared it exactly for this sort of pinch.]


    Despite being eager to put a swift end to this stressful match, Yuel never failed to consider the worst case scenario. StormBlitz held the upper hand the whole game, but he never got over the fear the enemy may turn things around in the last moment. That''s the whole reason this match felt so stressful in the first place, so the worst case scenario stuck to his thought process like gum.


    Because of that, he recommended Trever to head into this decisive push with just four public items in the build. A fifth item was also there, but cloaked. Considering the advantage StormBlitz already had, the marginal benefit from Trever finishing a proper build wasn''t that high. StormBlitz were already the stronger ones, so becoming a little bit stronger wasn''t going to change much.


    Instead, it was better to prepare a hidden item for the worst case scenario. This 2v1 against Breaker? That''s a worst case scenario right there. Trever was the King, his death would spell checkmate for StormBlitz. Killing him was all Breaker had to do here.


    A tense situation, but one which came with a great bait. Breaker was most certainly going to rush at least a little bit here, so it''ll be easier to punish her. Yuel just had to play his cards right and lead her right where he wanted her to be.


    The first move was to silence her with Justice Strike.


    "No you don''t!" Jennifer saw coming from a mile away! She rolled toward the Ranger, creating distance between herself and the Paladin. Ha! She beat that telegraphed Justice Strike! ... or so she thought. [Tch, he didn''t bite? What a guy.]


    The Paladin canceled his Justice Strike in the middle of casting, now focused on Jennifer''s new position. She was still recovering from the roll, so it''s impossible to dodge a second Justice Strike right now. Oh shit! It was over! ... or so her enemies should think!


    She bought Blink a some time ago, but she kept it cloaked the whole time. She waited and waited, until a super critical situation finally presented itself! Now, when the enemy least expected it, she was gonna use it!


    [Ugh, Blink.] Yuel frowned as Breaker teleported out of his Justice Strike, appearing right behind Trever. [A brilliant play, but not outside my calculations.]


    Breaker already showcased her ability to combine combos with Blink in the previous match, so there''s no reason to not do it again. Her team lagged behind on gold, so she couldn''t get Blink as early as last game. But, she was assuredly going to get it again, Yuel was convinced of that all along. So. that''s why...


    "Ha! How does that feel, eh!?" Jennifer grinned. The Ranger''s defenseless back was right in front of her! It was over!


    "Now! Use Dark Contract!"


    "Gotcha!" Trever uncloaked his fifth item and activated a cloaked utility skill: Dark Contract. By sacrificing half his current HP, he gained a huge boost in all stats. He was already running pretty low at 40% HP, but now he fell all the way to 20%. Breaker didn''t even need a combo to finish him off with a single Flame Wave.


    But, that''s where the second part of this plan came into play. The fifth item Trever uncloaked was none other than Deus Shield. Since Trever''s HP dropped below 30% just now, Deus Shield discharged a stunning shockwave around him. And, Breaker was right within range!


    "Gah!" Jennifer jumped "No way! Contract into Deus!?". Her Pyromancer was stunned in place, unable to deliver the final blow. Gaaaaah! Where the hell this trick play came from!? If only she had Cleanse right now...!


    The Ranger followed up with Wolf Companion, pinning her to the ground right before the stun wore off. He didn''t have his ult, but the stat boost from Dark Contract was plenty enough to screw her over. It was over.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Yeah! We did it!" Trever smacked Yuel on the back with literally everything he got. "Great job, bro! That Contract + Deus idea was outta this world!"


    "Ugh, thanks." Yuel forced a smile, wondering whether his spine was still intact.


    "Phew, we finally got through it." Gilbert sighed in relief.


    "Lol, ez clap." Roi chuckled. "We had them the whole game."


    "Yeah, until you charged in and got your ass killed." Dan retorted.


    "Hey, I was just trying to imitate your kamikaze strategy! Lol."


    With this, the second match was over. Yuel chose to face what was most likely the enemy''s strongest lineup and that led to a very stressful game, with a pinch right at the end. Nevertheless, StormBlitz prevailed! Against the enemy''s strongest composition! From here on out, the rest of the games should be much easier... or so he thought.

 37 The Coach Factor

    ¡ºDEFEAT¡»


    "No way..." Jennifer just sat there, staring at her screen. Why? How? They were so much better than the enemy during the first match, what changed? How come they lagged behind the whole match this time?


    "Oh, it''s over? Finally." Alex open his eyes and yawned, stretching his arms. Grrrrr! Jennifer wanted to rip that scum apart! But, she gave up on it. After all, Alex''s prediction came true - they lost the match. They came so close to making a comeback, but they fell short.


    "Cap, you need to pull yourself together." Albert said.


    "Yeah, I know." Jennifer muttered. "Just let me mope a little I''m also a human, ya know?"


    "No can do." Albert shook his head. "You''re the mood maker of this team, that''s literally the only reason you''ve been picked as the captain."


    "Rude." Jennifer''s lips curved into a thin smile. Yeah, yeah, that''s right. Keeping the team psyched was her job. No matter how grim the situation got, she''s the only one who wasn''t allowed to look down. Sigh.


    "Okay, guys!" Jennifer clapped once. "They got us good this time, I won''t lie. But, we almost 4v5''d their asses even though they had Overlord Buff, so these suckers got nothing on us! They''re just a bunch of baby greenhorns! Keep coming at them with everything you got and they''ll give in!"


    "Yeah, we were so close!"


    "Next time for sure!"


    "Good to see you still got the spirit." A man''s voice mixed into the team''s cries.


    "Oh, Coach?" Jennifer blinked. "The heck you doing here?"


    "Isn''t it obvious? I came to whip you into shape." Coach scanned each player in order with his hawk eyes. "Seriously, what are you doing? Losing to a makeshift team like that, is that how I trained you?"


    "Don''t worry, we totally got this!" Jennifer insisted.


    "Yes, very convincing after going 0-2. If this were a best of three, you''d be eliminated right now."


    "Geh. W-We''re working on it!"


    "''Working on it''?" Coach lifted his chin. "All I saw was you playing the exact same lineup as the first game."


    "Well, we thought we gonna win." Jennifer said. "You watched the first match? We totally dominated that one!"


    "And, you lost." Coach slapped them with the harsh truth. "It seems you don''t even understand the reason you lost. Can anybody tell me why you lost the first match?"


    "Yeah, sure!" Jennifer nodded. "They got super lucky and made a few good plays near the end-"


    "Anybody?"


    "Geh." Jennifer made a face. Coach scanned the other players, ignoring Jennifer''s input. Nobody volunteered to give their two cents.


    "Alright then, I''ll pick." Coach said. "Alex, what do you think?"


    "Huh? Well..." Alex sighed. "Their game plan changed during the end game. Like, they''ve been playing defense since mid game, right? But then, they suddenly went full offense. That caught us off guard."


    "That''s all true, but you''re only stating facts." Coach said. "Go deeper. Why and how do you think that switch happened?"


    "Heck if I knew." Alex shrugged. "I bet their shot-caller flipped a switch. Either that, or they changed the shot-caller altogether."


    "Good, that''s most likely the case." Coach nodded. "They made some very interesting plays there, starting with the Lancer''s suicide attack on Jennifer. They went on the offensive despite being behind and it paid off."


    Coach went over some scenarios from the first match, showing how the Leopards faced an entirely different beast during the end game. None of the enemy''s achievements were "lucky plays", they were all methodically calculated. He made sure to beat that fact into them, so they stop making excuses and wake up.


    "Frankly, some of these plays were too impressive for middle schoolers." Coach admitted. "Their team doesn''t have a coach as far as I know, so such a high level of play is unexpected from a makeshift second string. I sent a few of our boys to tail them during this break, to see if they''re exchanging information with any outsiders."


    "What, you think they''re cheating?" Jennifer asked.


    "One of their players from the first string has a pro player in the family, so you can never be too sure. Then again, their sudden transformation occurred during the first game and persisted all the way into the second game, so it''s most likely their own hard work."


    Coaches, let alone outsiders, weren''t allowed on stage during an ongoing match. In addition, players'' cell phones were confiscated. Lastly, the PCs on stage connected to a private server, so one of these kids had to be some kind of hacker to use it for external communication. Frankly, it was unlikely.


    [But, if they really got such a talented shot-caller, why would he be stuck in the second string? ]The coach, Rodriguez, wondered. [Actually, I have a good guess. Even if there''s really such a sharp shot-caller on the second string, there''s an even more amazing kid on the first string.]


    In the last two matches between the first strings, Rodriguez saw plenty high level shot-calling from StormBlitz. The kid in charge was undoubtedly Howard, nickname Aegis. His older sister made her professional debut soon after finishing high school, so he must had grown up next to Classmancers from a tender age.


    The kid sure put the Leopards through hell. With him in charge, StormBlitz had an impenetrable defense. Outwitting or punishing StormBlitz''s players was almost impossible, despite the high caliber of the Leopards'' first string. Rodriguez trained the kids over the past three years, so he attested to their skill. Yet, Aegis shut down most of their attacks.


    From what Rodriguez could tell, most of StormBlitz''s first string wasn''t anything special. Athena could be praised for her unorthodox playstyle and Frown had an oppressive late game, but that''s about it. Yet, under Aegis''s command, all the gears of that team worked together in perfect union, building an unbreakable line of defense.


    The Leopards held the upper hand most of the time, but they were forced to slowly crawl toward victory. As the players themselves put it, fighting against Aegis felt like "bashing their heads against a wall until it breaks". They somehow won both games so far, but they were mentally exhausted after each round.


    With such a brilliant shot-caller leading the first string, it wasn''t entirely impossible that another talented shot-caller ended up in the second string. Either way, this level of challenge was just right for the kids. They''ll definitely learn something new from today''s scrimmage.


    "Your opponents were tougher than you expected," Rodriguez said. "But, it doesn''t end there. In term of skill, you''re stronger as a whole. You proved as much during the first match. Then, what''s the real reason you lost?"


    Nobody volunteered to guess, so Rodriguez continued. "First, you had some bad matchups. Jennifer, you''re struggling against the duo in Bot, correct?"


    "Huh? Not at all!" Jennifer puffed her chest. "These scrubs got nothing on me!"


    "You say that, yet you failed to score any kills during the laning phase. Their Carry is about as skilled as you, so you find it hard to outplay him. And, their Support gave you trouble by CC-ing you with the worst timing."


    "Geh." Jennifer hung her head.


    "And Alex, you''re also struggling against your lane opponent, correct?" Rodriguez said.


    "Yeah, I guess." Alex shrugged. "That guy isn''t greedy enough, so I can''t punish him much. He''s such a drag."


    "Alright, these bad matchups are one thing we''ll have to fix." Rodriguez said. "Moving on, another big factor for your defeat is that the enemy figured you out."


    "Figured out?" Jennifer tilted her head.


    "They studied how you play and used the appropriate counters."


    "Well, we also adapted to them, haven''t we?"


    "Yes, but they adapted to you first and you forgot to adapt to them in return. After all, you picked almost the exact same lineup for the second game, somehow expecting to win."


    "Geh." Jennifer averted her eyes.


    Rodriguez went over a couple examples from the match, pointing out moments where StormBlitz brilliantly struck the team''s weakest points. Many of the scenarios involved Jennifer and Alex, whom StormBlitz targeted more frequently and for a good reason.


    The enemy learned Jennifer was a combo player, so they stayed out of her combo''s reach. This forced her to be aggressive if she wanted to score any kills, and more aggressively she played - the easier it was to punish her. On top of that, the moment she finished her combo - they focused on her, knowing she wasn''t much of a threat without her combo.


    Similarly, they focused Alex in the right moments. They recognized Alex as a threat in team fights, so they always tried picking him off before a team fight started. For example, one time they went hard on the offensive to pressure the Leopards, forcing Alex to play his cards right away. Right after he did, they suddenly switched to defending to throw the Leopards off. Amidst the confusion, Alex was pulled by the Druid and killed.


    "Yeah, that!" Jennifer exclaimed. "They kill him before every team fight, he can''t even dodge basic stuff! This guy has zero motivation to play, he doesn''t even come to practice. What''s he even doing on the team? Sub him, Coach! There are a bunch of guys who''d gladly take his place!"


    "Hmph, do what you want." Alex shrugged and averted his eyes, but he threw a glance at the coach. Despite how he talked and acted, he didn''t want to be replaced due to underperforming. He was a difficult kid, Rodriguez knew that.


    During his first year, Alex displayed great talent and motivation. Everybody believed he''ll become a first string player sooner than later, including Alex himself. However, Rodriguez always prioritized seniors for the first string, since they were the most experienced, polished, and reliable. Rodriguez already spent two years training these kids, so he knew exactly what to expect from them. On top of that, it was their last year of middle school, so he wanted them to gain some competitive experience before tackling high school''s competitive scene.


    Because of all that, Alex wasn''t picked for the first string as a freshman. And, neither as a junior. Nevertheless, Rodriguez had high hopes for him and put him on the second string as a junior, to nurture him as much as possible before his third year. Sadly, that intention didn''t reach Alex.


    He lost all motivation after not making it to the first string, He started lazing around, skipping practice, bickering with teammates and performing poorly. He became but a shadow of his former promising self.


    In this regard, Jennifer''s evaluation of him was correct, for a change. Alex wasn''t motivated to play on the second string and there were plenty of kids who''d gladly take his place. They''ll probably perform better too, since they were good kids who didn''t skip practice.


    Nevertheless, Rodriguez wanted to keep Alex in the game. Maybe, just maybe, it''d spark something. If there''s any chance Alex could regain his former motivation, it was worth taking a risk and keeping him in the game.


    "Alex stays in." Rodriguez announced.


    "Wha? But why!?" Jennifer cried out. "He screws everything for us!"


    "True, he messed up multiple times in both games. His lack of practice is showing itself." Rodriguez shot a criticizing glare at Alex. "But, you can''t deny he''s at least useful in team fights, correct?"


    "What team fights? The ones where he doesn''t drop dead before they start? As if that ever happens."


    "True, true. The enemy have a tendency to eliminate him before a team fight begins, but that just goes to show how wary they''re of him. They know he''ll mess up their plans if he contributes to the team fight, that''s why they eliminate him first. That should be proof enough he''s a great asset for the team."


    "But, he messes up simple plays! Just look how many times he failed to dodge telegraphed attacks! He''s been lazing too much and lost his touch."


    "Perhaps. But, nobody here is without faults, you all had your fair share of misplays. I''d go over them in more detail, but the break won''t last enough." Rodriguez softened his tone. "You all made mistakes and will keep making mistakes, and that''s alright. What''s important is to learn from them and better yourselves for next game. And, if you see somebody repeat a mistake, point it out instead of dissing them for it, understood?"


    "Roger..." Jennifer twisted her lips, but nodded nonetheless. Good girl.


    "Now, switch it up."


    BAM!


    Rodriguez produced a booming sound with a single clap.


    "Oh!" Jennifer exclaimed. Here it was! The ultimate clapping technique, only available to true clap-fu masters! She practiced her clapping for years to get to that legendary level, but she''s still just a scrub compared to Rodriguez''s level.


    The thundering loudness shook the whole team. First, there was surprise and bewilderment. Then, they were replaced with focus and sharpness. Everybody, even Alex, now paid attention to Rodriguez.


    "Frankly," Rodriguez said. "I didn''t expect you run into such tough opponents today, which is why I wasn''t strict about your mixup training. But, I always tell you to practice a secondary role," He pierced each player with his hawk eyes. "So, I hope you''ve been working hard on that even without my supervision."


    "Of course!" Jennifer gave a thumb up. "I''m always ready to go as Mid!"


    "That''s a good girl." Rodriguez nodded. Jennifer was perhaps somewhat of a dummy, but a motivated and diligent one, the polar opposite of Alex. "What about the rest? How confident are you in your secondary roles?"


    "Um..."


    "Well..."


    Cody and Joey averted their eyes, it seemed they didn''t practice much. Unfortunate, but not surprising. There were many kids who latched onto one role, sometimes one class, and wanted to play only that. Rodriguez didn''t expect them to play against such a strong team, so he wasn''t strict enough about their mixup training. Regrettable.


    "I''ve been playing Carry at least once a day," Albert said. "So, I should be good to go."


    "Oh, how promising." Rodriguez nodded repeatedly. What a good and obedient kid, it brought a smile on Rodriguez''s face. Albert wasn''t a particularly outstanding player, but he practiced whatever he was told without complaining. If he keeps this up, he''ll definitely become a great player one day.


    "I play Mid or Support whenever I feel like it," Alex shrugged. "So, I can play either, really."


    "That''s good to know." Rodriguez had mixed feelings about this information. But, as long as it was with Warlock, perhaps Alex could really play both roles equally. That is, equally poorly.


    "Alright, so here''s what we do." Rodriguez explained. "As I already said, the enemy figured you out and you have some unfavorable lane matchups. So, next game: Jennifer is Mid, Albert is Carry and Alex is Support. This will throw off your opponents and will deal with the unfavorable matchups, two birds with one stone."


    "Oh! That''s cool!" Jennifer jumped like an excited puppy. "We gonna win the next one! I''m feeling it!"


    "Just don''t forget what it means to switch to your secondary role." Rodriguez warned. "Make sure you switch seats like I taught you. Alex must sit between Jennifer and Albert as the Support."


    "But, then we''ll have to login again..." Alex sighed. "Can''t we just keep the same sits? It doesn''t really matter where we sit"


    "No, you sit like I taught you." Rodriguez insisted. "As a Support, you must be constantly in touch with the Carry and the Mid Laner, since that''s where you''ll be rotating the most during early game. I know it sounds like nagging, but it''s the little things that matter. Or what, you think you''re such pros that you can communicate telepathically?"


    "Exactly," Jennifer glared at Alex. "Just shut up and do what Coach says."


    "Whatever..." Alex sighed.


    "Good." Rodriguez nodded. "Now, onto other things to keep in mind. Jennifer, switching from Carry to Mid means you no longer have anybody to support you on lane. Make sure you don''t overextend."


    "Roger!" Jennifer saluted.


    "Albert, don''t forget you''re a squishy when you''re a Carry. You can''t be in the enemy''s face the way you like as Support."


    "Of course."


    "And Alex, I''m sure you want to go for a hybrid build as always, but make sure you prioritize defensive items during the early game."


    "Yeah, yeah. I know."


    "That''s about wraps it up." Rodriguez checked his watch. "I don''t want you to hate me for taking your break, so let''s end it here."


    "If you got more important stuff to say, you better tells us!" Jennifer said. "We don''t wanna lose to these guys again, so any tips will help. Right, guys?"


    "Yeah, we don''t care about the break."


    "We just wanna win, yo!"


    "Sigh, what a drag..."


    The whole team was on the same page, save for one lazy kid. They burned with the desire to win the next match, no matter what. Such determination! It brought a tear to Rodriguez''s eye. This unyielding attitude was the most important thing for competitive players, he was so happy the kids adopted it.


    "Heh, you''re really something." Rodriguez smiled softly. With Jennifer in charge, the thirst for battle and victory infected the whole team like a virus. Despite her many shortcomings, nominating Jennifer as the captain was the correct decision.


    "Then, let''s see." Rodriguez continued. "First, Jennifer. You''re a dummy, so better keep playing like one."


    "H-Huh?"


    "Remember how you cloaked Blink in the last game? You tried to ''outsmart'' the enemy by waiting for the ''right moment'', correct?"


    "Yeah, I was gonna shock these scrubs to another dimension."


    "Too bad, turned out they were expecting it."


    "Y-Yeah, they seemed kinda prepared..." Jennifer averted her eyes.


    "In the end, you didn''t fool anybody and only wasted other good opportunities to use Blink. What''s worse, you were preoccupied with thinking when you should reveal your Blink, which distracted you and dragged down your overall performance. Just focus on your usual combo plays and don''t think too hard, that''s when you''re at your best."


    "Roger!" Jennifer saluted.


    "Alex, you need to get your act together." Rodriguez said. "I know this isn''t the first string and it''s just a scrimmage, but don''t underestimate today''s importance. Your opponents are about as good as the average middle school team, so I''m going to treat today''s results seriously. If you perform well today, you may still have a chance to get into first string."


    "Ah!" Alex''s drowsy eyes flashed for a moment. "Sure, I''ll see what I can do." There was uncharacteristic weight behind these words, the kind Rodriguez hadn''t heard from Alex in a long time. Good.


    "The same applies to everybody here." Rodriguez turned to each member in order. "Depending on your performance today, you may earn yourselves a lot of points toward entering the first string. There''s still time until the regionals, so anything can happen."


    "Hell yeah! We gonna do it!" Jennifer''s pumped a fist, her blazing fighting spirit overwhelmed everybody around her. The whole team was psyched after hearing these words. They were like starving dogs and the coach just waved a bone in front of them. They had been training in the club for over two years now, so of course they all burned with desire to enter the first string. Turning said desire into strength would help them triumph over their opponents.


    "Next, Cody..." Rodriguez continued giving pointers to each individual player, polishing them as much as possible before the next game. With everybody''s fighting spirits burning strong, they headed into the next game with relentless thirst for victory.

 38 Mixup Strategy

    "... you lost?" Yuel blinked.


    "Yeah, kinda." Howard averted his eyes and put on a dim smile.


    "So, you''re at 0-2 now. That''d be a defeat in an official match."


    "Hey, we fought these guys for almost half an hour, it was real close. Gotta say, their coach is some nasty piece of work, even more than I expected."


    "He used that ''mixup'' strategy?"


    "Mhm, and it''s even worse than I imagined." Howard said. "Their whole team changed. It''s like everything we adapted to in the first match was useless. Well, except for Fenrir. That guy played exactly the same, but we still couldn''t deal with him."


    "Fenrir, you mean their captain, right?"


    "Yeah. That guy is really something, Aron couldn''t take him out even in late game. We already had our hands full dealing with him, but then there''s also the mixup on top of that. That Rodriguez sure created a nasty team."


    Fernando Rodriguez, the current coach of the Leopards. Classmancers coaches were extremely rare in junior high, so it gave the Leopards a huge advantage over other teams in the region. Howard did a lot of research about Rodriguez''s team, coaching and past records. Yuel memorized every bit of it.


    Unfortunately, the Leopards'' first string consisted mostly of seniors every year. That seemed to be one of Rodriguez''s policies, so it''s unclear whether the seniors were really always the best players he had or he just trusted them more. Either way, because of that, it was nigh impossible to get data about the current players, as they had no competitive records from the previous years.


    The only exception was Fenrir, who made his competitive debut last year as a junior despite Rodriguez''s policy. Though, apparently gathering information on him didn''t help the first string much, since he was a monster on another level. He was similar to Lars, an unstoppable storm nobody could hold down even though they knew it was coming. Even Ellen''s trickey failed against him. Just how good was he? Yuel wished to go against Fenrir at least once, but sadly it was impossible.


    Since investigating players led to a dead end, Howard focused on researching Rodriguez''s coaching style. In that area, there was a lot more information available online. The Leopards reached the nationals multiple times in recent years, a success attributed to Rodriguez''s coaching. Naturally, reporters interviewed him on the matter and asked about his coaching. In a couple of articles, he briefly mentioned the "mixup strategy".


    Basically, he coached his players to excel in two different roles: a "main" role and "secondary" role. Thanks to that, the Leopards'' first string could always play two entirely different lineups. If a player used his "main" role for one lineup, then he used his "secondary" role for the other lineup and vice versa.


    By dynamically switching their formation around, their enemies felt like they were facing an entirely different team each time. Thus, the Leopards always headed into the second match with a huge advantage. While they already studied their opponents during the first match, their opponents had to adapt to them anew during in the second game.


    Often times, this trick was enough for the Leopards to get a quick 2-0 and win the match right there. And, even if they went 1-1, they still had an advantage going into the third game. Their opponents had to guess which of the two lineups, normal or mixup, the Leopards were going to pick for the third game. Yuel could only imagine how much pressure it put on the enemy during drafting.


    Most official matches were in a "best of three" format, so this approach worked extremely well for stealing wins. It probably wasn''t going to work much in the pro scene, as pro players were expected to adapt quickly, but against middle schoolers it was super effective.


    "You be careful too." Howard said. "I saw Rodriguez talk with the second string. I''m sure he''s scumming something. Dunno if his second string can also mix up, but [something] gonna to be different next game."


    "I''ll keep that in mind." Yuel nodded.


    "Heh, no need to worry!" Lars invaded the conversation with his usual goofy grin and wrapped an arm around Yuel''s shoulder. "You should''ve seen Yuel in action there! That last match was sick, they totally owned these dudes! Ya better get on Yuel''s level or he gonna kick ya outta the first string!"


    "Heh, you wish." Howard sneered. "Now that their coach made a move, this is where the real test begins."


    "No problem! I''m 200% sure they gonna pull through!"


    "I wouldn''t trust the opinion of somebody who always thinks he gonna win next time, even after being beaten twenty times in a row."


    "If you don''t believe you gonna win, you not gonna win, yo!"


    "This guy is giving me a headache." Howard sighed. "Anyway, I warned you. If you fuck this up, it''s on you."


    "Got it." Yuel nodded. He had no idea what Rodriguez cooked for the second string, but the next match was going to be different from before. Chances are, Yuel will have to study the enemy team from scratch. Ugh, that sounded annoying.


    "Meh, you''ll be fine." Lars proclaimed with unfounded confidence. "I bet ya gonna beat the heck outta these dudes again, so I''mma go watch the first string this time."


    "Don''t." Howard retorted. "Keep watching the second string''s games."


    "Huh? But why?" Lars pouted. "I wanna watch some exciting stuff, not one-sided slaughter."


    "Just be a good kid and do as I say." Howard''s gaze turned sharp, piercing Lars to the very core. This wasn''t a request. It was an order.


    "Okay, okay..." Lars waved his arms in defeat.


    "Well then, good luck." Howard turned around.


    "You too." Yuel said. "Sounds like you need it."


    "Nah, it should be fine. We already figured both their play styles, so now we can mount a counterattack." Howard left these reassuring words behind, which didn''t convince Yuel in the slightest. After all, the first string was already at 0-2. No matter how confident Howard was, a 0-2 meant defeat in an official match. If this were the regionals, StormBlitz would be eliminated right here and now.


    Anyway, Yuel was a mere second string player. There''s nothing he could do about any of that. He had his own troubles to worry about, namely: ComboBreaker, Freezer and whatever new strategy Rodriguez cooked up for the upcoming match.


    Before heading into the next game, he warned the rest of the team about the possibility of a mixup. Afterwards, they all headed onto the stage together. The third round of the StormBlitz vs. Leopards scrimmage began.


    The drafting phase started normally. The enemy picked Pyromancer and Warlock, must be for ComboBreaker and Freezer like before. Were they really going to stick to the same lineup? Then, what did Rodriguez tell them over the break?


    "Doesn''t look like they''re doing anything so far." Gilbert said. "Should we go with our usual picks as well?"


    "We can do that." Yuel said. "Worst case, we''ll fall into their trap and lose this game. But, at least we''ll learn their second lineup."


    They were already sitting on a 2-0 advantage and it didn''t matter whether they''ll end the day with 5-0 or 4¨C1. Giving up one game in exchange for information wasn''t a terrible trade in this scrimmage, at least not in Yuel''s mind. He kept that opinion to himself though, it''s unlikely others would think highly of it.


    In the end, drafting proceeded pretty much like last time. Yuel went for Paladin and Trever for Ranger. Considering how many times Yuel shut Breaker down with Justice Strike, it''s amazing they didn''t ban Paladin. There''s definitely something afoot, Yuel could feel it.


    Before long, the enemy''s last pick came around and still no surprises. If everything was really going to follow the same script, their last pick would be a Support, a role played by SkyNight the past two games. Despite not standing out as muchas Breaker and Freezer, his airtight supporting couldn''t be underestimated. Especially, his heavy pressure as a Cryomancer warranted a ban each game.


    In preparation, Yuel and Gilbert banned various pesky Support classes during the second banning phase, so SkyNight didn''t have many great options left. Except, the enemy''s last pick turned out to be something else entirely. It was Elf. That''s not a Support.


    "Wow, what the?" Trever exclaimed. "The heck are they doing? They already got a Carry."


    "No, this is..." Yuel frowned. "This was their ''mixup'' all along." He just realized they were played for fools. They assumed Breaker will play Carry Pyromancer and Freezer will be Mid Warlock, just like the previous games. However, both Pyromancer and Warlock were flex picks, they could be played in at least two different roles.


    "Pyro is probably going Mid and the Warlock is either Support or Top, which opens up the Carry spot for the Elf." Yuel explained.


    "Huh," Gilbert made a difficult expression "So, I''ll have to deal with these combo memes this time. Alright then."


    There was a good reason for concern. After all, he picked Electromancer like before, expecting to go up against Warlock, which was a fair matchup. However, Electromancer vs. Pyromancer was a different story altogether. Electromancer was a team fight oriented mage, so his laning phase was relatively weak. With no reliable zoning tools except for his ult, Gilbert will definitely have a rough time holding down a Pyromancer, especially one as dangerous as Breaker.


    Elf was also a troublesome pick against Trever''s Ranger. It was an agile Carry, with the ability to get out of sticky situations and fire arrows across long distances. It was a natural counter to Ranger, whose game plan revolved around pinning the opponent down and finishing them off with "The Hunt is On".


    "Well shit, they got us good." Trever crossed his arms. "But, we already beat these guys twice, so let''s do it again, yo!"


    [Is this guy secretly Lars in disguise? ]Yuel sighed with a soft smile. Having one such confident goof on the team wasn''t too bad, especially when it was a senior. That''s probably why Trever was assigned as the captain, despite having zero leading or strategizing abilities.


    Ignoring the hiccup during drafting, the team headed into the third game with confidence thanks to Trever''s infectious high spirits. There''s nothing they could change at this point anyway, so they had to face the challenge head on. Gilbert will have to deal with a Combo Pyromancer on his lane, and Trever will have to find a way to score a kill on an Elf.


    The match began and Trever already struggled against the Elf from early on. SkyNight previously displayed decent mechanical skill as a Cryomancer and he had about the same amount of skill as an Elf, despite now playing a completely different role. He wasn''t as strong as Trever, but the Elf''s advantage allowed him gain the upper hand.


    "Damn! Get over here!" Trever darted toward the Elf, desperate to get at least some damage in. However, the Elf countered with Elven Leap, performing a high backflip.


    "Wait, don''t shoot-"


    "Agh, damn!" It was too late. Trever already fired two shots, believing he got the Elf. Not only did the shots completely miss the backflipping Elf, they also passed through the trail of wind left by the Elf''s leap. This was bad. Every enemy projectile that passed through the trail granted Elf attack speed and movement speed, as well as healed him. Trever was thoroughly countered!


    As soon as Night landed, he activated Elven Sight to capitalize on that buff. The Elf took steady aim at Trever, gaining increased attack power and range. Night and Trever were too far apart to reach each other with basic attacks , but thanks to Eleven Sight - he had no trouble sniping Trever across this long distance. And, his snipes were going to be both fast and strong too, thanks to the speed buff from Eleven Leap and the power buff from Elven Sight.


    "Shit!" Trever exclaimed. "Gotta get out- agh!? You serious!?" Just as he was about to retreat, Freezer hit him with Eldritch Blast. It was powered up by a Slowdown Invocation, as evident by Trever''s sluggish movements after the hit. He became a sitting duck for the Elf''s snipes!


    [This is bad! Can I make it!?] Yuel dashed toward Trever, hoping to body block the Elf''s long ranged shots. But, he couldn''t make it. Trever started this whole attack without informing Yuel beforehand, so Yuel was too far away to provide support.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "Shit! Damn it!" Trever slammed on the table and glared at Yuel. "Where were you, man!? You sleeping or something!?"


    "No, I..." Yuel was dumbfound. How was any of that his fault? It''s Trever who charged in solo and got outplayed by Night and Freezer. None of that was Yuel''s fault, right? There''s nothing a Support could do when the Carry acted selfishly like that.


    [Oh, not good. I have to retreat. ]Yuel shook his head and turned around, heading toward his Turret. While he was lost in thought, he almost handed the enemy a second kill on a silver platter.


    Wasn''t he already desensitized to being blamed for actions which weren''t his fault? He experienced this kind of toxicity countless times while playing online, especially before he started playing with Lars and Julia. Attacking the Support or Jungler was the first thing people did when they didn''t know who else to blame for their misplay. If it''s not their fault and there wasn''t anybody else to point at, clearly it had to be the Support or Jungler''s fault!


    Yuel went through this nonsense a thousand times by now, so he became resilient. Or, so he thought. Receiving the same criticism face-to-face from a fellow teammate, from a senior, from the captain... That''s unpleasant. Very unpleasant.


    Despite knowing it wasn''t his fault, a part of him couldn''t stop questioning. Maybe he should had stuck closer to Trever? That would had allowed him to get to the scene faster, no matter what unexpected play Trever did. Or, maybe Yuel''s lack of initiative was the problem in the first place? He hadn''t initiated any fights so far, because he was wary of the Elf''s range advantage. Maybe that made Trever desperate for some action, leading to that uncoordinated play.


    "Shit," Gilbert exclaimed. "Their Warlock is here! I don''t remember you called missing."


    "Oh, right..." Yuel blinked. At some point, Freezer rotated from Bot to Mid. Yuel should had called missing on him, but he didn''t. He was the only one left in Bot now, so it was his job to keep an eye on Night and Freezer. Seriously, the heck was he doing!?


    "My bad, I..."


    "Great," Gilbert clicked his tongue. "I already got my hands full dealing with heir Pyro and now the Warlock waltzes in too. Just great."


    Freezer maneuvered around Gilbert''s wards on his way to Mid, so he popped "out of nowhere" for Gilbert, as nobody called missing on him ahead of time. Fortunately, Electromancer had Thunderclap for blinking away, so Gilbert was fine. He just had to-


    "Great, he silenced me." Gilbert sighed. Just as he was about to teleport away, Freezer hit him with an Eldritch Blast powered by a Muteness Invocation. All his skills were locked, including Thunderclap. He had no way out. He was screwed.


    Breaker didn''t fail to take advantage of this situation. She unleashed her spells on Gilbert, converting Freezer''s rotation into a successful gank.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "Well, that''s unfortunate." Gilbert shook his head and stared at Yuel. "Seriously, how did you miss that? Rotating after a kill is basic."


    "I..." Yuel bit his lip. "I didn''t expect him to go for it just yet... Sorry." There''s no excuse, he totally blew it. This death was 100% on him.


    "Kid," Trever said. "You''re sleeping, I''m tellin'' ya. Don''t relax just because we won last game. These guys still mean business, we gotta keep it together."


    "Yes... Of course." Yuel answered. ["Keep it together"? Mind reminding me who just charged solo against the Elf? And blamed it on me for no reason?]


    He burned with the urge to give Trever a piece of his mind, but restrained himself. Nothing good will come out quarreling, especially not in the middle of a match. In fact, just [thinking] about that incident invited trouble. It distracted him enough to miss Freezer''s predictable rotation, resulting in Gilbert''s death. If there''s one thing Trever was right about, it''s that Yuel had to pull himself together. ASAP.


    Unfortunately, this wasn''t the end of StormBlitz''s troubles. Trever started playing overly aggressive on lane, most likely trying to compensate for the kill he conceded earlier. Yuel advised playing defensively since they were behind, but Trever kept recklessly pushing, trying to get a revenge kill on Night. It''s like Trever was asking for something to go wrong.


    But, Trever still viewed his previous death as Yuel''s fault, so arguing with him will only add more fuel to the fire. Instead, Yuel kept quiet and focused on supporting Trever''s reckless endeavours. The plan was simple: He''ll provide flawless support this time around and will regain Trever''s trust, then Trever should be more willing to listen.


    Trever''s repeated aggression managed to wear Night out. Despite the Elf''s advantages, Trever''s superior strength as an aggressor pulled through, bringing Night down to 2-% HP. Freezer wasn''t on lane at the moment, so it looked like a good chance to go for a kill on Night. Still, Trever was only at 40% HP himself, so it was best to proceed carefully-


    "Think you can run away? No dice!" Trever grinned and mounted his wolf, fully intent on chasing Night down.


    "Wait, don''t overextend." Yuel said. "We lost the ward near the jungle entrance on their side, so the Warlock could appear any-"


    "Shut up and watch, kid. I''mma kill that loser real quick!" Trever kept pursuing Night, dismissing Yuel''s warning. With no mobility skills at his disposal, Yuel had no way to keep up with Trever''s wolf. Yet again, Trever was heading into a dangerous situation all by himself. This looked bad. BAD! Yuel''s instincts screamed at him.


    [Tch, that blockhead. ]Yuel bit his lip. Trever was a veteran, he usually made good decisions. What was wrong? Why did he play so recklessly? Was it because of the first death he conceded? It was just one early death, it tilted him way too much..


    [Anyway, I should try blocking the jungle entrance. That''s the most I can do. ]Instead of chasing Trever, Yuel headed toward the jungle entrance. If a gank were to come, it''d be through there for sure. It was far, but the closer he could get - the better chance he had to thwart a potential gank.


    Honestly, this was far from an optimal play. In fact, it was rubbish. A terrible misplay. Going out of his way to reach that jungle entrance was an overextension in its own right, hardly any better than what Trever was doing.


    Nevertheless, Yuel had to go through with it. He started this game on the wrong foot with Trever, so he didn''t want to be "responsible" for another death here. Every cell in his body warned that this was a horrible idea, that this won''t end well. Nonetheless, he forced his Paladin to run toward the jungle entrance.


    As he predicted, Freezer appeared from the unwarded jungle entrance. This ward was methodically removed by Freezer a while ago, so Freezer knew he had the element of surprise on his side. There''s a chance this whole situation was a bait from the get-go...!


    Despite getting as close as humanly possible to that jungle entrance, Yuel still couldn''t reach Freezer with Justice Strike. It was bad. BAD!


    "Warlock is ganking!" Yuel cried out. "Retreat!"


    "Oh, shit!" Trever exclaimed, but didn''t turn around. "And I''m so close too! Deal with him for a sec while I finish the Elf!"


    "Wha-!? I can''t, he''s too far!"


    "Figure something out, kid. Stop being useless and do something for a change."


    "Wha..." Yuel couldn''t believe his ears. ["Stop being useless"? "Do something for a change"? The hell is he smoking!?]


    Dammit, Yuel just had to do it, right!? He''ll stop Freezer''s gank, right here and now. That''ll shut Trever up for good! Screw that this was a terrible play, caution could be damned. Yuel was going to do it!


    He didn''t want to spend Blink for such a bad play, but that''s the only option if he wanted to get in Freezer''s way. By blinking forward, the tip of his Justice Strike should just barely reach Freezer. Landing a silencing strike will delay Freezer''s CC, giving Trever enough time to kill Night... probably. Hopefully.


    At the back of his head, a voice never stopped droning. "This is a bad idea. You''re both going to die. You call yourself a Support?" High risk for low reward, he knew that. Even if his Blink play were to succeed, there''s no guarantee Trever will finish off Night in time. Too things could go wrong here.


    Nevertheless, Yuel had to do it. This was his chance to pacify Trever and stop the enemy''s momentum. He indirectly fueled that momentum by forgetting to call missing on Freezer, which led to Gilbert''s death. Just like Trever, Yuel also desperately sought an opportunity to make up for his bad play and right now was his chance.


    Despite harboring many doubts about this plan, he went all in! He blinked forward and cast Justice Strike. There''s no time to waste. He had cast it as soon as he finished teleporting, that''s the only way. He had to pray his mediocre accuracy was enough to pull this off...!


    A white blade appeared high in the air, then came down crashing... into the ground. The combined distance of Blink + Justice Strike was just barely enough to reach Freezer, there was nothing wrong with Yuel''s calculation.


    But, he missed. He messed up. His aim was a bit off. Amidst the haste, he failed to cast Justice Strike as ideally as he envisioned it in his head. This was bad. BAD!!!


    [Huh, I screwed up. ]He didn''t even have it in him to be mad. Seriously, what the heck was he thinking in the first place? Of course it was bound to fail. Since when he had the mechanical skill to blink forward and instantly land Justice Strike into a very specific microscopic area?


    He practiced Blink + Justice Strike, it was a common Paladin play. However, there''s no way he could pull it off in such a haste, especially not when his target was barely in range. It was stupid, so stupid.


    Without being slowed down in the slightest, Freezer continued the gank without paying any heed to Yuel''s movements. He hit Trever with an Eldritch Blast powered by Hex Invocation, lowering defense.


    "Shit! You didn''t stop him!?" Trever cursed. Being hit by Eldritch Blast forced him off his mount. He found himself surrounded by two enemies, with merely 35% HP and with lowered defense.


    Realizing the shift in tides, Night stopped running and turned around. He aimed his bow at Trever, fully intent on fighting. His Elven SIght was on cooldown, so he didn''t have range advantage over Trever. But, he could still dish out respectable damage with basic attacks, like any Carry.


    "Oh, sure!" Trever ranted. "Now you wanna fight! You damn pussy!"


    "Stop, you need to ret-"


    "Okay! Come at me, man! I''mma kick yo ass!" Trever didn''t listen. He was down to 35% HP and had lowered defense, so just a couple of shots from Night and Freezer would suffice to kill. There''s no chance he''d kill Night before getting killed first! Yet, he dashed forward.


    [Ugh, that dolt!] Yuel gritted his teeth. [But, maybe I can still make it...!]


    Maybe, just maybe, it''s still possible to turn this terrible situation around. With his Aegis, he could keep Trever alive long enough to put on a fight. Night was at 20% HP, so two accurate hits from Trever sufficed to seal the deal. Trever just had to actually survive long enough to be able to make these two shots.


    "Get closer to me!" Yuel shouted while running toward Trever. "I''ll Aegis!"


    "Tch, guess there''s no choice." Trever clicked his tongue. "If you just did your job and stopped their Warlock, I wouldn''t be in this mess."


    [Or, maybe you wouldn''t be in this mess if didn''t chase in the first place! Ever thought of that, huh!?] Yuel gritted his teeth. No good, he was dragged into the dark side again.


    [Stop. Calm down.] He took a deep breath and concentrated on running to Trever''s side. Trever was already down to 10% HP, but he was very much alive. Yuel had a decent chance to reach him with Aegis before-


    "Oh..." Reality hit Yuel like a truck. He got there, Trever was within the range of his Aegis. But, he couldn''t activate Aegis. Or any ability, for that matter.


    Freezer hit him with Warlock''s second spell, Eldritch Field. It didn''t deal much damage because it was an AoE, but it was infused with Muteness Invocation. It silenced Yuel long enough to miss the right timing for Aegis. Yuel should had been aware of this possibility all along, and yet...


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "Fuck! Damn! Shit!" Trever cursed to no end, slamming fists on the table.


    The rescue operation was a complete failure. Yuel failed to rescue Trever and needlessly overextended, handing the enemy another kill on a silver platter.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Man, MAN!" Trever shouted. "What are you doing!? You didn''t help me for shit and now you die too! What the fuck, yo?"


    "Sorry for trying, I''ll leave you to die next time." Yuel retorted. "You''re right, I played poorly. I shouldn''t have tried to prevent an obvious suicide."


    "What suicide? I almost had the guy!"


    "Whatever." Yuel shook his head, Trever was too titled to be reasoned with, there''s no point discussing this now. Seriously, what was wrong with him this game? He made one poor play after another and became increasingly toxic. Did his bad habit kick in?


    Yuel didn''t know the specifics, but he saw this pattern before. From time to time, during practice matches, Trever would suddenly become uncooperative for no reason. He either ranted to no end or expressed zero motivation. This always led to sequence of terrible plays which resulted in his death. And, the further the game progressed, the worse this phenomena became.


    Why now? Whenever this bad habit surfaced, it was often after Trever conceded a kill. But, he was already killed earlier today. Multiple times, in fact. On top of that, he was the first StormBlitz player to die today, right in the early game of their first match. That death was more shocking than anything that happened during this game so far, at least in Yuel''s eyes.


    So, what triggered Trever''s sudden deterioration? It''s pointless, Yuel never quite grasped the logic behind this. He only knew one thing: this was bad.


    Trever was losing it more and more with every passing second. This negatively affected those around him, especially Yuel. He thought he developed resistance to flaming, but he felt he was dragged to that level right now, just by sitting beside Trever.


    The rest of the team wasn''t nearly as lively as before either. It''s clear that Trever''s negativity slowly spread throughout the team, putting a damper on everybody''s mood.


    "I''d really appreciate some ganks on my lane." Gilbert said


    "Gotta agree. Dan, shouldn''t you gank other lanes a little more?" Roi added


    "Well, excuse me for not wanting to gank lanes with fed enemies" Dan sneered.


    Negativity begat negativity. Yuel experienced this vicious cycle countless times when playing online. Once flaming started, it spread across the whole team and burned everything down. Little by little, everybody added fuel to it, until it blew up in their faces.


    The team''s situation looked different from the typical online flaming at first glance, because the screen wasn''t drowning in text walls filled with insults and curses. But, it was exactly the same. Everybody just acted more cultured about it, except for Trever.


    In fact, this situation was even worse. Everybody sat next to each other, so it was easier to pick up how others felt. Words weren''t even as necessary. A tongue click after a failed gank, a head shake whenever somebody died and a sigh whenever somebody fell short of somebody''s expectations. The longer this went on, the more wrapped everybody became.


    Yuel felt he was the only one still resisting his inner demons. But, he was clearly affected as well. The last couple terrible plays were undeniable proof of that. In fact, perhaps thinking he was better than the rest already proved he fell into the same trap. Those who acted toxic always thought they were the only sane people around.


    Anyway, something had to be done. And fast. How could Yuel overturn this grim situation? At his rate, the team was heading toward certain doom...

 39 Rift in the Team

    "Hoh," Jennifer nodded. "You can actually do it when you try." She referred to Alex''s recent play, when he silenced the Paladin and secured a kill on the Ranger.


    "Hmph." Alex shrugged, but it''s clear Coach''s words had an effect on him. The mere mention of the first string was enough to light a fire. No matter how slim, if there''s still a chance to get into the first string - Alex wanted to grab it no matter what. Jennifer understood that well, since she was in the same boat.


    It also seemed like he didn''t make shit up when blaming his poor performance on lane matchup. Now, that he played against a greedy opponent on lane, he punished his opponents without mercy. There''s nobody better than Alex at punishing aggressive plays, even Jennifer had to admit that.


    It''s frustrating, but Alex was... Well, kind of a genius. He showed his stupid face in the club like twice a week at best, yet Coach still insisted putting him in the second string. And, as a vice-captain no less. Jennifer bombarded Coach with objections on the matter, but turned out Alex could pull his own weight. Heck, he even made a good play there.


    [Meh, I really hate that bastard.] Jennifer grumped. This sure brought back memories, from when she was but a clueless freshman in the club.


    When she first joined, she had less than 30 hours of playtime under under her belt. She was such a noob, couldn''t even tell left from right. The club had a tough entry exam, it was a mystery how she scraped through it. Maybe Coach went easier on her because she was a newbie, or because she was a girl, or both.


    Either way, it was a miracle she made it through. The gap between her and the other freshmen was appalling, it''s like she wandered into an alien world. Some of the words they used sounded Chinese to her.


    But, even among all these aliens, there was one who stood above the rest: Alex Romanov, a prodigy rookie. His existence made Jennifer feel like an ant. In the first couple of days, it became clear he was a league above other rookies. He had more experience than them, already a Gold player in Ranked. Jennifer hadn''t even unlocked the mode at that point. On top of that, his refined plays and sharp decision-making awed everybody. He was a guy to be feared and respected.


    But, all these achievements weren''t enough for him. "I''ll make it into the first string this year, mark my words." He proclaimed time and again, even after learning how competitive the club was.


    With Coach guiding new players, a huge skill gap existed between freshman and juniors. Rookies felt like wannabe players, whereas juniors almost looked like pros. And, seniors were definitely pros The rookies were thoroughly trashed during practice matches to be learn their place. They''d have to train for years before reaching the seniors'' level, only then they can start dreaming about the competitive scene.


    Nevertheless, Alex insisted: "I''ll make it, just you watch." He sounded so dumb, but also so cool at the same time. Thinking back on it, maybe Jennifer even had a little crush on him back then. Bleh.


    Anyway, he refused to yield. No matter who ridiculed his ambition, he kept working his ass off throughout the first year. Coming early to practice, staying overtime and talking about Classmancers 24/7. It was impossible to catch him doing something unrelated to Classmancers.


    That burning desire to make the impossible possible, that''s why Jennifer made Alex her goal. For her, who was at the bottom of the bottom, Alex was like a role model. He was a talented player, yet everybody ridiculed him for trying to get into the first string. Nevertheless, he didn''t yield. So, Jennifer refused to yield either.


    No matter how many times others called her an untalented scrub, she kept working hard. All she wanted was to become a respectable player, one who could stand shoulder to shoulder with the other freshmen. Such a small, but damn hard, wish to fulfil. There were countless times she considered quitting, but every time she remembered Alex''s efforts and kept pushing forward. It''s only thanks to him that she remained in the club to this day.


    For the better or the worse, a lot had changed since then. Through sheer effort, Jennifer climbed all the way to a captain position. She reached way beyond "respectable player", she was considered among the club''s top dogs.


    On the other hand, Alex gave up halfway through. Because of that, he failed to reach the first string even on his last year. All his unrewarded hard work during the first year burned him out, turning him into a shell of his former self. Zero motivation, zero effort. A total disgrace.


    Still, one truth remained: even now, he had the makings of a strong player. His potential was only held back by the lack of practice and fighting spirit. Coach brought up the possibility of promotion in front of everybody, but he mentioned it to Alex first. Not Jennifer, but Alex.


    Gah, so triggering! Coach still had expectations for Alex, even in his current sorry state. Not for Jennifer who worked hard every day, but for Alex who lazed around. Even after chasing Alex''s back for so long and eventually surpassing him, she still somehow felt inferior.


    [Damn, I''m not losing to some lazy bum!] Jennifer clenched her mouse. So what if Alex made some good plays? She not gonna lose! It''s time to show these scrubs what she''s really made of! Time to uncloak her secret weapon!


    She rushed Spellbook of Doom during the early game, to begin her combo plays as soon as possible. She gonna terrorize that scrubby Electromancer and score like twenty kills on him! Yeah, that''s right! For each assist Alex got, she gonna score ten kills! She not gonna lose against that lazy bum!


    After clearing all enemy minions, she uncloaked her Spellbook of Doom and hit the Electromancer with Pillar of Fire. She already baited Thunderclap out of him earlier, so he had no way to escape. He won''t see this coming!


    Soon after Pillar of Fire connected, she followed with Flame Wave and Blaze of Inferno. The usual pattern. That scrub sure didn''t expect losing his 80% HP in just two seconds! Ha!


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    Flawless execution, just like she practiced. Maybe she wasn''t a natural genius like Alex, but she delivered results through hard work! She''s not gonna lose. Not to Alex, and not to anybody else!


    "Spellbook? Already?" Gilbert frowned as he stared at the message on his screen.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    This was unexpected, to say the least. Breaker kept her Spellbook of Doom cloaked until the right moment, baited Thunderclap of him and then destroyed his life with a combo. Thinking back on it, he should had suspected something was off when she suddenly went on the offensive and then retreated as soon as he spent Thunderclap. She was already setting up the stage back then, it was so obvious. Damn. He was played.


    "She rushed Spellbook, so beware of combos." Gilbert informed the rest. "Pyro is already hard enough for to deal with as Electro, so I doubt I can handle her combos on top of that. Help will be appreciated."


    "Sorry, man." Trever shook his head. "I gotta deal with lots of shit over here too."


    "Yeah," Roi said "I''m not having an easy time either. They keep rotating from your lanes into mine 24/7. Do something about that, will ya?"


    "Hey, don''t blame me for that shit." Trever scowled. "I almost got them both times, just got unlucky there. You''re a big boy, you can handle a gank or two. Just hug the Turret until they give up and you gonna be fine."


    "Sure." Roi rolled his eyes. "Except, if they push me back to tower all the time, the Viking gonna outfarm me like crazy. I''m already lagging behind on gold and can''t 1v1 him."


    "Well, figure something out, man." Trever shrugged. "You''re not the only one eating shit here."


    "Just keep your opponents in lane, okay?"


    "We would, if it were that easy." Gilbert said. "It definitely doesn''t help our Jungler ganks only once in a blue moon."


    "Excuse me," Dan retorted. "I''m not exactly a fan of ganking fed enemies with full health. You gotta poke them harder first if you want good ganks."


    Back and forth. Forth and back. Blame was fired in every direction and Yuel wasn''t spared either. He made some poor shot-calls, failing to predict the enemy''s movements. The enemy''s mixup didn''t only shuffle the players around the map, it also made these very same players move differently.


    For example, unless there were special circumstances, Breaker always rotated upwards. She started at Bot, went to Mid and usually end up in Top. It''s a routine Yuel saw countless times and even exploited.


    But, the rule was broken this game. Breaker now started in Mid, so she was supposed to rotate to Top. But, she rotated to Bot.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "Shit!" Trever roared. "Didn''t you say she''ll go for Top!? Great job, detective!"


    "Ugh." Yuel bit his lip. It was a careless mistake. He should figured he couldn''t blindly trust his previous deductions, yet he went for it anyway. His attention was split between shot-calling and thinking about the team''s sorry state. He had to focus. [Focus!]


    "What, nothing to say for yourself?" Trever clicked his tongue.


    "... Sorry." Yuel hung his head in apology. Any attempt to justify himself would only add fuel to the fire.


    "Man, get a grip. I''m getting stomped all over the place thanks to you. You''re been playing like shit the whole game."


    "Sorry." Yuel apologized again. That''s all he could do. He itched to urge back against him "playing poorly the whole game", because it''s clearly Trever who messed up the team''s early game. But, he held himself back. The team already succumbed to toxicity, he shouldn''t feed it any further.


    Excuses aside, he failed to predict Breaker''s movements. Even worse, he carelessly claimed he knew where she''ll rotate, giving Trever the green light to keep pushing. He chose to trust his deduction without thinking twice, because if Breaker were to rotate to Top - Trever would be able to push Bot hard, maybe even score his first kill. Finally, StormBlitz would make a strong play! It''d surely alleviate some of the team''s toxicity!


    It was too alluring. He gave in to temptation, ignoring reason to chase that daydream. So, this was fully on him. And, it wasn''t the first dumb mistake he committed due to haste. Ever since his team started bickering, he stumbled time and again as he tried to restore the team''s momentum.


    It''s bad. The team was falling apart. Their chances of winning slipped farther and farther away with every passing second. If Yuel lost his focus too, they''ll be doomed.


    How could he turn this around? Was there anything he could do? The fastest way to inject the team with some positivity was to make a strong play, preferably as a team. For example, winning a team fight would surely boost morale. As the shot-caller, it was up to him to prepare the stage for that. But...


    [Isn''t there anything? Anything at all!?] He scanned the map, the status screen, compared levels, calculated gold, scanned the map again. Nothing. He couldn''t find the play his team desperately needed.


    Was there really none? Or, was he too foggy to see it? There''s no denying it: the negative atmosphere got to him as well. His vision and judgment were clouded. Thoughts about the situation constantly distracted him. What should he do? How could he turn this around? These questions haunted him.


    On top of that, the enemy''s mixup strategy got him well. They only moved three players around the map, yet it changed the the rhythm of the whole team.


    With Freezer as Support and SkyNight as Carry, the Bot duo played a lot more defensively than the Breaker + SkyNight duo. They made calculated plays and always waited for the right time to punish overextension. That''s how they punished Trever time and again, as he threw caution to the wind for some reason.


    At the same time, with ComboBreaker in Mid, the lane turned into a raging war zone as soon as she unlocked her combo. She relentlessly pressured Gilbert and went for kills, a world apart from how Freezer played Mid in the last two games. On top of adapting to a completely new beast, Gilbert also had to fend off Breaker''s unstoppable offense. He was a smart player with solid judgment, but mechanical skill wasn''t his forte. Therefore, Breaker overwhelmed him with the combination of superior mechanical skill and tremendous burst damage.


    Just by shifting players between lanes, the dynamics of the match completely changed. And, this wasn''t even a "full mixup", as only three enemies changed roles. A true mixup shuffled the entire team around, that''s what the first string had to deal with right now. Yuel could only imagine how difficult it was.


    [If I can''t even deal with this much, how am I ever going to get into the first string?] He gritted his teeth. He had to find a way to overturn this situation. He won''t lose to some half-baked mixup. If he couldn''t overcome that much, he had no hope getting into the first string anytime soon.


    [Think. It can''t be that hard. They changed positions, but they''re still the same players.] He took a deep breath and blocked out the negative energy surrounding him. They already played against these enemies before. Twice already. The changes in position caught them off guard, but the shock value mostly wore off by now. In addition, mid game started, so lane matchups were no longer as important.


    That''s when it hit him. Even though Breaker played Mid, she was a Combo Pyromancer just like before. Likewise, even though Freezer played Support, he stuck to his hybrid build like before. In other words, once Breaker and Freezer stepped out of their lanes to partake in team fights - they''ll become familiar foes again. That''s when Yuel will get a chance to turn the tables around with all the data he accumulated on them!


    There''s no need to act hasty right now. He gave up on making huge plays and prioritized defense, waiting for his chance. No matter what, he couldn''t allow the enemy gain any more advantage before the team fighting phase. When the likes of Breaker were fed, they became virtually unstoppable. That''s the main danger he had to avert at any cost.


    "Gilbert, return to base." Yuel said as he arrived in Mid. "I''ll hold the lane."


    "She clears fast," Gilbert argued. "You won''t be able to hold her back."


    "I know, but it''s better than feeding her a kill."


    "... Yeah, I suppose." Gilbert nodded with a complicated expression. Odd. Gilbert should had known that conceding another kill to Breaker was the worst thing they could do right now. Yet, he seemed reluctant about returning to base.


    Why? Did he want to stick around and fight Breaker? Sure, if he could score a kill on Breaker, then the tides would turn in their favor and he''d compensate for his two deaths. However, it''s too risky. Even Yuel preferred going on the defensive here, despite usually favoring offensive tactics. Their situation was that desperate.


    As Gilbert warned, Yuel couldn''t hold Breaker back. With her superior damage, fueled by the extra gold and exp she gained from two kills on Gilbert, she torched minions in an instant. Yuel couldn''t compete in the slightest in term of wave clearing speed, but at he zoned Breaker out of the Turret''s area. She was forced to rely on her minions for pushing the Turret, without getting any attacks in.


    She clearly wanted to invade, but reconsidered. Good. She understood the dangers of invading against a Paladin, Yuel''s whole plan revolved around that. Justice Strike gained additional effects against enemies who dealt large amounts of damage since their latest respawn, and Breaker was the biggest offender right now. She knew she most likely stacked enough damage on her record to trigger Justice Strike''s most vicious effect: stun. If Yuel were to make the Turret target Breaker and then stunned her within the Turret''s range, she''d be done for.


    In the end, Breaker didn''t dare to invade. The Turret fell from 70% HP to 40% HP due to efforts of enemy minions, but the it remained intact. Mission accomplished. The Turret survived and they didn''t feed Breaker with any kills. All''s well that ended we-


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "Gah!" Trever exclaimed. "Where are you at? I can''t 1v2 them!"


    "But, I told you to play defensively..." Yuel muttered. While he was busy defending Mid, Trever was left alone in Bot and had to face Freezer and SkyNight. Considering Trever''s poor performance so far, Yuel was convinced it''s best to make him play safe by hugging the Turret. Yet, somehow, Trever failed even that.


    "You saw how my previous fights went and you still leave the lane?" Trever ranted. "Support please?"


    "... Sorry." Yuel clenched his mouse. [Excuse me for believing you can do something as simple as hugging a tower. Totally my fault.] Given the circumstances, Yuel had no choice but rotate back to Bot. "I''ll go defend Bot."


    "Yeah, great! Come back right after I''m dead! Such helpful, so support!"


    "Ugh." Yuel trembled. What''s that guy''s problem? Yuel did everything he could to prevent this match from heading straight to hell, but all he received in return were complaints.


    Just who was that angry guy and what did he do to the usual goof? Trever''s transformation was so uncanny it was unsettling. Yuel caught glimpses of this behaviour before during practice matches, but he still couldn''t believe this was happening right now.


    Just what was wrong with Trever? Yuel couldn''t find the answer to that. There''s only one thing he knew: if things continue like this, the team will fall apart for sure. He had to do something, anything. But what? No idea.


    Maybe... Maybe this was beyond his power.

 40 Trevers Frustration

    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    Trever died. Again. It was the third time this game already. Yet again, it''s because Yuel wasn''t there to help him.


    "Where are you at?" Trever asked. "I can''t 1v2 them!"


    "But, I told you to play defensively..." Yuel said, averting his eyes.


    "You saw how my previous fights went and you still leave the lane? Support please?"


    "Sorry. I''ll go defend Bot."


    "Yeah, great! Come back right after I''m dead! Such helpful, so support!" Trever was losing his shit. This kid just kept screwing him all game! Fuck!


    "Ugh." Yuel just hung his head without saying a word. Well, maybe Trever went a little too far. Yuel definitely deserved some criticism, but...


    "Whatever," Trever shook his head. "Just make sure you actually support me next time, got it?" Seriously, what''s wrong with this kid? Didn''t he see Trever struggled in lane? Yet, instead of helping, he wandered hell knew where. It''s as if every possible bullshit was out to get Trever this match.


    Like, for real. The hell was wrong with this match? Ever since Trever got himself killed the first time, nothing went his way anymore. He was at freaking 0/3/0 already, a score for an exemplary feeder. If this were a Ranked match with some randoms, he''d be flooded with the insults by now. ¡ºOMG feeder noob uninstall game¡»


    How did this happen? They did such a good job the last two matches, he was sure they gonna dominate this one as well. The enemy changed their positions a little, but so what? StormBlitz was still stronger! They had this in the bag!


    ... yet, he got himself killed in less than five minutes into the match. How did that shit happen? Why the heck didn''t Yuel follow up on his attack? Where was the supporting at, yo!?


    Or, was that Trever''s fault? Did he rush too much? Honestly, he was a little greedy when chasing the Elf back then. Yeah, maybe it wasn''t exactly the smartest play ever. Yuel still could had supported it better, but okay, it wasn''t just the kid''s fault.


    Anyway, that first death wasn''t a huge deal. Everything would be fine once Trever redeems himself. It''s payback time, yo! He''ll wreck that annoying Elf & Warlock duo! An eye for an eye! A kill for a kill!


    By scoring a revenge kill, he''d fully make up for his previous death. The team would no longer be at a disadvantage because of him. In fact, they'' might even seize the momentum! Awesome! He''ll get that kill for sure! At least, that was the plan...


    Instead, he died. Again. He even announced out loud he was going after the Elf, yet Yuel still failed to protect him. Like seriously, the heck was Yuel doing? Kid was useless!


    In the end, instead of settling the score, Trever fed the Elf even more. Awesome. The enemy just gained further advantage! Exactly what Trever wanted! Fuck.


    Good job, he screwed his entire team. Shit, why was it happening? Why!? He was the senior! The captain! He was supposed to lead the others with his plays, not to drag them down! Not like this!


    After all this, Yuel told him to hug the Turret and play safe. Seriously? [Seriously?] Trever lagged behind the enemy Carry after dying twice, yet all Yuel suggested was to turtle. Not to try resetting the score via kills, but to play full defense and let the enemy steamroll them. GG.


    What a pain. No matter what people preached about the value of hugging towers when playing from behind, it never resonated with Trever. He had to go aggressive! He had to kill the Elf! That''s the only way to come back from this situation. Yuel should had understood that too, as the guy who always came up with crazy aggressive tactics. Yet, Yuel advocated playing defensively? Was today the end of the world or something?


    Well, whatever. Yuel declared he gonna defend Mid, so there''s nothing Trever could do. He couldn''t charge in without a Support, because that''d be a 1v2. Frustrating, but he agreed to sit under tower like a good boy. His chance to redeem himself would surely come. He just had to wait out. Just. Wait. It. Out. Gah.


    Even though he stayed by the Turret, he constantly sought an opportunity to get a kill. Turtling wasn''t nearly as effective when the opponent wasn''t scared of diving in. Even while playing defensively, Trever had to be on the lookout for a chance to turn the tables around. He needed that kill! The team needed that kill! He had to score that kill to redeem his shitty performance!


    As the thoughts swirled in his mind, an opportunity presented itself for real. He didn''t miss it. He couldn''t possibly miss it. The Elf got too greedy when pushing, getting his ass shot by the Turret. He dropped all the way down to 30% HP. Awesome! A huge chance to to finish him off! He even began retreating! This was the opportunity Trever had been waiting for!


    He left the Turret and chased after the injured Elf. No way he gonna miss this chance But, then Eldritch Nightmare happened. The Warlock robbed him of his vision and slowed him down. Not only he couldn''t pinpoint his target in the darkness, but even returning to the Turret was a challenge.


    That''s when it hit him: it was a trap. He was baited! Fuck! He fired arrows into the darkness, trying to strike an invisible foe. But, it was in vain. He was doomed. Another death, the third one already. Things just escalated from terrible to seriously fucking terrible.


    Damn! If only Yuel was here! He could had protected Trever with Aegis until Eldritch Nightmare was over. Then, Trever could had easily pursued his prey and would had finally settled the score. But no, Yuel just had to be in Mid for whatever reason.


    Dammit. Three deaths in a row without achieving anything, that''s how Trever ended up with a dumb 0/3/0.. The game hadn''t even reached the team-fighting phase yet, but he already screwed his team. Yes, him. The senior. The captain. Of all people. No matter how hard he lashed at Yuel, deep down he knew: the blame laid with him. He fucked up. Hard.


    Why did it turn out like this? Why did he keep messing up in the most critical moments? He used to be a king of Classmancers back in grade school. After failing to stand out in the soccer club, he tried Classmancers and became a celebrity among his peers. That''s what hooked him on the game. He forgot all about the unrewarding ball game and focused on Classmancers.


    Being a Classmancers ace didn''t exactly impress girls, but that''s fine. These chicks were just too young to understand its greatness. Once they grow up a little, they''d see how amazing Trever really was. Until then, he kept playing and bettering himself.


    At some point, he and Aron became the best players in class. Heck, the best players in the entire school! Especially, when they used their trademark "Double Jungler" combo - they wrecked all the other kids. It was awesome. [They] were awesome.


    When they took StormBlitz''s entry exam, they totally fazed the examiners. It was a breeze, everybody said they had the makings of pro players. Unsurprisingly, Trever became a core member of the first string and debuted in the regionals as a junior.


    For somebody like him, today''s scrimmage was supposed to be a walk in the park. It was nothing compared to playing in the regionals. Yet, here he was: conceding kills left and right. Such a disgrace.


    Ever since Ellen joined the club, nothing went his way anymore. He was forced to surrender the Carry role, got demoted to the second string and his overall performance dropped. Aron gave him an earful every other day. Life became hell.


    Why? How did it happen? Incomprehensible. It''s not like he lazed around or anything. In fact, he trained harder than ever after losing his spot as a starter. He refused going down without a fight! He wanted to teach that damn chick a lesson and reclaim his rightful place!


    Alas, none of his effort paid off. Despite working hard and improving a lot, he always blew it during important moments. For example, like how he lost it during Lars''s entry exam and almost ruined the whole thing. It always struck him suddenly, without explanation. It was like a bad dream, an illusion. He always refused to believe it was really happening to him, until it was too late to recover.


    To be blunt: he fell apart. No matter how strong he felt before the match or how decently he performed, he had a tendency to fall apart during critical moments. It''s a curse which had been haunting him since forever, even all the way back in grade school. That''s the main reason he failed to stand out in the soccer club. He was usually a strong forward, but sometimes he''d just miss every shot and waste every opportunity his team created for him. He hoped to escape that curse by switching to Classmancers, but ended up carrying over that bad luck.


    These were just "bad days", that''s how he called them. Sometimes, things simply didn''t go his way. He''d become agitated, desperately trying to fix everything he messed up. But, the harder he worked to redeem himself, the more he screwed himself and his team in the process.


    "It''s just not my day." That''s how he used to dismiss these incidents. There were some "good days" and some "bad days", that''s how life rolled. Sometimes he was on fire and dominated everybody, other times he played like a noob and anybody wreck him. Shit happened, that''s life for ya.


    Even with this glaring weakness weighing him down, he was appointed as a starter by the end of the first year. Everybody recognized him as one of the best players in the club despite his occasional breakdowns. The breakdowns were pretty rare anyway, way rarer than the ones he experienced in soccer. Truly, Classmancers was the right game for him!


    The more experience and confidence he gained in the club, the less frequent his breakdowns became. Aron still nagged about them whenever they happened, but everybody else just accepted them. Everybody had their off days, their "bad days". There''s nothing special about it.


    All in all, things were going great for Trever. That is, until that fateful entry exam. As a junior, he was in the shoes of an examiner this time around. The rookie he played against on lane was Ellen.


    He vaguely remembered that nerdy girl, she was a year below him in grade school. Always wearing thick glasses and being kind of a weirdo, she probably didn''t have many friends. Or, any friends. There also weren''t many kids her age in the school who played Classmancers, so she tried mixing into Trever''s gang. Pretty admirable, considering how shy and closed-off she seemed to be.


    He didn''t dislike the girl. In fact, he thought she''d be kinda cute if she took better care of herself. She sucked at the game, though. Coupled with her being the weirdo she was, it didn''t take long before she became the laughingstock of the group. Everything about her was ridiculed, from her appearance to her speech to her gaming skills.


    Trever also laughed at her, but not because he disliked her or anything. It''s just that she was a weirdo and her desperate attempts to play on par with the boys were hilarious. She always came to their class during lunch breaks, only to make a fool out of herself with her poor skills. It was so dumb.


    "You just ain''t cut for it." Trever told her. "It''s fine if you wanna watch, but I don''t think you should play. I mean, your team always loses, no matter who you play with"


    After that, Ellen stopped coming. He considered calling her over, but it was awkward so he gave up. That was the last time he ever saw that eccentric nerdy girl.


    The next time he saw her was during that fateful entry exam. The girl who appeared before him was definitely Ellen, yet she looked nothing alike. Her big glasses were gone, probably replaced with contacts. Her long messy hair was cut shorter, giving her a wild and daring look. But, the most notable difference was her attitude: she looked strong, brimming with confidence. She walked with her head straightened and had no trouble making eye contact. She was a world apart from the shy girl he knew, who used to stare at the floor all the time and stuttered every other word.


    In fact, she... She was kinda cute, Trever''s heart even skipped a beat when their eyes met. How could this cool chick be the same weirdo he used to make fun of? It was unreal.


    Contact between club members and examinees was frowned upon, but he decided to strike a conversation anyway. Based on how poorly she played in grade school, she''s not gonna pass anyway.


    "Hey there," he greeted her. "Remember me?"


    "Oh, you actually made it into the club." Ellen replied with a foxy smile. "I''m so glad."


    "Huh? Why?"


    "Because it means I get to destroy you." She smiled like an angel, but her words sent a shiver down his spine. From her striking beauty to her sharp tongue, anything and everything was different from the nerdy girl he remembered.


    "Um..." He had no idea how to respond to that greeting. She harbored a grudge against him, that much was clear. Well, he and his pals were kinda mean to her in grade school, so no surprise here. When he looked back on his actions, he felt he was kinda a scumbag back then.


    But, too bad for her, because she not gonna get her revenge. Regardless of how poorly he treated her before, it didn''t change the fact she was a weak player. He was like twenty leagues above her back in grade school and he got that much better since then thanks to the club. He was even gonna be a starter this year, he was killing it!


    This bulletproof confidence was shattered to pieces during Ellen''s entry exam. She was nothing special at first, he thought it''d be a breeze. However, slowly but surely, he felt a rope tightening around his neck. Suffocating him. Draining his life. Crushing him. He still stronger, yet somehow his strength turned against him.


    Time and again, he failed to kill Ellen. And, after every failure, the next fight was that much harder. He was grinded to death. Slowly. Veeeery slowly. But, eventually, she killed him.


    It was a "bad day". A [very] "bad day". He performed worse and worse as the match progressed, conceding kills left and right.


    Ellen showed no mercy. She took advantage of his poor condition and fed on every last drop of his blood. He became a feeder on a whole different level, it was the most embarrassing match of his life. His poor performance destroyed the balance of the match, messing up the entire exam. Needless to say, Aron was furious.


    Trever simply couldn''t comprehend. Wasn''t he a strong player? Didn''t everybody say he had the makings of a pro? Didn''t he completely wreck Ellen back in grade school? Yet, despite spending a whole year in a serious club, he was completely stomped by her. Even for a "bad day", that was too much.


    "My, turns out you''re a trash tier player. I''m so disappointed." Ellen told him that after the exam.


    ... What? He? Trash tier? How was that even...?


    His whole world collapsed. The skill he thought he possessed, the great effort he thought he put into improving - all of it was stomped upon, by a girl who was a total scrub last year. The entire year he spent in the club''s competitive environment was overshadowed by the progress Ellen made in that same time. It was unthinkable. Impossible. Yet, it happened.


    Was that the extent of his skill? Was that as far as he could go no matter how hard he trained? His confidence took a dive. Every time he tried acting like a big shot, flashbacks from that match crossed his mind. It''s like a curse was placed on him, torturing him at any opportunity it was given. Was that supposed to be Ellen''s idea of revenge? Even though she called herself Athena, she was no goddess; she was a witch.


    This bitter experience was carved onto his mind and popped up whenever he wavered in the slightest. Every time a game went south and he started questioning himself, the flood of negativity wouldn''t stop. "Was it his fault? Was he too weak?" and so on and so forth. His concentration scattered all over the place and he performed worse and worse.


    That''s how StormBlitz blew the regionals in the first round last year. He lost himself in the first match and the enemy exploited that. He played so bad that the whole team ended up looking like a bunch of amateurs. What a disgrace. He made a laughingstock out of everybody.


    And, the same exact thing was happening again right now in this scrimmage. The harder he tried to fix the situation by scoring kills, the worse everything became when he got himself killed instead. He knew: once things started going poorly for him, it only went downhill from there.


    But, he refused to accept it! There had to be something he could do! There''s no way the team gonna lose because of him! He was the senior and the captain! If he wasn''t gonna pull through, who would!?


    [Shit, what''s wrong with me!?] Trever slammed on the table. His fists trembled, his breathing ragged and his forehead sweaty.


    It was a curse. The witch''s curse tortured him. Once it gripped him, it''ll never let go. The only path he and his teammates will travel through will be one heading straight to oblivion...

 41 A Powerless Shot-Caller

    The third game was a mess for StormBlitz. Trever got killed time and again, his misplays became worse and worse with each subsequent battle. Gilbert was pushed back by ComboBreaker and struggled to defend the lane against her hyper aggression.


    Compared to them, Roi held his ground better. His lane opponent didn''t change anything for the mixup strategy, so it was the same matchup as before. Nevertheless, he was gradually pushed back by the momentum the enemy seized in other lanes. The Viking outleveld him and forced him to play defensively, overtaking the lane step by step.


    Worse than anything, negativity seeped into the team''s morale. Bickering, ranting and passing blame. Everybody was swallowed by toxicity. Even Yuel fell victim to it, despite his best efforts to objectively analyze the situation from the side. He criticized every misplay his teammates made, got irritated whenever unwarranted blame was shot at him and so forth.


    The only difference between him and the rest was how he kept his mouth shut. There were many complaints he ached to unleashed on his teammates, especially on Trever, but he didn''t utter a word. Adding more fuel to the fire was the worst he could do right now.


    As hopeless as everything seemed, the game wasn''t lost yet. At least, not by Yuel''s standards. Despite their poor conduct this game, his teammates were good players. They spent over a year in the club''s competitive environment, their skills were honed to unbelievable sharpness. Even while haunted by toxicity - they put on a fight, just enough to prevent the game from being lost. The only exception was Trever, who misplayed so hard he didn''t resemble even a shadow of his former self.


    Still, a comeback was possible. Difficult, but possible. If only Yuel could figure a way to inject positivity into the team, they could overcome this ordeal. But, what could he do? What [should] he do?


    So far, he focused on preventing the enemy team from snowballing too hard. If somebody like Breaker were get out of control, that''d seal the game right there. Therefore, he prioritized keeping Gilbert alive and thwarting Breaker''s aggressive plays to the best of his ability.


    Letting the enemy Carry snowball was equally dangerous, so he also tried protecting Trever from SkyNight. Alas, that proved nigh impossible. Trever was too uncooperative, always charging forward to score a kill on Night.


    Therefore, while Breaker was held in check for the most part, Night grew stronger and strong with each time he killed Trever. He didn''t come off as a particularly scary player, but a fed Carry was a fed Carry regardless. At this rate, Night will become unstoppable and single-handedly push the game to its conclusion.


    [How long can we hold up playing like this?] Yuel bit his lip. All he had been doing was run around the map and put out flames. But, playing defensively didn''t solve anything, it only delayed the inevitable. He had to switch gears into offense. The team needed a counterattack plan.


    Alas, ideas refused to sprout in his mind. With so much distraction around him, he couldn''t collect his thoughts. It''s like growing crops on poor soil. Nothing happened. He couldn''t see the enemy''s weaknesses.


    [Focus. Think.] The harder he ordered, the more his mind wandered off and asked stupid questions. How did things come to this? Why did Trever play so poorly? How could such a rift form in the team out of nowhere?


    Useless questions. All of them. Just useless. What''s done was done, there''s no point lingering on the past. He had to figure how to play with the hand he was dealt, that''s all that mattered.


    How could he stop both Breaker and Night from snowballing? He somewhat managed to keep these two threats at bay until now, but the game already reached its team-fighting phase. Normally, he''d form a plan or twenty by this point. Yet, he still didn''t have anything concrete.


    During a team fight, most enemies were gathered in one area. Therefore, their mixup strategy should no longer have much impact. He just had to counter Breaker with the information he collected on her in the previous rounds, as she was playing the usual Combo Pyromancer. Countering Night will be harder, because he played Support before. But, Yuel should had watched enough of his Elf plays by now to do basic profiling.


    Things looked good. By shutting down these two during team fights, StormBlitz still had a chance! They could still make a comeback!


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    Gilbert fell. How? Breaker and Night were over there, Yuel was keeping them in check. The enemy Jungler was on the other side of the map, so it''s not him either. Who else on that team could possibly dish out high damage?


    The answer revealed itself: Freezer. Yuel was naive. There were three enemies who benefited from the mixup strategy, not two.


    In previous games, Freezer was underfed after facing Gilbert in lane, so his impact on game mostly boiled down to disruptive CC in team fights. But, he played Warlock, a mage with the potential for burst damage. This game, he laned together with Night and scored an assist for each of of Night''s kills, so he was plenty fed. If he built power items, his damage will be plenty threatening. And, he certainly did.


    He played Support this time around, but his build shifted toward a Hybrid Warlock during mid game. He bought just enough offensive items to make his damage threatening, without entirely sacrificing his defense and cooldown reduction. It was bad news.


    Against the aggressive trio of Breaker, Night and Freezer - it took everything just to stay alive. The mere idea of suggesting a counter attack sounded ludicrous. And, if that wasn''t enough, the team''s bickering only became worse. Everybody were packed in one place during a team fight, so their misplays were easier to spot. It became hell.


    "Why did you step in there!?" Roi roared. "You literally gave her the kill, man!"


    "Well," Trever shook his head. "Maybe if our Jungler wasn''t literally useless and focused key targets for once, she wouldn''t be alive by now."


    [Ignore them. Focus. Think.] Yuel repeated in his head like a mantra. He couldn''t lose to the torrent of toxicity. He was the shot-caller, he had to think up a play that''d solve everything.


    "Wait," Dan demanded. "How exactly it''s my fault?"


    "He''s just pissed," Gilbert said. "But, he got a point. You played a little too passive."


    [Ignore them. Don''t stop thinking. There has to be something.]


    "And how is that different from what you were doing?" (Dan)


    [I-Ignore them. Keep analyzing the situation.]


    "Honestly, you both kinda suck, lol." (Roi)


    "Yeah, no balls. Only me and Roi try to get any kills there." (Trever)


    [Ugh. Shut up already. Let me think...!]


    "Sure, because charging at the enemy without a plan is smart when we''re behind." (Gilbert)


    "Such an eye-opener! Be right back kamikazing on my opponents then." (Dan)


    "ENOUGH ALREADY!!!" Yuel roared and slammed on the table, a jolt of pain ran through his fists. GOD. DAMN. IT. He couldn''t take this bullshit anymore! The heck was wrong with them!? Did they come here to win or to roast each other!?


    "...."


    "...."


    Silence. Awkward silence. Cold sweat ran down Yuel''s forehead. He felt a thousands eyes on him.


    He totally did. He just went and did it. He yelled like a madman at his seniors. Gulp.


    "Um, well..." He slowly raised his head, sneaking peeks at his teammates. Ugh! They were staring him down, no doubt wondering "Who the heck this brat thinks he is!?" Damn. He tried so hard to stay out of this mess, but ended up jumping right into it, head first. Everything he bottled inside gushed out.


    But, maybe it wasn''t all bad. The situation was terrible, but it''s also a chance. His teammates finally quieted down and had their attention focused on him. It''s a chance to talk some sense into them! While shaking like crazy and sweating bullets, he pressed on.


    "L-Look," Yuel gulped. " Um, well, You feel frustrated, I get that." He pushed the words through his throat. "But, arguing isn''t going to help. It''s a waste of time and increases our chance of losing."


    Nobody responded. They kept eying at Yuel, sending shivers down his spine. It looked like some wanted to retort, but restrained themselves to see what else Yuel had to say.


    "Instead of blaming each other, how about we work together and try to actually win?" Yuel suggested.


    "I hope you got a plan after saying this much." Gilbert retorted.


    "Um, about that..."


    "Yeah," Trever added. "Show us how it''s done, ''genius''. You''ve been ignoring me for a while now, so you better have something good."


    "Ugh." Yuel was cornered. After yelling his head off and dropping all that criticism, everybody expected a magical solution from him. Sure, totally fair! Just shove all the responsibility on him! He dug himself a hole.


    Still, it was an opportunity. He had a chance to turn the situation around with the next thing he says. For the first time this game, everybody were going to listen to what Yuel had to say instead of fighting each other. This was exactly the stage he needed! Except, he wasn''t prepared yet.


    A game winning strategy... He didn''t have one, not yet. The team''s negativity distracted him too much, making it hard to form any strategies at all. But, that''s not to say he was without ideas at all. For the better or the worse, his brain was wired to analyze enemy plays and craft counters on the go.


    Therefore, a bunch of ideas already floated in his head. It''s just that none of them felt airtight enough, not yet. At least, he couldn''t find the courage to suggest any of them. They all involved huge risks and failure would single-handedly destroy the team.


    [Should I take a risk and go with something half-baked?] Yuel contemplated. There''s a huge risk involved, but there''s also the possibility for a comeback. If they make a big play and it succeeds, the team''s morale will surely skyrocket. The longer he stayed quiet without providing any comeback calls, the more unrecoverable the team''s situation became.


    "So?" Gilbert asked again. "You got anything for us?"


    "I... I do." Yuel took a deep breath. His heart squeezed, This was a gamble. A huge one. He did his best to maintain a stoic expression, trying to convey confidence. If he doesn''t look confident about his own plan, nobody will take it seriously.


    [Okay. Think. Which one is the best for this situation?] From a myriad of unpolished tactics floating in his head, he had to pick the one with the highest chance of success.


    First, the current situation. Only Yuel, Dan and Gilbert survived the recent team fight. Trever and Roi overextended in a desperate attempt to score kills, leading to their demise. They took out the enemy Viking, but it was a 2-for-1.


    In other words, their current situation was a 3v4. On top of that, their most aggressive players were dead. That greatly restricted Yuel''s options. In this situation, their best bet was...


    "Let''s kill the Dragon." Yuel suggested.


    "Say what?" Gilbert raised an eyebrow. "In this situation? You serious?"


    "Yes,." Yuel nodded. "We''re running behind on gold and exp. If we can kill the Dragon, we''ll nearly close the gold gap in one go."


    "Wow wow wait a second," Trever intervened. "I just died, ya know? Somebody gotta defend Bot."


    "After we take the Dragon, we can rotate to Bot as a team." Yuel explained. "The Bot Turret is already gone, so the only substantial progress the enemy can make is push all the way to the Golem. We won''t give them enough time for that."


    "And," Gilbert said. "I suppose I''m also part of that Dragon hunting team?".


    "Of course." Yuel nodded. "All three of us need to be there. I''ll tank, you and Dan kill it."


    "And, who exactly will defend Mid then?"


    "Well..." Yuel gulped, knowing all too well how absurd his next words were going to sound. "We can let them take the Mid Turret."


    "Excuse me?"


    "I know, it''s not ideal. They''ll get lots of map control and gold from that. But, Dragon gives more gold than a Turret, so we''ll earn more gold from this exchange."


    "Lol, you sacrificing Mid for Dragon?" Roi chuckled. "Yuel''s Kamikaze Corporation strikes again!"


    That drew out a few chuckles from the team. Even though it was a joke about Yuel''s suggestion, it injected some positivity into the team. Things were going great! His suggestion was met with some resistance, but he held his ground and kept pushing it. Just by coming together as a team to discuss a strategy, the atmosphere began to shift-


    "There''s one huge problem," Gilbert stated, striking down the good mood. "Trading Mid for Dragon is already crazy as it is, but there''s an even bigger risk you forgot to address: can we even secure the Dragon in this situation?"


    "That''s..." Yuel knew all the dangers involved, but he hoped to avoid confronting this one. By explaining the potential benefits of his plan, he hoped the team will put their trust in him as usual. He was naive.


    "We''re down to 3v4." Gilbert said. "If we run into them at the Dragon, they''re going to finish us off. That''s GG right there."


    "True," Yuel nodded, steeling himself. "But, my Sentry Ward there still stands and there''s no sign of the other team. They''re not paying attention to the Dragon right now, they''ll prioritize pushing Mid and Bot."


    "Why are you so sure?" Gilbert demanded.


    "I agree," Dan joined in. "It sounds suicidal. You have a good reason to believe they won''t notice us stealing Dragon?"


    "Eh? Well..." Yuel was taken aback. Something was off. It wasn''t the first time he suggested a "weird" or "risky" plan, but he didn''t meet such strong resistance before. It''s weird. It''s like they already had their own ideas in mind and intended to dismiss every other suggestion. He had to literally fight to push his suggestion through, even though he was supposed to be the shot-caller...


    "Well," Yuel searched for convincing reasons. "They''ve been ignoring the Dragon a lot in past games, and..." The necessary data was definitely somewhere at the back of his head, but he struggled to draw it out. He went over his list of arguments time and again, but couldn''t help but question it. Were these arguments enough? Were they going to convince anybody? Wasn''t there more he could say?


    A thousand gazes drilled him. It felt like nothing he says will matter. Everybody were set on rejecting his plan. He could feel that in his bones. Did he pick the wrong tactic? Was it even a plausible tactic in the first place? Even he couldn''t tell anymore.


    How did things come to this? How did everything change so much? Since when a shot-caller had to work so hard to justify his calls? He made a couple mistakes earlier this match, but that alone shouldn''t dismiss him from being the shot-caller. And, even they had a problem with him as the shot-caller, nobody spoke up until now. Nobody asked to replace him, yet it didn''t seem like they had any intention following his orders either.


    Why? What was different? Before, everybody went along with his plans, no matter how risky or unconventional they were. Trever and Gilbert always supported his decisions and let him have his way... Oh, that''s what was different: Trever and Gilbert didn''t support him this time. In fact, Gilbert objected the most.


    All this time, Yuel thought he became a shot-caller who had the trust of his teammates. But, that''s wrong. The team actually trusted Trever and Gilbert, not some freshman. Everybody followed Yuel''s strategies as long as Trever and Gilbert endorsed them.


    Without their approval, he was was voiceless. He wasn''t a shot-caller. He wasn''t anything. Thus, pushing his ideas through was impossible right now.


    "Sorry, my bad..." Yuel mumbled. "Forget what I said. Let''s just defend the lanes..."


    "So, you got nothing in the end?" Trever scoffed. "What a disappointment."


    "Sorry..." Yuel bit his lip. What he wouldn''t give to get the usual scene: Trever smacking him on the back, yelling "What a crazy plan! I like it!" This was the first time he realized how important Trever''s endorsement was. He couldn''t mobilize the team without it. He couldn''t do anything.


    In the end, Yuel stayed quiet throughout the rest of the game. He let it roll to hell. Screw it. He was powerless anyway, nobody was going to listen to him while he was on Trever''s bad side. He had to hope the team will collect itself over the break. Otherwise, they''ll lose not only this game, but also the two games afterwards.


    [DEFEAT]


    Deafening silence. Nobody said anything as the match ended. They shot each other with so criticism throughout the match, that they probably ran out of bullets. Everybody silently stood up and left the stage.


    Yuel also left quietly, without exchanging a single world with anybody. This didn''t look good. No, that was sugarcoating. It looked [bad]. Terrible.


    Will things work themselves out before the next match if left alone? Shouldn''t Yuel do something? But, what could he do? Was there even anything a freshman like him could do? Nobody even truly respected him as a fellow teammate.


    Even in the team''s room, the atmosphere was suffocating. Nobody spoke with each other. Each minded his own business, as if the terrible match right now didn''t even happen. Roi was drinking Coke, uncharaersitically silent. Dan fiddled with his phone, without telling any bad jokes. Gilbert leaned on a sofa chair and closed his eyes, blocking out his surroundings.


    They just finished a terrible game, in which they bickered and were thoroughly crushed. Yet, nobody felt like reviewing their performance. There was so much to talk about, but the room was dead silent.


    Everybody sat silently in their own little corners, but there were signs of something uncomfortable underneath the chill facade. Especially, Trever looked the most irritated out of everybody. From the tapping of his foot to the mean look on his face, everything about him conveyed restlessness.


    In Yuel''s experience, once Trever got tilted - there''s no turning back. When that happened in club, Trever usually called it a day and left. But, what about this situation? He couldn''t simply "leave".


    Substituting players was allowed in official matches and the same applied to this scrimmage. But, it''s Trever, the senior and captain. How could they possible sub him out?


    No matter how much Yuel wished to substitute Trever for Lars, there''s nothing he could do about it. He was merely a freshman, whose opinion apparently didn''t count unless it was first approved by somebody else. He had no say about anything.


    But, things couldn''t stay this way either. Wasn''t there anything he could do? Anything he could suggest? Encouraging others wasn''t his forte. He wasn''t the type to have pep talks. And, in the first place, he wasn''t the type to turn a blind eye to his teammates'' misconduct. He couldn''t bring himself to say "We just had a bad game. Don''t worry, we''ll get them next time!"


    No, it wasn''t just a "bad game". The team self-destructed. Everybody were at fault, Yuel included. And especially Trever, who was the core of the problem in Yuel''s eyes. He simply couldn''t find it in himself to say "You just had a bad matchup in lane. I''m sure you''ll do better next time."


    Instead, he wanted to resolve this situation with action, with strategy. There had to be some counterattack the team could use against the Leopards. Once he finds it and shares it with everybody, their spirits should be lifted.


    Now that the match was over, he finally escaped the distracting negative atmosphere. Therefore, he could rationally evaluate the match and determine the team''s faults. Most of the blame laid with Trever''s poor performance, but before that there was the issue of bad lane matchups.


    After the enemy switched to their mixup lineup, Trever and Gilbert ended up being matched against problematic opponents. Trever was an aggressive player who easily fell into Freezer''s defensive traps, whereas Gilbert was an orthodox player who got overwhelmed by Breaker''s hyper aggression.


    The two of them were like the team''s pillars, gluing everybody together and "permitting" Yuel to play shot-caller. As both of them were overwhelmed by bad matchups, the whole team started falling apart.


    Was there any way to address that in the next match? Unfortunately, there''s no way to force specific enemies to play in specific lanes. It''s possible to ban specific classes to prevent enemies from picking them, but it''s impossible to force these enemies out of lanes. Banning Pyromancer and Warlock won''t do anything, since Breaker and Freezer surely had alternative classes they could play as Mid and Support. Each team could only ban a total of five classes, so it''s impossible to ban every single class these two could play.


    This was bad. The enemy''s mixup strategy proved to be more lethal than Yuel expected. Not only did it force StormBlitz to adapt from scratch, but it also created more favorable lane matchups for the Leopards. It''s the kind of flexibility normal teams didn''t have, since each player was normally stuck in a specific role. No matter how terrible of a matchup a player got in lane, they had to figure something out while sticking to their role.


    [Wait, maybe we could try that as well?] The easiest way to change bad lane matchups was to move Trever and Gilbert to other lanes. In other words, to use a "mixup" of their own.


    Unlike the Leopards, each player in StormBlitz only had one main role. However, everybody in the club were encouraged to pick at least one secondary role. This made them more flexible during practice matches and when playing Ranked.


    Fortunately, all members of the second string followed that advice. Therefore, it''s possible to move Trever from Carry to Jungler and to switch Gilbert from Mid to¡­ Support.


    [Why Support of all things?] Yuel frowned. Moving Gilbert to Support naturally meant Yuel will have to be kicked out of the role. Ugh.


    Like the others, Yuel also had a secondary role: Top Lane. As much as he wanted to hold onto the Support role, he had to prioritize the team here. If moving from Support to Top could improve their chances of winning ¨C he''ll do it.


    So: Trever to Jungler, Gilbert to Support and Yuel to Top. Next, it''s possible to move Dan to Mid. All that''s left open after that was Roi and the Carry role. Except, Roi didn''t play Carry, at least not as his secondary role. His secondary was Jungler, conflicting with Trever''s position. This mixup was impossible.


    There''s still the option to keep Trever as Carry and switch everybody else around, but that defeated the whole point. Trever needed this change the most, otherwise it''s pointless. In the first place, even if they were to switch roles around, how well would they perform?


    [What am I thinking? We didn''t even practice this lineup.] Yuel sighed. They didn''t have any experience playing such a lineup as a team in the first place. This second string team was formed a week ago and their practices were fully geared toward competitive matches. Therefore, they only ever practiced their best roles as a team.


    They also played some 3v3 along with Lars, because Howard insisted they had to hone their team-fighting coordination. But otherwise, everything was about playing 5v5 as a team. They weren''t like the Leopards, who were specifically trained by a coach to play two main roles.


    It''s useless. No matter how hard Yuel brainstormed, he couldn''t come up with a counter plan to their current situation. There''s no doubt the Leopards will use the same mixup lineup next match as well. It''ll be tough. The best StormBlitz could do was counter-pick as hard as possible in the Carry and Mid roles, giving Trever and Gilbert as much advantage as possible. It might work, but Yuel wasn''t confident about it. Damn, he felt so powerless.


    "What''s with the long faces?" Howard popped up in their room. "Don''t tell me you lost?"


    "Yeah," Gilbert answered with a deep sigh. "It was pretty brutal."


    "Huh. What went wrong? You were so confident after the last match."


    "They used their mixup, like you expected." Gilbert summarized the match, but he only covered the simple facts. How Breaker''s hyper aggression was hard to deal with, how Freezer punished Trever''s aggressiveness during the early game and how the team was at huge disadvantage from there onward. Not a single word was uttered about the team bickering, passing blame and falling apart.


    "...." Yuel opened his mouth multiple times throughout Gilbert''s summary, but ended up closing it without saying a word. He just couldn''t bring it up. Gilbert elegantly dodged around it and nobody called him on it, so it''s clear everybody wanted to bury the inconvenient details. Not surprising, considering how embarrassing it all was. They acted like a bunch of salty brats who just started playing yesterday.


    "I see," Howard nodded after hearing the bare-bones summary. "Sounds rough. I''d review the replay with you to give you some pointers, but I gotta to do lots of reviewing with my own team. We won the match, but it was far from easy."


    "Oh, you finally won one?" Roi chuckled. "You must''ve stolen our luck, lol."


    "Hey now, don''t reduce our efforts to luck." Howard said. "We finally adapted to these guys, but they''re strong. Not sure we can beat them 3-2, so I trust you guys to go 4-1. We need any seed points we can get before the regionals, so you better win the next two matches." He scanned the members one by one with a sharp gaze, instilling the importance of the next two matches.


    "Sure..." Roi put on a forced smile, the rest nodded awkwardly. Nobody conveyed much confidence. They already lost one match, so to go 4-1 they had to win the remaining two. Could this team really do it in its current state? At this rate, they''ll surely self-destruct in the upcoming matches.


    "Um," Yuel wanted to somehow convey that to Howard, but stopped in the last moment. "Nevermind." Shivers ran across his skin as soon as he opened his mouth. Not sure whether it''s just his imagination, but he felt like his teammates will eat him alive if he spills the beans about their poor conduct. They clearly didn''t want to bring it up, especially not in front of the club''s vice-captain.


    "Alright," Howard said. " I''ll be heading back then. Remember, I trust you guys. Also, Yuel, come with me for a second."


    "Huh? Me?" Yuel blinked.


    "Yes, you. I''d like your advice about something, as an expert on unusual plays. Don''t worry, it won''t take long."


    "Sure." Yuel nodded and followed Howard out of the room. What''s this about? Did the first string need some help with their offense? Or, did they need him to figure somebody''s weakness?


    "This should be far enough." Howard came to a sudden halt in the middle of the hallway and turned to Yuel. "Alright then, what you wanted to tell me?"


    "Wha?" Yuel was taken aback.


    "I''m not blind, you know. You wanted to say something the whole time Gilbert was talking, right? Saw you open and close your mouth at like 90 miles per hour, was pretty funny."


    "Ugh..."


    "Something you can''t say in front of the others?"


    "Well..." Yuel gulped. What an unexpected opportunity. But, should he really do it? There''s no turning back after that. Once he reveals the whole truth, there''s no way Howard will stay silent and about it, especially not after stressing how important it was for the second string to win 4-1.


    "There''s more to your defeat, isn''t there?" Howard''s sharp eyes penetrated Yuel to the core, as if seeing through everything. "Gil''s summary was a little shallow. You had some bad matchups, I get that. But, how in the world did that make you lose in under 12 minutes? Spill the beans, boy."


    "O-Okay." Yuel clenched his fists. As much as he was afraid of backlash from his teammates, he was even more terrified from what will happen if he lies to Howard. It''s impossible to hide anything from the vice-captain, it''s like Howard could look into people''s very souls.


    Thus, Yuel decided to speak up. About how Trever became tilted, about how the team bickered and about how they refused to follow Yuel''s shot calls. He didn''t hold anything back. Everything he bottled up until now came gushing out.


    How will Howard react to this information? Did Yuel make the right choice to speak about this behind his teammates'' backs? Either way, all he could do right now was keep talking and wait for Howard''s verdict.

 42 Substitution Reques

    "¡­ that''s all." Yuel finished venting his frustration in front of Howard. He said everything he had to said, from beginning to end. About how Trever got tilted after dying and performed poorly ever since, about how the team fell to the level of childish bickering and about how his shot-calls were rejected. Everything was laid bare, his own faults included.


    "I¡­ didn''t do much to stop them," Yuel admitted. He effectively ratted out his teammates, so the least he could do was admitting he wasn''t perfect either. "I stayed quiet the whole time, waiting for the storm to pass. At one point, I had the opportunity to change something, but the idea was shot down. At this rate, we have no chance of winning the next matches."


    "I see," Howard said. "I had a feeling it''s something along these lines, but I didn''t expect things to be this bad."


    "You knew?"


    "It was written on your faces." Howard sighed. "The atmosphere in your room was all doom and gloom. I had to mentally prepare myself before walking in."


    [So, he figured it out at a glance. Just how good is this guy at reading us?] Yuel frowned. Having a psychic mind reader as vice-captain was unsettling on many levels, but right now Yuel was thankful for it.


    "Alrighty then," Howard''s eyes turned sharp, peering into the depths of Yuel''s mind. "Let''s get to the point. What do you think was the source of the problem?"


    "Well, that''s¡­" Yuel stuttered. Even though he summarized everything, he avoided pointing fingers. In his story, everybody was equally guilty. But, that''s not how he truly felt. It''s clear as day whose actions were the catalyst for the team''s downfall. But, he felt bad pinning the blame on one player, since he was already talking behind his teammates'' backs. Not to mention, the culprit he had in mind was [that guy].


    "Hurry up. We don''t have much time before your next match."


    "It''s¡­ Trever." Yuel coughed up. "He was the first to BM and I think all the negativity spread from him. Everybody had their bad moments, myself included, but I don''t think anybody topped Trever. He only got worse with time, both in his plays and his attitude. Honestly, it was insufferable."


    Once Yuel''s tongue started rolling, it refused to stop. That was the last bit of pent-up frustration he still carried, and Howard squeezed it out of him. Even without outright saying it, Yuel''s position was clear: "Trever should be switched out".


    "Alright," Howard nodded. "It''s a shame, but you gotta sub Trever."


    "You agree? That easily?" Yuel was taken aback. "He''s the captain, you know?"


    "Between you and me: he''s the captain to ensure he stays motivated," Howard said. "You know how Trever used to be on the first string, right? I''m sure he''s not amused about being placed in the second string, so at least being the ''captain'' makes him feel more important. There''s also his pride as a senior to consider."


    "That sounds kinda¡­."


    "Don''t get me wrong, I don''t belittle him or anything. When he''s in the right mood, he''s a great player. He''s also good at being loud, which can be annoying but it keeps morale high."


    "I don''t know about morale, but it''s sure annoying."


    "Right? Haha. Anyway, that''s the good points about him. He''s a vital teammate when he''s doing well. But, if he falls into a slump, there''s no getting out. I tried all sort of things before, but I never figured how to make him snap outta it. So, he''s always a double-edged sword."


    "I see." If even Howard couldn''t pull Trever out of the slump, then nobody could. Especially, not Yuel. It''s regrettable, but the only option now was to give up on Trever. "So, can we sub Lars in?"


    "Yeah, you have permission." Howard nodded.


    "Shouldn''t you pass this by Aron first?" After all, no matter how dominant Howard''s presence was in the club, he''s only the vice-captain.


    "Nah, no need." Howard waved it off. "I already talked to Aron about subbing Trever for Lars if something happens."


    "Already talked...?" Yuel''s jaw dropped and refused to come back. What? When? Howard just learned about Trever''s slump, so it meant he prepared for this situation ahead of time, long before this scrimmage began. He knew about Trever''s problem, so he prepared a cure before the plague struck. He always did this, that''s how he provided his teammates with an absolute defense. That''s why he was Aegis, the impenetrable shield.


    [I knew it too. I knew how Trever is, and yet...] Yuel gritted his teeth. He''s the vice-captain of the second string. It''s his job to ensure the team''s victory. Yet, he didn''t think of any countermeasures to Trever''s bad habit. He was outdone by an "outsider", by somebody who already had his hands full managing the first string. Goddammit.


    "Wait," Yuel realized something big. "Don''t tell me that''s why you made Lars practice with us?"


    "Who knows." Howard dodged, but the smug on his face said it all. He came up with this "Plan B" all the way back then. He insisted Lars should train with the second string to "practice their team-fighting coordination". 3v3 battles were indeed a good way to improve teamwork, so nobody doubted Howard''s intentions. But, that training wasn''t just for those announced to be on the second string. It also ensured Lars practiced with them, so he can sub for Trever at a moment''s notice. Everything was calculated.


    Yuel was completely defeated. Not only he failed to prepare any countermeasures to Trever''s problem, but he didn''t even realize Howard''s real intent. Ugh. Seriously, what was he doing? Howard was the first string''s Support and shot-caller, the one Yuel had to overcome to claim a spot on the first sting. Yet, Yuel completely lost this round. Just how big was the gap between them? Did he have a chance of ever surpassing Howard...?


    "Anyway," Howard said. "You''re free to sub Trever. But, I''m not going back there, so it''s all up to you."


    "Me?"


    "Yes, you. I can''t babysit your team all day. You gotta learn how to solve your problems yourself. So, you go back to your team and announce whatever changes you deem necessary."


    "Wait, are you serious?" Yuel gulped. "You''re aware Trever is technically still the captain, right? And, he''s a senior while I''m the youngest player on the team."


    "Using age to defend yourself? I thought you wanted people to stop calling you a rookie."


    "Ugh, that''s..."


    "Didn''t you say it''s frustrating how the team rejects your shot-calls because you''re the youngest one?"


    "That''s true, but..." Yuel clenched his fists. Yes, he hated all of that. Being treated like a rookie, not being trusted as a shot-caller and having no voice - he wanted to break out of these shackles. To do so, he had to confront the team whenever necessary. He couldn''t run away.


    With that said, they still treated him as a rookie right now, How did Howard expect him to change the team''s opinion within a couple of minutes? Especially, with all that negativity hanging in the air. It''s an absurd demand! "What if Trever refuses?"


    "Then forced him to step down," Howard answered plainly like it was the easiest thing in the world. "And, don''t even think about sending him to me or Aron. Solve it yourself."


    "Excuse me, but you''re being absurd." Yuel insisted.


    "I could''ve done it without a problem."


    "Of course you can, you''re the vice-captain, You got authority."


    "No, even if I wasn''t the vice-captain ¨C I''d do it." Each of Howard''s words was heavy, pregnant with unyielding convicting. "If I were in your shoes right now, I''d still do it. I''d make him step down, no matter how older he is or what position he has. In real matches, results are everything. Those who can''t produce them shall be cut out."


    Howard swinging his blade, cutting Trever down. That''s the image these words instilled. Yuel felt a chill because he knew it''s true. Howard would have definitely done so. Without hesitation, without feeling any guilt.


    [This is unfair.] Yuel bit his lip. He saw Howard as a rival, as a goal to surpass. And, Howard knew that. That''s why he said all of this. What laid behind his words was one assertion: "If you can''t do this much, you''ll never surpass me."


    The idea of facing Trever and the other upperclassmen terrified Yuel to the core. The pressure was almost strong enough to knock him out. Could he really do it? He, a freshman, force a senior captain to retire? Absurd. Unthinkable.


    Yet, Howard claimed he would have done it. And, Yuel believed him. Regardless of age and position, Howard would have done what whatever it takes to secure the team''s victory. He was that kind of guy. Results were everything.


    Then, what about Yuel? Why couldn''t he do the same? What''s the difference between him and Howard? He understood what had to be done to secure victory and was granted permission to act.


    Then, why? Why did his body refuse to stop shivering!? The mere thought of going against his seniors rooted him in place, freezing every cell in his body.


    There''s no way it''ll be pretty. There''ll be yelling and fighting for sure. Amidst all that, he''d have to stand his ground and convince Trever to leave the stage. It was absurd to ask that much from him!! Inhuman! He wasn''t ready...!


    "Why?" Yuel hung his head. "Why me? You could''ve picked anybody from the team, but you called me. With this much foresight, I''m sure you already knew this conversation will lead to subbing Trever. Yet, you didn''t ask for anybody else here, just me. I know I''m technically a vice-captain of sorts, but that alone doesn''t mean..."


    "You asking why I didn''t call Gil too?"


    "Yes." Yuel nodded. "He''s the real vice-captain and he''s a junior, so his authority in the team is much higher."


    "You''re right, this sub should''ve passed through Gilbert. That''s how I originally imagined it too." Howard nodded. "But, he disappointed me. When he summarized the match, he wrapped it up like a nice little story about bad lane matchups. He was too embarrassed to admit the team flopped and he didn''t request to sub Trever. He''s a serious guy, but he has a bad habit of getting dragged by flow instead of fighting it. And, seems like he hates admitting his mistakes, more so than I thought. That''s why he won''t do."


    "Then, what about the rest?" Yuel grew desperate. "Any junior would be a better fit for the job than a freshman!"


    "Remember how I said I watched you guys before entering the room?" Howard sighed. "All I saw were exhausted and irritated faces. It''s like everybody lost their willpower and accepted defeat. That is, except for one guy. He sat there with a serious face, calculating some shit, probably solving chess puzzles or what not."


    "Ah." Yuel didn''t know what to say. What Howard saw was probably Yuel getting desperate, going as far as considering a mixup to counter the Leopards'' mixup. It''s embarrassing since that idea was dumb, but it''s not the only thing he brainstormed. He indeed spent the whole time thinking up solutions, since it was up to him to figure a counter strategy.


    "That''s when I was convinced," Howard continued. "You can do it. Even with the team falling apart, you were still obsessed with winning. That''s why you should grab victory with your own hands."


    "Grab it... Easier said than done."


    "You wanna go pro one day, right?"


    "Well..." It''s a little awkward to admit he was shooting for such a distant goal, considering he couldn''t even surpass the one player standing in front of him. But, that wasn''t going to stop him. "Yes, I want to become a professional Support player."


    "Then, deal with this situation," Howard commanded. It wasn''t a request from a fellow club member or even an order from the club''s vice-captain. It was an absolute command from a king. Yuel couldn''t refuse. He had to live up to Howard''s expectations, or else he''ll forever remain a nobody in the club. "Return to your team and do what has to be done. Get the next two wins at any cost."


    "I... I understand." Yuel clenched his trembling fists, so hard that he his nails dug into his skin. He had to do it. There''s no way around it. No matter what it took, he had to confront Trever, sub Lars in and lead the team victory. It''s the duty he was entrusted with.


    "That''s all." Howard turned away. Everything happened so suddenly. He dropped a huge bomb out of nowhere, then intended to leave just as suddenly.


    "W-Wait, I-"


    "No. The rest is up to you." Howard continued walking away. "Consider this a test your future depends on."


    "A test? What test?"


    "Pass it and you''ll know." Howard stopped for a moment and shot one last chilling glare at Yuel. "Don''t disappoint me."


    "I-I got it." Yuel fought off the trembling and straightened his posture. He no longer stared at the floor. His eyes were now looking straight ahead. Howard''s piercing glare conveyed a simple message: "If you fail here, you''ll never surpass me. You''ll keep chasing after my shadow for the rest of your life."


    [Just you watch!] Yuel took a deep breath and steeled himself. He was going to lead the team to victory in the next two matches, no matter what! And, after that, he was going to kick Howard off the throne!


    [¡­ I say all that, but how am I actually going to deal with Trever?] Yuel frowned. He became heated up after the exchange with Howard and his fighting spirit burned. But, that didn''t change reality. He, a lowly rookie, had to go there and kick the senior captain off the team. Gulp.


    [W-Well, I''ll call Lars first.] He returned back the way he came but didn''t enter the room yet. From the brief glance he caught of the room, it seemed Lars hadn''t paid a visit yet. Unusual, considering Lars came to talk about every match so far. The room''s cloudy atmosphere probably repelled him. After all, it was strong enough to make even Howard hesitate.


    Then, where was Lars right now? Did he return to the audience?


    [Oh, there he is.] Yuel spotted Lars and Julia around the corner, just a few meters away from the second string''s room.


    "Why me?" Julia pouted. "You go tell them something."


    "Nah" Lars waved his hands. "I dunno what to say in these situations. But, I betcha they''ll feel better if a cute girl pays them a visit."


    "C-Cute girl!?" Julia''s face turned into a tomato.


    [¡­ what did I walk into?] Yuel made a face. Julia was going to hate his guts for interrupting this, but he had to do it. "Lars."


    "Oh, dude!" Lars jumped as if spooked by a ghost. "Um, g-good fight there! Or something. Haha¡­" He forced an award grin on his face. It was funny watching Mr. 200% Confidence stumble over his words for a change. It''s almost like his confidence actually knew bounds. Unfortunately, Yuel didn''t have time to enjoy the show.


    "You''re up." Yuel said.


    "Wut?"


    "We''re going to sub you in."


    "...." Lars just stood there. His eyes opened wider and wider, to the maximum and beyond. "Haha, seriously?"


    "Yes, we have to change things around in the team."


    "HAHA! YES! AWESOME!" Lars fired toward the ceiling like a rocket, almost grazing it. "Dude! DUDE!" Lars darted toward Yuel and shook him. "It''s happening, right?! My debut as a pro!!!"


    "Pro? I have a feeling you skipped a couple of steps there." Yuel shook off the overly excited doggie. "But yes, it''s happening." He smiled. "We finally get to play together against competitive players."


    "Sick, yo! We gonna trash these guys!"


    "Yes, that''s what you''re subbed in for." As hard as Yuel tried countering Lars''s overflowing excitement, he couldn''t help but smile as well. It was a huge moment. Officially, this wasn''t really a debut in the competitive scene. It''s just a scrimmage and they played against a second string. Nevertheless, it was a huge milestone for both of them. They made it this far in their first year! They were unstoppable!


    "You heard that, July? I get to play!" Lars latched onto Julia next, since Yuel shook him off.


    "That''s great! I''ll be sure to cheer for you." Julia smiled from ear to ear in front of Lars, but she secretly shot a glare at Yuel. Translation: "What about me? Do I get to play too? You better say I do!"


    Yuel averted his eyes. Translation: "Sorry, not this time. But, you may get a chance if somebody else on the team performs poorly." Though, it was questionable whether the last part reached her through this telepathic communication.


    "Tch." Julia clicked her tongue but didn''t say anything. She just turned away, pretending not to care. Well, she probably didn''t expect much in the first place, but it''s clear she wanted to give it a shot. If possible, Yuel wanted to give her an opportunity as well. If Gilbert were to boycott for whatever reason, Julia would be the best substitute available. But, that''s unlikely to happen.


    "We don''t have much time until the match," Yuel said.


    "Okay, let''s go!" Lars pumped a fist. "My body is ready!"


    [But, I''m not sure my mind is ready.] Yuel secretly sighed. Informing Lars about the substitution was the easy part, just a little side-quest. Next, Yuel had to clear the main quest and face the final boss: Trever.


    Could he really convince Trever to sub out? He had no choice but to do it. Somehow. It surely won''t be pretty. At least, with Lars by his side, he felt more confident... A little more confident. Gulp.

 43 Seizing Leadership

    Yuel and Lars reached the second string''s room. That''s it. The moment of truth.


    Honestly, Yuel had no idea how he was going to convince Trever to sub out. Nevertheless, he had to do it. Somehow. Magically.


    [M-Maybe I''ll just give up on this idea...] His legs shook, refusing to step in. The more simulations he ran through his head, the more suicidal the whole thing sounded. He was literally going to kick out the team captain. It was nuts! No way that''s going to work!


    "C''mon, dude," Lars said. "Let''s go."


    "A-Ah!" Yuel staggered into the room after being pushed. [Wait! I''m not ready for this!!!]


    Nevertheless, he now stood inside the room, the lion''s den. He had to face not only Trever but the other upperclassmen as well. Gulp. He was dead.


    [Ugh, what a tense atmosphere.] His body turned to lead. Now it''s clear why even Howard hesitated to enter this room. The air felt so heavy it could crush him alive. The silence was deafening as if it''s a graveyard and a funeral is in session.


    To make things worse, everybody''s eyes jumped on him as soon as he entered. He could feel their gazes drilling into his skin. All his thoughts were stuck in his throat. He had to speak up, but it was like coughing out rocks. It was impossible.


    [No, I have to do it.] This was a chance. Everybody''s attention was on him, so he had to strike while the iron was hot. But, where should he begin? He couldn''t just casually drop such a huge bomb. How could he smoothen things out? No matter what ideas crossed his mind, shivers ran down his spine whenever he imagined everybody''s reactions to them.


    "Yo, what''s up?" Lars greeted everybody with his usual goofy smile as if the heavy atmosphere meant nothing to him. Wasn''t he also nervous about entering this room a couple of minutes ago? Maybe he forgot all about that. His brain was now filled to the brim with "I get to play, yo!". Heh, what a simpleton. If only Yuel could be this simple.


    "Heh," Trever sneered. "Came to laugh at us? Last match was shit, not gonna lie."


    "Nah, that''s not cool." Lars shook his head. "I came here to save you, my dudes!"


    "Wha-!?" Yuel''s jaw dropped. What was that goof doing!? Was he seriously going to drop the bomb? Just like this? Without any warning!?


    "Save us? The heck that means?" Trever cocked his head.


    "I''mma sub for ya," Lars announced in broad daylight, pumping a fist and everything. He just said it. He went ahead and said it. HE SAID IT!!!


    "Heh, good joke." Trever chuckled. "I know you wanna play, kid. But, leave this to the big boys."


    "Nah, I''m telling you, I seriously gonna sub in." Lars insisted. "That''s what our Shield Dude said, right?" He turned to Yuel for confirmation.


    [THAT''S where you put me in!?] Yuel felt like he was smacked in the face and almost knocked out. He wasn''t mentally prepared for any of this! [What''s this stupid goof doing!? He never heard of "breaking the ice"? Goddammit!]


    All attention was on Yuel now. The countless eyes spearing him until now? He could swear they''d shoot lasers at him any moment now. Was there even any oxygen in the room? Because none was reaching his brain. His head was heavy and his body was ready to buckle under the pressure.


    "Um, well..." No matter how many times he gulped, his throat was as dry as a desert. Squeezing out a single word, a single letter, was like lifting five tons.


    But, he had to do it. Lars passed him the baton at the worst timing possible, but maybe it''s for the best. Yuel had to deal with this anyway, so it''s better to strike sooner than later! [If Howard could''ve done this, then I can too!]


    "Sorry, Trever. We need to sub you out." Yuel declared. "T-That''s what Howard and Aron agreed on." He was quick to add.


    "Ha, ha," Trever produced a hollow laugh. "You two formed a stand-up duo to cheer us up? Well, it''s not funny. You''re saying you wanna sub the team captain?"


    "Yes." Yuel clenched his fists, fighting off the trembles assaulting his arms. "That''s what I agreed with Howard."


    "So, that''s why you were gone for so long." Trever sneered. "He called you to secretly talk about subbing me out? Is that it?"


    "That''s..." Yuel took some time to choose his words. Technically yes, Howard indeed called Yuel to listen to what Yuel had to say. But, if Yuel were to put things that way, it''d shift all the responsibility on Howard. It''s unfair and wouldn''t lead to anything good. Trever might confront Howard directly after hearing that.


    ["Don''t even think about sending him to me or Aron. Solve it yourself."] Howard made himself clear. Dumping the responsibility on Howard was the easy way out, but that won''t do. Yuel had to deal with this himself, here and now.


    "He called me for something else," Yuel said. "I used that opportunity to tell him how our last match really went. That includes all the arguing you did among yourselves and the repeated misplays."


    "You little...!" Trever''s eyes glinted dangerously. His fists were clenched to strike, but he didn''t make a move, not yet.


    "Talking behind our backs?" Gilbert said. "After all the work I put into summarizing the match neatly in front of Howard... Not very nice of you." Despite the criticism in his words, he didn''t seem too angry with Yuel.


    "I did what I thought was right," Yuel said. "If we keep playing like this, we have no chance of winning. I''m sure you all agree?"


    "That doesn''t give you an excuse to rat us out!" Trever stepped forward, towering over Yuel. "Some teammate you are! I bet you made yourself look good while trashing the rest of us!"


    "No, that''d be unfair." Yuel shook his head. "I properly told him part of the blame lies with me too. I was too passive while things were getting out of hand. I waited for the storm to pass without doing much. I thought the problem will resolve itself if I just ignore it. That was a huge blunder."


    "Oh, that sure sounds nice! Your only fault was how you ''didn''t do anything'' while everybody else played like trash? Is that how you put it, eh!?"


    "That''s not what I-"


    "What about your shitty support? You left me to 1v2 in the lane when I was already behind! Some genius Support you are!"


    "That''s all on you." Yuel retorted, blood rushing into his head. What the actual heck? Trever was beyond unreasonable! "You charged in alone without telling me. Every. Single. Time. I even asked you to stay at the Turret while I sub for Gilbert in Mid, but you died anyway. How is any of that my fault!?"


    "So, that''s what you told Howard, huh!?" Trever drew even closer, now standing face to face. "You told him I played like trash. That''s why he decided to sub me, right!?"


    "I only told him the truth." Yuel insisted. "Admit it, you''re in your ''slump'' again. You should know best: it always takes you a long time to recover from it. So, it''s best if you step down now and-"


    "Don''t fuck with me, kid!" Trever roared and thrust his fist toward Yuel''s face! Goddammit! Things were about to get physical! That''s what Yuel feared the most!


    "A-Ah!" Yuel stumbled backwards, almost crashing into the floor. He was still within Trever''s range! He was going to be beaten to a pulp!


    ... But, the hand didn''t reach him. It was grabbed in midair and tightly held in place.


    "I know you''re mad," Lars said. "But, that''s not cool, dude."


    "Gah, you little...!" Trever tried to shake off Lars''s grip, to no avail. "The hell is your problem? Don''t fuck with me, kid!"


    "Calm down, dude. You only make yourself look bad." Lars released Trever, hoping for peaceful negotiations. But, Trever had other plans. The moment he was freed, he tried pushing Lars with both hands.


    "Just calm down already." Lars dodged the assault. In turn, Trever tripped from the momentum and almost crashed into the floor.


    "Fuck." Trever cursed, but finally lowered his arms. Did he admit defeat? Was it over?


    "Phew, thanks." Yuel sighed in relief. Good thing Lars was here. Who knew how hard Trever was going to do smack Yuel otherwise.


    Unfortunately, they weren''t out of the woods yet. Trever still looked like an enraged bear, raring to wreak havoc. He wasn''t done yet, far from it.


    "This doesn''t make any fucking sense!" Trever thundered. "I''m the captain of this team! I''m the one who''s supposed to make the big decisions! You wanna sub me out? Who the fuck do you think you are!?" Attacks were fired at Yuel again. Trever failed to hit Yuel physically, so he resorted to verbal attacks instead. So sad. Why won''t this guy give up?


    "Aron and Howard are in charge of the club," Yuel said matter-of-factly, his tone surprisingly calm. Now that he knew Lars will defend him if push came to shove, most of his tension vanished. "They gave you the captain role, so they have the right to take it away."


    "And what? Give it to you? I bet you just wanna be promoted from vice-captain to captain, ain''t ya? Greedy fuck. You should be grateful you''re even on the second string in your first year! We didn''t even have a second string when I was a rookie!!"


    Trever''s arguments were all over the place. He just lashed with anything that came to mind.


    How was Yuel supposed to respond? He "wanted to be promoted into a captain"? Sure, that could be nice, but the thought hadn''t even crossed his mind until now. He didn''t discuss anything of the sort with Howard. Besides, if somebody had to replace Trever as the new captain, Gilbert would be the most appropriate choice.


    As for Trever never getting to play during his first year because a second string didn''t exist at the time... What was Yuel supposed to do about that? This whole back-and-forth didn''t make any sense no!


    "Got nothing to say, eh?" Trever clicked his tongue.


    "I just can''t process your arguments." Yuel retorted. "You''re all over the place. I understand you''re mad about the substitution, but attacking me isn''t going to change the facts: you''re underperforming and dragging the whole team down with you."


    "I just had bad luck last game. I can still play! If you actually support me next time, I won''t have to 1v2 all the time!"


    "Why? I really don''t understand. When you fall into a slump at the club, you always leave of your own accord to not ruin games. You know better than anybody it takes time to recover. The same should apply right now too, yet you insist to stay in the game. It''s like you don''t care if the team loses because of you." Yuel''s words became increasingly harsh, he was aware of that. It''s impossible to reason with Trever right now, so Yuel attacked with everything he had. No matter what, Trever had to step down.


    "Tch, you fuck." Trever trembled from rage. It seemed Yuel''s attack was at least somewhat effective. Trever will now hopefully understand how obnoxious he was acting. And yet, he refused to yield and turned to the other members. "This is fucked up! Don''t you agree? Who hell kicks out their captain like that! Gil, tell him something too!"


    [This can be bad.] Yuel frowned as his eyes met Gilbert''s. If Trever gains the support of other members, Yuel will have no chance of winning here.


    [Well, maybe that''s fine in its own way.] Yuel braced himself. If others choose to side with Trever, it means they believe Trever is right and Yuel is wrong. That''s all there is to it. Yuel would have no choice but admit defeat. Maybe they''d even turn on him and kick him out of the team instead. Goddammit, why did all of this have to happen?


    Anyway, everything was about to be decided soon. Gilbert was considered the "true" vice-captain of the team, so his words were going to sway the entire team''s opinion. Who will he side with?


    "What exactly do you want me to say?" Gilbert asked, clearly preferring to stay out of this mess.


    "Whose side are you on?" Trever demanded. "This damn rookie ratted us out in front of Howard. Don''t you think that''s low? If anybody here should be subbed - it''s him! His supporting and shot-calling were shit last game too."


    "Yeah, he totally ruined the pretty match summary I reported to Howard," Gilbert said. "To be honest, I''m kinda salty about that." He threw a blaming glance at Yuel.


    [Ugh, I should have added Gilbert to the conversation with Howard.] Yuel bit his lip. The way he complained to Howard behind everybody''s backs, especially behind Gilbert''s back, was really unbecoming. He should have at least consulted the real vice-captain first.


    It''s over. He got on Gilbert''s bad side too, so he couldn''t win here. Gilbert siding with Trever meant defeat.


    "You know why I kept hush about everything in front of Howard, right?" Gilbert addressed everybody in the room. "We all wanna get into the first string and Howard''s opinion of us plays a huge factor in deciding that. If he learns we made fools of ourselves during a serious scrimmage, he will write us off right there. You know how harsh he can be."


    "Yeah, yeah! Exactly!" Trever nodded repeatedly. "This kid just ruined our chances of getting into the first string for the rest of the year!"


    "But, all-in-all, I think he did the right thing," Gilbert said.


    "Eh?" Yuel blinked. Wasn''t Gilbert angry with him? What''s going on?


    "The ''right'' thing?" Trever''s face contorted. "Are ya high, bro?"


    "No, it''s just how it is." Gilbert shook his head. "I just gave a nice excuse for my actions, but the truth is: I simply didn''t have the balls to report everything to Howard. Deep down, I knew I should have done it. I bet Howard expected me to put things as they were, including the ugly bits. After all, he made me a vice-captain. But I chickened out."


    "So, what are you saying?" Trever asked. "You''re siding with that rat?"


    "It''s not about taking sides, it''s about what''s best for the team."


    "And, what are you saying is ''best for the team''?"


    "For you to be subbed out."


    "Gah! You fucker!" Trever''s fists trembled, along with the rest of his body. He was going to blow up any moment now. "You''re seriously telling me I, the captain, should get the fuck out?"


    "Y-Yeah, I am." Gilbert flinched for a moment against Trever''s murderous glare but stood his ground. "You''re too tilted to keep playing. Just look how you''re acting right now. You''re supposed to be the senior, but you''re arguing like a kid."


    "You little...!" Trever was about to snap. It''s bad! Lars wasn''t close enough to stop him, he was going to pummel Gilbert... Eh?


    SPLASH


    The room fell silent. What? Why? Everybody watched the scene in disbelief, struggling to process what the heck just happened.


    Water poured on Trever''s head, flowing downwards to soak his shirt. Wait, that''s not water. It was brown... Coke? He was showered by Coke? Pft, what?


    "W-What are you doing!?" Trever jumped away, as angry as he was confused.


    "Lol, just cool down, bro." Roi moved away his Coke can. He just emptied half of it on Trever''s head. Pft, haha! Chuckles and laughs filled the room.


    "You didn''t just do that!" Trever examined his wet clothes in disbelief. His anger was overshadowed by bewilderment. He had no idea how to even begin reacting to this silliness. "Bro, what the actual fuck?"


    "Lol, pretty effective, right?" Roi laughed. "My baseball coach always did this when somebody was tilted. Calmed down a little?"


    "Calmed down? I was calm all along!" Trever barked, but he definitely sounded less intimidating than before. As bizarre as Roi''s method was, it somehow opened the way for peaceful negotiations. "What''s YOUR stance on this anyway?"


    "You know what''s my stance, same as everybody''s." Roi shrugged. "I feel you, bro. We''ve been watching the first string play scrimmages this whole time. I''m also jealous. Now we finally got a chance to play too, so nobody here would want to sub out. But, you got your... Well, ''issue''. It sucks, but there''s nothing we can do about it right now."


    "You too, huh." Trever hung his head. His clenched fists had been trembling this whole time, but they finally relaxed. It looked like the realization started sinking in. "Heh, just look at me bitching. It''s like I''m some damn clown. Stupid, isn''t it? I can''t even properly play on a second string team. What the heck I''ve been doing in the club these past two years?"


    As somebody who was on the first string before and lost his spot, Trever''s frustration ran deeper than anybody here could understand. They were still striving to reach the first string, but he already went there once... and fell off. He climbed all the way to the top, only to come down crashing. It was even more soul-crushing than never making it into the first string.


    Ever since, he had been working hard to reclaim his position, to no avail. Now, he was already a senior. This was his last year to achieve anything. And, today''s scrimmage was most likely his last chance to participate in something that resembled an official match.


    "You guys have it nice," Trever said. "Rookies and juniors, you still got years ahead of you. But me? This scrimmage is my last chance to play competitively in middle school. Because let''s face it: I won''t be getting into the first string this year. Today is my last chance to do anything meaningful. Yet, you ask me to give up on it too, huh."


    Nobody responded to Trever''s monologue. What could they possibly say? Nobody on the second string was in the same shoes as him.


    How would Yuel feel if got into the first string and then lost his position? He couldn''t begin to imagine how depressing that''d be. The more he thought about it, the worse he felt about switching Trever out. Maybe it was a mistake? Maybe they should let Trever play his final game? Even though he dragged the team down? It was wrong, but Yuel couldn''t help but wonder...


    "Heh. ''Slump'', ''issue'', ''tilt'', you sure like calling it names." Trever chuckled. "Just say it straight to my face and get it over with. Say that I''m trash who doesn''t even deserve to be on the second string."


    "That''s not true, dude," Lars said. "I''m subbing for ya, but you were on the team first, not me. If I may say so myself, I''m pretty damn sick at this game. Still, they picked you over me. That means you''re like super mega sick, yo!"


    "I wonder about that." Trever''s shoulders slumped. "I bet they picked me because I''m a senior. It''s all pity"


    "Nah, no way." Lars shook his head. "I''ve been fighting ya more than anybody since I joined, so I know for sure - you''re stronger than me, dude. I mean, just a little stronger. Gimme a few weeks and I''mma kick ya butt!" He grinned and pointed at Trever, declaring war.


    "Heh, don''t get ahead of yourself, kid." Trever smiled wryly and started walking. His destination was the most certainly the exit. At long last, he gave in. As he passed by Lars, he stopped and patted Lars''s shoulder. "You better do a damn good job. You''re subbing for the great WildDragon, so better not embarrass me, kid."


    "Heh, easy. Go take a rest, [geezer]. I''mma wreck these scrubs for ya."


    "Good." Trever nodded and went on.


    Somehow or other, Trever was successfully persuaded to sub out. Did Yuel live up to Howard''s expectations by achieving that? Hard to say. After all, this result was only possible thanks to everybody''s efforts. Without Gilbert and Roi''s support and without Lars''s defending him, this would have never been a success.


    "Oh, right." Trever stopped and turned around. "You don''t have a captain now, huh. Okay, lemme do one last thing as the cap before I go." Trever approached Yuel.


    [Is this what I think it is?] Yuel was rooted in place like a tree. Was it really going to happen? Based on Trever''s words, that''s what he was planning to do. But, was he really going to nominate-


    "GUUUUH!?" Yuel shrieked and stumbled forward. It''s like a truck rammed into his back! Trever slammed him with everything he had! Compared to the normal Trever slam, this one was like a thousand slams! No, a million! A bazillion! Trever poured all his frustration and all his determination into this one, almost snapping Yuel''s spine in half.


    "You''re up, kid." Trever grinned. "I still don''t like how you ratted us behind our backs, but I get it. You had to do something, can''t blame ya. And, well... Sorry I yelled and all that."


    "N-No problem." Yuel mustered all his strength to straighten his broken back. He was entrusted with huge responsibility and he had no choice but accept it.


    "You started this whole thing, so you better see it through." Trever lightly punched Yuel''s chest. "You''re the new captain."


    "Y-Yes, sir!"


    "Haha, ''sir'' he says!" Trever laughed and so did the rest.


    [Ugh. Well. Heh.] Yuel sheepishly smiled along with the rest. His head was blank. The weight of the situation hadn''t fully sunk in yet. He... was the captain. The new captain. A captain of a team. He. Yuel. A captain.


    "That''s all from me." Trever reached the door and turned to everybody one last time. "Go out there and win this shit, guys!"


    "You betcha!" Lars gave a thumb up.


    "That''s the intention." Gilbert nodded.


    "I''ll kamikaze these guys to death," Dan smirked.


    "Just so we clear," Roi said. "You owe me three euro for that Coke."


    "Wait, what!?" Trever thundered "Bitch, you spilled that shit on me! Look at my shirt!"


    "No need to thank me, lol."


    "Heh, you fucker. Okay, if you guys win, I''mma treat each of you to a drink." He turned away and waved one last time, then vanished from view.


    After a long and exhausting back-and-forth, Trever finally accepted reality and surrendered his spot to Lars. For the sake of the team, he gave up his last chance to play competitively in junior high. With did he feel as he set foot out of the room? Yuel couldn''t even begin to imagine.


    "StormBlitz, you''re running late." The referee popped up in their room. "What''s going on? It''s time violation."


    "We''re sorry," Yuel stepped forward to confront the referee, unexplained confidence surging through him. "We had an important decision to make. We''d like to substitute WildDragon for this guy over here: Gunz. Also, I''m... I''m the new acting captain." Shivers danced across his arms as he breathed these words.


    He didn''t know how to take this development at first, but now it finally struck him. He''s a freshman, yet he got as far as becoming the captain of the second string! Not only that, but Lars was going to play as his lane partner! He could already tell - the next match will be one they never forget!

 44 Drafting a Counter

    The fourth match between StormBlitz and the Leopards was about to begin. Lars subbed for Trever, eliminating what Yuel considered the biggest of source of negativity in the team. Everybody''s spirits already looked a little lifted after the events in the waiting room.


    Unfortunately, they spent the whole break dealing with Trever''s substitution. As a result, there was no time to review the previous match or discuss counter strategies against the enemy''s mixup. Based on how favorable the new lane matchups were for the Leopards, there''s no doubt they''ll use their mixup again: ComboBreaker will be Mid to overwhelm Gilbert, whereas Freezer will be in Bot to punish aggressive plays.


    Even though Trever was no longer the Carry, the issue of dealing with Freezer''s punishes remained. Lars, too, was an aggressive Carry. In fact, he was a wilder and less experienced version of Trever, prone to overextensions. This was going to be fun...


    Success in Bot Lane will heavily depend on Yuel''s ability to lead Lars and prevent that goof from overextending. As long as Lars avoids irresponsibly charging in like Trever, things should work out. Hopefully.


    Alas, the same couldn''t be said about Mid Lane. Yuel was just one person, he couldn''t support both Mid and Bot at the same time. Mid was the most important lane and ComboBreaker was the strongest opponent, so surrendering the lane to her was out of the question.


    "Can we please ban their Pyromancer this time?" Gilbert asked.


    "Yeah," Roi joined in. "Chick is hella annoying."


    "It''s so stressing to gank her too," Dan added. "I always feel like she''ll destroy me the moment I show up. Combos are SCARY."


    Everybody''s eyes were on Yuel. He was the captain now. He had the final say.


    In truth, they had no obligation treating him as the captain. As far as they were concerned, he was just a freshman, a mere rookie. Nevertheless, they chose to respect Trever''s last wish and followed Yuel. Even now, Yuel''s authority in the team was still partially supported by Trever''s approval. He felt he earned some points by standing his ground against Trever and pushing the substitution through, but that''s about it. At the moment, he was still just "the new captain whom Trever vouched for."


    [So, they''re all set on banning Pyro.] Yuel frowned. The whole scrimmage until now, he had been arguing against banning Pyromancer. They already adapted to how ComboBreaker played the class, so it should be easier to counter her.


    However, the situation was different now. Gilbert couldn''t handle Breaker''s Pyromancer in Mid, so the argument of "adapting to her playstyle" didn''t mean anything anymore. Simply being familiar with Breaker''s Pyromancer didn''t make Gilbert beat her or even be her equal.


    Seeing as Breaker picked Pyromancer three times in a row, it''s certainly her best class. If they were to ban Pyromancer, she''d definitely be weakened to some degree. But, would it be enough? Judging by her high proficiency with combo and her ability to perform well in any situation despite the playstyle''s restrictions ¨C there''s no doubt she mastered combo with more than just Pyromancer. She probably had at least one or two more combo classes on par with her Pyromancer.


    [Maybe we can ban all suspects? No, there''s not enough data for that.] Yuel bit his lip. There weren''t many classes which could be played with combo on a competitive level, but there were definitely enough. Each team got only three bans during the first banning phase, so hitting all three of Breaker''s best classes was nigh impossible. They didn''t even have any hints.


    [In hindsight, maybe I should have agreed to ban Pyro during the second game. That way, she''d have to bring out her 2][nd][ best class. Then, in the third game, we could''ve banned that class too to force out her 3][rd][ best class. Oh well.] No use crying over spilled milk, He just had to deal with the situation at hand. Unfortunately, they were running low on time.


    "I need to think," Yuel said. "So, I''ll start with Viking." He made the first ban, two seconds before time ran out. It was a rather soft ban, but a safe one. The enemy Top Laner seemed to favor Viking and he''ll play Top regardless of whether the enemy will use mixup, so it''s a hit. Nobody complained.


    "Man," Jennifer sighed. "They sure took their sweet time with this one. And, just to ban Viking? What''s the big deal? They also switched out WildDragon. Wasn''t he like the captain and stuff? These scrubs make no sense."


    "Ban something. Quick." Alex ordered.


    "Huh? Who died and made you the boss?"


    "Just ban already. They were buying time with their first ban, so they must be arguing about something. Don''t give them time to think."


    "Got it, got it. Jeez, look who''s suddenly all srs bsns. Who are you and what you did to that lazy bum?" Jennifer chuckled and banned Shadow Walker. There was no need to even think since Shadow Walker was currently considered the only S tier class in the game. Nerfs pls.


    [Ugh, already back to me?] Yuel bit his lip. He had only one minute to decide the next ban. And, more importantly, to decide what he was going to do about Pyromancer.


    Should they ban Pyromancer? It''s a critical decision which may single-handedly decide the entire match. And, everybody expected [him] to make this critical decision because he''s the captain now. And, it better be a good decision. Yeah, no pressure at all. Gulp.


    [Was Trever playing under this pressure this whole time?] No matter how many times Yuel gulped, his throat remained dry. The weight on his shoulders was crushing him, it''s incomparable to anything else he ever experienced when playing Classmancers. He always thought being the shot-caller was effectively the same as being the captain since the shot-caller was responsible for many important decisions.


    But, he was wrong. Completely wrong. As the shot-caller, he was merely the team''s advisor, the strategist. He was merely tasked with providing the team with tactics and ideas. Nothing more was expected from him.


    However, as the captain, he was the team''s leader. Everybody''s eyes were on him, filled with expectations. With his words, his plays and his decisions - he was to lead the team to victory. And, if he can''t, that''s on him. Nobody would smack him on the back and say "It''s okay! Not your fault!" He personally kicked out the guy who had this role and assumed that guy''s post. Now, he was the only one who could say such things.


    So, back to the problem: should he ban Pyromancer as everybody wanted? How was he to make this important decision under all this pressure!? It''s unreal! No wonder Trever crumbled when things went south. Every mistake he made felt ten times heavier due to his position as the captain.


    [I think it''s better to confront Pyro like before, but...] Yuel''s thoughts didn''t come together. Despite what he personally believed, the team''s requests kept popping in his mind.


    ["Can we please ban their Pyromancer this time?"]


    ["Yeah, chick is hella annoying."]


    [ "It''s so stressing to gank her too. I always feel like she''ll destroy me the moment I show up."]


    Everybody wanted the Pyromancer banned, only Yuel had a different opinion. But, could he properly explain his position and convince them to follow him? With his mind in a jumble, he had a hard time explaining things even to himself.


    [Last time I tried, it was a disaster.] Yuel''s hands trembled. He recalled the bitter experience of the previous match when the team refused to follow his shot-calls. His opinion was at odds with that of everybody else, so he was rejected.


    Was it going to be any different this time? Just because he became the "captain" didn''t mean they suddenly saw him in a completely new light. He was still a freshman, a rookie. They gave him more credibility out of respect for Trever, but he could lose it all in a heartbeat with one bad decision.


    If a rift forms between the captain and the team, the events of the previous match will repeat themselves. Last time, the team fell apart shortly after Trever, the captain, crumbled. If Yuel were to fail the team here - it''d be over. Not to mention, morale still hadn''t fully recovered from that match. The atmosphere was still strained.


    "So, we''re banning Pyro or what?" Gilbert asked once the timer hit 30 seconds.


    "... yes, I suppose we should." Yuel bit his lip. There''s no choice. He couldn''t fight against these circumstances. As the new captain, his first task was to get the team on its feet. Therefore, he had no choice but to ban Pyro-


    "Lame."


    "Eh?" Yuel blinked, his finger froze on top of the mouse button.


    "I really wanted to fight that Pyro dude." Lars pouted. "She looks sick, yo. I wanna beat her."


    [Oh, right. Lars is here too.] Yuel was so preoccupied with the opinions of the upperclassmen that he completely forgot about Lars. There''s one more player here eager to challenge Breaker''s Pyromancer, potentially capable of overpowering her (as long as he doesn''t mess up like a goof).


    "I get that her Pyro is tough for Gil," Lars said. "But, can''t ya just counter her in Mid? That''s what you do best, dude."


    ["Just counter her", huh.] Yuel sneered. Lars sure made it sound easy, despite how critical this decision was. How could he be so nonchalant about it? Oh, it''s probably because he''s not the captain.


    That''s when it hit Yuel. If he weren''t the captain right now, he''d definitely push for countering Pyromancer. There''s no reason to fear Breaker''s Pyromancer just because the enemy destroyed them with a mixup. The burden of being a captain clouded his judgment. That''s no good. He shouldn''t succumb to this pressure!


    "I''ll ban Warlock first." Yuel submitted the ban 5 seconds before time ran out. Everybody agreed on Freezer''s Warlock being a pain to deal with, especially after he switched to Support.


    They still had one more ban left for this banning phase, so he could ban Pyromancer next time. Until then, in what little time he had, he''ll sway the team in his favor!


    "Geh," Jennifer made a face "They stalled for time again." And Warlock, of all things? Were they that scared by Alex? What a bunch of scrubs.


    "Targeting me, huh," Alex smirked, no doubt proud of himself.


    "You better be able to play something other than Warlock." Jennifer snarked. "You haven''t been showing your face in practice, so I''ve only ever seen you play Warlock lately. Please tell me you play other stuff in your free time."


    "No problem. Anyway, just ban already."


    "Yeah, yeah." Jennifer grumped and picked the second ban. [These scrubs better ban my Pyro next, or I''ll be mad for real.]


    [Ugh, these guys don''t waste any time.] Yuel hadn''t finished sorting his thoughts yet, but it was his turn to ban again. Only 60 seconds, that''s how long he had to come up with a case for keeping Pyromancer in the game. He had to figure something out!


    "I-I think we should keep the Pyromancer after all." Yuel fought his best to stabilize his voice. "There aren''t many good ways to counter her in Bot, but Mid is a different story.. There are enough mages who can outreach Pyro."


    "But, one of the best is already banned." Gilbert pointed out. True, Sage was just banned by the enemy. Along with Sorcerer, these two classes were known as strong Mid Lane counters to Pyromancer. Normally, they weren''t ban-worthy during the first banning phase. However, if Breaker intended to pick Pyromancer again, banning Sage and Sorcerer was a strong move. Sorcerer hadn''t been banned yet, but the ban was incoming.


    "I''m sure Sorcerer is next," Gilbert argued. "And then what counter do you suggest I pick? Wizard?"


    "That''s one option."


    "You can''t be serious." Gilbert made a face. Not surprising, since Wizard was a beginner-friendly class and unpopular in the competitive scene. Basically, it was considered a class for newbies only.


    Even so, there were niche cases when Wizard was picked even in the pro scene. Wizard was a simple and straightforward mage, but that''s what made it effective against Pyromancer''s relatively short reach. Yuel experienced the frustration of this matchup in his very first Classmancers game when he played Pyromancer against an intermediate Wizard bot. Back then, he found a way to defeat the Wizard, but that''s because the enemy was a mere bot. Against an experienced Wizard player, a Pyromancer was going to have a bad time.


    "Even if you''re serious," Gilbert said. "I haven''t touched Wizard in at least a year. So, don''t count on it."


    "I see." It was a shame since it was really one of the counters Yuel had in mind. But, even with Sorcerer and Sage banned, there were other ways to deal with Pyromancer. Especially, a Combo Pyromancer.


    The general approach to countering a Pyromancer was by outreaching it and zoning it during the laning phase. The best picks for that were mages with long range, namely Sage, Sorcerer and Wizard. Alas, they were out of the picture at the moment.


    However, Breaker didn''t just play Pyromancer. She was a Combo Pyromancer, relying on burst damage to swiftly eliminate targets. To achieve that, she had to farm effectively and preferably out level opponents by scoring kills. The one thing she definitely couldn''t allow herself was to fall behind on farm, as that''ll mess up her whole game plan. If she''s under-leveled, there''s a chance her combo won''t one-shot some opponents. In other words, she''ll no longer pose as much of a threat.


    Therefore, all Gilbert really had to do was deny Breaker''s kills and prevent her from getting ahead in farm. It''s enough for him to clear waves at a decent pace while maintaining distance from Breaker. As long as Breaker doesn''t get ahead, they should be able to deal with her during the team fighting phase.


    One good pick for this strategy was Aeromancer. Its Whirlwind spell summoned a tornado which persisted in an area for a while, dealing damage over time. Its clearing speed was a bit slow during early game, but with enough early power items - it''s enough to not be pushed back by the Pyromancer.


    Gilbert could cast Whirlwind all the way back from his Turret, without ever getting into Breaker''s range. In other words: a turtling strategy. Lars would yap to no end when asked him to play like that, but Gilbert should be reasonable enough to accept it as a viable strategy for winning the game.


    Therefore, the Aeromancer pick sounded good. But, was it enough? After all, they were dealing with Breaker, who time and again proved she knew how to handle any inconvenient situation.


    Aeromancer was a great defensive option against her, but playing too passively would allow her to exploit this matchup in other ways. For example, a standard counter strategy against turtling was to frequently rotate and gank other lanes. If said ganks were to succeed, they''d let her out level others, defeating the whole purpose of countering her in the lane with Aeromancer.


    30 seconds left. He had to make a decision. It''s the last ban of this phase. There''s no postponing any further. He tapped into the sea of knowledge in his mind, frantically searching for something, anything. Everybody called him a walking encyclopedia, so he had to know a Mid pick which could counter Breaker even more effectively than Aeromancer....!


    Alas, no matter how hard he searched, he couldn''t find such a Mid pick. If only there was a team formation which allowed Yuel to support Gilbert, then they could handle Breaker. Unfortunately, Yuel was just one person and he had to stay in Bot until mid game, especially now that Lars was playing instead of Trever. So, Yuel couldn''t help Gilbert in Mid... Wait, did it have to be [his] job?


    There''s another role in Classmancers with some similarity to Support. It had the freedom to roam throughout the map and help whichever lane was struggling. It''s Jungler.


    If Yuel and Lars hold their ground in Bot by themselves, Dan could focus on ganking Top and Mid. This would allow him to support Gilbert more often in lane.


    But, there''s a problem. ["It''s so stressing to gank her too. I always feel like she''ll destroy me the moment I show up. Combos are SCARY."] That''s what Dan said earlier. He might come off as a bit weak-willed there, but his words made sense.


    Ganking a Combo Pyromancer was similar to ganking an assassin: you must take the target down before they can dish out their burst. With Combo Pyromancer''s lighting speed casting and medium reach, as well as Breaker''s flawless execution, it''s no surprise Dan struggled to gank her. She bombarded whoever dared set foot on her lane.


    It''d be great if Dan could somehow support Gilbert in Mid without putting himself in danger, but how? There''s no choice but accept they had to play defensively in Mid against Breaker. So, it''ll be fine even if Dan can''t score any kills on her, as long as he helps pushing Mid and forces Breaker to stay in lane.


    In other words, they needed a Jungler class which could help with pushing Mid without getting too close to Breaker... Was that even possible?


    15 seconds left. There''s no time. He had to figure something out. Fast.


    He scanned every Jungler class in the game, even low tier ones like Rogue. Actually, if played right, Rogue could potentially fit the- No! Bad! They couldn''t pick a D tier class in such an important match. The enemy were going to counter the heck out of it.


    There had to be something more reasonable. There had to be a counter. It''s Classmancers, the game he fell in love with right after finding a way to kill a Wizard as a Pyromancer by overcoming the disadvantage of range. He refused to concede. There had to be a pick for this situation.


    Optimally, he wanted another class like Aeromancer: a class that can clear minion waves while staying away from the wave itself. This was an unconventional requirement for a Jungler, as neither assassins nor bruisers were designed to be played that way... Oh, but the Jungler role wasn''t restricted to just assassins and bruisers.


    Once he changed the class filter in the menu, he stumbled across a niche class which perfectly met the requirements: Beastmaster. Neither an assassin nor a bruiser, a peculiar class tagged as a "specialist".


    5 seconds left. It''s now or never.


    "Dan, you said you can play any Jungler, right?"


    "Yep."


    "Does that include Beastmaster?"


    "Oh," Dan blinked for a moment, then his lips curved into a smirk. "Of course I can play it. I love me some Beastmaster."


    "Good, then I know what we should do." Yuel nodded and proceeded to make the third ban-


    ¡ºTIME OUT¡»


    "Ah..." He just stared at the screen. It''s the first time this ever happened to him. Time ran out. They didn''t ban squat. "Um, oops."


    "... for real?" Gilbert facepalmed. "I didn''t want to interrupt your deep thinking, but man..."


    "Ugh," Yuel jerked as everybody''s eyes stabbed him, demanding an explanation. Not good. Not good at all, He just screwed up big time. He had to explain himself. Fast. "M-My bad. I was thinking about so many possibilities and... Anyway, I decided against banning Pyro."


    "You serious?" Gilbert raised an eyebrow.


    "Yes, quite serious." Yuel nodded. This was the decisive moment. Could he convince the team to follow his strategy? This is where he was going to make it or break it as a captain. "We can counter their Pyro with Aeromancer and Beastmaster."


    "Aeromancer? Since when that''s a counter?"


    "It''s not, not really. But, it''ll let you stay away from the Pyro without losing much farm."


    "You want me to turtle, huh," Gilbert made a complicated expression. Turtling wasn''t exactly the most fun strategy for most people. Especially, aggressive players like Lars and Trever hated it to death.


    But, what about Gilbert? He was neither an aggressive nor defensive player. His playstyle adapted according to the situation at hand. He was a balanced and consisted player. Therefore, Yuel believed Gilbert will agree to this plan


    "Can''t say I''m a fan of turtling," Gilbert said. "Especially, not when I''m heading into a match knowing I''m going to turtle. But alright, it''s one way to fight that Pyro, I guess. But, that can''t be your whole plan, right? Because that''s not enough."


    "Of course," Yuel nodded. "That''s where Dan''s Beastmaster comes in." He explained the gist of his reasoning:


    Beastmaster''s special gimmick was capturing jungle monsters and deploying them as minions on lanes. In other words, after unleashing the monsters onto a lane, he didn''t need to stick around to watch them fight the enemy wave. The monsters-turned-minions operated independently, just like normal minions.


    So, the strategy was straightforward: Dan will capture a bunch of jungle monsters, drop them in Mid and immediately get out. All of that without getting within Breaker''s range at all. Between the Aeromancer''s Whirlwind and the Beastmaster''s minions, they''ll rival the Pyromancer''s wave clearing speed without getting close to her. In fact, they''ll most certainly out push her.


    "Sound cool," Dan nodded repeatedly. "Never tried playing like that before, so I''m totally in. There''s some more fun stuff I can throw to the mix, like proxy farming with monsters. We can dominate that Mid Lane no problem. Easy peasy."


    "Hmm, I suppose it can work." Gilbert nodded, but his eyebrows were knotted. It seemed Yuel failed to sell him on this idea, but at least it wasn''t rejected.


    "So we facing the Pyro?" Lars pumped a fist and grinned. "Sick, yo!"


    "Heh," Roi smirked. "Guess I''ll get a few more home runs from her."


    Good, morale didn''t drop in the slightest. In fact, it probably improved, thanks to the two loud goofs. Yuel messed up huge time by missing a valuable ban, but things worked out. Somewhat. Though far from flawlessly, Yuel cleared his first hurdle as a captain.


    After StormBlitz missed their third ban by running out of time, the ball passed back to the Leopards.


    "Hooooooh," Jennifer trembled. " I see how it is. You don''t think my Pyro is ban worthy, is that it? I see, I see. Heh. Haha. Hahaha! Don''t fuck with me!" She roared and banned Sorcerer. "If you don''t mind my Pyro, I gonna pick it and tear you apart!"


    With that, the first banning phase ended. StormBlitz picked their first class: Paladin, a decent first pick. Generally, the first pick should be a high tier class which can be used in a myriad of strategies and has few counters. A strong pick like that didn''t give the enemy much info about the team''s strategy, therefore lowering the chances of being figured out and countered. For that reason, the first pick was usually a bruiser or a tank and almost never a mage or a marksman-


    "How''s that!?" Jennifer locked in her Pyromancer. It happened as soon as the turn passed to the Leopards. Not even a millisecond of thought was spared on it.


    "Uh..."


    "Err, Jenny..."


    "That''s kinda...."


    The team was stoned. Drafting the Mid Laner so early was already questionable, but on top of that, it''s Pyromancer, a mage known for its medium reach. It''s like she was asking to be countered!


    "Did you seriously just... huh." Alex massaged his temples, feeling his brain was losing cells just from breathing the same air as Jennifer.


    "What?" Jennifer crossed her arms. "These scrubs were asking for it! Hmph. Sage and Sorcerer are banned, so I can deal with whatever they bring. Besides, we all knew this was coming, so what''s the harm?"


    "You ever heard of ''concealing information'' from... Meh, nevermind." Alex sighed. There''s no use reasoning with a derp like Jennifer, especially when she''s triggered. "It''s a terrible pick for sure, but... We may be able to use it our advantage. Hmm..." He mumbled to himself.


    While still dumbstruck by their captain''s rash actions, the Leopards picked their second class: Orc, a Top Laner. The turn passed back to StormBlitz.


    "Pyro right off the bat?" Gilbert raised an eyebrow.


    "Seems like their captain is very confident," Yuel said. This was a great development for StormBlitz, as it eliminated one of the greatest fears he had regarding his Aeromancer + Beastmaster plan.


    Since StormBlitz went first in this draft, it meant the Leopards will be picking the final class of the draft after seeing StormBlitz''s whole team composition. So, if the Leopards kept their Mid Laner pick for last, ComboBreaker would get a chance to pick a different mage after seeing the Aeromancer and Beastmaster.


    Thankfully, that''s no longer possible. The Pyromancer was now locked-in and will undoubtedly be the Mid Laner, so Yuel could proceed as planned.


    Still, revealing the Aeromancer and Beastmaster early harbored some risks. Both classes had weaknesses which could be exploited via counter picks, especially in team fights. Therefore, Gilbert and Dan''s picks were pushed to the very end of the drafting process. First, Roi picked Knight and Lars got his beloved Trickshooter.


    "Sooooo," Jennifer torched the monitor with her intense glare "They got a plan against my Pyro or what?" Now that she cooled down a little, she realized she done goofed. Even with Sage and Sorcerer banned, there were many ways to make her life hard as a Pyromancer. She knew that, yet she went ahead and insta-locked Pyromancer anyway. Jeez, was she a Bronze player or something!? Blegh.


    While she was sitting and biting her nail, the drafting phase approached its climax. Only two more positions for the Leopards to decide on: Carry and Support.


    "I think I''ll go with Pirate," Albert said. "I would''ve liked Elf against their Trickshooter, but they banned it."


    "Wait," Alex said. "Let''s leave the Carry for last."


    "Hm? Isn''t it better to pick Support last? We''ll have a better idea how to counter their whole lineup by then."


    "Yeah, that''s usually true..." Alex shrugged. Explaining his idea was such a drag. "Anyway, it''s better to not limit ourselves too much. They probably gonna show us soon how they plan to deal with our Pyro. If their counter is decent, we may want to drop the mixup."


    Alex explained the gist of his idea. After some heated discussion, they agreed to push the Carry pick to the end. Instead, they picked Lumimancer for Support. It was StormBlitz''s turn again.


    [They''re keeping Carry for last? Why?] Yuel frowned. Both StormBlitz''s Carry and Support were already decided, so what sort of counter were the Leopards afraid of for their Carry? Well, it''s not like there''s a rule against picking Carry last in such situations, but it''s an odd decision to make without a good reason. It''s even weirder when considering that the Support was Freezer, who struck Yuel as the smart type. Did Freezer engross this decision? Why?


    "Hehehe," Dan cackled like a cartoon villain. "So, this is where we drop our trap card. Hehehe."


    "Yeah, let''s do it." Gilbert nodded. "Let''s see how this Aero + Beast combo is going to turn out."


    Neither of them was concerned with enemy''s pick order? Maybe Yuel was overthinking it? The drafting phase proceeded smoothly so far, so they could go ahead with the plan and pick Aeromancer + Beastmaster for their last two picks.


    Yes, everything had been going well so far, He didn''t want to instill unnecessary doubt in the team, so he kept quiet about his unfounded suspicion. He was the leader now, so his words carried weight. If he were to express doubt, said doubt would spread across the whole team.


    "They really went for it." Alex smirked. "Let''s play with our original formation then. Hmm, so I have to deal with Aero."


    "Electromancer is a decent counter." Albert pointed out. "They''re pretty even in the laning phase, but Electro can counter Aero''s ult."


    "Electro, hmm." Alex made a complicated expression. It''s really a good counter, but...


    "Hah," Jennifer sneered. "As if he can even play Electro."


    "And why you decided I can''t?"


    "Because you don''t practice for shit. Say, guys. Anybody here ever saw him play something other than Warlock the last few months?" Her question was followed by awkward silence.


    Of course nobody did, because Alex only dropped by the club once or twice a week and barely stayed for even an hour. That''s the laziest schedule he managed to get away with without being kicked from the club. If it was in Jennifer''s hands, she''d kick that lazy bum all the way to the moon! He was a disgrace to all aspiring competitive players in the world! No, in the whole universe!


    "Just because I don''t play something in the club doesn''t mean I can''t play it. Don''t go assuming shit with that feeble brain of yours."


    "Feeble? What''s that mean?"


    "Point in case."


    "Wut?"


    "Anyway, I''ll go with Electro," Alex announced. There was some hesitation, but he didn''t let it slip through his stoic facade. Real talk, when was the last time he touched Electromancer, again? ... whatever.


    With this, the final pick was decided by the Leopards. However, unlike everybody originally expected, said pick wasn''t a Carry. It was Electromancer, a Mid Laner.


    "Huh?" Yuel cocked his head. What? Electromancer? Why? It made no sense. They didn''t have a Carry- Oh. Actually, they did. They had a Carry. They had it all along...!


    "I-I think we messed up." Yuel gulped. It finally dawned on him. Why did the enemy pick Pyromancer early without any worries? Why did they postpone the Carry pick instead of the Support pick? This Electromancer pick answered everything.


    From the beginning, the Pyromancer was a wildcard. It could be either Carry or Mid. However, everybody, Yuel included, assumed the Pyromancer was definitely going to be in Mid because the enemy will surely use their mixup lineup. Ugh...


    "You think they changed formation again?" Gilbert grimaced.


    "Ouch," Dan sighed. "You could say... they did a mixup on their mixup, amirite?"


    This was a mess up. A huge one. After the devastating defeat they suffered the previous match, it was only natural to assume the Leopards will use the same winning formation. It was unthinkable the Leopards will change it back again after losing twice in a row, but they did. In the very last moment, by simply postponing the Carry selection, they gained the option to decide which formation to go with.


    Because of that, StormBlitz''s Aeromancer and Beastmaster became weak picks. They were supposed to counter Breaker''s Pyromancer in Mid, but that idea went down the toilet. On top of that, Aeromancer''s ult was going to be countered by Electromancer''s ult in team fights, whereas Beastmaster wasn''t a particularly strong Jungler in general. Instead of gaining an advantage in Mid with these picks, the odds were turned against them!


    Everybody knew the Leopards could abandon their mixup. Everybody, Yuel included. He should had taken that into consideration, but he failed. He was too concerned about pleasing the team as the new captain and finding a solution for the Gilbert vs. Breaker situation. As a result, he failed to see the bigger picture. He failed the team and he failed as the captain. He failed all over the place.


    Invisible weight dropped on his shoulders. The atmosphere around them turned dense and suffocating. It''s just like last game, when the whole team fell apart. Negativity seeped into the team and, this time, there''s nobody else to blame; it''s all Yuel''s fault!


    "Yo, what''s wrong, my dudes?" Lars asked. "If you concentrate this much, you gonna fry yo brains, haha!"


    "Well..." Yuel sighed. How could this goof smile so nonchalantly right now? Didn''t he understand the gravity of the situation? Did he even understand the situation at all? "We picked Aero and Beast to counter their Pyro in Mid, but they played around that by moving Pyro to Bot."


    "Oh, I see." Lars nodded. Apparently, he just figured the situation. Just how dense could this guy be? Well, at least now he''d share everybody''s sentiments- "Yo, that''s great!"


    "... excuse me?"


    "I gonna fight Breaker from the start! Best stuff!" He was unfazed by this development. Rather, he... welcomed it? While everybody else complained about facing Breaker''s Combo Pyromancer, Lars saw it as nothing more than a fun challenge. What a bizarre goof.


    "Besides, why worry so much?" Lars continued. "Aren''t they just returning to their original formation? You already mopped the floor with them when they played that way, so let''s do that again! No problem!"


    These words penetrated the team''s negative atmosphere and echoed in everybody''s minds. Everybody was speechless, because Lars both made absolutely no sense and perfect sense at the same time.


    There were some unfavorable factors, that much was true. However, they already bested the Leopards twice in this formation, that''s also true. In the first place, the Leopards resorted to using mixup because they couldn''t handle StormBlitz with their original formation. Pressuring the Leopards back into that formation could actually be seen as an achievement! Sort of.


    Either way, Yuel was the captain, so he had to say something. Something, anything. Lars''s positive attitude created an opportunity to wash away the team''s negativity, so he had to follow up on that.


    "Lars is right," Yuel said. "They got us good in Mid, but if you look at it another way: [we] managed to kick [their] Pyromancer out of Mid with our drafts. We''ll have to pay for that a little, but there''s no telling who is really better off in this trade."


    "Hm, that''s true." Gilbert nodded. "At least, I''m glad I don''t have to deal with Pyro on lane anymore. Freezer, on the other hand? I can handle him."


    "And," Dan added. "Maybe I can still put my Beast to good use. Just because Pyro moved to Bot doesn''t mean she''s no longer in the game. I''ve really been wanting to test Beastmaster in a competitive match, so this gonna be good."


    Little by little, morale was restored. Lars''s positivity infected the whole team. The negativity from the previous match wasn''t entirely gone yet, they were in much better shape now.


    Now, everything will depend on their ability to maintain said positivity throughout the match. With Lars being the only member not suffering from that baggage, he was the perfect candidate for becoming the team''s linchpin. He could very well generate the momentum the team so desperately needed to fully recover.


    But, he was a goof. Was he even aware of these things? Could he pull off such an important task on his debut? And, against a tough opponent like ComboBreaker? As Lars''s Support, Yuel will have to lead him in the right direction.


    The fourth match was about to begin!

 45 Shackles of the Larger Picture

    The fourth match between StormBlitz and the Leopards began. Yuel and Lars played in Bot as Paladin and Trickshooter, facing off ComboBreaker''s Pyromancer and SkyNight''s Lumimancer. More than anybody else, their performance in lane will have a huge impact on the rest of the game. No matter what, Yuel had to ensure they were going to dominate Bot.


    [Since they reverted to their original positions, I should rearrange my data.] In the previous match, Yuel collected all sorts of data about the enemy''s mixup formation. However, most of it was gathered in a haste and without enough validation, that''s how desperate he was to find something to latch onto in that dreadful match.


    It''s best to discard this information and recall everything he collected on the enemy from the first two matches. The one element which stayed exactly the same in these two matches was Breaker playing Combo Pyromancer. Just like in his data, she played the early game safely but effectively. She remained out of Lars''s range without being pushed back.


    "Geh, she''s such a pain." Lars ranted as Breaker slipped outside the range of his Trickshot again. "What is this? I remember her being more explosive and stuff."


    "You could learn a lot from her," Yuel said. "Her playstyle turns aggressive once she gets her combo pieces, but until then she plays good defense, unlike a certain somebody who only knows how to rely on aggression and mechanical skill."


    "Yeah, yeah, that''s me. The one and only." Lars made a face. How many times did he listen to Yuel criticizing his defense? There''s probably not enough numbers in the entire world to represent that amount. It was like a bazillion billion million times, at least. "Welp, no matter how good she can defend, it''s no use if I beat her anyway!"


    "It''ll be harder than you think," Yuel said. It''s already the third time he faced Breaker''s early game in Bot, yet even he struggled to find something to exploit. Same as her combos, her defense was practically perfect. In fact, her defense felt like a natural extension of the combo playstyle she mastered. It wasn''t just about playing strong defense in the early game, it felt her she was stating: "That''s how I play combo in the early game."


    Was it really impossible to break through her? As a Trickshooter, Lars had the clear speed advantage over Breaker in the early game, thanks to Trickshot''s high base damage. However, the enemy balanced it out with Lumimancer''s ranged basic attacks, taking advantage of the fact Yuel''s Paladin was melee. As a result, Lars mostly contested the wave clearing in 1v2 and Yuel barely had any safe chances to get close to the minions.


    Or rather, he [could] do so if he really wanted, but that involved huge risks. Breaker and Night weren''t the types to let that slide, they''d wipe him out in an instant. Conceding first blood for no reason was the last thing the team needed right now. Therefore, Yuel played it safe.


    "Dude, why don''tcha body-block their shots s little more?" Lars asked. "I can''t push them back like this."


    "This isn''t ranked," Yuel retorted. "They know how to deal with a frontliner in the early game, so they''ll eat me alive."


    "No spine!"


    "Whatever you say, I''m not taking the risk." Yuel shook his head. It''s better to be safe than sorry. Bot was a very important lane this match because of Lars''s inclusion, so Yuel couldn''t possibly risk committing a mistake which could cost the lane.


    And so, the early game remained at standstill. Lars pouted, and of course, Yuel wasn''t satisfied with the situation either. If possible, he wanted Lars to score at least one kill on Breaker before mid game, since Trickshooter had the power advantage over Pyromancer right now.


    But, how were they going to achieve that? They both thirsted for Breaker''s blood, but no plan of attack came to mind- wha!?


    "Here I go, yo!" Lars slid forward, right toward Breaker and Night! That reckless goof...!


    "Wait! Turn back!" Yuel gave chase, but for some reason, he was too far away. When did Lars get all the way out there? They were normally much better synchronized than this, how did that happen!?


    At first glance, Lars''s idea of closing the distance with a Trickslide didn''t seem that terrible. Breaker was at 30% HP and got outcleared, so she was in the middle of retreating. Chasing her and firing from behind could lead to a kill, but that''s only against inexperienced and uncoordinated foes. Breaker and Night were neither. They were going to turn the tables on Lars!


    Ugh! How did it come to this!? That goof was way too excited about his debut and got carried away! Didn''t he understand his importance of this match? He was supposed to be the momentum generator for the team! If he were to concede first blood here, things would only go downhill from there. Morale would be hit across all lanes and the team would fall apart.


    [Wait, what am I thinking?] Yuel stopped himself. None of these things mattered right now. Before anything else, he had to concentrate on the situation at hand. Right now, at this very moment, Lars put himself in a bad spot. It already happened, there''s no changing that. As Lars''s partner, Yuel had to pour everything into rescuing him from this predicament.


    "Retreat!" Yuel repeated while dashing to the scene. If Night was going for a blind, and Breaker was going to chase, and Lars fled, and then, and afterward and and and. A storm of thoughts and predictions whirled inside Yuel''s mind. The situation was dire, but it wasn''t unrecoverable.


    Unfortunately, he didn''t have the luxury to calmly analyze all the best plays. As he predicted, Night made the first move. While Lars''s attention was locked on the fleeing Breaker, Night turned around and teleported in front of Lars in a flash.


    "Crap!" Lars started turning his Trickshooter away, but it''s too late. The Lumimancer released a burst of blinding light, painting Lars''s screen in pure white.


    "Their Pyro is coming back for you!" Yuel informed. From this distance, providing info was all he could do to help. While Lars was blinded, Yuel was his "eyes". "She''s coming from your right, probably going for a Flame Wave. Actually, just check my screen!"


    "Oh! Sick idea!" Lars leaned toward Yuel to check out the Paladin''s point of view. Yuel maintained a full view of the unfolding situation, so Lars could see everything clearly, even though he was supposed to be blinded. It felt a bit like cheating, but there was no rule against it and they had to avoid Lars''s death by any means.


    "I can sure see ''em." Lars nodded. Actually, maybe he could even fight back like this! There was a difference in distances to account for between Yuel''s view and Lars''s actual position, but if he could figure it-


    "Don''t even think about fighting back." Yuel killed that thought before it was born.


    "Geh, okay. I''m out then! Cover me, dude!" Lars turned around and ran away... slowly, because Lumimancer''s Blinding Light also slowed its victims. Thanks to that, Night scored a couple of easy hits on the slooooowly fleeing target. Lars did his best to throw the enemy off by suddenly changing directions, but it wasn''t very effective with reduced movement speed.


    As a result, Lars dropped all the way to 40% HP. A single charged Flame Wave was going to finish him off and it''s coming soon, as Breaker was about to catch up to him. He was saving his roll to dodge that decisive strike.


    But, Breaker knew that. Therefore, once Lars was within range, she just barraged him with basics attacks. No need to use her trump card yet.


    "Geh, why won''t she use it already!?" Lars grimaced. It''s brutal. He couldn''t dodge roll her basic attacks, because after he rolls - she''ll unleash Flame Wave on him during roll recovery. His hands were tied. He had to keep saving the roll for her Flame Wave, which refused to come.


    [Crap, I''m screwed!] Lars understood there''s no way out. There''s no escape from this situation. The enemy completely turned the tables on him with that Blinding Light. If he didn''t roll now, he''d be dead to basic attacks. If he did roll, he''s dead to Flame Wave. Then, how the heck was he supposed to get out!?


    There''s only one way. Even though Yuel said not to fight, that''s the only way! "Sorry dude, but-"


    "Don''t even think about it," Yuel ordered while running toward Lars.


    "But-"


    "Keep running. You got this."


    "Geh! Okay!" Lars complied. Even though every cell in his body screamed to turn back and fight, he instinctively followed Yuel''s orders. After playing together so much, he was certain: if Yuel saw an out from this desperate situation, then there gotta be one, yo!


    With that said, being barraged by two sources of basic attacks seriously hurt. His HP plummeted at an insane rate. 35%. 28%. 21%. 18%. 15%. 12%. Wait, was it just him or did the damage slow down at the end there? He didn''t figure it from the displayed percentages though, because the heck was a number even. He just got a rough feeling, based on how much was erased from his HP bar.


    That''s when he noticed a violet aura stretching on the ground beneath him, a magical defense aura if he ever saw one. Was that Yuel''s doing? Actually, he mentioned something or another about building an item with a magical defense aura to counter the enemy composition. Dude was legit genius, yo!


    With Yuel finally getting close to Lars, Breaker was now put on the spot. With Lars''s buffed magical defense, she and Night couldn''t finish him off in time with just magical basic attacks. So, she had to fire her Flame Wave before Lars got away.


    And, she also had to do so before getting in the range Yuel''s Justice Strike. In other words, she had to fire it [right now]. So, she did.


    "No chance, yo!" Lars reacted instantly. Even amidst this chaotic situation, he neatly roll dodged the Flame Wave. That''s it! He finally got out! His blindness and slowdown were about to expire too. "Yeah! I''m finally... out?" Even though Lars and Yuel finally met on lane, Yuel didn''t stop running toward the enemy.


    "Now! Shoot her!" Yuel summoned a holy blade above Breaker''s head, which came down crashing right on her. She was silenced and slowed, becoming the prey! The tables were turned!


    "What!? Now?!" Lars exclaimed. "You crazy bastard! Haha!" He sharply turned around and took aim. His HP was at 8%. He''d die from just a couple of hits. Yet, in this super mega tight situation, Yuel put him on the offense! Dude was nuts, haha!


    With Yuel guarding the front, Lars didn''t have to worry about anything. He darted forward to get the slowed down Breaker back within firing range. To finish this with a kill, he had to fire a super accurate Trickshot with at least one bounce. And, he had to do it as quickly as possible. Meaning, right after his blindness lifts up.


    On top of that, considering the sudden shift from defense to offense, he didn''t have much time to take aim. Normally, it''d absurd to expect anybody to land a bouncing shot under these circumstances. But, it''s Lars. He should be able to pull it off.


    As soon as the whiteness started fading from his screen, Lars''s aim was already locked on. He fired with speed and accuracy that''d put even an aimbot to shame.


    It was an amazing development. When Lars charged in alone, Yuel was sure everything was doomed. However, thanks to their persistence under these harsh circumstances, something unbelievable happened: they created an impossibly rare chance to score a kill on Breaker! During the early game! With this pinpoint Trickshot, Lars was going to-


    "Whaaaaaa?! You kidding me?!" Lars exclaimed. His shot was fast and accurate enough, no complaints there. It was going to perfectly land on Breaker... but she rolled. As if driven by instinct, she rolled forward right as the Trickshot was fired. As a result, even though Lars''s bullet reached her location with pitch-perfect timing, the shot was a bit too high. She dodged Lars''s finishing blow by a hair''s breadth!


    "This girl is crazy, yo!" Lars''s grin was colored by a mixture of awe and disbelief. She''s even crazier than what he saw on screen from the audience! This was sick!


    [Good response there. Well played.] Yuel sighed. With that dodge, Breaker forced this 2v2 into a draw. With the looming danger of a gank, Lars couldn''t pursue the enemy any further with just 8% HP. They tried pressuring Night instead, but he elegantly disengaged as well. It''s a draw, plain and simple.


    "Phew!" Jennifer exhaled all the air from her lungs. "Man, that shit was intense! Did you see what just happened? What''s with that Trickshooter!?"


    "Yes, I saw," Albert nodded. "That was a pretty hard shot to land."


    "''Hard''? More like ''impossible''! And I barely dodged that shit!" Jennifer dropped back on her chair. This last exchanged spent all the brain power she had in stock. She could really use a breather.


    Seriously, what''s the deal with that Trickshooter? She thought he was some nobody StormBlitz subbed in after their captain ragequit or something. And at first, it really looked that way.


    Like, that scrub charged in solo a few moments ago. He should have totally been dead meat, but he somehow wiggled his way out. And, then he almost turned the tables around with a crazy pro tier Trickshot.


    So, was he a scrub or s decent player? Which was it!?


    As she thought back on her Trickshot dodge, her hands trembled. It was one hella clutch dodge, but it was a successful dodge nonetheless. As soon as she heard the Trickshot''s sound effect, her fingers reacted on their own. Rolling against a Trickshot was one of the many lessons she beat into herself via endless practice.


    ["Trickshot will sometimes come at you as the finisher."] One of Coach''s lectures. ["Always remember: Trickshot can''t bounce downwards. So, if you roll at the right time, the bullet can''t hit you."]


    After hearing that advice, Jennifer added it to her "Stuff I Gotta Ace" list. She dragged Albert into practice mode and made him fire countless Trickshots at her. She rolled and rolled and rolled and rolled until the experience was beaten into her.


    [Low HP? Trickshot coming at ya? Roll like your life depends on it!] After practicing it for hours and revising it every week, like with everything else on the "Stuff I Gotta Ace" list, her body reacted to this scenario by instinct.


    Against that Trickshooter''s lightning speed snipe, even a split of a fraction of a millisecond was fatal. If she were just a tiny bit slower - she''d be dead right now. Her methodical training exhibited great results!


    "Still can''t believe she dodged that," Lars scratched his head. "I don''t get it. Was my shot too slow? Was my aim off?"


    "I don''t think it was either," Yuel said. He was closely watching Breaker and Night''s movements the whole time, so he saw how everything went down. As soon as Lars fired the Trickshot - Breaker rolled. She didn''t turn back to check whether the shot was coming at her and she didn''t try guessing the trajectory. She just rolled, as if that''s an instinct she was born with.


    "I have a feeling she practiced this sort of scenario," Yuel said. "Expect her to regularly roll against your Trickshot. Especially, any Trickshot you''re using as a finisher."


    "Roger." Lars smiled mischievously. "So? How did you like my aggressive play?"


    "You mean, the play in which you charged in solo like a suicidal terrorist?"


    "C''mon, dude! We almost got them!" Lars pouted. "Besides, where were you at anyway? I''ve been advancing at them for a while now, but you stayed behind."


    "Well, I was... thinking about things, I guess." Yuel averted his eyes. The blame was rightfully placed. Out of all people in the entire world, he should have been the best at following up on Lars''s plays. They achieved an almost "telepathic" level of teamwork, the kind you''d only see at pro levels.


    Yet, Yuel failed to follow Lars''s play this time. Why? He knew the answer. His mind was clouded by thoughts about the team''s morale, about his responsibilities as the new captain and so on and so forth. All these thoughts about the larger picture shackled him, preventing him from performing his best during the small situations that occurred on lane. If he paid more attention to every little detail in the lane, they might have scored a kill in the latest play. Ugh.


    Lars had it good, he was so carefree about everything. That goof couldn''t for the life of him think about anything other than the fight in front of him. That''s how he could play so aggressively in this situation. On the other hand, Yuel was nervous and tried to avoid risks because it was an important match. If only he could also temporarily shut down his overheating brain...


    Between maintaining global map awareness, collecting as much data as possible on all enemies, wrestling with the pressure of being a captain and crafting strategies for the future - his brain couldn''t keep up. He wasn''t some quantum computer, he couldn''t handle countless parallel tasks.


    Through experience, he grew used to analyzing many different subjects at once, but he still had a limit. And, he just crossed it. The only solution was to narrow down his focus and concentrate only on the truly important subjects.


    [Easier said than done.] He never dealt with this sort of problem. The first thing he definitely wanted to get rid off was the pressure on his shoulders, coming from his responsibility as the captain. But, how exactly could he erase something vague like pressure? If it were that easy, nobody would ever struggle with pressure in the first place.


    The same applied to filtering out the endless stream of thoughts about the team''s morale and momentum. Even though his reason understood there''s no use thinking too hard about these things, the thoughts kept haunting him. When something positive happened, his brain went "Yes! We may be able to gain momentum and raise team morale!". When something bad happened, his brain went "No! The team may fall apart because of this!". Such extreme overreactions were unlike him. The previous match must have shaken him really hard.


    No matter how much he wanted, he couldn''t turn his brain numb to these thoughts. He had to cut something else from his overflowing mind. The only options left were... reducing map awareness and enemy analysis, perhaps? What if he completely ignored the upper half of the map for now and concentrated only on Bot and Bot Jungle? It''s still early into the game, so full map awareness wasn''t that crucial yet. Still, giving up such an important tactical tool wasn''t pretty, but Yuel had to do it. He had to lessen the burden on his brain at any cost.


    Therefore, he filtered out the upper half of the map, both from his sight and from his mind. He dedicated his everything to supporting Lars in Bot and finding a way to gain the upper hand in the lane.


    Despite his criticism of Lars''s reckless play, it''s the first time today Breaker was about to be killed during the early game. The situation was one huge uncoordinated mess, but it''s the first time he saw Breaker tripping during the early game like that. In previous games, he poked and baited her in various ways, but she didn''t budge. That''s why he concluded nothing could be done about her solid early game defense.


    But, Lars proved him wrong. By making a hyper-aggressive and super risky play, Lars revealed cracks in Breaker''s defense. She clearly practiced a vast variety of standard 2v2 scenarios, so it''s hard to fool her with standard baits and pressure tactics. But, what about an absurd scenario that transcended common sense? Like, Lars''s suicidal slide straight into the lion''s maw. A crazy play nobody would attempt on purpose, but it almost worked.


    Back when Yuel was paired with Trever, they didn''t have any opportunities to try that. Trever was an aggressive player, but he was more well-rounded than Lars and his fighting tactics were mostly orthodox meta plays. Compared to that, Lars was like a glass cannon. His defense was barely better than that of a Bronze player, but his offense was Master tier. He was a beast who operated outside the boundaries of common sense, the perfect counter for Breaker''s orthodox defense.


    Fortunately, the enemy didn''t have a chance to realize that yet. All they saw, was Lars making a fool out of himself by charging in alone like a reckless noob. They might be a bit wary of his accurate Trickshot, which nearly killed Breaker, but she dodged it in the end. So, her impression from that exchange was probably along the lines of "No problem, I can deal with this rookie Trickshooter."


    This was a chance. If they could recreate the circumstances from that risky play and this time coordinate their actions - they were going to score a kill, maybe two. Breaker was the last enemy he wanted to take risks against since feeding her would spell disaster for the whole team. Nevertheless, it''s against risky plays that she had the highest chance of stumbling. Therefore, paradoxically, unconventional high-risk aggression might actually be safer against her than orthodox aggressive tactics.


    "Let''s give it another shot," Yuel said.


    "Hm?" Lars cocked his head.


    "You want to go aggressive on them, right?" Yuel smirked. "Then, let''s do it. I''ll return to base to make some preparations. You stay on the lane to farm."


    "Really? We gonna attack!?" Lars''s eyes lit up. "I''m running low, though, Sure I shouldn''t back?"


    "No need. Just make sure you don''t overextend and keep your eyes peeled for ganks. Also, stay a little back while you farm. No matter how they bait you, don''t go on the offensive until I return."


    "Yeah, I know not to take candy from strangers, mom. Haha."


    "Heh." Yuel sighed with a smile. No matter what that goof said, there''s never telling what he''d pull. Leaving him alone on the lane with such low HP was risky, but for Yuel''s plan to work - Lars had to reach Lv.5 as soon as possible. While Breaker was busy traveling all the way from base to lane, Lars was going to farm some extra exp and get ahead.


    As Yuel began recalling back to base, his plan was set in motion. Through the cracks he discovered in Breaker''s defense - he and Lars were going to strike her down!

 46 The Beast That Transcends Common Sense

    After Yuel returned to base, he purchased an Lv.1 Windmail. An unconventional move, since it was usually better to upgrade items to Lv.3 before buying new ones. He already had an Lv.1 Repelling Amulet, which he bought to combat the enemy''s magical comp, but he chose to not upgrade it at this time.


    Repelling Amulet granted him HP and magical defense, but no physical defense. That''s what Windmail came to fix. While magical defense was valuable against the basics and spells of Pyromancer and Lumimancer, physical defense was necessary for tanking minion attacks.


    In addition, Windmail had an aura effect which increased the movement speed of all nearby allies, similar to how Repelling Amulet had an aura which increased the magical defense of nearby allies. Both auras were weak while the items were at Lv.1, but just having auras was huge for a Paladin. His passive, Holy Aura, granted him defense and HP regeneration for each aura item he built, regardless of the item''s level. Therefore, stacking two aura items early on gave him more "effective health" overall for the upcoming operation.


    As soon as his Paladin fully recovered, he dashed out of the base. According to his estimation, he and Breaker were going to reach the lane at about the same time. She had a head start, but he had the small speed buff from Windmail, which became increasingly more impactful when traveling across a long distance. She might outrun him if she built boots, but knowing her - she probably went for damage. And, even if she did build boots and gets to lane first, Lars would know to stay back and avoid picking fights when he''s running low on HP, right? Right? [I better hurry.]


    Fortunately, no disaster occurred. Breaker got to lane a little before him, but Lars stayed in the back and farmed near the Turret like a good boy.


    As soon as she returned, Breaker pushed harder than before, no doubt trying to capitalize on Lars''s low HP. Insisting to stay on lane with such low HP was a rather unusual scenario on high levels of play. It''s normally considered blatant overextension, the kind you''d only expect to see from greedy newbies.


    So, how well did Breaker practice such unusual scenarios? How well with her "orthodox defense" deal with this peculiar situation?


    As expected, she forsook defense and became the aggressor. She was probably led to this decision by some combination of the following factors: her limited experience with such silly overextension situations, the salt from her the previous failed attempt to kill Lars and the fact she was almost killed by Lars''s Trickshot back then. Perhaps there were even more reasons, but these were the ones Yuel accounted for. Thus, he could tell with certainty she''d go on the offensive here, just like he wanted.


    That''s the first mistake Breaker made. Even though Lars stayed in the back and played "defensively", he was like a starved beast. He consistently sought an opportunity to leap on Breaker and tear her apart. The term "playing defensively" didn''t really exist in that goof''s vocabulary, he was like a hungry wolf Yuel kept on a leash right now. But, Breaker didn''t see the leash, so she thought Lars was a well-behaved doggy. So, she approached the doggy and poked it, only to be bitten by a wolf.


    Her HP fell all the way to 70% after they exchanged blows, whereas Lars stayed at 10%. Breaker''s side still held an undeniable advantage, but she must have begun realizing she was doing this wrong. So, after her failed attempt to scare Lars away, she and Night retreated back to the center of the lane, inviting Lars to leave the Turret and get wrecked in a fight.


    It''s unfortunate, her retreat came much faster than Yuel expected. He hoped to bring Breaker''s HP down to 50% first, but she noticed the pitfall in her aggressive approach too quickly. Regardless, his plan was still very much feasible.


    The two ranged enemies were now back in the middle of the lane, so Yuel gained more freedom to move around as a melee player. He positioned himself on the frontline and body-blocked the shots of enemy bowmen, who were the hard-hitting minions in the wave. In exchange for his own HP, he reduced the total damage their minion wave received and gave them a push advantage.


    Of course, this stunt put him in the range of the enemy Pyromancer and Lumimancer. It''s a risk he had been avoiding until now in fear of feeding Breaker, but now he knew such tactics could actually throw Breaker off. In fact, he played on the front even more blatantly than usual, declaring his fearlessness.


    "Could you not rotate your camera so much?" Yuel requested.


    "Hm? Me?" Lars blinked. "Wait, why are you looking at my screen while playing? You got your own."


    "Just getting a feel for the perspective," Yuel answered. "You''re about to hit Lv.5, right?"


    "Yeah, like one more minion."


    "Good, make sure you get the last hit. Things are about to go down."


    "Heh, sounds fun!"


    [His exp lead is even better than I expected. He may be a goof, but his last-hitting skill is top notch. Instinct?] Yuel smiled wryly. The preparations were done. All that''s left was to pull the trigger. He advanced even more boldly, taunting his opponents. [Anytime now.]


    "Tch, these cocky scrubs are so damn annoying!" Jennifer ranted. Seriously, what''s with that attitude? First, they didn''t bother banning her Pyromancer, as if she''s not a threat at all. And now, they''re acting all confident with their overextension, thinking she gonna let them get away with this shit. Hell no! That Trickshooter was on his last breath and that Paladin totally gonna get burned playing on the frontline like that. She''ll rek them both!


    With the Trickshooter at barely 10% HP, there''s no way he could advance to the front to help the Paladin whatsoever. In other words, the Paladin was totally on his own on the front line. It''s basically the same mistake these scrubs made last time, but in reverse. Last time, the Trickshooter charged in alone while leaving the Paladin behind, and now the Paladin advanced solo while the Trickshooter couldn''t follow up. These guys had abysmal teamwork.


    "Let''s rek this Paladin scrub." Jennifer grinned.


    "So, should I go in?" Albert asked.


    "Yep, go AAAALLLL in!"


    "Got it." Albert nodded and activated Blinding Light. While his Lumimancer charged energy, he blinked forward with Flash, appearing right in front of the Paladin''s face. Right then, a flash of light erupted from the Lumimancer, robbing the Paladin''s vision.


    "Good! Now eat this!" Jennifer circled to the Paladin''s right and unleashed Flame Wave. Without his sight, he had no way to block the spell! He had no idea where it was going to come from!


    [From the right!] Yuel nodded to himself and activated Divine Shield, blocking the incoming Flame Wave.


    "Wha!? How!?" Jennifer jumped. He was blinded! He shouldn''t have been able to see it coming! How did he counter her Flame Wave so easily?!


    [Good, I pulled it off.] Yuel breathed in relief. For a while now, he had been playing while watching Lars''s screen instead of his own. He adjusted himself to moving the Paladin from Lars''s point of view, so the fact his own screen went white didn''t matter at all.


    With Breaker''s Flame Wave wasted, they were now in a great position to mount a counterattack! "Go! Finish the Pyro with your ult!"


    "On it!" Lars charged in without a moment''s hesitation. Low HP? Tremendous danger? Who cared about that crap, yo. He just wanted to get some kills!


    "It''s time for a trick show!" The sound cue of Trickshow resounded, turning Lars''s Trickshot and Trickslide into spammable skills. He slid straight ahead, gunning for Breaker.


    "He actually moved forward!?" Jennifer was agasp. What''s this situation? It''s she and Albert who initiated this fight. They were the aggressors! Yet, these scrubs pretended they were the hunters and Jennifer was their prey! Raaaaaaaaawr!!! She gonna kick their asses for sure!


    That Trickshooter couldn''t do shit with just... just.... 17% HP? Huh? What? When!? Oh shit, it''s that Flame Wave the Paladin absorbed earlier with his Divine Shield! He used the absorbed power to heal the Trickshooter! Nughhhhh! It''s like Jennifer healed that scrub herself!


    With 17% HP, things were quite different. The Trickshooter was no longer as easy to kill, especially considering the aura protection of Paladin''s Repelling Amulet. But still, Jennifer was at 70% HP. Did they really think they could take her down like this? She gonna wreck them for sure-


    "Would you stop already!?" Jennifer roared as a holy blade crashed on her from the sky. She was silenced and slowed, both her fighting and escaping options were sealed! [Don''t you mess with me! I''mma take you down with basics then. Come at me, scrub!]


    Instead of fleeing, she stood her ground and shot fireballs at the approaching Trickshooter. No matter what unfavorable factors were in play, she maintained a strong mental image. It''s the image of her crushing these two scrubs with her own two hands! So what if she was restricted to just basics attacks? Bring it on! That''d only make her victory look that much cooler!


    Alas, her first fireball missed. And, her second fireball missed. And, her third fireball missed. Eh? W-What''s going on!? Shivers ran across her arms. The Trickshooter moved all over the place, like a damn cockroach on steroids!


    [Are you for real?] Jennifer had no idea what to say. She was simply dumbfounded. Her instincts screamed to retreat and her Pyromancer already took a few steps back. But, escape? Really? In this situation? Didn''t she imagine herself crushing this suicidal Trickshooter? That glorious image of her standing on top of the crushed Trickshooter... it grew hazy.


    [There? No, damn...!] Just as she thought she predicted the Trickshooter''s next slide, he suddenly canceled it and rolled to the other side! What''s this nonsense?! Did he read her mind? ESP?!?!?


    But, the dodges weren''t even the most amazing part here. It''s the Trickshots he fired in-between slides that struck her with a mixture of awe and terror. Some shots were aimed straight at her, others bounced off a wall and then struck her. No matter the angle he fired from - he never missed! Not even once!


    Jennifer did her best to move around, making it hard for him to aim. Yet, his shots didn''t waver in the slightest. Sure, her movement speed was reduced by the Paladin''s Justice Strike, but she should have been able to dodge at least some of these shots. But, they always found their way to her, like goddamn guided missiles!


    [Shit, what''s with this damage?!] She turned pale. She was at 70% HP when she started, but it''s already down to 30%?! How was that even possible?! Gah, she realized her defense was debuffed too. That damn Paladin and his stupid Justice Strike!


    [This is bad. Like, seriously freaking bad.] She gulped. Even though she moved around to dodge, even though she fired basic attacks - it felt like she was frozen in place, like a practice dummy for that Trickshooter.


    Did Trickshow always last this long? It was supposed to last only a couple of seconds, but it felt like this torture lasted an eternity. She was locked in a cage of bullets, with no way to escape.


    Where was her mental image of victory now? It shattered to pieces. She couldn''t see herself winning by any stretch of imagination. Retreat... Geh, she had to retreat! Now!


    The slowdown was about to wear off and she still had 20% HP left. Trickshow had to be approaching its end too, so the Trickshooter probably had only one more Trickshot left before it goes on cooldown. At 20% HP, a straight Trickshot wasn''t going to cut it. So, he''d have to make it bounce. If she dodges that final shot...! Yes, there''s a chance! She could make it out!


    WHISH. She''d recognize this sound effect any day. The decisive Trickshot was fired. Just like she trained, she was going to roll forward and-


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    ¡ºFIRST BLOOD!¡»


    "Wha.... Ah..." Jennifer sat there like a statue. The Trickshot came as expected and she rolled as planned... but it still reached her. Just as she finished the roll and stood up - the shot pierced her skull. Not only did it hit despite her roll, but it was a headshot too?! J-Just what''s wrong with that guy...


    "Sorry I couldn''t help more." Albert apologized as he barely escaped to safety. "Everything was on cooldown. They really played us there."


    "Played us...?" Jennifer produced a dry laugh. "You''re saying they planned this whole thing?"


    "Not sure to what extent, but I think they were aiming for this."


    "Planned... this bizarre play? Heh. Haha." Jennifer laughed because that''s the only response she could come up with. She was sure the Trickshooter and Paladin had shitty teamwork, but what if it was actually godlike? What if it transcended everything she trained to beat?


    She was supposed to be able to deal with any situation, that''s what she trained herself for and what she prided herself in. But, this development... she failed to even register it as a "situation to deal with" at first. From the Trickshooter''s reckless charge and down to his hellish Trickshow - everything about that play transcended common sense! If it was really planned by these two, then... wow. Just wow.


    "Welp," Lars twisted his lips. "The Support got away."


    "You greedy bastard," Yuel smirked. They just pulled off a pretty insane play, but that wolf wasn''t satisfied until he devoured every last opponent. Well, it''s probably this hunger for victory that allowed him to pull off these insane stunts in the first place.


    Thanks to "Lars Trickshot Services Ltd.", they finally found a way to penetrate through Breaker''s airtight early game defense. StormBlitz seized the momentum first! They had to roll with it and gain further advantage while it lasted! It was up to Yuel, as the captain and the shot-caller, to ensure that was going to happen.


    "Congrats on the first blood," Roi said. "Nice beginner''s luck there, lol."


    "Luck?" Lars grinned. "I''mma kill her twenty more times, ez. Just ya watch, yo!"


    "So," Gilbert smirked. "If you score less than 20 kills we''ll sub you out."


    "Geh! N-No problem! Easy peasy lemon squeezy!"


    With this one kill, what remained of the team''s awkward atmosphere now entirely vanished. They were joking and laughing again. No ranting, no shifting blame. It was amazing. Lars, the "Momentum Generating Wonder Boy", was amazing!


    In the last match, Yuel spent the whole time thinking up ways to improve the team''s morale, to no avail. However, with Lars at his side, he found a solution within seconds. With Yuel''s strategy and Lars''s strength - they could pull through anything!

 47 Out of Touch

    "Passing through." Dan arrived in Bot shortly after ComboBreaker was killed.


    "Yo, now you come?" Lars chuckled. "Where were ya when we needed to score some kills, dude. We had to do some crazy stuff to get this kill. Was pretty fun though."


    "Not my fault you didn''t wait for me" Dan shrugged.


    "It wouldn''t have worked if we waited," Yuel explained. Breaker was good at dealing with common situations, such as incoming ganks. If she were to spot Dan nearby, she''d retreat without a moment''s hesitation and slip away. Besides, Beastmaster didn''t have much impressive CC in the first place, so Dan''s gank potential was rather low.


    "Yeah, Beast is difficult like that," Dan nodded. "But hey, at least I brought you some dogs." He activated "Let the Dogs Out", summoning four jungle monsters he tamed: Hyena, Alpha Wolf, Ogre Leader and Griffin. The monsters invaded the lane and joined the allied minion wave. Together, they all advanced toward the enemy Turret.


    It was an impressive army. Especially, the Ogre Leader and Griffin were much tougher than the average minion. Taming a Griffin was quite the feat, considering Griffins were located in neutral areas of the jungle, always contested by both sides. Yet, somehow, Dan secured one of them even with the Beastmaster''s subpar camp clearing speed.


    Yuel had been paying minimal attention to anything outside Bot, so he had no idea how Dan achieved all that. Some impressive strategy and decision-making must have been in play.


    [Hmm, he bought Smite and Sprint.] Yuel examined Dan''s build. Smite was a utility skill designed for Junglers. It dealt high damage to one monster, then released an AoE shockwave which dealt additional damage to nearby to monsters. Not all Junglers had to buy Smite to clear camps effectively, but Beastmaster definitely needed it.


    Sprint was the more interesting choice here. It''s a utility skill which granted a movement speed buff for a short time, as well as cleansed any slows. Beastmaster didn''t have any mobility options, so covering more ground via Sprint was one solution.


    Buying two utility skills so early into the game was very uncommon, but Dan clearly knew what he was doing. That''s evident by the great collection of tamed monsters he brought along to push Bot. With the tankiness of the Ogre Leader and Griffin, they brought the enemy''s Turret down to 50% HP in one push. Despite everything said about the Beastmaster''s weak points, its push potential was nothing to sneeze at.


    "They''ll probably return soon," Dan said. "Mind helping me with the Dragon?"


    "Nah, let''s push some more!" Lars kept firing away at the Turret like a brat. "We can take it out before they return! Fastest Turret fall in history, yo!"


    "We won''t make it." Yuel retorted. All they had left were a nearly dead Griffin and two bowmen minions. There''s no chance of bringing the Turret from 50% to 0% with just these.


    But, at the same time, going for Dragon also sounded risky. Both Yuel and Lars were running low on HP. "You sure it''s a good idea?" Yuel asked. "Their Mid or Jungler may gank us."


    "Hm?" Dan blinked. "Yeah, I think it''s safe enough. I mean, their Mid is turtling hard and their Jungler is around Top right now."


    "Is that so." Yuel threw some glances at his mini-map, verifying Dan''s words. Indeed, the Electromancer was hugging his Turret, so it''s unlikely he''d leave Mid any time soon. There''s no sign of the enemy Vampire, but there were some Wards in Top Jungle, so the Vampire was probably spotted by one of them a little while ago. "I guess you''re right..."


    "Wait, you didn''t notice?" Dan asked. "You? Of all people? I always thought your map awareness is the shit."


    "No, it''s just... Well, I was in the middle of an intense fight just now..." Yuel mumbled excuses. Not having full map awareness was embarrassing, especially for a shot-caller. But, that''s a sacrifice he had to make to let himself concentrate on Bot Lane. "Alright, let''s do Dragon. You''ll have to tank it, though. We''re spent."


    "No problem. I got a Supreme Wraith."


    "Oh, that''s great." Yuel was impressed. On top of the monsters Dan already unleashed in Bot, he still had one more in store. "Let the Dogs Out" didn''t force the Beastmaster to release [all] his tamed monsters in one go, so Dan kept himself the Supreme Wraith, the boss of the Wraith Camp.


    Once they arrived at the Dragon, Dan released the wraith with an attack order on the Dragon. Since the Supreme Wraith was the first and closest hostile presence, the Dragon focused its attacks on the wraith. The wraith wasn''t too tanky, but it could withstand a couple of Dragon attacks.


    In the meantime, the three of them assaulted the distracted Dragon. Once the Dragon started running low on HP, Dan used Smite to erase 15% in one hit. The Dragon''s HP fell below the necessary threshold, so Dan wrapped it up with "Tame the Wild", adding the Dragon to his monster collection.


    Then, Dan returned to farming in the Jungle, whereas Yuel and Lars recalled to base. Fortunately, nobody ambushed them this whole time. The Dragon was a highly contested objective, but they got away scot-free.


    It''s amazing how effective Dan''s Beastmaster turned out to be. With his help, the enemy Bot Turret was down to 45% HP and they even secured the Dragon. Yuel always considered Beastmaster a borderline meme class, but Dan definitely knew how to make it shine.


    It''s no joke that Dan could play "any Jungler". He wasn''t just some generalist, he really knew how to use the strengths of each and every Jungler class he played, even eccentric ones like Beastmaster.


    During matches, he usually didn''t stand out much because he didn''t exhibit any mind-blowing techniques with any particular class. But, he definitely had one impressive off-screen skill: the ability to pick any Jungler class and play it well. Only now, after seeing him play Beastmaster with such excellence even in a competitive match, Yuel came to realize how amazing Dan''s skill truly was.


    "Hey, Mr. Shot-Caller," Roi called out. "It''s nice to see you''re doing great in Bot and all, but what about other lanes? You''ve been awfully quiet. Where are your usual batshit crazy shots? Lol."


    "Oh, I just.." Yuel was taken aback. "Um, I needed more time to think." Now, that the team''s morale was restored, everybody treated him differently. After they resisted everything he suggested last game, he was reluctant to make any new calls this game.


    But, the team was fine now. His teammates even came asking for shot-calls of their own accords. It''s great! If they keep playing like this, then winning two more games was very much possible!


    But first, Yuel had to actually provide some good shot-calls for other lanes. He had been neglecting them to concentrate on taking down Breaker in Bot, but that''s done with, With the team''s morale restored, could he now expand his awareness to the whole map?


    Like for everybody else on the team, much of the pressure he had been feeling throughout the game dispersed by now. Lars injected a huge dose of positivity into everybody by killing Breaker, so the load on Yuel''s shoulder felt lighter. He was no longer haunted by a whirlpool of thoughts about restoring team morale and all that distracting nonsense. It''s now much easier to concentrate on the actual events happening in front of his eyes. In this state, he could surely play full force again!


    Mid Lane, Top Jungle and Top Lane. He gradually expanded his map awareness by analyzing each part of the map in order.


    In Mid, Dan unleashed his tamed Dragon and attacked the Mid Turret together with Gilbert. Freezer was apparently forced to retreat, so they had the freedom to push without any interference.


    When summoned as an allied minion, the Dragon was a powerful anti-tower tank. It couldn''t be ordered to attack enemies, but instead, it automatically latched onto the nearest enemy tower, no matter whether it was a Turret, a Golem or even the Colossus. The Dragon held said tower hostage, preventing it from attacking nearby players regardless their actions in the tower''s range. The Dragon soaked all of the tower''s attacks and its thick scaled skin survived many shots. On top of that, it restlessly clawed away at the tower with its razor claws, rending the tower asunder.


    With the Dragon''s aid, Mid Turret fell down to... 25% HP? Wait, that couldn''t be right. No matter how amazing the Dragon was for pushing objectives, there''s no way it could single-handedly allow Gilbert and Dan reduce the Turret from 100% to 25% so early into the game. They didn''t even have a DPS class to help them push, so how did this number come to be? What did Yuel miss while focusing on Bot?


    "That''s amazing progress in Mid," Yuel said as he turned to Gilbert. "You must''ve attacked the Turret a lot during laning."


    "I sure did..." Gilbert raised an eyebrow. "You were sleeping or something?"


    "N-No, of course not. I just paid more attention to other lanes." Yuel averted his eyes. "Anyway, that''s impressive. Freezer was good at freezing the lane the last two times he played Mid, but I see you found a way through."


    "Dunno what you''ve been looking at this whole time," Gilbert said. "But, he''s like a totally different guy this game. I dunno why, but as Electro he''s nowhere near the same level. He''s been making some really weak plays.."


    "Like what?"


    "For one, he doesn''t clear the wave right," Gilbert explained. Due to the way Electromancer''s kit worked, it had to unleash its abilities on the minion wave in a very specific order to effectively clear.


    First, it was mandatory to hit at least a couple of minions with basic attacks because those inflicted Electric Charges via the Electromancer''s passive. This was a necessary preparation before unleashing Chain Lightning, a damage spell which bounced for additional hits when there were nearby targets with Electric Charges. Each hit of Chain Lightning also applied another Electric Charge on hit targets, charging them even further for what was coming next: Electrical Explosion, a spell which detonated all Electric Charges. The more charged the enemies were, the harder they blew up.


    By following these precise instructions, Electromancer''s clear speed was actually quite formidable. However, failure to execute these steps properly led to very weak performance. It''s for this reason Electromancer was considered a difficult class to play.


    Most mages in the game didn''t require such elaborate preparations for something as simple as clearing a minion wave. So, to effectively execute the Electromancer''s particular ritual - it''s necessary to practice that routine a lot until it becomes natural. And, it''s also necessary to regularly play the class to not lose touch.


    Gilbert claimed he''d rust if he didn''t play Electromancer at least once a week. It was simply too different from the straightforward way most other mages played their laning phase.


    When playing correctly, Electromancer''s clearing speed would definitely superior to Gilbert''s Aeromancer. Yet, in this game, Gilbert somehow dominated the lane. According to him, the reason was Freezer''s poor skill.


    Freezer definitely knew the right moves for making the most out of Electromancer''s kit, but his execution was terrible. Sometimes his Chain Lightning was fired at a minion positioned too far from those with Electric Charges, so the spell didn''t make any additional bounces. Other times, he greedily stacked as many Electric Charges as he could with basic attacks before activating Electrical Explosion, but by the time he finally detonated the minions - the durations of many Electric Charges expired and only a few of the minions were actually were blown up.


    "Maybe he''s the type who needs time to warm up." Yuel wondered.


    "Hard to say," Gilbert shrugged. "At least, he wasn''t like that when he played Warlock."


    "So, you think he''s out of touch with Electro?"


    "Sure looks like it. I even saw him miss Lighting Chain once when aiming at the minions. I know it''s a thin skill-shot and everything, but damn man... so sad."


    [Is he really not good with Electro? Or, maybe it''s a trap?] Yuel couldn''t judge from Gilbert''s words alone. Freezer was a defensive and tricky player, who lured enemies and punished them for overextending. The enemy''s last-second lineup switch during drafting was probably his idea too, it fit his playstyle well.


    So, in theory, it''s possible Freezer was only pretending to play poorly, to lure StormBlitz into overexerting. It sounded counterintuitive, but a certain "goddess" in their club regularly pulled stuff like that. Anything was possible.


    Still, did it make sense to go as far as sacrificing a Turret for that kind of plan? And the Mid Turret, of all things. Would Ellen do that?


    A pointless question. That snake would do anything to get the upper hand, no matter what she had to sacrifice in the process. She had no qualms pretending she was as weak as a Bronze player and feeding her brains out, just so she can turn the tables on the overconfident enemies later on. She''s that bizarre.


    Freezer and Ellen were both defensive players, but so far Freezer hadn''t showcased the same level of otherworldly craftiness as Ellen. Therefore, it''s safe to assume he was either rusty with Electromancer or needed more time to warm up. Either way, it was worth testing by sending Lars to Mid and see how he''ll fare in a 1v1 against Freezer.


    To arrange that 1v1, Gilbert first had to leave Mid. Was there any good rotation for him? Yuel analyzed the map for a while, then came up with a plan.


    "I got an idea," Yuel announced.


    "Oh!" Roi grinned. "Here it comes, boys!"


    "Roi, can you let the Viking push you back a little? Then, pretend you''re recalling to base. But instead of actually recalling, circle around Top and ride to the enemy Wolf Camp. If Gilbert heads there too, you''ll get to 2v1 their Jungler."


    "Lol, hella roundabout. Like always." Roi chuckled.


    "What about defending Mid?" Gilbert asked. "The Electro will return any moment now."


    "That''s where Lars comes in," Yuel turned to Lars. "Go farm in Mid for a while. Try getting a kill on their Electro if you can."


    "Haha," Lars''s eyes lit up. "Want me to go all in?"


    "Yeah, go wild."


    "Sick! I''mma score twenty kills off that dude, just ya watch!"


    "Sure."


    "Wait, is that a good idea?" Gilbert asked. "You know Freezer is good at punishing overextension, right?"


    "Yes, normally he is." Yuel nodded. "But, it''s clear he''s not playing his usual game right now. How he deals with Lars will tell us a lot about how much of a threat he really is this match. If turns out he''s weak with Electro - we''ll feed on him."


    "Whoo," Dan whistled. "Brutal."


    "As for Bot," Yuel continued. "I''ll freeze it until Lars returns."


    "Got it," Gilbert nodded. "Sounds like a plan. Roi, tell me when you''re ready to go for the Wolf Camp."


    "Already working on it." Roi carefully poked the Viking and retreated, then again poked and retreated. That''s his way of pretending he was pushed back. Not exactly an Oscar-worthy performance, but he didn''t need to be a great actor to convince the enemy. He ran low on MP, so it made sense for him to switch to defense. That factor was part of what sparked Yuel''s plan in the first place.


    Once the Viking pushed Roi all the way back to the Turret, Roi retreated into the backside of the jungle, out of the Viking''s field of vision. In this situation, it''d make perfect sense for Roi to return to base, heal up and then teleport back to lane. He had done so before, so the enemy already knew he had Teleport and that it was out of cooldown.


    However, Roi headed into the jungle instead, as Yuel instructed. He activated the Knight''s ult, Noble Steed, and mounted a white horse. While mounted, his movement speed was much greater, allowing him to invade deep into enemy''s Top Jungle before they realize what happened.


    At about the same time, Gilbert began his rotation from Mid to Top. He started off almost twice as close to the destination as Roi, but they''ll still arrive at the enemy Wolf Camp at around the same time. That''s how fast the Knight''s Noble Steed was.


    As Yuel predicted, they found the Vampire there, still busy farming the last wolf. They ganged on the unsuspecting enemy without delay. Gilbert slowed him with Jet Stream and Roi pushed him back into the camp Shield Bash, denying any chance of escape. The fight ended almost as suddenly as it began.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Lol," Roi grinned and turned to Yuel. "He sure didn''t see it coming. Good guess there, bro."


    "Thanks." Except, it was no "guess". The enemy Jungler didn''t change positions during the enemy''s mixup, so he had been playing the same general playstyle all day. In other words, Yuel already had three games worth of data on that Jungler. Thus, predicting that Jungler''s farming routine wasn''t much of a brainer.


    Like many players in the Leopards, their Jungler was quite orthodox. Before choosing his next destination, he examined the states of nearby lanes and decided where to head next based on that. If a nearby lane was at a standstill or the Leopards'' laner was at a disadvantage, their Jungler would gank the lane about 80% of the time. On the other hand, when their laner was in lead and the enemy laner was pushed back to the Turret, the Jungler almost never ganked; he proceeded to farm the nearest camp instead.


    That''s all standard jungling theory and there''s no real fault with it. Nevertheless, it was a pattern this Jungler closely stuck to. And, a pattern could be exploited.


    When Roi allowed himself to be pushed back by the Viking, he indirectly prevented the Jungler''s gank. The Jungler saw his team held the advantage in Top and that Roi was retreating, so ganking would be a waste of time according to standard theory. It''s unlikely the Jungler would help to secure a kill or to push the lane much in this situation, so he headed to the nearby Wolf Camp instead. This sound, yet predictable, judgment was his undoing.


    With the successful sneak attack on the enemy Jungler, Gilbert and Roi took out the only enemy who could help out the Viking against a gank. Not only that, but they were already grouped up and positioned behind the Viking. Dan was also farming nearby, so it could even easily turn into a 3v1 gank.


    "Let''s gank-"


    "Gank the Viking next," Yuel ordered.


    "Of course, of course." Gilbert smiled wryly. "We can at least figure out a simple play like that ourselves."


    "Oh, right." Yuel frowned. Was he turning a tad too bossy? People sometimes told him he had the tendency to get carried away, but all he wanted was to ensure everybody was on the same page. Well, no matter. As long as they all play their parts and produce results, all will be well.


    What truly interested him was the situation in Mid: Lars vs. Freezer. This was the first time Yuel got to closely examine Freezer''s performance as an Electromancer. Fortunately, Lars''s monitor was right next to his, so it''s like he had a front seat in the cinema. He could see every move, every twitch, Freezer made.


    Just like Gilbert informed, Freezer''s wave clearing lacked polish. He definitely knew it was best to land a couple of basic attacks on minions before following up with Chain Lightning and Electrical Explosion, but he forced it too much. Even at the expense of putting himself in Lars''s firing range, Freezer advanced toward the clashing minions so he could land some basics on them.


    Unsurprisingly, Lars used this opportunity to fire away at Freezer. As a result, enemy minions focused on Lars and broke out of formation. In turn, allied minions broke their formation as well in order to pursue enemy minions.


    Both waves became a mess. That''s the last thing an Electromancer wanted to deal with. The swordsmen and bowmen strayed too far from each other, so Chain Lightning couldn''t bounce through all of them at once. It''s probably best to wait for a little until order was restored to the lane, then proceed with Chain Lightning.


    But, Freezer disagreed. He fired Chain Lightning anyway and it bounced between the minions, even hitting Lars who stood nearby and had one Electric Charge on him. Right after, Freezer followed up with Electrical Explosion, blowing up all the Electric Charges on the minions and Lars.


    All of that combined erased 25% of Lars''s HP. Nothing to sneeze at, but it didn''t feel like hurting Lars was Freezer''s main goal here. His actions felt forced and rushed. He knew the perfect routine the Electromancer should strive for and tried to follow it to a T, regardless of the unfavorable circumstances. These were all misplays.


    Freezer earned himself temporarily lane advantage in both health and minions, but it left him effectively naked against Lars. From this range, a single Trickslide would easily close the dist-


    "I''m going in!" Lars announced.


    "Wha, already?!" Yuel was taken aback. He didn''t even finish evaluating the situation, but Lars already jumped into the fray, like a predator sensing a weakened prey.


    Lars slid forward and fired a Trickshot at a nearby jungle wall. A ballsy move, since missing this opening shot could screw over the whole assault and Electromancer had the option dodge by blinking away with Thunderclap. But, the high risk paid off.


    The bouncing shot instantly reduced Freezer''s HP to 60%. On top of that, since the shot was fired from a Trickslide, it granted Lars a stack of Attention Grabber, boosting his attack power and speed. Thanks to this high-risk high-reward opening, Lars set himself in a great position for converting this assault into a kill.


    It''s the kind of play only he could come up with on the spot because he unconditionally trusted his otherworldly mechanical skill. Once he locked on his target, things such as chance or risk became secondary. He instinctively made the most aggressive plays possible, disregarding everything else.


    Admittedly, Lars had a bad habit of taking his aggression to the point of recklessness and Yuel often had to intervene. However, this time, he let Lars run loose. How well was the "overextension punisher" going to deal with this raw aggression? Yuel was curious.


    What options did Freezer have here? He wasn''t even Lv.5 yet, because he was pushed back by Gilbert the whole game and was forced to farm under tower. So, his ult wasn''t available yet. Both his Chain Lightning and Electric Explosion were on cooldown because he spent them on the minion wave without thinking twice.


    Thus, the only tool he had available right now was Thunderclap, a blinking ability. If he was his usual self, Freezer would probably blink away to lure Lars further in. However, if Yuel''s estimation was correct...


    [Seriously? What a pain.] Alex frowned as an impossibly accurate Trickshot bounced from a wall and pierced through his shoulder. That was 30% of his HP gone in one fell swoop. In just one hit. In one. Damn. Hit. What''s with this Trickshooter? Wasn''t he supposed to be some rookie? StormBlitz''s second string was supposed to be filled with just juniors and freshman from what he heard.


    He made fun of Jennifer when she died against this rookie, but it''s no longer funny. What''s with this bullshit accuracy? It was no damn joke. 30% HP in a single shot. C''mon, seriously?


    Anyway, he had just to retreat. It''ll be fine as long as he creates some distance. 1v1-ing a marksman as a mage was asking for trouble, especially when all his damage spells were on cooldown.


    So, retreat all the way. That''s the only option. If he''s lucky, he''ll lure the Trickshooter toward the Turret and turn the situation around.


    62%. 54%. 46%.


    [Damn, he''s sticking to me. What a pain.] Alex frowned as his HP plummeted. What was going on? Each shot hit like a truck. Oh, was it the Trickshooter''s passive? Um, what was it again? It was some convoluted buff effect if memory served.


    30%. 22%.


    [This is getting bad.] At this point, Alex had trouble distracting himself from the gravity of the situation. He already retreated back to his Turret, but theTrickshooter refused to let go. Was that scum going to invade? If so, there''s nothing Alex could do...


    No, wait. He still had Thunderclap! Right. How did he forget about it? He could blink away! This sort of mobility was so rare among mages that it completely slipped his mind. Electromancer and Lumimancer were about the only mages with a blinking ability in their kits.


    14%.


    Two more hits and he''s done for. As hard as he tried to maintain composure, his heart beat faster and faster. He was ready to give up at first, but Thunderclap opened up a possibility. He could still get away! He had to blink! Right now! As fast as possible! NOW!!!


    "Ack!" He shrieked as he hastily clicked. His Electromancer dissolved into a cloud of electricity and shot toward the sky, then came down crashing some distance away. He successfully used Thunderclap, but the direction he teleported in was far from optimal. He misclicked in hurry. What a dumb mistake.


    Still, even at this distance, maybe he could-


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Ah." He just sat there, unsure how to react. He just died to the most straightforward frontal attack ever. That Trickshooter just literally chased and shot him down, without missing a single shot. He was supposed to be good at punishing overly aggressive players, but it felt like nothing could be done in that situation. Why? It''s weird. He should have been better than this.


    "The hell you doing!?" Jennifer roared. "Why you didn''t blink right away!?"


    [Ugh, she saw that? Awkward.] Alex averted his eyes. "I planned to lure him to the Turret at first, but turned out his attacks were a bit too much to handle."


    "Yeah, sure. Because that explains why you blinked like a millimeter away once you actually blinked."


    "Ugh." Alex didn''t have a good excuse for this one. He really messed up. "As if you have the right to talk. You also got killed by him because you didn''t retreat in time."


    "Wha!?" Jennifer slammed on the table. "At least I didn''t fuck up a basic blink! You could totally get away there!"


    "Misclicks happen, okay?"


    "Misclicks?" Jennifer''s face contorted. "Right, right. Of course you''d misclick. Because you don''t practice for shit! When was even the last time you played Electro? You''re playing like trash!"


    "Can it already." Alex exhaled and dropped on his chair. Jennifer shot some more rants his way, but who cared.


    Jennifer was a pain. That Trickshooter was a pain. This game was a pain. Everything was a pain.


    So, she asked when was the last time he played Electromancer? Why, of course it was... when was it again? Um, a month ago? Maybe two? Huh, it''s been a while...


    Still, Electromancer was one of his best Mid classes, so that bitch should get off his case already. Nobody was perfect. Forgetting details and misclicking in the heat of the moment was normal. He was a little surprised by that Trickshooter''s intense aggression, that''s all. It was just a little hiccup. Not his fault.


    "This kill confirms it," Yuel announced. "Freezer doesn''t pilot Electro well. I thought he may be faking it at first, but giving us a kill on purpose in that situation sounds like a stretching."


    "Lol," Roi chuckled. "Wouldn''t put that kinda shit past Elly, though."


    "I agree." Yuel nodded. "Thankfully, we''re not playing her right now. I''m pretty sure Freezer didn''t plan on dying there. His plays just feel rusty. He may get a better hang of it as the game goes on, so don''t let this opportunity slip - feed on him every chance you get"


    "Got it," Gilbert nodded. "We''re also done in here."


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    Through combined effort, Gilbert and Roi took down the fleeing Viking in Top Lane. That''s three kills in a row. First the Vampire, then Freezer and now the Viking. The situation transformed from 5v5 to 5v2 in a blink of an eye. Both Top and Mid were completely open for pushing. There''s a good chance StormBlitz will take out at least one Turret this early into the game.


    This domino effect was amazing. After Lars generated momentum for the team by slaying Breaker, the momentum rippled throughout the team and brought one positive development after another. At this rate, this game was as good as settled!

 48 Combo Constraints

    With the deaths of their Mid, Top and Jungler, the circumstances were dire the Leopards. A 2v5 situation, with unprotected turrets in Top and Mid. The enemy Beastmaster spawned jungle monsters to tank Top Turret so that one was lost.


    However, there''s still a chance to protect Mid Turret. A slim chance, but it existed. Mid was the shortest lane, therefore the most important one. The Leopards couldn''t surrender it without a fight. At least, Jennifer refused to do so.


    "I''m putting a stop to that Trickshooter," Jennifer announced as she headed into the jungle.


    "You sure?" Albert asked. "He''s starting to become fed and anybody from Top can gank you anytime."


    "No problemo. I''mma combo his ass real quick."


    "Combo? But, it''s still going to a while before you can... Oh." Albert frowned as he checked Jennifer''s build. Though it was currently cloaked, Jennifer already bought a Lv.3 Spellbook of Doom. "Hm, you rushed it. Sure that''s a good idea?"


    "Dunno if it''s a good idea," Jennifer shrugged with a mischievous smile. "But, I''mma sure TURN it into a good idea."


    "Is that so." Albert smiled wryly. There it was: Jennifer''s unbreakable mental image of victory. Nobody could attest to her true feelings, but no matter how Albert looked at it: she seemed thoroughly convinced in her upcoming victory. Her plan was beyond reckless, yet she sounded so confident. She was simply too dazzling for an average Joe like Albert, so he couldn''t retort.


    Albert barely made the cut into the second string in his last year of middle school, despite being a dedicated club member for three years. He followed Coach''s instructions to a T, practicing the best meta classes, tactics and plays. He even learned to play both Carry and Support for Coach''s mixup strategy, to be ready to join the first string at a moment''s notice.


    Yet, despite all that, he barely made it into the second string. He was in a completely different league from Jennifer, who insisted to play the off-meta Combo style despite Coach''s objection. Even with such a handicap, she became the captain of the second string, and there''s no doubt she would have been on the first string if she played something meta. In fact, he could even see her becoming the captain of the first string.


    With all that considered, Albert had no right to object to Jennifer''s decisions. No matter how absurd and risky her plan sounded, with her skill she might be able to pull it off. She was the type to take a bad bet and turn it into a win, a quality Albert didn''t possess.


    "I''m off," Jennifer announced.


    "Got it." Albert just nodded, without voicing his concerns.


    [She''s rotating?] Yuel eyed ComboBreaker''s actions. Lars was going to destroy Mid Turret at this rate, so rotating to Mid wasn''t an odd decision. A risky one, but well within reason. Breaker struck him as the ballsy type to shoot for it.


    [No new items. Cloaking something?] Yuel pondered as he examined Breaker''s items. She didn''t bother getting anything new after dying, even though she should have had enough gold to either finish her first power item or to buy boots, the typical early game moves. So, she probably cloaked whatever she purchased.


    Was there any early game item worth cloaking for a Pyromancer? Not really. Based on past data, the one item she cloaked before was Spellbook of Doom. It was as a huge shocker in today''s first match, so she could be aiming for that surprise effect again.


    Spellbook of Doom was a mid game item, but only due to its power curve and not because of its price. She most likely had enough to purchase a Lv.3 Spellbook of Doom, which enabled her trademark combo playstyle.


    Did it make sense for her to rush Spellbook while she was behind on exp and gold? Unfortunately, Yuel couldn''t tell. He knew the gist of the combo playstyle, but not how it was advised to play under such specific circumstances.


    His only option was to analyze Breaker as a player. A proud and confident senior, who definitely practiced hard to reach her current level. She trusted her strength and her combo, so it''s very possible.; she could easily go for an aggressive play even while behind. She wouldn''t waver.


    "Their Pyro is rotating," Yuel announced, especially to Lars. "She''s most likely heading to Mid."


    "Cool, another kill for me." Lars grinned as while barraging the Mid Turret, unfazed by the news.


    "Be careful, she has a cloaked item," Yuel said. "I believe it''s Spellbook of Doom. She hasn''t built much power yet, but this early in the game the base damage of her spells will kill you fast enough with Spellbook''s effect. You''ll have to dodge her spells before anything else."


    "Okay, sounds like fun!"


    [Does he really understand the danger?] Yuel sighed. He was this close to ordering Lars to outright retreat from Mid. But, taking down Mid Turret this early into the game was too tempting. It''d be huge for the team. Besides, if Lars can turn the tables on Breaker and kill her for a second time, that''d set her so much behind that she wouldn''t pose a threat for a while.


    There were huge benefits to reap here, but knowing that goof... Sigh. "Gilbert, please rotate to Mid too."


    "Sure," Gilbert nodded. "Hope I make it. We pushed Top pretty far."


    "Thanks," Yuel said. Gilbert most likely wasn''t going to make it quite on time considering his current position, but that''s alright. He was only going there as a backup, in case things were to go south.


    This backup plan relieved Yuel a little. Still, he had a bad feeling something big was about to go down in Mid. Sadly, there''s no choice but to trust that Lars really listened to Yuel''s warning and was going to intercept Breaker correctly.


    Before long, Breaker appeared in Mid. She rotated even faster than expected, most likely using the movement speed buff of Burning Spirit. Without even positioning herself near her Turret - she opened attack! She had no interest playing this safe and went straight for the kill.


    She opened the assault with Pillar of Fire, setting the ground around Lars on fire. A quick glance at her build revealed the uncloaked Spellbook of Doom, as suspected. She planned to instantly finish this with a combo!


    "She got the Spellbook," Yuel said. "Reminder: dodge first."


    "Got it, got it." Lars turned around and dashed toward the middle of the lane.


    [You''re already dead!] Jennifer grinned as she drew the path for Blaze of Inferno. Whether her prey was going to attack or flee, it didn''t matter. She only had to figure which of the two he was going for, so she could draw him a fitting road to hell!


    And, the Trickshooter made his move. He decided to retreat. It''s over. She drew a path of flames along the Trickshooter''s escape route. He was going to eat some much damage he''ll evaporate without a trace.


    The trail drawn for guiding Blaze of Inferno was briefly visible to the enemy before the firestorm came down crashing. Supposedly, it was for balance purposes, to give the target a small chance to dodge. But, in reality, almost nobody could react to it on time. That Trickshooter scrub was dead meat!


    "Geh!" Lars saw the red path stretching ahead of him. It was drawn exactly along the escape route he planned to take. This was the road to hell. He was going to die.


    He already saw Breaker torch her foes in an instant in previous matches. Every cell in his body screamed: "You gonna die, dude!"


    [Not in a million years, yo!] Lars roared internally and activated Trickslide. He slid diagonally across the red trail, breaking out of it! The flames of inferno already burned him down to 40% HP, but he escaped instant death!


    [Heh, dodged?] Breaker grinned. [Quite the reaction time you got there.] What a persistent scrub. She wanted to crush him that much more now! Everything was supposed to end with that Blaze of Inferno, but that''s alright. She still had Flame Wave, it''d instantly erase this measly 40 % HP he had left!


    She was prepared to give chase from the get-go, so she timed her Burning Spirit to last long enough for that purpose. Due to how she drew her Blaze of Inferno, the Trickshooter was forced to dodge in her direction. He was right within reach! It was over! That scrub was all offense and no defense! He didn''t stand a chance!


    [Geh, she''s catching up!] Lars could tell by the approaching footsteps. The reaper was on his tail, already pressing burning scythe against his throat.


    Man, it sucked. His slide just now was so awkward, he slid right into her trap. Welp, that''s what he got for not practicing his defense enough. Maybe he should take defense practice more seriously from now on... Nah! As if!


    [I never expected to get outta this by playing defense anyway!] He turned around, staring his pursuer in the face. [Offense is the best defense, yo!]


    [A desperate last stand? You''re dead!] Jennifer unleashed Flame Wave without a second thought. It''s over. That scrub was done for- Huh?! He''s gone!?


    No, he just rolled away. Pointless! Flame Wave had medium reach, but it was a wide spell. Rolling to the side wasn''t going to cut it! Rolling away wouldn''t be enough either at this distance! He had nowhere to... Nowhere... No...


    He was there. Right there, beside her. He didn''t roll to the sides and he didn''t roll away either.


    No, he rolled forward! He rolled straight at her! Right before she unleashed the flames, he rolled at her and passed underneath her stretched arms! Absurd. Bullshit. It was a suicidal clown fiesta!


    Yet, he just barely dodged her Flame Wave with this stunt. She couldn''t cancel the spell or even turn it aside at that point. The flames burst forth, but her prey was right beside her on the left!


    [W-What is this shit? Is this guy even real!?] Jennifer gritted her teeth. She was one strike away from finishing her opponent. In her head, she already saw herself punching that scrub straight in the face; an instant knockout! But, just before her fist reached him, her hand freeze in mid-air. Chains were attached to her limbs. She couldn''t'' punch all the way, not like this.


    "It''s time for a trick show!" These words gave her shivers. It''s the sound cue for the Trickshooter''s ultimate. The tables had been turned, now the Trickshooter was coming after her. He was the predator and she became the prey.


    There''s nothing. She''s left with nothing. Pillar of Fire, Flame Wave, Blaze of Inferno and even Burning Spirit. Everything was on cooldown. She was a mage stripped of all her spells. She was as good as naked!


    She was at 90% HP and her opponent was merely at 40%, but she couldn''t fight back. Her limbs were chained. The restrictions of her combo playstyle didn''t permit any further fighting; the combo build she rushed killed that option. She didn''t have any cooldown reduction, so there''s no hope for her spells to come online before she''s decimated.


    It''s so annoying because it''s not like she couldn''t take this guy on. That Trickshooter played like a beast for sure, but Jennifer had enough experience dealing with beasts of this caliber. If she had to pick, then Fenrir, the captain of their first string, was a much crazier beast. She sparred with Fenrir enough to get used to such fights.


    Yet, right now, she was constrained. She wasn''t allowed to fight any further. Her combo relied on finishing the enemy in one swift assault, but she missed her chance. She was powerless now.


    [Damn, I... I gotta get the hell out!] Jennifer gritted her teeth and turned around. Dying a second time during the early game was out of the question, she wasn''t gonna recover from that.


    Luckily, she didn''t even pass the middle of the lane, so her Turret wasn''t that far away. Even while barraged by the Trickshooter from behind - she could still make it back. Rather, she HAD to make it back! At any cost!


    [Heh, look at me run from a scrub like that. So lame.] Jennifer smiled wryly but kept running toward her Turret. The Trickshooter chased her down with quick slides and dished out one Trickshot after another. Some flew straight at her, others bounced from walls and then found their way to her.


    This unceasing torrent of shots again... Was she playing a MOBA or a bullet hell? Seriously, fuck that guy. That deadeye accuracy was hax.


    But, it won''t be so easy this time. Jennifer already learned how strong his Trickshow was, she paid for that lesson with her life. The guy sure had pro-level accuracy with his Trickshots, but in the end, that''s just Trickshot. She knew both how to operate and how to deal with that skill.


    ["No matter how accurate Trickshots are, they always have to rely on prediction to some degree."] Coach''s words were burned into her mind. Jennifer didn''t main non-combo Carries, but she practiced some Trickshooter due to Coach''s advice.


    Trickshooter was a fellow Carry class she could meet as a lane opponent anytime, so she had to know how to deal with it. And, what better way was there to study an opponent than by playing from their perspective? That''s how she knew first-hand how even the tiniest unpredictable movements could throw a Trickshot off course.


    That''s right, she practiced it. Jennifer practiced both dodging and firing Trickshots, to fully understand them from both sides. That''s just one of many things Coach advised her to learn, and she added all of them to her "Stuff I Gotta Ace" list.


    Maybe she was stuck in the second string, but when it came to practicing whatever Coach suggested - she was the best in the club! Therefore, there''s no way this Trickshooter could break her! She WILL get outta here alive! Believe it!


    "Whoa," Lars exclaimed. "What''s with this girl?" His Trickshots pinpointed the target, but Breaker made some unexpected turns outta nowhere, making half his shots miss by like a millimeter. What happened to his usual 200% accuracy? This was some shenanigans right there, yo!


    [Lars can''t land every shot? That''s...] Yuel frowned. Last time, they caught Breaker by surprise amidst a chaotic situation and she was slowed down by Yuel''s Justice Strike, so she was thoroughly wrecked by Lars''s Trickshow.


    However, this time, she calmly read the situation and chose to retreat right away. She made some weird and inefficient twists and turns while running, which actually slowed her down. However, in exchange, she dodged many of Lars''s Trickshots.


    After seeing Lars''s overwhelming Trickshow the first time, Breaker must have already figured he only spammed Trickshots during Trickshow. So, she responded accordingly, using a defensive tactic she undoubtedly practiced before. Perhaps she even practiced the specific scenario of being chased down by a Trickshooter.


    This combination of adaptability, experience and skill... A second-string player? Nonsense. Breaker would give anybody from StormBlitz''s first string a run for their money.


    So, this was the competitive level for Yuel''s age. This is the challenge he had to overcome if he ever wanted to make it into the first string!


    "Drop the Trickshots," Yuel said. "She figured them out. Just shoot with basics."


    "Sounds good!" Lars switched gears and fired basic attacks at the fleeing Pyromancer. His basics were already strengthened enough by Attention Grabber, so they were quite lethal in their own right. In addition, they didn''t suffer from the casting time skills had, so he barraged her nonstop.


    [Tch, already switched to basics?] Jennifer clicked her tongue. [That''s faster than I expected. I thought this scrub was a brainless one-trick pony but seems like his IQ isn''t rock bottom.]


    Well, either way, it just meant she had to change her approach too. Against accurate basics, the safest tactic was to run away in a straight line, to get the hell outta there as fast as possible. Blindly dodging quick shots that came from behind wasn''t going to work, not against this sniper. Therefore, she stopped using feints and darted away full speed.


    The damage was heavy, way worse than expected. She fell all the way from 90% HP to 30%. But, she made it! By running in a straight line, she finally reached her Turret''s area. She was safe! The Trickshooter wasn''t gonna reach this far-


    BAM. A loud shot fired. It was the distinct sound of a Turret shot. Did that scrub chase her all the way under tower!? With just 40% HP!? What a suicidal idiot!


    "Retreat." Yuel implored. "It''s over."


    "Nah, dude." Lars grinned. "Don''t worry, I got this! Just one Trickshot!"


    After chasing his prey with just basics, Lars was gonna finish her off with a bouncing Trickshot. She won''t it coming, yo!


    Lars experienced many chases like these, therefore he knew: his prey was gonna keep running away. With such low HP, anybody''s top priority would be to get back to safety as fast as humanly possible. Therefore, he just had to aim his Trickshot to bounce a little ahead of Breaker''s current position. With that, he was gonna execute her... Wut?


    Breaker stopped in her tracks and turned around. She stood there, staring straight at Lars. Was this girl for real?


    [Idiot, you fucked up!] Jennifer grinned. Ah, this felt great! The moment that idiot stepped into the Turret''s area, she finally broke away from the chains holding her down.


    In this situation, she was no longer "Combo Pyromancer", or "Burst Pyromancer" or "Whatever Pyromancer". She was just a player who faced an overextending opponent under Turret. One of the most classic game scenarios, one she practiced a billion times by now! There''s no need to run anymore. She was gonna finish it right here and now!


    [Dang it! I gotta hit her, yoooo]! Lars already had his aim locked. His bouncing shot was planned to land ahead of Breaker''s position. But, he couldn''t possibly miss this shot, no matter what!


    In the last moment, he stopped himself and redirected his gun. There''s no time to find another trajectory with a bounce, so he just fired!


    A straight Trickshot. Even without bounces, it was still strong and benefitted from Attention Grabber. It gotta be good enough, yo!


    Despite the split second alteration, the shot landed. It just barely grazed Breaker''s shoulder, but it was a hit. Except, it''s not enough! It only dropped her to 10%! Quick, Lars had to follow up with-


    "You''re already dead!" Jennifer roared as she fired basic attacks. The Turret already erased 30% of the Trickshooter''s HP, so a couple of basic attacks were going to finish him off for good!


    "Crap!" Lars exclaimed. That girl was sick! He intended to finish her off with basics, but her counter attacks came flying before he got the chance to react.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Welp..." Lars scratched his head and turned to Yuel, slowly.


    "......" Yuel stared with empty eyes.


    "S-Say something."


    ".........."


    "I-I know you wanted me to retreat, but I almost had her! I''m tellin'' ya!"


    "............."


    "Geh! Okay, I fudged up! My bad!" Lars held his head.


    "I didn''t say anything," Yuel turned away. "If you want my opinion then yes, it was a reckless, stupid and irresponsible play which killed some of our momentum. That''s what you wanted to hear?"


    "Geh..."


    "But, it wasn''t a total waste. At least, it still converted into a kill."


    "Huh? It did?"


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    Breaker fell shortly, unable to escape from the scene. While he was rotating to Mid, Gilbert noticed the unfolding situation. He cut through the jungle to arrive on the lane behind the enemy''s Turret. This allowed him to intercept Breaker and finish her off from behind.


    "Nice cover there," Yuel said.


    "Yeah!" Lars tuned in. "Good job, dude. Thanks for cleaning up my mess, haha!"


    "No problem. You already did most of the work for me anyway."


    With that, Breaker died twice during the early game. As a combo player, being set behind twice should be fatal for her. It''d be interesting to see how she climbs out of this predicament, though, honestly, Yuel hoped she didn''t have a way to do that.


    The only regrettable thing about this development was Lars''s death. The team gained an overwhelming momentum through Lars''s kills, yet much of it was lost now. Lars was just one player, but he was the Carry, the one responsible for pushing lanes. Without him, it was that much harder to capitalize on the enemy''s absence from lanes.


    And, to make things worse, Freezer soon returned to Mid, before Gilbert got a chance to destroy Mid Turret. So, despite paying for it with her life, Breaker successfully saved Mid, at least for now. Lars''s death totally wasted the great opportunity they had to destroy Mid Turret so early. Sigh.


    If this were a practice match, Lars wouldn''t hear the end of it from Yuel. His play was reckless, thoughtless, amateur and all-around Bronze quality. Honestly, it was outright embarrassing for a competitive player. Yuel will have to beat that shame into Lars, to make sure this doesn''t repeat again in an official match.


    But, this wasn''t the time for that. The team''s morale was finally restored, largely thanks to Lars''s earlier plays. No matter what, Yuel wanted to avoid injecting the team with any sort of negativity, especially since he was the captain. His words were going to carry immeasurable weight, so he couldn''t utter anything carelessly.


    Besides, this was Lars''s debut and his first match of the day, so no reason to be overly harsh with him. Lars had always been a high-maintenance Carry who had a habit of playing too aggressively, so this was nothing new.


    All in all, Lars played his role as the "momentum generator" Yuel sought. So, it wasn''t that bad to let Lars off the hook this once. But, only for now. Once they get back home, they were going to have a loooooooong review of Lars''s performance.


    Despite this small hiccup, StormBlitz was still in a great position. With every passing second, Yuel was more and more reassured they could win this round. Rather, they HAD to win this round. As the captain, he was going to make sure that comes to pass!

 49 Smashed Mental Image

    The Trickshooter committed a terrible mistake. He entered the Turret''s range while chasing Jennifer down. From this position, Jennifer mounted a counter attack!


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    Things came down to the wire there, but she destroyed that scrub-


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Excuse what the?" Jennifer watched how her Pyromancer collapsed. A gust of wind struck her from behind outta nowhere. "The heck? Where did that Aero scum come from?"


    "He rotated from Top," Albert explained. "He was actually spotted by one of the Wards..."


    "Huh, is that so." Jennifer shrugged and leaned back on her chair with a deep sigh.


    "Your map awareness is shit like always." Alex jabbed.


    "Shut up, bitch." Jennifer made a face. "I was busy fighting, okay? Didn''t have time to check the map."


    "A real pro can see the map even while fighting."


    "Also, a real pro also wouldn''t forget he got a freaking blink ability in his kit and he definitely wouldn''t misclick in crucial moments."


    "Kh." Alex grimaced and turned away.


    [Whatever.] Jennifer stretched her arms. [I''m not a multitasking alien like these guys, so that''s the best I could do there... or was it?]


    She reflected back on how her flanking attack played out. In the beginning, she had all the advantage: more HP, all spells ready and a Turret nearby. Yet, she fucked up big time.


    What mistakes did she make? What could she improve for the next fight? These questions were never fun to face, but she got used to them by now. Tackling such armor-piercing questions after every defeat was what allowed her to better herself after every failure.


    Though, in the case of this flanking attack, it''s difficult to identify the main mistake she made. Depending on her decisions, many things could have turned out completely different. Maybe she shouldn''t have flanked at all? Or, maybe she shouldn''t have rushed Spellbook of Doom? Or, maybe she shouldn''t have thirsted so much for a kill and retreated as soon as her combo fell through?


    Well, without her ganking Mid, the Trickshooter would have easily destroyed Mid Turret, which was a big no-no. Even though she died, Jennifer at least stalled the Trickshooter enough to save the Turret. Alex now returned to lane, so the Turret was going to live for a while longer. Therefore, rotating to Mid in itself wasn''t a mistake.


    Then, what about rushing Spellbook of Doom? A difficult one. She started lagging behind on gold and exp after her first death, so it was going to take too long before she became a threat again if she followed her standard combo build.


    Rushing an Lv.3 Spellbook spiked her damage burst, at the cost of not getting other important stats and utility. It was a greedy approach, which demanded her to justify this rush with at least kill. But, as long as she wanted to keep playing Combo Pyromancer this match, that was her best bet. That''s what she concluded, as somebody who dedicated over three years of her life to the combo playstyle.


    In that case, her biggest mistake must have been the greedy attempt to finish off the Trickshooter right then and there. She rushed Spellbook of Doom, so she felt pressured to justify that by scoring a kill as soon as possible. There was a good opportunity to wreck that Trickshooter there, so she just went for it, disregarding that guy''s hax mechanical skill and batshit crazy aggressiveness.


    With all said and done, she had to hand it to that guy. He was a scrub, but not a weak scrub. He came close to almost possibly maybe posing her a little challenge. Hmph.


    [No way that guy is a freshman, right? He must be at least junior.] Shudder. If that guy was a freshman and still had two years ahead of him... Nah, no way.


    Anyway, that settled it. Her target was too tough of a cookie to pursue as greedily as she did. Instead of betting everything on one combo, Jennifer should have stayed under tower and stalled him until Alex returned to lane.


    But, there was a catch. Since she rushed Spellbook of Doom, she didn''t have much cooldown reduction or raw power. She had to entirely rely on her combo if she wanted to dish out serious damage. Therefore, if she were to play defensively under tower, she''d be a very ineffective defender.


    Sure, she might have stalled the Trickshooter like this, but she wouldn''t have been able to completely draw him away. That annoying Aeromancer was already in the middle of rotating to Mid at the time, so eventually, Jennifer would have found herself in a 1v2 situation. She''d be forced to retreat, leaving the Turret undefended against two foes, one of which was a Carry who could destroy it in seconds.


    So, even though defending Mid Turret sounded like the play she should have gone for, it still would have ended up as a weak play. At least, as long as she insisted to rush Spellbook of Doom.


    If she opted for better early game items, she''d have had a greater impact on lane. She''d be able to scare away, or maybe even kill, the Trickshooter via repeated spell attacks. But, that''s where a huge conflict occurred. Because, as a combo player, she already decided rushing Spellbook was the right move, way before this whole situation happened.


    Back when she purchased Spellbook of Doom, she couldn''t have possibly predicted that over half of her team would be wiped out in under a minute. At the time, rushing Spellbook wasn''t a wrong move for her as a combo player... or was it?


    Geh, her brain hurt. Rushing Spellbook was a good move for her as a combo player, yet it also sounded like a mistake due to how her fight with the Trickshooter turned out. If she wanted the ability to defend Mid Turret, or even just play safely in her own lane, she should have opted for something more stable than an early Spellbook of Doom. But, she still rushed Spellbook, because she wanted to play combo.


    Then, what? This almost sounded as if the root of her mistake was that she... insisted to play combo. Agh, what a headache. Coach''s words flashed through her mind.


    "You''re a talented girl."He always told her that, right before dropping some bomb. "But, focusing on combo is going to restrict you. In a vacuum, you got more than enough skill to be on the first string. But, in real competitions, as long as you stick to combo... It''s unfortunate, but I don''t think I''ll ever be able to make you a starter"


    "Just you watch! I''mma become the first combo player you ever put on the first string!"She always answered naughtily like that, They went through many variations of this conversation before, but she always answered the same: "I wanna play combo!".


    She was an exemplary pupil, following Coach''s instructions and training regimes to a T. No matter how boring or repetitive they felt at times, she sucked it up. But, despite all that, her combo playstyle was the one thing she refused to compensate on. For her, playing Classmancers was about playing combo.


    When she first heard of Classmancers years ago, she wasn''t interested. At the time, she enjoyed playing action games with fast kills, like shooter battle royales. Fights were all about split-second outplays. The first player to screw up was gonna get styled on. She''d rush her enemy and go for that sweet insta-kill shotgun headshot. You either go hard or you go home! That''s how real fights gotta be.


    Compared to that, Classmancers looked like a slow and boring game. Sure, it was kinda action-y and with its third-person perspective and all, but it suffered from the same illness like any other RTS MOBA. Namely, it was about players repeatedly bashing each other until somebody collapsed. Of course, some characters could destroy HP faster than others, but the fight just felt long and tedious overall.


    One day, boys in class were raving about a hype clip from Classmancers. It was short gameplay footage from a recent pro tournament, showcasing a fight between Maker and DimesionShift. According to the excited boys, Maker was universally accepted as the best Classmancers player in the world. He started off at 80% HP. a pretty safe position.


    On the other hand, his opponent, DimensionShift, had merely 10% HP and was in the middle of retreating. "Shift is desperately trying to get away!" The commentator hyped up the situation. "We all know he''s good at wiggling his way out of tight spots, but will that work against Maker!? The world champion is ruthless when it comes to chasing his prey, he won''t let anybody get away- Oh! What''s this!? Shift turned around!? Is he planning to fight back!?"


    Just as Shift was about to be caught, he suddenly turned around and blinked behind Maker! From this close range, he unleashed a lighting speed barrage of fire spells. Before Maker could react - he was reduced to dust!


    "Unbelievable! Did you just see what happened here!?" The commenter shouted into the mic. "What an upset! The audience is going wild over here! Shift proves once again he''s the uncontested god of combos! It doesn''t even matter who''s his opponent! Maker? Who was that scrub, right? Shift does what Shift does best - burst his opponent from full HP to nothing before you can even blink!"


    "C-Can you play that one more time?" Jennifer asked the boy who was showing the clip to his friends. She shortly received a link to the clip, with the tile "You won''t believe this greatest upset in Classmancers history!". It sounded like a clickbait title, but Jennifer couldn''t help but agree with every word. What she just witnessed was truly unbelievable.


    She played that scene over and over, trying to wrap her head around Shift''s mind-blowing play. His opponent was considered the world champion and was almost at full HP. Yet, Shift fearlessly blinked toward his opponent and wrecked the guy in an instant. What was that stuff??? It''s not like Shift was fed or anything. Jennifer knew this game had burst abilities but was there really something as powerful as that? It almost put shotgun headshots to shame!


    That''s when she learned about Classmancers'' combo playstyle, a niche build that worked on some burst mages. It was like burst damage, except it was a hundred times cooler! It dished out a shit ton of damage via a rapid and accurate sequence of inputs, kinda like combos in fighting games. A gimmicky and mechanically taxing playstyle, but it showed great results every once in a while in the pro scene.


    [I wonder if I can do that too.] Jennifer''s obsession with Classmancers was born that day. There were a bunch of boys in class playing the game, so she joined them. She was the laughing stock for a while since she had no idea how to play these weird strategy games. Nevertheless, she kept on trying, to see if she could someday recreate that amazing play DimensionShift made.


    Turned out combo was an insanely difficult playstyle to make practical and it was treated as a meme by most. But, she refused to give up. For her, playing Classmancers was about playing combo.


    When middle school started, she applied for the Classmancers club. Most boys her age who joined the club had a huge head start on her and she played the meme combo style on top of that. Obviously, nobody took her seriously even though she passed the entrance exam. Many joked how Jennifer only passed the exam because Coach played favorites for a girl.


    She wanted to bust these idiots'' skulls, but she didn''t have the confidence to argue back. After all, she was really weaker than these guys; she was just a "combo memer". The club became a toxic hell for her, even worse than the players she met online. She even considered dropping combo, or even quitting the club altogether. The training was dull and basic anyways, it didn''t help her improve as a combo player at all.


    "Give her a break, you meta slaves." One boy stood up to Jennifer among the freshmen. "If she played by the meta like you, she''d kick your asses to the moon." It was Alex.


    Back then, Alex was recognized as the most talented rookie. In term of skill, he was the goal Jennifer was striving toward and the player she wanted to surpass more than anybody else in the club. So, of course, the words of her "rival" had a huge impact on her. It wasn''t a stretch to say she remained in the club only thanks to Alex''s words from that day.


    "Combo is a constraining off-meta style," Coach also gave it straight to her. "But, if that''s what you want to play, I won''t stop you. The most important thing to understand is that you have to polish the basics before you even consider becoming a good combo player. You may be idolizing Shift for that one combo play he made, but you must understand that one combo play was built upon a solid foundation, which you currently don''t have."


    "Am I really gonna improve my combo plays with all this boring irrelevant training?" Jennifer made a face.


    "There''s no such thing as ''irrelevant training'' in MOBA." Coach proclaimed. "Just try taking the training more seriously for a month and you''ll see the results for yourself."


    With some lingering doubt, Jennifer complied with the request. Coach didn''t quite approve of the combo playstyle, but at least he didn''t bash her for it. That alone made him a good guy in her book. Thus, she started taking the dull training seriously for a change and even stayed extra hours in the clubroom.


    By the end of that month, she shot up from the bottom into becoming one of the top 3 rookies. That''s how effective Coach''s'' training was. Since then, she got hooked on it and practiced harder than anybody, polishing her skills in every aspect of the game to ultimately strengthen her combo style.


    She sure got far, no denying that. She became the captain of the second string, and right now she was leading the team in an official match. Well, okay, it''s just a scrimmage. But still! It''s huge progress compared to being rock bottom in her first year.


    Alas, after coming this far, for the first time she started feeling the hard limit of her combo style.


    ["Combo is a constraining off-meta style."] Coach''s words, which she ignored at first, came back to bite her this match. Fighting against that aggressive Trickshooter was the first time she felt like sticking to combo was a mistake. The only reason she beat him in the end was that he made a stupid mistake and because she only needed the basics to punish that overextension. Combo didn''t deserve any credit there.


    She could have taken that scrub on any time if she played something more meta. But, she insisted to play combo and that led to her second death. Not cool.


    [Can I change this build?] Jennifer wondered as she examined her rushed combo build. It was only the beginning of the mid-game, so she still had time to make adjustments. Maybe she could sell Spellbook of Doom to buy a more reliable item. The game sense she developed throughout the years advised it was the best move.


    [No, that''s dumb. I''m a combo player.] She clenched her mouse. For her, playing Classmancers was about playing combo. No matter the odds, she was gonna make it work! This match was still far from over! She could still turn things around, with this combo playstyle that captivated her heart!


    Alas, despite her determination, she never quite recovered from her two early deaths. The Trickshooter kept rampaging and she didn''t have the means to stop him. Landing a perfect combo on him was hella hard and trying to do so only left her clawless, turning her into a sitting duck.


    And, this problem extended beyond 1v1 situations. Even in team fights, the Trickshooter freely rampaged like a beast while Trickshow was active. He darted from side to side, dodging shots while dishing out insane damage. Whether he fired straight Trickshots or made them bounce first, it didn''t matter. The shots always found their target.


    He was so free, he could play however he wanted. He could choose when to go aggressive all the way, when to prioritize dodging and when he needed a balance of both. Nothing restricted him. He could do whatever the heck he wanted and adapt on the fly.


    Compared to him, Jennifer was shackled by a playstyle with very specific requirements. She had no freedom to play around with, Her game plan was always about setting up the perfect conditions for combo-ing her opponent to death.. But, when it''s an opponent who repeatedly escaped her combos alive...


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºENEMY DOUBLE KILL¡»


    ¡ºENEMY KILLING SPREE¡»


    The deaths didn''t stop. The killing didn''t stop. The rampage didn''t stop. That damn Trickshooter started snowballing hard and nobody could put a stop to his bullshit.


    It was... impossible. Her combos weren''t good enough. No matter how hard she tried to shut down that Trickshooter, it never worked out. Sticking to her combo playstyle against such an opponent... it was a mistake. A huge one. It was stupid.


    But, too late to switch builds now. She had no choice but to keep playing with her limbs shackled, until the end of this frustrating round.


    On the bright side, stopping the Trickshooter wasn''t only her responsibility. They were a team, everybody wanted to put an end to the beast''s killing spree. In fact, they even had a certain player who excelled at punishing overly aggressive foes. But...


    [He turned again?!] Alex was taken aback by the Trickshooter''s sudden slide to the right. Knowing that cocky Trickshooter, Alex anticipated an aggressive play even in this 4v3 situation. Just as he expected, the Trickshooter charged forth against these odds. Alex was already in position to counter, but as he was about to act - the Trickshooter made an unexpected turn and messed everything!


    [I just need to move my target a little to the right... Damn.] Alex cursed as his Thunderstorm, his calculated trap, failed to land where he wanted. All he had to do was move the target location for Thunderstorm little to the right, so it''d catch up with the Trickshooter''s new location. But, he accidentally cast the spell after being startled by the sudden development of this fight. What a stupid misclick.


    "Great aim there!" Jennifer sneered. "10/10! Would count on you again!"


    "Oh, shut up. Shit happens."


    "Lemme guess, gonna blame it on misclicking again?"


    "I just released the button a bit too early, calm your tits."


    "You better change your nickname to Misclicker. Fits you perfectly right now."


    Their back and forth was interrupted by "It''s time for a trick show!" Everybody knew what followed after this sound cue. They were in for a treat.


    "R-Ret..." Jennifer mumbled and grit her teeth, then opened her mouth again. "R-Retreat! Get the hell away from that Shooter!"


    "Wha?"


    "Huh?"


    "Really...?"


    Her teammates looked at her like she was some alien. Their proud and confident captain who saw victory in every situation, no matter how dire. That same captain just issued a retreat, even though they were in a favorable 4v3 situation.


    "You sure?" Albert asked. "This may be a chance to shut down their Shooter."


    "Not happening," Jennifer shook her head. "That chance died when this idiot here messed up his ult." She shot a glare at Alex.


    "You don''t see us winning this fight?" Albert asked.


    "......" Jennifer just hung her head, unable to give a proper reply. Truth to be told, she couldn''t form a winning mental image for a while now. Ever since the Trickshooter killed her for the second time, her image of victory had been blurry, shroud in uncertainty. And, it only became hazier with every passing moment.


    "Seems like we really better retreat," Albert concluded.


    "Yeah, let''s scram, guys."


    "What a waste. Whatever." Alex shrugged but hurried to retreat like everybody else. They were like ants, scattering after their queen had been taken out. Everybody understood: when the ever-confident Jennifer couldn''t draw a mental image of victory for the team, they were doomed for sure.


    Thus, even though it was a favorable 4v3 situation, the Leopards avoided battle and retreated. Thanks to that, casualties were avoided and the Trickshooter wasn''t fed any further. But, at the same time, they threw away a rare opportunity to regain momentum. That only gave StormBlitz more confidence to push forward.


    [Things can''t go on like this.] Jennifer bit her lip. Avoiding casualties was good and all, but that''s not how games are won. Turtling will hold up only for so long. At some point, they''d have to turn the tables around and go on the offensive.


    It''s just that right now wasn''t the time for offense. But, when WILL it be the right time? When will she recover her mental image of victory? Was that even going to happen anytime during this match?


    ¡ºAn enemy defeated the Overlord!¡»


    "Fuck." Jennifer slammed the table. In the end, the Leopards never got to take the initiative.


    "Well, it''s GG." Alex started a surrender vote and everybody threw their two cents on that.


    "Again with this? Well..."


    "To be honest, I kinda..."


    They turned to Jennifer. Regardless of how they felt about surrendering, she had the final say as the captain. Last time Alex suggested a surrender, Jennifer barked at him and shot it down on the spot. Surrendering was frowned upon, especially in competitive matches.


    However, this time, Jennifer didn''t utter a word. She blankly stared at the surrender screen, as if it was some peculiar creature she was seeing for the first time.


    "What we gonna do, cap?" Albert asked.


    "Just... do whatever you want." Jennifer hung her head. "If you think we should surrender, then just vote."


    "Really?"


    "Huh..."


    This was unheard of for Jennifer. Nobody had any idea how to digest her words. She was the type who refused to surrender under any circumstances, no matter how dire things got. Yet, this very same proud captain had just given them the green light to throw the match.


    "So," Alex said. "What are you waiting for? The captain gave permission. Admit it, the game is over."


    "Well, yeah..."


    "I guess..."


    Heavy atmosphere weighted on their shoulders. It''s clear they all wanted to vote and get this frustrating match over with, but that was just...


    ¡ºYES: 3 NO: 0¡»


    "What about you?" Alex asked Albert. "Need a special invitation?"


    "Who died and made you leader?" Albert made a face, then threw a glance at Jennifer. Was this really fine with her? Voting for a surrender felt like betraying her.


    "Do it. For her." Alex whispered to Albert.


    "Huh? How exactly is that [for her]?"


    "Don''t you see her face?" Alex pointed at Jennifer''s exhausted expression. "She also wants out of this match. She''s just too stubborn to admit it because she''s the captain. Put her to rest already."


    "Huh, didn''t expect [you] to care about her, of all people," Albert said.


    "Hmph." Alex shrugged and turned away. "Who knows? Maybe I''m just talking out of my ass to make you surrender."


    "Nah, I know. I spent enough time with you in the club."


    "Really? Even though I barely even visit anymore?"


    "You spent more time in the club than anybody else on your first year." Albert smiled and threw a glance at Jennifer. "Except maybe for her."


    "Yeah, chick is a workaholic alright." Alex smiled wryly. His first year, huh. Those were really some times. Back then, he thought he could make it into the first string as a freshman. He worked harder than anybody to secure that spot.


    But, the end result was disappointment. This defeated expression Jennifer was wearing right now was way too familiar to Alex. That feeling when your whole world comes down crashing on you, yet you try to deny it with everything you''ve got. Alex went through such a period at one time, fighting with the coach about getting into the first string. The more he did, the more stupid everything felt. In the end, he just quit everything.


    When he was still a freshman, there was one girl who worked just as hard as him. She played the obscure combo style, which Coach said had no chance of ever getting into the first string. Nevertheless, she stuck to the style she loved. And, to this day, she''s pushing forward and shining brilliantly.


    Honestly, a part of Alex derived satisfaction from Jennifer''s defeated expression. It served that cocky bitch just right. Yet, at the same time, he couldn''t stand watching it. She shouldn''t become like him.


    Out of the two of them, she was the only living proof that hard-work paid off. Even after quitting everything, deep down Alex still wanted to believe his efforts during the first year weren''t in vain.


    Perhaps Jennifer didn''t quite make it into the first string, but that''s only because of her restrictive combo playstyle. Through hard work, she undeniably became one of the strongest players in the club. So, if Alex continued to work hard too, he''d be a key player on the first string by now, just like Jennifer could had been without her combos.


    That was a nice mental image to carry around and he didn''t want to see it tarnished. Therefore, he wished to liberate Jennifer from this suffocating match as soon as possible.


    ¡ºYES: 4 NO: 0¡»


    Everybody voted in favor of surrendering, save for Jennifer.


    ¡ºThe team agreed to surrender.¡»


    ¡ºDEFEAT¡»


    The match was over.


    [So, it''s done.] Jennifer sighed and dropped back on her chair. The message she saw on screen wasn''t ¡ºDEFEAT¡», it was¡ºGOT STYLED ON BY SCRUBS¡». That''s how this whole match felt like. From start to end, she achieved very little. After dying twice in the early game, she barely had any presence throughout the rest of the game. She did score some kills, but she never managed to stop the real threat, the Trickshooter.


    On this discouraging note, the 4th battle of the scrimmage came to an end. StormBlitz somehow prevailed once again, bringing the score to 1-3 in their favor.


    The scrimmage was approaching its finale, yet Jennifer carried more doubts and anxiety than when she started. How were they going to turn things around in the next match? How will she lead the team to victory in the next game? She had no idea anymore.


    On the other team, the atmosphere was completely different.


    "Yeah! We did it, yo!" Lars jumped into the air like a missile. "Good game, my dudes!"


    "Good game."


    "We rekt these nubs, lol."


    "They never really figured how to deal with my Beastmaster. That was fun."


    This merry atmosphere made the tension from the beginning of the game feel like a lie. Thanks to Lars generating an early momentum for the team, they now completely recovered from the negativity that haunted them since last game. By pushing Lars in the right direction, Yuel successfully recovered the team''s morale.


    This was huge. It was Yuel''s debut as a team captain, with all the responsibility and expectations placed on this huge role. Yet, he prevailed! The team was nursed and they were now only one win away from scoring 4-1!


    "Good job, everybody. Um..." Yuel tensed up a little. What was he supposed to say? He was the captain, so he had to say something, right? Ugh, why did he even open his mouth? Now everybody''s eyes were on him!


    Thinking back on it, did Trever use to say anything special after a game was over? Probably not. He just loudly celebrated the way Lars did.


    Maybe this was one of these cases when actions spoke louder than words. He had no idea what to say, so he decided to mimic Trever''s gung-ho approach. Here went nothing!


    "W-We did it, guys! Just one more game and we got 4 wins!" Yuel pumped a fist. A shaky fist, just like his voice. Ugh, what was he doing!? This was embarrassing as heck!


    "Lol, who is this gung-ho goof?" Roi chuckled and the rest followed suit. Uuuuugh!


    "We don''t expect you to be some charismatic leader," Gilbert smiled and patted Yuel''s shoulder. "Just keep doing what you''ve been doing. That''s more than plenty."


    "Yeah," Dan tuned in. "Just tone down the number of kamikaze missions you give me."


    "I believe I only gave you about three so far," Yuel remarked.


    "So, you''re saying that''s too little for the ''Great Kamikaze Master'', heh." Dan smiled wryly.


    "Too bad that''s not your actual IGN," Yuel said. "You''re really good at this. What a wasted opportunity for the perfect nickname."


    "Oh shut up."


    Everybody laughed. Dan wasn''t the only one who had to make some questionable and irregular plays throughout the day, all due to Yuel''s instructions. But, all these particular plays somehow converted into a victory in the end, so that''s all that mattered.


    Suiciding on purpose against Breaker felt like crap no matter how many times Dan did it, but at least it''s pretty fun to watch how the consequences of this weird play rippled throughout the rest of the match. Only Yuel, the Chessmaster, could see that far ahead when he was issuing his unconventional orders.


    "They''re right, dude." Lars wrapped his arm around Yuel''s shoulder. "Just keep doing yo usual stuff. Ya know, being a bossy commander, haha."


    "Sure," Yuel rolled his eyes. "You also keep being yourself. You know, a goof who invades towers without thinking and forgets to retreat on time."


    "''Retreat''? What''s that? A new word?" Lars grinned. "Okay, one more game! We can do this together!"


    "Definitely." Yuel smiled. By properly leading this high maintenance goof, the team could overcome any obstacle. With Yuel''s tactics and Lars''s overwhelming strength, they were going to get that sweet 4-1!

 50 The Right to Stand on This Stage

    The fourth game between the Leopards and StormBlitz came to an end, setting the score to 1-3 in StormBlitz''s favor. If this were a best-of-five match, the Leopards would had lost right here and now. They would have been thoroughly defeated by a pack of greenhorns. For a team of seniors, that fact was nothing short of a disgrace. Jennifer had no idea how to face her teammates.


    A deafening silence descended on the Leopards. Nobody uttered a word even though it''s break time. Actually, nobody even left their chairs. They all just sat there, replaying the events of the previous game in their heads.


    Jennifer blamed the team''s defeat on her poor performance, but she''s not the only one; everybody felt the same. Every member of the Leopards thought back on their mistakes, on what they could have done differently and how they could have brought the team closer to victory with better plays.


    Even Alex was in that crew, despite his attempts to wave everything off. He stared at his own hands in disbelief. Whose hands were those? Had he always been the type to make so many errors in a single match?


    Multiple times throughout the match, he knew exactly what had to be done amidst a difficult situation, but his fingers refused to cooperate. One time, he directed his Thunderclap blink in the wrong direction while hurrying to flee. Another time, he misplaced Thunderstorm when trying to hit the elusive Trickshooter.


    The errors piled up, to the point Alex couldn''t excuse them anymore, not even to himself. Even if he called them "misclicks", they occurred far too frequently for somebody who played for the Leaopards'' second string. Frankly, it was a disgraceful performance.


    [This doom and gloom mood is a no-no.] Jennifer pursed her lips and clenched her fists. [I have to say something.] She was the captain, it was her job to pull the team through such difficult times. [C''mon, stand up!] She commanded her legs, but she couldn''t pump up any energy.


    What was she supposed to say to the team? They''re as good as defeated and there''s only one more match left. It was all fun and games calling StormBlitz "scrubs" at first, but somehow it ended with the Leopards having their asses handed to them by these "scrubs". She had to admit, the enemy... Yeah, they were strong. Especially, that No-Fucks-Given-Trickshooter.


    What should have been an emergency substitution for the enemy turned out to be a huge blow for the Leopards. That damn Trickshooter... Gunz, he was a tough opponent. He was possibly the most mechanically skilled opponent she ever faced, save for Fenrir, the first string''s captain.


    The more she thought about it, the more frustrated she became. [Stop thinking about stupid crap and stand up already!] She had to get up and act like her usual confident self, to pull the team forward. But, her body refused to cooperate. She just wanted to sit here like a scarecrow and mop.


    BAM!


    [Gah! My ears!] The stage thundered! Everybody felt like a bomb went off inside their eardrums.


    [Ugh, so Coach came to talk after all...] Jennifer gulped. This was terrible. She gonna get the scolding of her lifetime. The whole team will get lectured into another plane of existence.


    After all, they ended the match with a surrender. They gave up and quit, instead of fighting to the bitter end. They were supposed to be competitive players, and yet...


    "Heads up, everybody." Rodriguez delivered another EAR-SHATTERING CLAP, powerful enough to wake up a person from a coma. "You don''t dwell on your defeats when you still have games to play. I believe I taught you that."


    "Yeah..." Jennifer mumbled and corrected her slumped posture. It was acceptable for others to act weak at times, but Jennifer had to retain her dignity regardless of the circumstances. After all, she''s the captain.


    The others followed her example and raised their heads too. Everybody looked a little less dead now. Good, zombie apocalypse averted.


    The only exception was Alex, who looked depressed by the mere fact he was on this stage right now. Well, nothing new there.


    "That''s better," Rodriguez nodded. "Now, let''s talk about how you played, shall we?"


    "What can I say?" Jennifer forced a smile. "I played like shit, haha..." The sooner she admitted it, the better. But, Coach ignored her confession.


    "First, there''s the drafting phase," Rodriguez said. "You pushed your Mid Laner pick to the very end, which enabled postponing the decision of whether to go for a mixup. Who came up with this?"


    "This guy over here," Jennifer pointed at Alex. "What a shitty call. I knew we better go with mixup. It worked so damn well the game before. If it ain''t broken, don''t fix it."


    "Hmph." Alex scoffed and turned away.


    "A ''shitty call''? Not at all." Rodriguez shook his head. "It was good thinking. This team only got a partial mixup, because [some] of you have been slacking on their mixup practices." He shot two glares, making the criminals shake like little bunnies. "But, even with this handicap, what you did during drafting kept your opponent guessing until the very end, almost as if you had a full mixup available. Good job, Alex."


    "Oh," Alex blinked. "Thanks, I guess." This was rare. He was usually on the receiving end of criticism, not praise.


    "The one beef I got with your drafting," Rodriguez continued. "Was Jenny picking Pyromancer first. What was that about?"


    "Geh." Jennifer made a face. Yeah, that was hella dumb. She got triggered when the enemy banned Alex''s Warlock and not her Pyromancer. It''s like they thought Alex was more threatening than her! What''s with that!?


    Yeaaaah, looking back on it, it''s hella embarrassing. She deserved to be smacked for that shit. But, Coach just went on.


    "Beside that," Rodriguez continued. "The drafting went in your favor overall. You counter-picked their Aeromancer with Electromancer and made them pick Beastmaster. I believe picking Aero and Beast was their idea of countering Jenny in Mid, so having her play Carry instead definitely threw them for a loop."


    Considering the team''s overwhelming defeat, Rodriguez''s words were relatively soft. And, that''s the entire point. Before dropping any bombs, he pointed out the brighter sides of their performance.


    Matches weren''t black and white, there''s more to their outcome than just victory or defeat. The kids were defeated quite decisively, they even resorted to surrendering, but that didn''t mean they hadn''t made any good plays that match.


    Unfortunately, they were too hung up on their "terrible defeat". Therefore, the first step was to make them realize they made some decent plays too. Only after that, they''d be willing to absorb Rodriguez''s criticism.


    "With all that said, you didn''t handle their Beastmaster right." Rodriguez continued. "You deal with a Beastmaster with aggressive counter-jungling, I believe I taught you that."


    "Yeah..."


    "I just didn''t have any good opportunities..."


    They all mumbled. To counter a Beastmaster, they had to periodically invade the Beastmaster''s side of the jungle and steal their camps. It was such common knowledge even casuals were familiar with it. Yet, the team failed spectacularly.


    "To be fair, some of the blame lies with me," Rodriguez admitted. "I didn''t insist you practice many real matches against a Beastmaster. So, I''ll cram that in your training schedule. Be ready to stay for even more after hours."


    "Eeeeeh? Seriously?" This sentiment was echoed by all members, save for one.


    "Please do!" Jennifer nodded.


    "You see?" Rodriguez smirked while pointing at Jennifer. "That''s how you''re all supposed to embrace this happy news. Take an example from Jenny, boys."


    "Hmph," Alex shrugged. "She''s just sucking up, as usual."


    "Or," Jennifer retorted. "Maybe I really think we need more training. Thought about that-"


    BAM! A loud explosion put an end to the bickering. Coach''s booming claps were so cool, yet so terrifying too. Jennifer felt like she''ll lose her hearing if she''s hit with another one of these bombs, so she fell silent right away.


    "Enough is enough," Rodriguez said. "Keep your quarrels for later. We got a strategy meeting to finish here."


    "Yes, sir!"


    "Whatever."


    "Now, where were we?" Rodriguez continued. "Right, your early game. You had some problems at the start. The new player they subbed in, Gunz. He sure has been giving you trouble from the moment he stepped on the lane. He even killed Jenny."


    "Nah, that''s..." Jennifer twisted her lips. "He''s nothing special. There were just some crappy calls on my end. My bad."


    "Not quite true." Rodriguez shook his head. "Gunz turned out to be very skilled and he plays abnormally aggressive, in a way many would consider suicidal. All of that was very unpredictable, so it wasn''t a mistake on your end. You learned your lesson and played more safely afterwards, that''s what matters. No need to beat yourself over it, at least not over your first death. You did make some mistakes later down the road, but I''ll return to that later."


    "Okay." Jennifer wasn''t entirely satisfied, but she nodded for now.


    "On the other hand," Rodriguez continued. "There''s definitely somebody here who should be ashamed of the first time they died to Gunz. Anybody wants to take a guess who that is?"


    Everybody exchanged glances. Was it them? Or, the guy next to them? Oh boy, please don''t let it be them! When Coach asked this kind of question, 9 out of 10 times it was going to be followed by harsh criticism. A bomb was about to be dropped and it was of the nuclear type.


    Jennifer was already excused from this suspicion, so she only looked at others. Rather, she looked at one specific player. No, she GLARED at him, as if drilling a hole through his skull.


    "Yeah, yeah," Alex spoke up. "It''s me, isn''t it?"


    "So, you''re aware," Rodriguez nodded. "Jenny is excused because she didn''t know how aggressively Gunz plays. But, you already saw her die, so you had the information. Not to mention, you had Thunderclap to safely disengage. What''s your excuse?"


    "I... I misclicked. Can happen to anybody."


    "Misclicked, huh. That''s one way to make the mistake sound innocent."


    "What''s that supposed to mean?" Alex frowned.


    "Do you recall that 4v3 situation near the end?" Rodriguez answered with a question. "You didn''t reach Gunz with your Thunderstorm, missing a great opportunity to turn the tables. Another misclick?"


    "Yeah, basically," Alex said. "He surprised me by suddenly changing directions, so I didn''t cast Thunderstorm in the best spot."


    "But, you knew how you had to respond in that situation, right? And yet, you failed to act accordingly. I wonder, why?"


    "Just a misplay. Happens."


    "Yes, happens. Happens quite often. Specifically to you, it seems. Again, why?"


    "Bad luck."


    "Luck, huh." Rodriguez sighed. "How about you face the facts for a change?"


    "What facts?"


    "That you''ve degenerated as a player. You''re playing even worse than back when you were a rookie."


    "Guh!" Alex trembled, barely holding himself from leaping off his chair. That nosy coach! He just had to go ahead and say that kind of crap!


    "Admit it, you''re rusty." Rodriguez continued without budging. "Remind me, when was the last time you played Electromancer?"


    "Kh, hell if I remember." Alex turned away. "Probably a couple of weeks."


    "Be more specific. When?"


    "I dunno, okay!?" Alex barked. "It''s recorded in my match history. Why should I bother remembering that kind of thing?"


    "Yes, you''re right. So, dig it up from that history."


    "Eh?" Alex turned pale. "What, now?"


    "Yes, go right ahead. I''ll wait."


    "Ah, uh..." Alex''s lips trembled. He had a bad feeling about this. A VERY bad feeling. "G-Got it. I''ll search it up."


    "Good." Rodriguez nodded. "Meanwhile, Jenny," He turned to the captain. "Let''s discuss your real faults in that match, shall we?"


    "Geh, already my turn?" Jennifer made a face. So much for "returning later" to her. That "later" came after like five seconds! Dang it.


    "Well then," Rodriguez said. "You''re a dummy, but you''re a smart girl."


    [How does that even work?]


    "So, let''s hear it. What do you think were your biggest mess ups this match?"


    "Um, well." One idea was at the tip of her tongue, but she refused to share it. She felt like a part of her would be destroyed if she were to say it out loud. "I... I played too defensively, I guess?"


    "Not a bad observation," Rodriguez nodded. "During the mid game you were lagging behind, so you did well to play defense. However, you never converted your defense plays into offense. I believe I taught you turtling can only get you into late game, not win it."


    "Yeah..." Jennifer nodded, along with everybody else Rodriguez addressed with his eyes. Jennifer wasn''t the only one who tensed up in that match and overcompensated for dying with extreme turtling.


    "Frankly," Rodriguez said. "I was surprised. You always fight to the bitter end, no matter how bad things get. What happened to your mental image?"


    "I... It got foggy halfway through," Jennifer lowered her head. "I couldn''t see us winning anymore."


    "Interesting. And why is that?"


    "I guess... Well, that Gunz dude was kinda strong, He started to snowball, so I couldn''t see us stopping him anymore."


    "That''s nonsense and you know it. You''re the type who''d seriously believe she can beat an Lv.20 with a full build as a naked Lv.1. Gunz was definitely strong and snowballed, but you faced tougher situations. So, what really threw you out of your rhythm?"


    "I..." Jennifer averted her eyes. "Err, guess I was salty I lost to a scrub who may be a rookie."


    "That''s what you want to keep telling yourself? I believe I taught you to honest during match analysis, for your own sake. Dodging around your worries will only stifle your growth as a player."


    "Yeah," Jennifer raised her head. "The truth is, I felt like insisting to play combo against Gunz was... a mistake." She did it. She finally breathed these accursed words. Her insides twisted with every word, with every letter, uttered.


    "Go on," Rodriguez urged. "Why did you think so?"


    "Well, I fell behind after dying the first time, right? So, to stay relevant as a combo player, I rushed Spellbook. That was kinda risky and didn''t pay off like I hoped. I mean, I had a feeling it''d be hard to fight that crazy Shooter with combo, but..."


    "You still went for it."


    "Yeaaah, haha..." Jennifer scratched her forehead.


    "Why didn''t you build a standard DPS Pyromancer?"


    "Um, well..."


    "I''m sure you thought that''s the ''correct'' move, right?"


    "That''s..." A part of her agreed, but another part of her threw a fit. Jennifer? Give up on playing combo? No way, she could never possibly do that. But...


    "Here, I found it." Alex announced loudly, interrupting the ongoing interrogation. He couldn''t stand listening to this any longer for some reason. But, now the attention switched to him. Great, now he''ll be on the receiving end of Coach''s criticism. Why did he speak up again? Sigh.


    "Let''s hear it," Rodriguez said. "When was the last time you play Electro?"


    "It was..." A chill ran down Alex''s spine. "Almost four months ago." He was tempted to make it one month or at worst two months, but he felt like lying wouldn''t do him any favors here.


    "Hmm, four months." Rodriguez stopped pressuring Jennifer for now and shifted all his focus to Alex. "So, four months without playing one of your main classes and almost two years without properly attending practice. And, you still honestly think you''re a good player?"


    "Well, I''m here, right?" Alex argued. "I''m on the second string and playing in an official scrimmage. I''m even the vice-captain, in case you forgot. That''s gotta worth something."


    "You''re only here because I put you here."


    "Huh?"


    "You''re here to receiving a beating, so you finally realize how pathetic of a player you''ve become."


    "Eh? Huh?" Alex froze. The floor underneath him trembled as if about to collapse and swallow him whole.


    "The Alex I welcomed into the club was a hardworking boy who seriously wanted to be a competitive player. He wasn''t the type to ditch practice, make excuses and drag down his whole team."


    [Stop...]


    "He didn''t sweep his mistakes under the rug. He always learned from them and improved.."


    [Stop.]


    "And, he definitely wasn''t the type to hide behind excuses like ''misclicking''. If he wasn''t in top shape, he''d admit so and try to remedy that."


    [STOP!!!] Alex slammed on the table. His gritted teeth barely held him from shouting. Who the fuck that coach thought he was!? Who gave him the right to say all this trash!?


    "Just so you know," Rodriguez continued as if nothing happened. "I received a lot of backlash for putting you on the second string."


    "What backlash?" Alex frowned.


    "Many voiced their objections to this decision. After all, how could I pick somebody who''s effectively a ghost member?"


    "But, nobody said anything..." Alex mumbled. The only one who ever expressed her dissatisfaction was Jennifer, so he assumed everybody else was fine with this.


    "They''re good kids, they didn''t want to pick a fight. But, they voiced their objections to me clear as day."


    [So, even on this team, everybody probably thinks...] Alex felt a rift forming between himself the rest. All this time, he thought everybody here saw him as an equal. But, did they actually all want to kick him out? What the...


    Of course, there''s Jennifer who hated his guts and probably dreamed about murdering him in his sleep. But, the others too? Alex didn''t make it into the first string, so he thought at least being in the second string was some sort of achievement. But...


    "With all said and done," Rodriguez continued. "Many of them still remember you as the golden rookie you were two years ago. They all know you''re just a shell of your former self now, but they decided to not say anything in front of you."


    [So, that''s how it is.] Alex hung his head. His arms went limp, like those of a puppet whose strings were cut. From being the strongest rookie, he fell all the way down here, even lower than the level of the second string. He was a nobody. He''s just some random kid, who pretended he played competitively because he was in a club.


    Deep down, he had been aware of this for a long time. "When was the last time he played Electromancer?" Wrong question. More like: "When was the last time he played anything other than Warlock? Or a mode other than Casual?" Only playing Ranked wasn''t exactly the best practice for competitive players, but it''s still useful for staying in shape. It''s the least he could have done as somebody who didn''t show up for practice, yet he didn''t even bother doing that.


    His eyes naturally gravitated toward Jennifer. She was like the other side of the coin, the struggling rookie who climbed her way to the top, despite playing her meme tier combo.


    During the first year, they walked side by side as fellow rookies who trained harder than anybody- no, not really side by side. Alex was way ahead and Jennifer chased his back with everything she had. He was the golden rookie and she was the memer newbie.


    But, before he realized, everything flipped on its head. Now, he was the one left behind, chasing her back. No, he didn''t even chase. He just let her walk ahead without giving a damn. Her back had long since vanished from his sight.


    Despite playing with a huge handicap that was combo and despite being repeatedly told she''d never make it into the first string like that - she never gave up. And, her hard work paid off. She came this far.


    If only Alex also had that level of determination, who knew where he''d be by now. Captain of the first string? Or, at least the vice-captain? Definitely possible.


    Still, even Jennifer couldn''t escape criticism after the recent match. Coach made it clear he was going to criticize her build choice and her decision to stick with combo. [Stop. Don''t tarnish it.]


    It''s not like Alex cared about her. That loud and bad-tempered girl could go fuck herself for all he cared. But, she was a hard worker, just like Alex a long time ago. After so much sweat and blood, she had to succeed. He [wanted] her to succeed.


    It''s Alex who was the villain here. It''s him who gave up on everything and became a ghost member. He''s the one who stopped trying and dragged the team down. Everything should just be pinned on him.


    "Heh. Haha." He produced dry laughter. "I see how it is now. You''re right. You''re all absolutely right." He looked at each of his teammates in order. There''s no doubt at least some of them condemned him and they had every right to do so.


    "I''ve been dragging the team down this whole time, I see that now." Alex wore a self-scorning smile. "Our previous losses and this one - they''re all my fault." He stared intently at the coach. "It''s all my fault. I should be the only one criticized here."


    "Hoh," Rodriguez paused at this unexpected outburst. "So, you''re saying you should be held accountable for everything? How admirable."


    "Yeah, it''s all me. All me. Just me. Heh." Alex chuckled and threw a glance at Jennifer. Heh, her stoned expression was priceless. But, he wasn''t doing this shock her. He only wanted to convey a message: [Don''t turn out like me.] That''s all he was asking for.


    "I''ll just leave," Alex hung his head, a broken smile still plastered on his face. "I''m sure anybody can replace me."


    "Indeed," Rodriguez said matter-of-factly. "There are plenty substitutes waiting for a chance to get on stage."


    "Right." Alex walked down the stage, avoiding eye contact with everybody else. He wasn''t somebody who deserved to stand on this stage, the realization finally sunk in. Only players who worked hard for the past three years had a right to be here, and he wasn''t one of them.


    Rodriguez found himself dumbstruck by this development, but not because it was completely unexpected. It''s the development he wished for, but not the one he truly believed would come to pass.


    Alex coming to terms with his mistakes, embracing his flaws and admitting he had no right to be here - it''s impossible to ask for a better outcome. Thanks to that, the kid will now be able to move forward.


    But, this meeting wasn''t over yet. After all, there was another kid here who had to face her flaws. Now. that one problem kid was dealt with, Rodriguez could focus on Jennifer.

 51 Failures, Regrets and Hope

    Everybody silently watched Alex leave the stage, without turning his head even once. From start to end, nobody uttered a single word. There''s nothing to say here.


    "This is good." Rodriguez nodded to himself.


    ["Good?"] Jennifer raised an eyebrow. Sure, that lazy bum deserved some scolding, but wasn''t this too much? She never saw Alex react so strongly about anything before. It kinda freaked her out, honestly. He even tried shouldering all the blame, despite being a master of excuses. She had no idea how to digest this.


    "Now," Rodriguez turned to Jennifer as if what just happened was already history. "One player already came to terms with his faults. What about you?"


    "I..." Jennifer''s lips trembled. She couldn''t bring herself to lay her feelings bare, but she had to. Because even Alex, of all people, managed to admit he was a trash quitter. Jennifer won''t run away either.


    "I probably shouldn''t have rushed Spellbook," Jennifer said with downcast eyes. "After falling behind, I should''ve built something more stable against an aggressive scrub like Gunz."


    "And why you didn''t do that?"


    "Because..." Jennifer gritted her teeth, chewed her lips and finally opened her mouth. "I wanted to play combo. I''m a combo player."


    "Even at the expense of losing the game?"


    "No, that''s... I mean..." She hung her head. No, that''s wrong! She didn''t... But, she actually kinda did... GAH, her brain hurt!


    "Good girl." Rodriguez patted her head.


    "Eh? What?"


    "Admitting that combo held you back is a huge step forward." Rodriguez nodded with a kind smile. Normally, Jennifer would dismiss this kind of topic in five seconds, without even sparing a fraction of thought on it. No matter how many obstacles she had to swim through while playing combo, she never admitted that sticking with combo was a big mistake at times. Today was a first.


    "I know you''re fed up with this lecture by now," Rodriguez said. "But, you need to stop chasing that false ideal you created in your head. That famous video of DimensionShift beating Maker with a combo is sure amazing, but it made you miss the whole point. Before being a renowned combo player, Shift is firstmost a strong pro player. That one amazing combo play in the video was build upon solid foundation, it didn''t happen in the spur of the moment like you seem to think."


    "I know it wasn''t a fluke," Jennifer said with sparkling eyes. "Shift can pull off that kinda play any day! He''s awesome like that!"


    "That''s not the point," Rodriguez sighed. "The point is, Shift decided it was appropriate for him to play combo that match only after he analyzed the development of the match to that point. That''s why I told you to also watch matches in which he doesn''t play combo. Did you watch them?"


    "A little..." Jennifer shifted her eyes away. Honestly, she couldn''t bear watching them for more than a few minutes. For her, Shift was the best combo player in the world. Watching him play something other than combo was like watching how the best pitcher in the world played as an outfielder. Sure, it could be fun to watch too, but it ruined Shift''s cool image.


    "If you tried to analyze them, you''d realize he''s not using combo every game. In fact, I''d be surprised if he uses combo more than half his games."


    "Geh..."


    "I know you don''t like hearing it, but it''s the truth. As I said, he''s a pro player before he''s a combo player. His job is to win. He knows when to give up on combo to secure victory."


    "Grrr..."


    "If Shift were in your shoes last game, he wouldn''t hesitate to give up on combo. He''d go for a slower and more stable build instead of rushing Spellbook."


    "I get it already." Jennifer grumped. There''s no denying it, Coach was right. If she truly wanted to play combo on the highest level, she had to learn when to give up on it for the sake of victory. It sounded dumb, but that''s the circumstances combo players had to face in the current meta. [Combo buffs when!?]


    It was a painful reality to accept since for her playing Classmancers was all about playing combo. Still, little by little, she started coming to terms with it. Even a legendary pro player like Shift, renowned as the best combo player in the world, couldn''t afford to play combo every match. So, playing combo 100% of the time was clearly wishful thinking.


    "As long as you understand," Rodriguez nodded. "I''m not going to force you to play either way, it''s your choice to make. In the end, I''m just a coach. It''s you who''s playing the actual game. You have to decide what''s right for you. I made you practice the standard playstyle too, so I''m sure you can play at least half-decently without combo."


    "I can play SUPAH decently with any build!" Jennifer pouted. Coach drilled AAAAAALL the stuff into her, included how to build and play meta classes as Carry and Mid. She rarely ever used these builds outside practice, but she definitely knew how to. Compared to playing combo, the standard playstyle was like the easiest shit in the world.


    "Decently, huh." Rodriguez sneered. "I hope you give it a try next match. You may be surprised."


    "Huh? Surprised by what?"


    "You''ll see," He smiled meaningfully. "Very well, that about wraps up the important points. Now, just a couple more pointers for the rest of you. Let''s start with Albert."


    "Yes?" Albert stiffened. Something was coming. Gulp.


    "First, I''ll say you played well overall. No complaints about your performance."


    "T-Thank you." Albert forced a smile. Gulp, gulp and double gulp. Coach was starting with praise? A meteor of criticism was about to drop on Albert.


    "With that said," Rodriguez continued. "You''re technically the shot-caller. I know I divided the responsibility between you, Jenny and Alex, but I''m sure everybody sees you as the main shot-caller." He scanned the rest of the kids and they nodded in response.


    "Yep, Albert makes the best calls."


    "Mhm, no question about it."


    [Oi, don''t agree so casually.] Albert frowned. [Thanks for the extra pressure, guys.]


    "As I previously noted," Rodriguez continued. "You''ve been turtling too much last game. There were multiple times when you could have gone on the offensive, but you retreated. Why?"


    "Um, well, I actually... Err..." Albert shifted his eyes from side to side until they laid on Jennifer. In truth, he wanted to take the initiative on multiple occasions, but he couldn''t. He wasn''t allowed to, because Jennifer made a different call.


    "Okay, okay," Jennifer pouted. "Jeez, no need to look at me like that. Yes, I chickened out, I admit." She already admitted that playing combo was a mistake, so at this point, she was willing to admit anything. "It was all me. Sorry, Coach. I didn''t feel like we could win any of these team fights, so I said we should retreat. My bad."


    "I see," Rodriguez nodded in understanding. "However, that doesn''t clear Albert from responsibility. I divided the shot-calling role among you to ensure nobody monopolizes the control. If one of you makes a poor call, the others are supposed to object. Isn''t that right?"


    "Y-Yeah..." Albert cast his eyes downwards, avoiding Coach''s piercing gaze.


    "Tell me, did you agree with Jenny''s call for a retreat every time?"


    "Not exactly..."


    "Yet, the team ended up retreating every single time. I thought everybody agreed you''re the main shot-caller here? Why they didn''t listen to you?"


    "Well..." Albert didn''t know how to retort. Perhaps he was seen as the "main shot-caller", but Jennifer was the captain. Compared to her, Albert was practically a nobody. He''s just one of many semi-decent bench players in this huge club.


    "You didn''t oppose her, right?"


    "Well, I did say the 4v3 situation looked like a good chance to attack, but..."


    "You gave in to her."


    "I... I guess. I mean, she''s the captain."


    "That''s an excuse," Rodriguez shook his head. "In the end, you didn''t trust your own judgment. Jenny is the captain just because she''s loud, that''s about it."


    "Hey! Hey!" Jennifer waved angry fists.


    "I joke, of course," Rodriguez snickered. "But, my point is: she didn''t become the captain for her shot-calling skills. She can make a decent call once in a blue moon, but it''s clearly not her strong suit."


    "Grrr, is it just me just me or Coach is bullying me more than usual today?" Jennifer hissed.


    "It''s all for your own good."


    "Oh yeah, I''m sure!" She puffed her cheeks.


    "Anyway," Rodriguez turned to Albert. "No need to be scared of Jenny. Have more confidence. If you think she''s wrong, say it to her face. She wouldn''t get the hint otherwise."


    "I understand." Albert nodded. Easier said than done, but he''ll give it his best shot.


    In this fashion, Rodriguez addressed every player in order. His criticism was brief but sharp. It struck every player in their most sensitive spot, forcing them to confront their greatest blunders.


    "There''s more I''d like to say," Rodriguez concluded. "But, I need to pay a visit to the first string too."


    "Did they blow it?" Jennifer asked.


    "I haven''t seen the result yet, but most likely." Rodriguez nodded as he walked toward the exit. "Jenny, go pick somebody from the reserves to sub for Alex. You can take whoever you deem fit, I trust your judgment. Ask for Albert''s opinion if you''re not sure."


    "Roger."


    "One last thing: make sure you ban their Trickshooter. I doubt Gunz can play every class on such a high level."


    "Of course, no question about it. That fucking Trickshooter is getting his ass banned for sure!"


    "Language, young woman."


    "Yeah, yeah." Jennifer waved her hand. Her former vigor gradually returned. That''s good because being energetic and positive was her main redeeming point. Without that, this girl simply wouldn''t be Jennifer.


    "Good luck in your next match." Rodriguez left the stage on that note, leaving the kids to their own devices. They''ll surely put on a good performance in their final game. And if they stumble again, that''s alright too. After all, this was just a scrimmage, not a tournament match. They were here to learn and gain experience, not just to win.


    Losing today''s scrimmage may cost the Leopards the chance to be seeded high in the tournament, but that''s not a deal breaker. If the kids get to learn something new and improve for the future, that''s a fine trade.


    In that regard, Rodriguez was thankful to StormBlitz. Both their first and second strings were strong and engaging. Fighting against them provided his kids with an abundance of experience.


    On his way across the hallway, Rodriguez spotted a familiar face. Alex was just standing there, staring at a wall with a soft drink in hand.


    "You really put me on the spot with your stunt," Rodriguez admitted. "It was hard for me to be too harsh on Jenny after you quit like that. Was that your goal?"


    "Who knows," Alex shrugged and took a slow sip from his drink, without even turning to face Rodriguez. "Don''t get the wrong idea, though That idiot can go die in a hole for all I care- agh!" CHOP!


    "Don''t talk like that, especially when you don''t mean it."


    "Tch, whatever." Alex rubbed the aching spot on his head. "Some coach you are. Is it fun beating your players? You literally put me on the second string to fuck with me, you twisted bastard."


    "First, language. Second, ''twisted bastard''? That''s some respect you show your coach."


    "Whatever. I don''t expect to stay in the club anyway after all this crap."


    "I''m not kicking you out, if that''s what you think."


    "Eh? You want to keep me?" Alex shuddered. With everything that just happened on stage, he was sure his middle school Classmancers career was over. Yet, he was allowed to stay? "Why? Didn''t you put me through all that shit to make me quit on my own?"


    "If I wanted, I would have kicked you out a long time ago," Rodriguez said matter-of-factly. "You can call me ''twisted bastard'' or any other names you wish, but I want you to understand I didn''t intend to bully you."


    "Then what? What was the point of that whole gig?"


    "I simply wanted you to realize how low you''ve fallen," Rodriguez explained. "I knew you''ll stumble once Warlock is banned, and I and hoped that''ll make you question yourself."


    "Wait, you knew I''ll perform poorly without Warlock? You make it sound as if..."


    "I do have access to your match history, after all," Rodriguez smirked.


    "You sly bastard," Alex clenched the drink in his hand, almost making it spill out. "You knew all along, but you made me dig up the data anyway for the show."


    "It''s to make sure you confront the facts by yourself. It''s one thing to be told by somebody else, and another to uncover the truth on your own. Either way, the goal wasn''t to make you quit. On the contrary, it''s to make you take the game seriously again."


    "Ah." Alex paused. So basically, it was a wake-up slap. Or rather, a freaking punch. This sly coach went as far as putting Alex on the second string, endangering the whole team''s chances of winning, just to punch Alex straight in the brain.


    This stunt might cost the Leopards some seeding points, which will hurt their chances to win the regionals this year. Didn''t Coach care about winning the regionals more than anything? After all, it''s the guy who came up with the weird mixup strategy for that sole purpose.


    So, what gives? All this effort and risk, for what? Just to mentally slap Alex across the face? That''s so dumb. What did Coach want from him? What did he expect?


    "Keeping me in the club after all this shit," Alex muttered. "It''s like you''re saying I still have a chance to get anywhere."


    "Yes, you do," Rodriguez nodded. "You''re a talented boy. Already in your first year, you were very close to the level of the first string."


    "But, I didn''t make it."


    "Indeed, because I have a policy of forming the first string from seniors," Rodriguez said. Unless the kid was a godly prodigy who stood above the rest, there''s no chance Rodriguez would pick them for the first string before their last year. There were many reasons for that approach.


    One of the goals was to make the younger players hunger for the first string, motivating them to train harder. After all, it''s not like getting on the first string as a junior was entirely impossible. The current captain of first string was one such rare example, a truly genius kid.


    All in all, this motivator worked well for most kids. However, it backfired in Alex''s case.


    In hindsight, maybe Rodriguez should have strayed from his policy this once and put Alex on the first string as a freshman. Unfortunately, he couldn''t predict these consequences at the time. He still had a lot to learn as a coach.


    "This is your last year," Rodriguez said. "You can still make it into the first string if you''re good enough. You may be rusty, but your sharp instincts are still there. If you can polish yourself in time for the regionals, who knows what''ll happen."


    "Are you really going forgive me...?" Alex hung his head. The drink can in his hand trembled as he tried to take a sip. "Even after all the shit I''ve been pulling the last two years, you''d still let me into the first string?"


    "If you prove you''re putting effort and show results, I have no reason to refuse you. Everybody makes mistakes, especially kids. There''s no reason to condemn you for it."


    "T-Thank you v-very much." Sobs mixed into Alex''s words.


    "Good luck," Rodriguez patted Alex''s shoulder and continued further down the hallway. "I''m expecting great things for you." On that note, he left.


    Both Alex and Jennifer received heavy blows after this match. Good. That should serve as a wakeup call for them. Each of them had to be broken down so they can rebuild themselves from scratch, stronger than ever. Once they do that... Hmhm, who knows how strong they''ll become.

 52 Everybodys Alternatives

    "You did it, huh." Howard nodded in satisfaction after hearing Yuel''s report. "You got Trever to step down and led your team to victory. You even became the new captain, congratulations."


    "Thanks." Somehow, being praised so openly by Howard felt weird. Still, it''s all true. Yuel truly achieved great results, despite all the drama that happened in the team.


    Just half an hour ago, Yuel was shaking in his boots from the mere idea of confronting Trever. In the end, he not only overcame that hurdle but also achieved victory. With Lars''s help, of course.


    This definitely warranted a celebration. Yuel took a sip from his Coca-Cola can, no longer feeling guilty about not paying for it.


    "I see everybody is celebrating with Coke," Howard chuckled at the sight. Every member of the second string was holding a can in their hand. "Should we name your team CokeBlitz?"


    "That just sounds wrong. On many levels."


    "I know, right? Haha. Was it your idea to buy Coke for everybody?"


    "No, that''s... Um, a fairy delivered them." Yuel smiled wryly. When they finished the match and returned to the waiting room, five cans were waiting for them. Trever promised to treat them if they win, so he must have watched the match from somewhere.


    This was probably Trever''s way of making up for the troubles caused. He really didn''t have to, but it brought smiles on everybody''s faces. They all sat around the room, chatting away while drinking. It did wonders to the team''s spirits.


    Even though Trever wasn''t here, he was still supporting the team from behind. In the end, Yuel was just a stand-in. Trever was much better suited to be the captain.


    "Anyway, you really did well." Howard sang even more praises. It''s amazing. Howard had never praised Yuel like this before. He always either scolded or belittled Yuel and rarely ever appreciated. This was huge progress!


    "I''m really impressed." Howard didn''t stop. Okay, at this point the amount of praising started sounding downright uncanny. "So, I''m trusting you to win the last game as well." Howard''s eyes turned sharp, like a knife pressed against Yuel''s throat.


    "O-Of course!" Yuel responded by instinct. After receiving so much praise, he had to live up to the expectations placed on him... Wait, was that maybe Howard''s goal all along? Did Yuel just beautifully walk into Howard''s trap? Gah! N-No! Yuel didn''t care about any of that praise! Not even one bit! Really! Goddammit...


    "How did your game go?" Yuel asked, trying to deflect attention from himself.


    "We won, but it was a close one. They adapted to us really well, which is why," Howard placed a hand on Yuel''s shoulder and squeezed it. "You must win the next game, no matter what."


    "G-Got it." Yuel stepped back to escape the grab. Ugh, it hurt a little.


    "I have high hopes for you" These were Howard''s last words before leaving.


    [He''d say anything to motivate his chess pieces.] Yuel grumped. [Just you wait. I''ll make you praise my skill for real next time.]


    Howard''s lip service wasn''t appreciated, but it''s understandable. The first string was in a tight spot, hanging at a 2-2. One more defeat and StormBlitz will lose the entire scrimmage unless Yuel''s team prevails once again and finishes with a 4-1. That''ll guarantee StormBlitz''s victory today, regardless of how the first string match plays out.


    After getting buttered up so much by Howard, Yuel secretly hoped the first string will blow their next match. That''ll turn the second string''s 4-1 into today''s savior. That''ll show Howard!


    [But first, we have to actually win.] Yuel switched gears. It was too early to indulge himself in rebellious banter. He still had an important game ahead of him. A game he had to win at any cost.


    His team took the last game quite convincingly, but that''s because the enemy didn''t expect Lars to be this strong. They allowed Lars to pick Trickshooter and to gain early momentum, that was their undoing. Lars was unstoppable once he started rolling.


    But, the Leopards surely learned from their mistakes. They''ll find a way to adapt. The next game won''t be nearly as easy.


    First, they''ll most certainly ban Trickshooter. After that overwhelming performance, anybody could tell it''s Lars''s strongest class. It''s the only class with which he had a positive win ratio against Trever in 1v1.


    However, that didn''t mean Lars couldn''t play other classes. He liked insta-locking Trickshooter, but Yuel made sure to stop him every once in a while so he picks something else. Yuel also closely monitored the classes Lars picked during practice, to make sure the distribution wasn''t 99% Trickshooter and 1% everything else.


    Thanks to that, Lars didn''t become a one-trick pony. Trickshooter was still his main and strongest class, but he could play many other Carry classes too. So, unlike Freezer, Lars won''t fall apart just because his main class is banned. Probably.


    [It''ll be fine. That goof will do fine.] Yuel repeated like a mantra while walking upstage. The fifth and final game was about to commence.


    "Leopards switch a player." The umpire announced. "Freezer is replaced by Onions."


    [Not surprised.] This only further supported Yuel''s theory. Freezer could probably only play Warlock on a competitive level. And, even then he had some glaring issues.


    On paper, Freezer seemed like an experienced player with superb decision-making skills. But, something was amiss. Most likely, Freezer was rusty with other classes due to lack of practice.


    "That''s what happens when you only main one class all day," Yuel addressed Lars. "You''ll be kicked out as soon as your main is banned."


    "Yeah, I get it, I get it" Lars nodded. "You only told me that like a billion times. Don''t worry, I practiced all the good classes. Pick any Carry you want and I''mma show you da stuff, yo! "


    "Elf."


    "Geeeeh! I mean, not like I can''t, but... Really, dude?"


    "Yes. They''re going to be on guard against you and Elf is great for these scenarios. But, I haven''t decided for sure yet. It depends on whether they ban Trickshooter during the first-"


    ¡ºThe enemy team banned Trickshooter.¡»


    "Welp," Lars sighed. "Guess Elf it is. You''re a freakin'' prophet dude, I swear."


    "I just got something called ''basic drafting knowledge."


    "What''s that skill? Never spent any SP on it, haha." Lars tried to laugh his disappointment away. "Meh, just pick whatever you think is best. I''mma blow these guys out of the water no matter what I play."


    [Mr. Confidence, as always.] Yuel sighed. As much as he wanted to take a jab at Lars''s attitude, he couldn''t. Lars delivered results, regardless of matchup and circumstances. That always gave him the excuse to not participate in the drafting process. No matter what class he ended up with, nine times out of ten he prevailed through brute strength.


    Everybody else could draft. Gilbert was good enough to be the team''s drafter, Dan was decent and Roi could at least draft a good matchup for his own lane. But Lars? Put him in charge of drafting and he''ll mash random buttons.


    Was it mandatory for Lars to know drafting? Well, not necessarily. This was a team game, so as long as others could handle the drafting - Lars didn''t need to lift a finger. At least, that''s how Yuel justified being lax with Lars on the matter.


    Honestly, it''s such a pain to teach that goof anything outside matches. Things which Lars couldn''t directly experience on his flesh through gameplay simply refused to register in his bird-brain. Sigh.


    "How do you feel about fighting their Pyro?" Yuel asked.


    "She''s sick, yo! That insta-kill combo is da stuff!"


    "That''s not what I''m asking." Yuel shook his head. "Think you can handle her? Remember. you won''t be playing Shooter this time. If you think she''s too much, we can ban her."


    "No problem!" Lars flashed his teeth. "Elf, Pirate or even Archer - doesn''t matter! I''mma beat her for sure!"


    "Some confidence for somebody who can''t beat Trever." Yuel rubbed his temples. If he got one cent every time Lars spouted such overconfident nonsense, he''d be a millionaire by now.


    It was no use. Mr. Confidence thought he could take on the whole world, so Yuel had to make the call himself.


    The first two bans were pretty much decided. The first was Shadow Walker because it''s Shadow Walker. The second was Cryomancer because SkyNight played it extremely well. That left only one more ban for this banning phase.


    There''s no point banning Warlock anymore, since Freezer was switched out. And, there weren''t any other bans which seemed mandatory.


    So, maybe it''s a good idea to ban Pyromancer here? After all, they had to win this round, no matter what. They were going to win here and make sure StormBlitz wins the scrimmage, no matter how first string fares. That''s what Yuel promised.


    Until now, Yuel had always kept Pyromancer in play. However, that''s only because there were reasons to believe they''d successfully deal with Breaker''s combos. Right now, he wasn''t so sure.


    Because of Freezer''s sub, Pyromancer became a wildcard. There''s no telling whether the new player was going to play Mid or something else. Therefore, there''s no telling whether Breaker will play Mid or Carry. She exhibited mastery in both roles, so either was a legit option.


    If she plays Mid, she''ll face Gilbert again. That''s an unfavorable matchup, as proven by the devastating results of the third game. Yet again, they''ll have to devise some elaborate plan against this arrangement, such as picking Aeromancer + Beastmaster.


    Last time, that almost backfired. They were only saved because Freezer was a rusty Electromancer and because the enemy didn''t properly shut down Dan''s Beastmaster. It''s no good to rely on such luck again.


    On the other hand, if Breaker plays Carry, Lars will have to handle her. Unlike Trever, Lars had many holes in his defense. Against the absurd burst of combo, even a tiny misplay in defense was going to be fatal.


    Without Trickshooter, could Lars fight Breaker without getting eliminated in an instant? Ugh, it''s such a sticky situation. No matter where Breaker plays, she''ll be a tough opponent to deal with.


    "You''re running out of time." Gilbert pointed out.


    "Oh, right." Yuel returned to earth. The clock showed 5 seconds. He had to make the second ban, so he banned Cryomancer.


    "What''s wrong, dude?" Lars craned his head toward Yuel. "You look beat. Fried your brain? Haha."


    "Maybe I''m a bit tired." Yuel exhaled and dropped backward on his chair. Thinking of it, he had been making shot calls for four games in a row now and this was the fifth. Every game was also stressful too. The Leopards never gave him a breather.


    And, then there were other responsibilities weighing on his shoulders: being the captain and being repeatedly told to win 4-1. Oh, and in case people forgot, he was also the Support. No, no pressure at all. Easy.


    "You look troubled," Gilbert said


    "I just can''t make up my mind about the last ban."


    "You don''t have to make that decision alone, you know." Gilbert crossed his arms. "I''m still technically the vice-captain, in case you forgot."


    "Yeah," Roi added. "Speak to us if you got problems, man."


    [Oh, right. I suppose I can borrow their help.] Yuel contemplated for a moment. It''s true he was responsible for drafting, but they were a team. Just the way Lars was exempt from drafting because somebody else could handle the job, Yuel could also share some of the burden with others. Especially with Gilbert, who was as good as Yuel in drafting.


    "I consider banning Pyro," Yuel explained. "But, I''m not too sure."


    "That''s new," Gilbert raised an eyebrow. "You''ve been arguing for keeping Pyro open this whole day. What changed?"


    "I''m not sure we can handle her this time. Because of the sub, we don''t know if she is going to be Carry or Mid, so it''s hard to prepare. And, you know how Lars plays. He''d be combo''d to death in a second."


    "Whoa!" Lars exclaimed. "You don''t trust me, dude?"


    "Not particularly. Not after you chased Breaker under tower and got killed."


    "Welp, that was kinda dumb," Lars rolled his eyes. "But, c''mon! I dominated most of the game, didn''t I?"


    "Yes, with Trickshooter. Which is now banned."


    "I can do that with any class! 200%!"


    "If only I could take your word for it..." Yuel sighed for the hundredth time. "Besides, that''s only half the equation. There''s the chance she''ll play Mid, which means we''ll have to go out of our ways to counter her again."


    "I can spare you that headache," Gilbert pointed at the enemy''s bans. "These aren''t bans for playing a Mid Pyro."


    After Trickshooter, the Leopards'' second ban was Paladin. Not surprising, considering Justice Strike had been giving Breaker trouble. These bans directly targeted Yuel and Lars, so the straightforward counters for Mid Pyromancer were left open.


    "If we suspect she goes for Mid," Gilbert said. "I can go for either Sage or Sorcerer. Not claiming it''ll to be an easy ride, but I should be able to handle her."


    "I see. You''re right." Yuel rubbed his eyes. He started overthinking the whole topic way too early. He should have known they could narrow down Breaker''s options based on the bans, but... He freaked out. Maybe his brain was really fried at this point.


    It was weird. Yuel led the team to victory last game, so he should have been more confident about the next game. But instead, he felt even more stressed than before. All the adrenaline and sharpness from last game vanished without a trace, leaving him only with fatigue and worry.


    The more he thought back on the "victory" StormBlitz achieved last game, the more concerned he became. It''s clear there were many fortunate factors in play back then, like Lars snowballing early and Freezer playing poorly. None of that will happen next game. Trickshooter? Banned. Freezer? Subbed.


    Worst of all, the Leopards'' coach discussed something with the team. Yuel briefly saw the man step on stage during the break. As far as he knew, that happened only once before today, right before [that] match. The one match in which StormBlitz was rent asunder and nearly fell apart.


    Something was coming. Yuel had no idea what, but something was going to happen this match and he wasn''t going to like it.


    Could he hold the team together if push comes to shove? There''s no guarantee. Compared to Trever, Yuel''s charisma stat was rock bottom. If the team falls apart because of him...


    "Relax, dude," Lars smacked Yuel on the back, a technique he inherited from a certain senior. "Look at these guys, they''re on guard against us." He pointed at the banned Trickshooter and Paladin. "You said they''re all seniors, right? Well, guess who''s scaring them shitless right now? That''s right, this sick freshmen duo right here!"


    "Oh." Yuel blinked. It''s true, the two bans were specifically aimed at Yuel and Lars. The Leopards didn''t want to deal with this duo after witnessing its power, which meant they couldn''t find any counters.


    So, while Yuel felt pressured by Breaker''s presence, the enemy team felt pressured by Lars''s strength. And, maybe they were even a little pressured by Yuel''s tactics too. Neither side felt like they had the upper hand.


    "You see? We got this!" Lars grinned. "Besides, didn''t ya say Elf is kinda good against Pyro? Because of range or something?"


    "That''s... true, actually." Yuel forgot how to blink for a moment. Did Lars just bring up a favorable matchup? Unbelievable. Absurd. Who was this smart guy and what did he do to the usual brainless goof? Perhaps Lars absorbed more game knowledge than Yuel gave him credit for.


    As a Carry with an extremely long reach, Elf was indeed favored against Pyromancer''s medium reach. Elf didn''t quite have the tools for outright defeating Pyromancer, but it could be played defensively by maintaining distance, without surrendering the lane. That''s especially effective for staying out the range of Breaker''s combos.


    Yuel actually considered all of that over the break, back when he was coming up with a Trickshooter replacement for Lars. But somehow, it slipped his mind while he was fussing over Breaker''s options. His brain must had been on the brink of shutting down completely if a goof like Lars had to remind him of the strategic value of Elf.


    "Alright," Yuel said. "Let''s keep Pyro in the game and deal with her, like before. Any bans you''d like?" He turned to the others.


    "No Viking would be really nice," Roi said. "I''ve been facing that dude all day and I tell ya, he plays a good Viking. Make him pick something else."


    "That works." Yuel nodded and selected Viking as the third ban. Aside from Shadow Walker, the other bans StormBlitz made specifically targeted classes which players from Leopards liked to pick. It felt less like a tactic and more like a personal attack.


    The Leopards retaliated in kind. Their third ban was Druid, targeting Yuel again. Two bans against Yuel and one against Lars. They must have left quite the impression on the other team.


    What kind of face would Breaker, the "pride senior", make if she knew she was on guard against two freshmen? Yuel was tempted to send her a private message asking how it felt, but those were disabled in official matches.


    Paladin and Druid were the two classes Yuel felt most confident about, but he wouldn''t dare to call himself a competitive player if he only could play these two. He held game knowledge in high regard, so naturally, he mastered many different options in the Support role. He was probably only second to Dan in term versatility, and that''s because Dan also learned how to play off-meta and meme classes.


    So, there were plenty of options. Question was, what should Yuel pick to keep Breaker in check? He had some ideas, but he had to admit - he was exhausted.


    Therefore, it''s best to pick a class which didn''t demand a high level of execution and decision-making. Even if it isn''t high tier, as long as it doesn''t require many fast and accurate decisions, it''ll be great.


    Which class fit that requirement best? The answer actually stared him in the face the whole day: Warlock.


    With a CC ultimate which shrouds the entire area in darkness, it''s easy to influence a team fight with a single click. There''s no need to aim or to make complicated decisions, just press a button and all nearby enemies are affected. Simple and effective. Perhaps that''s why Freezer mained this class, the guy looked like he was born tired.


    With that decided, Yuel picked Warlock. Next, he turned to discuss the rest of picks with his teammates. There wasn''t enough time to strategize during the break, because he was busy reporting to Howard while the rest were busy celebrating with free Coca-Cola. Thus, Yuel had to organize everything on the fly.


    First, Dan. His Beastmaster was very effective last game, which showed what type of team the Leopards were. They must have primarily trained how to deal with meta classes, but not so much how to play against the gimmicky off-meta ones. Thanks to that, Dan got away with playing Beastmaster last game and even showed great results.


    Unfortunately, it''s unlikely Beastmaster was going to work again, especially not after the Leopards had a meeting with their coach. Then, how about another obscure class?


    "Say," Yuel addressed Dan. "Is there another off-meta class you can play that''s viable?"


    "Sure." Dan smiled, no doubt entertaining some wacky ideas. "How about Jungle Lumi or Jungle Cryo?"


    "Okay, not THAT off-meta. These are all memes."


    "Hey, don''t underestimate Jungle Lumi. If Lumi builds damage, it can be pretty scary." Dan claimed while wearing a smirk that betrayed his words. He clearly just thought it''d be cool to meme on stage.


    "I meant something viable. Something you''d see in a pro match at least once in a while."


    "You meta slave. No soul, eh?"


    "There''s a difference between off-meta and meme, in case you didn''t know."


    "Heh, okay, fine. How about Chrono? Meta enough for you?"


    "You can play Chrono too?" Yuel blinked. Chronomancer was a mage played primarily as a Jungler due to its heavy burst potential, slowdown CC, decent mobility and time-rewinding ult. It''s complex utility class which demanded high-level execution to be effective.


    Not many could boast they can play Chronomancer competitively. However, judging by how well Dan played Beastmaster, he probably didn''t joke about it.


    "Impressive."


    "Heh, no big deal," Dan puffed his chest. "Told ya, I can play any Jungler."


    "No kidding," Roi chuckled. "This guy right here is a jack-of-all-freaking-trades in the flesh. Back when we played baseball, dude legit tried to learn everything at once. Hitting, defending, pitching and even catching, you name it. And I''m like: ''My dude, how you gonna pitch when you''re also the catcher?'' Lol."


    "Um, that was..." Dan shifted his eyes. "Anyways, I''m a changed man now. See? I only learned everything about one role this game. That still allows me to play cool stuff, like Jungle Lumi and Jungle Cryo. But, I won''t lie. Being able to play all roles sounds cool too."


    "And theeeere we go. Classic Dan-of-all-Trades. You ain''t learned nothing, lol."


    "Oh shut up." Dan chuckled.


    [Interesting.] Yuel nodded to himself. He didn''t know these two personally, so this conversation was insightful.


    Apparently, it had always been Dan''s thing to be a versatile generalist. That convinced Yuel even more that Dan could play Chronomancer on a competitive level, despite being only one of countless classes Dan learned. Dan-of-all-Trades was a fitting name for sure.


    And so, Yuel put his trust in Dan and went along with the Chronomancer idea. However, he didn''t pick it right away, just to play it safe. If the enemy sees Chronomancer early, they might respond by picking a more CC-heavy comp to counter Chronomancer''s time-rewinding ult. That''d be a problem.


    So instead, Yuel picked Elf for Lars. It was already decided in his mind that the defensive capabilities of Elf were the best pick for Lars this game. Yuel would have preferred to push the Carry pick for a little later, but there''s the chance Elf will be banned in the second banning phase. It was a slim chance, but Yuel didn''t want to take any risks. He didn''t have any good backup plans in the case Elf was banned, so Elf had to be picked now.


    What most unsettled Yuel about the development of this drafting phase was the absence of Pyromancer. Breaker usually picked her favorite class early into the draft, but they were already halfway through and still nothing.


    Was the enemy cooking something up again? After all, they discussed something with their coach. There''s a good chance he provided them with some sort of game plan.


    Then again, picking Pyromancer early wasn''t exactly a smart move in the first place. Maybe the coach just called Breaker out on that?


    "Oh man," Roi made a face. "They went after my Knight. Guess they''re all sick of getting parried, lol."


    The second banning phase opened with another personal attack, this time on Roi. He played Knight all day, just like the enemy Top Laner played Viking all day. So, it''s an eye for an eye. StormBlitz banned Viking, therefore the Leopards banned Knight.


    Now, both Top Laners had to adapt by picking something new. The Leopards had no intention making the last game easy for Yuel. Even after losing three matches, they didn''t lose their spirit and were still going strong, right from the drafting phase.


    On one hand, Yuel kind of wished the Leopards'' spirit would crumble so they hand him an easy win. On the other hand, he was glad they stayed strong. The Leopards were worthy opponents. He wanted to defeat them while they were playing their best, that''s the only way it''d be truly satisfying.


    "Lel, can I go for Warrior?" Roi asked with an impish smile.


    "I don''t mind," Yuel cocked his head. "But, you sure? There are better options."


    "I want a guy with a good bat and Warrior is as good as it gets."


    "I see. You want to keep parrying." Yuel had no idea how he even understood Roi''s intention.


    As far as parrying was concerned, Warrior was among the best classes in the game. Yuel experienced that first-hand when he practiced parrying against Julia. Compared to classes with one-handed swords like Paladin and Knight, Warrior carried a large two-handed sword and swung it swiftly with both arms. Yuel''s parrying success ratio increased by about 20% when he played Warrior.


    With that said, no sane person would ever pick Warrior just to slightly increase their parrying ratio. Except, Roi was no sane person. He was a walking parrying machine.


    "Go for it," Yuel said.


    "Awesome!" Roi locked-in his Warrior like an excited child.


    With that, the drafting phase approached its end. For some reason, there''s still no sign of Pyromancer. The enemy didn''t ban any of Pyromancer''s main counters for Mid Lane, so it''s safe to assume Breaker wasn''t going to play Mid. Besides, the enemy already picked Shaman, a mage without combo potential, at least as far as Yuel knew.


    Still, just in case, Gilbert picked Sorcerer. There''s always the possibility the enemy was playing mind games and planning sneak in a Pyromancer in the last second. As the one who invented the mixup strategy, there''s no telling what other aces the Leopards'' coach had up his sleeve.


    Shaman wasn''t Carry material either, so the enemy''s last pick was assuredly going to be the Carry. Was it going to be Pyromancer? Or, some other class with combo? Either way, the Elf pick for Lars should had covered all these scenarios.


    [Elf, huh.] Jennifer lifted her chin. [I see what you''re doing. You ain''t gonna ban my Pyro, but you still play around it. And, this one too.] She threw a glance at the Sorcerer, who was clearly picked to kill the possibility of Mid Pyromancer.


    So, that''s what these scrubs were basically saying, right? "Come at us with everything ya got! We gonna mop the floor with ya!"


    Irritating scrubs, they hadn''t banned Pyromancer even once today. She had been making sick plays left and right the whole day, yet these triggered trash kids thought they could handle her without a problem.


    Grrrr! She sooooo wanted to insta-lock Pyromancer and beat the shit outta these trash kids! But, what''s even more infuriating, was how everybody seemed to think she can''t play shit except for Pyromancer.


    [Bitch, I got a bunch of combo classes waiting in line. I''ve been waiting the whole day for you to ban Pyro so I can show ''em off, dang it!] Jennifer waved an angry fist at the screen.


    What''s even worse, it didn''t even cross anybody''s mind she can play anything other than combo classes. Sure, she was a combo god above everything, but she practiced normal meta plays too. She just found them less fun to play, that''s all. She could definitely play them decently, and yet...


    ["Decently, huh. I hope you give it a try next match. You may be surprised."] What was it with Coach? It''s like he was saying Jennifer will have her ass handed to her if she plays a non-combo class.


    Okay! Fine! They all wanna see her play something that''s not combo? Then, she''ll show them a mothafucka non-combo class!


    [Here! How''s that, huh!?] Jennifer made the last pick: Pirate. Here, a non-combo class! These scrubs better not fall off their chairs from shock!


    "Wha..." Yuel gaped like a fish.


    "That''s one funny-looking Pyromancer." Lars chuckled.


    "Um," Dan titled his head. "I think I''ve been sleeping on the latest patch notes. Turns out they made Pirate into a combo class"


    "You didn''t sleep on anything," Yuel said, his voice hoarse. That was no Pyromancer and not a combo class either. In fact, it wasn''t even a mage. Just a [proper] and [standard] marksman who was meta to boot. Yes, the [normal] stuff.


    Yet somehow, it couldn''t get more alien than that. It''s the last thing Yuel expected ComboBreaker to pick after she has been coming across as a meta-defying player the whole day. Pirate was even partially a counter to Elf if utilized correctly.


    Just what was going on with this match? Yuel was exhausted, so he picked Warlock to cut himself some slack. Trickshooter was banned, so Lars had to play a weaker class and a defensive one at that.


    Then, on the other end of the spectrum, Dan played the high skill Chronomancer because he claimed he could play any Jungler. And, Roi picked Warrior for... better parrying ratio?


    And finally, Breaker picked a non-combo class for the first time today. Odd and uncharacteristic picks all over the place. Yuel didn''t even...


    He was too tired to try making sense of this mess. The final game was definitely going to be something. He had no idea what, but it''ll be something.

 53 Inherited Skills

    The final game between StormBlitz and Leopards began. If StormBlitz can take this game, they''ll be at 4-1. That''ll guarantee StormBlitz''s victory in today''s scrimmage right away. Yuel had to win this game, no matter what.


    [Have to... win... ugh.] The harder Yuel tried to concentrate, the stronger fatigue beat him down. It was all too much. He had been juggling between supporting, shot-calling and being a captain. He never trained for wearing so many different hats in one game.


    Fortunately, he got away with picking Warlock this time. That should lessen the decision-making he had to make during team fights, which were always the most chaotic parts of the game. By simply booting Eldritch Nightmare, he''d blind the entire enemy team at once. It even became a meme in the Classmancers community that Warlock required only one button to play.


    Still, Warlock was considered an intermediate difficulty class and the reason for that were his various invocations. The first two spells, Eldritch Blast and Eldritch Field, were straightforward damaging spells. One was a line skillshot and the other was a circle AoE, as simple as mage spells could get.


    However, what made the class interesting was the third skill: Invocation. It allowed the Warlock to pick one of multiple bonus effects and add it the next spell he casts.


    For example, using Power Invocation made the next spell deal more damage, whereas using Slowdown Invocation made the next spell apply a slow on the target. There were five invocations in total, so the Warlock''s kit was very customizable. Picking the right invocations for the right situations was key for playing Warlock effectively.


    All these options made Warlock a somewhat complex class, but Yuel knew exactly which invocations to focus on in which scenarios. So, it was a no brainer for him. Once the purpose of each invocation was understood inside out, the decision-making process became rather straightforward.


    The enemy was at low HP? Hit them with a Power Invocation. The enemy was fleeing? Hit them with a Slowdown Invocation. Everything was down to simple scenarios like that. In addition, activating an invocation required a mere button press and the effect will apply on the next spell regardless of when that spell will be cast. In other words, there''s no taxing mechanical skill involved. Perfect for Yuel.


    During the laning phase, Yuel mostly used Power Invocation to help Lars clear the lane faster. He also zoned their lane opponents, ComboBreaker and SkyKnight, by extending the range of his spells with a Radius Invocation. Going back and forth between the two effects, his job on lane required minimal mental effort.


    Yuel was tired, but maintaining this basic routine was as natural as breathing. He repeated these actions like a machine, without even thinking much. As long as neither side goes on the offense of all a sudden, Yuel won''t have to make any split-second decisions or analyze chaotic situations.


    Surprisingly, Breaker really didn''t initiate any fights. Did she prioritize farming safely to take full advantage of the Pirate''s passive? Or, was she perhaps wary of the dominating display of skill Lars showcased last game?


    Whichever it was, there wasn''t much fighting going on in Bot. And, Yuel didn''t complain.


    "C''mon, dude," Lars pouted. "Let''s rush them a little."


    "No." Yuel retorted. "Stay back and keep shooting from afar. You''re playing Elf, your advantage is range. Use it."


    "Geh, fine." Lars made a face and continued shooting laser beams from the backline. When using Elven Sight, the range of his basic attacks was largely extended and he could snipe minions from far away. And, not only minions. He also sniped the enemy Pirate and Lumimancer whenever he had the chance.


    Even though Elf was a defensive class by nature, it was actually pretty good at exploiting the enemy''s defensiveness as well. If the enemy doesn''t aggress, the Elf will simply shoot them from afar. Bit by bit, that''d exhaust the enemy''s HP.


    That''s all the more effective when in the hand of a godlike FPS player like Lars. His point-of-view changed to first-person during Elven Sight, becoming like his beloved first-person shooters. Lars felt right at home. His already absurd accuracy was enhanced even further, allowing him to land shots across half the lane even when the enemies were trying to be cautious.


    "Tch," Jennifer clicked her tongue as a laser beam hit her. "What''s with this guy?" Even though she tried to sneak out of firing range, Gunz somehow landed a shot on her anyway. Freaking aimbot incarnate.


    Like, what the actual heck? These snipes were hitting her across half the lane. Putting aside how difficult it was to land shots on moving targets from that distance, Jennifer was specifically trying to dodge these shots. She practiced such scenarios before and knew how to handle Elf''s long-ranged shots. Or, at least, she [thought] she knew, but Gunz''s shots found their way to her regardless.


    Also, what''s with that stupid sci-fi skin? Gunz''s Elf wore a helmet and was dressed in futuristic armor. He also wielded a laser gun instead of a bow, which fired green laser beams instead of arrows. First Trickshooter, now a freaking StormTrooper. Always "Gunz", huh. [A cool skin there, dammit.]


    Skins were inconsequential, but this irritated her. Here she was, COMBO-Breaker, playing a NON-COMBO class. It''s like she gave up on her identity, just because it was a little hard to play combo against Gunz. Grrrrr!


    "You sure you don''t want to aggress?" Albert asked. "That Elf is too good of a sniper. We keep losing HP from trying to dodge his shots."


    "I know, dang it." Jennifer hissed. Yeah, they were kinda getting rekt at the moment. Gunz''s snipes repeatedly punched their HP bars, forcing them to retreat after a while. Running around and doing sudden dodge rolls hardly affected that aimbot scum, so sticking with defense clearly didn''t work that well for them. Going on the offensive didn''t sound like a bad idea, but...


    "Nah," Jennifer shook her head. "Let''s keep farming for now. Once I get enough gold advantage to outbuild them, we''ll rush these scrubs."


    "Well, playing Pirate safe during the early game is good and all..." Albert didn''t finish that thought. The Pirate''s early power was relatively weak, but it compensated for that with Plunder, a passive which granted extra gold upon last-hitting. Therefore, by framing effectively, eventually, Jennifer will earn substantially more gold than Gunz and will be able to finish an Lv.3 item faster.


    But, as a fellow player who knew how to play Carry, Albert felt that Jennifer''s approach was too lax. Farming safely was good and all, that''s the standard strategy for Pirate. The current situation called for action, at least in his opinion.


    Elf wasn''t a particularly strong Carry for 1v1 and 2v2, so Jennifer should be able to overpower Gunz in a fight. If she takes the fight to Gunz, she should be able to either kill the guy or injure him enough to force a retreat. Either result would be great.


    But, what did Albert know? Jennifer was the best player on the team, so she surely had her reasons. He decided to keep quiet and let her do her thing.


    [She''s playing it safe.] Yuel concluded after observing Breaker''s playstyle for five minutes now. She never pushed hard or initiated fights, she''d rather stay in the backline and keep dodging Lars''s snipes. Even when Yuel asked Lars to move a little forward, Breaker didn''t bite and insisted to play defense. This experiment proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that Breaker had no intention going on the offensive for now.


    As far as Breaker''s build was concerned, it was standard so far. Solid, but standard. Yuel was half-expecting to see something as absurd as combo, but there were no surprises. Between how Breaker prioritized farming safely and her orthodox build, it didn''t seem like she was planning to do anything out of this world. Was she going to play standard meta Pirate? Really? It was a bit disappointing.


    Perhaps that''s how she played when she wasn''t using combo. In fact, that''s more in line with the general image Yuel had of the Leopards: they all played by the book, best at piloting and countering meta classes. Until now, Breaker''s niche combo playstyle was an anomaly in this strictly meta-oriented team.


    Did their coach force her to change styles? Not surprising, considering how Lars outplayed her combos last game. If Yuel''s hypothesis was correct, then Breaker was really going to play a standard meta Pirate this game, possibly something she didn''t quite enjoy. A bit unfortunate, but Yuel didn''t have the luxury to complain. This increased StormBlitz''s chances of winning, so he was thankful.


    The situation in Bot remained unchanged for a long time. Every time both sides finished clearing minions, they retreated to their backlines and waited for the next wave. Lars managed to sneak a few snipes on the enemies during these downtimes, but otherwise not much was happening.


    After enough minion waves, this routine depleted enough of the enemy''s HP to force them to retreat to base. This made Breaker occasionally miss on some exp and gold, but she made up for it by earning extra gold from her passive, Plunder. As a result, she maintained a gold advantage over Lars.


    As the game started shifting toward the mid-game, Yuel rotated to help in Mid. Gilbert was in a deadlock against the new Mid Laner who was subbed in, so Yuel hoped to turn the tides in their favor.


    "Don''t try pushing," Yuel warned Lars before leaving the lane.


    "No problem, mom." Lars chuckled.


    The enemy Lumimancer was removed from Bot thanks to a gank by Dan, so with Yuel rotating it''d become a 1v1 in Bot between Lars and Breaker.


    How was Breaker going to play in this scenario? Honestly, part of the reason Yuel wanted to rotate from Bot was to see what''d happen next. Breaker''s performance in the upcoming 1v1 scenario should determine whether she had something up her sleeve or was really just playing a standard Pirate.


    "Their Warlock is missing," Jennifer warned. "Gotta be rotating to Mid."


    Finally, she was left in a 1v1 situation against Gunz. The pesky Support player, who had been getting in her way every damn game, was out of the picture. This was the opportunity she had been waiting for!


    Gunz was untouchable while supported by Chessmaster because that pesky Chessmaster was a freaking expert at finding openings in the enemy''s offense, he probably even had a diploma and everything. But, in a straightforward 1v1 , Jennifer was gonna kick Gunz''s ass!


    Still, she didn''t act right away. First, she confirmed that the Warlock successfully reached Mid. That sneaky bastard liked playing mind games, so Jennifer could never be too safe.


    Next, she confirmed that the enemy Chronomancer was still jungling in Top Jungle. Awesome! Nobody was gonna interfere with this 1v1. This was her moment! Showdown time! She had been holding back this whole time, eating countless snipes to the face, just to endure until this very moment!


    Her gold advantage already kicked in, letting her get one item ahead of Gunz. She clearly had the DPS advantage now. As long she delivers the first strike - she was gonna kick his ass for sure!


    Right before the minion waves were fully cleared, Jennifer initiated her assault. The opening attack was none other than her ult: Release the Kraken! Landing this opening strike would give her more than enough advantage for the rest of the fight. She gonna destroy this Gunz dude!


    "Release the-" The Pirate''s familiar sound cue resounded.


    "Dan," Yuel called out. "How fast can you get to Bot? I suspect this 1v1 won''t end up nicely."


    "Hmm," Dan pondered. "I can get there pretty fast if I use Haste with quadra Accel, but that''s quite the investment."


    "Please do. If we get a kill on their Carry as a result, it''ll be huge for us."


    "Okay, I''m on it."


    Meanwhile, in Bot, Lars had to confront Breaker''s assault. "Release the-" A sound cue he had heard countless times in his Classmancers career. The big tentacle dude was coming!


    [Crap!] Lars had to dodge! Fortunately, Elf had Elven Backflip, so he should be able to jump out of the Kraken''s range. Easy, no sweat! He watched Trever dodge his Krakens many times before, just like that. He also dodged some of Trever''s Krakens... Wait. Wait, wait, wait!


    His finger was about to press on the Q key, but it froze. No, it was too soon. Until the Pirate finishes shouting "Release the Kraken!", it''s still possible to cancel the ult and cast it again right away. Trever tricked Lars countless times like that, so he not gonna fall for it again! He gonna wait until the very last nanosecond, yo!


    [Not even dodging?] Jennifer sneered. With the reaction speed Gunz showcased so far, she expected him to at least dodge the incoming Kraken. She already played out the next couple moves in her head from there: she cancels her ult, closes the distance with Backfire Cannon and casts Kraken again, this time hitting for sure!


    But, turned out Gunz''s defense was utter crap. He couldn''t even dodge the Kraken, just because she caught him a little off guard while minions were still on lane. What a disappointment. [Fine by me, eat the Kraken right in the face! Makes it easier for me, hmph.]


    "-the Kraaaaaaken!" Her Pirate finished the dramatic shout. The legendary sea monster erupted from the ground, emerging on the surface to destroy everything in range. That StormTrooper Elf was totally done for- ... or not!?


    Right as the Kraken was to crash Gunz, his jetpack lit up and launched him into the air. It had a stylish animation, but it was the same skill Jennifer had been anticipating all along: Elven Leap! Except, it came way later than she thought.


    So, Gunz waited for the very very VEEEEEERY last moment before dodging. Fuuuuuu! Was that even gonna work? Jennifer had no idea! She had never seen Elven Leap cutting it so close against Kraken. Normal people would dodge as soon as they can, not wait a light year first. Dang it.


    And, it worked. Gunz just barely slipped away from the emerging Kraken. It was such a close call that it almost looked like a lucky dodge. No, it HAD to be a lucky dodge. No way Gunz knew that shit would work. Just no way...


    [When did he learn to dodge like that!?] Yuel''s eyes almost popped out of their sockets when Lars somersaulted through the air and dodged the Kraken''s tentacles by a hair''s breadth.


    Unbelievable. Lars was a glass cannon, so his defense should be terrible. No, it actually WAS terrible. That''s a fact.


    Yet, Lars somehow beautifully dodged that Kraken. He didn''t take the bait and patiently waited for the very last moment. He leaped away only after Breaker could no longer cancel her ult. It almost looked like a pro level play.


    Elven Leap being capable of dodging Kraken in the last split-second was very specific knowledge. Even Yuel didn''t know how close Elven Leap could cut it until he saw Trever pull off such clutch dodges against Lars''s Pirate. Whether it was Elf, Seraph or any other Carry with a dodge skill - Trever always knew the best way to dodge Kraken. If he lived in a fantasy world, people would use him as an Anti-Kraken ward for sure.


    After fighting against Trever on a daily basis, Lars must have absorbed this knowledge and made it his own. Trying to teach that goof about these interactions would be a waste of time, but after seeing Trever abuse them in action against him - the knowledge was burned into Lars''s mind. Literally "monkey sees, monkey does".


    Even though Trever was booted out of the team, a part of him was still here and pushed the team forward. Thanks to the experience acquired from Trever, Lars could stand his ground against Breaker''s Pirate! It''s a matchup he experienced at least a hundred times by now!


    [Tch, think I gonna let you get away!?] Jennifer roared internally. That damn scrub, leaping away in the last moment like that. This shit ain''t over! Perhaps her initial plan was ruined, but she still had more tools in her arsenal. She won''t let this golden opportunity slip from her! She''ll get this kill, right here and now!


    Jennifer turned around, showing her back to Gunz. Then, she fired Backfire Cannon, blasting herself toward the spot Gunz where was gonna land!


    Unfortunately, the knockback alone wasn''t strong enough to get her all the way across. Therefore, she extended her travel distance with a timely Blink, activating it right after the knockback. With this advanced maneuver, she reached Gunz right as he was about to hit the ground!


    [How''s that, sucker? Yo ass is mine!] During this quick move, she swapped her gun for a saber through "Wield Cutlass", the Pirate''s second skill. By sacrificing her attack range, she gained increased attack power, penetration and speed. She gonna wreck Gunz from close quarters!


    [Girl is nuts!] Lars''s eyes popped as Breaker darted across the lane like a bullet, seamlessly chaining Backfire into Blink. Damn, that was sick! She closed all that distance in an instant! And he was still in the air, so he couldn''t do anything about it! Yo!


    [Oh boy, she switched to cutlass too?] Lars noticed the saber in Breaker''s hand. Yeaaaaah, she gonna wreck him good if this turns into close combat. He hafta get outta her range as fast as possible!


    Elven Leap was cancelable into a roll as soon as the Elf''s leg touches the ground, Trever pulled that stuff many times before. Dude always dodged Lars''s shots in a nick of time like that. So, Lars could do it too!


    What angle did Pirate''s cutlass swing have again? Geh, there''s no time to think! He just had to trust his instincts, honed by the countless dodge rolls he performed against Trever.


    As soon as his Elf hit the ground, Lars rolled to the side. The Pirate''s cutlass came straight at him, thirsting for blood. Breaker swung it down at lightning speed, but... it whiffed.


    Just barely, very barely, Lars evaded the attack by diving underneath the blade. If the sword swing was just a little lower, it would have slashed right through him. But, it missed! He dodged the attack without a scratch! [Woooooohoooooooooooo! Yeaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!!!]


    [W-Wha?] Jennifer froze. She... She missed. She freakin'' missed. Her slash just... How. What. Bullshit.


    Unfortunately, it really happened and she had to deal with it. So, what''s next? Should she keep pressuring Gunz and try beating him in a 1v1? Or, was this a good time to retreat?


    Her build was one item ahead of Gunz and said item was even at Lv.2 already. So, she had the DPS advantage, right? She should able to deal with a mere Elf.


    Um, how did Pirate compare to Elf at this stage of the game in term of power, again? Pirate was weaker than most Carries during the early game and needed gold advantage to compete. Was her one item advantage big enough to overwhelm Gunz''s Elf?


    Gaaaah! Processing this shit required too much brain power. She tried painting a flawless picture of victory in her head, but it always came out smudged. It wasn''t clear enough. She wasn''t whether she had the necessary strength to kill Gunz right now.


    So, what it gonna be? Attack or retreat? She had to make the choice- PEW. The sound of a laser beam firing off.


    Gunz fired as soon as he recovered from the roll. The green beam pierced through Jennifer''s shoulder, erasing over 10% of her HP. FUUUUUUU!!!


    That''s it, the choice was made for her: she had to get the hell outta here! In a battle between squishy players with high DPS, whoever landed the first blow had a huge advantage. Her chances of winning tanked after this hit, so her only option was to get outta here as fast as-


    "Nuuuu!" Jennifer slammed on the table with her left hand, which now became useless. Why? Because freaking branches appeared under her feet and rooted her in place. It was Nature''s Embrace, Elf''s ult.


    Gah! Of course Gunz used that shit! Jennifer should had expected it and rolled aside or something! Dang it!


    This sucked hard, but she had to make do with the hand she was dealt. She swapped her cutlass for a gun and turned toward Gunz. She couldn''t move from this spot, but at least she could still rotate n place. This allowed her to shoot Gunz until the root wears off.


    She took aim and fired, but her bullet didn''t reach. Of course it didn''t, considering how far Gunz stood. Pirate''s shot couldn''t fly across half the universe like that.


    Nevertheless, Jennifer was hit by a laser beam in response. She was hit, despite the distance. Gunz''s laser beams had no trouble reaching her.


    That''s the nasty combo of Nature''s Embrace and Elven Sight. By itself, a mere root effect was pretty damn underwhelming for an ult. However, combined with the range extension of Eleven Sight, Gunz sniped the rooted Jennifer from afar, as if she were a practice dummy. Dang it!


    72%. 60%. 48%. Her HP plummeted with the speed of light! And she couldn''t do shit about it! Gaaaaah!


    She had to get out. As soon as these damn branches evaporate, she''ll dash for her life. Gunz didn''t have Elven Leap anymore, so he won''t be able to chase. Once she gets outta the range of his Elven Sight - she''ll be in the clear! The mental image of her successful escape was painted clearly in her head.


    As soon as the branches vanished, she rolled forward. [Ha! Take that, sucker!] Her quick roll made Gunz miss a shot, leaving her with over 20% HP. Gunz needed at least two more hits to finish her off. She gonna make it out alive!


    "Weeeelp," Lars smiled awkwardly. He landed one more hit on the fleeing Breaker, but it wasn''t enough to finish her off. She was outside the range of his Elven Sight and he didn''t have any means to chase her. "She got away. I was so close, yo!"


    "No problem," Yuel said. "We got her." While he was saying that, Breaker already got all the way back to her Turret.


    [Yeah! I''m fast as fuck, boi!] Jennifer grinned. The Turret''s area was right in front of her. Once she crosses the line, she''ll be- Oh shit. A wild Chronomancer appeared!


    "You serious!?" She thundered. Where did that fucker come from!? He was like on the other side of the map last time she checked! Sure, Chronomancer had a movement speed buff ability, but was he THAT fast!? [Chronomancer? More like, Sonicmancer!]


    Well, shit. There''s no getting outta this one, so she just fired at that Sonic a few times before getting dead.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Man," Lars twisted his lips. "I didn''t get an assist on that."


    "You still did well." Yuel nodded in approval.


    "Oh?" Lars''s eyes sparkled. "Haha, I did, didn''t I? That was some intense stuff right there! I showed her how this is done, yo!"


    "Yes, yes." Yuel nodded, already regretting uttering words of praise. Feeding this goof with the smallest hint of approval was bound to put him on the high horse.


    Still, Lars truly did well. He tapped into the experience he acquired from Trever and deflected Breaker''s attack, even turned the tables on her. It wasn''t a stretch to call it "good defense". Brr, the mere sound it gave Yuel the chills.


    What''s even more interesting about this exchange were Breaker''s plays. She started well with "Release the Kraken", a rather meta opening. She undoubtedly planned to cancel it after baiting Lars''s Elven Leap


    However, that idea backfired. Lars didn''t take the bait and ended up baiting the Kraken out of Breaker instead. The Kraken was summoned, but it couldn''t land a hit. A total waste of an ult.


    Still, Breaker recovered quickly and closed the distance with Backfire Cannon + Blink, aiming to overwhelm Lars in melee combat. The beautiful Blink extension for her travel distance was on the wilder side, but the idea of taking the fight to close quarters was a standard approach against Carries.


    Overall, until that point, her game plan was orthodox enough and she executed it perfectly. There''s no doubt she practiced these plays enough to pull them off in any situation. That was in line with her pitch-perfect execution throughout the day and the Leopards'' overall mastery of meta classes.


    However, missing the slash with her cutlass threw Break off balance. It''s the second time things didn''t go her way. She seemed puzzled, bewildered. For a brief moment, she just stood there in shock.


    This suggested she didn''t know this match half as good as Lars did. She knew how to play Pirate in general, but she didn''t know how to specifically pilot it against Elf. It was a very specific matchup and understanding it required experience, the kind not easily obtained from normal practice. Especially, not from practice which focused entirely on the meta, for Elf was a mid-tier class.


    In other words, Breaker learned and practiced the meta plays, but she lacked the "streets knowledge" for niche and specific scenarios. That pointed to a lack of experience, in a similar, yet different, way from Freezer. While Freezer seemed rusty, Breaker was outright inexperienced. She covered it up by effectively executing orthodox plays, but she couldn''t hide it from Yuel''s eyes.


    After Breaker missed her saber slash, she froze for a moment. Even though Yuel was busy in Mid at the time, he couldn''t tear his eyes away from Lars''s monitor. He saw it all. It was just a small freeze, but he saw everything in that moment. In that brief period, Breaker''s true nature revealed itself.


    The ever-confident Breaker was at a loss about her next play. For a second, she hesitated. That never happened when she played Pyromancer, aside from maybe truly extreme scenarios.


    Until now, she has always bounced back from any unfavorable situation and immediately went for the next best option. It''s like she was guided by instincts honed over thousands of battles. But, that didn''t happen with Pirate. She didn''t know what''s the next best move, so she stopped to consider her options.


    Honestly, Yuel didn''t know either what was the "right" choice for her at the time. She most likely pondered whether to continue the attack or retreat, as these were her only logical options at the time.


    In term of strength, Pirate had an advantage over Elf in that scenario. Pirate was a relatively weak Carry at its base, but the same applied to Elf too. The same way Pirate compensated for its weakness with gold advantage, Elf compensated for it with range.


    Therefore, when forced into a 1v1 at close quarters, Elf would lose its main advantage and would fall back into being a subpar Carry. With Breaker''s gold advantage, which already pushed her ahead by one item, she clearly had the upper in term of stats. But, apparently, she didn''t quite see it.


    The only real consideration left for her in that scenario was whether she could match Lars in a 1v1 in terms of mechanical skill. Maybe it''s the concern she had, but that''s unlikely. Breaker didn''t seem like the type to fear her opponents without a good reason. It''s true Lars displayed some amazing plays as Trickshooter, but there was absolutely no reason to believe he could do the same as Elf.


    So, no matter Yuel twisted it, Breaker''s momentary freeze was most certainly a result of her inexperience. And, this one freeze cost her the whole fight. It Lars to sneak the first hit on her.


    Even after surrendering the first attack, Breaker actually still had the upper hand in term strength. But, she didn''t see that. As soon as she was hit, she backpedaled and retreated.


    With Breaker''s course of action decided, the situation fell back into familiar territory for her. Besides the hiccup of getting easily caught by a predictable Nature''s Grasp, she overall did a solid job escaping from there alive. If Yuel hadn''t asked Dan to head to Bot ahead of time, Breaker would have gotten away scot-free.


    The more Yuel went over the facts, the more convinced he became - Breaker wasn''t a big threat this time around. She wasn''t going to be an easy opponent by any means, but she didn''t stand a chance against Lars, who experienced countless Carry matchups throughout the year. Every time Lars fought Trever, it was a simulation of real high-level combat. Lars accumulated plenty of experience of fighting classes which Trever liked and Pirate was among them.


    In fact, Lars fought Trever so much, he barely did any other type of practice. It would be frowned upon for anybody else, but for Lars that was probably the perfect form of training. With Trever''s knowledge supporting Lars from behind, there''s no way Lars would lose to Breaker''s inexperienced Pirate. As far as "streets knowledge" was concerned, Lars was the mafia boss right now.


    As long as Breaker doesn''t change her approach, this final game will be in StormBlitz''s hands. That''s the conclusion Yuel reached after seeing that one exchange between Lars and Breaker. They had this game in the bag! Probably!

 54 The Gap Between Practice and Experience

    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    Jennifer stared at her screen, twisting her lips. She done goofed. She done goofed HARD. Even though she''s the one who started the attack on Gunz, she''s also the one who wound up dead. And she would have gotten away with it too, if it weren''t for that meddling Chronomancer. Dang it.


    Still, even without the Chronomancer''s unexpected gank, she knew the truth: she played like trash in that 1v1. Gunz almost destroyed her. The most she managed was to barely slip away alive.


    Why? How? Jennifer thought she was piloting Pirate decently back there. She started off with Kraken to bait out Elven Leap. When that didn''t work, she instantly closed the distance with Backfire Cannon + Blink and planned to wreck Gunz from close range.


    There shouldn''t have been any issues with these plays and she pulled them off pretty smoothly, if she can say so herself. Yet, none of them worked!


    The Kraken bait didn''t work and her saber slash missed. Both times, Gunz pulled off crazy clutch dodges, but somehow his plays brimmed with confidence. They... They weren''t flukes. Jennifer understood that now.


    Gunz wasn''t even fazed by the fact he dodged these attack by a hair''s breadth. He immediately connected one play into another without delay. He leaped over the Kraken, dodged Jennifer''s slash and immediately shot her.


    The only one fazed by this absurd development was Jennifer. After being thwarted twice in a row, she was put in a difficult spot. She had to decide whether to keep pushing this clunky attack or to call it a day and retreat.


    While Jennifer was mulling over her options, Gunz went on the offensive without a second thought. From start to end, all his plays were so damn fast, so natural. It''s like he had experienced this exact scenario a thousand times already. He knew all the best moves, like some freaking time traveler from the future.


    Well, jokes aside, the guy must have practiced Elf to death to play so naturally. But then, what about Jennifer? She also practiced Pirate a lot because Coach insisted. That''s how she knew to farm effectively early on, to open a fight with a Kraken bait and to corner the enemy Carry into melee combat. These were strong meta plays she learned and practiced to perfection.


    Then why? What was the problem? Didn''t she learn and practice how to play Pirate? What was the difference between her and Gunz? It felt like she was missing something. There was something Gunz possessed that she didn''t, and that''s why she got her ass whooped. It kinda sounded like an excuse, but it really felt that way.


    "What a headache." Jennifer sighed.


    "I think you should''ve pressured him more during the early game," Albert said.


    "Hm? You talking about Gunz?"


    "Yeah." Albert nodded.


    "Hmm, but isn''t that kinda bad? I mean, Pirate is kinda trash during the early game, so I gotta play defense and farm hard."


    "True, Pirate is a bit weak, but the same goes for Elf. Even though Elf has great range, it''s a mid-tier class because it doesn''t have many tools for fights and its stats aren''t that high. So, Pirate can pressure Elf during the early game."


    "Hoh." Jennifer nodded.


    "You didn''t know that?" Albert raised an eyebrow.


    "A-Aahaha, of course I did!" Jennifer forced a huge smile. "I''m just impressed how much you know about these classes! I mean, Carry is your secondary and all, but you sure know your stuff!"


    "I see." Albert nodded.


    [Phew! Dodged that bullet.] Jennifer secretly sighed in relief. Seemed like Albert was convinced-


    "Sorry, I should have said something earlier." Albert continued. "Coach told me to speak my mind, but I was sure you know what you''re doing. Sorry, didn''t know you''re not familiar with the Pirate-Elf matchup."


    "Geh!" Jennifer jumped. "I-It''s not like I''m not familiar it! It''s just, ya know. my own personal playstyle and stuff! This is my pirate way, believe it!"


    "Really." Albert narrowed his eyes. "Thinking of it, I don''t even remember seeing you play Pirate during practice matches."


    "Well, that''s... ya know." Jennifer looked away. "You must''ve missed it. I mean, I don''t take Pirate into real matches that often. I mostly practice specific plays and situations in training mode, haha..." A dry laugh. As she was saying these words out loud, she was beginning to realize how wrong all of this sounded.


    "I see," Albert had a difficult expression. "Well, what''s done is done. I can''t travel back in time to stop your death, but from now on I''ll make sure to throw some advice your way when there''s a chance."


    "Hey, if you got something good to say - speak up. I always listen." Jennifer gave a thumb up. [Especially, I gotta listen REAL good when it''s about shit I don''t know. Man, even Albert seems to know more about Pirate than me, and I''m supposed to be the one maining Carry. Derp.]


    Jennifer somehow wiggled her way out of this discussion without embarrassing herself too much, but Albert''s question still lingered in her mind. Did she even ever play Pirate during practice matches? Hmm, probably like two or three times? Yeaaaah, most of her knowledge and experience came from practicing Pirate in training mode.


    Oh, that''s it! That''s what she was missing! The difference between her and Gunz must have been their experience!


    Gunz reacted quickly and naturally as if guided by instinct. To become so natural, he must have played lots and lots of Elf in real matches, against real opponents who were out to murder his ass. He didn''t just "practice" Elf, he went out there and kicked the shit outta people with it.


    That must be it. That''s how he knew Elven Leap was fast enough to dodge Kraken in the last moment, and that he could quickly cancel it into a roll to dodge Jennifer''s slash. He knew this Elf vs. Pirate matchup a hundred times better than Jennifer.


    He''s good. He knew every aspect of this matchup. Gunz was a world apart from Jennifer, who never faced an actual Elf player as a Pirate. She only knew the general theory behind fighting an Elf, and even that was on the weaker side. Elf was just a mid-tier class, so it didn''t warrant much attention. Yeaaaaah, derp.


    And even beyond the matchup, turned out Jennifer''s mastery of Pirate... well, it wasn''t exactly what she thought. She did take Pirate to Ranked from time to time, due to Coach''s pesky demand to play every relevant Carry class at least once a month. The few times she played, she simply executed the strong meta plays she practiced and nobody complained about her performance. She felt pretty confident.


    But, now she knew: it wasn''t good enough. Ranked wasn''t the same as competitive. Coach always said that and Jennifer understood it at the back of her head, but it''s the first time she experienced it on her flesh like that.


    Unlike in Ranked, here she couldn''t get away with just knowing the gist of her class. This was a competitive environment. Each player here polished their main classes to almost perfection, the way Jennifer did with her combo classes.


    There''s no way she could go toe-to-toe with them as Pirate, a class she never bothered to truly master. She had been underestimating it, thinking it''s easy because it''s a high tier meta class. But like with any other class, she needed high mastery and tons of experience to make it work.


    As the game progressed, Jennifer was forced to acknowledge this fact time and again. Every time she clashed with Gunz - she was overwhelmed. His reaction was faster, his plays were smoother and he countered everything Jennifer threw at him.


    It''s like Gunz knew exactly what Jennifer gonna do next before she even figured it out herself. Actually, "knew" was probably the wrong word here. That Gunz fellow didn''t strike her an intellectual. It''s his robust experience, which was carved into his instincts. He didn''t even need to think, he just acted.


    Jennifer knew how this shit worked because she was exactly the same way when she played combo. She practiced and played combo to death,. At some point, it became as natural as breathing. She didn''t even need to "think" much, she just did what seemed "right" and it worked most of the time.


    But, it was a long road. At first, playing combo was hella though. It required fast, but careful, decision making. Jennifer often found herself pausing in the middle of a heated fight, unsure what should be her next move. Of course, that pretty much always led to being killed in some lame way and getting scolded by both her teammates and Coach. Geh, them memories.


    Anyway, things were crappy like that for a while. She even considered quitting combo multiple times, which meant quitting Classmancers altogether. But, Coach insisted things will get better. He always said "Just give it another month or two. If you work hard, you''ll develop the intuition for it."


    Jennifer already developed some respect for Coach by that point, something she never had for any teacher in her entire life. Coach was a really competent teach, not like the those who lecture you to death in class about shit you couldn''t care less about. Thanks to his intense training regime, Jennifer leveled up from "Weakest Freshman" to "Average Player".


    So, she decided to trust his guidance and continued working hard on her combo. Eventually, it paid off. After experiencing countless combat scenarios, watching replays of her mistakes, getting advice about them and simulating them in training mode - her combo playstyle finally came together. There was virtually no situation she couldn''t deal with, she no longer paused to ponder her options.


    Even when it was some absurd situation she hadn''t experienced before, her honed instincts guided her. It didn''t mean she always executed the best plays, but they were generally hella good. And so, she successfully graduated from being a combo pleb and was ready to take on the world!


    But, she couldn''t be arsed to go through this long process with non-combo classes. She was busy polishing her combos, so she had neither the time nor the interest to work on non-combo classes. Okay, may she DID have the time, just not the motivation. Like, combo was the real shit, that''s where it''s at. Screw other classes.


    Besides, it''s fine, right? Meta classes were a lot easier to play anyway, right? So, there''s no need to pour tons of hours into them. Surely, it was enough to just practice them from time to time, right?


    Well, Coach said Jennifer was wrong about it, but she was sure it''ll be A-OK. She did practice these boring classes from time to time, so she shouldn''t have any trouble playing them in a competitive match. At least, that''s what she thought.


    Turned out she was an idiot. Only now that she faced Gunz, she realized her foolishness. Pirate was higher tier than Elf and was even somewhat of a counter to Elf, so she was supposed to wreck Gunz apart. But, he owned her ass.


    Even while getting tips from Albert, Jennifer still couldn''t score a single kill on Gunz. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn''t paint a mental image or victory against Gunz.


    Every time she assaulted Gunz from an advantageous position, it somehow turned into a near-death experience for her. She eventually got killed one more time during her attempts, but at least this time it was a proper gank which turned the situation into a 1v2. Phew, at least she didn''t let Gunz destroy her in 1v1 again... wait.


    [Am I seriously happy I died from a gank and not from 1v1?] Jennifer facepalmed. [The heck am I saying? I still died. I got rekt. There''s nothing to be happy about, dang it!]


    At some point, "winning the game" was overshadowed by "don''t lose to Gunz". After realizing how embarrassing her Pirate skills were, she had been preoccupied with how to not embarrass herself any further. Getting a kill on Gunz, or at least beating him up enough to force a retreat. Something, anything. She had to prove she''s not just some scrub.


    So, she focused only on that and got repeatedly wrecked in the process. Dang it. It''s impossible. She couldn''t win against Gunz this game. At this point, she had no choice but admit it.


    The difference in their experience was too much. It''s not a gap she could close by trying hard or getting a few tips from Albert. It''s frustrating, but her only option was to play defensively against Gunz. In other words, to give up.


    [And how exactly we gonna win like this?] Jennifer chewed her lips. If she, the Carry and captain, quakes in one''s boots, then who gonna lead the team to victory? Nobody.


    Momentum was on the enemy''s side, so at this rate, they''ll rend the Leopards asunder. Especially, Gunz was growing into a larger and larger threat with every second.


    No, defending won''t cut it. Gunz had to be stopped, or the Leopards won''t have a future. But what could Jennifer do? How was she supposed to take down that beast!?


    "Man," Jennifer sighed. "This is rough. I can''t figure out how to deal with Gunz."


    "Then don''t?" Albert shrugged. "If all we gonna do is turtle to not lose the lane, I can do it alone. You can go gank other lanes."


    "Hoh!" Jennifer exclaimed. "That''s not a bad idea! You should really speak up more often, Al. You actually got a head on your shoulders."


    "Unlike a certain somebody."


    "Okay, I changed my mind. Don''t ever speak again."


    "Heh."


    [Okay, I''mma do it!] Jennifer cracked her knuckles. [Al got it right. I gotta think bigger. It''s not just between me and Gunz, there are other fish in the water too. This is a team game, not a 1v1. If we can wreck the rest of these scrubs, we can win!]


    As soon as she regained her fighting spirit, she noticed a great opportunity in Mid. The enemy Sorcerer and Warrior fought 2v2 there, then got ganked and it became a 2v3. The gank didn''t go smoothly and both sides disengaged, but Sorcerer and Warrior were both low on HP.


    Jennifer wasn''t too far from Mid, so maybe she could do something with this. No, she WILL do something! Yes, she saw it! The picture of her, standing on top of two corpses! She had it! Her groove was back!


    Instead of heading to Bot as planned, she dashed to Mid through the jungle. By the time she arrived, the Warrior escaped into the jungle on the other side. Tch, that''s one corpse gone from her picture


    Oh well, no big deal. The Sorcerer was still there, running along the lane toward his Turret. Easy! She gonna cut him off!


    Jennifer switched from gun to saber and waited behind a jungle wall. Once Sorcerer got into range, she blinked through the wall and appeared right in front of him.


    [Eat shit!] Jennifer delivered a lightning speed slash, cutting across the Sorcerer''s chest. And another slash! However, this time she missed.


    The Sorcerer vanished right before the blade struck him again. He blinked past Jennifer and continued running away. Sneaky bastard.


    [Not bad, but not good enough!] Jennifer activated Backfire Cannon, with her back still turned to the enemy. It pushed her backwards and placed her right beside the Sorcerer again. No escape!


    Another slash! Down to 18% HP. And, another one! This time she had to shoot, because the Sorcerer was gaining distance. Bam! Clean hit! Down to 7%! One more hit and it''s over!


    Jennifer took aim and... Huh? A wild Warrior appeared! He rolled into the scene stood in between Jennifer and her target. Didn''t that scrub retreat to the jungle?


    Well, that didn''t change a damn thing, because the Warrior only had 5% HP. What did he even hope to accomplish by returning? Sacrifice himself for a teammate with higher damage? How noble.


    In Jennifer''s picture, there was still a dead scrub crushed underneath her foot. Will it be the Sorcerer or the Warrior? No matter which, she gonna turn that picture into reality.


    In fact, this development was awesome. Jennifer wanted the Warrior dead a hundred times harder. Why? Because bastard had been giving her shit this entire day, parrying shots like he''s in the Matrix.


    [Not this time, boy!] Jennifer grinned as she aimed her gun. Unlike Pyromancer''s big fireballs, Pirate''s gunshots were tiny projectiles. That Matrix-wannabe won''t get to parry shit this time!


    Jennifer fired, her aim locked on the fleeing Sorcerer. With all said and done, the damage dealer was the bigger fish. So, either she''ll hit the Sorcerer like originally planned, or the Warrior will step in to take the shot in the face. Either way, somebody gonna get dead! So, who gonna be the corpse from Jennifer''s picture!?


    [You better focus on the batter when pitching.] Roi licked his lips, his eyes locked on Breaker''s movements. Already at two strikes, the cleanup batter found himself in a pinch! He had only one chance! The enemy pitcher was tough, known for her trademark pitch: Pirateball! Fast, compact and deadly! Could the team''s cleanup handle it!? The fate of his entire team rested on his shoulders!


    [Okay, let''s goooooo!] Roi swung his giant bat. The Pirate''s shot was notably larger and slower than a real-life bullet, but it was still tiny and fast. If Roi playing Knight, he''d be struck out for sure.


    Fortunately, he was Warrior this time and dressed in a baseball skin to boot. His bat was giant and he swung it faster than Knight ever could. He gonna show these guys parrying like they have never seen before! Even against Pirateball, he gonna slam it out of the stadium!


    ¡ºHOME RUN¡»


    Huge colorful words popped up in front of him. It was a gimmick of his baseball skin. Normally, that message would say ¡ºPARRY¡». He did it!


    "Bullshit..." Jennifer''s jaw nearly hit the desk. D-Did that just really happen? Seriously? Her shot was... parried. It was freaking parried. That tiny fast bullet. Parried. Dafuq.


    Was she dreaming? Pinch, pinch. Nope, seemed like the real world. Ha. Haha. HAHAHAHA! Interesting! [Fine1 Bring it on! You wanna be one to die so badly, then I''mma grant your wish!]


    This ain''t over yet. She refused to give up on her beautiful picture. There''s one corpse drawn there and she gonna recreate it in reality!


    Besides, she had been wanting to get back at this baseball idiot for a while now. Like seriously, who called themselves CleanupHitter? And that baseball skin, too. The guy was trying way too hard, thinking he''s some major leaguer. Jennifer gonna strike out his ass!


    She actually played a little baseball in grade school, and as the pitcher no less. So, there''s no way some wannabe gonna hit her shots!


    Hitter already displayed his ability to parry high balls, even when they were tiny bullets. Then, how about a low ball? Yeah, a low ball, right at his feet! Warrior couldn''t possibly hit a low shot due to how he swung his blade, so that''s where she gotta shoot!


    But, there''s a catch. A low shot was easier to dodge, so there''s no guarantee Hitter would even try to parry again. After all, why parry when you can easily sidestep?


    Nevertheless, throwing low was the best bet. So Jennifer had to shoot low, but without making it obvious she was going to shoot low. A breaking ball would do the job in baseball, but this was Classmancers. Just like Warrior''s swings were restricted in movement, the same applied to Pirate''s shots. Jennifer only had fastballs at her disposal.


    However! That''s where her practice comes into play! There were barely any opponents online who relied on parrying, so Jennifer dragged club members into her anti-parrying practices. They were second rate batters at best, but she had to make do with that.


    Not the most professional training in the world, but it helped her develop some useful techniques. One such technique was what she called "Pretend to Shoot High, Then Shoot Low in the Last Moment!" It''s like a pro level play and stuff!


    Jennifer aimed her gun at Hitter''s upper body. But when she actually left-clicked to shoot, she swiftly lowered her gun and fired toward Hitter''s legs. Surprise, bitch!


    [I knew you''d go for the legs!] Roi grinned as he stepped forward. Aiming at the legs was basic knowledge for anybody who ever read tips about bypassing parries, and Breaker clearly did. She already used this strat against him a couple of times today, so he knew it was coming.


    Waving her gun like that, pretending to aim for his upper body. Not the worst acting ever, but it''s just a cheap attempt at misdirection. It not gonna work on a real cleanup hitter like Roi!


    By moving forward, he could hit the incoming Pirateball before it went below his reach. A tricky parry, but he did it!


    ¡ºHOME RUN¡»


    Two home runs in a row! Ezpz.


    "You shittin'' me..." Jennifer froze. What. How. Bullshit. Did he seriously just parry that? But, but, but! This move worked on everybody in the club! No matter how many times they saw a low shot like this, nobody could ever parry it! What''s with this guy!? He''s nuts!


    "Nothing personal, lol." Roi grinned as he blinked forward, appearing behind Breaker.


    "Crap!" Jennifer shook her head and concentrated on the enemy beside her. Did Hitter just enter her range out of his own volition? What a fool! He''s done for!


    Jennifer switched to her saber and turned toward Hitter. [I wanna see you parry THIS!] She slashed. There''s no way Hitter could dodge this one. It''s over! This will snuff out his remaining... 45% HP? Huh? Wait, wasn''t it like 5% a moment ago? What the heck!?


    Oh. OH. OOOOOOOOH! Hitter actually went and did it! He built Flag of Rebellion, which restored HP after each successful parry. It''s a crappy item with shit stats for its price, but in the hands of this baseball maniac... Damn, he got her good. What a guy.


    Jennifer''s saber slashed across Hitter''s chest, but it was far from enough. He still stood firm and retaliated with Fearless Charge, pushing Jennifer back. And what''s behind her? The enemy Turret! Fuuuuuuuuuu!


    BAM. A huge bolt hit her like a bomb, punching down her HP from 80% to 55% in an instant. And what''s worse, she had no escape tools! She spent both her Blink and Backfire Cannon on her failed attempt to kill the Sorcerer. Kraken was on cooldown too. [Fuck my life.]


    And if all this crap wasn''t enough, Hitter also booted his ult: Swordwhirl. He turned into a human fidget spinner and smacked Jennifer with his oversized bat. Then smacked again and again and again. Each strike slowed her down and lowered her defense, making the situation a million times worse with every passing moment.


    [No way outta this, huh.] Jennifer chewed her lips. Another undodgeable Turret shot rained on her and Hitter kept beating the shit outta her... Yeah, she was royally fucked. It was over. Trying to escape was pointless.


    So instead, Jennifer stood her ground and struck back. At least, Hitter would be forced to retreat right away if he loses enough HP.


    She delivered three strikes in succession, bringing Hitter down from 45% to 25%. But, that''s as far as she could go.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    [He totally rekt me.] Jennifer sighed and dropped back on her chair. There''s nothing she could even say here. Hitter just played hella well. Jennifer was confident about the anti-parry techniques she practiced, but she was forced to realize yet again: real matches were a world apart from practice.


    Hitter surely worked on his parries a lot, both in practice and in real matches. It must have been easy to rack up experience, considering any ranged opponent was a potential practice partner. It was completely different from Jennifer''s anti-parry practices, which were restricted to Practice mode due to how rare parrying was on their level of play.


    It was hard to improve when all her practice opponents were scrubs who couldn''t parry for life. It''d be awesome if she could practice anti-parrying against Hitter, he was hella cool- Er, ahem, like, he was pretty good at parrying! Yeah! Above the level of a scrub, at least. Hmph.


    Anyway, this wasn''t the time to think about this stupid stuff. They still had a match to win. Their chances looked grimmer with every passing moment, but Jennifer won''t back down just because she died a couple of times. Hell no! She gonna fight hard until the bitter end, even if it means getting repeatedly stomped due to her lack of experience! Let''s goooooooooooooooooooooo!

 55 Outcast Seniors

    From the audience, the competitive stage looked completely different. It was gigantic, stretching across the whole stadium as if to declare dominance. The lights were dazzling, turning the stage into a majestic entity. It was a privilege for commoners to gaze upon it.


    It''s hard to believe that, until recently, Alex also played on that grand stage. He had been looking down on it this whole time, thinking it''s lame because it''s the second string. Only now that he was kicked off the stage and had to sit among the commoners, he finally appreciated the huge opportunity he was given.


    How stupid. It didn''t matter whether this was a second string match or a tournament match. Both teams were strong and the competition was fierce. The stage was filled with high-level plays and brilliance. Some visitors from the center even stopped by to watch the match. Yes, to watch this middle school second string match.


    Alex should have done more. He should have tried harder. Even though it was just a spot on the second string he should have held onto it with all his strength, so he could keep playing on this majestic stage.


    If only he tried a little harder from the beginning, he could have prevented this 1-4 score. Heck, he could have led the team to victory... Okay, maybe that''s wishful thinking. But at least, he wouldn''t have dragged them down to oblivion.


    Alas, he messed up. Big time. He spat at the opportunity Coach gave him. And now he was down here in the audience, while the rest of his team was up there on the grand stage. Jennifer reigned as everybody''s beloved queen, whereas Alex was a hated beggar.


    It felt like shit. All of it. But, too late for regrets. Everything was his fault, so right now this hall of commoners fit him perfectly.


    Alex took a sip of his apple juice, took a deep breath and walked to the seats tucked away at the very back. It should be hard enough to spot him here. Good.


    "Oh." Alex stopped in his tracks. There was already a guy sitting in the back row, glued to a wall like some criminal hiding from the law. Hm? He looked kinda familiar...


    What''s even more interesting was this fellow''s soggy appearance. He was wet. Like, thoroughly soaked. From his hair and down to his shirt. Did he take a shower or something? There were actually shower rooms in ProCenter if memory served.


    "Yo," The guy waved. "Freezer, right?"


    "Yeah..." Alex nodded slowly. So, it wasn''t just his imagination. He knew this shower guy from somewhere. But, based on that reluctant greeting, they weren''t particularly familiar. Where did Alex meet this guy? And, why was the guy soaked inside the hall? Alex simply couldn''t comprehend.


    "Oh, this?" The guy pointed at his wet hair. "Just a fashion statement, haha. Don''t worry about it."


    "Huh." Alex knotted his eyebrows. That''s some revolutionary modern fashion right there. Anyway, it''s best to keep a distance from this guy.


    "Whoa, sitting so far away? Cold." The guy made a face.


    "Do I know you?" Alex finally asked, since guy''s overfamiliar attitude starting irking.


    "Hey. C''mon, man. We''ve been playing each other the whole day, ya know."


    "Oh," It finally hit him. Somebody who played on the stage today and got subbed out. Yes, there was another poor fellow like that beside Alex. "WildDragon, right?"


    "Yep, I knew there''s no way you forgot. I''m known for leaving an impression, haha."


    [Yeah, the impression of a chatty idiot who''s all talk and no skill.] Alex nodded, which the other guy apparently interpreted as a friendly gesture.


    "Trever." The guy stretched his hand with a smile.


    "... Alex." He dragged his hand to form a handshake across the two chairs separating them. Sigh. What a drag.


    The conversation died after that. Good. Now Alex could enjoy his drink in peace-


    "Man, Bot is so boring this game," Trever said out of the blue. "Last game had some crazy action there, but now both sides are playing some hardcore defense. What a snoozefest, right?"


    "... Sure." Alex shrugged. "Well, it''s not that weird. Elf is designed to play defense."


    "Yep. That''s why the Pirate should git gud and pressure him."


    "Hmm," Alex contemplated what to say. Wait, the heck was he even doing? He just wanted to watch the game in silence, yet something compelled him to respond.


    Sigh. Alex was never good dealing with these chatty fellows. "You say Jenny isn''t playing that early game right?"


    "Jenny?"


    "Oh, I mean ComboBreaker."


    "Heh, her name is Jenny? Noted that down." Trever grinned like an idiot. Actually, that''s wrong. It''s not "like" an idiot, as Trever was most assuredly an actual idiot. Whatever.


    "Well," Trever continued. "I guess It''s up to playstyle? I know a chick who turtles with literally every class and it works for her. But, I believe Pirate better pressure Elf early to control the lane. Weird to see Breaker play like a pussy after she had been kicking everybody''s butts with a meme before."


    "Hmm, that''s really peculiar." Or, maybe not really. Had Jennifer ever played Pirate in practice matches and such? Alex couldn''t recall a single instance from the top of his head. Then again, the testimony of somebody who barely showed up to practice didn''t hold much.


    "Oh! Finally!" Trever exclaimed as the situation in Bot heated up. Jennifer unleashed her Kraken, finally going on the offensive. Alas, after a sequence of fast plays, it''s Jennifer who ended up fleeing the scene. In the end, the Chronomancer ganked her before she managed to slip away.


    "Oh yeah!" Trever jumped from his chair and pumped a fist. "Nice one, Dan!"


    [Too loud. Annoying.] Alex rolled his eyes and took another sip of apple juice.


    "Kinda disappointing, though." Trever sat down and crossed his arms. "That was kinda one-sided, don''tcha think?"


    "... I guess."


    "I mean, it''s not like she played bad or anything." Trever tilted his head. "How do I put it? She had some good plays there but it''s all basic Pirate stuff, ya feel me?"


    "Huh."


    "Like, it''s the kinda stuff everybody does. Bait with Kraken, rush with Backfire. There''s nothing like ''Hey, that move is cool!''. Know what I mean?"


    "Sure..." Alex sighed. Still, the information mildly interested him. Assuming this guy knew what he was talking about, it suggested Jennifer was out of her element when playing Pirate. Interesting. It was in line with how Alex never saw her seriously play Pirate or any non-combo Carry for that matter.


    Maybe that''s why Coach held her back in the second string? Alex had been actually wondering about that for a while now. Why somebody of Jennifer''s level was stuck in the second string? As far as her skill was concerned, she was among the top players in the club. In fact, depending on the criteria used for grading players, she may as well be the strongest in the club. Well, after Fenrir, of course. That guy was a legend.


    Anyway, there''s no reason why somebody like Jennifer would be stopped at the second string. That''s unless she had a glaring weakness which Coach refused to overlook. And, this subpar Pirate performance may very well be it.


    It''s similar to how Alex performed poorly as Electromancer last game, but also very different at the same time. Unlike him, Jennifer never stopped practicing. She just didn''t bother playing that many serious matches with non-combo classes, resulting in a lack of practical experience. Her moves were polished, but they lacked a certain level of fluidity which was only achievable by playing many matches.


    But at least, unlike Alex, she never stopped polishing her favorite combo skills and that made her a constant threat for the enemy team. Compared to that, what did Alex achieve today with his favorite Warlock? His performance was mediocre at best. He made some impactful plays, but he also messed up in a bunch of critical moments. Sigh.


    At least the conversation died out again. Good. Now he could quietly watch-


    "Gotta say," Trever spoke up. Again. "The stadium is more packed than I expected. I mean, it''s just a scrimmage and it''s the second string. What gives?"


    "Probably spies from other schools or something" Alex shrugged.


    "Oh, think they came to check us out?" Trever smirked. "Makes sense. We''re hella strong, after all." He turned his head from side to side, scanning every corner of the hall.


    [If you think there''s any paparazzi here to report on you, think again.] Alex rolled his eyes.


    "But hey, isn''t that weird?" Trever crossed his arms. "We''re the second string, ya know. If they wanna spy on our team, shouldn''t they spy on the first string?"


    "I suppose." Alex checked the audience again. Upon closer inspection, he recognized half the faces here despite the darkness. "Huh, there are some guys from my club. Coach always makes us watch scrimmages."


    "Even the second string matches?"


    "Dunno, our second string never had a scrimmage against other schools before. Guess Coach thinks it''s worth watching?"


    "Heh," Trever grinned. "We''re the best, so of course we''re worth watching!"


    [I don''t see you on the stage, though.] Alex jabbed internally. "I agree, though. There have been some high level plays here today. I think your second string is even better than some of the representing teams I''ve seen this year."


    "Maaaaan, if only we could play in the regionals too." Trever slid down his chair, staring at the ceiling. "I actually was on the first string last year, so I played in the regionals. We got our asses handed to us, though. Haha."


    "Must be nice being in a small club." Alex lowered his eyes. He never even got the chance to be on the first string. If only that damn coach was more willing to enter freshmen and juniors into the first string... [No, stop. That''s not Coach''s fault. That''s all on me. If I kept practicing, I''d be in the first string by now. Maybe I could even get there on my second year, like Fenrir.]


    "By the way," Trever said. "You guys got a coach, right? How is it? To be in a club with a coach, I mean."


    [How am I supposed to answer that?] Alex rolled his eyes. It''s not like he ever was in a club without a coach, so he had nothing to compare with. Not to mention, as far as he was aware, the Leopards were the only middle school team in the region with a coach. "What do you want to know, exactly?"


    "Hmm, I dunno."


    [Then don''t ask!]


    "Like, you think it''s a good thing to have a coach?"


    "Depends on the coach, I guess." Alex shrugged.


    "How''s your coach?"


    "He''s..." Alex opened and closed his mouth. What did he think of Coach? A sly bastard, who''d go as far as setting Alex up as the vice-captain of the second string just to see him crash and burn. Also, a strict dictator who won''t let anybody into the first string until they''re a senior. Yeah, there were many things Alex could say. But...


    "He''s okay, I guess," Alex said. "His coaching really helps. You may not believe it, but ComboBreaker was actually one of the weakest members in her first year. But look at her now."


    "Wow, that''s crazy." Trever''s eyes opened wide. He stared at the ongoing match in disbelief. To think that this chick who kept everybody in StormBlitz on their toes was actually a scrub during her first year. It''s unbelievable.


    "So," Trever said. "You recommend going for a high school with a coach?"


    "Oh." Alex paused for a moment. Right, graduation. They were both seniors, so they''ll have to pick their high schools soon.


    Coaches were more prevalent in high schools, to the point about half the schools in the region had coaches. Whether to aim for a school with a coach was a legitimate concern for anybody who planned to play competitively in high school. It was a concern which eluded Alex for a long time. After all, he...


    "It''s probably better to have a coach," Alex said. "It''s usually the teams with coaches that make it big, like Venom."


    "Ivy High, huh." Trever smiled wryly. "Gonna shoot for it?"


    "I..." Alex opened his mouth, but words didn''t come out. He hadn''t really thought about it, despite graduation being around the corner. "They''re the regional champions every year and they got a coach, so may as well."


    A businesslike answer. It just showed how little thought Alex had been putting into this topic until now. "Venom is the goal for most players, right? If you can get in, it''s your best shot at getting to nationals."


    "I dunno," Trever crossed his arms. "I mean, it''s cool to play on a good team and all. But, there also gonna lots of pressure and stuff, ya feel me?"


    "True. I heard the coach is strict."


    "Yeah, so I dunno if all that hardcore stuff fits me." Trever smiled wryly. "I just wanna play and improve. Don''t wanna deal with all the difficult stuff, ya feel me?"


    "Huh. So, you don''t want to work hard?"


    "Nah, that''s not the problem" Trever waved his hand. "Ever since I got kicked outta the first string, I''ve been working my ass off to climb back. But here I am, sitting in the audience of all places. Funny, right?"


    "Hmm." Alex nodded vaguely. The words "worked my ass off" stung a little, since they were the complete opposite of what Alex had been doing these past two years.


    Here they were, two seniors who walked completely different paths and developed different mentalities. Yet, both became second string rejects and were demoted to sit in the audience.


    "What went wrong?" Alex asked. "You couldn''t beat the player who took your spot?"


    "Nah, I''m better than her," Trever claimed. "That is, when I''m in top form. But turns out I''m not really good at maintaining that form. I somehow always mess shit up at the critical moments."


    "So, you buckle under pressure?"


    "Something like that." Trever sighed and shook his head. "Dunno why I''m even telling this to some random dude."


    "I think that''s what makes it easier to share." Alex also found himself unusually talkative. "So, you rather pick an underdog team which doesn''t have much riding on it?"


    "Yeah. Besides, isn''t that way cooler? Be an underdog and beat the reigning champions!"


    [Or, get trashed by the champions and use the underdog excuse to justify your defeat.] Alex sneered.


    Underdog, huh. Back in grade school, Alex was set on playing for the strongest team. That''s how he came to attend Leo Junior High, even though it demanded a long train ride every morning. Alex heard how the Leopards was the only team with a coach, so he pestered his parents to let him attend here.


    But, was it really the best choice? Probably not, at least not for Alex. There''s no denying he learned a lot from training under Rodriguez, but at the same time he also lost his drive due to Rodriguez''s strict policies.


    Rodriguez was actually upfront about his policies from day one. During the club application process, he warned students that he prioritized seniors and that newcomers shouldn''t get their hopes up about playing in tournaments.


    Even so, Alex applied without a second thought. He was sure he''ll knock off Coach''s socks by becoming a starter during his first year! What a cocky idiot he was. As a result, he learned on his flesh how frustrating it was to be a skilled player who couldn''t play in tournaments.


    Had Alex picked a school with a no-name team, he''d surely become a starter right away, Or at least, he wouldn''t have to worry about eventually becoming a starter. A no-name team would have a small club, so there wouldn''t be much competition for spots in the first string.


    But instead, Alex threw himself into the lions'' den. A huge club, filled with players hungering for the competitive scene. He had to practice hard. He had to become stronger. These were the only thoughts occupying his mind during his first year.


    In the end, all this hard work went unrewarded due to Coach''s policy. Alex felt like a fool for trying so hard. It completely killed his motivation and the rest is history.


    So, if Alex decides to continue playing Classmancers in high school, he rather not go through this bullshit again. A no-name team was perfectly fine. With Alex joining, the team will stop being no-name anyway.


    And most importantly, he''ll be able to play in real matches. He''ll no longer have to sit in the audience and gaze upon the dazzling stage from below. No, he''ll sit on that majestic stage himself.


    "I guess going to Ivy really isn''t for everybody," Alex said. "The bigger the club, the harder it is to become a starter."


    "I know, right?" Trever nodded repeatedly. "Lemme play, dang it. I didn''t join just to warm up a chair."


    "Agreed."


    "Besides," Trever wore a difficult smile. "If I go to Ivy, I won''t be able to play against [her]."


    "You got a rival?"


    "It''s more like a curse. Unless I beat her, I''ll stay cursed."


    "Now that sounds like comic," Alex sneered. "Just combine it with the underdog story and you got yourself a bestseller."


    "Heh. it''ll be the season that changes the city forever!" Trever chuckled. "You know what''s funny? Everybody only ever talks about Venom because these guys have been taking the regionals every years. But, there are actually other great teams in our region which are always runner-ups."


    "Oh?" Alex blinked. Interesting. He also was under the impression that ["You either play on Venom or you''re a nobody."]


    "A pal of mine dug up on previous tournaments," Trever explained. "There are two other teams which always make top four: Aces and Knights. Cool, right?" He puffed his chest as if he deserved any credit for obtaining this data. Still, it was news for Alex.


    "Which schools?"


    "Aces in Hamilton High and Knights in Gordon High."


    "I see." Alex didn''t recall hearing much about these teams, but he knew the high schools at least. Gordon High was actually pretty close to his house. Hamilton was like two hours away if memory served. "So, you think to join one of them?"


    "Yep, that''s the idea," Trever nodded. "The thing is, Aces got a coach while Knights don''t. Made me wonder."


    "If you''re already dodging Venom to minimize pressure, may as well go all the way and pick the one without a coach." Alex wasn''t sure whether he was telling that to Trever or to himself. "Having a coach can help you improve, but he''ll always demand results."


    "Yeah, figured." Trever shrugged. "Think I gonna go for the Knights then. Besides, don''t they sound cooler? Ya know, like heroic knights who rescue beautiful ladies? Haha."


    "... sure." If there were a Guinness record for "the stupidest reason to pick your high school", Trever would easily take first place.


    Aces and Knights, huh. Two teams which consistently made it into top four, and most likely were the second and third seed of every tournament. They''re "underdog" teams compared to the unbeatable Venom, but they''re not bad to the point they can''t achieve anything in the regionals. Therefore, they were the perfect picks for anybody who didn''t want to go to Venom but still wanted to compete.


    [I haven''t done any homework at all, huh.] Alex sighed. High school was right around the corner, yet he didn''t check anything at all.


    After spending over two years in the Leopards, Alex should have already figured that joining Ivy''s big club was not in his best interests. Yet, he didn''t bother searching for alternatives. Did he even plan on playing in high school? He wasn''t even sure what he was thinking these past two years. It''s like his time was frozen in place all this time.


    But, things were different now. Today, he faced his foolishness and took the first step forward. He came to terms with the fact he completely wasted the past two years. While he was busy hating Coach and ranting about the first string, he degenerated and became a total loser. Somebody like him didn''t deserve to play on the competitive stage right now.


    Fortunately, there''s still time until the regionals. He''ll use it to salvage himself and to shoot for the first string once again. Maybe he''ll make it in, maybe not. Either way, he took the first step.


    Even if it doesn''t work out, next year he''ll be in high school. It''ll be a fresh start. All the effort he''s going to put this year will build up toward next year.


    Whether Alex will join Aces or Knights, he hadn''t decided yet. But whichever it''s going to be, he''ll do his utmost to become a starter and face Venom in a tournament. His ultimate goal: to take down the big renowned club! That''ll be fun!


    Flames sparked in his heart once again. This was just the beginning of his Classmancers career!

 56 Facing Ones Shortcomings

    The fifth game between StormBlitz and Leopards reached its final stage. After gaining momentum during mid game, StormBlitz maintained their lead and pushed the Leopards back in Bot and Mid. No matter how hard Jennifer tried to turn the tables around, her team was constantly overwhelmed.


    The main culprit was Gunz who dominated for the second game in a row, largely thanks to the kill he scored on Jennifer. It gave him just enough lead to go on a wild hunt. Despite playing a defensive Carry, his super accurate super long snipes were the bane of existence for everybody.


    Dude was legit aim-botting, no joke. Like, how the heck was he landing every shot from across the whole lane? Hax!


    The enemy Chronomancer, Average, was also a huge pain in the butt. In term of skill, Average didn''t seem like anything special, just like his name. Yet somehow, he managed to create trouble every time.


    In the first game, Average did a crazy switcheroo with his finished build and pulled a kamikaze stunt on Jennifer. In the previous game, he played a very nasty Beastmaster who pushed lanes at the speed of light. And this game, his Chronomancer popped all over the map and burst players down, then quickly got out by rewinding time. That sneaky little...!


    Despite all that, the Leopards fought relentlessly till the very end. Jennifer''s performance was lackluster and she was aware of it, but that didn''t stop her from trying. She kept trying and trying and trying, believing the Leopards can break through.


    ¡ºDEFEAT¡»


    [Damn.] Jennifer sighed. They couldn''t do it, huh. Everybody must have seen this result from a mile away considering her underwhelming performance and how dominant Gunz and Average were, But, they all fought by her side to the bitter end.


    "Good game, guys." Jennifer stood up, forcing herself to smile. "These scrubs were kinda better than what we expected, right? But make no mistake: any other day we''d mop the floor with them. Today was just a hiccup."


    "We went, 1-4, though." Albert pointed out.


    "Oh shush you." Jennifer made a face. "Every game today was hella close. If we subbed Alex earlier... " She paused. "Anyways! We were real close! No need to feel bad!" She wasn''t entirely sure whose spirits she was trying to lift, the team''s or her own. "Okay guys, let''s go and get the formalities done with."


    Both teams gathered in the center of the stage. There were some rules about how they were supposed to line up... probably. Jennifer couldn''t be arsed to remember. She just secured the beginning of the line. She''s the captain, so surely she gotta stand at the top, right?


    "Good... Game..." The boy in front of her starched a shaky hand. Whoa, what''s this guy? He''s pale like a freakin'' ghost and looked like he could collapse at any moment.


    "Yeah, good game." Jennifer shook the ghost''s hand. If memory served, this kid was the vice-captain of StormBlitz. At least, until these crazy guys decided to kick out their own captain.


    So, did it mean this kid was the new captain? Like, he''s just a freshman. Was Jennifer''s team really done in by a bunch of greenhorns? Bloody hell. How did her team lose!? How!? To a bunch of rookies! Dang it.


    But she had to admit, these guys played well today. They deserved at least some respect. Like, not TOO much respect but at least a little. Some of there were definitely worthy opponents to keep an eye on. Who knows, she may face some of them in high school.


    "Who''s Gunz?" Jennifer asked out loud.


    "Yo," A blonde guy flashed his teeth and stretched his hand. "Breaker, right? Your combos were sick! Good game."


    "Hm, thanks. Good game." Jennifer twisted her lips as she accepted the handshake. It almost sounded like he was making fun of Jennifer after beating her two games in a row, but there was something earnest about his smile and energetic handshake..


    Well, at least there''s no way this guy was a freshman, right? Like, he was pretty tall and all. It''d be the end of her if she learned she was beaten by a freshman in one of her main roles.


    "What year are you?"


    "First year."


    "Wha-!? A freshman!?"


    "Yep, freshly baked. Haha."


    "You shitting me..." Jennifer facepalmed. What the hell was wrong with this team? A freshman captain and a freshman mechanical monster? Daaaamn, these guys gonna rock the middle school scene in a year or two. Too bad Jennifer wouldn''t be there to see it.


    "Two years," Jennifer declared. "Once you get to high school, I''mma kick yo ass for real."


    "Looking forward to it." Gunz grinned, confident he''ll mop the floor with Jennifer without any trouble. Cocky kid, heh.


    Besides Gunz, there''s one more guy who gave Jennifer a shitton of trouble today. [I swear, if this guy is also a rookie...]


    "Who''s the major leaguer wannabe?" Jennifer asked. "You know, the one with the parries."


    "That''s me, the one and only." A guy stepped forward. Tall, tanned and got some thick muscle on him. Looking hella fine. Ah, ahem! That''s beside the point.


    So this was CleaupHitter, huh. That pesky guy who pulled off miraculous parries, which put Jennifer''s anti-parry practices to shame. Even though his overall impact on the games was incomparable with Gunz''s, for Jennifer he was actually the greater mystery out of the two.


    Nobody bothered to learn parry. Like, nobody. Seriously. In her entire club, not a single player challenged this beast of a mechanic. Many tried of course, because parrying was hella cool. It ended up as just a meme for them. A cool meme, but that''s it.


    Yet, the guy standing in front of her made it work. He tamed this beast of a mechanic and unleashed it on stage. His parries were even game changers on a few occasions. That''s just amazing. Putting aside how he was some major leaguer wannabe, Hitter was a crazy guy.


    He wasn''t a freshman too, was he? Like, there''s no way anybody can master parrying to this level on their first year. Besides, he''s too tall and buff to be a freshman. Though, the same kinda applied to Gunz too. Geh, so hard to tell.


    "Don''t worry," Hitter chuckled. "I''m not a freshman, so no need to feel bad about losing to me, lol ."


    "W-Wha!?" Jennifer felt her cheeks heating up. T-This freaking guy! She had to shoot something back! "Huh, using ''lol'' in real life? That''s like super lame. It''s even more embarrassing to know I lost to a guy like that."


    "Says the girl who named herself after a meme from the previous millennium."


    "Geh," Jennifer clenched her fists. "Don''t wanna hear that from a guy who pretends he''s playing baseball."


    "I actually played in Little League though. Was even the cleanup and everything. Pretty cool, huh?"


    "Wait, seriously?" Jennifer blinked. Well, Hitter was really kinda buff, so it''s possible. The cleanup, huh. The fourth batter, the team''s best slugger. That''s really cool. Ah, like, not THAT cool or anything. Hmph.


    "So," Jennifer continued. "What the heck a ''cleanup'' is doing playing Mancers?"


    "Reasons." Hitter shrugged.


    "Hmmmm." Sounded mysterious, but Jennifer didn''t pry any further. Bottom line, this guy really played baseball before and he probably carried over his batting sense in the form of parrying. Not bad. "Hey," She pulled her phone. "Gimme your number."


    "Lol, you hitting on me?"


    "Wha, no!" Jennifer waved her phone in denial. I-It''s not like that! And why was she even overreacting in the first place!? Dang it!. "I just wanna work on countering parries, and you''re like the only guy in the whole world who uses them."


    "Impressed by my skill?"


    "Hmph, you''re not too shabby, I guess." Jennifer crossed her arms and glanced away. "So c''mon, let''s exchange numbers so we can arrange games."


    "I dunno, though," Hitter rolled his eyes. "Sounds like you just gonna use me to improve yourself. What''s in it for me?"


    "Um," Jennifer knitted her eyebrows. Right. Welp. What was there? Err. "Well, look at it this way: you gonna get the number of a popular girl. How''s that?"


    "Oh, you gonna introduce me to some chick?"


    "Wha, that''s not what I..." Jennifer clenched her phone. [Yeah, my bad! Excuse for not being a "popular girl"! Nobody even treats me like a girl anyway, hmph! Dang it.]


    "Okay," Hitter took out his phone. "I''m game."


    "Seriously? I''m not introducing you to anybody, ya know."


    "You''re also fine."


    "W-Wha!?" Jennifer took a step back. Her heart squeezed. W-W-What was going on here right now!?


    "I mean," Hitter said. "You throw some tricky pitches, so batting against you gonna be good practice for me too."


    "O-Oh, that''s what you meant. Huh, yeah. I, um, pretty good at that stuff." Jennifer''s words were a jumble. A weird wave of heat traveled through her body. What the hell was wrong with her? She shook her head to regain her senses. "You better be grateful you get the chance to play to against an amazing pitcher like me. I may not look like it, but I played some baseball back in grade school. Was usually the pitcher and stuff."


    "Lol, a girl pitcher? That''s hot."


    "Y-Yeah, it sure damn is." Jennifer stuttered for some reason. Gah, every little thing this guy was saying ticked her off for some reason, "Anyway, what''s your number?" They exchanged numbers, then she put her phone away. "Okay, wrote you down as ''Dat lol guy''."


    "And you''re ''Dead meme chick''."


    "Yeah, whatever." Jennifer chuckled. "I''mma text you about practice later, so make sure to check your messages."


    "Sure. Wouldn''t want to miss any messages from a ''popular girl'', lol."


    "You know it." Jennifer turned to her teammates and clapped once. "Okay, let''s... Whatcha all laughing at?" Her teammates gave her funny looks, giggling for some reason.


    "We''re just happy for you," Albert said with a stupid smile on his damn face. "You got yourself a boyfriend."


    "Oh shut it." Jennifer waved her hand. "Besides, he''s one year younger than me."


    "Already making excuses?"


    "You know, I think I liked you more when you talked less." Jennifer gave Albert a look. "You''ve been kinda bossy last game too, nitpicking every little thing I did."


    "I just pointed out your what you could have done better. Not my fault there was a lot to point out."


    "Snarklord," Jennifer lightly punched him on the shoulder. "Well, let''s go. Coach must be waiting to give us an earful."


    "Guys, blame everything on Jenny." Albert pretended to whisper.


    "I heard that!" Jennifer waved an angry fist on her way out. Though, it''s true she messed up a lot last game.


    By now, Jennifer came to terms with the fact she had a lot to learn when it came to non-combo classes. Basic practice wasn''t enough. She had to go out there and fighting with her rank points at stake. [Okay, the goal for tomorrow is a hundred matches as Pirate! No, a thousand! Yeah, that sounds good.]


    As for practicing anti-parrying techniques, she now had dat lol guy. Awesome. Everything was set. She knew exactly what she had to work on, so she gonna improve a whole lot before the regionals. If anybody climbs from second string to first string, it gonna be her!


    "That''s a good look you got." Coach nodded in approval.


    "I just figured some stuff." Jennifer smiled wryly. For her, playing Classmancers was about playing combo. Until now, she only focused on that art and treated non-combo meta classes as basic level stuff.


    But, Classmancers wasn''t such a simple game. Unless she genuinely practices all the important classes, she''ll never become a truly godlike combo player. Even DimensionShift didn''t use combo every game, despite being crowned as the top combo player in the world. Jennifer still had a long road ahead of her.


    "Finally," Coach nodded. "Looks like things I''ve been telling you from day one finally sunk in. Good girl." He tried to pat Jennifer''s head.


    "Yeah, I guess." Jennifer jerked away. She wasn''t some little kid, dang it. "We lost a buncha times today, but I really learned a lot. These were some good matches."


    "True, true. But, that''s not going to spare you kids from a long review session about all today''s losses."


    "Fuuuuun." Her shoulders dropped.


    The next day, Jennifer arrived at the club room at 6am. They had optional morning training, but that started at 7am. She had been attending that morning practice every day, but it''s been a while since she got here so early. When was the last time, again? Probably sometime back in her first year, back when she was fighting her hardest to climb out of her noob rank.


    It''s been a long time since she felt like this: frustrated and hungering for improvement. There''s tons of work to do and little time. She had to play at least hundred games a day with every meta non-combo Carry and Mid class, then she''d be ready for regionals for sure!


    "Hm?" Something was off. Jennifer inserted the key, but the lock didn''t turn. Huh? Oh, the clubroom''s door was open. Did somebody forget to lock again? Seriously, these guys.


    Jennifer removed the key and entered the room.


    "Oh." Her bag slipped off and crashed into the floor. Even though it was 6am and even though actual morning practice would only begin in an hour... somebody was already here.


    "You''re early," Alex said nonchalantly as if it''s totally normal for him to be here. Yeah, totally normal. Nothing odd about this situation. It''s just that the lazy bum who always skips practice happened to come here at 6am. What''s next? Elephants gonna rain from the sky?


    "Is today April''s Fool or something?"


    "Not really." Alex looked away. "Just felt like practicing a little. Feel kinda rusty."


    "Rusty doesn''t even begin to describe you," Jennifer gave him the evil eye. "It''s a miracle you even still remember how to play."


    "Hey now. I''ve at least been playing some Ranked."


    "With just one class, apparently."


    "...." Alex couldn''t come up with a retort. Ha! 1-0 to Jennifer.


    "I''ll do it." Alex proclaimed. "I''ll practice as hard as it takes to make up for the time I lost. This time, I''ll definitely make it into the first string."


    "Hmph, big words." Jennifer shrugged. She itched to shoot some more thorny words at him but decided against it. This must be the first time in ages she didn''t feel like punching Alex in the face the moment she saw him.


    Alex proclaimed he''ll get into the first string no matter what, just like he claimed back in first year. Back then, they often came to the clubroom at 6am like this and worked themselves to the bone. Fun times.


    "Well then," Jennifer put her hands on her waist and lifted her chin. "I''ll be damned if you beat me to it. It''s a race! I gonna become a starter way before than ya!"


    "I can see that happening." Alex shrugged. "So, you also figured something from that match?"


    "Not your business."


    "I see." Alex returned to monitor in front of him. "I''m doing a warm up with my other main classes. Wanna join?"


    "Nah, I got something more fun," Jennifer smirked and pulled out her phone. She called "Dat lol guy". It took the call a while to get through.


    "... What?" A zombie answered from the other side.


    "GUUUUUTEN MORGEEEEEN!!!"


    "Agh! My ears- whoa!" A loud thump resounded.


    "Pft, you okay there?" Jennifer laughed. Did he drop his phone or something? The guy must have been spooked shitless, haha!


    "You just murdered my ear..."


    "That''s what you got another one for." Jennifer snickered. That felt oddly satisfying for some reason.


    "What do you want anyway? It''s like six now..." A loud yawn followed


    "What do you mean ''what I want''? I texted you yesterday about practicing parries today at six."


    "I don''t remember replying, though..."


    "Yeah, exactly. So, it means you don''t have any objections!"


    "10/10 logic, much genius..."


    "I know, right?" Jennifer laughed. Then, silence descended on them.


    Awkward. She actually started feeling a little guilty for waking up the poor guy like this. Like, she only met him yesterday and she''s already pestering him at 6am. "Err, sorry. Go back to sleep."


    "Like I could. My ear is still ringing."


    "Haha, sorry, sorry."


    "To hell with it. I''ll practice with you."


    "Really!?" Jennifer jumped.


    "Yeah. Just gimme a few minutes. I gonna parry your attacks so hard they''ll fly outta your screen and smack you in your stupid face."


    "Hoho, we''ll see about that." Jennifer grinned. "Call me when you''re ready. I''ll send you an invite." All she received in response was a loud yawn that vaguely resembled affirmation. Good enough for her.


    "Everybody says you got yourself a boyfriend," Alex said with a stupid smirk across his face.


    "They''re just making shit up."


    "You do look happy, though."


    "Heh, of course, I am!" She pointed straight at Alex, stabbing him with an imaginary laser beam. "I gonna perfect my anti-parrying techniques, then get some experience with non-combo classes and shoot all the way to the first string!"


    "And then invite your boyfriend to a date? Sounds like a plan."


    "Gah! Will you all drop it already!?" Jennifer waved an angry fist. She got no time for such stupid crap right now.


    The regionals are in a few months. She gotta practice, practice and practice! This time, she had a clear idea what she was lacking and what she gotta focus on. It won''t be easy, but she''ll make it for sure! Her fight for a starter position gonna start for real today!

 57 Afterword

    @@


    This is the end of the third volume. Finally, the long scrimmage came to an end. Yuel''s team won quite decisively, but it was just a second-string match. How will Yuel and Lars fare in a real battle between first strings?


    Wait, but they''re not even in the first string yet! Will they be able to get there in time for this year''s regional tournament!? Find out in the next volume!


    The writing has been progressing at a steady pace, so there won''t be any breaks before the next volume. In fact, starting with the next volume, I''ll have a bi-weekly schedule where every other week will have TWO chapter releases instead of one!


    Since my ******* has reached the milestone of 20$, I''ll release an extra chapter this week on Saturday. In general, the new schedule will be: one chapter every week on Tuesday + one extra chapter every other week on Saturday.


    To keep my ******* rewards in line with the faster schedule, the 3$ plan now offers FOUR chapters ahead instead of just three.


    Thanks for the support, everybody. I hope you''ll keep enjoying the series for a long time!


    *******: https://www.*******.com/darkclaymore


    EDIT: Apparently the word P A T R E O N is censored, so all the "*******" are referring to it.@@

 58 The Regionals Without Me

    The competitive stage. The place where each player puts their everything on the line for the sake of victory. An arena where gladiators fight relentlessly through blood and sweat, displaying their strengths and conquering their weaknesses.


    In today''s scrimmage, Yuel got a taste of this glamorous stage. It was a ruthless war zone, but a glimmering one. Today''s battle just ended, yet he already dreamed of playing here again.


    "Hey dude," Lars called out. "Match is over. How long ya gonna stand there?"


    "Oh, right." Yuel returned down to earth. What did just happen, again? Right, they had a handshaking ceremony and the Leopards left. Everything was a blur. He vaguely recalled Breaker talking about something with Lars and Roi, but he completely out of it at the time.


    "You okay? You look like a zombie, haha."


    "Just tired." Yuel slowly turned toward the exit. Ugh, his legs felt like lead. Each step felt like pushing a car that ran out of gas.


    "Dude, you look pooped." Lars walked up to him and offered a shoulder. "C''mon."


    "I''m not [that] tired- wah!" Yuel stumbled, almost diving into the floor. So much for acting tough. Ugh. He felt his cheeks heating up. "... guess I''ll take you on that offer." He wrapped his arm around Lars''s shoulder. "This is embarrassing.."


    "Totally." Lars nodded. "You gotta exercise more. You''ve been slacking lately, right?"


    "I still jog, at least once a week."


    "Laaaame. You gotta jog every day, yo."


    "Pretty sure that''ll break my legs."


    "Nah, it''ll be fine! Trust me, you''ll have more MP than ever! Can cast yo Tactics Shmactics spell all day."


    "Heh, I''ll think about it." Yuel smiled wryly. Body fitness directly contributed to mental fitness, so it''s not like Lars was wrong. However, Yuel''s fatigued stemmed primarily from the abnormal circumstances of today''s match,


    First, he inherited the shot-caller role amidst a helpless situation in the first game. He had to squeeze every last bit of brain power to overcome that ordeal. And since then, he had been the shot-caller every game. That''s extremely taxing when combined with playing Support, a role which required sharp-decision making.


    However, all of that was still up his alley. Things started getting out of hand once the issue with Trever hit the fan. Yuel was stressed out by the team falling apart and he desperately tried to find a solution, which led to confronting Trever face to face and asking the team captain to step down. An absurd situation. Yuel never dealt with that kind of drama before.


    And if all that wasn''t exhausting enough, he also became the captain. That loaded further pressure on him, since he had to act like a role model for everybody and hold the team together. Yuel never trained to bear such heavy responsibility during a match. It was nerve-racking.


    So all in all, there were too many unforeseeable circumstances and too many roles forced on him. No wonder he was exhausted. No amount of daily exercise could have prepared him for something like this. Even running twenty marathons every day wouldn''t build the necessary mental fortitude to deal with that sort of rollercoaster ride.


    The only relief he had today was when Lars joining the team. Lars was a high maintenance player, so Yuel had to babysit him a little. But in exchange, Lars steered the momentum in StormBlitz''s favor, making it that much easier to win the two games.


    "You played well today," Yuel said.


    "Whoa," Lars jumped. "You really praising me? That''s rare! You sure you okay? Don''t die on me, dude!"


    "I can give credit where it''s due. With that said, we still need to review some of the terrible plays you made, like that one time you died diving under tower."


    "Bah, ruthless." Lars made a face. "But we really did it, huh." His eyes went over the grand stage. "We finally became pros!"


    "Again with that..." Yuel sighed and smiled wryly. "This is just junior high. And, we only played as a second string."


    "But duuude, wasn''t it sick!? We finally got to play on a real stage! There was even an audience and everything! "


    [I bet they were mostly spies from other schools, though.] Yuel kept that observation to himself to not ruin the moment. Circumstances aside, today was really a huge step forward.


    Just a year ago, the two of them were just newbies who grinded in Ranked during lunch breaks and after school. They had come a long way, getting to play on a real stage where pro matches were held. But, that''s just the beginning.


    "We really made it far, but we still got a long way to go."


    "True dat. Next time, we gonna come here as the first string!"


    "Yes." Yuel nodded. [Though, that''ll have to wait until at least next week.] Sadly, it''s unlikely any changes will be made to the first string so late into the year. The regionals were just a couple of months away and Yuel still hadn''t surpassed Howard. But, next year for sure...!


    "Sure took you a while." Gilbert greeted them as they returned to the waiting room. "You alive?" he asked while throwing a glance at the shoulder supporting Yuel.


    "Kinda." Yuel quickly removed himself from Lars, before anybody else sees this embarrassing scene. Gilbert was fine, but others would make fun of him to no end. And, Julia would definitely tear him apart for this.


    Yuel dropped on one of the sofas and exhaled. Thinking of it, he didn''t get much sleep tonight. The nap he took before the scrimmage relieved some of that fatigue, but it was creeping back. He was so tired. If not for his teammates being as reliable as they were during the matches, he would have collapsed a long time ago.


    "By the way," Yue; addressed Gilbert. "Thanks for backing up my shot-calling, especially in the last game. I could barely put two and two together at that point."


    "Well," Gilbert shrugged. "I was kinda supposed to be the team''s shot-caller in the fist place, so..."


    [Thanks for willing to surrender the role to me.] Yuel kept that one inside to not rub any salt.


    Gilbert clearly came here today fully intent on being the shot-caller throughout the whole scrimmage. After all, that''s the role entrusted to him by Howard. Just how hard was it for him to surrender the role to somebody else? And to a freshman, to boot.


    "Really, thank you so much."


    "C''mon, you making me blush." Gilbert chuckled. "It''s no big deal. That''s what teammates do: we support each other. Just because you play Support, doesn''t mean you can''t rely on others. That''s a problem I noticed, you know? You like shouldering everything yourself. It''s a team sport. You don''t have to do everything yourself."


    "Right." Yuel had mixed feelings about this critique, but it probably had some truth in it. He really did accumulate a bunch of different roles and overclocked his brain to find solutions for all the problems the team faced. But, it''s not like he didn''t rely on his teammates at all. For example, he did borrow Lars''s help to reclaim the team''s momentum, didn''t he?


    "Well," Gilbert looked aside. "To be fair, you were probably meant to be tested as the shot-caller in the first place."


    "Hm?"


    "Nothing," Gilbert shrugged. "Anyway, I''m off to watch the first string''s game. Seems like they''re still at it."


    "Oh! " Lars exclaimed. "I wanna watch too!" He turned to Yuel. "Wanna go?"


    "Nah," Yuel shook his head, sinking deeper into the comfy sofa. "I want to rest a bit."


    "Okay, seeya after the match." Everybody left. Yuel also wanted to join them, but his body lost all its strength once it dropped on the sofa. So tired. He merely played five games, but it felt like he returned from war. A little nap was in order. His eyes grew heavier and heavier until he succumbed to darkness.


    Sometime later, Lars woke him up. The first string match was over, along with today''s scrimmage. It''s time to head home.


    "Who won?" Yuel asked Howard.


    "We, of course," Howard answered matter-of-factly. So, in the end, the first string went 3-2, which made the second string''s 4-1 unnecessary. Yuel stressed so much over getting that 4-1, but it didn''t even matter in the end. He felt cheated.


    "Gotta admit though," Howard said. "It was close. Good thing you got that 4-1 as a backup."


    "Yes, after somebody pressured me about it to death."


    "Haha, did I press too hard? My bad." Howard said that, but there was as nothing apologetic about his smirk. "Well, rejoice. You passed the test with flying colors."


    "What test?" Thinking of it, when they talking about subbing Lars in, Howard said: ["Consider this a test your future depends on."] And, Gilbert also mumbled something along these lines. "You never told me what this ''test'' is about."


    "You''ll find out."


    "When, exactly?" Yuel frowned.


    "After we win the championship." Howard grinned.


    "That''s some confidence. How are our chances?"


    "We''re in a pretty good spot for the regionals, at least," Howard said. "I mean, we just beat the team that''s favored to represent the region. That''s not too shabby, right? Haha."


    "You lost 0-2 to them at first, though."


    "You''re a real party popper, anybody ever told you that?" Howard shook his head. "But, you''re right. We only ended up winning because it was a best of five. It''s tough to beat them 2-1, but if it''s 3-2 we got a decent chance. Gotta pray we''ll only meet them at the finals."


    "So it seems." Yuel nodded. In the regionals, all matches were best-of-three, except for the finals which were best-of-five. They''re bound to run into Leopards as long as they keep winning, so it''s best if that happens in the finals.


    That''s where the seeding system came into play. If StormBlitz and Leopards get first and second seeds, they''re bound to meet only at the finals.


    Unfortunately, things didn''t go as planned. StormBlitz managed to secure first seed, but for some reason, the Leopards only secured fourth seed. After the scrimmage against StormBlitz, the Leopards lost most of their subsequent scrimmages.


    Was it on purpose? Did their coach order them to lose so they avoid meeting StormBlitz at the finals? It sounded like a stretch, but it''s hard to put anything past Fernando Rodriguez. After all, he''s the man who came up with an unconventional strategy like the mixup to increase the chances of winning best-of-three games.


    Aron and Howard spied on one of the scrimmages and Yuel tagged along. The lineups the Leopards used there were quite different from the ones Howard played against. There was also an abnormal amount of subs during that scrimmage. The only consistent element was Fenrir, the team captain. He was the one player who had never been subbed out.


    Were they experimenting with new formations for the tournament? Perhaps their coach was preparing a special strategy to deal with StormBlitz.


    The most surprising part of the scrimmage was when ComboBreaker and Freezer were subbed in. Could it be this scrimmage was used to test them? After all, they were capable players. Being stuck in the second string definitely didn''t suit somebody of Breaker''s caliber.


    [Are they being given a chance to become starters?] Yuel clasped his hands. He played against these two. His team even won 4-1. And yet, Breaker and Freezer were apparently given a chance to prove they were fit for the first string, whereas Yuel was stuck in the second string. As a mere rookie, there was no hope for him this year.


    [No, that''s not important right now.] Yuel shook his head. He came here to observe the scrimmage, not to lament his situation. Besides, it''s possible the coach just used this scrimmage to give Breaker and Freezer some practical experience, a thing both of them seemed to previously lack.


    Either, the two of them put on a solid performance. Breaker played Pirate, but she was an entirely different beast compared to when she faced Lars. Her movements were as refined as ever, but now she also knew how to adapt to unforeseeable situations on the fly.


    "RELEASE THE-!" The Pirate began yelling, then stopped. There''s no telling whether the enemy Elf intended to dodge the Kraken in the last second, but Breaker didn''t care to check. All she wanted was to startle the enemy with the threat of an incoming Kraken.


    While her opponent was momentarily fazed by this development, Breaker closed the distance with Backfire Cannon. One slash. Two slashes. The Elf took two hits before finally escaping with Elven Leap.


    However, what awaited the Elf at his landing spot was a vicious Kraken. Breaker forced this sequence of plays to completely trap the Elf. The Kraken smacked the enemy into the ground and Breaker finished him off.


    Breaker''s plays were already polished before, but now they were also swift and brimmed with confidence. She must have gained a tremendous amount of practical experience over the last month. She was no longer a one-trick pony whose only dangerous weapon was combo. Right now, Breaker was an all-around powerhouse.


    Similarly, Freezer also put on a surprisingly solid performance as Electromancer. All he did were mostly basic plays, but at least they no longer had any glaring flaws in them. He patiently applied Electric Charges via basic attacks, followed up with Chain Lightning for maximum hits and wrapped it up with Electrical Explosion. The minion wave was blown to pieces.


    On top of that, Freezer also utilized Thunderstorm in the nastiest way possible. He always placed the storm in the center of the enemy''s formation during team fights, forcing the enemies to scatter and break formation. This usually led to an easy team fight win.


    Compared to how poorly Freezer played Electromancer last time, he truly improved a lot. Or rather, it''s more like he was rusty before and now got back in shape. Combined with his sharp decision-making and his deadly ability to punish overextension, he was shaping into a tough opponent.


    The Leopards ultimately lost 2-3. However, the two only games they won were the ones where Breaker and Freezer played.


    So, did it mean these two really had a chance to be promoted to the first string? They definitely improved a lot since the last time Yuel played them. They were moving forward, chasing the competitive stage. Yet here Yuel was, still stuck in the second string like before. Ugh.


    Before long, the regionals came around. StormBlitz pushed forward all the way to the semifinals, where they ran into the Leopards. Whether it was a calculated arrangement or purely bad luck, this best-of-three was an unwelcome matchup for StormBlitz.


    Neither Breaker nor Freezer participated in the tournament until this point, so it''s safe to assume they didn''t make it into first string. Phew, that was good. Yuel felt a little bad for thinking this way, but he couldn''t deny he was glad these two didn''t make it into the first string. Because otherwise, he''d feel terrible for still being stuck in the second string-


    "ComboBreaker!" The announcer shouted as he read the roster. "A face we haven''t seen this tournament yet! And a girl, no less! Is she Rodriguez''s secret weapon!? Or, perhaps a special tech against StormBlitz!? After all, the Leopards lost to StormBlitz in a scrimmage earlier this year. Oh? I also hear she used to be the captain of the second string? That sounds promising!"


    The announcer''s loud words hammered Yuel. So, Breaker made it. Freezer wasn''t in the roster, but Breaker made it. In just a span of a few months, she ascended into the first string. Even though she didn''t get to play in every match, she still achieved way more than Yuel did, which was zilch. Nada.


    And, Breaker didn''t come on stage just to shock Yuel. She actually put on a lot of work during the StormBlitz vs. Leopards match, displaying her hyper-aggressive combo style in all its beauty. It proved quite effective against Howard''s defensive composition. Defending was that much harder against an enemy who could blast you apart in an instant.


    "Amazing!" The commentator shouted. "From hundred to zero in an instant! To all you folks out there who call combo a ''meme'', watch and learn!"


    So much praise. So much attention. Even though Breaker wasn''t necessarily the most amazing player in the match, the caster hyped her enough to make her look like a star. Her competitive debut was nothing short of dazzling.


    Meanwhile, Yuel was downstairs in the audience. He was sitting in the shadows of the glimmering lights, unnoticed. The stage was right there in front of him, yet it felt like it''s on the other side of the world.


    This year, Yuel didn''t make it there. It''s Howard and Ellen fighting on that grand stage instead of him and Lars. They were appointed as substitutes, but that''s only in case something were to happen to Howard or Ellen. In practice, they weren''t considered part of the first string in any shape or form.


    Worse of all, Howard and Ellen were juniors. They''ll be around for another year and will keep overshadowing Yuel and Lars, stealing their spotlight on the competitive stage.


    [No. Next year will be different.] Yuel swore to himself. For now, he had no choice but to admit defeat against Howard. However, next year he''ll seize the Support role for sure! He''ll no longer stay in the shadows.


    Even at his current level, Yuel led a team to score 4-1 against a team led by Breaker. And, Breaker proved herself a strong player who had what it takes to reach the first string. So, Yuel definitely had what it takes to compete on that dazzling stage too. And the same went for Lars, who defeated Breaker multiple times.


    They''ll get there. Next year, they''ll play on this same stage and facing strong teams. Next time, Yuel will lead a team to beat the Leopard''s first string.


    The StormBlitz vs. Leopards match concluded in three rounds. StormBlitz lost 1-2. As Howard predicted, beating the Leopards in a best-of-three was unlikely. It''s impressive enough they won one game, largely thanks to Aron''s strong late game.


    Nevertheless, a loss was a loss. The regionals had a single elimination format, so StormBlitz was out of the tournament. Despite Howard talking big about winning the championship, they didn''t even reach the nationals this year.


    In the end, the Leopards won the regionals. However, even they didn''t get all the way to the championship. They reached the semifinals of the nationals and were stopped there.


    In other words, there were even stronger teams out there, waiting for Yuel on the national stage. He had to get there, no matter what. Next year, for sure! It''ll be a long road, but the first step was clear: surpassing Howard as a Support.

 59 New Captain and Vice-Captain

    Summer arrived soon after the nationals. Before Yuel realized, he had already spent an entire year in the Classmancers club. He improved a lot and class-changed from "Kid" to "Second String Captain". But, that''s about all he achieved. He''ll have to work even harder next year if he wants to play competitively.


    The end of the year was approaching and a third of the club was about to graduate: Aron, Trever and all the other seniors. It meant all their spots on StormBlitz will be open next year. But Howard and Ellen were still here, so Yuel and Lars''s spots were still taken... for now.


    Before graduation day, the club threw a small farewell party for the seniors. All juniors and freshmen joined hands to bring snacks and drinks. Chips, cupcakes, candies, cola, you name it. Yuel could only imagine the horror of cleaning all of this afterward, a job that''s clearly going be forced on the freshmen... oh well. It was supposed to be a party, so he did his best to shut his brain and enjoy.


    "Hey," Lars called out to Trever. "You finished entry exams, right? Got into Ivy?"


    "Ivy?" Trever took a slow sip from his drink. "Nah, I blew it."


    "Pft, not surprised."


    "What''s that supposed to mean!?" Trever jabbed. "Man, like you''re the one to talk. I''ll know for sure the zombie apocalypse is coming when ya get higher than a failing mark at literally anything, haha."


    "Have to agree with that," Yuel gave Lars a look. "From what I heard, most of your grades have only one digit."


    "Haha!" Trever smacked Lars on the back. "And you wanna get to Ivy? Better start taking cram school, boy."


    "Heeeeck no." Lars shook his head so hard it nearly flew off his neck. "I''mma just study hard in the last year. Things will work out for sure. Believe it, yo."


    "Second year." Yuel insisted. "You start studying in the second year. You need to get your grades at least into double digits first."


    "Geh, what a pain. I''ll think about it."


    "Do it."


    "I''ll [think] about it."


    "I''ll tell your mom about your grades."


    "Gah! Okay, okay! I''ll try harder next year!"


    "Good." Yuel nodded. Ivy High was known as a rather "prestige" school. It demanded an average grade of 70 or more across subjects, as well as passing their entry exam with at least 60 points..


    Fortunately, there were various scholarships which made things easier, like a sports scholarship. Since Classmancers was so highly regarded in Ivy, the sports scholarship extended to scouted Classmancers players. Being scouted didn''t always guarantee admittance, but at least it significantly lowered the required average grade and entry exam score. Honestly, that''s Lars''s only hope.


    Trever didn''t get to play in the regionals this year and barely even in scrimmages, so of course, nobody scouted him. Not to mention that even if somebody had seen him during the StormBlitz vs. Leopards scrimmage, they wouldn''t have gotten the best impression of him. Though it seemed the guy in question had completely forgotten about that dark past of his, and that''s for the better. Trever was at his best when he acted like a goof and pretended like he''s everybody''s big bro.


    Unlike Trever, there''s one senior who DID participate in the regionals and put on a solid performance. He would have easily gotten the "Best Jungler" award in the regionals if not for Fenrir. Of course, the talented senior in question was Aron.


    "Did Ivy scout you?" Yuel asked.


    "No," Aron shrugged. "Nobody contacted me."


    "Really? That''s surprising."


    "They got high standards, I guess. An elitist school and all."


    "I see. But, that''s not an issue for you, is it? I''m sure you still passed the entry exam with flying colors."


    "I did. But, I won''t attend Ivy."


    "Huh?" Yuel was sure he misheard for a moment. "Why?"


    "After riding there for the exam, I realized how far it is," Aron shook his head. "The thought of traveling there every day by metro and two buses killed all my motivation. I''ll be going to Gordon instead."


    "I see..." Yuel wasn''t sure how to take this. Aron should have been the type who strives to play in the best environment possible, he even considered going pro later down the line. [Everybody and their reasons, I guess.]


    "By the way," Trever butted in. "I''m going to Gordon too."


    "You don''t say." Aron made a face.


    "Hm?" Yuel raised an eyebrow. There was something off about that reaction, but didn''t seem like either of them was planning to talk about this.


    "My," Ellen waltzed into the conversation out of nowhere and smiled at Aron. "You gave up on Ivy to go to the same school as your boyfriend. How romantic~"


    "You chick and your creepy fanfics," Trever shuddered. "You''re still aiming for Ivy, right?"


    "That''s the idea, but who knows what gonna happen. At least, I''m sure I won''t give up on Ivy for a silly reason like failing all my exams~"


    "You''re real cute, you know?"


    "My, thank you~" Ellen tilted her head and smiled like an angel. A thoroughly disturbing angel.


    "So," Trever grinned and thrust his finger at Ellen. "We gonna play each other next year. Better brace yourself, girl!"


    "My, how rude." Ellen smacked Trever''s finger away. "Your parents didn''t teach you to not point at people? Sheesh. And sure, I''ll brace myself real well. That is, brace myself to never playing you in high school because you''ll never become a starter~"


    "We''ll see about that." They glared at each other for about two seconds, but it felt like an hour. Finally, Ellen shrugged and waltzed away, with a foxy smile still plastered across her face.


    "Tch," Trever clicked his tongue and refilled his drink. Yuel never heard the full story of these two, but they clearly had some bad blood between them. Was it just because Ellen stole Trever''s Carry? It felt like there was much more to it, but Yuel never mustered the courage to poke that beehive.


    "So," Yuel changed the topic. "Is the team at Gordon any good?"


    "Heck yeah!" Trever nodded, the usual smile gradually returning to brighten his face. "They got the Knights! These bad boys don''t have a coach, but they get into top four every year. How cool is that, huh!?"


    "I see." Impressive, but also strange. If these "Knights" were truly so strong, why hadn''t Yuel heard more about them?


    Then again, the only high school team anybody ever talked about was Venom, the team of Ivy High. They had been the reigning champions of the region for the past six years, so the accepted mentality was: "You either play on Venom, or you''re a nobody."


    Whichever reasons Aron and Trever had for picking the Knights, hopefully they won''t regret their decision. They were good players, but not being in Venom meant facing Venom in the regionals. Merely being "good" won''t cut it, that much was evident by the fact a strong player like Aron wasn''t even scouted by Ivy. It''ll be a tough competition for these two in high school.


    Will Aron and Trever be able to shake the tradition and overthrow Venom with the Knights? [I should really start following the high school competitive scene...]


    But, it wasn''t so simple. The high school scene was where competitive Classmancers began overlapping with the pro scenes. It wasn''t uncommon to hear about talented high schoolers receiving pro contracts.


    Unfortunately, all of this was so far from Yuel right now. He was just a freshman in middle school, about to become a junior. The high school scene was still many years away from him. Every time he remembered that he died a little inside.


    As much as he wanted to debut on that stage right now, he first had to conquer the junior high scene, for which he first had to graduate from the second string. And to do that, he had to beat Howard. Speaking of the devil...


    "Alright," Howard raised his voice. "We got a farewell speech from our captain. Gather around."


    Everybody crowded in the center of the room around Aron and Howard.


    "Let''s see," Aron started off by going over his notes.


    "C''mon, cap!" Trever shouted with hands cupped over his mouth. "Speak from the heart, not from your notes!"


    "If I did that, you''ll be stuck here until tomorrow listening to my rants about your performance."


    "Wooooh!" Lars and Taison waved their hands. "Roasted!"


    "You punks," Trever chuckled as he tried to kick them. "Don''t forget who still has the highest win rate in our fights!"


    "Ahem, moving on," Aron took one more glance at his notes and then raised his eyes. "I wrote a nice scroll, but I don''t want to bore you to death. So, I''ll try to keep it short."


    "He means it''ll take one hour instead of five." Trever pretended to whisper.


    "AHEM," Aron stabbed Trever with a sharp glare. "First of all, we got the seniors who have spent three years in this club." He went over the seniors one by one. "Thank you for bearing with me to this day. I know I can sometimes get a little obnoxious, but you stuck with me to the very end and I''m really grateful for that."


    "A ''little obnoxious'' is an understatement."


    "Yeaaaah, but you did a great job as the captain."


    "Yep, nobody could have handled it better."


    The seniors gave Aron thumb ups. Even though Yuel had spent only one year with Aron, he understood how they felt. Aron was very meticulous. He planned training regimes weeks in advance and did whatever it took to see them through, no matter what.


    The zombie apocalypse was going to strike tomorrow? No matter. Everybody had to assemble in the clubroom and follow the schedule Aron posted on the notice board. Anything that got in the way of the plan was frowned upon.


    That''s the kind of punctual captain Aron was. While Yuel thought that''s admirable, some complained how this scheduling was a thorn at their side. Mainly, the wild ones like Lars and Trever. They always just wanted to have fun and do whatever they felt like at the moment. It''s not surprising Aron mostly gave up on chaining them and mostly filled their schedules with "independent practice".


    Regardless, it''s undeniable that Aron''s organized schedules and strict management greatly boosted the level of each and every member. He was critical, sometimes downright unforgiving, but it was all for the sake of players.


    The first time Yuel interacted with Aron was during the entry exam and at the time he also thought Aron was a rather demanding person. Aron bombarded him with questions after every move, giving him no chance to catch a breather. However, now Yuel knew that was just Aron''s way of assessing Yuel''s level and helping Yuel improve. When Aron asked questions, Yuel''s flaws came to the light. When Aron criticized the flaws, Yuel learned what to work on. In the end, it was all for the better.


    "Next, the juniors." Aron went over the names of the juniors. "After today, you''re the seniors. The club is in your hands. Not it''s your job to pull the younger members." He passed a huge responsibility to them, emphasizing how they must serve as role models for the younger members and keep on striving for the championship.


    "Since I''m no longer the captain after today," Aron said. "I''ll announce the next captain now: Howard."


    A round of applause broke out, with some whistles mixed in-between. Yuel should have joined in, but his arms froze. His palms trembled, unwilling to connect.


    This should have been obvious for a while now. It''s only natural for Howard to become the next captain. It''s a standard promotion from a vice-captain into a captain, nothing special.


    However, it carried heavy implications for Yuel and Lars''s chances of making it into the first string next year, because the captain decided the lineups. There''s no way Howard would give up the Support role of his own accord, especially not when he can single-handedly decide who gets to play and who doesn''t.


    Just when Yuel thought he was getting closer to the competitive scene, a new wall appeared in front of him. Was it even possible to overcome? Even if he somehow convinces everybody he''s a better Support than Howard, it''s still the captain who had the final say. Ugh.


    And what''s even more frustrating, Howard just took another huge step forward and increased the gap between himself and Yuel. Ever since their clash in the entry exam, Yuel had been chasing Howard''s back the whole year. From a rookie to a second string vice-captain and all the way to a second string captain. Yuel made tremendous progress in this one year.


    However, all of that paled compared to this one promotion Howard received. Just as Yuel was finally about to catch up, Howard sprinted five kilometers ahead yet again. Was it even possible to catch up at this point...?


    "Alright," Howard finished giving a small speech regarding his ambitions as the new captain, but none of it registered with Yuel. Something something, winning the nationals, something something. "Now then, since I''m the captain, it means the club doesn''t have a vice-captain, right? So, I gotta pick some sucker who''ll do all the work for me, haha. The new vice-captain gonna be Yuel."


    "Eh...?" Yuel stumbled backward. He? The vice-captain? Ah...


    "C''mon," Howard motioned to come over.


    "Right..." Yuel wobbled forward, each step felt heavier than the previous. He? The new vice-captain? That was...


    "Heh," Trever smacked Yuel on the back. "Good job, kid. You''re finally a bigshot, haha."


    "Yeah, dude!" Lars lightly punched Yuel on the shoulder. "You gonna be one of the top dogs, yo!"


    "Haha, thanks..." Yuel responded with a weak smile. He was actually going to become the vice-captain? That was... He didn''t even...


    He was wobbling all over the place, but somehow reached his destination and stood beside Howard. Yes, they were actually standing shoulder to shoulder. It''s the first time Yuel felt this close to Howard. Even though Howard leaped forward by becoming a captain, Yuel closed much of the gap by becoming the vice-captain. The chase wasn''t over yet! It''s still possible to catch up!


    But at the same time, Yuel felt anxious. Howard was the vice-captain before Yuel. In other words, Yuel was walking down the same path Howard did. It should have been a good sign, since it meant Yuel was on the right track for catching up with Howard.


    But at the same time, it emphasized the greatest gap between them: the one year gap. Just by being one year older, Howard will forever be one step ahead. Was it an impossible chase all along...?


    Eventually, the crowd dispersed and everybody returned to their snacks and drinks. Howard said more things regarding the club''s future, but it all went in one ear and out the other. Yuel just stood there like a statue, mulling over this development.


    "You okay?" Howard asked.


    "Yeah..." Yuel mumbled. "Just wondering: why me? Wouldn''t somebody like Gilbert be a better fit?"


    "Maybe," Howard shrugged, not even trying to deny it. "But, the tradition is that the captain is a senior and the vice-captain is a junior. That way, the vice-captain becomes the captain in his last year."


    "I see." It made sense. Even though Howard spoke lightly of it, this had huge implications about Yuel''s future: at this rate, he was going to become the captain next year. He''ll literally walk down the same path as Howard. Was that good or bad?


    "Why me?" Yuel asked.


    "Heh, and who else could I pick?" Howard chuckled. "You knew Lars and Tai are out of the question. and July wouldn''t be arsed. I guess Greg was one option, but you''re the better player. You even passed my ''test'' with flying colors."


    "Test? Oh, so that''s what it was about." It finally clicked. When Howard forced Yuel to confront his teammates during the scrimmage, it was a test of Yuel''s ability. How well could he speak up his mind? How would he deal with problematic allies? Could he lead the team into a comeback? That one simple test answered all these questions.


    "Well," Howard patted Yuel on the shoulder. "Better be ready to work your ass off. Another thing that''s according to tradition, is that vice-captain handles most stuff. The captain gets to kick back and relax."


    "That sounds irresponsible."


    "It builds character. Think of it as gaining exp for when you become the captain. Besides, I can''t babysit everybody. My job as the captain is to bring the team to nationals."


    "Makes sense." Yuel wasn''t keen on the idea of becoming Howard''s errand boy, but that''s actually how Howard was as the vice-captain too. Howard handled most issues throughout the year, making him feel like the actual captain of the club. Aron had the last word in everything important, but he was a rather distant figure for everybody outside the first string. Aron was like the unapproachable CEO of a big company, while Howard was the company''s representative.


    And now, Yuel became said representative. Huge responsibility dropped on his shoulders along with the promotion. He had mixed feelings about it. On one hand, he was glad his skill was recognized. On the other hand, it invited more trouble than it''s worth. His resolution for the upcoming year was to catch up to Howard, but the vice-captain job will surely get in the way of that.


    Was it going to be alright? Will he be able to catch up despite this slowdown? Either way, there''s no choice but to accept his fate. It''s not like he could casually step down from the job. Not to brag or anything, but he was really the most fitting junior to handle this job. Not necessarily because he was that amazing, but because of who the other juniors were. Putting his ambitions aside, this was a responsibility he had to accept as a club member with the appropriate set of skills.


    It''ll be fine. Howard overcame this ordeal, and so will Yuel. Just because Yuel will have more work cut out for him, it didn''t mean he''ll stop in place. He''ll catch up to Howard and become a starter, without fail. By walking down this road, he''ll acquire the necessary experience for topping Howard not only as a Support and a shot-caller, but also as a captain. There''s still a long road ahead of him!

 60 Summer Break Begins

    As the school year ended, summer vacation began. This was Yuel''s second summer since he started playing Classmancers.


    Last summer, he and Lars spent the whole time playing together to climb the ladder in Ranked. That was their best indication of improving at the game. But this summer, they had a concrete goal in mind: surpassing Howard and Ellen. The goal was huge and stared them right in the face, but they weren''t sure how to actually reach it.


    Unlike ranking up in Ranked, there was no linear progression toward this goal. How will they know if they''re getting any closer to beating Howard and Ellen? Was there any specific training regime they could use to get there faster? Unfortunately, Yuel didn''t have an answer and Lars didn''t even bother thinking much.


    "Don''t worry, yo." Lars always said. "Let''s just keep playing and climb these ranks! We''re just two ranks below them, so we gonna beat them in no time!"


    "Online rank doesn''t decide everything, you know." Yuel always retorted. They were at "Diamond I" right now, whereas Howard and Ellen were at "Challenger IV". They were indeed only two ranks apart. Though, in Diamond and Challenger, even a single rank required tons of grinding.


    Still, in theory, they could eventually catch up with Howard and Ellen if they grind a whole lot. Unfortunately, that didn''t mean anything for their position in the club. Clubmates had a certain amount of respect toward online ranking, but it couldn''t single-handedly decide who''ll play on the first string. There were many other factors involved.


    For one, there''s each player''s "main role". Even though Yuel and Lars had the highest online ranks after Howard, Ellen and Roi, it didn''t mean they could just take the 4th and 5th spots on the team. Their main roles were Support and Carry, which were already taken by Howard and Ellen. So, there weren''t any open spots to claim.


    So, how about Lars''s suggestion of beating Howard and Ellen''s ranks? Well, Howard was new captain so he decided the roster. Beating his online rank won''t be enough to make him surrender his spot. The only true way to force Howard to step down was by making him admit defeat. In other words, making him admit Yuel was the superior Support and that the team would have a higher chance of winning with Yuel on the team


    So, while beating Howard''s online rank could be a good first step, it''s far from enough. Yuel had to do more, to aim higher. But, he had no idea where exactly he should aim or how high he should get.


    In the end, all he could do was spend the summer practicing, just like last time. Lars dropped by every day and they played Classmancers from morning to evening. Lars even slept over a few times so they could play some more.


    Julia also tagged along. She didn''t visit every day like Lars and she vehemently refused to sleep over, but she also poured hours upon hours into the game. This was also the same as last summer, except for her big shift in attitude compared to last year.


    Julia firstmost came over because of Lars, no question about it. However, she also displayed a much more genuine desire to better herself.


    "Hey, you," Julia called out. "Take a look at this." She shoved her tablet into Yuel''s face. "How should I''ve played here? This guy mopped the floor with me."


    "Let''s see," Yuel grabbed the tablet before it smashed his nose. "For starters, you pushed too hard here. Aeromancer is good for defending, so random aggression won''t get you far."


    "Yeah, I know that stuff." Julia glared at him as if he was making a fool of her. "But, the heck was I supposed to do instead then? The guy was hugging his tower all day like it''s his baby."


    "One idea is to bait them outside." Yuel slid his finger across the screen, drawing paths from Mid Lane to the neutral Griffin Camps and the enemy Hyena Camps. "Pretend you''re going for one of their camps while they''re turtling. It won''t work on everybody, but some may be tempted to chase you. That''s when you catch them off guard and finish them off."


    "Oh, that''s an idea!" Julia nodded, then shifted her eyes aside. "But of course I already knew that. Hmph."


    "Sure." Yuel rolled his eyes. Even though Julia changed her attitude toward the game, her attitude toward Yuel remained the same. Oh well.


    Over the year, Julia greatly improved her defense and offense. Her tight defense was no longer as wasteful as before because she developed the confidence to not ward every single pixel on the mini-map. Her offense was also fiercer thanks to her secret training with Ellen, or so Yuel heard. He barely got any chances to see it in action because Julia refused to use it in front of Lars.


    Julia didn''t admit it, but she was also chasing a rival. Gilbert was assuredly going to be StormBlitz''s new Mid Laner next year, so Julia had to surpass him to get a chance to play competitively. Just like Yuel and Lars, she also lagged behind her rival by two ranks. Julia was at Diamond III, whereas Gilbert was in Diamond I.


    Fortunately for her, gaps within Diamond division were much easier to close than the gap between Diamond I and Challenger IV. So, she actually had the highest chance to catch up to her target this summer. Who knows, she might even become a starter before Yuel and Lars. That is, if she were as passionate as them.


    "I''m pooped," Julia sighed as she dropped on the sofa. "Say, don''t you guys wanna do something else for a change?" She made it sound like she''s asking both of them, but her eyes were locked on Lars. "It''s summer and stuff. We could go to the beach or just hang out at the mall. We didn''t get to do anything fun last summer. I don''t wanna spend another summer cramped in this room."


    "Hey now," Lars said. "We went to the beach once, remember?"


    "Oh yes, of course I remember." Julia''s eyes turned sharp like knives. "You mean that one time when I thought we''re going to have fun at the beach, but turned you were talking about doing a flipping marathon aaaaall the way to the beach and back!"


    "Nah, that''s no marathon. It was just like five kilometers."


    "That''s marathon enough for me!" Julia hissed. "Anyway, I''m talking about hanging out for real, not working out or playing Mancers."


    "Well," Yuel said. "You have girl friends you can go with, right?"


    "You don''t get it, do you? Dumbass" Julia puffed her cheeks. "I wanna go to the beach with-" She paused and threw a glance at Lars, then turned away with a tint of blush on her cheeks. "Nevermind, forget it." She dropped again on the sofa. "Guess we''ll just rot in this boring room the whole summer. Great."


    "Welp," Lars scratched his head. "I kinda get it. Playing at the same place with the same people kinda burns you out. I wanna keep playing Mancers, but maybe we can make things more fun somehow?"


    "More fun?" Yuel asked.


    "Ya know, revolutionize stuff. Change the atmosphere. Do some cooler stuff.."


    "Hmm," Yuel pondered. So, Lars meant to keep playing Classmancers but to do so with a novel approach or in a different environment. That''s indeed a good way to combat burnout.


    Admittedly, Yuel was also getting a little sluggish during this routine. It didn''t bother him at all last summer, probably because Classmancers was still new for him. But after spending a whole year playing Classmancers seriously in a club, the game lost most of its novelty.


    Interestingly, Yuel didn''t feel that way during the year. Everybody had been practicing every day in the clubroom, yet every time felt fresh and new in its own way. Sure, there was some repetition, but it didn''t feel this bad.


    What was the difference? Why was practicing in the club usually fun, whereas meeting up in Yuel''s room was burning them out? It''s probably the number of people. They had 15 members in the club, so there was a lot of variety. Team lineups and compositions varied wildly during practice matches and even the roles people played were different. Yuel usually played Support, but sometimes he was had to fill in as a Top Laner or Jungler.


    This variety and flexibility of club practice was something this room severely lacked. It''s only the three of them here, which wasn''t even enough to complete a full team. The only "variety" they had was when their online teammates stole their main roles, so they had to adapt. But, that always felt like nothing more than an inconvenience.


    Another factor that played a role in the burnout was the location itself. Even though the clubroom sometimes felt stuffed because of all the computers, it was rather big and offered a lot of space. Compared to that, Yuel''s room felt jail; tiny and restricting.


    There was the option of playing in the living room, but he wanted them to take turns playing on his computer so they don''t become overused to tablets. Sadly, his computer was in his room. He suggested temporarily moving it to the living room for the summer, but his mom rejected the idea.


    So, whoever was going to play from the computer had to stay in Yuel''s room, while the rest could play from the living room. Lars said that''s silly and beats the entire point of gathering together, and Yuel agreed. Thus, there''s no choice but to play together in Yuel''s room. Ugh, it''s really cramped.


    The third factor of note was that there''s only one PC here. Lars didn''t like playing on tablet because apparently, it''s harder to execute his superhuman shots there. So, he brought over a laptop whenever he could. It wasn''t exactly optimal because there wasn''t much space for a laptop with a mouse, but Lars preferred that over a tablet.


    So, most of the time Yuel and Julia took turns playing on Yuel''s PC. Julia actually liked playing on tablet and argued she''s fine with Yuel always staying on PC, but Yuel objected. Playing on a tablet was a different experience from playing on PC, so it might create some bad habits. Competitors played on PCs during tournaments, so it''s important to hone mechanical skill on PC.


    [So, what can I do with this?] Yuel wanted to convert his observations into a solution. First, the number of players. The most straightforward approach was to call other club members and play together with them. Especially, Roi and Dan would be great additions because they''d fill in the missing Top Laner and Jungler roles. Playing as a full premade team would also allow them to climb ranks faster, so it''s a win-win for everybody.


    But, Yuel couldn''t possibly call them over. The room was already cramped, so shoving more people in here would make pack them like sardines.


    "So," Lars said. "How about we play at the club?"


    "At the club?" Yuel blinked. "But it''s summer vacation. The school is closed."


    "Is it though? Some srs bsns sports clubs practice during the summer, so don''t see why we can''t. My basketball club did that in grade school."


    "Hmm, I suspect that''ll require getting Burton involved," Yuel said. For starters, they probably had to get permission from their club supervisor, Mr. Burton. There''s a chance Burton will have to be physically present at school to permit this activity, in which case there''s no chance. He didn''t care about Classmancers or the club. The supervisor role was forced on him and he wasn''t particularly thrilled about it.


    "Ask him then." Lars pushed.


    "No, he may suspect something. I''ll talk to Howard and Aron first. I''m sure they know."


    "You do that," Lars nodded and clenched a fist. "Worst case, we''ll bust our way in!"


    "Yeah, no." Yuel shook his head. "You don''t want the club to get into trouble, do you?"


    "Meh, what they gonna do about it? Probably just scold us or something."


    "You talk like you''re a veteran at getting scolded by teachers. Not surprising, with your grades."


    "Weeeeelp, haha."


    Later that day, Yuel called Howard about this topic.


    "You want to practice at the club room?" Howard asked. "Alright, go ahead. You haven''t lost the key I gave you, did you?"


    "Of course not. Getting in isn''t the problem. You sure it''s alright? We don''t need Burton''s permission or anything?"


    "Yeah, according to the rules you need him at school to ''supervise'' you."


    "Figured..."


    "But who cares, right?" Howard chuckled.


    "Huh?" Yuel raised an eyebrow.


    "Just do it."


    "You telling me to break the rules? Nice start, new cap."


    "Nobody gonna give a shit. Just don''t wander around the school too much and you''ll be fine. If they question you, tell them you forgot something in the clubroom and came to fetch it. A no-brainer."


    "Can''t believe I''m hearing this from the captain. If it were Aron, he''d object for sure."


    "Yeah, he was reluctant at first too," Howard said. "But we applied peer pressure on him so he gave in, haha. He agreed to us use the clubroom as long as he''s there to supervise us. Treating us like a bunch of brats, heh."


    "Definitely sounds like Aron," Yuel nodded, but still had trouble believing it. A strict and by-the-book captain like Aron agreed to sneak into the club room during the summer? It''s hard to imagine, but the part about peer pressure sounded believable enough. [Won''t be surprised if it''s Howard who organized that peer pressure.]


    "Let''s be real here," Howard said. "Burton not gonna bother coming to school for you. And, he not gonna stick out his neck to give us special permission in his absence. If you want to use the club room, gotta break a rule or two."


    "Yeah..." Yuel wasn''t too happy about this, but it''s true. Talking to Burton was a lost cause, it''ll only alert him of the club''s intentions. Maybe it was really necessary to sneak around the rules here...


    "Well," Yuel said. "Worst case if they catch us, you''ll defend us, right cap? After all, you''re Aegis. Your defense is unbeatable."


    "Heh, sure. Tell them I gave permission if they catch you. I''ll take the hit."


    "Huh? You''re actually fine with that?"


    "It''ll look even worse if they think you''re acting without the captain''s permission. It''ll make the club look like a bunch of rascals and the school will blame Burton for that. He won''t get off our cases for a while."


    [He sure put some thought into that.] Yuel just listened, absorbing every word. These sort of school politics were beyond him. How did Howard know all of that so well? Because he spent more time at the club? Yuel would eventually become a captain too, so he had to get on Howard''s level as soon as possible.


    "Anyway," Howard said. "Have fun there."


    "Hm? You''re not joining?"


    "Nah. I may drop by from time to time, but don''t expect me to stick around. It''s summer break, after all. It''s silly to go to school during a vacation, right? Haha."


    "I take it you have some other training plan?"


    "Training plan? C''mon, it''s summer. Gotta relax sometimes."


    "Huh..." [Is he serious?] Yuel paused for a moment. Howard wasn''t going to practice much during the summer? Really? Was he that confident in his skill?


    Honestly, it''s disappointing. Yuel expected more from the rival he was trying to surpass.


    "Fine," Yuel said. "You''re free to spend the summer as you wish."


    "Damn right, son."


    "But, I''m going to keep improving myself. Once school starts, don''t be surprised if I take your spot on the team."


    "You wish," Howard sneered. "Don''t forget I''m the captain. I make the calls."


    "Ugh." Yuel bit his lip. That''s right, Howard''s position as the captain was the final obstacle in Yuel''s path. No matter how much Yuel improves, Howard will have the final say about who makes it into the first string. To snatch a spot on the team, Yuel will have to beat Howard so hard that it''ll make Howard recognize Yuel''s skill and admit defeat. Easier said than done.


    "Well," Howard said. "We''ll see what happens. You''re still Diamond I, right? If you catch up with me, I''ll take you more seriously."


    "Ah." Yuel''s hand trembled, almost losing grip of his phone. There it was! The next goal! Yuel could see it clearly now. He was already planning to beat Howard''s rank anyway, but now he had every reason to pursue that objective. He was going to do it! Challenger IV in two months! Easy. No sweat.


    "Just to make sure," Yuel said. "This also applies to Lars, right?"


    "Sure. I mean, if you''re supporting then it''s stupid to not make Lars carry, and vice-versa. You know I can''t deal with him on lane. You''re the only one he listens to."


    "Yeah, I feel you." Yuel nodded. Even after spending a whole year in the club, Lars remained one heck of a brat. He didn''t like Howard''s defensive shot-calls, so he often rebelled by going on the offensive anyway. Sometimes it worked and scored a kill, other times it got Lars killed. Either way, Howard wasn''t amused. The two of them just didn''t mesh together as a Bot duo.


    The same could be said about Yuel and Ellen but from a different angle. Ellen had her own unique playstyle and her own ways to exploit enemy weaknesses. Yuel had trouble integrating such an unusual chess piece into his tactics. Ellen was like a wild card who changed properties on the fly to mess around with her opponents, but in the process that made it difficult to form a consistent strategy around her.


    Perhaps it wasn''t necessary to do so since she was arguably better than Yuel at striking enemy weaknesses by herself. However, having one less piece to command greatly restricted Yuel''s strategic options. So, rather than not meshing together, it''s more that Yuel and Ellen just didn''t quite complement each other as a pair.


    With all of this in mind, it''s easy to see why StormBlitz''s Bot duo could only be either Yuel & Lars or Howard & Ellen. Therefore, it won''t be enough just for Yuel to beat Howard or for Lars to beat Ellen. Howard most likely won''t admit defeat unless "Yuel & Lars" defeat "Howard & Ellen". It had to be a joint victory.


    "Fine by me," Yuel said. "Have fun during your ''vacation''. Meanwhile, Lars and I will use the clubroom to grind all the way to Master and beat you and Ellen."


    "Heh, have fun."


    With that, it was decided Yuel and the rest could use the clubroom throughout the summer. He, Lars and Julia went to school on the following day, dressed in school uniforms. The guard at the gate didn''t ask them anything, so they cleared the first stage. Phew, they got inside without alerting anybody.


    "Really," Julia pouted as she stared at her t-shirt. "Can''t believe I''m wearing a uniform during summer break. It''s like school never ended."


    "Better safe than sorry," Yuel retorted. The guard at the gate seemed more lenient than usual, so maybe they could''ve gotten inside without uniforms. But, it''s better to wear them just in case. Howard agreed too.


    Even so, this whole situation was bad for his heart. His eyes darted from side to side as he walked, searching for openings in the teachers'' positions to avoid their eyes.


    Judging by the activities around, all the students here belonged to sports clubs. Some dribbled a basketball, others took turns shooting a soccer ball into the goal. They sure worked hard.


    It felt like a long time ago now, but just a year ago Yuel also yearned to be a part of this. He tried many different sports at school, but nothing ever went his way. No matter how hard he studied the sport and its theories, he always messed up in practice. At one point, he even considered giving up on sports entirely and sticking with chess all the way, maybe even becoming a pro.


    But, that''s history now. While Classmancers wasn''t exactly what most would consider a "real sport", in Yuel''s book it was a sport in every sense of the word., Having teammates with a variety of skills, using team strategies to defeat the opposition and participating in competitions against other schools. It had everything a team sport needed.


    And just like these hardworking sports clubs in front of him, Yuel and Co. also came here today to hone their skills at a sport. It''s just the three of them here today, but if this infiltration mission succeeds then he''ll to invite the others too. Maybe they''ll even recreate the same environment they had throughout the year, minus the seniors who graduated.


    But first of all, they had to safely reach the clubroom. They almost ran into some teachers along the way, but Yuel maneuvered around them through safe paths. The team rotated from lane to lane, dodging enemy gankers.


    They ended up going in a roundabout route, but that should let them avoid all dangers. As long as they don''t attract anybody''s attention, they should be fine. Except, that''s easier said than done...


    Julia fidged as she walked, throwing glances all over the place. Yuel was nervous too, but Julia was overdoing it. She looked like a thief who snuck into a house and worried the residents may wake up any moment.


    "You know," Yuel said. "You look suspicious staring at everything like that. Are you that worried?"


    "H-Huh? Of course not, dumbass! I''m just... Err, looking around! Yeah! Because the school looks so different when nobody is around!"


    "Looks the same to me."


    "Hmph, you must be blind then." Julia turned her face away. "But serious talk: what do we say if a teacher catches us?"


    "Relax, July." Lars chuckled and tapped on her shoulder. "If somebody stops us, we just do the obvious: DASH THE HECK OUTTA HERE FULL GAS, YO!"


    "Like hell we will," Yuel made a face. "We''ll say we''re from the Classmancers club and that we came here to pick up our controllers. We only now realized we forgot them back at school, because we usually play on PCs at home. Got it?"


    "Hmm," Julia cocked her head. "Not the best excuse ever. I''ll give it like 4/10. But, it should do."


    "But, but," Lars insisted. "Running away like assassins is so much cooler! Then we''ll have to slip by the guard and-"


    "You. Forgot. A controller. Got it?" Yuel shot a sharp look.


    "Okay, okay. Just don''t kill me, haha."


    After what felt like an hour, they finally reached the clubroom. Once they went in, Yuel immediately closed the door and locked it. That''s it. They made it. Mission accomplished! They infiltrated the clubroom without any incidents!


    "Dude!" Lars spread his arms wide as if to embrace the whole room. "Now we''re talking! This is a whole different level of space." He ran around the clubroom in an airplane pose, something he definitely wouldn''t be able to do in Yuel''s room.


    "Gotta agree," Julia nodded. "Like, I''m not a fan of spending my summer at school, but at least it''s better than that cramped room."


    "Well," Yuel frowned. "Excuse me for not hosting a five-star hotel in my room." [These ungrateful rascals.]


    Still, they were right. Even though it was the three of them like always, the atmosphere here felt a world apart. The room was larger, PCs were available for everybody and various training notes were posted around, mostly Aron''s prints. This was a proper training room designed for improving at Classmancers. Just breathing the air of this room already made them feel like slightly better players.


    "C''mon, yo!" Lars waved at them, already seated at his favorite spot at the PC closest to the window. It''s one of the two PCs which were clogged at the beginning of the year. Yuel shaped them up, but they still weren''t in best form compared to the other PCs here. Yuel recommended using one of the better comps, but Lars insisted this one was the best.


    "Let''s go, my dudes!"


    "Coming," Yuel joined in.


    Meanwhile, Julia was torn between her options. On one hand, she wanted to sit near Lars. But on the other hand, she wanted to stay far away from the noisiest PCs. In the end, she sucked it up and took a seat beside Lars. But of course, she didn''t dare to pick the other defective PC.


    With that, their summer training began. Yuel relayed Howard''s words to Lars: ["You''re still Diamond I, right? If you catch up with me, I''ll take you more seriously."]


    They agreed this was the first goal on their way to the first string. They had to catch up to Challenger IV, then challenge Aegis and Athena for the starter positions.


    With that determination, they spent every day practicing at the club.

 61 Everybody Help to Grind

    Yuel spread the word about practicing at the club and invited others to join in. Roi, Dan, Gilbert, Taison, and Gregory all dropped by from time to time to help with the grind. It was a huge boost, since playing with a five-man premade was a world apart from playing as a three-man premade. No more praying about being matched with decent teammates. Everybody in the club were skilled players and they all cooperated with Yuel''s shit-calling, so the team was consistently strong in every game.


    In particular, Roi and Dan were the most welcome visitors. They filled in the need for a Top Laner and a Jungler, and they were the best in the club at these roles.


    Though, Dan was a little problematic sometimes. He was a good player, but his desire to master every Jungler class in existence made him pick an unconventional Jungler from time to time. Bottom tier classes like Rogue, complex classes like Chronomaster and even outright memes like Cryomancer.


    Needless to say, these experiments didn''t always go well. No matter how well Dan played, classes like Rogue were bottom tier for a reason and the Challenger division wasn''t one to mess around in. Everybody who played at this level came a long way from the bottom, so they knew how to deal with memes and gimmicks. Still, Dan-of-all-Trades insisted.


    "Can''t you experiment in Casual?" Yuel asked after they suffered another defeat, in part because Dan played Druid Jungler. Why would anybody even do that...


    "I experiment in Casual too," Dan said. "But, there ain''t anywhere better than Ranked to test stuff for real. You know the matchmaking in Casual is clown fiesta."


    "I suppose that''s true." Yuel didn''t like it, but he didn''t have any good retorts. The matchmaking of Casual indeed worked in mysterious ways unbeknown to humankind. It supposedly matched players based on level, playtime and estimated skill. But in practice, there were huge skill gaps and games often snowballed. It may be because people used Casual to try new things, but bottom line it made Casual very unreliable and uncompetitive.


    There''s no choice, Yuel had accepted Dan''s dedication to playing a billion different classes in Ranked. It surely slowed the team''s progress on the ladder, but it was still leaps and bounds beyond playing in a three-man premade.


    All in all, Roi and Dan greatly helped. Thanks to that, Yuel and Lars climbed to Challenger V by the end of the first month. Just one more rank and they''ll catch up to Howard and Ellen!


    Unfortunately, there were also some slowdowns the way. Unlike Roi and Dan, Taison and Gregory weren''t as helpful. They insisted they were "da best" Bot duo and demanded to play Support and Carry. As a result, Yuel and Lars had to take turns playing their main classes.


    "Saw this shit?" Taison pumped a fist after scoring a kill. "We''re da best duo, yo!"


    Admittedly, Taison and Gregory weren''t terrible. They lagged behind on ranks because they didn''t play Ranked as often, but they were definitely around Challenger level in term of skill.


    Still, Taison wasn''t Lars. He lacked the explosiveness and snowballing threat. The best thing about Lars in Ranked was how difficult it''s to stop him once he starts rolling. At least 20% of the time, matches were single-handedly decided by Lars snowballing to victory. It crushed the spirit of the enemy team and led to an early surrender. Easy rank grinding. Everybody wanted Lars to carry for that reason.


    But, Yuel agreed to entertain Taison and Gregory because a five-man premade was that valuable. Having Taison and Gregory in Bot was still better than not having them at all. So, Yuel and Lars altered between playing their main roles and playing Top and Jungler. It was an alright arrangement for Yuel, but not so much for Lars.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "Gah!" Lars exclaimed. "I almost got him! Sneaky dude."


    "That gank was a terrible idea." Yuel shook his head.


    "But he was about to get away with no HP! I had it, yo!"


    "The result begs to differ," Yuel pointed at the defeat message. "You have to keep in mind whether your target has its ult ready. You can''t just attack everybody who has low health."


    "But, how was I supposed to know whether his ult is up? I can''t keep track of that stuff when I''m not even on lane."


    "You can ask others."


    "Oh, didn''t think of that. Smart!"


    "Literally basic logic." Yuel sighed. In term of mechanical skill, Lars''s ganks were amazing as expected. However, his lackluster map awareness and subpar decision-making were fatal for playing Jungler. Therefore, as far as playing Jungler was convened, his skill was stuck somewhere in Gold rank. Yuel ended up played Jungler instead most of the time, leaving Top to Lars.


    There was also the option of letting Julia play Jungler, but that was an even bigger disaster. She was already struggling to balance her offensive and defensive sides, so adding the complexity of jungling on top of that didn''t do her any favors.


    However, Julia was decent as Top so Lars sometimes got to play Mid, his second best role. With access to burst damage, he managed to snowball and carry the team to victory from time to time. Still, he wasn''t nearly as effective as when he played Carry. Ugh, such a waste...


    Fortunately, they only had to deal with this whole headache once in a while, because Taison and Gregory didn''t visit the club that frequently. These troublemakers were also fine with playing Jungler and Top at least half the time, and they were actually decent at these roles. In particular, Taison''s aggressive jungling dominated in some games. Even though it wasn''t his main role, he was likely among the top three Junglers in the club, second only to Dan and Ellen.


    The seniors who graduated also caught wind of this summer camp and paid a few visits.


    "Hey there!" Trever invaded the clubroom and smacked Yuel on the back. "Heard you''re throwing a party! Lemme in."


    "Ugh," Yuel massaged his KO''d back. "Who called you?"


    "Roi said you were having fun here, so I decided to check on ya. You''re throwing a party and don''t even invite your dear seniors. So cold, man."


    [Okay, so it''s Roi.] Yuel nodded to himself. Now he knew to whom to send a medical bill in case his back breaks from repeated smacks over the summer.


    "Yo, dude," Lars greeted his older self with some fake gangsta moves. "The Carry role is already taken."


    "Seniors get priority, kid." Trever puffed his chest. Gangsta negotiations began. "I came here to help ya grind, so you better be thankful."


    "Yeah, it''s awesome," Lars nodded. "We''re missing a Jungler today, so you came at the best time, dude."


    "Heh, you think you can carry better than me? Don''t forget I''m already Challenger IV."


    "It''s because you''re a geezer, so you grinded for a billion years."


    "Wha-!? I''m only two years older!"


    [And yet you call us "kids" all the time.] Yuel retorted mentally.


    "Okay then!" Trever thrust a finger at Lars. "Let''s settle who gets Carry with a 1v1!"


    "You''re on!"


    Aaaaand they went to fight each other for the next two hours. Sigh. This summer sure was going to be noisy...


    In the end, every time there was competition for the Carry role, it was decided with a 1v1 between the two goofs. On some days, it was a 1v1v1 with Taison in the mix. Fortunately, Taison never came on top in 1v1v1, so it was always between Lars and Trever. On the other hand, in 1v1 Taison won a lot. Sigh The team was supposed to spend this summer grinding, but somehow these blockheads turned it into a 1v1 tournament...


    The good news: Trever''s performance as Carry was more than satisfactory. In fact, as long as he maintained his cool, Trever was even better than Lars thanks to his robust experience and superior decision-making. Trever even sometimes displayed the same snowballing potential as Lars, but only when he was "on a roll", as he called it.


    Based on statistics, on average it took longer to win a match with Trever as Carry than it took with Lars as Carry. The difference was about five minutes, nothing to sneeze at. On the other hand, the win ratio with Trever was higher by almost four percent, so hard to say which of the two was a better Carry for grinding ranks.


    One thing for sure, Trever was a better Carry than Taison and Yuel always played Support for him, so it worked out fine. When Trever wasn''t Carry, he was usually a very competent Jungler, so all in all, they steadily grinded rank points with his help. Eventually, they hit Challenger V.


    "This is where the grind begins for real," Trever said. "I''ve been stuck at Challenger V for like a year."


    "A year is too long." Yuel clenched his fists. Challenger IV was the goal. Once there, he can rightfully challenge Howard for the Support spot. It was just one rank away! [It can''t take a year. No, I won''t let it.]


    The first half of summer break ended, but there was another half to go. By the end of it, they''ll reach Challenger IV. They had to. To accomplish in a month what took Trever a year... Ambitious, to say the least. At their current level, it was borderline impossible.


    The promotion from Diamond to Challenger wasn''t reflected only in the amount of grinding, there was also a noticeable difficulty spike. They came across more and more opponents with golden names, either pros or fellow competitive teenagers. Especially, when playing a five-man premade, almost every game was against a premade team of golden names.


    The games became fiercer than ever. Enemy teams had airtight defenses and even when Yuel found a way to break through - they weren''t rattled at all and immediately adapted. These enemies also never missed a chance to punish Lars''s extensions and risky plays, making his dominating snowballs much rarer.


    So, Yuel and Lars not only had to grind more points than before to rank up, but they couldn''t even grind as quickly as before. Even if given a year, was it even possible to reach Challenger IV at this pace...?


    One day, Aron dropped by the club along with Trever. Howard mentioned how Aron used to bring members to the clubroom over the summer, so it wasn''t THAT surprising. Still, Yuel couldn''t believe somebody as strict and by-the-book as Aron would sneak into school without permission, especially now that he graduated. He technically wasn''t even a student here anymore.


    "I had my conflicts about it at first," Aron explained his side of the story. "When I became the captain, Trever and Howard nagged me about how we should use the clubroom instead of meeting at others'' houses."


    "You used to arrange group meetings over the summer?" Yuel asked.


    "Oh yeah," Trever laughed. "The good ol'' days. We picked a victim every time and raided their place, haha."


    "A ''victim'' is a bit extreme." Aron frowned. "But yes, we gathered a group of five every time and practiced at somebody''s place. It wasn''t optimal, I admit. But, I couldn''t possibly let them slack off for two months. We played online too with voice chat, but it wasn''t quite the same."


    "Yeah," Trever nodded. "Because you couldn''t lecture us for hours after every game. Everybody just muted you without telling, haha!"


    "Reviewing games is as important as playing them."


    "Yeah, yeah. Anyway, that''s when The Great Trever came up with a brilliant idea: Let''s use the clubroom!"


    [Reminds me of a certain goof.] Yuel smiled wryly.


    "I had my concerns," Aron admitted. "But, he kept begging and got Howard and others on his side, so I gave it a shot. Turns out nobody cares about us using the room, so I just went along with it. The first couple of days I was still on the fence, but after a week it became a routine."


    "I know the feeling," Yuel nodded. On the first day, he and his accomplices infiltrated the school as if it was mission impossible. A few days forward and it became as natural as going to school every day. The few teachers at school were occupied with other matters, so nobody was interested in policing students who illegally visited their clubs without a supervisor. Clubrooms were locked, so it''s not like unauthorized individuals could easily get in. Besides, they didn''t come here to cause trouble so it''s not a big deal.


    "I heard you''re stuck at Challenger V?" Aron said.


    "Well," Yuel crossed his arms. "Not stuck, but it''s sure tough. We overall move forward in points, but it feels like we''re crawling."


    "I know that feeling," Aron nodded as a proud Challenger IV who overcame this great obstacle before. "The surefire method is to play with the same coordinated team and with a game plan in mind."


    "So, like a competitive team."


    "Yes, like the way Howard is training with the first string right now."


    "Huh...?" Yuel''s brain short-circuited for a moment. "Like the way Howard is doing what?"


    "He takes the first string online and makes sure to practice with the same lineup all the time. Why the surprise? That''s the most logical thing to do."


    "Well, sure..." [Except, I heard nothing about it!] Yuel clenched his fists. Neither Howard nor Ellen paid a single visit to the club so far, so Yuel thought they were lazing around because it''s a vacation. But, they were actually practicing hard too? And with the whole first string!? No wonder Gilbert, Roi and Dan only showed their faces at the club on rare occasions. And, their visits became rarer and rarer as time went by.


    Why Yuel hadn''t heard any of this? Was it supposed to be some sort of secret training? A ploy by Howard to rise to Master rank before Yuel could catch up to him!? Yuel had to know the details. He had to know everything!


    The next time first string members came to the clubroom, Yuel interrogated them.


    "Yeah," Dan said. "We''ve been meeting at Howard''s place to practice every now and then," he admitted without the slightest hesitation.


    "How comes nobody ever mentioned it?"


    "Hmm, I guess because Howard asked to not talk about it too much."


    "Wha..." So, there was something fishy after all! Howard told Yuel to chase his rank, then proceeded to abuse his position as captain to grind rank points faster than Yuel with the strongest lineup! Ugh!


    "So," Yuel said, holding back his irritation. "You grind online a lot?"


    "We grind, but I wouldn''t say ''a lot''."


    "Really? Then what [do] you do?"


    "Howard comes up with the menu, so we just go along. Practicing stuff, reviewing matches and... Well, you get the idea."


    "I see," Sounded like standard first string training. Maybe there''s nothing to worry about after all? He thought there was some huge secret, but it sounded very normal.


    Still, as the vice-captain, Yuel would have liked to be informed about the club''s activities. But, Howard probably didn''t deem it necessary. After all, Yuel was just a second string player. Howard made his stance clear when Yuel became the vice-captain: ["I can''t babysit everybody. My job as the captain is to bring the team to nationals."]


    That''s fine, for now. Yuel was in no position to overthrow Howard, not yet. But by the end of this summer, Yuel and Lars should have enough experience to do so. They''ll seize their spots on the first string and get to play in tournaments, no matter what.


    But first, they had to actually get said experience and grinding ranks was the most straightforward way to go about it. With Aron joining the summer camp, their win ratio fired upwards. He was StormBlitz''s former Jungler and one of best Junglers in the entire region, second only to the Leopards'' Fenrir. Aron''s consistency, knowledge and decision-making were top-notch.


    On top of that, his late game was brutal. He deconstructed enemies to the tiniest bits throughout the match, gathering even more data than Yuel. Then, in the late game, he unleashed all that knowledge and decimated every opponent on his path. He became a killing machine, without a single flawless move.


    His effectiveness was further enhanced with Trever on the team. When Trever picked a Carry like Ranger with good jungle clear, the two of them played a "Two Junglers" formation. Trever strolled throughout Bot Jungle, whereas Aron focused on Top Jungle. That way, they greatly optimized jungle farm.


    In addition, they used coordinated pincer attacks. They ganked their prey from two opposite directions, leaving no chance to escape. When the target through they escaped Aron''s gank, they ended up running into Trever instead. An elegant and powerful tactic.


    If Yuel and Lars get into Ivy High as planned, they might get a chance to face Aron and Trever in the high school regionals. Shivers danced on his skin from the mere thought. How would Yuel counter Aron''s unstoppable late game? How will Lars''s skill compare against Trever''s by then? Sadly, there were still two more years ahead of them before any of that can be answered.


    Before long, the summer break was approaching its end. They made huge progress with everybody''s help, but... Yuel and Lars didn''t make it. They were still stuck at Challenger V. Trever didn''t joke when he said it took him a year to get to Challenger IV. The grind was REAL.


    Did Yuel and Lars get any closer to overthrowing Howard and Ellen? It''s hard to tell. They needed some sort of opportunity to test their mettle against Aegis and Athena. The chance will surely come once the school year begins. Worst case, Yuel will have to create one himself.


    A week and a half before school resumes, these were everybody''s standings:


    Challenger III - Aron


    Challenger IV - Howard, Ellen, Trever


    Challenger V - Yuel, Lars, Roi


    Diamond I - Julia, Gilbert


    Diamond II - Dan


    Diamond III - Taison, Gregory

 62 Duties of the Vice-Captain

    A week and a half before summer break ended, Howard called Yuel to his house. He wanted to discuss topics related to managing the club in the upcoming year, especially the club''s entrance exam. The exam will be held shortly after the school year begins and, this time around, Yuel will be largely in charge of it.


    It felt like a waste traveling all the way to Howard''s house just for that. Yuel had to take two buses to get there. He suggested meeting at a more neutral place like school, but Howard insisted. "Captain''s orders." What a lazy tyrant.


    But honestly, Yuel was a little interested too. After all, Howard''s older sister was a Classmancers pro. What kind of person was she? She went by Ignis and played for the Sweepers, a B-League team. Yuel saw some of her matches because he knew the name, but otherwise, she wasn''t exactly a very well-known pro.


    Still, a pro was a pro. She participated in official tournaments, which came with large crowds, professional commentary and everything. Compared to StormBlitz''s members, her skill was nothing short of impressive. She''d probably even mop the floor with somebody as strong as Roi in a Top Lane duel. So, meeting such an amazing player would be like meeting a celebrity-


    "Too bad," Howard said. "Sis isn''t home."


    "H-Huh?" Yuel was taken aback. He hasn''t even mentioned her.


    "You''ve been ogling the place from the moment you entered. But, too bad. Being a pro means working like any other person, so she won''t be home until evening."


    "Oh, I see..." What a bummer. Yuel hoped at least one good thing would come out of wasting time and money on two buses to come all the way out here. Oh well.


    "Heya, Yuyu~" A familiar voice greeted him as he entered the living room. Oh no, it''s Ellen.


    "You were practicing together?" Yuel asked.


    "Nope, we''re on a date and you''re interrupting it. Hmph~" Ellen pretended to pout.


    "She''s just freeloading here," Howard said. "She''s like a bunny, she dies from loneliness. So, I have to take care of her. It''s quite the pain."


    "My, Wardy is such a bully. And here I am, gracing him with my presence."


    "More like, here you are breathing down my neck the whole summer."


    "Tehe~"


    So, Ellen spent much of the summer at Howard''s place? Well, there''s nothing odd about a Support and Carry training together. Unlike other roles, Bot Lane was about playing as a duo, so pairing with random people online was nothing short of frustrating. Especially for the Support, who was helpless when the Carry was an uncooperative self-centered dimwit.


    Besides, Yuel already heard about Howard training with the first string throughout the summer. Training in secret without informing anybody else, not even Yuel.


    "Doing secret training?" Yuel asked.


    "The truth is," Ellen giggled, "We''re eloping~"


    "....." Howard didn''t answer right away since he must have caught the accusation in Yuel''s tone. He studied Yuel for a moment, then replied. "What do you mean?"


    "I heard you''ve been training with the first string and that''s why you don''t show in the clubroom."


    "Yeah," Howard nodded. "I just invite everybody here. As you can see, I got a lot of space." He stretched his arm, presenting the big living room.


    Indeed, this space was well-tailored for gaming. It had three desktop computers, two laptops, two game consoles and two wide TVs. Ellen was currently in the middle of trying out various skins on the Ultra HD TV, which almost looked like she was dissecting some with a microscope. That TV was huge.


    From what Yuel could tell with a glance, this living room could host at least 7 players across the different platforms. This was some amazing setup.


    "Do live in a gaming center or something?"


    "Heh, I get that every time. Sis brings everything she can get for cheap."


    "I see." Thinking about it, these consoles looked like they were from the previous generation. The laptops weren''t very wide, they probably didn''t support an amazing resolution and possibly couldn''t even handle most modern games. Also, only one of the computer monitors looked modern. The other two were CRT, reminding the relics at school. These things belonged in a museum.


    "Still," Yuel said. "That''s an amazing setup you got. I''m surprised your parents allow all of this in the living room."


    "Oh, they don''t live here anymore. They ran away."


    "Ran away...?"


    "Yep," Ellen interjected. "And they left poor Wardy with a huge debt too. Such a tearjerker story, sob."


    "Stop making shit up," Howard chuckled and patted Ellen''s head. This special technique always turned her on mute.


    "I didn''t mean they abandoned us," Howard explained. "They just moved to a newer house. They badgered sis to move out because as you see she has been redesigning this living room into a gaming center. But, sis kept doing whatever she wanted until my folks got fed up and moved out instead. Hilarious, right? Haha."


    "That''s quite the story..." Yuel didn''t even know where to begin. It''s like Ignis kicked out her own parents so she can keep playing Classmancers. Scary. "Your sister must be really something."


    "Right? Right?" Ellen acted proud for some reason. "Sis Ignis is so cool~"


    "Who are you calling ''sis''?" Howard pinched her cheek.


    "C''mon," Ellen leaned against Howard''s arm. "She gonna be my sister too."


    "As if you get to decide that."


    "Tehe~"


    [Why am I here again?] Yuel averted his eyes from this embarrassing romcom. The specifics of their relationship has never been quite explained, but it''s clear they had something going. They also apparently spent much of the summer together and now Ellen was hinting at marriage... Weren''t they still in junior high?


    "That''s enough," Howard tapped on Ellen''s on the head and created distance. "You''re making our guest uncomfortable."


    "My," Ellen winked. "Sorry, Yuyu. Forgot you''re still green to all this love business."


    "...." Yuel just narrowed his eyes.


    "Return to your dress-up, Elly," Howard said. "I called him here to discuss club matters. But if you really want, you can join in."


    "No way." Ellen hopped away and continued messing around with skins.


    "Sorry about that," Howard said. "Let''s get down to business. As I said, the main thing I want to prepare for is the entrance exam. This time you''re the vice-captain, so you''re going to be in charge of everything."


    "Of ''everything''? Isn''t that the captain''s job?"


    "I told, the captain is responsible for the first string while the vice-captain handles the menial stuff. I gonna work you to the bone."


    "Sounds like fun..." Alas, Yuel couldn''t retort. Last year, during his entry exam, it was Howard who handled most of the operation. He''s the one who presented the exam on stage, the one who answered questions and so forth. Despite being presented as the vice-captain, he was registered as the actual captain in everybody''s minds.


    "Of course," Howard said. "If you run into any trouble, you can talk to me. But, don''t run to me for every little thing. I expect you to handle everything from start to end."


    "I understand." It''s going to be a big job and honestly quite the hassle, but Yuel had no choice here. Howard did it last year and Yuel will do it this year. Step by step, Yuel was walking down the same road which Howard traversed.


    "Here," Howard handed over a USB stick. "It got everything you need for the exam. There are examples of opening speeches, test questions, how to grade players and so on. Make sure you study all of it before the new year." Howard grabbed one of the laptops and went over the contents of the flash drive.


    [This is great.] Yuel nodded to himself. Most of the planning process was already handled for him in these documents. He only had to execute the instructions.


    "The plan is the same as last year," Howard explained. "It''s something of a tradition. A three-part exam: First we make them run, then answer a quiz and finally we test how good they are."


    "I see." It''s a weird feeling. Just a year ago, Yuel was among the examinees who struggled through this intense exam. But in a couple of weeks from today, he''ll be responsible for putting others through the same hellish test. On one hand, he felt like he came a long way and was no longer a "rookie". On the other hand, he was going to torment new rookies and possibly crush the hopes and dreams of many kids who wanted to play Classmancers competitively. It''s rough.


    "Do we have to follow these instructions to a T?" Yuel asked. "Or, we''re allowed to innovate?"


    "It''s a tradition, but not a hard rule. As I said, you''re in charge of the exam this year. You can change whatever you want, as long as it makes sense. I''ll have the final say, but I won''t make your life hard as long as you don''t suggest anything dumb."


    "Did you update anything last year?"


    "Not really," Howard shrugged. "I decreased the number of questions on the quiz to make our lives easier when grading, but that''s about it. I like this filtering system, that''s one reason I went to Riverstock and not to Leo. I knew the Leopards are a strong team with a coach, but I believed this entry exam would do a good job picking the best players. And well, going to Leo requires two buses every morning. Not fun, right? Haha."


    [Says the guy who forced me to come here with two buses.] But it''s true, there''s some merit to this hardcore exam structure. It was creative and kept the examinees on their toes from start to end, which made it feel like a meaningful experience.


    But, as to whether the exam did a good job selecting the "best players" for the club... Yuel had some objections. "The way I see it, the last part where we test their Mancer skills is the most important part of the exam."


    "True."


    "So, what if we skip the first two parts and only do that?"


    "Had a feeling you''ll go there," Howard smiled wryly. "A cool idea, but impractical. There are like a hundred freshmen who apply every year. You really want to privately test each and every one of them? You''ll have to host at least 50 test matches."


    "That doesn''t sound too bad. If we assume an average match lasts half an hour including preparations, then 50 matches are about 25 hours. Last time, the exam lasted for four days, so we need about six hours a day and we''ll be good."


    "That''s some quick math you did there." Howard nodded. "So, you''re saying six hours a day, every day for four days, is nothing?"


    "I wouldn''t say ''nothing'', but it''s not that hard. I''m sure I can manage."


    "Yes, [you] maybe can manage. But don''t forget you need 8 examiners, which is almost everybody from the club. You really think they''re going to be fine with this routine for multiple days in a row?"


    "Well, that''s..." Hard to say. There''s a good chance some will be worn out, especially the likes of Gregory and Taison who were always the first to complain when they weren''t having fun. In theory, the idea of playing test games rookies sounded like fun, but...


    "I''ll tell you from experience," Howard said. "Everybody thinks it''s fun and games at first, but it doesn''t take long till you hear sighs and complaints." He provided some of the reasons behind it.


    The examiners often had to play their secondary roles and follow some specific instructions to maintain balance. Sometimes, they also had to stray from their game plan to not overwhelm the examinee or to create various scenarios to test the rookie on. The more often these things were needed, the less the exam felt like playing a real game. It started becoming a chore.


    "Also," Howard added. "There''s another reason to filter so many players before this stage. There''s a huge difference between grading a hundred players or just twenty. With twenty, you can more or less remember who is who and how they impressed you in the test. With a hundred? Good luck."


    "Yeah, memorizing a hundred players isn''t easy. I think I can pull it off, though."


    "Yeah, maybe [you] can. A guy who can recreate full chess matches from memory can probably handle a hundred players. But, others can''t. So, you won''t be able to get much valuable input from them since they won''t even remember who they tested."


    "I see. You''re right, we need some filtering," Yuel admitted defeat. If it was only him handling everything, he could have pulled it all off. However, to stage real test matches, he needed everybody''s help. It''s unfortunate, but he couldn''t demand too much from them.


    "You''re really adamant about skipping the first two tests. You hate them so much?"


    "The ideas themselves aren''t bad, but some skilled players may fail the exam because of these tests," Yuel explained how he and Lars barely made the cut during the entrance exam. The one-kilometer race test would have failed Yuel for sure if not for jogging he picked up over the summer. Similarly, Lars almost failed the quiz test and barely scraped by in last place.


    And, there was another problem: cheating. By learning about the contents of this exam ahead of time, it''s possible to prepare for the first two parts in advance and gain an unfair advantage. Taison trained all summer for the one-kilometer race, whereas Gregory got his hands on a list of quiz questions from previous years. Yuel didn''t mention any names, but he brought up variations of these cheats as examples.


    "I get what you''re saying," Howard nodded. "Question is: do you have better alternatives? Exams are never perfect, so it''s easy to pick them apart. But once you''re in the shoes of the examiner, for the first time you realize how tied your hands are."


    "I have to agree." Yuel knotted his brows. Even though the current exam structure had many problems, it was a necessary evil for filtering candidates. It was upheld as a "tradition" for a reason. It''s not like everybody was satisfied with it, it''s just that they couldn''t think of better solutions.


    And honestly, Yuel couldn''t either. At least, not practical ones. The one-kilometer race tested the person''s resolve, whereas the quiz tested their game knowledge and how invested they were in Classmancers. Though imperfect, they had the right ideas and achieved their goals to some degree.


    "Alright," Howard said. "If you''re not satisfied, try improving the parts you don''t like. You''re supposed to be some kind of genius, right?"


    "Only others call me that. I don''t think I''m that special."


    "Anyway, try and see if you can fix it. No need to reinvent the wheel, though. Take the current structure and tweak it until you''re satisfied. Or at least, more satisfied than you are right now."


    "I''ll try to figure something out."


    "It''s an important topic for the club, so I''ll listen to any ideas you have." Howard stood up. "But first: I wanna eat. It''s already three and we haven''t done shit yet. We''re sure taking our sweet time with this. I don''t suppose you brought lunch?"


    "No, I didn''t think I''ll stay this long."


    "Okay~!" Ellen joined out of nowhere. "I''ll whip something up for you-"


    "No." Howard shot her down. "Just no. We still want to live, thank you."


    "My, so mean. You don''t trust my cooking skills?"


    "Oh, I trust them. If they existed in the game, I''d level them up first because they can one-shot people."


    "Meanie," Ellen hmphed and returned to the TV. "There''s nothing to eat in this house anyway."


    "Yeah, I really need to do some shopping already." Howard sighed. "But hey, there''s always sis'' favorite: insta noodles!"


    "Bleeeeh. You call that food?"


    "Hey, they''re not that bad. You get used to them... after a while."


    "Poor, poor Wardy. I better level up my cooking skills soon so I can save you from this torture."


    "I can''t tell if ''level up'' means anything good in your case. I can make stuff myself, alright?"


    "Yeah, when you''re not too lazy to shop for them."


    "Right, when I''m not too lazy to shop for them," Howard nodded with a sigh. "I swear sis can live off insta noodles 24/7," He turned to Yuel." Anyway, you heard it. There are only insta noodles. You in?"


    "Sure," Yuel nodded. "I kinda like them, actually."


    "You whaaaaaat?" Ellen thundered. "They don''t feed you at home?"


    "My parents work around the clock, so sometimes there''s nothing to eat when I''m home. Instant noodles are the best for times like these."


    "I know the feel," Howard said. "When you know you ain''t getting shit for dinner that day, then you remember there are insta noodles. Instantly makes them taste a hundred times better."


    "Exactly."


    "You two are a lost case," Ellen shook her head." Anyway, what about lil ol'' me? I also want lunch."


    "Then, should I make noodles for you too?"


    "No way! Gimme something decent."


    "The fridge is empty. Like, real empty. There''s only sis'' beer."


    "Then let''s order something. Ple~as?" Ellen made puppy eyes.


    "You''re such a pain sometimes." Howard crossed his arms, threw a glance at Yuel and then sighed. "Alright, fine. I''ll order pizza."


    "Yeeeepie~! Wardy, you''re the best~"


    "Yeah, yeah." Howard pushed Ellen away while she was trying to wrap herself around him. "You alright with pizza?" he asked Yuel.


    "Yeah, but what about the price? We''re going to split it?"


    "Nah, I''ll just use sis'' cash. I''ll order some for her too so she doesn''t complain. I mean, it''s her fault we don''t have anything to eat in the first place. Just whose house she thinks this is? We can''t even feed a guest."


    "I see," Yuel didn''t say anything further to not interrupt this flow of events. He did say instant noodles were fine, but a pizza topped that a hundred times over. It was actually TASTY food. Junk food, but tasty. It''ll serve as reasonable compensation for having to take two buses to get here on this beautiful sunny day which he could have spent grinding Clsssmancers at the club.


    The pizza arrived shortly. Apparently, there''s a shop nearby and the delivery guy already recognized Howard as a regular.


    After they finished eating, Yuel and Howard returned to discussing the structure of the entrance exam.

 63 A Drunk Pro Appears!

    Yuel and Howard discussed the various issues plaguing the entrance exam. Namely, the issues of the first two tests: the one-kilometer run and the quiz.


    Every time, Yuel brought up and issue and Howard defended against it. It''s like they became a duo of prosecutor and defense attorney.


    "Objection," Howard said. "Regarding the race, despite what we say on stage we actually accept everybody who makes it to the finish line. It doesn''t matter whether they run, walk or even crawl. As long they reach the goal, it''s fine."


    "I see," Yuel nodded while jotting down notes. "So, when you said that those who do poorly will fail, it was all part of testing their resolve."


    "A nice trick, right? Haha."


    Yuel had mixed feeling about it. Yes, it was much better than failing people for poor fitness. But, was it forgiving enough? If Yuel hadn''t met Lars and hadn''t started jogging, how would he have reacted to these rules? As motivated as he was to play Classmancers, he might have given up midway along the race.


    It''s impossible to know for sure now, but there''s a chance he would have failed and that worried him. Testing resolve was good and all, but it shouldn''t come with the risk of filtering out talented players. Yuel shared his concerns.


    "That''s not a bad line of thinking," Howard said. "Except, we can''t discover these ''talented players'' before we start the exam, right? If we could, we wouldn''t need an exam in the first place."


    "That''s true..." Yet again, a clash between theory and practice. Yuel knew what had to be improved but didn''t have a practical solution. The goal of the exam was to discover the highest caliber players, which meant the exam should ensure the talented players don''t fail. But, there''s one big problem: the examiners didn''t have any magical way to discover said talents ahead of time, so there''s no way to ensure the exam will suit them.


    "I wonder," Yuel said. "Wasn''t there any way for me or Lars to prove ourselves before we got to the first test? Anything that stood out about us?"


    "Among the hundred candidates? Not really. Though, I believe you were the only ones in Platinum at the time."


    "Ah, that''s it!" Yuel jumped. "We can use ranks! Say, we can let anybody who is Gold or higher skip the first test. And, maybe even the second test."


    "Not a bad idea," Howard nodded. "We can ask them to confirm their ranks by telling us their IDs, so there won''t be any cheating. It''ll be a little pain to go over all these accounts and write them down, but I''m sure you can handle it."


    "No problem. Okay, so that''s it," Yuel jotted down the idea in his notebook and drew a big circle around it. "Players ranked Gold or higher skip the first test and maybe the second test too."


    "I''d even consider lowering the requirement a little. You picked Gold because it''s one below Platinum, right? So, it catches those who played as much as you and a little less."


    "Pretty much. It''s also the division Gregory and Taison had at the time."


    "Just so you know, that''s rare on these exams. You not gonna have more than a handful of kids who reached these ranks, or even reached Ranked at all."


    "So, maybe anybody who hit Lv. 50 in their accounts?"


    "That''s an option. I''ll leave the specifics to you. There''s still plenty of time to decide till the exam."


    "That''s true," Yuel wrote down "[Consider lowering the requirement from Gold. Maybe being Lv. 50 is enough."]


    With this, two of Yuel''s biggest gripes about the exam were partially resolved. No matter how terribly unfit a candidate was or how bad they were at quizzes, they''ll easily make it through if they played Classmancers enough and reached Ranked.


    The next issue was the way the quiz was handled. The examinees weren''t given any time to prepare and it could easily fail anybody who was terrible at taking exams. For example, Lars and Taison. Letting examinees skip this stage based on account level was a good start, but it''s not enough. Not giving them any tools to prepare for the quiz was outright unfair.


    "We can hand out example sheets," Howard suggested. "I actually thought of this idea last year, but it slipped my mind until it was too late."


    "Examples are great, I agree," Yuel nodded. "But, the format of the quiz is also an issue. It''s too arbitrary," he referred to the big pool of possible multi-choice questions on the USB device Howard handed him. To compose a quiz, all they had to do was to pick some random questions for each role. It''s a simple and efficient approach for creating a quiz, making the examiner''s life easy.


    However, it''s not exactly friendly toward the examinees. What they received was a bunch of arbitrary questions in a random order. As a result, the examinee had no way to find questions relating to topics they were most confident in. And, that''s assuming such questions even made it into the exam in the first place during its random generation.


    Long story short, it was a terrible exam for those who weren''t good with quizzes. Some students knew to leave the tough questions for last and focus on what they knew best, but not everybody had that wisdom. Especially, not a certain goof who nearly blew the exam by mulling over questions outside his field of expertise.


    Lars wasn''t the sharpest tool in the shed, but he knew Classmancers. No matter how bad he was with quizzes, he shouldn''t have been in the "barely passed" group. If the quiz did a better job guiding him to the topics he knew, he would have scored much higher.


    "Maybe add categories?" Howard suggested.


    "Yes, that''s what I was thinking too," Yuel nodded. "First, split between ''general'' and ''role-specific'' questions. Then, further divide them into subcategories and make sure each of them has about the same amount of questions. Say, like this."


    "Looking good. You sure know how to handle these things. It''s like you''re a teacher."


    "I helped some classmates before, so I saw what kind of weaknesses they had and where the exams stumped them."


    "The genius student, huh."


    "You really like using that word, don''t you?"


    "Just because you always react to it." Howard snickered.


    They discussed the questions and categories some more. To give each category equal weight, it''s necessary to put the same number of questions in each of them. However, that led to an overall increase in the number of questions.


    "Isn''t that bad?" Howard asked. "They won''t have enough time to answer everything."


    "They don''t have to. We''re going to pick the top scorers anyway, right? So, it doesn''t matter what their actual scores are. What matters is how they fared relatively to each other."


    "That''s true," Howard nodded. "Say, you ever considered becoming a teacher?"


    "No way. Imagine dealing with brats like Lars in class."


    "Haha, I feel you."


    By the time they wrapped up the discussion, it was already evening. Yuel stayed here far longer than he expected, but it was fruitful. They couldn''t have possibly resolved this many issues if they did this over a phone call.


    "I''m hooooooome!" A voice echoed from the entrance. Was that...!?


    A young woman wobbled into the living room, taking needlessly big strides and nearly tripping over her own foot. Her face was tinted red and she had a weird expression, something between laughing and crying. It was quite the scene.


    She looked... drunk. Completely hammered. Was this Howard''s sister? A pro player?


    "Oh no," Howard facepalmed and shook his head.


    "Wardy, Wardy~" The woman somehow made her way to Howard without crashing. "Listen, listen. These freaking Falcons! We almost *hic* them! We were thiiiiis close. But noooo, of course they had to *hic* some shit on us at the last moment! They organized kinda well in the late game and I made one bad rotation. One! Just one! But that helped them win and everybody *hic* it''s my fault! Can you believe this!?" She shook Howard''s shoulders nonstop.


    "Alright, alright." Howard patted her head as she sobbed. It''s hard to tell who was the older sibling here. "Just how much did you drink?"


    "I ain''t didn''t *hic* anything! I''m tooootally sober!"


    "Yeah of course," Howard nodded and led her to the sofa. "Here, sit down."


    "Thanks, Wardy~ You''re so *hic*. You''re the only one nice to me. Waaaa!" She started wailing all of a sudden. What was even going on...


    "It''s alright," Howard patted her back. "It''s just one match. You''ll get your revenge."


    "But, it''s the Falcons! We always beat them! We really needed these points! I hate them! I soooooo hate them! We hafta *hic* this damn season so they call me to A-League already! I don''t wanna be stuck in B-League forever! Waaaaaaa!"


    "No biggie. I''m sure you''ll earn enough points in the next matches-"


    "No! It''s over!" The woman crashed on the coach and flailed her arms like a protesting baby. "We even lost to the Falcons! We''re fucked! I don''t wanna! Don''t wanna! That''s it! I''m quitting this *hic*!"


    "It''ll be okay," Ellen crawled toward the woman and gave her a pat on the head. "You''ll get them next game. The season isn''t over yet."


    "Elly sweetie..." The woman sniffled and wrapped her arms around Ellen. "Elly, you''re soooo *hic*. Right, maybe it''s not over yet..." She apparently consoled herself by petting Ellen like a kitten.


    "Yes, yes," Ellen nodded with a smile but secretly threw a glance at the guys, rolling her eyes and squeezing her nose to say ["She reeks something serious."]


    "You''re right!" The drunkard exclaimed. "We still got one more match against the Falcons this year! We''ll *hic* ''em!"


    "Yes, yes. Get your revenge."


    "Yeaaaaah! We gonna wiiiiin! ...But we lost today. We lost today! To the Falcons! Waaaaaaa!" The woman rubbed herself against Ellen like she was a stuffed animal. Howard took this opportunity to step back and enlighten Yuel about what the flipping heck was going on right now.


    "Sorry," Howard said. "Sis isn''t usually like that. She just gets a little salty after dropping a match, then she goes to drink and... well, you see the result. Not exactly the ''amazing pro'' you imagined, right? Haha..."


    "Yeah..." Yuel wasn''t sure how to respond because Howard looked embarrassed by this scene. In truth, it was a huge disappointment. Ignis was supposed to be a cool person and a skilled player, not... this. The whole scene was too awkward to bear. "I think I should go."


    "I agree," Howard escorted Yuel toward the door. Yuel wanted to get the heck out of here and Howard also wanted him to get the heck out of here. Therefore, he should definitely get the heck out of here. QED.


    "Heeeeey," Ignis called out. "Who''s this kid?" She squinted her eyes, studying Yuel from head to toe. Or, at least she tried to do so but her head was tilting from side to side the whole time. Just how many shots did she have...


    "He''s a friend from school," Howard said.


    "Huuuuh. Haven''t seen him before. Doesn''t look like one of the usual guys."


    [The "usual guys"?] Yuel stopped. Did Ignis refer to StormBlitz''s first string? Well, it''s not surprising she knew them since they trained here together over the summer. Trained here together, without saying a word.


    "He''s not on the first string," Howard explained. Anyway, it''s already late so he''s leaving-"


    "Waaaardy, watcha doing wasting time with him then? You gotta train your guys! You gotta *hic* ''em to nationals!"


    "I know. Don''t worry, he''s leav-"


    "Hey, kid!" Ignis pointed at Yuel. "Don''t *hic* Wardy''s time! He ain''t got no time hanging out with some nobodies! He gotta train hard so he can join the Sweepers and beat Exodus!"


    "Sis, please," Howard sighed and whispered to Yuel. "I swear she doesn''t mean it. She got no idea what she''s saying."


    "It''s okay, I understand," Yuel didn''t appreciate being disregarded as a nobody, especially not by a pro, but Ignis clearly wasn''t in the right state of mind right now. [Just let it pass. Let it pass.]


    Uuuuugh! it''s so infuriating, though! Yuel was a competitive player too! Ignis just never met him here as one of the "usual guys" because he wasn''t on the first string yet.


    [Wait, can it be she was helping with the first string''s training?] Considering how much Ignis seemed to care about Howard''s success, it''s quite possible. In fact, it''s almost a given.


    In other words, the first string had been secretly training here together with a pro, that''s probably why Howard wanted to keep hush about it. While Yuel had to nag people to visit the club so he could hopefully form a five-man team for Ranked, Howard was consistently training with the best players in the club and with a pro to boot. Damn, this was so unfair!


    "I don''t like that look," Ignis scoffed. "Got a problem with me, eh?"


    "... no. Not at all."


    "You even play Mancers, kid?"


    "Of course I do," Yuel clenched his fists and stared straight into Ignis'' eyes.


    "Wait, don''t-"


    "Just so you know," Yuel continued. "I''m the vice-captain of the club."


    "Well, shit..." Howard facepalmed for some reason.


    "Oh, so you''re that kid." Ignis nodded to herself. "Heard you playing Support like Wardy?"


    "Yes, I am." Did Howard tell his sister about Yuel? Why? Well, it''s not like Yuel was complaining. Now, this drunk woman knew Yuel wasn''t some nobody.


    "You''re the vice-captain now? Huh, trying to *hic* Wardy''s captain position, eh?"


    "Um, not quite." For some reason, every time Yuel was somebody''s vice-captain, somebody had to accuse him of trying to steal the captain position. Why? Was there something weird written on his face? It''s true that becoming the captain was a great honor, but that wasn''t even on his mind right now. "My first goal is to get a spot on the first string. Anything else is secondary."


    "But you play Support, right? Ha! It means you trying to *hic* Wardy''s place!" Ignis pointed at him and her reddish cheeks became even redder. She was like an angry tomato.


    "Well," Yuel contemplated over his words for a moment, then straightened his back. "Yes, I plan to get into the first string and to do that I must beat Howard."


    "..." Howard stared at him for a long moment, then turned away. "You''re digging yourself a hole..."


    [Hm? What''s that supposed to mean?]


    "Aha!" Ignis jumped. "I knew it! You think you''re some hot stuff, right? Come here and fight me!" She clenched fists and threw out some punches. An invitation to a drunken brawl!?


    "Wait," Yuel protested. "I''m not into violence."


    "Silly kid, I meant this," Ignis waved a game controller. "Fite me 1v1! Let''s see whatcha made of!" She nearly slipped off the couch while talking in excitement. Was she really okay? She definitely should catch some sleep instead of playing, but...


    "What should I do?" Yuel whispered.


    "Too late," Howard sighed. "This shit always happens. She cries her eyes out, then vents on somebody in 1v1. Good job provoking her, genius."


    "Ah," Maybe Yuel really said a bit too much. Ignis was clearly out of it and overreacted to every little thing, so mentioning stuff like "beating Howard" and "taking the Support role" was probably not the smartest move ever.


    Nevertheless, Yuel didn''t regret it. He was going to defeat Howard, he had to make that clear. He wasn''t just "some kid playing Support", he was "the one who''ll play Support on the first string"!


    "Come here already!" Ignis waved her controller. "I''mma *hic*yo ass reaaaaal good!"


    "So," Yuel turned to Howard. "What do I do?"


    "Yout got no choice," Howard placed a hand on Yuel''s shoulder. "You have to play her, that''s the best way to calm her down. Eventually, she''ll say she wants to sleep. Probably. You gonna have a really bad time, but blame your big mouth for that."


    [What can be so bad about it?] Yuel tilted his head. Wasn''t this a rare chance to play against a pro? It''s great! The only unfortunate thing was that it''s 1v1, so Yuel won''t be able to fully display his skill. Still, he reached Gold IV in 1v1 while researching lane matchups, so he should be able to put on a fight.


    "I''ll play," Yuel nodded. "But, I have no intention losing on purpose. Is that alright?"


    "Don''t worry," Howard said. "She''ll still kick your ass anyway."


    "Even though she''s wasted?"


    "[Especially] because she''s wasted."


    "Huh?" That made absolutely no sense, but okay. A drunk pro opponent was a fair handicap for somebody who didn''t play 1v1 much.


    "Here you go," Ellen handed him a controller and freed space on the couch. "Good luck," She saluted for some reason as if Yuel was a departing soldier. Just what was the deal here?


    Well, no matter. This was a rare opportunity to test his mettle against a pro. This match should show how much closer he came to the pro scene. A drunk pro should be no problem. Yuel will win for sure and prove he had what it took to rival Howard!

 64 1v1 Preparations

    Logging into your Classmancers account on any platform was as easy as scanning a QR code with your phone. This ease of use was undoubtedly one of the biggest factors for Classmancers'' booming success. As soon as Yuel scanned the QR code displayed on the TV, his account data and settings became accessible from the game console.


    The same applied for Ignis, who connected to the console of the other TV. With a simple QR scan, they were both logged in and ready to go. But...


    "Isn''t that a little problematic?" Yuel referred to the way the TVs were standing almost side by side. It was too easy to peek at Ignis''s screen and learn exactly what she was doing. In fact, it''s harder to [not] see anything from this position.


    "It''s fiiiiine," Ignis waved her hand. "You can look at my screen allllll day. I''mma still *hic* yo ass anyway."


    [But, what if I''m more concerned about YOU using the information from MY screen]? Yuel grumped.


    "My, Yuyu is so serious," Ellen smirked. "It''s just a friendly 1v1. No need to set up a professional tournament environment."


    "Yeah," Howard nodded. "No need for headphones either. You''ll hear both games at once, but we tweaked the sound options so things don''t sound like shit. So, relax. It''s just an innocent friendly 1v1."


    "Sure..." Something about these two was suspicious, but Yuel chose to ignore it. These conditions were far from optimal and it''s a 1v1, which wasn''t Yuel''s forte. However, all of it paled in comparison to the fact he was going to play against a real pro! In the flesh! He''d take this opportunity under any circumstances, even if he had to play blindfolded and with 500ms ping, Well, okay, maybe that''s a stretch. But still! A match with a pro!


    "Alrighty," Ignis nodded. "Made a room. How many levels ya want, kid?"


    "Levels?"


    "Hmmmmmm, let''s make ya Lv.10. That should do."


    "We start at Lv.10? I see," Normally, both players started at Lv.5 in 1v1. This was to make battles more fast-paced from the beginning and to balance out classes which had underwhelming early game. Starting at Lv.10 will make the matches even faster, but that''s fine for a local friendly match.


    "Nope," Ignis said. "YOU start at Lv.10. I start from 5."


    "Huh?" Yuel wasn''t sure he heard that right. This gotta be a joke.


    "Just a little tiny handicap. You don''t really think ya can *hic* me in a fair 1v1, do ya?"


    "A handicap? Of five levels?"


    "Oh, I see, I see," Ignis nodded. "It''s not enough, right? Yeah, of course you''re no match to an awesome pro like me! Okay kid, you can start at Lv.12."


    "What, no. That''s absurd," Yuel argued. "I want a fair match."


    "Ha, haha, hichahaha! This kid is funny! Where did ya find him?" Ignis burst into laughter for some reason, almost falling off the couch. What was so funny? Dammit.


    "She may look like this," Howard said. "But, don''t underestimate her. She''s a Grandmaster in 1v1."


    "A Grandmaster..." Yuel''s jaw literally fell off. Pros were always ranked at Master or Grandmaster, but that''s in 5v5 because it''s the only competitive mode that mattered. 1v1 was more of a casual mode which happened to offer a ranked mode as well. It''s a mode which pros shouldn''t have much business with, yet Ignis was Grandmaster? In other words, she''s one of the strongest 1v1 Masters in the entire world!?


    "I-I see," The controller almost slipped through his sweaty palms. Yuel, a mere Gold IV who used 1v1 mostly for experiments and research, was about to challenge a Grandmaster. Yeah, okay, maybe a handicap was in order...


    "So," Yuel said. "You also play against her with a handicap?"


    "Yeah," Howard nodded. "She says three levels is good enough for me. She usually beats me, but with four levels I often beat her so she hates that, haha."


    "I see," Yuel turned to Ignis." I''d like only four levels then."


    "Huuuuuh?" Ignis brought her face closer, examining Yuel. Ugh, she reeked of alcohol. "Wardy, is this kid any good?"


    "He''s alright," Howard said. "I don''t think he has a fair chance with just four, though."


    "I''ll do it," Yuel insisted. "Four levels is plenty."


    "Hmm," Ignis crossed her arms for a moment, then threw them in the air. "Meh, whatever! Four levels it is. Let''s just play already!"


    "Yes, let''s," Yuel nodded. As he wished, Ignis changed the match settings to give him only four levels advantage. Arguing over a one level difference might sound silly to some, but it actually had a huge impact, especially in 1v1. A lead of one level could easily allow a player to destroy the opponent even if they were otherwise fairly matched in skill. So, starting at Lv.10 would have given him that advantage five times over. It''s inconvincible to overcome such odds, even for a Grandmaster.


    With the match settings sorted out, they entered the class selection screen. Since it was a casual game, Ignis didn''t bother making it in draft format. A shame, since he would have liked to learn what a Grandmaster normally bans in 1v1.


    Before proceeding with the pick, Yuel moved to the edge of the sofa to make it harder to see Ignis''s monitor. He wanted to keep the match as fair as possible even in this low effort setup. If he gets any hints about Ignis''s pick, his brain will automatically try to come up with a counter even if he doesn''t want to.


    Without knowing what Ignis may pick, the only thing to do was select a class Yuel was proficient with and which performed well in 1v1 on average. Knight was one such good option. Bruises were generally favored in 1v1 due to boasting a combination of offense and defense. Also, Knight''s passive, Chivalry, granted a small defense buff to nearby allied minions, which was a huge advantage for a 1v1.


    [Okay, this should do it.] Yuel nodded to himself and locked his pick.


    "Knight, huh." Ignis mumbled with a drunk smile.


    "Wait, wha-" Yuel jumped. "That''s cheating!"


    "Huh? Who''s cheating?" Ignis waved her hand. "Just making sure we can have a fun fight. You don''t want me to accidentally pick a counter, do ya?"


    [But what if -I- picked a counter to what you had in mind?] Yuel made a face. [Just watch, she''ll pick a hard counter to Knight for sure.]


    "Hmmm," Ignis tilted from side to side. "Warrior sounds good. This gonna be fun, hic."


    [Warrior? That''s not a counter.] In fact, Knight was one of the classes which rendered Warrior obsolete in the meta because it had access to similar types of CC, except with better utility. Maybe Ignis really just wanted to have a fun match?


    "Hehe~" Something about her smirk was disturbing, though.


    "My condolences." Ellen placed a hand on Yuel''s shoulder with an understanding nod.


    "Yeah, he''s toast alright," Howard nodded too.


    "Hey now," Yuel frowned. "Don''t write me off before we even started." There was nothing particularly favorable for Ignis in this matchup, was there? If anything, Yuel might have an edge thanks to Knight''s passive and ult.


    The match began before Yuel could draw any conclusions. He spawned in the base at Lv.9 and allocated all 9 SP. That''s a lot of points right off the bat, but there was an optimized order for leveling skills so it''s a no-brainer.


    The more interesting question was which item to build first. Normally, he''d go for armor to survive the early game in 1v1. That gave him time to study the opponent without conceding any kills.


    However, this situation was very different from normal 1v1. Yuel was already four levels ahead of the enemy, so he''s in a "leading" position. Therefore, the idea of building a power item to swiftly crush a "weaker opponent" was appealing. It didn''t matter the opponent was a Grandmaster because stats were stats. No amount of skill could overwrite the absolute law that was math.


    Buying a power item on top of his four levels lead will allow him to kill Ignis in just a couple of hits. It was too good to pass on. Thus, he bought the Muramasa blade.


    Muramasa provided high attack power with a little mix of attack speed and penetration. However, its main function laid in its Lv.3 passive, which shredded the enemy''s protections with each strike and temporarily transferred them to the attacker. It was one of the best 1v1 items available, especially in bruiser vs. bruiser situations which dragged on. How will Ignis respond to it? This should be fun.


    After finishing his purchase, Yuel headed into the jungle. The map had two Wraith Camps, one on each side. Defeating wraiths granted a blue buff that gave MP regeneration, which was essential for staying on the lane for a long time. It also gave cooldown reduction to skills, which allowed to spam them more often in a fight.


    According to the rough meta of this mode, each player should start by clearing the nearby Wraith Camp before heading to the lane. However, Yuel had a different idea in mind. With his huge head start and with Murasama in hand, he should be able to easily kill Ignis if he brings to battle to her. Therefore, instead of clearing his own Wraith Camp, he''ll start by invading her camp instead! That way, he might get a kill AND steal her buff along the way.


    [This should work.] Yuel nodded to himself as he passed by his Wraith Camp without touching it. He ventured deeper into the jungle until he reached Ignis''s camp.


    [Not here yet?] For some reason, Ignis was nowhere in sight. Weird. The wraiths will spawn in a couple of minutes, so she should have been here already. A pro player, especially a 1v1 Grandmaster, should be more punctual than this. She surely knew this was the common opening for this mode, right?


    "Huh...?" Time passed, the wraiths spawned and still no sight of Ignis. Where was she and what was she doing? Maybe she headed to lane already? That shouldn''t be the case, but... "Where?"


    "What''s wrong, kid?" Ignis''s lips curved into a smug. "Don''t tell me you''re waiting at the wraiths."


    "Who knows."


    "Haha! You''re funny! Think you can invade my stuff and *hic* me just because you''re a few levels higher? Keep dreaming, kiddo!"


    [She saw through it!?] Yuel clenched his controller. He thought he was onto something here, but Ignis figured him out in instant. Wait, was she spying on his monitor again? He threw a glance at her, but it seemed she was concentrated on her own monitor.


    Was it really just deduction? Thinking about it, Ignis probably played many games with a handicap like this. No matter how "smart" Yuel thought his idea was, it surely crossed the minds of some of her opponents before. So, she was already aware of this "smart" tactic via experience.


    Yuel was careless. Even though Ignis was drunk, she still reasoned exceptionally well. Rather, it''s probably not a stretch to say such reasoning was already engraved on her instincts. She could counter such basic plays in her sleep.


    [Oh, so that''s what she''s up to.] While checking whether Ignis was spying on his monitor, Yuel accidentally caught a glimpse of her screen instead. The spied became the spy. Oops. W-Well, the clashing sounds from her console also indicated who she was fighting right now, so it''s not like learning any of this was his fault, okay?


    Ignis was fighting ogres and there''s only one place on the map where that could be done: the Ogre Camp in Top Jungle. Instead of starting at her Wraith Camp in Bot Jungle, she started at the Ogre Camp. Considering how it was on the other side of the map, Ignis must have figured Yuel out from the get-go, before he even set foot in the jungle.


    The strengths of both Wraith Camp and the Ogre Camp were roughly the same, so Ignis won''t have any trouble clearing the camp. Even if Yuel tries to invade her now, he won''t make it in time to Top Jungle. [Well played, I have to admit.]


    With no better choice left, he proceeded to take out the wraiths. He got a blue buff while Ignis got a red buff. Ignis''s clearing speed will be faster thanks to increased power, whereas Yuel will be able to stay longer on lane thanks to his MP5. Not a terrible trade. This early into the game it''s impossible to tell who benefited more from this exchange.


    Before going to lane, Yuel could first take a detour to clear the Wraith Camp on his side of the map. Doing so would give him extra exp, prolong his blue buff and ensure Ignis won''t get her hands on it any time soon. It was an attractive offer, but it harbored some risks.


    Losing even a little bit of lane control in 1v1 was extra dangerous because the Colossus was only protected by a Golem; there were no Turrets. Considering Ignis had the power buff, she could push the lane pretty hard. So, if Yuel doesn''t get there right away, the consequences will be dire.


    Therefore, he went to lane right away. Ignis also arrived shortly, coming from the opposite side. Now that she was within his range of sight, he could see what item she started with. So, what was the opening move of a Grandmaster?


    Spiked Buckler. Hmm, interesting. It was on the cheaper side. Players started with much more gold in 1v1 than in 5v5, so there were plenty more expensive options she could have gone for.


    Spiked Buckler provided attack power and defense, both in decent amounts. It was a balanced pick, which implied Ignis wasn''t sure yet how her battle with Yuel will play out. A smart choice, not quite what he expected from such a vulgar and conceited player. Putting aside her personality and drinking habits, Ignis was a pro alright.


    Despite trash talking and treating Yuel like a nobody, Ignis was taking this match 100% seriously. Gulp. This match will be even harder than Yuel originally thought...

 65 The 1v1 Grandmaster

    Minions arrived from both sides of the lane and clashed in the middle. Now, the battle began for real.


    Normally, both players will join the war effort by attacking enemy minions. However, that only applied when both sides were of roughly equal strength and it wasn''t dangerous to directly confront the enemy.


    This situation was different. Yuel was Lv.9 whereas Ignis was Lv.5. He had a huge lead in term of strength. To make the best of it, he aggressed on her to kick her out of the lane as soon as possible.


    "Coming at me, eh?" Ignis sneered. She sure sounded confident, despite the fact she was four levels below him and he had Marasume. Amazing confidence.


    Contrary to her arrogance, Ignis actually retreated toward her Golem. However, she didn''t get too far away and allowed Yuel to pursue a fight if he so wished. In other words, she was accepting the invitation to a duel but she didn''t want to hold it near the minions.


    [Makes sense.] Both his Knight and her Warrior gained benefits from being near minions, but the Knight''s benefits were superior in this situation. His passive, Chivalry, buffed the defense of nearby allies, players and minions alike. On the other hand, Warrior''s passive, Battle Thirst, buffed only the Warrior''s own attack power for each nearby enemy, counting both enemy players and minions.


    Knight''s Chivalry had a clear advantage as long as they were near a healthy wave because the buff applied to a group of allies. As long as Knight was working alongside his minions, they were more durable and will eventually out-grind the enemy forces.


    Thus, Ignis got away from the minions to rob Yuel of this advantage. In exchange, she lost most of the power she could have gained from Battle Thirst. It was a good trade for her.


    [Is she really drunk?] Yuel frowned. Ignis read the situation in a split second and immediately made her tactical retreat. This wasn''t such an easy judgment to make, especially not with a hazy mind.


    Then again, she was a pro and a 1v1 Grandmaster to boot. Perhaps this sophisticated move was as natural as breathing for her. It''s not even a question of "reading the situation" or "making the right judgment". Ignis probably just [felt] what''s the best response in this situation. It''s like an instinct.


    Yet, Yuel was going to take on this magical beast. A pro, a Grandmaster. He was now going to test how his skill compared against the real deal!


    Yuel followed Ignis toward her side of the lane, away from the minions. Now, the two waves had equal strength and will wipe each other out at around the same time. Gaining lane advantage through buffing minions was the Knight''s forte, but no big deal. Yuel just had to defeat Ignis and then he''ll get his chance to push the lane.


    "Come, kid," Ignis used a taunt emote, but she hasn''t even cast War Cry yet. Was she going to fight without a shield? Or, was she waiting for the fight to start first? Well, either way...


    "If you''re sure." Yuel advanced. No problem, he had plenty of advantage. No matter how good a Grandmaster was, they couldn''t magically alter their stats. Math was on his die! He''ll win!


    Yuel got within range and slashed! But, it whiffed. Ignis stepped backward in the last moment and the blade missed her by a hair''s breadth. In the very next moment, she attacked back!


    [Huh? It reached?] Yuel blinked in confusion as his HP dropped. Even though his blade failed to deliver a hit due to distance, Ignis''s counter-attack had no trouble hitting him. How could that be? Shenanigans.


    [Whoa!] A second slash at his Knight! No time to be distracted here! The enemy was a Grandmaster and she thirsted for blood. [Focus. Focus!]


    Yuel attacked again and missed again. Ignis just barely got out of the range of his swing. This time, he confirmed for sure: it''s the distance that made his attack whiff. Therefore, from this range, Ignis couldn''t possibly- hit!? His Knight lost 7% HP!


    [How!?] This didn''t make any sense! Both Knight and Warrior were melee classes with swords, so their attack range should have been the same!


    No, wait. That''s not quite right. Getting struck by that huge blade reminded Yuel a piece of trivia: the range of the Warrior''s attacks was slightly amplified by the fact he was wielding a big sword and was swinging it with both arms. Yuel never bothered comparing the lengths, but apparently, the Warrior''s reach with basic attacks was slightly longer than Knight''s.


    The difference between them was minute, something like half a step. Yet, Ignis utilized it to the fullest. She dodged Yuel''s attacks by a hair''s breadth and instantly countered.


    "Daydreaming? Haha!" Ignis dished out another attack before Yuel could react.


    [Ugh! I need to focus or I''m dead!] Yuel shook his head. Ignis struck in the brief window of time it took him to measure distances. This was tough. Thinking for too long will be the end of him. The fight just started, yet he was already down to 72% HP. And Ignis? Unharmed.


    [Okay,] Yuel created some distance first. [How am I going to deal with her range advantage?]


    From the last two exchanges, he got a rough idea of how the Warrior''s reach compared to the Knight''s. He improved his understanding by carefully stepping forward to intimidate. The moment Ignis finally stepped back, that''s where the limit of his range laid and where Ignis''s range advantage began.


    Okay, so he grasped the distances. What next? As long as Ignis maintained that distance, Yuel couldn''t charge at her. She was effectively zoning him by having a reach that''s barely half a step longer than his. It''s absurd. He never felt so pressured by a Warrior''s reach before.


    He fought Roi before, so he should have been used to confronting strong bruiser players. But, this fight was something else. Roi was strong, but he mostly relied on his mechanical skill to dodge incoming attacks while attacking.


    Ignis was a different beast altogether. She''s a pro who knew every aspect of Classmancers, a Grandmaster who fought countless duels. She knew every situation like the back of her hand, even while drunk.


    Gulp. Was Yuel''s controller packed with rocks or something? It felt so heavy...


    "What''s wrong, kiddo?" Ignis asked. "Cooooome at me already!"


    "W-Why don''t you come at me instead?" Yuel forced a shaky smile. His forehead felt sweaty. This Grandmaster read every move, every twitch, he made. It felt like no matter what Yuel will try, Ignis will tear his plans apart.


    "Heh," Ignis smirked. "You''re pretty sharp, kid. You figured how *hic* I am from being hit just twice?"


    "Yeah, I admit you''re pretty good," Yuel forced that through gritted teeth.


    "Hehe, damn right! I''m awesome! The best! No wonder you''re *hic* of my *hic* and *hic* damn *hic*" Ignis turned into a hiccupping machine gun while acting she''s the number one player in the world.


    [Chance!] Yuel rolled forward, closing the distance to Ignis. After he recovers from the roll, Ignis will be deep within his attack range and won''t be able to easily step backward and counter.


    "Ah! Cheap!"


    [Not my fault you were busy boasting instead of focusing on the game.] No mercy. As soon as Yuel stood up - he swung his blade!


    "Whoa! Dangerous! Pffhew!" Ignis made some weird noises as exaggeratedly steered her controller to the right as if it''s going to make her Warrior move faster. Futile! Yuel already saw where she was moving, so he aimed his blade a little to the right to- wha!? He missed!?


    In the very last moment, Ignis changed directions and took a step to the left! Yuel swung based on his prediction, but it sliced through empty air. How did this...!?


    [Superhuman reaction speed? Or, was it a feint all along?] Yuel bit his lip. Even though he attacked Ignis in a moment of vulnerability, she wiggled her way out.


    But, it''s not over yet. They were next to each other, so even though the first attack missed - he went for another one! At this range, simply taking a step back won''t cut it!


    "Guuah, you got me!" Ignis activated War Cry, erecting a shield.


    Yuel''s second attack connected, but it didn''t touch Ignis''s HP. The slash destroyed over half her shield and stole some protections via Murasama''s effect, but that''s all. Ignis was unharmed and dished out a counter right away, shaving off another 7% from Yuel''s HP. The amount of protection he stole from Ignis was meager from landing just one hit, so they didn''t reduce the damage much. He had to press harder!


    A third attack! Ugh, this one missed. Yet again, Yuel predicted Ignis'' movements to guide his blade, but she altered her course in the last very last moment. And of course, he instantly ate a counter-attack straight in the face.


    But, that''s no reason to panic. Yuel had a huge level advantage, so he could soak more hits than Ignis. He never expected this to be an even battle in the first place, not against a Grandmaster.


    To compensate for the huge gap in their combat skills, his best bet was to keep abusing his stat advantage and push forward. His four levels of extra stats were his greatest, and possibly his only, advantage in this fight.


    Therefore, a fourth strike! Before Ignis could escape his reach! This one connected. It shattered her shield and slashed her HP. It erased a measly amount of 4% HP because most of the damage was soaked by the shield, but it was a huge step forward. He finally injured her!


    Of course, Ignis countered right away and Yuel could do nothing against it. After this exchange of blows, Ignis almost retreated far enough to take advantage of her longer reach again. But, Yuel had the momentum right now. He was the aggressor, so he won''t stop here!


    Instead of swinging his sword again, Yuel activated Shield Bash and charged forward with his shield stretched out. Thanks to the quick leap of Shield Bash, this shield attack had a longer reach than his basic attacks. Ignis couldn''t possibly dodge-


    "Not bad!" Ignis responded with Fearless Charge, quickly leaping aside. Just like Shield Bash, Fearless Charge was both an attack and a mobility skill packed into one. And it actually had slightly better properties than Shield Bash, including faster cast time and longer travel distance.


    Ignis got away in the nick of time, dodging to the left. What an absurd reaction speed. But, it wasn''t over yet!


    After Shield Bash ended, the skill temporarily transformed into a special follow up skill: Blade Swing. This second strike was Yuel''s goal all along! Warrior didn''t have any follow-ups for Fearless Charge, so Blade Swing was going to hit for sure!


    "Pffhew! So *hic*!" Ignis rolled aside and Yuel''s swing passed right above her. Unbelievable! What''s with this superhuman reaction speed!? Was she Lars MK2!?


    But despite the absurdity, Yuel had to keep attacking. Ignis didn''t roll too far away and was still within reach. Therefore, another slash! Ugh, it didn''t quite reach, just a few millimeters short. And of course, Ignis didn''t waste this opportunity and slashed back at him.


    This was bad. VERY bad. Yuel was already down to 39% HP, whereas Ignis was still sitting at 96%, alive and kicking.


    How did things come to this? Yuel felt like a complete amateur in this fight. Ignis''s reaction speed, decision-making, execution... everything was pitch-perfect. From the moment this 1v1 started, she hadn''t made a single mistake he could exploit. Even when Yuel caught her off guard, he barely managed to land any hits.


    If people called Lars a "beast", but then what did that make Ignis? She''s a demon, in the flesh. She was at least as mechanically skilled as Lars, but she also had boundless experience as a pro and her decision-making was polished to the level of instinct. She''s unbeatable!


    But, that didn''t mean Yuel was going to give up. No, not yet. He still had four levels of stat advantage and he already stole protections twice from her. If he can land a couple of hits, Ignis will drop to low HP in a blink of an eye. Yuel just had to land these few hits. Just a few hits... This simple task never sounded harder.


    There''s still one trick he had up his sleeve, the Knight''s second skill: Honorable Duel, an AoE taunt which forced enemies in range to hit the Knight with basic attacks. The Knight also received power and defense buffs for each successfully taunted enemy.


    The taunt lasted but a second, but the hit was easy to confirm. It''ll draw Ignis toward him and will allow landing easy hits on her while her twitch reflexes are sealed by the taunt. This was the only way he could still make a comeback this fight. The alternative was to retreat, which Yuel refused to do. He was going to show this pro what he was really made of!


    Yuel advanced towards Ignis, as if to strike again. But instead, he activated Honorable Duel. "Let us fight honorably!" The Knight''s booming voice resounded throughout the area. The skill had a decent reach and was shaped in a cone, so Ignis won''t be able to step back or aside. It was a pitch-perfect... miss!?


    [No way!] His controller almost slipped through his fingers. Right as the taunt was about to hit - Ignis vanished! She had a concealed Blink! That''s why the first item she built was the cheap Spike Shield. Ignis poured the leftover gold into a cloaked Blink!


    [Not good!] Yuel turned around. Ignis didn''t just dodge his taunt, she teleported behind him!


    "Nothing personal, *hic*!" Ignis activated Swordwhirl and began spinning with her blade stretched out. It struck and struck and struck. This was bad. BAD. BAD BAD BAD!


    [Ugh, she got me good!] Yuel fired a counter-attack while trying to get out of Swordwhirl''s range. A single direct hit shaved about 15% of Ignis''s HP and lowered her defense. It was heavy damage, but her fast strikes weren''t shabby either.


    [Yuel: 18% HP] [Ignis: 65% HP]


    If they exchange blow for blow here, it''s clear Yuel will die. Quick math showed Ignis needed at most three more hits to get him, whereas Yuel needed at least five. It''s impossible to win here by confronting her.


    So, should he run? That''s the only alternative, but... this was checkmate. Not in an instant one, but still a mate in a couple of moves.


    Yuel''s best bet was to roll towards his side of the lane and keep running from there. Warrior didn''t have any chase skills beside Fearless Charge, which was currently on cooldown, so Yuel might get away if he just sprints full gas.


    Unfortunately, Swordwhirl''s attacks slowed him down. Even if he opens a little distance between them, she''ll catch up to him in no time. The only option was to use his ult, Noble Steed, to summon a horse and ride away on it, but- ugh! Ignis landed another hit!


    There''s no time to dwell on it! Yuel just had to do it! A checkmate in a few moves still required the opponent to execute it flawlessly, so maybe Ignis will make a tiny mistake somewhere. That was his only hope.


    Yuel rolled forward, getting slightly out of Ignis'' range. But, as if she already predicted this move before Yuel even thought of it, her next swing nearly sliced him. It missed by a nanometer.


    Yuel''s roll should have gotten him completely out of Ignis''s attack range, yet he was almost hit. It could only mean one thing: Ignis started moving along his escape route even before he decided to use it! This was absurd!


    Still, Yuel miraculously dodged that attack, recovered from the roll and activated Noble Steed. The Knight whistled, calling forth a majestic white horse. This was his ticket out!


    But, there''s a catch. Knight''s defense greatly decreased during the mounting animation. The defense fell low enough to allow Ignis to finish him off in just one hit. So, if she strikes him in this brief window of time-


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    The Knight fell off the steed and crashed into the ground.


    "Awwyeah!" Ignis triumphantly flailed her controller and flashed her teeth. "I''m the best! Right? Right?"


    "But of course, of course," Ellen nodded more times than was necessary. "You''re amazing, Igny~"


    "Right? Right?"


    "Yes, you''re the best~"


    "Aww, thank you~" Ignis grabbed Ellen and snuggled her like a kitten. Um, what about the game...?


    "Good play, sis." Howard also joined the celebration. But, it''s not like she won yet... Oh, it''s probably all part of a routine. Yuel was used as a punching bag to help Ignis relieve stress. Howard and Ellen showered her with excessive praises so she stops moping.


    Well, Yuel wasn''t against helping Ignis feel better about herself, but... it''s frustrating. She mopped the floor with him. Yuel could come up with excuses all day, like "I''m not mechanically skilled" or "I don''t have enough 1v1 experience". But, the bottom line was: Ignis thoroughly and utterly crushed him, even with a handicap of four levels. It''s as if he was a newbie who played Classmancers for the first time today.


    But, this 1v1 wasn''t over yet. Yuel won''t let it end like this! Scoring first blood in 1v1 was a huge advantage, but it wasn''t the whole game. He still planned to do his absolute best to mount a comeback!


    Alas, it proved futile. Due to the huge level gap between them, Ignis leveled up twice after killing him. The level advantage shrunk by half and Yuel now also lagged behind on gold. After adding the astronomical skill gap between them into the equation... This match was already over.


    Yuel played safer and waited for opportunities to strike a weak point, but those never came. There were no weaknesses in a Grandmaster''s technique.


    Eventually, Ignis outfarmed him and that gave her the upper hand in literally every area. The match was decided shortly after that, with Ignis''s overwhelming invade under Yuel''s Golem area.


    ¡ºDEFEAT¡»


    It was a crushing defeat, but also an amazing experience. This 1v1 showed how powerful real pros were. And, Ignis was only a B-Leaguer. There were many pros out there who were much stronger than her!


    Yuel thought he was already a strong player, but this fight forced him to realize he barely started his journey toward the overwhelming level of the pro scene. He still had a long, looooong way to go.

 66 Counter Pick Checkmate

    "C''mon! One more!" Ignis waved her controller and grin beamed on her face. It made her look like a brat who wanted to mess around. Even though Yuel lost terribly in the previous game, it was hard to hate Ignis''s attitude. She was really just a Classmancers geek. "One more!"


    "May I?" Yuel turned to Howard, who held the most authority in this house right now because Ignis was totally hammered.


    "You got no choice," Howard''s lips curved into a smirk. "Once you start playing her when she''s drunk, you better be prepared to play her own until she knocks herself out."


    "Yep~" Ellen added with an impish smile. "Be ready to stay here aaaaaall night~"


    "That''ll be a problem," Yuel had no plans staying over. "But I''m not in a hurry so I''ll play as many matches I can."


    "Good, good!" Ignis nodded repeatedly and exaggeratedly, making it feel like her head will fly off her neck at any moment. "That''s the spirit, Chesskid!"


    "The name''s Yuel."


    "Nooooope. You''re Chesskid. Real pros use their nicks," Ignis puffed her cheeks, leaving no room for argument. Thinking about it, Yuel also referred to her as "Ignis" even though that''s her IGN and not her real name. What was even her real name? That kind of information wasn''t always trivial to find online. Pro players were really best known by their nicknames and not any real name. But, even so...


    "It''s not Chesskid," Yuel argued. "It''s Chessmaster."


    "Pft, yeah, right! You''re ten years too young to have such a coky name!"


    [Actually, this name was your brother''s idea...]


    "So, Chesskid suits ya just *hic* right now."


    "Is that so," Yuel made a face. He felt obligated to shoot something back. "I didn''t see you calling Howard and Ellen by their nicknames."


    "Weeeeell," Ignis shrugged. "Wardy is Wardy and Elly is Elly."


    [You''re making so much sense that you''re blowing my mind!]


    "She just hates her real name," Ellen whispered. "So, she wants everybody to call her Ignis."


    "What''s her real name?" Yuel asked in a whisper.


    "It''s Heather."


    "Don''t see a problem with it," Yuel shrugged.


    "Nuuuuuu!" Ignis roared out of the blue. "I''m nooooo Heather! I''m Ignis! IG-NIS! Drill that into yo *hic*!" She poked Yuel''s temple as if to transmit this data into his brain.


    "Fine," Yuel conceded. "You''re Ignis."


    "Damn right, kiddo! All hail Ignis!" She threw both hands in the air to celebrate.


    [What are you, five?] Yuel sighed. "I''ll call you Ignis, so you call me Chessmaster."


    "Nope."


    [Gah! This woman! I swear...!]


    "If you don''t like it, then c''mon! Try and *hic* me, Chesskid."


    "You''re on," Yuel clenched the controller. Despite the huge skill gap between them, he''ll do it. He''ll beat Ignis, somehow. There had to be a way.


    "That''s the spirit." Ignis grinned. "You got trashed real bad last round, so I''mma boost you to Lv.10. Or, you need more?"


    "Five levels is fine," Honestly, considering the outcome of their previous game, it''s possibly Yuel needed more than that to fight Ignis on equal footing. But, Howard claimed he defeated Ignis consistently with a handicap of five levels, so Yuel had to try it too.


    "Come at me then." Ignis tinkered with the settings and instantly locked her pick. Yuel didn''t hear any sounds of scrolling across the selection screen, so Ignis obviously picked Warrior again.


    "Um, I know you picked Warrior," Yuel said. Despite the suboptimal conditions of this match, he still wanted to keep things fair.


    "Yeah," Ignis admitted. "Whoever wins gotta stay with that class for next round."


    "Huh? Why?"


    "House rules!"


    "I see," In that case, knowing that Ignis picked Warrior wasn''t cheating. On the contrary, it''s information Yuel was expected to abuse according to these "house rules". An interesting rule, which was undoubtedly created to give the loser a chance to get revenge. After all, knowing the enemy''s pick ahead of time was huge in 1v1.


    Not to make excuses or anything, but Yuel lost so badly in part because Ignis saw his Knight pick and picked Warrior in response. Yuel didn''t think of it as a counter pick at the time, but it''s clear Ignis considered it as such. At least, she must have played the Warrior vs. Knight matchup enough times to know how to overwhelm Knight as a Warrior.


    Now, it''s Yuel''s turn to counter-pick. This was a chance. With a five-levels handicap, information about Ignis''s pick and some experience playing against her Warrior - Yuel will come up with a much better game plan this time. The skill gap between them was undeniably huge, but he should be able to reduce it with proper planning and preparation.


    Now then, how should he go about countering Warrior in 1v1? Considering Ignis''s overwhelming strength, Yuel needed a class that''d enable him to play more defensively this time around. Going head-to-head with Ignis will spell death to him, he barely even touched her in their previous fights.


    Therefore, a long-ranged class was a good starting point. Preferably, one with consistent DPS rather than burst, because Ignis always knew how to dodge at all the right moments. In other words, Yuel needed a marksman. Bonus points if it has some good escape tools to help thwarting Ignis''s offense.


    Elf seemed like a good option. It could snipe from afar and could get out of sticky situations with Elven Leap. It was a popular defensive Carry pick for a reason.


    [Maybe this is how Howard adopted that defensive style of his.] Yuel wondered. If Howard plays against somebody as strong as Ignis every day, it''s only natural to develop a defensive mentality and get that much better at defending. Even Yuel, who favored offensive tactics, resorted to thinking about defense. Ignis was such an overwhelming opponent that he couldn''t even imagine himself going on the offensive and winning against her, not in a million years.


    But, was that really good enough? Unless Yuel scores at least one kill, he''ll never win the 1v1. Even with his advantage of five levels, Elf''s attacks won''t be a threat unless Yuel actually lands them. Unfortunately, based on past experience, landing shots on Ignis was a huge challenge in its own right. Yuel wasn''t some sharpshooter like Lars, so he couldn''t reliably snipe an elusive enemy like Ignis.


    The only way he had to cheat around this issue was with the Elf''s ult, Nature''s Embrace, which rooted an enemy in place. Ignis will dodge any obvious attempts to root her, but Yuel was confident about landing at least one successful hit, considering the ult''s long distance and fast casting speed.


    But, what''s next? Suppose Yuel roots Ignis and turns her into an easy target for his shots, will he be able to kill her before the root effect runs out? A difficult calculation. It will greatly depend on what items they start with.


    Yuel will most likely be able to kill her if he buys a crit item and scores some critical hits while Ignis is rooted. But, that like rolling dice. Critical hits will be very inconsistent with just one crit item.


    Not to mention, this whole play will fall through spot if Ignis buys Cleanse to negate the root of Nature''s Embrace. This wasn''t good enough. Yuel needed something more decisive.


    The general idea of pining Ignis in place and shooting her down was good, it''s probably the only way he could ever hope to kill her. But, to actually kill her tanky Warrior in one play, he needed a marksman who could pack a punch. He needed more DPS, or at least a way to temporarily boost his DPS to threatening levels. A defensive class like Elf didn''t cut it.


    So, what marksmen could pin Ignis in place and deal a lot of damage... Ranger? That''s an interesting idea to explore. If he can-


    "C''mon!" Ignis pouted. "*hic* something already! Let''s play!"


    "Just a second." Yuel almost reached the solution he was looking for. He only had to determine whether Ranger was good enough to-


    "Diiiing dooong! A second passed."


    "Fine..." Yuel sighed and picked Ranger. He no choice but to trust his rough estimation and make this work. Somehow.


    During the loading screen, Yuel kept thinking about various scenarios and how he''ll checkmate Ignis. As he went over the most common variations of how 1v1''s early game usually played out, he became more and more confident about this pick. If his calculations were right, Ranger had a very real chance of checkmating Ignis!


    For the first item, Yuel built Morning Star. It provided attack power and crit chance, but both in small doses. The crit chance of the next attack increased every time he failed to score a crit, but that''s all this item had to offer. It was on the cheaper side, but Yuel had a reason to do things this way.


    With the leftover gold he had, he purchased Blink. If push comes to shove, he''ll have to rely on blinking for the checkmate he had in mind. Whether he''ll be able to correctly blink amidst the unfolding situation, that remained to be seen.


    With Morning Star and Blink, he was ready to leave the base. The next decision he had to make was regarding the jungle camp to start from. Last game, he attempted to invade Ignis''s blue camp to score an early kill on her, but she dodged him and took the red buff instead.


    Will Ignis go for the Ogre Camp again? Perhaps. But, Yuel really wanted to snatch that power buff for himself. Ranger didn''t need much cooldown reduction or MP5 for 1v1, but power was of utmost importance. Yuel had to able to deliver as much damage as possible to create the checkmate he envisioned.


    Therefore, he headed for the Ogre Camp. If he finds Ignis there, he can try killing her on the spot. If not, he''ll simply take the buff.


    "Hehe," Ignis chuckled. "Thought I''ll be going for red again? Too bad! I''m doing blue this time!"


    "What? Impossible. Can''t believe it." Yuel rolled his eyes.


    "I totally fooled ya, Chesskid! Haha."


    "Oh no. I''ve been outsmarted."


    "Totally! I''m just the *hic*!"


    [As long as you''re enjoying herself.] Yuel shrugged. It''s better for him if Ignis doesn''t suspect a thing and keeps underestimating him.


    Yuel defeated the ogres and took the red buff, while Ignis beat the wraiths and took the blue buff. They both arrived in the lane at the same time.


    Yet again, Ignis started with Spiked Buckler. In other words, she most likely bought a utility skill as well. Blink again? Or, maybe Cleanse? It''s probably Cleanse to counter Ranger''s CC. Yuel already prepared himself for this worst-case scenario.


    With all his planning and preparation, how will he fare against Ignis this time around? Will he be able to force her into the checkmate he envisioned? Now, the real fight was about to begin!

 67 Stats over Skill

    The minions from both sides clashed in the center of the lane. This served as the starting gun to inform that the battle began for real.


    The first move in Yuel''s envisioned checkmate was to stun Ignis with Beartrap. For that reason, he leveled up Beartrap to Lv.4. This allowed him to place up to four traps at the same time. It was normally a waste to level up Beartrap this much, but he had a five-levels lead, so he traded some of his extra SP for increasing the chances of trapping Ignis.


    Yuel scattered all four traps around the clashing swordsmen. Warrior was melee, so Ignis had to approach the minions if she wanted to strike. That''ll prove difficult with so many traps lying in wait.


    "Tch," Ignis clicked her tongue. "What a *hic* you are, Chesskid."


    "Maybe it''s because I''m actually a Chessmaster."


    "Naaaaaah." Ignis maneuvered around the traps and focused on his bowmen instead. A ballsy move that played around Yuel''s plan, but how was Ignis going to play from this dangerous position? She placed herself right within Yuel''s attack range.


    [Well, I''m not complaining.] Yuel shrugged and focused his attacks on Ignis. If she stays this close, it''ll be easy snipes for him.


    "Too sloooow!" Ignis sidestepped the first shot. And the second shot. She continued striking Yuel''s minions while sidestepping all his shots! What was this inhuman situational awareness!? And how did she sidestep so perfectly every time!? Warrior sidestepping speed OP, pls nerf.


    But, there''s no way Ignis could keep this up forever. Yuel kept shooting and shooting. Eventually, Ignis had to slip. It just had to happen, or else she''s officially a demon.


    Ignis dodged the third shot. And the fourth shot. However, the fifth was about to- PARRIED.


    "Wha!?" Yuel jumped. "You can parry too!?"


    "Haha! Hichaha!" Ignis burst into laughter so strong even hiccups failed to interrupt her. "Of course I can parry, kid. That''s basic shit right there. If you keep shooting easy shots like that, I''mma send them flying!"


    ["Easy shots", huh.] Yuel frowned. He wasn''t exactly the best sniper in the world, so he relied on stability to increase his aim. Once he gets his target marked, he always tries to steadily keep shooting from the same position and angle. Such shots had the highest chance of hitting.


    Unfortunately, such shots were the easiest to predict. And, predictable shots were the easiest to parry.


    [It''s no good from this distance. I can''t hit her.] Yuel pursed his lips and slowly advanced forward, reducing the gap between him and Ignis. The closer he gets, the better chance he''ll have to hit her. But, at the same time, it''ll be easier for Ignis to charge at him with Fearless Charge and destroy him in melee combat.


    As a countermeasure, he placed a Beartrap between them. If Ignis charges at him, she''ll run straight into the trap and get stunned. She had a way to play around that trap, but Yuel had a way to outplay the play that played around the trap. Outplay-ception.


    A shot. And another shot. And another. All misses. Each of Yuel''s bolts was either sidestepped or parried. He couldn''t land a single hit.


    [Steady shots just won''t cut it.] This was the time for some experimentation. How should he go about making his shots connect?


    Ignis claimed the shots were too easy to predict. In that case, should he shoot quickly and wildly? After getting this close to her, even his terrible accuracy must have gone up a little. Maybe he could actually land a quick shot or two. Maybe. Possibly.


    Either way, Yuel had nothing to lose. He fired a slow steady shot first, which Ignis dodged without a problem. Right after, he drastically changed his aim and fired toward Ignis''s legs! A fast and totally uncalculated shot which relied purely on his coordination.


    "Ah!" Ignis exclaimed. Good, it caught her off guard. She moved backward in an attempt to dodge, but she didn''t react in time. It was effective! ... except, the shot ended up hitting the ground. 10/10 accuracy. Sigh.


    "Nice shot, kid," Ignis laughed. "Too bad you''re facing the best *hic* in the world! I mean, the best [Grandmaster] in the world!"


    [Yes, the best Hiccuping Grandmaster in the world.] Yuel shook his head. He missed the wild shot, but it successfully surprised Ignis. It was close. If he keeps trying it, eventually it should connect. There was still time before the minion waves eliminate each other, so Yuel turned it into target practice time.


    [I better add this type of practice into my regular training]. Yuel rarely ever played marksmen, so normally it wasn''t a big deal if he failed to land a shot or two. But, that didn''t mean he should aspire to be the kind of player who can''t land shots. If Ignis is any indication of what the pro scene held, then Yuel''s slow and steady shots will be rendered ineffective on the pro level. Even a ranged Support mage had to be able to confirm shots, especially since some of them had effects which were tied to their basic attacks, like Cryomancer''s Frostbite.


    For the first shot, Yuel took his time to aim. The opening shot better be accurate, or else Ignis would ignore the whole assault. As expected, Ignis dodged that shot.


    [Good, and now...!] Yuel tilted his crossbow upwards and fired.


    "Whoa!" Ignis exclaimed as the bolt went toward her face... and passed over her head. "Scaaaaary."


    [Tch, so close.] Just a couple centimeters lower and it would have hit. Yuel was getting closer and closer. He tried that routine again. And again. And again. Every time, his bolt almost grazed Ignis. [Almost! So close...!]


    With every shot, Yuel got a better feel for the bolt''s trajectory and for Ignis''s sidesteps. If he can predict how she''ll dodge his first shot, he''ll have a much easier time landing his quick follow up shot.


    Unfortunately, Ignis did a good job mixing up her evasive maneuvers. A sidestep to the left, a parry, another sidestep to the left, another left, a parry, a right sidestep, right again, parry, left, right, parry. Ugh, it''s too random! She''s like a stumbling drunkard who tilted from side to side.


    [Wait, maybe it''s really because she''s drunk?] Yuel hasn''t seen yet how being drunk affected Ignis''s performance. Aside from her rowdy behavior and endless hiccups, there weren''t any signs that her performance was hampered by alcohol in any way.


    But, perhaps her random movements were a result of that? She wasn''t thinking straight, so she dodged randomly instead of following some pattern. There''s a chance this line of thinking was a huge stretch and Ignis was just that good at masking her patterns; she''s a pro, after all.


    However, Yuel had nothing to lose by testing it. Assuming her movements were truly random and lacked coherent thinking, there was a great way to exploit it. In fact, it might be exactly what he needed for his checkmate.


    [If she reacts mostly by instinct, then she can''t always be aware of everything in her surrounding. If I just lead her with me attacks...] It won''t be easy, but it''s worth a shot.


    Yuel took a few steps forward. His wild shots should have an even higher chance of hitting now, so Ignis will have to work harder to dodge them. Like before, he placed a Beartrap to kill any ideas like being rushed with Fearless Charge. Or rather, the trap was there to ensure that if Ignis decides to rush him - he''ll checkmate her.


    With preparations finished, Yuel began another target practice routine. A steady shot, followed by a wild shot. However, this time he had an ulterior motive. He fired faster and aimed toward Ignis''s left side, to make it more appealing for her to dodges to the right side. This worked well. Ignis instinctively dodged to the right almost every time. Good.


    This trick gradually pushed her closer to the side of the lane. More specifically, pushed her toward an area where Yuel planted two bear traps. Ignis was now just a couple steps away from being trapped. She only had to move a little more to the right...!


    If Ignis were in full form, she''d probably keep tabs on all of Yuel''s traps. But, right now, she was drunk and had her hands full with dodging Yuel''s wild shots. Her judgment should be impaired. Even if she''s aware of the traps, there''s a chance their exact positions will slip her mind while she dodges one bolt after another.


    Believing in that possibility, Yuel continued shooting without rest. It was no easy feat to lead Ignis toward the traps because her drunk dodges were all over the place. There was no way to predict how exactly she''d react to every shot.


    But still, many of her responses made some sense. When Yuel fired toward her left side, she often dodged to the right. When he fired toward her legs, she usually backstepped. Shot by shot, Yuel led her toward the trap.


    After countless shots, by the time the minion waves already finished clashing, Ignis was just one step away from a trap. Just a little more! She was right there! Just a little!


    Yuel fired again, aiming toward her shoulder. Or rather, he fired the bolt and just prayed it''d fly toward that general area. A professional sharpshooter, by the way.


    Miraculously, the bolt flew exactly where Yuel wanted it! It''ll pierce through Ignis''s shoulder if she doesn''t move! Probably. At least, it was going to be too close for her to ignore.


    CLACK. The sound of metal shutting. Finally, Ignis did it. She stepped on the trap and got herself stunned!


    Yuel dashed forward to get Ignis within the range of his Wolf Companion. As soon as she gets out of the stun, he''ll pin her down with the wolf to extend her immobility. In that short period of time, he should be able to barrage her to death thanks to his ult. It''ll be a checkmate, one of the easiest variations he came up with.


    In case something goes wrong, Yuel first placed a Beartrap in front of him. Then, he activated his ult. "THE HUNT IS-" his Ranger began t shout.


    "Nope!" Ignis reacted as soon as Yuel started casting the ult. No, she probably reacted even earlier. She knew exactly what Yuel was going for. It was a typical Ranger play, but also the best one he had available.


    Ignis activated Cleanse to remove her stun and charged at Yuel with Fearless Charge. She was going to exploit the brief moment it took to activate Ranger''s ult to get in Yuel''s face and tear him apart!


    Even though Yuel set up a trap between them ahead of time, it was rendered useless. On top of removing all CC, Cleanse also granted Ignis a temporary CC-immunity. She passed over the trap, but it didn''t stun her. Her charge wasn''t slowed down in the slightest!


    Countering her with the wolf will be equally pointless. No CC could hold her down right now. Ignis was going to get in Yuel''s face and rend him asunder with Swordwhirl. She''ll become CC-immune while spinning, so his traps and wolf will be useless yet again.


    If Yuel stays and fights, will he be able to shoot Ignis down before Swordwhirl kills him? He had an advantage of five levels and "The Hunt is On" was going to greatly amplify his damage against Ignis. So, he should be able to put on a decent fight.


    However, it would be an extremely difficult fight due to Swordwhirl''s high damage and defense reduction. Yuel would out-DPS Ignis if he were to land a few lucky crits, but with just Morning Star in his build that''s not going to happen.


    Thus, that''d be a futile struggle. Ignis was one step ahead of him yet again! She was going to own this 1v1! Hopefully, that''s what she thought.


    There were many details and calculations involved in this sequence of plays, way more than Yuel could possibly handle on the spot. Thankfully, he has already analyzed this scenario ahead of time. Ignis buying Cleanse, using it to negate a trap and relying on its CC-immunity to charge at him - he already went over this set of moves. It was an effective counter to Ranger and something Yuel would have considered doing himself in her shoes.


    Therefore, Yuel came prepared. He started the game with a cheap item like Morning Star to leave enough gold for Blink. And, since he has already played out this scenario in his head, he responded without wasting any time.


    As soon as Ignis got close and began spinning her blade - Yuel blinked away! That''s it, checkmate! Yuel was outside the range of Swordwhirl and his ult was on, granting him a huge damage boost. Ignis was moving slower while spinning, so she could neither chase him nor dodge his shots. Yuel had the high ground in every regard.


    "No way!" Ignis exclaimed. She must''ve understood this was the end. "You little whippersnapper...!"


    [Just don''t mess up now!] Yuel''s moved the mouse with a trembling hand. Fire! Unlike before, the bolt connected with ease. No matter how predictable his shots were or how good Ignis was at dodging, she couldn''t dodge while spinning around. This one bolt instantly eliminated 15% of her HP. With such a big level advantage, he needed at most 6 more hits to seal the deal. It was almost settled!


    "Think you won, huh?" Ignis barked. "No way I gonna let ya!" She canceled Swordwhirl to regain her mobility, but it did little to help her at this point. Without Swordwhirl, she was no longer CC-immune. Yuel has been waiting for this moment!


    Right as Ignis''s spinning slowed down, Yuel activated Wolf Companion. The wolf leaped on Ignis and pinned her to the ground as soon as she stopped lost her CC-immunity. She didn''t even get a chance to try to roll away.


    It was over. Ignis''s Cleanse was already spent on Beartrap, so she had no way to get out of this stun. Yuel just had to land a few easy shots-


    "Hey, over here!" Ignis waved her arms exaggeratedly, blocking some of Yuel''s view. "Look! The house is on fire! We gotta run! ... and what''s that over there!? A UFO!? Aliens are invading earth, kid!"


    [Tell them I said hi.] Yuel moved aside to dodge Ignis''s arms and finished the job.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    Yuel did it. He actually did it! He beat the 1v1 Grandmaster! It''s was only made possible by the advantage of five levels and because Ignis underestimated him a little, but a win was a win! Yuel flawlessly calculated his way to the victory!


    Yuel normally disliked 1v1 because it was a mode for the mechanically gifted, but this variation with a handicap was actually quite fun. It allowed him to counter the enemy''s superior skill with a combination of stats and tactics, which turned it into a much fairer.


    "Nuuuuuuu!" Ignis kicked like an angry toddler. "You were just lucky! I went easy on you. Don''t think you can really *hic* the best Grandmaster in the world!"


    [More like, the brattiest Grandmaster in the world.] Yuel shook his head and concentrated on the game. His objective was clear: take advantage of Ignis''s death and push all the way into her base! He was going to win this match!

 68 Battle for the First String

    After killing Ignis, Yuel focused all his efforts on pushing the lane. A new minion wave soon arrived and to help him invade the Golem.


    He failed to finish the Golem before Ignis returned, but he brought it down to 40% HP. That''s a huge lead when combined with his already existing advantages of level, gold, and minions. Even the number one Grandmaster in the world should struggle to climb out of this position.


    Still, given Ignis''s skill, anything could happen. At least, if she played as strongly as before...


    "You pesky *hic*! I mean, kid!" Ignis charged at Yuel as soon as she returned. "I''mma *hic* you this time!!"


    [Frontal assault? Seriously?] Yuel frowned. Did she really think she could just go on the offensive despite all his advantages? Frankly, it looked like throwing a tantrum.


    But, that''s no reason to let his guard down. Yuel fired bolts while retreating to the backline. Thanks to his attack range advantage, he could combine offense and defense into one play. Truly, he every possible advantage at this point.


    Alas, things were never that easy with Ignis. She side-stepped the first shot without slowing down and swung her blade at the second shot.


    "Think you can *hic* the Great Ignis with these lame shots? Ha!" Ignis parried the second shot... at least, that''s what''d normally happen. However, her blade failed to make contact. The bolt hit her.


    [That''s a first.] Yuel followed up with another shot. It hit Ignis before she recovered from her swing.


    "Oh, now you''ve done it! You''ve soooooo done it!" Ignis ranted through gritted teeth. "I''mma kick yo *hic*! Just you- Aya!" Another bolt hit her. Ignis wasn''t moving much while ranting, so Yuel just shot her without waiting. "You little runt! Now the Great Ignis is REALLY mad!"


    [And seems like that''s exactly what I want.] Yuel smiled intently. That slow reaction and poor coordination, she was finally playing like a drunk. Becoming salty must have thrown her off her game, so her automatic professional responses stopped kicking-in.


    The harder Yuel pressures Ignis, the faster she''ll fall apart. Therefore, he didn''t let up for a single moment. One shot after another without rest. Eventually, Ignis''s HP ran so low that, even in this unstable state, she understood she had to retreat.


    [So, what if I do this?] Yuel switched gears without warning and rolled forward.


    "Wha!? Whatcha think ya doing!?"


    [Winning.] As soon as he recovered from the roll, Yuel sent his wolf forth. If he could just pin her down again, he''ll get another-


    "Tooooooo bad! Haha!" Ignis dodged the assault with Fearless Charge. Even with her reduced reaction speed, she was still leagues above Yuel. It was a naive attack, but it delivered the message: if Ignis doesn''t retreat, Yuel will pounce at her until he gets a kill.


    "I swear I''mma mop the *hic* with ya when I return!" Ignis shoved her finger into Yuel''s face while recalling to base.


    [Good luck with that.] Yuel proceeded to push the undefended lane. Step by step, he was approaching victory. Ignis was losing it, so this game should be in the bag now.


    By time Ignis recovered and returned from the base, her Golem was already at 20% HP. Just one more little push and Yuel will take it down, along with the whole game.


    "Don''tcha think you won yet!" Ignis rushed at him again and yet again, her defense was lacking.


    [This is getting risky.] Yuel glanced at his HP. Even though Ignis''s assaults ended in failure, she usually managed to land a few hits before being forced to retreat. Slowly but surely, she was grinding Yuel out of HP. I


    With Yuel now at 60% HP, Ignis could cut off his escape with Swordwhril and then score a kill. No, wait. She won''t do it because Yuel will assuredly score at least one critical hit in this exchange and will out-damage her thanks to Morning Star increasing his crit chance with every attack. So, with that in mind-


    "Gotcha!" Ignis charged forward and spun her blade through him! No time to think!


    [Five hits plus a crit is like six hits, so that should work out, right!?] With Yuel''s snail speed reaction, he had no choice but trust his rough estimation. His Blink was still on cooldown, so fighting back was his only option.


    Yuel fired and Ignis sliced. He shot again and she slashed. A shot for a slice, a slash for a bolt. It was a race to the death!


    "Nuuuuuu! Flippin'' crit!" Ignis smacked her own forehead. She realized her miscalculation too late.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    With this, the match was pretty much settled. Yuel took down the Golem, which spawned super minions from his side. He also took the time to clear buff camps, further boosting his overwhelming advantage. Before long, he invaded all the way into Ignis''s base.


    The Colossus of the 1v1 mode was much weaker than the one in 5v5. On top of that, Yuel was effectively a Carry, so his DPS with basic attacks was nothing to sneeze at. Together with his super minions, Yuel made a quick work of the Colossus. Only 30% HP left to finish this game!


    "Nuuuuuuu! Stahp!" Ignis rolled on the sofa, jumped around, shook Yuel''s shoulders and did everything in her power to interfere. There was nothing for her to do until she respawns, so she did everything in her power to slow Yuel down. That''s some the mature tactic right there.


    But, it was useless. The Colossus was already at 10%, so Ignis won''t be able to achieve anything even if she to revives now.


    [It''s over. I wo-]"Agh!" Yuel jumped after something slammed his face! In real life! What the-!?


    "Don''t wanna!" Ignis flailed her arms and tossed sofa pillows. Right into Yuel''s face.


    "Stop tha- ack!" Headshot! Critical hit! The pillow smashed right into his nose! Goddammit, seriously!? It was both hilarious and sad at the same time. Ignis was supposed to be the adult here, but she was acting like a five-year-old. Even though she were drunk, that didn''t excuse this childish behavior... or maybe it did? Yuel obviously had no experience with being drunk, so hard to say.


    Either way, he must wrap up this game. He ignored the barrage of pillows and focused on taking down the Colossus. Despite the interference, he successfully finished the job.


    ¡ºVICTORY¡»


    He did it! He beat a pro! ... a pro who was drunk, five levels below him, partially underestimated him and let him counter-pick her. But even so, it was a win! Yeah!


    Still, if Ignis were to take him more seriously from the get-go and wasn''t so drunk, she probably would have torn him apart despite all the other advantages he had. Just how strong was she in her top form? Gulp.


    This was a great experience, aside from the pillow missiles at the end there. Yuel got a lot of insight into how Ignis played the game. How she waited for the right moment to strike, how she dodged and parried his shots and so on. There was much he could learn from just playing her.


    Did Howard get to play his sister every day? So lucky. No wonder he was such a strong defensive player. He must have learned to defend so well in order to stay alive against Ignis. If only somebody in Yuel''s family was a pro player... sigh.


    "No fair! Hax!" Ignis pouted. "One more! I''mma *hic *ya this time!"


    "Sis," Howard leaned toward her. "It''s already late. He needs to-"


    "OOOOONE MORE!"


    "... alright," Howard sighed he turned to Yuel. "Will you?"


    "Sure." Yuel nodded. This was a rare chance to play against a pro, so Yuel wouldn''t miss it for the world. He''d stay up all night to keep playing Ignis.


    "C''mon then!" A confident grin returned to Ignis''s face. "Let''s go! I''mma show you how real players get things done!"


    They started the third match. Ignis should still be salty from losing the previous round, so it''ll hamper her performance... or not. Despite her rowdy behavior, she apparently regained her composure during the short break.


    Not good. Yuel had to stick Ranger because of the "house rules", so Ignis countered him with ease. The third game easily went to her. Yuel barely landed a single hit.


    However, next game Yuel countered her back and got another win, though it was a close game. Whenever he managed to throw Ignis off her game, that made her slip and opened the road to victory. That was his secret weapon against her.


    The fifth match went to Ignis, and so did the sixth. Cornering her Viking proved harder than Yuel thought. This was some serious challenge.


    And so, the night went on into the seventh, eighth, ninth, tenth, eleventh and twelfth games.


    "Aaaaa~" Ignis yawned, opening her mouth so wide she could swallow the whole living room. After rubbing her eyes, she dropped on her side. "Tired. Sleep."


    "Yes, yes," Ellen and caressed Ignis'' hair. "It''s already late, so you need to go to bed." She spoke softly as if addressing a baby.


    "Finally," Howard sighed in relief. The party was over. After 12 matches, the final score was 4-8 in Ignis''s favor. Yuel held his ground quite well if he had to say so himself, but his tactics weren''t enough to match Ignis''s strength. She was at least as mechanically strong as Lars and she amplified said strength with airtight decision-making. Will Lars also reach that level one day? How long will it take that goof?


    "So," Yuel turned to Ignis. "How did I play?"


    "Like poop," Ignis closed her eyes and lifted her chin. "But well, guess it''s not that bad for your age. You even managed to beat the Great Ignis a few times. Not too shabby, kid." She threw him a smile. Maybe she wasn''t that bad after all. "You got nothing on Wardy, though." Okay, never mind. She''s the worst.


    [That last comment was totally unnecessary, but I''ll take it.] Yuel played good enough to impress a pro, so that''s good enough for now. His next goal was to blow Howard out of the water, so he''ll make Ignis eat her words then.


    "This lasted way longer than I planned," Yuel put down the controller and stood up.


    "Sorry about that," Howard smiled wryly. "She''s not like that usually."


    "No problem. It was fun." Though, at the same time, a bit frustrating too. Howard could spar with such an amazing pro player on a daily basis. So damn lucky.


    "Hey, Wardy..." Ignis mumbled half-asleep. "Before I pass out and forget... Our guys agreed to play your team this weekend. They''re salty about losing to the Falcons, so they wanna vent by beating some kids. So mature, haha... yawn~"


    "... alright." Howard answered with a pause while trying to lead Yuel toward the door. However, Yuel didn''t budge.


    What did he just hear? Ignis said "our guys" who "lost to the Falcons" will "play Howard''s team". It''s a one plus one which he really wished he didn''t put together right.


    Ignis''s team, the Sweepers, lost to the Falcons today, that''s why she was drunk in the first place. And, these "guys" will be playing against "Howard''s team", which likely referred to the new first-string led by Howard. In other words, a scrimmage between StormBlitz and Sweepers! And it didn''t sound like the first time either.


    "What''s wrong?" Howard asked. "Forgot something?"


    "So that''s what you''ve been doing in secret the whole summer," Yuel muttered. "Playing against pros, huh."


    "From time to time, yeah." Howard didn''t even try to hide it. His team gained valuable experience by playing against pros. It''s the first time Yuel heard about any of this. Nobody mentioned anything about this even when they visited the club. Not Gilbert. Not Roi. Not Dan. Nobody.


    "First time I''m hearing about this," Yuel did his best to hold back the malice. "So, it''s like a summer training camp?"


    "Something like that," Howard shrugged. "Pro teams are quite busy, so it''s not easy to arrange a match with them. But, they agree to play us from time to time because our team is decent. I personally think they just enjoying stomping us, haha."


    Why. Why was this the first time Yuel heard about any of this. While he and Lars were busy doing something basic like grinding in Ranked, Howard got to play against real pros. And not just some 1v1s, but real 5v5 matches.


    "Why." Yuel bit his lip. He didn''t want to come off as aggressive, but he couldn''t contain it anymore. "Why I never heard of this? You told everybody to keep hush about it, didn''t you? Why?"


    "I only told them to not spread the word too much." Howard turned around to face Yuel. "I knew how you and Lars would react. You''d be begging to play against the Sweepers too, right?"


    "Of course we would. Any chance to play against real pros is a huge deal."


    "Exactly, and I didn''t want to deal with that. As I said, pro teams are busy even in B-League. It''s not like they''re at my beck and call. They do sis a favor by playing us during their off-hours. So, I can''t waste these opportunities on anybody but the first string."


    A long and airtight response, as expected from Howard. He must have already planned out how he''d answer such questions. He never failed to prepare the defense in advance.


    "You could''ve at least told me," Yuel insisted. "I thought I''m the vice-captain."


    "I don''t think that really concerns you. I told you: I''m responsible for the first string, you handle everything else. This is a first string business, so it''s not your concern."


    "I see..." Yuel clenched his shaking fists. It''s true, it didn''t concern him. After all, he was just a member of the second string. Even though he was the vice-captain, the first string had nothing to do with him. Because he wasn''t on the first string. Because he couldn''t beat Howard.


    "Then," Yuel spoke through gritted teeth. "What if I become part of the first string?" He glared at Howard with all the determination he could muster.


    "In what position? You want to try beating Roi to take Top? Will be pretty rough, haha."


    "I''m serious."


    "Huh." Howard''s smile vanished. His eyes turned sharp, like that of an eagle eyeing his prey. That piercing gaze, it always made Yuel step back.


    But, not today. Yuel glared back without budging. He had enough. If he doesn''t fight back now, then when!? He had to defeat Howard and win himself a spot on the first string. Things couldn''t go on like this. As long as Yuel was stuck in the second string, he was nothing. A nobody.


    Yuel had to get out. He had to get to the first string. Then, and only then, he''ll be considered a real competitive player. He couldn''t waste another year sitting on the bench.


    "Alright," Howard finally unlocked his gaze. "If you''re that serious, I''ll give you a chance, but only one. If you and Lars can beat me and Elly, we''ll surrender our roles to you."


    "Really!?" Yuel''s heart skipped a beat, but only for a moment. No, it''s still too early to celebrate. "What do you propose? A 2v2?"


    "Nah, that''d be silly. Let''s have a proper 5v5. You take Roi, Dan, and July. I take Gilbert, Tai, and Gregory. We''ll decide who plays on the first string with a best-of-three."


    "But, that''s..." Yuel frowned. It''s quite clear Yuel''s team had an advantage. Roi and Dan were first string players and they were superior to Taison and Gregory in virtually every way. Yuel''s team will only have a slight disadvantage in Mid, but according to his estimation, Julia wasn''t that much below Gilbert.


    Yet, Howard was confident. Did he really think he could win against these odds? If so, he was suggesting that he and Ellen were much better than Yuel and Lars and that''d balance the teams out...


    "Sounds crazy?" Howard smirked. "I know what you''re thinking, but this is the best way. If we beat you with this arrangement, you''ll accept that I deserve the first string more than you, right?"


    "Yes, I won''t complain." Yuel pursed his lips. Having Roi and Dan will give Yuel''s team a huge advantage, so the only reason they can possibly lose would be because of Yuel and Lars. If they happen to lose, there''d be no choice but to admit that Yuel and Lars didn''t deserve the first string yet.


    "But," Yuel started. "If I win, will you really step down from the first string?"


    "You have my word," Howard nodded. "If I can''t overcome this much, there''s no hope of leading the team to the championship. May as well give up right here and now."


    "I see." It sounded over-the-top, but Howard must have arrived at this conclusion after participating in many real matches. He has already fought on the competitive stage, so he knew how tough it was. For him, this unfavorable battle for the first string wasn''t even considered his greatest challenge; it''s just another milestone on the way to the top.


    "Okay," Yuel said. "I''m in. When we''re doing it?"


    "Let''s do it before the weekend, on Friday. I''ll tell Roi and Dan that you''re in charge of them until then. Both teams will use this time to prepare."


    "Sounds good." [I just hope he''s not planning to rig this match.] Yuel frowned. Getting Roi and Dan was a huge advantage, but it could turn out to be a double-edged sword. After all, these two were on the first string, so they respected Howard as their captain. They might play poorly on purpose to ensure Howard''s victory.


    "Don''t worry," Howard said. "I''ll tell them to take this seriously. If they mess around, feel free to report. It''s an important match and they must treat it as such. If they can''t, they''re not fit to play competitively. Simple as that."


    "Sounds good." It''s downright eerie how well Howard read him, but these words were reassuring. It will be a fair match and it will have the first string on the line.


    Yuel came this far. He''s now just one step away from the first string and the competitive scene. He won''t let this opportunity slip by! He and Lars will win this match and claim their rightful places as StormBlitz''s Support and Carry!

 69 Battle Preparations - Howards Side

    "Lol, you serious?" Roi asked. Howard just called him and Dan to explain the crazy bet he made with Yuel.


    "Wait," Dan said. "You really gonna step down from being the captain if you lose?"


    "Not sure what I''ll do about being the club captain," Howard answered. "But, I will surrender him the Support role as promised. So, yes, this is no joke. It''s a serious match if that''s what you''re asking."


    "Huh..." Dan was speechless.


    "You really think you can win, bro?" Roi asked. "It''ll be me and Dan on Yuel''s team, ya know. You don''t think Tai and GG can balance us out, do you?"


    "Of course not. But, where''s the fun if it''s not challenging, right?"


    "Lol, somebody likes to live dangerously."


    "Anyway, that''s the gist of it," Howard said. "Until the match on Friday, consider Yuel your captain. Cooperate with him on whatever he asks and prepare for a tough match. I don''t want to see you put on an embarrassing performance just because my position is at stake." It wasn''t a request; it was an order. They weren''t allowed to even entertain the thought of slacking off. It was a serious match through and through.


    "Heh," Dan chuckled. "Bet you also gonna say you''ll kick us off the first string if we don''t play well, amirite?"


    [Hmm.] Howard paused for a moment. Normally yes, he''d threaten them with something along these lines. That''d to ensure they''re 100% concentrated on the task at hand and will be able to draw out their full potential.


    However, right now, these two were his "enemies". Howard wanted a fair match with Yuel, but there''s no reason to go out of his way to ignite the enemy''s fighting spirit. That''s the job of the enemy captain, not Howard''s.


    "Nah," Howard said. "We all know you''re better than Tai and GG in your main roles. No matter who wins the match, I''m sure you''ll keep your positions regardless. That is, as long as you don''t embarrass yourselves with a shabby performance and play worse than Tai and GG."


    "Lol, it takes a special kind of skill to play worse than these kids"


    "Yeah," Dan added. "They don''t even main these roles. We can play better than them even with our eyes closed"


    "Good." Howard nodded. From their tones, they were going to put on a decent fight. However, they won''t be fighting with their positions on the line, so they''ll be tough opponents but not overwhelming. Unless Yuel ignites a flame in them, there''s nothing to worry about... right?


    Next, Howard informed Gilbert. However, here he assumed a different tone. Gilbert was on Howard''s team, so he had to treat this match as a matter of life and death. Therefore, maximum motivation!


    "Also," Howard added after explaining the basics. "This match will double as a selection test for the first string, which includes you too. It''s a good chance to test how much July has improved over the year."


    "Hm," Gilbert was silent for a long moment. "You mean it? You really consider picking her for the first string over me?"


    "Elly trained with her and said she improved a lot. So, who knows how good she is by now."


    "I see. I''ll play with that in mind." Gilbert said. There was strong determination hidden underneath his tone. Even though he didn''t seem to believe Julia had any chance to steal his spot, he wasn''t going to take any risks. After all, it''s Gilbert, he hated risks no matter how small they were.


    [Alright, nothing to worry about here.] Howard nodded to himself. Gilbert''s motivation should now be at its peak, so he''ll put on a good show on Friday. Julia will no doubt also be motivated for this match, so Gilbert will have to squeeze every last bit of fighting spirit to overwhelm her.


    Next, there''s Taison and Gregory. These two will be a little harder to handle because Howard didn''t know them that well. He has known Gilbert since grade school, but he only spent one year in the club with Taison and Gregory. They didn''t really have that many meaningful interactions.


    Nevertheless, Howard had a rough idea of how to press their buttons. These two will have to do their absolute best this to get obliterated by Roi and Dan, so their motivation will have to be beyond its maximum. The problem was: they were a rather selfish bunch and they didn''t have anything particular at stake this match.


    As the captain, that''s up to Howard to solve. He had to make sure all his soldiers were psyched for the upcoming match and it didn''t matter what he had to do to that end. For starters, Howard invited the problem kids to his house and explained the situation face-to-face.


    "Man," Taison was the first to complain. "Why we gonna do this shit?"


    "I second that sentiment," Gregory added. "It feels like we''re just being used for your little game. We''re also players, you know. What about our chances of getting into the first string, huh?"


    "They exist," Howard answered right away, he was already prepared for this. "Even though I only made a promise with Yuel, I think of this match as a general ''first string selection test''. In a way, you could say I''m using [him] to test other players like [you]."


    "Kek, smartass."


    "Khaha, I''m lovin'' it!"


    Alright, they were amused by this little wordplay. Things started off on the right foot-


    "Except, there''s a problem," Gregory was quick to catch on. "We also wanna play Carry and Support. How does that fit into your test?"


    "Hey, the man is right!" Taison flailed his arms and added noise.


    [Sharp little...] Howard frowned. Well, this sucked. Then again, he knew this was going to be the main issue with these two troublemakers. They''ll be playing Top and Jungler in the upcoming match, but that''s not their main roles. Same as Yuel and Lars, these two aimed for Support and Carry. In a sense, they were rivals too.


    It''s a tough spot. How should Howard wing this? He had multiple ideas prepared, but couldn''t tell which of them will lead to success.


    "Too bad," Howard said, his tone turning colder. "Support and Carry are taken."


    "Yeah," Gregory retorted. "Except, you''re giving Yuel and Lars a chance to grab the roles."


    "Not really because there''s no chance I''ll lose. This is just a way to drop Yuel off my case. Gotta crush him thoroughly, so he doesn''t dare to speak about being Support while I''m here."


    "Kek, savage." Gregory''s attitude started changing, it was easy to tell by his tone. Howard got one step closer to converting these two.


    "I''ll give you two a chance as well if you really insist," Howard said. "But, you really think you can take on me and Ellen? You don''t wanna embarrass yourselves, do you?"


    "Heh, well..." Gregory averted his eyes.


    "I totally should be a starter, yo!" Taison insisted.


    "My," Ellen interjected. "You want to steal my spot? Taitai you''re so cruel~ Sob, sob."


    "Gah, well..." Taison scratched his head. "Guess I can wait for next year..." Good job, Ellen.


    "That''s why I said," Howard steered the conversation back on track. "Think of this match as also a test for [you]. Not for Support and Carry as you''d ideally like, but for Top and Jungle. I want to see how you fare compared to Dan and Roi. These are your secondary roles and I know you can handle them well. Who knows, maybe you''ll show enough potential to become a starter."


    "So," Gregory adjusted his glasses. "You''re saying this is our chance to debut with our secondary roles. Hmm."


    "Hell yeah!" Taison exclaimed. "I''m totally in, man! Gonna blow Roi out of the water, khaha!"


    "I believe your opponent would be Dan, though." Gregory corrected.


    "Oh, true dat. No matter! I''mma wreck them both! Because I''m da best!"


    "Dumbass," Gregory chuckled. He contemplated for a moment, then spoke up again. "You''re really saying we got a chance?"


    "Perhaps," Howard shrugged. "Anything is possible. You were greenhorns when you first joined, but you''ve already spent a year in the club by now. The first year is the most important for growing, so only now we can really test how good you are. I''m sure you improved a lot, so let''s see if you''re good enough to earn yourselves any starter positions."


    "Hell yeah!" Taison nodded exaggeratedly. "Nationals, baby! Here comes yo boi DaBestBro!!!"


    "Somebody''s here already in La-La Land." Gregory smiled wryly. Judging by his tone, he wasn''t entirely convinced yet. Howard had to give him one more push. But, what else was there to offer as a reward?


    "My," Ellen tilted her head. "You really don''t know how to dream big, GG. Maybe that''s why you''re not a starter yet. Ever thought about that?"


    "Who the fuck are you calling GG." Gregory frowned at her, but she dodged it.


    "Anyway, [GG]. You better think about what''s important here."


    "And what''s important, exactly?"


    "That Yuyu is trying to become the team''s Support. If you don''t cooperate with us, we may actually possibly kinda lose, you know. You really wanna see Yuyu become a starter before you?"


    "No way," Gregory replied instantly, his eyes sharp like a blade.


    [Here we go.] Howard nodded. Ellen did a good job striking a nerve, atta girl. This should be in the bag now. "You''re all juniors, so I''m sure it''ll suck to see another junior become a starter before you. Especially, Yuel and Lars."


    "You can say that again." Gregory made an expression of disgust.


    "If you want to prevent it from happening, we really need your cooperation here. And as I said, who knows? Maybe you''ll even beat them to the punch and become starters before them."


    "Heck yea!" Taison made noise again. "I gonna get the nationals before Lars, yo!"


    [We got this one in the bag alright.] Howard restrained himself from grinning. Unfortunately, the job won''t be done until both troublemakers are persuaded.


    "Fine," Gregory adjusted his glasses. "I''m in. I don''t think we got much of a shot at the first string, though."


    "You never know what gonna happen," Howard objected. "There''s always a chance." He told this to Gregory, even though he said the complete opposite to Roi and Dan. But hey, it''s not like he lied to either side. There was a chance but it was miniature, especially for Gregory. Taison had a much better chance of proving himself as a valuable Jungler through solid mechanical skill, but he probably won''t beat Dan''s versatile arsenal of class options.


    "Oh, and guys," Ellen said. "You haven''t heard the best part yet. If we win, Howard gonna treat all of us to some pizza. From his own pocket, of course~"


    "Wha-" Howard gasped, but celebrations broke out before he got to react.


    "Sweet deal, yo!" Taison pumped a fist and grinned from ear to ear. "You''re a real bro, man!"


    "You should''ve started from that," Gregory adjusted his glasses and smirked. "Now I''m totally in."


    [Damn you, Elly. Good move.] Howard had to hand it to her. In for a penny, in for a pound, literally. "Yeah, it slipped my mind. Pizza for everybody if we win. You can start placing orders now."


    With that, everything was set in place. Gilbert was motivated to not lose his spot, whereas Taison and Gregory were motivated to stop their rivals, get a starter spot themselves and most importantly: get some pizza! What a bunch of shallow brats...


    Gilbert came over later that day and the team began training for the upcoming match. Before anything else, Howard made sure to study the strengths and weaknesses of the juniors. Especially their weaknesses, because Yuel was undoubtedly familiar with them and will try to exploit them. Howard had to form his strategy around that.


    After a first fruitful day of practice, everybody left except for Ellen. She probably planned to sleep over again because she''s too lazy to head home; what a spoiled princess.


    "So," Ellen dropped on the sofa beside him. "Feel confident about our chances?"


    "Of course. We got this in the bag. Good thinking there with the pizza by the way."


    "Anything for you, darling." Ellen giggled as she rubbed her head against his arm, like a kitten asking to be petted. "So, you gave all of them a motivation boost, but what about me?"


    "You really need one?"


    "Probably not," Ellen smiled like a fox. "It''ll be good enough if I just get Lars off my case. He still tries to challenge me every now and then, saying some nonsense about taking my spot and what not. He''s such a pain. I''ll gladly break him if you don''t mind."


    "I don''t," Howard shrugged. "He''s a strong boy, he can take it. Besides, the only one you ever ''broke'' was Trever and he already had stability issues in the first place. You just like playing the witch, don''t you?"


    "Tehe, maybe~" Ellen stuck out her tongue. Esmeralda was rubbing on her too much. Ellen inherited not only her playstyle from that witch but also some questionable personality traits too. Well, it was endearing in its own way. Kinda. Maybe.


    "Anyway," Howard said. "You got plenty of motivation."


    "Buuu~t," Ellen rubbed her nose against his arm. "You need everybody in absolutely top form, right? So, giving me something special may make me work even harder~"


    "Like what?"


    "Hmm, I dunno~" Ellen put a finger on her lips. "Something special only couples do. I mean, aren''t we dating and stuff?"


    "First time I hear that."


    "Meanie~" She pinched his arm. "Weeeell, I''m not saying you [have] to, but a kiss could be nice."


    "Here you go." Howard brought his lips toward her and gave her a peck. On the forehead.


    "W-Wha!?" Ellen jumped backward, her face flushed. "T-Tell me before you do that kind of stuff! Jeez, you barbarian. Hmph. Besides, what I meant is more..." She tapped on her lips.


    "This of it as advance payment," Howard smirked. "You''ll get the rest once we win."


    "I''m holding you on that, you know." Ellen poked his cheek while pouting, but her expression soon transformed into a beaming smile. She was already motivated before, but now her motivation was through the roof. With this, Howard''s entire team was guaranteed to put on a strong performance. He did his job.


    "I''m beat," Howard leaned back on the sofa and closed his eyes. Finally, he could rest a little.


    [We''re all confident and fired up, just like you wanted.] Ellen caressed Howard''s hair. [But, what about you? Who''ll reassure YOU that we''re going to win? Who''ll promise you a reward for your hard work?]


    Ellen was the only one by his side here. She''s the only one who could reassure him, to promise him anything. No matter how tough and confident Howard acted, deep down he was uneasy too. This match was more than just selecting the starters, it''ll decide whether Howard''s ambition of winning the nationals will come to fruition. Failure wasn''t an option.


    "Don''t worry," Ellen held his hand. "I''ll do anything to win this. I''ll break anybody who stands in your way."


    "Heh, that nonsense again," Howard smiled dimly and clenched her hand. "I''m not worried. It''s just warm up for us. Our real battle with these brats will be in high school after they get some competitive experience. So, in two or three years. Then we''ll know for sure who''s really better."


    "But, aren''t they going to Ivy just like us?" Ellen pointed out. "How we gonna face them in high school?"


    "I don''t plan on going to Ivy," Howard answered. "Remember how I told you about Grandview High?"


    "Yeah, the one with the strongest high school team, right? What was it again... Dystopia, I think?"


    "Utopia. Anyway, that''s where I''m planning to go. "


    "W-Wait!" Ellen jumped and clenched his hand. "That''s like on the other side of the country!"


    "No shit, Sherlock."


    "T-Then how you gonna study there? You can''t just take a bus or train there every morning."


    "A scholarship that comes with living at the dorm. They offer them to promising Mancers."


    "B-But what about me!?" Ellen finally asked what was really eating her. Howard planned to leave!? To the other side of the country!? To leave Ellen behind!? T-T-That''s just... N-No...


    "You can try following me if you want." Howard shrugged.


    "Wha... But I... I thought..." Ellen''s eyes became glossy. How could this... But they were... She...


    "Joking, joking," Howard ran a finger across her cheeks to wipe her tear. "I won''t leave you behind. Because then, I won''t have anybody to mess around with, right? Haha."


    "You jerk! I hate you!" Ellen buried her nose in his arm.


    "Playing for Utopia is the shortest way to the pro league," Howard explained. "Many players there receive offers even before they graduate. If I go there and show results, I''ll be able to play together with sis as a pro in just a few years. But, if you''re not on board, I''ll rethink things,


    "No, I''m totally fine with it if that''s what you want. But, what our chances?"


    "Sis talked to the school about us. You know, giving a little ''pro recommendation''. They said we''ll have a decent chance if we get to nationals this year and put on a show. If we become the champions, it''s pretty much settled."


    "So, we just have to win." Ellen rubbed her cheek on his arm.


    "Yeah, easier said than done though. That''s why the match on Friday is like the first trial. If we can''t beat Yuel''s team with this arrangement, I won''t feel confident about our chances in the nationals."


    "We''ll beat them."


    "Yeah, we will. We have to."


    They remained hugged together for a while longer...

 70 Battle Preparations - Yuels Side

    One day after Yuel made the deal with Howard, he gathered Lars and Julia in the clubroom and told them the news.


    "For real!?" Lars jumped before Yuel could finish. "We gonna be starters!? Sick, yo!"


    "IF we can beat Howard''s team, yes."


    "You heard that?" Lars ran to July and shook her by the shoulders. "We''re going to nationals this year!"


    "Y-Yeah," Julia squeezed the words through her fluster. "It''s great." She nodded with a smile, then shot a glare at Yuel. ["I also gonna be a starter, right? Right?"]


    ["Depends,"] Yuel answered by averting his eyes.


    ["I''ll kick you."] Her glare continued to drill Yuel.


    ["I''ll see what I can do..."] Yuel let out a sigh. He didn''t want to make promises he couldn''t keep.


    It''s not like Julia was a weak player, it''s just Gilbert was a better player overall. Gilbert was a consistent player, whereas Julia had her ups and downs. She had a bad habit of overcompensating for her mistakes, which led to further mistakes and further overcompensating. Yuel has exploited that side of her many times when he played against her in practice matches.


    Anyway, it''s best to keep all of that to himself right now. Whether Julia could become a starter wasn''t the main concern at the moment. The top priority was to win the match on Friday. Nothing will begin until they clear that first hurdle.


    In the afternoon, Yuel called over the remaining members of his team: Roi and Dan. Howard already gave them the gist of it, so they were quick on the uptake. In fact, Howard apparently even ordered them to treat Yuel as their captain until and during the upcoming match, which made things a lot easier.


    Lars, Julia, Roi, and Dan. With this team, Yuel will have to overcome Howard''s lineup. Based on the individual strength of each team member, Yuel''s team had the advantage. Roi and Dan were on the first string with their current positions, they were leagues above Taison and Gregory for whom Jungler and Top were secondary roles. Therefore, assuming Yuel and Lars roughly balance out Howard and Ellen in Bot, the only disadvantage the team had was in Mid: Julia vs. Gilbert. But. even that didn''t sound like a big deal because the skill gap between them wasn''t that big.


    All in all, Yuel''s team was stronger. But, Howard was the one who suggested this match and he''ll be leading the enemy team. Therefore, Yuel couldn''t lower his defense. To secure victory in this important match, he''ll have to prepare the team to the best of his ability.


    "I prepared some notes," Yuel dumped a stack of papers he printed with copies for everybody. "It''s a summary of useful observations I''ve collected about everybody on Howard''s team throughout the year. Their preferred classes, their playstyle quirks, their weak points. Anything that can give us an edge."


    "Whoa," Roi exaggeratedly flipped through the stack of pages. "That''s some intense research you got here, doc. Lol."


    "I guess there''s one about us too?" Dan asked after skimming the contents.


    "Yes, I can make a list like that about anybody from the club. But, they''re just scattered notes right now. It takes time to organize them into a comprehensive list."


    "Haha," Lars laughed and shook his head. "Dude is a genius, I''m tellin'' ya."


    "More like a stalker." Julia jabbed.


    "It was Aaron''s suggestion," Yuel felt like defending himself for some reason. "I usually store all this data in my head, but he said it''s a good habit to jot it down so I can share it with others later."


    Thinking of it, maybe all the way back then Aron was already preparing Yuel for becoming the vice-captain. Either way, following that piece of advice paid off. Yuel didn''t bother writing his observations on paper as Aron suggested, but he has been recording his thoughts on the phone during some club practices. He thought of it as a good way to sort out his thoughts, but nothing more.


    Today was the first time he found a very practical use which extended beyond personal use. After he returned from Howard''s place, Yuel started preparing for the upcoming match right away and that''s when he remembered the notes on his phone. Except, they were a scattered jumble which would make little sense to anybody but him. Heck, even he wasn''t sure what some of the notes meant.


    Yuel didn''t waste a moment and ported all his notes onto his PC, then organized them by players. It was done rather hastily, so the data still wasn''t as perfectly organized as he wanted. Still, it became way better than the mess it was before.


    After spending the whole night, and some of this morning, on this task - Yuel finally ended up with this pile of papers. Twelve pages, five copies of each. That''s the result of taking notes throughout half a year.


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    "Welp," Lars put down his copy. "This is cool and all, but now let''s play some!"


    "No," Yuel retorted. "First, I want to go over these notes. Before we begin practicing we need to understand who we''re dealing with."


    "Duuuuuude," Lars dropped back on his chair and closed his eyes. "I sleep."


    "At least try to listen, okay?" Yuel sighed. [I doubt his selective memory can hold all this information anyway.]


    "Okay, I''m listening. Zzz." Lars produced fake snoring noises; what a brat. Well, he''ll definitely tune in during the important parts, so that''ll be fine. Besides, by Friday, he''ll probably forget like 90% of what they discuss today. He was a troublesome goof like that.


    "First," Yuel assumed a lecturing tone. "About the enemy''s overall strategy. Anybody who ever played under Howard knows he sticks to defense, so I''m sure that''s what we''re going to deal with. All their laners work well with that game plan."


    Ellen was an infamous poke-and-run player. Gilbert was a balanced player who had both decent defense and decent offense. And of course, then there''s Howard himself, the paragon of defense. This was an airtight defensive lineup alright.


    Next, onto the lesser threats: Taison and Gregory. As a Top Laner, Gregory relied on tactics and counter-building, similar to how Yuel played Top. Gregory wasn''t a defensive player per se, but he''d most certainly play defensively against an overwhelming opponent like Roi. Gregory had no chance of beating Roi in a straight 1v1, so Howard will surely make him play defense, no question about it.


    As for Taison, that guy will most likely be the most aggressive enemy on that team. As a Jungler, he liked ganking lanes and getting into fights with enemy laners. He enjoyed that a little too much, to the point it was impossible to stop him even it was going to be a misplay.


    Howard may try to force Taison into playing slower and safer, but that''s like asking Lars to play defensively. Yeah, that''s not going to happen. Besides, Taison almost exclusively played bruisers as a Jungler and those had better survivability than assassins. So, that''ll probably be "defensive" enough to Howard''s taste.


    Long story short, it''ll be a hyper-defensive lineup. And, to make the most of it, it''ll most assuredly feature mid/late game classes. These were the classes which typically didn''t do well in the early game, but they compensated for that with a huge power spike in the mid/late game. Fights against defensive teams usually dragged on, so said teams benefitted the most from picking classes which excelled in later parts of the game.


    In a nutshell, that''s what Yuel''s team will have to deal with. There were no objections to his analysis. Everybody silently listened to what he had to say. Even Lars did his best to not doze off.


    "As you probably know," Yuel continued. "I prefer more aggressive comps myself. So, unless I find another approach, Friday''s match will boil down to whether our offense can break through their defense. If we can gain an advantage in the early game, we win. If the game drags into the late-game, we''re in trouble."


    "Nice and simple!" Lars nodded. "We''re going go full aggro, yo!"


    "You''re quite the challengers," Dan smiled wryly. "You know how hard it is to penetrate Howard''s defense."


    "Of course." Yuel nodded. Back at the entrance exam, he was helpless against Aegis. Everything he tried was blocked, denied and negated. The countless practice matches throughout the year only further proved Howard boasted an amazing team-wide defense.


    But, a whole year has passed since they last serious match. Yuel has improved a lot since then. He was no longer the same rookie who barely knew left from right. He studied many different tactics, analyzed countless games, absorbed knowledge from his seniors and gained experience all across the board. As he was today, his refined tactics should be capable of piercing through Howard''s Aegis. They had to.


    To do so, Yuel had to utilize his team to the fullest. Any opening in Howard''s team, no matter how small, shall be to be thoroughly abused. That''s the only way to break through Howard''s absolute defense.


    "First, Roi," Yuel said. "Considering your skill compared to Gregory''s, I think you should go hyper-aggressive from the get-go. For example, Dark Knight or Orc."


    "Lol, that''s indeed hyper-aggressive, alright."


    "Gregory is nowhere near as mechanically skilled as you and he''s lacking experience as Top, so that''s where I want to strike. With a hyper-aggressive class like Dark Knight you should be able to overwhelm him, maybe even snowball off him."


    "Sounds good and all," Roi nodded. "But, you really think something like DK is necessary? I mean, c''mon I''m the starter in Top. I can rek GG with any class. DK gets clunky if I don''t start rolling during the early game. There are more stable classes out there, ya know?"


    "Perhaps," Yuel agreed. "Even so, I want to strike as hard as possible at that weak spot."


    [I''ll be the one doing the "striking", though.] Roi shrugged.


    "Gregory is their weakest link," Yuel explained. "And, luckily, he''ll be facing you, one of our strongest players. I want to make the most out of this matchup advantage."


    "Okay, okay," Roi shrugged. "I get it, you wanna bully the poor kid, lol. I still think DK is going too far with the aggro plan, but alright I''ll play it during practice if you insist."


    "And Orc too. It''s a backup in case Dark Knight is banned."


    "Had a feeling you''ll go there... Okay, got it. I''ll try getting my DK and Orc in shape during this week.


    "Thanks,". Yuel said. "Next, Dan. As you said, Howard''s defense is tough. Got any idea what kind of jungling can break through it?"


    "Heh," Dan smirked. "Trying to extract Howard''s weaknesses from one of his teammates? Savage."


    "I''m sure he''s doing the same." Yuel retorted.


    "Not even doubting it," Dan nodded. "Okay, let''s see. Howard always says Jungles are the hardest to defend against, so I bet he pays extra attention to them. One thing I noticed during practice is that he can deal with meta classes way better than with off-meta ones."


    "Makes sense." Yuel nodded. As somebody whose life purpose was to provide the team with perfect defense, focusing on the strongest meta Junglers was the most efficient way. It''s similar to how the Leopards were trained by their coach, which resulted in Dan''s unexpected Beastmaster and Chronomancer being rather effective against them in the scrimmage.


    "In other words," Dan wore an impish smile. "I better play Jungle Cryo if we wanna win."


    "Yeah, that''s not happening." Yuel shot it down on the spot. There was such a thing as an "off-meta pick" which saw some practical uses, but then there was also a "meme pick" which was completely worthless. Unfortunately, Dan has always wanted to show off how well he played the meme picks. Sigh.


    [Should we go with off-meta?] Yuel pondered. Dan was clearly trying to promote his services as Dan-of-all-Trades, but his analysis made sense. Howard''s defense will likely have some holes against off-meta Junglers, just like the Leopards back in the scrimmage


    However, there''s one huge difference between Howard and the Leopards: Howard knew exactly who he''ll be playing. There were five days until the match, so knowing Howard - he''ll somehow cover up this weakness. He''ll probably study all of Dan''s most successful off-meta picks and will train his team to counter them.


    The whole advantage of an off-meta class was how it was rarely played, so the enemy didn''t expect it and sometimes didn''t know how to deal with it. On the other hand, such classes usually posed little threat to an opponent who prepared for them, that''s the whole reason they were "off-meta" in the first place. They were something akin to a gimmick and pro players had to know how to deal with any gimmick, which was why these classes underperformed in the meta and became off-meta.


    With all that considered, there''s little hope to catch Howard off-guard with an off-meta pick. Maybe some bizarre meme pick will provide shock value, but it''ll be short-lived. The best way to utilize Dan''s versatility here would have him the most efficient [meta] class against the enemy''s comp.


    "I think you should focus on meta classes," Yuel concluded. "Knowing Howard, he won''t let you surprise him with any weird pick."


    "Hey now, don''t underestimate me," Dan said. "You think a week is enough to learn how to counter all my stuff? I''ve been working on all my list of viable classes for years."


    "Perhaps, but he most likely knows your favorites. Even I can tell you''re hoping to bring in Beastmaster or Chronomancer."


    "Would be rad, not gonna lie. But hey, I got other aces up my sleeve."


    "I rather not take the risk," Yuel said. "It''s an important match for me and Lars. We must win no matter what."


    "Hey now," Roi exclaimed. "You''re saying me and Dan aren''t here to win?"


    "No, that''s not what I..." Yuel pursed his lips. Honestly? A part of him was doubtful. Roi and Dan were Howard''s soldiers, they spent more time with Howard and they probably thought Howard was the better leader. How motivated were they to win this match against Howard?


    "Gonna admit," Roi said. "Howard is better-fit for leading the first string as far as I''m concerned."


    [I knew it...]


    "But, with that said, me and Dan are on your team right now. We''re here to win."


    "Yeah," Dan joined in. "And. if it makes you feel better, Howard personally told us to take this match seriously and follow you as our captain."


    "He did?" Yuel blinked. Sounded like Howard wasn''t planning to rig this match in any way. On the contrary, he desired a fair showdown. "So, you''re really going to try and beat him with everything you got?"


    "Yeah," Roi chuckled. "If he loses after telling us all that, that''s on him, lol."


    "I see." Yuel smiled faintly. That''s one worry off his chest. If there''s really no reason to worry about the possibility of a rigged match, Yuel could concentrate on forming the optimal strategy while trusting in Roi and Dan''s skill.


    "I apologize," Yuel bowed his head. "I admit, I had some doubts about how seriously you were going to take this. You''re right, we''re all on the same team here. Let''s do our best to win."


    "You got it!"


    "Sounds good."


    After that, the strategy meeting continued for a while. Yuel''s plan was to make Roi play a hyper-aggressive class during the early game and for Dan to counter-pick the enemy composition with a strong meta class. They didn''t show much enthusiasm regarding the plan, but after a long back-and-forth, they reached a compromise of sorts.


    "Let''s do it like this," Roi suggested. "I''mma play DK or Orc or whatever you want. But, if that blows up in our faces and we lose, lemme pick whatever I want the next game. Deal?"


    "Alright," Yuel nodded. Not exactly his favorite idea, but this discussion was going nowhere otherwise. He''ll just have to make sure they don''t drop a single game. Easy, right? Well, worst case, Roi''s picks should be decent anyway, so there''s not much to worry about.


    With this, Roi and Dan''s game plans for the match were decided. As for Lars, there wasn''t much strategy to discuss. Lars just had to be Lars. Meaning: pull off insane snipes, overpower opponents through strength and carry the team. All these things were natural for him, so there wasn''t much to add.


    "Just don''t get baited by Ellen," Yuel warned.


    "I know, dude. I''ll only chase her when I''m sure I can kill her."


    [With your baseless confidence, that''s like 90% of the time.] Yuel sighed. It''d be up to him to lead Lars appropriately against Ellen. In term of raw strength, Lars was superior to Ellen, but she was a trickster of an opponent. Even after spending a whole year with her in the club, she still found ways to press Lars''s buttons during practice matches and lead him to death. Even Yuel struggled to grasp her intentions most of the time, so it won''t be easy.


    "By the way," Yuel said. "Do you have any second favorite class after Trickshooter?"


    "Hm?" Lars cocked his head. "I''d say Gunslinger is pretty sick. Love that bad boy, but it''s not easy to land these headshots all the time."


    "I see." Yuel jotted it down. Howard will assuredly ban Trickshooter every game, so Lars needed strong alternatives.


    The last player to discuss was Julia and there was a lot to talk about. But, not so much of it was directly about her game plan.


    "Listen to me without getting angry, okay?" Yuel cleared his throat. "In this match, our biggest weakness is going to be Mid-"


    "Huuuh?" Julia shot him a glare packed with a thousand death curses. "You saying I gonna drag the team down!?"


    "No, I''m just saying you have the toughest lane matchup." Yuel was quick to explain before something explodes. "Like it or not, but Gilbert is the starter for Mid and has been playing for way longer than you. Before things like skill or talent, he has way more experience and that''ll play against you."


    "Hmph, so what?" Julia scowled. "I just gotta beat him, right? I gonna become a starter too, ya know."


    [I have my doubts about that.] Yuel kept that to himself. "Anyway, regardless of how your current skill compares against Gilbert''s, I''m sure the enemy will consider Mid our weakest link."


    "I''m telling you, I''ll be fine!"


    "I said [regardless] of how things really stand. No matter if you''re stronger or weaker than Gilbert, they''re going to assume you''re weaker."


    "Hmph." Julia crossed her arms and lifted her chin, but she was listening.


    "So," Yuel continued. "At one point or another, they''ll definitely gun for Mid. Dan, I need you to watch out for Mid rotations."


    "Roger."


    "I don''t think Howard''s offense will begin until mid-game, but we can never know for sure. Roi, since I''m sure you''ll have lane advantage, it''s best if you rotate frequently to Mid. If we can gain an early advantage there, we''ll have nothing to fear."


    "Strike before the enemy strikes, heh." Roi gave a thumb up. "I''m in."


    Once everybody understood their game plans, the team practiced together in Ranked. They purposely picked team compositions which were similar to what they discussed and stuck as closely as possible to their agreed game plan. In a matter of days, this very team will be pitted against Howard and the fight for the first string will begin!

 71 Everybodys Stakes

    The first day of training in Yuel''s camp has been progressing smoothly. However, it came to an abrupt halt.


    "Well," Dan stood up. "I''m beat. That''s it for me."


    "Yeah," Roi left his chair too. "I think that''s enough for today."


    "But, it''s only five," Yuel argued. "We can still keep going for a while. They lock the gate at around eleven."


    "Haha!" Roi laughed. "You''re not seriously saying we should stay here the whole night, are ya?"


    "May as well suggest we sleep here." Dan chuckled.


    "Actually, that''s not a bad idea." Yuel nodded to himself.


    "C''mon," Roi shrugged. "We still got four days. We got plenty of time."


    "We ONLY got four days," Yuel corrected. "We need to dedicate every last second to this, or else we won''t win."


    "Zero trusts in your team, huh." Roi shook his head. "Overworking yourself not gonna do you any favors."


    "That''s hardly overworking," Yuel argued back. He just couldn''t help it. Every second, every millisecond, of practice was of utmost importance for this newly formed team. They had to pour their everything into practice to get a real chance at beating Howard''s team.


    "We must win no matter what," Yuel insisted. "We can''t waste a single moment."


    "Yeah well," Roi shrugged. "We don''t practice that much even on the first string, you know."


    "But, you do get to practice with pros. I bet it''s great to gain so much experience in such a short time."


    "Oh," Roi averted his eyes with an awkward smile. "You heard about that, huh."


    "Not from you, that''s for sure." Yuel judged Roi and Dan with his eyes. Even though these two visited the clubroom, they never uttered a word about training with pros. Dan was one thing, but Roi usually bragged about any "cool" games he had. And yet, this same Roi kept silent about playing pros. The two of them followed Howard''s instructions to a T like faithful soldiers.


    "We just didn''t want to make you feel bad," Dan explained. "I asked Howard what are the chances of letting some of you guys play with the Sweepers, but he said that''s not gonna happen. Sucks, I know."


    [That excuse again.] Yuel frowned. It''s the same excuse Howard gave him before. Did Howard go as far as planning what excuse they should use in case they''re questioned? Considering how good he was at preparing the perfect defense, that''s more than likely.


    "Anyway," Roi shook his head. "What''s that got to do with our training today? Just because we can''t play any pros doesn''t excuse training 25 hours a day, ya know."


    "My point was: everything is different here," Yuel explained. "The resources we got for training and the amount of time we have to prepare for the next match - everything is different from your regular training. The first string gets a year to prepare for tournaments, but we don''t have that kind of time. Our match is on Friday."


    "And that''s an excuse to work ourselves to the bone? You gotta take a breather too, man."


    "We don''t have time for any ''breathers''."


    "Well then," Dan said as he approached the door. "You two can keep discussing this until midnight, but I gotta go."


    "Wait, we-"


    "Sorry, I didn''t sign up for this. Even if you were Howard or ''The President of the Universe'', I still wouldn''t stay extra hours after such a long day."


    "Because you don''t have anything at stake this match, right?" Yuel pressed. Ugh, what a pain. As he feared, Roi and Dan weren''t quite on the same page as. They didn''t have anything to lose in this match, so they didn''t feel like doing their best. They won''t be putting on their best performance on Friday,...


    "Hey now, kid," Roi raised his voice. "Don''t make me mad. That was pretty insulting, you know. We told ya we''ll be taking this match seriously, right? We''re competitive players, so it''d be great if you didn''t look down on us."


    "Ugh." Yuel clenched his fists and gritted his teeth. Roi''s glare was sharp like a knife, ready to dig into Yuel as soon as he utters a single word. But, this discussion was too important. This was no time to be intimidated. Yuel couldn''t possibly give-


    "Yo, my dudes," Lars weighted down on Yuel''s shoulders with his arm, stopping Yuel from arguing further. "Let''s just leave it at that. Yuel is just nervous about the match and all. Ya know, being the captain and all."


    "I''m not- ugh."


    "Look how stiff his shoulders are." Lars squeezed Yuel''s shoulders, doing what he probably thought was a "massage".


    "Aah!" This was no massage! It was a public execution in broad daylight!


    "These shoulders are made of rocks I''m tellin'' ya, haha."


    "Ugh...!" Yuel''s bones were gonna break!


    "Heh," Roi chuckled. This wasn''t funny, goddammit! "Sorry, I also pressed too much. I know this match is important for you, guys. I was in your shoes last year, we also had a similar ''starters selection'' match. So, no way me or Dan gonna do anything to ruin your chances."


    "You heard the man." Dan nodded in agreement.


    "I see," Yuel mumbled. Somehow, the whole argument now felt childish and embarrassing. "Sorry, maybe I''m really a little nervous."


    "Don''t sweat it," Roi gave a thumb up. "There''s still time. Get used to it little by little."


    "Sure." Expect, there''s NO time. Sigh, whatever. Roi probably had good intentions when he said that, so Yuel didn''t retort.


    After they reached a compromise of sorts, Roi and Dan left the clubroom.


    "Guess that''s that," Yuel sighed and turned to Lars. "Thanks for stepping in before it got ugly. It''s okay, you can let go of me now."


    "No problem, dude," Lars continued to press Yuel''s shoulders, applying his "Massage from Hell" ultimate. "It''ll help ya relax."


    [Yeah, I''ll be very relaxed after this. In my grave.] Yuel mentally retorted. Though, he had to admit this massage had some effect. Lars''s grip had like 600 horsepower and hurt like hell at first, but it started feeling better over time. [I''ll just endure this punishment. I probably deserve it anyway.]


    "Did I really say too much?" Yuel asked.


    "You''re asking if you acted like a total ass?" Julia crossed her arms and lifted her chin. "Yep, like a total ass. We''re not your slaves, you know."


    "Yeah, I just..." Yuel pursed his lips. He just wanted the team to spend as much time as possible on preparing for this fateful match. His and Lars''s futures were riding on it. The outcome of this match will decide whether they''ll spend the next year as real players or as nothing more than cheerleaders for the first string.


    "It''s not like I enjoy staying here the whole day either, ya know," Julia said. "I''m doing you a huge favor, so you better be grateful."


    [You''re only here because Lars is here.] Yuel squinted his eyes but kept his mouth shut. He had enough tedious conversations for one day.


    "Thanks, July!" Lars flashed her a smile. "Let''s all train to death so we get on the first string together!"


    "Y-Yeah!" Julia''s cheeks were tinted pink, which made her beaming smile look that much cuter. She could actually be such an agreeable girl when she wanted. A shame that Yuel was on her blacklist.


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    With their determination reaffirmed, the three of them stayed in the clubroom until 10pm. Yuel still wanted to keep going, but now it was really getting late and his mom called to ask where he was. So, with that, their first day of training was over. Only four days left until the match.


    "Seeya, my dudes." Lars waved.


    "Don''t forget that plan we discussed." Yuel waved back.


    "No problem, I''mma practice some more Gunslinger before sleep. Let''s all do our best!"


    On that note, Yuel and Julia parted ways with Lars and went on together because their houses were in the same direction.


    Once Lars vanished from view, Julia stopped and spoke up. "I''ll do everything I can this Friday." She clenched her fists and her eyes glinted like a blade.


    "Of course," Yuel nodded. "After all, it''s an important match for Lars."


    "Don''t get me wrong," Julia shook her head. "True, I want Lars to become a starter because he deserves it. And well, I guess you too. Kinda. Maybe." It felt like she was going to choke to death while pushing these words through her throat. "But, I also wanna play on the first string, you know!"


    "Oh." Yuel just stood there. The chilling night breeze hit against his skin, but he didn''t budge. Julia wanted to become a starter? This was new.


    It''s something Yuel has been noticing throughout the year, but now it was clearer than ever: Julia changed a lot. What started as a silly desire woo Lars gradually transformed into a genuine interest in playing competitive Classmancers. Though, Julia will poke his eyes out if he says that out loud.


    "That''s good to hear," Yuel found himself smiling. "You''ve become a strong player, so there''s a chance you''ll be picked.."


    "Sheesh, please. You flatter me." Julia covered her mouth like some sophisticated lady, except the expression she was hiding was definitely far from ladylike. ["Praise me more!"] her eyes said. Yuel had to poke at that smug.


    "But, if you really want to play your best, you have to learn how to use your aggressive-"


    "Nope! Nopenopenope!" Julia exaggeratedly waved her arms. "I know, I know. No need to rub it in. Sheesh, you can''t say anything nice without following up with a jab, can you? We''re trying to be positive here, so learn to read the damn mood."


    "Sure..." [Says the girl who almost coughed blood when calling me "kinda maybe decent".]


    "Also," Julia continued. "Once we win, I plan to confess."


    "Confess what?"


    "To Lars, you idio- Ahem. To Lars, of course, you dummy." Julia put on the fakest friendly smile ever.


    "Huh, I see."


    "What''s with the weak reaction?"


    "Well..." [You should''ve confessed to him ages ago. No idea what you''re waiting for.] Yuel stopped himself from blurting these thoughts. [Stop. Read the mood. Don''t poke her.] This was was a rare occasion when "Nice Julia" graced Yuel with her divine presence. Or, at least it was "Julia Who Wants Him Dead a Little Less Than Usual"


    "I mean," Yuel finally continued. "That''s between you and Lars. Why are you telling me?"


    "Because you''re the captain, duh." Julia thrust her finger at him. "It''s your job to make sure we win, so better work yourself to the bone!"


    [My job? Classmancers was a team game last time I checked.] Yuel was [this] close to shooting back at her but he somehow held himself.


    "Got it?" Julia repeated. "You gotta make sure we win so I can confess to Lars!"


    [Just go confesses already. Sigh.] "Yes, your highness. I''ll do everything in my power."


    "I sense sarcasm but I''ll let it slide," Julia crossed her arms. At first, it looked like she was about to complain about something again, but instead, she smiled softly. "Well, I''ll do my best too, so let''s win this thing."


    "Definitely." Yuel smiled back. No matter how annoyed Julia usually was, Yuel couldn''t help but melt during these rare moments when she showed her bright smile. It turned any nonsense she pulled into forgivable. With the streetlight shining on her, she looked like an angel. She was cute- no, beautiful. It''s no surprise she was popular with boys at school.


    Also, despite being a pain every so often, Julia actually had a modest and diligent side to her. For a long time now, she has been secretly pouring extra hours into practicing Classmancers without showing off to Lars. She worked on her decision-making with Yuel, she practiced her aggressive playstyle on Yuel and she got general advice from Yuel.


    They really trained a lot together. Maybe that''s why Yuel couldn''t help but give her a pass for anything she did. He saw with his own eyes how hard she worked and how much she developed as a player. Julia''s training became even more intense after the StormBlitz vs. Leopards scrimmage. She won''t admit it, but she must have been really frustrated that she didn''t get to play on the stage that day.


    Seeing all that, Yuel couldn''t help but root for her. Even though Julia treated him like trash, he wanted to see her succeed. He wanted to bask in the warmth of her brilliant smile, even if the smile wasn''t meant for him. Perhaps, he even... well, that didn''t matter.


    Anyway, same as Yuel and Lars, Julia had a lot riding on this match. She had to help Lars get into the first string, she wanted to use the victory as good timing for a confession and she also wanted to debut in the competitive scene herself.


    Julia had to win no matter what, even if it meant pleading with Yuel. She was far from polite or straightforward about it, but this whole conversation was her unique way of asking for Yuel''s help with the upcoming match. And, Yuel was compelled to comply.


    Yuel, Lars and Julia - all three of them had an entire year of their lives at stake this match. They had to win. No, they WILL win this. As the captain, Yuel will ensure that. Even against Howard, he''ll find a way.


    [Tomorrow, I should ask Roi and Dan to stick at least until 6pm...]

 72 The Trickshooter Gamble

    Friday arrived and the match for deciding the new first string was upon them.


    "We''ll use the computer rooms," Howard handed Yuel a key.


    "How did you get the keys?" Yuel asked.


    "Let''s just say I borrowed them, alright?"


    [Borrowed. Even though we''re supposed to keep a low profile about being at school without our advisor. Sure.] Yuel wanted to retort, but that didn''t really matter. Howard probably knew where to get the keys because StormBlitz held their entrance exams in these computer rooms. That''s where Yuel met and fought Howard for the first time. And now, yet again, they''ll be clashing with each other in these same rooms.


    "Good luck," Howard smiled and stretched his hand.


    "You too," Yuel accepted the handshake with a smile, but immediately applied some force behind it because Howard did the same. The handshake and smiles were just a sportsmanship formality. In truth, they both wished for the other to crash and burn in the upcoming match. Neither of them was allowed to lose today.


    After a tug of war that felt like it lasted five minutes, neither of them managed to crush the other''s hand and they let go. That''s it. From this moment on, they were sworn enemies. No pity and no mercy. They silently approached their respective doors and went inside.


    The two computer rooms were adjacent to each other, a single wall separated between them. Perhaps the two rooms were a single one in the past and were separated to make it look like this school had two computer rooms. That''d explain why each room was too small to house a whole class and students had to work in duos and trios.


    Whatever the case, this arrangement of two rooms was convenient for them today. There were even five monitors already lined up in a row, just waiting to be used for a Classmancers match. Everything looked exactly the same as during the entrance exam.


    Yuel booted the five computers and opened Classmancers on all of them. He and Howard organized everything by entering all game clients into the same room. Physically, each team was going to be in a separate room, but virtually, inside the game, they were all packed together into one space. Nothing new about that concept, but it felt funny somehow.


    Before long, the other team members arrived. Howard and Yuel arrived early to set everything up but everybody was told to get here at 9 am.


    "Yo," Lars greeted everybody by flashing his teeth. "Ready to rek these dudes?" He raised his hand.


    "Of course," Yuel also raised his hand for a high-five. They were born ready for this.


    "I''m going to play my best too," Julia interjected.


    "Look who''s all ya fired up," Lars grinned and huddled both of them. "We gonna do this, yo!"


    "Definitely." "We got this."


    Roi and Dan shortly joined them. Dan barely made it in time, whereas Roi was late by three minutes. There always had to be that one kid who comes late, right?


    Anyway, everybody was here now. The stage was set. The match was about to begin!


    "About the first game," Howard addressed his team. "We might lose because I plan to let them use Trickshooter."


    "Kek," Gregory adjusted his glasses. "I see you like to live dangerously."


    "Sounds like an unnecessary gamble," Gilbert said. "Reason?"


    "Simple," Howard said. "We all agree their team gonna be at its peak if Lars gets Trickshooter, right? Which means: if we beat them in that condition, it''s as good as winning the entire match right there. Think of the mental blow that''d deliver."


    "Evil,". Gregory smirked, his eyes full of respect. He must have been taking mental notes about this tactic.


    "But," Gilbert objected. "If we lose, they''ll be one game away from winning. You sure that''s worth it? I never thought you, of all people, would ever suggest taking such a big risk."


    "Sometimes, you have to take a calculated risk to increase your chances of winning."


    "Sounds like something Yuel would say," Gilbert raised an eyebrow. "But, if you''re sure..."


    There were no further objections. Calling this idea "bizarre" didn''t do it justice, but everybody trusted Howard''s judgment. Over the past week, he has displayed an unrivaled ability to organize, strengthen and lead the team. He paid attention to the smallest quirks of each teammate and advised them how to cover their weak points, how to play without dying in difficult situations and even which classes suited them best in different team compositions.


    Howard''s way of doing things often led the team to victory in Ranked, even against strong pre-made teams filled with "golden names". These guys were either active/former competitive students or maybe even legit pros. Even so, with Howard holding the reins, the team felt strong and successfully ground most opponents into submission.


    Therefore, even though nobody quite understood why the ever-careful Howard would go for such a dangerous gamble, everybody was going to follow his lead.


    [Nobody seems too concerned. Alright.] Howard nodded to himself. As long as this plan wasn''t going to cause distrust, it was worth a shot. It''s alright that nobody understood the full scope of Howard''s intentions this time. In fact, it''s better this way.


    ["Something Yuel would suggest", huh.] Howard smiled meaningfully. At first glance, the idea of taking a big gamble to potentially reap huge benefits was very Yuel-like. In fact, maybe Yuel really inspired this line of thinking in Howard.


    However, there was one fundamental difference between Howard''s idea and Yuel''s tactics. What Howard was trying to achieve here was radically different from gaining "a better position" in a game. Yuel probably couldn''t think in such a way yet because he was still a greenhorn when it came to competitive experience.


    "Tai," Howard patted Taison''s shoulder. "Your ability to 1v1 Lars is going to play a huge role this game. Think you can handle his Trickshooter?"


    "Kahaha, no problem!" Taison pumped a fist. "I''m the 1v1 champ! I beat scrubs and get da pizza!"


    "A very questionable motivation, but good enough for me." Howard nodded. [Let''s see how far he can go. I''m not going to count on it, but if he can beat Lars in 1v1 that''d give us a real chance to win this gamble. If he loses, that''s good in its own way too.]


    "So, Greg," Howard turned to Gregory. "Do you feel like playing hardcore defense?"


    "Eh, do I have to?" Gregory made a face. "I mean, if you tell me to, I''ll do it, but..."


    "Nah, that''s alright. Play what you think works."


    "Sweet! I wanna go for something more balanced, like Knight."


    "No problem." [This first game will change your mind, then.] Howard left it at that. Forcing a difficult brat like Gregory play something he didn''t like was only going to put a damper on his motivation and will create a rift in the team. It''ll be a hundred times better when Gregory chooses to turtle of his own accord. That''s one benefit to reap from this crucial first game.


    After Howard addressed each member, nobody was concerned about the Trickshooter gamble anymore.... save for Howard himself. No matter how he twisted it, this plan still harbored huge risks. Losing a game in a best-of-three match was like putting one foot in the grave.


    Even if they lose, they''ll gain many benefits. Ultimately, they should win more than they lost. In the long run, it''ll be the superior strategy... it had to be.


    [This isn''t good for my health.] Howard sighed. Even the tiniest risk could prove fatal, and failure was absolutely not an option today.


    "My," Ellen leaned on Howard''s back. "You''re such a worrywart."


    "I''m not worried."


    "Oh, is that so? Then, pray tell, why are you tapping your foot as if you''re trying to break the floor?"


    "Tch," Howard looked away. His right leg was really restless, he didn''t even notice.


    "You''re not the only one who is good at noticing stuff, you know." Ellen gently wrapped her hand around his. "It''s okay, we got this. We''ve been discussing that idea the whole week, remember?"


    "Since when it''s [your] job to console [me]?"


    "Hehe, what can I say? I''m a woman of many talents~" Ellen playfully rubbed her nose against his arm.


    "And here I thought you''ll be the most worried about this first game. You''re probably going to be a primary target. Sure you can survive his Trickshooter?"


    "I have absolute faith my dear knight will protect me~"


    "You gonna make it my responsibility?" Howard sighed with a chuckle. "Alright, let''s begin. No use worrying about it. We won''t know the result until we play them."


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    With everybody convinced, or at least not outright opposed, Howard''s plan was set in motion.


    "Hey, look!" Lars shoved his finger into Yuel''s monitor. "They left Shooter open!"


    "I can see that." Yuel frowned. The first banning phase was over, yet Trickshooter was still available and it was Yuel''s turn to pick a class for the team.


    "C''mon, dude! Let''s grab it!"


    "Hrm." Yuel crossed his arms. Why? Why didn''t Howard ban Trickshooter? Everybody knew Lars was exponentially stronger when playing Trickshooter. There was no conceivable reason to allow Lars to play Trickshooter.


    Was it some sort of trap? If so, Howard was way too obvious about it. And yet, it was a very alluring trap, the kind you can''t help but walk into even though you know it''s risky.


    "My, Yuyu is pretty shaken~" Ellen covered her lips as if to muffle laughter.


    "He must be pretty shocked" Howard smiled to himself. [So, you hesitate even though I gave you such a great opportunity. Alright, we''re off to a good start.]


    Picking Trickshooter should have been a no-brainer for Yuel, yet he took his time. Sure, standard theory claimed that taking Carry as the first pick wasn''t advised and yadda yadda yadda, but that theory didn''t hold to this situation. Lars''s godlike skill with Trickshooter transcended any reason or logic.


    Nevertheless, Yuel hesitated. He was wary of what Howard could possibly have in mind to allow this. Yuel will probably still go for Trickshooter in the end, but this hesitation was huge. Howard''s presence already started weighing on Yuel''s mind and that weight will only become heavier as the game goes on. This was bound to impair Yuel''s judgment at some point.


    [I can''t figure it out.] Yuel sighed. There were multiple ways to deal with a Trickshooter on lane but none of them was effective enough to hold down a beast like Lars. Maybe Howard and Ellen underestimated Lars''s skill? Or rather, they underestimated Yuel and Lars as a Bot duo? Perhaps it was Howard''s way of saying "We''ll beat you even with this handicap."


    "C''mon, dude!" Lars insisted. "Gimme a Trickshooter already." He pretended like he was going to snatch Yuel''s mouse, which made Yuel instinctively grab the mouse.


    Due to the way this match room was set, Yuel had complete authority over the drafting phase. He was the one who''ll pick classes for everybody, so the decision laid with him. So, Trickshooter or no Trickshooter?


    "Just to make sure," Yuel turned to Lars. "You can play Trickshooter, right? I pretty much banned you from playing it the whole week because I was sure it''ll be banned every game."


    "No problem," Lars grinned. "You didn''t let me play it in Ranked, but I still practiced it at home every day."


    "Seriously?" Yuel blinked. Even though they trained together from early in the morning until late into the night every day, Lars still found time to work on his Trickshooter? Heh, what a guy.


    "Okay, let''s do it then." Yuel locked-in the Trickshooter. [If they think they can beat me and Lars with this handicap, be my guests. Surprise me, maybe there''s a counter I haven''t thought of.]


    But, there was nothing that resembled a hard counter in the enemy''s picks. Howard''s first two picks were Paladin and Knight, their Support and Top. Paladin was a decent counter because he could shut down Trickshooter''s ult with Justice Strike, but it wasn''t the most reliable tactic, especially not against Lars''s inhuman twitch reflexes.


    Afterward, Howard picked Pirate for Carry. Again, nothing unusual and nothing that directly countered Trickshooter.


    [Maybe there''s some larger strategy in store?] Yuel couldn''t help but wonder. There had to be something to it because Howard would never take such a risk for no reason. But, no matter how hard Yuel pondered, it felt like banging his head against a wall. Howard''s plan was shroud in mystery.


    Before long, the drafting phase approached its end. Both sides had only one more class to pick, which happened to be the Jungler for both teams.


    Leaving Jungler for last was a calculated choice by Yuel. With Dan''s versatility, it was best to push the Jungler pick to the very end and pick a class which countered the enemy comp the best. On the other hand, in Taison''s case, there was probably no special reason to leave him to last. As a Jungler, low versatility was one of Taison''s most glaring flaws. He only ever played bruisers and never played assassins. Therefore, Yuel could pick a Jungler with the assumption that Taison will pick a bruiser.


    "Venomancer seems good here," Yuel addressed Dan. "What do you think?"


    "Sounds good," Dan smirked. "If Taison picks a bruiser, they gonna have a pretty tanky comp, so taking them down with percentage damage gonna be fun."


    "Indeed." Yuel nodded. They have already discussed Venomancer as one of the likely picks for this match. The enemy already had a Paladin and a Knight, so together with Taison''s bruiser - they''ll have three tanky classes. Venomancer was one of the most effective ways to deal with those.


    [So, he went for it.] Howard smiled wryly. That Venomancer pick clearly factored Taison''s tendency to play bruisers. Howard left Taison''s pick for last in hope Yuel wouldn''t consider this line of attack, but Yuel gotta be Yuel. Sneaking somebody''s weakness past Yuel was impossible.


    [But, you fell into my trap!] Howard smirked. [I also knew Taison''s weakness, so I made him practice assassins! ...I wish it was like that.] He sighed. It''s something he really wanted to do, but it was impossible to pull off, especially not over the span of a single week.


    Taison''s love for 1v1 fights caused his fixation on bruisers. Sneaking behind enemies to burst them down wasn''t his style. Instead, he wanted to fight his enemies face-to-face and take them down via a display of strength. As a result, even when he agreed to play assassin due to Howard''s request, Taison retained the same gung-ho mentality and challenged his enemies to 1v1s. Needless to say, that didn''t turn out well for him.


    To fix Taison''s weakness, it was first necessary to change his mindset. That was too great of a challenge for Howard, especially with the time limit of a single week. Not to mention that forcing Taison to practice something he didn''t enjoy was only going to hurt his motivation. Howard''s hands were tied on that matter.


    "What you want to pick?" Howard asked.


    "Lancer looking hot right now," Taison said without the slightest hint of concern. So what if picking a busier will play right into the enemy''s Venomancer pick? Taison just gonna wreck some scrubs as usual!


    "Alright," Howard nodded with a small sigh on the side. This was his team right now, so he had to deal with it. He was the one who came up with this arrangement in the first place, so there''s nobody else to blame but him. He''ll have to make the best out the hand he dealt himself and to push toward victory despite the odds.


    With the Lancer pick, the drafting phase came to an end. The starter selection match was about to begin!


    Picks:


    Yuel: Alchemist


    Lars: Trickshooter


    Julia: Electromancer


    Dan: Venomancer


    Roi: Dark Knight


    ---


    Howard: Paladin


    Ellen: Pirate


    Gilbert: Warlock


    Taison: Lancer


    Gregory: Knight

 73 Preparation and Adaptation

    The battle for StormBlitz''s first string began. After clearing some jungle camps, everybody headed to their respective lanes. Yuel and Lars headed to Bot, where they''ll face Howard and Ellen.


    "Remember," Yuel said. "Don''t get carried away against Ellen."


    "I know, I know," Lars claimed so, but the glint in his eyes told a different story. "Don''t worry, I''mma rek that Witch of Victory. Believe it, yo!"


    [That''s exactly the mentality I''m worried about...] Yuel sighed. Well, maybe that aggressive mentality will work out with this arrangement. After all, Lars got to play his godly Trickshooter this game and Yuel further supplemented that pick with his Alchemist.


    Alchemist was a specialist class which revolved around crafting items. It was considered mid-tier, but mostly because it required very good game knowledge and decision-making skills. Even though most people treated Alchemist as C tier, in Yuel''s hands it was easily a B tier.


    It''s not a class Yuel showed often, but today was the day to let it loose. Alchemist''s versatility, combined with its surprise element, should work well against Howard.


    "Say," Howard started. "You ever saw Yuel play Alchemist?"


    "Hmm, don''t think so," Ellen cocked her head. "Think he''s experimenting?"


    "I wouldn''t put it past him, but that can''t be all. No matter what absurd ideas he usually comes up with, he wouldn''t gamble this match on a class he can''t play."


    "Oh, I know! He must''ve kept Alchemist as trump card this entire time, in preparation for this one match!"


    "Only you would do something silly like that."


    "Teehee~" Ellen playfully stuck out her tongue.


    "Anyway, let''s play it safe," Howard advised. "Alchemist has a stupid amount of options, so we''ll need to figure out Yuel''s exact plan for this match step-by-step. Try to poke him every now and then to make him leave lane and miss on materials."


    "Aye aye, cap." Ellen saluted.


    The two pairs clashed in the duo lane. As always, Ellen used her signature poke-and-run. She advanced just a little tiny bit toward Lars, shot him once and then immediately fled before he could counter.


    [Geh! Here we go again.] Lars felt like Ellen slowly, but surely, sucked out his blood. It''s like she was a flippin'' mosquito!


    Worst of all, Ellen always picked the most annoying timing to shoot him. Her shots struck in the brief moments after Lars finished an attack and was stuck in the recovery animation that followed. By the time he could attack again, Ellen has already snuck out of his range.


    This was especially frustrating when Lars fired Trickshot, which had a longer animation than a basic attack. Ellen was gonna take every chance she could to poke him after a Trickshot.


    "Duuuude!" Lars exclaimed. "Can I kill her already?"


    "Stop," Yuel shook his head. "The game just started."


    "C''mon, I just need to Trickshot her once and get in a few more hits after that. Easy peasy!"


    "You know you''ll be playing right into her hands by doing that, right?"


    "Geh, but...!"


    "Don''t worry, I''ll shut down her pokes after the first wave," Yuel promised. His Alchemist needed a little time to get going, but he definitely took Ellen''s poke-and-run into consideration when picking Alchemist.


    Alchemist was an amazing class because it offered tools for dealing with virtually every situation. Yuel could craft any consumables available in the shop, even Wards, which spoke volumes of the class''s versatility. In addition, Alchemist could craft numerous "tools", which were unique consumables only the Alchemist could use. The tools effectively served as the Alchemist''s kit, since his actual skills all revolved around crafting and using items.


    This huge variety provided options for dealing with many different scenarios, but it was a two-edged sword. It was easy to lose oneself in the large number of options and to take too long to decide on anything. For that reason, Alchemist was one of the few classes in the game to deserve the "Challenging" difficulty tag.


    To perform well as Alchemist in real-time, it was necessary to decide ahead of time which specific items the player was going focus on in the upcoming match and set these items to shortcut keys. Perhaps the top Alchemist players in the world could make fast decisions on the fly while taking into account the Alchemist''s whole kit, but Yuel couldn''t, not even with his extensive game knowledge.


    Therefore, when he prepared for today''s match, Yuel narrowed down the exact tools he''ll be needing today. Ellen''s infamous poke-and-run tactic was expected to show up, so Yuel prepared a tool to counter it. But first, he had to gather enough Magnetite to craft said tool.


    Alchemist''s passive, Gather Materials, automatically extracted materials from nearby fallen units, both allied and enemy. The type of gathered material depended on the fallen unit and minions dropped the most basic type: Magnetite. It was good enough for crafting most tools and consumables, save for the most powerful ones.


    A single minion wave rewarded Yuel with 12 Magnetite, which was enough to craft four Blaze Bombs. This was the zoning tool he chose for dealing with Ellen.


    "My!" Ellen exclaimed as a bomb flew in her direction. It exploded as it hit the ground, spreading flames on the ground. Ellen retreated as quickly as she could, but she still received a few ticks of damage from the flame. Fortunately, it was a DoT attack, so a few ticks didn''t hurt that much. But, the bad news were that the fire kept burning on the ground for a while and zoned her out of her favorite poking spot.


    Even though the bomb didn''t quite hit Ellen, it served its purpose as a warning shot. That''s clearly Yuel''s way of saying "Try to poke if you dare, I''ll bomb you." What a rascal.


    "That''s no fun." Ellen puffed her cheeks. "Yuyu is such a bully."


    "Blaze Bomb, huh, " Howard took a mental note. So, that was one tool in Yuel''s arsenal this game. How many more to go? The number had to be limited, so they''ll find out with time.


    With that said, Blaze Bombs were troublesome. Ellen tried poking from a different angle, but she was met with another Molotov. It felt like Yuel was watching every Ellen made.


    "Say, Wardy," Ellen twisted her lips. "Can''t you Divine Shield that thing?"


    "I wish," Howard shook his head. "It''s considered a tossed object, so Divine Shield doesn''t work on it."


    "So useless." Ellen pouted.


    "I thought I got him with the Paladin pick," Howard admitted. "But, he came prepared."


    Paladin was a class both Howard and Yuel favored, so Howard felt confident when he got to pick Paladin. He left the class open on purpose during drafting, despite knowing Yuel''s team would be picking first. Yuel was assuredly going to jump on the available Trickshooter, so Howard grabbed Paladin right afterward. It was a nice trade.


    Alas, whether by chance or by a stroke of genius, Yuel''s Alchemist was prepared to deal even with Paladin. Really, these Blaze Bombs were art. They both zoned out Ellen''s poking and bypassed Howard''s Divine Shield. [Well played, Yuel. Well played.]


    But, that wasn''t enough to shut down Ellen''s poking. Even though the bombs were items from Yuel''s inventory, they were considered "tools" and therefore couldn''t be consumed normally. Yuel had to activate them with skills, but skills could be silenced.


    "Tell me when you go for a poke next. I''ll silence him."


    "Roger~"


    From Yuel''s perspective, the laning phase proceeded smoothly. His Blaze Bombs zoned Ellen just like he planned days ahead. It allowed Lars to play his usual game without being distracted by pokes.


    "Dude, gotta say," Lars grinned. "I usually don''t care for Molotovs in games, but this right here is some sick stuff."


    "Thanks," Yuel smiled. He actually really loved these sort of tools in action games. Why? Because they were much easier to hit, especially in shooters. Landing a Molotov required predicting the enemy''s general movements, but thankfully, it didn''t require hitting that opponent with a nanometer-sized bullet.


    Anyway, it''s too early to celebrate a victory. Howard and Ellen weren''t the types to quietly take a beating. They clearly weren''t prepared for this Alchemist play, but they''ll adapt.


    "Ack!" Just as the thought crossed Yuel''s mind - it happened. He tried to bomb Ellen again, but a perfectly-timed Justice Strike sealed his skills. As a result, Ellen successfully poked Lars and ran away.


    "Dude, did I ever tell ya how much I hate that poking stuff?"


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    "Only about a billion times."


    "Okay, then now it gonna be a billion and one. I HAAAAATE that stuff!"


    "Sure you got enough ''A''s there?"


    "Nah, dude. Take all the ''A''s in the world and it ain''t gonna be enough."


    "At least I''m slowing her down," Yuel sighed. "She''ll have to wait for Justice Strike''s cooldown before trying anything again."


    "That''s cool and all, but when we get to the part where I kick her butt?"


    "Still working on it. Clear minions faster to hit Lv.5, then we can begin."


    "Oh, that''s what we''re waiting for?"


    "Yes, we are. I believe I went over this play with you a few days ago..."


    "Dude, do you seriously think I remember."


    "I no longer do." Yuel sighed. Well, that''s to be expected from a goof who didn''t even remember what he had for breakfast. They practiced that play together and that''s what was important. Lars''s muscle memory should recall the experience once they begin. No matter what science claimed about the human body, Lars''s memory was clearly stored in his muscles and ONLY in his muscles.


    The second minion wave has been wiped out, but there haven''t been any new developments on the lane. Ellen''s pokes became rarer due to the danger of Blaze Bomb, whereas Lars was under Yuel''s watch and couldn''t go on the offensive as he wished. As a result, both sides only fired away at minions, it was like a cold war. They only exchanged hits every now and then when somebody overstepped their boundaries.


    Thanks to Trickshot''s high base damage, Lars easily outcleared Ellen. She could have kept up with him if she used Backfire Cannon, but of course, a sneaky player like her wouldn''t do so. Backfire Cannon was both Pirate''s best lane clear ability and its escape tool, so by spending it on minions, Ellen would cut off her best escape option. That''s a big no-no.


    [These beasts will eat me alive if I do that.] Ellen wore a difficult smile. She could see Lars and Yuel''s hungry eyes, they both waited for an opportunity to leap forth and ravage this innocent maiden. [My, how savage. I won''t let you take me that easily.]


    Thus, Ellen stuck to playing defense even though it came at the expense of surrendering lane control. Being pushed back a little was nothing compared to dying and feeding the big scary beastie. That rascal had do be tamed little by little, so she couldn''t spoil him with food like that.


    However, this defensive game plan was one hell of a challenge. In addition to the advantage of Trickshot''s high base damage, Lars also built more power than Ellen. As a result, even Lars''s basic attacks cleared minions way faster than Ellen''s.


    Per usual, Ellen started off with a lifesteal item, a "bad decision" according to the meta. But, she knew how to make it work because she was talented like that~


    Even though Ellen was losing in terms of lane advantage and farm, she was leading in HP and has already poked Lars all the way down to 60% HP. Of course, between arrows from aggro''d enemy bowmen and Yuel''s pesky bombs, Ellen didn''t escape these pokes entirely unscratched. Nevertheless, thanks to her lifesteal, she was at 75% HP.


    Lars had neither lifesteal nor HP recovery, so eventually, he''ll... oh, crap. She forgot what Alchemist could do.


    "Take a potion," Yuel tossed an HP Potion at Lars.


    "Yo, my dude!" Lars exclaimed. The potion landed on his Trickshooter and the recovery effect kicked in. It was a slow recovery, but over time it resorted 20% of Lars HP and put him at 80% HP, slightly above Ellen.


    "My," Ellen twisted her lips. "I have a feeling I hate Alchemist."


    "Yeah, it''s sometimes cheap like that." Howard nodded. Normally, it was impossible to use consumables like HP Potion on another ally. However, Alchemist''s "Item Toss" skill made it possible.


    Judging by Yuel and Lars''s starting build, neither of them brought any potions when they arrived on the lane. However, at some point, Yuel crafted an HP Potion with Alchemy and now used it on Lars. It cost some Magnetite, but it erased a large chunk of the progress Ellen made with her pokes. Not friendly.


    Getting Alchemist out of lane was the best way to hit him where it hurt because he had to be near dying minions to collect Magnetite. Under normal circumstances, even the ever defensive Howard would vouch for aggressively assaulting the Alchemist. Unfortunately, this one Alchemist was guarded by a mad dog. Going on the offensive against Lars''s Trickshooter was like asking to be killed.


    [Yuel sure got us good with that Alchemist.] Howard frowned. What were their options at this point? They have been already pushed back due to the difference in damage output, and with HP Potions the enemy will be able to outlast them on lane. Ellen''s early game lifesteal was cute and all, but it wasn''t even as effective as the cheapest potion the Alchemist could craft on the go.


    In term of preparation, Howard had to hand to Yuel. This Alchemist pick outplayed Howard and Ellen in every way. But, sports wouldn''t be fun if the outcome were 100% determined by preparation, right? By facing challenges head-on, players learned to adapt and resolve problems.


    Alchemist seemed overwhelming right now, but Howard wasn''t some salty Bronze V who called "OP! Nerf!" on everything that beat him. Alchemist wasn''t bulletproof, it''s a class with its own shortcomings. It was a mid-tier class for a reason and not just because it was difficult to play.


    "Elly," Howard said. "Try baiting bombs out of him. If he runs out of Mag, he won''t be able to do much."


    "My, how devilish," Ellen smirked. "I''m sure he''ll fall for it and think I''m being salty after that potion heal."


    "Aren''t you, though?"


    "Hmph, not in the slightest. Who cares that all my poking efforts have been erased like that? Nope, definitely not me."


    [She''s a salt mine, alright.]


    Following on Howard''s advice, Ellen went for a poke even though Justice Strike was still on cooldown.


    [So, she''s going for it.] Yuel nodded to himself. Justice Strike should still be on cooldown according to Yuel''s estimation, but Ellen went for a poke regardless. She must have been triggered by that potion play just now. It must''ve sparked a desire to poke even harder than before in order to close that HP gap. This was a chance!


    Unfortunately, it was still too early for the finisher he had in mind. Ellen''s HP wasn''t low enough to be killed by the play he practiced with Lars.


    Therefore, Yuel went for the usual Blaze Bomb. He tossed the bomb in the usual direction, aiming to encircle Ellen with flames. But, as soon as the bomb left his hand - Ellen rolled away! She escaped the explosion range before the bomb even traveled halfway there.


    [Ugh, a bait. Well played.] Yuel had to concede. There was no way Ellen reacted that quickly to the bomb, so she must have intended to roll away from the get-go.


    The Blaze Bomb crashed and exploded, but its flames burned only the ground and nothing else. What a waste of Magnetite. Well, at least, Ellen didn''t get to poke Lars.


    Still, things got more hairy for Yuel. If Ellen mixes baits between her pokes, it''ll be difficult to tell when to throw a bomb and when not. It''d be one thing if he had an unlimited supply of bombs, but Alchemist constantly required Magnetite to craft more bombs. Yuel couldn''t waste any bombs on feints.


    Shortly after this bait play, Ellen advanced for another poke. Another bait? Or, was she serious this time? Justice Strike was possibly out of cooldown by now, Yuel couldn''t tell for sure because it''s was really borderline.


    Ugh! Ellen must have picked this exact timing to make Yuel hesitate! Should he bomb her? Wasting 3 Mag again would hurt too much, but getting damage on Ellen was very important- Agh! Too late!


    Ellen poked Lars and dashed away, while Yuel was stuck in analysis paralysis. Goddammit, that hesitation cost him.


    "My," Ellen giggled. "Yuyu is such an indecisive boy~"


    The bait tactic was very effective, so Ellen continued messing around with Yuel. Was she going for a poke or a bait? Ellen made her decisions on a whim, so there wasn''t any pattern to her actions. At least, there shouldn''t have been...


    "My," Ellen clocked her head. "Am I imagining or his accuracy went up? It''s like he can almost tell when it''s a bait."


    "He must''ve noticed," Howard said. "You never bait more than twice in a row."


    "Really? And here I thought I was being deceptive," Ellen twisted her lips. She thought she was being random but, thinking about it, of course she didn''t like baiting three times in a row. After all, she wanted to get some hits in. She didn''t want to run back and forth the whole day like a headless chicken.


    Yuyu being Yuyu, he must have figured out this pattern after stalking Ellen''s graceful movements. He was soo~oooo not cute sometimes.


    "If you bait twice," Howard said. "Either wait until Justice Strike is out of cooldown, or go for another bait."


    "Aye aye, cap."


    Thanks to this advice, Ellen covered up her quirk. She went for a triple bait for the first time while Justice Strike was on cooldown. That completely fooled Yuel and made him waste another one of his precious bombs. [Messing with Yuyu is so fun~]


    [So, it''s no longer guaranteed on the third time.] Yuel nodded to himself. He adapted to Ellen''s baits and exploited a quirk they had, but she responded in kind by adapting to his adaptation. Which meant, he now had to adapt to her adaptation to his adaptation. Adapt-ception.


    This was rough. Losing the guarantee that Ellen will shoot after two baits forced Yuel back to square one. Predicting her movements was the same as predicting die rolls. Ellen probably wasn''t going to use tripe bait often, but she''s the type who''d go to any length to mess with her opponent''s expectations. Anything was possible with that fox.


    Then, there''s also Howard''s Justice Strike which gave Ellen more freedom to work with. Ellen could be even more greedy than usual while Justice Strike had her back, she could mess with Yuel nonstop. For example, using a bait even though she could''ve gone for poke because Justice Strike would have protected her, or going for an unexpected poke in the small window of time in which Yuel couldn''t tell for sure whether Justice Strike was on cooldown. Then, there''s also-


    "Dude, you thinking way too hard about that stuff." Lars turned toward Ellen and fired a shot, straight in her face!


    "Wha...?" Yuel blinked. Ellen must have been equally shocked, she immediately retreated without finishing her poke. All this time, she has been sneaking up to Lars while he was recovering from an attack animation, so what on earth happened just now?


    "That''s how ya do it, yo! Don''t think too much, just feel it!"


    [Yes, just feel it. I understanding everything now!] Yuel made a face. Still, this was a shocking stunt. "How did you hit her? I thought she has been catching you off-guard this whole time."


    "I dunno, I somehow reacted on time now," Lars shrugged. "I betcha it''s because she has been poking way too much lately. Sometimes, I can see her step forward before I actually start my shot, so I get time to switch targets."


    [By "enough time" he probably means something like five milliseconds.] Yuel smiled wryly. What kind of supercomputer was installed in that goof''s brain to make such split-millisecond adjustments?


    Anyway, this was an interesting discovery. Was Ellen playing a bit more recklessly compared to before? Yuel hadn''t noticed anything of the sort, but that''s probably because Ellen was constantly wary of his bombs and focused on messing with him. As a result, she couldn''t focus as much on Lars''s movements and that left her open at times. Or at least, open enough to be countered by people who had Mach 5 reaction speed.


    "Keep getting shots on her whenever you can," Yuel said. "I''ll keep pressuring her with bombs."


    "No problem! Let''s rek her already and win this!"


    Pressured both by Yuel''s bombs and Lars''s quick shots, Ellen began slipping. Her elegant poking fluttered and occasionally led to injury. Nevertheless, she stuck with that tactic.


    Both sides were wearing each other down. Lars fell down to 40% HP, whereas Ellen was at 50% HP. Yet again, she somehow gained the upper hand. She was like a slippery snake which bit, retreated, bit, retreated and then bit some more.


    But, this was good progress. 50% HP was very low, especially for a squishy class. Without being aware, Ellen fell right within range for Yuel''s plan.


    Lars was about to hit Lv.5, a fact the enemies didn''t know. Ellen just recently hit Lv.4, so nobody was expecting an Lv.5 from Lars for a while. Howard and Ellen surely knew Lars had some exp advantage over them, but they had no idea that when Lars was fully concentrated on farming - he landed a perfect last-hit on every single minion. In other words, he has gained the absolute maximum farm possible from every single minion wave!


    That''s why Yuel insisted on this passive early game. No matter how hard Lars itched to aggress on Ellen, Yuel stopped the hungry beast from touching the main dish and made him focus solely on the appetizers, the minions. This slowly prepared Lars for gulping down the main dish in one fell swoop.


    Lars hasn''t done much this laning phase except for farming, which created the impression he wasn''t much of a threat. However, in truth, he was like a beast lying in the bushes and waiting for an opportunity to leap on its prey! And now, that he was about to hit Lv.5, it was time!


    "Remember," Yuel said. "Use Trickshot for the level up."


    "Gotcha."


    "I''ll move in as soon as you hit Lv.5. If you see me throw an Impulse Bomb, that''s the cue."


    "Gotcha. We practiced something like that, right?"


    "Yeah, we did." [So, you DO remember how the actual play goes.] Yuel shook his head with a smile. Seriously, that goof was a piece of art. Well, that''s what made him charming in his own way, kind of.


    Right as Lars was one minion kill away from hitting Lv.5, Yuel made his move. He stepped forward and Ellen stepped forward too, just as planned. There''s no way she''ll miss this opportunity to poke Lars. Yuel requested Trickshot to be dealt as the final blow for leveling up because Lars was the most vulnerable while firing Trickshot, hence the most inviting for Ellen to poke.


    There was only one point of concern: will Howard make a move too? Poking during a Trickshot was so inviting, that Howard almost always backed it up with a Justice Strike. Getting silenced was the last thing Yuel needed right now.


    As the thought crossed Yuel''s mind, Howard turned in Yuel''s direction! Justice Strike was coming! Yuel didn''t waste a moment and rolled forward. From the corner of the screen, he saw a white blade forming at his previous location. Yes! He read it and dodged it!


    There was a quirk. Whenever Howard planned to go for Justice Strike, he always turned to face Yuel right after Ellen advanced forward. It wasn''t an easy quirk to spot because Howard has been looking in Yuel and Lars''s general direction the whole the time. Nevertheless, that slightly unnatural twitch finally gave him away!


    With that, Yuel baited out Justice Strike. However, that was just a nice bonus. The real play was starting now!


    Yuel lightly tossed, almost rolled, an Impulse Bomb in Ellen''s direction. He only needed to get the bomb a little behind Ellen''s back, so no exaggerated movements were necessary. A low, but quick, throw was enough.


    "Ah!" Howard exclaimed. "Elly, roll back! That''s a-"


    BAM. The Impulse Bomb exploded a behind Ellen''s feet and fired a shockwave. The impulse shot Ellen to another dimension! The vertical dimension!


    "My goodneeeeeeess!" Ellen cried out in sync with the hiiiiigh flight. She was launched to the other side of the lane like a human rocket! She was thrown into the den of lions! Oh no...


    [We got her!] Yuel nodded to himself. Finally, the play he had been cooking this whole time was about to come to life!

 74 Preparation and Wi

    "My goodneeeeeeess!" The Impulse Bomb launched Ellen high into the air and sent her flying to the other side of the lane. She was diving right into enemy territory!


    This was the play Yuel has been carefully setting up this entire time. With perfect timing, Lars hit Lv.5 while Ellen was still in the air. In other words, Trickshow was a thing now! The Impulse Bomb plucked Ellen out of her safe zone and placed her within reach, so Lars was going to decimate her now!


    "It''s time for a trick show!" The familiar ultimate sound cue. The decisive attack was starting now- DENIED. In a single move, the whole plan was shattered.


    A holy blade crashed down on Lars, it was Howard''s Justice Strike. It was so unexpected even Lars failed to react in time.


    [How!? Didn''t I just dodge his Justice Strike!?] Yuel exploded internally. When he started this offense, the first thing he did was to dodge-roll Justice Strike. He definitely saw the white blade forming! And he dodged it! It should have been on cooldown!


    [Did he cancel it? But, that means...] Yuel bit his lip. Canceling Justice Strike required very precise timing because it didn''t have a very long casting duration. For Howard to cancel Justice Strike on time, it meant he was prepared for the possibility Yuel would dodge.


    No, Howard read even further. A mere moment passed between Yuel''s Impulse Bomb play and Lars''s Trickshow activation. In that brief window of time, Howard closed in enough on Lars to drop Justice Strike and deny Yuel''s entire plan. As soon as Howard saw the impulse explosion, he knew to focus on Lars. There was not a single moment of hesitation.


    [How!? Every single time...] Yuel bit his lip. He planned this play days in advance. It definitely had some weak spots, but nobody should have been able to shut it down so perfectly in the heat of the moment.


    Yet, Howard did it. He always somehow did it. No matter what offense Yuel came up with, Howard was always ready to shut it down. Even though Howard failed to save Ellen from the Impulse Bomb, he perfectly shut down any follow-up plays.


    With Lars silenced, Trickshow''s zero cooldown benefit was rendered meaningless. Now, all Lars had were his basic attacks, 35% HP and because of Justice Strike, he was now slowed down and had lowered defense. Great...


    Compared to that, Ellen was going to land with 45% HP and still had Backfire Cannon. Lars and Ellen both needed the same number of hits to take each other out, but the advantage of having an available skill was a huge one. Under these circumstances, Lars may lose a frontal fight against Ellen, especially with Howard on his tail-


    BANG. A bullet pierced through the air and dug into Ellen''s leg while she was still in the air.


    "C''mon, dude!" Lars darted toward Ellen''s landing destination. "Let''s do it!"


    "Wha..." Yuel blinked. Didn''t that goof realize what just happened? Trickshow was rendered useless. The whole attack ended in failure. "But, your Trickshow..."


    "Yeah, that part sucks," Lars nodded as he dodged Ellen''s attempt to snipe him from the sky. "But, so what of it? I''mma just take her down with basics!"


    "But, that''s..." Yuel''s words trailed off. No, Lars was right. Even without Trickshow, Lars was a mechanical beast! He will surely take Ellen down in a fair fight!


    The beautiful shot Lars landed on Ellen in midair brought Yuel to his senses. This wasn''t over yet! Howard threw off their plans a little, but it just meant they couldn''t guarantee a 100% chance kill on Ellen. Okay, so now it was just 80% chance, still good enough!


    [Wait, Howard must have realized that too- ack!] Yuel''s daze cost him. Howard almost caught up with the slowed Lars. He must have been planning to pincer Lars!


    In a 1v1, Lars had a good chance. However, against both Ellen and Howard at once - Lars was a goner for sure. Yuel was also here, but his basic attacks were even weaker than Paladin''s and they were ranged, which meant Ellen will have an easier time dodging them. And, in the first place, Yuel was too far from Ellen right now, so he couldn''t even support Lars right away! Goddammit!


    [I have to get Howard out of the picture!] That''s all Yuel could do right now. He couldn''t compete in term of damage output, but he still had tools at his disposal.


    Yuel cut in between Howard and Lars with an Impulse Bomb in hand. By activating the skill "Use Tool" he crushed the bomb flask in his hand. A booming impulse erupted around him and blew Howard away!


    [Yes! It worked!] Yuel got Howard out of the picture! Phew, this was a close one.


    "Yo! Dude!" Lars exclaimed. "I didn''t hear this was part of the plan!"


    "Ah." Yuel mentally face-palmed. The impulse exploded all around Yuel, so it hit Lars too and sent the goof flying. Oops. The explosion didn''t deal any damage to Lars, but it caused a terrible misposition. "I-I Just thought I''d help you get to Ellen faster. Yeah."


    "Thanks, dude! VERY nice of ya!" Lars chuckled and his grin didn''t vanish for even a moment. He was a total sucker for chaotic developments like these!


    Thankfully, the explosion didn''t send Lars that far. Still, it brought him closer to Ellen and that put them at a disadvantage because Ellen will have an easier time slipping by them. With Lars''s reduced movement speed, he won''t be able to keep up.


    But, Lars didn''t have the time to think about these matters. He just had to settle this fight as quickly as possible without getting killed in the process. Easy, yo!


    "My, what a predicament," Ellen rolled as soon as she landed and dodged Lars''s shot by a hair''s breadth. She was down to 33% HP, so like three more hits and she''s dead for sure. Scary.


    Ellen retaliated and fired toward the spot where Lars was expected to land, but he dodge-rolled as soon as he touched the ground. Tch, unfortunate, but her main goal wasn''t to hit him anyway. The time which Lars spent on rolling and recovering was extra time for Ellen to scram! DAAAAAAASH~¡ï


    "Should I go into the Jungle?" Ellen asked, seeing as Howard was blown too far away to help her.


    "No," Howard said. "Just get back as quickly as you can."


    "Gotcha." Ellen continued dashing toward her side of the lane while occasionally sneaking a shot on Lars.


    "Geh," Lars made a face as another shot him, dropping him down to 20% HP. He planned to side-step that shot, but his reduced movement speed got in the way. It also made it difficult for him to chase Ellen. That fox was totally gonna slip away, yo!


    But, Lars almost got her! Ellen was already below 10% HP, so he needed only one more hit! Just one! Even a normal basic shot would do the job! But, Ellen got out of his range. His bullets won''t reach her.


    But, not all was lost. The silence from Justice Strike finally faded and Trickshow''s effect was still on, so Lars could spam his abilities for like two seconds! He slid after Ellen right away!


    [It''s already back!]? Ellen exclaimed as heard the sound of Trickslide behind her. Darn it, what a persistent beastie! She almost got away, but noooooo. Of course lil'' Larsy had to chase her down like a stalker.


    But well, it''s not like she wasn''t prepared for this. Ellen was saving her Backfire Cannon for this sort of situation. That was her trusty panic button~


    Ellen turned around to face Lars and aimed Backfire Cannon at him. She wasn''t gonna just escape, she''ll also smack Larsy on her way out~! That''ll teach him to mess with her!


    To be honest, she probably won''t be able to land this shot. But, it''ll definitely make Lars either roll aside or slide aside. Either way, it''ll slow him down and give Ellen more time to escape. Brilliant plan~¡ï


    [Oh boy!] Lars grinned when a cannon dropped in front of Ellen. She was going for her last resort and she was aiming right at him! Things were getting intense!


    [I won''t die if I''m hit by that stuff, right? Probably not. Probably. Anyway, let''s go for it! She ain''t getting away, yo!] Lars chained another Trickslide, but he didn''t slide to either side. No, he charged straight ahead! Right toward the cannon pointed at him! "Dodging"? The heck did that word even mean? He was driving forward full gas ahead, yo!


    A cannon shell flew straight toward his face... and missed. He slid underneath the shell! Matrix shenanigans, yo!


    [Excuse me!?] Ellen roaring internally. What the flipping heck was that just now!? Did somebody order a circus? Because there was an acrobatic monkey right there!


    [Uh-oh.] Ellen gulped. This was bad. Like, really, really, REALLY bad. One more hit and she''s done for. And, because Lars didn''t dodge like he was supposed to, he might actually catch up to her. "Wardy, save me~"


    [Woohoo!] Lars celebrated after getting past the cannon shell. He saw Trever pull this stunt before, so he adopted this pro level play. Sickest thing ever, yo!


    After Lars finished the slide, Ellen was finally within reach again. This was it! He took aim. A single hit will seal the deal. It didn''t even have to be a Trickshot, a basic attack will suffice. She was so ded- wha!? A wild Paladin appeared! Howard blinked between Ellen and Lars!


    [Gah! Then, I''ll shoot through ya!] Lars switched to Trickshot because it could pass through units. There''s no stopping him now! He was gonna shoot right through Aegis and strike Athena down!


    Except, there a problem. Howard was in the middle of raising his shield, so Divine Shield was going to be a thing. Trickshot will just get absorbed in Howard''s shield at this rate! Nuuuuu!


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    [Geh! T-Then, I''ll shoot around you!] There was only one option left: a bouncing shot from the side! If Lars can''t shoot through Howard, he''ll just shoot around him! E-Easy!


    In the split second before clicking, Lars rotated to aim at the wall. There was no time to figure the right angle or literally anything. He just had to shoot! Right now! He had to trust his honed trick-shooting instincts!


    The bullet hit the wall and bounced off it. Okay, this was the easy part. Next, it had to actually hit Ellen...!


    [A Trickshot?] Ellen heard the distinctive sound effect. Knowing Lars, he might find a way to make his shot reach her even though Howard. Therefore, Ellen rolled forward without thinking twice. This outta mess up Lars''s aim- aya!


    It didn''t help. As if anticipating Ellen''s roll, the Trickshot caught Ellen during the start of her roll. The bullet pierced right through her shoulder. It was a hit. A fatal hit.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "My, how infuriating," Ellen dropped back on her chair.


    "I almost got you out," Howard shook his head. "Lars apparently changed his aim in the very last moment after seeing me."


    "Yep, Larsy is crazy like that."


    "I was sure the most he''d be able to do is either shoot into my Divine Shield or miss. I guess I was naive. Heh, to think it was like half a step difference."


    "Hm? What do you mean?"


    "My timing," Howard explained. "I''m sure if I delayed my blink just a little, Lars wouldn''t have been able to change his aim so easily. Against most people, it''s best to blink as soon as possible in these situations, but apparently, this rule doesn''t apply to Lars."


    "Yeah, Larsy is special. You can''t block this brute when he got Trickshooter."


    "But, I have to able to. There will be others at his level at the nationals. You expect me to give this excuse to the scouts from Grandview when they ask me why I blew the nationals?"


    No, of course not. Ellen didn''t even need to respond. Howard was aiming to play in Utopia, the strongest high school team in the country. If he really wants to get into prestige team, he can''t allow himself to be held back by some acrobatic trick-shooting clown.


    "Well," Howard smiled weakly. "I suppose that''s how this match gotta go. That Impulse Bomb play looked like something Yuel planned way in advance. Had we managed to shut it down, maybe today''s match would have ended right there."


    "Really?"


    "You didn''t see Yuel''s reaction, did you?" Howard smiled meaningfully. "For a moment there, he completely froze in place. He was shocked when I silenced Lars because that kinda killed the entire follow-up play he planned. Maybe he even thinks I''m some chess pro who reads twenty turns ahead, haha."


    "My, Yuyu is so fun to bully~"


    "I''m sure it would have shattered his confidence as a shot-caller if you managed to slip away in that situation. Then, this match would have become a much easier ride to victory. Oh well, the ''unexpected developments'' during that play must''ve shaken him enough."


    "And that''s great for us~"


    "That''s for sure."


    In the other room, Yuel and Lars celebrated the successful kill.


    "We did it, yo!" Lars pumped a fist. "Easy!"


    "Yeah, right. Easy." Yuel rolled his eyes but he found himself smiling too. Despite the hiccups along the way, they ultimately secured a kill on Ellen. Yuel''s plan was made into a success through Lars''s strength. It was great!


    But, another feeling brewed inside Yuel as well. It took him multiple days to plan this and other strong plays against Howard and Ellen. Nevertheless, Howard nearly shut down the entire play on the spot. If not for Lars''s quick wit, Ellen would have slipped away for sure.


    [Even that much preparation isn''t enough?] Yuel frowned. Aegis, the absolute defense. Every time Yuel tried to pierce through it, he was forced to realize anew how impenetrable it was.


    Will any of the other plays he prepared work against Howard? There was no guarantee. Still, Yuel and Lars won this first exchange. They now had to push this early advantage all the way to victory!

 75 Thirst for Strength

    For Gregory, this stupid "starter selection match" came out of left field. And honestly, it didn''t even feel like it was meant to "select" anybody. The positions for the first string were already pretty much set in stone: Howard, Gilbert, Dan, Roi, and Ellen.


    In truth, this match was nothing but a farce. It''s just gonna be a shitshow in which everybody beat the crap outta Yuel and Lars. After all, there''s no way these losers can carry the team better than Howard. And even if they somehow win this selection match, there''s no way Howard gonna be like "Yep, I''m totally fine with this" and step down from his precious captain position.


    [This entire thing is just one big joke, kek.] Gregory didn''t want to delude himself for even a moment. But still, Howard sold this as a "starter selection match" to Gregory and Taison, he even went as far as suggesting they could make it into the first string if they perform well today. Yeah, fat chance. They''ll never become starters this year... or, maybe?


    Honestly, there''s never knowing for sure with Howard. Back when he was saying it, he sounded genuine enough. Howard probably didn''t really believe any of them could best the first string players, but he''ll surely take them into consideration if that happens. After all, Howard was a straightforward guy in that sense. He wanted to win, so he wanted the strongest pieces he could get.


    In other words, if Gregory proves he''s strong, he''ll be picked. Simple as that.


    But, of course, there had to be a catch to such a sweet deal. Due to how Howard arranged this stupid selection match, he had to give Gregory the Solo role instead of Support. Not exactly the most fitting role for DaBestSupport, kek.


    Or, maybe it was fate? Maybe God dropped this trial on Gregory? After all, he had been considering switching to Solo for some time now.


    Back when Gregory joined the club, he had a strong rivalry with Yuel. He was totally planning to kick that snotty guy''s ass and steal the Support spot on the team. He even proclaimed himself DaBestSupport, topkek.


    But then, Howard happened. A strong, confident, skilled, experienced and knowledgeable player, and also a great leader if all that wasn''t enough. Gregory figured right away he was no match to that top dog, so should forget about playing in tournaments until his third year. He accepted that shit because there''s literally nothing he could do about it.


    But, Yuel didn''t get the message. That mofo kept challenging Howard time and again, aiming for that sweet starter spot. What a dumbass. Yuel must have had a fetish for embarrassing himself, kek.


    What''s real dumb, though, was Howard''s special treatment of Yuel. Even though Howard always took jabs at Yuel and criticized that scrub, he also paid a lot of attention to Yuel for some reason. When Yuel made a weak shot-call during practice, Howard debated it with him over the break. When Yuel proposed a crazy plan of attack with a shit ton of holes in it, Howard suggested how to make it safer. No matter what Howard claimed, he constantly paid attention to Yuel.


    But wait wait wait, wasn''t there another amazing Support player in the club? Ya know, a certain DaBestSupport? Hello? Anybody? No? Okay.


    Gregory planned to beat Yuel in their third year to get the starter spot, but he wasn''t even on these guys'' radars. In practice, there were only two Support players in the club: Howard and Yuel. Gregory? Who''s that mofo?


    Seriously, that''s how it felt. They let Gregory play Support from time to time in practice matches, but way less than they let Yuel do it. It''s clear everybody preferred Yuel over Gregory as Support. These damn ungrateful scrubs.


    Why? What was wrong with Gregory''s play? Well, he wasn''t strong enough, that''s what. Whether it''s about picking players or picking friends, everybody preferred strong guys. The weak and untalented were useless, they only existed to be made fun of.


    Yeah, Gregory was weak. Or at least, that''s what everybody around him claimed. He really didn''t want to accept that, but a certain conversation he overheard drove that point home.


    "So," Aron started. "You decided who you''re going to make the vice-captain next year?"


    "Yeah," Howard replied. It was a secret conversation between the two top dogs of the club. Gregory shouldn''t have eavesdropped, but screw the rules that sounded interesting as heck.


    "There''s only one option, really," Howard continued. "Yuel."


    [Only one option?] Gregory grimaced. Sure, Lars and Taison were monkeys and Julia was an emotional bitch. But, what about Gregory? He was a smart, good-looking, intelligent, skilled and knowledgeable player!


    Well, okay, maybe a few of these points were debatable. But still, he was far from a nobody. His game knowledge and decision-making skill should be on par with Yuel''s. He also knew how to gather, process and organize data. So, Gregory was totally a candidate for the vice-captain position. Heck, he could even run for president if he wanted!


    "I agree," Aron said. "Yuel seems like the best candidate at the moment."


    Zero objections and not a single mention of Gregory''s name. Did people forget he exists? Man, already going senile at this age? Topkek shenanigans.


    ... but damn, that stupid conversation. It reduced Gregory to a nobody who never even stood a chance against Yuel. Why? Why!?


    They were both mechanically trash players. They both relied on game knowledge and dirty tactics to beat stronger mofos. Then why? Why wasn''t Gregory on anybody''s radar!? Why was he always treated like some weak nobody!?


    Seriously, the flying fuck? Gregory worked his ass off to research Classmancers back in grade school, just so he could play Support that satisfied Taison. When the two of them joined arms, they were unbeatable! They were the strongest! They even stomped Lars, the popular guy who always in the center of everybody''s attention. They embarrassed that loser in front of the entire class!


    But, then came Yuel and flipped everything on its head. That damn degenerate.


    If Yuel is nominated vice-captain, he also gonna become the captain after that. And, of course, he''ll be the one who chooses which role goes to who. In other words, Gregory, and Taison will be fucked. They won''t get to play Support and Carry even in their third year.


    Julia probably gonna get Mid because she held Yuel''s balls, so the only remaining positions will be Solo and Jungler. Therefore, if Gregory wants to play competitively at some point in middle school, his best bet was Solo.


    "Hey, what''s up, GG?" Taison asked after being called over.


    "Who you fuckin'' calling GG?" Gregory hissed. "Anyway, listen. I''m thinking about maining Solo."


    "Huh?" Taison raised an eyebrow. "The heck you''re on about?"


    "I''ve been thinking about it for a while. Yuel will probably be selected as the team captain eventually, so-"


    "Huh? Why would that happen? That dude only knows how to come up bullshit ideas."


    "Bullshit ideas that [work]," Gregory corrected. He didn''t mention the conversation he overheard because Taison wasn''t exactly the type who knew how to keep their trap shut, so instead, Gregory pretended it was all hypothetical. "Why do I think Yuel will become the vice-captain? Well, everybody thinks he''s some hot stuff. Besides, who else you think can lead the club after Howard is gone?"


    "There''s DaBestBro right here!" Taison grinned like an idiot while pointing at himself.


    "So, as you see, there are only two real options here: me or Yuel."


    "Hey! I can totally be the cap!"


    "Jokes aside, that''s our situation," Gregory shrugged." It''s either me or Yuel, and pretty sure right now most people are in Yuel''s favor."


    "Yeah, okay, maybe that that''ll happen. So, what of it?"


    "You really don''t get it?" Gregory sighed. "If Yuel becomes the captain, he gets decides the roster. He gonna place himself as Support and who do you think he gonna pick for Carry?"


    "DaBestBro, of course!"


    [Does this guy even have a brain?] Gregory felt like facepalming all the way through his skull. This was going nowhere, so enough being roundabout. "He''ll take Lars for Carry. So, neither of us will get to play in tournaments even in our last year."


    "No way in hell," Taison''s face twitched. "I gonna play tournaments, yo! My bro gonna be a starter in Venom next year, and I''mma be a starter in StormBlitz!"


    "Yeah, I also wanna play but, at this rate, we won''t be able to because Yuel and Lars kinda exist. We''ll have to break their arms or something if we wanna play, kek."


    "I''ll do it, yo!"


    [Will he? He might, honestly.] Even Gregory couldn''t tell. "Anyway, I got a better solution. How about we switch roles? I can play Solo and you''re kinda alright at jungling, so you can play Jungle."


    "Nah, bro. Jungle is cool and all, but I wanna be the Carry! That''s like being the ace, ya dig?"


    "So, what do you prefer? To play in tournaments without being the ace? Or, to not play at all?"


    "Of course, I''mma play in tournaments! As the ace!"


    [My brain cells need an ambulance.] Gregory massaged his temples. "Anyway, I think I''mma give it a shot. I''ll try focusing on Solo a little more from now on and see how it goes."


    "But mah brosef, ain''tcha ''DaBestSupport''? How ya gonna play Solo with that name? Khaha."


    [No need to rub it in, dammit! It''s not like I wanna do it either! Dumbass.] Gregory wondered why was he still here, just to suffer? "Anyway, that''s all I wanted to say. I suggest you to play more Jungle too, in case Yuel really becomes the captain." [And I know he will, at this rate.]


    "Hm, okay, I guess," Taison crossed his arms. "But, I still gonna be the ace! And play in tournaments!"


    "Yeah, yeah." Gregory looked away. [At least, you have a better chance than me because people actually think you''re a good player. It''s because of you that I...]


    Gregory was overshadowed, that''s the only explanation to this bullshit. Even though Taison was an idiot with a minus 200 IQ, he was a strong player. He has been playing Classmancers with his bro for longer than any other freshman and he was mechanically skilled.


    As a result, Taison''s strength overshadowed Gregory''s. Nobody took notice of Gregory because Taison was stealing all the good parts when they played as a duo. Even though Gregory was the one who always had to cover up the shit Taison caused, nobody appreciated him for that hard work. All they saw were Taison''s successes, while Gregory was also sorta there maybe.


    Supports were often underappreciated due to their less active role, but this shit was getting outta hand. Good players would know how to gauge a good Support, but Howard and Aron were a bunch of blind fools. They won''t recognize good supporting even if somebody shoves it in their faces.


    To get the spotlight he deserved, Gregory first had to step out of Taison''s shadow. Playing Solo was the best way to do it because it''s a lane where he had to rely only on himself throughout half the match. That''s why he liked calling it "Solo" instead of "Top". It was an isolated lane with mostly 1v1 action. And for Gregory, this lane was a grand stage prepared solely for him to play as the leading actor.


    With that convincing, Gregory focused more and more on playing Solo. He still often played Support for Taison in the club, but in his private time, he poured hours into Solo.


    On one hand, Solo was one of the easiest roles to play. Solo classes were mostly bruisers and tanks, so survivability was high and the enemy laner didn''t apply that much pressure. On the other hand, mastering Solo was quite the pain. It was a lane on which every type of player skill had roughly equal importance. Mechanical skill was useful for the many 1v1 scenarios, decision-making was important for not losing the lane and game knowledge was needed to counter-pick and counter-build.


    As a result, there were all sorts of different Solo Laners. Some were brutes like Roi who relied on raw strength, whereas others were intellectuals like Gregory who used game knowledge to counter their lane opponents.


    Like the genius Gregory was, he knew that knowledge was his strongest suit. Therefore, he polished that area more than anything else. He read the upvoted guides, watched recommended ClassTube videos and so forth. Of course, he was also up to speed with all the spicy Solo Lane memes; very important.


    And today, in this "selection match", Gregory finally gonna reveal his insane Solo Laner skills to the entire world! It''s a fateful trial, no doubt arranged for him by God himself! Today will be the day he beats Roi and claims himself a spot on the first string! And also, today, Gregory will get to crush the hopes and dreams of Yuel by stopping that nerd from getting into the first string! Two birds with one stone, topkek.


    As for preparations, Gregory did plenty. In addition to the time the team spent training together, Gregory also spent some of his off-time researching Roi. As a fellow guild member in the game, Gregory could easily access Roi''s match history. All matches from the past week were set to "private" to avoid info leaks between the teams, but any of Roi''s older games were accessible.


    So, of course, Gregory abused this privilege. He studied which classes Roi played the most, what were Roi''s win ratios with them, what Roi usually built and so on. All that crap was too much to process though, so Gregory used the app Classmancer Analyst, which summarized the data for him.


    It was really convenient. He just had to dump Roi''s match history into the app and it showed lots of useful shit. It even collected some data from the actual match replay, such as when and where Roi went to farm jungle camps. It had everything Gregory needed for taking down that Goliath.


    As expected from today''s greedy apps, all these fancy analytics features were locked behind a paywall. Buuuuuuut, Gregory just download a crack. [Who''d pay for this shit when you can get it for free, kek.]


    Gregory jotted down the major points about Roi''s playstyle and researched counter picks. He even opened some forum threads under an alt account and asked for the best way to counter classes which didn''t have any natural counters, like Knight which was one of Roi''s favorites and a high tier Solo Laner in general.


    As expected, there were some troll replies in these threads like "git gud" and such. However, the most upvoted posts usually made some sense. There were a few odd suggestions thrown into the mix and were still upvoted, like how supposedly Warrior could deal well with Knight despite being a trash-tier class. But,t otherwise, the suggestions were good.


    All in all, Gregory came pretty damn prepared for the match today. He knew exactly what Roi gonna pick and how that mofo gonna play. Everything was calculated to a T. This was Gregory''s time to shine in a solo performance!


    Then why? Why the flying fuck did Roi pick Dark Knight? It''s one of Roi''s least played classes! Gregory even double-checked the data on Classmancer Analyst during the drafting phase and there was almost nothing!


    What the actual fuck. Roi wasn''t supposed to play this kind of shit. Like, it''s a flippin'' Dark Knight of all things. Roi played mostly fair and strong classes like Knight, not this garbo.


    [Hoho, I see, I see. Roi is so scared of my analytical skill that he''d rather play one of his niche classes instead of facing me with a class I''ve already researched! Yes! Fear my genius, peasant!]


    No, of course not. In the first place, Roi probably wasn''t that smart. And, the guy was hella confident in his skill, so he wouldn''t think twice about going all out with his usual playstyle.


    Then, why Dark Knight? Why in this match? Of course, because it''s freakin'' Dark Knight, the anti-fun noob stomper. Dark Knight was the strongest early-game bully in the game because he boasted the highest base damage during the early-game. Therefore, Dark Knight destroyed any scrubs who had no idea WTF they were doing during the early game.


    Back when Gregory first picked the game, he liked him some Dark Knight too. Getting 10 kills a row and dominating the game was the best. Boy. those were fun times, probably the most fun he ever had playing Classmancers.


    But, that didn''t last forever. Once Gregory started facing more competent players, Dark Knight became trash. Against enemies who knew when to defend and when to pressure, Dark Knight was either stalled until late-game or get his ass whooped due to its suicidal game plan.


    Thus, Dark Knight will only be forever immortalized as "a fun class" in his memories, but nothing more. Nowadays, Gregory couldn''t play that edgy boi without a high chance of getting rekt, even in casual. One of these days, he should make a smurf account to pwn some noobs with Dark Knight, kek.


    Anyway, Dark Knight was trash at this level of play. It was apparently sorta viable in the high-level pro scene in some niche scenarios, but everybody here were mid-level players at best. No way Roi can dominate a game as Dark Knight here, especially considering the guy barely even played the class.


    Not to mention, there was one huge requirement for playing Dark Knight: you had to be better than your lane opponent. Only then, Dark Knight had any chance to exhibit his stomping ability. That stuff was hella rare in the pro scene because everybody there was preeeetty good. But, it still happened sometimes, mostly in C-League.


    So, by picking Dark Knight, Roi was basically saying "Come at me, nub. I''mma whoop yo ass, you filthy trash kid." In other words, Gregory wasn''t even on Roi''s radar as a threat. Gregory was, and remained, a nobody in everybody''s eyes.


    "So, Greg," Howard spoke in the middle of the drafting phase. "You sure you don''t want to try turtling? It''s D-Knight, so turtling is a viable opening here."


    "No fuckin'' way," Gregory pressed his glasses against his nose. "Lemme at that fucker. I''ll show him what happens when you think you can DK me."


    "Don''t lose your cool over it. It''ll hurt your performance."


    "No problem, chief. I''m calm. REAL calm." Gregory insisted. "Lemme fight that D-Knight. I''mma pwn it."


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    "If you''re sure," Howard shrugged. "As I said, I don''t plan to force you into playing hyper defense. If you want to challenge Roi, go ahead."


    "You won''t regret it," Gregory promised. "So, Knight for me, pls."


    "You got it." Howard picked Knight. Good, that''s how it gotta be.


    Until a few moments ago, Gregory was borderline fine with following Howard''s turtling game plan. However, after seeing Dark Knight, it became a different story. He''s gonna destroy Roi. He''ll mop the floor with that pompous bastard. Gregory will prove that he was a strong player, that he was more than just a scrub hiding in Taison''s shadow!


    [This looks like a recipe for disaster.] Howard had a complicated expression. [But, I should probably thank Yuel for this Dark Knight. It''ll serve me well.]


    Gregory headed into the first match with burning fighting spirit. But, who will it end up burning? His opponent? Or, Gregory himself?

 76 Dark Knight, the Early Game Bully

    The first game of the "selection match" began but, unfortunately, Gregory didn''t get to collect much data on Roi''s Dark Knight. He reviewed the info he dumped into Classmancer Analyst but there wasn''t anything that stood out. Maybe there were some good statistics buried deeper in the report, but there was no time to dig them up.


    In some games, Roi stomped the other team and went 10/0, while in other games he didn''t achieve anything of note. Extreme highs and lows, pretty standard distribution for unreliable trash like Dark Knight. This edgy boi was always either hella oppressive or a useless nobody.


    [Whatever. I''ll figure it out on the go.] Gregory played enough Dark Knight in his earlier days, so he knew the gist of it. There was no way he''d lose to some cheap noob stomper class. Gregory was stronger than that, dammit!


    Following the standard game opening, Gregory headed to the Wraith Camp together with Gilbert. While Gregory aggro''d the wraiths and took their attacks in the face, Gilbert blasted them away with Eldritch Blast.


    [Man, this feels like slavery.] Gregory made a face. As a Support player, he was kinda used to being a meat shield for others. However, Gregory wasn''t Gilbert''s Support. Heck, he wasn''t a Support at all this game, he was a Solo Laner, dang it. Gregory was supposed to be his own boss.


    Of course, Gregory understood this was an efficient opening. Minions just spawned and hadn''t reached the lane yet, so players had a short window of time to farm in the jungle. Gregory actually supported the idea of farming as much as possible to gain an advantage. Over-grinding for the win! That''s how he beat bosses in every RPG.


    Nevertheless, this opening has been irking Gregory this entire week. It''s like the Solo Laner was slaving away for the Mid Laner without getting anything in return. Gregory and Gilbert shared the exp from the camp, but according to the meta the blue buff had to go to Gilbert. Gregory wasn''t gonna get shit.


    Yeah, yeah, Mid was the most important lane. Yeah, mages needed CD and MP5 more than bruisers. Yada yada yada. Bleh.


    [I''m the one tanking this shit, so at least gimme something in return.] Gregory grumped. It''s just one of these things he had to accept as part of being a Solo Laner. No matter how many times he followed this routine, it never became any easier to digest.


    Like, his fam Knight could also use some CD and MP5, ya know? After all, Gregory gonna go toe-to-toe with Roi, a starter from the first string. Shit ain''t gonna be easy. Of course, Gregory was gonna trash that edgy boi, but he wouldn''t mind getting some buffs to make the job easier.


    "Hey," Gregory started. "Gil, my man. You don''t mind if I take the buff, right?"


    "Excuse me?" Gilbert raised an eyebrow as if Gregory just said something in Chinese.


    "C''mon, man. You''re already a starter and you''re paired against July. It should be a walk in the park for ya, right?"


    "Yes, it should be easy enough."


    "Right? Right?"


    "As long as I have the blue buff, of course."


    "Kek, bastard." Gregory sneered. His hopes and dreams were shot down as soon as they formed. Welp, at least he tried.


    They finished the Wraith Camp and Gilbert claimed the blue buff. Gregory was tempted to steal it just to spite but decided against it. Poking Gilbert for lulz was one thing, but getting on Howard''s bad side was more trouble than this buff was worth.


    [Meh, whatever. Who even needs a buff against DK.] Gregory parted ways with Gilbert and headed to Solo Lane.


    Along the way, he passed by the Wolf Camp. It was tucked away right beside the lane, inviting Gregory to farm it. Alas, he couldn''t do it because he spent all his cash on Iron Boots and HP Potions for surviving Dark Knight''s onslaught. As a result, he didn''t have enough damage to efficiently clear these wolves.


    Of course, Gregory COULD clear the camp if he really wanted. He wasn''t some weakling who''d get pwned by scrubby wolves. However, dealing with them would take too long without any power items in his build, so in the meantime, he''d miss on farm from the lane.


    What a waste. Gilbert usually built power and went straight for the Wolf Camp without thinking twice, but here he had to respect Dark Knight''s early-game damage. That shit was scary when you didn''t build any defense, so the Iron Boots and HP Potions were necessary for Gregory to avoid getting instantly cucked.


    Soon after Gregory reached the lane, Roi appeared too. And, somehow, that mofo was already at Lv.2.


    [Shit, he did the wolves.] Gregory clicked his tongue. He also could have been at Lv.2 right now if he cleared the wolves. Shit. The game just started and he was already out-leveled.


    [He finished the camp hella fast too.] Gregory knotted his brows. Roi built Samurai Tabi, the most offensive shoes in term of raw power. Combined with Dark Knight''s naturally high damage, it''s not surprising Roi cleared two camps in the time it took Gregory to clear one.


    [Dammit, just you wait. I''ll get the advantage back before you realize!] First, Gregory will farm up while keeping himself alive. Eventually, he''ll outlast Roi''s Dark Knight on the lane and will get an opportunity to push ahead. After all, Dark Knight was a suicidal edgy boi.


    "Oh shi-" A dark wave sliced through Gregory! The black slash passed through all the minions on the frontline and then hit Gregory too, deleting 20% of his HP! Aggressive ahoy!


    So, it began. This was the overpowered attack which hit like a truck was the Dark Knight''s spam skill: Dark Blast. Just a few hits from that shit and Gregory will be a goner. He immediately spent two HP potions to compensate for the damage. They will slowly, but surely, restore all the HP he lost.


    "Respect his Dark Blast," Howard lectured. "You''re hanging too close around the minions. Roi won''t hesitate to aim at you instead of the bowmen if you give him the chance."


    "Yeah, I kinda realized already," Gregory grunted. Dark Blast was a great wave clear, on par with the stuff mage usually had. The black slash traveled through the air in a line and dealt a shit ton of damage. Basically, it was everything one could ask from a wave clearing ability. One hit from that bad boy was enough to bring an entire minion wave to the brink of death, at least in the early game.


    But, back there, Roi opted for hitting Gregory instead. He fired Dark Blast through the swordsmen on the frontline and then the attack flew toward Gregory instead aiming at the bowmen. Needless to say, Gregory didn''t expect this level of aggressiveness right from the get-go.


    [This guy doesn''t get the true fun of DK.] Gregory shook his head. Wiping out the enemy''s entire minion wave and leaving them alone against a gang, THAT''S where the real fun was at. Not killing the bowmen was such a wasted opportunity.


    Well, whatever. This warning shot made it clear Roi won''t always prioritize clearing minions first. So, Gregory will have to be a little more careful about his positioning.


    [Just you wait. I''ll make your life hell.] Gregory smirked. Once he hit Lv.2, he spent 1 SP on Honorable Duel. This gonna be topkek.


    As the next minion wave was about to arrive, Gregory advanced on his own. He reached the enemy minions first and taunted the swordsmen with Honorable Duel, then turned around and ran away. Kek, take that!


    Gregory led the enemy minions away and broke their usual formation. In response, Gregory''s minions responded to the new enemy positions and broke their formation as well. As a result, the whole lane became a mess! The minions were scattered around like a bunch of unruly brats.


    [How about that? Salty?] Gregory smirked. Dark Blast was a hax OP skill no doubt, but it traveled in a straight line. It must have been designed to hit an entire minion wave because these idiots always conveniently lined up in one column, just asking to be shot.


    But, what happens when the minions are forced to break formation? Boy, that''s where the fun began. With the minions scattered around, Dark Blast couldn''t possibly hit all of them in one shot. This was the topkek counter to Dark Knight''s bullshit!


    [He must be hella mad.] Gregory amused himself with the image of Roi''s annoyed expression. Gregory had played enough Dark Knight to know these situations felt like shit. There''s nothing more annoying than stupid minions not lining up to be slaughtered like proper sheep. That always killed half the fun of playing Dark Knight-


    "Again!?" Another Dark Blast smacked Gregory! What the actual fuck!? Roi didn''t even wait for the minions to slow down! Dude had no chill.


    [That shithead is out for blood. Damn, son.] Gregory tapped his foot. This was some clown fiesta Dark Knight gameplay. Roi didn''t give a single fuck about the minions and fired straight at Gregory.


    Was that some sort of special playstyle Roi developed? Or, maybe that''s how Dark Knight was played on higher levels of play? Honestly, Gregory had no damn idea. He ditched that trash tier class ages ago, so he didn''t bother researching it much. High tier classes were the only thing that mattered in this game.


    [Okay, this is starting to get a little annoying.] Gregory has already spent all his potions and was still hanging at 70% HP. These Dark Blasts raped his HP bar.


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    But hey, Roi was even worse off. The guy only had 50% HP because Gregory''s minions retaliated against him every time he hit Gregory. These little mofos took revenge for their beloved boss! So touching, kek.


    But, the main reason Roi had low HP was due to Dark Blast. On top of costing MP, it also cost 5% of the user''s HP, not exactly fun. With great power comes great responsibility, kek.


    Between aggro-ing Gregory''s minions and spending HP on Dark Blasts, Roi was quickly burning himself out. Not to mention, the Dark Blasts didn''t even hit Gregory''s entire minion wave, which gave a Gregory a huge lane advantage. His minions had enhanced defense thanks to Chivalry, his passive, so when Roi chose to not wipe them out in one fell swoop - Gregory''s remaining forces were stronger than Roi''s. Ez lane advantage.


    [Good, good. At this rate, that scrub gonna burn himself out.] Gregory smirked. Despite the few hiccups earlier, things were proceeding smoothly. With every Dark Blast which Roi fired, it was actually Gregory who was getting closer to winning the lane.


    [But still, I wanna taunt these minions. How do I go about it without getting rekt?] Gregory pondered. Advancing to the frontline was dangerous because he might eat another Dark Blast to the face.


    Nevertheless, he really wanted to pull this off somehow. Scattered minions were like the most annoying thing ever for a Dark Knight. That shit triggered Gregory all the time back when he played Dark Knight, so Roi should feel the same salt!


    Eventually, Gregory figured it out. Yes, it was the ultimate plan! Da best plan! Flawless and genius, as expected from somebody of Gregory''s caliber.


    He advanced to the frontline and activated Honorable Duel. Same as before, right? WRONG! Surprise, mothafucka! Right after activating the taunt, Gregory rolled away! That''ll totally throw Roi off and-


    "Shit!" Dark Blast struck him again! What the-!? Gregory was still in the middle of the roll! Damnmit! Did Roi misclick and fire his attack in the wrong direction? Like, there''s no way Roi saw through Gregory''s brilliant roll and adjusted in a split second, right? Nah, no way.


    Welp, this was unfortunate. The HP gap between Gregory and Roi was almost entirely closed in that one hit. Gregory was now at 50%, whereas Roi at 45%. Gregory''s faithful minions will smack Roi''s HP now, so everything was fine. Gregory still had the upper hand.


    "Greg," Howard called. "You should consider retreating."


    "Huh? Why? I''m winning here."


    "You''re running low and you don''t have any potions left. It''s risky against a D-Knight."


    "Running low? My man, I''m at 50%. The heck you on about?"


    "Yeah, half HP is usually fine, but, D-Knight is a different story. He takes about one-fifth of your HP in one hit, right?"


    "Only with Dark Blast."


    "Keep in mind his ult too. Combined, that''s already about 40%."


    "Hmm, I guess." Gregory knotted his brows. He understood what Howard was saying, but he didn''t like. It''s as if Howard was already convinced that Roi will destroy Gregory at this rate. It''s like Gregory was nothing but a punching bag who couldn''t fight back. [Am I a joke to you?]


    Like, hello? What about Roi being at 40%? That didn''t mean anything? On top of that, Roi will have to spend 5% HP on Dark Blast and 10% more on Gate of Sheol if he wants to go all out, so his 40% HP was more like 25% right now. Roi was a walking dead, kek.


    Seriously, everybody has been looking down on Gregory. Out of all the stupid nicknames Ellen invented from her sick mind, only "GG" became widespread and it''s the stupidest of them all. It''s like nobody took Gregory seriously as a player. Tch, he gonna show them...!


    "Well," Howard said. "If you feel confident about staying on lane, you can keep going."


    [Thank you so much for giving me permission, my lord.] Gregory sneered. Hah! Of course he felt confident about staying in lane; he had this shit in the bag. Ezpz.


    The plan was simple: hit Lv.5 and wreck Roi''s life. Once Gregory''s ult, Noble Steed, becomes available, he''ll have a convenient escape tool at hand. He''ll finally be able to go all out on Roi''s ass and then scram if shit hits the fan. Well, not that there was any chance anything would go wrong in Gregory''s masterful plan, but just in case.


    After a few repeated failures, Gregory gave up on triggered Roi with Honorable Duel. There was no need to do that shit anyway because Gregory''s minions were stronger thanks to their buffed defense, so he dominated the lane by default without even lifting a finger.


    Roi had to spend a Dark Blast on the minions to regain some lane control, but for some reason... he didn''t? Huh. Roi just hit minions with basics, apparently unconcerned by Gregory''s advantage. Did that guy forget about Knight''s passive or something? So strong player, such first string. Topkek shenanigans.


    [Oh! This is a huge chance! Clearly, God sent me this opportunity to destroy Roi!] Gregory couldn''t stop himself from grinning. All the pieces were here. He hit Lv.5 and still had some minions remaining, unlike Roi who didn''t have shit. Gregory couldn''t ask for a better stage! Shit was about to go down!


    Gregory fearlessly dashed ahead of his minions. His goal? None other than Roi, the big boi himself!


    As soon as Gregory got into range, he opened his assault with Shield Bash. He charged forward and slammed his shield at Roi! At least, that was the plan. Right before the shield rammed into the target - Roi vanished!


    [Damn! Where did he go!?] Gregory scanned left and right, but no sign of Roi. The guy clearly dodge-rolled, but where to!? Gregory had to quickly figure this shit because this assault wasn''t over yet...!


    The same way Dark Knight had a broken ability in Dark Blast, Knight was broken too. It''s top tier class, after all. After finishing Shield Bash, a skill that was already preeeeetty good on its own, the Knight readied his blade for an even stronger follow-up move: Blade Swing! Yeah, the name sounded kinda lame, but this bad boi was the shit.


    So, Shield Bash being dodged wasn''t a big deal on its own. In fact, Gregory suspected Shield Bash might be dodged. That''s right, everything was according to plan! Gregory''s real attack was gonna begin with Blade Swing! And for that, he had to strike Roi right away.


    [But seriously, where did that mofo go?] Gregory scanned both sides but found nothing. Roi rolled right before Gregory''s attack connected, so it was hard to see the roll''s direction from the camera''s limited third-person view. [Dammit. Why can''t this be a MOBA with an RTS point of view?]


    This was so damn weird, it''s like Roi disappeared from the face of the earth. He didn''t roll left, right or away. He definitely wasn''t up in the sky and of course not inside the ground either. Then, where!?


    As if to answer, a black blade slashed Gregory... from behind!? What the-!? Roi somehow teleported behind Gregory! And he probably gonna claim it''s nothing personal!


    How the flying heck did Roi appear behind Gregory? It''s the mystery of the millennium! Okay, not really. Roi must''ve rolled toward Gregory while Gregory was charging forward with Shield Bash. In other words, Roi rolled underneath the shield assault! What a cucklord!


    [But, you made a great mistake revealing yourself to Gregory the Great!] Gregory turned around to finally strike with... huh? Roi wasn''t there? What the...


    Another slash! Yet again, aimed at Gregory''s back. Even though Gregory turned around, Roi was behind his back yet again!


    [Bitch, are you messing with me!?] Gregory roared. That mofo must be sticking to Gregory''s back like glue! Even turning around in place had some weight to it in Classmancers, so it wasn''t as instantaneous as in many other games. Therefore, even though it should be hella hard to do, it was possible to keep stalking somebody''s back while they''re turning around.


    At least, it was possible as long as the player didn''t turn around at full speed. Gregory didn''t do that because he wanted to take a more careful aim for the upcoming Blade Swing, but no more! He gonna turn around like a supersonic fidget spinner! If he doesn''t attack soon, Blade Swing will cool off and won''t be accessible. So, he had to strike! Now!


    Gregory spun around in full speed and thrust his blade as soon as he caught a glimpse of Roi. Like before, Roi tried to bullshit his way through his situation by sticking behind Gregory, but no luck! [Cute trick, fam, but it won''t work on Gregory the Great! Your ass is mine!]


    Blade Swing shot forward. Landing a hit not only gonna deal damage but will also buff Gregory''s attack power. He''ll totally have this fight in the bag! Provided, if the attack actually connects. And, it didn''t.


    [What the...?] The blade cut through empty space. The attack lasted but a second, but it stretched to infinity in front of Gregory''s eyes. Roi was a little to the right, outside the sword''s reach.


    At that moment, Gregory realized he done fucked up. It''s not like he missed or anything. Blade Swing had a rather wide attack range, so there''s no way a deadeye like Gregory would miss with from point-blank.


    No, it was all Roi. Right before Gregory fired his attack, Roi sidestepped in the opposite direction. Roi stopped sticking to Gregory''s back for just a moment and that was all it took for Gregory to turn too much to the left and miss.


    Oh oh. Shit. Shit shit shit! Roi was still sitting on 40%, but Gregory was now hanging at 42%! When did that even happen!?


    ALERT. DANGER. GET THE FUCK OUT. Alarms rang in Gregory''s head. He messed up this attack! Or, more accurately, that scrub Roi was a little better than Gregory expected. Yeah, Roi was quite the beast in this fight, outplaying Gregory''s flawless attacks like that.


    Anyway, this was the right time to scram. Gregory booted his Noble Steed right away. Once he gets on the horse and rides away, he''ll be untouchable! Ezpz retreat.


    Except, the bully had no intention of letting Gregory slip away. Roi sliced through Gregory with Dark Blast, dealing the usual 30% damage... wait, 30%!? Wasn''t Dark Blast around 20% until now!? Did Roi level it up? No, even with a level up, that''s WAY too much damage! Gregory was playing Knight for God''s sake, not some squishy class!


    A-Anyway! Gregory finally got on his white steed, so that''s it! He was safe! Dark Blast was on cooldown, so Dark Knight won''t be able to give chase-


    "Death to the feeble!" Errie words resounded throughout the area. Oh crap! Shit! Roi hit Lv.5, so he had access to Gate of Sheol! Fuuuuuuuu!


    A large gate popped out of thin air. Forged from black metal and decorated with skulls, it was the manifestation of death itself. As the doors opened wide, a wraith emerged from inside and latched onto Gregory''s back.


    There was time to dodge. The wraith ripped out the Knight''s soul as if plucking a leaf and dragged it back into the gate of doom. The Knight turned limp and slipped off his steed, then crashed straight into the ground.


    ¡ºEXECUTED¡»


    It was a delivery of death in its purest form. There was no damage dealt, just instant death. Gate of Sheol erased anybody whose HP fell below a certain threshold. It sucked in the weak souls without giving them any chance to fight back.


    There it was, the anti-fun lane bully in all its glory. Between a blast with tremendous early-game damage and a freaking execution ult, Dark Knight was the kind of mofo nobody wanted to mess with.


    And, that bastard just trampled all over Gregory. Damn it. Maybe he should have listened to Howard earlier and retreated...

 77 Coping with Defea

    "Only the strong can survive in this harsh world." A metallic voice resounded after Gate of Sheol vanished. Gregory''s soul was sucked out, both figuratively and literally.


    ["Only the strong", huh.] Gregory took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. It was just a dumb scripted line, but it struck home right now. Gregory was completely overwhelmed by Roi because he wasn''t strong enough.


    Of course, part of it was Dark Knight''s fault. That overpowered edgy boi was the best at bullying during the early game. But, even beyond that, Roi totally outplayed Gregory at every step of the way. Gregory thought he knew how Dark Knight was supposed to be played and how to beat it, but Roi countered everything. Damn it...


    In the end, Gregory was just a weakling, he couldn''t do shit. This one-sided battle made it crystal clear: he had no future in Solo Lane. By himself, he was a worthless player.


    "Tai," Howard called out. "I need you to gank Top."


    "Okay, on it!"


    "It''ll be great if you can get a kill, but driving Roi out of lane is good enough."


    "I''mma kick his ass, no problem!" Taison claimed with a confident grin. "Gonna get there in a jiffy." He said while clearing the Wolf Camp.


    "You know," Gregory muttered. "You could''ve gotten there earlier to help me if you didn''t farm camps the whole day."


    "Hey, farming is important too, ya know? Gotta get vegetables from somewhere, right? Khaha."


    "Hilarious."


    "I mean, hey, you didn''t call for help or anything. How the hell should I know you''re in trouble?"


    "That''s... fair, I guess." Gregory pursed his lips. Right, it wasn''t Taison''s fault. Like, sure, if Taison were a half-decent Jungler with sharp decision-making, he would have noticed Gregory''s situation and would have rotated to Solo as quickly as possible. But, Taison was just a brainless thug, so what did Gregory expect?


    "Anyway," Gregory continued. "Don''t underestimate Roi. He''s strong."


    "Well yeah, he''s playing DK."


    "It''s not just that. He''s just strong, in general."


    "No problem, yo. I''mma avenge ya, my brudda!"


    "Good luck with that." Gregory smiled wryly. With this gung-ho attitude, Taison will probably burn and crash too. Despite the friendly advice, a part of Gregory actually wished to see it happen. If Taison puts on an even fight against Roi here, then...


    "Heeeeere comes Taison!" Taison leaped onto the lane from the jungle and crashed onto the enemy minions. As soon as he landed, he swept through the remaining minions with his lance. Awesome! All the weak dawgs were dead, so it gonna be a pure 1v1 now!


    [Okay, let''s go!] Taison dashed toward Roi and thrust his lance. Wham! Easy hit! That slowpoke tried to sidestep, but no dice! Ain''t nobody getting away from Lightning Speed Taison!


    Still, though, that dude had over half his HP bar. The heck was Gregory doing here until now?


    "Yo GG," Taison called out. "Didn''tcha fight this guy? He''s healthy like a damn horse!"


    "Didn''t you check his HP before jumping him?" Gregory made a face. "I almost got him, but he restored like 30% after killing me. DK kinda got a passive, in case you forgot."


    "Oh, yeah?" Taison shrugged. Welp, that sucked ass, but no problem! He just gotta beat Roi from half HP to zero. Easy peasy lemon squeezy!


    Taison maintained his distance and thrust his lance again. Bullseye! Another clean hit! The fight only started and it''s already 2:0 to Taison!


    But, Roi ain''t no pushover, he won''t keep taking a beating like some wuss. Edgy Knight charged his blade with some edgy magic stuff and slashed through the air.


    [Oh shit, it''s that thing!] Taison exclaimed. It was that thing! The high damage shit! What was it called again? Dark Fart or something? Anyway, it was coming!


    Taison rolled aside and dodged that shit. Khaha! Easy! Now, back to offense- keh!? "When did he-!?"


    Roi was right in front of him! When did that mofo close the distance!? Shit, this ain''t good! Taison had to create some space again- geh!


    Edgy Knight slashed without any chill, taking off like 10% from Taison''s HP. Damn, even a simple basic hit like a truck! But, now it was Taison''s turn! Ha!


    Taison''s lance dug into Edgy Knight''s chest. Goal! He totally owned this- whoa! Black ooze sprayed at him from the Dark Knight''s wound! And it hurt, yo!


    [Pulling out the big guns, huh?] Taison flinched. Edgy Knight cloaked himself in a black aura. It was that Nightmare crap, Dark Knight''s second ability. Taison properly remembered this name, because it was so spot on. 1v1 against this shit was a legit nightmare, yo!


    At low ranks, there were a bunch of shitheads who thought they''re good at the game by bringing Edgy Knight to 1v1 mode. Heck, Taison did that shit too at first. The class seemed hella broken, no joke. The win streaks he had were hella funny.


    But, eventually, Taison came across stronger opponents and that''s where shit got real. These bastards did everything they could to ruin Taison''s game plan as a Dark Knight, which led to some of the most frustrating gaming experiences EVER. An Edgy Knight who didn''t start strong in the early-game was trash later on, so eventually, Taison moved on from this disappointing mess of a class.


    But, to REALLY move on, Taison first had to be strong enough to beat the trashbags who continued playing Edgy Knight. To become da best, he fought lots and lots of Edgy Knights until he figured out how to deal with that mofo. So, there''s no way this shitty class will take him out in 1v1!


    Nightmare reflected like 40% damage and buffed the heck out of Edgy Knight, but it also gradually sapped Edgy Knight''s HP. So, Taison just had to maintain his distance and let Roi burn himself out.


    [Come at me, yo!] Roi taunted by rapidly stepping back and forth. As much as he liked charging at the opponent''s face, Taison had to play the waiting game for now. [I''mma let Roi wipe out his own HP, khaha.]


    Since Taison became passive, Roi took the initiative and tried closing the distance. But, too bad, sucker! Edgy Knight had no movement options for shit! While Black Fart was on cooldown, Roi didn''t have any ranged attacks and only had his basics to rely on. As long as Taison doesn''t let that mofo get into melee range, this fight was ez.


    Roi approached from different sides and angles, but Taison just stepped away every time. A game of cat and mouse, heh.


    [I know whatcha trying to do, but it ain''t gonna work.] Taison smirked. Roi clearly tried to corner Taison against one of the jungle walls, but Taison was smarter than that. Whenever his back was forced to a wall, he re-positioned himself with a roll. [Keep trying, fam. You ain''t cornering the mighty Taison!]


    Tick tock. Tick tock. Dark Knight''s HP went down with every tick. Dude has already lost like 5% since he entered Nightmare.


    [Damn, he''s good.] Roi glanced at his HP. He was already down to 30% because of his Nightmare and he hasn''t achieved much in return. This was getting bad. Taison was hella healthy at 70% HP, so there''s no way this gonna be a fair fight. Especially, there''s Lancer''s ult to look out for. [Guess I have to scram. At least, I got myself an easy escape route. Thanks for being so cooperative, Tai! Lol.]


    [Oh, finally.] Taison grinned and clenched his mouse. The dark fog around Dark Knight dispersed. Nightmare was out of the picture, so now they could fight like real men!


    Except, apparently Roi had no intention to fight. He just turned around and dashed! Fuuuuu! He gonna get away!


    [Damn, I forgot to block his escape route. Derp.] Taison smiled wryly. While he was busy running away from Roi, he rotated to the opposite side of the lane and opened an easy escape route for Roi. Welp, damn. Good damn job, Roi. A 200 IQ play.


    But, it ain''t over yet! There was still Gae Bolg! Taison just had to close the distance a little and launch himself at Roi!


    [Follow me, by all means.] Roi threw some glances behind his back, to see if Gae Bolg was coming. "Dan, you ready to jump on Tai when comes?"


    "I''m not done with the wolves yet, but I''ll be there."


    "You still messing with the wolves? Lol, you slow as fuck, boi."


    "Hey, not my fault ClassSoft can''t give Venomancer a proper jungle clear ability."


    "How can you even play that slowpoke."


    "Yeah, he''s slow as heck, but shredding tanks is fun. Anyway, no problem. I''ll gank Tai if he comes."


    "Roger," Roi nodded. [I''ll slow down a little then, to give Tai more hope about catching up. Next level bait, lol.]


    "Hey, I can get him!" Taison exclaimed as Roi was almost within range. The guy kept turning around while running, he probably thought Taison will eventually give up. Not in a million years! Taison gonna chase his prey to the end of the world!


    "Alright, Tai. That''s enough," Howard pierced Taison with a sharp tone. "You did your part, now retreat."


    "Yo, but I almost got him! Just a little more and I''mma kill his ass!"


    "Or, maybe just a little more and you''ll get your ass ganked instead. I haven''t seen Dan for a while now."


    "Oh shit, for real?" Taison backpedaled. "Oh hey, there''s our guy." He spotted the Venomancer peeking from inside the jungle. "Yo, my man. How''s life?" Taison used a hand-waving emote inside the game, then got the heck of outta there. Phew, he almost had his ass ganked for real. Too bad he couldn''t get that sweet kill, tho.


    "Good job," Howard nodded. "That should be enough to make Roi retreat. I bet you''re salty about missing the kill but trust me, your contribution was huge. It may not look like it right now, but you saved the entire game."


    "Just doing my job, khaha."


    "..." Gregory silently watched how the whole situation unfolded. He had nothing to do because he was dead, so he closely followed the Taison vs. Roi fight. He saw every part of it.


    Taison actually fought on equal ground against Roi, the guy who kicked Gregory''s ass without breaking a sweat. Taison failed to score a kill, but even just driving Roi out of the lane was huge. It neutralized the situation Gregory caused in Solo Lane with his incompetence.


    Why? This didn''t make sense. Yeah, sure, Gregory didn''t main Solo, so it''s understandable why his combat skills were lacking. But then, what about Taison? The guy didn''t main Jungler, yet he put on a strong show anyway. It didn''t make any sense.


    Was Gregory just... weak? Was that the truth? No matter which role he played, he couldn''t deliver results. Was that the extent of his worth? Was he forever doomed to remain "GG", the joke of the club? Dammit...


    [This stupid respawn timer is taking too long. Let me back into the game already!] Gregory refused to accept this reality. He wanted another shot to prove he wasn''t some useless weakling.


    While waiting for the timer to tick to zero, something unexpected happened in Bot Lane.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    The second death in the team. This time, it was Ellen. That was a rare occurrence.


    Ellen always played safe during the early game and hid behind her pokes. Gregory knew this all too well because he was often on the receiving end of Taison''s rants when these two clashed. In practice matches, Ellen''s pokes always triggered Taison to the point he started overextending just to get a few hits on her.


    As a result, Gregory always had to do something to salvage the situation before Taison screwed himself and the team. Man, these matches were such a pain. The most Gregory ever achieved was stopping the fool from getting killed. They never actually managed to counter Ellen''s poking.


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    So, to think Yuel and Lars found a way to score a kill on that poking machine... Honestly, it was pretty impressive. Gregory missed how that play went down, but it must have been something out of this world. Yuel probably came up with another one of his bullshit plans and Lars pulled off some inhuman stunt. It''s frustrating to admit, but these two were... good. Really good.


    And, Taison was pretty good too, even as a Jungler. Only Gregory didn''t perform for shit. No, he wasn''t even "Gregory", he was just "GG". He didn''t even deserve a proper name because he was trash. Fuck...


    "Well," Howard smiled. "I suppose that''s how this match gotta go."


    Huh? He was smiling? Even though his rival just shat on him real hard? Gregory found himself staring in disbelief.


    "Something wrong?" Howard asked.


    "Uh, nothing." Gregory shifted his eyes away. "I just thought you''ll be more salty about losing to Yuel."


    "Oh, trust me, I AM salty. Very salty." Howard claimed so but there was still a faint smile on his face. "It''s just that I knew I might be biting off more than I can chew, so I can live with this result. Turns out Lars''s Trickshooter is pretty damn good after all, haha."


    This was some bizarre shit right there. That situation was "more than Howard could chew"? How was that even possible? Howard was the top dog of this club, so there shouldn''t be anything he can''t handle. That defeat should''ve completely destroyed his confidence, yet Howard was smiling like he was having fun.


    "Looks weird to you?" Howard asked as if reading Gregory''s mind.


    "Well, yeah. I mean, you just got owned."


    "You can''t win every time, right? Matches aren''t just about winning or losing, they also let you test your limits and teach you new things."


    "You sound like these YouTubers who make ''Top 10 Tips'' videos."


    "Haha. Won''t lie, I listened to many of those. But, that''s a nice mindset to have, right? You should adopt it. Think about why you lost and what you learned."


    "What I learned, huh," Gregory mumbled. All Gregory learned from the fight with Roi was that he''s complete trash who couldn''t play Solo for shit. Even a noob class like Dark Knight stomped him hard.


    "You seem to beat yourself over dying to Roi," Howard said. "But, you gotta look at it with the right mind frame. Tell me, how would you describe Roi as a whole?"


    "The Lol Guy, kek."


    "Heh, that''s definitely a thing. Anyway, when you look at Roi from your current position, what do you see? Just some senior from your club who plays Top, right?"


    "Yeah, I guess." Gregory shrugged, not sure where this was going. Like, that''s what Roi objectively was, right? A senior in the club who played Solo and the enemy Gregory had to surpass in order to play Solo competitively in the upcoming year. Also, the Lol Guy, kek.


    "That''s a narrow view," Howard stated. "You need to think on a bigger scale. Roi is actually one of the best Top Laners I''ve seen in our entire region. We still don''t know the regional lineups for the upcoming year, but I guarantee Roi will count among the strongest Top Laners in the tournament."


    [The strongest...] Gregory clenched his fists. He knew Roi was good, but THAT good? If Howard said so, then Roi probably warranted the praise.


    Thinking of it, Gregory heard something about Roi almost making it into the first string last year, so there was no doubt that everybody highly regarded the guy in the club. And, to be fair, Roi had the skill to back up that trust.


    "So," Howard continued. "If you think you lost to some nobody, you gotta reframe your perspective. You lost against one of the best Top Laners, so no need to beat yourself over it. You made a few mistakes and Roi exploited them, but that''s alright. Don''t focus too hard on the fact you lost. Instead, think about your mistakes and figure out how you gonna avoid them next time. That''s how you get better."


    "I guess that makes sense..." Gregory''s words trailed. Maybe he was really beating himself over nothing. Just because he lost so pitifully against the "strongest" didn''t mean he was necessarily weak. He just wasn''t as strong as Roi, that''s all.


    Yeah, it was only inevitable for Gregory to lose that 1v1. He "bit more than he could chew", as Howard put it. Now, that Gregory learned the gap between himself and Roi, he should give up on proving himself superior and should focus on dealing with Roi in the lane.


    How should Gregory play against one of the strongest Solo Laners in the region? To be fair, Howard already kinda gave him the answer a week ago.


    "Got it," Gregory said. "I''ll play more defensively from now on."


    "Atta boy," Howard nodded. "I know you wanted to beat Roi and take his spot, but you''re not up to the challenge yet."


    "Wha-!?" Gregory coughed. Was Howard aware of Gregory''s super secret plan to overthrow Roi all along? Nah, the guy was probably just guessing based on circumstantial evidence. Seriously tho, Howard was borderline ESP sometimes.


    [Good.] Howard nodded to himself. After they finished the conversation, Gregory had a refreshed look on his face. Now, he''ll be more willing to listen to Howard''s directions and to play defense, maybe he''ll even be willing to turtle. Being beaten to a pulp taught that brat a good lesson. Good thing this problem fixed itself so early,


    That''s one troublemaker dealt with. Next, Howard focused his attention on Taison. This "throw-away" game was a good chance to test the waters and see how far their "Lars Killer" weapon could go. Its effectiveness will undoubtedly decide a lot in the upcoming battles...

 78 The Hungry Jungler

    The match gradually transitioned toward the mid-game. Yuel''s team was leading with a 2-0 in terms of kills, one kill by Lars and one kill by Roi. The kill count alone usually didn''t tell the entire story unless there was a huge lead but, in this case, it was a fairly accurate representation of the game''s state: Yuel''s team was in a superior position.


    [Not enough.] Yuel knitted his brows. It''s great they scored two kills during the early-game, but the pace slowed down ever since.


    Howard and Ellen fortified their defenses and Yuel couldn''t find another opportunity to set up a kill. The Impulse Bomb play worked splendidly for the first time, but it won''t work again. Likewise, Gregory turtled up in Top Lane after his first death. As a result, Roi couldn''t score any additional kills.


    To be absolutely sure the team will dominate mid-game, Yuel wanted at least one more kill. The damage outputs of both Trickshooter and Dark Knight dropped off during mid-game, so another kill by Lars or Roi was needed to compensate for that. It was especially important in Dark Knight''s case, which was a hyper early-game class.


    But, how to get this one more kill? The enemy''s defense was tight, as expected from a team led by Howard. With Howard playing in Bot, it was a given that killing Ellen would be difficult. However, even Gregory did a spectacular job staying alive while maintaining minimal lane control, despite playing on the other side of the map.


    Was Gregory always this good at defense? No, it must have been Howard''s influence. Howard knew that Roi would destroy Gregory if they clashed on the lane, so he must have trained Gregory to turtle efficiently. Though, it was unclear why Gregory didn''t employ this defensive playstyle right from the start. Did he think he could beat Roi in 1v1 and that made him go against Howard''s orders?


    Either way, Top was sealed against kills. Yuel sent Dan to gank the lane a few times, but that approach didn''t see much success. Venomancer wasn''t exactly the best at finishing off weakened opponents, his specialty lied in demolishing tanks. Therefore, even though Yuel coordinated Dan''s ganks to strike at the best timing possible, Gregory always slipped away.


    [Is that also Howard''s work?] Yuel pondered. Gregory''s defense improved leaps and bounds during this short week, but that wasn''t enough time to develop such acute decision-making. Howard must have been the one issuing the timely retreat orders for Gregory.


    It seemed unlikely anybody would be able to score any kills in Top any time soon. Likewise, getting another kill in Bot seemed like a lost cause as long as Howard was there. Thus, only Mid Lane remained.


    While Gregory was turtling, Roi rotated to Mid a few times. That was one of the most efficient responses against overly defensive opponents. While Gregory was busy clearing the remains of the minion wave, Roi had the freedom to leave the lane and either steal camps or gank other lanes. Mid Lane was the closest, so Roi ganked Gilbert.


    Unfortunately, it never led to a kill because Gilbert was always prepared. One moment, Gilbert was aggressively pushing against Julia, but the next moment he was already retreating. As a player who boasted a great balance of offense and defense, Gilbert was capable of quickly switching gears from offense to defense and vice-versa. It''s like he just pressed a button and his entire playstyle did a 180.


    So, it was virtually impossible to catch Gilbert off-guard without some elaborate trick. Yuel had a few ideas in mind.


    "Roi, let''s try the Recall Feint."


    "Lol, starting the mind games? Ok, ok. love this one." Roi dialed his aggression up to eleven and pressured Gregory with everything he had. It wasn''t a very effective approach against a turtling opponent, but the goal wasn''t to kill Gregory. Roi just had to exhaust his own resources.


    "Julia," Yuel pinged the map. "Place a Sentry here and see if they got any Wards."


    "Just a sec," Julia did as she was told and placed a Sentry Ward. As Yuel suspected, there was an enemy Ward there. Julia cleared it with a single basic attack.


    Good, the "Recall Feint" was ready to go. The preparations for this play were on the costly side, but it''ll be worth it if Roi can score another kill.


    "Okay, I''m ready," Roi called out. "Let''s see if this works." He retreated just enough to stay at the edge of Gregory''s field of vision and formed a magical circle. It was the familiar animation for the Recall skill which sent players back to base.


    "Roi is recalling," Gregory announced and sighed in relief. That recent hyper-aggression from Roi was nothing to sneeze at. Even while turtling like some wuss, Gregory found himself pressured by Roi''s relentless attacks. That was some scary shit, it might even keep Gregory awake at night, kek.


    But, that''s behind him now. With Roi gone from the lane, Gregory could also recall now. At least, after he clears all these pesky enemy minions...


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    "Wha!?" Gilbert exclaimed a moment later. A thunderstorm formed in Mid Lane! Bolts struck from the sky!


    [Her ult!? Why now? But, I can get away.] Gilbert rolled out of the range of Thunderstorm after two bolts struck him. "Julia''s ult is down. Not sure why she even went for it, maybe a misclick."


    "Interesting," Howard narrowed his eyes. Julia has been playing defensively until now, so why cast Thunderstorm out of blue? Gilbert wasn''t low enough to get killed by two hits of Thunderstorm and Julia wasn''t exactly in a great position to follow up with another attack. Sure, she dealt decent damage with this play and Gilbert will have to play more cautiously for a while, but that wasn''t a good payoff for spending such a powerful AoE ult.


    [Did she want to force Gil out of position?] Howard scanned the area around Gilbert''s escape path. Maybe it wasn''t a very important detail, but Julia cast her Thunderstorm at the bottom half of the lane. As a result, the top half was the most logical place for Gilbert to flee towards.


    Was there anything around Top Jungle? A Ward revealed Dan in Bot Jungle just recently, so there was no way he''ll gank from Top Jungle. Yuel and Lars were right in Howard''s face in Bot Lane, so they had nothing to do with this situation either.


    And the last suspect, Roi, just recalled to base. He already bought Blink, so it''s extremely unlikely he could afford Teleport on top of that. Therefore, Roi had no way to... wait.


    "Gil," Howard pinged the map. "What happened to the ward over there?"


    "Julia took it out a short time ago. I didn''t have the chance to replace it yet."


    [Julia placed a Sentry over there? On top of all the other wards, she has been spreading everywhere?] Howard found this odd.


    The Sentry Ward in question was close to Top, in an area which should have been outside Julia''s jurisdiction. The Ward which Gilbert originally placed there was supposed to warn him against rotations from Top that may catch him off-guard from behind. However, for Julia, having a Ward over there didn''t severe much purpose. Knowing her tendency to ward every nook and cranny, she must have already placed better wards all over the place.


    Hrm. Between this odd Sentry Ward near Top Lane and Julia''s sudden aggression which pushed Gilbert toward Top Jungle... Wait, it couldn''t be! Was this one of Yuel''s tricks!?


    "Gil, retreat! I think Roi is rotating."


    "But, I told ya," Gregory intervened. "Roi recalled to base"


    "Did you see him actually finish the recall?"


    "Yep, I saw him vanish and all."


    "From what distance?"


    "Huh?"


    "From what distance did you watch him!?"


    "Um, he was kinda far away..." Gregory adjusted his glasses. What was this about anyway?


    "Then," Howard''s expression turned grim. "There''s a chance he blinked instead of finishing the recall. From far away, you won''t hear Blink''s sound and it won''t look any different from vanishing because of Recall. Gil, retreat!"


    "Already started," Gilbert was in the middle of dashing toward his side of the lane. Alas, the response was too slow - Roi was already here! As the feared, he didn''t recall after all. It was a Recall Feint!


    "Tai," Howard called out. "Get to Mid and help Gil deal with Roi."


    "Gotcha, fam!"


    [This will be rough.] Gilbert grimaced in front of the Dark Knight. Roi only had 30% HP and 20% MP, which was a believable reason for recalling to base. However, at the same time, it was also more than enough resources for a Dark Knight to finish off a squishy mage during the early game.


    Gilbert absolutely couldn''t die here. Feeding the Dark Knight even a little would spell doom for the entire team. He had to get out. Now.


    Unfortunately, Gilbert hasn''t bought Blink yet. Until now, he had been keeping himself alive through timely retreats and Eldritch Nightmare. The good news: Eldritch Nightmare was out of cooldown. The bad news: Gilbert didn''t have enough MP to cast it.


    [Darn it, that''s what happens when I spam invocations too much. I really need to get Blink soon.] Alas, that realization didn''t help Gilbert right now. He didn''t have Blink and he failed to retreat in a timely fashion, so he HAD to cast Eldritch Nightmare no matter what.


    Therefore, Gilbert cast it. The Warlock''s passive, Life Tap, allowed him to cast spells by paying HP instead of MP. The cost for Eldritch Nightmare was especially steep, shaving off 25% of Gilbert''s HP. However, that wasn''t a big price to pay if it''ll guarantee his survival.


    Darkness erupted from Gilbert and enveloped the entre lane, robbing the enemy''s vision. As long as Gilbert doesn''t get too close, Roi won''t be able to see him in the darkness. At least, that should have been the case...


    [I came prepared this time!] Roi dumped a Stealth Ward! Yeah, just like that, in the middle of the lane!


    Eldritch Nightmare didn''t actually make enemies blind, it was the other way around: it gave stealth to allies inside the darkness. Therefore, a Stealth Ward cut through the darkness and exposed Gilbert''s position for everybody to see!


    [He won''t see it coming, lol.] Now, that Roi knew exactly where to aim, he unleashed Dark Blast. Gilbert didn''t even try dodging because he was sure he was stealthed. Lol, too bad! It was a clean hit! Dark Blast erased 40% HP in one fell swoop!


    [Lol, DK is broken alright.] Roi couldn''t help but laugh at this absurd damage. Just one hit and almost half of Gilbert''s total HP went bye-bye. Gilbert just barely made it out alive with 5% HP, but he was as good as dead.


    [How did he land that!?] Gilbert nearly lost his entire HP bar! "Damn, I think they got me-"


    "Heeeeeeere comes Taison!" Lancer leaped onto the lane from the jungle. "I''mma save ya, bro!"


    "Wait, he can see-"


    "GAE BOLG! LET''S GOOOOOO!" Taison thrust his spear. Inside the darkness, he gonna land his ult for sure! Roi won''t even know what hit him, khaha!


    But, Roi saw everything. His Stealth Ward revealed Taison, so he saw where the attack was coming from. Roi rolled to the side to dodge the deadly spear and simultaneously to close in on Gilbert, all in one move! A 200 IQ play, lol!


    [Darn it, he''s catching up.] Gilbert was running slowly due to the Thunderstorm hits from earlier. Julia built Chains of Infinity, which applied a slowdown with each instance of damage. Thunderstorm struck Gilbert twice, so he carried two stacks of the slowdown effect. That must have been the main goal behind spending Thunderstorm in such a lackluster situation, it was all for this very moment!


    Roi easily outpaced that turtle and slashed.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    Ez. There was no resistance at all. Taison''s gank startled Roi for a moment and the Gae Bolg was dangerous, but Taison failed to stand between Roi and Gilbert. As a result, the gank didn''t pose a threat. In fact, it added another target for Roi to prey on.


    After killing Gilbert, Roi restored all the way to 55% HP thanks to his passive. So, he was more than prepared for another fight!


    "Shit!" Taison cursed. "How did he dodge my Bolg!?"


    "I tried to warn you," Gilbert sighed. "Either he or Julia placed a Stealth Ward on the lane."


    "Damn, my Bolg went down the toilet."


    "Which resulted in my death," Gilbert added.


    "I''ll avenge you, bro!"


    "You wouldn''t have to if you just ganked properly," Gilbert jabbed. "Why did you flank him? You should''ve stepped in between us to stop him from chasing me."


    "I went for the kill, yo." Taison thrust his spear into the Dark Knight''s shoulder while explaining. "If I just landed that damn Bolg, Roi would have been totally screwed! I could''ve finished him off on the spot!"


    "I believe I asked you to help Gil," Howard said. "I didn''t ask you to go Mid to kill Roi."


    "Um, yeah, like," Taison''s attention span was split between maintaining the conversation and stabbing Roi.


    "Retreat," Howard ordered. "You don''t want to feed him another kill, do you?"


    "Yeah, guess I better get the heck out." Taison was finally convinced when Roi booted his damage reflection cloak. What a freakin'' nightmare of a skill It was. Taison turned around and darted from there.


    "Tai," Howard spoke up again after Taison made it out. "You were supposed to get between Roi and Gil in that situation, not to attack. Your job was to protect him, not to get a kill."


    "I was gonna protect him by getting a kill! I snuck up to Roi like a ninja and struck from the shadows! It was supposed to be perfect, yo!"


    "You do realize that, by going around to flank Roi, you took the longer route and delayed your arrival? As a result, you gave Roi more time to close in on Gil."


    "Ah, well, if you put it that way..." Taison shifted his eyes and smiled awkwardly.


    "The Jungler''s job isn''t just to get kills, I believe we went over this. You also need to consider how your presence on the lane can change the situation. If you just got there earlier, there''s a chance Roi would have decided to retreat right away without chasing the kill any further. You could''ve resolved the entire situation without lifting a finger, just by being there."


    "Yeah, I gotcha," Taison sighed. "Sorry, bro, I''m gonna pay more attention next time."


    "That''ll be great.'' Gilbert said.


    [Alright.] Howard nodded to himself. This failure will hopefully stick in Taison''s head for a while and will point that rascal in the right direction next time.


    Taison was a skilled player, but he was rough in many departments. Half of the problem was that Jungler was his secondary role, and the other half was his attitude toward the game: he always sought glory through scoring kills.


    In some situations, that mentality was a great strength. But, in many others, it was a glaring flaw. Even though Junglers were commonly associated with ganking and getting kills, that was a shallow understanding of the role. The Jungler''s mere presence was an important weapon in its own right. A good Jungler knew when to appear on the lane to scare enemies away without even lifting a finger.


    Unfortunately, Taison lacked such in-depth understanding at the moment. Despite Howard''s best efforts, a single week wasn''t enough to bring Taison to that high level. No matter how many times Howard explained the importance of a Jungler''s presence, the knowledge just refused to sink in.


    However, there were some occasions when Taison finally got the message and started playing more efficiently. After careful observation, Howard noticed that happened whenever Taison messed up big time and was called out on it, just like this situation with Gilbert.


    Based on Taison''s reaction, he genuinely felt bad for letting Gilbert die. Either that, or his ego was hurt because everybody was blaming him for a terrible mistake. Anyway, this mistake lingered on Taison''s mind. That was already way more effective than any lessons Howard gave him because those always went in one ear and out the other.


    Taison wanted to stand out and hated being criticized, so whenever he committed a mistake and was called out - he dialed down the gas and started thinking more carefully about his actions. As a result, he transformed from a hungry beast to a more reasonable Jungler.


    [Alright, this should take care of Tai''s problem for a while. At least, half the problem.] Howard knew this wasn''t over yet. Taison was a more skilled player than Gregory, but he also had more glaring flaws. While Gregory''s biggest problem was resolved after Roi destroyed him once in 1v1, Taison required more babysitting.


    Still, that was one more problem resolved. Howard hoped to resolve the other one by the end of this throwaway game.

 79 The Flawed 1v1 Prodigy

    Just making Taison understand his responsibility as the Jungler didn''t stop him from hungering for kills. After failing to save Gil, Taison will now surely pay more attention to such situations and will prioritize helping his teammates instead of chasing kills. However, there was another type of situation which posed a big problem: a situation in which an enemy was pushing a lane alone.


    "Yo!" Taison called out. "Lars is alone in Bot, so I''mma gank his ass."


    "Wait, he still got his ult-" Howard stopped mid-sentence. Maybe this was a good chance, Lars had Trickshow available, so normally Howard would do anything to stop Taison from going 1v1.


    However, the purpose of this first game wasn''t to win. Of course, a win will be more than welcome but, with a Dark Knight claiming a second kill this early, this game was clearly heading in a bad direction. So, there was no need to try too hard anymore. This has officially become a throwaway game and he''ll use it to educate the rascals of his team.


    "You sure you can handle Lars in a 1v1?" Howard asked.


    "Easy! I''mma wreck that dude!"


    "Then, go for it." Howard nodded. [Go for it and fail, that''ll be the best outcome. This is also a good chance to see the effectiveness of the "Lars Killer" in action.]


    "Okay, I''m ganking Bot then!" Taison announced as he dashed through the Jungle. Awesome! A chance to 1v1 Lars! Taison will whoop that loser''s ass and prove everybody he''s number one!


    Taison leaped with Lunge and activated Gae Bolg while still air-bound. This gave him extra hang time to aim the deadly spear attack at Lars.


    "GAE BOLG!" A thundering roar.


    "Wha-!?" Lars stopped shooting. Some shit was coming, yo! There were wards all around the jungle, but none of them spotted anybody. So, where was his enemy coming from!?


    [Crap! From above!] Lars rolled out of the Turret''s range.


    [Shit!] Taison''s lance came down crashing but it hit nothing but the ground. Lars slipped away just in the nick of time.


    But, that''s to be expected. Lars wasn''t some noob who''d get owned by simple shit like that. That''s what made him a worthy opponent to tear apart!


    Taison didn''t waste a moment and swept his lance through Lars. The Gae Bolg was just a feint. This was the real shit, yo! Yeah!


    [This ain''t good, yo!] Lars frowned. He spent his dodge-roll on the deadly ult, so he had no choice but to eat that sweep attack in the face. On top of dealing damage, the sweep also lowered Lars''s defense and slowed him down. Yikes.


    Taison was already a tough enough opponent to take down, so all these extra disadvantages were bad news. Like, REALLY bad news. But, Lars had Trickshow, so everything gonna a-okay!


    "It''s time for a trick show!" Lars''s limiters were removed. [You wanna go? Let''s do it!]


    Right as Taison''s next attack was about to connect, Lars slid aside. Easy dodge-


    [Gotcha!] Taison grinned as his lance pierced through Lars in the middle of the slide. Ha! Maybe this lame sliding dodge works on some scrubs, but not on Taison!


    [Geh! He can keep up.] Lars grinned. Taison struck at lightning speed, accurately and decisively. His attacks easily caught up with Lars''s quick Trickslides. Part of it was because Lars was slowed down and therefore his slides were a bit slower, but this was still some pro level stuff right there!


    [Sick! Nice going there, Tai!] Lars got shivers. This gonna be rough. Sick! That''s how real fights gotta be! Not like that poking clown fiesta with Ellen.


    Taison''s attacks were cool and all, but Lars had no intention of staying on the receiving end. He fired a Trickshot during a Trickslide, aiming for a bouncing shot. This gonna deal a crapton of damage! It''ll make things even-


    [No chance!] Taison saw that shot coming. First, the shot gonna travel to the nearby wall, then it''ll bounce and, finally, it''ll fly toward Taison. He had all the time in the world to react, yo!


    Taison rolled forward and dodged the bouncing Trickshot. As soon as he recovered, he thrust his lance at Lars again. Bullseye!


    [This ain''t good!] Lars found himself on the defensive even though he was in the middle of a Trickshow. Unlike most opponents, Taison wasn''t the type to be overwhelmed by fast movements and attacks, so bouncing shots were a no-no. Taison was fast enough to react to them, so Lars had to fall back to straightforward Trickshots.


    "You need to retreat," Yule argued.


    "Yeah, probably," Lars forced an awkward smile. "I don''t think he gonna let me, though."


    "Just retreat as far as you can. I''ll try to get there."


    "Okay- ack!" Another stab! Dang it, Taison was on a roll today! Lars finally started landing some shots after giving up on bounces, but Taison didn''t let him rest for a moment. Dude dished out one lightning speed strike after another!


    [This can actually work.] Howard nodded in amazement while following the development of the 1v1. Lars''s Trickshow overwhelmed most people, but not Taison. Miraculously, Taison kept up with Lars''s fast pace and reacted in time to both the Trickslides and the Trickshots.


    Part of it was because these two has been fighting each other on a daily basis at the club. They and Trever spent way too much time duking it out in 1v1s and 1v1v1s. As a result, they got used to each other''s tricks and learned how to handle each other in a 1v1.


    But, that''s not all. Among the trio, Taison was especially strong in 1v1. During the second half of the year, Taison even beat Trever''s 1v1 win ratio, which was already higher than Lars''s. Nobody ever realized this fact, because the three clowns only ever compared their win ratios across the entire year. In that statistic, Trever was always on top thanks to the big lead he got at the beginning of the year.


    However, after Howard examined the most recent statistics, he could claim beyond a shadow of a doubt: by the end of the year, Taison surpassed Trever in 1v1! But, for some reason, Taison''s performance was the worst in 1v1v1. And, in general, he didn''t impress much in team fights. In fact, even in advantageous 2v1 situations, it often felt like Taison''s wasn''t nearly as amazing as Lars and Trever.


    Fortunately, the current situation was a pure 1v1 and Taison was quite possibly the strongest club member in that area. At this rate, he might even beat Lars''s Trickshooter!


    [Just like the data says.] Yuel nodded to himself as he watched the 1v1 through Lars''s monitor. Taison was very strong in 1v1, that''s what the most recent statistics claimed. Yuel noticed this troubling fact while preparing for today''s match. Statistics claimed that among the "Three Goofs" Taison was currently the strongest in 1v1. However, he was strong ONLY in 1v1. Therefore...!


    [Geh! This is it.] Lars gulped. One more hit and he''s a goner. Thankfully, Trickshow was still on, so he could slide to dodge. But, where should he slide? To the right? To the left? It felt like Taison would hit him no matter where he goes. Dude was on fire today! There were no openings!


    [It''s over!] Taison finally cornered Lars. One more strike and that scrub was done for! Taison gonna prove he''s number one, right here and now! [I gonna kick yo- huh!?]


    BAM! A bomb went off and flames broke out on the lane! What the hell!? Wait, the fire was actually pretty far away from Taison. Huh? What gives?


    [Heh, he came to the rescue?] Taison sneered as he spotted Yuel from the corner of his eye. [Too late, slowpoke! I''mma finish this right here and- bah! Where did that mofo go!?]


    In the split second Taison took his eyes off his prey - Lars vanished! Shit shit shit! Where did that shithead go!? Taison had to win here and prove he''s da best!


    A shot pierced Taison from the right, revealing Lars''s current location. Instead of running away, Lars rolled to Taison''s side and fired a Trickshot. Did that mofo think he still had a chance or something?


    [Idiot! You should have gotten away while you had the chance! You''re dead meat now, khaha!] Taison turned around and thrust his spear. [It''s over, yoooooooo!]


    [Did you know, Tai?] Lars smiled as he watched the deadly spear approach. [If you shoot a Trickshot in 90 degrees, it''s like dribbling a basketball - it comes right back at ya!]


    The Trickshot that hit Taison from point-blank continued flying forward and hit the wall behind. Then, it bounced back with an almost perfect 90 degrees angle! The bullet pierced Taison''s back for double damage!


    [Wha?! No fucking way!] The tip of Taison''s spear reached all the way to Lars''s chest... then his Lancer collapsed.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Noooooooooo!" Taison flew from his chair and held his head. "Fuuuuuuuuuuck! How!? SHIT! FUCK!" He kicked a chair, sending it flying across the room. "I was SO close!''


    "You played well," Howard said.


    "''Well''? What part of it was ''well''?! I fucking blew it! Fuck this game!"


    "You did something nobody else here can do," Howard continued in a chill voice. "You actually went toe-to-toe with Lars''s Trickshow."


    "Hey," Ellen puffed her cheeks. "I can totally do that too-"


    "Not now, Elly."


    "Aya!" Ellen jumped from being pinched.


    "You almost killed Lars," Howard continued. "That was plenty impressive."


    "Yeah, [almost] killed," Taison ranted as he walked back to his chair. "But in the end, I didn''t kill shit, yo!"


    "You were distracted at the end there, right?"


    "Gah, I guess..." Taison sighed. Really, it was all because of that stupid Yuel and his stupid ass bomb. Why the flying fuck did that mofo even throw a bomb all the way out there? The fire didn''t even do shit, it was like twenty miles away from where Taison and Lars were fighting. It must have been a weird misplay.


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    "That bomb was no accident," Howard smiled meaningfully. "Yuel did it on purpose."


    "Huuuh?"


    "Yuel did it to throw you off because he figured you''re not good at analyzing multiple things at once. That''s why you''re only so good at 1v1s - you got attention span issues."


    "I''m telling ya, I got none of that shit, yo!"


    "Sound really convincing after you lost the way you did."


    "Gah..." Taison gritted his teeth but had nothing to retort with. That flippin'' bomb really threw him off at the end there. It distracted him just for a split second, it wasn''t even anything special. And yet, somehow, that was enough to give Lars the opportunity he needed. Fuck this game.


    "On high levels of play," Howard continued. "Split second distractions can prove fatal and you just experienced a taste of it. There''s nothing to feel embarrassed about, everybody got weaknesses. It''s all about knowing how to cover them up."


    "Yeah..."


    "Remember the training you did to block out the noise around you? Next time, try using some of what you practiced."


    "Yeah, yeah." Taison sighed.


    [Alright, seems like he cooled down.] Howard nodded to himself. Thankfully, the entire incident was wrapped up nicely.


    Yuel did a great job figuring out Taison''s weakness, but that much was within Howard''s expectations. Yuel was meticulous about match preparation, so there was no chance he wouldn''t notice Taison''s abnormal 1v1 win ratio. From there, it wasn''t a huge leap to figure out that Taison underperformed whenever he was confronted with too many elements.


    Yuel''s "bomb distraction" was like an experiment to verify the theory about Taison''s weakness. With how successful it turned out, Yuel now knew how to effectively counter Taison''s ganks. It was unfortunate, but it was bound to happen at some point today.


    After seeing how strong Taison was in 1v1, Yuel will surely advise his teammates to avoid 1v1s at all cost. But, Howard anticipated this sequence of developments and prepared a tactic which will bait enemies into 1v1s against Taison. It was a necessary plan for this team because pretty much all of Taison''s worth came down to his 1v1 skill. If they can''t abuse that advantage, the team will become too underpowered.


    "From now on," Howard said. "Don''t rush into 1v1s unless I approve of them. Even if it looks like a good opportunity, it can always be a trap. You know how Yuel likes setting traps."


    "Yeah," Taison rolled his eyes. "That mofo sure likes messing with people."


    "So, make sure you play like we practiced this week. Elly, you''re up."


    "Got it~" Ellen winked. "Just follow my lead, Taitai. I''ll arrange some ni~ce 1v1s for you~"


    "Sure, I''m game." Taison nodded. He didn''t seem too enthusiastic about the idea yet, but he''ll change his mind after scoring the first kill via this tactic. Especially, after scoring a kill on Lars.


    "But, no need to do any of that this game," Howard said. "Leave the ''Lars Killing'' for the next game. We''ll surprise them then."


    "Roger~" Ellen saluted.


    With both Roi and Lars at 2 kills this early, this game became an official throwaway game. There may still be a chance for a comeback, but it was very unlikely and everybody will have to expend lots of energy in an attempt to make that happen. No point wasting energy on a lost game.


    "Alright, listen, guys," Howard addressed everybody. "I''ll be honest, this game is probably lost. But, no need to feel bad about it. I warned you at the beginning, right? Leaving Trickshooter open was a gamble I took and it backfired, so I''m the only one to blame for this situation."


    "Yep," Taison laughed. "You''re the drafting pro, fam. Khaha,"


    "It was a really bad idea," Gilbert nodded.


    "So," Gregory smirked. "I can get killed 10 times now and blame it all on you? Topkek."


    Chuckles and laughter spread across the team. Howard''s words relieved some of the pressure the teammates have been experiencing. Players always built up negative feelings whenever they were in a losing position and these may carry over to the next game, so Howard had to dispel them right here and now.


    One solution was to surrender. That would immediately cut down the negative momentum of the game and would allow the players to walk away with minimal salt. But, there was an even better way to handle this.


    "Just take it easy for the rest of the game," Howard said. "If you see an opportunity then take it, but don''t push too hard to get a win here. Just play casually and make our opponents the tryhards. Make them burn out."


    "Kek, that''s evil," Gregory smirked. "I like it."


    "Then," Taison grinned. "Can I just 1v1 anybody I catch?"


    "If that''s how you like it, sure," Howard nodded. "Just don''t try too hard. Remember, the goal is to wear down our opponents, not ourselves. Let''s see how long it gonna take them to win."


    After Howard issued this order, everybody breathed in relief. He gave permission, so they messed around without fearing the consequences. That should help them feel refreshed before the next game even after they lose.


    As Howard feared, the first game ended up as a throwaway. However, it was a good educational experience. Gregory was convinced to play defense and Taison agreed to cooperate when ganking. With that, the two troublemakers of the team have been dealt with.


    In the next game, Howard will show what he really cooked up for today!

 80 Joy and Concern

    "Phew." Yuel sighed in relief. Somehow, his bluff worked. He couldn''t make it in time to help Lars against Taison so, in a desperate attempt, he tossed a Blaze Bomb in their direction. Yuel knew the bomb won''t reach, but he hoped the explosion would distract Taison.


    And, it did. For a split second, Taison turned around to check what was going on. For just a moment, it stopped being a pure 1v1. In that tiny window of time, Lars turned the tables around.


    "Got ''em!" Lars pumped a fist. "Easy!"


    "Sure, ''easy''." Yuel made a face. Taison totally wrecked Lars in that fight. Sure, Lars put on a decent fight and brought Taison low enough to be finished off with two Trickshots, but overall Taison overwhelmed him.


    Taison''s 1v1 skill was even scarier than the statistics implied. Did he hone his 1v1 skills even further throughout the week? Was that part of Howard preparations? Either way, this fight showed everybody must avoid 1v1-ing Taison at all cost. If Lars with a Trickshooter can''t win, then nobody can.


    Still, it was impressive. Lars somehow made an entire comeback in that situation. Even though Yuel suspected the bomb distraction will affect Taison, he didn''t expect Lars would convert that brief moment of vulnerability into a kill. It was a mind-blowing play.


    "I have to admit," Yuel said. "You really surprised with that kill. Did you know Taison will be distracted by the bomb?"


    "I dunno, dude. I just heard a BANG and I was like ''Yo! Shit about to go down!'' and I just went for it!"


    "Just went for it...?"


    "Yeah. I was looking for a chance to shoot Tai but I was kinda in a pinch, right? So, I couldn''t decide whether to fight or retreat. But, when that BANG happened, I just jumped him, yo!"


    [He was thinking about fighting back? In that situation?] Yuel had no words. Lars was clearly heading toward defeat, yet he didn''t stop searching for an opportunity to mount a comeback. Even when all the odds play against him, this hungry beast will keep thinking about how to devour his enemy.


    "You really do some crazy plays, you know that?" Yuel couldn''t help but smile.


    "That''s the most fun, yo." Lars grinned. Seriously, it was impossible to keep up with this goof. No matter how many games they played together, Lars always found a way to surpass Yuel''s expectations.


    This miraculous turnabout was even greater than Lars realized. Thanks to how the fight played out, Yuel confirmed his suspicions regarding Taison''s weakness.


    According to the statistics, Taison was a monster in 1v1 and halfway through the year, his win ratio surpassed those of Trever and Lars. It was even a little higher than Lars''s Trickshooter, the only class with which Lars had a consistently higher win ratio than Trever in 1v1.


    On top of that, Taison even passed Lars''s rank in the 1v1 Ranked mode. Taison was at Challenger V, whereas Lars was at Diamond I.


    These impressive achievements made it look like Taison tremendously improved as a player throughout the year. However, in practice, Taison didn''t show such amazing improvement in practice matches.


    When Taison played Carry in Bot, he didn''t stand out more than before. He was a strong player, but not a match for Lars or Trever. While undoubtedly strong in 1v1s, Taison was rather sloppy everywhere else and especially in team fights.


    So, compared to the impressive 1v1 stats, it didn''t feel like Taison actually improved that much as a player. Then, why was Taison so strong only in 1v1? That question has been bugging Yuel ever since he found out about the 1v1 statistics. By understanding what was so different between 1v1 and other situations for Taison, it''ll be possible to arrange unfavorable circumstances for him and to avoid the scenarios in which he''ll be dangerous.


    The outcome of the 1v1 between Lars and Taison verified Yuel''s theory. With just a tiny bit of distraction, Taison let victory slip through his fingers. Therefore, his short attention span was most likely the main culprit. Throughout the year, Yuel has noticed signs of Taison''s poor attention span during practice matches, but this was the first time he saw that weakness play such a big role.


    Taison was a huge threat in 1v1, but it wasn''t that hard to counter him. As long as somebody or something distracted him and got in the way of a "pure 1v1", Taison would start slipping up. If just one more player walks into the scene, Taison will no longer be able to focus on the 1v1.


    "Listen," Yuel addressed everybody. "As you saw, Taison is very strong in 1v1s. Even Lars can barely keep up with him."


    "Hey, I was totally winning, yo!"


    "So," Yuel continued. "Avoid 1v1s with him at all cost. If he forces you into a 1v1, you should either retreat or try changing the situation into anything other than 1v1. Taison is good at concentrating on one opponent at a time, but he gets easily distracted when there are other players on the scene."


    "So, you''re saying it''s better to 2v2 him instead of 1v1?" Dan asked.


    "Yes, exactly. The more enemies he has to deal with, the worse he performs."


    "So, it''s like ADHD or something?"


    "I''m not sure but it''s probably similar. Taison seem to have attention span issues."


    "Wait, then how about fighting Taison in a 1v2 situation? Is he gonna perform worse even though having allies around is a good thing?"


    "... it''s possible, I suppose." Yuel felt like a lecturer who was stumped by a smartass question. "You never want to find yourself in a 1v2 situation anyway, so it''s pointless to analyze that."


    "Heh, I guess." Dan chuckled. He was clearly having too much fun testing the extent of Yuel''s knowledge. It wasn''t a bad thing, though. There was a chance others were wondering the same thing, so addressing these questions should help them get a clearer understanding of Taison''s weakness.


    Still, that last question was interesting. Which would be easier: to 1v1 Taison or to 1v2 him while he got another ally nearby, say a low DPS player like a Support. [No, stop. I just explained why that''s a pointless question.] Yuel shook his head and stopped himself before going down the analysis rabbit hole.


    Anyway, everybody got the message about facing Taison in 1v1. Once the game entered the mid-game phase, Taison aggressively pursued players and tried to corner them into 1v1s. However, everybody heeded Yuel''s advice and did their best to avoid such situations.


    In particular, Dan was quick to rotate whenever somebody found themselves in a 1v1. Venomancer didn''t exactly have the scariest gank potential but against Taison that wasn''t necessary. Just by popping on the scene, Dan distracted Taison and sealed that beast''s power.


    With Taison''s attacks constantly blocked, the enemy team stopped posing any serious threats. Howard''s team assumed an overly defensive game plan as if they already their accepted defeat in the mid-game and had no choice but to bank everything on the late-game.


    It wasn''t too surprising, considering Roi was becoming more and more fed. His score jumped all the way to 5/0/1 in mid-game. A Dark Knight this fed was almost unstoppable at this point, especially in the hands of a mechanically skilled player like Roi.


    "Shoot! They got me!" Roi exclaimed as he found himself in a 1v2 situation against Ellen and Gilbert. They totally baited him into that one! But, was it really a reason for concern?


    Roi booted Nightmare and proceeded to wreck both enemies. As the two fought back, half the damage they dealt reflected back at them. On top of that, with the high damage of Dark Blast and the execution ability of Gate of Sheol, Roi made quick work of them. Even the slippery Ellen failed to escape.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    ¡ºDOUBLE KILL¡»


    "Man," Roi chuckled. "Dark Knight is sure fair."


    [He''s doing his job.] Yuel nodded in approval. After seeing Roi and Dan''s performance this game, Yuel felt really bad for suspecting they might throw today''s game to let Howard win.


    Roi was the strongest player in the game at the moment and unstoppable even in a 1v2. Meanwhile, Dan provided timely backups to completely shut down Taison''s 1v1 strength. They both performed splendidly and Yuel couldn''t come up with a single complaint.


    And, if that wasn''t enough, the two of them cooperated really well together. Dan shredded the defenses of tanky targets with Venomancer''s percentage-based damage, then Roi finished them off via execution. With this strong duo and with Lars''s carrying, the team pushed forward at full throttle!


    Compared to them, Julia... Well, she did alright. She was at 0/0/2. Zero deaths and two assists was a positive score, but not a particularly remarkable one. She had many good opportunities to score kills, but she constantly picked defense over offense, it was an old habit which refused to die. At least, she defended Mid from all attacks and set up a few kills for others, so overall her performance was passable.


    With Roi and Lars pulling the team forward with their offense, there was no real need for Julia to join. It was a waste a class pick since Electromancer was a strong offensive class, but they were winning anyway so it was fine.


    [Is that really it?] Yuel''s heart beat faster and faster as the game approached its finale. With every kill the team scored, the position on the chess board became even more unwinnable for the enemy. At this point, it was impossible to imagine what sort of comeback Howard''s team could possibly mount.


    But, the smoother things went, the harder it was to not be concerned. Was this really the extent of Howard''s strength? Was that really the best he could achieve with his current team after preparing for a week? It was hard to believe but at the same time, Yuel felt like he truly won in the strategic department this round.


    Roi snowballed hard as a Dark Knight, just like Yuel planned. Also, everybody dodged 1v1s with Taison and surely avoided many deaths. And, most importantly, Yuel''s Alchemist pick successfully created an opportunity for Lars to kill Ellen during the early-game. It wasn''t the smoothest play and they failed to reproduce it ever since, but it worked the first time and that was huge. It felt like Yuel outwitted Howard across the entire board.


    [We''ll win this!] Yuel''s fingers trembled. They were really doing it! They were winning against Howard! After being thoroughly shut down by Howard back during the entry exam, Yuel came to the point where he could put on a decent fight against Howard''s defense. Or rather, he was WINNING and quite decisively too!


    Before long, they''ll claim their spots on the first string. The competitive scene was just a few steps away!


    ¡ºVICTORY¡»


    The first game came to an expected conclusion. Howard''s team played defensively till the bitter end and dragged the game out for as long as humanly possible but they couldn''t stop Roi and Lars''s overwhelming pushes.


    "Woohoo! We did it!" Lars raised a hand. "Just one more and we gonna go pro! We got this!"


    "Yeah!" Yuel high-fived Lars amidst the excitement and regretted it a moment later. Ugh, his palm turned red. Lars''s hands were definitely made of metal or maybe something even stronger.


    "There''s a 10-minute break between games," Yuel explained. "We arranged it to be like tournament matches."


    "Okay, cool." Roi jumped from his chair and stretched.


    "Overall," Yuel said. "You all played well. Especially, Roi and Lars. You carried the entire team."


    "No problem, yo."


    "Dark Knight is fair, lol."


    "C''mon, guys," Dan pouted. "You finished the game so quickly I didn''t even get my Venom online."


    "You did fine too," Yuel said. "But, there are a few parts I''d like to address." He briefly went over the few occasions in which Lars and Roi were lured into a trap. Considering it was Ellen''s specialty to bait players to their doom, there was no way Lars and Roi would develop complete resistance to it, especially not in such a short time. Still, they''ll hopefully pay more attention after being shown their mistakes.


    All in all, Yuel was content with the team''s performance. The teamwork and tactics they practiced throughout the week delivered results in this game. Their early-game lead could have been easily lost if they performed poorly during team fights, but that didn''t happen. They dominated even that part of the game, so they were stronger from start to end.


    Truly, they all played well. Well, [almost] all of them were.


    "Julia," Yuel called out once everybody else left. Julia crossed her arms and shot him a glare, must be a defensive stance of some sort. She probably had an idea where this was going. "You played too defensively, again."


    "Hmph, not really." Julia shifted her eyes away. "I got some assists, didn''t I? Could''ve easily been kills instead."


    "Not exactly. You did a good job setting up kills for others, but you never pushed hard enough to get kills yourself. For example, when Taison ganked Mid and Roi was there, you had a 2v1 situation. Why didn''t you advance to help Roi against Taison? That could''ve easily been a kill."


    "I didn''t want to risk it."


    "Risk it? But it was a 2v1. You had all the advantage."


    "But, what if he suddenly turns around and focuses me? I might die, you know?"


    "That''s always a possibility in literally any scenario, so that''s not how you''re supposed to think during advantageous situations. They''re called ''advantagous'' for a reason, you''re supposed to take advantage of them. Otherwise, you''ll keep missing any opportunity you''re given."


    "Hmph, it''s not my fault," Julia lifted her chin. "Remember what you told us about Tai a few days ago? You went on and on about how he''s like the most dangerous guy on that team and how we gotta be careful around him. So, I didn''t wanna take any risks."


    "How''s that my fault?" Yuel was taken aback. Yes, he did warn the team about Taison''s potential strength before the match. He shared his findings of Taison''s impressive 1v1 record and told everybody to be careful.


    At the time, it was unclear in which specific scenarios Taison lost his efficiency. Therefore, Yuel told them to watch out for Taison in general, not only in 1v1. But, that wasn''t supposed to scare them to the point they''d avoid taking advantage of a 2v1 situation against Taison.


    "If you told me earlier that he''s only good at 1v1, I would have attacked him for sure. So yeah, it''s all your fault."


    "Huh..." Yuel wasn''t even sure how to retort. This accusation was beyond asinine, but that was par for the course for Julia. Yuel just had to approach this from a different angle. "Taison wasn''t there every time you had a good chance. You also gave up many opportunities because you chose to not chase enemies. There are times when chasing the enemy is the right play, you know."


    "But, what if it''s a trap?" Julia retorted. "I know Ellen likes that kind of stuff, so you can never be too careful. It''s safer to just let them go. They can''t do anything with that little HP anyway."


    "That''s not how it..." Yuel sighed. Julia was stubborn with her stance even though she knew she gave up many great opportunities. She couldn''t bring herself to play aggressively in front of Lars, not even during such an important match. It''s a shame, but that''s how it was.


    "Don''t get me wrong," Yuel had to pacify her before this gets out of hand and she stops listening to him entirely. "You did a passable job overall, but you could''ve done even more with a defensive class. If you can''t bring yourself to play offense, then picking an Electromancer is a waste. You should go with a class that has more utility."


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    "I just..." Julia clenched her fists but didn''t follow up with anything.


    "You said you''ll do your best to make the team win today, right?"


    "Well, yeah, but..."


    "Then, I''m sorry to say, but doing a ''passable'' job isn''t enough. You can do better and the team [needs] you to do better. So, again, if you don''t plan on bringing out your explosive playstyle-"


    "I get it already!" Julia shifted her eyes from side to side to make sure nobody was listening. "Okay, fine. Next drafting phase, you tell me which class you think is good for me and I''ll think about it. Hmph."


    "Got it." Not exactly the most conclusive way to finish this conversation, but it''s probably the most Yuel could get out of her right now. Julia was visibly frustrated by her own lackluster performance, so Yuel didn''t want to press any further.


    At around the same time, another secret conversation was taking place.


    "Welp," Dan leaned on the window. "We won."


    "Yeah," Roi took a sip from his Cola. "DK is sure fair, lol."


    "Well, to be fair, any class would feel cheap when you''re fed."


    "That true," Roi smiled wryly. "But, it felt like I stomped GG without even giving him a chance. He did get a little better afterwards when he started turtling, but it felt like I was bullying him. I like it when I can fight face-to-face without having that swingy advantage, ya feel me?"


    "Well, Yuel wants to win at any cost, so he doesn''t care about you having fun."


    "Yeah, I get it, but it''s not exactly fun."


    "Well, if things keep going like this we may actually win this thing."


    "Yeah..." Roi wore a difficult expression as he took another sip. "Should we really be doing this? I mean, at this rate, Howard gonna give up his position."


    "So, what you suggest? We butcher the game?"


    "No, but..." Roi clenched his drink. "No matter how you look at it, we clearly got the stronger team this match. I dunno what Howard was thinking when he suggested this silly challenge, but he either underestimated Yuel or overestimated Tai and GG. Either way, this ain''t looking good for him."


    "Yep. Well, me and you probably gonna be starters no matter who wins, right?"


    "Yeah, but I don''t want to only be a starter - I wanna win. The regionals and the nationals, I want the team to go places and challenge the strongest guys out there. And to do that stuff, the team needs a strong captain. I respect Yuel and all, but I don''t think he quite cuts it right now. He''s a good strategist and shot-caller, maybe even a better than Howard. But, as a captain, he''s lacking right now."


    "If only we could somehow form a team with both Howard and Yuel in it."


    "Heh, that''d be pretty epic," Roi smiled. "Also throw Lars into the mix and you got yourself some godlike team right there."


    "Ez nationals."


    "Lol, no joke. Too bad that can''t happen, though. We either gonna have the best captain or the best strategist, but not both. I think Yuel may become a decent captain in the future, but there''s a gap of one year between him and Howard. Or maybe even more, dunno for how long Howard has been playing Mancers."


    "From age zero. The first thing he did when he was born was to pick Paladin."


    "Lol, can totally see that. Really, there''s just a huge gap of experience between them. I don''t see Yuel making up for it with just good shot-calls."


    "Well," Dan shrugged. "If Howard is really such an amazing captain, he won''t go down without a fight, right? He probably got an ace or two up his sleeve. This match gonna prove which is superior: Howard''s leadership or Yuel''s crazy ass shot-calls, heh."


    "Lol, yeah," Roi smiled wryly and clenched his knee. "I just know how important it is to have a strong captain to get far in tournaments, that''s why I''m not sure about this. You were there too, right?"


    "Sure was," Dan narrowed his eyes as he glanced at Roi''s leg. The injury which ended Roi''s baseball career and destroyed the team''s spirits, Dan saw it all from the dugout. Everybody crumbled under pressure without a strong captain to reassure them.


    "Well," Dan smirked. "Worst case, if Yuel wins, you can become the captain."


    "Lol, yeah right."


    "Really, I think you''d do a fine-"


    "No, Howard is our man," Roi declared. "I can tell the guy is serious about winning the championship. If it''s with him, we can really get there."


    "Then, what about this match?"


    "Ugh..."


    "We''re back to square one, huh." Dan shook his head.


    "I''ll play," Roi said. "Howard came up with this idea, so he better put his money where his mouth is at. Otherwise, not gonna lie, I''ll lose some respect for him as a competent captain."


    "Heh, gotta believe his team holds some secret strategy."


    "Yeah. I hope he finds a way to turn this around, but I''ll keep playing seriously," Roi sighed. "Gotta admit, not a fan of heading into a match while rooting for the enemy."


    "You can say that again." Dan stared at the clear summer sky. Did Howard really have a way to turn this around? Yuel hasn''t even displayed the full extent of the planning he has done over the week. This was worrisome.


    Nevertheless, the two of them had no choice but to keep acting like faithful chess pieces in Yuels'' plans. While secretly praying for Howard''s comeback, they had to keep taking the match seriously...


    One-third of the match was over, but everything was still shroud in uncertainty. Even though Yuel''s team took the first round quite decisively, doubt and uneasiness secretly seeded themselves among some of his teammates. How will that affect the team''s performance? Will Yuel be able to push all the way to victory despite all of this?


    What''s for sure, the true challenge will begin with the second game.

 81 Afterword

    @@


    This is the end of volume 4. The next volume will continue with the selection match until its conclusion. Will Yuel and Lars win themselves spots on the first string? Or, will Howard and Ellen defend their positions?


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    Some of you were interested in Julia''s performance in Mid Lane, which we didn''t get to see much so far. But, don''t worry. She''ll play a much bigger role in the upcoming volume.


    There won''t be any breaks between the volumes and the schedule will remain the same for now. I''m looking into the possibility of posting two chapters every week, but that''ll probably only happen after I finish my last semester of university.


    I opened a discord server: https://discord.gg/QCKYeBj. You''re free to stop by to talk about Classmancers.


    Also, if you haven''t already, please consider rating the story and leaving a review. It''s a niche story with a small following, so every single vote is very impactful.@@

 82 Drafting Traps

    After the 10 minutes break, both teams returned to their seats. The drafting phase for the second game began.


    Since Howard''s team lost, he could choose whether to go first or second. There was no conclusive research about whether going first gave an edge in Classmancers, but most of the most statistics Howard came across suggested it''s slightly more advantageous. It also felt good banning three classes instead of just two since whoever went second was obligated to waste a ban on Shadow Walker.


    Therefore, Howard chose to go first. But still, even with three bans at his disposal, he was in quite the predicament. Yuel pretty much dictated Howard''s bans for him.


    In the previous game, the playmakers were Roi and Lars. Lars rampaged thanks to his superhuman Trickshooter skills while Roi dominated with Dark Knight. Allowing these two play the same classes for a second time would demoralize Howard''s team.


    So, Howard would like to ban them. But, if he bans Dark Knight due to its early game strength, then he also has to ban Orc for the same reason because these two were known as the most notorious early game bullies. If Dark Knight is banned, Yuel will surely make Roi play Orc next. Gregory said he was less familiar with Orc because it was a rather rare pick, so it may pose him even more trouble than Dark Knight despite not being as overwhelming during the early game.


    So, there were three classes to ban: Trickshooter, Dark Knight and Orc. That filled up Howard''s entire banning phase. There was no doubt Yuel planned this advance. Rather than keeping Dark Knight as a surprise for a more decisive game, Yuel exhibited its strength on the very first match to seed anxiety.


    [He really got some nasty ideas.] Howard smiled wryly. This was an annoying lockdown but Howard didn''t see much choice other than playing along with it.


    Therefore, the first ban: Trickshooter. Yuel answered by banning Paladin, this time he had no intention letting Howard grab Paladin. A shame.


    Though, it''s a little odd. Whoever goes second would normally start off by banning Shadow Walker to get the "mandatory ban" out of the way. It was banned in almost every match, so banning it gave the least amount of information to the enemy. Yet, Yuel started with Paladin instead. Huh.


    [I hope he''s not planning to pull what I think...] Howard frowned and proceeded with the banning order he discussed with the team. Second ban: Orc.


    Yuel responded with a Cleric ban. Another understandable jab at Howard which limited the pool of strong defensive picks. Cleric''s revival ability was the bane of existence for early game teams which sought to gain an early momentum via kills.


    But, Cleric was no Shadow Walker. That was already the second ban. Why?


    [He can''t be serious.] Howard paused. How naive of him. He thought Yuel''s "banning lockdown" was the whole extent of the trap, but he was wrong - it went even further.


    This third ban was Howard''s last opportunity to ban Shadow Walker before they move on to the class selection phase. Normally, this wouldn''t even be worth considering. After all, it''s the other team''s "responsibility" to ban Shadow Walker. Howard''s team will be picking a class first, so if Yuel doesn''t ban Shadow Walker - Howard could grab Shadow Walker for his team.


    Except, Howard couldn''t really do it in this particular case because one of Taison''s whims was that how he only played bruisers as Jungler. Unfortunately, Shadow Walker was as assassin-y as assassins could possibly get. It was infamous for its insane burst damage and chase potential, especially when the player followed a specific famous build invented by one Korean pro. Said build spread around after overperforming in a world championship, which is how Shadow Walker shot up to S tier.


    Howard tried teaching Taison how to play assassin Junglers over the week, but he soon gave up and tried teaching the brat how to at least pilot Shadow Walker. Alas, that was a disaster too. A single week simply wasn''t enough. Taison was too much of a rascal, always eager to exchange blows with his opponents in 1v1. An assassin wasn''t designed to last long in a fight so, naturally, Taison performed terribly with that mentality. S tier meant nothing when the player couldn''t pilot the class correctly.


    So, in the end, Taison remained a bruiser-only Jungler. But, this was something only Howard and the team should have known for sure. Yuel definitely knew Taison favored bruisers, as already proven by his Venomancer pick last game, but he had no way to know for sure that Taison couldn''t go for Shadow Walker.


    [Would he gamble on something like that?] Howard pondered. [If it''s Yuel, it''s possible. He must''ve figured Taison can''t learn to play even a single assassin class in just a week. And, even if Taison DID learn to play Shadow Walker, he''d likely perform worse than with a bruiser anyway. Sigh.]


    "My," Ellen poked Howard''s forehead. "You''ll get wrinkles if you frown so hard~ What''s wrong?"


    "Say," Howard lowered his arms and leaned back. "You think Yuel will take a gamble here by not banning Walker? He knows Tai prefers bruisers, so he may be thinking Tai won''t be able to pick Walker even it''s available."


    "Hmm, I can see that. I mean, they got a one-win advantage, right? Yuyu got some leeway, so he can go crazy."


    "Right." Howard got all the confirmation he needed. All of this may just be a part of Yuel''s mind games, but Howard didn''t want to take the risk. He already took a huge risk with the previous game, so no further risks were allowed. Even if it meant leaving Dark Knight open for a second time, Howard to prevent another disastrous game at any cost.


    "Greg," Howard called out. "You said you''re alright with playing heavy defense against Dark Knight, right? Even if it means outright turtling and lane freezing."


    "Well, I don''t have much choice, do I? I''m not exactly into suicide, kek."


    "Alright." Howard nodded. It was settled then. Third ban: Shadow Walker.


    "Wow," Dan exclaimed. "They banned Walker?"


    "As I thought," Yuel nodded. "Taison can''t play assassins."


    "Heh, you were really gonna bet on it and not ban Walker?"


    "Maybe." Honestly, Yuel wasn''t sure what he would have done if Howard hadn''t banned Shadow Walker. It most likely would have come down to analyzing Howard''s behavior. If Howard were to immediately ban something other than Shadow Walker, it''d suggest he was confident about Taison''s skill as Shadow Walker. On the other hand, if Howard were to take his time before banning something other than Shadow Walker, it''d suggest he wasn''t confident and was probably just trying to play around Yue''s bluff. In that case, Yuel would have gambled by not banning Shadow Walker.


    In some ways, the drafting phase was similar to poker. When both teams knew each other''s strengths and weaknesses, it became a game of bluffing and reading the opponent''s intentions. In this case, Yuel''s bluff won them the right to pick Dark Knight again.


    The enemy locked their first pick: Druid. A very defensive class, as expected from a team led by Howard.


    "Yo," Lars exclaimed. "Look at ''em pilling on the defense from the beginning, they''re shook. Gonna be a pain to play against that wood dude on lane, though."


    "Assuming that''s their Support pick," Yuel pointed out. Druid was a good Support, but it was also a well-known lane freezer for Top Lane. It''s quite likely this was a counter-strategy to Dark Knight.


    On paper, this was a disadvantageous matchup for Dark Knight. If Druid freezes the lane for long enough, Dark Knight won''t be able to get the advantage he needs for mid-game. But, it should be fine considering Roi''s skill.


    "I''m picking Dark Knight again," Yuel announced.


    "Again?" Roi made a face. "You really think it gonna work twice in a row? If that Druid is for Top Lane, I don''t think I wanna bump into that thing with a DK, lol."


    "I''m aware it''s not the most favorable matchup," Yuel nodded. "But, Gregory isn''t that amazing of a defender. With your skill, you should be able to pressure him into submission. He will concede either kills or lane control."


    "That''s some big expectations ya got for me. No pressure at all, lol. But okay, if that''s what you want. It worked last time, so maybe it''ll work again."


    "Okay then," Yuel locked in Dark Knight. Next, he picked Gunslinger for Lars.


    "Oh!" Lars grinned. "We''re going with that bad boy? Noice."


    "Let''s show them the training you''ve done this week."


    "You got it! Gonna knock their socks off!"


    Gunslinger was the pick Yuel originally planned to start with today because he was under the assumption Trickshooter was a guaranteed ban. Hopefully, the enemy team will underestimate this Gunslinger pick because it''s not the famous "Lars with Trickshooter", which was a beast from an entirely different dimension and transcended any common sense.


    "Gunslinger, huh." Howard narrowed his eyes. Similarly to Trickshooter, it''s another tricky class which required high mastery and mechanical skill to be truly effective. While with Trickshooter it was about landing bouncing Trickshots, with Gunslinger it was all about landing headshots for guaranteed crits. "Say, Tai. How strong is Lars''s Gunslinger?"


    "He sucks ass, khaha."


    "Funny, but serious now: How good is he at scoring headshots and using Gunslinger''s kit in general?


    "He''s alright, I guess," Taison shrugged. "Can''t say it''s anything special. It sucks balls just like anything else he plays. Except for Shooter, I guess."


    "So, you wouldn''t call Gunslinger his ''best second'' or anything like that?"


    "Nah, not really. I know he really likes that cowboy boi, but that''s about it. By the way, in case you''re wondering, I think that class is trash, yo."


    [Nobody asked.] Howard locked his palms. So, Gunslinger was just one of the classes Lars played well and really liked? Was that really all? Considering how early it was picked, it felt like there was some sort of strong conviction behind it. It''s better to stay on guard. "How do you usually combat his Gunslinger?"


    "Oh, that''s easy peasy. Here''s my protip: just don''t get headshot! Khaha."


    "And how exactly you do that?"


    "Umm, ya just don''t get too close to him, I guess. It''s hella easy to headshot ya when yo head is right in front of the gun. It''s like head-shotting a watermelon, khaha."


    "So, maintaining distance is key. Alright." Howard has already passed the one minute mark, so he had only one more minute to decide on the next two picks.


    In order to maintain distance against Lars, Taison would need a ranged Jungler. The first idea that came to mind was Ranger, but unfortunately, that''s an assassin. Taison would most likely drag it into drawn-out combat and will get obliterated.


    Were there any good ranged bruisers? Howard felt like the answer was at the tip of his tongue, but he was drawing a blank. Well, no need to mull over this on his own.


    "Tai," Howard said. "Got any ideas for a Jungler you''d pick against Gunslinger?"


    "Hmm, gimme Vampire. This gon be gud."


    "Alright." Howard nodded. Vampire was a decent choice. Not only it was a ranged bruiser but it also had Coffin Slumber, a skill which turned him invincible for a short period of time. It''d be extremely efficient against Gunslinger''s barrages.


    As for the second pick, Howard went with Cryomancer. A melee tank didn''t sound like a good idea because it''d require getting close to Lars, so Cryomancer was the next best thing against Gunslinger.


    [A very tight defense.] Yuel frowned as the turn passed back to him. The Cryomancer pick pretty much confirmed that the Druid pick was meant for Top instead of Bot. Running a Dark Knight into Druid was far from optimal, but Roi should manage.


    More importantly, Vampire had Coffin Slumber and Cryomancer had Cryo-Freeze, both were abilities which granted temporary invincibility. This must have been Howard''s idea of countering Gunslinger''s barrage during Fan the Hammer. Druid''s shield from Gaia''s Protection was also a decent counter because it could soak a couple of shots.


    It was a nasty defensive lineup for sure, but not an impenetrable one. Coffin Slumber, Cryo-Freeze and Gaia''s Protection all had one element in common: they were treated as protective special effects. There was actually one class which specialized at nullifying those: Aquamancer.


    [He got me.] Howard smacked his forehead. He didn''t realize he was packing so many defensive effects into his lineup. Of course Yuel would notice that and strike with an Aquamancer pick. It was a mid-tier class under normal circumstances, but it was a hard counter when the enemy comp had many protection effects. [Kudos for finding that right away.]


    After that third pick, the drafting phase transitioned into the second banning phase. Yuel started off by banning Elf for a very obvious reason.


    [Oh, I missed that one too.] Howard made a face. It was another potential mistake on his end. Considering how maintaining distance was a huge factor against Gunslinger, picking Elf for Ellen should have been a high priority. Alas, Howard was preoccupied with Taison''s pick at the time and didn''t want to pick a Carry so early into the drafting. That came back to bite him.


    [I wonder how much of this drafting phase Yuel has already predicted days in advance.] That damn Yuel must have played out this drafting routine at least a hundred times in his head in preparation for today. His picks and bans were quick but they struck hard. Especially, that Aquamancer was good. That wasn''t a class somebody would pick instantly without pondering first, it was clearly a result of preparation. In that area, Yuel seemed to be a step ahead of Howard. Not fun.


    But, that didn''t mean the game was lost, far from it. It''s true that winning the drafting phase was like winning half the game. At pro levels, some even claimed that the drafting phase pretty much decided the entire game before it was played.


    However, at this club''s level, the execution part was even more important. Therefore, even though Howard''s team suffered from a disadvantage during drafting, they''ll just make up for it during the game itself.


    Once the second banning phase ended, it was Yuel''s turn to pick again. He wanted to keep the Jungler pick to last due to Dan''s flexibility, so the next pick will be Mid Laner.


    "So," Yuel turned to Julia. "A defensive class like we discussed right?"


    "Sure," Julia chewed her lip for a moment but didn''t antagonize him. "What you got?"


    "Aeromancer is looking good. It''s a good counter to both Coffin Slumber and Cryo-Freeze because you can-"


    "Set up Whirlwind or charge Hurricane while they''re not moving," Julia filled in the blanks with frightening accuracy. She literally took the words from Yuel''s mouth, word for word. "Did I pass the exam, teach?"


    "Full marks." Yuel nodded. Did he teach Julia this specific tidbit before? Probably among the many other considerations he covered with her about picking a Mid class. She was a surprisingly good student, unlike a certain goof...


    "Aero sounds fine," Julia said. "It sucks to not know their Mid pick, though."


    "Aero it is then." Yuel locked Aeromancer and the turn passed to Howard.


    "A defensive pick?" Howard couldn''t help but blurt his thoughts. Aeromancer didn''t quite mesh with an aggressive early game composition. What was the catch?


    "I told you," Ellen smiled like a know-it-all. "July can''t play aggressively when Larsy is there. She probably came to terms with it after the first game."


    "Alright, makes sense." Howard nodded. Julia indeed put on a shabby performance last game when it came to grabbing kill opportunities. Her defense was rock solid and she set up some good opportunities for others, but her offense had effectively zero impact on the game. Her final score of 0/0/4 only further proved that.


    "Can I take Electro?" Gilbert asked.


    "Hm?" Howard blinked. "That''s a rather aggressive pick. Reason?"


    "I didn''t get to do it last time," Gilbert''s eyes glinted. "But, this game, I want to make it clear who is the best Mid Laner."


    [Seems like my little motivator worked wonders.] Howard smiled to himself. The mere possibility of losing the starter spot would drive anybody to perform their best, even a stoic guy like Gilbert. "Sure, let''s go with Electro. It''s a good counter for Aero in team fights."


    After Electromancer, the final pick was Pirate for Ellen. It wasn''t much of a counter for Gunslinger, but it had the option to quickly create distance with Backfire Cannon and to knock down Gunslinger with Kraken to stop his barrage. That should be more than enough for Ellen.


    After that, the turn passed back to Yuel. It was the final pick of the drafting phase: the Jungler pick for Dan. The possibilities were infinite and Yuel had to figure the best counter to the enemy''s comp.


    "Got anything in mind?" Yuel asked.


    "Beastmaster," Dan answered without thinking twice, with a mischievous smile spread across his face.


    "Really." Yuel narrowed his eyes. This was clearly just Dan asking to meme.


    "Hey, Beastmaster is actually not that bad here," Dan claimed. "Vampire has slow clear and Electro can''t farm both lane and jungle at once, so Beastmaster can thrive."


    "You''ll make any class you like to sound good."


    "Heh, maybe."


    Admittedly, Yuel didn''t have a good retort there. Dan''s argument was very convincing and made Beastmaster sound like a good pick. However, Dan''s smile betrayed him. It''s clear Dan was just pulling Yuel''s leg to play a class he liked.


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    "So, any real picks?"


    "Heh, I''m telling you Beast is legit good. But sure, tiers and all that. Hmm, I guess Lion then? None of them got a good way to escape the ult except for Electro''s blink."


    "Vampire''s ult also passes through, but you''re right. That''ll pretty much force all of them to buy Blink. Good catch."


    "Beast would be totally better, though."


    "Right." Yuel shook his head and locked Lionfolk. This wasn''t the time nor place to mess around. They''ll win the second game and wrap up the whole match.


    With that, the drafting phase was over. The second game will now begin!


    Lineups:


    Yuel: Aquamancer


    Lars: Gunslinger


    Julia: Aeromancer


    Roi: Dark Knight


    Dan: Lionfolk


    Howard: Cryomancer


    Ellen: Pirate


    Gilbert: Electromancer


    Taison: Vampire


    Gregory: Druid

 83 His Second Strongest Class

    The second game began. Yuel and Lars arrived in Bot, playing Aquamancer and Gunslinger. Their lane opponents were Cryomancer and Pirate.


    The outcome of this laning phasing will probably be decided by how much the enemy underestimate Lars''s Gunslinger. If they think Gunslinger is just one of the many classes which Lars can play at a passable level, they''re in for a surprise.


    "He''s good." Howard had to admit while observing Lars. The Gunslinger scored one headshot after another on minions, which made each hit deliver critical damage due to Gunslinger''s passive: Bullseye. Even without any AoE lane clears, Lars held the lane by simply landing one critical hit after another.


    "No," Ellen shook her head. "He''s not good. He''s VERY good. Actually, TOO good, I''d say."


    "Well, they supposedly grinded ladder like crazy this summer, so it''s not that strange Lars improved."


    "Maybe, but I don''t like it." Ellen puffed her cheeks. "Gunslinger is supposed to lose lane control early on, but Larsy isn''t losing squat. Cheater."


    "You need to play more aggressively if you want lane control."


    "But, that means risking getting headshot. No thanks"


    "Sorry to inform you, princess, but you can''t have lane control unless you actually take control."


    "What a pain." Ellen pouted. "You think it''s safe to come closer?"


    "Heck if I knew," Howard shrugged. "Against Trickshooter, it''d be a clear cut NO. But, I don''t know what to tell you yet about his Gunslinger. He only built Lv.1 Samurai Tabi, so I suppose he could have invested the rest into Blink or Dark Contract. So, he got some interesting options, but we won''t know unless we poke him."


    "You asking me to go ahead and become a guinea pig?"


    "You can think of it that way, heh."


    "You meanie! Hmph." Ellen puffed her cheeks but her lips soon curved into a smirk. She wasn''t any less interested than Howard. Poking Larsy to test the limit of his ability with Gunslinger will be fun, it''ll give her a good idea how much she could mess with him this game~


    "Oh!" Lars exclaimed. "She came closer. Can I go for it? Can I? Please?"


    "Hmm," Yuel confirmed the stats. Lars was at Lv3, with an Lv.1 Combat Roll and an Lv.2 Fan the Hammer. Good, that''s exactly the scenario they wanted. "You should be good. Just don''t forget to use the potion."


    "Okay, here we gooooo!" Lars drank his Potion of Strength and rolled forward with Combat Roll. It was similar to the regular dodge-roll, except this bad boy was faster and had better recovery properties. On top of that, it increased Lars''s crit damage for his next shot and gave it a cripple effect.


    But, that''s not even the coolest part! By following up with Fan the Hammer, the crit buff and the cripple effect gonna extend to all the quick shots Lars gonna fire during that sick skill! Stuff gonna go down, yo!


    Lars spun the hammer of his revolver and pulled the trigger. One! Two! Three! The shots fired one after another like a machinegun! Ellen was dead meat, yo!


    "M-My!" Ellen exclaimed. She slipped away with Backfire Cannon as soon as Lars rolled forward... or, at least, that was the plan. Lars recovered from his roll way too fast and shot Ellen in the middle of the knockback from Backfire Cannon.


    Bang. Headshot! The bullet crippled Ellen, which abruptly interrupted the knockback movement from Backfire Cannon.


    Bang. Another headshot! Her HP fell below 50%.


    Bang. ANOTHER FLIPPING HEADSHOT! Three headshots in a row! It stunned Ellen in place!


    [You shitting me!?] Ellen received astronomical damage and fell from 80% HP to below 20% in a matter of a single second. What the actual bloody flipping hell!?


    Not a single shot missed its target. Lars nailed each and every headshot. He hit Ellen in the middle of the knockback movement, he hit her again right as she started moving and he hit her a third time when she was already running away at full speed. Didn''t these shots have recoil which made them harder to land in succession? And, these were all HEADSHOTS too! It was preposterous!


    And now, Ellen was stunned in place after eating three of these shots in a row. She was completely powerless. [Larsy, you bully!]


    [You''re done for, dude!] Lars aimed the fourth shot. Another headshot gonna seal the deal. He gonna win against Ellen! Easy!


    Bang. The bullet flew right toward Ellen''s head. That''s it! It''s a sealed deal- clang. The bullet hit a wall.


    "Wha!? No way!" Lars exclaimed. An ice wall formed between him and Ellen. Not only it stopped the killing blow but it also prevented any follow-up shots. That Shield Dude, yo! It was sick defense and all, but nuuuuuuuu! Whaaaaaay!? Lars was so close!


    "I''ll knock her up!" Yuel dashed toward the ice wall. He has been following the attack from the get-go, so he was close-by. There was never telling what kind of defensive masterpiece Howard would pull off. As Yuel feared, Howard responded splendidly with that Ice Wall and almost stopped the assault. Almost.


    Lars''s attack was like a swift spear thrust which got deflected by a shield before delivering the finishing blow. However, Yuel was going to grab that spear and thrust it once more! This time, it''ll break through Howard''s defense for sure!


    Yuel activated Geyser Eruption and targeted it behind the ice wall. He couldn''t see Ellen''s exact position, but he knew she has been stunned by Lars''s shots up until now. The cripple effect from the shots lasted longer than the stun, so Ellen was still crippled at the moment and couldn''t roll away. Therefore, she had to be around the same place she was before. Maybe Yuel didn''t have Lars''s amazing split-second accuracy, but he still could accurately calculate the enemy''s position with enough data.


    Splash! Water erupted on the other side of the ice wall and sent Ellen flying high into the air! For a brief moment, she flew above the ice wall and became visible.


    "Whoa! Sick!" Lars exclaimed as he was put on the spot outta nowhere. Yuel literally notified of this play at the last moment, so Lars had like a millisecond to hit a target which only briefly popped her head over the wall. It''s like a sudden whack-a-mole from two meters away and up in the sky! Crazy shenanigans!


    But, Lars has already pointed his revolver toward the sky as soon as Yuel dropped the news. Headshot or not headshot, he just gotta hit, yo! His aim was ready!


    As soon as Ellen''s head appeared - Lars fired. He had no idea how quickly she was gonna fall down, so he had to fire instantly.


    Well, crap. It wasn''t a head shot. There went his combo. He landed three straight headshots but messed up the fourth. That sucks.


    But hey, at least he hit! Easy kill!


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    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    "Woohoo! Let''s go!" Lars raised his left hand toward Yuel.


    "We''re not supposed to do that during the game, you know." Yuel sighed but he gave Lars a high five anyway.


    They did it. They actually did it! This time, they nailed the whole offense from start to end. Howard interrupted them in the middle, but they pierced through his shield! They broke through the absolute defense!


    The special training regime for Lars paid off. Even though Lars''s Gunslinger wasn''t nearly as strong as his Trickshooter before, it became almost as deadly through special training throughout the week!


    "L.A.R.S.Y." Ellen puffed her cheeks and aggressively waved her arms as if shaking Lars''s imaginary shoulders. "Gaaaah! I''m mad. I''m sooooooooooooooooooooooo mad! Did you just see that bullshit?"


    "Yeah, I saw it alright." Howard nodded.


    "He hit me three times. Three!" Ellen shoved three fingers into Howard''s face. "And all them were headshots. Each and every single one of them! Because it''s not like that skill has a big recoil or anything. And it was three shots! Three!"


    "That was really something," Howard knitted his brows. "Tai, didn''t you say Lars''s Gunslinger wasn''t anything special?"


    "Yep.?"


    "Then, how would you call it when a Gunslinger lands three headshots in a row during Fan the Hammer?"


    "Aimbotting! Khaha... Wait, don''t tell me that mofo...!"


    "Yeah, Lars just pulled that off and pretty convincingly too."


    "You gotta be shitting me! I missed some hella cool stuff."


    "I take it you never saw him pull anything like that?"


    "Nope. I only ever saw highlight clips of pros pulling that cool stuff."


    "I see," Howard got the confirmation he needed. This wasn''t normal. Taison played Lars more than anybody else here, so he knew Lars''s level the best. This deadeye headshot accuracy was clearly beyond what Lars''s current skill with Gunslinger was supposed to be.


    Considering how confident Lars seemed when he opened the attack, this wasn''t a fluke. Lars even drank a Potion of Strength beforehand to boost his damage. That was likely an idea Yuel came up with because starting with Potion of Strength wasn''t popular in the current meta but it has been done before in some niche situation. This opening worked wonders for Gunslinger because it provided a flat power boost, which the Gunslinger doubled with guaranteed crits when landing headshots.


    So, this clearly wasn''t a fluke. Yuel and Lars were confidence in this play from start to end. Somehow, Lars leveled up like fifty levels as a Gunslinger in term of mechanical skill and there was only one explanation Howard could think of.


    "I think I get it," Howard said. "Lars must''ve heavily focused on practicing Gunslinger this past week."


    "Hmm," Ellen cocked her head. "You think he could really improve so much in just a week?"


    "It sounds unreal, but it''s Lars we''re talking about. I''m not sure scoring headshots is any harder hitting bouncing Trickshots. So, if he really focused on Gunslinger, and I mean REALLY focused on it, then it may be possible."


    "Like, you mean he barely played any other classes at all?"


    "Yeah, he probably spammed Gunslinger every game. And, I assume he did some special head-shooting practice. The goal was probably..."


    [A strong secondary class.] Yuel smiled proudly. They did it. They really did it! By focusing almost exclusively on Gunslinger this past week, they bumped Lars''s skills almost to the same level of his Trickshooter.


    Most people probably had a huge misunderstanding about Lars''s skills. Indeed, he was a mechanical monster gifted with godlike coordination and superhuman reaction speed. These talents definitely contributed a lot to Lars''s amazing Trickshotoer skills, but they were only the baseline.


    Lars''s talents enabled him to play on that level, but they weren''t the only reason he performed so well. Everything was thanks to his daily training with Trickshooter. Every night, without fail, Lars practiced Trickshooter before going to sleep, it became something of a habit. Lars even said he couldn''t fall asleep if he missed his Trickshooter training that day.


    It was through this combination of talent and daily training that Lars ascended to his supreme level with Trickshooter. So, Yuel capitalized on that successful training regime and asked Lars to incorporate another class into it. It just so happened that the second class Lars loved the most was Gunslinger and it was picked solely based on that factor. As long as it was a class Lars loved, he''d enjoy practicing it even late at night.


    Yuel also complemented Lars''s solo training with team practice by letting Lars play lots and lots of Gunslinger with everybody in Ranked. So, even though the training lasted "less than a week", Lars practically spent every day playing Gunslinger from morning to evening. In term of total training hours, it rivaled a month of practice!


    Lars was still a little rough around the edges, but he completely nailed down the headshots. It was the most important aspect of playing Gunslinger and set apart an amateur from a pro. They had this game!


    [This is bad.] Howard gritted his teeth. That Gunslinger stunt completely stole the momentum, Yuel, and Lars were on a roll right now. If things continue like this, this game will become unrecoverable.


    Thankfully, the other lanes were doing alright so far. Even though Ellen''s death set the team a little back, the others will make up for it. They''ll turn this around, step by step. The real battle was only beginning!

 84 Turtling Patience

    In Top Lane, Gregory was doing a fine job playing defense, just like Howard ordered. However, he was a little too provocative...


    [Kek, eat shit.] Gregory snickered as he flung a stone at Roi. Then, another one. And another one. [Man, sniping melee scrubs from afar is fun. It''s like playing darts.]


    Druid was a rare hybrid between tank and mage, so it had both high defense and ranged basic attacks. The class was perfect for poking that Dark Knight mofo from afar while maintaining distance. It sucked that the pesky minions turned on Gregory whenever he landed a shot on Roi, but poking was just so much fun he couldn''t stop. Maybe he was getting a little addicted, kek.


    [Tch,] Roi grimaced as another stone smacked him. [What an asshole. Just lemme farm in peace.]


    These ranged basic attacks were real cancer. Gregory wasn''t a particularly competent shooter, so it''s not like the shots were that difficult to deal with. However, the shots constantly split Roi''s attention between farming minions and dealing with incoming shots.


    [Okay, another pitch coming.] Roi noticed that Gregory advanced. The guy was like a walking telegraph, so it was a no-brainer to predict his attacks. Roi will easily parry this pitch and return to business... shit.


    The pitch passed slightly above Roi''s bat and hit his arm. Strike! How!? Dang it. These pitches were so easy, so how come Roi failed to parry half of them? It''s not like they were particularly fast or thrown from a nasty angle or anything.


    To Gregory''s credit, the pitches did have a somewhat annoying timing because they always came when Roi was busy handling minions. But, that shouldn''t be an issue when the pitches were so telegraphed. Roi saw these pitches from a mile away, but he failed to make contact. His bat just didn''t behave as he wanted.


    And, if that shit wasn''t triggering enough, Gregory repeatedly jumped into the middle of his minion wave to get hit by Roi''s Dark Blast. The damage from Dark Blast was soaked up by Gaia''s Protection, so Gregory could eat Dark Blasts in the face for days. This only got worse with time because the shield from Gaia''s Protection scaled better with level than Dark Blast''s damage.


    Gregory''s stunt was a pain for two reasons. First, because hitting Gregory with anything aggro''d his minions on Roi. As a result, Roi had to run away like a pussy every time until the minions lose interest in him. But, that alone wasn''t a huge deal.


    The second annoying factor was that Dark Blast''s traveling distance became a little shorter after every time it passed through an enemy. It was tiny modifier which wasn''t even motioned in the skill''s description, so it was niche knowledge. However, anybody who played Top Lane seriously had to know this tidbit to bully Dark Knight. And, Gregory was using it to great effect right now.


    [Kek, this shit actually works.] Gregory smirked as he body-blocked another Dark Blast. That''s a nice tip Howard gave him. Gregory had no idea Dark Blast was actually affected by how many enemies it hit. That shit wasn''t written anywhere in the description or anything, so he had to double-check after Howard told him.


    Sure, there were a few rare occasions when Gregory played Dark Knight and his Dark Blast randomly decided to rebel. Even though he was sure Dark Blast should be able to travel a certain distance, it just went NOPE and didn''t travel all the way. Gregory always assumed it was either some sort of bug or that he misgauged the distance. But, turned out it was a legit aspect of Dark Blast''s design and it was hella fun to exploit, kek.


    Every time Roi fired his Dark Blast in hope to damage the entire minion wave, Gregory jumped in its way. At first, he wasn''t keen on the idea of repeatedly eating damage in the face like that, but then he realized he barely received any damage thanks to Gaia''s Protection. So, rather than getting punched in the face to save his minions, it''s more like Gregory pulled a pro-level block.


    Thanks to this little trick Roi couldn''t gain much lane advantage. So much for Dark Knight''s early game power, it had no power here. That mofo couldn''t do shit against a pro like Gregory, kek.


    Best of all, Roi gradually exhausted his own HP. Aside from poking here and there, Gregory didn''t need to lift a finger. Casting Dark Blast cost HP and Gregory''s body-blocking aggro''d his minions on Roi''s ass, so the game''s mechanics bound together to help Gregory win!


    As a result, Roi was already running out of steam at 30% HP. He probably gonna retreat soon without accomplishing shit. Man, this battle was a piece of cake. At this rate, Gregory legit gonna get a starter spot on the first string. He gonna become DaBestSolo, kek.


    [This is a great opportunity.] Gregory smirked. To put the final nail in Roi''s coffin, Gregory better get a kill here before Roi retreats like a pussy. That''ll prove once and for all who was the true best player here! Gregory will finally step out of Taison''s shadow and will be feared as the powerhouse he really was!


    "Don''t rush it," Howard said.


    "Huh?"


    "Don''t assume that Roi gonna be an easy target just because he''s at low health. Sitting at 70% HP sounds safe, but Roi is playing Dark Knight and I''m pretty sure you can''t make another shield with that MP. Don''t be careless."


    "I didn''t even say anything..." Gregory knotted his brows. [What''s the deal with Howard? I swear dude is an esper or some shit. He better appear on variety shows instead of playing Mancers. I bet he''d become filthy rich, kek.]


    "Just thought I''d give you some friendly advice," Howard denied the whole ESP theory, but Gregory was totally onto that mofo. "It''s very tempting to go on the offensive after you''ve been defending for so long, I know the feeling. But, don''t let it sway you. Remember, your job is to freeze the lane and make sure Roi doesn''t get ahead in the early game."


    "Huh, you make it sound like I got no chance kicking his ass. The guy is already out of steam. I can totally wreck him."


    "I didn''t say you can''t kill him, but..." Howard paused for a moment. "Alright, let''s do it like this. Tai, go for the Wolf Camp near Top Lane. Keep tabs on the situation on lane and give a hand if needed, but don''t go out of your way to gank for no reason."


    "Gotcha, boss."


    "Greg, you''re free to take a shot at Roi once Tai gets there. Sounds good?"


    "Hm, sure," Gregory replied half-heartedly. What''s with this babysitting? Gregory would totally win this 1v1, he didn''t need any safety nets1. [I swear, Howard is such a worrywart. Zero trust, huh.]


    [Okay, fine.] Gregory sighed after contemplating for a moment. He''ll wait for Taison to get closer, then he''ll rush that scrubby Dark Knight. It gonna be the easiest win of the century.


    The best strat was obviously to pull Roi deeper into Gregory''s territory, that''ll guarantee Roi ain''t gonna get away. Gregory had just the tool for the job: Nature''s Grasp. But, landing that shit from afar on an unpredictable target was hella hard. That skill-shot had the width of an ant, so one had to be a trained pro sniper to land it consistently on enemies.


    The good news, there was one scene in which Roi always became hella predictable and easy to grab: while he was casting Dark Blast. That''s the moment Gregory gonna shoot for!


    [Damn.] Roi tapped his foot. This laning phase was going nowhere. He just finished clearing a minion wave, but a new one was already here. This pace was unacceptable for a Dark Knight. This early-game powerhouse had to maintain an early-game lead and bully the lane opponent, or else it''ll become useless.


    What an annoying restriction. It''s really not fun when your performance in the early-game gonna single-handedly decide whether you gonna be worth anything later down the road. That''s why Roi preferred classes with a more balanced power curve.


    [Well, it is what it is.] Roi shrugged and shook his head. [Yuel insisted on Dark Knight, so Dark Knight he got. I gotta do what I can.]


    With that said, there wasn''t much to do with just 30% HP, especially when his lane opponent had a defensive ranged class. If Roi can get closer to Gregory, maybe he''ll be able to turn the situation around. That''s the kind of play Yuel was expecting, he even told Roi to buy Potion of Strength to increase the chances of scoring an early kill.


    But, it was no good. The lane was totally frozen. At this rate, Roi won''t only lose his chance to stay relevant for later parts of the game, but his investment into Potion of Strength will also end up being a complete waste. The potion gave a flat power bonus, so it became less and less impactful as the game went on, pretty much like the Dark Knight himself.


    Therefore, despite being at 30% HP, Roi couldn''t possibly retreat yet, not before he puts Potion of Strength to good use and scores at least one kill here. Retreating would be as good as surrendering. Gregory was already down to 70% HP, he didn''t have enough MP for another shield of Gaia''s Protection and he hasn''t built much defense yet.


    So, this situation was still salvageable and Roi had at least one more shot. He had to make his move now. Once this next minion wave arrives, he gonna settle this!


    Roi advanced as usual to fire Dark Blast. Of course, Gregory was already in the middle of his minion wave, ready to soak up the damage. Even though Gregory didn''t have a shield this time, he was still gonna eat a Dark Blast to the face for the sake of his minions. Admirable, but this gonna be his end!


    Roi chugged down the Potion of Strength and raised his blade to shoot Dark Blast- wha!? Branches wrapped his body and pulled him toward the enemy wave! Nature''s Grasp!? Really? In this situation?


    The branches dragged Roi all the way to Gregory''s face. Lol, Roi couldn''t ask for a better arrangement! It was awesome! He gonna put his Potion of Strength to great use and get himself a sweet early kill, two birds with one stone! [Alright, now you gonna pay for all the crap you''ve been giving me with your pokes and body-blocks. Payback time, baby!]


    Roi booted Nightmare, which covered his body in dark miasma. He was ready to rock n'' roll! To start off, a powerful Dark Blast right into Gregory''s face!


    "Wha!?" Gregory jumped. A Dark Blast smacked him right as he finished pulling. That''s 25% HP gone in an instant! Damn, wasn''t Druid supposed to be a tanky class? What was this trashy defense!?


    But, that wasn''t even the most surprising part. For some reason, the Dark Knight was enveloped in a dark aura. Why use Nightmare? Wait, could it be Roi was actually planning to give a fight? Even though he only had 25% HP and was gonna lose even more due to NIghtmare? Heh, that loser ain''t got any chance!


    [Fine! If you think you can win, let''s see ya try!] Gregory accepted the challenge head-on and replied in kind. Roi slashed him, so he fired right back at that mofo!


    There was no way Roi could win in this situation. Not only he was running low on HP, but he was also in the middle of Gregory''s minion wave. The aggro''d swordsmen and bowmen gonna pincer Roi from both sides and kick his ass!


    Except, nobody fired arrows for some reason. The swordsmen turned around to hit Roi, but the bowmen were sleeping. That''s some weird shit right there. A bug or something? Man, this game was sure... oh. [Shit! This ain''t good...]


    The only bug here was the absolutely broken damage of Dark Blast. The attack which erased 25% of Gregory''s HP didn''t just stop there, it flew all the way to the backline and wiped out all his bowmen too. Shit, shit, shit! The bowmen were supposed to be the biggest source of damage, but they were busy chilling in hell right now!


    But, no matter. Gregory still had the-


    "Retreat. Now." Howard gave an order.


    "But, I can-"


    "Now."


    "Tch," Gregory shook his head. Why!? This situation was the perfect chance to get back at Roi for last game! Gregory had to- Wait, when the hell did his HP drop down to 20%!? Even worse, Roi was still at around 15% himself!


    [I''m outta here!] Gregory turned around and sprinted like the wind. Or rather, like a big bulky tree guy. This damn Druid was slow as hell!


    This development was insane. Like, hello? Tanking pls? Druid was supposed to be a tough guy, but Roi shredded him apart with every slash. And what''s worse, Nightmare reflected half the damage Gregory dealt to Roi. Goddammit! Gregory might actually die at this rate...!


    [Strike!] Roi drove his black blade into Gregory''s fleeing back. [One more strike and you''re out! It''s over! ...oh, damn.] Roi stopped in his tracks, he couldn''t move a single step. Druid''s passive rooted him in place because he spammed too many basic attacks in a row! Crap, Roi done goofed.


    The root effect lasted less than two seconds, but it felt ten times longer when Roi had to watch the Druid get farther and farther away. And, if letting Gregory slip away wasn''t bad enough, the enemy minions also caught up with their immobile target and slashed away at Roi. At this rate, he''ll be done in by a bunch of small dudes! Minions? More like Killions!


    [Nope! Ain''t having any of it!] Roi turned around and ran like his life depended on it, because it kinda literally did. There was no choice but to give up on the kill because dying right now would set Roi back too much. Thankfully, the minions were a bunch of slowpokes, so it wasn''t hard to get away from there. But...


    "HERE COMES TAISON!" Taison invaded the lane! "Coming to the rescue, yo!"


    "I don''t need any rescuing," Gregory retorted. "You better rescue that DK from himself. Put him out of his misery, kek."


    "On it!" Taison activated Hungering Horde, which sent a pack of bats at Roi.


    [Damn!] Roi continued running, but he already knew it was futile. The horde of bats slowed him down and gradually sucked away his HP. Taison caught up in no time and sealed the deal with a couple of basic attacks.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Dammit!" Roi kicked. That''s it, game over. A Dark Knight who dies in the early game gonna suck for the rest of the match. Roi might still get a few chances to execute people, but that''s about it. His ability to contribute to this match was reduced to almost nothing.


    "That was a little reckless," Yuel said. "You should''ve taken into account that Taison was likely rotating to Top."


    "Yeah, I..." Roi sighed. Actually, he wasn''t even sure whether he saw that. At the very least, it wasn''t on his mind when he decided to kill Gregory. And, he also forgot to play around Druid''s passive root effect...


    It was lame. First, he had trouble parrying easy shots, and now he carelessly overextended in enemy territory like some Bronze player. This ain''t like him at all.


    But, this wasn''t the first time. Roi knew this feeling very well and his palm trembled as he clenched the mouse. This annoying phenomenon was nothing new or strange, he experienced it many times before in baseball. When the spirit wavers, so does the player''s performance. The bat stops listening to its own and fails to make contact. It''s a basic sports thing that can happen to anybody. Trever was especially bad at dealing with it.


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    With Roi''s years of experience playing sports, he was fairly resilient to this thing. It wasn''t like he developed immunity to this phenomena, he just learned how to conquer it whenever it popped up. During such dark times, all he had to do was think about the importance of the match, about what he was fighting for and about why he had to win at any cost.


    Unfortunately, in this match, these very questions were the core of the problem to begin with. Roi''s doubts about the direction of the match and its consequences were the root of his uneasiness. Was he even fighting for the right cause? He couldn''t tell, yet he had to keep fighting anyway.


    "You need at least one kill before mid-game," Yuel droned. "Otherwise, you won''t be able to come back in time."


    "Yeah, I know..." Roi sighed. [Why do I even have to play DK? Climbing from behind is such a pain with this class... No, focus.] Roi slapped his cheeks. He had to get his groove back before he drags the team down to oblivion.


    Meanwhile, in the other camp, the players celebrated this development.


    "Good job getting out of there alive," Howard said.


    "Yeah, right," Gregory averted his eyes. ["Good job" my ass. I almost fucked myself over by pulling Roi. If not for Druid''s passive, I''d be dead meat right now. And, I didn''t even get the kill in the end. It was all Taison.]


    "It was really a risky play," Howard lectured. "Especially, after I told you to play defensively so many times."


    [Jeez, thanks for rubbing it in.] Gregory made a face.


    "But, it''s alright."


    "... excuse me?" Gregory couldn''t help but make a dumb face.


    "You did well, all things considered. When you turtle for too long, you start wanting to kick some ass for a change, right? Just imagine how quickly somebody like Taison would break while turtling."


    "Me? Turtle?" Taison''s face twisted like he just heard the most disgusting word ever. "I ain''t doing that lame shit, it''s for pussies."


    "You see?" Howard turned back to Gregory. "Just fighting that temptation as long as you did is already amazing. It''s thanks to your patience that Roi became restless and slipped at the end there."


    [Heh,] Gregory sneered. [He''s sure trying to make it sound like I pulled off some cool shit.] Gregory shook his head, but he couldn''t deny he felt a little better after hearing these words. Even though Gregory knew that Howard was probably just talking outta his ass to keep morale high, a little bit of praise never hurt.


    "You probably think it sucks because you couldn''t get the kill," Howard continued. "But, it doesn''t matter that Taison dealt the final blow. It''s your persistence against Roi that drove him into a corner and created this opportunity. So, it''s really your kill, even though you only got an assist for it."


    "My kill..." Gregory mumbled. That''s a hella messed up way to think about it. So, even though it was Taison who wrapped things up, it was actually all thanks to Gregory turtling like a pussy? That was... actually kinda true.


    Gregory messed with Roi the whole time and hit the guy where it hurt most. Gregory denied full wave clears by body-blocking Dark Blast and poked from afar with basic attacks. He did lots of shit to tilt Roi and it paid off in the end. The triggered boi lost his head and went on the offensive, even though he was almost dead. That cost the guy everything.


    Heh, everything was actually part of the master plan! Of course Gregory knew he''d easily get away if Roi decides to attack, so that''s why he went for that risky pull. 100% calculated! That kill was all Gregory!


    [Alright.] Howard nodded to himself after seeing Gregory''s snicker. Even though Howard''s speech was just consolation which ensured that Gregory won''t lose his head and will continue turtling, there was a grain of truth to it.


    Thanks to Gregory holding the fort for so long, Roi became uncertain of his plans and became restless. Roi must have been mulling over whether to retreat or attack, and then Gregory''s pull made the decision for him. With the target right within reach, Roi naturally chose fight instead of retreating.


    [And, he miscalculated.] Howard smiled meaningfully. Forgetting about the rooting effect of Terra''s Warth was a huge blunder, that''s not like Roi. He must have been pressured and distracted by Dark Knight''s requirement to get ahead in the early game.


    And, Roi was probably wavering for another reason as well because even his parries didn''t connect well. It seemed like the consequences of the first game were slowly injecting their poison into the enemy team, right under Yuel''s nose.


    With a kill on Roi, the advantage in Top Lane went to Howard''s team and Roi will have a hard time climbing back from that as a Dark Knight. Alas, the enemy team held a slight advantage in Bot Lane after Lars killed Ellen.


    Therefore, whoever gains the upper hand in Mid will dominate the early game. If the enemy''s aggressive comp loses initiative during the early game, this match would be as good as settled.

 85 Canst Go on the Offensive

    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


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    [For real?] Julia blinked. Roi? Beaten by that loser? [Oh, it was a gank.] That made more sense. After all, there''s no way Roi would lose against that loser GG.


    [But, this isn''t good. Are they gonna focus Mid next? Okay, on the bottom half everybody is in place. On the top side... missing.] Julia knotted her brows. Taison didn''t stay in Top to push the undefended lane. Meaning, he was either counter jungling or... he gonna gank Mid!


    Julia immediately turned around. Dying right now would be the worst. Lars did a great job gaining an advantage in Bot, but Roi totally blew it in Top. So, now the kill count was 1-1 and each team dominated one lane. If Julia dies now and loses Mid, she''ll be blamed for losing the entire game and everybody will point fingers at her. Lars will hate her! Nuuuuuu!


    [Nope, not having any of that.] Back, back, back! All the way to the tower! Gilbert was kinda running out of steam anyway, so he''ll retreat any-


    "Excuse me!?" Julia blurted. That stupidface didn''t retreat! He advanced instead! Even though Gilbert only got like 30% HP and 25% MP, the guy was acting like he was all that. The nerve!


    [Okay, let''s see how long you dare to stay here.] Julia activated Whirlwind to summon raging winds in the center of the enemy wave. Of course, she didn''t miss the chance to hit Gilbert along the way. Unfortunately, he dodged the spell after being hit by just a single tick of damage. [Can''t you play like Bronze sometimes? Stop being good at this game.]


    But, of course, Gilbert gotta be good like that. After all, he was StormBlitz''s Mid Laner, at least for now. If Julia just scores a kill on him...!


    [Take that! And that!] Two basics, two misses. Grr, that slippery bastard! Gilbert stayed just close enough to be within Julia''s attack range, but also far enough to quickly step out of it. It''s like he had a sixth sense to tell delicate border between the two. Did he have a uni degree at "Spacing" or something? Jesus.


    Worst of all, Gilbert refused to budge. He stayed on the offensive even though he was running low on HP. It''s as if he was asking to get killed. Like, seriously, did he think Julia won''t dare to rush him?


    [You won''t attack.] Gilbert confidently pushed forward. Going on the offensive with 30% HP was normally against his better judgment, but there was an exception to everything. One such exception was Julia''s extreme tendency to stick to defense, even to turtle if necessary.


    Julia already displayed her strong intent to stay on the defensive in the previous game. She remained on guard that entire game, even though she was playing an aggressive class like Electromancer. And, this game, she went for Aeromancer, which told she was fully committed to the defensive game plan. It was just like Howard briefed them: Julia only played defense.


    Therefore, Gilbert extended more than usual into enemy territory. He put aside his balanced playstyle and went full offense to pressured Julia with everything he had. Thanks to that aggressiveness he shaved the Mid Turret''s HP, little by little. These small pushes stacked up to sizable damage and gave Gilbert a big lead in term fo Turret health.


    So, even now with just 30% HP, Gilbert pushed hard. Every little bit of damage to the enemy Turret will go a long way. In addition, this may tempt Julia to go on the offense and then...


    [Darn it.] Julia twisted her lips. She couldn''t do it after all. To punish Gilbert for this overextension, Julia will have to fully commit to the offense. But, there was the risk of getting ganked by Taison and besides, going on the offensive for real required her to... Ugh, she couldn''t do it. Julia had to stay on the defensive, there had to another way to punish Gilbert.


    "Gilbert is overextending and stuff," Julia notified, her words were aimed at their Jungler.


    "Okay," Dan answered. "I''ll get there in a jiffy."


    "Wait," Yuel said. "If you plan to gank, you better go through this route because there''s... a Ward." Ugh, too late.


    "Whoops," Dan''s mistake led to consequences right away. Gilbert turned around and began retreating, fully aware of the incoming gank.


    "Um, should I keep going?" Dan asked.


    "Yes," Yuel said. "You may still have a chance to catch him."


    "Roger."


    [Well, the gank is still a thing, but...] Julia chewed her lips. Dan most likely won''t make it in time. At this rate, Gilbert will get away scot-free after blatantly overextending in Julia''s face. Grrr!


    [If I just slow him down a little... No, but that...] Her heartbeat quickened. This was a great opportunity to put on a strong show! Or, to mess up horribly...


    Jet Stream and Squall were online, so Julia could catch up to Gilbert and blast him from behind. However, that required entering enemy territory and exposing herself to tremendous danger. Julia only had 60% HP, so this chase could go wrong very fast.


    She... no. She couldn''t. It was too risky. It''s not like Julia doubted her offensive skills or anything. She trained them plenty with Ellen and she tested them in Ranked. She also used them to punch the lights outta Yuel in 1v1 practice, though that probably wasn''t much of an achievement.


    Anyway, Julia could definitely go full offense if she wanted. But, she had a bad habit of getting overly excited and... blurting stuff.


    ["You did a passable job overall,"] Yuel''s words echoed in her head.[ "But, you could''ve done even more with a defensive class. If you can''t bring yourself to play offense, then you should go for a class with more utility."]


    The words hammered at Julia. It''s not like she played defensively because she wanted, dammit! Okay, that''s it! Julia cast Jet Stream, which created a trail of wind on the lane. It was a pointless move unless she was really going to give chase.


    [O-Okay, what now?] Her heartbeat quickened. I-It''s not like she was necessarily going to risk it. It''s just that, if she still wanted a chance to catch up, she had to start moving now.


    Julia passed through the slipstream and gained a movement speed boost. With her speed, it was a no-brainer to get Gilbert into her attack range. But...


    [Not good. I... I don''t know.] Julia''s hands trembled. It felt like her heart was beating inside her skull. On one hand, she had to stay alive no matter what. On the other hand, she had to do everything in her power to win this match. If Julia lets this opportunity slip and it somehow leads to the team''s defeat via some crazy domino effect... But, if she chases and gets killed in the process, that''ll also... Gaaaaaah!


    ["You could''ve done even more with a defensive class. If you can''t bring yourself to play offense..."] Grr, that stupid idiot and his big mouth! It''s not like Julia wanted to play like this! And, even though Aeromancer was a "defensive mage", it''s not like she couldn''t go on the offensive at all, damn it!


    [T-That''s it! I''ll show you what I can do!] Julia went full steam ahead! She gonna chase after Gilbert and slow him down!


    But, things weren''t so easy. Julia wasted too much time hesitating, so this chase became trickier. There was no choice but to venture a little deep into enemy territory to catch up with Gilbert.


    But, Julia will make it! With her buffed movement speed, it was a non-issue. The only challenge was to land Squall from that distance, but she practiced basic moves like that to the point they became as natural as breathing. It''ll be a cinch! Julia just had to predict a few steps ahead and fire there. She''ll wreck Gilbert for sure- wha!? Thunder!?


    Dark clouds formed over Julia''s head and lightning shot through her body. Thunderstorm!? What the-!?


    For a brief moment, her eyes locked with Gilbert''s. Amidst his escape, Gilbert turned around to unleash Thunderstorm. How!? What a fast switch from defense and offense! Darn it!


    Another lighting struck. This was bad! Bad, bad, BAD! Should Julia push forward or retreat!? There was no time to think! She rolled aside and got out of the danger zone.


    Her HP fell down to 40%, but she got out alive. Phew, this almost ended as a disaster- Wha?! Bats!? Oh no! Taison was here! The gank came from Top just like Julia feared!


    [Crap! I can''t see shit!] Julia cursed internally as she tried to figure the best course of action. She still had the speed boost from Jet Stream, so she might be able to get away. However, said speed buff was partially diminished by the pesky bats flapping around her. And to make things worse, Julia could barely make out the situation with the bats covering her screen. [Oh god, why me!?]


    [Think! Fast!] Her heart was about to explode from all this craziness. There was only one thing she knew for sure: she gotta get away! Now!


    Julia turned toward her Turret and flew at full speed! [Stupid class. If your basic movement is to fly, then at least be as fast as Superman!]


    New bats rammed into Julia as she was making her escape. Vampire''s basic attacks fired bats and there were also bats flocking around her. Flippin'' bats everywhere!


    No good, Julia already fell down to 30% HP. Taison will chase her all the way to the Turret unless she does something fast. A slowdown! Right, she should slow that idiot! That''s what Squall was for! She won''t get to use it on Gilbert anymore, so Taison should get hit by that stuff.


    The blinding effect of the bats was about to lift up, so it was now or never! Julia turned around and took aim. [Gilbert isn''t the only one who can quickly turn around and fire a skillshot, you know!]


    Whish! A blast of wind cut through the air. It darted right toward Taison... but it missed.


    No, that''s wrong. It didn''t "miss" because Julia''s aim was spot on. Taison dodged it. Just like that, without breaking a sweat. It''s like he dodged a turtle that was charging at him, it was that easy.


    [Oh god, I''m screwed. So screwed.] There was no hope of deflecting Taison''s assault, especially not in a 1v1. This idiot was one heck of a monster in those, even Julia had to admit.


    Her only option was to keep running. Thanks to the Aeromancer''s passive, Wind Flow, she gained a 10% movement speed buff for 3 seconds after casting a spell. Even though her Squall missed, she gained a burst of speedup from firing it. If she could just cast one more spell and gain an additional 10%, she''d get away in no time!


    Alas, Whirlwind was used earlier for zoning and Jet Stream was used for chasing, so she had nothing. Her ult didn''t count because it required long casting time, so the 10% from Squall and the earlier buff from Jet Stream were the only things she had to rely on. And, Jet Stream''s buff was about to run out, so she won''t benefit from that buff stacking for long.


    It was terrible. Taison had no problem staying on her tail with his ranged basic attacks, so the only hope she had was that maybe that dumbass would miss a few shots. Buuuuut of course that didn''t happen. Taison landed each and every flippin'' shot. His bats were like guided missiles.


    Still, Julia somehow made it! She reached her Turret''s area! She was barely alive, but she still- BAM! An electric explosion! The Thunderstorm from earlier inflicted Julia with Electric Charges and now Gilbert detonated them. Just great...


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    [Fuck!] Julia slammed on the table. [I knew I shouldn''t have chased! I died without getting anything out of it! Goddammit!]


    "You shouldn''t have extended so much," Yuel said.


    "Yeah, I KNOW that."


    "The opportunity itself wasn''t bad," Yuel droned on. "But, you took too long to decide-"


    "I said I KNOW!" Julia thundered. If she just decided her course of action faster, she would have avoided this disaster. She had to run so deep into enemy territory only because she started late. Goddammit.


    "I got him!" Dan leaped onto the lane and surrounded Gilbert with lions from all side.


    [Oh, at least something came out of it.] Julia sighed. Gilbert had to turn around to unleash Thunderstorm on Julia, so maybe that slowed him down enough to help Dan catch up. If Dan scores this kill... oh, nevermind.


    "Ah!" Dan exclaimed. Gilbert activated Thunderclap and blinked outside the prison of lions. He got away, just like that. "No way! He had the blink? Weeeeeelp."


    "That was careless," Yuel remarked. "You should''ve asked Julia if Thunderclap was up."


    "Yeaaaah, I just kinda assumed he already spent it to get this far. I mean, if he didn''t blink even once, then how the heck did he escape all the way out here against an Aeromancer?"


    "......." Julia left the question hanging. As far as chasing potential was concerned, Aeromancer had all the tools to outpace an Electromancer: a movement speed buff from Jet Stream, another buff from Windflow and a speed debuff from Squall. To get away against these odds, Electromancer would normally have to blink away with Thunderclap, so Dan''s assumption wasn''t too out there. The one at fault here was... goddammit.


    "You still should double-check the situation with the laner before ganking," Yuel said. "Anyway, get out of there before Taison catches you in a 1v1."


    "Roger." Dan fled from Mid to avoid confrontation and left the lane completely unguarded. Thankfully, Gilbert was forced to retreat due to running out of steam, so he won''t get to capitalize on this opening. However, Taison was totally free to push Julia''s undefended lane.


    [We''ll lose. Because of me.] Julia clawed at her knees. She was supposed to do her best today, so what''s with this crappy performance? If she keeps going like that, she''ll drag down the whole team. They''ll lose and it''ll be her fault. She''ll single-handedly ruin Lars''s chances of becoming a first-string member and he''ll hate her for life. [I... I need to... I don''t even...]


    Of course, for the other team, this development was worthy of celebration.


    "Nice kill, Tai." Howard said.


    "Heh, ez!"


    "Stay in Mid for a while and push."


    "You got it, bro!"


    "Nice escape there," Howard addressed Gilbert.


    "It was a no-brainer," Gilbert shrugged. "We already know she can''t go on the offensive, or at least that she can''t switch gears quickly."


    [Heh, good job criticizing Julia while emphasizing why you''re a better player.] Howard chuckled. Gilbert was selling himself in his own roundabout way, it was cute.


    Julia''s weak performance on the offensive was par for the course, but Dan''s slip-ups during the gank were quite unusual. Firstly, Dan telegraphed the gank by letting a predictable meta Ward to expose him. Secondly, Dan used his ult right away without accounting for Gilbert''s Thunderclap.


    The Ward issue was the smaller offense out of the two. With Dan''s experience, he should have known to not take the straight path to Mid because it was pretty much always warded. But alright, that''s just on paper. It was impossible to have perfect judgment during a stressful match, so this kind of misplay was understandable.


    However, the mess up with "The King''s Dominion" just looked bad. For Lionfolk, the ult was the surefire way to secure kills. In fact, the enemy clearly picked this class to bully Howard''s team composition. Most of the classes on Howard''s team didn''t have any good answers to "The King''s Dominion", so they were great targets for a gank.


    However, Gilbert did have an answer in the form of Thunderclap and Dan should''ve kept that in mind. Yet, Dan completely butchered that opportunity and now his ult was on cooldown, so his ganks won''t be nearly as scary for the time being.


    Was it a case of miscommunication? Maybe Julia didn''t remember whether Gilbert has already used Thunderclap, so she couldn''t feed Dan with the necessary information on time. However, in that case, Dan should have thought twice before going all in. No matter how Howard looked at it, it was clearly a huge misplay by Dan. Just like Roi, Dan has been slipping this game.


    [The effect of the first game is sinking in.] Howard smiled meaningfully. Just as he suspected, Yuel hasn''t resolved the core issues plaguing his team. Roi wavered, Dan slipped and Julia couldn''t bring herself to play aggressively.


    Only Lars still posed danger, but that won''t last long either. It was time to bring out the "Lars Killer". Once they destroy the last pillar that was supporting the enemy team, it''ll be over.

 86 The Lars Killer

    The second game was rough. Lars gained an early advantage in Bot, but the others lost the initiative in Top and Mid. Roi''s early death hurt in particular because a Dark Knight who falls behind always had an incredibly hard time climbing back.


    Even after returning to lane, Roi hasn''t been able to gain an advantage. Gregory continued to turtle and poke and played even more defensively than before. So, getting a kill in Top seemed hopeless and instead, Roi hoped to pull off a gank on Gilbert in Mid.


    Alas, whenever Roi tried to rotate, he always ran into Taison. It seemed like Taison was tasked with patrolling Top Jungle, probably by Howard''s command. It was just like Howard to notice this hole in the team''s formation and to close it off. This effectively locked Roi up in Top Lane and forced him to starve.


    In Mid, Julia continued reinforcing her defenses. She prioritized stability and freezing the lane''s progress above everything else. To that end, she bought way more wards than necessary...


    "Don''t waste gold like that," Yuel said.


    "Hmph, I''m only buying as many as I need."


    "Are you trying to light up the entire map or something? You even warded some of Top..."


    "I need to see where Taison is because he''s been all over Top Jungle recently."


    "Yeah, but..." Yuel sighed. There was no point reasoning with Julia when she became like that. Excessive warding was still way better than conceding kills and losing lane control, so Yuel didn''t want to make the situation any worse by arguing. If that''s how Julia felt most comfortable protecting Mid, so be it.


    All in all, the situation looked bad. The enemy effectively controlled Top and Mid right now. Roi was locked out in Top while Julia was pushed back in Mid. Thus, Bot was the only lane where Yuel''s team maintained an advantage. But, even there, the enemy stabilized very well.


    Howard and Ellen learned to be cautious of Lars''s Gunslinger, so they played hyper defense. Lars rolled forward a few times to get things going and he successfully caused some havoc, he couldn''t confirm a second kill. As expected from impenetrable Aegis and the ever slippery Athena, they flawlessly defended against Lars''s Gunslinger.


    But, that''s only while the lane was at a 2v2. How will Howard defend in a 2v3?


    "Dan, now!" Yuel called out.


    "Gotcha!" Dan jumped over a jungle wall and aimed at Howard and Ellen. Once he lands, he''ll lock them inside "The King''s Dominion"! Then, he''ll proceed to tear them apart- DENIED. Dan turned into an icicle in midair. A timely Ice Coffin from Howard.


    With Dan frozen in place, the situation remained the usual 2v2 and nothing stopped the enemies from fleeing. It was a terrible gank blunder.


    "Why did you jump so close to Howard?" Yuel demanded. "Ellen is the primary goal. There was absolutely no need to target both of them and run the risk of getting CC''d in midair."


    "Yeah, you''re right," Dan smiled awkwardly. "Fudged that one, my bad."


    "Okay, as long as you keep that in mind for next time." Yuel sighed. This was rough. The team''s aggressive composition demanded to get early momentum to be able to win during the mid-game, but they haven''t achieved anything so far. All lanes were frozen at best and pushed back at worst.


    Somebody had to break this settlement and it should be Lars. Out of everybody right now, his performance was the only one which lived up to the standard and even surpassed it. The rest of the team wasn''t up to par right now due to the enemy''s tactics. But, once the Lars seizes momentum, the others will surely follow on it.


    "Lame," Lars pouted when Ellen snuck away yet again. "They ain''t coming at me. Where''s the action, dude? Howard is always there to ruin the fun right when things start getting interesting. What a party popper."


    "Agreed, Howard makes this difficult," Yuel nodded. "I''ll go help in Mid and hopefully that''ll bait him into rotating out of Bot."


    "Oh, that''s smart! Dude, you''re a genius!"


    [Literally one of the most basic tactics ever.] Yuel rolled his eyes. Still, sometimes the simplest tactics were the best. It won''t be easy to bait a defensive juggernaut like Howard, but this play should leave Howard no choice. Either Howard will rotate to Mid to interrupt Yuel and that''ll create the desire 1v1 in Bot, or alternatively, Howard will remain in Bot while Yuel helps Julia gain the upper hand in Mid. It was a win-win situation as far as Yuel was concerned, but how will Howard see it?


    "He''s baiting me," Howard sneered.


    "My, Yuyu is such a brat," Ellen shook her head. "He really thinks such an obvious bait will work?"


    "He knows it''s obvious, but he also knows he doesn''t leave much choice," Howard said. "If I don''t go to Mid, Gilbert will be pushed back. Taison has to keep an eye on Top and you need to stay in Bot to farm, so only I can rotate."


    "My, Yuyu came up with such a simple but devious plan. So, what you''re going to do?"


    "I''ll accept the invitation. Yuel is doing this under the assumption you won''t be able to survive against Lars in a 1v1, so we''ll just have to prove him wrong."


    "I feel so underrated," Ellen puffed her cheeks. "I''ll show him!"


    "Yeah, let''s do it. Time to turn Taison into the ''Lars Killer'' we deserve, and the one we need."


    "Sure thing~" Ellen smiled from ear to ear. "I got a Checkpoint Ward ready."


    "Tai, you listening?" Howard asked.


    "Huh? What?"


    "We''re doing ''Da Play'', as you like to call it."


    "Oh, awesome! I''ve been waiting for this shit! Patrolling near Top all day is such a snoozefest."


    [Alright, we''re set. Heh, Yuel doesn''t even realize,] Howard couldn''t help but snicker. [Leaving Lars alone with Ellen is exactly what we want too.]


    After Howard left Bot, it became a 1v1. Ellen fell back a little to escape Lars''s attack range, but she continued poking him and the minion wave. Lars wasn''t gonna get any hits on that fox unless he aggresses.


    "Yo, them pokes," Lars pouted. "I gonna go all out on her, yo!" That''s normally where Yuel would stop him, but Yuel didn''t say a word. "I''m totally going!" Still no reaction. "I gonna jump into the danger and fight face-to-face, yo!" Even this warning passed through. "I''MMA TOTALLY-"


    "Just DO IT," Roi shouted into the mic and almost turned everybody deaf.


    "Yeah," Dan tuned in. "JUST-"


    "DO IT."


    "JUST-"


    "DO IT!"


    "Gah!" Julia slammed on the table. "Would you mind to kindly SHUT UP? Thanks."


    Everybody laughed and even Julia couldn''t help but smile. Finally, Yuel reacted to Lars''s warning. "Go for it. This is your chance to turn the game around. This was what you''ve practiced Gunslinger for, right?"


    "Yeah, you betcha!" Lars nodded repeatedly. He sure trained hard, every day without fail.


    The daily practice the team had at the clubroom this week was already exhausting, it was nothing but matches, practice, strategy meetings and match reviews from 8 am to 5 pm. Like, that''s literally the same as the work hours of Lars''s folks. Where was his fat salary check, yo?


    And, that practice wasn''t even the end of it. After they wrapped up at the club, Lars went to Yuel''s place to do some extra duo training, with emphasis on playing Gunslinger. If Lars wasn''t totally popped from the practice at the clubroom, this extra duo training made sure to suck out every last bit of MP he had left. Yuel was even stricter than these math teachers who only knew how to give single-digit marks.


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    And, even THAT wasn''t the end of Lars''s daily routine. After he returned home, he did some extra fine-tuning practice with his Gunslinger. The only way to bring his Gunslinger anywhere close to the level of his Trickshooter was to train with Gunslinger just as hard, and even harder.


    To make quick progress in just one week, Lars even sacrificed some of his Trickshooter training for Gunslinger. There were days when he was simply too beat and didn''t have any strength left for a long practice session before bed. So, he always started and finished with Gunslinger, then either moved on to Trickshooter or fell asleep, depending on how much MP he had left.


    Yeah, that''s right: Lars skipped on practicing his strongest class for the sake of improving as a Gunslinger. All of it was for this one moment: the 1v1 against Ellen! Lars will apply everything he learned with Gunslinger to mop the floor with that fox! That''ll prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that he was the stronger Carry, [That starter spot is mine, yo!]


    "Okay, here I come!" Lars rolled forward with Combat Roll. After leveling up the skill, its properties became way better than those of a normal dodge-roll. Yuel always said he barely felt any difference, but dude just wasn''t paying enough attention. Combat Roll felt totally different! The startup on the roll was super fast and the wake-up was almost immediate! It was a rolling technique from another realm, attained only by masters who spent hundreds of years rolling every day from morning till evening!


    Lars rolled fast and recovered fast, then activated Fan the Hammer. Same good old strat which gonna apply the buffs from Combat Roll onto every shot of Fan the Hammer. Lars barraged Ellen before she could even react!


    [My, watch this brat go.] Ellen sidestepped the deadly first shot. If she were to react just a moment later, the bullet would have hit her square in the forehead. But, she did it! She dodged the opening shot!


    After seeing this play so many times, of course Ellen could outplay it. Lar''s fast combo of Combat Roll into Fan the Hammer caught Ellen off-guard the first time, but that rascal has been desperately trying to repeat the success ever since. After seeing this move so many times, it became predictable and easy to dodge.


    [I missed?][Well played, dude. Then, how about this...!] Lars adjusted his aim after the recoil and his gun automatically fired again on its own. The barrage during Fan the Hammer was insanely fast and fired nonstop, so Lars didn''t have any time to act surprised. He had to keep attacking no matter what!


    [Alright, now!] Ellen rolled aside before Lars fired. Normally, if Ellen were to move before the shot was fired, Lars would adjust right away by shifting his aim. It sounded absurd, but that''s the kind of beastie Lars was. Even if he only had a fraction a microsecond to react to somebody''s movements, he would adjust without fail.


    However, right now, Larsy should be just a teeny-weeny rattled by the fact his first shot missed. Therefore...!


    [Geh! I can''t adjust in time!] Lars tried to follow Ellen''s rolling form with his aim, but he was too late. The shot fired without waiting for him... and it missed.


    [Dang it, that last second roll was something else.] It was a perfectly timed dodge, as expected from a fox like Ellen. It reminded him of an important fact: even though that fox spent most of the game doing cheap poke-and-run, she was actually hella fine in combat too!


    However, that Dodge Roll left Ellen wide open. Before she finished the roll, Lars already fired his next shot. He knew exactly where to aim and there was no way for Ellen to pull any tricks this time.


    Third shot! Headshot!


    [My, it''s so hard to shake him.] Ellen twitched but insisted to maintain a confident smile. [Alrighty, let''s go. I''ll dance with you, my dear Larsy. Follow my lead, right into the sweet embrace of death~]


    Lars fired again. Another headshot! He got her now! One more hit and he''ll stun Ellen!


    Third shoot... dodged! Ellen sidestepped it. Dang it, so close!


    [How eager~] Ellen smirked. There was no denying that Lars''s head-shooting skill was superhuman right now, but he still had that little thing all humans had: a brain. In his case, it was mostly empty, but that didn''t stop him from being affected by emotions.


    When Lars missed the first shot, it threw off his rhythm. That was incredibly dangerous during Fan the Hammer because the trick to landing all the shots was in maintaining perfect harmony with the tempo of the shots. Ellen was a Carry too, so she knew that stuff.


    The reason Ellen easily dodged Lar''s second shot was that his first miss rattled him. As a result, he had to pour extra attention into regaining his groove, which hampered his ability to adjust the aim in the last moment like he usually did.


    Unfortunately, Lars was a hard nut to crack. He regained his tempo for the third shot and scored a headshot, then rolled into another headshot with that momentum.


    But, that''s when Lars became too eager. Like a starving beastie which finally received a snack, Lars wanted to gobble down everything at once. Landing a third headshot in a row would stun Ellen, so Lars wanted to pull it off right away. Therefore, he didn''t even notice the trap Ellen led him into.


    The fifth shot darted straight toward Ellen''s forehead, it was going to be a clean hit and Ellen wasn''t fast enough to react. But, the bullet never hit its target, it dropped shortly before reaching Ellen. There was too much distance between them!


    When Ellen let Lars land a second headshot, that service wasn''t for free. She used that opportunity to distance herself as much as possible from the rampaging beast. Thanks to that, she only had to take one step to get out of Lars''s firing range for the fifth shot. No matter how inhumanly scary Lars''s shots were, they couldn''t transcend the concept of distance. Too bad for him~


    [Geh, I have to catch up!] Lars dashed after Ellen to close the distance and secure his last shot. He successfully scored a headshot on the sixth shot, but unfortunately, it didn''t count for the combo and therefore didn''t stun Ellen.


    Still, Ellen was crippled from all the shots and every Lars landed extended the cripple duration. She won''t get away, yo!


    [Finally over.] Ellen exhaled. She did it, she survived the onslaught of Fan the Hammer. From here on out, she''ll counterattack and force Lars into her pace.


    "RELEASE THE-"


    [Wha!? Giant Squid Dude!?] Lars didn''t expect Ellen to fight back here. That fox was supposed to be the master of escaping, so why did she turn around to summon a Kraken!? [I gotta roll aside- wait, there are no sides!]


    Lars just realized: he just entered the jungle, so there were walls on both sides. There was nowhere to roll to! When did he even get here!? They were fighting on the lane just a moment ago, but before he realized - the battle moved all the way out here into the jungle. Lars was so focused on landing all his shots that he didn''t see notice around him. Whoops.


    Rolling to the sides was impossible, so he had to roll either forward or backward. If he rolls forward, Ellen will most likely cancel the Kraken and will use it again from a closer range. But, that''s okay. Lars had Cleanse for dealing with the Kraken''s CC, so he had no problem pushing forward anyway!


    [Coming right at me?] Ellen smiled meaningfully. [Then, your Cleanse must be online. Thanks for the free info~ In that case, there''s no need to waste my ult here.] She canceled the Kraken and fired a shot instead. Hitting an opponent during their roll wakeup was always so inviting, she couldn''t possibly miss this opportunity.


    Once Lars was back on his feet, the fight fell into Ellen''s routine. She ran away to maintain distance, but also occasionally turned around to poke Lars. She had to wear down that beastie as much as possible without dying herself.


    It was like walking on thin ice. Ellen couldn''t fall down to low HP because Gunslinger''s ult, Deadeye, will guarantee her death. It was a nasty locked-on shot which passed through any obstacles. So, Ellen had to maintain a delicate balance her distance from Lars and her timely pokes.


    Ellen has already set up a Checkpoint Ward while fleeing. She placed the ward right when she turned around a corner, to make sure Lars couldn''t see her in action. The preparations have been set. Now, Ellen just had to get in as much damage as possible without dying.


    Eventually, she had to let go. Leaving Lars at 60% HP should be good enough, so she could retreat in peace now.


    "That''s it," Ellen created distance with Backfire Cannon to guarantee her escape. "He''s all yours, Taitai~"


    "Okay!" Taison exclaimed. "Here coooooomes Taison!" He activated Teleport and targeted Ellen''s Checkpoint Ward.


    [Man, she gonna get away.] Lars grumped. He could hit Ellen with Deadeye because she was still within his field of vision, but even a headshot probably won''t kill her from 30% HP. All that lifesteal and defense Ellen built was super annoying. It''s like she was a tank instead of a Carry. Oof!


    Welp, he''ll chase her as far as he can. The rest of the enemy team was scattered across Mid and Top, so there was no danger of being ganked out here. Lars was allowed to overextend into the enemy''s side of Bot Jungle.


    If Lars gets just one more headshot on Ellen, he can finish her off with a headshot from Deadeye afterward. C''mon, he was so close! He gonna catch up and - Huh? Bats!?


    A pack of black bats swirled around Lars. What? From where!? This was clearly the job of Vampire, but Taison was on the other side of the map just a moment ago. That dude couldn''t possibly be here right now... but he was.


    "No way!" Lars exclaimed. "Where did Tai pop up from!?"


    "Huh?" Yuel blinked. Taison? In Bot Jungle? It must have been Teleport. And, considering the timing and position, that must have been...


    "They planned it," Yuel concluded. "Ellen wore you down so that Taison can finish you off in a 1v1."


    "Geh, that girl I''m tellin'' ya...!" Lars gritted his teeth as he turned around to face the assaulter. [Can''t she ever fight fair? Dang it, always relying on these cheap tricks...!]


    [No way I''ll fight you to death.] Ellen smiled innocently. [My job ended when I lured you here, I don''t need to lift a finger anymore. Let the brutes duke it out among themselves~]


    "This is bad," Yuel said. "You''re too low to give him a proper fight."


    "No problem!" Lars fired a shot even though bats obstructed his field of vision. Easy headshot! ... not. [Damn, this is rough.]


    As soon as Lars whiffed a shot, Taison fired right back. But, no problem! Lars just gotta sidestep that shot- ack! It hit! Lars couldn''t move aside as quickly as he wanted because the bats around him were slowing him down.


    "I take it back," Lars said. "This gonna be a little rough."


    "You have to slip away somehow," Yuel said. "Try getting closer to Mid so I can get there and help."


    "I don''t think Tai gonna let me," Lars missed yet another headshot. This time, his aim should''ve been perfect, but Taison sidestepped the bullet. What an absolute mad lad.


    "Khaha!" Taison laughed. [I know all yo tricks! Ya think I gonna let ya headshot me from that distance? Think again, loser!]


    [Geh, I can''t land these freakin'' shots!] Lars missed another shot. [Headshots won''t cut it against Tai.]


    Even with 200% accuracy, aiming at the head was always riskier. The head was a tiny target compared to the rest of the body, so a simple timely sidestep was enough to dodge a shot aimed toward the head. If things keep going like this, instead of dealing with insane headshot damage, Lars will end up dealing no damage at all!


    [No choice, I gotta go for the body.] Lars lowered his aim toward the center of Taison''s body while doing his best to retreat at the same time.


    Bam! Finally, Lars landed a shot! But, his next shot was dodged-rolled. But then, his next shot connected! However, the next one missed again.


    [Tai busts some moves, yo!] Lars grinned. This was awesome! Even in the Challenger division in Ranked, there weren''t that many opponents who moved as smoothly as Taison. This gonna be a good fight!


    At long last, the pesky bats stopped bothering Lars and he could see everything now, as well as move around at full speed. The real fight gonna start now, yo! [Bring it on, dude!]


    Sidestep. Shoot. Roll. Shoot. Sidestep. Shoot. Sidestep. Shoot. Side- Ha! It''s a feint! It''s a shot instead! [Gotcha!]


    [Shit!] Taison anticipated another sidestep and fired ahead of time, but Lars stayed in place instead and fired back!


    [I ain''t gonna fall into your stupid game!] Taison took the hit like a man and fired back right away. Instead of playing this stupid guessing game of "sidestep vs. shooting", Taison rather take control into his hands. He got the HP advantage here, so he''ll dictate the pace!


    [He''s advancing!?] Lars flinched. From close quarters, there''ll be less room for dodging. If they both start hitting each other 100% of the time, Lars will surely be the first one to fall. He was already down to 20% HP, barely hanging by a thread.


    Against Taison''s 60% HP, there was no way to win in a straight exchange of blows. It''d be a different story if Lars had access to the firing speed of Fan the Hammer, but he used it against Ellen. Without that overwhelming DPS and considering how difficult it was to score headshots against Taison, Lars had nothing at his disposal except for the raw attack power of his build. He didn''t have any attack speed, crit or lifesteal.


    [Crap! He''s good!] Lars missed another shot. It was such a fast crossover! Taison should''ve had his hands full with advancing toward Lars, but he had no problem shifting his tempo midway to throw off Lars''s shots. And, as soon as Taison dodged, he never forgot to shoot back right away! It was like a crossover, yo!


    [Tai has always been good at this stuff.] Lars had to hand to Taison. When they played basketball together, Taison was unstoppable when he had momentum and faced a blocker one-on-one. He always dribbled the ball from side to side at a fast pace, then broke through. Taison could beat anybody like this, even Lars could only stop that crossover like 50% of the time, maybe less.


    [I''ll whoop yo ass!] Taison charged forward. [Maybe I ain''t getting a starter spot this year, but then neither will you! I''mma murder yo ass to make sure of it!]


    [Gah, I''m so dead!] Lars''s HP dropped so low it was impossible to see the green bar anymore, it had a width of like one pixel at best.


    There was no winning this fight, that much was clear at this point. So, Lars had to scoot! Combat Roll came out of cooldown, so Lars went for it. As soon as he reached a corner, he rolled right into it with Combat Roll. And, right afterwards, he followed up with a normal roll! A "Double Roll Escape Combo", yo!


    This sick maneuver created lots of space between him and Taison. Okay, it was going good! With this distance, Lars could get away and- gah! Nuuuuuu! Not that ult!!!


    A human-sized bat chased after Lars! Crap, it was Taison! He transformed into a giant bat and darted after Lars! No! Nonono! That giant bat dude was way too fast...! The bat rammed into Lars and transformed back into its original form, that of a vampire.


    The Vampire wrapped his arms around the Gunslinger and dug his teeth into the Gunslinger''s neck. It was a stun ability with DOT damage and life steal! Fuuuuuuuuu! Lars couldn''t move at all!


    Ah, but wait! Lars had Cleanse! He could get away from this stun-


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Geh, that was lame." Lars smacked his forehead. Welp, he did about everything he could in that fight. Nobody could have guessed that Taison would pop outta nowhere like that on the other side of the map, that was a srs bsns shocker. It could legit be used as a scare-jump in a horror movie, word. "Welp, Tai put on a strong show but I''mma get him next time. Just lemme at him."


    "No," Yuel objected. "It seems like you can''t handle him one-on-one."


    "Wha!? I can totally do it! He only won because he had more HP! In a fair fight, I''d kick his butt for sure!"


    "I wonder," Yuel shrugged. "Either way, avoid fighting him 1v1. Even if you can sometimes win against him, it''s a big risk. Losing a Carry hurts way more than losing a Jungler."


    "Okay, I''ll see what I can do," Lars rolled his eyes. "Gotta say, Tai really played me there."


    "Hah!" Taison pumped a fist. "You saw that shit? You saw it, my bros!? I totally wrecked that loser!"


    "Yes, yes," Ellen smiled. "Thank you for the hard work, Taitai~" [Thanks for doing my work for me~]


    "Good job," Howard said. "You really impressed me there."


    "Khaha! C''mon, ya make me blush." Taison pretended to be humble, but his cocky smug said it all. [Eat shit, Lars! How ya like that, huh? Now, you''re in 2nd place! I ain''t gonna let ya get ahead of me again, yo!]


    [Heh, he sure looks happy.] Howard chuckled. This was good, a kill on Lars was a huge morale boost for Taison. It gave Taison confidence and momentum, so it''ll improve his odds of winning future engagements. The "Lars Killer" was now out of the bag and its first field test was successful, this was huge for the team. This should give them all the momentum they needed for winning this round.

 87 Lack of Early Game Advantage

    The game transitioned into mid-game. Yuel''s team failed to establish the early-game advantages which their lineup desperately needed. Roi was locked out in Top, Julia turtled in Mid and Lars was killed before he got a chance to push much.


    This was bad. Extremely bad. Dark Knight and Gunslinger were supposed to carry the team through the early game and that should have opened the path to winning the game during the mid-game. But, the enemy stalled them out all across the board.


    What''s worse, Taison scored three kills already and that put him on a roll. He was two levels ahead of most players and one level above Lars. A fed Jungler had lots of flexibility with its rotations and ganks because it didn''t need to fear getting countered as much, so it naturally put all the laners on edge. Well, except for one...


    "Come at me, yo!" Lars fearlessly charged into the jungle as soon as a Ward exposed Taison. That goof...


    "Oh!" Taison exclaimed. "He''s coming at me!"


    "Back," Howard ordered. "No need to fight him right now."


    "But, I can totally destroy him-"


    "I said BACK. You''ll get plenty of chances to score kills before this game ends."


    "That''s right," Ellen winked. "I''ll make sure to arrange some nice situations for you~"


    "Tch, okay," Taison shrugged and declined Lars''s duel invitation. Seriously, what was the deal? Taison could have totally wrecked that loser right here and now. Howard totally commanded like a pussy sometimes, but whatever. As long as Taison gonna get some other good fights later down the road, he ain''t gonna complain yet.


    "Hey! Don''t run away!" Lars called so loud that his voice pierced through the wall. At least, he had the decency to turn off his mic because otherwise, everybody''s ears would have bled.


    "I ain''t running away!" A reply thundered from the other side of the wall. "I just got more important shot to do right now!"


    "My... ears..." Ellen took off her earplugs with shaky hands. That shout raped her ear. "... you alive?"


    "Yeah," Howard answered nonchalantly as if nothing happened. "I figured he''ll shout something back, so I muted him."


    "Jeez, thanks for the advance warning..."


    "Haha, my bad."


    The entire team was inflicted with stun for two seconds. Thankfully, nobody was in the middle of making any major plays, so they weren''t affected too badly.


    "Hah!" Lars exclaimed out loud. "I bet you''re just sc-"


    "Enough already," Yuel jabbed Lars''s side. "It''s bad etiquette to shout during a match."


    "But dude, both Ellen ad Tai keep running away from me! How am I supposed to get my revenge like that?"


    "Focus on pushing instead. If you push enough, they''ll have to come after you themselves."


    "Oh! Genius, dude! I''mma push so hard they can''t ignore me anymore!"


    "Just please don''t get into unnecessary trouble," Yuel pled. "Don''t 1v1 Taison in areas from which you can''t retreat and don''t chase Ellen too far."


    "Yeah, yeah."


    [Does he really get it?] Yuel frowned. The enemy must be banking on Lars''s gung-ho mentality. After killing Lars once, Taison had been avoiding unnecessary contact and Ellen was the same way. Lars couldn''t execute his vendetta on any of them, which irritated him and hampered his judgment.


    There was no way an aggressive player like Taison would play defensively like this of his own volition, so it had to be Howard''s doing. This was undoubtedly all part of a plan. It was unclear whether this "plan" had an end goal in mind, but for the time being: it has been doing a good job rattling Lars.


    How should Yuel respond to this? The optimal solution would be to corner Ellen or Taison in a disadvantageous situation and let Lars finish them off. This way, Lars will deliver his revenge and will be on a roll, so he''ll be able to bring the team back into the game.


    But, that was easier said than done. Cornering Ellen was like cornering a fly. She''ll find a way to wiggle out of any situation, that was one of her strong suits. Worst of all, even if they manage to somehow corner her, it may turn out she was the one who cornered them instead. It was pointless to even try.


    On the other hand, Taison should be an easier fish to bait, but his movements so far have been careful and well-calculated. When Taison played in the club, he was usually reckless and aggressive, but the Taison this game was relatively tame. Howard must have been leading Taison by hand because he understood how important of a piece Taison became in this game. With three kills under his belt, Taison was the greatest threat on the enemy team and best candidate for carrying it to victory. Therefore, Howard made sure to protect Taison well.


    If all of that wasn''t hard enough, the enemy team also employed a very defensive game plan during the mid-game. Enemies always grouped in duos and trios everywhere on the map, leaving no isolated targets for Yuel to pick off. Ellen joined Gilbert to push against Julia in Mid, whereas Howard and Taison rotated to Top against Roi. It was much harder to catch anybody off-guard like that.


    "You know," Roi said. "I could really use some help in Top here. It''s a 1v3."


    "Sure," Dan volunteered. "I''ll be right there-"


    "No, wait," Yuel objected. "Rotate to Mid instead. With you and me there, we can push against Ellen and Gilbert."


    "Hey," Roi exclaimed." What about Top then? They gonna run all me over."


    "Fight them for as long as you can, then retreat. You''re still at 0/1 and it''s already mid-game, so there''s no much you can do. We''ll have to use you as a tank."


    ["Not much I can do"?] Roi clenched his mouse. Yeah, that sounded fair. First, Roi was forced to play that stupid Dark Knight and now he was dismissed as useless because he couldn''t get an early-game advantage. How FUN. "... okay, I got it."


    "You okay?" Dan whispered over the shoulder with the mic on mute.


    "Sure," Roi sneered. "Having the blast of my life."


    "If you think we can turn things around in Top, I''ll go there-"


    "Dan?" Yuel asked. "You listening?"


    "Yep," Dan turned his mic up and threw one last glance at Roi.


    [It''s okay.] Roi just shook his head to dismiss the offer. They were soldiers on a battlefield and Yuel was the commander right now.


    "Okay," Dan nodded in response. "So, I''m rotating to Mid?"


    "Yes, please."


    "Roger, cap."


    Dan and Yuel both rotated to Mid and turned it into a 3v2 situation together with Julia. Meanwhile, Lars was left completely alone in Bot.


    "Where do I rotate?" Lars asked.


    "Just push," Yuel said.


    "Eeeeh? Why only you guys get to have fun?"


    "Don''t worry," Yuel smiled meaningfully. "If you push hard enough, they''ll come to you themselves."


    "Okey-dokey! I''mma blast that Turret in no time!" Lars booted Fan the Hammer and barraged the enemy tower.


    Gunslinger''s efficiency fell substantially during mid-game, so, for now, it was best to let Lars grind and push instead of fighting. The power curve of Gunslinger was wild and will pick up again during the late-game, so Lars will just have to be patient until then.


    To keep Lars safe, Yuel warded Bot Jungle with Sentry Wards to counter any Teleport tactics. It was a costly operation, but he borrowed Julia''s help for it. She was already wasting a lot of gold on Wards anyway, so Yuel just mentioned how important it was to ward Bot Jungle to keep Lars safe, that made Julia cooperate without hesitation. If only she was always this agreeable.


    Even though Yuel''s team was still lagging behind, the current position wasn''t terrible. Howard, Taison, and Gregory were pushing Top against Roi, whereas Yuel, Dan and Julia kept Ellen and Gilbert busy in Mid. This gave Lars complete freedom to push Bot. Eventually, the enemy will be forced to break their thick defensive formation and rotate to Bot to stop Lars. That should create some openings to exploit.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "Damn," Roi fell. He was about to make his escape, but Gregory denied it with a timely pull of Nature''s Grasp. Following Roi''s death, the enemy busted the lane wide open and they''ll take down the Turret in no time if they combine their firepower.


    It was an unfortunate, but reasonable sacrifice. The interesting question was: how will this trio move next? Surely, they won''t rotate together all the way from Top to Bot, that''ll be too inefficient. Then, how will they proceed? There were multiple possibilities.


    Option #1: All three of them will stay in Top and keep pushing hard. In other words, they''ll force Yuel''s team to make a move. That''s probably what Yuel would have done in Howard''s shoes, but Howard wasn''t that kind of aggressive player. So, this was unlikely.


    Option #2: They''ll all rotate to Mid. An interesting move that might win them Mid if executed well. But again, Howard''s team wasn''t aggressive enough to go for that type of play.


    Option #3: Some will return to base and go to defend Bot from there, while the rest will either keep pushing Top or will rotate to Mid. That sounded like the most Howard-like game plan.


    There was a very helpful mathematical fact which played in Yuel''s favor here: the number 3 couldn''t be equally divided into two integers. In other words, if the trio in Top splits into two groups, somebody will be isolated for a while. That''ll be a great opportunity to pick somebody off.


    ¡ºAn allied Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    After the enemy took down the Turret, they were about to make the important move.


    "Good job," Howard said. "Greg, you and I will rotate to Mid."


    "Huh," Gregory pondered. "Isn''t it better if one rotates to Mid and the rest push all the way to Golem?"


    "It''s risky to travel alone. I told you, Yuel always searches for opportunities to pick off isolated targets."


    "That sounds about right," Gregory had to agree. "Okay, Mid it is then."


    "As for Tai," Howard continued. "Return to base to heal up. And then..."


    The offense in Top came to an end with the destruction of the Top Turret. Taison was seen recalling to base, whereas Howard and Gregory were apparently rotating towards Mid.


    [I see Howard is really persistent about the lack of isolation.] Yuel wasn''t amused. The duo traveling from Top to Mid had reinforced defense which made it impossible to pick anybody off and they''ll also turn the situation into a 3v4 once they reach Mid. It was bad news.


    ¡ºAn enemy Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    At least, meanwhile, Lars was able to take down the first objective in Bot. That was some good news. Taison undoubtedly recalled to base in order to heal up and then head to Bot from there, but it''ll take him a while to reach- huh!?


    "SURPRISE MOTHAFUCKA!" Was it a bird? Was it a plane? No, it was the one and only - Taison! Coming right at that mofo in Bot!


    "Where did dude come from!?" Lars had every right to be surprised. Taison literally appeared behind him on the lane out of nowhere. This was impossible...!


    This could only be pulled off with Teleport, but with which Checkpoint Ward? The team had Anti-Ward vision in pretty much every corner of Bot Jungle, so it should have been impossible for anybody to slip in a Checkpoint Ward in one of the few uncovered areas. Doing so would require either clairvoyance or cheats. But, if it the Checkpoint Ward wasn''t in Bot Jungle, then where...?


    [Don''t tell me, from the lane!?] Yuel couldn''t believe it, but that was the only explanation. Somebody must have placed a Checkpoint Ward on the lane itself!


    In retrospect, it was a bit odd how easily the enemy gave up on the warding war in Bot Jungle. Howard knew the importance of vision, so he''d never allow the enemy to control Bot Jungle like this unless it was a misdirection all along...


    It was a trap, no two ways about it. Yuel thought he found an easy exploit in the enemy''s thick formation but turned out it was a bait. They lured Lars into pushing Bot, just so they could arrange this situation.


    Yet again, it''ll be a 1v1 between Lars and Taison. Yet again, Taison had HP advantage because he teleported here from the base. And, yet again, Lars had little-to-no chance of escaping. This was a huge blunder, but the goof definitely didn''t realize that.


    "Awesome!" Lars exclaimed. "Exactly what I was asking for!"


    [This guy...] Yuel sighed. There was a difference of about 30% HP between them. Did Lars really think he could overcome that gap in a 1v1 against Taison? Was he even thinking at all? No, probably not. He just wanted to duke it out with Taison and get his revenge.


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    Unfortunately, there was nothing Yuel could say to help here. Lars''s defensive play was poor, so his chances of getting out of this situation by playing defense were slim. Therefore, unfortunately, fighting all-out against Taison was probably the safer approach for Lars. This was going to go south fast...


    "Try getting as far away as you can," Yuel said. "Don''t fight too hard if you see you''re losing."


    "Don''t worry, yo!" Lars fired a shot and hit Taison in the chest. [I ain''t gonna lose this time! I already know headshots aren''t good against this dude, so I not gonna waste any shots on that. I just gotta keep hitting him till he drops, yo!]


    Lars fired, rolled, fired, sidestepped and fired again. Taison rolled, fired, sidestepped and rolled. They danced around and exchanging blows. In term of skill, neither had a clear0cut advantage. But...


    [Huh!] Taison sneered. [That''s all ya got? It''s like ya shooting turtles, kahaha!]


    [Geh! Why is he so fast!?] Lars fired one shot right after another, but Taison somehow had enough time to dodge-roll in-between. So fast! No, it actually wasn''t Taison who was fast. It''s Lars''s shots, they''re so slow as heck!


    [Welp, I guess that''s what happens when you don''t buy any attack speed.] As much as Lars liked Gunslinger, the mid-game always felt so slow. He didn''t build any attack speed despite being a Carry because Gunslinger relied on Fan the Hammer for delivering ultra-fast shots. The Attack Speed stat didn''t affect the speed of the shots during Fan the Hammer, so there wasn''t much reason to buy any attack speed items for Gunslinger.


    So, Lars mainly had power and penetration in his build. And look at this, even a Jungler was attacking faster than him. He was totally losing face as a Carry, yo!


    [Can''t this cooldown tick faster!?] Lars threw glances at the ticking number every couple of seconds. Fan the Hammer was still offline because he just used it to push the tower. He somehow held his ground against Taison with basics so far, but he really needed Fan the Hammer to turn this around.


    [No choice! I just gonna dodge everything!] Lars rolled, then Combat Rolled and then ran around.


    [The heck ya doing, man?] Taison raised a brow. [Trying to escape? Not under my watch!]


    Taison closed in to improve his accuracy. No way he gonna let this scrub get away with this embarrassing performance. Taison gonna destroy that scrub again and prove that he was No.1! He ain''t gonna be overshadowed by Lars anymore!


    [Duuuude!] Lars was backed into a corner. Yeah, this plan to stall for time by dodging shots was a bust. Lars didn''t have the defensive capabilities to pull off such a pro-level maneuver.


    Taison was hella savage, he closed on Lars like it was nothing. This ain''t good, Lars was already down to 10% HP. He gonna lose at this rate!


    But, Lars was still alive and Fan the Hammer finally came outta cooldown. This was the chance to turn things around! Even Taison gonna have trouble dodging headshots against super-fast shots, especially now that they were so close to each other. This was the moment of an overthrow!


    [Fan dat hammer with all ya got, yo!] Lars spun the revolver''s hammer and aimed at Taison. It was now or never! Fire! ...dang it.


    The bullet didn''t miss, but it didn''t hit either. Taison just turned himself into a freakin'' coffin. Lars was trying to wreck his life, but dude just went off to sleep!


    [That''s right,] Taison smirked. [That''s exactly what I think of ya right now: you put me to sleep, bro. Too easy!]


    [Geh, what now?] Lars fired at the coffin, but the bullet didn''t deal any damage. Coffin Slumber made Taison invulnerable to everything, so Lars first had to land multiple basic attacks to pull Taison outta that state. What''s even more annoying, that beauty sleep also recovered some of Taison''s HP. It was the most hax skill ever!


    Lars has already started the barrage of Fan the Hammer, so he couldn''t cancel it. There was no choice but to keep shooting and shooting until he runs out of bullets. And, he couldn''t even use this opportunity to escape because his movement was reduced while he fired. This situation was wack.


    [My ace went down the toilet.] Lars twisted his lips. Welp, this was kinda bad. Like, seriously flippin'' bad. He was forced to spend the entirety of Fan the Hammer merely on kicking Taison outta bed. And, once Taison finished his beauty sleep...


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    It ended, just like that. Lars lost for the second time. Taison totally got him. Damn it.


    [So, Lars couldn''t do it after all.] Yuel shook his head. It wasn''t much of a surprise considering Gunslinger was at its weakest during the mid-game due to its reliance on Fan the Hammer. The mid-game was like the uncanny valley of the class because, at this point, Fan the Hammer was already a rather deadly tool, but the build didn''t have enough attack power and cooldown reduction to turn it into a consistent threat quite yet. It wasn''t Lars''s fault.


    "I..." Lars muttered. "I can''t beat that dude..."


    "Eh?" Yuel was sure his ears were playing tricks on him. Lars? Giving up? That concept should have been alien to that optimistic goof. If Lars loses faith, the entire team will be doomed.


    Maybe this match was already over. Howard and Gregory''s rotation to Mid forced everybody to retreat. Dan got killed and Yuel was forced to recall to base. Only Julia remained healthy because she stayed far in the backline and only poked from afar every now and then. Unfortunately, there wasn''t much she could do alone against four enemies on the lane.


    Yuel''s team lost Mid Lane and Lars was losing any hope of winning against Taison. This was turning hopeless. Maybe they have already lost...


    "I can''t beat Tai, not yet," Lars clenched his fists. "I need to get more power first. Mid-game Gunslinger just doesn''t cut it. Once I get my build going, I''mma kick Tai''s butt!"


    [He didn''t give up at all!] Yuel found himself smiling. That''s right, what was Yuel even thinking? This was far from over. So what if they lost initiative? So what if they lost control of Mid? So what if Lars lost to Taison twice? There was still a game to play, they still had time to turn things around before late-game!


    As the captain and shot-caller, it was Yuel''s job to figure out how they could mount a comeback. The enemy defense was strong, but not impenetrable. There had to be a way to break through it! This wasn''t over it. Yuel and Lars''s ticket to the competitive scene was riding on this match, so they''ll win this second game and earn their spots on the first string!

 88 Defense That Sets up the Offense

    [Think. Think!] Yuel took a deep breath. The match wasn''t over yet. There still had to be something he could try. If there''s even the smallest chance of mounting a comeback here, Yuel will find it.


    To deal with Howard''s tough defense, Yuel''s team first needed momentum. Simple tricks won''t work here. Any easy opening in the enemy''s formation was a potential trap, just like the one which got Lars killed. Tactics alone won''t be enough. Even after coming such a long way from being a total rookie during the entrance exam, Yuel still didn''t have a way to pierce through Howard''s defense with strategy alone.


    Power and momentum, that''s what the team needed. Once they seize the initiative, they''ll be able to pressure the enemy team into submission.


    Positive momentum should also inspire everybody to play better. Right now, Roi lagged behind as Dark Knight, Dan didn''t get any chances to deliver decent ganks and Julia turtled too hard. If everybody continues this way, the team will never make a comeback.


    Something had to change. Right now. Fortunately, there was one player who harbored the same feeling as Yuel: Lars. That goof was the keyman here. Even without momentum, Lars''s spirit didn''t waver, he was dead set on beating Taison even after dying twice.


    Therefore, Lars had to be the one to spark a turnaround in this situation. He''ll have to drag the team out of this predicament and carry it to victory!


    Unfortunately, it wasn''t that simple. Gunslinger''s mid-game was too weak and Lars has started lagging behind after dying twice. His power curve will stabilize again in the late game, but dragging the game until that point was bad news. Once late-game hits, it''ll be game over for sure.


    But, there was one way. It was a risky approach that went all out, but it had a chance to pay off.


    "You said you need more power, right?" Yuel asked.


    "Yep. Just a little bit more DPS and I''ll be able to beat Tai for sure!"


    "And, you''ll be fine with it even if it''s demonic power, right?"


    "Hoho, sounds edgy as heck. Whatcha got?"


    "Something that may become our last chance," Yuel explained the gist of his idea. "For now, make sure you always stick close to a teammate so the enemy doesn''t catch you isolated. We''ll have to slow down and play defense for a while, but then..."


    It was a gamble that might not pay off, but they reached a point at which taking risks was necessary. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.


    [Hmm,] Howard squinted his eyes. It seemed the enemy resorted to defense because their attacks didn''t work[. Is that it? Yuel no longer sees a road to victory?]


    It took a long time to reach this point, but it seemed like Howard''s defensive plan finally crushed out the enemy''s fighting spirit. When faced against an impenetrable defense, the enemy felt like they were bashing their heads against a wall when they attacked. The harder they hit, the more it hurt them. Therefore, at some point, they were bound to lose the will to continue.


    This applied all the more to Yuel''s aggressive team, which was in total disarray at this point. Roi and Dan underperformed all across the board and Julia turtled for no reason. Yuel probably didn''t even bother to address any of that and kept issuing orders as if everybody was alright.


    No wonder Yuel''s attacks didn''t reach Howard at all. As long as Yuel''s teammates were in a turmoil, their performance was bound to be lackluster. No matter how many times Yuel thrust his spear, it''ll never break through Howard''s shield as long as the spear was unsharpened. Will Yuel realize that at some point?


    Either way, this game was over. Yuel showed an intention to drag this fight to the bitter end by playing defense, but it won''t work. Maybe Yuel was banking on Lars to somehow turn things around, but it was futile.


    Taison was already at 5/0 thanks to everybody leaving the kills to him, per Howard''s request. At this point, Taison was no longer just a "Lars Killer" - he was the pillar of the team''s offense and the one who''ll wrap this game up. Honestly, Taison performed beyond expectations. His strong desire to defeat Lars must have contributed to that.


    With unbreakable defense across the map and with a fed aggressive Jungler, Howard''s team had all the means to win this. If Yuel wants to struggle to the bitter end, that''s his choice. Howard will simply keep deflecting attacks and keep driving the enemy into a corner until they lose all hope and beg for a swift death.


    [This is my fault.] Julia pursed her lips as she retreated to base again. All she has been doing this game was staying far in the back and poking the enemy every now and then. She had zero kills, one death, and one assist. She hasn''t done anything meaningful at all and allowed the enemy to take Mid. At this rate...


    [I''m totally blowing this game.] Roi tapped his foot. He has already died three times this game and he scored only one kill via the execution from Gate of Sheol. On top of that, his bat failed to make contact with enemy shots, so he barely got to parry anything and ended up eating a lot of damage while swinging. The entire enemy lineup was made of ranged attackers, yet Roi couldn''t parry for the life of him. What a terrible batting average...


    [Is it just me or I''m messing up too much this game?] Dan tilted his head. There was that one time when he didn''t ask whether Gilbert had blink to escape. Then, another time when he got killed in a team fight due to poor positioning. And then, that other time when he... Yeah, that was a nice and long list of mess-ups. Nobody was perfect, but this game just looked bad. So much for "not throwing the game" like he claimed he''d do...


    While individual players were carrying their own worries and frustrations, the game went on. Yuel switched to defensive shot-calling and deflected the enemy''s pushes to the best of his ability. All they were doing right now was stalling the enemy''s progress, it didn''t feel like they were getting any closer to victory.


    But, Yuel believed. If there was still a way to turn this game around, it''ll be during the transition from mid to late game. Once Lars completes his build of attack power, crit damage and cooldown reduction, as well as maxes out the level of Fan the Hammer, he''ll become a killing machine. That''ll be their chance to go on the offensive!


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    [This is rough.] Yuel frowned. The team didn''t practice defense much, so their defensive play was a bit shallow. There were so many holes that even a defensive team like Howard''s found weaknesses to exploit.


    However, the same seemed to apply to the enemy team. After being forced on the offensive, Howard''s team hasn''t been doing too hot. They played too cautiously and gave up many great opportunities to push. In addition, small gaps opened in the enemy formation and Yuel had no intention of missing them.


    "Lars," Yuel pinged the mini-map. "Go cut Gregory off."


    "Gotcha!" Lars dashed into the jungle to greet the incoming invader. The distance between lanes shrunk down when they were this deep in their territory, so Gregory''s rotation from Top to Mid must have felt like a short walk. But, there was still some distance to travel and Yuel was going to use that to his advantage.


    "Got him!" Lars opened an attack with Combat Roll into Fan the Hammer. One headshot! Two headshots! Three headshots! Stun! 200% accuracy! This was easy! Gregory couldn''t dodge a single bullet!


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    [Good!] Yuel nodded. Gregory has just recently spent his Gaia''s Protection in Top, so it should be still on cooldown. Therefore, he wasn''t tanky enough to survive this onslaught-


    [Nice try.] Howard arrived on the scene and booted Cryo-Freeze right before Gregory''s HP dropped to zero. He froze Gregory still, which made Gregory invulnerable to all attacks and quickly restored HP.


    [Even here!?] Yuel felt like yelling. It was absurd. Nothing escaped Howard''s attention. Every little hole in the enemy''s formation was covered up immediately. "Retreat!"


    "But," Lars insisted. "I can take on him-"


    "Don''t. Gilbert and Ellen are close enough to rotate there. You don''t suppose you can win a 1v3, do you?"


    "Bring it on, yo!" Lars said that, but his Gunslinger turned around and retreated. When the situation was this dire, even this goof understood the importance of minimizing risks and making the right decisions.


    "Come with me to the ogres," Yuel said. The time was almost right to mount a comeback. After Lars gets the red buff on top of his blue buff, they''ll finally begin their counterattack during the next team fight.


    It didn''t take long for the fight to come to them. Most of the enemy team gathered in Mid, save for Taison who was likely farming Dragon. Even though the enemy held the advantage across all lanes, breaking through Mid was always the preferable tactic. Howard''s team let their super minions push the other lanes while they all focused on Mid.


    This was the last stand. If Yuel''s defense falls here, the game will be over.


    "Julia," Yuel said. "Right after we start, advance a little and use Hurricane."


    "Huh? But, what about Thunderstorm and Kraken? They gonna gun for me right away."


    "It''ll be fine."


    "I wouldn''t exactly describe anything as ''fine'' this game so far."


    "Just do it, please."


    "Okay, sure. Not like we got any chance anyway."


    "That''s not the right mentality to have during a fight."


    "Hmph."


    Both sides got into position. Roi and Yuel were at the front, while Lars and Julia started at the rear. Similarly, the enemy had Howard and Gregory on the front while Gilbert and Ellen were in the rear. Both sides had two damage dealers, so everything will boil down to which side loses their DPS first.


    As the only melee fighter, Roi had no choice but to advance all the way to the enemy''s face. Yuel followed closely behind, but he didn''t stick out his neck more than was necessary. This was the optimal arrangement because, with Roi''s defensive build, he was quite tankier than Yuel. In addition, Roi was the most disposable teammate this game because Dark Knight didn''t have any good CC and his overall value was low when he was lagging behind.


    The team fight began. First, zoning shots were fired. Lars and Julia fired at Howard, whereas Ellen and Gilbert fired at Yuel. Both sides gunned for the squishiest target they could reach without putting themselves at danger. However, even though they were the "squishiest" in range, both Yuel and Howard had defensive build, so they endured without a problem.


    "Julia, now," Yuel ordered. "Make sure to maintain some distance to make Kraken feel like a waste if they go for it."


    "Sure," Julia didn''t sound too enthusiastic, but she followed the order nonetheless. She broke formation to and went far to the left side. Once the enemy team was at the tip of her range, she began channeling her ultimate: Hurricane. It was a huge AoE spell which dealt high damage and sucked enemies into its center, which placed them in a compact area that made it easy to follow-up with even more AoE attacks.


    However, the downside of this great skill was the long windup animation. The Aeromancer flailed her arms around to generate a spiral of wind and it took a couple of seconds until the hurricane reaches its full size and was ready to be unleashed. Therefore, the enemy had plenty of time to react and one of the most common counters was Electromancer''s Thunderstorm.


    "Wait," Howard said. "Don''t step-"


    [I''ll get her this time!] Gilbert stepped forth to counter Hurricane. This was a great opportunity! He''ll get this easy kill on Julia and prove that he was unquestionably the best Mid Laner in StromBlitz- wha!? A knock-up!? Water erupted from the ground and sent Gilbert flying toward the sky! It was Aquamancer''s Geyser Eruption!


    "Tch!" Howard erected an ice wall between the two teams and fired commands. "Greg, shield me. Ellen, Kraken her." Right after Gregory cast Gaia''s Protection to give Howard a shield, Howard blinked forward across the wall and darted in Lars''s direction. He had to prevent the worst-case scenario!


    That Hurricane was clearly a bait. The enemy''s real goal was to bait somebody and knock them up, which allowed Lars to barrage them in midair. To prevent that kill, Howard had to freeze Lars here and now.


    One headshot. Two headshots. Lars landed his shots without breaking a sweat even though his target was far and high in the air. The shots came out in blinding speed during Fan the Hammer, but he had no intention of dropping even a single headshot!


    [Okay, I got this!] Lars grinned. It was about flippin'' time he got himself another kill! He gonna get this one for sure and- wha!? Big Shield Dude!? That absolute mad lad was charging right at Lars! Even though this was all the way in the Golem''s area!


    [So fast!] Yuel expected Howard to counter this play in some way, but that reaction was way too fast! Yuel originally planned to follow up with another Geyser Eruption to knock up any enemy who advanced forward in an attempt to interfere with Lars, but he couldn''t keep up with how fast Howard executed this counter!


    [Your offense is over.] Howard declared as he released a burst of cold air. Ice Coffin will put an end to this- wait, Lars was gone!? The guy was literally there a moment ago, but then he vanished! He couldn''t roll while Fan the Hammer was active, but he could still do a Combat Roll! Lars rolled right underneath Howard''s spell and got behind him!


    [You ain''t getting in my way, yo! This kill is mine!] Lars quickly recovered behind Howard and fired another shot at the falling Gilbert! It wasn''t a headshot, though. Dang it, connecting a headshot on an air-bound target right after a Combat Roll was sure hard. Lars wasn''t worthy of being called a master Gunslinger player yet, he gotta practice more.


    [What an absurd guy.] Howard shook his head. Even though Lars should have been preoccupied with landing headshots on Gilbert, he still noticed Howard''s advance and countered in a split second with Combat Roll. [These reflexes are beyond human. It''s like playing with sis, maybe even worse...]


    Nevertheless, this wasn''t entirely outside Howard''s estimation. That''s what he created the ice wall for. Once Gilbert falls low enough, the ice wall will hide him from Lars''s sight.


    "Another one!" Yuel announced. He caused another geyser eruption and knocked Gilbert back into the sky right before Gilbert hit the ground.


    [Again!]? Gilbert made a huge mistake. That knock-up spell wasn''t Geyser Eruption, it was the Overflow version of it: Hot Spring Eruption! It was an upgrade which put the skill on par with an ultimate ability and allowed the caster to spam three geyser eruptions in a row without a cooldown. Gilbert won''t be touching ground today...


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    The turnaround was starting here and now! If Yuel''s team wins this fight, they''ll be able to turn this game on its head! This was their last chance and they had to seize it!

 89 Unleash the Demonic Power!

    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    [That''s one.] Yuel nodded to himself after Lars beautifully finished off Gilbert in midair. Now, the next target will be-


    [Me, right?] Howard rolled aside to dodge a geyser eruption. He was the obvious next target, considering how deep he was into enemy territory and that the Golem was already targeting him.


    "Target Howard!" Yuel ordered.


    "On it!" Lars scored a headshot before Yuel even finished the sentence.


    [Tch,] Howard frowned. [Lars will end me in no time if he keeps getting these headshots.] Howard retaliated with Icicle Rain and basic attacks to slow down Lars''s attack speed, while at the same time also drawing some distance between himself and the mad dog. But, that wasn''t nearly enough.


    "Greg, pull out the Ents," Howard froze himself with Cryo-Freeze to negate the incoming damage from the Golem''s boulder and Lars''s headshot. It''d be great if he could just chill out here and slowly restore HP while being invulnerable, but...


    [Not under my watch.] Yuel splashed water on the frozen Howard and melted away the freeze effect. This handy nullification effect of Splash was exactly what Yuel picked Aquamancer for!


    [Figures.] Howard has already been spamming the Shift key this entire time to roll away as soon as his Cryo-Freeze is negated. Cryo-Freeze was merely a distraction to buy himself some time. To properly evacuate, he needed the help of Gregory''s Ents.


    Three giant trees appeared on the lane and made the area even more packed than it already was. Ents behaved like minions, so they focused on whoever was targeting nearby allied players.


    "Wait," Yuel called out. "I''ll hit him first to aggro the Ents." He activated Rainfall, which summoned a rain cloud over Howard''s head. The rain slowed Howard down, which allowed Yuel to catch up and hit him. "Okay, you can keep attack-" A shot fired!


    "Already on it!" Lars delivered a headshot right away!


    [So persistent...!] Howard grimaced. The Ents were focusing Yuel, so they didn''t scare Lars away as Howard hoped. But, that was fine. Their attack power scaled with Gregory''s, so it wasn''t high in the first place due to Gregory''s defensive build. The Ents were just here as a distraction to help Howard maneuver around Lars''s headshots.


    Based on Lars''s current attack speed, another shot was coming right about now. Howard turned to the right and went behind an Ent. A shot resounded, but it didn''t land a headshot, it hit the Ent instead.


    [Wha!?] Lars was so concentrated on Howard that he didn''t notice the Ent stepping into the shot. [He''s making Ents body-block for him!? Savage!]


    [Such flawless defense.] Yuel frowned. No matter what they threw at Howard, nothing fazed that guy. It was impossible to take him down like this after all. "Lars, forget Howard. Focus on Gregory instead."


    "On GG? You got it!" Lars gave up on one snack to chase another. He gonna get a bunch of kills here, he had to! This was the team''s big comeback, yo!


    Gregory has been running kinda low already. Dude was tanky, but with Lars''s red buff and all the penetration in his build - he could do some hella fine damage!


    "Greg," Howard said. "There''s a chance he''ll gun for you next, so retreat."


    "Tch, got it." Gregory noticed Lars changing forward, so Howard''s advice was most likely spot on. Gregory wanted to stay here a little longer to finish Roi off, but yet again he was forced to retreat without dealing the finishing blow himself. This was shit.


    [Can Greg get out?] Howard pondered while making his own escape. [It''s probably a 50-50. They got us well when they killed Gil right off the bat. But, it''s not like that kill was for free.]


    "You call this ''fine''?" Julia grumped. While the others were busy dealing with Howard, she went through some horrible stuff. Ellen downed her with Kraken and then Gregory pulled her with Nature''s Grasp. The enemy forced Julia into close-quarters combat wiped her out. ["It''ll be fine" my ass. Yuel is so full of shit sometimes.]


    "I thought stopping Gilbert would be enough," Yuel made an excuse. In truth, he didn''t have any special plans for protecting Julia in that situation. If Ellen were to step within his range, then he would have knocked her up with a geyser eruption to deny the Kraken play. However, Ellen knew better than to that such a risk and Yuel didn''t go out of his way to make that situation happen.


    To put it bluntly, Julia was a sacrificial pawn in this play. Her job was to bait some kind of play out of the enemy so that the team could take advantage of it. Trading their Mid Laner for the enemy''s Mid Laner was advantageous because the team was behind, which meant every player on the enemy team was "worth more".


    Of course, Yuel kept all these considerations to himself. Julia will make a scene if she hears any of this.


    It was unfortunate, but being a bait was the best worth Yuel could find for Julia this game. She has been playing overly cautious ever since Taison killed her, so she didn''t do her job well as a backline damage dealer. Instead of letting her stay in the back and poke every once in a blue moon, using her as bait in the team fight was far more efficient. Nothing personal.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Woohoo!" Lars finished Gregory off. "Now we''re talking!"


    "Good job," Yuel said. Things were finally going their way. With this team fight, they might very well turn this entire game around!


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    But, nothing was earned for free. While Lars focused on Gregory, Ellen finished Roi off. In term of death counts, this fight was still two for two. Yuel''s team didn''t quite seize an overwhelming advantage yet, but this much was already impressive enough considering for how long they''ve been lagging behind. Just a little further and they''ll gain the upper hand...!


    "I''mma gun for that fox next!" Lars darted at Ellen even before finishing the sentence.


    [My, how aggressive.] Ellen spotted a vicious doggie running at her and began her retreat. Escaping along the lane will do her little good, so she entered the nearby jungle.


    "You ain''t getting away, yo!" Lars chased into the jungle.


    "Wai..." Yuel stopped mid-sentence. This was dangerous. So far, nothing good has ever come out of chasing Ellen this game. However, to gain a true advantage in this situation, killing Ellen was essential. That''ll flip the entire game on its head!


    [So, it comes down to this...] Yuel hesitated. Was it okay to let Lars fight Ellen? In term of HP values, Lars had a huge advantage. He was sitting at 70% compared to Ellen''s 20%. In term of raw power, Lars was also obviously stronger. Ellen has also spent her Kraken, so she lost her most threatening tool.


    In addition, Ellen ran into Top Jungle. It wasn''t long ago that Taison was spotted going for the Dragon in Bot Jungle, so he couldn''t have rotated all the way to Top Jungle to surprise Lars. Was Taison''s Teleport online? Possibly. Were there any Checkpoint Ward in Top Jungle? Unless someone predicted this entire sequence of developments, that was unlikely. Sentry Wards were too valuable at this stage of the game to randomly carry Checkpoint Wards around, right...?


    "Be careful," Yuel said. "I''ll join you soon, so don''t overextend if you see any danger."


    "No problem! I got this!" Lars had no intention of letting Ellen slip away, not this time. This was such a rare opportunity, her HP was so low right now! He had to finish it!


    [It''s on purpose~] Ellen winked at the screen as she placed a Checkpoint Ward around the corner, in an area illuminated by an allied Sentry Ward. "Taitai, you''re up~"


    "Not again!" Lars cried out when Taison appeared behind him in the jungle. How was that dude always teleporting behind him like that!? EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. For real, yo!


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    [I had a feeling.] Yuel clenched his mouse. It seemed Ellen took it upon herself to always carry Checkpoint Wards for Taison, even though she was the Carry and should have been investing gold in her build.


    This was all a part of the usual "two-step bait" strategy for killing Lars. Fist, Ellen baited Lars while placing a Checkpoint Ward nearby, then Taison teleported over there to kill Lars. Such tricky, as expected from a snake like her.


    However, this time it was different. Yuel finally wiggled his way out through the giant Ents which were ganging on him, so he could quickly chase after Lars. If he gets there on time, he''ll turn this into a 2v1 and- an ice wall!? It blocked the entrance into the jungle!


    [Howard is back!?] Yuel couldn''t believe his eyes. Howard, who should have fled for his life with no HP, turned around and returned to the lane! And now, he stood in Yuel''s way. All of a sudden, reaching Lars to provide backup became a hundred times harder!


    [Damn, he doesn''t miss anything.] Yuel bit his lip. Howard had no shortage of tools to hinder Yuel''s plan: blocking the jungle entrance with Ice Wall like he already did, freezing Yuel with Ice Coffin and slowing Yuel down with Icicle Rain. Ugh, such a pain!


    "Howard is blocking me," Yuel said. "You''re alone out there again, so do everything you can to not die."


    "Don''t worry!" Lars dodged a shot and fired back. "I''mma kick his butt this time! I got demonic powers on my side, yo!"


    [Where is this guy getting his confidence from?] "... okay." Yuel gulped. Losing Lars here would be mean losing the entire game because Ellen, the enemy Carry, was still alive. Respawn times were long at this stage of the game, so until Lars respawns, Ellen will have more than enough time to heal up in base and push all the way to victory. Therefore, despite the many things Yuel''s team achieved in the recent team fight, everything could crumble from the tiniest of mess-ups.


    Unfortunately, Yuel''s path was blocked and he couldn''t do anything about this situation. There was no choice but to put faith in that goof...


    "Let''s rock n'' roll!" Lars gave the hammer of his revolver a fast spin. This was gonna be good!


    [This shit again?] Taison sneered. [Bro just ain''t learning. That shit has no power here, yo!] Taison conjured a coffin and entered inside. Coffin Slumber, ez counter!


    [Not this time!] Lars fired without hesitation. One shot. Two shots. Three shots. The coffin was blasted apart, but Lars kept shooting. Now, that Fan the Hammer was at Lv.6, it fired six shots in a row. That''s way more than that pesky coffin could handle!


    Boom! Headshot! Super critical damage! 30% HP erased on the spot!


    [Fuck! I forgot it can fire so many!] Taison ate a crapton of damage right in the face. He had to dodge! Fast! He rolled aside, but the next shot hit him too. At least, it wasn''t a headshot so it only took 10% HP. Still, that was a lot.


    [Vampire is kinda a bruiser, ya know?] Taison grumped. He wasn''t supposed to be some squishy loser like this. How the heck did Lars hit like a truck?


    [Damn, son. This build...] Taison''s grinned as he went over Lars''s stats. Lars''s built literally had only power, penetration and crit damage. Dude was like a freakin'' ballista. He fired slow, but his shots were hella deadly.


    But, that was also the build''s weakness. Fan the Hammer was Gunslinger''s only way to fire quickly, so once it went on cooldown - Taison had the speed advantage! It was over now! [You''re dead, bro!]


    [Let''s see what ya got!] Lars took the challenge head-on.


    It was a dance of shots and dodges. Bullets darted from Lars''s side and bats charged from Taison''s. Their movements were matched in term of skill. This time, Lars ain''t gonna lose in a 1v1! But...


    [Too slow, loser!] Taison fired, sidestepped and fired again. In that same time, Lars only got to shoot once and to just barely sidestep Taison''s first shot in the last moment. As a result, Lars had no time to dodge the second shot. Khaha, so slow! This was easy peasy!


    [Geh! It feels like he''s moving twice as fast as me!] Lars couldn''t keep up. Faster attack speed meant shorter recovery time, so Taison could transition from shooting into sidestepping way faster than Lars.


    Even if they fired each other at the same time, Taison sometimes sidestepped the attack while Lars was still stuck recovering from the shooting animation. Dang it!


    [Welp, about what we expected, right?] Lars smiled wryly. He started this fight on a strong note with Fan the Hammer, but now he was at 10% HP while Taison was at 40%. [Okey dokey! It''s time to unleash the demonic power, yo!]


    Lars unleashed a burst of black energy. It was Dark Contract! By paying half of his remaining HP, Lars received a huge boost in all his stats! His attack power, attack speed, movement speed, penetration - everything!


    This was the final gamble Yuel prepared for this game. With this temporary power-up, Lars gonna overwhelm Taison for the first time today!


    "Shit! Contract!?" Taison stumbled for a moment. "Khaha, what a guy!" [Too bad you''re one shot away from dying. You tried!]


    Taison fired the decisive shot! ... and missed. The fuck!? Oh, right! Dark Contract made the user faster, so Lars could dodge faster! Oh, shit! A counter was coming!


    Taison sidestepped, but the bullet still drilled into his shoulder. So fast! And so strong, too! The shot erased like 15% of Taison''s HP! Two more hits from that shit and he was a goner! This power-up was bad news!


    [Shit, I just need one more shot and the guy''s through! Just one shot!] Taison fired... but he missed. And, Lars countered with a shot right away. Fuuuuuu! Both of them were one hit away from dying!


    [I-I ain''t dying here!] Taison stepped back. This called for a tactical retreat! He totally wasn''t running away like a pussy or anything, it was just better to retreat and reorganize. [That''s called playing smart, yo!]


    Taison turned into a bat via his ult and flapped away. His flight speed was hella fast, so if he just gets around that corner-


    [Gotcha!] Lars activated his ult: Deadeye. He locked onto the flying bat right before it vanished around the corner. Once locked on, Deadeye will never miss. Even if it had to pierce through the Great Wall of China or fly across the entire cosmos, Deadeye will always strike true. It was over!


    A lightning speed bullet. It cut straight through the jungle wall and pierced the fleeing bat.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    ¡ºKILLING SPREE¡»


    "Woohoo!" Lars pumped a fist. "That''s what I''m talkin'' about!"


    [He really did it!] Yuel couldn''t believe that absurd gamble worked. Dark Contract was a flimsy utility skill to rely on, but it worked like a charm this time. Rather, Lars made it work.


    Yuel noticed before how Lars seemed at least ten times stronger with Dark Contract, it saved them a handful Ranked games. To think it also worked in a serious match... amazing, nothing short of amazing. They finally broke through that nasty strategy designed to kill Lars!


    With this kill on Taison, the tides have turned. Lars scored three kills in a row and it put him on a roll. Until Ellen returns from the base, Yuel and Lars had time to reorganize and push Mid. Thanks to Fan the Hammer, Lars''s push potential was huge at this stage of the game, so they''ll be able to break through- SHOT!


    "Eh...?" Lars''s Gunslinger collapsed.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Eh? Wha..." Lars only saw the attacker for a split second before dying. It was Ellen.


    [Surprise~] Ellen stuck out her tongue. These whippersnappers probably thought they won, but too bad~


    Taitai has been doing a great job pushing Larsy around this game, but Ellen didn''t believe even for a moment that this routine would keep working the entire game. After all, Larsy was a wild beastie. That''s why Ellen had a simple backup plan: if Larsy ever beats Taitai, Ellen will just have to return and clean up the mess. It was a simple as that.


    [It was a nice last-ditch offense,] Howard nodded with genuine respect. [But, this game has already ended a while ago. Ever since you lost the early game, you''ve never had a real chance to break through.]


    "No way..." Yuel''s lost grip of the mouse. Even though they got so far, even though they almost turned the tables around... everything was still within Howard''s calculations. Yuel and Lars broke through one wall, only to discover an even greater wall waiting behind it. That was just...


    "Weeeeelp..." Lars threw his head backward and stared at the ceiling.


    They both understood what this result meant. It was over. They lost.

 90 From Offense to Defense?

    ¡ºDEFEAT¡»


    Silence descended on Yuel''s camp after the enemy team thoroughly crushed them. Even after Yuel and Lars came up with a way to mount a comeback and even got a kill on Taison, they crashed into a wall right after that.


    Such was the extent of Howard''s Aegis, the absolute defense. Every time Yuel thought he pierced through it, he discovered it was thicker than he thought.


    During the entire game, Howard has been using Taison as a momentum generator and as a weapon against Lars, but Howard didn''t bank solely on Taison''s performance. Howard took into account that Taison might be beaten at some point and he was prepared to cover up that mess up with more defense.


    [I was too greedy.] Yuel hung his head. If only he stopped Lars from chasing Ellen back then, they would have had a chance to win. They gained so much momentum from the team fight and they were finally getting a chance to turn things around, so it was tempting to keep pushing all the way. But, these poisonous greedy thoughts led to their demise.


    [Maybe I should have just given up earlier.] Perhaps the entire last part of the game was completely pointless and Yuel was just prolonging a lost game. To fight so hard until the very end, to nearly grasp a chance... only to fall without gaining anything.


    It was upsetting and it might put a huge damper on the team''s morale. No wonder everybody was so quiet.


    "C''mon, my dudes!" Lars jumped from his chair. "What''s with the long faces? We almost got these guys!"


    "You have an interesting definition of ''almost''," Dan retorted with a chuckle.


    "But, ya saw it, right? I totally beat Taison there! We were winning! We gonna get them next time for sure, believe it!"


    [How can he still be so optimistic?] Yuel sighed, but a smile crept onto his face. Lars was right, they still had one more shot. This wasn''t the time to lose hope.


    In the last game, the team was forced into a bad position and Howard revealed the aces he prepared for today''s match. However, in the next game, they will be better prepared. Yuel will use everything he learned from this defeat to strengthen the team, that''s what it meant to play a competitive best-of-three set.


    As the captain, Yuel, in particular, wasn''t allowed to mope. At dark times like these, he was supposed to be a role model for the others. If he loses spirit, the negativity will spread across the entire team.


    "It was a tough game," Yuel said. "But, we also learned a lot from it. Dan, you need to communicate better with the laners to know the state of the lane before ganking."


    "Roger that."


    "Roi, you need to play a little safer and not rely on parrying so much."


    "Heh," Roi sneered. "Maybe I wouldn''t have that much trouble if I actually played a half-decent class for once."


    "What do you mean?"


    "Exactly what I mean, lol," Roi added his trademark phrase, but his smile looked far from joking. "I told you, Dark Knight is trash. I became totally useless after we lost the early game."


    "Yes, that''s one of the weaknesses of Dark Knight by design. It''s a risk I took."


    "Yeah, sure. I bet you also took into account how fun it''ll be for me to play while feeling totally useless, right?"


    "What?" Yuel frowned. "You transitioned into a tank build, so you became our main frontliner. That''s far from being useless."


    "Oh yeah, sure. Because it''s so fun to play a tank who can''t CC for shit, right? Are you even hearing to yourself, bro?"


    "Hey now," Dan interjected. "You letting the salt speak for you."


    "... right, my bad." Roi shook his head. "I gonna go wash my face. Gotta wash off all this salt, lol."


    "I need to go too." Dan joined.


    With that, Roi and Dan left the room. Even though the quarrel quieted down, it left a bad taste.


    [Maybe Dark Knight was really pushing it.] Yuel tapped his forehead. Against a late-game composition like Howard''s, Dark Knight was a very fragile pick. It could dominate the mid-game with just a little momentum from early-game but, without any advantage, Dark Knight was doomed to be subpar for the rest of the game. Its only choice was to become a pure tank, but a very lackluster tank without CC. The presence of such a Dark Knight was far from impactful, it was almost a 4v5 game at that point. It was like a rook piece which devolved into a pawn.


    Roi stated many times he didn''t like using Dark Knight, but he was competent enough to pilot Dark Knight well. After seeing Roi''s strong performance in Ranked, Yuel decided to go through with this pick despite everything and hoped for the same great results.


    Alas, the competitive level was different from Ranked. Howard''s team was given time to adjust after losing the first game, so they handled the Dark Knight much better in the second round. That''s where the cracks in Dark Knight''s properties and in Roi''s mastery began to surface.


    In retrospect, Yuel probably should have dropped the Dark Knight strategy after winning the first game. It''s just that Dark Knight worked so well the first time that Yuel couldn''t help but try it again. Frankly, it was foolish. He must do something different in the next game.


    Anyway, that''s something for Yuel to figure out. Before that, he wanted to finish discussing everybody''s faults from the previous game. Especially, the next one had a lot on her plate...


    "Julia," Yuel carefully spoke up. "You-"


    "I know!" Julia shot up from her chair like an arrow. "You gonna say I played like shit right?"


    "Well, not in these exact words, but there were a few glaring issues with your performance. Starting with-"


    "You''re really good at motivating people, you know that? Yeah, please go on. Rub into our faces how shit we were that game. I bet it makes you feel good about yourself, even though you messed up a shitton of stuff too!"


    "I never pretended I''m perfect," Yuel argued. In fact, he believed much of the fault laid with him, but that was a separate matter altogether. As the captain, it was his job to ensure everybody performed their best and that''s why he had to review the game with them.


    "Whatever," Julia walked toward the door.


    "Wait, we haven''t reviewed the game yet. Where are you going?"


    "Toilet!" Julia slammed the door behind her.


    [Oh, brother...] Yuel had a distinct impression that Julia might be a little pissed off. [This isn''t good...]


    Everybody left. Yuel and Lars were the only ones in the room. Going to the bathroom during the break wasn''t odd or anything, but the way everybody left was concerning. It felt like a rift was forming among them. It reminded him of the huge breakdown the second string suffered during the scrimmage with the Leopards.


    Back then, Yuel argued it was mostly Trever''s fault. Then, did it mean that this time it was Yuel''s fault? No, that shouldn''t be the case. There was no denying that some of his bad decisions contributed toward the team''s defeat, but he didn''t do anything toxic that could cause bad blood in the team.


    Either way, now it was only Yuel and Lars.


    "Gonna roast me next? Haha."


    "I didn''t mean to roast anybody. I just wanted to review the game."


    "I know, I know. Just kidding, dude," Lars flashed his teeth. "Okay, hit me with it, yo! Come at me with everything you got! I''ll handle it!"


    "Your defense was awful."


    "Gah! I knew you''d start from there!"


    "But, beyond that," Yuel paused for a moment to think. "You played both games really well. Your Gunslinger was even better than I hoped, so you did great."


    "What, not even gonna mention that last chase I did?"


    "You mean, the one after Ellen?"


    "Yep," Lars shook his head. "That was so lame. I finally had things going but I fudged it up at the end there. We could''ve won if I didn''t chase."


    "True, it was the misplay that killed our chances of winning," Yuel nodded. "But, it was my fault."


    "Huh? How come?"


    "I made a bad call not stopping you. I was mulling over it but decided against it. So, that one is on me."


    "Hey," Lars smacked Yuel''s shoulder. "That''s wrong, dude. I mean, maybe you could''ve stopped me but I''m the one who decided to chase there. It''s all on me, yo."


    "I see," Yuel smiled weakly. Compared to the rest, Lars was willing to face his own mess-ups and to admit he committed some mistakes. "You''re really taking this well, huh."


    "You kidding, dude?" Lars dashed toward his bag with and took out... a basketball? Why did he even bring it here? "I''m super pissed, yo! So pissed, that I feel like I gotta dribble for five hours straight to forget about this shit!"


    Lars threw the ball at the floor and it came back to him. He threw again, and it came back again. And then again. And again. Every throw was faster and fiercer. In a couple of seconds, the ball started moving so fast there were multiple copies of it in the air! It must have reached Mach 4!


    "You sure you should be doing this before a match?" Yuel asked. "It looks tiring."


    "No problem," Lars continued slamming the ball. "It''s my meditation."


    "Really..." Rather than peaceful meditation, this looked more like boxer venting his anger on a punching bag. Lars slammed the ball into the ground with quick movements, as if hitting the floor with all his frustration.


    But of course, there was no way Lars wasn''t frustrated by this defeat. For them, the competitive scene was at stake this match. If they lose one more time, it''ll be game over. They''ll have to spend another year gazing at the dazzling stage from below.


    No more. They were sick of it. They were serious competitive players, their place was on a competitive team, not on the second string.


    To get there, they absolutely had to win the next game. No ifs or buts. They had to win, period. As the captain, Yuel had to lead the team to that victory.


    At this point, both teams showed what they were capable of. All the big aces prepared for today''s match must have been revealed by now. For the last game, everything was up to Yuel figuring a counter-strategy that''d allow the team to adapt to Howard''s game plan.


    How should Yuel tackle Howard''s unbreakable defense? So far, Howard has adjusted to everything Yuel threw at him: the Alchemist''s Impulse Bomb was a one-time shocker, Gunslinger will most certainly be banned next game and Dark Knight proved inefficient against the Druid counter pick.


    Banning Druid was one idea, but Howard surely had other good counters in mind. It was obvious Howard trained Gregory how to turtle, so it''s best to assume Gregory knew how to freeze the lane with multiple different classes. Running a Dark Knight against that turtling was a folly.


    In general, Yuel''s early-game composition worked at first, but Howard has completely shut it down the second time around. Therefore, charging in with another aggressive composition was risky. The only reason Yuel''s team won the first game was that Howard''s defense wasn''t fully prepared yet. But, now it was all set and it felt impenetrable.


    In that case, should Yuel try extending the power curve of the team? From an early-game composition to a mid-game composition, or maybe even a late-game composition. Given the overly defensive nature of Howard''s lineups, Yuel''s team should be able to get away with a lackluster early game.


    Switching to a composition with a longer curve also meant the team will have a better defense, so it should be easier to pick a class which can help Lars avoid confrontations with Taison. For example, with a class like Elf, even a Bronze rank defense player like Lars should be able to get out of most sticky situations.


    "Oh! I know that look!" Lars grinned while throwing the basketball into the air and catching it, without even looking at it. Mr. Supreme Mechanical Skill, as always.


    "What do you mean? What look?"


    "Ya know, when you cross your arms and stare reaaaaal hard at nothing. It''s like you''re on another plane, yo."


    "Do I really do that?" Yuel wasn''t sure how to take it. The ability to filter out the environment in order to concentrate on a single task was an important skill in chess, so Yuel mastered it a long time ago. Perhaps he was using it subconsciously?


    "So, whatcha got? Came up with anything fun?"


    "I got an idea," Yuel said. "I think we should try extending our power curve."


    "What''s that mean?"


    "Instead of focusing on the early game, we''ll aim to gain an advantage in later parts of the game. In mid-game, or maybe even late-game."


    "Wait, what?" Lars failed to catch the ball and it hit the floor. "We not gonna go hard early on?"


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    "That''s the gist of it."


    "But, that''s like our thing, yo! We go all in and wreck these dudes as fast as possible!"


    "You saw how well that works," Yuel pursed his lips. "Our aggressive early-game failed to make Howard budge."


    "Hey, we won the first game, remember?"


    "That game was..." Yuel still wasn''t sure what to make of it. "It was odd, that''s the only way I can describe it. The way they played the first game was half-hearted like they were warming up. "That game doesn''t represent their real strength. The second game is what we should use to judge their power."


    "But, we were doing fine in the second game too," Lars insisted. "I even killed Athena and all."


    "Yes, once. And yes, YOU were doing fine in the early game but the same can''t be said about the other lanes. And, even in Bot, Howard stalled us out. It''s like he held all lanes under a lockdown."


    "Should I start calling him Big Lockdown Dude? Haha."


    "You may as well," Yuel smiled even though this was no laughing matter. Howard''s global lockdown during the early game was their biggest problem that game. Yuel''s team didn''t lose too badly in the early game, it''s just that they didn''t win the early game. That alone was a huge hit against their early game composition.


    For Howard''s late-game composition, all it took was to stall out until the later parts of the game. At that point, Howard team was almost assured to win.


    "But wait," Lars picked the basketball from the floor and started tossing and catching it again without even looking at it. Seriously, what manner of witchcraft was that? "If we ain''t gonna blast through these guys in the early game, does that mean we gonna play defensively?"


    "For the most part, yes. It''ll be a defensive early game which will transition into an offensive mid or late game. I was considering Elf for you"


    "Gaaaah, but that''s not fun, yo!"


    "Yes, because your defense is terrible."


    "This ain''t it, chief," Lars insisted. "I mean, going full offense to kick the enemy''s butts is what we do best, right? If we throw that away, it''s like we''re giving up on our game plan. We gonna be playing in enemy territory, yo!"


    "That''s an exaggeration," Yuel objected even though he knew there was some truth it.


    The team focused on practicing the early-game over the past week because Yuel believed he''ll be able to penetrate through Aegis'' defense with hyper-aggressive early game. If Yuel shifts their game plan toward the later parts of the game, it''ll be like venturing into unexplored territory and playing at Howard''s pace.


    Nevertheless, the mid-game and late-game were still well-established parts of the game. Just because the team didn''t specifically practice these parts of the game didn''t mean they couldn''t play them. Howard''s team might be more experienced in that territory, but Yuel''s team had superior players like Lars, Roi, and Dan. No matter which part of the game they play, Yuel''s team should be able to win in terms of raw strength.


    "Elf doesn''t sound like a ''winning'' pick to me, tho," Lars protested even after hearing the gist of Yuel''s reasoning.


    "I thought of Elf because it''s easy to defend with it, even for you. This way, I won''t have to worry about babysitting you that much in the early game."


    "I ain''t no baby, yo!"! Lars made a face. "Just give it to me straight, will ya? You think Taison gonna keep wrecking me, so you want me to turtle, right?"


    "That''s part of the equation," Yuel admitted. "If Taison keeps targeting you this game, then Elf''s escape potential will come in handy."


    "C''mon, it sounds like ya just scared of taking some risks. How we gonna win if all we do is defend? Maybe I''m just dumb, so explain it to me, genius."


    "That''s..." Yuel opened and closed his mouth. When put like this, Yuel''s plan really sounded like it came from somebody who was already defeated. At some point, the goal of "winning" was replaced with "not losing".


    That was wrong. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. To secure victory against an opponent of equal strength, Yuel had to take some risks. That was true for chess, for sports, and for Classmancers as well.


    Even in a defensive team, somebody had to be the pillar of the team''s offense. On Howard''s team, that was Taison last game. In Yuel''s team, that had to be Lars. Rather than sheltering Lars in fear of Taison''s ganks, it was best to play to Lars''s offensive strength.


    "Okay, I see your point," Yuel said. "So, what class would you rather play? As you saw, focusing on early game is problematic. We need a class that functions well in the later parts of the game."


    "Hmmmmmm. Oh! I got it! How about Seraph!?"


    [This guy...] Yuel sighed with a smile. A Hyper Carry, of all things. That''ll certainly be a dangerous check for Howard''s team, but... "I thought you said you hate classes with a slow early game."


    "Yeah, it''s lame. But, if we only gonna fight for real in the late-game anyway, my dude Seraph gonna kick some serious ass."


    Truer words have never been spoken by this goof. As a Hyper Carry, Seraph was a monster in the late-game. And, combined with Lars''s skill, it''ll become a demon. Howard will no longer be able to drag the game out forever in fear of Seraph''s late-game potential. Putting a defensive team on a timer was a good way to make it slip up, it might even open up opportunities for breaking through Howard''s defense.


    That goof clearly didn''t think that hard about that pick, but it was a great choice. Yuel will have to work hard to keep this goof''s Seraph alive and well until the later parts of the game, but if they succeed - they''ll claim victory!


    Once the others return, Yuel will go over this plan with them. The next game was one they couldn''t possibly afford to lose, yet they were about to take a huge gamble. Will they be able to beat Howard in his own game by switching from early game to late game? Yuel will have to make it happen, no matter what.

 91 Restroom Encounters

    "Damn!" Roi splashed his face at the sink. He was totally out of tune last game. His parries didn''t connect, he died numerous times and he hasn''t scored a single kill. It was like he was some Bronze player. Damn it!


    "So much for ''we ain''t throw the game'', heh." Dan shook his head.


    "It''s not like I was messing up on purpose," Roi frowned. "My bat just didn''t connect and I couldn''t get anything going, which only got me more triggered and distracted. You remember that feeling from baseball, right? When you''re out of tune and miss literally every swing."


    "Yeah, my entire baseball career in a nutshell."


    "Lol, that''s not true," Roi chuckled. "Anyway, don''t know about you, but I wasn''t trying to throw the game"


    "Hey, I played alright too," Dan said. "I messed up here and there, but it''s far from my worst game."


    "Gonna make excuses, huh. I know you can play way better than that."


    "I think so too, but it is what it is. Howard packed some serious formation this time and I kept running into his traps."


    "Really now," Roi narrowed his eyes. "You gonna say every time you messed up it was some 200 IQ trap? Like, when you ganked Gil without asking whether he had his blink on?"


    "Welp," Dan twisted his lips. "Guess I was a little distracted. But again, nothing out of the norm. I''ve screwed worse in Ranked before."


    "You really insist on that point as if it matters. This is a serious game with lives on the stake. You can''t just say it''s alright to screw up."


    "Heh, ''lives on the line''," Dan chuckled. "Now that''s melodramatic."


    "It''s kinda true, though. For Yuel and Lars, this game gonna decide the upcoming year. Who knows, if they debut as juniors and get far in the regionals, they might get some sweet pro offers later down the line."


    "Heh, always dreaming about these sweet pro offers. I remember how you used to say that by becoming the cleanup batter of our team you took a step closer to the Major League."


    "Still think that''s true. You ain''t gonna get far if you aren''t aiming far."


    "Fair enough," Dan smiled wryly. He understood the reasoning, but for him, these were just empty words. How the heck becoming the cleanup batter of some grade school team gonna lead to the Major League? How winning the nationals during junior high team will lead to getting pro offers? It was all silly talk.


    "Anyway," Roi continued. "You really better start shaping up next game."


    "Right back at ya."


    "No kidding. I need to sort myself out-" Roi paused. An unexpected visitor entered the restroom - Howard.


    [Welp, this is kinda awkward.] Roi put on a dumb smile. Until the end of the match, Roi and Howard were like mortal enemies. There had to be a way to break the ice somehow. "Hey look, it''s the Big Shield Dude."


    "Heh, is that how you call me during strategy meetings too?" Howard chuckled but afterward, silence descended again. Roi and Dan threw glances at each other as if urging each other to say something.


    "What''s with the difficult faces?" Howard asked.


    "Nothing big, you know," Roi replied with a forced grin. "It''s just we''re kinda on opposite sides right now, so it feels weird."


    "Relax, it''s just a game."


    "You really think that way?"


    "Of course not," Howard''s eyes turned sharp as he passed by them. "For me, this is an important match with huge implications. But, for you two? It''s just a game. Your positions on the first string are pretty much guaranteed, so there''s no need to stress over it, is there?"


    "Well, that may be true, but..." Roi couldn''t find the right words to express his mixed feelings about this entire arrangement. This match was messed up, plain and straight.


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    Why were Roi and Dan on Yuel''s team? They gave the team too huge of an advantage, which made them look like bullies. It was hella hard to play their best in this environment. And not to mention, consider what was at stake on this match''s outcome... damn it all.


    "You said the match has ''huge implications'' for you," Dan addressed Howard. "You mean, like not being able to play in the tournament this year?"


    "It''s more than that," Howard explained. "Not sure if I mentioned, but I''m aiming for Grandview next year."


    "Huh?" Roi cocked his head. "The heck is that? The name sounds kinda familiar."


    "Isn''t that the high school where Utopia plays?" Dan asked.


    "Oh!" Roi exclaimed. "Utopia!? For real?!" He turned to Howard with a loose jaw. "Aren''t they like the top dogs of the high school scene!?"


    "Yes, that Utopia," Howard confirmed. "I applied for the team and they said my chances depend on my tournament results this year. Getting to nationals is the bare minimum and winning it will pretty much guarantee a scholarship and everything."


    "Damn, son!" Roi nodded with respect. "You''re shooting high, huh."


    "Impressive..." Dan wasn''t sure what else to say. This was a grand ambition but also a very down-to-earth one. "Isn''t Grandview pretty far from here, though?"


    "Yeah, I plan to live in the dorms. That''s why I really need that sports scholarship they offer for Mancers."


    "I see, sounds tough. Good luck with that." Dan smiled wryly and averted his gaze. Great, this match has just become a hundred times heavier.


    For Howard, winning this match was the first step toward getting into Utopia, the pinnacle of the country''s high school competitive scene. Utopia was known as a powerhouse that produced many pro players, so for Howard, today''s match was like a step toward the pro scene. This was serious business and yet here Dan was, playing on the opposite team and getting in Howard''s way...


    "Alrighty," Howard finished his business. "Good luck next game. Just don''t sweat it and everything will be fine."


    "Haha, sure."


    "Good luck, too."


    On that note, Howard left the restroom. As soon as he exited, a smirk surfaced on his face. As he thought, Roi and Dan were rattled. If things keep going this way, they''ll keep underperforming and it''ll be an easy victory for Howard. The next game was in the bag.


    At around the same time, at the girls'' restroom...


    [It''s because of me.] Julia finished washing her face and stared at the mirror. All it reflected was the sight of a useless girl who achieved absolutely nothing in the past two games. After she talked big about how she''ll fight her best today, she ended up putting on an embarrassing performance.


    Was that the extent of her skill? No, no way. Julia knew how to play more aggressively and score kills, she just couldn''t bring out these techniques in front of Lars.


    When Julia was playing Ranked, it was usually enough for her to stick to defense and wait for the opponent to commit a mistake. Then, she''d punish that idiot and win the lane.


    Unfortunately, Gilbert was no idiot. He knew exactly how far away he had to stay while pushing and he didn''t leave any openings even when he aggressed on Julia. In the second game, Gilbert was always on the offensive and yet Julia couldn''t kill him anyway.


    Even with a gank, they failed to kill Gilbert. Though, if Julia just went all out with offense at the time... [Bleh, I gotta stop thinking about this before it depresses me to death.]


    Bottom line: Julia sucked in both games. The team somehow pulled through in the first game, but the second game was much harder. And, as much as Julia wanted to deny it, much of the fault for the team''s defeat laid with her. Not only did she fail to initiate anything and score any kills, she even ended up dying and losing Mid. Like, these were the worst things a Mid Laner could do EVER.


    Yuel drilled this knowledge into her on a regular basis: ["No matter how badly a Mid Laner performs, they must prevent the enemy from penetrating Mid at all costs."] How many times has he repeated that?


    Every time Julia lost control in Mid, Yuel lectured her about how she put the entire team at a disadvantage. Each lane was like a pillar that supported the team''s defense and Mid was the most vulnerable of them all. Countless games have been won with a team just pushing all the way through Mid without bothering with other lanes.


    So, as a Mid Laner, Julia had just one job. ONE! Was it that hard? Was it!? Yeah, it sure was.


    Considering the importance of Mid, everybody was eying it like hungry wolves. A single misstep would give these wolves the cue to leap on Julia and tear her apart. That''s why she had to fortify her defense as much as possible.


    But, playing defensively wasn''t enough here. Even though the enemy team was filled with hungry wolves, they were smart wolves who didn''t overextend while targeting Mid. To turn the tables on them and to truly crush their assault, Julia had to get out there and fight them face-to-face. But, the problem with that was...


    "Gah!" Julia splashed her face. Her thoughts were swirling and swirling and swirling to no end. Jesus, it was depressing. Why was she even putting herself through all this crap? She just wanted to go hide under a rock...


    "My, what a surprise," Ellen waltzed into the restroom. Great, what a pleasant surprise...


    "Um..." Julia didn''t know how to respond, so she just silently approved of Ellen''s presence with a nod.


    "How cold~" Ellen pouted and quickly closed the distance.


    "Wha-!?" Before Julia realized it, she was wrapped from all sides. Oh god, the snake caught her!


    "No need to be like that," Ellen rubbed herself against Julia. "We may be enemies in the game right now, but we''re still best pals, right~?"


    [I don''t remember ever being your "pal".] Julia retorted mentally while trying to shake off Ellen''s embrace. Dang it, Ellen literally glued herself to Julia. This was neither the time nor place for these buddy-buddy gestures, they were in the middle of a world war.


    "Would you let go already?"


    "Only if you show me your cute smile," Ellen stuck out her tongue. "You look waaaay too serious right now. No boy would approach you from one kilometer with this face, especially Larsy."


    "Mind your own business," Julia scoffed off. Smile? What was there to smile about? She felt more like crying. "Let go already."


    "Alright, alright," Ellen unlocked the hugging cage and slithered away. "You just looked so depressed that I felt you need a hug. Wanna talk about it?"


    "No."


    "C''mon, I''ll listen."


    "I said no." [Can''t she ever mind her own business?]


    "It looks like you''re blaming yourself too hard," Ellen proceeded to talk some crap anyway. Great.


    [Can I just leave? Please?] Julia sighed because she already knew: there was no shaking Ellen off once she latches onto you.


    "You actually played both games pretty well," Ellen continued.


    "Is that supposed to be sarcasm?"


    "Nope, I mean it. Sure, you didn''t get many kills, but your defense was on par with The Pentagon. That ult play you did in the last team fight was pretty cute too."


    [Now, that''s definitely sarcasm.] Julia clenched her fists so hard her nails dug into her skin. The brief pain reminded her of the bullshit she had to go through in that play. Yuel promised "everything will be okay", so Julia went ahead and charged Hurricane. Needless to say, it was a recipe for disaster.


    ["It''ll be okay" my ass.] Julia felt like tossing that idiot of a cliff. While she was charging her ult: the stupid Kraken knocked her down, that dumbass Druid pulled her into enemy territory and the damn Pirate skewered her to death. That Hurricane play was total bullshit.


    "I see," Ellen smiled meaningfully. "You probably think that play was terrible because you died, right?"


    "Well, duh. It was terrible."


    "And here I thought it was good bait."


    "A bait...?"


    "Yep," Ellen nodded. "You became a must-target because Aero''s ult is nasty in team fights. So, you forced our hand and we had to strike first, so your team capitalized on that. Thanks to that bait, you guys almost turned the tables on us. Good thing we''re always prepared for anything~"


    "Huh," Julia scoffed. "You say it was good bait even though I died?"


    "Yeah, it was a small sacrifice for the huge payoff you almost got. Or wait, did I get it wrong? You didn''t plan to be a sacrifice bait there?"


    "Y-Yeah, of course, that was the plan. I was just impressed by how well you saw through it. You''re really sharp, huh."


    "I sure am~"


    "Haha..." Julia shifted her eyes away. Was the bait play really that helpful for the team? Even though it led to Julia''s swift death? Maybe her well-being was never a priority in the first place, so Yuel used her like a disposable pawn. That''s just... haha... ha... goddammit.


    "Oh, lookie, you''re finally smiling. Not your cutest smile ever, but it''s a start."


    "Heh..." Yes, Julia smiled. She smiled because of how useless she was. Yuel discarded her like a pawn in that play without even informing her. That dumbass planned to sacrifice her from the very beginning!


    "Anyway," Ellen patted Julia''s shoulder. "I know you''re trying your best to help Lars win so he can get into the first string, but no need to push yourself to the point of depression. As long as you play well, Lars won''t blame you if you lose."


    "That''s not..." Julia''s words trailed off. What was this bullcrap? Sure, Julia wanted to help Lars get into the first string, but she also...


    "Good luck next game~"


    "Yeah, you too." Julia left the restroom with quick strides. Once she got outside, she threw quick glances around the hallway. Okay, nobody was here.


    "GAAAAAAAH!" Julia roared. What the actual fuck!? A sacrifice bait!? Was that all Julia was worth for Yuel!? Was she just some pawn meant to be discarded!? [Don''t you fuck with me, you dumbass! I can do way more than that! I can...! I...! ]


    Sure, Julia was neither an amazing player like Lars nor a first-string member like Roi and Dan. And sure, she had all sorts of flaws. But! She was a player too! She wasn''t some dead weight that dragged the team down, right? Right!?


    Maybe she didn''t have as much at stake this match compared to Lars and Yuel, but that didn''t mean she was taking this match lightly. Helping Lars was an important goal, but even beyond that, she wanted to....! Goddammit!


    [Just you wait! Next game, I''ll show you what I can do! I''ll go so hard on the offense you''ll be begging me to stop killing so much! I''ll murder everybody! Every last one of these shitheads! I''ll do it, goddammit!]


    With this determination, Julia headed into the final game. Will she be able to draw out her aggressive side once she''s in the match? There were no guarantees, but she''ll do it! She''ll do it, goddammit!

 92 Drafting the Late Game

    Everybody from Yuel''s team returned to the computer room. It was time for the final game of the day.


    Everybody took a long break, so they should''ve returned refreshed... or so Yuel hoped. Instead, everybody looked even worse than before.


    Roi wore a stern expression and avoided eye contact. Dan was deep in thought about something. And Julia? Oh boy, she pierced Yuel with one of the fiercest glares ever. It''s like she wanted to stab him to death about a million times, burn his body and flush the remains down the toilet. Gulp.


    [Did she figure it out?] That was the most likely explanation. Julia must have realized she was used as bait in that last team fight and now she was mad. Like, really, really, REALLY mad.


    To be fair, that sacrifice stunt by Yuel wasn''t exactly pretty, especially since he kept it under wraps. However, he couldn''t come up with any better play at the time and Julia was definitely going to argue against it. There was no time to argue about that play, so Yuel pushed it through no matter what it took.


    Julia was a decent player, but she underperformed in that game. Therefore, using her a bait was more valuable in that situation than keeping her alive for the team fight. That''s all there was to it, but good luck explaining that to Julia...


    [Should I say something? No, I''m not even sure that''s what she''s mad about. After all, she''s always mad for whatever reason.] Yuel decided to keep quiet. There was no telling whether Julia really figured this out or there was some other random reason for her intense hatred. It always felt like it''s Julia''s purpose in life was to search for reasons to hate on Yuel, so...


    [I''ll just pretend I didn''t see anything.] Yuel shook his head, took a deep breath and spoke to everybody. "I''ve been going over our options for the next game. It doesn''t seem like our early game offense will work anymore, so I suggest we extend our power curve to not lose by default when we lose the early game."


    "That''s how it should''ve been from the start," Roi said. "Betting everything on the early game is way too risky. It''s like putting all your eggs in one basket, man."


    "Yes," Yuel admitted. "As it stands, we can''t pull off this approach against Howard''s defense."


    As frustrating as it was to accept, this team simply didn''t have enough time to practice. Howard has been using his defensive playstyle with the other members all the time, whereas Yuel''s hyper-aggressive early-game composition was a new approach he came up with for this specific match. If they had a couple of months to prepare for this match, things would have been totally different.


    Unfortunately, the situation was what it was. A single week of training wasn''t enough for the team to master this playstyle.


    "So," Roi started. "I can pick Knight or whatever this game, right? You promised you''ll let me pick whatever I want if your idea doesn''t work."


    "Sure, as long as it''s not an early-game class." Yuel wasn''t sure how he felt about that remark, though. During the week, Roi said something along the lines of "Let me pick what I want if your Dark Knight plan doesn''t work out." Yuel thought it was a joke, but apparently not. [Seems like he really hated the Dark Knight idea that much, huh.]


    But alright, fine. Dark Knight and the whole early hyper-aggression was an idea Yuel insisted on and it failed, so he had to give it up and to cooperate with the team to come up with a new game plan. Roi wouldn''t pick anything dumb, so this should be fine. In the worst case, Yuel would have to raise an objection. As it stood, Knight was a great pick and they should be able to get it for sure.


    "Instead of concentrating on attacking," Yuel explained. "We''ll play the early game more defensively."


    "Wha-!?" Julia exclaimed.


    "Something wrong?"


    "No, it''s just..." Julia shifted her eyes away. "Nevermind. Just thought it''s weird."


    "This approach should actually play to your strengths better," Yuel explained. "You can stick defense the whole game and it''ll be fine."


    "Sure," Julia rolled her eyes. "Because being a defensive player is all I''m good at, right? Other than that, I''m only good for... Tch, nevermind."


    [Somebody is sure in a bad mood, but I don''t have the time or skill to appease her. Sigh.] Yuel shook his head and went on with his explanation. As long as Julia doesn''t perform poorly, it''ll be good enough. Lars, Dan, and Roi should have more enough strength to carry this team. Yuel just had to lead them effectively.


    "Lars will be the pillar of our offense," Yuel continued. "The idea is to have him pick Seraph."


    "Whew, daring," Dan whistled. "Going all in, huh."


    "Of course," Yuel nodded. "We have to win this game, no matter what."


    "No matter what, huh." Dan smiled wryly. It was hard to tell what was on his mind, so Yuel didn''t linger on it.


    "The main priority is to not fall behind in the early game. After that, we''ll start gaining control during the mid/late game."


    "So, a standard defense plan, right?" Roi confirmed.


    "Yes, essentially." Yuel nodded. For Roi and Dan, this must have been the arrangement they were most used to play with. After all, they were members on Howard''s first string, so their experience with defensive game plans will play a big role this game. In fact, without that factor, Yuel wouldn''t have had any hopes for this plan in the first place. The fate of the game was quite literally riding on Roi and Dan''s experience.


    At around the same time, the other team was wrapping up its preparations as well.


    "We stick to the same game plan," Howard explained. "Greg, keep stalling Roi. Tai, cooperate with Ellen to score kills on Lars and keep ganking. As for Gil," Howard locked his eyes with Gilbert''s for a moment, then continued. "Keep controlling Mid. You''ve been doing a great job against Julia so far."


    "Sure..." Gilbert responded half-heartedly, in an almost questioning tone. [Is that all he got to say?]


    "There''s no need to say anything else, right?" Howard responded to Gilbert''s questioning eyes. "You know where you messed up and why you did. I trust you''re smart enough to work this out yourself."


    "Got it," Gilbert nodded. His uncertain expression was painted with determination again. Good, that''s how it gotta be.


    [Maybe I pressured him too hard before the match.] Howard pondered. That one rush move Gilbert did during the last team fight was a result of desperately wanting to score a kill on Julia. Why? Probably because Howard said that Gilbert''s starter position was on the line this match.


    Howard''s statement must have pressured the Gilbert into trying his best to overwhelm Julia and prove he was the superior Mid Laner beyond a shadow of a doubt. That led to some riskier plays than usual.


    Throughout most of the match, Gilbert played more aggressively than usual, but he has been doing a solid job of pushing Mid without outright overextending. However, eventually, this bloodthirsty mentality got the best of him and he fell for Yuel''s bait during the last team fight. That one mistake almost cost them the game.


    Howard could still stop this charade and tell Gilbert there was no need to worry about the first string. Based on Julia''s performance today, she wasn''t ready for the first string in any shape or form. Her defense was airtight but it came at the expense of spending too much gold and she focused on too hard, to the point she always failed to seize the initiative. Ellen insisted that this wasn''t Julia''s "full strength", but so far it was hard to believe that Julia was capable of anything mind-blowing that''d make up for her current shabby performance.


    Thus, Julia had no chance of getting into the first string at the moment. Howard could simply announce that and relieve some of Gilbert''s stress, but he didn''t do it. A little bit of pressure was healthy and it served as good simulation for the tournament play. As a first-string player, Gilbert will be put through many matches at the regionals which will be way more stressful than this. So, this was a good opportunity to make him get used to playing under pressure. Also, it was a good way for Howard to gauge how well Gilbert performed under pressure.


    [I don''t wanna believe Gil got any problems with pressure, but...] Howard had to examine this carefully after Gilbert''s big misplay in the previous game. If Gilbert had some mental weakness like that, Howard will have to work on it during the upcoming year.


    After Howard finished going over the game plan, the players assumed their positions in front of the computers. In just a minute, the third and last game of the day will begin. It will decide who''ll reach the top and who''ll rot in the second string.


    "I ran into Roi and Dan," Howard whispered to Ellen. "They looked conflicted, just like I thought. They probably won''t perform well in this match either... hey, you listening?"


    "Huh? Oh," Ellen shook her head as if she just woke up. "Ah, yeah. That''s great."


    "Something wrong?"


    "No, I just..." Ellen averted her eyes.


    "What is it? Tell me."


    "You really wanna know? My, Wardy you care so much about me~"


    "I just wanna make sure you won''t drag us down in the next game."


    "Boo, meanie," Ellen pouted. "Well, the thing is, I ran into July and... said something I probably shouldn''t have."


    "Which is?"


    "I mentioned how she did a great job when she played the bait in the last team fight. I really meant it as a compliment, but I think she didn''t even realize she was used as bait..."


    "You think Yuel pulled a fast one on her? Wouldn''t be surprised, considering how rocky their relationship seems to be. I''m not sure what I would have done in his shoes, to be honest."


    "July looked shocked when she learned she was a bait," Ellen twisted her lips. "I wonder if she''s still hung up on it. Maybe I should go apologize-"


    "You sit down," Howard pulled Ellen back to the chair. "We got an important match to win here."


    "Yeah, but I feel like I''ve done something terrible."


    "Just accept that you''re a natural-born terrible person."


    "Hmph, what''s that supposed to mean?" Ellen scowled.


    "Jokes aside, what''s done is done. Besides, this match is like an exam. If that much is enough to throw Julia off her game, then she doesn''t have the mental fortitude to be a competitive player yet, simple as that. Psychological attacks are part of the game, you should know that better than anybody. Since when you have a problem using them?"


    "If it was about any other opponent, I''d say anything to crush their spirits and ruin their lives," Ellen said something pretty messed up with a smile on her face. "But, enemies or not, I didn''t want to bully July like that."


    "It''ll be alright," Howard said. "It''s not like testing Julia is an important part of this match anyway. She''ll get her chances in the future, maybe even during this year. Right now, the goal is to beat Yuel and Lars so we can destroy their chances of getting into the first string this year."


    "Oh, right," Ellen nodded. "July may still make it even if she doesn''t do well today. Alrighty, let''s get this game started then~!"


    "That''s the spirit," Howard nodded.


    This was it, the final game. How will Yuel come at them? What did that chess boy come up with for the last round?


    Hopefully, Yuel has spent all his aces by now. He pulled the early-game Dark Knight aggression, the unpredictable Alchemist and the overpowered Gunslinger. There couldn''t be more tricks, right? Howard should''ve countered everything by now.


    Unfortunately, there''s never knowing for sure with Yuel. That guy could produce insane ideas out of thin air on the spot. Howard always had to stay one step ahead and lead the team around Yuel''s traps. Honestly, it was quite exhausting.


    How will Yuel attack next? Howard couldn''t possibly tell. Unlike some people believed, he wasn''t gifted with clairvoyance. Therefore, he had to reverse-engineer any potential ideas Yuel could come up by examining his own team.


    How was the team''s formation? What weak spots it had? These questions were undoubtedly somewhere at the core of Yuel''s reasoning when he was crafting his offense. And, similar questions were on Howard''s mind when he was fortifying the team''s defense.


    The game plan of the team was straightforward: a slow and steady defensive formation which aimed to win during the late-game. There were two major weaknesses in this game plan: a weak early-game and a slow game closure. Yuel will surely try to strike one of these, no question about it.


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    In fact, Yuel has already been striking Howard''s weak early-game with the Dark Knight pick. Gregory''s turtling successfully stopped this attack during the second game, but it''s not like the approach wasn''t effective. If Roi and Dan were in top shape, they might have carried that game to victory.


    Nevertheless, the end result must have looked devastating to Yuel. After Howard shut down the early game aggression, his team practically steamrolled during mid-game. Therefore, there was a good chance Yuel will switch up his strategy for the upcoming game in some way.


    If Yuel wants to keep pushing for an early-game advantage, he''ll probably resort to even more aggressive team composition. That''d be extremely risky, but it sounded like a very Yuel-like idea. Under normal circumstances, that chess boy would shoot for something like that without thinking twice, but will he dare to do that during such an important match? Even Yuel will be wary of going hyper offense like that. Probably.


    Instead, it was more likely Yuel will slow down the pace because the early-game aggression fell through. That''d be both a blessing and a curse. It''ll remove the need to consistently counter Yuel''s attacks every five seconds during the early game, but it''ll also mean Howard''s team will lose its decisive power advantage during the later parts of the game. Everything will boil down to which side plays the endgame better.


    But, if it comes to that, Howard''s team will win. While Yuel was the maestro of offense, Howard was the maestro of defense. Howard''s team had more than enough defense training to beat a makeshift defensive team. In fact, this would actually be the optimal scenario as far as Howard was concerned. It''ll be a surefire victory.


    But, for now, Howard could only speculate. First, there was the banning phase which didn''t give him much information. His three bans have been already predetermined for him: Shadow Walker, Trickshooter and Gunslinger.


    [Gotta admit,] Howard frowned. [Yuel arranged this banning lockdown really well. It''s like I don''t even get a real banning phase.]


    Howard hoped to learn something from Yuel''s bans, but they were standard jabs aimed to seal Howard''s options: Cleric, Paladin, and Druid. So far, nothing special. The Druid ban must have doubled as a way to stop the turtling strategy in Top Lane.


    ¡ºThe enemy team selected Knight¡»


    [So, he''s slowing his game plan.] Howard nodded to himself. This was bound to happen. Even an absolute mad lad like Yuel wouldn''t gamble this entire match on a hyper-aggressive plan which can be shut down entirely during the early-game.


    The good news: Yuel''s team will surely be much weaker without its aggression. The bad news: Roi was a much strong Knight than he was Dark Knight. This matchup might be rough for Gregory. Howard had to pick some solid defensive class for Top.


    "Greg," Howard started. "Knight is Roi''s strongest class, so don''t let your guard down just because it''s not DK. Since Druid is banned, I consider picking Vanguard. Is that alright with you?"


    "Geh, Vanguard?" Gregory made a face. "Well, whatever you think is good, I guess."


    Not exactly the highest motivation, but at least it wasn''t a flat out rejection. Some didn''t like playing Vanguard due to its masochistic game plan that revolved around receiving hits for others, but it was a solid class for surviving 1v1s. Gregory should be able to squeeze his way out of many tight situations on the lane.


    As for the second pick, Howard went with Cryomancer before it was taken. Yuel would most likely be willing to pay real money for an option to ban a 4th time just to get rid Cryomancer now, but too bad.


    Yuel''s next two picks were still in line with the theory that he was going for the mid/late game this time around, he picked Aeromancer and Aquamancer. These two were picked last game too despite being defensive classes which did better during the late game. Aeromancer was picked last time because Julia has been playing defense from the get-go, whereas Aquamancer was picked for was the ability to destroy enemy protections.


    And, yet again in this game, Aquamancer was a great pick against the ults of Cryomancer and Vanguard. This niche class was becoming a pain in the butt today. But, it wasn''t all bad.


    [By all means, keep going with defense.] Howard smiled. In a battle of defense, Yuel had no advantage whatsoever. Even if Yuel planned this strategy ahead of time and trained with the team to play better defense, a single week won''t be enough to compare with Howard''s years of experience. Even pros from the Sweepers said Howard''s defensive game plan was impressive, to the point it managed to stop some of their offense. Howard won''t be beaten in his own playfield.


    Unfortunately, that''s when something unexpected happened: Yuel picked Seraph, a Hyper Carry. It was a late-game monster who reaped the enemy apart if the game was dragged to that point. Yuel wasn''t just clamming up by going on the defensive, he planned to wait for the late-game in order to mount a fierce counterattack!


    [This could be bad. Really bad.] Seraph was like a countdown timer for defensive teams. It was no longer possible to take things slowly because Seraph will dominate the late-game. Somewhere between mid-game and late-game, Howard''s team will have to wrap things up or else they''ll be decimated.


    [Damn, why didn''t I think to ban it!?] Howard gritted his teeth. This had to be some bad joke. After all, it was Lars who''ll be playing Seraph. That guy couldn''t defend for shit, so how was he going to survive through Seraph''s weak early-game and mediocre mid-game? It''s unrealistic!


    And yet, Yuel approved of this absurd pick for such an important match. So, he believed there was a chance this will work. Was Seraph another class Lars secretly trained this week? If his mastery of Seraph was anywhere close to his skill with Gunslinger, this was going to be terrible. A full-blown disaster.


    [Okay, calm down. What can I do against this?] Howard took a deep breath.


    In the end, Seraph was just one class. A single class couldn''t determine the outcome of the entire game unless it was something broken like Shadow Walker. Then again, until two years ago, Seraph was actually also an S tier class. It took a while until they reworked its ult and dropped the class down to A tier... [Wait, that doesn''t matter right now. I have to deal with present-day Seraph, not what it was before. What can I do against Seraph?]


    Unfortunately, the drafting phase has already approached its end and only Gilbert''s class remained. Ellen has already taken Ranger earlier, so it was impossible to counter Seraph in Bot. Yuel obviously waited until the very last moment to deliver this surprise pick. Dammit!


    Was there any Mid Lane class which could contribute to countering Seraph? No, at least not directly. The best thing a Mid Laner could do to hamper Seraph was to push Mid hard and finish the game before Seraph reaches its full strength. Either that or help killing the Seraph throughout the game via ganks.


    But, what''s a good pick for any of these purposes? Howard couldn''t figure this out on his own, so there was no reason to keep bashing his head against a wall.


    "Gil," Howard said. "Got any idea what you could pick to mess with their Seraph plan? Either a fast pusher you''re confident in, or a class that can rotate quickly to gank Bot."


    "I got one, but you not gonna like it."


    "Try me."


    "Pyromancer."


    "That''s a bold one..." Howard paused. Well, he asked for a name and he got a name. Pyromancer satisfied both conditions, it was a hundred mark answer. Pyromancer was a semi-Carry class with great push potential and it had a movement speed buff via Burning Spirit which allowed for faster rotations. It really satisfied everything Howard asked for.


    Alas, Pyromancer was a very aggressive and risky pick. It better-suited offensive players with mechanical skill and, unfortunately, Gilbert didn''t belong to either of these categories. Not to mention, Pyromancer had a relatively short attack range and that made it susceptible to ganks.


    Were there any safer options along the same line of thinking? For example, an offensive Mid like Electromancer was a much safer choice because it had a blink in its kit. The enemy Jungler was Lionfolk yet again, so having the ability to get out of the cage of lions without buying Blink was highly valuable.


    But, Yuel banned Electromancer earlier. That chess boy must have read that Electromancer will become an appealing pick against Seraph and Lionfolk. What a cunning little...


    There were probably other classes besides Pyromancer which could do the job, but Gilbert specifically brought up Pyromancer. So, he must have wanted to play this aggressive class. That wasn''t like him. Gilbert usually went for balanced classes with a combination of damage, utility and escape tools. Yet, that same Gilbert was now suggesting Pyromancer.


    [You wanna take Julia down so badly?] Howard knotted his brows. Gilbert''s obsession with proving his superiority over Julia was messing up his playstyle. If he keeps focusing so much on Julia, he won''t notice what''s in front of him and might stumble at some point. This reeked of bad news.


    ¡º15 seconds¡»


    There was no time to think about that. Howard had to make a decision right here and now.


    It was impossible to properly discuss this topic in just a couple of seconds. Besides, talking too much about it might do more harm than good because it''ll come off as a sign of mistrust in Gilbert''s decision-making skills. That may push the guy even harder to prove his mettle and might result in even more misplays. So, warning about misplays might lead to more misplays. What a silly catch-22.


    "Alright," Howard said. "Let''s go with Pyromancer. Just don''t forget to be careful. We''re playing against Yuel, so he''ll gladly exploit everything he can about Pyromancer."


    "Got it."


    With this, the drafting phase came to an end. The final decisive game was upon them.


    Team compositions:


    Yuel: Aquamancer


    Lars: Seraph


    Julia: Aeromancer


    Roi: Knight


    Dan: Lionfolk


    Howard: Cryomancer


    Ellen: Ranger


    Gilbert: Pyromancer


    Taison: Vampire


    Gregory: Vanguard

 93 Defensive Gears

    The last game began. For the third time today, Yuel and Lars faced Howard and Ellen in Bot. However, this time the dynamics of the fight were rather different. For the first time, it was Ellen who went on the offensive during the laning phase.


    "Duuude," Lars pouted. "I can''t do anything if we keep running. Lemme at her, I''mma get a kill for sure!"


    "Patience," Yuel dismissed the idea. "You should''ve known you''ll lag behind during laning as Seraph."


    "Yeah, but Athena is right here and she''s pushing! And I can''t do anything! Gah."


    "She''s playing like this because she knows you can''t go in. And, this also doubles as a bait. If you take it, they''ll run all over you."


    "I''ll just beat them, yo!"


    "Or, you''ll die and set the whole team back."


    "Geh, okay..." Lars pouted but didn''t argue any further. As much as he itched to give Ellen some heat, even this goof understood the danger.


    For Seraph, the laning phase was merely a situation to live through, not a situation to dominate. This Hyper Carry class didn''t have any AoE skills aside for his ult, so clearing the lane was tough. Lars couldn''t rely on anything but his basic attacks.


    As for the enemy, Ranger wasn''t exactly the fastest lane clearer either, especially with Ellen''s infamous defensive build. Still, Ellen could send her wolf to slash minions in a cone and this AoE attack allowed her to out-clear Lars.


    Fortunately, Yuel was there to help. He splashed water in a cone on multiple minions with Splash and knocked them up with Geyser Eruption. To make his damage relevant, he started off with an Lv.1 Unholy Grail. It was a greedy power item which didn''t provide any MP5 or cooldown reduction, two valuable stats during the early game. Instead, it offered raw power on par with a mid-game item for a much lower price.


    Unholy Grail was supposed to be a greedy starter item for Mid Laners, not for Supports. However, Yuel had to go that far in order to support Lars''s Seraph during this early laning phase.


    Thanks to that, Ellen and Howard couldn''t dominate the lane. They still had an advantage, but they couldn''t do much with it. Every time they tried to aggress, Yuel issued an immediate retreat order.


    [What a waste.] Yuel thought every time Ellen advanced to the frontline. It''d be so easy to knock her up with Geyser Eruption and assault her. Unfortunately, Lars''s Seraph currently lacked the strength to finish Ellen off even during such a great opportunity. Seraph''s only weapon was his basic attacks and it won''t become deadly until much later into the game. What a shame.


    As a result, the early game in Bot was rather uneventful. Taison ganked a few times and so did Dan, but neither side got a kill. Nobody chased kills too hard or overextended too much because they didn''t want to mess up. After all, the risk-reward ratio was skewed when playing a defensive comp. Getting early kills wasn''t that important, but falling behind by getting killed could prove fatal during the mid-game.


    Thus, both sides fortified their defenses and preserved through the early game to the best of their abilities. In a game between late-game teams, the early-game was just a formality. Neither side cared too much for it and they both wanted it to be over with so they could get to the meat of the fight.


    The game proceeded like that on all lanes until the average player level became Lv.7. At this point, everybody had their ults and the mid-game was approaching. So, fights naturally broke out.


    During such a critical time, Yuel found himself hanging with little to no MP. That was the inevitable cost of relying on Unholy Grail. At Lv.3, the item gained an amazing passive effect that increased power by 10%, but it came with the cost of increasing MP cost by 10%. It was a calculated risk which allowed Yuel to defend the lane for this long, but now it forced him into a sticky situation.


    "They''ve ground me out of MP," Yuel informed Lars. "I have to recall, so be careful out there. Don''t advance too much and keep an eye on the wards in the jungle."


    "Gotcha."


    "They''ll probably try to pull something while I''m away, so pay attention," Yuel said as he crossed into enemy territory in the jungle to place a Checkpoint Ward. [This is where things begin for real. Don''t mess this up, I beg of you.]


    Despite his worries, Yuel had no idea choice but return to base. The enemy made a very calculated decision to focus almost exclusively on Yuel in all their gank attempts. The goal was no doubt to kick him out of lane so they can catch Lars alone. There was no doubt that a storm was coming.


    Howard also left Bot, so it became a 1v1 between Ellen and Lars. A classic recipe for disaster. Gulp.


    "Don''t worry, dude," Lars said. "I got this!"


    "I''m not sure what you ''got'' and I''m too scared to even ask."


    "Haha," Lars laughed as he fired at a minion. Boom! Headshot! Too bad that didn''t do anything when he wasn''t Gunslinger. Seraph''s laser beams were easy to land, so getting extra damage for headshots would''ve been sick. Oh well.


    Once Ellen killed all of Lars''s minions, she fired directly at him.


    "Yo!" Lars dodged the bolt with a roll. [You wanna go? You wanna go!?] Lars fired right back at her! Ez hit! No headshot, though.


    But, Ellen persisted and fired again. Ha! No dice! Another supah dodge! Maybe this Seraph dude was a little shabby in the early game, but Lars still had his own skills! He fired a counter right away. Bam! Another hit! 2:0 to Lars. He got this!


    After the successful hit, three robotic arms stretched from the Seraph''s back. Normally, these would be angelic wings, but that was meh. Instead, Lars had this sick sci-fi skin which replaced wings with robotic arms. This was da real stuff, yo! Each arm held a laser gun they were all aimed at Ellen!


    This was the power of Seraph''s passive: Six Wings of Holiness. Or, in Lars''s case, it was Six Laser Beams of Awesome. After landing seven basic attacks, these bad boys popped outta his back and were ready to go wild!


    Whishwhishswhish! One beam after another! No breaks! Ellen dodged the first with a roll, but the next two beams hit her before she even finished rolling! Light speed shooting, yo!


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    Too bad the party had to end after just three beams. The maximum Seraph could fire in a row was six beams, but Lars first had to level up to get more laser juice. The more he levels up, the more shots he''ll get every time from Six Wings of Holiness. By the end of the game, he''ll be firing like a Gatling laser gun, yo!


    Ellen ate up all that damage, but she was still alive. Geh, such a persistence. Did she build defense again? That''s no way to play Carry.


    [I almost got her!] Lars''s heart thumped. It was a chance! He just needed like two more hits and he gonna seal the deal! He was healthy as a horse, so there was no danger of pushing all the way. He had this, yo!


    But, of course, Ellen gotta be Ellen and run away. No way! She won''t get away! Not under Lars''s watch!


    He activated Angelic Grace and leaped into the air to pursue. His robotic Seraph launched off the ground with his jetpack and darted forward. Lars gonna get this early kill and bring the team one step closer to victory! They gonna win and enter the first string!


    Bam! Lars landed another hit from midair! Just one more hit and it''ll be done! Lars landed on the ground and kept running after Ellen.


    "Bah!" Just as Lars was about to catch up, Ellen mounted on her wolf and sped away. Yo, so close!


    [Have fun, boys~] In the next moment, the trap went off.


    "Heeeere comes Taison!"


    "Geh! Not again!" Lars exclaimed. He was so concentrated on chasing Ellen that he didn''t notice he entered deep into the jungle at some point. Nuuuuuuuu!


    "I told you to retreat," Yuel said. "Multiple times."


    "Haha, my bad" Lars produced a dry laugh as he dodged a kamikaze bat. Yuel probably objected to this chasing, but all Lars''s head was filled to the brim with killing Ellen and winning this game, so he didn''t hear squat. This was kinda bad...


    "Try to get away," Yuel said. "I''ll get there as fast as I can."


    "Easier said than done," Lars dodged another bat, but right afterward a swarm of bats flocked around him. Gaaah! Now his flippin'' screen was pitch black! He couldn''t even see Taison! This was so fair!


    [Daim, I spent my escape tool too. I''m such a genius.] Lars just moved randomly, hoping he''d doge attacks that he couldn''t even see coming. Using Angelic Grace for chasing Ellen was a bad move. His only remaining escape tool now was his ult, but he first had to activate Six Wings of Holiness before the ult could be used.


    So, to escape... he had to attack! But to attack, he had to actually see stuff! But because he couldn''t see stuff, his only option was to escape! So wait, what was he even supposed to do!?


    He could get rid of these pesky bats CC with Self-Nullification, but that''d leave him at very low MP. His math sucked so he couldn''t tell for sure, but there was a good chance he won''t be able to use his ult if he spends any MP on Self-Nullification now.


    Thus, Lars''s only option was to fight despite his blinded state.


    [Okay, I got it. From now on, I''ll be known as "Lars the Blindfolded Sniper"!] Besides, it wasn''t like the screen was 100% covered anyway. Lars could roughly estimate Taison''s position. Kinda.


    So, screw the rules! Lars just went for it and fired! Without even seeing his target!


    [The heck is that scrub doing?] Taison sneered. He got tense for a moment and prepared to dodge a shot, but the shot dodged him instead. WTF, yo? Did Lars plan to play blindfolded darts or some shit? Khaha! No way that scrub gonna land any shots without seeing- gah!? It connected!?


    [Okay! That''s one!] Lars heard the sound of his beam cutting through meat. He had this! Just three more hits with his basics and he''ll activate Six Wings! Then, he''ll be able to get the heck outta here with his ult!


    [How did he even hit that shit?] Taison clicked his tongue. Well, no matter. That shot caught Taison off guard and he didn''t even try to dodge it, but next time he''ll pay attention. He won''t let that scrub hit him anymore!


    They exchanged more blows from afar. Taison tossed his kamikaze bats whereas Lars fired laser beams into the darkness. As expected, Lars didn''t have much success landing shots without seeing his surroundings.


    [Geh, this is rough!] Lars was running low at 20% HP. Yikes! This was close! But, only one more hit and he''ll activate Six Wings! Just one more- whoa!? Giant Bat Dude appeared!?


    [It''s over!] Taison transformed into a giant bat and darted toward Lars! Taison rammed right into that mofo and transformed back into vampire form. Then, he grabbed Lars and dug his fangs into Lars''s neck.


    [Gah! I can''t move!] Lars spammed the entire WASD to no avail. There was no getting out of this stun! Taison gonna suck out what little remained of Lars''s HP. Gaaaah! Wasn''t there anything Lars could do here!?


    "Be ready to shoot him."


    "Huh?" Lars jumped. In the next moment, a splash of water hit both of them. The water canceled the stun CC and allowed Lars to break away "Sick, yo!"


    [W-Wha!?] Taison was thrown into a daze. Where did that Aquamncer shithead pop up from!? Didn''t Yuel return to base just a few moments ago or something? Shit! This water crap canceled Taison''s finishing move!


    [Gotcha!] Lars turned around as soon as he broke away and fired at Taison. Alright, Six Wings was up! Now, Lars could do the cool stuff!


    [Shit! Shit! Shit!] Taison shifted his eyes right and left. What he gonna do here? He should go after Lars to finish off that mofo, but that damn Yule was gonna get in the way for sure. So, maybe he should smack Yuel first? Or, retreat? Damn, how did this bullshit even happen!?


    [He''s confused.] Yuel noticed Taison''s slow reaction. Yuel''s original plan was to get here to help Lars escape, but maybe they could be more greedy and go for a kill.


    From all the recent exchanges, Lars brought Taison down to 50% HP. With the power-up of Six Wings, Lars could now deliver tons of damage in a blink of an eye. On top of that, Yuel was here as a backup.


    Considering that Taison wasn''t at his best when it wasn''t a 1v1 situation, this had to be checkmate. They had him!


    "Keep attacking him," Yuel cast Rainfall around Taison. A gray cloud formed over Taison''s head and poured an intense shower which slowed Taison down. "We can get a kill here."


    "You ain''t gonna tell me to escape? Sick!" Lars aimed his laser guns at Taison. This gonna be a vortex, yo! Rtatatatata!


    [I ain''t having this shit!] Taison booted Coffin Slumber. [This situation sucks, so I''mma sleep.]


    "Geh, crap," Lars''s first beam ran into the coffin without dealing any damage to Taison. "Stop napping, dude!"


    "Wait," Yuel shot a ball of water at the coffin. "I''ll take the coffin out with basics. No need to waste your Six Wings on it."


    "Okey-dokey."


    Yuel fired one basic after another. His shots weren''t nearly as fast as Lars''s, so this took a couple of seconds. However, once they break through it...!


    [My, such naughty boys~] Ellen crept up on the unsuspecting backs of her enemies. These two whippersnappers were thinking they''re on a roll, but Ellen won''t let that pass~


    [You''re going down, Larsy~] Ellen snuck up behind Lars. [Go, my cute wolfie~]


    "Gah!?" Lars exclaimed. A wolf pushed him into the ground from behind! Where did this doggo dude even come from!?


    [Wha!?] Yuel didn''t expect this either. Ellen came back!? Even though she was low on HP!?


    No, that was a wrong assessment of the situation. Ellen WAS low on HP the last time they saw her, but right now she was back to over 50% HP. She quickly restored all that HP by life-stealing from jungle camps. Dammit!


    [I should have told Lars to get out while he had the chance! Damn! Damn it all!] Yuel felt like running his face into the desk. But, it wasn''t the time for that. This was his blunder, so it was up to him to fix things.


    Thanks to landing all these shots on Taison''s coffin, Yuel gained enough Water Flow stacks to active Overflow. Therefore, he could spend said Overflow to enhance one of his water spells. Only one of his skills wasn''t on cooldown right now, so he went right for it: Geyser Eruption + Overflow = Hot Spring Eruption!


    [I''ll just knock Ellen up in the air and-]


    "The hunt is on!" The Ranger shouted right as Yuel cast Hotspring Eruption. Water erupted from the ground underneath Ellen, but it didn''t knock her up; she remained glued to the ground. Her ult negated the knock-up CC! That fox was prepared for everything!


    But, Yuel couldn''t let Lars die here no matter what!


    [Bye bye~] Ellen stuck out her tongue as she pointed her crossbow at the trapped prey. This was going to be a piece of- [Oya?] An obstacle popped up between her and her prey! Yuel stepped in to block the bolt with his body!


    [My, protecting your boyfriend with your life? How admirable~ And, how freakin'' annoying.] Ellen tried to maneuver around Yuel, but the brat kept covering Lars from her field of view. What a rascal.


    "Say, Taitai," Ellen called out. "How long you plan to sleep in that coffin? Come out and finish the work."


    "Coming!" Taison jumped outta the coffin and aimed at Lars- whoa! The next moment, Taison found himself in the air! And, the bat he just fired smashed into a wall instead like a drunk driver!


    [Knockups don''t work on Ellen right now,] Yuel chained another water eruption. [But, I can at least keep Taison in the air!]


    With his body, Yuel shielded Lars form Ellen''s shots and with his overflow spell, he kept Taison at bay. Yuel had to do everything in his power to keep Lars alive through this unfortunate situation Once Lars breaks out of the wolf stun, he should be able to get out of here with his ult. Just a little longer and the storm will pass...!


    [Tch, what a rascal,] Ellen clicked her tongue. This wasn''t going as she planned. Like, not at all. "C''mon, Taitai. Can''t you land a single shot? So what if you''re in the midair? Larsy would have landed every shot from there without trouble."


    "Keh! That one was just a warning shot, yo!" Taison took aim again. If Lars can land these shots, then Taison can land them in his sleep! He ain''t gonna miss again a second time! [Okay, careful. Aim for that mofo and then- keh!] Another water knock up messed shit up!


    But, that''s nothing, yo! Taison adjusted on the fly and fired while being launched up! It was a hit, boiiiiiiii! Easiest shot of his life, word.


    [The knock-up wasn''t enough!?] Yuel launched that second knock-up early before Taison hit the ground. The plan was to mess up Taison''s aim with unexpected CC, but Taison still made it land somehow. Lars was now down to barely 1% HP!


    "Duuuude! I got like 3 HP left!" Lars exclaimed. The wolf finally let go, so Lars jumped back on his feet. But, what was he even supposed to do in this kind of situation!? If anybody merely sneezes in his general direction - it''ll be enough to knock him out!


    "Run! Out of here!" Yuel practically yelled.


    "But what about you-"


    "Just get out! You can''t die here!"


    "G-Gotcha!" Lars had to boot his ult: Divine Messanger.


    [You ain''t getting away, bro!] Taison wasn''t done yet! He was out for blood and he gonna get it! Whish! Another shot from midair! He was Taison the Combat Airplane! This shot gonna be land perfectly, he could feel it with every fiber of his body!


    [It gonna hit!] Lars saw the bat flying straight at him. That squeaky little dude was coming to deliver the finishing blow! Divine Messanger will be too slow! First, Lars gotta roll!


    [Wha-!?] Taison gasped so hard he forgot how to close his mouth afterward. His deadly bat crashed into the ground like a blind missile. What a useless little dawg!


    [I''m out!] Lars canceled the roll into Divine Messanger without wasting any time on the recovery animation, it was a cool trick he picked up from Trever.


    The laser guns on his robotic arms transformed into exhaust pipes and energy burst out of them to launched Lars toward the sky. Ellen fired a bolt which almost hit Lars on the way up, but the bolt didn''t make it. Lars got away!


    But, what about Yuel? "You gonna be okay, dude?"


    "You think I''ll be okay?" Yuel smiled wryly. He was surrounded by two strong opponents, both of which were above 50% HP. Yuel already ate a lot of damage while protecting Lars with his body, so there was no getting out of this.


    Yuel tried his hardest to slip away, but it was futile.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "About what I expected," Yuel nodded. "This entire situation was a bad call by me. I should have told you to retreat right away."


    "C''mon dude, don''t be like that," Lars smiled and patted Yuel on the shoulder. "You totally saved my butt there. If you wanna blame somebody, blame me for chasing Ellen like a tool."


    "Oh, right. I forgot it was all your fault. Seems like you need another looooong lecture about not chasing Ellen."


    "Geh! Spare my poor brain already!


    "Heh," Yuel chuckled, but he couldn''t curve his lips into a genuine smile. In a way, it was true that Lars caused this entire disaster by insisting to chase Ellen. However, that was still partially Yuel''s fault.


    Yuel saw how the entire situation unfolded but he didn''t insist to stop Lars. He merely advised asked Lars to stop because it was risky and his reluctant words didn''t even reach Lars. At the time, Yuel''s head was filled to the brim with thoughts about how scoring a kill on Ellen would put the team ahead before the mid-game. He was still stuck in the mentality of an offensive team composition and greedily sought to capitalize on every opportunity.


    No matter how Yuel twisted it, that was a risky chase. Plays like that fit an aggressive team, not a defensive one.


    Maybe if Lars could pump out more damage in that fight, things would''ve turned out differently. However, that was impossible to do with Seraph during such an early stage. Lars could only rely only on basic attacks and those were limited in many ways.


    Despite the problems, Yuel somehow held the front and prevented the worst-case scenario of Lars''s death. But, everything back there came down to the wire. Way too many things could''ve gone wrong. All it took was one more shot from either Ellen or Taison, then Lars would have been dead. In fact, if not for Lars''s fast reflex at the last moment, Taison''s last shot would''ve sealed the deal.


    Therefore, frankly, the only reason a disaster was averted was due to dumb luck. Yuel deserved to be ridiculed for allowing such terrible plays. At the back of his head, Yuel understood they were playing with a more defensive formation right now. However, his brain kept thinking of how to attack and exploit weaknesses. Switching gears was harder than he expected.


    But, it should be manageable. Yuel''s death as the Support was the least impactful death that could happen right now. It still meant the team was heading into the mid-game with a disadvantage, but there were still ways to turn this around. No, they WILL turn this around. They had to. No matter what.

 94 Fatal Hesitation

    For Julia, everything about today''s match was a mess. She promised to do her absolute best today, yet she has been putting on a crappy performance so far. Likewise, she promised herself to go on the offensive and in the third game, yet she was stuck being on the defensive as usual.


    [Gilbert plays a Pyro, for god''s sake!] Julia ranted to herself. [I should be able to beat him with my range. Goddammit.]


    As a Pyromancer, Gilbert had a more restricted attack range than Julia. Therefore, if Julia goes on the offensive, she should have been able to pressure Gilbert and draw him away. The only factor playing against her was that Pyromancer had a faster lane clearing speed than Aeromancer. Nevertheless, Julia should have been able to zone Gilbert out with her range and prevent him from coming close.


    Alas, Julia didn''t do any of that. In her head, she understood what should be done, yet her fingers refused to move. It was one thing to figure out the right line of play and another thing to commit to it. There were simply too many risks involved in that play.


    To properly zone Gilbert out, Julia had to advance to the frontline and put herself in danger. There was no telling when that dumbass, Taison, will decide to show up in Mid to gank her, so she couldn''t advance carelessly. Danger loomed nearby at all times.


    Not to mention, she has already suffered a horrible death last game when she tried going on the offensive. In her head, Julia understood that she died back then due to her indecisiveness and not because she was trying to go on the offensive. Nevertheless, she couldn''t forget the bad taste that left.


    [So, that''s how it is? I''m only good at talking big? Is that it?] Julia pursed her lips. In the end, she couldn''t follow up on any of her promises, not even on the promise she made to herself. She was a complete failure. A deadweight for the team.


    [I can''t keep playing like this. I have to...] Julia trembled. She had to... what? How should she start changing things up?


    She has already fixed the issue of spending too much gold on wards, for the most part. She still purchased a large number of wards that some would consider too high, but it was just a part of her careful playstyle; she wasn''t acting like a paranoid.


    Buying this many wards wasn''t optimal, but having many wards around helped Julia feel at ease. She couldn''t concentrate on the lane without being reassured that nobody was going to sneak up to her from the jungle. Therefore, this amount of wards was justified. Probably.


    Anyway, what Julia had left to adjust now was the way she farmed on the lane. That''s where things were getting ugly. In her head, she understood she had to go out of her way to pressure Gilbert''s Pyromancer. Yuel told her this numerous times: "A Pyromancer you don''t pressure in lane is like an S+ tier class."


    Pyromancer was an extremely powerful mage and apparently, it was totally broken upon release. Even after ClassSoft bombarded it with nerfs, Pyromancer remained a strong pick and could easily get out of hand if not dealt with correctly.


    So, if Julia continues being wishy-washy, she''ll let Gilbert grow into a terrible threat for the entire team. At this rate, everybody will lose because of her! [God, just make me disappear and never hear about Mancers again...]


    No matter how hard her brain implored her to take action, her body refused to budge. Julia kept playing it safe from the backline and didn''t come out of her shell to seize the initiative. As a result, Gilbert strutted all over the lane like a king and Julia didn''t do anything to kick him off the high horse.


    From time to time, Gilbert even had the nerve to leave the lane and go farm some jungle camps. While Julia was busy clearing the remaining minions, Gilbert was working on out-leveling her via extra farm. That guy didn''t even see Julia as a threat. Her countless wards captured his crimes in action, so she could easily head over there to assault him.


    But, she didn''t. The jungle was a dangerous place. If she gets ganked by Taison...


    [There he goes again.] Julia sighed. Gilbert ventured into the jungle once again, most likely to farm. One of Julia''s wards captured the criminal hanging around the Griffin camp, so that was probably his goal.


    The Mid Laners were normally responsible for contesting Griffins, but Julia couldn''t leave the lane while there were still minions here. This entire thing sucked. Couldn''t just somebody go there and gank Gilbert for her? Why did Dan have to be on the opposite side of the map right now? Sigh.


    Seriously, what was Julia supposed to do with this situation? She knew she had to turn more aggressive in some way, but all her ideas sounded risky and uncertain. On top of that, if she does somehow manage to draw out her aggressive side, she might lose something very important as a result. [Just kill me.] Julia sighed for the hundredth time today.


    Julia wasn''t the only one having a rough time today. While she was mulling over her options, another teammate was struggling with his motivation and performance.


    [Shake it off!] Roi shook his head. [C''mon, brain! Do a restart already. In case you haven''t noticed, I''m in a serious match right now. Stop thinking about dumb stuff.]


    Alas, the conversation with Howard kept bugging him. In this match, Howard pretty much had his future on the line and that wasn''t even exaggeration. Of course, it wasn''t like Howard won''t get into Grandview High for sure if he loses here today, but it''ll definitely make things much harder for him.


    Sometimes, missing just one opportunity decided everything. As a former baseballer, Roi understood the stakes better than anybody. A single miss could be the whole difference between winning and losing a match.


    Because Roi related so much, this situation weighed heavily on him. He should be putting his everything into this match because that''s what proper sportsmanship dictated, but was that the really the right thing to do?


    If he defeats Gregory on lane and hat opens a path for the team''s victory, then Howard''s defeat will be on Roi''s hands. Roi will have to live with the fact he might have killed off Howard''s chances of pursuing his dream.


    [Unlike me, Howard can still aim for the top.] Roi tapped with his leg. This stupid leg killed his chances of ever playing competitively, Or rather, it was Roi who killed his own chances by being stubborn. Either way, the fact was simple: Roi couldn''t hope to play baseball seriously ever again. His dream of becoming a Major Leaguer was utterly crushed.


    But, Howard still had his dream and it was very much within reach. His path was clear: he had to win this selection match, lead the first-string to nationals, join Utopia and get scouted for becoming a pro. It was a straightforward and clear road that started right here from this very match. A match in which, unfortunately, Roi had to be a villain who stood in the way of Howard''s ambitions.


    [Damn, why it gotta be like this? Ack!] Roi got launched into the air! Gregory must have been feeling himself if he thought he could advance to the frontline like this without any consequences. If Roi really wanted, he''d whoop Gregory''s ass right here and now. While playing Knight, Roi''s power level was over 9000!


    But, Roi couldn''t bring himself to do it. Destroying Gregory like that might give the team too much momentum and snowball into a victory. So, Roi chose to be a little lax and trust the enemy will be smart enough to know when to retreat. [C''mon GG, quit it while you''re still alive. Don''t stay here with such low HP. C''mon, man.]


    But, GG gotta be GG and keep messing with Roi. Where was Howard at right now? He''d normally instruct his teammates to play safe and all that. Howard should put GG on a leash before Roi turns this brat into a steak that''ll feed the team for days.


    While dragging out this silly situation, Roi was gradually losing HP. Gregory was down to 30% HP and Roi dropped to 50%. At this rate, Roi will fall into dangerous territory and will have to consider retreating himself. Now THAT would be an unacceptable performance from Roi.


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    So far, Roi could still kinda justify his passiveness as being "cautious" or whatever. This was an important match and going on the offensive always harbored risks, so it wasn''t too strange to play a little safer than usual.


    But, outright losing the lane to Gregory? Now THAT would be disgraceful. Putting aside that Yuel would nag about it to no end, there was also Roi''s pride to consider. He was the first string''s Top Laner, so he couldn''t lose the lane to some overconfident snotty brat. That just ain''t happening.


    [COME. ON. GG. Recall already.] Roi sighed. He has already struck Gregory a few times to put the guy at 20% but Gregory STILL remained on the lane. [What''s your problem, man? Take a hint already and get outta here before I whoop your ass.]


    This situation sucked. Roi fell down to 40% HP while trying hit that damn GG without going overboard. Seriously, it was harder to NOT kill the guy than it was to poke him while keeping him alive. This was turning into such a pain...


    All Roi wanted was to give Howard''s team the fair chance they deserved. The two teams weren''t balanced in the slightest, so by dumbing himself down to GG''s, Roi actually made this game fairer. But, there was a limit to how long Roi could keep this nonsense going.


    [Damn, man. At this point, I got no choice, right?] Roi sighed. He has been dragging this for way too long. Gregory had plenty of chances to fall back and Howard had all the time in the world to order a retreat, yet nothing happened. [Welp, sorry but this is no longer my fault. You gonna get rekt, GG.]


    First, Shield Bash. Roi charged forward and slammed his shield into Gregory. Normally, this the impact would cause a pushback but the big guy didn''t budge. Of course he didn''t, because Vanguard''s passive, Immovable Object, negated any form of soft CC that moved the Vanguard around. As a result, the stun part of Shield Bash didn''t kick in either because it was directly tied to the success of the pushback CC. The pushback had no effect, therefore no stun.


    But, that''s fine. Roi didn''t expect any CC outta this anyway. His main goal was to get close and follow up with Blade Swing!


    [Kek, gotcha.] Gregory activated Provoke.


    "Come at me, bro!" The Vanguard shouted. This meme voice pack for Vanguard was worth every penny, kek.


    [Tch, this sucks.] Roi frowned. Instead of slashing the Vanguard with Blade Swing, he was forced to use basic attacks due to that damn taunt effect. But, no matter. Gregory was already down to 15% HP, so this will be over soon- wha!? A ring of fire formed under Roi''s feet!


    [When the hell did Gil get here!?] Roi turned aside to confirm the identity of the aggressor: it was Gilbert! He rotated from Mid to Top at some point! [Where was the missing call!? Damn!]


    It was a pincher! Gregory from the front and Gilbert from behind! This was hella bad news. Roi had to get outta here! [I can''t die here, dang it!]


    All Roi wanted was to make this match a bit fairer. By not utterly destroying Gregory, he was giving the enemy a chance to settle everything during the team-fighting phase. However, dying here wasn''t part of the plan! Dammit, now it gonna look like he''s really throwing the game! Shit!


    [How these two are planning to wreck me?] Roi shifted his eyes between the Vanguard and the Pyromancer. [So, GG gonna CC me and Gil gonna hit me with his ult. Something like that? In that case...!] Roi rolled the heck outta there!


    [Shit!] Gregory exclaimed. His Vanguard has already raised his foot and was gonna stomp on the ground with all his strength. The idea was to knock Roi up so he becomes an easy target for Gilbert, but Roi slipped outta range!


    The most annoying thing was that Vanguard''s Heavy Stomp couldn''t be canceled. So, Gregory had to go through with the stomp he started even though it was pointless. What a waste of skill, MP and time.


    [Okay, that''s one.] Roi recovered from the roll and broke into a dash. With Gregory not longer posing any CC threats, Roi had a good chance to flee the scene. At least, that''s what he hoped. Unfortunately, his Knight was moving at a snail''s pace.


    [Ah, shit. The slowdown.] Roi clicked his tongue. The Pillar of Fire, which Gilbert used to open this attack, applied multiple ticks of slowdown due to the Chains of Infinity in his build.


    [Damn, I won''t be able to get away on foot. Better bring out the horse... ah.] Roi paused. He didn''t have enough MP, so he couldn''t cast Noble Steed. Daaaaaaaamn! When did he burn so much MP? Or rather, why wasn''t he more careful about maintaining enough MP for an emergency like happens!? [Damn! I''m an idiot!]


    Damn, there was no time to mull over his mistake. How Roi gonna turn this around? Escaping seemed unlikely. Running away at a turtle''s pace only gonna make him a perfect target for Gilbert''s Blaze of Inferno. So, in that case...!


    [They say offense is the best defense!] Roi dashed straight at Gilbert! The guy had 40% HP left and he was a squishy mage, so Roi might get this kill!


    [Frontal attack!?] Gilbert jumped. That wasn''t part of the plan! The simple elegant gank he envisioned turned into a complete mess.


    [So, I''ll have to kill him in a straight fight.] Gilbert shook his head to recollect his thoughts. The situation was a mess, but that didn''t give him an excuse to just stand there and whine. He had to act. Now.


    Gilbert started drawing a line for Blaze of Inferno around the approaching foe. Even though Roi was a moving target, the guy was moving like a snail thanks to Gilbert''s slowdowns. Therefore, it was a no-brainer to hit Roi with every tick of Blaze of-


    [You ain''t casting that!] Roi burned what little MP he had on Honorable Duel, Knight''s aggro ability.


    "Let us fight honorably!" The Knight shouted. The taunt interrupted Gilbert''s casting and forced Gilbert to use basic attacks. So, instead of a hellish firestorm, a single fireball flew Roi.


    [Ez parry!] Roi swung his blade in the middle of running and sliced the fireball into two. He won''t die here! He wasn''t allowed to!


    This entire situation was Roi''s fault. From dragging the fight against Gregory and up to not keeping mana for Noble Steed 0 everything was on Roi. Therefore, he had to clean up his own mess by winning this fight!


    Roi swung his blade at the enemy and it struck home. Gilbert''s Pyromancer was still controlled by the taunt, so he had no control over his movements; dodging attacks was impossible.


    However, the taunt was short-lived. Now, things will get interesting.


    [How Gil gonna move?] Roi eyed his prey like a predator. [I bet he gonna start by creating some space.]


    [First, I have to create some distance between us.] Gilbert rolled aside to get as far away as possible from Roi''s reach. [Alright, now to- Wha!? He''s already here!?]


    [Lololol, I knew it!] Roi slashed through Gilbert again! [Too predictable, man!]


    Retreating toward the jungle was the natural instinct when a player was caught in a sticky situation on the enemy''s side of the lane. Therefore, Roi ran toward the jungle as soon as Gilbert started the roll and caught up in no time! [Worst case, if my guess had been wrong, I could have escaped through the jungle myself from that position. 200 IQ play!]


    [There''s no choice,] Gilbert frowned. [I have to take him head-on.] He unleashed Flame Wave right at Roi''s face. With how wide the burst of fire was, there was no dodging the attack from this range.


    [Welp, nothing I can do about this one.] Roi ate the fire damage in the face like a man. Instead of wasting time trying to dodge the Impossible, he slashed Gilbert again without wasting any time.


    It was almost over. Gilbert only had about 25% HP left. Just three more slashes and Roi will redeem himself!


    So, the first swing! Ez homerun! Alas, the attack didn''t deal as much damage as Roi hoped. [Damn, GG is still here? Go home already, kid!]


    Gregory, the absolute mad lad, approached the battlefield and booted his ultimate: "Hold the Line!" It spread a big aura around him which extended all the way to Gilbert. The aura negated some of the damage dealt to Gil by transferring a portion of the damage to Gregory.


    [Damn, what a pain in the ass.] Roi clicked his tongue. Because of this shit, it gonna take like twice the time to kill Gilbert, This ain''t good! Roi had to win this fight no matter what! [Maybe I should switch to killing GG first? No, then Gil will run all over me off from behind. What a damn situation. REEEEEEEEEEEEE!]


    Everything was Roi''s own damn fault. If he hadn''t messed around with GG and took this seriously from the start, GG would have been dead by now. But, because Roi has been taking it slow like an indecisive scrub, he found himself in this gank.


    Was there even a "missing" call from Mid about Gilbert''s rotation? Damn, it felt like everything was out to get him right now. This situation royally sucked in every way possible!


    Roi tried his best to score at least one kill in this desperate situation, but Gregory and Gilbert ganged on him from both sides. Roi simply didn''t have enough damage to get a fast kill here. GG was tanky as heck, so bringing him down required some time. On the other hand, Gilbert was squishy but any damage Roi dealt him was almost halved by Gregory''s ult.


    Thus, it was impossible to quickly kill any of these guys. And, escaping wasn''t an option either with all these slowdowns stacked on Roi...


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    [Fuck.] That''s all Roi had to say on the matter. From start to end, he has been fucking shit up. This wasn''t how this game was supposed to go. All Roi wanted was to even out the odds of this game a little, not to get wrecked like a pleb and give the enemy an easy lead.


    He wasn''t supposed to be throwing the game! He wasn''t doing it! He just...


    Together with Yuel''s earlier death, the team was losing 0-2 while the game was transitioning into the mid-game. Will they be able to recover from this? [Dammit, I gotta make up for this shit somehow...]

 95 JULIA UNLEASHED!!!

    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "Wha..." Julia''s lips trembled. How could this happen? Roi has just died in Top Lane. But, he didn''t just die; he got ganked. And, the ganker was Gilbert, of all people. It''s all because Julia allowed Gilbert to do as he pleased that this happened. [Oh god, this is so my fault...]


    "Hey July," Roi called out.


    "Y-Yes?"


    "Did you even call missing on Gil? Don''t remember hearing it."


    "I... um..." Julia gulped. No, she didn''t call it. She didn''t call anything. Julia allowed Gilbert to rotate out of lane and gank a teammate and she didn''t even notify anybody about it. Goddammit, how bad could she be!?


    "I thought Gilbert was just going for the Griffin..." Julia made a weak excuse.


    "Man, you should still call missing when that happens," Roi said. "The guy totally screwed me over here."


    "Yeah, I..."


    "Roi," Yuel joined the conversation. "One of Julia''s wards showed that Gilbert was heading towards Top Jungle. Nobody could tell for sure where he was going, but you could see he was going in Top''s direction. That should''ve been enough of a warning."


    "R-Right!" Julia followed up. "I put a bunch of wards around, so you should''ve seen the rotation. Hmph."


    "Huh," Roi paused for a moment. Wait, did any of the wards really expose Gilbert as he was making his way to Top? Um... maybe? To be honest, Roi didn''t recall seeing anything of the sort, but if Yuel said so then it had to be true.


    So, just how distracted was Roi this whole time? Damn, this was hella embarrassing.


    "Well," Roi started. "I still think she should''ve called missing just in case."


    "I agree," Yuel nodded. "But, that doesn''t change the fact you weren''t cautious enough. You should''ve waited until we clarify Gilbert''s intentions before charging at Gregory."


    "Yeah, I guess." Roi sighed in resignation.


    [Phew, looks like I''m in the clear.] Julia sighed in relief. After clearing Julia of the guilt, Yuel went on to criticize Roi''s recent plays some more but who cared about that anyway. As long as it wasn''t Julia''s fault, it didn''t matter, right?


    [Except, it IS my fault.] Julia clenched her mouse. All of this was happening because she allowed Gilbert to do whatever he wanted. Instead of pressuring the Pyromancer as she should, she let that dumbass strut around as if he owned the entire place. Goddammit!


    This was not good. Julia''s misplays began spreading beyond her own lane. This was no longer just a question of whether she could defend Mid. Her poor performance was dragging down the entire team.


    Things couldn''t continue like this. At this rate, she''ll drag the entire team down to oblivion. They''ll lose the entire match and everything will be on Julia''s hands. [God, just end me.]


    Losing this game meant losing the entire selection match. That''ll crush Lars''s dream of playing in tournaments next year. Yuel will also be screwed by this, but who cared about that idiot. Hmph.


    On top of that, Julia''s poor performance guaranteed she won''t get into the first-string either. In short, everybody gonna got screwed due to her weak performance.


    This couldn''t go on. It was no longer just about Julia, it was also about Lars and even Yuel. This match will decide whether they spend the next year as competitive players or as mere benchwarmers. For the two game addicts, this was a matter of life and death. As for Julia...


    [Well, it''s probably too late for me anyways.] Julia hung her head. Considering her awful performance up to this point, nobody would ever pick her for the first string. And, honestly? She didn''t think she deserved it either.


    But, Lars deserved to be on the first string. Heck, even Yuel deserved it. Well, probably. Kinda.


    Unlike Julia, these two were brilliant players. She knew first-hand how amazing they were because she spent every day playing with them. Thanks to them, Julia improved tremendously and even ranked all the way to Diamond I. So, the least she could do for the boys was to not drag them down.


    [Lars will hate me for sure if he sees how I play aggressively,] Julia smiled wryly. [But, if playing aggressively will help Lars get into the first string, then I''ll freaking do it!]


    Julia put her mic on mute and exhaled deeply. It was now or never. She''ll go on the offensive and wreck all these idiots!


    "Where are you going?" Yuel asked.


    "Top Lane," Julia answered matter-of-factly as if it was the most natural thing to do right now.


    "What for?" Yuel asked. "By the time you get there, they''ll start retreating. You won''t be able to defend Top much."


    "Defend? Who said anything about defending?" Julia cracked her neck. "I''m done with defending. I''m going to murder these bastards!" A grin curved on her lips. Her eyes glinted like a polished blade.


    [I know this look.] Yuel couldn''t believe it but, apparently, it was happening for real. [If she''s serious about this, she may actually pull it off.]


    "Dan," Yuel said. "Rotate toward Top. Check for opportunities to pick somebody off."


    "Roger."


    Was it really going to happen? Will Julia go for her alternative playstyle even though Lars was here? It was hard to tell with this moody girl. But, if she really pulls through and activates her aggressive style, this match will take a huge unexpected turn...


    [Okay, here we are.] Julia took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. She got to Top Lane pretty fast after buffing her movement with Jet Stream. These bastards won''t see this one coming! She gonna kill them so hard they''ll feel the pain in real life! She gonna destroy them!


    [Okay, first this dumbass over here.] Julia noticed that Gregory retreated a little and began recalling. "Running away to your mama? Not under my watch! Die, dumbass!"


    Julia activated Squall, which fired a gust of wind. The hit damaged Gregory, interrupted his recall and slowed him down.


    "You''re soooooo dead!" Julia grinned as she darted to finish off her weak prey.


    "Wha!?" Gregory exclaimed. "Shit! Where did that bitch come from!? Hey Gil! Help me out here-"


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Fuck!" Gregory smacked the table. "Thanks for the help, man."


    [Why is Julia here?] Gilbert was too confused by this development to even come up with counter-play.


    Julia was supposed to be defending Mid Lane, that''s how she was playing the entire day. How in the world was she in Top Lane right now? Not to mention, she apparently snuck up to them on her own and put herself in a dangerous 1v2 situation that could''ve easily gone wrong. That was an absurdly offensive play.


    [I don''t even...] Gilbert blinked repeatedly in hope his eyes were playing tricks on him. But no, Julia was definitely here. And, she just scored a swift kill on Gregory.


    "Haha! Yes! Die!" Julia cackled. She made sure to mute herself before her mouth started running off on its own, but that didn''t change the fact her teammates were sitting right beside her. So, they could probably hear some of it. Especially, Lars could probably hear her too. He was most likely giving her funny looks right about now.


    But, Julia didn''t send as much as a single glance in Lars''s direction. If she sees Lars''s reaction, her fighting spirit will die out on the spot. So, she couldn''t possibly check her teammates'' reactions right now. She had to step on the gas and wreck Gilbert before she starts feeling awkward about all of this.


    Out of everybody on the enemy team, Gilbert deserved the most painful death possible. That pompous bastard has been feeling himself too much this game. It was time to show him that Julia wasn''t some weak player he could mess around with!


    "C''mon!" Julia roared. "I''mma kick your ass to another plane of existence! You''re sooooo dead!"


    [She''s going for it?] Gilbert frowned. A 1v1 against an aggressive opponent wasn''t exactly something he wanted right now with his 20% HP. [But alright, he was game.]


    This was a great opportunity to decide once and for all which of them was the superior Mid Laner. Gilbert was in a bad shape, but so was Julia. She was down to 30% HP and she has already spent Squall on Gregory, so her options were limited.


    Julia still had her ult, but it was practically impossible for her to land it on Gilbert during a 1v1. He''d burst her down if she dares to go ahead and channel it. Therefore, Julia will have to resort to basic attacks while Gilbert had some options.


    Unfortunately, his Flame Wave was currently on cooldown for a few seconds, so he''ll also have to rely on basics attacks at first. However, he also had Blaze of Inferno which Roi interrupted last time. The casting of the ult didn''t go through because of Roi''s taunt, so Blaze of Inferno wasn''t on cooldown.


    So, if Julia gets close, all Gilbert had to do was bombard her with Blaze of Inferno. Thus, despite the slightly lower HP, Gilbert actually held the advantages here. Julia couldn''t do anything of note in this 1v1. Gilbert had this one in the bag.


    [Take this! And that! Die!] Julia barraged Gilbert with wind blasts. That bastard was soooo dead! [Ha! You think you gonna hit me with that shit? That''s cute!]


    "Wha?!" Gilbert fired back at Julia, but his fireballs missed. On the other hand, all of Julia''s wind blasts perfectly landed. What kind of wizardry was this?


    [She''s good. Unexpectedly good.] Gilbert gulped. He didn''t expect things to go this way. Julia should''ve been a defensive player who hated putting herself in battle, yet she packed quite the punch in an actual fight. Was she hiding this skill all this time? Was it for the surprise element or something?


    Either way, Gilbert won''t lose here. This was his opportunity to kill Julia and prove he was the only Mid Laner the first-string needed. No matter how good Julia was at dodging shots, she was still a greenhorn with fewer years of experience. Gilbert has been playing Classmancers for over four years now, so there was no way he''ll be beaten by this rookie!


    "Die!" Julia fired another wind blast as she advanced toward her foe. She had this! Gilbert was already down to 10%. [Goddamit, the damage of my basics sucks when I build a defensive build. I hit him so many times but he''s stick kicking. Die already!]


    [You''ve made a grave mistake.] Gilbert drew a path of flames on the ground. Julia foolishly stepped within the range of his Blaze of Inferno. He marked the entire area around her with red lines, so she had no way to escape the blaze. This fight was over.


    "Ha! You think that''s enough!?" Julia blinked forward. She escaped the danger zone in an instant!


    [A cloaked Blink!?] Gilbert flinched as Julia teleported behind him. His Blaze of Inferno went down the toilet!


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    [But, now you''re even closer!] Gilbert turned around. His Flame Wave came out of cooldown with perfect timing, so this was the perfect opportunity to unleash it! It''ll erase most of Julia''s- huh!? She was gone! Where did she go after blinking!?


    "Hahaha! How about this, sucker!" Julia rolled underneath the Flame Wave just as Gilbert unleashed it! [This is so cool! I''ve always wanted to do it ever since Lars pulled it off in the scrimmage! It feels SO good!]


    [T-This is¡­] A shiver ran through Gilbert''s arms. For a moment, an unsettling image crossed his mind. It was a mixture of mechanical skill which rivaled Lars''s and sharp decision-making which resembled Yuel''s. Both skills were right here, packed into one!


    [I''ve underestimated her.] Gilbert gulped. It was unclear why Julia didn''t play like this from the beginning, but right now she was DANGEROUS. Alarms rang in Gilbert''s head: RETREAT. RETREAT. RETREAT.


    [No idea who I''m fighting right now, but this "Julia" right here is a beast.] Gilbert concluded that he was going to die at this rate. RETREAT. RETREAT. RETREAT. He booted Burning Spirit and dashed out of there as quickly as his legs could carry him.


    "Heh! Coward!" Julia could already feel it with every cell in her body. This rush! This tension! This was gonna be a beautiful kill! "Goodnight, dumbass!"


    Julia charged her ult, Hurricane, and sent it flying in Gilbert''s direction. It took the hurricane some time to pick up the pace, but once it got going - it was hella fast! It chased Gilbert and sucked him in.


    [Drat, I can''t get out!] The hurricane dragged Gilbert back toward Julia!


    "Die, sucker!" Julia finished the job with a couple more basic attacks.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    ¡ºDOUBLE KILL¡»


    "Yes! Get fucked!" Julia pumped a fist. She did it! She freaking did it! Two kills! These idiots will think twice next time before messing with her! She¡­ Oh, shit.


    ".....¡­." Lars was staring right at her. His eyes were wide-open. He was shocked as hell.


    [Oh god, I knew this was a bad idea¡­] Julia gulped. She has just exposed her ugly side in front of the boy she loved. That''s it, her life was over.


    "Duuuude," Lars finally spoke. "That was sick!"


    "Eh¡­?"


    "You totally rekt these guys! I never knew you can play like this! You wrecked them HARD!"


    "I-I, um, yes, I¡­" Julia trembled. W-W-What was happening? Lars didn''t seem shocked or disgusted at all. In fact, he was [complimenting] her. How in the world was this even¡­


    "It''s not over yet," Yuel warned. "Get out of there as soon as you-"


    "Here coooooomes Taison!"


    "Ah! Crap!" Julia jumped. Her engines totally cooled down after scoring these kills, so she wasn''t ready for extra action right now! This was bad. She had to get away! After scoring two kills and being praised by Lars, dying right away will be the most embarrassing thing ever!


    "Coming through!" Dan leaped into the action from the jungle and summoned a pack of lions around himself and Taison.


    "Yo," Taison exclaimed. "You wanna die instead, bro? I''mma take ya on!"


    "No," Howard retorted. "Use your ult and retreat."


    "But I-"


    "No buts. This is a 1v2 and you''re Inside Lion''s the ult. You can''t win here."


    "But July is so low on HP, she doesn''t even count-"


    "No, she counts a lot. Didn''t you hear she just got a double kill? If you stay, she''ll fight you together with Dan."


    "I''mma just kill her before she-"


    "Retreat. Now." Howard shot a sharp glare.


    "O-Okay, okay, I''m getting out. To the Vampmobile!" Taison transformed into a bat and flew over the lions. [I''mma get you scrubs next time, word.]


    "PHEEEEEW!" Julia literally exhaled all the air from her lungs. "Thanks, you totally saved my ass- Ahem. I mean, you totally rescued me."


    "Sure thing," Dan gave a thumbs up. [Man, I barely got here in time. Yuel must''ve read this situation from a mile away when he told me to rotate here.]


    "Good job on that double kill," Yuel could finally say it once the situation calmed down.


    "Suuuure," Julia rolled her eyes. "Next time, congratulate me five years after I make the play," She had a sassy tone, but her expression soon turned into a beaming smile. "But, thanks for that rescue. It was your doing, right?"


    "Hmph, who knows." Yuel shrugged and returned the game.


    [Heh, bastard.] Julia chuckled. [But, thanks. Really.] That last-moment rescue made Julia''s entire play turn out perfect. She scored a double kill and got away scot-free. It was awesome!


    [T-This is really happening, isn''t it?] Julia rubbed her sweaty palms against her jeans and put a hand on her chest. Bam. Babam. Her heart was still racing. This situation was unbelievable. She felt like she wandered into Wonderland.


    Not only did she finally bring out her aggressive side during a real match, but it was also surprisingly well-received too! Lars didn''t seem disgusted with her at all. In fact, he even liked it? Maybe he actually liked girls who acted like this!?


    No, no, no. It was way too early to assume anything wild like that. For now, she was content with just not entering Lars''s blacklist for her running her mouth like that.


    "So," Yuel said. "I take it you have no problem playing aggressively for the rest of the game?"


    "Heh! Haha! I''ll murder them all!"


    "Good," Yuel nodded. [No idea what happened to her, but she finally brought out her other half. This is a huge game-changer.]


    With this lineup, their chances were better than ever. As the match was heading into the mid-game, the team gained huge momentum thanks to Julia''s double kill.


    If they can push all the way with this momentum, they might very well win the entire match during the mid-game. Alternatively, if they fail to wrap it up by then, the game will be dragged into the late-game. That''s where Lars will dominate with his Seraph.


    Either way, Yuel''s team had the upper hand. They were about to settle this!

 96 Slipping Defense

    Thanks to Julia''s double kill, the score was evened to 2-2. Although Classmancers wasn''t a ball game and the kill count never told the entire story, in this case, the score was a fairly accurate representation of the game''s state. Each side scored two kills and their positions were even. Neither side held a notable advantage as they were approaching the mid-game.


    [That''s why I don''t like the early game.] Howard sighed. The team gained an early game advantage by scoring kills on Yuel and Roi, but that achievement was quickly overwritten by Julia''s double kill. All that effort was essentially wasted. In fact, killing Roi only led to losing two team members in exchange. The payoff was terrible.


    "I gotta admit, Julia was pretty impressive," Howard turned to Ellen. "So, that''s the ''full strength'' you''ve been talking about?"


    "Y-Yeah," Ellen shifted her eyes away with a dumb smile. Her expression was something between happiness and awkwardness. On one hand, Ellen was happy that Julia finally came out of her shell and displayed her full strength in a real game. But, on the other hand...


    "You said you were worried about Julia because you told her something over the break?"


    "Haha..."


    "I have a distinct impression there''s nothing worry about," Howard frowned. "Rather, it''s WE who should start worrying."


    "N-Nah, we''re fine," Ellen forced a smile.


    They both knew that Julia''s sudden change of gears couldn''t have happened haphazardly. The girl has been struggling to draw out her aggressive side throughout the entire year, so something must have triggered this change. And, that "something" was...


    "I really wonder what it was," Ellen smiled like a dummy. "Maybe Yuel actually had a pep talk with her?"


    "Yeah, and next you''ll suggest the zombie apocalypse is tomorrow. A very believable theory."


    "W-Well, it''s not my fault," Ellen pouted. "I didn''t mean to trigger her like that."


    "Yeah, I''m sure you didn''t mean to. You''re just a natural-born terrible person, so you did it subconsciously."


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    "Rude," Ellen twisted her lips. "So, what we gonna do?"


    "This sure complicates things," Howard frowned. Lars''s aggressive strength was already causing more than enough trouble to Howard, to the point Howard had come up with the whole "Lars Killer" tactic as a counter. If Julia also starts playing like a berserker with high-level aggressiveness, things will get rough.


    According to Ellen, Julia had "two forms". The first form was the one everybody was familiar with: the overly defensive Julia. The other form was the exact opposite: an overly aggressive playstyle. The sudden switch between them was like ice transforming into magma; it was mind-boggling.


    The "defensive Julia" was cautious and had great map awareness, so it was nigh impossible to gank her. However, she was [too] cautious, to the point she missed many great opportunities to kill her opponents.


    The "aggressive Julia" was the exact opposite. She struck at every opportunity she got while throwing caution out of the window. As a result, her defense suffered and it was easy to trap her. At least, it should''ve been easy...


    Back when Julia arrived in Top Lane, Howard has already realized something was amiss. He didn''t want to believe it, but there was no other explanation: a wild Aggressive Julia appeared! He had a feeling things will go south from there, so he ordered Taison to gank Top.


    Alas, Howard wasn''t fast enough. While he was busy analyzing that irregular situation and figuring out what calls to make, Julia destroyed Gilbert in that 1v1. Gilbert must have been as shocked as Howard by this development, probably even more. So, Julia totally ripped him apart in that 1v1.


    [I should have ordered a retreat right away.] Howard shook his head. There was no doubt that Gilbert underperformed in that 1v1, but Howard shared some of the responsibility too. Howard knew that Gilbert wasn''t strong in 1v1 and he also had intel about Julia.


    Ellen often droned to Howard about Julia''s "amazing potential", so he was very familiar with the topic. However, Gilbert didn''t know the first thing about this and surely didn''t anticipate that level of play from Julia. Not informing the team about this was a huge blunder on Howard''s end. All this time, he was sure Ellen has been exaggerating just because she was thinking of Julia as her little sister.


    [Alright, that''s enough. Switch gears.] Howard closed his eyes, too a deep and slow breath, then slowly opened his eyes again. Learning from mistakes was a good practice, but hanging on them was the worst thing a player could do. He had to move on with the program.


    What''s done was done. Instead of losing his mind over Julia''s aggressiveness, he had to figure a way to deal with her. If that double kill wasn''t a one-time performance, there was no choice but to classify Julia as a high-level threat on par with Lars.


    Fortunately, the "Lars Killer" tactic would probably work against her as well. The idea was simple: Lure Julia somewhere => Make her fight Taison 1v1 => Profit. However, that''d be difficult to pull off consistently. The team only had one expert at luring opponents, so they''ll be spreading too thin if they go after both Julia and Lars at once.


    [I didn''t prepare for this.] Howard sighed. [I should''ve taken Elly''s words more seriously.]


    No matter from what angle Howard tackled this problem, he couldn''t come up with any quick solutions here. The team hasn''t practiced any tactics for dealing with two oppressive threats in one game. Unless some inspiration strikes him, Howard could only keep going with the usual game plan.


    "We''re entering the mid-game," Howard announced. "This game, our formation will be Type-2. Everybody remembers, right?"


    "What was that again?" Taison asked. "Something about going full aggro and kicking everybody''s ass?"


    "Not quite," Howard retorted. Seriously, that guy had the memory of a flea. In the first place, this team hasn''t practiced any aggressive tactics. Taison was drunk.


    "Alright, I''ll go over it briefly," Howard sighed. "Type-2 is the other defensive formation we practiced. It''s the same as a usual defensive formation, except we also try to create situations that''ll let us kill a major threat from the enemy team. In this case, I''m talking about Lars''s Seraph. We can''t allow that thing to reach the late-game."


    "So, as I said," Taison grinned. "We gonna go full aggro, yo!"


    "Yes, yes," Howard rolled his eyes. "One more thing, be careful about Julia. As you may have already noticed, she''s a little different this game. And by ''little'', I mean she''s like a completely different person. Don''t count on her staying on the defensive anymore. She WILL come to attack and she WILL defeat you if you''re not careful." He threw a glance at Gilbert as he was saying this.


    "Just lemme at her!" Taison made noise. "I''ll kick her ass."


    "So, we''re all clear on that?" Howard continued as if nothing happened. "Don''t engage Julia alone unless you have a big advantage over her. And, a general reminder: don''t wander around alone. This will only make it easier for Yuel to arrange an ambush on you."


    Once everybody confirmed they were on the same page, Howard spoke directly to Gilbert. "I''m sure you already realized, but you were too greedy in that fight."


    "I was sure I had her," Gilbert said. "So, it looked like a free kill."


    "Did you really have to take on her despite the HP disadvantage? You should''ve secured an escape route first, then fight. But, instead, you chose to go all in and had no way out once things became hairy."


    "I just misgauged her skill," Gilbert said. "I didn''t expect her to fight this well because she usually only turtles."


    "Yes, that''s definitely a part of it. But, don''t deny the other part: you took the fight to her, that''s not like you. You''d normally be more aware of the situation. Did you really need to unload your entire kit on her right away?"


    "I was just trying to finish it quickly..." Gilbert''s voice went down. He probably began realizing his mistakes while trying to make excuses.


    Gilbert was clearly out of his element this game and it all started from the unusual request to play Pyromancer. It wasn''t like Gilbert was a terrible Pyromancer, it was just that Pyromancer didn''t play to Gilbert''s strengths. He benefitted more from balanced classes which could play both offense and defense; an aggressive burst mage didn''t suit him. Maybe Howard should''ve tried harder to convince Gilbert against that pick.


    Anyway, Gilbert must have realized by now that he rushed that fight, so that was good enough for a review right now. There was no need to poke him any further while the game was still in session.


    "Just relax and play your usual game," Howard said. "I did say I''ll be testing you against Julia this match, but it''s not like her chances were ever that high in the first place. I just said it to give you a little spark of motivation, that''s all. I see it''s doing more harm than good at this point, so I better come clean."


    "I see. It was one of your usual mind games, huh," Gilbert smiled wryly. Yeah, he totally fell for that one. As much as Gilbert hated to admit it, he was too hung up on proving himself superior to Julia. It has been throwing him off his game the entire day.


    Julia was just some rookie, so there was nothing for Gilbert to fear. As long as he plays his usual game and helps the team win, he''ll get his spot on the first string. Therefore, he should only focus on making optimal plays in any given situation. There was no need to chase any secondary goals which had nothing to do with winning the game.


    Though, given Julia''s recent performance... No, he had to stop with that line of thinking. [C''mon, brain. Stop thinking about useless stuff and focus on the game. We have to win here.]


    The game transitioned into mid-game. Players began leaving their lanes and roaming around. Skirmishes broke out here and there, but neither side won any major battles. Both sides always poked each other and then disengaged.


    [So, it''s this tactic again.] Yuel concluded after observing the enemy''s formation for a while. Yet again, everybody on the enemy team traveled in duos and trios. This made them incredibly difficult to isolate and ambush. No matter how hard Yuel searched, he couldn''t find any good openings in the enemy''s movements.


    Last game, this tight defensive formation made Yuel panic a little. He did everything in his power to find a weakness to strike because he couldn''t allow the game to drag into the late-game.


    However, this game was different. His team''s composition was geared toward the mid/late game and they had Seraph, a late-game monster. Even though Yuel still preferred to win as quickly as possible, there was no reason to be hasty.


    "Dude, this mid-game is stale as heck," Lars pouted. "Can''t we just rush them?"


    "There''s no need," Yuel said. "They''ll have to come to us eventually unless they''re fine with letting Seraph reach late game. Just keep doing what you''re doing and we''ll be fine."


    "Meh, so lame," Lars complained but he kept playing as ordered. But, seriously though, where was all the action at? [Lemme at somebody, yo!]


    [It should be about time.] Ellen smiled meaningfully. [Larsy must be getting bored with this situation right about now so I''ll liven things up for him~]


    "Oh!" Lars exclaimed. "Athena is alone in Bot! I''mma snipe her!"


    "It''s bait," Yuel said. The enemy''s game plan revolved around traveling in groups, so there was no way Ellen would just happen to be alone all the way out there. This had to be a trap.


    "Don''t worry," Lars insisted. "I''ll just check it out real quick. If things get rough, I''ll get outta there."


    "Wait, this is-"


    "Here I come!" Lars grinned as he dashed toward Bot Lane.


    [I have a bad feeling about this, but...] Yuel frowned. It was risky, but it was also a rare opportunity. Bait or not, this was a chance to strike an isolated target, who happened to be the enemy Carry. If they can convert this into a kill, they''ll get much-needed freedom to push Bot without being stalled.


    [Assuming it''s a bait, where will Ellen go? And, where will she try to set up an ambush?] Yuel thought back on all of Ellen''s baits today. The baits were always well-crafted and executed to perfection, but they were all orchestrated by the same player. Therefore, there had to be a pattern to them which Yuel could predict.


    Ellen''s escapes always led into the jungle and this time will no exception. There were multiple reasons to flee through the jungle. First, there were many twists and turns, so it was harder to chase anybody inside the jungle. Second, Ellen had Devourer''s Mask, which allowed her to quickly restore herself from killing jungle camp bosses.


    With all of that in mind, what would be Ellen''s most likely escape route this time? Assuming she wanted to reach a jungle camp to restore her HP after getting away, her escape route will have to lead toward a camp that was currently alive.


    Unfortunately, Yuel didn''t have such information at hand because nobody warded the enemy''s jungle camps. Julia warded the jungle a lot around Mid and Yuel warded around Bot, but they focused on warding passages rather than camps. Therefore, the enemy camps were pitch-black on the map.


    [Taison got the red buff, so ogres are probably down.] Then, Ellen will have to either go for the wolves near Bot or for the hyenas near Mid. Either way, she should pass through this intersection. Yuel calculated the various possibilities and arrived at a satisfactory conclusion.


    "Julia," Yuel pinged the map. "Get here as soon as you can. I expect them to ambush Lars here."


    "Gotcha!" Julia replied with unusual vigor. For a moment, Yuel almost mistook her for Lars. She sounded gung-ho about the game ever since she drew out her aggressive side. Not to mention, she must have been extra motivated about this play because it involved helping Lars.


    [Okay,] Yuel nodded to himself. [Julia will intercept the ambush. Then, I''ll intercept Ellen. If this works, we can get up to two kills here.]


    Yuel was the closest to the jungle area through which he expected Ellen to escape route, so he took it upon himself to intercept her. It wasn''t ideal considering his low damage output, but he was the only one for the job. Roi and Dan were stuck fighting in Top, so asking any of them to rotate all the way out here would be pointless; they won''t make it.


    Once Lars reached Bot, a 1v1 broke out. As expected, it was bait. Once Ellen''s HP fell below 20%, she mounted her wolf and darted into the jungle.


    "Dang it!" Lars gave chase. "Every single time, yo! Can''t she stay and fight for once? Geh!"


    [Okay, so far so good.] Yuel nodded. It looked like Ellen was heading toward the intersection he had in mind.


    Meanwhile, Julia was on her way to back Lars up. If Taison arrives to gank, he''ll be forced into a 1v2. That''ll stop the gank right in its tracks and- wait, it wasn''t Taison!


    "Yo!" Lars exclaimed. "They''re double-teaming now!"


    The enemies who showed up for the gank were Gilbert and Gregory. It was a two-player gank!


    [Of course, they''d gank as a group,] Yuel shook his head. He should have taken this possibility into consideration. Everybody on the enemy team was sticking together in duos and trios, so the same rule applied to this gank. Instead of sending Taison alone as an easy target for Yuel, Howard played it safe and sent a tag team.


    "Kek, we got him," Gregory smirked.


    "Let''s finish this quickly," Gilbert said.


    "You got it," Gregory blinked forward and activated Provoke.


    [Crap!] Lars wasn''t quick enough to dodge. That taunt skill was way too fast! It was unreactable, yo!


    The taunt forced Lars to advance toward the Vanguard and fire basic attacks at that big dude. This was the complete opposite of what he should be doing right now. Lars should be creating distance from the enemies and firing from afar, not running head-first into this danger!


    "Done," Gregory said. "He''s all yours."


    "On it." Gilbert went in for the kill. While Lars couldn''t control his Seraph, Gilbert was going to unload his entire kit to burst the guy down. This time, it was going to be a swift and smooth gank-


    "Not so fast, dumbass!" Julia appeared! She unleashed a huge hurricane as soon as she got there.


    "Wha!?" Gilbert jumped. That was Aeromancer''s ult and it was heading straight toward him! [I''ll be sucked in if I go any closer!] Gilbert stopped dead in his tracks and turned around.


    "Wait, where are ya going?" Gregory asked. "Come kill this mofo over here."


    "I can''t," Gilbert said. "Unlike you, I''m not resistant to CC."


    "Huh? Oh." It finally hit Gregory. The closer the hurricane got, the stronger its pull power became. However, Gregory''s fat Vanguard didn''t budge in the slightest thanks to his passive, Immovable Object.


    "Okay, so," Gregory started. "I''mma knock Lars up anyway and- huh!? When the fuck did he get away!?"


    [Too slow, dude!] Lars rolled away as soon as the taunt wore off.


    [Fuuuu! I fudged up.] Gregory cursed. The plan was to follow up with Heavy Stomp while Lars was taunted, but this unexpected hurricane distracted him. "Welp, this gank just went to poop."


    "...." Gilbert just knotted his brows in response because he didn''t have the luxury to talk while repositioning himself. Indeed, this gank didn''t turn out well. More accurately, it was about to become a disaster.


    "Thanks, July!" Lars called out. "You really saved my butt there!"


    "N-No problem," Julia''s cheeks burned. The mixture of ecstasy and embarrassment made her a little dizzy.


    "But, we''re not done yet," Julia shook her head and concentrated on the enemies in front of her. "We still gotta murder these asshats!" .[.. Oh shit! Did I just say that out loud!? To Lars!? Ahhhhh!]


    "I-I mean, let''s-"


    "Yeah! Let''s wreck these dudes!" Lars went on, seemingly unconcerned by Julia''s language.


    "R-Right! They''re dead meat!" Julia smiled from ear to ear. Phew, there was nothing to worry about. She was still alright in Lars''s book.


    With Julia joining in on the action, the situation turned into a 2v2 now: Lars & Julia vs. Gilbert & Gregory!


    "My, my, my," Ellen twisted her lips. Her entire bait plan fell through. Hopefully, it won''t lead to any major losses from their side. Oh well, at least Ellen herself got away safely... or not.


    [So, you finally came, Yuyu.] Ellen smiled wryly. She knew it was a question of time before Yuel catches up to her baits. And of course, it had to happen with the worst timing possible.


    [Got her.] Yuel intercepted successfully. Despite the unexpected factor of the two-man gank on Lars, Yuel''s counter-play still turned the tables around on Ellen''s play.


    Julia backed Lars up to make the situation a 2v2, whereas Yuel cut off Ellen''s escape route. From this position, they might get up to three kills! It was time to seize the momentum of the game!

 97 Fast Shot Mixups

    "I told you," Howard scolded Ellen. "Your baits are pushing it at this point. You should''ve quit before it came to this."


    "Yep, my bad," Ellen admitted. The fact that Julia came to Lars''s help was already bad enough, but on top of that, Yuel also intercepted Ellen. This entire play might turn into a huge disaster.


    "But," Ellen shrugged. "No need to worry about me. I mean, it''s just Yuyu, right? I can dodge his stuff."


    "I really hope so."


    "Just watch me~" Ellen continued along her planned escape route, pretending that Yuel was just empty air. "Mr. Genius" over there was smart, but not skilled. Even though Yuel beautifully predicted Ellen''s route, he lacked the means to finish her off.


    [Oopsy-daisy.] Ellen rolled aside right as a gray raincloud formed over her head. It was only natural for an Aquamancer to begin the assault with Rainfall due to its slowdown effect, so Ellen was prepared. [How predictable, Yuyu~ You can''t hit me even if you take five years aim- aya?]


    A splash of water hit Ellen. Eh? What? Where did that shot come from? Like, it was a water attack, so it obviously had to be from Aquamancer, but...


    [E-Excuse me!?] Ellen roared internally. [That was a hella fast follow-up! No, wait. That gotta be a fluke, right?]


    Ellen recovered the roll and continued running. Another shot came flying her way, but she easily maneuvered around it.


    [There we go.] Ellen nodded. [That''s the slow and steady Yuel-quality shots I know- kya!?] Another ball of water struck her right after she dodged the first! How!? Yuel never fired this quickly! Didn''t he need time to adjust his aim because he wasn''t mechanically skilled!? This felt like cheating.


    "I, I may be in a tiny bit of trouble here..." Ellen squeezed out.


    "Yeah, I noticed," Howard said. "I''ll try to get you out. Just don''t die too quickly."


    "I really don''t get it," Ellen twisted her lips. "When did Yuyu learn to shoot like this?"


    [A slow, steady shot.] Yuel took careful aim and fired. The aim was pinpoint, but it took him too long to prepare, so Ellen dodged without trouble. So, right afterward, he followed up with a fast improvised shot. It hit! Ellen failed to react in time. It actually worked!


    Ever since Ignis completely shut down Yuel''s shots during their 1v1, he has been practicing the idea of shooting faster with reduced accuracy. The first shot was his usual type: slow and steady. However, the follow-up was fast and instant. That second shot was much harder to land properly, but it was also much harder for the enemy to dodge!


    At first, Yuel had a terrible aim with these quick shots. That came as no surprise, considering he was the type who couldn''t make a single proper pass in soccer.


    However, through repeated practice and some vague advice from Lars, he improved leaps and bounds. To take the idea to the next level, he combined his prediction ability with this shot. By predicting how the enemy will dodge his first shot, he cut the time required for aiming the second shot.


    Even though there was barely any time to adjust the aim of the second shot, Yuel created a mental image of the future aiming he''d have to do and he did that before even firing the first shot! Thanks to that, his accuracy skyrocketed and he started landing quick shots. At least, most of the time...


    [Oh, he missed.] Ellen blinked. These surprise quick shots have been on point so far, but this one just totally went in the opposite direction. Hmhm, interesting.


    [Yuyu seems to have learned a new trick. I''m so happy for him~!] Ellen smiled meaningfully. [But, looks like it''s not polished yet. Say, what if I do something like this?]


    Ellen dodged the first slow shot as usual, then stopped in place. Yes, she was in the middle of making an important escape, yet she froze in place like a statue.


    "Huh?" Yuel gasped. Ellen paused? Why? It''d be so easy to hit her now.


    Except, Yuel''s hand already moved ahead of him and fired the second quick shot. It was aimed toward where Yuel expected Ellen to be next, and he definitely didn''t expect her to just stop in a place like that...


    [As I thought~] Ellen smiled to herself. Yuel''s quick shots were based on prediction rather than on expert gunman skills. As a result, anything that threw off Yuel''s prediction guaranteed that his fast shot will miss. [Now, things gonna much easier~]


    [She''s good.] Yuel frowned. It only took Ellen a couple of seconds to come up with a new way to mess with him.


    With Ellen throwing off Yuel''s predictions, his quick shots were reduced to 50-50 at best. No, they even worse. Their hit rate wasn''t even 100% in the first place, so even when he predicts right he might still miss. This chase will be rough.


    Three more hits, that''s all Yuel needed to finish Ellen off. Unfortunately, she was already close to reaching her lane. There wasn''t much time left. Yuel had to make every shot count!


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    [Two can play this game.] Yuel fired a slow accurate shot, but it was dodged like always. Then, instead of going for a fast shot, he paused.


    As expected, Ellen slowed down to throw off Yuel''s prediction. But, too bad for her because he wasn''t going for a quick second shot this time around! Instead, Yuel went for another slow accurate shot. Hitting a slow opponent was a piece of cake even for him!


    [You whippersnapper...!] Ellen gritted her teeth. She both loved and hated Yuyu for this bullshit. They were both experts of mind games, like two birds of a feather. And, precisely because of that, they were each other''s worst enemy on the battlefield.


    [So,] Ellen pondered. [I need to slow down before the second shot, but not to the point I can''t dodge a slow shot. Bingo!] Ellen pretended to slow down all the way, but she picked up the pace right as Yuel fired.


    [Smooth dodge.] Yuel nodded. [But, if you move like this, it becomes much easier to predict. There! Yes!]


    [Ack! You flipping Yuyu!] Ellen flinched. One more hit and she was a goner! The lane was right over there, she just had to dodge like two more shots and she''ll be in the clear. But, what else should she try?


    If she runs fast, Yuel counters via prediction + quick shot. If she slows down, Yuel counters with a slow shot. And, if she slows down and then speeds up, she seems to fall back within the scope of his prediction ability, which lets Yuel snipe her with a fast shot all over again.


    Then, how about going fast and then slowing down in the last second...! Whoa! The shot passed right in front of her nose!


    But, it didn''t hit. She dodged! Ellen was about to get away- aya! Another shot!?


    [A quick third shot!] Yuel fired right after the second shot without wasting any time on readjusting his aim. To pull off this technique, he first had to predict where Ellen will be after his first shot, then from there predict where she''ll be after the second shot.


    It was a difficult and unpolished technique, but Yuel didn''t have the time to be picky. He had to hit Ellen here and now, no matter what!


    [I can''t dodge!] Ellen just started accelerating again after slowing down, so this third shot came way too fast! [C''mon! Miss! You wanna miss me, right? Right!? No way Yuyu can be accurate twice in a row like that! C''mon, it''s just Yuyu! Phuuuu!] Ellen blew at the screen as if it was going to blow the shot away.


    Alas, the ball of water made contact. It was a hit! ... except, it didn''t deal any damage. Instead of hitting Ellen, the water struck against ice. Ellen was turned into a block of ice! Cryo-Freeze to the rescue!


    "Pheeeeeew!" Ellen exhaled all the air in her lungs. "That wasn''t close at all."


    "Then, dodge better next time." Howard shrugged.


    "Meanie." Ellen pouted.


    [Damn!] Yuel was so close! The third shot was actually going to land! But, Ellen was a block of ice now, so she was untouchable. At least, not until Yuel erases her invulnerability. That''s right, it wasn''t over yet! He still had Splash, the anti-invulnerability tech!


    [No, it''s over.] Howard erected an ice wall right before Yuel sprayed water. The splash struck against the ice wall and vanished.


    [No way...] Yuel bit his lip. As always, an impenetrable defense. Damn! If only he practiced the fast shots a little more, he would have been able to kill Ellen before Howard got here.


    Now, Yuel''s only option was to retreat. He couldn''t do anything to Ellen while she was healing up inside the ice. If he stays, this will just become a 1v2.


    [So close.] Yuel sighed. He almost got this important kill, but Ellen''s slippery nature and Howard''s darn defense made Yuel miss the opportunity by just a little. Hopefully, the others were doing a better job in the 2v2...

 98 Gilberts Hesitation

    The fight between Lars & Julia and Gilbert & Gregory began.


    "Die!" Julia fired wind blasts.


    "Tch," Gilbert got hit despite his attempt to dodge. Julia''s attacks were fast and fierce, she has been playing like Gilbert has never seen before. From the moment she arrived, she has been relentlessly barraging Gilbert and he couldn''t do anything about it.


    Thankfully, Gregory''s ult was mitigating some of the damage Gilbert was receiving. That kept Gilbert alive for now. Otherwise, he would have been dead meat by now.


    [This fight is getting ugly.] Gilbert assessed the situation.


    While Gilbert was busy dealing deal with Julia, Gregory has been trying to aggress on Lars with little success. As a melee fighter, Gregory had to get close in order to strike. Unfortunately, Lars constantly maneuvered around the area to get out of Gregory''s range and fired from afar. As a result, the only thing Gregory achieved was keeping Lars away from Gilbert.


    Per Howard''s orders, everybody should prioritize killing Lars whenever there was a chance. Therefore, Gilbert should be following Gregory''s offense and focus on taking Lars down.


    Alas, Julia''s presence ruined everything. She stuck to Gilbert like glue and shut down all his offensive options. Her earlier surprise Hurricane forced Gilbert to retreat away from Lars and that gave Julia enough time to step in between the two of them. So, to get to Lars, Gilbert first had to pass through Julia.


    [You ain''t getting through!] Julia fired without tiring. [You wanna kill Lars? Over my dead body!]


    "Geh!" Gilbert flinched. Even though he used a dodge-roll, Julia immediately hit him during the recovery animation. How could she be so good? She was supposed to be nothing more than a scaredy-cat defensive player. This plain wrong.


    [Go down already...!] Gilbert cast Pillar of FIre under Julia while she was busy shooting. [Alright, this should do the trick!]


    Thanks to the Chains of Infinity in Gilbert''s built, the ticks of damage from Pillar of Fire will slow down Julia''s movements. That''ll make her into a much easier target-


    "Not gonna work, dumbass!" Julia blinked away as soon as she saw the circle of fire forming under her feet. She completely dodged Pillar of Fire!


    [Seriously?] Gilbert grimaced. What''s with this reaction speed? It''s almost as if Julia''s reaction time was on par with the likes of Lars and Taison. How was that even possible!?


    [Damn, each and every one of these rookies.] Gilbert gritted his teeth. These greenhorns were one year younger than Gilbert and they haven''t been playing the game for nearly as long as him, and yet...! Damn. Gilbert had to put them in their places!


    "Don''t force the fight," Howard cut into Gilbert''s thoughts. "You can''t win every battle. I thought you learned that a long time ago."


    "Ah, I..." Gilbert paused for a moment. "[You can''t win every battle."] These words took Gilbert back all the way to the first time he came across Classmancers in grade school.


    It was during fifth grade when he first heard classmates getting excited over some "RPG MOBA" thing, whatever that meant. Out of curiosity, Gilbert took a peek at their tablets and followed the match. On the surface, it didn''t really look like anything special. The graphics weren''t on par with AAA games and the map looked kinda small and basic. Nothing to be excited about, really.


    However, one boy in the group caught Gilbert''s attention; it was Howard.


    "Ted," Howard called out. "Rotate to Mid, please."


    [Why, though?] Gilbert cocked his head at this request.


    Howard was apparently asked his ally, Ted, to head to the middle lane of the map. But, why? As far as Gilbert could tell, Howard''s team was already in the lead in the middle lane and another ally was already protecting that lane.


    So, wasn''t it better to make Ted push somewhere else? From how Gilbert understood the game, the objective was to push as much as possible in order to invade the enemy base, so...


    A few seconds later, the reason revealed itself. Right as Ted reached the middle lane, an enemy wolfman jumped appeared the opposite jungle! If not for Ted getting there in time, the situation on the lane would have turned into a dangerous 1v2, which would have surely spelled disaster.


    [Howard told Ted to go mid to counter that ambush!?] Gilbert''s jaw dropped. T-This was kinda... A-Amazing! He has never seen anything cool like that before!


    As a result of this play, Ted and his ally on lane turned the tables on the enemy and killed the wolfman attacker. Then, hey pushed through the middle lane together and the entire team gained huge momentum. Many other things happened that game too, but this one brilliant play was burned into Gilbert''s mind to this day.


    Right afterward, Gilbert joined that group of boys and started playing Classmancers with them. He couldn''t tell left from right at first, but everybody helped him get up to speed. Especially, Howard was extremely knowledgeable about the game and taught Gilbert many useful things. There was also Aron, a stern boy who was one year older than the rest and gave all his advice in a form of criticism.


    It didn''t take long for Gilbert to realize how deep and complex the game was, which made it that much more fun to learn. He believed that, with enough study and practice, he''ll eventually get to Howard''s level and will be able to pull off cool tactics too!


    Thanks to everybody''s help, Gilbert grasped the concepts of the game in no time and learned how to do his job in every role. However, he was painfully far from pulling off any of the "cool plays" he had in mind.


    To win a match, the team had to push all the way into the enemy base. To do that, the team first had to get some kills and get the enemy defenders out of the way.


    Therefore, scoring kills was crucial. Especially, when Gilbert played Mid, one of his main jobs was to burst down as many enemies as possible during team fights. Alas, that was easier said than done.


    The first shocking event that was burned into his mind was back when he ran into Trever in the jungle. It was a fair 1v1 and they both had damage-dealing classes, so it was supposed to be a close fight, right? Wrong.


    "Tough luck, kid!" Trever decimated Gilbert without breaking a sweat. Even though it was a 1v1, to Gilbert this felt more like a 1v100.


    [W-Well, he''s a year older than me so, of course, he''s stronger.] Gilbert tried to wave off the result based on the age difference. It wasn''t even an excuse or anything, it was the truth. Trever and Aron have been playing the game for much longer than Gilbert, so that''s why they defeated him so easily in 1v1.


    ... then, what about Ted? And Scott? And Billy? They were all fifth graders just like Gilbert, yet they''ve also been tearing him apart in 1v1.


    "Hey look, it''s Gil! I''ll kill him real quick before I recall."


    "Oh shit, a gank!? Oh, nevermind, it''s just Gil. I can handle this."


    If it was "just Gil", there was nothing to worry about. That was the general consensus formed in the group. Despite Gilbert''s efforts to get kills on these guys, he rarely ever won a fight against any of them. They were all so wild, so fast and so strong. He simply couldn''t keep up with them.


    "Why? Why can''t I kill them?!" Gilbert slammed his controller.


    "Careful, you''ll break it."


    "E-Eh!?" Gilbert jumped. He should''ve been the only one left here, but Howard returned to the classroom for some reason.


    "I know the feel," Howard said. "Sucks when you get run over in 1v1, right? Trust me, I know. There''s somebody who mops the floor with me every day in 1v1, haha."


    "Mops? You?" Gilbert blinked. Within their group, Howard was actually quite skilled in 1v1 situations. So, who could possibly mop the floor with him like that? And, on a daily basis, too.


    "Anyway," Howard continued. "You can''t beat everybody. Sometimes, you gotta let go."


    "But," Gilbert objected. "If I can''t beat them, then we can''t win."


    "Nah, that''s not true."


    "Huh?"


    "I think you''re just too hung up on the idea of ''winning''. You don''t have to win every battle to win the war," Howard explained. "Think of it this way: as long as you haven''t lost, the enemy hasn''t won either."


    "Huh? Well, that''s true, I guess."


    "Getting kills is important and all, but Mancers is a deeper game than that. If you can''t beat somebody, don''t push it. Avoid the fight and search for a better opportunity next time. There''s nothing wrong with retreating when you can''t handle something. Just defend against them until they mess up, then punish them. That''s how you do smart defense."


    "Smart defense..." Gilbert mumbled. Howard''s words were simple, yet strangely captivating. There was some sort of wisdom in them that transcended the understanding of a mere grade-schooler.


    "So," Gilbert started. "How exactly do I play this ''smart defense''?"


    "I''ll teach you all about it," Howard answered with a delighted smile. "It''s my favorite strat."


    That day, Gilbert learned a valuable lesson that has been guiding his playstyle ever since. Against mechanically skilled opponents, there was no need to rush into a 1v1. Even when Gilbert couldn''t score a kill, it was fine as long as he didn''t die himself.


    Ever since he started applying this mindset, he noticed something interesting: the enemies he thought were unbeatable actually had very obvious flaws. As long as Gilbert was on the defense, the enemies chased him, unloaded their entire kits on him and overextended all over the place. They hungered for that one kill so much that they were willing to throw caution to the wind.


    [A chance!] Gilbert turned around once the effect of Trever''s "The Hunt is On" expired.


    "Say what!?" Trever exclaimed. "Heh, you finally going to fight, kid?"


    [I can win here.] Gilbert opened an attack. Trever exhausted all his tools against Gilbert''s defense, so this was a chance to turn the tables around! Gilbert activated Eldritch Nightmare to cover the entire area in darkness and attacked with everything he had.


    "Gah! I gotta get out!" Trever realized his mistake, but it was too late. He was way too deep into enemy territory to make an escape now. It was over.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    That was the day Gilbert''s playstyle was fleshed out. When he faced a weaker opponent, he immediately went with an offense and struck them down. On the other hand, when the opponent was too strong, Gilbert focused on defense and waited for the right time to strike back. As soon as the opponent showed any hint of weakness, Gilbert instantly switched to offense and struck them where it hurt.


    That''s exactly what he should be doing against Julia right now. This entire time, Gilbert has been trying to keep up with Julia''s attacks and strike her down, but it was a mistake. As frustrating as it was to admit, Julia was apparently more skilled than Gilbert in a fight. Even though she was a rookie, he couldn''t handle her wild attacks in a straight 1v1.


    Therefore, he should simply stop trying. Trying to achieve the impossible won''t help the team win.


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    [Calm down.] First, Gilbert had to slow down and reassess the situation. Admitting that he was weaker than Julia in a fight was embarrassing, but playing Mid wasn''t just about scoring kills in 1v1s.


    Not being able to beat Julia in a 1v1 didn''t mean Gilbert couldn''t be a better player than her. While Julia had her explosive offense, Gilbert had his balanced combination of offense and defense. Perhaps he couldn''t defeat Julia upfront, but he could outwit her and turn the tides in his favor.


    [Gregory is starting to run low.] Gilbert threw a glance at the ongoing fight between Gregory and Lars. About half the damage that piled on Gilbert was transferred to Gregory and that''s on top of the damage Lars dealt to Gregory directly. As a result, despite Vanguard''s tankiness, Gregory has been falling apart.


    At this rate, this battle will be lost. What were Gilbert''s options here? Getting a kill on Lars would be great, that was the goal of this gank in the first place. However, that possibility has been slipping farther and farther away by the moment.


    If Gilbert could somehow get Julia out of the picture it''d be great, but he couldn''t defeat her right now. Then, what else could he do here? Retreat? Gilbert may make it out alive if he starts running now, but Gregory was doomed for sure.


    Not to mention, running away against Julia felt wrong. If he was truly the superior Mid Laner here, he should be able to find a way to both survive AND turn the tables around on Julia.


    What was Julia''s weakness? Where did her overwhelming offense slip up? How could he turn the situation against her? These were the questions he had to answer while deflecting her blows.


    "You flipping dumbass!" Julia cursed. "Stop dodging and get dead already!"


    [Her defense isn''t that good.] Gilbert dodged shots and observed Julia''s movements. This explosive offense was indeed overwhelming, but it left Julia wide open to counter-attacks. If Gilbert can just find the right timing for striking her...!


    "What are you doing?" Howard asked in a stern voice. "Retreat already. I didn''t think I even had to say it."


    "Ah." Gilbert paused. Retreat? Against Julia? Was this situation so lost that there was no other option? But...!


    Unfortunately, the decision was made for him. Lars slipped past Gregory and darted toward Gilbert. Now, there were two damage dealers on Gilbert''s tail. The effect of Vanguard''s ult won''t last much longer, so Gilbert had to get away while he still could.


    [Alright, full defense.] Gilbert had to get out of here alive, even if it meant giving Julia another "win". It''ll be a small price to pay compared to giving Julia an actual kill.


    "You ain''t getting away!" Julia moved to cut off Gilbert''s escape route. She has been saving Squall for a moment like this, so it was time to put it to use. "Eat shit!"


    [I knew that''ll come.] Gilbert nodded to himself. Julia kept her slowdown tool for the moment Gilbert decides to flee. To counter that play he booted Burning Spirit, which gave him a boost to his movement speed. It allowed him to speed up ahead and dodge Julia''s blast of wind.


    "Goddamit freaking aghhh!" Julia roared incomprehensibly as she continued chasing. There was only one nearby exit from the jungle and it was narrow. It''ll be easy to hit Gilbert once he''s forced into that passage-


    "Whoa! Watch out!" Lars called out.


    "Wha- Ah!?" Flames rained from the sky! Blaze of Inferno! The hellfire covered the entire entrance to the narrow passage and threatened to torch anybody who approached. "That stupid dumbass idiot...!"


    [Alright.] Gilbert should be safe now. It was unfortunate he had to spend his ult like that, but it created the strong line of defense he needed to slip away from his pursuers. It served as but a momentary slowdown against his pursuer, but that''s all he needed to get away when his movement was boosted by Burning Spirit.


    [I''m safe now,] Gilbert nodded to himself. [Though, Lars still got a chance to catch up if he has Six Wings + his ult. But, last I''ve seen he didn''t have Six Wings, so I should be safe.]


    "Oh man," Lars started slowing down. "He got away. I should''ve saved my Six Wings for this." He had Six Wings earlier, but he unleashed all the fast shots on Gregory to scare that tanky dude out of the picture. As a result, he didn''t have access to his ult now, so he couldn''t pursue Gilbert anymore.


    "We can still catch up!" Julia cast Jet Stream, which created a trail of wind in front of the nearest jungle wall.


    "You wanna keep chasing?" Lars asked. "I don''t think we can outrun that dude."


    Jet Stream buffed the movement speed of allies who passed through it, but Gilbert also buffed his own movement speed. So, considering the current distance between them, they couldn''t possibly catch up on foot with just a little boost of speed.


    "No, idio- Ahem!" Julia cleared her throat. "You can cut him off with your leap!"


    "Oh, you mean to jump across the wall? I can hop over this wall, but that ain''t enough to get me to the lane from here." Lars was still too far away from Mid. He could diagonally leap over the wall in front of him, but that''ll still keep inside the jungle.


    "No, the wind!" Julia insisted. "Jump through the wind and it''ll send you flying all the way to lane!"


    "Huh? Oh, right! That stuff really worked that way!" Lars grinned. This was one heck of a rare play, but he saw this sick stuff before. Angelic Grace into Jet Stream gonna lead to some cool results!


    As Lars approached the stream of wind, he activated Angelic Grace. Even though it was a "leap" ability, in practice it was more like an airplane going taking off. The Seraph ignited his jetpack, did a cool spin while jumping forward and only then took off toward the sky.


    That horizontal jump at the beginning of the animation was the key to this entire play. While still taking off from the ground, Lars passed through the jet stream and VROOOM! He was launched toward the sky like an arrow!


    "Woohoo!" Lars cross over the first jungle wall and also went beyond the jungle wall behind it! He reached all the way to Mid with a single jump! Sick pro-level shortcuts, yo!


    Angelic Grace kept him afloat for a while, so he could snipe anybody from this high ground. From this position, it was easy to see the entire lane and find his prey.


    "Gotcha!" Lars fired without warning. Bam! Hit! And, another one! And another! Even without Six Wings, late game''s Seraph''s shots were preeeeeetty good!


    [Wha!? Where!?] Gilbert jumped. One laser beam pierced his back, another struck his shoulder and a third landed on his head. How!? Did Lars have Six Wings after all!?


    No, Seraph couldn''t fire from the sky during Divine Messenger, so that had to be Angelic Grace. Did Lars blink through one wall and then leaped over the next wall? No, that sounded unlikely either... Damn! None of that mattered right now! Gilbert had to figure out how to dodge Lars''s snipes- agh! A fourth hit! The attacks just kept coming!


    [Damn, it''s over...] Gilbert sighed. One more hit and he was done. He did everything he could, but that was the end of the line.


    Once within Lars''s firing range, nobody could get away. It required a superhuman reaction speed or an acute ability to read opponents'' movements, but unfortunately, Gilbert didn''t possess either of those skills. He lost enough matches back in grade school to know he couldn''t overcome such a difference in skill.


    Well, at least the one to kill him will be Lars and not Julia...


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»

 99 Do I Have the Right to Win?

    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Heh, that guy is one hell of a sniper..." Gilbert smiled wryly. This death was so frustrating that he had to laugh it off or else it''ll eat away at him.


    [Seriously, Gil?] Howard frowned. [You gonna pretend Lars''s skill is too much for you? What kind of excuse is that?]


    Gilbert didn''t lose to something simple like "inferior skill". Classmancers wasn''t some shallow game where everything could be blamed on a difference in mechanical skill. Gilbert should have known that well by now, and yet...


    [Gil may become useless at this rate.] Howard concluded. A fighter who lost his determination to adapt was useless. With that kind of mentality, Gilbert will keep losing time and again.


    Was there anything Howard could do to still salvage Gilbert? Scolding may make Gilbert even more conscious of his faults and that''ll drag down his performance even further. At the same time, giving Gilbert empty praise like "you did your best" may make Gilbert think there was really nothing he could''ve done in that situation and that admitting defeat was alright.


    It was a delicate issue. Howard couldn''t tell for sure how Gilbert may react, so it was safer to not poke this beehive. It was a rare display of weakness from a player who was otherwise solid and consistent, so Howard didn''t know how to deal with this yet. It was unfortunate, but Gilbert lost to the pressure and to his pride, and this wasn''t the first time either.


    [I don''t like this,] Howard frowned. [In a tournament match, things like that are fatal.]


    Consequently, Howard''s eyes naturally fell on Julia''s status. As if responding to his gaze, a message popped up.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    Julia finished off Gregory shortly after Gilbert''s death. The 2v2 turned into an unfortunate 0-2 for Howard''s team.


    Lars performed well in that fight, as expected from him. However, surprisingly, Julia also put on a very strong showing there. From how she countered the gank with Hurricane by separating Gilbert and Gregory, and all the way to the final play where she combined Jet Stream with Angelic Grace to catch up to Gilbert. Truly, Julia executed this attack with finesse. It was a type of aggressiveness that Gilbert lacked.


    [Hmm, I wonder...] Howard didn''t expect such thoughts to emerge during this selection match, but there was no denying that Gilbert had a tendency to underperform under certain circumstances. Of course, Julia also had her own bag of problems. However, if she can learn to consistently play like she''s playing right now, then...


    "Haha!" Julia pumped a fist after scoring a kill on Gregory. "Get cucked, bastard!"


    "Awesome job, July!" Lars called. "We got them both!"


    "Y-Yeah!" A wave of heat spread throughout Julia''s body as the situation sank in. Not only did Lars just praise her for playing aggressively, but they made a beautiful combo play together! The game was a blast and was on a roll! It was awesome!


    [I can do it!] Julia clenched her mouse. If she keeps playing like this, she''ll deliver victory to the team for sure. She''ll murder everybody for the sake of getting Lars into the first string! [Yeah, that''s right! You idiots all gotta die for the sake of my love!]


    However, right now, there weren''t any enemies in sight. So, Julia took a deep breath to calm down. If she stays in this hyper state the whole time, her heart will explode for sure. Therefore, until she runs into another enemy, it was better to switch gears for defense- wha!? A wild Ellen appeared!


    [Sorry, July,] Ellen smiled wryly. [I knew you''d stay here for a little too long like that.]


    It was a habit Julia exhibited from time to time when they practiced together. After scoring a kill, Julia remained at the same place for a few seconds, supposedly to "cool her engines". During this short period of time, she was in a limbo between her offensive and defensive sides. Therefore, any surprise attack would catch her off-guard!


    "S-Shit! I gotta-!" Julia jumped. She had to defend! No, to attack! Wait, what was her HP? What was Ellen''s HP? What was- AH! A wolf jumped on her and pinned her to the ground!


    [It''s not exactly fair to use this against you,] Ellen thought. [But, everything is fair in love and war, right? You''re fighting for the boy you love and so do I. And, I have to win to stay on the first string, so... sorry.]


    Ellen relentlessly barraged Julia. It felt bad exploiting Julia''s weaknesses like that, but it couldn''t be helped in this serious match. In order to win, Ellen had to use every trick and tool at her disposal, no matter how low she had to stoop.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    "I hope I redeemed myself a little," Ellen said. This kill should compensate at least a little for the fact she was likely the one who triggered Julia''s aggressive side.


    "Good work," Howard nodded. "Make sure to advise the others too about how and when it''s best to attack Julia."


    "Roger~"


    [So,] Howard pondered. [Even with this stronger playstyle, Julia still has some glaring flaws to overcome.]


    Apparently, it took Julia some time to switch time from offense to defense and vice versa. During that period, she was a vulnerable target. In other words, she wasn''t good at quickly adapting to surprises which required switching her focus.


    This was the exact opposite of Gilbert, who trained himself to switch gears in an instant. But, in Gilbert''s case, the tradeoff was that both his offense and defense weren''t as outstanding as Julia''s.


    [I guess I can''t have it all, huh.] Howard shook his head. One Mid Laner had balanced offense & defense, while the other had hyper offense & defense but could only pilot one mode at a time. [Can''t these two just fuse into one player? Seriously.]


    Which of these two will prove more useful in tournaments? It was hard to tell at the moment. However, one thing was for sure: Julia was on Howard''s radar. By the end of this match, Howard will have to decide which of the two he prefers for Mid.


    But first, his team actually had to win this game. The late-game was approaching and the threat of Seraph was growing ever nearer.


    "Gil," Howard called out. "Focus on defense for now. No need to chase kills for now, not even against Lars."


    "Alright..." Gilbert''s tone implied he understood the criticism hidden in this order. As a hyper-defensive team, they only had two players who served as attackers: Taison and Gilbert. So, an order which sent one of the two attackers to defense sent a pretty clear message: "You''re not doing your job on the offense, so I''m taking you off that role for now."


    [I suppose that''s fair.] Gilbert nodded with a difficult expression. It was the second time he "overextended" this game. Or, at least, Howard clearly saw these two occurrences as overextensions. [I think I couldn''t help it in both cases because of the surprise element, but I digress. Fact is, I died twice and I''m sure Howard isn''t a fan of this trend. Alright then, defense it is for now.]


    The team''s situation as a whole was far from good right now and things were only getting worse. Howard had to leave Taison alone in Top when he dashed to rescue Ellen, so now the Taison vs. Roi fight was coming to an end.


    Throughout that 1v1, Taison held the upper hand overall with his impressive dueling skills. However, the situation was coming down to the wire. It was turning into the kind of scenario which Yuel liked exploiting.


    "Tai, retreat," Howard ordered


    "Huh???" Taison made noise. "But I''m totally owning this mofo! I can beat him-"


    "Retreat. Now. If you don''t, you''re going to be ganked."


    "Tch, okay." Taison turned around and darted toward the jungle.


    [Alright, let''s see,] Howard visualized the many different escape routes Taison could use. Which was the most predictable? Which was the fastest? And most importantly, which one was Yuel most likely to target?


    If Howard lets Taison run freely, Taison will probably go straight through the center of the jungle and will recall from there. However, such a route would be too predictable. Therefore, the most straightforward counter would be to make Taison take an unexpected turn somewhere along the way. But, will that be enough to throw Yuel off?


    [Damn, I don''t know.] Howard rubbed his eyes. On one hand, Yuel surely knew Taison''s most likely escape route, so he may choose to target it. In that case, telling Taison to stray from that route would be ideal.


    On the other hand, by now Yuel must have figured many of the quirks of Howard''s defensive shot-calls. So, Yuel may instead predict the alternative escape route which Howard had in mind. In that case, leaving Taison to his own devices would actually be the better move.


    [Does Yuel even have a way to guess which of the two scenarios is more likely?] Howard couldn''t tell for the life of him. That chesskid could see like twenty turns ahead, so all Howard could do here was to gamble on one of the two approaches. Thus, he decided on the alternative escape route he came up with.


    "Tai," Howard called while drawing a route on the mini-map. "Escape like this."


    "Huh? Why, tho? Isn''t it safer to just go straight through the jungle?"


    "Yeah, it is. That''s what the enemy ganker gonna think too."


    "Oh! So, it''s like mind games and shit! Okay, okay. Gotcha, fam. So, you want me to run around in the jungle and then actually get back to lane?"


    "Yeah, basically."


    "You got it!"


    [And now, to pray that this coin flip is successful.] Howard tapped his foot as he awaited Yuel''s response.


    "Roi," Yuel started. "Chase Taison."


    "You sure it''s a good idea? I''m kinda running low myself, ya know."


    "Don''t worry, they can''t gank you." After all, both Howard and Ellen were in Bot Jungle. Howard has already spent his Teleport to rescue Ellen, while Ellen surely didn''t have enough gold to buy Teleport considering all the Checkpoint Wards she has been buying.


    "Okay, I just hope it doesn''t backfire," Roi gave chase. [I really can''t die here, so I better maintain some distance. If things get dangerous, I better bolt. Another stupid death here would make it look like I''m throwing the game. Better safe than sorry!]


    "Dan," Yuel drew a path on the mini-map. "Cut off Taison''s escape route through the jungle."


    "....."


    "... Dan?"


    "Huh? Ah, yeah, right! Go gank and shenanigans! On it, chief!"


    "Good," Yuel nodded. That pause was a little odd but it didn''t sound like Dan had any objections.


    Good, everything was set. Taison will either run straight through the jungle and will get cut off by Dan, or Howard will tell Taison to take a misleading turn somewhere along the way. For that reason, Roi will remain on Taison''s tail and will constantly reveal Taison''s course. If Taison curves, Roi should be able to catch up and slow Taison down until Dan arrives for backup. It was a flawless pincer.


    [So, I gotta kill Taison, huh.] Dan smiled wryly as he ran through the jungle. With Roi pursuing Taison from the other side, this pincer looked pretty solid. Taison was running low on health, so it should be enough to just leap on him and use Mighty Roar afterward. Thanks to Lionfolk''s passive, Superiority, the CC from Mighty Roar gonna hit Taison pretty hard and it''ll be an ezpz kill.


    If Dan kills Taison, it''ll be the third death for the enemy team after Gilbert and Gregory; the situation will become a nasty 4v2. Even the almighty Howard, the Big Shield Dude himself, won''t be able to defend from that position. There simply won''t be enough resources to build a solid defense.


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    So, if this pincer gank succeeds, it may very well spell Game Over for Howard. It was a huge play.


    [Should I really be doing this?] Dan clenched his mouse. It felt wrong. For Howard, this match will decide whether he can play in tournaments, which will determine his chances of getting into Grandview High. That''ll directly affect his chances of being scouted for the pro scene during high school.


    In other words, this little inter-club match might decide Howard''s entire future! Wasn''t that absurd? Like, they were just middle schoolers, they weren''t supposed to worry about difficult stuff like getting a job.


    Well, at least Dan definitely didn''t worry about anything. For him, this was just a game and just a club. Sure, he enjoyed competing and playing with his fams but, in the end, this was just a game. He didn''t have any grand plans like becoming a pro or anything of the sort. He was just pretty good at the game and there were many classes for him to master, so it was fun to keep playing and improving.


    It was exactly the same for him back when he played baseball in grade school. It was all fun and games, but that''s pretty much it. Back then, Dan always laughed whenever Roi went all like "If we win the nationals, we''ll be one step closer to becoming Major Leaguers!" It sounded like some childish nonsense.


    However, in this selection match, it was for real. Unlike Roi, Howard was a guy with a head on his shoulders. Howard properly researched what was required to get into Grandview High and even reached out to the school via his pro sister. His road toward the pro scene was paved clearly and it all started with winning this selection match.


    [Isn''t that kinda unfair?] Somebody like Dan, who didn''t have any aspirations for Classmancers, was forced to stand in Howard''s way and potentially destroy Howard''s dreams. It''s like Howard was the hero of the story and Dan was cast as a villain. Not fun.


    Heck, Dan didn''t even have anything to lose this match because his spot on the first string wasn''t at stake. Taison has been putting on quite the performance today as Jungler, but there was no way Howard would pick that guy over Dan. Taison was pretty good in fights and stuff, but he had nothing on Dan''s versatility.


    So, Dan had literally zero stakes in this match.


    [Do I even have the right to help beating Howard''s team?] Nobody was there to answer that question for him. As far as Dan was concerned, Howard should just win this match already and keep advancing toward the pro scene.


    There was absolutely no reason for Dan to get in the way. On the contrary, he rooted for Howard. That guy should definitely become a pro. Heck, he might even already be pro material at his current level; dude was nuts.


    But, this selection match was taking place for a reason. Yuel and Lars wanted to be on the first string, so they challenged Howard and Ellen to this battle. So, Yuel and Lars had stakes in this match too. If they lose, they won''t be able to play competitively for the entire next year.


    [Well, sucks to them but it''s not that big of a deal, to be honest. I mean, I''m also only getting to play in tournaments during my third year, sooooo...] Dan understood the desire to compete in tournaments, but waiting one more year won''t kill them. They didn''t have nearly as much to lose as Howard.


    That''s why this third game was so tough. Ever since Dan learned about Howard''s ambitions, this entire match became weird. It was just plain wrong. They shouldn''t be fighting among themselves like this. Everybody should just root on Howard and support him in any way they could. Or, at least, they shouldn''t be getting in Howard''s way like some villains.


    Did Yuel know about Howard''s plans? Did he insist on beating Howard despite that? Dan considering asking but gave up on the idea.


    Howard asked Dan to take the match seriously, so Dan shouldn''t be causing any quarrels within the team. Like, if even the important guy in question asked Dan to fight hard, what excuse did Dan have to go easy this match? None. Zero. Zilch.


    [Oh, damn. I took a wrong turn.] Dan shook his head to regain focus. He accidentally wandered deeper into the jungle instead of continuing straight ahead. Well, it won''t slow him down by that much but still, a derp was a derp. He better start focusing on the game before he screws something up.


    [So, Dan is coming too.] Howard spotted the Lionfolk on the mini-map. It wasn''t clear why Dan approached through this part of the jungle instead of picking the shorter route but it was good fortune because a stray ward exposed his position.


    By knowing Dan''s exact position and direction of approach, Howard could issue defensive orders more efficiently. He no longer had to outguess anything. It was crystal clear what Yuel was going for: a pincer attack by Roi and Dan. It was the most difficult scenario to defend against, but not an impossible one.


    On one hand, taking a curved turn to return all the way to Top was impossible because Roi was hot on Taison''s tail. On the other hand, continuing along the shortest jungle route was a surefire way to get ganked by Dan. So, at first glance, all of Taison''s options appeared to be sealed.


    However, there was a third solution: turning toward Mid Lane. This sounded silly at first because with such a big slowdown Dan should be able to catch up for sure. However, considering the inefficient route Dan was taking, this was actually Taison''s best bet.


    Dan''s current route had many jungle walls in his way, so it''ll be harder for him to properly aim his leap across a wall even if he catches up to Taison. If Dan is still distracted by what Howard told them over the break, there was a chance a miracle will happen.


    [A miracle, huh.] Howard chuckled. It wasn''t like him to rely on chance, but he didn''t see any better ways out of this situation. Everything was riding on how efficiently Dan will execute his gank. Even the slightest delay on Dan''s part will prove critical and will allow Taison to slip away.


    "Tai, change of plans." Howard drew a new route on the mini-map, one which curved toward Mid Lane.


    [Taison is going to Mid?] Yuel pondered. This was the last thing he expected to see but it was easy to gank all the same. "Dan, just cut him off before..." Yuel''s words trailed off as he noticed Dan''s position. "Why did you enter deeper into the jungle?"


    "Haha, my bad," Dan laughed it off. "A force of habit, I guess. Don''t worry, I''ll catch up in no time."


    "I sure hope so." Yuel frowned but didn''t say anything more. Because of this small mistake, the perfectly calculated pincer might come down to the wire. Dan will have to time his leap perfectly to hit Taison across the wall.


    Was there any way to provide backup and increase the chances of catchingTaison? Lars was currently pushing Mid, so he could quickly rotate to the jungle and turn this into a three-way pincer. However, that may come at the cost of not finishing the Mid Turret during this push.


    [What''s more important right now? The kill or the Turret?] Yuel pondered for a moment but it wasn''t much of a dilemma, really. Taking down a Turret, especially the Mid Turret, was equivalent to scoring at least three kills, maybe more. Therefore. Lars should keep pushing Mid.


    [I''ll just have to trust Dan here.] Yuel concluded.


    [Oopsie.] Dan realized the bad turn from earlier made this gank ten times harder to pull off. That sudden turn Taison made toward Mid was a great way to capitalize on Dan''s weak positioning.


    How did the enemy even know about Dan''s slip up? Did he pass by an enemy ward when he made the bad turn?


    [Damn, talk about bad luck. Welp, then.] Not much Dan could do about it at this point. He just had to keep going and finish the gank from this position. The moral question of whether he should be getting in Howard''s way weighed on him, but this wasn''t the time to be distracted by stuff. He was a srs bsns player and he was cast into a game, so he had to play his role.


    If Howard is really as amazing as he claims to be and got what it takes to become a pro, he should be able to overcome these odds, right? ...right?


    [Gah! I just gotta do it! Here goes nothing!] Dan got Taison in his range and jumped over the wall with Majestic Leap!

 100 Wavering Minds

    "Oh, shit!" Taison saw the lion dude jumping on him from the jungle! Shit! This was bad! He won''t be able to dodge in time...!


    Taison was low on HP, so that leap was gonna have an extra knock-up effect that''ll completely kill Taison''s chances of getting away. Craaaaap! He should''ve started retreating earlier to dodge all this bullshit! Damn, now it was all over... or not?


    The Lionfolk crashed on the ground, but the slam didn''t knock Taison up. In fact, it didn''t even hit him. That scrub missed the landing! Khaha! What an absolute tool!


    All this time, Taison thought it was a dumb idea to run so close to the walls, but it paid off! Howard''s advice totally saved his skin.


    "Huh?" Dan blinked. He should''ve landed on Taison and knocked up that boy, but nope. Did he jump too early? Dang it, what a dumb mess up.


    It was all because Taison has been running so close to the walls, which made it awkward to target Majestic Leap on him. Dan had to make sure that Majestic Leap''s target location didn''t overlap with the wall at all because, otherwise, the game treated the target as invalid. Dan thought he nailed it, but...


    Still, this wasn''t over yet! Dan was still right in front of his prey, so he darted toward Taison! This was a huge blunder on his side, so he couldn''t let it end like this. He''ll get closer and CC Taison with Mighty Roar instead. That should be good enough to get the kill- ah!?


    "No way, sucker!" Taison rolled aside right as the lion began roaring. [Ha! Ez dodge!]


    "Ah, damn..." Dan lowered his head. This was an oopsie, a big one.


    "You should''ve caged him with your ult first!" Yuel criticized. "His ult is still down, so he couldn''t have escaped the cage!" Seriously, it was one mistake after another with Dan''s plays today. At this point, Yuel couldn''t stay quiet anymore.


    "R-Right, I just thought it was overkill. Wanted to save my ult for later and stuff..." Dan mumbled. Yeah, that was a derp, alright. Dan should''ve activated The King''s Dominion first to imprison Taison in a cage of lions, then Taison would have had zero chance of escaping. Dan wanted to end this unpleasant job so much that he rushed things.


    "N-No problem!" Dan insisted. "I''ll just catch up to him and lock him."


    "Yes, that''s the only thing you can do now." Yuel''s voice didn''t sound sympathetic in the slightest, but it was hard to blame the guy. First, Dan missed the leap. Then, he wasted the roar. It was one misplay after another with him.


    [Focus already!] Dan shook his head. This performance was sloppy and outright embarrassing. This wasn''t the time to think about silly stuff like Howard''s future. Dan was cast as a player on Yuel''s team, so he had to do his job no matter what.


    [Alright, he''s almost within range...!] Dan was about ready to cast The King''s Dominion. Just a few more steps and- wham! A wild ice wall appeared!


    "No way..." Dan crashed into the ice wall face-first.


    In this narrow jungle passage, the ice wall was wide enough to block the entire path. With Dan''s Majestic Leap on cooldown, he didn''t have any means to get across. So, it was over. He failed to score this kill.


    "Phew!" Taison exhaled. "Thanks, bro!"


    "Don''t mention it," Howard smiled weakly. "Good job surviving to this point. Now, recall to base and heal up."


    "On it."


    A huge disaster was averted. In the end, Howard''s defense managed to deflect Yuel''s attack. There was an element of luck involved, but luck was also part of the game. Especially, the kind of "luck" where an enemy player messed up by rushing things. Howard didn''t have direct control over Dan''s misplays, but there was no doubt he affected Dan''s performance. Therefore, this exchange was Howard''s victory.


    [This should''ve been a kill.] Yuel frowned. That attack plan was perfect from start to end. Roi pursuing from one side and Dan cutting-off from the other, it was a pincer which allowed no escape. There weren''t any miscalculations in Yuel''s plan.


    And yet, the plan fell through. Why? The only explanation was the performance of the players. Specifically, Dan''s performance. The guy messed up three times in this one chase alone. First, he made a bad turn in the jungle and delayed his arrival, then he failed to leap on Taison and finally he failed to lock Taison inside the cage of lions. Three big mess-ups under less than a minute.


    On their own, none of these misplays was a big deal. Everybody made mistakes, so things like that were understandable. But, making so many mistakes one after another like that? Something was clearly wrong here.


    "That was a poor play," Yuel criticized.


    "You don''t say," Dan cracked a laugh. "Yeah, I rushed a little."


    "We need every kill we can get. We can''t miss chances like that."


    "Yeah, my bad. I totally derped that opportunity," Dan straightened himself. "Don''t worry, it won''t happen again."


    Dan made that promise to convince Yuel, but in truth, he had to convince himself more than anybody else. Dan''s concentration slipped during that chase. He had to make sure this doesn''t repeat itself next time.


    [Dammit, that was such an important kill.] Yuel bit his lip. He has already planned a few steps ahead after the kill on Taison, it was such a promising future. In a 4v2 situation, Yuel''s team would have had the leeway to simultaneously push Mid and Top without worrying about ganks. With only Howard and Ellen to defend, the enemy wouldn''t have been able to stop any offense.


    Alas, due to how things turned, Yuel had to take Taison''s existence into account again. Now, asking Roi to push Top was risky considering his low HP. After Taison heals up at the base, he might be able to immediately travel back to Top via Teleport. That''ll lead to Roi''s death for sure.


    [That kill could''ve decided the game...!] Yuel gritted his teeth. He had such great plans in store, but everything came down crashing thanks to Dan. The team was supposed to dominate the mid-game with this kill, but instead, both teams remained mostly on even ground.


    "So," Roi started. "What''s next? Do I retreat, or...?"


    "Ah, right," Yuel shook his head. There was no time to cry over spilled milk. This was a team game, not chess. Individual mistakes have always been a thing. As the captain and the shot-caller, it was Yuel''s job to figure out the next course of action after one play ended in failure.


    [We can''t attack as much as I hoped, but we can still attack.] Yuel nodded to himself. The best-case scenario he was hoping for didn''t happen, but he had to make the most out of the hand he was dealt.


    "Roi, recall. Dan, come help us push Mid. Lars, keep pushing Mid. I''ll join you two as well."


    "Got it."


    "Roger."


    "Pushing full force?" Lars grinned. "That''s what I like to hear, yo!"


    Pushing Top was impossible right now, so they''ll push through Mid at full force instead. With Seraph''s DPS, they might even take down the Golem after finishing the Turret.


    In addition, by gathering three players together on one lane, they protected themselves from any ganks. The enemy team only had three members alive, so at worst, Yuel''s strike force will run into a 3v3 situation.


    Fortunately, Taison wasn''t much of a threat in team fights and Ellen''s playstyle wasn''t quite at its strongest during team fights either. Therefore, this was a great opportunity to break through. They''ll take out the Mid Turret and maybe even the Mid Golem too!


    [I knew you''d focus Mid.] Howard arrived on the lane to stall the enemy''s progress.


    [Fast defense, as always.] Yuel smiled. It was amazing how quickly Howard switched gears and returned to Mid lane. Just a moment ago, Howard protected Taison in the jungle and now he was already in Mid guarding the Turret.


    But, it was futile! With Lars''s DPS, they''ll break through the Mid Turret for sure! Howard will only delay the inevitable, nothing more. Things will start getting trickier only once Ellen and Taison join the defense effort.


    [The turret is a goner.] Howard knew that from the beginning. However, by slowing the enemy down just a little bit here, he greatly lowered their chances of claiming the Mid Golem afterward.


    [Yuel will keep pushing after taking the Turret.] Howard was convinced beyond a shadow of a doubt. Yuel''s offense wouldn''t stop until things come down to the wire; the disrespect that brat showed was unbelievable.


    In fact, Howard expected Roi to stay and push Top despite his low HP. Unfortunately, Yuel''s offense was aggressive and disrespectful, but not dumb. Telling Roi to recall was the right decision because Taison''s Teleport was ready at a moment''s notice and there was a convenient Checkpoint Ward near Top Lane.


    [The important question is: can they finish the Golem too?] Howard frowned. It was a difficult estimation. Could the enemy destroy the Mid Turret and right afterward destroy the Mid Golem? Considering Seraph''s absurd DPS, that kind of stunt might be possible even in mid-game.


    However, could that realistically happen in this very specific situation? Unlike Yuel, Howard wasn''t a genius who could crunch numbers. The best he could do was to tap into his vast experience and make an educated guess. He has watched and analyzed many matches throughout the years, so he should be able to give a good estimation.


    "Ha..." Nothing came to mind.


    "You okay, Wardy?" Ellen asked. "You look a little pale."


    "Haha, it''s nothing..." Howard blinked multiple times. His concertation has been gradually slipping away throughout this match. This was just a set of three games, so why was he so exhausted?


    It was all Yuel''s fault. That guy kept attacking and attacking and attacking, using any opportunity he had. Howard had to stay on his toes the entire time and cover up every possible weak spot in the team''s formation. Yuel could exploit even the tiniest of openings and turn it into a snowball, so Howard couldn''t allow anything to pass through.


    Honestly, Yuel was like the bane of Howard''s existence. It was a clash between the ultimate offense and the ultimate defense. This game only proved how deep was Yuel''s understanding of offense in this game. Even though Yuel went for a mid/late game composition that had to play more defensively, he never missed any good opportunities to attack. Thanks to that, Yuel created this current unfavorable situation for Howard''s team and it would''ve been ten times worse if Howard failed to rescue Taison back there.


    Because of stuff like that, Howard couldn''t rest for even a moment. Surrendering any initiative against Yuel and Lars was a surefire way to get stomped. Howard had to keep guarding and defending against everything. It was a huge pain, but he had no other choice.


    Only against Yuel, Howard had to concentrate on defensive shot-calling for pretty much the entire match. A single misstep was going to be fatal. Frankly, it was exhausting.


    [Heh, look at me crying like a little bitch.] Howard chuckled. This was unbecoming of somebody who aimed to be a pro. At the nationals, he''ll surely run into opponents with a superior offense. If he can''t even deflect the offense in this match, how exactly will he win the nationals? No matter how tiring it was, he couldn''t fall apart here!


    [C''mon, focus.] Howard inhaled and exhaled. Will Yuel''s attack convert into taking down the Mid Golem? Howard should be able to tell, he has watched and analyzed so many matches together with his sis.


    This scenario wasn''t that rare. Seraph was pushing a Turret and two allies supported him. It was a straightforward scenario that always interesting to analyze due to Seraph''s famous DPS. Considering the Turret''s current HP, considering the DPS of the involved players and considering...


    "Should I come back to defend?" Ellen asked.


    "... no," Howard finally arrived at a conclusion. He recalled a similar scenario from a pro match his sister played. In that game, she defended the Golem against a Seraph and two enemies all by herself, while the rest of her team went ahead to push elsewhere. In the end, the Seraph got close but he couldn''t take the Golem, and that was a pro-level Seraph player, not some middle schooler.


    "Push Bot," Howard ordered.


    "Hm?" Ellen tilted her head. "My, you want me to push? In this situation?"


    "Yeah, that''s the best play right now," Howard nodded. "They won''t be able to take the Golem anyway, so we may as well take one of their turrets while they push."


    "You sure they won''t take the Golem too? I mean, they got Seraph."


    "It''ll be fine." [Probably.]


    "Alright, if you say so," Ellen saluted. "I''m heading to Bot, then."


    [If my estimation is wrong, then we''re screwed.] Howard braced himself for the worst and poured his everything into stalling the enemy''s advance, all on his own.


    [Ellen isn''t defending?] Yuel squinted his eyes. Why was Ellen pushing Bot? This had to be some sort of mistake...


    [Did Howard conclude we won''t be able to destroy the Golem?] That''s the only explanation that made sense. If this push fails to take the Golem even without Ellen''s presence, then it made sense to make her push Bot; it was like trading the Mid Turret for Bot Turret. Golems gradually restored HP over time, so any failed attempt to destroy a Golem might end up the same as not getting to push the Golem at all.


    [There''s a chance Ellen''s push is just a decoy to split our forces, but...] Yuel frowned. That didn''t sound like something Howard would pull.


    For the most part, Howard''s defensive shot-calls have been fairly straightforward. They simply covered up holes in the enemy''s defense. Usually, when the tables have been turned on Yuel''s team, it was when somebody overcommitted to striking an opening that Howard covered up.


    Therefore, it wasn''t like Howard to go out of his way and prepare a decoy that lures the enemy into an unfavorable position. On the other hand, that was definitely Ellen''s forte. In just today''s match alone, she has already pulled off that stunt countless times.


    Was this another instance of Ellen baiting them? Maybe. But, even if that''s the case, Ellen still had to get Howard''s approval for this play. Howard wasn''t the type to take a risk during such a critical situation, so he must have been confident that, even without Ellen being there to defend, Yuel''s team won''t be able to destroy the Golem.


    [We really won''t make it?] Yuel frowned. According to his calculations, the outcome was indeed down to the wire with just three of them pushing. However, Yuel planned to add Roi the offense as well. So, with four pushers, the enemy Golem should be done for.


    Unfortunately, this wasn''t pure math. In terms of raw damage output, four pushers will output more than enough damage to destroy the Golem. However, said damage won''t necessarily behave like in theory because due to the human factor. There was always the possibility that somebody will mess up things up and the pushers won''t get enough damage on the Golem.


    [Roi and Dan are especially suspect.] Yuel threw glances at the two troublemakers. These two have been playing alright for the most part, but the few slip0ups they had were awkward and led to terrible consequences. If anything like that happens during this push...


    [Is that what Howard is betting on? Or, is there something else he knows that I''m not taking into account?]


    ¡ºAn enemy Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    There was no time left; Yuel had to make a decision. Should Roi join them in Mid? Or, should Roi go defend Bot against Ellen''s pushing?


    [I don''t know what''s the correct answer here. But, if Howard is so confident this push won''t get the Golem, I better play it safe.]


    "Roi, go defend Bot," Yuel ordered.


    "Oh? I thought you''d tell me to push Mid. Okay, I''m on it."


    "Meanwhile," Yuel addressed Lars and Dan. "We''ll keep pushing."


    "Roger."


    "Let''s push all the way to Colossus, yo!"


    [That won''t happen, but we''ll get close.] Yuel nodded


    Once they penetrate Mid Lane, the road to the final boss will be open. Their radiant futures in the competitive scene were right within grasp! Just a little more and they''ll win!


    But, it was too early to celebrate. They had to push as hard as possible, but they couldn''t let their guards down until the very last moment. That''s why Yuel asked Roi to defend instead of joining the attack. Better safe than sorry.


    [Oh, right, there''s Roi too...] Howard somehow found himself surprised by Roi''s existence.


    Back when Howard was weighing the odds that their Golem will survive, he completely forgot to take Roi into account. In a 4v2 situation, Yuel''s team would have certainly destroyed the Golem in one fell swoop. Telling Ellen to push Bot instead of defending almost became a fatal misplay.


    [Phew, bullet dodged.] Howard sighed.


    Still, this was peculiar. Normally, Yuel would send everybody on the attack, especially when there was a great opportunity like this. So, why did Yuel choose to put Roi on the defense in this situation?


    [Heh, maybe we intimidated him.] Howard amused himself with that thought. From the very first game today, it was quite obvious Yuel was overly cautious about Howard. And, Howard made sure to do everything in his power to keep justifying such concerns with his airtight shot-calling. His judgment and shot-calls have thwarted Yuel''s plans countless times throughout the day, so Yuel had every reason to be cautious.


    As a result, maybe Yuel overestimated Howard''s judgment regarding the Golem''s defense. Howard messed up his estimation because he failed to factor Roi in, but Yuel couldn''t have possibly known that. So, maybe Yuel thought that Howard was 100% confident about protecting the Golem even in a 2v4 situation. If any of that was true, that''d be pretty hilarious, right? Haha.


    In this decisive final game, at this late stage of the game, even the chesskid with a risk fetish was wary of defeat. Yuel got scared of Howard''s ability and bailed out just to be safe. If Yuel stuck to her original playstyle and went all-in with this push, the situation might have become unrecoverable for Howard. But, thanks to Howard''s reputation preceding him, a disaster was averted!


    [But, I won''t be able to get away with it every time. I have to bring this game to an end.] Howard successfully defended the Golem with Taison''s help. The enemy shaved off 60% of the Golem''s HP, but it was still very much alive.


    Meanwhile, Ellen demolished the Bot Turret because it was already at low HP. Roi only got there in time to prevent the possibility of their Bot Golem being taken, but Ellen didn''t have such intentions in the first place. She departed into the jungle and got away scot-free.


    From this point onward, the match will transition into a phase that''ll revolve around team-fights and securing objectives. Who will be able to push faster? Which team will reign superior in team fights? The end game was nigh!


    The state of objectives on each lane:


    Yuel''s team''s vs. Howard''s team


    Top Lane: Turret (80% HP) vs. Turret (90% HP)


    Mid Lane: Turret (15% HP) vs. Golem (40% HP)


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    Bot Lane: Golem (100% HP) vs. Turret (80% HP)

 101 Shot-Callers Fatigue

    The decisive final match was transitioning into the late-game. At this point, Seraph''s full potential was already unlocked. Six Wings of Holiness finally allowed Lars to fire all six shots in a row and his finished build provided much-needed power to each of his shots. As a result, he demolished objectives in an instant.


    ¡ºAn enemy Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    "Woohoo!" Lars exclaimed. "Let''s go, my dudes!"


    "Good job," Yuel nodded in approval. That''s the second turret down, so the enemy only had Top Turret left. But, that''s not for long. No objective lasted in front of Seraph''s overwhelming push potential.


    ¡ºAn enemy Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    "Triple Turret Kill, yo!" Lars pumped a fist. He destroyed the Top Turret shortly after destroying the Bot Turret even though the two turrets were a whole map apart from each other. By using his ult, Divine Messenger, he quickly flew from one side of the map to another and split-pushed.


    "Okay, we got this, my dudes!"


    "Don''t let your guard down," Yuel said that, but he couldn''t deny he was also getting excited. This was the late-game, a phase that was supposed to be Howard''s dominion. And yet, Yuel''s team was winning! They were beating Howard in his own playground!


    Howard perfectly predicted Lars''s rotation toward Top Lane and even got there in time to defend, but he was powerless against Seraph''s onslaught. With Lars''s skill and Seraph''s high DPS, the team destroyed Howard''s tight defense through sheer strength!


    However, Lars wasn''t the only one putting on a strong show.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Haha! Die, dumbass!" Julia caught Gregory off-guard in the middle of his rotation and wiped him out. Her plays were rough and reckless, but also strong and overwhelming. Since Roi and Dan have been slipping up this match, Julia became one of the top-performing players on the team, second only to the great goof himself.


    Yuel considered having a talk with Roi and Dan, but he ultimately decided against it. The team had momentum right now, so he didn''t want to ruin it by creating discord in the team.


    It didn''t seem like Roi and Dan were doing any of that on purpose because they overall performed fine. They only goofed during critical moments, so maybe the pressure was getting to them. Yuel had no idea what he could possibly do to alleviate their stress, but criticizing them definitely didn''t sound like the solution.


    It was unclear why experienced players like them would crack under pressure during a match in which they didn''t have personal stakes, but Yuel didn''t have the luxury to investigate. He just had to accept the fact he couldn''t 100% rely on these two to do their job every time, so Lars and Julia had to lead the team. Two aggressive beasts were more than enough at the moment.


    But, things were only getting harder. The deeper Yuel''s team pushed the enemy, the easier it was for the enemy to defend their objectives. The lanes curved inwards toward the enemy base, so the enemy Golems were positioned much closer to each other than the Turrets. Therefore, it took less time for the defenders to rotate between the Golems.


    "Lars," Yuel called. "Switch to Bot."


    "Got it, dude!" Lars stopped pushing Top Golem against and rotated all the way to Bot Lane through the jungle. The same way the defenders had an easier time traveling from one Golem to another, the same applied to the attackers.


    One moment, Lars was pushing Top Golem. The next moment, he was already all the way down in Bot-


    "Oh, snap!" Lars exclaimed. "There''s an ice wall!" Just as he was about to enter Bot through the jungle, an ice wall formed in front of him and covered the entire passage.


    [Howard anticipated it.] Yuel bit his lip.


    Howard should have gone back to the base to recover but, instead, he rotated to defend Bot ahead of time. With Yuel, Julia and Dan pushing Mid Golem, any normal opponent would expect Lars to rotate from Top to Mid and help them to break through. Therefore, Yuel expected the enemy to fortify their defenses in Mid and that''s why he sent Lars all the way from Top to Bot. It was supposed to be a smart outplay, but it didn''t work against Aegis.


    Howard noticed the opening in Bot Lane and hurried to cover it. As a result, the Bot Lane push fell through.


    [Kudos, that was a good play.] Yuel shook his head. With the ice wall stalling Lars, the enemy gained enough time to recognize their forces and send people to defend Bot.


    "I''mma go help ya dudes in Mid!" Lars declared.


    "Wait, that''s unnecessa-"


    "Here I come!" Lars booted Divine Messenger and flew across the sky toward Mid. It was an unnecessary stunt, considering the short distance between Bot Golem and Mid Golem.


    [He''s getting carried away.] Yuel knotted his brows. Well, that wasn''t a bad play per se. Flying to Mid saved Lars some time, so Howard and anybody who went to defend Bot won''t be able to rotate back to Mid in time. It may very well create an opportunity to break through this barricade.


    [We gonna rek them by force!] Lars grinned. Before these dudes even figure what''s going on, Lars will drop from the sky and destroy the Golem Dude! By the time Big Shield Dude gets back to Mid, it''ll be too late- gah!? What!? How did Howard get there so fast!?


    Right after Lars landed in Mid Lane, Howard appeared there too and joined the defense effort. That was nuts, yo! What that guy a wizard!?


    [Again.] Yuel frowned. It''s like Howard had a GPS which told him Lars''s position at every given time. Even worse, said GPS somehow predicted where Lars will be going seconds in advance. That''s the only way to explain how Howard always quickly got in position to intercept Lars.


    "Let''s just push through!" Lars insisted. "We can take down that Golem Dude!"


    "You''re right," Yuel nodded. Thanks to previous efforts, the Mid Golem was down to 20% HP. With one more hyper-aggressive push, they should be able to take it down no matter how well the enemy defends. Therefore, they''ll push through regardless! If it was impossible to pass through Howard''s defense via tactics, they''ll just break through by force!


    "I''m opening with Tsunami," Yuel announced. "After it scatters the enemy, charge in and attack the Golem as much as possible before the enemy reposition."


    "Okay."


    "Gotcha."


    "Let''s goooo!"


    Yuel hid behind his teammates to not make his motions too obvious and began casting Tsunami, the Overflow version of Splash. By unleashing a huge wave on the entire Golem area, he''ll hit the entire enemy team.


    [They''re going to push.] Howard instinctively understood. His eyes naturally fell on Yuel, the Support. If something big was about to go down, Yuel will be the one to conduct it.


    Yuel moved a little to the back and hid behind Dan and Julia. Something was definitely afoot. What would an Aquamancer try to pull from this distance? It''ll surely be something with Overflow, so there were three options: Rainstorm, Hot Spring Eruption, and Tsunami.


    Rainstorm would immediately cover the entire area with heavy rain. Howard''s team didn''t have a way to interrupt that play, so there was no need for Yuel retreat to the backline. On the other hand, Hot String Eruption had limited range, so going backward only made it harder for Yuel to reach Howard''s team. Thus, there was only one option left...


    [It gonna be Tsunami!] Howard darted away from the Golem area. Yue was going to knock back the entire team and invade the Golem! If Howard''s team loses its ground here, the Mid Golem will fall for sure!


    [Alright, I should be good.] Howard reached the edge of the Golem''s area right as Yuel unleashed the huge wave.


    [Oh, wait. What about the rest!?] Howard forgot to warn them! "A tsunami is coming! Get out of the Golem''s area!"


    Unfortunately, the warning came too late. The tsunami was already here! The huge wave blew Gilbert and Ellen out of Golem''s area and all the way into the base. Only Howard dodged the disaster and was still within range to defend the Golem.


    "Get back to defend!" Howard ordered as he ran into the Golem''s area. He immediately returned to defend, but he couldn''t hold the fort his own.


    "Let''s go go gooooo!" Lars invaded the Golem''s area along with Yuel, Julia and Dan. It was a 4v1! Howard had no chance to stop them.


    [I''m dead if I face them head-on.] Howard had no choice but to wait for backup. If he tries to block this gang on his own, they''ll run over him in an instant. He needed Ellen and Gilbert to fight back together with him... wait, where was Taison at?


    "Tai!" Howard called. "Why are you in Bot!?"


    "Huh?" Taison cocked his head. "Ya told me to go here, bro."


    "Yeah, but... ah." Howard paused. Back when Howard intercepted Lars in Bot, he ordered Taison to follow up and rotate to Bot as well. It was a preventive measure in case Lars was to gun for Bot even after being stalled.


    However, while that situation was unfolding, Howard realized Lars might aim for Mid instead, so he rotated back to Mid. He rotated alone, without telling Taison to follow. Howard completely forgot about Taison at the time and concentrated only on what he had to do next.


    [I''m slipping.] Howard gritted his teeth. He was too late to warn the rest about Yuel''s tsunami and he failed to update Taison''s orders in time. Howard''s concentration was slipping.


    He could still figure things quickly and provide optimal defense, but he failed to provide timely shot-calls. It was like he forgot the others existed and focused on blocking all incoming blows on his own. He was messing up big time...


    ¡ºAn allied Golem has been destroyed!¡»


    "Damn," Howard muttered. If he just warned everybody earlier, they would have dodged the tsunami and could help to hold down the fort. On top of that, if he told Taison to rotate to Mid earlier, they would have formed an impenetrable barricade around their Golem. This Golem could''ve been saved! Damn! Damn it all!


    "My, you''re running out of gas?" Ellen asked.


    "Nah, I''m alright."


    "Su~re," Ellen rolled her eyes. "I know what it means when you''re being slow on the orders and focus only on your own plays."


    "Heh," Howard smiled wryly. There was no chance of hiding this from Elly, was there? He switched over to private communication and spoke quietly. "Yeah, I''m starting to lose focus. This match is rough."


    "My, and it''s only the third game. How would you last in a best of five at the regionals?"


    "I''m not used to defending 24/7, alright?" Howard grumped. Against normal enemies, it was enough to only cover up some of the holes in the team''s defense. There was no need to be cautious about every little weakness because there was no way the enemy would find all of them.


    But, Yuel was a different story. That chessboy could make a weakness out of literally anything. If you just sneeze during a match, that guy would somehow sense it and he''ll strike you down instantly. It was some superhuman bullshit.


    Therefore, Howard had to make sure the team''s defense had absolutely zero holes. He evaluated and reevaluated everybody''s positions, playstyle and quirks. He had to make sure nobody left any opportunities for Yuel to strike. Even the smallest of openings could turn into fatal game-changing plays when Yuel was involved, so Howard had to cover them all.


    Unfortunately, maintaining this concentrated routine came at a terrible price: Howard''s mental juice. He wasn''t used to maintaining that level of intense concentration for three games in a row, so mental fatigue kicked in.


    "It''s all because you don''t do exercise and eat junk all day," Ellen jabbed.


    "That got nothing to do with it," Howard rolled his eyes. "It''s just that I never practiced such an intense shot-calling routine. I like taking longer breaks after intense games, okay? Kill me."


    "But," Ellen tapped on her cheek. "I have to say, Yuel is hanging just fine under this ''intense routine'', isn''t he?"


    "Yeah, he seems to be doing alright, as annoying as that is."


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    "Because, unlike you, he exercises."


    "Nah, I bet it''s because he''s a chessboy. You know what people do in chess, right? They just sit there in front of the board and fry their brains for hours. No wonder Yuel is used to this kind of stuff."


    "All I''m hearing is excuses," Ellen said. "Exercising makes your brain work better. I read some articles and stuff."


    "Yeah, I know, I know. I''ll think about it after the match. Maybe I''ll start doing it. Maybe."


    "What a lazy bum you are, Wardy," Ellen pouted. It was always the same story with Howard. He was a skilled and experienced player, but he never worked hard enough.


    During this year''s entrance exam, Howard''s match against Yuel served as a wake-up call of sorts. It showed Howard there were other skilled players out there and they might overtake him despite being younger. It was a heavy but much-needed blow for this lazy bum.


    Thanks to that, Howard started taking his training and his duties in the club more seriously. In fact, that''s probably what pushed Howard to arrange practice matches against Ignis''s team. He wanted to get stronger and wanted to grow an overwhelming first-string at any cost.


    But, no matter what, Howard just refused to work out. Even back when he was undertaking StormBlitz''s entrance exam, he faked sickness to get a note from the doctor. Thanks to that, he got exempt from the racing test and passed it without even stepping on the track.


    Worst of all, Howard knew about this test ahead of time and didn''t even tell Ellen. He only told her to practice one-kilometer jogs and that it was important. He totally just wanted to see her sweat hard during that exam. What a bully.


    Well, at least Ellen passed the race with flying colors thanks to jogging all summer. In addition, she shaved off some excess fat and learned to appreciate this healthy routine. She felt more focused during games and could play longer without getting tired.


    But, unlike her, Howard remained a lazy bum and now he was paying the price for it. Ellen almost wanted to see that bum getting beaten this game to teach him a lesson.


    But, of course, they weren''t allowed to lose. That silly bet Howard made with Yuel was still in effect. Howard''s pride won''t allow him to turn back on it, so losing this match meant saying bye-bye to this year''s tournament. That was a big no-no.


    [If Wardy is out of gas,] Ellen smiled meaningfully. [I''ll have to pick up the slack by becoming an angel of death for him.]


    Now, that it was late-game, Seraph became an unstoppable force, especially in the hands of a beastie like Lars. Therefore, the outcome of this match will boil down to how efficiently they can shut Lars down. And, who was better for the job than Ellen?


    "I''ll kill Lars for you," Ellen declared. "I promise."


    "That''s reassuring," Howard smiled weakly. Hopefully, this won''t end up as another instance of Ellen giving herself too much credit while role-playing some evil witch.


    "Okay!" Lars exclaimed. "One Golem down! Let''s go let''s go let''s goooo!"


    [I think we got this.] Yuel nodded to himself.


    Taking down the Mid Golem was huge. It gave Yuel''s team a big advantage in the most important lane and paved a path toward the enemy Colossus. With Seraph''s late-game strength, it was possible to take down the Colossus in a 1v1 with enough preparations. However, it was a lengthy and dangerous line of play, so it wasn''t realistic to pull off against Howard.


    Therefore, the team first had to weaken the enemy''s defenses further by destroying additional Golems. They already took one down, so they''ll eventually destroy the others too. Even though the enemy''s defense was tight, it wasn''t flawless. Yuel smashed through it quite easily with his recent tsunami play.


    In fact, that one felt a little TOO easy. Howard was quick to react to the tsunami, but the rest of the enemy team froze in place and got washed away. As a result, all the defenders were scattered and only Howard was in a position to defend. Yuel expected his Tsunami play to cause the enemy some trouble, but it turned out way too effective.


    Normally, Howard would have evacuated his entire team in a timely fashion. That''s why he was Aegis, the impenetrable shield. Yet, for some reason, in that particular situation, he didn''t extend his amazing defense to the rest of the team. Or, maybe he [couldn''t]?


    [Is he losing focus?] Yuel wondered.


    As a fellow shot-caller, Yuel knew all too well how mentally exhausting it was to command a team during a difficult match. Yuel should''ve been used to long sessions of mental activity as a chess player. Even so, he found himself completely exhausted during the Leopards scrimmage


    It certainly didn''t help that he had to deal with difficult topics like the team''s atmosphere in that scrimmage, but that wasn''t an excuse. Yuel shouldn''t have run out of gas like that. If he wanted to pull through long matches in the competitive scene, he had to prepare his brain for long sessions.


    Therefore, to make sure he won''t run out of gas again, Yuel took his jogging routine more seriously. He has been exercising less and less throughout the year, but after the Leopards scrimmage - he made sure to jog at least once every two days. It was hard to tell how much working out really helped him play better, but there was one thing he knew for sure: this was the third game of the day and he was fully concentrated. Meanwhile, the enemy shot-caller seemed to be falling apart.


    [We need to use this opportunity to push hard, but we can''t be careless.] It was tempting to go all in and blast through the enemy''s weakened defenses, but a single mistake could cost the entire match during late-game.


    Therefore, Yuel had to arrange an offensive strategy that had solid backup plans in things go wrong. They were so close to grasping victory, they couldn''t mess up here!


    "Lars, go push Top."


    "Okey-dokey!"


    "Julia, follow Lars. Your priority is to keep him alive."


    "Alright."


    Lars was like the Queen piece of this match, a unit with enough strength to single-handedly pressure the opposition into submission. As long as Lars was alive and targeted objectives - they''ll win this game!


    "My, how annoying," Ellen pouted. "I can''t find a good chance to take on him. They''re always teaming somebody up with Larsy."


    "So it seems," Howard agreed. Instead of going full offense, Yuel picked a more balanced approach. Lars pushed at full throttle, but his teammates never left him alone. Either Yuel or Julia was always there to be back Lars up, so it was impossible to score an easy kill on Lars like that.


    "I say," Ellen started. "First, we get rid of one the guardians. I''d like to get rid of Yuyu personally because Aquamancer is such a pain in late-game."


    "I agree," Howard nodded. "But, how do you suggest we do that? It''s not like we can just forget about defense and hunt Yuel down."


    "It''s simple, darling. We just bait them into a bad position and get rid of them~"


    "Alright, sounds good. Now, tell me something that sounds like an actual plan with details and everything"


    "I got just the thing~" Ellen''s lips curved into a smirk. "Hey, Taitai and GG, do you feel like giving Lars and Yuel some pain?"


    "You even need to ask?" Taison chuckled. "Of course we wanna wreck these guys!"


    "Yeah, what that idiot said," Gregory nodded.


    "My, how passionate. There we go, we got two volunteers for the suicide squad~"


    "Huh?" Taison raised an eyebrow. "Did ya just assume these shitheads gonna own us?"


    "Oopsie, a slip of tongue. Teehee~" Ellen stuck out her tongue. "Anyway, here you go," she switched her mic to a private channel with Howard. "We got two faithful beasties who''ll do everything in their power to kill Lars and Yuel. We just gotta unleash them on Lars and Yuel at the right time and pray for the best."


    "You''re really suggesting this 2v2?" Howard asked. "You know just as well as me who''ll win there."


    "Sure, if we were talking about the standard Bot Lane 2v2, we know which pair is better. But, this game, the brats on our team are playing Jungler and Top, so they don''t have to cooperate like a duo. They can split this fight into two 1v1s."


    "That still sounds like a recipe for disaster."


    "Then, what you suggest? We gonna keep defending like this until we''re squashed?"


    "No, but..." Howard sighed. His thoughts refused to come together. All he could think about was "which area to cover next" and "how to deflect the next attack". There was no spare brainpower to consider sophisticated plays. Besides, such players weren''t Howard''s forte in the first place. His game plan was the same as usual: maintain solid defense until the enemy commits a fatal mistake.


    Unfortunately, Yuel hasn''t been taking any risky bets recently. If things keep going at this rate, no amount of defending will save the team from inevitable defeat. They''ll lose this game, this match, and the entire next year.


    "Alright," Howard said. "If you think Taison and Gregory can pull it off, then let''s give it a shot. I trust your trolling skills."


    "My, you make me blush~" Ellen giggled. "Alrighty, but I need your help with this. To catch them off-guard, I need to know where they''ll be attacking next. Can you do that for me?"


    "I''m not a damn oracle," Howard chuckled.


    "Sorry, I''m just not good at that kinda stuff," Ellen said. She was good at messing around with Yuel, but she wasn''t nearly as good at predicting Yuel''s moves. Only Howard had the natural affinity for doing that because he was good at spotting holes in their defense, which were exactly the spots Yuel tended to target.


    "Alright," Howard said. "I''ll try to figure where they''re likely to strike next, but no guarantees."


    "I know, I know. But c''mon, you need to sound more confident. What do you mean you''ll ''try''? You gotta DO it. You''re the captain, you can''t sound like a wuss."


    "Heh, can''t even say anything back to that." Howard smiled wryly. That''s right, he was the captain and he was the one who arranged this entire match. Therefore, he had to stay strong and believe in the team''s victory.


    "Alrighty then," Ellen concluded. "I''ll give our brats a few tips, while you focus on reading Yuel''s plans."


    "Alright." Howard nodded. He had to reverse-engineer Yuel''s next attack plan from the current state of the team''s defense. It wasn''t exactly the most reliable way to predict things and it was ten times harder than usual with his fried brain. Nevertheless, for the sake of mounting a comeback in this situation, he had to predict correctly one more time...!

 102 Two 1v1s Instead of 2v2

    ¡ºAn enemy Golem has been destroyed!¡»


    "We''re doing it, my dudes!" Lars exclaimed. "One more Golem to go! Or, we can even push all the way right here and now!"


    "No, let''s retreat for now," Yuel said. His balanced tactic of offense and defense has been working so far, so there was no need to rush.


    The tactic was simple: Lars followed Yuel''s orders and rotated from lane to lane to push in the area where enemy defenses were the thinnest. At the same time, Yuel made sure there was always somebody there to back Lars up. It was an idea Yuel stole from Howard''s defensive team play.


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    Yuel split the babysitting job between himself and Julia. Considering Roi and Dan''s recent slip-ups, Yuel couldn''t bring himself to entrust such an important task to these two. So, Dan and Roi''s primary task was to serve as a diversion and lure out enemy defenders.


    At this point, Yuel was convinced: Howard''s defense has been slipping. The impenetrable Aegis was cracking down. Even straightforward attacks passed through Howard''s defense right now. Yuel could aim at any weak spot without fearing a counter.


    However, even without Howard''s bulletproof guidance, the enemy team was still putting on a solid defense. They couldn''t prevent Yuel''s attacks ahead of time, but they deflected the attacks with minimal loses. Nobody on the enemy team made any punishable mistakes while defending, not even Gregory and Taison.


    As a result, it was difficult to score any kills on the defenders. Howard must have coached his team when it came to playing airtight defense. Thus, the game dragged on.


    Fortunately, if things keep going like this, the game will be over soon. Two Golems were already down, so only one left. If all three Golems are down at the same time, all three lanes will be swarmed with super minions; the enemy won''t be able to defend from all three directions at once. It would be a complete checkmate.


    Yuel entertained some alternative game plans, like busting through one of the lanes before taking the last Golem or trying to steal the Overlord Buff while the enemy was busy. However, both approaches invited unnecessary risk. This time, he preferred to slowly and steadily pressure the opposition into submission.


    "Let''s get Bot next," Yuel dashed toward Bot Lane.


    "Coming!" Lars approved. "Time to take down that last Golem Dude!"


    Yuel and Lars cut through Bot Jungle and arrived- ah! Taison and Gregory stood in their way!


    [Was this attack too predictable?] Yuel bit his lip. Even though Howard wasn''t as sharp as usual, it seemed he could still defend against overly obvious attacks.


    "Alright, there you go," Howard exhaled. Somehow, he managed to squeeze just enough brain juice to foresee Yuel''s next move. It was largely thanks to Yuel''s attacks becoming more straightforward recently. The guy was feeling himself and striking at any opportunity that presented itself without respecting Howard at all.


    Knowing that chesskid, Yuel must have figured that Howard wasn''t in the best shape right now. That''s why that brat fearlessly seized every opportunity he found. Unfortautnely for him, it helped Howard predict this overly obvious rotation toward Bot Lane.


    "Alrighty," Ellen nodded. "Taitai, GG, don''t forget what I told you. You absolutely have to score at least one kill here no matter what. We''ll keep the rest of their team busy, so I can trust you to do your part, right?"


    "No problem!" Taison nodded. "We gonna wreck these scrubs!"


    "This gonna be good." Gregory much appreciated this opportunity. This was a fateful 2v2! Everything started back when Gregory and Taison played 2v2 against Yuel and Lars. They lost horribly back then and everything went downhill from there.


    So, it was payback time! They gonna kick these losers off the high horse and drag them down to oblivion! This selection match was the perfect opportunity to end Yuel and Lars''s whole careers.


    "Hey, they''re coming at us!" Lars''s tone made it clear he wanted to duke this out with Taison and Gregory. It wasn''t surprising, consider how much the enemies have been turtling until now. The last time Lars scored a kill was ages ago.


    [Looks like it was supposed to be a trap of some sort,] Yuel pondered. [But, it''s actually convenient for us. It''s a rare chance to score some kills and weaken the enemy''s defense.]


    "Okay," Yuel said. "Let''s take them on."


    "That''s what I like to hear! Let''s go, yo!"


    [Honestly, I''m not sure what Howard is thinking.] Yuel knotted his brows. Did Howard believe Taison and Gregory could defeat Yuel and Lars in a 2v2? Past experiences should have pointed to the opposite. Whenever they faced each other in Bot Lane at the club, Yuel and Lars always came on top.


    Was this even Howard''s idea in the first place? Howard rarely ever went for such plays. Maybe Ellen? Or, maybe these two were running amok? It was really hard to tell the goal behind this 2v2.


    [But, they clearly want this 2v2 to go through.] Yuel glanced at the rest of the map. Ellen was occupying Julia in Top, while Howard and Gilbert were clashing with Roi and Dan in Mid. All supply lines were cut, so this was going to be a 2v2 fight without any backup for either side.


    [Maybe I''m digging too much into it.] Yuel thought. [No matter what Howard had in mind, we''ll be fine as long as we win the fight-]


    "Dude, watch out!"


    "Wha-!?" Yuel noticed too late: Gregory was right in front of him! And, already with his big foot raised into the air! Damn, Yuel won''t be able to- BAM! A heavy stomp! The impulse blasted Yuel away.


    [Not good...!] Yuel grimaced. He didn''t expect Gregory to blink forward and initiate such an aggressive attack. The enemy team has been in full defense mode until now, but Taison and Gregory were clearly out for blood out here.


    Lars dodged the stomp in time with Angelic Grace but ended up on the other side of the area. Yuel and Lars have been separated.


    "We have to regroup- ah!?" Yuel paused. Gregory stood between him and Lars like a gatekeeper.


    [You ain''t getting through, cuckhead.] Gregory swung his blade and cut through Yuel.


    [He''s going to block me?] Yuel hit back with a water ball and ran to the side. He had to maneuver around Gregory to regroup with-


    [I won''t let ya!] Gregory activated Provoke and dragged Yuel farther away from Lars. [You ain''t passing, not under my watch.]


    [Ugh, this is a problem.] Yuel recovered from the taunt and tried breaking through again, but the giant Vanguard blocked the narrow jungle passage.


    What was going on here? What sort of 2v2 battle was this? The frontliner was supposed to be on the frontline and protect his DPS, not to stall the enemy frontliner. Instead, this battle tactic was as if...


    [It''s ain''t a 2v2, sucker!] Gregory smirked. [It''s two 1v1s!]


    That''s the idea Ellen came up with. In a straightforward 2v2, everybody knew Yuel and Lars were better than Gregory and Taison. However, in a 1v1, Taison proved he was stronger than Lars. So, instead of cooperating as a duo, it was best for Taison and Gregory to fight separately across two 1v1s.


    [Though, I''m just the diversion here.] Gregory smiled wryly. The only reason this double 1v1 arrangement was superior to a 2v2 was because of Taison''s amazing skill in 1v1. Everything was riding on Taison''s ability to beat Lars.


    In other words, Gregory''s only job here was to keep Yuel at bay while Taison was doing his thing. Despite playing Solo this game, Gregory yet again ended up as being nothing more than Taison''s Support. Yet again, Taison was overshadowing Gregory.


    [It sucks, but I''ll take it.] Gregory unleashed his frustration by slashing Yuel. Even though he was just a diversion, even though he was just the backup - he wanted to win this damn fight! This was the best opportunity he''ll ever get to kick down these two losers from their high horses! Yuel and Lars won''t be getting into the first string this year!


    [Go, Tai!] Gregory cheered silently. [Wreck Lars while I jail Yuel for the rest of the day. You gotta do it!]


    [Ugh, I can''t pass through!] Yuel maneuvered left and right to no avail.


    Gregory''s blocking was surprisingly tight. Every time Yuel moved in one direction, Gregory covered the area right away with his big body. This particular passage was so narrow that Vanguard''s big armor almost covered half of it. So, Yuel had to find a way to squeeze through a tiny opening and Gregory wasn''t making this easy.


    What''s worse, Gregory delivered one blow after another while blocking the passage. Each individual attack didn''t deal that damage because Gregory and Yuel both had tanky builds, but the damage accumulated over time. If this goes on, Yuel will eventually be forced into a dangerous situation.


    [He''s really good at this,] Yuel frowned. [It''s like he practiced this specific type of marking.]


    If Gregory had been playing any other class, then passing through would have been a simple matter of using Geyser Eruption to knock him up and dash through underneath him. However, Vanguard''s Immovable Object made him immune to such displacement CC. Gregory was literally immovable right now.


    Yuel could retreat and reach Lars through an alternative route, but that''d take too long. Not to mention, it''d mean abandoning Lars in a 1v2 situation. That was a surefire way to lose this fight.


    So, neither approach was viable. Passing through Gregory seemed hopeless and going around was too risky. It was impossible to reach Lars like that!


    [Kek, you mad?] Gregory snickered as he moved from side to side to block Yuel.


    This job was a piece of cake with how much of a fatty Vanguard was. Gregory just had to keep his eyes on Yuel''s movements and match his own movements. He was doing no more than stalling, but it actually felt great. Just imagining Yuel''s angry expression was hella satisfying.


    [Kek, guess it wasn''t such a bad idea to practice all this shit after all.] Gregory thought back on how much he ranted during training. Howard came up with this silly training routine about "marking" enemy players and put Gregory through that shit.


    At the time, it was nothing than a giant pain in the ass. It was legit the most boring training ever. Gregory had to spend an hour, sometimes more, on just moving back and forth to block the enemy''s route and to bodyblock attacks. It was like training to become a professional punching bag; the lamest shit ever.


    Nevertheless, Howard insisted this was an area Gregory severely lacked in, so Gregory had to polish it for the upcoming match. So, already back then, Howard must have foreseen that Gregory will be playing defense like this. Dude was legit an ESPer, no doubts about it.


    That training was a huge pain back then, but right now Gregory was glad. Messing around with Yuel like this was topkek shenanigans. Not to mention, on top of blocking the path, Gregory has been landing hits, so Yuel has been gradually losing HP. It''d take like twenty years to actually drop Yuel to low HP, but just being able to repeatedly cut that mofo was all Gregory needed. Right now, Gregory had the upper hand! He was the stronger player!


    "Lars!" Yuel called out. "Can you get any closer to me? We have to regroup!"


    "Sorry, no dice," Lars answered. "Taison is totally locking me down."


    "What about leaping over here?"


    "Can''t do, dude. I leaped away to dodge GG''s stomp."


    "Damn..." Yuel clicked his tongue. Indeed, Lars''s Angelic Grace was on cooldown right now. The situation was rough.


    While Yuel was struggling to break through Gregory, Lars was locked in an intense fight with Taison. They dashed all over the area while firing at each other.


    [Yo, dude is strong as ever!] Lars dodged one bat with a roll, but another bat crashed into him during the recovery. This stuff was savage! Taison was on point right now. This gonna be a good fight!


    That hit during the roll recovery was cool stuff, but Lars was no pushover himself. The next time Taison dodged with a roll, Lars fired a follow-up shot while Taison was recovering. Payback, yo!


    Once any marksman class hit the late-game, their attack speed became so sick that dodge-rolls almost became pointless. Like, it wasn''t easy to predict the entire roll''s route and fire ahead of time at the right spot, but Lars and Taison were above such limitations. They were real duelists!


    [Khaha, you piece of shit!] Taison laughed. [Think you''re some hot shit, eh?] Taison received a laser beam in the face right as he recovered from his roll but he didn''t waste any time and fired right back! [Counter hit, bitch! Ain''t nobody hitting The Great Taison without getting burned in return!]


    The counter shot landed perfectly. This fight was tight!


    [I can do this shit!] Taison grinned. Even though there was some distracting shit going on nearby between Gregory and Yuel, Taison managed to concentrate on his 1v1 with Lars and his performance was hella smooth. All that boring "mental training" nonsense was actually paying off!


    Throughout the past week, Howard has been making Taison go through some shit he called "mental training". Basically, Taison just had to stand there and imagine stuff. In order words, most boring shit ever.


    Apparently, the idea was to help Taison filter out the noise around him. Basically, Taison had to imagine that none of the shit around actually mattered. Only Taison and his opponent existed in the entire universe. The rest of the world was pure blackness and totally silent.


    Yeah, like hell that was possible to do. Every time Taison started concentrating on Howard as the opponent during training, somebody just had to go ahead pop a loud skill nearby. That shit was distracting as hell and Taison always had to check what the actual heck just happened.


    In the brief moment Taison took his eyes off his opponent, Howard landed an easy shot on him. Taison didn''t even notice that thing coming.


    [Well damn, maybe this training is kinda important after all.] That''s what Taison realized after getting hit time and again by lame shots like that. There was no reason that kind of stuff should work on him.


    When it was a 1v1, it was a 1v1. Nothing more and nothing less. Most of the time, Taison had no reason to take his eyes off his opponent during a fight. So what if somebody cast a loud spell nearby? It probably had nothing to do with Taison at the moment. His job was to wreck the opponent in front of him.


    So, Taison took the "mental training" seriously. Well, kinda. He almost fell asleep every now and then because half the training was about blocking out everything around him. And, what was the easiest way to filter out his surroundings? Just gotta close his eyes and take a good long nap, khaha.


    A single week wasn''t enough to master this mental filter thing, but Taison got a little better at it. When he concentrated hard enough, he could kinda ignore the irrelevant stuff around him. The game also had an option to lower the audio sensitivity to pick up less noise from afar, so Taison dialed up that shit up to eleven.


    Thanks to all that, Taison could now fight Lars in a pure 1v1! Whatever shit was going down between Gregory and Yuel nearby didn''t matter in the slightest. Taison maintained 100% focus on the opponent in front of him. So, this was just a normal 1v1 and Taison gonna win this shit!


    "Let''s goooo!" Taison fired. His bat missed the target, but no big deal. He just sidestepped Lar''s counter-attack and fired again! Bullseye! This one was a hit. Taison was in the zone, yo! Full focus on the 1v1! He got this one in the bag.


    [Geh, not bad!] Lars finched as a bat rammed into him like a bullet. Vampire''s basic attacks looked so silly once they reached high attack speed. It''s like dude was firing bats from a freakin'' machine gun.


    [But, my attacks are still faster!] Lars fired a laser beam and grazed Taison''s shoulder. Taison''s sidestep was late by like a nanosecond, but a hit was a hit.


    The fight was rough, as expected from a 1v1 against Taison. Nevertheless, with this late-game Seraph, Lars could do it. [You killed me enough times today, dude. This time, I''mma win! And, it gonna be fair and square! Let''s goooooooooo!]


    After the laser beam hit Taison, six robotic arms stretched from Lars''s back. Six Wings was on! When a marksman''s late-game attack speed didn''t cut it, Seraph got ya covered with even faster attacks! Six shots in a row with zero reload time. Lars gonna bombard the heck outta that dude!


    [Ha! You wish!] Taison sidestepped the first shot like a boss. But, against Lars''s accuracy, there was no way in hell to dodge the following shot which came out a split millisecond later. That''s why: Coffin Slumber!


    A coffin popped out of thin air behind Taison and sucked him inside. Lars''s laser beam struck home, but it hit the coffin instead of Taison himself. Khaha, ez defense!


    [Damn. Every. Single. Time.] Lars grumped as he unleashed his fast shots at the coffin. The attacks didn''t do any damage, but after three hits they destroyed the coffin and forced Taison back in the open.


    Lars unleashed the two remaining shots and both landed perfectly despite Taison''s attempts to dodge. Taison avoided getting utterly wrecked and went on the offensive again! [Yeah baby, let''s go!]


    [Geh...!] Lars flinched as two bats hit him in a row. Taison attacked like a beast. Dude moved around from side to side while firing nonstop! Lars did the same, but he couldn''t keep up. [What gives!? Why he feels faster!?]


    While Lars was constantly going back and forth between dodging and attacking, Taison somehow combined both into one. Dude moved and attacked at the same time, so he both dodged shots and landed shots at the same time. It was some crazy shenanigans!


    There shouldn''t have been much difference between their combat skills, yet Taison was half a step faster. No, not even half a step. It was like half of a quarter of a step or something. Yet, this small difference was enough to gradually overwhelm Lars.


    [Damn, I can''t win like this!] Lars gritted his teeth. In this 1v1, Taison was stronger. As hard as Lars wanted to deny that - it was a fact.


    Lars could have put on an even fight if he was using a Trickshooter or a Gunslinger, but not with Seraph. It was a class he only played from time to time, so it was nowhere near the level of his main classes. Thus, he lacked the necessary mastery to fight Taison on even ground here. Dang it!


    "I-I think I''m in a tight spot," Lars gulped.


    "You should''ve regrouped with me while he was in the coffin," Yuel criticized. This was partially his fault because he was too busy with Gregory at the time, so he failed to make the call in time. They missed a great opportunity to turn this situation around.


    The situation was turning from bad to worse by the moment. They had to regroup no matter what. But, how!?


    Lars''s Angelic Grace was still on cooldown, so he couldn''t leap over here. His Divine Messenger was on cooldown too, so that''s all Lars''s mobility options gone right there.


    There was the option of making Lars try busting his way through Gregory, but it won''t be easy. Taison will surely use that opportunity to assault Lars from behind, so Lars will likely die trying. It was already hard enough for him to stay alive in a straightforward 1v1, so if he turns his back to his opponent... Yeah, not the brightest idea.


    Should they just retreat for good? This has become an unfavorable situation, so a tactical retreat wasn''t unreasonable. But, at the same time, this was a rare opportunity to score kills and thin out the enemy''s defenses. Not to mention, if they retreat now, they''ll be giving up on the strong momentum they have been maintaining so far. They were so close to pushing this game all the way to victory, they couldn''t stop here!


    "Okay, listen," Yuel said. "Next time you get Six Wings, your ult should already be out of cooldown. So, fly out of there and regroup with me. For now, this is the most I can do to help you out."


    Yuel cast Rainstorm, the Overflow version of Rainfall. This was almost a waste of an ult, but it was the only support Yuel could provide in this situation.


    Rain clouds formed around the entire area and heavy rain poured. The rain reduced the attack speed and movement speed of all the opponents in the area, which should give Lars an edge in the 1v1. On top of that, it may even allow Yuel to finally slip past Gregory.


    As the entire area was covered in rain, the unconventional 2v2 was heading toward its climax.

 103 The 2v2 Turnabou

    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Got him!" Roi exclaimed as his blade cut through Gilbert. With Dan''s help, he finally took down an enemy. It was unfortunate that Dan died in the process, but at least they got rid of one important target. Now, only Howard was left to defend Mid.


    [Okay, I''m finally getting shit done!] Roi pushed hard and disregarded Howard''s feeble attacks. This was the chance to make up for all the mistakes Roi committed. This play gonna be huge!


    Roi had a chance to break through Mid before the Mid Golem revives. He has been playing like a Bronze tier schmuck for too long, that shit had to stop. And, the first step for redemption was securing Mid here and now.


    The whole thing about Howard''s dreams still weighted on Roi, but this was a serious match and he was a competitive-level player. He had to perform even if it meant getting in the way of Howard''s dream. Deep down, he wanted Howard to win. But, at the same time, he had to do everything in his power to ensure this match stayed competitive.


    Therefore, Roi pushed! He struck down the weak minions and attacked Howard. Nobody gonna stop him! He''ll make sure this match was conducted with fair and square sportsmanship.


    [Okay, the way is open!] Roi grinned as Howard finally retreated. It was about damn time because the guy has been eating one attack after another for a while now, both from Roi and from super minions. Howard did his best to soak damage for his minions, but no matter how tanky his build was - his HP wast finite. At long last, Roi forced the Big Shield Dude out of this picture!


    [I''mma push all the way while he''s gone! Time to end this- ah!] A heavy thump resounded behind him. Rocks rose into the air and darted into one central point as if sucked in by a black hole. Oh damn, the Mid Golem revived!


    Roi was banking on his super minions for this important attack, but the little guys finished their invasion at the Golem''s area started hitting the revived Golem. Damn, pushing through Mid was impossible now, First, Roi had to take down the Golem again.


    Unfortunately, none of the damage dealers were around right now. Lars was locked in a 2v2 near Bot, Julia was pushing Top and Dan was dead. Still, Roi was a bruiser, so his offense wasn''t a joke. Together with this last wave of super minions, he''ll take down this weakened Golem on his own!


    [Gonna be difficult once Howard returns.] Roi brought the Golem all the way down to 10% HP with the help of the super minions, but the last push will be the real challenge. All his super minions died and a new wave of enemy minions came forth to defend, On top of that, Howard was surely done healing by now and will soon return to defend.


    It was a little odd, though. What was taking Howard so long? The guy should have already returned to defend Mid by now. Where was he at?


    Well, no matter. The fewer defenders there were, the easier it made Roi''s life. He gonna wreck this Golem and push all the way to the Colossus! That was the least he could do to make up for his countless mess-ups today. He gonna push through all the way!


    At around the same time, Yuel and Lars were struggling against Gregory and Taison. With the entire area covered by heavy rain, the tides were turning around.


    [Got him, yo!] Lars landed a shot right at Taison''s chest. Easy hit. Taison was way too slow to get out of the way because of the rain, so it was time for a counterattack!


    [Shit!] Taison gritted his teeth. This fuckin'' rain was messing shit up! Taison''s shots moved in slow motion compared to before and he became as slow as a turtle. The slowdown from Rainstorm shouldn''t have been that big of a deal but, in this srs bsns 1v1, even the slightest debuff was huge. [Stupid damn rain! But, I still gonna win!]


    Taison insisted to fight despite the disadvantage. With his current speed, the usual routine of dodging a shot and then countering gonna be hella hard to pull off, so Taison had to change his approach. It wasn''t the first time the enemy slowed him down in a 1v1, so he knew how to handle this shit.


    [He stopped?] Lars noticed an easy opportunity and seized it at once. Wham! A direct hit- gah! A counter right away!? Taison fired during Lars''s firing animation! [Geh! I can''t dodge this one!]


    Lars successfully seized the inviting opportunity and scored a hit but, in exchange, he was hit as well. Taison purposely slowed down in order to have an easier time firing that counter!


    [Well played, dude.] Lars smiled. [So, that''s how ya gonna play this, huh.]


    While Taison was at a speed disadvantage, he gonna try enforcing a one-for-one ratio of successful hits. Taison was leading in term of HP, so if they gonna keep hitting each other one for one - Lars gonna lose this!


    [Ain''t happening, yo!] Lars fired the next shot and immediately canceled into a roll. It was just by a hair''s breadth, but he dodged Taison''s counter!


    [Shit! That damn slippery mofo!] Taison barked internally. Just a few more hits and Lars will be dead, but this damn rain forced Taison to slow down the pace. Countering every shot was an awesome 200 IQ play, but it was going to take a while to kill with it.


    Fortunately, Taison had leeway in terms of HP. Gregory''s protective aura was on and reached all the way to Taison, so a large chunk of the damage dealt to Taison was transferred to Gregory instead. Even if Taison gets wrecked real hard, it''ll be Gregory who''ll eat shit instead, khaha.


    "Yo, my shots!" Lars complained. "They do nothing!" Even with the speed advantage, Lars couldn''t wreck Taison. His shots didn''t do nearly enough damage to be deadly.


    Taison was a bruiser so he had decent defense. On top of that, like half of the damage Lars delivered was mitigated by Vanguard''s ult. So, even though Lars had the upper hand, he couldn''t wrap this up. Dang it!


    [The rain isn''t enough.] Yuel expected as much. Rainstorm gave Lars the edge in terms of speed, but the problem of Gregory''s protective aura was still present. As long as Gregory was passively protecting Taison, there was no easy way to drive this fight to an end.


    Therefore, Yuel absolutely had to break through this barricade. That was the only way to turn this entire thing around.


    Rainstorm slowed Gregory too, so slipping by him should be easier now. A movement debuff wasn''t a huge deal in this cramped area, but it had just enough impact. Gregory still managed to block Yuel''s path, but it got visibly harder for him. Now, Gregory had to compensate for his slow speed with extra prediction.


    [Damn, I gotta read that mofo ahead of time.] Gregory concentrated on every twitch Yuel made. To block in time, Gregory had to anticipate Yuel''s movements faster than before. No matter what it took, he''ll buy enough time for Taison to wrap this up. They''ll win this shit!


    [There!] Yuel has been running toward the right side in a telegraphed manner, then switched to the left with a quick roll!


    [Wha!? Shit!] Gregory couldn''t react in time! He saw Yuel''s obvious movements and started moving ahead of time to intercept, but it was a bait!


    [Finally.] Yuel rolled past Gregory. At long last, he passed through, He got out of the prison!


    "I''m back," Yuel announced.


    "Only took you a year," Lars chuckled. "Okay, let''s get them! We gonna show them we''re da best around here!"


    "Yeah," Yuel wasn''t too keen on that whole "da best" part, but they were definitely going to prove something big here: they were stronger in a 2v2!


    First, the protection from Vanguard''s ult had to go. Yuel snuck up to Taison and sprayed the guy with Splash. The protective aura from Vanguard''s ult vanished, so Taison became fully vulnerable to attacks.


    [Damn! Where did that fucker come from!?] Taison exclaimed. "Yo, GG! Where are you at, man? You were supposed to keep this guy away!"


    "I can''t stall him forever, you know," Gregory retorted. "You should''ve finished Lars faster, dumbass."


    "Who ya call a dumbass, yo!? You wanna go!? Don''t make me come over there, bro."


    "Kek, just focus on the damn fight."


    "And how you expect me to do that?" This unexpected development shattered the solid 1v1 concentration Taison has been maintained until now. It was impossible to think of this as a 1v1 fight anymore because it became a 1v2 in every sense of the word.


    "I''ll be there in a jiffy," Gregory was running toward the battle scene, but his movements were sluggish. This fatass Vanguard was naturally slow and the stupid rain only made him slower. It was like trying to drive a tank through mud.


    "Yeaaaaah," Taison squinted his eyes at Gregory''s snail pace. "I hope ya gonna get here before the game is over."


    [You ain''t paying attention, dude!] Lars fired a shot. Taison wasn''t even looking in his direction right now, so it was a golden opportunity. Bam, easy hit!


    Finally, it was a shot that dealt proper damage as a Carry should. No more of that damage splitting nonsense between Taison and Gregory. From now, it gonna be full damage with every shot, yo!


    This was Lars'' seventh hit, so Six Wings activated.


    "I''ll knock him up," Yuel said.


    "Okay, it''s showtime!" Lars''s body was ready. He practiced enough shots against knocked up dummies to pull off this combo play. Landing all six shots of Six Wings in a row was quite the challenge compared to landing regular shots, but Lars gonna do it!


    Yuel waited for the moment Taison wasn''t looking his way and unleashed Geyser Eruption. Hot water erupted from the ground and blasted Taison toward the sky. This was it, the final act!


    "Fuuuuuu!" Taison roared. These mofos totally got him! [Thanks for all the help, GG! Such backup, much support!]


    [But, I ain''t gonna give up!] Taison took aim at Lars while being air-bound. He needed like three more shots, maybe two if he crits. Even though he was high in the air, he gonna finish off that mofo!


    Whish. A laser beam pierced Taison in the middle of the flight, as expected from Lars''s damn accuracy. But, Taison gonna return in kind- eh? A water ball flew right past him, What the actual heck?


    Unlike Lars''s accurate laser beam, the water ball missed Taison by a mile. Pft, what''s with that scrubby accuracy?


    Anyway, Taison gonna smack Lars right back! Bam! A bat darted downwards like a bullet. It gonna hit! ... or not. Damn, it was totally off! What the heck? Taison should''ve been a better sniper than this! Da best sniper!


    Another laser beam came flying at him, another hit. Lars was sniping from the ground without any effort. Damn, this was bad! Taison was already down to like 20% HP! Two more hits and he was dead meat!


    [He ain''t gonna magically start missing me on my way down, right? Nah, no way.] Taison was about to reach the end of the flight, next he''ll be heading downwards. Hitting a falling target should be a pretty damn (difficult) task, but...


    [Easy, yo!] Lars landed every shot on the air-bound target as if it was the easiest thing in the world. Taison was heading downwards now, but that didn''t affect Lars in the slightest. He practiced how to hit targets both on their way up and on their way down, so he ain''t gonna miss a single shot. Wham! Another clean hit! Just one more to go!


    [I-I''m fucked at this rate!] Taison knew death was coming. There''s no way Lars would miss in this kind of situation; dude must''ve been sniper rifle in his past life.


    At this point, there was no chance of outshooting Lars either. So, the only thing Taison could possibly do was.... dodge! In mid-air! [I gonna do it, yooooo!]


    Right as Lars fired the next shot, Taison performed a dodge-roll! In mid-air! Yeah, that shit was actually possible!


    [Oh! That''s sick!] Lars grinned as his laser beam missed the target. Taison just dodged a K.O. by a few millimeters. [But, you ain''t gonna dodge the next one!]


    That mid-air roll was sick, but it wasn''t enough to throw off the rhythm of Lars''s shots. Even though it was rare for somebody to dodge-roll like that in mid-air, Lars knew this counter existed because Trever used that stuff against him. So, Lars got to practice against this trick in real fights.


    On top of that. Lars also practiced against such situations in training mode. Yuel used some wizardry to configure a training dummy that jumped high into the air and performed a random roll in the middle of the fall. By repeatedly practicing against this wild dummy, this mid-air roll stopped fazing Lars.


    The counter was simple: figure out where the target gonna finish its roll and shoot there. To accurately estimate the target''s position, there was a need to know some supah high-level physics and stuff. And, of course, Lars didn''t know the first thing about any of stuff! He just winged it! Snipping sense, yo!


    [Got him- ah! No way!] Just as Lars was about to fire the decisive shot, Taison pulled another trick. Dude canceled the roll halfway through and turned into a bat!


    [Crap! But, I still can...!] Lars adjusted his aim. Taison''s bat form was smaller and floated in mid-air, so it was a completely different type of target to snipe. But, so what of it? Lars just had to strike down that little flying mouse dude!


    [I got it!] Lars could tell his aim was perfect. There won''t be any new tricks now. No rolls, no transformations, and no nothing. His laser gun was 200% locked on Taison. This was the finishing blow, yo! Whish!


    The beam cut through the air on its way up- agh!? An ice wall appeared in its path! The wall formed just in time to block the beam.


    "N-No way!" Lars''s jaw dropped. His finishing blow was just......... Gaaaaaah!!!


    "No way," Yuel gasped. When did Howard get here!? He was supposed to be defending Mid!


    But, that wasn''t the time to wonder about it. Taison still hasn''t gotten away, so this wasn''t over! Yuel could still land a shot on Taison from this position, so if he just calculates the right angle- FREEZE! Howard passed by Yuel and unleashed Ice Coffin.


    "Ugh! He froze me," Yuel informed. "You have to deal the final blow yourself!"


    "On it!" Lars rolled around the ice wall. This kill was right within grasp. Lars just had to aim one more time and fire. [Okay, there! This time, the true finishing blow...!]


    Lars''s bullet perfectly hit Taison! But, it didn''t do anything.


    [Barely made it.] Howard sighed in relief as he finished releasing cooling gas into the air. The cold air reached Taison and froze the bat like an icicle. Cryo-Freeze prevented the killing blow!


    The entire assault came down crashing. In the end, Yuel and Lars failed to gain the upper hand in this battle. But, this wasn''t over yet! With Howard on the scene, this became a 2v3 situation. Now, it was the enemy''s turn to attack!


    "Greg, you and I will focus Lars," Howard commanded. "Tai, join us once you heal a little."


    "You betcha," Taison nodded repeatedly. "That''s my kill, ya know."


    "Even if the game doesn''t it count it that way, we sure will," Howard said what had to be said. This should lower the chances of Taison prematurely popping out of the ice to chase the kill. That brat was peculiar about scoring his kills, so Howard always had to be extra careful.


    "Yo," Lars exclaimed. "They''re rushing me!"


    [Damn it!] Yuel bit his lip. They came so close in that attack! They almost got that decisive kill! But, instead, the entire situation flipped its head and now they were in pinch. How did it come to this!?


    "Dude!" Lars called. "What do I do? Want me to take on them?"


    "Ah," Yuel snapped out of it. There will be enough time for regrets later. Right now, Yuel had to make a call. "Retreat. Fly out of here with your ult."


    "But, what about you?"


    "Forget about me. Just get out."


    "G-Got it!" Lars still had one shot left for Six Wings, so he activated his ult: Divine Messenger. The robotic arms on his back replaced the laser guns with rockets and launched Lars toward the sky.


    [Okay, good.] Yuel nodded to himself as Lars vanished from view. At the very least, they avoided the worst-case scenario. Lars''s death would have spelled disaster.


    As for Yuel, his situation didn''t look too promising. He got out of Ice Coffin''s freeze, but...


    "Alright," Howard changed direction. "Get Yuel instead."


    "Gladly!" Gregory dashed forward. He totally gonna repay that mofo for the earlier defeat at the jungle and for all the other bullshit Yuel has been pulling from the moment he appeared in Gregory''s life. A single kill wasn''t nearly enough to compensate for all that shit, but it was a hella sweet start!


    [I can''t get out.] Yuel concluded. He was injured from the earlier confrontation with Gregory and this was a 1v3 situation. So, yeah, he was dead, alright.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Sorry, dude," Lars apologized. "If I just killed Tai in the air..."


    "That wasn''t your fault," Yuel examined Mid Lane, where Roi should''ve been keeping Howard busy this entire time. Yuel wasn''t paying enough attention to the rest of the map during the 2v2 and that cost him dearly. "Roi, you should have said something about Howard missing."


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    "Sorry, man," Roi said. "I thought he just went to heal and was gonna come back any minute, so I kept pushing."


    [You should''ve at least warned us about the possibility.] Yuel ranted internally. Howard only made it look like he retreated to heal, while in truth he used that time to teleport into the jungle.


    [I''m partially to blame too,] Yuel held his head. [I wasn''t paying enough attention to catch that. When Howard retreated, I should''ve played it safe and asked Roi to rotate over here to help. Dammit.]


    There was no denying it: Yuel got overconfident. Even though the 2v2 against Taison and Gregory started off on the wrong foot, Yuel was too confident that he and Lars will win. After all, their opponents were Taison and Gregory, so there was no need to worry. These two were strong, but Yuel and Lars were better.


    Even with the surprise element of the fight being split into two 1v1s, Yuel was still sure he and Lars will turn it around. He was so eager to get kills and thin out the enemy''s tight defenses that it was all he could think about at the time. Therefore, the idea of calling Roi over for help didn''t even cross his mind.


    It was such an important opportunity, so Yuel shouldn''t have allowed himself to take any risks. Even though he believed the chances of defeating the enemy were high, Yuel should have still asked Roi to rotate for backup just in case... wait.


    [Roi is still in Mid!] It suddenly struck Yuel. "Roi, retreat! They might be coming after you-" Too late. They were already there!


    "Fuuuuuu!" Roi turned around and fled the Golem''s area, but he landed on a bear trap right at the edge of the area. "Damn! Who even places a trap in that kind of place!?" [Damn you, Eleeeeeen!]


    Howard, Taison, and Gregory appeared from Bot Jungle and charged at Roi all at once. Roi was stuck at the Golem''s area thanks to Ellen''s beartrap, so there was no hope of getting out alive...


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Shit!" Roi slammed on the table. He was so close! He almost took down the Mid Golem! That would have been such a big play. It would have redeemed at least half of the garbage plays he has been making this game.


    But no, Roi only made things worse again. He was so focused on the Golem that he didn''t give enough thought to Howard''s movement. The idea of rotating to help in the 2v2 crossed his mind but he wasn''t sure whether he''ll able to contribute much over there. He believed Yuel and Lars would resolve the 2v2 situation themselves, so his rotation would either look like a weak play or might even be a misplay.


    So, instead, Roi focused on a Golem. That was a play where his efforts will surely recognize, so it was the best opportunity to redeem himself. But, instead of doing good, he only made everything a hundred times worse.


    [They got us good with that 2v2 bait.] Yuel frowned. [Two deaths and zero kills. We''ve been had.]


    And, the storm hasn''t even passed yet. Julia was currently pushing the Golem in Top Lane, she was completely isolated from her allies and she was deep in enemy territory. If the enemy gang from Mid come after her, she''ll be a goner too.


    "Julia, retreat," Yuel said.


    "Huh? But, I almost got this. I gonna kick this Golem''s ass!"


    "They may come after you from Mid, just like they did to Roi."


    "Tch, okay," Julia turned around and activated Jet Stream, which generated a flow of wind in front of her. As she passed through the wind, it gave her a boost of movement speed. That allowed her to quickly retreat from the scene.


    The situation has been one disaster after another for Yuel''s team, but at least the worst-case scenario was averted. Lars and Julia were still alive, so there were still ways to maintain the momentum and keep push. Even though the situation has temporarily become a 2v4, the battle wasn''t over yet!

 104 How Momentary Overconfidence Costs Lives

    "Julia is retreating," Ellen announced.


    "Alright," Howard nodded. As expected, it won''t be so easy to score another kill here. A kill on Julia would have turned this into a 4v1, a dreadful situation for the enemy. With late-game''s long respawn times, it would have given Howard''s team more than enough time to turn the tables around. Maybe they could have even taken the Overlord during that time. Oh, well.


    "I''ll push Bot," Howard said. "Tai, return to base to heal, then go replace Ellen in Top. Greg, you''ll defend Mid for a while. I suggest you go back and heal first, just in case."


    "Nah, no need," Gregory dismissed the idea. Like, c''mon, he was the super tanky Vanguard. His 40% HP was like over 9000% HP for anybody else.


    Besides, who gonna get him all the way out here right now? Lars has just recently flown away from a fight barely hanging onto his life, while Julia was currently running away like a pussy. So, Mid was totally open for being pushed hard. At least, as hard as Gregory could possibly push with a tank which had zero damage, kek.


    "Alright," Howard went over the orders one more time. "Tai to Top, Greg in Mid and I''m in Bot. Elly, heal up and join one of us as necessary."


    "No problem, darling~"


    With their game plan decided, the team split across the map and began regaining control across all three lanes.


    [Wait a minute,] Yuel realized something big: the enemy most likely won''t rotate to Top to chase Julia. Ellen was defending Top against Julia, so she surely informed her team about Julia''s retreat.


    There was a tiny chance Howard ordered to chase Julia through the jungle but that was unlikely. Howard''s team wasn''t that kind of aggressive kill-hungry gang. So, what move would Howard actually make here instead of chasing?


    Howard knew Lars had to return to base with such low HP. Also, he knew Julia was in the middle of fleeing. In other words, he knew that all the lanes were completely open right now.


    Optimally, he''d like to assemble his entire team on one lane and push all the way to Yuel''s Colossus. However, their team was too much behind on all lanes because Lars terrorized every lane with his Seraph. So, first, they had to reclaim their footing on the lanes.


    Since nobody from Yuel''s team could possibly defend any of the lanes right now, this was a great opportunity to split across all lanes and reclaim control in all of them. There was also the possibility Howard would go for the Overlord instead if he wanted to be spicy, but he wouldn''t take such a risk during such an important game.


    Therefore, Howard will definitely shoot for reclaiming the lanes. So, how will he assign his teammates across the lanes? There were too many factors to consider, so Yuel couldn''t tell for sure.


    However, there were two specific arrangements which would be great for Yuel''s team: either Gregory or Taison staying in Mid to push. They both had low HP, but there was a chance they won''t return to base to heal and instead will push Mid right away. After all, from their perspective, there weren''t any immediate threats for them to be concerned about.


    If that happens, it''ll be a beautiful weak point to strike. Under normal circumstances, Howard would never allow such an opening in his team''s formation. However, Howard''s defense has been slipping recently. Even though he still pulled impressive defensive plays, the rest of his team was more vulnerable than usual.


    Therefore, there was a possibility Taison or Gregory would become easy targets. At least, it was worth a shot because the play he had in mind didn''t harbor much risk.


    "Julia," Yuel drew a path on the mini-map. "Go toward Mid."


    "Huh? You want me to go back? I thought I''m supposed to retreat."


    "You made it clear to the enemy that you''ll get away so they''re not going to bother with you," Yuel explained. "They don''t consider you a threat right now because they expect you to retreat far away, so they''ll focus on pushing lanes. I think there''s a chance they''ll leave somebody with low health in Mid, so you may have a chance to get a kill there."


    "A kill..." Julia mumbled as her lips curved into a smile. "Okay, I''ll check what''s up."


    "If there''s somebody with full HP there, don''t bother. But, if you see somebody who is low and they''re alone-"


    "I''ll murder them." Julia''s eyes glinted dangerously. She was like a blade begging to be unleashed. If there was an opportunity to score a kill, she''ll seize it without thinking twice. It was a dangerous mentality, but it made her much easier to command compared to the usual defensive Julia who always refused to budge.


    Julia strayed from the lane and cut through the jungle. She arrived at the exit to Mid Lane and scouted the area. It actually happened! It was one of the two best-case scenarios! Gregory was pushing Mid alone and he was at 40% HP.


    According to the vision from allied minions, Taison replaced Ellen in Top while Howard defended Bot. Meanwhile, Ellen most certainly returned to base to heal the injuries she received from Julia.


    In other words, nobody was around to help Gregory. This was a great opportunity to strike!


    "Julia, go gank- ah," Yuel paused because his words were unnecessary.


    "I''ll kill him!" Julia was already on the lane. She didn''t waste any time examining the situation. As soon as she spotted her prey, she charged forth without thinking twice.


    [I''ll get it!] Julia was convinced. Just a brief glance at the map was enough to inform her that nobody was around. She has spent more than enough time reading the mini-map data on her way to Mid.


    As a defensive player who was infamous for covering the entire map with wards, Julia had tons of experience with reading vision information from the mini-map. Whether it was vision from wards or from minions - Julia digested and analyzed everything in an instant. Minions were just like walking wards anyway as far as she was concerned.


    Therefore, Julia''s quick and "reckless" attack was actually perfectly safe. Julia knew that Gregory was completely alone all the way out here, it was almost like he was waiting to be murdered like an idiot!


    "What the-!?" Gregory exclaimed. "Guys, Julia is over here!"


    "My, how aggressive," Ellen smiled. "Don''t even think about fighting her. Run back to base on the double. I''ll get there as soon as I can."


    "Tch, got it," Gregory didn''t appreciate the implication Julia was gonna tear him apart in a fight, but he had to concede here because he only had 40% HP. Julia''s build leaned toward the offense, so even as an Aeromancer, she could dish out some serious damage. Gregory had to scoot.


    [You ain''t getting away!] Julia fired Squall at Gregory. The blast of wind slowed him twice: once due to Squall''s slowdown effect and one more time due to the Chains of Infinity in her build. So, Julia reduced that dumbass to nothing more than a big armored turtle!


    Next, she summoned Whirlwind right in front of Gregory. Normally, it wasn''t a very effective spell for killing because it slowly dealt damage over time and the enemy could easily maneuver around it to dodge most of the ticks. However, with the double slowdown on Gregory and with the Whirlwind blocking his escape route - he couldn''t dodge it so easily.


    [Fuck! I can''t let this shit get any more ticks on me!] Gregory turned aside and ran around the whirlwind while trying to maintain as much distance as possible from Julia.


    [Not good enough, dumbass!] Julia grinned as she channeled her ult: Hurricane. While Gregory was running away at the speed of a disabled snail, Julia finished the long casting animation of Hurricane and unleashed it toward Gregory''s back.


    "Game over, fucker," Julia cackled and turned her back to the scene. Yeah, that''s right. Julia turned around and left, just like that. It was done; Gregory was finished.


    "A-Ah! It''s sucking me in!" Gregory ordered his Vanguard to run as fast as humanly possible, but this fatass mofo didn''t move! The hurricane approached from behind and sucked Gregory in!


    The hurricane pulled Gregory all the way to Julia''s whirlwind, which was still going strong. In other words, he was pulled by one tornado into another tornado! [Yo dawg, I heard you like tornados, so I put a tornado in your tornado. Fuuuuuuuu!]


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Ha!" Julia pumped a fist. "Got that idiot."


    [Yes!] Yuel also felt like pumping. His gamble worked! This proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that Howard''s defense was out of shape at the moment. So, despite the recent loses Yuel''s team suffered, the game was still far from over. Lars and Julia were more than enough to push against Howard''s weakened defense.


    However, as much as Yuel wanted to exploit Howard''s moment of weakness and push hard, he had to play this patiently. Lars and Julia were the only teammates alive right now, so it was important to keep them safe until the others respawn. Above everything, Yuel had to make sure the enemy won''t be able to easily gank either of them. Therefore, it was best to keep them together.


    "Julia," Yuel started. "Push Bot together with Lars." This was the safest offense he could come up with right now.


    In truth, Yuel wanted them to push Mid and take down the Golem which Roi almost destroyed. However, placing the team''s only survivors in Mid will make it too easy for the enemy to gank them from all sides. Taison will have an easy time rotating from Top and Howard will rotate from Bot.


    Therefore, pushing Bot was the safer option. This way, if Taison chooses to rotate, it''ll take him twice the time to get all the way over there from Top.


    [Darn it.] Howard clicked his tongue. That stupid death Gregory suffered was completely Howard''s fault. [What I was thinking? I should''ve ordered Gregory to go back and heal, no ifs or buts.]


    It was like karma. Back during the 2v2 between Yuel & Lars and Taison & Gregory, the main reason Howard successfully snuck into the scene and caught the enemy off-guard was that Yuel was overconfident and didn''t request backup.


    Unfortunately, the success of that play got into Howard''s head, so this time he grew numb to danger. So, he defeated an overconfident foe only to become overconfident himself and get bitten right away. Awesome. Exactly what he needed right now in his life. 10/10.


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    [This is only becoming worse and worse.] Howard had no choice but admit he was getting sloppier and sloppier with every passing moment. After all his recent misplays on the defense, Yuel surely realized that Howard''s defense was no longer the same. In fact, it was possible some of Yuel''s recent plays have been already designed around that knowledge.


    [Shit, we can''t do anything like this.] Howard stomped with his foot. The team only had three members alive and there were three lanes to defend, so each of them had to be assigned to a lane. Howard originally hoped to push at least one of the lanes with two players, but that became impossible now. Darn it all!


    "My, you look troubled." Ellen jabbed.


    "You don''t say," Howard sighed. "I thought we finally had a breakthrough but turns out we''re still stuck on the defensive. There''s nobody in Mid now, so you gotta go there."


    "Do I, really?"


    "Excuse me?" Howard raised an eyebrow.


    "Defending is important and all, but we have to go on the offensive at some point. Think about it, this is still a 3v2. We got the numbers."


    "These numbers don''t help much while Top is attacked by super minions. We got no choice but to keep clearing them."


    "But hey, Mid is safe."


    "You call that ''safe''?"


    "Well, okay. I admit, the Golem over there is in rough shape."


    "More like, it''s half-dead."


    "Yeah, right. But, it''s still standing and stuff," Ellen insisted. "GG did a splendid job clearing the minions over there, so Mid should be fine for a while as long as nobody pushes it."


    "Alright," Howard sighed in defeat. "Suppose you''re not going to defend Mid. Then, what are you suggesting?"


    "Well, let''s stop to think for a moment, shall we? You''re the master of predicting Yuyu''s attacks, so where do you think he''ll strike next?"


    "I don''t remember ever claiming to be a master," Howard shook his head but nonetheless squeezed out what little remained from his brain juice. He couldn''t answer for sure where Yuel will strike next, but he could at least estimate what was the most inviting spot to attack right now.


    Mid will be the enemy''s top priority for sure, but it was risky to gun for it during a 2v3 situation. Howard and Taison will be able to rotate over there in no time and Yuel surely knew that. Therefore, as Ellen said, Mid was actually relatively "safe" at the moment. Its convenient location between Top and Bot indirectly served as protection even when nobody was there to defend it.


    Of course, Yuel may still choose to gun for it despite the risks; there was never telling with that chesskid. However, considering that Yuel has just recently suffered a heavy blow in the 2v2 due to his own negligence, he should be trying to play safer for a while. Hopefully, that one mess up will stick in Yuel''s head for the remainder of the game and will screw his entire gameplan.


    [Oh, right, gotta focus. So, about Yuel''s next attack...] Howard rubbed his eyes. Instead of thinking hard, it was easier to just hope for the enemy to dig their grave. Unfortunately, things won''t just magically solve themselves.


    So, where will Yuel strike? If Mid wasn''t the target, then there was only Top and Bot. This was a tricky one.


    On one hand, Taison''s defense was much weaker than Howard''s and the enemy had super minions in Top, so it was appealing to push Top. On the other hand, the Golem in Bot had low HP and taking it down will make let super minions oppress two lanes at once.


    In addition, Vampire was a marksman type class, so Taison''s wave clearing speed was decent. He has already pushed back one wave of minions, so it''ll take the enemy some effort to push back all the way to the base in Top. On top of that, Howard ordered Taison to stay near base instead of pushing the lane any further, which guaranteed Taison won''t become an isolated target for Yuel to pick off. So, Yuel couldn''t target Top to get an easy kill either.


    [Man, this all sounds so needlessly complicated.] Howard''s thoughts became a salad. [I can usually figure all that basic stuff without even actively thinking about them. Maybe I really need to start jogging or something for extra brain fuel...]


    "Yuel will probably go for Bot," Howard concluded.


    "My, even though you''re the one defending it?"


    "I''ve barely pushed the lane at all and I won''t be able to damage the attackers much, so it''s a great spot to target."


    "Okay, then Larsy and July are coming from Bot''s direction," Ellen smirked. "Then, how about I go greet them?"


    "You want to gank them by yourself?"


    "There''s no way they''ve already organized. Larsy should be leaving base right about now, but July was in Mid a moment ago. I don''t think she''ll head back just to regroup, sooooo..."


    "You want to attack one of them in isolation, huh." Howard wasn''t too sure about that. The risk was high, but the potential reward was high as well. "Who you want to gun for? Julia?"


    "No no no, I can''t handle her in that fire mode," Ellen waved her hand. "I could''ve beaten her if I laid out more tricks during previous matches, but July switched modes way too late. So, don''t expect me to ever beat her in a 1v1 this game. On the other hand, Larsy... Hmhmhm~"


    "You''ve only been luring Lars into traps the whole day," Howard pointed out. "Sure you can handle him?"


    "But of course, darling. That was all part of the plan~" Ellen licked her lips. This was the moment she has been preparing for the entire day.


    In this selection match, Howard and Ellen had to prove their absolute superiority to Yuyu and Larsy. So, just Howard beating Yuyu wasn''t good enough. To make their victory decisive, Ellen also had to pull her weight and teach Larsy a hard lesson~


    "But," Howard started. "Julia will rotate to help him."


    "Then do something to prevent that, darling."


    "Heh, fair enough," Howard chuckled. "I''ll take the fight to her."


    "Alrighty, then we''re set," Ellen mounted her wolf and rode toward the jungle. Riding on the cute wolfie boosted her movement speed a lot, so it''ll be easy for her to get all the way to Lars before he regroups with July.


    Meanwhile, Howard advanced toward the jungle to intercept Julia ahead of time. His job was to keep Julia occupied while Ellen handled Lars.


    This was an unusually aggressive move for Howard''s team, but they had to shoot for it. Passively waiting for the enemy to stumble wasn''t good enough at this point, not when Howard''s defense was this sloppy. The only way to win was by taking the fight to the enemy and beating them at their own game of aggression!

 105 Bait Twis

    "Yo!" Lars shouted. "Athena is here!"


    "Ah," Julia exclaimed. "And Howard came over here."


    [What?] Yuel looked back and forth between the two sides of the map. Ellen cut through the jungle to intercept Lars near the beginning of Bot Lane, whereas Howard abandoned the Golem''s area to engage Julia at the end of Bot Jungle.


    [Is that supposed to be a defensive tactic?] Yuel couldn''t wrap his head around it. This looked nothing like Howard''s typical plays. The intention here was clearly to stop Lars and Julia from regrouping, which made some sense from the defenders'' perspective. Dealing with two aggressive DPS enemies in one place was often harder than stalling each of them separately.


    But, was the goal behind this play just to stall Lars and Julia? Or, could it be enemy were aiming for a kill here?


    If this play was Howard''s idea, then it''s unlikely this play was intended for scoring kills. However, if Ellen came up with this play, it could have twenty ulterior motives packed into it.


    [Okay, what do I do here?] Yuel frowned. Should he let Lars and Julia engage in 1v1s? Or, should they regroup and then fight in a 2v2? No, that''d be suicide. The team play between Howard and Ellen was frightening. Making Lars and Julia 2v2 the enemy''s aces was risky beyond measure. However, at the same time, holding two 1v1s wasn''t exactly appealing either...


    "Okay!" Lars shouted. "This time, I''mma finish this!" He charged at Ellen without thinking twice, as expected from that goof. Where there was a battle to fight, Lars would fight it no matter what.


    "Wait, don''t be reckless," Yuel warned. "Something is afoot."


    "Hmph," Julia scoffed. "No shit, Sherlock. They totally timed this stuff." Unlike Lars, Julia understood this wasn''t a normal situation. And yet, just like Lars, she attacked her opponent without wasting any time.


    [They''re both like hungry beasts.] Yuel smiled meaningfully. When Julia entered her Attack Mode, it''s she channeled Lars''s playstyle. She wasn''t quite as strong and overwhelming as Lars, but she had unexpected explosive strength which has been proving effective so far.


    Therefore, with Julia joining the offense, Yuel felt like he was carrying two shotguns this game instead of just one. If he just fires them at the right targets, he''ll completely destroy what little remained from Howard''s flimsy defense!


    However, he couldn''t handle the shotguns careless. To make the right call, he first had to understand the enemy''s intentions for this peculiar play. Even though separating Lars and Julia made some sense from the defenders'' perspective, the Yuel wasn''t convinced this was just a defensive stunt.


    If the enemy''s goal was to defend, a 2v2 should work in Howard and Ellen''s favor because they had a high level of team-play which they''ve been polishing for years. Compared to them, this was Lars''s first time playing alongside Julia''s Attack Mode, so their synergy won''t be nearly as effective. Therefore, the enemy''s play didn''t make much sense for defense.


    So, was it an offensive play? Was the goal to kill Lars or Julia? That didn''t seem likely either. Howard didn''t have the damage to take Julia down. In fact, given Julia''s performance so far, she might even kill Howard instead in a 1v1.


    Similarly, Ellen won''t be able to kill Lars under fair conditions. They''ve both just returned from their bases and had full HP, so Ellen didn''t have any advantages over Lars. In fact, Lars had a big advantage because he was Seraph, the notorious late-game Hyper Carry. Ranger was more of a mid-game class, so its strength didn''t peak nearly as high as Seraph during the late-game.


    On top of that, there was no threat of Taison teleporting to aid in any of these fights. Based on the last time he used Teleport, it should still be on cooldown for about a minute. Therefore, Ellen couldn''t even bait Lars into fighting Taison like she has been doing the entire day.


    [No, wait. I''m being too optimistic again.] Yuel shook his head. His analysis seemed airtight, but he felt the exact same way about his previous analysis regarding the 2v2 situation with Gregory and Taison. And, how did that one turn out? It was a disaster. Yuel was too greedy and underestimated his opponents.


    The late-game was the worst stage in the game to commit mistakes. Even the smallest slip-up could turn the entire game around. Therefore, Yuel absolutely couldn''t make the wrong call here. Any mistake that''d result in Lars''s death might decide the entire game on the spot.


    [Think. What are they planning here? What are they expecting us to do?] No matter how hard Yuel thought, he couldn''t get to the bottom of that play. It was the first time he saw such a puzzling play from Howard''s team today, so he had no references to work with. This late-game surprise felt like something Ellen would pull. Dammit.


    "Geh! C''mon!" Lars fired a laser beam. A beautiful hit! "Okay! Got her this time!"


    While Yuel was locked in analysis paralysis, the battle between Lars and Ellen was in full swing. As expected, Lars dominated the fight like every other time.


    This could be huge. If Lars scores a kill here, they''ll get the luxury to push hard for a while. It was a great chance!


    Therefore, distracting Lars with a retreat order seemed foolish right now. Yuel had no evidence of any immediate threats, so there was no justified reason to retreat.


    Nevertheless, this situation reeked of danger. At the very least, Yuel wanted to set up a safety net.


    "Julia," Yuel said. "Go help Lars."


    "Huh? I''m not done with this dumbass over here," Julia fired one wind blast after another at Howard. After she unleashed her Whirlwind and Squall, Howard was already down to 50% HP. Julia was dominating this 1v1.


    Alas, as much as Yuel wished for this situation to convert into a kill, he knew that killing Howard will be tough, And, in the first place, killing the Support wasn''t exactly the greatest achievement. Therefore, keeping Lars alive and killing Ellen were much higher priorities.


    "We have to make sure Lars doesn''t die," Yuel insisted. "I don''t know what they''re planning with this play, but I''m sure their plan isn''t suicide. I need you to keep Lars alive."


    "Okay, got it." Julia stopped her aggression and turned her back to Howard. However, just as she was about to head deeper into the jungle, an ice wall blocked her path. "Shit! That dumbass...!"


    Julia turned around again and shot a wind blast at Howard. "Doesn''t look like this bastard gonna let me go that easy. So, I''mma kick his ass first!"


    "Just make sure you head toward Lars once the path opens."


    "I heard you the first time," Julia said as she shot Howard again. Despite what her words, her actions implied she was 100% focused on beating Howard right now. Yuel will have to observe her carefully and remind her to rotate again once the ice wall melts. It was his first time playing a real match with "Attack Mode" Julia, so he had to handle her with caution.


    Meanwhile, the clash between Lars and Ellen was approaching a turning point.


    [Okay!] Lars landed another shot. That made it six hits so one more shot and Six Wings will activate. Then, he''ll wreck Ellen for sure! It was time to defeat the fake goddess of victory once and for all!


    Throughout the entire day, Ellen has never faced Lars for real. She always poked him from afar or baited him into 1v1s against Taison. So, there was no doubt she''ll pull something this fight too. After all, Athena just ain''t strong enough to beat him in a fair fight.


    Whatever was coming, it gonna happen any moment now because Lars has already gained a huge life lead over her. He was at 60% HP while Ellen was at 30%. He was totally owning her, yo!


    This time, there won''t be any baits. Only Howard and Taison were alive to help Ellen but, according to Yuel, their Teleports were down. So, there won''t be any surprise gank shenanigans. Lars and Ellen gonna duke this out all the way to the end, fair and square! ... yeah, right.


    [Geh, like I thought.] Lars made a face when Ellen turned her back to him. Yet again, she gonna try to escape. Every. Single. Time. Dang it!


    However, this time, Lars will chase her all the way! To the end of the world! He won''t let her slip away! He gonna get this kill and prove he has surpassed this fake goddess of victory!


    After spending an entire year in the club, Lars has grown a lot. He was no longer the same scrub who got completely outplayed by Ellen''s tricks during the entrance exam. Now, he now had more than enough strength to overpower her no matter what crap she pulled. It''s payback time, yo!


    [Should I stop him?] Yuel frowned. The fight between Lars and Ellen progressed too quickly for Julia to get there on time. It has already reached the most critical part: the moment when Ellen retreats. This always followed by some unexpected trap.


    But, what could Ellen possibly do in this situation? Taison should still be pushing Top like before. He wasn''t visible on the mini-map at the moment because he just finished clearing a wave, but that''s not a big concern. Even if Taison starts running now, he won''t make it in time to do anything at Bot Jungle.


    Likewise, Howard was too far. He seemed more interested in stalling Julia than in rotating to support Ellen. Then, what was the trap? What was Ellen''s trick this time around? The fox''s intentions eluded Yuel.


    "Julia," Yuel called. "The ice wall is about to melt, so start rotating."


    "Huh? Ah, sure," Julia finished firing two more shots, then activated Jet Stream and dashed through the wind trail into the- FREEZE!


    "Wha-!?" Julia jumped. "You freakin'' degenerate! Leave me alone already!"


    Howard was faster. He blinked after Julia and froze her in place with Ice Coffin. While she was stuck in place, he maneuvered around her and blocked her route with his body.


    "So, that''s how it gonna be, huh." Julia''s face twitched. [You''re saying I gotta beat the shit outta ya to reach Lars, huh? Fine by me!]


    As soon as Julia broke out of the ice, she launched another assault at Howard. She gonna get a kill here and then help Lars! This stupid damn idiot won''t stop her!


    [Damn.] Yuel clicked his tongue. [Howard got everything covered as always. I should''ve told Julia to go for a different path instead of insisting on the shortest. Now, it''s too late to go around. Her only option is to break through Howard.]


    At the same time, Lars was closing on Ellen. Since she used her Wolf Companion earlier to drive all the way to enemy territory from base, the skill was on cooldown and she didn''t have any escape tools at her disposal. She only had her base movement speed and her trickery to rely on.


    Or, so Lars thought. Just as he was about to get Ellen within his firing range, she sped up like a freaking'' Sonic! She gained a huge boost of speed from Sprint, her second utility skill. At such a late point in the game, it was common for everybody to have two utility skills and Sprint was a pretty good second choice.


    Unfortunately, Lars didn''t have the luxury to get himself Sprint. Seraph''s early-game was too weak and Yuel forced him to play safe, so his farming suffered as a result. Lars just got enough gold to buy Sprint, but he couldn''t return to base right now. So, he didn''t have any utility skills to quickly close the distance.


    But, he didn''t need any either. He''ll just use the Seraph''s chasing tool: Angelic Leap! He fired into the sky and took aim while in mid-air. Whish! A clean hit from the sky!


    It was the seventh hit, so it caused Six Wings to activate. Now, Lars was in a great position to bombard Ellen to death!


    [My, how infuriating...!] Ellen flinched after a laser beam pierced her back. [You must be kidding me. How can a human being land that kind of shot so quickly from mid-air at this distance? Oh, right. Larsy isn''t a human, he''s a beastie.]


    This was rough. With that Angelic Leap play, Lars closed the distance and made Ellen''s Sprint look useless. She began her retreat right before Lars got all the way to Six Wings, but now it was in full bloom and it was coming after her! In just about two hits, she''ll be a goner.


    [Larsy has really grown strong.] Ellen had to admit. The potential that beastie showed during the entrance exam was no sham. Unlike a certain trash-tier former member of the club, Lars was the real deal. He was a beast through and through.


    He was rough around the edges during the entrance exam, but he brushed up his skill a lot since then. At this point, Ellen couldn''t figure a way to beat him in a straightforward 1v1. The simple mind games, that messed with Lars during the entrance exam, were no longer effective.


    [But, even so,] Ellen smiled confidently. [You will lose here.]


    Whish! Another a quick shot at Ellen''s back!


    [Geh! So close!] Lars twisted his lips. Ellen turned aside in the last second. It''s like she had eyes on her back and saw the shot. But still, Ellen was totally within range. Lars gonna seal the deal with the next two shots!


    He landed on the ground and darted forward while firing another shot. Whish! A hit! That''s it! Just one more! He gonna win- SNAP. It was the metallic sound of something shutting down.


    "Oh, crap..." Lars knew exactly what it was: a bear trap. He just stepped on one shortly after landing.


    "No way, dude..." Lars smacked his forehead. All his attention was on Ellen''s back, so he didn''t see anything underneath his feet. He didn''t buy Cleanse because he prioritized finishing his build first, so there was no way to get out of this stun. Nooooooooooo! Ellen gonna get away... [Huh? She''s turning back!?]


    Instead of fleeing, Ellen turned around and ran back toward Lars!


    "N-No way!" Lars blinked. That was a first today. Ellen never turned around and fought back like this. Every single time, she ran away to bait Lars into a fight with somebody else. This was crazy, yo! Crap, this might actually be bad news!


    [What a good little beastie you are~] Ellen smiled. This was such a delightful moment. Her numerous retreats and baits throughout the day were all building up for this one surprise attack~


    Since Ellen always avoided battle, it created the impression she didn''t have it in her to confront Lars in a 1v1. No matter how cautious the enemy was, eventually they began seeing Ellen as an inferior fighter to Lars. So, no way she''d ever kill him in a fair fight, right?


    But, they simply forgot: Ellen wasn''t some Bronze player with zero combat skills. No, she was the gorgeous goddess of victory who turned every situation in her favor! This grand finale play was also a bait but it was a bait by Ellen for Ellen herself! A one-man bait play! 1000 IQ!


    "The hunt is on!" The Ranger shouted as Ellen activated her ult and fired without further ado. Each of her bolts hit like a truck thanks to the power buff from her ult. It was time to punish a bad, bad beastie~ She''ll tear him apart piece by piece until he regrets ever underestimating her!


    "C-Crap..." Lars clenched his jaw. Gah, this sucked! He almost got her but, in that last second, she pulled an insane switcheroo. Lars was stronger than her this match and he has been beating her the entire day, and yet...!


    The plan was to catch up to Ellen and kill her, then carry the team to victory. Lars was the Carry and Ellen was his greatest nemesis, so it was his job to settle all of this. But, he blew it. He fucked up everything.


    Yuel always said that a Carry dying in late-game was one of the worst things that could ever happen to a team. And, it was ten times worse when the Carry died while the enemy Carry was still alive. So, the enemy team might win the entire match if Lars dies here.


    [Why? Am I really a worse player than her?] Lars couldn''t help but wonder. Why!? He poured hours upon hours into practice and matches, so he should have gotten way better! Way better1 He should have been able to kick Ellen''s butt by now!


    [You can''t win,] Ellen smiled from ear to ear as she skewered Lars with bolts. [It''s because you''re a beastie like that. As long as you keep chasing me like I''m a tasty snack, you''ll keep falling for my traps. Opponents like you are the most fun to mess around with~]


    [But, I ain''t gonna lose!] Lars shook his head. [Since it came to this, I''mma at least take ya down with me! You won''t have this game! Me and Yuel gonna win this thing and play at the nationals!]


    Lars readied his aim and waited for the stun to run out. As soon as it does, he''ll snipe Ellen and take her down! Even if it gonna result in a double KO, Lars had to do it. He won''t hand this game to Ellen! If he dies, Ellen will have to die too!


    The gauge for the stun''s duration was running out. Beartrap had a hella long stun compared to most skills, but even its stun only lasted a couple of seconds. So, the shackles binding him were about to shatter and then he''ll deliver the decisive blow- gah!? Ellen sent her wolf at him!


    "Shit!" Lars jumped from his chair. This couldn''t be real! She already got Wolf Companion again!? No. No. NO! [S-Stop! You can''t do that shit! N-No way...]


    Before the stun ended, the wolf leaped on Lars and pushed him to the ground. It was a classic Ranger play that chained one stun into another.


    [I-It''s useless. I... I can''t do anything...] Lars slid back into his chair. His entire body was limp. It felt like the stun CC jumped outta his monitor and struck him in real life too. He couldn''t even budge.


    It was over. Lars lost. All the small victories he has gotten against Ellen until now were completely pointless. In just one play, Ellen stole the win for this entire match. She was truly Athena, the goddess of bullshit victories. Even after all his training, Lars still couldn''t defeat her...


    [Goodnight~] Ellen delivered the final blow at the immobile beastie.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    [We won.] Ellen licked her lips. Until the enemies respawn and regroup, Ellen will have all the time in the world to push to her heart''s content. She''ll push so hard that all the advantage the enemy had until now will poof out of existence. They''ll win this match and Ellen will get her sweet, sweet reward~


    [It''s my fault.] Yuel''s lips trembled. [I should''ve ordered Lars to retreat. It was an obvious trap. I knew it. We all knew it. And yet...!] He slammed on the table. Stupid. Stupid. Stupid! He was so stupid!


    [Is this the end?] Yuel''s hands trembled. Because of this one mistake, they were about to lose all the momentum they''ve built. Without a Carry to terrorize the enemy''s lanes, they couldn''t push this game to victory. Until the team respawns and regroups, Ellen might push this game all the way to victory.


    "Sorry," Lars mumbled with a lowered head. "If only I beat her..."


    "It''s okay," Yuel said. [It''s my fault for not forcing you to retreat. This is supposed to be my job as the shot-caller. What good is a shot-caller for if he can''t make the right calls!?]


    This was most certainly the end. Without Lars to carry the team forward, they couldn''t seal this game. Howard and Ellen will slowly but surely strangle them to death. Without anybody alive to threaten the enemy with, Yuel''s team was done for...


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    "Ellen, you bitch!" A roar thundered across the room. "I''mma destroy you!"


    "Ah, right," Yuel gasped. Julia was still alive! In this game, she transformed into a wild card with offensive capabilities on par with Lars''s.


    [There''s still a chance.] Yuel smacked his own face to kill his negative thoughts. [Not yet. If I lead Julia properly, we can still win this. This isn''t over!]


    With Lars out of the picture for now, the responsibility of carrying the team fell upon Julia''s shoulders. Yuel will have to formulate the winning game plan with this wild card as the center. It''ll be difficult, but not impossible.


    It was too early to give up. With how strongly Julia has been playing this game, Yuel will find a way to break through this predicament and make Julia carry the team to victory!

 106 Hyper Rotation

    While Ellen was baiting Lars to his death, Howard stalled Julia by blocking her path. However, it wasn''t nearly as easy as he expected.


    [Julia sure packs a punch.] Howard glanced at his 30% HP. Maybe it''s in part because he was exhausted, but he couldn''t give Julia an even fight. The girl overwhelmed him big time. Even considering the fact Howard was on the defensive and his main goal was to stall instead of winning the 1v1, this was still a surprising development.


    For a player who was infamous for her overly defensive playstyle, Julia''s fierce offense was overwhelming. Was this the result of Ellen and Julia training together? They have engineered some aggressive monster, alright.


    "I gotta let her go," Howard informed Ellen. "She''ll kill me at this rate... and you''re not even listening." He sighed. Ellen was concentrated on landing shots on Lars while her wolf was pinning him down.


    [This should be good enough.] Howard nodded to himself and snuck away from the fight. Ellen was about to finish her job, so there was no need to worry about Julia anymore.


    "Huh!" Julia exclaimed. "You think I gonna let you run away, you-"


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "... ah." Julia paused. That message delivered terrible news: Lars died. How? Why? Wasn''t he winning against Ellen? Goddammit!


    Julia should''ve taken Yuel''s warning more seriously and dashed to help Lars right away. But, instead, she wasted a crapton of time on fighting Howard and didn''t even get a kill. She was a complete and utter failure. But, she won''t let it end like this!


    "Ellen, you bitch!" Julia thundered. "I''mma destroy you!" She cast Whirlwind behind her and sprinted into the jungle.


    Thanks to Aeromancer''s passive, Wind Flow, casting a spell gave her a boost of movement speed. She would have liked to cast Jet Stream for even more speed but, unfortunately, it was on cooldown right now. Still, she should be able to catch Ellen before that fox vanishes from the crime scene.


    "Wait," Yuel said. "You should chase Howard instead. You may still get a kill on him. You won''t reach Ellen on time."


    "Shut up, I know what I''m doing." Julia dashed onward without heeding Yuel''s words.


    [And I thought this situation can''t get any worse.] Yuel sighed. He underestimated the "wild" part of Julia being a "wild card". She was a strong and promising candidate for carrying the team in Lars''s absence, but Yuel couldn''t control her. This was a problem.


    [Great, so we won''t get a single kill from this entire play.] Yuel sighed. It''s true that killing Ellen would be ten times more beneficial than killing Howard because Ellen was the Carry, but there was no chance Julia will get to Ellen in time.


    "Phew," Howard breathed in relief after escaping to safety. Thankfully, Julia didn''t catch up to him. Despite his solid defense, that berserker girl almost murdered him in that 1v1. If she insisted to chase him all the way, there was no telling whether he would have gotten away.


    [Why didn''t she chase, though?] Howard knotted his brows. Ever since Julia turned on her berserker switch, she always chased down her prey and did everything in her power to get a kill. Yet, this blood-thirsty berserker chose to not chase Howard this time.


    Why? Was there something that interested her more? Another target, perhaps?


    [Wait, did Elly ever get my message?] Howard checked Ellen''s position. Not good! Ellen hasn''t recalled to base yet!


    Ellen was so absorbed in the fight against Lars that she didn''t hear Howard''s warning about Julia. So, after killing Lars, Ellen carelessly headed toward a nearby Hyena Camp in order to heal up via lifesteal.


    "Elly!" Howard called out. "Julia didn''t chase me, so she may be coming after you. Recall to base. Now."


    "Eh!? Really!?" Ellen jumped like it''s the first time Howard dropped this news. "My, I was sure you had her under control."


    "That girl is crazy, I can''t hold her down on my own." [Especially, not when I''m this tired.]


    "Heehee," Ellen puffed her chest. "Isn''t my dear July amazing? I told you she had the potential to become a great player."


    "I''m pretty sure you only pushed so hard for her to be accepted into the club because you wanted another girl in the club, but alright."


    "My, zero trust in my judgment skills. Hmph." Ellen pouted but her lips curved into a smile. It was a good thing that Julia was leaving such a strong impression on everybody. The girl started this match on the wrong foot because she couldn''t bring out her offense, but now she was totally rocking it.


    So far, the only time Julia looked a tiny bit bad on the offense was when Ellen got a kill on her. It was an unfortunate development but Ellen had no choice, she had to do it for victory. Ellen felt a little bad for exploiting Julia''s weakness back then, but there was no need to worry because Julia''s performance remained strong and she even overwhelmed Howard in a 1v1. The girl was on a roll and even Howard was mildly impressed. Who knew, Julia might even get a spot on the first string at this rate~


    [Well then, I better recall.] Ellen nodded to herself. It felt like it was a waste because she could quickly recover a lot of HP via lifestealing from jungle camps and then push a lane right away, but it was better to be safe than sorry. Ellen activated Recall, which formed a magical circle under her feet. In just a couple of seconds, she''ll be back to safety.


    "My, she''s really after me," Ellen smiled when a ward revealed Julia sprinting through the jungle. Instead of chasing Howard for a good chance to get a kill, Julia chose to go after Ellen.


    [Revenge for Larsy? How cute~] Ellen smiled. It was a cute motivation, but Julia won''t make it. The girl was too far away and Ellen''s recalling was halfway done.


    [I''ll murder her.] Julia cut through the jungle without slowing down. She had a good idea of Ellen''s position thanks to the vision from wards, so there was no need to play hide-and-seek. Julia dashed directly toward Ellen!


    [I knew you''ll try healing up from jungle camps instead of recalling right away.] Julia smirked. She has played more than enough games with Ellen to notice how greedy that fox was with HP recovery. When the situation looked safe, Ellen always preferred to heal up via lifestealing off jungle camps instead of recalling to base.


    In addition, Ellen had a bad habit of celebrating her victories. Even though she was one of the strongest defensive players in the club, she often lowered her guard a while patting herself on the back for a scheme that was well executed.


    When they played together in Ranked, there were a few occasions when these two bad habits played against Ellen and led to her death. Therefore, Julia insisted to strike right here and now. Perhaps she wasn''t as sharp as Yuel when it came to exploiting weaknesses, but she sure knew how to do it right against Ellen. So, she''ll get this kill for sure!


    Ellen has been helping Julia a lot throughout the year, going as far as holding special training to invoke Julia''s dormant aggressive side. Julia wouldn''t have improved even half as much if it wasn''t for Ellen always dragging her into that kind of unsightly practice. Therefore, exploiting Ellen''s weakness like that based on what Julia has learned from the time they''ve spent together felt a little low.


    Nevertheless, there won''t be any mercy. Ellen was on the opposite team and she was Lars''s murderer. Therefore, Julia gonna get this kill no matter what!


    [She won''t make it in time.] Yuel shook his head. In theory, it should be borderline possible for an Aeromancer to cross that big distance and deliver a blow in time. However, he wasn''t even sure what was the correct sequence of plays to make that happen. There wasn''t nearly enough time to analyze the situation and make the correct judgment, so...


    "Elly, DIEEEEEEEE!" Julia blinked through a jungle wall. It was a huge shortcut that got Ellen into her sights but she was still too far away! Neither her basic attacks nor Squall would be able to reach Ellen from here. Meanwhile, Ellen''s recall was almost done. It was hopeless, and yet...


    "Eat this!" Julia pressed on without hesitation. She activated Jet Stream and generated a trail of wind up ahead. Then, she fired Squall through the flowing wind. The gust of wind darted into the jet stream and gained a huge speed boost. And, with higher speed, it also gained increased reach!


    "N-No way!'' Ellen flinched as the gust of wind was running at her like an excited puppy. [I-It may actually reach!]


    Should she try dodging it? No, that''s suicide. Dodging meant interrupting her Recall, which meant she''ll stay in the area after that. Ellen had less than 20% HP, so there was very little chance she''ll be able to slip away from Julia. She was stuck between a rock and a hard place.


    [I''ll just gamble on July''s shot missing.] Ellen gulped. [C''mon, it''s her first time using her aggressive playstyle in a real match with the others, so she can''t possibly be at full strength-]


    BAM! The wind blast slammed into Ellen and erased her HP bar.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Heh," Ellen produced a dry laugh as she dropped back on her chair. That was amazing. Nothing else to say here. Ellen really trained that girl well. [Too well], in fact.


    "Yes!" Julia pumped a fist. "Get freakin'' dead, haha!"


    "You really did it..." Yuel didn''t even know what to say. He had a feeling an Aeromancer could pull it off, but he wasn''t even sure what sequence of plays was required for that. Yet, Julia executed that amazing play without a moment''s hesitation. It was Blink into Jet Stream into Squall. A simple but genius sequence of plays that required unwavering confidence in one''s skills.


    "Amazing..." Lars mumbled as he slowly raised his head. He was sure they''ve already lost the entire game because of his stupid death, but Julia was still going strong. Killing Ellen reset the situation because now neither team had a Carry, so both teams'' push potentials were about the same. It was a sick turnabout, yo!


    "July! You''re awesome!" Lars exclaimed.


    "E-Eh? Ah, yeah, I..." Julia shifted her eyes away and her intense attitude died out. No matter how aggressive or kill-hungry she was during her "Attack Mode", she still had the usual soft spot for Lars.


    "We can still win this!" Lars shouted. "You gotta attack! You''re the only one we got left!"


    "Hold your horses," Yuel said. "I agree that we have to keep pushing, but we need to do it carefully. This is still a 1v2 situation."


    "Oh, right." Lars piped down. Yeah, they shouldn''t be reckless here. It''s thanks to Lars''s recklessness that they got into this sticky situation in the first place. If only he didn''t chase Ellen back then, the team would still be in the lead right now. Even though he knew there had to be some kind of trap, he still chose to chase and almost blew the entire game.


    Thankfully, Julia''s kill reset the situation and gave the team another chance. The game wasn''t lost yet! They''ll win this momentum and go to nations, yo!


    "See?" Julia lifted her chin in Yuel''s face. "I can totally get kills when I want to."


    "Yeah, you did great." Yuel had nothing to criticize this once. That play was beyond his expectations and it single-handedly saved the team from disaster. It was a magnificent play, which was on par with the miraculous shenanigans that Lars often pulled off. Julia really did a good job.


    "Hmph, so you finally admit I''m a great player. About damn time."


    "Heh," Yuel chuckled. The girl was getting ahead of herself and he really wanted to jab at her, but it''s better to not ruin this positive atmosphere. He''ll let Julia have her moment of glory.


    More importantly, Yuel had to decide on the team''s next move. Or, most specifically, he had to decide on Julia''s next move because she was the only one alive. She alone was the entire team at the moment.


    Should she push one of the lanes? Taison was last seen pushing Top, so pushing Top Lane was out of the question. On the other hand, Mid and Bot weren''t much better either because Howard will likely rotate to defend them in response. Howard most likely returned to base after the fight with Julia and restored his HP to full by now, so Julia won''t be able to break through his defense all by herself.


    With all of that considered, pushing any of the lanes would be a bad idea during this 1v2 situation. However, Julia was relatively healthy at around 80% HP, so it felt like a waste to tell her to recover at the base. Decisions, decisions.


    "Since you''re already in the area," Yuel said. "Clear the Ogre Camp first. After Dan respawns, group up with him to push Bot.


    "Got it," Julia responded. Despite her gung-ho behavior, she was more cooperative than ever. As long as Julia proceeds carefully, the outcome of this match still favored Yuel''s team with all the lane advantage they had.


    Julia''s Whirlwind came out of cooldown just as she reached the Ogre Camp, so she cast it on the three ogres and the tornado knocked them out in a couple of seconds. Her reward for that work was the red power buff. This was the first step in preparing for her next big attack.


    "Hmm," Yuel pondered. "It feels like a waste, but I think you better recall to base and wait for Dan to respawn."


    "I guess," Julia shrugged. She itched to go out there and blast some idiots with her power buff. Alas, she was alone right now so the odds weren''t in her favor.


    Thus, Julia cast Recall and formed a magical circle around her. Three, two, one and-


    "Here comes Taaaaaaaison!"


    "Wha!?" Julia jumped. A bat rammed its ugly face into her and interrupted the recalling! What the hell!?


    [Where did he...!?] Yuel flinched. That shouldn''t have happened. Taison was supposed to stay in Top and push, or at most rotate to Mid and defend. He shouldn''t have been all the way down here in Bot Jungle!


    "You made it," Howard smiled weakly. "Good job."


    "Heh," Taison grinned. "The party is just getting started, yo!"


    [Alright, this turned out perfectly.] Howard nodded to himself. He originally asked Taison to rotate to Bot Jungle in case something goes wrong with the Ellen vs. Lars fight. As convinced as Ellen was about her tactic, there was no telling what could happen when Lars was involved.


    Admittedly, Howard made that call a bit too late. As a result, Taison arrived in Bot Jungle only now. So, even if Lars were to kill Ellen, Taison most likely wouldn''t have gotten there on time to clean up. That delay almost turned Taison''s entire rotation into one huge misplay.


    However, one thing led to another and Julia became the new attractive target in Bot Jungle. How nice of her to stay in the area long enough for Taison to get there. From almost becoming a terrible misplay, Taison''s rotation suddenly transformed into an amazing opportunity!


    If Taison can get a kill on Julia here, it''ll put Howard''s team ahead by two players. It might very well decide the entire game right there! No matter how competent Julia was in her Attack Mode, there''s no way she''ll be able to stand up to Taison, the king of 1v1s. The outcome of this 1v1 might very well decide the entire match and the odds were in Taison''s favor!


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 107 Julia vs. Taison

    "I''mma get this kill! Ez," Taison proclaimed. "We gonna win this shit right here and now, yo!"


    "Just don''t underestimate Julia," Howard advised. "She''s surprisingly strong when she''s on the offense."


    "Pft, yeah, right," Taison shrugged. "Ya think some chick gonna take me down? I''m da best at 1v1s around here, bro, Ain''t nobody gonna stop me!" Taison fired Hungering Horde. A pack of bats darted straight at Julia!


    "Shit!" Julia cursed. [Why is this even happening!? I gotta dodg- Shit!] The bats struck her before she finished processing the situation. The ugly flying mice covered her screen and continuously bit away at her.


    Shit. Shit. SHIT! Why was this crap happening!? She was a split second away from recalling to base and then this stupid shit happened.


    "You have to retreat!" Yuel commanded. "You can''t beat him in a 1v1."


    "Geh, damn it!" Julia turned around and dashed, but her movements were so damn slow because of these stupid bats. To make things worse, the bats covered most of her screen, so she had no idea where the flipping heck she was even going.


    [I gotta get outta here!] Julia''s heart raced but for all the wrong reasons. She has been on the offensive for so long this game that she couldn''t forget the thrill. As a result, even in this dangerous situation, she was thinking about all the wrong things. [Goddammit, I so wanna turn around and beat the crap outta that dumbass!]


    It was no good. Julia couldn''t cool down. She tried to dodge shots while running away, but it wasn''t going well. Half of the problem was her slowed down movement and the other half was her mental state. She wired her brain for offense and couldn''t switch gears to defense so quickly. Unlike Gilbert, she couldn''t pull a 180 on the spot.


    [Can I really get away like this?] Julia''s heartbeat hammered all the way in her brain.


    ATTACK.


    KILL.


    TEAR THAT DUMBASS APART.


    Every part of her wished to turn around and give that dumbass a run for his money. Even though she knew Taison was possibly stronger than Lars in 1v1, Julia wanted to kill that idiot. Rather, BECAUSE that dumbass killed Lars so many times today - Julia wanted revenge! She wanted to destroy scumbag!


    Not good. She couldn''t stop these thoughts from overflowing her. Attacking and killing enemies was just too much fun. It was the first time she allowed herself to go wild during a real match and nobody criticized her. In fact, Lars even praised her!


    And, she really pulled some pretty damn good plays, if she could say so herself. In other words, Julia has been on a roll today. It was awesome!


    [Like, seriously, killing is the hypest part of this game.] Julia smiled wryly. Just imagining how she''d crush her opponents was so delicious.


    Back when Julia first started Classmancers, she died. Like, a lot. She chased kills into enemy territory, she overextended while pushing towers, she didn''t protect herself from ganks and that list just went on. And, of course, everybody laughed their asses off whenever she died. Sometimes, they even got angry with her.


    "Khaha! You''re so bad at this shit!"


    "You need to buy life insurance to keep playing this game, kek."


    These bastards told their terrible jokes as they pointed at Julia and laughed. Worst of all, they did it in front of Lars! Gaaah! It was the most embarrassing thing ever! They turned her into a laughingstock in front of the boy she loved!


    Therefore, Julia decided: she won''t die. She''ll learn how to fortify her defense and minimize her chances of dying. She gave up on chasing kills, she stopped pushing objectives early, she retreated faster from dangerous fights and she warded the entire jungle against ganks. No matter what, she refused to die.


    Thanks to that, she stopped dying all the time and nobody laughed at her anymore. However, instead, they hit her with new complaints.


    "Some help would be appreciated, ya know?"


    "Don''t run away like a pussy! Keep pushing!"


    This criticism wasn''t fun to hear either but at least Julia was no longer the laughingstock. She traded all her offense in exchange for defense, but at least her defense was solid and consistent. Though, once Yuel started coaching her, she realized how god awful she has been playing back then. Truth to be told, she deserved some of the shit people were giving her.


    But, Julia learned all sorts of stuff from Yuel and, eventually, her defense truly became solid. She was prepared to deflect any attack that came flying at her and she developed a sixth sense for when it was safe to punish enemies. If an enemy overextended too blatantly, Julia destroyed that dumbass.


    Her playstyle was coming together pretty well in her opinion. However, deep down, she never forgot about the deaths that drove her to come this far. The same way her enemies murdered her time and again, Julia wanted to unleash the same terror on her opponents.


    She wanted to make them quiver in fear from her strength and then execute them like a bunch of helpless fools! She wanted to turn them into the same laughingstock she was in the past. Why was she the only one who had to practice defense so hard like she was some scaredy-cat? She others to go through that shit too.


    At some point, these repressed feelings gave birth to the other extreme inside her: the hyper-aggressive kill-hungry playstyle. Once in a while, when Julia was willing to throw her defense out of the window to assault her opponents, she invoked something scary. She became a rampaging warrior who tore everything in her path.


    The first time she realized that potential was during StormBlitz''s entrance exam. After Ellen pushed her buttons, Julia stopped giving a fuck and went all out. Surprisingly, she put on quite the spectacle. Her defense was shabby and she died a few times, but she compensated for that by scoring loads of kills. At that moment, she became the terrifying monster she was fearing all this time! It was awesome!


    Honestly, Julia was sure she''ll die all over the place once she goes on the offense, so her performance during the entrance exam surprised her. She only played defense with the boys during the summer leading to the exam, yet somehow her offense became hella impressive too. She improved all across the board as a player so, apparently, that contributed toward her offense as well.


    Well, maybe the nosy idiot deserved some credit for this. Even though Yuel knew that Julia''s playstyle was defensive, he insisted to work on Julia''s offense as well. He was willing to become her target practice just to make sure she was motivated to shoot stuff.


    So, even though her offensive playstyle lacked match experience at the time, she trained more than enough against Yuel in private. She entered her hyper-aggressive mode numerous times during the practice and completely wrecked that idiot. As annoying as it was to admit, Julia truly owned Yuel a lot for all that training.


    And, she also owned to Ellen. That nosy girl pulled Julia into Ranked and made Julia play lots and lots of games with her aggressive playstyle. Ellen even pulled Yuel into the business so they could simulate playing as a team. It wasn''t as good as playing with a full premade team but it was close. All that experience made Julia more comfortable playing offense and she felt like she was getting really good.


    Unfortunately, nothing could cure her bad habit of cursing and raising her voice while playing aggressively. Therefore, she was always embarrassed to show this playstyle in front of others, especially in front of Lars.


    However, in this critical game, she finally opened Pandora''s Box and unleashed her offense in all its glory. And, it was well-received! Lars even praised her! It was still pretty damn embarrassing to curse like that in front of Lars, but she finally took the first step!


    Truly, this third game has been so much fun! Julia set up one kill on Gilbert, she killed Gregory twice and she even pulled off a clutch kill on the ever-elusive Ellen. She was unstoppable!


    And yet, Taison was thinking he was some hot stuff by attacking her. Even though in her head she understood this 1v1 was terribly dangerous, her heart ached for it. She wanted to attack, she wanted to repay that bastard for all the bullshit he gave to her in grade school and to make a laughing stock outta him! It was her turn to laugh at that dumbass!


    Julia stopped and turned around. She won''t be able to simply escape outta here alive. Therefore, she gonna fight this one out. Right now, offense was the best defense!


    "Wha!?" Yuel gasped. "What are you doing? You have to retreat-"


    "Shut up!" Julia fired a gust of wind at Taison. The stupid bats finally left her screen, so she could now see everything now. It was time to murder an idiot!


    "Khaha, what the heck?" Taison chuckled. "Chick went crazy! She thinks she can actually take on da best 1v1 pro in the world?"


    Taison fired back right away but... he missed? Dafuq!?


    [Damn, what the hell!?] Taison flinched as another wind blast hit him. He countered back right away, but Julia sidestepped the shot while firing another blast at him. W-What the hell was going on!?


    [I can do it!] Julia felt it in her bones. She was unstoppable! No matter how amazing that bastard was in 1v1s, she gonna tear him apart and mop the floor with his stupid face! She''ll murder his ass!


    Due to the hits Julia received during her short-lived attempt to escape, her HP fell from 85% to 70%. However, Taison didn''t come here unscratched either. That idiot probably tanked some super minions back at Top Lane, so he started this gank at 80%. And now, after they''ve exchanged a few blows, Taison was already below 70% while Julia remained unscratched.


    She could do it. With the power buff Julia has recently picked up, she had a DPS advantage. She just gotta keep pushing and she''ll crush that bug!


    "D-Damn!" Taison grit his teeth as he failed to dodge another shot. [What the hell!? Am I really being pushed around by July? I ain''t having that shit!]


    Taison fired another bat. Hell yeah, this one gonna be good! It gonna hit for sure- Shit! The bat flew right at Julia, then took a dive into the ground right before reaching her. The small dude couldn''t reach all the way to the target.


    Meanwhile, Julia had no trouble landing a counter shot at Taison. Damn, it was that stupid wind! It blocked off Taison''s attack, yo!


    Julia cast Jet Stream between them and the wind was blowing in Taison''s direction. As a result, the bats he fired at Julia were slowed down and dropped earlier than they should have.


    On the other hand, Julia''s shots only became faster as they passed through the stream. They crashed into Taison like a Major Leaguer''s fastball. It was bullshit, yo!


    [She may actually do it.] Yuel was astonished at this development. Even though Taison should be stronger in 1v1s, Julia held the initiative right now. Her unexpected offense made her look more powerful than she actually was.


    In truth, Julia wasn''t as mechanically skilled as Lars or Taison. However, her unwavering explosive offense made her look unstoppable. On top of that, she had the surprise element on her side. Taison didn''t expect her to turn around and fight, and he definitely didn''t expect the infamous hyper-defensive player to be this strong in combat.


    Taison was shook, it was obvious from his sluggish movements. Under these circumstances, Julia might very well...!


    [Shit! Shit!] Taison cursed internally. This damn Jet Stream put him in an awkward position. The wind stream was wide enough to cover the narrow passage leading to Julia, so the only way across was to run right through that shit. But, doing so would slow down Taison''s movement speed and attack speed, so he''ll become an even easier target.


    [You think you''re all that, huh!? Watch this shit!] Taison activated his ult to transform into a bat. He flew above the Jet Stream and dove right toward Julia. He gonna take this into close quarters and tear her apart! There''s no way he gonna lose in a 1v1 to some chick who only ever played defense like a pussy! He was the true champion here, yoooooo!


    "Haha! Dumbass!" Julia grinned. [Wanna bite me? Be my guest! Get destroyed by your own ult! Haha!]


    Julia saw the incoming attack but she didn''t dodge. Instead, she waited until the oversized bat reached her and cast Whirlwind around herself.


    "Gah!?" Taison jumped. He bumped into Julia and transformed back into his vampire form, which stunned her in place and allowed him to suck her blood. That should''ve been a great development for him, but Julia somehow turned this situation into the worst shit ever.


    Even though Taison was holding Julia in place and slowly sucking her HP, the whirlwind around him was fucking shit up! It dealt damage faster than Taison could absorb HP from Julia. Shit! It was one bullshit after another with this chick!


    Taison canceled the ult and rolled the hell outta there. He was totally screwed at this point. Not only he dropped all the way to 40% HP, but the ticks of damage from Whirlwind also slowed him down. He was now moving in slow motion, dang it!


    "You wanted a fight? You got yourself a fight, shithead!" Julia''s grinned. "Come! I''mma kick your ass into another dimension! You''re dead! DEAD!"


    [F-Fuck! This can''t be happening!] Taison instinctively stepped backward as he fired at Julia. H-He couldn''t do this shit. Bitch was crazy, yo! It shouldn''t have been impossible for Taison to lose here, and yet...!


    "Use your coffin."


    "Ah? Oh! Right! Better pull that thing while I got the chance!" Taison activated Coffin Slumber. The Vampire pulled a coffin outta thin air and locked himself inside it. He gonna be safe for the next couple of shots like this. Phew.


    "Calm down," Howard said. "You''re too agitated by Julia''s attacks. I told you, she''s surprisingly strong. Just accept that fact and treat her as a worthy opponent."


    "R-Right!" Taison nodded strongly. Yeah, what the heck was he doing? He totally let Julia take control over this 1v1.


    Taison was supposed to be the king of 1v1s, he was the topdog! Sure, Julia wasn''t too shabby herself, he had to give her a little credit. Nevertheless, she had nothing on Taison! He gonna mop the floor with her once he comes outta the coffin!


    [Alright.] Howard nodded. Once Taison regains his vigor, he should be able to put on a decent fight. Unfortunately, Taison''s shock cost him a lot of HP this fight. Escaping wasn''t an option with his reduced movement speed so this might head in a bad direction...


    "Oh?" Julia sneered as her wind blast hit the coffin. "You''re hiding? Come out here and get wrecked!" She unleashed one basic attack after another, then stopped to cast her ult - Hurricane. While Taison was hiding inside his precious coffin like a scaredy-cat, Julia had all the time in the world to cast this slow-ass ultimate.


    "Shit!" Taison noticed what was about to go down and popped outta the coffin ahead of time. He gotta blitz the heck outta here, yo!


    He rolled toward the nearby corner. It''ll take the hurricane some time to catch up with him, so he''ll just dodge it by going around the corner. The hurricane only traveled in a straight line, so it won''t be able to follow him if he runs in a different direction.


    "You ain''t getting away!" Julia blinked across the wall to get Taison into view again! Casting Hurricane took quite a while but the caster was allowed maneuver around to some degree, like slowly move around or blink. Taking advantage of that, Julia caught up with her prey and unleashed the hurricane!


    "What the-!?" Taison thought he dodged that shit after he got all the way here, but somehow the hurricane was coming straight at him! This ain''t good, yo!


    Taison tried to do a 180 and run back to where he came from but he was too late. The hurricane caught up to him and sucked him in. Normally, he should''ve have gotten away from this distance. But, the slowdowns from Julia''s recent attacks were still in effect so he couldn''t move as he pleased.


    [Shit, this gonna hurt...] Taison braced himself for impact. He fell down to 40% HP while Julia was still sitting at 70%.


    Damn, this was hella embarrassing. How was Taison losing to that chick? He was the 1v1 world champion so he ain''t gonna let it end like this! There was no chance of escaping from here alive, so nobody will complain if he goes all out against that chick.


    [You coming at me now?] Julia shook her head. [What an idiot.]


    At this point, Julia had a such a big life lead that the battle was as good as settled. If Taison wanted to get out of this alive, he should start running like a wuss.


    "Whatever," Julia sneered. "If it''s a fight you want, then it''ll a fight you''ll get! I''ll destroy you!"


    Julia fired a wind blast right in Taison''s face! ... at least, that was the plan. Taison somehow sidestepped the blow and countered right away.


    "W-Wha!?" Julia flinched when a bat rammed into her. [Huh, I see you still got some fighting in you. Okay, bring it on! I''ll murder you!]


    "I ain''t done yet, yo!" Taison sidestepped the next shot too, but this time it grazed him just enough to hit. Damn, these slowdowns were real brutal.


    But, nothing will stop him from moping that floor with that chick. Bam! He countered right away with a bat right into Julia''s face.


    "Geh, die already!" Julia fired again. Her shot landed but Taison counterattacked right away.


    This sucked. A back and forth of basic attacks was learning hard in Taison''s favor because he was a bruiser. His basics dealt decent damage and he was tanky to boot. Compared to that, as a mage, Julia''s basic attacks were rather weak and she was squishy as heck.


    Her damage had to come from spells but most of them were on cooldown right now. Squall has just come online again but Julia couldn''t just shoot it. She only had one chance to land it before it goes on cooldown again, so she had to make sure she''ll land that hit.


    [C''mon,] Julia glared at the screen. [Waste your roll already so I can safely bomb you afterward.]


    [Yo, July,] Taiso wore a nervous grin. [Shoot yo wind spell already so I can dodge it with a roll.]


    Each side waited for the other to make the first move. Julia needed Taison to waste his Dodge Roll on something trivial before firing Squall. That''d increase her chances of successfully landing it afterward.


    However, Taison knew her Squall was probably online. He wasn''t keen on the idea of eating that heavy damage and getting slowed down again, so he waited with his Dodge Roll to dodge that shit.


    As a result, the back and forth of basic attacks continued. Julia had a huge life lead before but this ongoing exchange reduced it to almost nothing. She was at 40% HP while Taison was at 30%. At this rate, he gonna get her!


    "S-Shit," Shivers ran across Julia''s skin. If she doesn''t do something, she''ll die. Death was the most embarrassing type of failure in this game. It was the dumbest stuff ever.


    But, that wasn''t all. This was one fight she wasn''t allowed to lose no matter what. If Taison kills her, the entire game will go to hell from there. The enemy will have the advantage of two living players, which will let them do whatever the heck they want. They will be able to push any lane, to take Overlord or employ any other winning strategy they fancied. They''ll straight up win the entire match!


    And, that''ll all be Julia''s fault. Even worse, it was already her fault they were in this position in the first place. If she just played better from the early-game, they would have penetrated Mid Lane way sooner.


    Hell, maybe if she played even half this aggressive in the previous game, they would have already won the entire match right there and then. So, her underperformance led the team to the current situation.


    Julia''s chances of getting into the first string were already dead, she understood that much. But, Lars and Yuel could still make it. All they had to do was win this one stupid game and they''ll get the starter spots they deserved.


    These two deserved to play on a competitive level more than anybody else, Julia knew that better than anybody. Therefore, she won''t be able to face them if they lose this golden opportunity because of her. She had to make them win today no matter what!


    [C''mon, think!] Julia gritted her teeth as another bat crashed into her. This fight of basic attacks was no good. Taison had way too much advantage over her. Maintaining this routine was a sure-fire way to get killed.


    So, there was no choice. Julia couldn''t wait any longer for Taison to burn his Dodge Roll. She had to go all-in and unleash her Squall.


    But, how could she guarantee her Squall would land while Taison still had access to Dodge Roll? Even though that guy was an idiot, he sure knew how to roll. He''d dodge Squall without breaking a sweat if Julia makes it too easy for him.


    Wasn''t there any trick for these situations? Something that''d help Julia land a shot despite Dodge Roll being a thing? Actually, there was one method!


    It was a technique Ellen used from time to time but for a different purpose: poking. One of the things everybody hated the most about fighting Ellen was her "terribly precise timing." She was an expert at finding the absolute best moment to poke somebody without giving them a chance to respond.


    Since they have been playing together so much, Ellen taught Julia the general idea behind it. On paper, it was quite simple: Ellen just fired her shot at the same time her target started firing their shot. As a result, the opponent was locked in their firing animation while Ellen''s shot was already on its way to them. There was literally nothing they could do but get hit.


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    Julia didn''t practice it too much, but she has seen it numerous times in action and understood the gist of it. Taison''s attack animation wasn''t absurdly fast like that of a proper Carry, so it didn''t have instantaneous recovery. If Julia can just fire Squall at the exact moment Taison begins an attack - it should a guaranteed hit!


    But, there was no chance Julia would be able to pull this off for free during such a heated fight. She would have to pay for it with her HP. It was necessary for her bait out a shot which will be easy for her to read, even if it meant taking the hit in the process.


    If it were Ellen, she''d probably be able to analyze the "rhythm" of Taison''s shots and deliver a shot at the best timing possible without putting herself at risk. Alas, Julia was no Ellen, so she couldn''t pull off such a stunt. Instead, she''ll have to bait and gamble.


    [Khaha, what''s wrong? Giving up?] Taison sneered at Julia''s frozen stance. Chick must have figured she was screwed, so she just wanted to get this over with. [Okay, I''mma put ya out of your misery! Here goes!]


    [Should be about now...!] Julia took a deep breath and cast Squall. Oh god, it might be a bit too early! Taison hasn''t started the animation for the shot yet!


    [What the-!?] Taison noticed the spiral of wind gathering in Julia''s hand. [Bitch gonna shoot that freakin'' wind spell, yo!]


    Taison had to cancel his shot and roll aside, but it was too late! He already pressed the left button and fired a bat. He was stuck in the attack animation, so there was no way to dodge the incoming spell! Fuuuuuu! He let his guard down like a damn scrub!


    "Yes! Get fucked!" Julia shouted. Her Squall landed perfectly and deleted 20% of Taison''s HP!


    But, that wasn''t all. The hit also applied two slowdown effects. One due to Squall''s slowdown effect and one thanks to the Chains of Infinity in Julia''s build.


    Furthermore, Aeromancer''s passive, Wind Flow, granted Julia a small speed boost after casting a spell. With all these advantages, she had everything she needed to press this fight all the way to victory!


    [F-Fuck! No way!] Taison instinctively stepped back. That damn chick was fast as fuck, boy! Or, rather, she looked like Sonic level of fast because Taison moved like a snail in a wheelchair with all these slowdowns. He couldn''t dodge anything like this!


    "Gah! C''mon, out damage her!" Taison ranted at his Vampire. Why couldn''t that mofo shoot faster and stronger? Damn, Taison gonna lose at this rate! No way!


    Taison returned shot for shot, but Julia''s pressure was overwhelming and she regained the HP lead with that wind spell. Yo, this shit was impossible to win...


    6% HP.


    4%.


    2%.


    "Gaaaah!" Taison jumped. The end was nigh!


    "Go, July!" Lars cheered.


    "One more hit," Yuel said. "Finish this."


    "No need to tell me twice!" Julia fired the final wind blast. With this shot, she''ll grasp victory! The team will win!

 108 And the First String Goes To...!

    Taison was at 2% HP. A single basic attack from Julia was enough to seal the deal.


    "Die!" Julia fired the decisive shot. It flew straight at Taison without (flattering). With how slow Taison was right now, hitting him with a basic shot was a no-brainer. She had this in the bag!


    "No fuckin'' way!" Taison jumped aside. [Dodge Roll, bitch!] He still had that ace up his sleeve! "Miss me with that shit, yo!"


    "Just die already!" Julia didn''t let go. Another shot! The next one will seal the deal for sure. No more bullshit. It gonna be ABSOLUTE AND TOTAL DEATH!!!


    "Keh, this is it..." Taison clicked his tongue. He saw the wind blast fly in his direction, but he couldn''t do shit about it. He felt like a racer who was forced to drop out in the middle of the competition even though he could still run. If he just wasn''t slowed down by all this shit, he would have mopped the floor with Julia. [Man, fuck this game.]


    The wind blast flew straight at Taison. There was nothing in its way and it wasn''t going to miss. This fight was decided. That''s what everybody believed during that breath-taking decisive moment.


    WHOOSH. The wind struck against Taison. The shot definitely connect. Yet, no message popped up. The attack dealt zero damage.


    Taison was frozen solid in place. It was Cryo-Freeze, Cryomancer''s ult. Howard emerged from within the jungle''s shadows!


    "W-Wha...!?" Julia''s lips trembled. Just a little more. She was a single step away from winning this entire thing but now...


    "Get out of there!" Yuel ordered.


    "R-Right!" Julia smacked herself on the face. This was no time to mope over her failure. She barely had any HP left and it was impossible to kill Taison anymore, so she had to get away. Retreat! Defend! Now!


    Julia turned around and darted toward the allied side of the jungle. She should be faster than Howard thanks to her speed buff so, from this distance, he shouldn''t be able catch up- an ice wall appeared! It blocked her best escape route!


    [No way...] Julia''s ray of hope was cast into the darkness. If this route is closed, how realistic was it for her to get out of this situation? There was no way...


    "Don''t stop!" Lars shouted. "Try going around!" His voice sounded desperate.


    "R-Right!" Julia turned around and ran toward the nearby corner. I-It wasn''t over yet! It couldn''t end like this! She had to get the heck outta here, or else...!


    "You aren''t getting away." Howard caught up the distance cast Icicle Rain. With Julia fully concerted on fleeing, she had no chance of dodging anything that flew her way. She fought well until this point, but...


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Ah..." Julia opened and closed her mouth. She couldn''t even bring herself to make up an excuse. The reality of the situation still hasn''t sunk in. One moment, she was on a roll and about grasp victory, but the next moment... this.


    [This is my fault.] Yuel bit his lip and hung his head. For a moment, it seemed to him like Julia might win against Taison. As a result, Yuel gave up on trying to make her retreat. He completely neglected to consider the fact Howard was still alive and chose to play along with Julia''s aggressive play. Even though he should have known that Julia wasn''t in the best state of mind to make that kind of judgment, Yuel let her go along with it.


    Back when Julia gained the upper hand for the first time, Yuel should have ordered her to disengage. At that moment in time, before Taison regained his fighting spirit, they could''ve disengaged peacefully. Retreating wasn''t Taison''s cup of tea, but Howard most likely would have enforced it. At the point in time, it didn''t look like the odds were in Taison''s favor at all, so Howard would have gladly bailed out of that risky situation if Julia were to disengage first.


    But no, Yuel didn''t say anything at that point. He allowed this lottery to go on. It was an insanely high-risk gamble, even for him. He effectively gambled the entire game on this fight, with his and Lars''s ticket to the first string at stake. And, he lost the gamble.


    "Gah!" Julia jumped from her chair and dashed toward the door. "I-I''ll be right back!"


    "..." Yuel couldn''t tell for sure because of how fast it happened, but it looked like Julia was tearing up as she left.


    "July..." Lars stretched a hand toward her departing figure but gave up. His hand dropped. The weak smile on his face had "defeat" written all over it. At this point, everybody could tell this was over. The enemy''s next move will most likely be...


    "Let''s take the Overlord," Howard said. "Gil, get a Sentry Ward and rotate there as soon as you respawn."


    Howard and Taison arrived at the Overlord and attacked the giant super boss, with Howard tanking on the front. Gilbert joined them shortly and provided the much-needed DPS for taking down the big enemy.


    Gilbert has been struggling today as a Pyromancer because it required him to play outside his element, but right now Howard was thankful for this pick. Pyromancer delivered high burst damage via spells and also had consistent DPS via basic attacks. The Overlord''s HP plummeted in a blink of an eye.


    "You have to steal the Overlord," Yuel told Dan, the only one who was currently alive on the team.


    Dan revived a little ahead of Gilbert and also headed toward the Overlord, but he couldn''t carelessly aggress on the enemy during their fight with the Overlord. If he attacks, the enemy would simply shift their focus to him and that''ll put him in a nasty 1v2.


    Therefore, Dan had no choice but roam around the Overlord''s area and wait for the right moment. Eventually, Gilbert grouped up with his teammates and the Overlord started going down fast.


    Gilbert also brought a Sentry Ward with him, so he took out Yuel''s Ward in the Overlord''s area. As a result, Dan could no longer tell what was the Overlord''s situation.


    "Man," Dan shook his head. "How am I supposed to know when to jump on the Overlord? I can''t see shit."


    "I suppose we''ll have to guess," Yuel said.


    "Hey now, what''s with that weak answer?" Dan asked. "You sound like you already gave up."


    "No, I just..." Yuel chewed his lips but couldn''t think of anything to say. Honestly, he was already convinced: they lost. Stealing the Overlord in the last moment via last-hitting was a desperate maneuver that rarely worked even on low-levels of play, let alone in a competitive environment. But, that''s all the hope they had left right now.


    "C''mon, dude," Lars said. "We still got a chance. Let''s steal the Overlord and turn this whole thing around." He was saying the usual encouraging words but they lacked a punch.


    No matter how positive Lars tried to act, it''s clear he thought the same way as Yuel: they''ve lost. At the very end, Ellen defeated Lars and Howard outplayed Yuel. It was a complete and utter defeat.


    [But, even so...!] Yuel gritted his teeth and slammed on the table. A shockwave of pain traveled through his palms and woke him up. No matter how difficult it was to steal the Overlord and how unlikely their chances were, it was still an opportunity to turn things around. They... They still had a chance!


    Therefore, Yuel had to do everything in his power to seize it. As the shot-caller, he had to make the right judgment regarding this objective-stealing operation. Dan couldn''t estimate the Overlord''s state from the data so far but Yuel had a rough idea.


    The Overlord was at around 70% HP when the Sentry Ward went down. With Gilbert joining the fight, the Overlord should be falling into a critical condition right about...


    "Now," Yuel said. "Jump it!"


    "Okay, you got it!" Dan leaped across the wall that surrounded the Overlord''s area. He didn''t know the Overlord''s exact location, so he took a safe bet and jumped toward the center, which was the area in which the Overlord originally spawned.


    Alas, Dan landed on nothing but flat ground. The enemy team dragged the Overlord as far away as possible from the center of the camp. Dang it, these guys were prepared!


    "No matter," Yuel said. "It''s still alive, so go for it!"


    "Roger!" Dan dashed toward the Overlord. The giant boss was at his last breath, but he was still kicking. If Dan just sneaks the last hit on him- ah! Dang it!


    [You won''t pass.] Gilbert blocked the path and opened an attack on Dan.


    [Well played, dang it.] Dan smiled wryly. Gilbert shifted from offense to defense at lightning speed. What a guy.


    Dan had no time to waste on fighting Gilbert. He had to break through and reach the Overlord as quickly as possible. Alas, Gilbert did a hella great job blocking him out. In the meantime...


    ¡ºAn enemy defeated the Overlord!¡»


    It was over. Howard, Taison, and Gilbert all gained the powerful Overlord Buff. On top of that, the dead Ellen and Gregory instantly revived. It became a 1v5 situation.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºANNIHILATION¡»


    Now, it became a 0v5. The enemy ran over Dan in a 1v3, pretty much what Yuel expected to happen in case of a failure. This game was through.


    With the Overlord buff and a huge number advantage, the enemy pushed Mid all the way to the Colossus. Yuel respawned right before the enemy destroyed the Colossus, but he was powerless alone. All he could do was shoot from afar because, if he came closer, the enemy would gang on him and rip him apart.


    It was hopeless. There was nothing Yuel''s team could do. Absolutely nothing.


    ¡ºDEFEAT¡»


    It was over. The battle for the first string ended in a devastating defeat. Even after coming this far, Yuel and Lars still couldn''t beat Howard and Ellen. Even with the advantage of first-string players like Roi and Dan on his team, Yuel couldn''t still lead this team to victory.


    He has made numerous mistakes today, especially toward the end. He thought his late-game shot-calling was solid but he was naive. Against an experienced opponent like Howard who specialized in the late-game, Yuel was bound to commit more mistakes Damn...


    "Phew," Howard exhaled in relief. Finally, this darn thing was over. Today''s matches sucked out so much outta him that he felt like he could collapse any moment. Maybe he should really consider working out a little. Maybe.


    "Yay! Wardy, we won!" Ellen jumped on Howard and hugged him.


    "Yeah, yeah," Howard chuckled. Normally, he''d dodge Ellen, but he was just so tired right now. [I''ll let her do whatever she wants for now. She deserves it. Without that last kill she pulled on Lars, I''m not sure how we could''ve won this.]


    "Yeaaaah, boi!" Taison jumped from the chair and pumped a fist. "We did it, yo! Ez game!"


    "Kek, ez you say," Gregory high-fived Taison. "Good game there. I told ya, you should really consider playing Jungler more."


    "Heh, thanks," Taison shrugged. "You kinda sucked as Top tho, khaha!"


    "Ha ha, hilarious." Gregory made a face. It stung because it was true. Despite Gregory''s secret training and all the research he did on Roi, his performance as Solo today was lackluster.


    It was a tough lesson and Gregory will have to figure out what to do from here on out. Should he keep trying to play Solo? Maybe, For now, he was just happy with shutting down Yuel''s chance of getting into the first string. [Eat shit, Yuel! Rot in the second string like the trash you are! Kek.]


    "Good game, everybody," Howard finally pulled himself up from the chair. "This match meant a lot to me, so thanks for coming through. As promised, the pizza is on me. Let''s go, you''re free to order whatever you want."


    "Hell yeah!" Taison pumped a fist. "The shit, yo!"


    "Anybody wants salt on their pizza?" Gregory smirked. "I''m sure we can get some from the other team, kek."


    "My, salt on a pizza?" Ellen covered her mouth. "What kind of fetish is that?"


    Everybody laughed. There was a merry atmosphere in the room as everybody celebrated the victory, except for one teammate.


    "Good job protecting the Overlord against Dan," Howard approached Gilbert. "What''s wrong? You''re awfully quiet. You wanna skip the pizza?"


    "No, I''m totally in. It''s just..." Gilbert made a difficult expression as he flipped through the stats of the last two games.


    "I get it," Howard tapped on Gilbert''s shoulder. "But, let''s leave the match review for later. For now, let''s celebrate that we pulled through this."


    "Yeah, you''re right." Gilbert nodded and stood up.


    [So, he''s concerned about it. That''s good.] Howard nodded to himself. Gilbert''s performance today was lackluster at best, so it was a good thing he wasn''t satisfied with himself. In fact, Howard had some harsh words to say about it as well but now wasn''t the time or place. They''ll review everything in detail at a later date.


    [Man, I''m so done.] Howard tripped and caught himself in the last second. He rubbed his unfocused eyes and leaned against the cold wall. Frankly, he''d gladly drop into a bed right now and take a nap for an hour or five. Well, maybe the pizza will refresh him.


    "Wait for me at the gate," Howard told everybody. "I still need to lock up the classrooms and return the keys."


    "Gotcha!" Taison saluted and darted out of the room. "Pizza, here comes Taison!"


    "Shut up, kek." Gregory chuckled as he followed with a light jog.


    [They still got that much energy? How nice it is to be young.] Howard chuckled. The hell was he even talking about? These brats were just one year younger than him. Was he really that unfit? Nah, that couldn''t be the case because he wasn''t obese or anything. He was exhausted because he had to use much more brain juice than the others, that''s all.


    All the brats left the room with hungry eyes. Only Ellen stayed behind.


    "My, are you alright?" Ellen asked. "You look like a zombie."


    "Just a little tired," Howard sighed.


    "Bad boy, Wardy. That''s what happens when you don''t exercise: you don''t have enough brain juice to last the entire match."


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    "It''s only when I play against Yuel," Howard smiled wryly. Only against Yuel, he felt it was absolutely necessary to put on a 100% flawless defense 24/7. There was never telling where Yuel will strike from because he''d turn even the smallest weakness into a great opportunity.


    "I just need to practice more under these sorts of intense circumstances," Howard said. "Then, I''ll have no problem- whoa!" He tripped and dived toward the floor.


    "My, Wardy is such a klutz~" Ellen jumped forward to catch him.


    "Thanks..." Howard regained his balance but remained crooked. [Ah, it''s so soft. Like a pillow.] He didn''t feel like opening his eyes. His head landed on something soft and he just wanted to fall asleep on it.


    "H-How long are you going to stay like this? Y-You''re kinda heavy, you know. And, um..."


    "Hm? What''s wrong? Oh," Howard finally opened his eyes. No wonder it felt so soft and comfy. His head fall landed on Ellen''s chest! Whoops.


    "Ahem," Ellen cleared her throat, her face was a little red. "So, you remember you promised me a reward, right?"


    "Oh, yeah..." Howard also cleared his throat and straightened his back. [Right, that thing...]


    Weren''t they a little too young for that? Then again, it shouldn''t be a big deal, right? Not to mention, Ellen definitely deserved any reward in the world right now. The team managed to turn the tables around only thanks to her crafty ideas during the late-game.


    "Alright," Howard placed his hands on Ellen''s shoulders.


    "E-Eh?" Ellen jumped like a kitten. "M-My, you''re really going for it? What a Casanova, h-haha." Her face turned redder by the moment. How cute.


    "Thanks for everything," Howard said as he brought his face closer. "I couldn''t have done this without you."


    "M-My, you flatter me." Ellen stiffened like a statue.


    "We won this. Together." Howard placed his lips to hers. It was a brief, sweet moment.


    Meanwhile, in the adjacent room, the atmosphere couldn''t be farther away from feisty.


    "Dude."


    "......"


    "Hey, dude." Lars shook Yuel''s shoulder. "C''mon, everybody left."


    "Ah, oh..." Yuel made some weak sounds as he looked around. Roi and Dan left at some point and Julia never came back. Only Yuel and Lars remained in the classroom.


    "Okay," Yuel pushed himself off the chair and tried to balance himself on his shaky feet. "We need to turn off the PCs..."


    "Already did," Lars gave a thumb up.


    "Oh, thanks..." Yuel wobbled toward the door. "Then, guess we''re done here."


    "Yep," Lars followed quietly. Even though he retained a smile on his face it felt forced. "I''mma go wash my face."


    "Okay, I''ll wait by the stairs." Yuel headed toward the other classroom. And, he ran into the last person he wanted to see right now...


    "All done over there?" Howard asked.


    "Yeah, we turned everything off. You can lock up." Yuel avoided eye contact and tried to quickly pass by.


    "Alright," Howard also proceeded along the hallway. As they crossed by, Howard spoke again. "Your team put on a decent fight. You should lift your head."


    "Decent or not, we lost."


    "That''s true. But, I''m not gonna lie - you gave me a run for my money a few times there. If you played in any other school, I''m sure you would have easily made it into the first-string with your current skill. And Lars too, of course. Sucks that you''re stuck in the same club as me, right? Haha."


    [Yeah, it sure does suck.] Yuel pursed his lips. Everything about this situation sucked. Not just the fact he had to compete for a starter position against such a strong rival, but also that Yuel simply couldn''t win against Howard. Even one whole year after their first meeting, Yuel was still chasing Howard''s shadow. Was it even possible to catch up...?


    With this defeat, Yuel and Lars''s fates were sealed. They''ll be nothing more than benchwarmers for the entirety of the second year. The competitive scene was out of their reach.


    Was that really the end? Wasn''t there anything they could do about this? Yuel asked over and over but couldn''t come up with any answers...

 110 The Aftermath of Defea

    Tad.


    Tad.


    Tad.


    Up and down. The sound of Lars''s basketball jumping up and down was the only thing to fill the silence in the living room.


    Lars was laying on the sofa and threw the ball toward the ceiling, then caught it and threw it again. As usual, he had perfect mastery over- wham! The ball crashed on his face!


    The ball rolled downwards and fell off the sofa but Lars didn''t bother getting it. He just kept staring at the ceiling as if nothing happened. The ball jumped a few more times on the floor and rolled toward Yuel.


    "Here," Yuel picked the ball and tossed it over. Uh-oh. The ball went in a completely different direction roe some reason. 10/10 accuracy.


    WHAM! The ball crashed into a shelf and rocked it. One book slipped off the edge and dove straight toward the floor. Next, a few of its neighbors followed suit and committed suicide as well.


    "I-I aimed there," Yuel jumped from the chair and hurried to clean the mess.


    "Haha..." Lars laughed weakly. "Nothing is going our way today, huh."


    "You can say that again." Yuel stared at the pile of scattered books. The ball kicked them off the high ground and they fell to oblivious, just like Yuel and Lars.


    They lost their chance. After an entire year of training and improving themselves, Yuel and Lars lost against Howard and Ellen. They should have had an advantage thanks to having Roi and Dan on the team, but they still lost. It was a decisive defeat.


    If only Yuel could go back in time and fix the numerous mistakes he made today. His shot-calling was beyond atrocious. It was full of risks and gambles all over the place even when those were completely unnecessary.


    Especially, in the last portion of the third game, Yuel messed up multiple times in a row. First, he allowed Lars to chase Ellen because he couldn''t imagine what sort of bait Ellen had in store. Unfortunately, that''s how Ellen "trained" him to think throughout the match.


    She seeded the expectation that each of her escapes had to lead into a gank from another player because she wasn''t strong enough to handle Lars herself. Yet, at the very end, she subverted that pattern by fighting back on her own. Yuel and Lars''s awareness of Ellen''s repeating trap pattern was a trap in its own right, as expected from that fox.


    That''s strike one. Next, Julia saved the game by killing Ellen but Yuel didn''t order her to retreat right away. Instead, he told Julia to get the red buff first because that''d help the team''s next push. That was greedy and led to a gank from Taison.


    That''s strike two. Lastly, Yuel failed to order Julia to retreat against Taison. He did order a retreat at the beginning but, apparently, Julia wasn''t able to switch from Attack Mode to Defense Mode in that situation. So, her defense was flimsy and she claimed it was better for her to stand her ground and fight back.


    Yuel didn''t have enough match experience with Julia''s Attack Mode, so he chose to trust her judgment. Even now, it was harder to tell whether that decision was a mistake. But, even if it was, Yuel simply didn''t have the necessary data to work with so it wasn''t his fault.


    His real mess up was not telling Julia to retreat after she gained the upper hand against Taison. At that moment in time, it should have been possible to disengage peacefully. The overall state of the game was a 1v2 at the time, so Yuel should have known that things could easily go south at any moment if they don''t proceed carefully.


    Yet, he chose to be greedy and prioritized getting a kill on Taison. The gamble almost paid but not thanks to Yuel. It''s Julia who was amazing. She got Taison down to 2% HP and even fired the decisive shot. For all intents and purposes, she won that 1v1.


    But, then Howard happened. Yet again, the impenetrable defense exhibited its strength. Even though Howard''s shot-calling seemed sluggish during the late-game, his defense was still airtight when he was the one doing the defending.


    In the final decisive moment, right before Julia sealed the deal, Howard turned the entire situation on its head. Yuel should have been wary of this development, but he chose to gamble on Julia''s strength. And... he lost.


    That''s three strikes; shot-caller out. But, that wasn''t the end of it. After going over the game time and again in his head, these were far from the only mistakes Yuel committed.


    There was also that unfortunate 2v2 between Yuel and Lars vs. Taison and Gregory. Yuel was overconfident about beating that duo, so he insisted to keep fighting despite the rocky start. Nothing was stopping Yuel and Lars from disengaging to regroup elsewhere but no, Yuel refused to do so. He saw an opportunity to get kills that''ll crack the enemy''s impenetrable defense, so he leaped on the opportunity like a hungry beast.


    It''s not like Yuel''s estimation was wrong. He and Lars eventually gained the upper hand in that fight and were about to kill Taison. However, then Howard happened. Again. The impenetrable Aegis was everywhere, shutting down every angle of attack.


    Yuel insisted to partake in that drawn-out 2v2 and, as a result, he wound up dead while Lars barely escaped at the cost of his ult. Thinking of it, maybe that''s where the third game''s entire disaster started. After Yuel died in that fight, he was no longer around to keep Lars safe and that''s how Ellen lured Lars into that accursed 1v1.


    It almost felt like the enemy''s goal with that 2v2 was to get at least one kill, no matter whether it was on Yuel or Lars. Of course, Lars was their top priority for obvious reasons, but the enemy seemed satisfied with taking Yuel down. Was that their plan? To get one kill by putting Taison and Gregory''s lives on the line?


    It didn''t sound like something Howard would go for. But, if it were Ellen...


    "Okay..." Yuel finished returning the books to the shelf. Good thing he didn''t break anything valuable with his crappy pass.


    "Here," Yuel dropped the ball on Lars.


    "....." Lars caught the ball by instinct alone. His empty gaze was still directed toward the ceiling. "Say..."


    "Yes?"


    "What we gonna do now?"


    "Is there anything we even CAN do?" Yuel dropped on the sofa chair.


    "C''mon, dude. You''re the one who got the brains here. Ain''t ya got any cool Einstein shenanigans that''ll let us get into the first-string?"


    "What the heck Einstein got to do with any of this?" Yuel chuckled. "Actually, I heard if you can move faster than the speed of light then you can go back in time."


    "Sign me up, yo. I''mma go practice my light speed running right away!" Lars tried to laugh but it came out as a cough instead.


    This was frustrating. Lars hated everything about it. Howard and Ellen were some serious pain in the butt for standing in Lars and Yuel''s paths.


    Thinking of it, this must have been the first time Lars felt this way about his own teammates. Back when he played basketball, it was unthinkable for him to not be on the first string. Everybody regarded him as Michael Jordan Jr. and he always made it into the opening roster.


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    Therefore, this felt so wrong. What did it even mean to be on the bench? Why he couldn''t compete in serious matches? During the first year, he was a scrub compared to the seniors so it was fine to stay on the bench.


    But, this was already his second year. He improved a ton since he joined and gonna improve even more throughout the year, so he was totally ready to face the world, yo!


    But, he couldn''t. Because he lost. Because he and Yuel lost. That one match sealed their fate for the entire year.


    At the back of his head, Lars understood that not everybody could always make it in. Even back in basketball, he had pals who attended the club for years but never made it into the main team. Especially, when it was their last year of grade school, some of these dudes were real mad.


    There was Kevin, who bickered a lot with the basketball coach over the starter position and eventually stopped showing up to practice. On the other hand, there was Derek who poured many hours into training after school. Dude was real diligent and kept working toward a starter position the entire year.


    [I remember Derek looked like he was about to cry when he got the bad news.] Lars jerked. It was so unfair. [I hope he properly got into the main team in middle school. Dude really deserved it.]


    There were many other such instances. Even Taison has been throwing a tantrum quite often, but at least he made it into the first string on the last year so he had nothing to really complain about.


    Each and every one of these players was really talented. Lars knew that first-hand because he played with them every day. But, there were only five spots on the main team while the club had like thirty students. Kevin and Derek simply didn''t cut it and even Taison only got there on his last year. So, they were stuck on the bench throughout the majority of grade school.


    At the time, Lars thought he sympathized with them. What did he tell them, again? Stuff like "Keep trying!" or "You gonna make it next time for sure!"


    Lars thought he understood their frustration, but now he learned - he knew absolutely nothing about how they felt. Somebody like him, who passed all the selection tests with a breeze and spent the entirety of grade school playing on the main team, couldn''t possibly understand how it felt to be left behind.


    This was the first time somebody forced him to sit on the bench like this and for an entire year too. It felt like a truck ran over him. Suddenly, all the encouraging words he gave to Kevin and Derek sounded like total bullshit right now.


    "Keep trying"? "You gonna make it for sure"? It was all bullshit. Yuel and Lars lost the selection match. They won''t get a second chance from Howard. It was game over.


    And, it was all Lars''s fault. Why did he chase Ellen every time? He knew that witch always had something up her sleeve, yet every time a tasty opportunity presented itself - he couldn''t help but charge in. He wanted to get these kill so hard like they were worth millions or something.


    Every time, it led to a disaster. How many times did he run into somebody and got his ass whooped? It''s like he smacked himself in the face, realized that it hurt and then proceeded to smack himself again anyway. What kind of idiot would do that? This idiot right here.


    On top of that, why did he keep losing to Taison in the first place? When the heck did Taison become stronger in 1v1? They have been training together almost the entire year, so they should have gained the same amount of experience.


    Yet, Taison was clearly stronger. Even when Lars was using Trickshooter, Taison almost kicked his butt. What an insane beast.


    Lars should''ve trained harder. He should have been stronger. If he just were a little better in combat, he would have destroyed Taison every single time in 1v1s. That would have smashed all of Ellen''s pesky traps.


    But, Lars couldn''t do it. He lost every single time. Damn it. He wasn''t good enough, so he and Yuel got screwed.


    "I ran into Howard after the match," Yuel smiled wryly. "Even though we lost, he said we were difficult opponents to deal with. He also said that, if you and I played for any other school, we would have been on the first-string for sure."


    "How nice of him."


    "I know, right?" Yuel chuckled. Such what-ifs were pointless. They were part of StormBlitz and they were denied from entering the first string.


    Perhaps Howard intended to encourage by saying these words, but to Yuel they sounded like nothing more than sarcasm. What did it matter that Yuel could become a first-string player on some other unknown middle school team? He wanted to play and compete with the best. StormBlitz wasn''t even as renown as the Leopards, yet Yuel didn''t make the cut even here. He stood way too far from the top of the competition. Dammit.


    "Wait," Lars jumped from the sofa. "Another school? You think we would have made it in another school?"


    "Yeah, most likely. Aside from StormBlitz and the Leopards, I doubt any other team in the region has enough high-level players to form a full team. Based on the level of Bot Laners from last year, I believe we''d rank somewhere among top three duos in the region. So, yes, we''re quite likely to make it into the first string in other schools."


    Yuel''s conviction wasn''t based on arrogance, he had the data. Last year, he helped the first-string with gathering data on enemy teams. He also often participated in the first-string''s strategy meetings. Thus, he had a good idea what other schools in the region had to offer.


    The Leopards were the strongest and most prestige team in the region, no question about it. Their school had a huge Classmancers club which allowed many members and they even had a personal coach. In fact, it was the only middle school in the region with a coach and that coach was no pushover.


    So, it''s no surprise the Leopards have been taking the regionals every year. Their player lineup last year was crazy, especially their captain and Jungler, Fenrir. That monster seized control of the entire match by himself the moment the enemy showed the slightest sign of hesitation.


    All these strong players were seniors last year, so they graduated. However, with such a big club, there was no doubt a new powerful lineup of players will come forth to replace them this year. Therefore, there was no doubt that the Leopards will have some of the strongest Support & Carry duos in the region this year as well.


    Next, the second-best team in the region was actually StormBlitz. Being restricted to a maximum of only 15 club members sounded harsh at first, but turned out it was among the more luxurious deals out there. Most other Classmancer clubs in the region typically allowed up to 12 members.


    There was also Stratus, a team whose club couldn''t have more than nine members. Yes, just nine. It was absurd.


    In short, StormBlitz and Leopards had the number advantage and will likely boast the strongest lineups this year as well, including the strongest Bot Laners. As frustrating as it was to admit, Yuel and Lars were still inferior to Howard and Ellen at the moment, if only by a little bit.


    But, the good news was that Howard and Ellen will surely be among the top players in the region this year. So, being a little below them meant that Yuel and Lars would have also ranked among the best. Most likely, among the top three or top five Bot duos in the region.


    Therefore, just like Howard said, Yuel and Lars assuredly would have made it into the first-string in any other school. Worst case, even if they somehow failed to claim their main roles, Yuel was also strong in Top and Lars was great in Mid. So, they would have gotten at least SOMETHING. There was no doubt they would''ve competed in the tournament along with the strongest players the region had to offer and would have made a name for themselves.


    Alas, their defeat in today''s selection match guaranteed that nobody will know Yuel and Lars next year. They''ll spend the entire next year as nameless benchwarmers who won''t get to participate in a single match.


    Worst of all, Yuel had nobody but himself to blame. He was the one who insisted to attend Riverstock Junior High because he heard good things about StormBlitz. But, he failed to account for the fierce competition he and Lars would have to face in a strong club. So, maybe attending a school with a weaker team would have been better...


    "Then," Lars jumped restlessly in place. "Why don''t we try it? Let''s play on a different team!"


    "Huh?" Yuel blinked. "And how do you suggest we do that? We''re students of Riverstock and only one team is allowed to represent the school."


    "My dude, you ever heard of transferring schools? I reckon that''s a thing, haha."


    "Transfer..." Yuel mumbled. This idea was so sudden and so unconventional that it required time to process "You''re suggesting to leave our current school to go play elsewhere?"


    "Yep, why not? It''s a bummer we''ll have to leave our dudes behind, but I wanna play competitively together with ya. We gonna rock the pro scene together, yo!"


    "You rather play on a weaker team just to be in the tournament?" Yuel asked. "It''d be like we''re running away from the challenge, running away from facing Howard and Ellen."


    "C''mon, don''t say it like that," Lars smiled wryly. "I like competition, I really do. As much as I hate Ellen, I also really love her. She''s a great rival! A super mega ultra annoying one, but a good one. She forces me to improve and everything."


    "Howard is the same for me," Yuel admitted. Normally, he''d rather choke than say this out loud, but indeed Howard was a great rival for him.


    Aegis was the ultimate form of defense. It canceled all of Yuel''s offensive tactics. By clashing with Howard time and again, Yuel improved tremendously.


    Deep down, Yuel wanted to keep challenging Howard. He wanted to keep chasing Howard''s shadow, to catch up to it and to finally surpass by it. One day, Yuel will surely find a way to break through that impenetrable defense. As long as he keeps trying, he''ll find a way.


    "So, if we both feel the same way," Yuel said. "You should understand what I''m saying. Leaving the club just because we can''t beat them right now is like running away from the fight."


    "Nah, it''s backwards," Lars said. "I wanna keep improving so I can beat Ellen and take the Carry spot on the team. But, that''s no longer possible."


    "Right, because we lost the selection match..."


    "Yeah, exactly," Lars nodded. "Howard said it clearly: if they win, they gonna be on the first-string while we gonna rot on the bench. There''s no competition anymore. No matter what we do, we can''t get into the first-string this year. We''re screwed."


    "Well, we can try challenging them again later down the line," Yuel was fully aware he was talking nonsense. There was no way Howard would go back on his word.


    The only way to change Howard''s mind was to defeat him thoroughly on a rematch. However, unless Yuel and Lars come across a magical artifact that grants them a miraculous power-up, there was no way they''ll be able to create the necessary skill gap. They might surpass Howard and Ellen during the upcoming year, but they won''t be able to get a level where they can mop the floor with Howard and Ellen.


    "That''s what I''m saying, dude," Lars nodded repeatedly while Yuel was sharing his thoughts. "We''re screwed at this point. No matter how hard we try to beat them, we ain''t getting to play. If we gonna lose before even trying, what''s the point? Dunno about you, but I know I won''t be motivated to train hard like this."


    "You make a good point," Yuel said. "Losing to rivals is supposed to motivate you to improve. But, when you know you can''t get anywhere no matter how much you improve... yeah. That makes it hard to keep caring about the rivalry."


    "Totally," Lars nodded. "Besides, this year is our last chance to beat them. They gonna graduate after that, so we gonna have to wait till high school if we wanna fight them again. So, we gotta beat them this year! I figured if we transfer schools, we can actually play them in the tournament and stuff. It gonna be the best stage for a rematch, yo!"


    "You''re right about that," Yuel lowered his head. "But, transferring schools because of this sounds a little extreme."


    "Hm? What''s the problem with it? Wait, don''t tell me you''re actually fine with sitting on the bench next year? You don''t care if you don''t get to play competitively?"


    "Of course not," Yuel shook his head. "I also want to play competitively, but..."


    It wasn''t that simple. True, it was technically possible to transfer to another school and try to get into the first-string there. However, this was a huge and sudden move.


    First, his mom will kill him if he tells her he wants to transfer. He already begged her last year to let him attend Riverstock even though she wanted him to attend another school. So, asking her to transfer again was a bit too much.


    "Don''t worry, yo," Lars thumped on his chest. "I''mma talk to yo mom and convince her!"


    "Please don''t." They both laughed at the image. Yuel''s mom was a serious woman who didn''t exactly appreciate goofs like Lars, so that would be the disaster of the century. Yuel would have to talk with her himself, no two ways about it. That''d be one hell of a challenge.


    But, even Yuel convinces his mom, there was another issue: he was StormBlitz''s vice-captain. He had responsibilities on his shoulder and he was expected to lead the team after Howard graduates. Abandoning the team like that was really irresponsible. Honestly, it was kind of a dick move.


    "I get what you''re saying," Lars nodded. "But, you know, ya don''t own anything to anybody. You don''t even have any freshmen under you yet. You literally became the vice-cap before summer break, and school year hasn''t started yet, so it''s like you haven''t even gotten around to be being a vice-cap at all."


    "Well, that''s not exactly true, but..." It wasn''t entirely wrong either. Yuel has been preparing for the upcoming year together with Howard and even improved the formula of StormBlitz''s entrance exam. He has been working for a while now under the assumption he''ll be the team''s vice-captain next year and Howard had expectations for him.


    However, it''s also true that Yuel didn''t have that many responsibilities as a vice-captain yet. There weren''t any younger members for him to lead, so it''s not like leaving the team would hurt anybody. Well, except for Howard who''ll have to find a new vice-captain to dump the work on.


    Honestly? Yuel didn''t feel as bad as he should''ve about that part. Howard was mature enough to handle that kind of problem. Perhaps that didn''t make the act of abandoning the vice-captain responsibilities look any better, but at least it won''t be a disaster for the team.


    Yuel started feeling a little better about the idea of transferring schools but it was still a huge risk. In StormBlitz, Yuel and Lars were pretty much guaranteed to become first-string members during their last year. However, in a new school, they''ll have to go through the process of applying to the Classmancers club all over again and there was a chance they won''t make it for some random reason. So, instead of losing just one year of competitive play, they might lose TWO years!


    "Yeah, that''d suck," Lars nodded. "But, didn''t ya say we''re like da best duo in the region and stuff?"


    "[Among] the best, yes."


    "Then, we gonna get in for sure! Ain''t nobody gonna stop us, yo!"


    "I wish I knew where you draw your baseless conclusions from," Yuel sighed. "Do you even understand the risk? We may be stuck as benchwarmers for the [entirety] of middle school."


    "Yeah, that''ll suck alright. Welp, maybe we can just transfer back if things don''t work out? The ultimate switcheroo!"


    "That''ll be hella awkward. I''m sure Howard would make us retake the entrance exam just to spite."


    "Haha, no kidding," Lars chuckled. "But hey, we''ll blast through it again without a problem!"


    "That''s true," Yuel nodded. There was no telling what everybody''s reaction would be if Yuel and Lars transfer away and then transfer back, but at least it was a safety net that existed for them. Though, Yuel''s mom would eat him alive if he pulls that kind of stun...


    "Okay," Yuel concluded. "That''s definitely an idea we can try. Howard said he''ll hold a meeting tomorrow to announce the starters, so let''s wait and see what he has to say first. I''m sure we''re not going to make it in, but let''s be sure about it before we make any rash decisions."


    "Meh, to be honest, I don''t think I even wanna go." Lars twisted his lips. "It gonna be sad to stand there and wait till our names are called. Because it never gonna happen."


    "Yeah, I know what you mean. But, I''m still the vice-captain for now, so I have to be present."


    "You do what ya gotta do. I''m gonna talk to my folks about the transfer in the meantime."


    "I see you''re really pumped up for it."


    "You bet I am!" Lars pumped a fist. "It''s our last chance to play like pros and get revenge on Ellen in a serious match! Heck, maybe I even gonna get a chance to pay Taison back if he plays."


    "That''s unlikely, but you''re right about the rest. If we join a team and keep winning, we''ll eventually face Howard and Ellen again." Yuel clenched his fists. Despite his uncertainty, his heart raced. This transfer idea was sounding better and better by the moment! Yuel and Lars will transfer to another school, get into the first string and have their revenge match against Howard! And, this time, they''ll win!


    "Oh," Lars paused. "What about July, though? We better tell her about this. Maybe she''ll want to join us."


    "Did you hear anything from her after the match?"


    "Nope, total radio silence. Guess she''s depressed because we lost."


    "Yeah, she took it pretty hard," Yuel nodded.


    Julia vanished right after the match and hasn''t contacted them since. Lars tried calling her but there was no response. It''s like the girl went into hiding.


    "Maybe she''ll be at the meeting tomorrow," Yuel said. "Unlike us, she still got a chance to get into the first string."


    "Yeah," Lars agreed. "July played like a beast in the last parts of the game."


    "If I run into her, I''ll talk to her about the school transfer idea."


    "Then, maybe I should come too after all." Lars pondered.


    "Actually, it might make things more awkward for her."


    "How come?"


    "Well..." How should Yuel explain it to this ignorant goof without spilling the beans? The person Julia wanted to see the least right now was definitely Lars. More than anything, Julia must have been devastated by the fact she failed to get Lars into the first-string. She might be thinking her defeat in the last part of the game was the reason the team lost, so it''s like she was responsible for ruining Lars''s chances of playing competitively.


    "Let''s just say," Yuel chose his words carefully. "If she sees both of us there, she may feel uncomfortable being there. She seems to blame herself for our defeat."


    "But, it''s not her fault at all. She played solid."


    "I know," Yuel nodded. In fact, the team put on such a strong fight during the third game largely thanks to Julia''s offense. Roi and Dan weren''t performing well that game, so Julia''s Attack Mode gave the team the edge they needed to pressure the enemy. If not for Julia''s bold offense, there was no telling whether Yuel could figure a way to gain the upper hand and maintain an advantage for so long.


    "Welp, guess I''ll skip the meeting after all," Lars shrugged. "If July comes, make sure to tell her it wasn''t her fault."


    "Of course."


    Tomorrow, Howard will announce first-string''s lineup. Who''ll make it in? Neither Yuel nor Lars, that''s for sure...

 111 The Unexpected Announcemen

    It was the second day after the fateful selection match. Howard called everybody to the clubroom to announce who was going to play on the first string and who''ll be a benchwarmer for the entire upcoming year.


    In the end, Lars decided to sit this one out. He mulled over it for some time yesterday, but ultimately decided he didn''t want to attend this meeting. It was a bit bratty of him, but Yuel understood the feeling all too well. Honestly, Yuel didn''t want to go either.


    The verdict was already set in stone for both of them. They lost the bet against Howard and Ellen, so they won''t get the Support and Carry roles. Coming all the way to the clubroom just to get struck with that fact was like some sort of masochism.


    Was there any chance they''ll be assigned for some other roles? With Lars''s mechanical skill, he could easily become a scary Mid Laner. However, his lack of experience was a glaring issue.


    As for Yuel, there was no way he''d be valued over Roi as a Top Laner. So, no matter how Yuel looked at it, there won''t be any surprises about him or Lars today.


    In fact, will there be any surprises at all? Roi for Top, Dan for Jungler and Gilbert for Mid, that''s the announcement everybody expected. It was odd for Howard to call a meeting over something so predictable. Then again, the guy seemed to like face-to-face meetings for some reason. [To each his own, I guess.]


    Regardless of how predictable this meeting was going to be, Yuel had to attend as the vice-captain. He might not remain the vice-captain for long if he and Lars go through with the transfer plan but, for now, Yuel still had to act the part. It felt like he was coming to this meeting just to see Howard and Ellen boast about their victory but he had no choice.


    [Maybe I should call in sick? But, I already came all the way up here...] Yuel dragged himself up the stairs. All he wanted right now was drop on the floor and lay there until the meeting ends.


    [Ugh, I so don''t want to be there...] The stairs went on forever, it was like climbing the Everest. Alas, no matter how hard Yuel''s legs tried to delay the inevitable, he eventually reached the right floor. The clubroom was just a short walk away. Sigh.


    At least, Yuel didn''t run into anybody along the way. He willingly picked the longer route to avoid running into others. Thanks to that, he was going to reach the clubroom without stumbling into any awkward interactions... or so he thought.


    Somebody was there. A fellow attendee who wanted to sneak into the meeting without running into anybody. A girl was hunched over as she peeked at the clubroom from behind a wall. It was Julia.


    "What are you doing?"


    "E-EEEEK!" Julia jumped like an exposed criminal and bumped her head into the wall behind her. "Aya!" She crouched forward. "W-What''s wrong with you!? Don''t sneak on people like that! Ouchie..."


    "Sorry," Yuel said. [Though, you''re the one who was sneaking around.] But, he kept that to himself. This was the first time they got to talk with each other after the selection match, so he didn''t want to start on the wrong foot. Julia was probably still blaming herself for her performance in the selection match, even though she played so well in the third game.


    "You okay?" Yuel asked.


    "Could have been better if not for a certain idiot," Julia hissed. Great, this conversation has already started with so much positivity. It''ll surely go smooth...


    "You''re still feeling down because of the match?"


    "Hmph. Not your business, dumbass."


    [I need a better approach here.] Yuel frowned. How should he make this conversation flow? He already got on Julia''s bad side before even starting, so he needed to inject some positivity here. Knowing Julia, one idea came to mind.


    "Lars was worried about you."


    "Eh?" Julia glanced at him without turning to face him. "What did he say?"


    "He said you played really well, so you shouldn''t blame yourself that we lost."


    "Really..." Julia mumbled. A faint smile of relief formed on her lips.


    [Okay, this tactic is working.] Yuel nodded to himself. Maybe he''ll be able to hold a proper conversation with her for a change.


    "And you?" Julia asked out of the blue. "What do you think about my performance in the match?"


    "I agree with Lars. You played the third game well."


    "You only gonna mention the third game, huh." Julia shifted her eyes away. "What about the rest?"


    "Do you really want to hear my honest opinion?"


    "Probably not."


    "So, let''s leave it at that," Yuel said. "As far as the third game is concerned, nothing about that outcome was your fault."


    "Then, who? Whose fault is it that we lost?" Julia''s glare demanded an answer. It seemed she won''t be satisfied until she learns who she could blame for that devastating defeat. If it wasn''t her fault, there surely had to be somebody else to blame, right?


    [It''s not that simple.] Yuel frowned. In a team vs. team game, it wasn''t so easy to pin the blame on one specific player.


    Everybody had their ups and downs. Julia played well in her Attack Mode, but she was beaten in the end. Lars put on a strong performance as Seraph and pushed many objectives, but he was baited to his death by Ellen at the end. Roi and Dan overall played fine, though their performance felt lackluster compared to their usual selves.


    All in all, everybody had their ups and downs. If Julia had to blame somebody no matter what, then...


    "You can blame me," Yuel glanced away. "I made many bad calls and they cost us the game. I was the shot-caller, so I was supposed to guide you better during the decisive moments. But, I was greedy with some of my decisions and, as a result, you and Lars died. So yeah, you can pin everything on me."


    "I knew it!" Julia jumped on her feet. "We lost because of your shitty shot-calls! Because of you, Lars won''t play on the first string next year!"


    [And I won''t play either.] Yuel pursed his lips. If only he was less greedy back then. If only he was more assertive. If only he stopped Lars from chasing. If only he ordered Julia to retreat. If only. If only. If only.


    "Hmph, this is stupid," Julia crossed her arms. "I knew Lars shouldn''t pair up with you. You''re just dragging him down."


    "That''s not really..."


    "You always act like a know-it-all but then fuck up when it matters most. I should''ve known from the beginning we gonna lose that stupid match with you in charge. I''m not even surprised. Howard is a way better captain than a dumbass like you. If Lars played with Howard instead, I''m sure they would have become the strongest duo in the country. No, in the whole world even!"


    "Hey now," Yuel clenched his fists. That was going too far. Did she seriously claim that Lars would have been better off playing with Howard? That''s some bullshit right there. Yuel and Lars had great teamwork in that game. Out of all the things Julia could complain about, this was the dumbest.


    "For your information," Yuel said. "Lars and I held the upper hand in Bot during the first two games. In the last one, we had to sacrifice some lane control because Lars was playing Seraph, but we still did perfectly fine."


    "Oh, you did? Then how the fuck did we lose these games, genius? If you really had Bot under control in the second game, you should''ve been able to push for the win."


    "It just wasn''t enough. In the second game, we did great in Bot but the rest of the team couldn''t gain an advantage in other lanes."


    "Oh, so now it''s not your fault but everybody else''s, huh? Wasn''t it your job to organize the team, ''cap''?"


    "I can''t solve everything myself," Yuel jerked. This was getting dumber and dumber. "For example, what do you expect me to do when a certain somebody is doing a terrible job gaining an advantage in Mid? That was one of the biggest issues we had in the second game."


    "Wha-!?" Julia''s face twisted like that of a demon. "You fucker! You gonna blame everything on me after all!?"


    "I didn''t say EVERYTHING was your fault," Yuel''s tone raised. "I''d just appreciate it if you stop talking shit about me and Lars. Yes, we weren''t perfect. Nobody was. But, compared to your expensive turtling in the first two games, our teamwork was a hundred times more useful to the team. It actually helped the team push forward instead of dragging it down!"


    "What did you-!?" Julia shook like a bomb that was about to go off. "Okay, screw it! I''m done!" Julia stomped toward Yuel and passes by him.


    "Where are you going?"


    "Not your damn business!"


    "Wait, what about the meeting-"


    "Don''t touch me!" Julia slapped Yuel''s hand away. Her eyes were filled with murderous intent, but they seemed a little teary. Did Yuel go too far?


    "My, my, my," Ellen waltzed into the scene out of nowhere. "What''s going on here? A lovers'' quarrel~?"


    "Yeah, right," Julia grimaced as if she wanted to puke from the mere suggestion of that.


    "....." Yuel just averted his eyes and remained quiet.


    "My," Ellen tilted her head from side to side as she checked both of them. After a few seconds, she nodded to herself as if she reached some conclusion. "I see, I see. Yuyu is bullying you, isn''t he?" Ellen wrapped herself around Julia and patted Julia''s head.


    "I didn''t really..." Yuel''s words trailed off. He felt like anything he says will be used against him.


    "Yuyu is just terrible, isn''t he?" Ellen went on with her baseless accusations while patting Julia.


    "Yeah, he''s a total dumbass," Julia nodded. Her tone still had angst in it, but seemed like she calmed down a little.


    "C''mon," Ellen said. "Let''s forget about this bully and go to the meeting, shall we?"


    "No, I..." Julia hung her head.


    "You''re too embarrassed to face Larsy?"


    "N-No! I just..." Julia sighed in defeat.


    Ellen''s guess must have been spot on. Even though Julia lashed at Yuel a moment ago and tried to pin all the blame on him, deep down she must have still felt responsible for the defeat. So, she didn''t know how to face Lars right now. In that case...


    "Lars isn''t coming," Yuel said.


    "Eh?"


    "He had some important business with his family today," Yuel lied. "So, he''ll be skipping the meeting."


    "Is that so..." Julia stared at the floor with a mixed expression.


    "Alrighty then," Ellen gently pushed Julia''s back. "C''mon, let''s go to the clubroom."


    "Do I have to?" Julia sighed.


    "Yes, you DE-FI-NI-TE-LY have to. C''mon, you two are running late."


    "Okay..." Julia answered half-heartedly and dragged herself toward the clubroom.


    "C''mon," Ellen turned to Yuel. "Chop-chop."


    "Right," Yuel followed them from afar. After this awkward exchange with Julia, he now had two reasons he wanted to skip this meeting. Just great. [Can I just go home? Pretty please? Sigh.]


    "I know you''re salty about losing," Ellen said as she walked beside Yuel. "But, don''t take it out on July."


    "That wasn''t my intention," Yuel grumped. [Besides, she''s the one who started it.]


    "It was the first time she showed her aggressive side in front of Lars. It took her a lot of courage, you know? Just imagine how scary it was for her to use it for the first time and suddenly become the game-maker near the end. It''s so much pressure and responsibility."


    "I understand that. But, that doesn''t give her an excuse to spout bullshit and blame others."


    "My, how aggressive," Ellen covered her mouth. "If Yuyu got so mad, I guess July went out of line too. But, you''re the boy here so play nice with her, will you?"


    [How is that even related?] Yuel rolled his eyes.


    It''s true that Julia had to go through a lot in that match. During the most critical moments of the game, she was promoted into a Queen piece. She became the lynchpin, the game-maker, and the savior. That game was the first time she mustered the courage to show her Attack Mode in public, but tons of responsibilities were dumped on her right away as a result. The pressure must have been maddening.


    Worst of all, she couldn''t carry the team to victory. She was cast into the leading role of the show but couldn''t get a happy ending. It''s like everybody''s expectations were riding on her and she failed them. It was an unfair role to dump on her, especially when she was still struggling with her inner demons due to the public debut of her Attack Mode.


    Nevertheless, none of that excused Julia''s trash talk about Yuel and Lars''s performance as a Bot duo. It was one thing to complain about Yuel''s subpar shot-calling, but it was another thing entirely to blame his teamwork with Lars and say that Yuel was dragging Lars down. That was unforgivable.


    "My, such a scary face~" Ellen pinched Yuel''s cheek. "I don''t know what she said but you''re the most mature in your gang, right?"


    "I don''t remember signing up to be anybody''s babysitter."


    "I know, I know. But, somebody has to play the adult here, right? I say you''re the best man for the job~"


    "Huh," Yuel made a face. Well, Ellen wasn''t exactly wrong. Lars and Julia often turned to Yuel whenever they had questions or problems. In a sense, he was like the "consultant" of the trio, so perhaps it was reasonable to expect more maturity from him.


    "Okay, I get it," Yuel sighed. "I''ll do what I can."


    "Yuyu is such a trustworthy boy~" Ellen patted Yuel''s head like he was a kid.


    "Cut it off," Yuel pulled aside to get away from that busybody. Ellen could get annoying with how she always stuck her nose everywhere but, this time, Yuel had to admit her intervention was for the best. Things would have gotten out of hand if the quarrel between Yuel and Julia escalated.


    Yuel took a deep breath and entered the clubroom. It wasn''t like he forgave Julia for her words, but he had to take into account she was a mess after the defeat in the selection match. In fact, all three of them were a mess. Lars didn''t even want to show his face here today because of how frustrating it was going to be. Each of them blamed themselves and felt irritated, so Yuel had to give Julia a pass for her harsh words. That is, a kinder pass than usual.


    [Okay, forget about it. Let''s just get this meeting over with.] Yuel informed everybody that Lars won''t be coming today due to "family business", so there was no need to wait anymore.


    "Alright," Howard nodded. "Then, let''s get started. Thanks for coming, everybody."


    They all gathered in front of Howard. Yuel and Julia stood on opposite ends as if they were magnets that pushed each other away.


    "First," Howard said. "Support and Carry will be me and Ellen." He threw a glance at Yuel.


    [Of course.] Yuel averted his eyes. There was nothing he could say back. He and Lars lost fair and square in that selection match. Howard and Ellen won their spots so there was nothing to complain bout.


    "Yay!" Ellen made a V sign and winked as if she didn''t see this announcement coming. She was trying to rub salt on Yuel''s wounds, wasn''t she?


    "Next,". Howard continued. "Top: Roi. Jungle: Dan."


    "Okay, we made it!" Roi pumped a fist.


    "Heh, of course." Dan shrugged with a smile.


    Roi and Dan bumped fists to celebrate the occasion. It was the predictable lineup but it still must have felt good to be officially selected. Not that Yuel had any idea how that.


    "Tch," Gregory shook his head. Apparently, he was expecting to be picked even though his chances were realistically zero.


    Even if Howard didn''t pick Roi for Top for whatever reason, the next candidate in line would have been Yuel. He didn''t play Top nearly as often as Support, but he was confident he was at least better than Gregory. In fact, Top Laner was the only role Yuel could''ve realistically gotten today, but now that opportunity vanished. As expected, he didn''t make it.


    The only spot left was Mid Laner. It was Lars''s second-best role, so there was a slim chance he''ll make it. But, before that, there was Gilbert and Julia. The logical assumption would be that Gregory will retain his spot. However, Julia put on a strong performance during the third game of the selection match, so she had a chance. It wasn''t high, but it was there.


    "As for Mid," Howard smiled meaningfully. "Frankly, I couldn''t decide. Gil and Julia are both great players and they have very distinct play styles. In some matchups, Gil''s versatility would be more valuable, while in other matches I can see Julia''s hyper-aggressiveness serving the team well."


    [W-What!]? Julia jumped. Wait, was Howard seriously considering her for the first string!? Everybody''s eyes turned on her. Gulp. Her heart beat faster and faster like it wanted to leap out of her chest. Was this really happening? Did she have a chance!?


    This gotta be a dream, but pinching her cheek didn''t wake her up. It was real life and she was just one step away from the first string. Will she make it!? [C''mon, Howard! Stop beating around the bush and tell us what you decided already!]


    "So," Howard concluded. "After taking all that into account, I decided both Gil and Julia will be on the first string."


    "N-No way..." Julia shook. S-She did it. It''s not like she outright surpassed Gilbert, but she did it! She made it into the first string! [Oh my god! I can''t believe it!]


    "July~!" Ellen leaped on Julia and squeezed the girl. "Congratulations~!"


    "T-Thanks," Julia would normally kick Ellen away, but right now she was too shocked to react. Most of the other members also gave her approving looks; it seemed the majority agreed that Julia deserved to be on the first string.


    What was Yuel''s reaction? Julia was curious but. at the same time. it felt awkward to face him. After all, that selection match was supposed to be for Yuel and Lars. Yet, they didn''t make it into the first string while Julia somehow passed.


    In the end, curiosity won and Julia glanced at Yuel. Well, that was disappointing. Yuel didn''t show much of an expression. Or, at least, Julia couldn''t read much from it. Yuel was wearing his usual difficult expression, which he probably thought made him look serious and smart. It was impossible to tell what he thought of this pick.


    Their eyes met for a moment but Yuel instantly averted his gaze. Then, after a second, he turned to look at Julia again and gave her a small nod with a thumb up. Fortunately, he didn''t seem angry over this announcement.


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    [Hmph, not only like I care how he feels about it.] Julia lifted her chin. [But, I rather not add fuel to the fire. We''re still clubmates and all. Yeah, that''s why.]


    [So, she made it...] Yuel sighed and stared at the ceiling. This made the situation ten times more complicated. With Julia now on the first string, how was he supposed to bring up the topic of transferring schools? Oh, boy...

 112 The Only One Who Made I

    Contrary to expectations, it really happened: Julia made it into the first string. She will have to share the Mid Laner position with Gilbert, but this achievement was still leaps and bounds beyond what Yuel and Lars got. Depending on Julia''s performance throughout the upcoming year, she might even grab the entire position all for herself. It was great for her.


    [What face am I supposed to make?] Yuel dragged himself out of the clubroom after the meeting ended. Of course, he was glad for Julia. He knew better than anybody how much Julia worked behind the scenes.


    Julia started Classmancers with the ulterior motive of getting closer to Lars. However, she genuinely tried to improve at the game, even if it meant going out of her way to ask for Yuel''s advice. She worked hard for the sake of looking good in front of Lars.


    However, at some point, the game grew on her. Julia began playing for herself instead of focusing on how to best show off in front of Lars. She developed a genuine interest in the high-level plays and she wanted to get onto the competitive stage. Even though Julia tried to deny that at times, it was evident by how frustrated she was when she didn''t make it into the scrimmage match against the Leopards.


    At some point along the way, Julia developed an amazing talent for playing hyper offense. She was probably influenced by Lars''s wild plays because she has been exposed to them on a daily basis.


    At first, her hyper offense was rough and flawed. However, Yuel and Ellen helped Julia polish it in secret until it became a real weapon. This hyper-aggression was exactly what Julia was missing as a player because it compensated for her usual defensive playstyle. With both a Defense Mode and an Attack Mode her arsenal, Julia became a force to be reckoned with.


    However, Julia had a bad habit of getting overly excited once she entered Attack Mode. She became like one of these loud Youtubers who yelled about every little thing that happened in the match.


    Frankly, Yuel agreed with Julia that it was embarrassing conduct. If he could play better by transforming into a loud overhyped goof, would he have done it? He wasn''t sure.


    [Who am I kidding? Of course I would have done it.] Yuel smiled wryly. Victory was everything. Even if he had to act like a total clown, he would have used any tools at his disposal to get an edge in a match.


    But, for Julia, it was another story. This moody princess hated it when people gave her funny looks. Especially, she couldn''t bear the idea of Lars seeing her act like that. It was far from a ladylike behavior, so she was convinced Lars will hate it.


    Yuel and Ellen tried to convince Julia otherwise, but she was stubborn about it. So, she never used Attack Mode in front of Lars because she was afraid of embarrassing herself in front of the boy she liked.


    However, during the selection match, Julia overcame that wall. She unleashed her potential in its entirety and laid it bare for everybody to see. It took everybody by surprise, even Howard. Only Yuel and Ellen knew that side of Julia because they practiced in secret with her.


    Julia''s Attack Mode was still rough around the edges during its debut, but she was undeniably strong. The surprise element of revealing her Attack Mode for the first time surely played a big role in shaking the enemy team, but it was impressive how Julia capitalized on that advantage to dominate the entire flow of the match. With her joining the team''s offense, it was like the team''s attacks became ten times stronger.


    In a match where the team needed an extra edge on the offense, she might very well be more valuable than Gilbert. And, if she becomes more consistent and improves her ability to switch from offense to defense on the fly - she''d become a real monster. The potential was definitely there.


    What an unfortunate outcome. Yuel and Lars didn''t get into the first string, so they were considering a school transfer. Since Julia has always stuck around them, Yuel thought she might want to join them.


    However, Julia was on StormBlitz''s first string now. For her, transferring schools meant giving up on the position she worked so hard to get.


    [How am I supposed to approach this?] Yuel rubbed his temples. In theory, it was a simple matter. He just supposed to come up to Julia and inform her about the transfer idea. After that, whether she decides to join or not, was no longer Yuel''s business. Julia was the one who had to make the decision.


    But, that''s just theory. In practice, it was up to Yuel to break the news for her and face whatever reaction she was going to fire at him. And oh boy, her reaction was bound to be far from calm or reasonable.


    [This is giving me a headache. I just need to get it over with.] Yuel took a deep breath and caught up to Julia on her way out.


    "Wait," Yuel called.


    "What?" Julia continued walking without slowing down in the slightest. Her pacing was so fast that Yuel almost had to jog in order to keep up.


    "I need to tell you something important."


    "Yeah?"


    "Would you stop for a second?"


    "...." Julia came to a sudden halt.


    [Phew, okay.] Yuel also stopped to catch his breath.


    "There," Julia started walking again. "One second passed."


    "Wha, wait!" Yuel barely caught one breath and he had to start chasing again. This girl had no chill! She was probably still mad about that quarrel they had before the meeting. Honestly, Yuel hasn''t forgotten that incident either. Julia''s insults toward his teamwork with Lars were still fresh in his mind.


    Nevertheless, he had to put all of that aside for now in order to discuss what really mattered. And, to do so, he first had to catch up with Julia. So, he had to increase his pace and-


    "Whoa!" Yuel tripped and dived into the floor. "Ouch."


    "..." Julia stopped because of the crashing sound and turned around. "You okay there?"


    "Y-Yeah," Yuel waved his hands. "Finally, you stopped."


    "Hmph," Julia turned around again but this time she didn''t start walking. At least, not yet. "What''s so important that you have to say it right here and now? Gonna complain about the selection match again?"


    "No, let''s put that aside for now," Yuel stood up and wiped his hands against his pants.


    Okay, he finally captured that problematic girl. What''s next? How should he approach her? He was clearly on Julia''s list of "Idiots to Kill" right now, so he had to proceed with caution.


    "Congratulations," Yuel tried to start off with some positivity. "It''s only half a spot, but you''re in the first string. You really deserve it."


    "Is that supposed to be sarcasm?"


    "No, I really believe you deserve it. The way you played in the third game was impressive. I would have picked you for the first string too if I were the captain."


    "Is that so," Julia shrugged. "But, you still would have split Mid between me and Gilbert, right? After all, I played so poorly in the second game that you lost because of me, right?"


    "I didn''t say that."


    "But, that''s what you think, right?"


    "That''s not the topic right now," Yuel tried to deflect the question. This wasn''t about the selection match right now. He had to discuss the school transfer-


    "I bet you feel like an idiot, don''t you?" Julia continued with her nonsense. "It''s only because you came outta nowhere and took my Support role that I ended up playing Mid, you know?"


    "Yes, I remember that," Yuel nodded. Back when they first met, Julia was insisting to play Support for Lars because she believed that''ll bring them closer together. However, then Yuel came into the picture and became Lars''s Support. As a result, Julia had no choice but to switch her main role to Mid. After all, she had no chance of beating Yuel when it came to supporting.


    "But, look at the result!" Julia grinned. "I''m on the main team while you''re stuck on the bench. Hilarious, isn''t it? Ahahaha! I bet you''re thinking now how you should have played Mid yourself instead of helping me learn it, right?"


    "... I wouldn''t say that," Yuel claimed so, but he had to admit a part of him was irritated by this outcome.


    He has been watching over Julia''s progress the entire time and has been helping her improve as a Mid Laner. Therefore, as her coach, he was happy for her success. However, at the same time, he was mad at himself.


    If only Yuel spent more of his time on improving himself instead of coaching Julia, perhaps he could have beaten Howard during the selection match. Yet, instead of pushing himself to new heights, Yuel burned his free time on helping Julia with her countless problems.


    What an ugly feeling. Somewhere deep down, Yuel regretted all of it. He was glad Julia made it into the first string and yet, at the same time, he actually wished for her to fail and stay on the bench along with him Lars. If only Julia didn''t make it into the first-string today, holding a conversation about a school transfer would have been so much easier.


    "Don''t worry," Julia finally turned to face him. She placed both hands on her hips and lifted her chin like a pompous queen. "I''ll make it big in the first-string to make up for you and Lars not getting in."


    "To make up...?" Yuel blinked. Oh, so that''s how Julia saw it. Now that she got into the first-string, she suddenly became the "representative" of the trio. She was the queen because she reached the first-string and they were nothing but second-string plebs compared to her. That''s what Julia was implying, right?


    Yeah, that''s right. The two of them were total trash! They had terrible teamwork and they didn''t have half the skill required for reaching the first string! Is that what she was saying!?


    "Forget it," Yuel turned around. "Enjoy your stay in the first-string while it lasts."


    "Huh? What''s that supposed to- hey!" Julia called out from behind but Yuel kept walking.


    There was no need to tell her about the transfer. She finally made it into the first-string, so she should enjoy riding the high horse while she could. After all, she no longer had anything to do with benchwarmers like Yuel and Lars. Julia already got her desired spot while they had to gamble on a new school in order to reach the competitive scene. This had nothing to do with her.


    [Is this really fine?] Yuel jerked uncomfortably. If he doesn''t inform Julia about the transfer now, she won''t have enough time to join them later even if she wanted to. Was this really for the better?


    [But seriously, I''ve had enough.] Yuel''s fists trembled. There was a limit to how much bullshit he could bear with. He had enough of that girl''s attitude.


    Julia always treated him like dirt even though he was always there to help her with anything she needed. It was largely thanks to Yuel that Julia made it so far and reached the first-string.


    Yet, what did Julia ever do for him in return? Nothing. She only bitched and spit in his face like he was some lowlife. Maybe Julia didn''t really mean everything she said to him, but enough was enough.


    Yuel has been patient with her shitty attitude for two years now. It was annoying, but he could handle it. However, some of her actions today crossed the line. Criticizing Yuel and Lars''s teamwork just to spite? That''s a new level of low.


    On top of that, she suddenly began acting like she was a league above them just because she entered the first-string. In truth, that achievement meant nothing compared to their failure because the competition for Mid wasn''t nearly as fierce. Gilbert was a solid player, but he wasn''t Howard or Ellen.


    So, with all that considered, Yuel had every right to ditch her. Julia should keep enjoying her precious spot on StormBlitz. Maybe she''ll even become the main Mid Laner of the team.


    She should keep enjoying her moment of glory until Yuel and Lars face her at the regionals and mop the floor with her! That''ll teach her a lesson or two.


    [I''m really getting heated over this.] Yuel took a deep breath before entering his home. [Forget Julia. There are more important things I should be doing, like researching our transfer options and preparing a strategy to convince mom to let me transfer.]


    As soon as Yuel returned, he sat down in front of the computer. He and Lars couldn''t just transfer to any random middle school. It had to be a school with a Classmancers team, preferably a decent one.


    Unfortunately, there weren''t many nearby schools to choose from. His mom was assuredly going to be against the transfer, so if he picks a faraway school which requires extra transportation fee - his mom will shoot him down on the spot. Therefore, he had to choose a school that was at least as close as his current school.


    Out of the small list of options, there was only one which had a Classmancers club: Skyline Junior High.


    [Ugh. Seriously?] Yuel frowned. Was that really the only option they could go for?


    The team representing the school was Stratus. Yuel researched all the teams in the region last year, so he knew a little about their histories. Stratus was a bottom tier team which hasn''t passed the first round of the regionals for the past few years.


    The main reason for that must have been its painfully tiny club. The school only allowed the club to get nine members. In other words, they couldn''t even form two full teams for sparring against each other. It sounded like oppression.


    Also, nine got dangerously close to five, which was the number of strong players required for doing well in tournaments. Freshmen counted among these nine, but they were ill-suited for tournaments due to their lack of experience and polish. Therefore, as far as participating in tournaments was concerned, the relevant number of club members was nine minus the number of freshmen.


    That greatly restricted the club''s options for forming the first-string. The team had to be composed of a small number of seniors and juniors, regardless of their actual skill. Not to mention, they also had to fit themselves into the five meta roles even if it meant some of them will be playing their secondary roles. It was a disaster.


    But, in a way, that was good news for Yuel and Lars. Less club members meant less competition for starter positions. So, it''ll be easier for them to grab their spots in such a team. There was no way they''ll have to compete against a Bot duo of the same caliber as Howard and Ellen.


    [Is that really something to be happy about?] Yuel smiled wryly. He was supposed to be striving for the top of the competitive scene, yet here he was rejoicing at the fact he won''t get much competition in Stratus. Absolutely disgusting.


    That''s how far he and Lars have been pushed. They had to seek a team with less internal competition so they could reach the competitive scene and battle against the best. They first had to go downwards in order to be able to climb up from there.


    So, Stratus was an alright team for them. But, will the school allow Yuel and Lars to join? Clubs usually only scouted first-year students, that was the standard routine.


    However, transfer students had a peculiar situation. They were new students who haven''t joined a club yet even though they weren''t freshmen. Yuel''s current school allowed clubs to scout transfer students, but there was no telling if Skyline Junior High followed the same rules.


    To eliminate any doubt, Yuel called the school. Fortunately, even though it was summer vacation, he got a hold of somebody. So, he proceeded to ask a couple of questions.


    The phone call somehow dragged out for almost half an hour. The woman''s tone implied she was growing impatient, so Yuel cut it short before she snaps at him.


    Unfortunately, he couldn''t get all the data he needed. The woman didn''t know the specifics about the Classmancers club because she wasn''t directly involved with it. The only good news he got was that the school''s policy was the same as in his current school.


    In other words, clubs were allowed to recruit transfer students as if they were freshmen. So, there shouldn''t be a problem getting into the club itself.


    Another thing Yuel learned was that the school didn''t think highly of the Classmancers club. Even when he told the woman he was an experienced player with a high rank, she still tried to push him toward joining other clubs. It almost felt like somebody told her to lower the motivation of anybody who wanted to join the Classmancers club.


    It was a nasty treatment but far from unusual in this region. It generally felt like schools didn''t appreciate the Classmancers clubs much. Even his school treated StormBlitz as an eyesore to some extent, despite the team''s strong performance at the regional. StormBlitz''s ridiculous entrance exam existed largely to appease the school by "showing" how serious the club was.


    Only Leo Junior High seemed to have a genuine love for its Classmancers club, which made the Leopards such a powerhouse team. They even had a coach, something that was relatively rare even in high schools in their region.


    Truly, Leo Junior High was a great school for playing Classmancers. Unfortunately, the school was located on the other side of the city. On top of that, the coach pretty much only ever put seniors on the first-string, so Yuel and Lars probably won''t make it in as juniors this year.


    That coach only ever made one exception in the past for Fenrir, a strong player who was allowed to join the first string as a junior and became the captain on the following year. However, that was a very particular instance that it was not worth betting on. Even if Yuel can somehow convince his mom to attend such a faraway school, the competition there would be even fiercer than in StormBlitz. That''ll defeat the entire purpose of transferring.


    [Why am I even thinking about it so much?] Yuel sighed. Naturally, he would have liked to be a part of a prestige Classmancers club which the school treated with respect. However, that was a pipe dream at the moment.


    So, during middle school, he and Lars will have to keep eating dirt and play for teams that weren''t respected by their own schools. Things will get better once they enter high school and attend Ivy High, the powerhouse of the region''s high school competitive scene.


    However, that''s two years from now. Right now, his only option was Skyline Junior High and the small underdog team that was Stratus. Not the most exciting option, but that''s all he could get Yuel and Lars will have to take that small team and transform it into a powerhouse that rivaled StormBlitz and Leopards. Then, they''ll beat both these teams and go to nationals!


    Later that day, Yuel called Lars over to discuss his findings. He also filled Lars in on what went down during the club meeting.


    "July made it!?" Lars exclaimed.


    "Yes, she got half a position," Yuel explained. "She''ll share Mid with Gilbert, but I''m sure she''ll get to play at least a few tournament matches."


    "Sick, yo!" Lars pumped a fist with a big grin, but then it hit him and his smile died down. "But wait, what about our super secret transfer plan? You talked to her?"


    "I... tried to bring it up," Yuel averted his eyes. "But, she was raving so much about making the first-string that it seemed like she wouldn''t trade her Mid position for the world."


    "Yeah, makes sense. So, she said she ain''t interested?"


    "Um, something like that," Yuel said. He didn''t really ask Julia but her attitude made it crystal clear: she was going to treasure her precious starter spot like it was her baby. So, there was no reason for her to transfer schools.


    That''s why Yuel didn''t bother to ask her for confirmation. After all the bullshit she gave him today, he didn''t really care for her. Yuel and Lars will make it just fine on their own in a new team. They didn''t need Julia.


    "I better call her to say congrats," Lars dialed up Julia''s number.


    "Uh, sure..." Yuel gulped. If Lars blurts anything about the school transfer and Julia acts oblivious, it''ll make it seem like Yuel just lied about talking with her. It wasn''t his intention to deceive anybody, but...


    "She doesn''t pick up," Lars shrugged. "I thought she''d be fine by now."


    "She seemed so-so," Yuel said. "She looked happy about the first-string announcement, but she still seems to blame herself for our defeat in the selection match. It was hard to even start a conversation with her."


    "Feels bad," Lars shook his head. "Maybe we should visit her tomorrow? Maybe even throw a party to celebrate her promotion and stuff."


    "I''d rather focus on training," Yuel said. "We can''t waste any time. Before we run into Aegis and Athena in another match, we have to get as strong as we can."


    "Yeah, I agree," Lars smiled wryly. They both shared the same feeling of weakness after the defeat in the selection match. So, they had to get stronger no matter what! They couldn''t waste even a single day!


    "So," Lars started. "You figured which school we go to?"


    "As I said, there''s only one option really," Yuel explained what he found out about Skyline Junior High and its small team, Stratus.


    "Oh, so they''re like an underdog?" Lars''s eyes sparked for some reason. "That''s so cool, yo! It''s like in the movies: the underdog team which gonna change the town forever!"


    "Heh, easier said than done," Yuel chuckled. "But, we''ll have to make it work somehow."


    "No problem! With us on the team, it gonna transform from underdog to top dog!"


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    "That''s right," Yuel nodded. A Bot Lane duo of their caliber should be able to transform Stratus into a force to be reckoned with. If the team got at least one or two more competent players, it should be able to put on a strong performance in the regionals.


    But first, Yuel and Lars had to actually convince their parents about the transfer. The new school year was just a few days away, so transferring with this timing was a bit awkward.


    In Yuel''s case, bothering his mother about the transfer was definitely going to be quite the headache. There was no way in hell she''d see eye-to-eye with his determination to play Classmancers competitively. Especially, not after what happened with his dad.


    "Oh," Lars shrugged. "My folks already agreed."


    "What. Just like that?"


    "Yep, pops said I can transfer wherever I want. I told him I got this silly situation which is like being a great basketball player but not getting picked for the main team based on positions. He agreed it sucks and said I should totally search for a place where I can get into tournaments."


    "Wow, that''s very supportive," Yuel smiled wryly. [I wish mom was at least half as supportive about these things. Dad would understand where I''m coming from, but he has no say in the matter.]


    "So, it''s my turn next," Yuel sighed. "I hope I''ll be able to catch my mom today and talk to her about it. She sometimes stays over at the office, but she should be coming home today. Though, I don''t expect things to go smoothly..."


    "No problem, dude," Lars puffed his chest and pointed at himself. "Lemme talk to her then. I''mma convince her, no problem!"


    "Please no. You''ll only make things worse."


    "Haha, maybe. I saw yo mom like once but she looks like a serious business lady."


    "She really is. She''ll hear you say ''yo'' once and she''ll find a way to send you to jail, I guarantee."


    "Savage, haha. She''s like a judge or something, right?"


    "A prosecutor."


    "Oh yeah, that pro thing. So, if she''s also a pro, she should understand where ya coming from. Tell her you wanna become a pro just like her!"


    [This guy...] Yuel sighed but also couldn''t help but smile.


    The confrontation with his mom was going to be tough. It''ll possibly be one of the hardest battles he''ll ever fight in his life. Nevertheless, he had to face his mother and convince her to let him transfer.


    He''ll get into Stratus, participate in the regionals and fight Howard again, this time on the competitive stage. This was the first step toward the competitive scene!

 113 Confronting the Lioness

    It was already past midnight. When the clock hit 1:27 am, the door to Yuel''s house opened. Finally, his mom was home.


    "Why are you up?" Leona demanded as soon as she walked into the living room. The room had its lights on without her approval.


    [Okay, here goes.] Yuel took a deep breath to steel himself. "I was waiting for you."


    "I see," Leona wore a thin smile. "Kids should be sleeping at this hour. There''s a study that shows-"


    "That kids who sleep less than nine hours are moodier, have worse attention spans and partake in more dangerous activities. Did I forget anything?"


    "No, that''s a perfect summary," Leona smiled softly. "So, I assume you have something important to discuss?"


    "Yes. Very important."


    "I see," Leona nodded but she headed toward the kitchen in the opposite direction. "You mind if I fix myself some noodles first?"


    "You''re eating at this hour?" Yuel raised an eyebrow.


    "The day was so packed I had to skip dinner," Leona explained as she fished for a cup of instant noodles in the drawer. "I see we''re almost running out." She checked the refrigerator next. "I''ll prepare you a grocery list for tomorrow. Would you take care of it, please?"


    "Okay."


    "Sorry I push it on you again. This month has been so chaotic I don''t have time to breathe."


    "No problem," Yuel said. He was already used to this routine by now. They used to run groceries together when he was younger but recently it has become entirely his responsibility in the house.


    "I''ll leave you some extra cash, so you can buy whatever you like with it." Leona smiled softly.


    "Cool," Yuel nodded. This was the great benefit of doing the groceries himself: he was rewarded with extra cash that he added to his savings. One day, he''ll have enough to buy himself a decent laptop to play Classmancers on. That''ll finally save him from playing it on a tablet when he''s not home.


    But, that''s a plan for much later down the road. Right now, he had to focus on this important conversation.


    "Okay," Leona began brewing water and returned to the living room. "So? What''s so important you had to wait until 1 AM to talk to me about?"


    "I..." Yuel gulped. His throat was as dry as a desert. He coughed once and continued. "I''d like to transfer schools to Skyline Junior High."


    Leona reacted with a frown, as expected. "Explain yourself, young man."


    "Well, it''s a little compacted," Yuel fidgeted as he tried to recite the explanations he prepared. "Remember how I''m in a club for a competitive game?"


    "Of course, a video game. Something with ''Class'' in the name, if I recall."


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    "Yes, Classmancers. Anyway, there''s a little problem in the club..." Yuel chose his words carefully. "In short, I won''t be able to play in the regional tournament this year even though I know I have the skill for it. So, if I try in another school, I''ll have a decent chance."


    "You''re being vague. Elaborate."


    "Well," Yuel gave up on being dodgy and gave it to her straight. "There''s a boy who is one year older than me and he''s the captain because he''s a senior. So, he gets to decide who plays in tournaments and he took the position I play best. So, I can''t play on the main team because of him."


    "I see," Leona crossed her arms. Will this minimalistic explanation fly with her? Mentioning the selection match and how Howard defeated Yuel was definitely out of question. That''ll make Yuel''s mom reject the request on the spot.


    "That older kid," Leona started. "Is he a better player than you?"


    "It''s... hard to say," Yuel couldn''t answer for sure even if he wanted. "He''s better in some areas and worse in others, so it''s not clear-cut. But, he got one extra year of experience on me and his older sister is a pro at this game, so he got many unfair advantages."


    "Is that so. And, I assume you tried challenging him for the position you want? That should be one of your rights as a club member."


    "Yes, I did," Yuel had no choice but to admit because otherwise his mom will get hung up on that point. "It''s hard to test such a thing in a team-based game. We had a serious match but I was the captain, so it tested much more than just my performance in my main role."


    "You were the captain?" Leona nodded with approval. "That''s a big responsibility. Sounds like you''re highly regarded in your club."


    "Yeah, I believe so. But, I don''t have much experience being a captain while the other boy has been leading teams for over a year now. So, my team lost in the end, but I don''t believe that''s proof I''m worse than him in the position I''m maining. He was just a better captain than me."


    "I see," Leona said. "So, that''s why you want to try your luck in another school. But, you sure Skyline even got a team?"


    "Yes, I checked everything. I even know their team is called Stratus and how well they''ve been doing in tournaments the past few years." With that said, Yuel didn''t dare to share the statistics because they''d make Stratus come off as a weak underdog team.


    "I see, you''ve done your research," Leona nodded in approval. "Are you sure they''ll let you join after your transfer? You will no longer be a freshman."


    "I called the school today," Yuel was prepared for this line of attack. "I squeezed out all the answers I needed from them."


    "You did good," Leona smiled proudly. "Alright, you made a solid case so far and I understand where you''re coming from. But, there''s one thing I can''t quite agree with. I understand you want to play in tournaments, but is waiting one more year such a big problem? Does it really warrant transferring schools?"


    "Yes, it is," Yuel answered. "I have the skill to play on a competitive level, so I don''t want to stay on the bench for another whole year. I want to compete and to win."


    "That look..." Leona knotted her brows. "Getting so overworked over some game... Out of all things, why did you have to inherit this trait from your father?"


    This was the breaking point. Yuel didn''t have any more weapons in his arsenal. He did everything he possibly could to make a solid case for the transfer. Now, everything was in the prosecutor''s hands.


    "Back when you were playing chess," Leona said. "You went to the nationals in fifth grade."


    "Yes, I did. It was really hard, though," Yuel said. He still remembered that difficult final match he had during the regionals of that year. His opponent was a knowledgeable theory player who knew all the optimal standard moves. Yuel only beat her in a clutch with some unconventional moves that threw her off.


    "I''m not going to pretend I approve of how much you invest yourself into a video game," Leona said. "However, I understand you''re very passionate about it. According to my research, it''s a game with a serious competitive scene, so at least I know it''s not a braindead game that only exists to waste children''s time. And, since even schools approve of it as a competitive sport, it''s not my place to judge it."


    [This sounds good so far, but I''m sure there''s a catch.] Yuel braced himself for impact


    "But, if you really want to dedicate so much of your time to a video game, I want you to prove you''re not wasting your time with it. So, suppose I let you transfer, will you be able to reach the nationals this year?"


    "That''s..." Yuel stumbled over his words. He hid the information on purpose, but he knew Stratus was one of the weakest teams in the region and hasn''t passed the first round of the regionals in years. This will be rough.


    Did Yuel and Lars have what it took to pull an underdog team all the way to the finals and beyond? Will they be able to beat Howard''s StormBlitz for sure? And, what about the Leopards? In addition, there were other tough contenders too. Yuel couldn''t even begin to imagine how low his chances were. Nevertheless...


    "Yes," Yuel answered. "I believe I can do it."


    "Then, this is my condition: if you don''t reach the nationals this year at your new school, you''ll drop that game and concentrate on your studies."


    "Y-Yes, I understand." A chill ran through Yuel but he stood his ground. He couldn''t show any weaknesses right now.


    The condition was absurd, but he expected nothing less from his mother. For her, failure in a competitive environment was unforgivable. Anybody who didn''t possess the neccessary skill shouldn''t bother trying. It was an extreme opinion but one his mom wouldn''t budge on.


    So, Yuel just had to do it. He''ll have to find a way to bring an underdog team like Stratus all the way to the top. It''ll be a long and thorny road. But, together with Lars, they''ll pull through it.


    "I see how serious you are about this," Leona approached her son. "Frankly, asking for a transfer just before school begins is unreasonable. I''ve already paid for the school, so now I''ll have to negotiate a refund. After that, I''ll have to talk to Skyline and ask them to register you at such short notice." She sighed.


    "Sorry."


    "It''s okay," Leona smiled softly and rubbed Yuel''s cheek. "It''s not often that you ask something from me, so I''ll spoil you this once."


    "Thanks a lot, mom."


    "Well," Leona smiled and glanced away. "I actually wanted you to attend Skyline from the beginning, remember? According to my research, the level of education is higher there."


    "Yes, I know. But thanks anyway, mom."


    "Will your studies be okay?" Leona gently patted Yuel''s head.


    "I''m sure I''ll manage."


    "If your grades drop, you''ll have to prioritize your studies over the game. I hope that''s clear."


    "Yes, of course."


    "And, what about friends? It''s a good thing you finally made some friends in your current school."


    "It''s okay," Yuel said. "There''s a boy I play a duo with and he''s going to transfer there too, so we''ll keep playing together." On second thought, maybe it was better to keep that one to himself...


    "You mean Lars, that bratty kid you always hang out with? I''m really not sure he''s a good influence for you."


    "I know he''s a little childish, but he''s a good guy and he''s one of the best players around. Together with him, I''m sure we can reach the nationals."


    "Is that so. What about the girl who visited a few times? Julia, I believe."


    "She... probably won''t join." Yuel looked away.


    "Unfortunate, I thought she was pretty cute," Leona winked.


    [Yes, she can be cute when she wants to be. But, most of the time, she''s one of the most annoying creatures ever.]


    "Okay, I''ll take care of the transfer tomorrow," Leona kissed her son on the forehead. "Now, go to sleep, young man."


    "Goodnight." Yuel gave his mom a small hug before going to bed.


    Phew, he did it! He really did it! This year, Yuel and Lars will be attending Skyline Junior High and play for Stratus. They''ll finally get a chance to play in real tournaments.


    From this moment, everybody from StormBlitz was an enemy. Howard and Ellen didn''t even require mentioning, but also Gilbert, Dan, Roi, and... Julia.


    [Was this really the right thing to do?] Yuel''s heart stung. He and Lars were about to leave their friends behind just to get a chance to play in the regionals.


    Yuel wasn''t nearly as close to the others as he was to Lars, but they still spent an entire year together in the same club. Calling them "friends" might be a stretch, but they knew each other well and depended on each other when they played together as a team. So, there was a bond there.


    Worst of all, Yuel was the club''s vice-captain. Just a week ago, he and Howard discussed their plans for StoemBlitz''s upcoming entrance exam. Yuel was supposed to supervise the entire exam himself next year, but now he was bailing out in the last moment. Abandoning his responsibilities like that was bad manners.


    [I''ll talk to Howard the first thing tomorrow.] Yuel nodded to himself and took out his phone. It was already 2 AM, so he couldn''t call Lars to share the news. Therefore, instead, he sent a message.


    ¡ºMy mom approved¡»


    Surprisingly, a reply arrived a few seconds later.


    ¡ºsick dude! we gonna take the regionals by storm!!!¡»


    Wasn''t that goof asleep already? There''s no way he was waiting until this hour just to hear the news from Yuel, right? Either way, Yuel returned Lars''s enthusiasm in kind.


    ¡ºYeah, we''ll win against Howard and Ellen this time and take the regionals¡»


    ¡ºez¡»


    "Heh," Yuel chuckled, then put down his phone and crawled into bed. The difficult fight was behind him. Now, he could finally relax.


    In just a few days, he''ll be attending a new school and playing for a new team with new teammates. There were so many unknowns down this path. Shudder.


    But, no matter what, Yuel had to deliver results. He promised his mother he''ll get to nationals this year, so his ability to keep playing Classmancers was at stake here. He and Lars will have to pull Stratus from the bottom and push it all the way to the top of the region.


    It won''t be easy but Yuel never asked for an easy solution. He just wanted an opportunity and he got it. Now, he''ll have to face the fierce competition head-on and he''ll conquer it!

 114 Passing the Baton

    Yuel''s mother approved the transfer to Skyline Junior High. On the following day, Yuel called Howard to deliver the news.


    "Transferring?" Howard frowned. "That''s sudden. School starts in two days."


    "I know," Yuel said. "Sorry that I drop this on you at the last moment, but I only got the OK yesterday. Or, technically, today in the morning."


    "Huh. Is it because of how the selection went?"


    "... yes," Yuel admitted. He was dropping a huge bomb on Howard, so the least he could do was offer a convincing explanation for his actions. "Lars and I decided we want to play competitively this year no matter what, even if it means playing for another team. You said it yourself: in any other school, we''d be on the first-string for sure."


    "I did say that, but I didn''t mean it literally..." Howard dropped on the sofa, his phone still pressed against his ear. "Honestly, you put me in a sticky situation here."


    "I''m aware and I''m sorry about it. But, it''s already decided. Lars and I are transferring to Skyline."


    "Pft, you gonna play on Stratus? Of all things?" Howard produced a dry laugh. "You really expect to get anywhere with that team?"


    "I won''t know unless I try. But, fear not: I have every intention to win the regionals this year."


    "You realize you''ll have to beat StormBlitz to achieve that, right? Sorry to break it to you, but there''s no chance in hell."


    "We''ll see about that," Yuel insisted. "Next time we fight, I''ll be better prepared. I''ll smash your defense to pieces."


    "Heh, I''d like to see you try," Howard smirked. Even though Yuel''s transfer was going to be a huge pain in the ass for him, a part of him couldn''t help but feel entertained by this development.


    Thanks to Yuel''s bold decision, they''ll get another chance to cross blades before high school. And, this time, it''ll be on a real stage. It was hard to expect any results from a weak team like Stratus, yet Howard still looked forward to something. Who knew what miracle these two brats could cause?


    "What about Julia?" Howard asked. "Is she also transferring?"


    "... no," Yuel said. "She''ll stay with StormBlitz. After all, she finally got a spot on the first string."


    "Does she really prefer her position on the team over Lars?"


    "I suppose..."


    "Huh," Howard wasn''t convinced by Yuel''s weak tone but it wasn''t his business. This was the first good news he heard this entire conversation. Howard had some big plans for Julia, so losing her would have hurt even more than losing the club''s vice-captain.


    "Alright," Howard said. "I approve of your transfer."


    "I don''t remember asking for your permission."


    "Haha, true that," Howard chuckled. "Just don''t forget to send me everything you worked on for the entrance exam. Because, thanks to a certain rebellious brat, I now gotta handle the entire thing myself."


    "About that," Yuel started. "I uploaded all the files to cloud so you can access them from everywhere."


    "Oh, innovating, aren''t we?"


    "I''ll give you all the rights to that folder. I tidied up the files and finished the templates for the written exams, with the categories and everything like we discussed."


    "So, you finished everything?"


    "Yes, I believe so."


    "See? You can also deliver good news when you try, haha."


    "Finishing everything is the least I could do," Yuel said. "Again, I''m really sorry it had to turn out like this."


    "Yeah, yeah. I heard you the first time. Your apologies are cute and all, but they aren''t helping me. I still gotta clean up this entire mess myself."


    "That''s right," Yuel didn''t have anything more to add.


    They went over the details of the cloud storage and the call ended there.


    "Damn..." Howard dropped on the sofa and sighed deeply.


    "My, what''s wrong?" Ellen waltzed into the living room and sat beside him. "Bad news?"


    "Heh, ''bad news'' doesn''t even begin to describe it. Yuel and Lars gonna transfer schools so they can play in the regionals."


    "My, such rascals!" Ellen covered her mouth. "And, you gonna let them do it?"


    "What authority do I have? I''m not their mom."


    "Hehe, that''s true," Ellen patted Howard''s head. "Can''t believe these two are so rebellious. They''re such brats."


    "The worst thing? I can''t really blame them," Howard smiled wryly. "I may have done the same exact thing in their shoes. Not playing on the main team in the first year is acceptable. But, as juniors? Players of our caliber should be on the team, unless we''re talking about some crazy Korean club that got players who were born pro gamers."


    In fact, Howard decided to attend Riverstock over Leo after he read interviews about Rodriguez, the Leopards'' coach. Rodriguez repeated many times he had a principle of only putting seniors on the main team. He gave multiple reasons for that, but the bottom line: 99% of the juniors in his club had zero chance of making it into the first-string. There were only a couple of rare exceptions to this rule like Fenrir, who led the Leopards'' last year.


    Could have Howard made it into that special 1% in the Leopards? He didn''t know Rodriguez personally, so he had no idea what criteria this coach used for assigning juniors to the first-string. Therefore, Howard dodged that risk by attending Riverstock and joining StormBlitz. It was known as one of the most serious teams in the region and it didn''t disappoint him.


    So, even though the circumstances were quite different from what Yuel was doing right now, it''s undeniable that Howard also picked to play for a weaker team in exchange for a higher chance to enter the competitive scene earlier. As such, Howard understood where Yuel was coming from with that transfer. Howard might have done the exact same thing in Yuel''s shoes.


    But, with all that said, losing the vice-captain two days before school definitely sucked. This suddenly dumped so much extra responsibility on Howard.


    [Great. Just great.] Howard shook his head. His shoulders already started feeling heavy from the weight of all this responsibility.


    "What you gonna do?" Ellen asked. "You''ll assign a new vice-captain?"


    "What else can I do? I need somebody to handle the menial work for me. I have to concentrate on strengthening the first-string so we can win the nationals. The scouts from Grandview want results and they not gonna care about any internal club drama we had."


    "Then, who you gonna pick? You still have to choose among the juniors, right?"


    "Frankly, I have no idea," Howard went over the option with Ellen. Whoever becomes the vice-captain will eventually become the club''s captain, so it had to be somebody who was capable of keeping the team together and leading it.


    Taison? The guy was too self-centered for his own good. On one hand, it was a quality which made him pursue strength so he could stand out and perform stronger plays. On the other hand, it was a huge personality flaw that prevented him from giving two shits about anybody else. A guy like him at the top would only care about promoting himself, even at the expense of the rest of the club.


    Then, what about Julia? An interesting idea. At first glance, the girl seemed too prissy and immature to handle that kind of responsibility. However, with that said, she has already surprised Howard once when she pulled that amazing aggressive playstyle during the selection match. There was more to the girl than met the eye.


    "I think July will be able to handle it if we leave her no choice," Ellen said. "But, expect her to rebel a lot until she gets used to it. Also, I doubt she''ll be able to handle being the vice-cap and a competitive player a the same time. As you''ve probably already guessed from seeing her in action, July isn''t exactly a pro at multi-tasking. She''s a cute blockhead like that~"


    "So," Howard rubbed his temples. "If I make her the vice-captain, I''ll pretty much have to give up on her for the regionals."


    "Yep."


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    "Life is never easy, huh." Howard shook his head. With all things considered, Julia looked like the safest pick for a vice-captain. She was far from an ideal candidate for being a captain, but at least she wasn''t an entirely self-centered brat who''d assuredly run the entire team into the ground for the sake of promoting themselves.


    However, the cost of not having her on the first-string was high. With Julia in StormBlitz, the team had more options to adapt to enemy teams. Julia would be super effective when the team needs more explosive aggression to seal the deal, whereas Gilbert will be more valuable in games that go back-and-forth and require quick transitions from defense to offense.


    So, what''s more important? Assigning a competent vice-captain or increasing the chances of winning the nationals? It wasn''t even a question. Winning the nationals was a must for Howard. He was willing to do whatever it took to secure that victory.


    Therefore, even though Julia seemed like the best fit for a vice-captain out of all options, Howard refused to give up on her as an important situational player. Thus, there was only one last option left: Gregory.


    [Well, that guy is a piece of work.] Howard smiled wryly.


    If a vice-captain only needed the ability to organize things, then Gregory was second to Yuel among the juniors. Even when it came to playing Classmancers, Gregory was the type to research his opponents and to study counters. Sure, he had some bad habits like missing important details and relying too much on cheap tactics, but all of that could be resolved with enough experience and with some guidance from Howard.


    However, the problem with Gregory was his attitude. Similarly to Taison, that brat only cared about himself and believed he was the top player in the entire universe. His actions always aligned with self-benefit and he wanted the entire world to revolve around him. That kind of selfish captain would be detrimental to the team.


    Still, Gregory was definitely a better choice than Taison, so that''s all Howard had left. Will Howard be able to fix Gregory''s attitude throughout the year? Maybe it could be done with enough babysitting.


    Unfortunately, Howard had no time to babysit. He had to concentrate 100% of his efforts on the upcoming tournament or else StormBlitz won''t make it to the top.


    But, if nobody fixes Gregory''s attitude, StormBlitz will definitely become a trainwreck next year and Howard will be partly to blame. So, should he really throw the future of the club under the bus to prioritize his own interests?


    [If Yuel can act selfish, so can I.] Howard reached a conclusion. Frankly, the future of the club was not his concern. He''ll graduate after this year, so all that mattered was the here and now. So, even though it went against his better judgment, he''ll sacrifice the club''s future if it meant gaining a higher chance to win the nationals.


    With that decided, Howard called Gregory over in the afternoon. It was best to drop such huge news on somebody in person. It''s the kind of delicacy Yuel apparently lacked.


    "Excuse me?" Gregory raised an eyebrow. "Me? The vice-captain? The heck did that come from?"


    "Yuel is transferring to another school," Howard explained. "So, I need a new errand boy to be my vice-captain, haha."


    "And, you want me?"


    "Yeah, you''re the only other competent guy among the juniors. When I first considered who to pick for vice-captain, it was a close one between you and Yuel."


    "Huh, really," Gregory looked unconvinced for some reason. Howard was sure that praising this guy would work like a charm but seemed like it''ll be harder than expected.


    "So," Gregory pushed his glasses. "What if I refuse?"


    "I''ll murder your entire family."


    "Yikes, that''s harsh."


    "It really is," Howard chuckled. "But, seriously, would you mind not doing that? It''ll make my life at least a million times harder."


    "Kek, you really think I give a shit about how hard your life is?" Gregory shrugged. "I mean, there''s nothing in it for me. It sounds like a huge pain in the ass."


    "If you become the vice-captain, it guarantees that you''ll be the captain next year."


    "Hmm, that does have some appeal."


    "Also, you''ll be taking Yuel''s spot. That''s what you want, right?"


    "You know what I really wanted," Gregory narrow his eyes. "I wanted to beat that mofo and show once and for all that I''m way better. This vice-cap job ain''t it, chief. Like, is it supposed to be a consultation prize or something?"


    "I see," Howard was running out of ammo. As always, Gregory was difficult to handle. Some of Howard''s ideas worked on the guy like a charm, whereas others failed miserably.


    Worst case, Howard could try applying peer pressure. If that doesn''t work either, he''ll just make Taison the vice-captain. That brat will surely jump on the opportunity because it promised the captain position in the future. For somebody who wanted to stand out so much, what better role was there than the captain, right?


    [Wait, speaking of Taison...] Howard smirked. "Alright, I get what you''re saying."


    "Really," Gregory raised an eyebrow.


    "If you don''t want to, I won''t force you. I''ll just make Taison the captain."


    "Wait," Gregory started. "I didn''t say I wasn''t going to do it for sure..."


    [Gotcha.] Howard found Gregory''s Achilles heel. On top of being a selfish guy, Gregory also had self-esteem issues. Despite being Taison''s duo partner, Gregory ranted about how nobody noticed his "brilliant plays" because everybody only paid attention to Taison. So, this was Gregory''s opportunity to come out of "Taison''s shadow".


    "Look," Howard switched to his stern tone. "I don''t have all day. School is about to start and I need to find a vice-captain. This isn''t the time for you to play an indecisive princess."


    "Kek, rude," Gregory chuckled. "Okay, so what the job entails, anyway? Do I just get to chill and wait until I become the captain?"


    "You wish," Howard turned his laptop toward Gregory. It showed that plans regarding the upcoming entrance exam, including Yuel''s notes. "For starters, you''ll be in charge of hosting the entrance exam. Remember how I did it last year? That''s traditionally the vice-captain''s job."


    "Huh," Gregory squinted his eyes behind his glasses and leaned toward the laptop. The open document was a summary of the exam''s three stages, which Gregory was quite familiar with. He thought he left all this shit behind after he got into the club, but now it was here again.


    "This sure looks like fun," Gregory rolled his eyes. "We really gotta do this shit? Can''t we just pick the new members from a list or something? Like, based on rank or something."


    "That''s not good enough," Howard shook his head. "Not everybody who got talent starts playing in grade school and not everybody who got a high rank can necessarily become a competitive player."


    "But, higher rank players are probably better, right?"


    "Yeah, on average that''s true. But, our club is small and the school demands it to be competitive. So, we have to look for players who''ll be useful in tournaments later down the road. Think about this like the club''s future captain. Next year, you''ll have to form a team of your own with all these players."


    "Like the future captain, heh," Gregory smiled gleefully. He must have really liked the sound of that.


    [Alright, so this is one effective way to lure this basic brat.] Howard made a mental note.


    "But, ya know," Gregory said. "I understand we gotta be a little picky and all, but do we [really] have to go through all this bullshit? Supervising a race, making quizzes and then playing with all these scrubs... I got a headache from just thinking about all that crap."


    "I agree, it''s a little excessive," Howard nodded. "I also wanted to cut down some of this hassle when I became the vice-captain. But, we need to play it safe against the school."


    "The heck does that mean? You make it sound like the school is our enemy."


    "It kinda is," Howard explained. "Like many schools, ours doesn''t particularly like the idea of a ''video gaming'' club. They pretend to accept it as a sports club but they still got some prejudice against it."


    "It''s that bad?"


    "Yeah, it''s basically like this: the soccer club? A totally legit sports club. But, the Mancers club? What the heck is this club that promotes kids to play video games and to grow up as unproductive members of society."


    "That''s why we can''t have nice things," Gregory shook his head.


    "The only way our club survives is because we''ve been convincing the school that we''re a super competitive club. That''s how this over-the-top entrance exam came into existence. Apparently, the captain at the time had to come up with a convincing way to show the school how serious the club was, so he came with this sort of exam."


    "What an absolute mad lad."


    "Ironically, this spread the rumor that StormBlitz is a super serious team. In turn, that attracted some strong players to the school and made the team good enough to go far in tournaments. That proved to the school that StormBlitz is a serious competitive team. So, you can thank that guy for the reputation StormBlitz got and for the computers we got in the clubroom."


    "That guy is a legend," Gregory said. "Well damn, guess there''s no way to get rid of this tradition now. Then, can we at least cut ourselves some work?"


    "I''m always in favor of working less but smarter," Howard nodded. "So, what you got in mind?"


    "From what I see, we supposedly let anybody who finishes the race to pass the first stage," Gregory pointed out. "Weren''t we supposed to only pick the top runners?"


    "That''s a little lie we tell to test the players. In practice, anybody who crosses the finish line gets in."


    "That sounds like horseshit. This race ain''t gonna filter anybody like that."


    "You''d be surprised how many people it takes out. So many of them give up without even trying."


    "I dunno," Gregory shrugged. "I say we filter them REAL HARD. Screw anybody who doesn''t make it among the top. We don''t need them."


    "That''s a bold statement," Howard frowned. "If you apply such a harsh filter, you won''t give a chance to anybody who is a little less athletic."


    "Yeah, screw these guys. We ain''t got time to deal with everybody. The more of these scrubs we filter out early, the better."


    Gregory''s gaze was fixated on the description of the third stage of the exam. There was a side note there that stated this part might take anywhere from one to three days, depending on how many people reached that far. So, [the more people I cut down early, the faster we can get the third part over it. That''s some 200 IQ management skills right there, kek.]


    "You''re not exactly the most athletic yourself," Howard pointed out. "If we used such a strict filter last year, it might have filtered you out too."


    "Hey, I''m pretty sure I finished among the best. I trained for that shit all- Ah," Gregory cleared his throat. "Anyway, I say let the slowpokes fail. Ain''t nobody got any proof we gonna lose any good players from that."


    "It''s true, you can''t know for sure what''ll happen. But, you''re willingly taking a huge risk"


    "I can live with it. The less candidates, the less hassle."


    "Is that so," Howard narrowed his eyes. So, that''s what this was all about: the number of people to test. Gregory shined when it came to finding shortcuts and doing less work, so it came as no surprise that this brat figured things will be easier if he kicks out as many candidates as possible during the first stage. Lazy but shrewd.


    Yuel''s side notes in the document made it clear that the more people there were, the more work the examiners will have to do. He listed factors like how many days were required to properly test everybody during the third stage and how it might be impossible to fit all candidates in one classroom for the quiz in the second stage. No wonder Gregory was shook.


    Of course, these notes didn''t exist to scare people. Yuel made them because he was meticulous and wanted to make sure he covered all the challenges he discussed with Howard.


    On that subject, Yuel was the complete opposite of Gregory. He tried to get as many people as possible into the third stage in order to get as much data as possible about them. No matter how much work it required, Yuel wanted to pick the absolute best players for the club. At the time, it was actually Howard who had to argue against this approach because Yuel''s ideas would have put too much strain on the club.


    Gregory understood Yuel''s notes but took them in the opposite direction. Fewer candidates = less work. That''s all Gregory saw it.


    [If you really want to surpass Yuel,] Howard thought to himself. [You first have to fix that attitude. You become better by striving to become better, not by searching for easy shortcuts.]


    However, Howard kept quiet. He desperately needed a vice-captain and Gregory was the only realistic option. So, he didn''t want to insist on hosting a better quality entrance exam because it might him get into an argument with that brat.


    Besides, even though Howard wasn''t supposed to be involved with the entrance exam this year, at this rate he''ll definitely have to split a lot of the work with Gregory. So, frankly, he''d appreciate less work.


    [Heh, I''m totally throwing the club under the bus here.] Howard smiled wryly. There was no doubt that applying an aggressive filter would deny the club some decent candidates. Case in point: Yuel barely finished among the top runners in the race while Lars barely passed the quiz. So, if the exam were just a little harsher, these two might have failed to reach the third stage.


    [In retrospect, it would have been better if they failed.] Howard chuckled. This whole messy vice-captain situation only happened thanks to them. So, if Howard could go back in time, he would have definitely failed these brats.


    Anyway, it was regrettable but Howard had no choice. He had to compromise to make everything easier. If he wanted Gregory as vice-captain, he had to play along with this brat''s laziness for now, even at the expense of ruining the club''s future. Whatever happens to StormBlitz next year wasn''t Howard''s concern.


    Only this year mattered. In this year''s regionals, Howard had to win and win and win, all the way to the top. It was the only way to faze the scouts from Grandview and make them give him the scholarship he needed.


    "Alright," Howard started. "You''re going to be in charge of the entry exam, so I''ll leave all the decisions to you. If you want to filter more candidates based on the race, you''re free to do so. Just remember, you''ll be the one dealing with the consequences next year."


    "Good, now we''re talking," Gregory smirked. "Okay, another idea I have is to cut down the number of questions in the quiz. I see Yuel made a new format and gotta admit it''s pretty well organized and everything, but it got way too many questions in it."


    "Yeah, he said he thinks it''d be fairer if there are more questions. That way, people can focus on the areas they know best. That''s why he went through the trouble of categorizing the questions the way he did."


    "Such a hard worker," Gregory sneered. "Well, I say we cut like half of this crap and only leave the good questions. It gonna be less work for us to check the exams."


    "Sure," Howard gave up on objecting. As long as Gregory does at least a semi-passable job at the entrance exam, they''ll be able to put this whole ordeal behind them. That was more than enough for Howard.


    And so, Howard continued playing along with all of Gregory''s cheap suggestions...

 115 The Last Farewell

    Yuel''s transfer to Skyline Junior High was decided and he performed his last responsibility as the vice-captain. He finished writing down all the notes for the exam and prepared the new quiz, then passed everything to Howard. So, even though Yuel still felt bad for abandoning his post like this and dumping everything on Howard in the last moment, he did everything he could to soften the blow.


    And so, Yuel finished all the important preparations and everything was set. Except, there was still one unresolved business...


    [I still haven''t properly told Julia.] Yuel felt bad about it. Now, that he cooled down about their argument, he realized that he overreacted to Julia''s words.


    Her antagonism was nothing new and it shouldn''t be taken at face value. She was always needlessly harsh toward Yuel, to the point it became a habit. She didn''t necessarily mean everything she said to him. Hopefully.


    On top of that, she was shaken by the defeat in the selection match. The burden of the responsibility crushed her, so she was acting even harsher than usual yesterday.


    [She isn''t the only one, though. I was also depressed by the defeat.] Yuel immediately retorted because a part of him didn''t want to give Julia a completely free pass for her behavior.


    The defeat in the selection match devastated all three of them, so nobody was in the right mind right now. This situation made Lars suggest something absurd like transferring schools and Yuel went along with that absurdity. They were clearly out of their minds, but they were totally going to do it. Instead of blaming others or mulling over this depressing situation, Yuel and Lars chose to take action.


    Meanwhile, Julia chose to isolate herself from the world and act like a total asshat toward Yuel. It was hard to justify that kind of behavior, but it was important to keep in mind that some coped worse with defeat. Especially, Julia was worse off than others when it came to losing.


    For example, she had a bad habit of overcompensating with her defense after getting killed in a match. Therefore, going into hiding after losing an important match sounded just like her.


    [I should try being the adult here and reach out to her.] Yuel wasn''t confident about his chances but he had to settle this the best way he could. Therefore, he called Julia to inform her about the school transfer plan.


    Alas, it didn''t work. Julia manually declined the calls as soon as they started. She wasn''t even trying to be subtle about it; what a troublemaker.


    [You should at least let it ring to pretend you can''t answer.] Yuel grumbled. As he suspected, reaching Julia by phone was impossible right now. She hasn''t been answering Lars either. It''s like the girl went underground to hide from the law.


    [Am I really obligated to inform her?] Yuel sigh. Unfortunately, he had to do it. Despite their rocky relationship, he and Julia were friends. Or, at least, they were something that vaguely resembled that.


    There was the option of dumping this job on Lars, but that would be cruel. More than anybody else, Julia was scared of meeting Lars right now. Even during the club''s recent meeting, the girl was sneaking around like a ninja to not be spotted by Lars. It was both hilarious and tragic.


    So, Yuel had to somehow do it himself. But, what exactly was he supposed to do when Julia wasn''t even answering his calls? The only other way to reach her was to meet her face-to-face again.


    [I SO don''t want to...] Yuel sighed. Alas, there was no other option. School begins in two days, so he won''t get any other opportunities. He had to tell her now before she learns from another source and curses Yuel for life.


    [So, here I am.] Yuel gulped. He was in front of the entrance to Julia''s apartment. She lived all the way on the 7th floor of a tall luxurious building, so her parents must be well-off. That explained why she always thought she was the center of the world- [No, stop. I didn''t come here to bicker.]


    Yuel took a deep breath to clear his thoughts. He only came here to deliver the news and get out. He had to deliver everything as peacefully as possible without creating another fight.


    [Thinking about it, depending on how I handle this conversation...] Yuel clenched his fists and froze like a statue in front of the doorbell. If he messes up big time, this might become the last time he sees Julia. The friendship they have been building up over the past two years will crumble to dust.


    Despite Julia''s frequent antagonism toward him, Yuel couldn''t deny that cutting all ties with her will surely sadden him. Because, deep down, [very] deep down, Julia was actually an agreeable girl and a skilled player. Watching her grow and improve as a player was a delightful experience.


    Among the trio, Julia developed the most as a player. Yuel and Lars were serious and competent players from the get-go, whereas Julia had to climb up from the level of an "uninterested newcomer" all the way to becoming a "strong competitive player". It was a long and thorny road. She has almost given up numerous times.


    However, she persisted through all these hardships and ultimately earned herself a spot on StormBlitz''s first string. So, her attitude aside, she deserved respect as a player. If possible, Yuel didn''t want to end their relationship after delivering the news. His body refused to budge in fear of that possibility.


    Nevertheless, he had to do it. He came all the way here, so... DING DONG! He jumped from the sound of the bell.


    That was it. The decisive moment. He couldn''t turn back anymore.


    ... but, nothing happened. Yuel pressed the doorbell again.


    Ding dong. Ding dong. Diiiiiiing dong.


    [C''mon, you''re there. I know you are.] Yuel sighed. Julia was 100% holed up inside. Therefore, he kept ringing.


    Ding dong. Ding Dong. Ding dong.


    "GODDAMMIT!" A roar thundered from the other side of the door. "Who is it!?" Angry stomps approached the door. So, she was there, after all.


    "It''s Yuel," he answered calmly.


    "Tch!" It was a click of the tongue so loud it resounded through the door. "What do you want? You''re so bored that you came to prank me?"


    "No, I have something important to tell you."


    "And why do you think I wanna listen, huh? Go away."


    "No, I have to tell you. You can hate me all you want afterward. But first, please hear me out."


    "I''m not opening."


    "It''s okay. You just need to listen."


    "Well, I''m listening. Out with it already."


    "Lars and I... We''re transferring schools."


    ".............................."


    Dead silence. It must have taken Julia a couple of seconds just to process what she just heard


    "E-Excuse me?"


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    "Yes, we''re transferring," Yuel repeated. "We want to play on a competitive team this year and we''ve lost our chance to do so on StormBlitz. So, we''re transferring to Skyline."


    Clack. The knob on the door turned and two emerald eyes peered from the small opening.


    "Are you screwing with me right now?"


    "No, I''m serious," Yuel insisted. "We''re already arranged the transfer, so we''ll be attending Skyline in a few days."


    "Are you fucking..." Julia''s lips trembled and words didn''t come out. She was evidently confused and nobody could blame her. Yuel practically dropped an atom bomb on her.


    "B-But then, we won''t be on the same team..."


    "Yeah."


    "And, we won''t see each other in school..."


    "Yeah."


    "And..." Julia staggering backward. "W-Why?"


    "I told you, we want to play in the regionals this year."


    "No..."


    "No what?"


    "Why... Why you didn''t tell me earlier!?" Julia roared.


    "It''s something we decided just the other day," Yuel excused himself.


    "And why you never asked for my opinion!?" Julia trembled from rage.


    "I tried to tell you earlier," Yuel said. "But, you were to busy being in hiding."


    "T-That''s..." Julia clenched her fists but she had nothing to retort with. "You could''ve at least mentioned it when we met at the club, right?"


    "I was trying!" Yuel''s tone grew increasingly heated. "But, you were too busy raving about your precious first-string position and boasting how much better you are than us because you made it in and we didn''t."


    "I didn''t mean..." Julia had nothing to say back. Of course she didn''t, because she was 100% at fault. If not for her attitude, they could''ve discussed this entire thing as soon as Yuel and Lars agreed on the transfer.


    "Sorr- No, I... It''s like..." Julia stumbled over her own words. Small hiccups mixed into her words as she tried to speak up.


    [Is she okay?] Yuel started feeling a little bad. Even though all of this was unquestionably Julia''s fault, maybe Yuel took it too far with his accusations.


    Julia looked like she might break into tears at any moment now. But, she was holding everything inside.


    "I, I''ll kill..." Julia muttered as if she was possessed. Her fists trembled like they were about to explode. "Okay then! Think you''re so good!? Then come face me at the regionals! I''ll murder both if you! Mark my words!" She slammed the door in Yuel''s face.


    "....."


    For a while, Yuel just stood there.


    It was over. He did it. He just went and did it. He destroyed this relationship. It wasn''t the first friendship he ruined, but this time it really stung.


    Yuel''s relationship with Julia has been rocky since day 1 but it endured for a long time. Eventually, they came to a mutual understanding of sorts. They were still frequently at each other''s throats, but that was just their way of communicating.


    Alas, this time, they had a real fight. There was no mending this situation at this point. Therefore, it was the end.


    Yuel would be lying if he said he didn''t feel sad at all, but he had to move on. From this moment onward, Julia became an opponent for Yuel and Lars to defeat at the regionals. Of course, provided that Julia will be able to maintain her starter position until then.


    [I''m sure she will.] Yuel smiled wryly. Julia will definitely stand in Yuel and Lars''s way as a formidable opponent. They''ll clash with her and will have to bring her down.


    Despite the bad blood between them, Yuel wished Julia good luck on that front. She deserved to play competitively, just like Yuel and Lars. It was unfortunate they had to go separate ways like this even though they were all aiming for the same competitive scene, but some things couldn''t be helped.


    [We''ll definitely reach you in the regionals.] Yuel made a silent promise. [And then, we''ll see who is really better.]


    Yuel failed to resolve this talk peacefully, but at least he got everything off his chest. Now, he was ready to head into a new year in a new school.


    Before he can even think of facing StormBlitz at the regionals, he and Lars first had to secure themselves a spot on the new team. After that, they''ll have to somehow pull this underdog team all the way to the finals, even though this team never made it past the first round before.


    Just beating StormBlitz with the new team was ambitious enough, but Yuel had to win all the way to the top. Because of the promise he made with his mom, his entire Classmancers career was riding on this year''s tournament.


    [I have to admit, I made a hasty promise back then.] Yuel gulped. Nevertheless, he promised his mom he''ll reach the nationals this year, so there was no turning back. He and Lars had to win all the way to the end this year!

 116 New Beginning

    The new school year began. Yuel and Lars were about to begin from scratch in their new school, Skyline Junior High. Unfortunately, they didn''t make it into the same class. This was probably a result of their last-moment transfer.


    "You''re new here?" Some students showed interest in the unfamiliar alien. They all seemed to know each other from the previous year., so Yuel stuck like a sore thumb.


    "Yeah, I just transferred," Yuel answered without adding much. He wasn''t interested in sharing his story with people he just met. They asked a few more questions, but he answered as briefly and as concisely as he could to kill any further questions. Before long, everybody lost interest and went on with their businesses.


    The first day started with homeroom, followed by an opening ceremony. The homeroom teacher informed that clubs will start reciting members next week, so there was no way to apply to the Classmancers club yet.


    "Dude, wanna check out the club?" Lars suggested.


    "I wonder if anybody is going be there today," Yuel said. "But, at least we can learn where the clubroom is."


    "Okay, let''s go explore!"


    They walked around the school and asked teachers and students, but...


    "Classmancers? What''s that?"


    "Do we really have a club like that?"


    It was useless. The question only surprised people and made them respond with questions of their own.


    "Dude," Lars made a face. "You sure this school even got a club?"


    "Yes," Yuel frowned. "At least, it''s supposed to."


    They went over every floor of the school building, but they couldn''t find anything that even remotely resembled the Classmancers clubroom. None of the people they met along the way was helpful either. It''s possible the club was behind one of the closed rooms they ran into, but all these rooms had proper labels and none of them sounded related to Classmancers.


    There''s no way the school decided to disband the club on a whim, right? Even the school secretary wasn''t sure where this specific club was located. Just how unknown could this club possibly be?


    Then again, a club with just nine members was bound to be relatively unknown. At the very least, the secretary confirmed that the club still existed on the list of this year''s clubs. That''s a relief.


    But, where was this clubroom located? Yuel and Lars searched pretty much the entire school, yet they couldn''t find anything. So, it seemed unlikely they''ll find anything today... or, so they thought.


    "Why hello there," A boy popped up in front of them out of nowhere. He was holding a tablet and a digital pen as he spoke to them. "A little bird told me you''re looking for the Mancers club."


    "Whoa!" Lars jumped. "How did ya know, dude?"


    "There''s nothing I don''t know," The boy smiled confidently as he tapped on his tablet. "I''m an ESP. My special power is to absorb all the information that''s floating around in the world! I call it: Information Blackhole!"


    "Oh!" Lars nodded in excitement for some reason. "That''s sick, dude!"


    [More like, sick in the head.] Yuel shook his head. What did "Information Blackhole" even suppose to mean? Did this guy claim he sucked all information into himself like a black hole? In that case, the information should be gone forever and never return. [Wait, why am I even seriously thinking about this?]


    "You just heard us talking to the secretary," Yuel retorted. "Pretty sure I saw you waiting in line for her."


    "Yes, that''s exactly right," The weirdo admitted the truth. "It was the power of my Information Blackhole!"


    "... excuse me?"


    "My Information Blackhole sucked you into my general space so I could overhear your conversation!"


    "Of course it did," Yuel narrowed his eyes. [Okay, this guy has a few loose screws...]


    "Oh, right," The boy stretched out his hand. "The name''s Vincent. But, you can call me by my superhero name: Information Blackhole!"


    "Yo, Blackhole," Lars played along with this insanity and shook the weirdo''s hand as if it was the most normal thing in the world. "I''m Lars, but you can call me-"


    "Gunz," Vincent smiled confidently. "Right?"


    "Huh....?" Yuel zoned out for a moment. What? Did this stranger just identify Lars by his IGN? No, surely Yuel misheard it somehow, right?


    "Whoa, dude!" Lars jumped like an excited puppy. "How did ya know!? Am I famous or something!?"


    "Kukuku," Vincent cackled. "Don''t underestimate the power of my Information Blackhole! I told you, I know everything there is to know. I also know your pal over here is Chessmaster."


    "A real ESP, yo!" Lars was going along with this nonsense, but Yuel didn''t bite. Being called by their nicknames was a big surprise, but there had to be a way to explain it. There was no "Information Blackhole" or any such nonsense.


    [This oddball sure knows his Mancers.] Yuel tried to piece together all the information he had on Vincent so far.


    That oddball definitely knew a little about Classmancers, that much was easy to deduce based on the conversation so far. When Vincent greeted them, he said they were searching for the "Mancers" club. That''s right, he didn''t say "Classmancers"; just "Mancers". That was the most common nickname for the game because "Classmancers" was quite a mouthful.


    Therefore, Vincent definitely had a certain degree of familiarity with the game. Still, how could he possibly know the names Chessmaster and Gunz? It''d make some sense if Yuel and Lars were famous first-string players, but they haven''t debuted in any real matches yet. The only time they played in front of a crowd was during the scrimmage with the Leopards... oh, that''s it!


    "You watched our scrimmage, didn''t you?" Yuel interrogated.


    "Heh, such lightning speed deduction," Vincent nodded with an odd sense of admiration. "As expected from a guy with the Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception!"


    "The mystic eyes of what, now?" Yuel narrowed his eyes.


    "You figured out all the weak spots in my act and stuck me down. Thus, it''s the Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception!"


    "Sure..." Yuel had no idea how to even begin replying to this nonsense. Vincent''s evaluation was sorta correct but also entirely off the mark at the same time. It was bizarre.


    "Cool!" Lars was the only one entertained by this silly show for some reason. "Then, you also know what powers I got?"


    "Of course," Vincent nodded without hesitation. "You got a bunch of spicy stuff, but my favorite is definitely the Gungnir Sniper. With its power, you don''t drop a single shot!"


    "Yep, ya got that right, dude," The two goofs high-fived each other. "I call it 200% Accuracy, tho."


    "Hey, I like it," Vincent nodded in approval. "You got the knack for this naming thing. Maybe if you invest in this craft, you''ll be worthy of becoming the Arbiter of Talents, just like yours truly."


    "Not sure what that means but it sounds dope as heck!"


    [No, it does not.] Yuel sighed. He''ll definitely lose all his brain cells if he keeps listening to this conversation. "So, you went to watch the StormBlitz vs. Leopards scrimmage last year, right?"


    "Nope," Vincent denied. "I didn''t go anywhere. Instead, my Information Blackhole pulled the entirety of ProCenter toward me so I could see everything that unfolded there!"


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    "In other words, you went to watch the matches."


    "Yep."


    [He dropped the act so fast!] Yuel couldn''t keep up with this oddball. "So, you checked out the matches of both strings and that''s when you learned the names Chessmaster and Gunz."


    "You got me, Sherlock. These cursed Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception, they don''t miss a single thing."


    "So," Yuel continued. "I take it you were spying on matches for the regionals?


    "Yep, I was an undercover agent. You can call me Agent Blackhole 007."


    [More like, Agent Ham 11.] Yuel retorted in his mind.


    At least, everything made much more sense now. Vincent spied on the StormBlitz vs. Leopards scrimmage last year, so that''s how he recognized Yuel and Lars as Chessmaster and Gunz.


    [That''s some impressive memory.] Yuel thought. [But, in the end, it''s a rather underwhelming explanation. So much for his ''Information Blackhole''.]


    "Now, you fess up," Vincent pointed at them. "You came here to spy on our team, didn''t you?"


    "Nah, dude," Lars answered. "We''re new students here."


    "You transferred to this school? Why?"


    "Reasons," Yuel shot the topic down before Vincent got a chance to blow things out of proportion.


    "I see, I see," Vicnet swept the digital pen across his tablet. "So, the news article would be something like this: ''The two promising young stars of StormBlitz, Gunz, and Chessmaster, abandon their former team in search of new adventures. You won''t believe what happens next!'' Sounds good to me."


    "Sounds like a cheap clickbait article," Yuel shrugged.


    "Yep, haha," Vincent smiled wryly. "Nobody would read that stuff anyway." He shrugged and erased everything he just wrote. "Anyway, you''ve been looking for the clubroom, right?"


    "Indeed," Yuel have completely forgotten all about it by now. This Vincent fellow was the way too distracting. "We searched everywhere but couldn''t find the Mancers clubroom."


    "Kuku," Vincent smirked. "Of course you couldn''t. Our team''s fortress is hidden in another realm, unreachable by common humans!"


    "So, it''s in some obscure location?"


    "Eh, you can say that," Vincent twisted his lips.


    [Okay, I successfully shut down his nonsense again.] Little by little, Yuel was figuring how this clown ticked. In short, Vincent was the type to dramatize things for no reason. So, all one had to do was act unimpressed by Vincent''s shenanigans and that''d kill down the clown''s motivation to act. Alas, a certain goof didn''t get the memo...


    "Sounds cool!" Lars exclaimed. "So, it''s like a secret base?"


    "Yeah, exactly!" Vincent grinned anew. "It''s so well-hidden, even the school got no idea where it is! Anybody who wanna spy on our team gonna have a hard time!"


    [As if anybody is going to spy on such a weak team.] Yuel retorted mentally. Then again, with Yuel and Lars here, Stratus will definitely become one of the strongest teams in the region. Therefore, avoiding spies was a nice benefit.


    [No, wait!] Yuel shook his head. [I just fell for his nonsense again. Vincent is just hamming up the fact the clubroom is located in some obscure, possibly rundown, location.]


    "We don''t let outsiders into the club, though", Vincent lifted his chin.


    "Oh, snap!" Lars exclaimed. "C''mon, dude! Don''t be like that. Let us iiiiiiiiiin!"


    "We''re planning to join anyway," Yuel added. "After you show us to the clubroom, will stop being ''outsiders''."


    "Hoho," Vincent smiled mischievously. "You gonna join our pro team?"


    [More like, your Bronze tier team.] Yuel rolled his eyes. "Of course we plan to join. We''re aiming for the nationals this year."


    "That''s the spirit!" Vincent gave a thumbs up. "Alrighty, you''re both cool, so I''ll do you a super special favor and show you the clubroom. C''mon, I''ll let you feast your eyes on our super secret fortress!"


    "Woohoo, super base!" Lars ran ahead of the pack." Let''s go!"


    [I just hope it''s a functional environment...] Yuel sighed deeply as he dragged himself after the two excited goofs.


    Where could that clubroom be, anyway? Yuel and Lars have already searched every reasonable location, so it had to be somewhere really unexpected. Either that or the clubroom simply didn''t have a proper label on the door; that''d be anticlimactic.


    "Down here," Vincent led them down the stairs... to the underground level.


    "Wait," Yuel frowned. "It''s in the basement?"


    "Yep. Told you, it''s a secret base!"


    "Yo, my dude" Lars stopped. "That sounds cool as heck!"


    "Right? Right?"


    [These two at it again...] Yuel facepalmed. But, admittedly, this was peculiar. Considering how many different classrooms Yuel and Lars found on the upper floors of the building, it felt like the Classmancers club got shafted hard. It''s like school shoved it into the basement to hide it from plain sight.


    Then again, it wasn''t that surprising. It was a tiny club that was allowed only nine members, so that was proof enough the school didn''t particularly like the club. Even StormBlitz always had to prove itself in order to avoid getting criticized by the school.


    After going down the stairs, the group found themselves in a narrow hallway. As expected, this was the place where all sorts of things were thrown to hide them out of plain sight. There were torn posters scattered around, probably taken down from somewhere to be reused later. There was also a big metallic closet with cleaning tools peeking out from it.


    No matter how Vincent tried to excuse this with his "secret fortress" nonsense, this definitely didn''t look like an environment where club activities should be held. It was more like an all-purpose armory for staff members.


    At the end of the narrow corridor stood a big metal door. It looked like a bunker.


    [Weird. I didn''t see any other rooms along the way.] Yuel looked around again to confirm. Did this hallway have alternative routes? If not, where was the clubroom? [I mean, it''s surely not... right?]


    "Here we are," Vincent presented the metal door like it was their destination. No, that couldn''t be...


    "This room?" Yuel asked.


    "Yep, this is our super secret base. I call it, the Den of Undiscovered Potential!"


    "It''s just a shelter room or such."


    "Nope, it''s the Den of Undiscovered Potential!"


    "By calling it ''undiscovered'', you practically admit it''s tucked away from civilization"


    "That''s why it''s a super secret base!" Vincent persisted with his nonsense. "We secretly train here to take over the world!"


    [I''d like to start from just taking over the regionals, thank you.]


    "C''mon, let''s see what''s inside!" Lars pressed onward while the other two were bickering over nonsense. He pulled the big rusty door. It opened with a heavy sound. "Hey, it''s open!"


    "Yep," Vincent walked in first. "Cap must be here already."


    [This is sure going to be interesting...] Yuel dragged himself into the room after Lars. So far, nothing seemed promising about this club. The first club member they met was a total weirdo and the clubroom was located in this godforsaken basement.


    Nevertheless, this was a new beginning for Yuel and Lars. They''ll have to make work with the hand they were dealt with.


    After taking a deep breath to mentally prepare himself, Yuel entered the basement clubroom...

 117 New Captain, New Trouble

    Yuel slowly entered the basement club room after Lars dashed in. The goof was eager to see the entire place because he was still buying into that whole "secret base" narrative that Vincent fed him. However, based on all the data so far, Yuel set his expectations extremely low and he was right on the money.


    Like the rest of the basement floor, this room looked more like storage the school staff used and less like a room for club activities. Desks, chairs, whiteboard. cleaning tools, stage props, and whatnot. It definitely felt like a place that should be out of reach for students.


    The only redeeming quality of this room was the two computers sitting there. Yes, just two computers. But, two were still more than zero.


    "Wow," Lars smiled wryly. "The place is kinda big and stuff, haha..." His excitement vanished without a trace. So much for the "secret base" fairytale.


    "How do you like it, folks?" Vincent was the only one who still maintained high spirits. "This is our super secret base, the Den of Undiscovered Potential!"


    [There''s only one word in that name that''s on point and it''s "undiscovered".]


    Bam. Bam. A heavy sound resounded throughout the room. Somebody was banging their shoulder against the heavy iron closet, trying to push it.


    "Tch, this damn thing," A boy ranted while fixing his cap. The iron closet had wheels, but it still looked too heavy for a middle schooler to push. Especially, for a boy who looked about as thin as Yuel.


    "Hey, cap," Vincent advanced forward. "I see you''re working hard."


    "And, I see you''re late," The captain detached his shoulder from the closet to catch a breather.


    "My bad," Vincent admitted. "Took a while to get to the secretary. Everybody and their moms wanted to speak with her today for some reason."


    "So? How did it go?" The captain asked.


    "It was like talking to a brick wall."


    "About what I expected," The captain shrugged and resumed his fight with the closest. He made some progress, but the closet refused to move more than a few millimeters at a time.


    "Need help with that?" Lars stepped forward.


    "No, it''s fine. Umph!" The boy rammed his shoulder into the closet again, his black cap almost slipped off. Why was he even wearing a cap indoors? No sunlight could possibly reach this godforsaken clubroom.


    Either way, it didn''t seem like that closet was going to move any time soon.


    "C''mon, lemme help," Lars approached the closet even though his offer was already shot down.


    "No need," The captain insisted. "I''ve already pushed it all the way across before, so- hey, what are you doing?"


    "You keep pushing," Lars said. "I''mma pull it from this side."


    "I can do it myself."


    "C''mon, we almost got it, dude!" With Lars'' help, the operation finally started making some progress.


    "... fine," The captain pulled his cap down with a sigh, then resumed pushing. Through a combined effort, they finally returned the closet to its proper place.


    [Why did he move that closet in the first place?] Yuel examined the area. Judging by the cleaning tools nearby and the wet floor, the captain must have moved the closet in order to clean underneath it. That''s some diligence.


    "We did it, yo!" Lars gave a thumbs up.


    "I could''ve done it myself," The captain crossed his arms and sized up Lars and Yuel. "Who are you supposed to be, anyway?"


    "Let me present them," Vincent stepped forward. "These are Lars and Yuel. However, they''re best known as Gunz and Chessmaster!"


    "No idea what you''re on about, but I thought we agreed about not bringing any outsiders here. You remember what happened last time, right?"


    "Oh, but these two aren''t just some outsiders. They''re two legendary players who seek to join our prestige club!"


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    "Legends?" The captain made a face. "Did you coax them into coming here or something?"


    "Nope, not all at. Right, guys?"


    "Indeed," Yuel seized the opportunity to take hold of this conversation. Vincent''s presentation was wack. This was a serious matter. "We came here to apply to the club."


    "Really eager to join, huh," The captain tilted his head. "But, club applications begin next week."


    "We know," Yuel said. "But, we wanted to check out the club. It''s better to get to know our clubmates as soon as possible."


    "Your clubmates?" The captain raised an eyebrow. "Somebody sounds awfully confident about their chances."


    "We [will] get in," Yuel proclaimed. "That''s for sure."


    "Yeah," Lars tuned in. "We gonna join. 200%, yo!"


    "Where did you find these two?" The captain shook his head and tapped on the tip of his cap.


    "It was a fateful meeting!" Vincent provided a completely useless answer, pretty much as expected. "My sixth sense as the Arbiter of Talents drew me toward the immense potential these two were emitting! There''s a gravitational field around them that sucked me in an instant!"


    "Really now," The captain came closer to inspect Yuel. From this close, Yuel could properly see the captain''s face under the cap and...


    [Wait, is this captain a boy or a girl?] Yuel thought the captain''s face looked a bit too soft for a boy.


    Yuel''s initial impression of the captain''s gender was formed based on the boyish clothes the captain was wearing: a t-shirt, long pants, sneakers, and a sporty black cap. It''s not like there was a rule against a girl dressing this way, but this sporty look was definitely more common for boys.


    However, from up close, the captain''s face stood out more than the clothes and it was harder to see him as a boy. So, maybe he was actually a she?


    [I don''t think I can just casually ask, though.] Yuel frowned. Being mistaken for the opposite gender never felt good, especially when it was an honest mistake and not just somebody trying to be mean on purpose. Fortunately, there was one easy way to solve this mystery without looking bad.


    "By the way," Yuel said. "You forgot to introduce yourself."


    "Oh, right," The captain nodded and revealed the decisive piece of information that''ll unravel the mystery behind their gender. "I''m Kai."


    [Dang it! This name can go either way.] Yuel ranted internally. [This is awkward.]


    "You both seem passionate, I''ll give you that," Kai concluded. "But, you have to wait for the club recruitment next week like everybody else."


    "How you''re going to decide who gets in?" Yuel asked.


    "That''s up to me as the captain," Kai shot down the question. "I don''t think it''s fair to give this information to an outsider."


    "We''re going to decide it by online rank," Vincent pretended to whisper.


    "Hey!" Kai shot him a glare. "We''re not supposed to reveal that."


    "Whoopsie daisy," Vincent rolled his eyes.


    "If it''s only by rank," Yuel said. "Lars and I will get in for sure. That is, unless you expect to stumble across any freshmen who are higher than Challenger V."


    "You''re Challenger!?" Kai''s jaw dropped for a moment, but she was quick to recompose herself. "H-Huh, that''s not bad at all. Yeah, pretty acceptable. Mhm."


    "Wow!" Vincent exclaimed as he scrolled on his tablet. "You guys got to Challenger already? A few months ago you were still around Diamond II. That''s some grind right there. I hereby dub thee ''The Duo that Shall Grind the Heavens''!"


    "How do you even know them?" Kai asked.


    "Why, it''s elementary. My Information Blackhole gathers all Classmancers-related knowledge from across the globe! Twenty-five hours a day and eight days a week!"


    "And seriously?"


    "Well," Vincent chuckled and dropped the act. "Remember when I went to collect data on the Leopards vs. StormBlitz scrimmage? These guys played on StormBlitz''s second-string and they mopped the floor with the Leopards'' second string."


    "Is that so."


    "Yep. Remember I told you about this awesome Bot duo I saw playing in StormBlitz''s second-string?"


    "Eh, not really."


    "Anyway, these are the guys!" Vincent presented Yuel and Lars again as if they were some superstars. "And, they transferred to our school this year."


    "Really," Kai turned back to Yuel. "Sounds like you two will pass without a hitch. But, I''m not sure we can recruit juniors."


    "It''s fine," Yuel said. "I''ve already asked the school about this."


    "Really," Kai crossed his/her arms. "I''ll have to double-check, though. The answer they gave you might not apply to this club."


    "Is that even possible?" Yuel wondered.


    "You''d be surprised," Kai said. "We can only recruit three new people this year."


    "Three?" Yuel paused. That was odd. According to his knowledge, last year Stratus had five seniors. "Shouldn''t you be able to recruit five?"


    "Yeah, totally should," Kai clicked her tongue. "But, imagine the year starting and the school informs you they cut the club down to seven people."


    "Wha... That''s..." Yuel was at a loss for words. Only seven members? Seriously? Nine was already a low number, but seven!? That''s beyond absurd.


    Classmancers was played in teams of five, so seven members barely offered any flexibility for composing a competitive team. Without Yuel and Lars, the club would have had to recruit three freshmen this year and one of them would have to be part of the main team just because there weren''t enough members. It was insanity.


    "Only seven dudes?" Lars asked. "That''s hella harsh, yo."


    "Tell me about it," Kai sighed.


    "Why they did ya dirty like that?"


    "It''s... Well..."


    "Because we suck," Vincent gave it straight with a hollow smile.


    "No, well, that''s," Kai desperately tried to counter somehow but Vincent delivered the finishing blow.


    "This team traditionally drops out on the first round of the regionals. You can imagine the school isn''t too happy about it. We deserve the achievement ''Forever Stuck at Stage 1''."


    "That''s in the past," Kai insisted, but it sounded like she was trying to convince herself as well. "This year will be different. I''m the captain this year and I''m gonna make sure everybody takes things seriously this time. We''ll pass the first round for sure this year!"


    "That''s such a low goal to aim for," Yuel retorted. "If you want to take it seriously, then at least aim for the nationals."


    "Wha!?" Kai jumped. "Well yeah, I guess. Hell, let''s go all the way and win the nationals!"


    "Totally!" Lars gave a thumbs up and flashed his white teeth. "Then, after that, we gonna challenge the entire world!"


    "That might be a stretch, but that''s the spirit," Yuel nodded. "And, to achieve any of that, this club absolutely needs any strong players it can get its hands on, right? Like, for example, two Challenger rank players."


    "Yeah, that''d help a little, I guess," Kai shrugged with a smile.


    Clap. Clap. Clap. "Beautiful!" Vincent exclaimed. "Today, the Alliance of the National Warriors was born! Brave warriors have come together to fight all the way to the pinnacle of the competitive world!"


    "Yeah, yeah, whatever," Kai shrugged. "There''s just one thing, though. I believe Vincent said you''re playing Bot?"


    "Yeah," Yuel answered.


    "The thing is," Kai said. "I''m going to be the team''s Carry and I had Vincent in mind for Support. So, you''ll have to play different roles. Well, I don''t mind replacing Vincent if you can do a better job, though."


    "I see..." Yuel held himself back. Goddammit! It was happening again! Why couldn''t people let Yuel and Lars play as a Bot duo in peace!? Did they transfer schools just to run into the same exact nonsense again!?


    [No, calm down.] Yuel exhaled. [At least, we''re assuredly going to be on the main team. That''s already one step forward. But, unless we play Bot, we won''t be able to carry this team to victory...]


    "That''s cool," Lars smiled for some reason. "So, you two are also a strong duo with great teamwork and all that jazz?"


    "Great teamwork, huh" Kai glanced away. "Not sure what your standards are, but I''m a strong Carry and Vincent is an alright Support. So yeah, we''re pretty good as a duo."


    "Then," Lars grinned mischievously. "What you say we play a 2v2?"


    "Huh? Sure, I don''t mind," Kai said. "But, first, we have to tidy up this room. The club supervisor told us the room has to be sparkling if we want to keep using it as clubroom. Tch, as if we even want this stupid basement room so much."


    [That''s really low.] Yuel thought. From the looks of it, the school used this room as storage for many different purposes. In other words, people came here to dump whatever and then just left.


    From the looks of it, nobody was assigned to keep this room tidy on a regular basis. So, the school just dumped that responsibility on the Classmancers club because it''s their "clubroom". Honestly, it feels like exploitation.


    [Isn''t this child labor?] Yuel wondered. [Maybe I should ask mom if I can sue the school.]


    "Okay!" Lars grabbed a mop. "Let''s get this stuff over with real fast and then play! Let''s go let''s go let''s go!!!" He drove the mop into the floor and sprinted around the room.


    "Um, you forgot to dip the mop," Kai pointed toward the bucket of water.


    "Oh, right! Haha," Lars returned, dipped the mop and dashed away again. "Let''s goooo! This time for realz!"


    "He sure got energy," Kai made a face.


    "Yeah, he''s always like that," Yuel also made a face because this development came out of nowhere. He and Lars only came here to join the club, but somehow they found themselves helping with cleaning duty before even becoming official members.


    [Well, we''re going to be a part of this club soon and, unfortunately, we''ll also be using this room. So, I suppose we have a reason to help out here. Still, cleaning... ugh.]


    This was going to be such a pain, but Yuel nevertheless joined the effort.


    "Such teamwork!" Vincent exclaimed. "New and old warriors join hands to defeat the Evil God of Dirt!" He loudly rooted on everybody''s efforts. But, that''s literally all he was doing.


    "Would you mind helping too?" Kai shot a glare.


    "Hey, I''m helping. Look, I''m sending you my energy!" Kai joined his hands as if to shoot some sort of beam. Very helpful, much contribution. Seriously, this clown...


    "Here," Kai shoved a cleaning cloth into Vincent''s face. "You go clean that table over there."


    "Okay, okay. I got it, Ms. Overlord."


    "Who''s a ''ms.''?" Kai stabbed Vincent in the ribs with her fingers.


    "Au au!" Vincent jumped. "The mighty overlord unleashed her final move: The Rib Poke of Judgment Day!"


    "Get moving already."


    "Okay, okay!" Vincent made a few more silly comments before finally departing to do his job. Evidently, Vincent didn''t think of cleaning as a fun pastime. He was a clown and an oddball, but at least he saw eye to eye with Yuel on one matter: cleaning was a pain!


    But, more importantly...


    [So, Kai is a girl.] Yuel concluded. Vincent said "ms." and referred to Kai as "her". If one uses the advanced deduction technique called "simple logic", Kai had to be a girl.


    So, Yuel resolved one problem related to Kai. However, that was the trivial one. The much bigger issue was that she''s the captain and she was set on playing Carry with Vincent in Bot. So, for Yuel and Lars to be able to play Bot in Stratus, they''ll have to find a way to get Kai to give up on her position.


    "Don''t worry, dude," Lars passed by Yuel and gave a thumbs up. "We gonna show ''em how much better we are in the 2v2. After we beat them good, they gonna have no choice but let us play Bot!"


    "Yeah, that should work," Yuel nodded. That 2v2 challenge was a great spontaneous idea by Lars. It''ll prove beyond a shadow of a doubt how strong of a duo they were. An overwhelming victory will earn them their Support and Carry spots on the team.


    It felt like the selection match all over again, but this time it''ll be a 2v2 in its purest form. Even against Howard and Ellen, Yuel and Lars often held the upper hand in straightforward 2v2. So, not to disrespect or anything, but a Bot duo from a weak team like Stratus didn''t stand a chance against Yuel and Lars.


    This 2v2 will be their first important battle on their road to the nationals, so Yuel and Lars will win for sure! But first, they had to tidy up this room. There were so many things to move around and so many places to wipe clean. [Ugh, my back...]

 118 Sizing Up the Opponents

    "Phew, finally..." Yuel sighed as he dropped on a chair. His muscles were legit dead right now. However, the torture was finally over; they finished cleaning up the clubroom.


    "Okay!" Lars was pumped a fist, still full of energy as ever. "Now, let''s 2v2!"


    "Eh," Kai made a face. "Don''t you want to rest first?"


    "Nah, rest is for the weak! Let''s go go go! Or, wait, are you guys tired?"


    "Eh?" Kai frowned. "N-Not really, not me. I just thought the others might be. No way this much would tire me. It was like a brief workout, nothing more."


    "Okay, then let''s do it!"


    "A moment, please," Vincent''s voice resounded from somewhere but he was nowhere to be found. "Don''t know about you, but I need to take five. Or fifty, even."


    "... why are you lying on the floor?" Kai raised an eyebrow.


    "This may look like the floor to you, but it''s actually a bed. I dub it the Makeshift Floor Bed!"


    "You''re literally just lying on the floor."


    "It''s the Ultimate Makeshift Floor Bed!"


    "You gonna get yourself dirty."


    "Nah, we just wiped it clean, remember? Therefore, it''s the Ultimate Sparkling Makeshift Floor Bed!"


    "Whatever," Kai shrugged. "If you need a rest so hard, then we should take a break."


    "Yep, let''s take a huge break," Vincent said. "Like, for an hour or two."


    "Just how tired are you?"


    "Imagine I''m a Warlock who ran out of MP early on and continued spamming spells all day long at the cost of my HP. That''s how tired I am. I''m literally dying over here."


    "Seriously," Kai shook her head. "Aren''t you supposed to be a boy? Get a grip."


    "I identify as the Digital Boy class. I got high INT but low STAMINA."


    [I guess I belong to that class too.] Yuel silently nodded. He also needed some rest for his sore muscles, but thankfully he didn''t have to admit it. [I''ll let Vincent look like the only unfit guy in here. Flawless strategy.]


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    "Okay," Lars sat down. "Tell me when you dudes are ready to go."


    Everybody sat down, except for Vincent who insisted to keep planking on the floor like a noodle. It''s like he was making a public statement against the atrocity that was cleaning.


    Nobody was busy right now, so it was a great opportunity to make some small talk and get to know the other members. Alas, Yuel hasn''t invested any SP into his "Small Talk" skill, so it was unusable. On the other hand, Lars had that skill as a passive ability he was born with.


    "So," Lars started. "Where''s the rest of the club? You''re not the only ones here, right?"


    "There are two more," Kai said. "Luke made an excuse to ditch cleaning, as expected. Ben was supposed to come, but I guess his... Eh, his ''friends'' probably dragged him somewhere again."


    [The other members sound like a bunch of troublemakers.] Yuel thought. He hoped a small club like this would be a house for a few but very competent individuals, but that impression has been shattering with every passing moment. And, it didn''t help that the school was treating the club like dirt, which probably further discouraged new students from joining.


    It felt like a catch-22. The school didn''t think highly of a club dedicated to a video game, so it treated the club like a nuisance. As a result, the club got a barely functional clubroom that was hidden deep in the basement and was allowed to recruit only a small number of students. As a result, the club performed poorly in tournaments and the school got another reason to cut the club''s numbers. It''s a vicious cycle.


    Not to mention, any sensible student who learns the grave circumstances surrounding this small club would be discouraged from joining. Even the non-competitive players, who''d normally jump on any opportunity to be in a "video gaming club", will steer clear of a club like this. So, it was expected that the skill of club members would be all over the place.


    "What ranks are you two?" Yuel asked.


    "... Diamond V," Kai answered with a pause. It was a decent rank for a middle schooler, so it was unclear why she sounded uncomfortable saying it out loud.


    "Yeah," Kai clicked her tongue. "I know what you''re thinking. Compared to Challenger V, Diamond V must be looking like shit to you, huh?"


    "I didn''t say anything," Yuel answered plainly. "Diamond V is decent."


    "I don''t need your sympathy."


    "Um, sure," Yuel didn''t know how to handle this one so he just let the topic die out on its own. "What about you?" He turned to Vincent.


    "I''m still Platinum IV. Gotta be honest, the grind is real in Platinum. It''s the Grind of a Thousand Years."


    "I see," Yuel said. At one point in time, he also thought that the grind in Platinum was rather absurd. But, after he passed that, he thought the grind in Diamond was way more absurd. And then, he reached Challenger and... well.


    So, at this point, the grind in Platinum felt like a child''s play. In fact, Yuel and Lars already hit Platinum II by the time they got to middle school. Platinum was definitely not the kind of league a competitive player should be stuck at, especially not a senior in middle school.


    Getting to Diamond V like Kai and being stuck there for a while was acceptable, especially without a strong team to help carrying you. But, being stuck in Platinum? Please.


    [Well, maybe I''m exaggerating.] Yuel stopped himself before drowning in the negativity. Kai was Diamond V, which was decent. Vincent was Platinum II, which should be easy to convert to Diamond V with Yuel and Lars''s on the team. That is, provided that Vincent was at least a semi-decent player.


    In conclusion, by the time the regionals hit, there was a good chance four out of five players on the main team will be of Diamond quality or higher. Not too shabby.


    But, before all that, there was the 2v2. Online rank alone wasn''t nearly enough to determine a player''s real skill level, so it''ll be interesting to see how well Kai and Vincent perform in practice. Nevertheless, Yuel was inclined to believe that a duo of Challenger V would stomp a duo of Diamond V + Platinum II.


    Kai might be an opponent to look out for, but Vincent was most likely lacking in some areas at the moment. He''ll be the weakest link in the enemy duo, so Yuel and Lars should focus on outplaying that clown. Even though normally it wasn''t the best idea to focus the Support, here it sounded like the best plan.


    "So, about the 2v2," Yuel said. "When are we doing it?"


    "Wait, we''re really doing it today?" Vincent asked with a long face. "C''mon, guys. We just finished cleaning our super secret base. I''m dead tired."


    "I''m also a little tired," Yuel admitted. "But, let''s just play a friendly match."


    "These aren''t the eyes of somebody who wants a friendly match," Vincent smiled wryly. "You look like a hound who craves to devour the gods."


    "That''s just my normal look," Yuel said. [He''s sharp. I have a feeling I shouldn''t disregard him based on rank alone. He might be the type whose strength lies in strategizing.]


    If that''s the case, then Vincent''s rank might not represent his true skill. There was no telling how far Yuel would''ve gotten in Ranked on his own without Lars''s overwhelming carrying strength. Yuel''s forte laid in tactics and strategies, which were difficult to utilize with limited team communication. Online players rarely agreed to follow the advice of some random on the internet.


    Perhaps Vincent, just like Yuel, excelled in those areas more. After all, despite Vincent being such a clown, the club entrusted him with scouting last year and Kai wanted him as her Support. So, Vincent might hold great value when he plays in a strong organized team.


    "C''mon," Lars urged. "Let''s rock, my dudes!"


    "I''m down," Kai nodded and gave Vincent a look.


    "Oh c''mon," Vincent sighed. "You guys have to make me out like some kind of party popper, don''t you? Alright, fine. Let''s do that 2v2."


    Everybody was on board now. The only things left to discuss were the rules of the match and how they''ll play. From what Yuel could tell, the room only had two computers. So, it was impossible for all four of them to play on computers.


    "Are we going to play on tablets?" Yuel asked.


    "You can play on the PC if you prefer," Kai said as she pulled out a controller. "I''ll stick with tablet."


    "Yeah, I also prefer the tablet," Vincent took out his controller.


    [They''re way too nonchalant about it.] Yuel frowned. If it were him, he''d do anything in his power to play on PC instead of a tablet. It was the superior platform for this sort of game.


    Was it possible these two were more comfortable playing on a tablet? That''d be unusual because PC was the popular platform that gave players an edge. If they really felt more comfortable on a tablet, that might be a bad habit that required fixing ASAP.


    "Okay," Lars nodded. "Then, let''s use the PC!"


    "No," Yuel objected. "It''ll give us an unfair advantage, so let''s use tablets too."


    "Welp, okay," Lars twisted his lips but obediently took out his tablet. He was very much a PC player, so his performance on tablet paled compared to how strong he played on PC. Under any other circumstances, Yuel would make Lars play on PC for sure.


    However, in this 2v2, the goal was to prove they were better fit to play Bot than Kai and Vincent. Therefore, playing with a PC advantage would defeat the entire purpose. They had to play on even grounds with their opponents and destroy their opponents fair and square.


    "Are we doing banning?" Vincent asked.


    "We really have to?" Kai made a face. "I thought this was a friendly match. We should just go with blind picks."


    "Friendly match, huh," Vincent smiled wryly. Apparently, he was the only one in that camp who understood Yuel and Lars''s intention with this match. "How about we do a short banning phase? Say, just ban three classes and that''s it."


    "Fine by me," Yuel said.


    "Geh," Lars pouted. "We gonna waste time on that stuff? Let''s just play already, yo!"


    "It sounds unnecessary," Kai shrugged. "But, I''m fine with a quick ban."


    "Alrighty," Vincent nodded. "We''re all set then. Oh, wait. We need to open the door." He dashed to the metal door and opened it wide.


    "Is there a reason for doing that?" Yuel asked.


    "Indeed," Vincent nodded. "There''s a big, deep and sophisticated reason for this ritual. From the beginning of time, humans have worshipped the sun as a god and-"


    "A real reason?" Yuel asked again.


    "It''s to help the wifi," Vincent dropped the act. "Even though we''re connected to the school wifi, it doesn''t reach that well down here. Sometimes we get lag spikes and disconnects. So, by busting this door open and exposing our clubroom to the sun, our wifi connection gets a goldy boost!"


    "I see," Yuel wasn''t entirely convinced but it seemed reasonable. It was common to lose reception inside tunnels, so perhaps this bunker room had the same signal blocking capabilities.


    [I only get four bars down here.] Yuel checked the wifi signal on his phone. He has been maintaining solid five bars throughout the day at the school, so this basement was truly an exception.


    "With the door closed, no signal could ever hope to penetrate these walls!" Vincent started his nonsense again. "Even the FBI wouldn''t be able to spy on us in this secret Anti-Signal base!"


    [Why would the FBI want to spy on a lowly Mancers club like this?] Yuel retorted mentally.


    "I like this," Lars gave a thumbs up. "Keep the door open so we get at least some sunlight. Not gonna lie, this place is dark as heck. We need some sun energy, yo!"


    "Oh, I see you''re a follower of the Sun Order," Vincent nodded repeatedly. "I see, I see. So, the secret to your power must be the sun! Wait, don''t tell me! Are you perhaps the Sun Messiah prophesied to save Stratus from the bottom of the competition!?"


    "Yep, that''s me. The one and only, Gunz the Sun Dude, yo!"


    "Can we move on to the match already?" Kai asked right before Yuel brought it up. Ninja''d by a split second.


    "Yes," Yuel followed up on her words. "Let''s start already."


    The two pairs split up and went to opposite sides of the room to set up their tablets. This storage room didn''t have many computers, but at least it had desks and chairs for days. This was probably the place where they stored reserves for classrooms. And, apparently also where they dumped the old, barely functional ones...


    "W-Whoa!" Yuel slid off the chair and dived into the floor.


    "Pft, haha," Lars offered a hand. "You okay, dude?"


    "Y-Yeah," Yuel''s cheeks felt a little hot. "Who put these broken chairs in here?" He shot a glare at the stupid chair. One of the chair''s legs was didn''t reach the floor properly, so the entire chair tilted to the side when Yuel tried sitting on it. "We gotta be careful with what we pick."


    "Yep," Lars nudged the nearby table. "This dude right here also sways pretty hard. Gonna be a pain to play on."


    After conducting a careful inspection, Yuel and Lars finally found a stable table and a safe pair of chairs. Now, they were ready for battle!


    "You ready over there?" Vincent shouted from the other side of the room.


    "Yeah!" Lars replied with a shout.


    "Alright, only took you guys a year!"


    [Well, excuse me for being new here.] Yuel grumped. As expected, the veterans found functional desks and chairs instantly because they knew what''s up. So, everybody was waiting for Yuel and Lars.


    But, everything was set now. They were ready to duke it out in a 2v2.


    Honestly, this arrangement wasn''t ideal because both pairs were in the same room and there was a chance they''ll overhear each other''s plans and shot-calls. However, it seemed difficult to hear anything unless somebody was literally shouting, so it should be fine.


    "These guys are out for blood," Vincent whispered to Kai.


    "Huh? What''s that supposed to mean?"


    "Just warning you that these guys will be playing seriously," Vincent explained. "They got no chill. They''re like hungry hounds."


    [Especially,] Vincent thought. [Because they want to prove they''re the strongest duo around here. Which, to be fair, is probably the case.]


    However, that blockhead Kai didn''t realize any of this. She probably saw this as nothing more than an opportunity to fight Challenger V opponents and to compare her skill against theirs. She was simple-minded like that.


    Unlike Kai, Vincent wasn''t particularly attached to playing in Bot. Playing Top was usually more fun due to its 1v1 nature. Studying one opponent at a time was the best.


    Nevertheless, Vincent wanted to take this match as seriously as possible. Based on the scrimmage with the Leopards, Gunz and Chessmaster were absolute mad lads; they were most likely going to wreck Vincent and Kai. Therefore, there was no reason to hold anything back.


    "What''s with that face?" Kai asked. "You look like you''ve accepted defeat."


    "Nah. But, I know they''re super mega ultra good," Vincent admitted. "They were the hidden Golden Duo of StormBlitz''s second string. If not for Aegis and Athena being such a strong duo in the first-string, I''m sure these two would have played on the main team."


    "Then," Kai started. "You say they''re at least as good as the average first-string middle schooler?"


    "No, my scouter says their power level is even beyond that," Vincent grinned. "I bet you they''re going to be among the top ten players in the region this year. Maybe even top five."


    "So, their Challenger rank isn''t just for show," Kai nodded. "That''s all the better. If we want to take the regionals this year, we have to be able to win against players of this level."


    "Yeah," Vincent glanced away. [But, I have a feeling we''re going to get destroyed. Well, it doesn''t mean we can''t try.]


    Vincent brought up his super secret notes on the tablet. It had records about all the notable players from the region, including Gunz and Chessmaster.


    "For the banning phase," Vincent said. "We have to ban Trickshooter. It seems to be Gunz''s strongest class."


    "Then, let him try it," Kai scoffed. "I''ll beat him."


    "You don''t get it," Vincent shook his head. "Remember I said he might be one of the top five middle schoolers in our region? Well, that''s when he doesn''t play Trickshooter. But, when he got his hands on Trickshooter he becomes the god of destruction! An unstoppable killing machine!"


    "Please," Kai narrowed her eyes. "As if I''m going to buy any of these exaggerations."


    "Then, let''s put it in perspective," Vincent said. "Remember Fenrir, the captain of the Leopards last year? You agreed with me that that little wolf was a monster."


    "Yeah, the guy was nuts."


    "Well, I''m sure Gunz can give him a run for his money with Trickshooter."


    "Seriously?" Kai frowned. "Okay, maybe Trickshooter needs to go after all. I''ll beat him in his weaker form first, then I''ll destroy his final form."


    "Sounds good," Vincent nodded. [Though, no offense, but I have a feeling you''re the one who''ll be destroyed first, even by his "weaker form".]


    During the StormBlitz vs. Leopards scrimmage, Vincent was sitting on the front row and saw everything up close. In the two matches Gunz played, he wrecked the Leopards'' members left and right even without Trickshooter. That guy was the Insane Beast of the Apocalypse!


    However, Gunz alone wasn''t the biggest threat ever. He was undeniably powerful, but he seemed to lack in the decision-making department. However, when somebody led Gunz into the right situations, he shined brightly like the Sun Messiah and delivered godlike results.


    Of course, Gunz''s shepherd had to be none other than Chessmaster. It was always difficult to analyze shot-callers from simply watching a match, but Vincent was convinced of one thing: Chessmaster had the Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception. That guy always found weaknesses in the enemy''s positioning and struck where it hurt.


    Going for the enemy''s weakness was the most basic tactic, but Chessmaster polished into art. He employed superb tactics to force enemies into bad positions and crush them like bugs. So, there was no doubt Chessmaster will display the full strength of his Mystic Eyes in this match as well.


    What weakness would Chessmaster target? Most likely, he''ll go after Vincent first. Based on Chessmaster''s reaction to Vincent''s Platinum rank, it was clear Chessmaster disregarded Vincent as the weakest link. It was the logical conclusion to draw and it was true to some degree. Vincent really wasn''t as strong as Kai, especially not on his own.


    With that in mind, Vincent will probably have to defend himself a lot this match. Therefore, a tanky class with solid escape options should work well. Knight sounded like one solid option for that. Its primary escapes were the forward dash from Shield Bash and the Noble Steed ult.


    Unfortunately, both of these were relatively slow escapes. If Vincent wanted to escape from the clutches of a beast like Gunz, he needed something more immediate. It already sounded like he''d have to purchase Blink at game start, but he needed backup options in his kit because Blink''s cooldown was quite notorious.


    Lumimancer was a Support class that had a blink effect in its kit, but it wasn''t a tanky class. Electromancer also had Thunderclap, but it wasn''t even a Support class.


    Wasn''t there anything else? Vincent frowned as he scrolled down the list of classes. Tanky characters were rarely fast, which made sense from a design perspective. Most of the beefy characters with good movement were bruisers designed for either Top or Jungler, not for Support.


    For example, Viking had great mobility via Axe Blitz, which instantly wrapped him to the location of his axe. However, Viking was a rather selfish frontliner who was mostly interested in going in, getting some damage done in and getting out. It wasn''t the type of class that cared too much about creating opportunities for its teammates.


    "Say," Vincent started. "You know any tanky Support classes with good escapes?"


    "Eh, Knight?"


    "Figured," Vincent sighed. "I''ll go with Knight then."


    The banning phase of the game began. As Vincent and Kai agreed, the first class they banned was a Trickshooter. Then, as if in direct retaliation, the enemy banned... Knight.


    [Here come the Mystic Eyes of Weaknesses Perception!] Vincent grinned like a mad scientist. [The Chessmaster is already onto me! We''re super screwed, hahahaha!]


    With that, the "friendly" match started off!

 119 Restricting Defensive Options

    While setting up the tablet for the 2v2, Yuel shared his observations with Lars.


    "Judging by their ranks," Yuel said. "It might be a good idea to focus on Vincent first."


    "We gonna focus the Support?"


    "Maybe," Yuel narrowed his eyes as he glanced at the enemy camp. Vincent was busy explaining something to Kai with his usual exaggerated hand motions. That clown was always speaking a lot of nonsense, but it also seemed like there was some unexpected sharpness to him.


    Maybe Yuel was just imagining it, but it felt like Vincent figured that Yuel will be gunning for him. Something about their exchanges before the match just rubbed Yuel the wrong way.


    "We''ll have to see how it goes," Yuel said. "For now, my plan is to ban Support classes with good escapes. Let''s focus on Vincent whenever we can and see where we go from there."


    "Okey-dokey," Lars flashed his teeth and saluted.


    The banning phase began. Yuel''s side won the virtual in-game coin toss, so he got to ban first. His first target was Knight. It was a class with a solid combination of tankiness and mobility, so a Support who wanted to keep himself alive while helping his lane partner would opt for Knight.


    [I think I hit bullseye.] Yuel gauged Vincent''s reaction from afar: a dry laugh followed by a head shake. Even if Knight wasn''t going to be Vincent''s first pick, it was most certainly a pick he was considering.


    In response, the other team banned Trickshooter.


    "Yo!" Lars exclaimed. "For real? How did they know!?"


    "It must be Vincent," Yuel deduced. "He saw the scrimmage, so he knows how strong your Trickshooter is."


    "And here I thought I''ll get to go wild on them," Lars twisted his lips. "C''mon dude, ban their best Carry too!"


    "And how would I know their best Carry?"


    "I believe in ya! You''re smart and stuff."


    [Being smart doesn''t magically make me know things.] Yuel retorted mentally. He got an early read on Vincent, so he could estimate what classes Vincent was considering. However, as for Kai? Yuel didn''t know the first thing about her as a player.


    Kai was rather stoic and it was difficult to read her expressions, especially with that black cap that covered her face whenever she was lowering her head. Why was she even wearing that cap inside a basement?


    Anyway, there was one Carry which Yuel definitely saw fitting to ban: Elf. Depending on how well Vincent studied Lars during the scrimmage, there was a chance Vincent realized Lars had a bad habit of overextending at times. Yuel has been working hard with that goof on fixing this weakness, but it hasn''t been entirely resolved yet.


    Therefore, if the enemy chooses to go with a defensive game plan, it might cause some trouble for Lars. Thus, Elf had to go.


    In response, the enemy banned Paladin. Yet again, a class that showed strong performance during the StormBlitz vs. Leopards scrimmage. Yuel''s Paladin even impressed the Leopards back then and posed enough of a threat to warrant their ban.


    Based on these bans, it was evident Vincent didn''t know much about Yuel and Lars beyond what he saw in that one scrimmage. So, all his bans were likely going to be based on that one event. So much for his amazing "Information Blackhole". He didn''t know squat about Yuel and Lars''s other strong options.


    For the third ban, Yuel banned Lumimancer. It wasn''t a tanky class but its Flash spell was a blink, so that made the class great at escaping. Now, with both Knight and Lumimancer out of the picture, there weren''t that many options for Vincent to go for if he wanted an evasive Support.


    For the enemy''s last ban, they picked Druid. Yet again, a class which put on a strong showing during the Leopards scrimmage. It was also a great class for stopping escape attempts thanks to the pull from Nature''s Grasp, so perhaps that was one of Vincent''s considerations as well.


    With the banning phase over, Yuel''s side proceeded to select the first class. The other side will then have to pick both classes at once, so Yuel preferred to keep his own pick for last and counter-pick whatever Vincent picks.


    "Say," Yuel started. "You think you can handle a Gunslinger on tablet?"


    "Yeah, no problem," Lars nodded. "I''mma get these headshots."


    "You sure? You only practiced it on PC."


    "Believe it, yo!"


    [I''d believe it if you didn''t always pretend like you can do everything even when you clearly can''t.]


    Gunslinger was Lars''s second-best class, provided he could land headshots as he practiced on PC. For landing headshots, in particular, there was a huge difference between playing with a mouse on PC and playing with a controller on tablet. Could Lars really pull it off...?


    Then again, it was Lars. His sharpshooting abilities never ceased to amaze. Yuel and Lars absolutely had to dominate this match to show how much better they were than the other duo, so going with Lars''s second strongest pick seemed like the best option.


    "Okay," Yuel said. "I''ll believe you''re not all talk. Let''s go with Gunslinger."


    "Heh, this gonna be fun. I''mma style on them!" Lars grinned and his eyes glinted like a knife. He was like a hungry beast that was about to set out to devour his prey. Maybe it was just Yuel''s imagination, but there was something a tad unsettling underneath Lars''s usual gung-ho attitude...


    "Gunslinger, huh," Vincent nodded to himself as the turn passed back him and Kai. Now, they had to pick their two classes.


    With both Knight and Lumimancer banned, Vincent''s escape options were severely limited. He felt like there had to be a better option out there, but the only thing that came to mind was Viking''s blink ability toward his axe. Alas, Viking wasn''t a proper Support class. It was a bona fide Top Laner.


    "What do you think about me picking Viking?" Vincent asked.


    "Well, if that''s what you want," Kai shrugged.


    "You don''t have any objections?"


    "Not really. I mean, it doesn''t sound like the best Support out there, but this isn''t even a real match anyway. The extra power may be useful for a 2v2."


    "I guess that''s true," Vincent was taken aback at first by the lack of resistance, but then he remembered this was Kai he was dealing with. This girl always focused more on her own picks and plays. The rest could be whatever.


    "I''ll go with Pyro," Kai said and locked in Pyromancer.


    "Wha-!?" Vincent jumped. How about discussing it first!? Seriously, she was the Maiden of Zero Fucks given. "That''s a pretty risky pick right there."


    "Looks good to me," Kai shrugged. "Pyro can both carry and clear minions, so I figured it''ll be good for a 2v2."


    "That may be true, but it has a short range," Vincent argued. "I told you how Gunz has Gungnir Sniper, right? He doesn''t drop a single shot! If you get close to him, he''ll snipe you every single time!"


    "Again with that over the top nonsense..."


    "Alright, you don''t have to believe everything I say. But, at least trust me that Gunz is scary if you put yourself in his firing range. He''s going to aggress on you and he won''t be missing any shots."


    "We''ll see about that."


    [I got a bad feeling about this.] Vincent sighed. Despite his best efforts to avoid everything he saw during the StormBlitz vs. Leopards scrimmage, Kai just had to go ahead and pick Pyromancer, the exact class Gunz tore apart in that scrimmage. This was an ominous sign. History was about to repeat itself!


    [As the Support, it should be my job to protect her. But...] Vincent shuddered. He felt it! That murderous intent that traveled across the air from the enemy camp! He definitely had a mark on his back.


    At least, with Viking, Vincent will be able to protect himself with long-distance blinking. However, that''ll come at the expense of his ability to properly support Kai. If Chessmaster fails to take Vincent down, he''ll surely go after Kai next. Decisions, decisions.


    Normally, the Support''s life was considered of less value than the Carry''s and therefore the Support should be willing to sacrifice himself for the Carry. However, in a 2v2, the death of a single player meant 50% of the team was eliminated. So, Vincent''s death would spell imminent doom for Kai.


    [I should focus on keeping myself alive first.] Vincent concluded. [After I secure my own safety, I''ll figure out how to keep Kai alive. Oh, I mean Beat! Yeah, she''s Beat now. And, I''m Information Blackhole!]


    "Beat." Vincent pointed at Kai. "Information Blackhole." He pointed at himself.


    "What are you doing?"


    "Rehearsing the proper names," Vincent explained. "Gotta call everybody by their competitive names."


    "Is that a new gig you''re running?"


    "Yeah, isn''t it cool?"


    "Not really."


    "You should also call everybody by their competitive names when we''re in a match."


    "You expect me to call you Information Blackhole?" Kai made a face. "That''s a mouthful for a name."


    "You can just call me Blackhole."


    "How about no?" Kai rolled her eyes.


    "Anyway," Vincent continued before their time runs out. "I''ll take Viking to keep myself alive. Just keep in kind that my supporting options are limited, so play a little safer."


    "Sure."


    Vincent locked in the Viking pick and their turn was done. Now, the ball was in Chessmaster''s court again.


    [An interesting approach.] Yuel thought. This confirmed his suspicion: Vincent was definitely aware of the mark on his back. After Yuel sealed the defensive options of Knight and Lumimancer, it forced Vincent to resort to a selfish Support pick like Viking just to keep himself alive.


    It was an unexpected move but it was even better than what Yuel hoped for. Without a proper Support, the Carry will become a much easier target during the early parts of the game. So, if focusing on Vincent won''t pay off, Yuel and Lars will simply focus on Kai instead and Vincent won''t be able to do too much about it. Vincent played this one too safe for his own good.


    On the other hand, Kai''s Pyromancer pick was ballsy and disrespecting. She knew she was going up against Challenger V players but she didn''t care. That was some confidence right there.


    [Does this duo even communicate?] Yuel wondered.


    This mismatch in how each of them approached the match seemed like a small thing at first glance, but it might hint about a disagreement in the enemy camp. On one hand, Vincent saw how good Yuel and Lars were and played cautiously. On the other hand, Kai was going on all in without a single care in the world because she never saw them in action.


    Did Vincent forget to warn her? Judging by how energetically he was talking over there, it seemed unlikely he wouldn''t mention such an important detail. So, Kai most likely didn''t take his advice seriously.


    Honestly, it was hard to blame her because Vincent was a clown who blew every little thing out of proportion. Still, this was important information from a teammate and Kai disregarded it. This alluded to potential weaknesses in the enemy''s teamwork. Yuel should definitely capitalize on those.


    To counter Viking''s best escape option, Yuel picked Cryomancer. Between Ice Wall and Ice Coffin, Cryomancer had great tools for stopping Viking''s escape. On top of that, Cryomancer doubled as a counter to Kai because Pyromancer didn''t have any leap abilities for jumping over Ice Wall. So, unless both enemies get Blink at game start, they''ll be easy targets.


    "Man," Vincent shook his head. "I''m telling you, this guy really knows how to spot any weakness. He really got the Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception, no kidding."


    "Sure."


    "Cryo''s Ice Wall is a good counter to both our classes, so we have to buy Blink as soon as possible."


    "I''ll think about it." Kai shrugged.


    "Can''t you agree with something for once?"


    "Not until I''m sure I can trust your judgment on this," Kai said. "You''re the kind of guy who hears a random loud sound and immediately claims it''s aliens bombarding Earth. You expect me to trust the judgment of somebody like that?"


    "Fair enough," Vincent smiled wryly. He actually had solid information this time around and he was taking this match seriously, but good luck convincing Kai about any of that.


    Welp, he already knew this is how Kai always rolled, so there wasn''t much more he could say. She''ll just have to witness the savage strength of the Golden Duo first hand. Then, she''ll become more cooperative. Probably. Maybe. Hopefully.


    With the drafting phase over, the match finally began. They played on the map that was popular for 1v1, so their starting options were practically the same: either go for the Wraith Camp on their side of the map or contest the Ogre Camp in the middle of the map.


    "Dude," Lars said. "Let''s invade them!"


    "No need to rush things," Yuel said.


    "C''mon, let''s beat them before the game starts! C''mon, c''mon, c''mon!"


    "No. Gunslinger isn''t that strong in the early game. Did you forget that already?"


    "But, we''re starting at Lv.5. I already got my cool stuff going!"


    "That''s still too early," Yuel insisted. "But, we''re definitely going for the red buff. If they think they can contest it, they''ll come to us themselves and we''ll get ourselves a fight. Is that good enough for you?"


    "Okay, let''s goooo!" Lars darted out of the base as soon as he purchased the starter items Yuel advised for this matchup.


    Samurai Tabi was an aggressive starting option which will ensure that each of Lars''s shots will be impactful. Lars pouted at first and said he wanted something more aggressive, but Yuel insisted. Seriously, that goof was too bloodthirsty right now. Yuel will have to keep that beast under control.


    "Let''s go for red buff," Kai said, already on her way out of the base.


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    "Wait, wait, wait," Vincent objected as he followed. "I told you, these two are good. Like, super mega ultra good. You don''t want to challenge them to an early fight like that."


    "Why not?"


    "''Why''? You''re really something..." Vincent sighed. This was even harder than usual.


    Perhaps, despite Kai''s stoic expression, she was actually overflowing with emotions right now. It felt like she was dead set beating these two with her own hands. Did she feel threatened by their presence? Because, they were undoubtedly going to take her position as the strongest player in the club, Not to mention, they were boys...


    Being motivated for the fight was fine and dandy, but Kai was being way too reckless. At this rate, the enemy will mop the floor with them in under five minutes.


    [I know we''re going to lose, but I want to at least put on a good fight.] Vincent knotted his brows. [Oh well, let''s just see how it goes. As far as raw stats are concerned, I believe our classes got an edge over theirs in an early 2v2. I even got my ''press Y to win'' ult and all. And, if push comes to shove, we can just blink... or not.]


    "Wait, why you didn''t get Blink?"


    "It costs too much," Kai shrugged. "I couldn''t buy Lv.3 Demonic Arm together with Blink."


    "Oh boy," Vincent sighed deeply. This was going to be a wild ride. He felt that in his bones.


    Unfortunately, he couldn''t just leave Beat to her own devices, so he followed after her toward the Ogre Camp. Chessmaster and Gunz were probably feeling themselves right now due to their higher rank, so they''ll assuredly contest the camp. If so, GGWP.


    [Yep, just like I thought.] Vincent spotted the two enemies heading toward the Ogre Camp from the opposite direction. "They''re going for red buff too."


    "Yes, I can see that."


    "Any chance you reconsider contesting the camp?"


    "Why would I?"


    "Haha, right, why would you..." Vincent produced a dry laugh. There wasn''t anything else he could do but brace for impact. Viking''s ult might be able to get them a cheesy win in a 2v2, but the Chessmaster probably knew how to safely diffuse this bomb.


    The early clash for the Ogre Camp was about to begin! Who''ll take the upper hand at the very beginning!?

 120 200% Accuracy Without a Mouse Is 0% Accuracy

    Both sides ran into each other at the Ogre Camp right at the beginning.


    [So, they really came to contest it.] Yuel didn''t think that''ll happen. Vincent should have been cautious about Yuel and Lars''s skill, yet he allowed this situation to happen. This only further reinforced the suspicion that Kai and Vincent didn''t see eye to eye this match.


    That was useful to keep in mind. It meant the other team wasn''t nearly as organized as Yuel and Lars-


    "There they are!" Lars pointed at the screen in excitement as if he saw a UFO. "C''mon, let''s get them!" He dashed forth without thinking twice.


    "Wait," Yuel said. "We can''t just go in there. Viking''s ult will run all over us if we don''t-"


    "No problem! These guys aren''t that good, right? Lemme beat them real quick."


    "Wait-"


    But, Lars didn''t listen. The goof darted forward and opened a primitive attack without any planning.


    [What''s wrong with him!?] Yuel roared internally. For a while now, something felt off about Lars. He was always a gung-ho goof, but not like this. This situation was about to get out of hand!


    "Stop, we need to play this smart," Yuel hurried after the goof.


    "Nah, it''s cool, dude," Lars insisted with unfounded conviction. "I''mma take them down real quick for ya."


    "First, let''s take the red buff," Yuel changed his argument to make it sound more appealing for the hungry beast. "Once you get more power, it''ll be easier to kill them."


    "Sounds good!" Lars dashed into the Ogre Camp without hesitation. For a moment, Yuel was sure that goof will hit the ogres and aggro their attention. Fortunately, the goof didn''t lose all of his common sense yet.


    "C''mon" Lars urged. "Aggro these dudes so I can take them down real quick."


    "On it," Yuel entered the Ogre Camp and fired at the big Orge in the center. This triggered the entire camp and all three Ogres craved Yuel''s blood. As soon as they focused their attention on Yuel, Lars opened fire.


    Meanwhile, Kai and Vincent were standing on the other side of the narrow jungle passage. They must have been thinking really hard about what to do in this situation because of how disrespectful this play was.


    The entire enemy team was right in their faces, yet Yuel and Lars were farming Ogres like they didn''t care in the slightest. Any opponent would be taken aback by such a bold display of overconfidence. That was all part of the plan.


    "Huh, they''re seriously doing it," Kai raised an eyebrow. "They think we just gonna let them take red buff? They gotta be really looking down on us because we''re not Challenger, huh."


    "I wonder," Vincent cocked his head. On the surface, the enemy''s play looked like a huge disrespect. It was as if Yuel and Lars completely ignored Vincent and Kai''s presence. They were like air.


    Was it sheer confidence? Or, was that some sort of 200 IQ ploy? Nobody should underestimate Chessmaster because the Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception were high-level sorcery. They didn''t just spot weaknesses that already existed. These magical eyes also saw lines of play which could artificially create weaknesses in the enemy''s formation.


    But, was there really anything devastating a Cryomancer and a Gunslinger could do from this position? Chessmaster was tanking the Ogres while Gunz was shooting from the backline. So, there wasn''t any reason why Vincent and Kai shouldn''t assault their opponents right now. In fact, this was a great opportunity to strike!


    On top of that, this situation was very exploitable. Whichever team gets the last hit on the Ogre Leader will win the right to collect the power buff. So, even if Chessmaster and Gunz take down most of the ogre''s HP, Kai only needed one quick shot to steal the buff from them. Heck, even Vincent could steal the last-hit by throwing an axe.


    So, no matter how Vincent looked at it, the enemy put themselves in a terrible position. This was a great chance to strike and win an early game advantage.


    "I''m going in," Kai announced as soon as the HP of the Ogre Leader dropped to 20%.


    "Okay," Vincent nodded. "But, let me be on the front,"


    "Then hurry up."


    "On it," Vincent ran ahead of Kai. He had to make sure they minimized risks, so it was better for Kai to stick behind him. Despite how inviting this situation looked, there was still a good chance this was some advanced tactic by Chessmaster.


    Therefore, it''ll be much better if Vincent is the one who gets caught in the trap. Not only he was tankier than Kai but he also had his axe blinking technique. So, he should be able to get out of every sticky situation no matter how cunning the villains were. In fact, if Viking-man were a superhero a kids show, it''ll be a story about a hero who always gets out of trouble in a timely fashion with his axe. That''s how reliable the class was for escaping.


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    "They took the bait," Yuel said. "Be ready to switch targets once I blink."


    "Gotcha, dude."


    "Okay... now!" Yuel turned toward Vincent and closed the distance between them in a split second with his concealed Blink.


    "Oh, shit!" Vincent exclaimed. No way! That mad lad just jumped into the fray like it was nothing! Chessmaster just put himself in a sticky 1v2 situation of his own accord. Was it a misclick on his part? Because, who in their right mind would approach a Viking like that? It was suicide!


    [And here, we gonna see the classic Viking punish from Blackhole - the ultimate wrestling throw!] Vincent hyped up the situation in his head as he activated Takedown, a close-range CC grappling move. It''ll pin the Chessmaster down and make him a sitting duck for Kai.


    Everybody knew that getting in a Viking''s face was like asking for trouble and Chessmaster was no exception to the rule. There was no telling why Chessmaster went for such a suicidal move, but Vincent was definitely going to take full advantage of it!


    The Viking put his sword away and thrust his arms toward the Cryomancer''s waist. This big muscular guy was going to crush the slim mage- but wait! The Viking''s arms froze in the middle of the motion!


    Like, they literally froze. His whole skin turned blue. It was a timely Ice Coffin from Chessmaster!


    "No way! What a turnabout!" Vincent practically shouted. So, this was the enemy''s plan! Chessmaster went for the Blink + Ice Coffin combo! Damn, it was a classic Cryomancer play but Vincent completely failed to take it into account.


    [Chessmaster made the situation look so inviting that his enemies forgot how to think!] Vincent grinned madly. It was amazing! Chessmaster even strategically cloaked his blink to lower the chances that Vincent would think about it. It was so simple but so brilliant.


    Vincent was so busy thinking about how favorable this situation was that he failed to consider this predictable Cryomancer play. It was a weakness on his part! The Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception struck again! Blackhole completely fell for Chessmaster''s trap!


    "It''s the real deal," Vincent grinned as the hype commentary exploded in his head. This play was exactly like the type of craftiness he saw during the StormBlitz vs. Leopard scrimmage. It was this tactic of instilling the enemy with a fake sense of comfort, only to pull the rug from under them! Beautiful.


    While this exchange between Blackhole and Chessmaster was taking place, Gunz used Combat Roll to also get closer. So, it was a double play! Both enemies moved in at the same time as if they were synchronized!


    Gunz activated Fan the Hammer right as he recovered from the roll. Next, he was assuredly going to drill each and every bullet into Blackhole''s frozen head! It probably won''t be enough to kill, but it''ll be close and it''ll cripple. These were terrible news for Blackhole!


    But, will Gunz be able to land three shots in a row from Fan the Hammer? Why, of course he will! He was Gunz, the master of the Gungnir Sniper! The 200% Accuracy wonderboy!


    "Got him!" Lars took aim while spinning the hammer of his revolver. He only had five bullets available so he had to land a headshot with each and every one of them to get a kill. [Okay, let''s rock n'' roll!]


    He gonna land all these shots for sure. Ez. After all, he practiced these headshots so much. He just had to adjust his aim a little to the left and- bam! The first shot fired!


    "Ah, wai..." Lars had a really bad feeling about that one. Didn''t he rotate a bit too much to the left? It was hard to tell without a mouse in hand.


    Anyway! He had no time to mull over this. The next bullet was gonna burst outta his revolver and he had to make it count!


    [This time, I''mma make sure I''m not pulling it too much- crap!] The bullet blasted off before Lars finished adjusting the aim after the recoil. [This ain''t good! It gonna miss! Dang it, I''m supposed to be pro-level at landing headshots, yo!]


    Alas, the two shots indeed missed their idle target. Gah! A new year just began but Lars has already made the most embarrassing mistake of the year!


    But, there was still the third shot- bam! It flew far off toward the sky. Lars missed the timing for adjusting the aim. He missed three shots in a row already! Gaaaaaah! That''s why he hated playing with a controller! Master race mouse for the win! What he gonna do now!?


    There were two more shots in the revolver. But, the freeze from Ice Coffin wore off, so the target was going to start moving now.


    [Do I keep going for headshots? But, I can''t get a cripple anymore and if I miss everything...] Lars gritted his teeth. Just before the bullet came out, he made the call.


    Bam! The bullet hit Vincent''s torso. Lars lowered his gun to aim for the body instead of the head. Going for headshots was pointless right now. He was just going to miss everything.


    For the next shot, Lars aimed for the body again and landed a shot on Vincent''s shoulder. Good, at least he got some shots in. This way, he didn''t entirely waste the opportunity Yuel created for him.


    [Not a single headshot?] Yuel was stunned. This was the complete opposite of Lars''s so-called "200% accuracy".


    Yuel suspected there will be a disparity between Lars''s PC performance and tablet performance, but this much? "Nailing every headshot" vs. "not landing a single headshot" were a world apart...


    Yuel specifically came with this play because he believed Lars would be able to confirm headshots against an immobile opponent. Alas, turned out he underestimated the difference between aiming with a mouse and aiming with a controller. It was terrible news!


    "Okay, no matter!" Lars advanced. "I''ll just kill him with normal shots!"


    "No, we retreat," Yuel erected an ice wall to close the narrow jungle passage. Kai was fast enough to land two basic attacks on him before that but overall he disengaged without any losses. "Finish off the ogre and we return to lane."


    "But-"


    "No buts. Do it."


    "Whoa, somebody is angry," Lars smiled wryly and obediently shifted his focus back to the dying Ogre Leader.


    "You take the red buff and we go to lane. Is that clear?"


    "Yes, sir."


    Lars finished off the Ogre Leader and snatched the red buff, then both of them scrammed from the area. They safely reached the lane and the danger was behind them now.


    "My bad," Lars apologized. "I messed up the shots. Seems like practicing headshots with a mouse doesn''t translate that well to a controller."


    "Who would have thought," Yuel rolled his eyes.


    "But, don''t worry! I''mma get the headshots next time for sure!"


    "No, just shoot at the body. We don''t have time for you to adjust to the controller."


    "But, I can wreck them with head-"


    "We''ll lose if you keep pulling that stuff."


    "... okay, got it. I''mma prioritize body shots and only go for headshots if I''m sure I can get them."


    "Okay, but only when you''re [really] sure."


    "Yeah, yeah" Lars nodded. "Gotta say, it''s been a while since I saw you this mad."


    "I''m not mad."


    "You are, though."


    "Am not."


    "You totally are, dude."


    "NOW I''m getting angry."


    "Haha, okay, okay."


    "Just focus on laning," Yuel said. And, for the record, he wasn''t mad. But, admittedly, he was a little frustrated with Lars right now. That goof always promised miracles without thinking things through. Sometimes, Lars truly deliverer unexpected results. Other times, he failed miserably. It was so frustratingly unpredictable.


    It''s thanks to unpredictable factors like these that they lost the selection match against Howard. Despite playing with Lars for so long, Yuel still hasn''t quite grasped how to tell when Lars could really pull something off and when the goof was talking nonsense. It got aggravating at times.


    So, if Yuel was mad at anybody, then it was only at himself. He was unable to make the right call and that''s why the entire play fell apart.


    Yuel knew Lars was a goof. He also knew about the difficulties in handling a controller. And, he definitely knew how difficult it was to land headshots during Fan the Hammer. So, Yuel knew everything. He had all the data in hand, yet he made the wrong judgment. Dammit!


    [I need to be stricter.] Yuel took a deep breath. This time, they miraculously escaped without suffering any grave consequences. However, next time, a huge mistake like that might cost them the entire game. If this were the regionals, the enemy would have eliminated them from the entire tournament for a mistake like this. They couldn''t let themselves slip up like this anymore.


    "Stay behind me as you farm," Yuel instructed. "If the Viking gets into range, prioritize him. We want to condition him into being afraid of the frontline. If he advances anyway, retreat right away and be ready to dodge his axe. It might be a sign he''s going to blink in and ult."


    "Got it, got it," Lars nodded. "No need to worry so much. I just messed up the headshot. I know what I''m doing."


    [How I wish I could believe that.] Yuel shook his head. From now on, he should rely as little as possible on blind trust. If something sounded unlikely then it was unlikely, even for Lars. It''s better to be safe than sorry. That''s how Yuel will have to reason from now on.


    Meanwhile, the other camp also analyzed this outcome.


    "Huh," Kai shrugged. "Didn''t you say he''s a sniper?"


    "Yeah, well..." Vincent couldn''t even begin a retort. All the hype he was building up about the enemy''s amazing play came down crashing the moment Gunz missed three shots in a row.


    Vincent was frozen in place at the time, completely immobile. And yet, Gunz couldn''t land a single shot. And, not just headshots but simple body shots too. Gunz missed everything at first.


    What kind of absurdity was that? Did Vincent slip into a different timeline? Was this the Beta timeline? A timeline in which Gunz hasn''t developed the Gungnir Sniper?


    The recoil during Fan the Hammer was quite severe, so everybody knew it was difficult to land multiple shots in a row. Even some pros admitted they didn''t play Gunslinger because they couldn''t land these headshots consistently.


    But, not landing headshots was a world apart from not landing any shots at all. It seemed like Gunz insisted to aim for the head and failed miserably every time. Especially, the third shot looked like it was aimed toward outer space. Only after that Gunz started properly landing body shots, probably because he gave up on headshots.


    How could the mighty sniper fall so hard? Did Gunz try to style on them with headshots he didn''t practice? Or, maybe it''s because they were playing with controllers? Either way, the Gungnir Sniper was dormant right now. That''s one thing less to worry about.


    Brimming with confidence about their chances, Vincent and Kai reached the lane. The battle for territory began!

 121 Lane Pressure Sparks Offense

    The laning phase began. Yuel and Lars fired at the minions from afar with their long-ranged classes. Yuel positioned himself a bit ahead of Lars to intercept any attempts at aggression, but overall they both maintained a safe distance from the minions.


    On the other hand, the enemy duo didn''t have the same luxury. Kai''s Pyromancer had to advance toward the frontline from time to time to unleash Flame Wave. And, Vincent''s Viking was an entirely melee class save for his Throw Axe, so he had to be on the frontline if he wanted to deal any damage. Naturally, Yuel took full advantage of these facts.


    Every time Vincent advanced to help with the farming effort, Yuel and Lars advanced to get Vincent within their firing range. They poked Vincent until he had no choice but retreat to the rear.


    [Figured. They won''t let me play.] Vincent smiled wryly. In a 2v2 situation where one of the enemies was melee, zoning him out was a basic tactic. So, Vincent couldn''t get to the frontline to help with the farming. not unless he wanted to commit suicide.


    Once in a while, Vincent tossed his axe at minions from afar to get some damage in. But, overall, his contribution to the farming efforts was negligible.


    "Sorry," Vincent apologized. "Seems like the farming is up to you."


    "I noticed," Kai shrugged.


    [Not fazed at all, huh.] Vincent was impressed by the girl''s confidence. Or rather, her overconfidence. She was probably still under the impression she could seriously take on the Golden Duo.


    Still, even though their farming was effectively 1v2, Kai held her ground. The strong AoE burst of Flame Wave was effective at clearing minions and compensated for the fact she was farming alone. Neither Cryomancer nor Gunslinger had any particularly impressive lane clearing tools, so a Pyromancer alone could roughly rival them as long as the Gunslinger wasn''t landing quick headshots on minions all the time.


    However, the bad news was that Kai had to get close to the minions to unleash Flame Wave effectively. This medium reach was one of the greatest weaknesses of Pyromancer. The burst of Flame Wave was powerful, but it forced Kai to put herself in danger every time.


    "Just a friendly advice," Vincent said. "Don''t try too hard to match their clearing speed."


    "You''re asking me to surrender lane control?"


    "You put yourself in danger every time you advance to the frontline. If you keep this up, the Golden Duo shall smite you down."


    "Aren''t you here to prevent things like that?" Kai asked. "If they get close, just boot your ult."


    "So, you''re using me like a scarecrow here?" Vincent chuckled.


    Kai had the right idea here. Viking was scary at close range due to his ult, so even the Golden Duo will think twice before approaching him. So, even though Vincent couldn''t help much with the farming, his mere presence on the lane kept Kai safe.


    "Yo," Lars exclaimed. "When we gonna go all out?"


    "Not any time soon," Yuel answered. "We can''t go in while the Viking is here."


    "Why not? Let''s do it!"


    "You want to face an army of pirates? Yeah, didn''t think so. Just wait until we wear out the Viking with pokes. He doesn''t have any regen, so he''ll have to retreat once he runs out of potions."


    "Geh, so boring," Lars twisted his lips but kept following the game plan. He stayed far in the back and only advanced to pressure the enemy at Yuel''s command. There was still a feeling of unruliness coming from him but, for now, he was cooperating with Yuel''s tactics.


    [I have to admit, Vincent is putting on a solid performance.] Yuel nodded to himself. As far as defense was concerned, Vincent didn''t come across as a weak player at all. He played patiently from afar and understood the threat he was posing with his presence as a Viking. It was a small thing, but Yuel saw countless melee Supports who impatiently advanced to the frontline to make their presence look more relevant.


    A lack of greed was a virtue for a Support. While a Carry sometimes had to be greedy to score kills or secure objectives, a Support was almost always better off taking a slower and more methodical approaching. After all, the Support''s priority was to support the Carry during the laning phase, not to achieve anything amazing. Apparently, Vincent understood this profound concept.


    Yuel picked a ranged Support in part because he hoped Vincent would fall for the mistake of being an impatient melee Support. However, so far, Vincent hasn''t shown any obvious weaknesses Yuel could exploit.


    In fact, both opponents were putting on a strong show. Kai picked all the right moments to unleash Flame Wave on the minion wave while maintaining as much distance as possible from her foes. As a result, it was difficult to punish her advances. She wasn''t a Diamond player for nothing, that''s for sure.


    Due to the enemy''s solid performance, the laning phase remained in a status quo even during the third minion wave. Yuel and Lars cleared the wave a little faster, but Kai immediately caught up with a powerful Flame Wave. Her Heat Gauge must have been staying close max at all times.


    "Meh, nothing is happening," Lars pouted. "Welp, at least I can work on my headshots."


    Lars apparently used this "peaceful" laning phase to practice his head shooting skills. He fired slower than usual but about half his shots landed on the minions'' heads. However, the other half either outright missed or just barely hit the body.


    Even though Yuel asked to not be greedy with headshots, he didn''t say anything about Lars''s practice. Since Gunslinger''s headshots were critical hits, firing a little slower to secure headshots was actually better DPS. It was hard to calculate the exact damage on the spot but Yuel estimated that, in the worst-case scenario, they weren''t losing much in this exchange.


    And, if this little practice helps Lars to learn how to score headshots with a controller, all the more power to him. This investment might pay off in the later stages of the match.


    "Okay!" Lars exclaimed. "Check this out!" He activated Fan the Hammer and barraged the minion wave.


    The first shot hit a minion straight in the forehead. The second shot was also a headshot! And then, the third shot! ... missed completely.


    "Dang it!" Lars ranted as he adjusted his aim for the fourth shot. Knowing that goof, he was definitely going for another headshot to prove that the ratio of his headshots improved.


    It sounded like the wrong thing to do because Lars has already lost the rhythm of the shots for Fan the Hammer. Unfortunately, Yuel wasn''t fast enough to advise against this idea. Gunslinger''s revolver was like a machinegun during Fan the Hammer. Therefore, while Yuel was still forming his analysis of the situation, the Gunslinger already fired the next bullet!


    As expected, it wasn''t a headshot. Yuel was no expert on the topic, but he watched some Gunslinger guides before and heard about it many times from Lars. Once the shooter''s timing was thrown off with a miss, it was "super duper hard" to adjust again in the middle of Fan the Hammer.


    So, it came as no surprise the bullet failed to hit the minion''s head. However, what [did] surprise, was that the bullet landed on the minion at all. Instead of hitting the head, the shot pierced through the minion''s chest. The following shots were all the same.


    "Meh, better than nothing," Lars said.


    "Did you aim for the head?"


    "Nope," Lars answered. "I messed up the third shot, so I figured I won''t be making the next ones either. So, I just went for the body."


    "Really?" Yuel blinked. Did Lars really give up on the last few headshot opportunities? This was unheard of. "What''s wrong? I thought you''ll keep going for headshots until I lecture you like twenty times."


    "Hey, I''m learning from my mistakes, okay?" Lars chuckled. "Just figured it ain''t good to go for headshots all the time before I practice them enough. I don''t wanna lose the game just because I whiff headshots."


    "That''s surprisingly smart coming from you."


    "Rude, haha," Lars smiled wryly. "It''s just that, sometimes, being greedy kinda costs you games."


    [Welcome to MOBAs.] Yuel retorted mentally but didn''t say anything.


    There was a hint of frustration in Lars''s tone and it wasn''t hard to guess where it was coming from: their defeat during the selection match. Lars died time and again by greedily chasing Ellen and by recklessly challenging Taison to 1v1s. These misplays were a big factor in the team''s defeat and the harsh experiences seemed to teach the goof a lesson or two.


    Lars''s headshot ratio increased with every subsequent wave and he stopped going for impossible headshots he knew he''ll miss. As a result, his lane clearing speed increased every time through sheer skill. It was amazing how quickly this goof was leveling up his execution on a tablet.


    Thanks to that, they have been progressively gaining the upper hand on the lane. Lars cleared the wave faster and faster with each iteration, which made it that much harder for Kai to contest. Eventually, they managed to clear the wave fast enough to give themselves some time to aggress on their opponents.


    They prioritized attacking Kai because she was the squishy DPS, but Vincent didn''t let that pass. He stood in their way and blocked with his body.


    "That''s how we''ll wear him out," Yuel explained. "We''ll go after the Pyro and that''ll force the Viking to bodyblock. He''ll run out of gas eventually."


    "Oh, smart!" Lars nodded. "We gotta go all out on that dude then! Let''s go!"


    "No, we don''t," Yuel shot down the idea. "Let''s force them to act. Right now, we got the lane advantage. So, they only got two options: either submit against our advantage or try mounting a counterattack. In other words, either they come to us or we''ll slowly grind them to dust"


    "Not sure I get all the details but sounds cool! So, when do I go all in and kill somebody?"


    "When the Viking comes at us, if he ever does."


    "So, we wait?"


    "Yeah, we wait."


    "Boo, but okay." Lars went along with the defensive plan with surprisingly little objection. He was still the usual hungry beast who sought action and kills, but he was more accepting of a defensive plan than ever. Perhaps, this was the first step toward that goof''s growth!?


    "So, can I go all out on these dudes already?"


    "... no, I said we wait."


    "I waited for like five seconds yo. That gotta be enough, right? Haha."


    "Yeah, right," Yuel sighed with a smile. Well, at least Lars was showing signs of developing patience. So, in twenty years or so, he''ll finally figure out what it means to play defense. Hopefully.


    Following Yuel''s game plan, they waited for the enemy to take action. They have already gained the upper hand during class selection and that allowed them to gain an early game advantage, so Yuel was going to abuse that fact to the max. There was no need to take risks by going on the offensive, especially not with Lars''s half-cooked Gunslinger skills on tablet. Let the enemy come to them and commit mistakes.


    The opponents were no amateurs, they understood the situation well.


    "You not gonna initiate?" Kai asks. "In case you didn''t notice, we''re kinda in a rough spot."


    "You don''t say," Vincent smiled wryly. [Yeah, this situation is rough. We attack, we''re screwed. If we don''t attack, we''re also screwed.]


    Viking''s melee attack range was a huge issue right now. He could throw his axe at enemies, but that was both his escape tool and initiation tool. The enemy will probably aggress on him right away if Throw Axe goes on cooldown, so he avoided using it too much. He also had the option of using Takedown to grab a minion and toss it at another, but that required advancing too far into the frontline and putting himself at immense danger.


    Vincent hoped the enemy will be the first to attack and overextend, but so far Chessmaster and Gunz have been unexpectedly passive. They didn''t radiant the same terrorizing aura they had during the scrimmage with the Leopards.


    Then again, in this situation, Chessmaster and Gunz didn''t need to lift a finger to win. They held the upper hand in this position, so it was a valid tactic to wait for Vincent and Kai to make the fire move. It was probably the smarter and more level-headed decision, but also the more boring one. Vincent wanted to see some thrill! He wanted to experience the unstoppable destructive force of the Golden Duo!


    Welp, maybe that won''t happen until Vincent and Kai prove they were worthy opponents. But, were they, though? It was hard to say, but at least they won''t go down easily in a fight.


    "So, you want to attack?" Vincent asked.


    "Well, duh," Kai said. "Or what, you want to wait till they push us back to tower? Then what?"


    "Yeah, you''re right," Vincent nodded. If he were playing a proper Support, perhaps he could''ve played the waiting game for a bit longer. But, with Viking, his strongest tools were on the offensive side. He had to start something, or else he''ll be nothing more than dead weight.


    [Yep, I totally went for the best pick with Viking. 200 IQ play.] Vincent shook his head.


    The entire idea behind picking Viking was to secure himself a solid escape option with Throw Axe. However, he failed to consider the possibility that he''ll have to be the aggressor to win lane advantage. Now, he had to go hard on the offensive with the very class he picked for defense. It was le derp of the year.


    But, it wasn''t all bad news. Based on his observations during the Leopards scrimmage, the Golden Duo were godlike on the offense but their defense didn''t leave much of an impression. So, if Vincent and Kai take the initiative and go hard, they might be able to pull something off.


    "Alrighty," Vincent started. "After they clear our minions, I''ll try bumping into these guys with my ult."


    "Sounds good," Kai nodded. "I''ll follow up."


    "Just make sure you stay behind me to not give them a chance to target you."


    "Duh. No need to remind me every time, you know. Carry is one of my main roles, in case you forgot."


    "Yep, your [second] best role."


    "That''s right."


    [She didn''t get the hint, did she.] Vincent smiled wryly. Both he and Kai were playing their secondary roles right now. So, what chance they stood against the Golden Duo who mained Carry and Support in the truest sense?


    Either way, Vincent had no choice but to aggress against these clearly superior foes. [Here goes nothing!]


    The enemy cleared the minion wave first, per usual. They still had two bowmen alive and used this advantage to push along the lane. Little did they know it was all a bait! Vincent and Kai were about to pull a fast one on the Golden Duo and crush these godlike attackers! Muhahahaha! [We''re so dead...]


    Vincent activated Throw Axe and, you won''t believe it, he threw an axe! The originality of this skill name always killed him. It''s like the company held a competition for coming up with the most generic name ever and whoever named this skill was the winner.


    Either way, he threw the axe but it wasn''t aimed at the enemy. Instead, he aimed it at the wall far behind him. The axe dug into the wall and got stuck in it.


    This was Vincent''s lifeline and the reason he picked Viking in the first place. The axe will remain stuck in that wall for a while and during that time his Throw Axe skill was replaced with Axe Blitz. It allowed him to instantly blink to the axe''s location. So, if anything goes wrong, this was his trusty panic button!


    "Alrighty," Vincent gulped. "I''m going in! Let us venture into the abyss!"


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    "Got it."


    Vincent and Kai charged forth at the incoming enemies. It was showtime!


    "They''re coming," Yuel warned as soon as the Viking tossed his axe at the wall. It was the classic Viking opening. It was a bit too obvious to Yuel''s taste, but it usually did the job. Too bad the enemy were facing somebody who has already analyzed this move all the way back during the drafting phase.


    First, Yuel erected an ice wall behind Vincent. That kept Kai away and divided the enemy forces.


    However, even alone, Viking was still a threat in this situation. His ult will summon a gang of savage vikings who were tough to deal with. Yuel had to prevent that play at any cost.


    Fortunately, Yuel''s Blink was out of cooldown by now. So, he blinked forward and caught Vincent off-guard. It was a repeat of how the game began: the classic Blink + Ice Coffin! Yuel froze Vincent in place before the guy could even react.


    "Ah," Vincent exclaimed. "That perfect timing! Could it be!? Does he also possess Mystic Eyes of Timing Perception!?"


    This was marvelous! Vincent knew the Golden Duo''s offense was their strongest suit, so he believed he got a shot against their defense. However, Chessmaster understood that too! Therefore, instead of defending, Chessmaster countered Vincent''s offense with an offense of his own! Offense was the best defense for these guys!


    The hunter became the prey! This was a pinch for Information Blackhole! Will he find a way to crawl out of his predicament!?


    [I''m so dead, haha...]

 122 Rhythm Reader

    Vincent''s attempt to aggress turned into a disaster. He was a frozen solid in place, effectively becoming a sitting duck for the enemy. Meanwhile, an ice wall stalled Kai and she couldn''t back him up.


    "Can you get out?" Kai asked.


    "Does it look like I can? You''ll have to help me... Oh, right. He created an ice wall between us. Haha, that Chessmaster, I''m telling you."


    "You sure look happy for a dead man."


    "Why wouldn''t I be? These guys are nuts! Look at Gunz coming to wreck me as soon as I got frozen. Their timing is so perfect! That''s why they''re the Golden Duo!"


    "Huh," Kai shrugged. The timing and coordination of that counter-offense was indeed solid, but she won''t let them get away with this nonsense. She''ll counter their counter!


    Besides, there was nothing to worry about. Even though Vincent was frozen, only the enemy Gunslinger could deal enough damage to kill a Viking quickly and he had to use Fan the Hammer masterfully to pull that off.


    But, they all saw how "masterful" this Gunslinger was with headshots. He either gonna miss all his shots or only deal subpar damage by shooting the body. So, Vincent will be fine. Kai had more than enough time to turn this around-


    "Oh!" Vincent shouted. "Here it is! The Gungnir Sniper! Three headshots in a row with Fan the Hammer! That''s how it gotta be!"


    "Eh...?" Kai blinked. Did that guy seriously land them? She had firsthand experience with how rough it was to land multiple headshots in a row during Fan the Hammer. Could somebody their age really pull that off in the heat of the moment?


    No way. Vincent had to be exaggerating, right? With that said, Vincent''s HP indeed plummeted at lightning speed. Darn it, if only this annoying ice wall wasn''t in her way so she could see what''s going on.


    "Got ''em!" Lars grinned. "Three headshots in a row! Headshot spree, yo!"


    "You missed the fourth shot, though," Yuel said.


    "Geh, c''mon, dude! Would it kill ya to praise me sometimes?"


    "I guess you did alright."


    "Haha, I swear dude," Lars shook his head. "So, what''s next?"


    "We kill him," Yuel ordered to continue the offense. It was checkmate. The three headshots came after Combat Roll, so a combo of three headshots in a row stunned Vincent for a short time.


    On top of that, each shot stacked a cripple effect on Vincent that''ll last even after his stun. While crippled, all movement abilities were sealed, even blinking. In other words, they sealed Vincent''s escape route of teleporting back to his axe. Their prey was captured.


    "They got me good," Vincent smiled wryly after finally breaking out of the freeze. His panic button was disabled by the cripple, so he had no way to get out of there. The Golden Duo completely turned the tables on him. It was epic.


    However! That didn''t mean Vincent was ready to give up just yet! The enemy''s play was quick and crisp, but Vincent didn''t want to hand them the victory on a silver platter like this. He''ll struggle to the very end!


    Therefore, it was time to unleash his trusty minions! [Come forth, Viking Rangers!]


    Vincent activated Unstoppable Raid, which summoned forth five viking warriors. They were the heroes of justice who''ll save the day! They gonna get Vincent out of this pinch with the power of friendship! Or, more accurately, by savagely assaulting his enemies.


    Each individual viking minion was separately customizable, so Vincent put quite the effort into giving each of them a different color scheme. He even spent some of his allowance on these premium customization options. But, it was totally worth it. All for the sake of creating the Viking Rangers!


    "Yo!" Lars exclaimed as a rainbow-colored brigade appeared outta thin air in front of him. "Haha, what''s with these dudes? They''re sick!"


    "Ignore them," Yuel said. "Just kill the Viking and they''ll die too."


    "Roger!" Lars maneuvered around the colorful gang of warriors and snipped Vincent.


    The warriors began charging toward Yuel and Lars, but the two of them ignored that noise and focused on their prey. They had to finish Vincent off before Kai arrives to the rescue.


    "Okay, almost got him!" Lars only needed one more hit to seal the deal but it wasn''t easy to confirm with a bunch angry vikings charging right at him.


    But, Gunslinger had the wallhack called Deadeye! Lars just had to get Vincent into his field of view again and- Geh!? The ground around Lars was tainted red! A surprise Blaze of Inferno was incoming!


    [Got him!] Kai arrived on the scene right before Vincent dropped dead. She unleashed Blaze of Inferno right around the Gunslinger. The damage will be heavy enough to flip this entire situation on its head. Kai and Vincent could reverse the entire situation!


    Kai drew the target area for Blaze of Inferno compactly around the Gunslinger. Therefore, almost all the ticks of damage will come down crashing on the Gunslinger. It''ll be a huge burst of damage that wasn''t typically expected from this ult. It might even kill on the spot!


    The enemy had a brief window of time to see the red lines and dodge before it started raining fire. But, in practice, nobody had the reaction time to do anything with that warning. Maybe some pros could dodge fast enough, especially the crazy Korean pros. But, some middle schooler? No chance.


    Therefore, all this heavy damage was guaranteed! That Gunslinger was a goner.


    [Whoa, it''s hella packed!] Lars noticed that all of Inferno''s lines were concentrated around his feet. Rather than a rain of fire, it was more like a meteor was incoming and it gonna crash right on his head! He''d be dead meat if that stuff lands, yooooooo!


    Lars rolled before he even finished processing the entire thing. Forget killing Vincent, he had to evacuate right away!


    "Yeah! Nailed it!" Lars pumped a fist as he got out of the danger zone.


    "Wha..." Kai choked. Did that guy just dodge her Inferno? In that brief, almost nonexistent, window of time during which he could see the red lines? No, that''s...


    Kai''s concentrated attack backfired. By drawing all the lines in a spiral around the Gunslinger, it made the flames easier to dodge by rolling away. Normally, nobody was fast enough to react to this fierce assault. Even in Diamond rank, she only ran into a handful of opponents who rolled out of such an attack and even that usually looked like sheer luck.


    But, in this case, Kai clearly saw the dodge. Lars was desperately chasing Vincent in order to land the finishing blow, but he stopped in the middle and performed a dodge roll right before the flames came down crashing. Such a quick shift of priorities had to be the result of godlike reaction speed. Was that guy a superhuman? An alien?


    "Okay, got ''em!" Lars recovered from the roll and booted Deadeye. He got the Viking within his field of view and also added the Pyromancer as another target because why not.


    Bam! Two bullets erupted from his revolver and flew at the designated targets. Nothing could stand their way and no distance was too far for them. The bullets struck true at both targets and delivered the fatal blow!


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    After Vincent fell, his gang of vikings also vanished into thin air.


    "The mighty rangers are defeated!" Vincent raised his arms theatrically.


    Welp, this was about what he expected. In fact, he was surprised he survived for so long and almost got away. The Golden Duo was must have been using only 10% of their real power on tablet. They were awesome! They might really pull Stratus far in the upcoming regionals!


    But, that''s in the future. Right now, they were enemies and Vincent had to figure how to beat them. Well, it wasn''t like he and Kai had a real chance of winning, but still. It''s the struggle that mattered, right?


    "I think you should retreat," Vincent advised.


    "You don''t say," Kai already booted Burning Spirit to enhance her movement speed and turned her back to the enemy. It seemed like she finally began to realize the power gap between herself and the Golden Duo. So, she scrammed.


    "You ain''t going nowhere!" Lars gave chase. Now, that the rainbow viking brigade was gone, the lane was clear. That Pyromancer was the only enemy in sight, so Lars gonna get a double kill, yo!


    [She''s fast to retreat.] Yuel nodded to himself. So far, he couldn''t find any glaring flaws in Kai''s performance. It was both impressive and concerning.


    So far, every move Kai made in this tense situation was solid. She quickly maneuvered around Yuel''s ice wall, she launched a powerful attack to startle Lars and when it failed she was quick to flee. So, even though Yuel and Lars outplayed the enemy as a whole in this situation, Kai''s quick responses made their life hard. She must have had nerves of steel to play this rationally under the pressure of such an unfavorable situation.


    Even now, with Lars on her tail, Kai didn''t commit any notable mistakes. In fact, she was... dodging some of the attacks? Or, was Lars missing again because of the tablet?


    "You can''t hit from this distance on tablet?" Yuel asked.


    "Nah, it should be fine. But, like," Lars''s tone sounded as confused as Yuel''s. Something wasn''t quite right about this chase.


    Lars fired a bullet and his amazing "200% accuracy" should''ve made it land for sure. Yet, the bullet missed.


    "What the heck, yo. I totally should''ve landed that," Lars cocked his head. "Dang it, another one!"


    Another miss. This one was closer and only missed by a hair''s breadth, but it still missed. What the actual heck? It''s not like Kai was doing anything special, yet Lars''s shots were missing left and right.


    "Are you trying too hard to aim for the head?"


    "Nah, I''m not even aiming for the head. I''m keeping it real and going for the upper body."


    "Huh," Yuel knotted his brows. This was interesting.


    While running away, juking the chaser was an important skill. This generally involved moving irregularly to throw off the enemy''s aim. But, to consistently pull this off against somebody like Lars, one needed an amazing reading ability like Ellen''s.


    Nevertheless, Kai was apparently doing something to that effect right now. Somehow, Kai was reading Lars''s moves and juking his shots while escaping.


    "Here it is!" Vincent boomed. "The Rhythm Reader is unleashed! Oh."


    A bullet hit Kai just as Vincent made his grandiose announcement.


    "Can you keep it down?" Kai grumped.


    "Oh, my bad. I''ll be quiet as a mouse." Vincent shut his mouth. He wanted to keep hyping up this amazing clash of superpowers but, for the sake of Kai''s concentration, he had to pipe down.


    [Here it is! Beat''s special ability: Rhythm Reader!] Vincent continued the commentary in his head. He had nothing better to do anyway while he was dead, so he hyped up the ability for an imaginary crowd.


    [Rhythm Reader is a high-level technique which discerns the opponent''s rhythm and allows Beat to adjust her tempo to it! Like you see right here, she nailed down the rhythm of Gunz''s shots and dodges each and every single one of them! It appears as if even Gunz''s Gungnir Sniper can''t defeat Beat''s Rhythm Reader!]


    Though exaggerated, Kai was doing pretty much what Vincent described. She was mostly running in a straight line but, when she thought a shot was coming, she strayed from the path just enough to dodge the shot.


    To pull off this trick, Kai didn''t rely on the sound of the shot or anything like that. In the first place, most people didn''t have the necessary reaction time to dodge a shot after hearing it. Instead, Kai downloaded Gunz'' shooting pattern and played around it! She was reading his rhythm!


    "Beautiful!" Vincent exclaimed.


    "Ahem," Kai cleared her throat.


    "Oops, my bad," Vincent covered his mouth before he blurts something else. This was just too hype! It was a clash between Kai''s Rhythm Reader and Lars''s Gungnir Sniper! He couldn''t contain himself!


    Judging by the data so far, Rhythm Reader completely nullified the effect of Gungnir Sniper. No matter how accurate Gunz was, said accuracy meant nothing when the opponent could predict the timing of the shots and dodge them in the last split-second. It wasn''t like Gunz was "missing", his aim was actually spot-on. But, it''s his opponent who dodged everything!


    In fact, it''s probably because Gungnir Sniper was so accurate that Rhythm Reader did such a great job. If Gunz''s aim wasn''t pitch-perfect, he might have landed a few inaccurate shots by accident. Kai''s last-moment dodges were minimal, so a slight inaccuracy from the shooter''s side might have made the shot graze her.


    [So, what will Gunz do now!? He has to adapt or he''ll let Beat get away. At this point, it''s safe to say Beat will get away alive. But, Gunz still has a few more attempts to redeem himself for his earlier misses. Can he land any of the remaining shots!? He had about four more chances to shoot. Let''s see how it goes!]


    The first shot missed. Or, more correctly, Kai dodged it.


    "Gah!" Lars jumped. "I don''t get it, yo! I totally had her marked down! How did that miss!?"


    [So, he thinks that should''ve landed,] Yuel pondered. This was indeed peculiar. Whenever Lars was about to miss, he usually could tell his aim was off. In fact, he''d often shout some nonsense and blame himself for the miss.


    But, this situation was different. Lars didn''t think his aim was off, so it most likely wasn''t. If so, the only remaining explanation was that Kai was somehow dodging all his shots. Was that even possible? She was in the middle of fleeing and her back was turned to her opponent. It should''ve been impossible...


    [Let''s see if she moves,] Yuel squinted his eyes and focused entirely on Kai.


    Bam. Another shot, another miss.


    No, that wasn''t a miss. Yuel definitely saw it: just before the bullet reached Kai, she turned to the right and dodged it by a hair''s breadth. What a godlike split-moment dodge!


    [Did she react to the sound of the shot? No, she wouldn''t have made it in time like that.] This was an interesting phenomenon. It''s almost as if Kai had eyes on her back and could see when Lars was about to shoot.


    Once Lars pulled the trigger, there was no going back. Nobody could alter the bullet''s trajectory and it was guaranteed to land on the target because Lars was the shooter. So, if Kai could somehow move [exactly] the moment Lars pulled the trigger, it was theoretically possible to dodge the bullet from this distance.


    But, how did Kai react in such a timely fashion? Did she have a superhuman reaction time like Lars? No way, there couldn''t be so many superhumans around. Yuel refused to believe in such statistics.


    In that case, Kai must have been using something else to react with perfect timing. But, what could it possibly be? It couldn''t be a pure guess because she dodged way too many shots at this point. There was a limit to how lucky a person could be.


    Bam. Another shot. Yet again, Kai moved aside and dodged the bullet''s in the last nanosecond. The way she has been running in a straight line the whole time and only moving aside in the last moment was incredibly risky. Yet, it worked for her. It''s like she knew the exact timing for Lars''s shots... wait. May that''s it!


    Lars was keeping his finger pressed on the left mouse button to fire every shot as quickly as possible. Unlike Yuel, who struggled to land such fast shots in succession without adjusting his aim in-between, Lars''s godlike accuracy allowed him to fire nonstop at top speed.


    As a result, the interval between Lars''s shots remained consistent the whole time. The shots were fast and accurate, but they had very distinctive timing. If Kai had the ability to nail down this timing, she could dodge the shots with perfect timing!


    "Wait," Yuel said. "Delay your shot by half a second."


    "Wut? Ah," Lars paused to listen and that made him delay the shot just like Yuel wanted. "Dunno what''s up, but I guess I gotta shoo- oh!" Lars saw it! He saw it clearly! Just before he pulled the trigger - the Pyromancer moved ever so slightly to the left!


    "You ain''t dodging this, yo!" Lars shifted his aim a little to the left while pressing the left button. He gonna land this, yo!


    [I can do it.] Kai nodded to herself. The rhythm of the enemy''s shots was echoing in her head: wait, wait, shoot. Lars has been repeating this exact pattern every single time with amazing accuracy. So, all Kai had to do was: wait, wait, dodge.


    [It''s a beautiful rhythm.] Kai admitted. It brimmed with boundless confidence. The shooter was 100% confident in his ability to land every single shot. Maybe it was even 200% confidence.


    However, that made it all the easier for Kai to adjust her movements to that rhythm: wait, wait, dodge. Worked like a charm every time.


    The music beating in her left ear helped her synchronize her movements even more. If she wore earplugs on both ears, her dodges would have been even sharper. Unfortunately, she had to make sure she could hear her teammate, so she had to keep one ear unplugged.


    So far, all her dodges were on point except for that one time when the noisy fool distracted her. So, she was going to get out of this sticky situation with minimal damage. The Golem''s area was just a couple of steps away, so the enemy had only one more chance to shoot her; maybe two if he really pushes it.


    The next shot was coming. Wait. Wait. Dodge! Following the beat, Kai shifted her movement to the left. Another bullet dodged! Or, that''s what would have happened if any bullet was fired in the first place.


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    Did the pursuer already give up? Then, all the better for- bam! A bullet hit her from behind!


    "Eh?" Kai blinked. Did she mess up the rhythm? No, it was the usual "wait, wait, dodge". She pulled it out perfectly.


    So, the only explanation was that the enemy delayed his shot. Was that on purpose? Eh, whatever. Kai got out of danger and safely reached the Golem''s area. That''s all that mattered.


    After reaching safety, she turned around to check whether the enemy was greedy enough to dive under Golem. If he were, Kai would retaliate without hesitation. After all, she still had over 60% HP to spare.


    "Yo!" Lars exclaimed as he continued chasing. "I actually hit her!"


    [As I thought.] Yuel nodded to himself. Kai adjusted to the pattern of Lars''s shots and relied on the timing to dodge everything. It was an impressive show, but her over-reliance on that technique exposed her. From now on, they''ll know how to deal with her dodges.


    But, right now, there was a more important topic at hand. Lars being Lars, he continued chasing Kai even though she already retreated into her Golem''s area. This goof had to be stopped, or else he''d dive under tower and will get countered.


    "That''s enou-"


    "Geh, she got away," Lars stopped one step away from Golem''s area before Yuel even finished his warning. Yes, Lars actually stopped a chase out of his own volition without Yuel warning him. That only happened once in a blue moon. It was simply amazing. Yuel had no better words to describe this otherworldly phenomenon.


    "Okay, what''s next?" Lars asked as he jogged back to their side of the lane. "We gonna push them hard while it''s a 2v1?"


    "No, I don''t think we''ll get much mileage out of that," Yuel explained. "That Pyro knows what she''s doing. She''s not Diamond just for show. She got her fundamentals down."


    "Yeah, she''s pretty slick."


    "I don''t see her committing any big mistakes even if we pressure her in a 2v1. And, from mid-range, Pyro can clear minions about as fast as us. So, let''s use this time to gear up. Recall to base and buy Fury Knuckles."


    "Gotcha," Lars began the recalling animation right there on the spot, right in front of the enemy.


    "Don''t be obvious like that," Yuel smacked his forehead. "At least do it in the jungle or something."


    "Oh, right, haha," Lars laughed awkwardly. "Well, I already started so better finish it."


    "Yeah, I agree with," Yuel sighed.


    With the initiative in their hands, Yuel made the call that it was best to have a brief downtime and gear up for the upcoming fights. However, this was just the calm before the storm...

 123 Slogging for Victory

    After Lars healed up at the base and purchased Fury Knuckles Lv.2, he returned to the lane. Next, it was Yuel''s turn to recall.


    "The Viking revived but it''ll take him a few seconds to get to lane," Yuel informed before leaving. "So, this will be a pure 1v1 situation. If you got an opportunity, go for the kill."


    "Gotcha, dude," Lars nodded and a familiar grin formed on his face. The beast was exposing its fangs with murderous intent. He was totally going to push for a kill, wasn''t he? Thankfully, this was a great situation for that kind of aggressive stunt, so Yuel had no objections.


    "Okay!" Lars exclaimed. "Let''s rock n'' roll!"


    After the enemy Pyromancer finished clearing the minions, the lane became a 1v1 arena for Lars and Kai. This gonna be good!


    [C''mon! Come at me, dude!] Lars used a taunt animation from the middle of the lane.


    [This punk wanna go at it, huh,] Kai accepted the challenge and advanced along the lane. She had to spend Flame Wave on the minion wave, so her offensive options were restricted right now. Nevertheless, that won''t stop her from crushing that guy.


    "I think you better wait," Vincent advised. "I''ll be back on lane in a jiffy."


    "Huh? You''re saying I can''t win this 1v1?"


    "Um, well," Vincent rolled his eyes as he searched for an appropriate answer. "Can we just call it an unnecessary risk?"


    "There''s no risk if I''m going to beat him."


    "Yeah, that''s true, but..."


    "So, you ARE saying I can''t win this fight. Why? Because he''s a guy?"


    "No no no, that got nothing to do with it. This guy is just pretty damn strong. He''s the Insane Beast of the Apocalypse!"


    "Sounds like a small fry."


    "By what absurd standard!?" Vincent laughed in shock. Welp, there was no changing Kai''s mind once she had her mind set on fighting somebody, especially when the opponent was a guy. All Vincent could do was hurry to the lane and hopefully prevent the inevitable disaster.


    [Hmph,] Kai scoffed. [Taking me lightly like that. I''ll show him I can beat any guy at this game!]


    Kai darted straight at her enemy. She gonna run over that guy real quick- bam! Huh!? A shot pierced her shoulder!


    "Eh?" Kai took a step back. She needed a moment to understand what the hell just happened.


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    Was she already within Gunslinger''s attack range? She must have barely touched the tip of that range, yet a bullet came flying at her right away. That was some impressive zoning...


    Kai originally planned to start juking once she gets closer, but this opponent had no intention of letting her get any closer. This guy was a good shooter, Kai had to hand it to him. How did Vincent call it again? "Gangnam Style Sniper" or something? Not too shabby.


    As a mid-range Pyromancer, how should Kai approach here? She had to get in before she can start dishing out attacks. But, this guy gonna shoot her a few times before she even gets a chance to get close. This was bad.


    [Am I seriously thinking so hard about it?] Kai frowned. She never felt such intimidation from a single opponent. Something about that instantaneous shot sent a chill down her spine. It was a zero tempo shot. There was no even time to react. To get around such shots, she''d have to dodge them before even realizing she had to dodge.


    In none of her online matches, neither against Diamond players nor against Challenger players, did Kai ever encounter such precision. This will be a tough fight, she could already tell.


    "What''s wrong?" Lars asked. "If you ain''t coming, then I gonna come at ya!" He rolled forward with Combat Roll. All-out attack, yo!


    Right as he recovered, he booted Fan the Hammer. The Gunslinger spun the hammer of his revolver and took aim. A barrage was incoming!


    Bam! Headshot! The first shot landed without any trouble. The enemy Pyromancer was totally fazed and didn''t even move! Lars gonna take her down ez! He could even go for three headshots in a row! He was feeling it right now!


    The next shot came out right away! The Pyromancer took half a step to the side in a poor attempt to dodge. It wasn''t nearly enough. Bam! Another headshot! Lars had this! One more headshot and Kai gonna get stunned!


    [It''s so fast...!] Kai bit her lip in frustration. Reacting to these shots by sound was impossible. But, she got two samples of their beat. The third one was going to fire at the exact same timing, so she had to dodge... Now! She rolled aside!


    Whish. The bullet cut through empty air.


    "Wha!?" Lars exclaimed. What sick dodge, yo! He was perfectly locked on Kai, but she just barely slipped away at the last moment. She literally escaped death there.


    But wait, it ain''t over yet! He had two more shots left. This was no time to be impressed!


    [Geh, a headshot seems rough,] Lars gave up on that and aimed for Kai''s body while she was recovering. It was a shot she couldn''t dodge, so it easily dug into her back. It wasn''t a headshot so there was not critical damage, but it was still a decent shot.


    With that momentum, Lars gonna land the final shot too! This time, it''ll be a headshot! His aim was spot on, so this one gonna hit!


    ... or not. Kai sidestepped the shot in the last moment.


    [Phew, barely made it.] Kai sighed in relief. Even though she got the timing down by now, it was incredibly difficult to dodge such fast shots. But, she somehow made it.


    [Geh, seriously? But okay, she''s low.] Lars chased his prey. Kai was at 20% HP while Lars was completely healthy at 100%. So, he gotta go in and get that kill!


    [Damn, this is bad.] Kai turned around and booted Burning Spirit. She had to concede she had no chance right now. It''s not like Kai was weaker than that guy or anything, it''s just that the enemy caught her at a disadvantageous position. Therefore, this called for a tactical retreat.


    "You ain''t gonna get away, yo!" Lars chased and landed a shot on her back. Ez hit.


    [I remember the timing for these.] Kai repeated in her head to confirm: wait, wait, dodge. There was nothing she could do about the first shot, but from now she had the timing down for all the upcoming shots. Therefore, she''ll dodge everything and get away alive!


    [Okay!] Lars fired again... but he missed! "What the-!? I swear, this Pyro''s sidesteps are outta this world!"


    "She got your pattern down," Yuel explained. "You should delay your shots to mix up the timing."


    "Yeah, I was getting that feeling too," Lars waited a brief moment before firing the third bullet.


    Right there! The Pyromancer moved! If Lars fired quickly like usual, he probably would have missed.


    [So, that''s your game.] Lars grinned. [No idea how ya doing it, but it''s sick! Not gonna work on my 200% Accuracy, tho.]


    Bam! Headshot!


    "Wha-!?" Kai exclaimed. [Again? Did I mistime it? Or, did he delay on purpose? Either way, this is bad news.]


    Kai was down to 8% HP. One more headshot will seal the deal. Alternatively, two normal shots would do. So, she absolutely had dodge all incoming shots no matter what.


    [One more headshot and it''s over!] Lars licked his lips. He just had to catch up to her with a roll and then he gonna be ready to deliver the finishing blow!


    "The Viking might get there soon," Yuel warned. "Be ready to escape after you get the kill."


    [The Viking?] Lars''s brain stopped for a moment. He glanced at the corner of the jungle and saw the figure of the Viking.


    If Lars dives any further into enemy territory, he might get the kill, But, then he''ll have to 1v1 that Viking. It gonna be a nasty fight. He might die.


    Even worse, what if he fails to get the kill after rolling? Then, this entire play gonna be a waste and he gonna find himself dead. It''ll be exactly like these traps he was repeatedly running into during the selection match. Every time, he chased Ellen thinking he gonna get that sweet kill but instead he wound up dead with zero kills.


    Should he chase this kill anyway? This Pyromancer has already dodged a bunch of his shots, so there''s no guarantee he''ll land the next shot after the roll. It''d be easy on PC, but on tablet it was iffy.


    So, this play might be suicide. Geh, what was the right course of action!? Damn, if only his ult was online right now, then it''d be a guaranteed hit...


    While he was racking his brain over it, his fingers came to a halt on their own. He didn''t dare to chase any further.


    This was a risky play. It''s the kind of play that cost games. If only Lars didn''t take so many risks during the selection match, he and Yuel would have been on StormBlitz''s first-string right now.


    So, no. He won''t chase. Lars turned around retreated.


    "You''re giving it up?" Yuel asked.


    "Y-Yeah," Lars produced a dry laugh. "That Pyro is slick, so she might dodge my next few shots. I shouldn''t overextend like that with the Viking around the corner, right? Gotta play smart and stuff."


    "Well, that''s certainly the safer approach, but..." Yuel wasn''t sure what to say.


    The prey was right within Lars''s grasps. One or two more shots and Lars would have gotten this kill. It''s true that Kai has successfully dodged many of Lars''s shots so far, but she probably wouldn''t have been able to estimate the timing for Lars''s shot after a roll. Therefore, chasing all the way should''ve been a safe bet.


    However, Yuel was basing all of that on empirical evidence. He didn''t know for sure how Kai managed to dodge all these shots, so maybe he was wrong about Lars''s chances. Still, the risk-reward ratio heavily leaned in Lars''s favor. Even in case Lars failed to get the kill, he wouldn''t have had much trouble retreating because Vincent''s ult was on cooldown. So, at best, Lars would have gotten a kill there and, at worst, he would have retreated without receiving much damage.


    Nevertheless, Lars decided to retreat right away. The ever-hungry beast gave up on his meal just like that. What''s next? Are elephants gonna rain from the sky?


    Then again, maybe that''s the mentality they should adopt from on: less risk, more reward. If a play might lead to disaster, they should avoid it unless they were 99% sure they were going to nail it. If they play safe like this, the enemy won''t be able to exploit their aggressiveness anymore. So, in the end, perhaps Lars made the right call after all.


    "Whaaaaaaat?" Vincent''s jaw dropped as he arrived on the lane. "Gunz didn''t go for the kill? But, the Insane Beast of the Apocalypse..."


    This match was so weird. The Golden Duo was definitely as strong as he remembered them, but they were missing that spark they showed during the scrimmage with the Leopards.


    In this match, Chessmaster and Gunz played very reservedly. It didn''t mean they were playing bad because, despite everything, they were still holding the upper hand. Nonetheless, it felt wrong somehow.


    ["The Golden Duo falls into a slump!?"] Vincent came up with a clickbait title for an article that would have definitely hit over a thousand clicks if Chessmaster and Gunz were celebrities. Though, even if they were, Vincent could never bring himself to post such a thing...


    [Enough, enough. Focus on the game.] Vincent shook his head. The problems of the Golden Duo weren''t his concern right now. None of that changed the fact they were strong adversaries and Vincent had to do his best to beat them, even though he knew it was futile.


    "That damn Gunslinger..." Kai muttered. Her eyes glinted like a polished dagger.


    [There it is, the Pheromone Buster.] Vincent smiled wryly. He knew that even though Kai slipped away alive, that 1v1 must have been embarrassing for her because Gunz basically ran all over her. This girl won''t let that stand.


    Therefore, that triggered the Pheromone Buster! It was a special ability akin to a berserker switch. Sometimes it worked in Kai''s favor by giving her great strength, but other times it blew up in her face.


    Which one will it be this time? Welp, with Chessmaster''s Mystical Eyes of Weakness Perception in play... This sure gonna be interesting! More scoop for Vincent to write about!


    After Kai healed up at the base and returned to lane, Pheromone Buster was in full effect and it was immediately apparent. Instead of maintaining a safe distance from her enemies as a Pyromancer should, she advanced to the frontline way too often to intimidate and poke. Kai was out for blood.


    "Yo," Lars grumped as he retreated from the Pyromancer''s range again per Yuel''s order. "This dude is pushing it. Can I just go at her?"


    "Hmm," Yuel tried to process what was happening. Ever since that 1v1, the Pyromancer''s game plan shifted drastically. She was no longer playing the safe spacing game Yuel praised before. Instead, Kai was advancing to the frontline as if trying to pick a fight.


    What was the strategy behind it? This had to be some sort of adjustment from the enemy''s side, right? After all, Yuel and Lars have been dominating the lane from early into the game, so the enemy must have switched to a more aggressive game plan.


    It wasn''t a bad idea to be more aggressive, but was that the entirety of the enemy''s plan? Because, if so...


    [They''re not initiating a real fight.] This was very confusing.


    The Viking closely followed the Pyromancer like a bodyguard but he didn''t initiate any attacks. Any scary offense from that duo would have to start with the Viking initiating, but there were no signs of any of that coming. It felt like Kai was trying to push offense while Vincent was trying to maintain defense. There was a mismatch of interests.


    Was it some sort of trap? Were the enemy trying to lure Yuel and Lars into something? Yuel couldn''t tell. The Pyromancer''s careless advances left multiple holes in her defense, but Yuel wasn''t sure whether they should go ahead and strike those.


    Was it even necessary to do anything about it? Even though the Pyromancer was intimidating them, it wasn''t like these advances helped the enemy win lane control. Yuel instructed Lars to poke Kai whenever she advanced to clear minions, so she couldn''t stay on the frontline for long without eating damage. So, if Kai keeps going like this, she''ll eventually burn herself out.


    But, that was the bare minimum. Yuel saw multiple lines of plays he could go for to exploit flaws in the enemy''s formation even further and assuredly get a kill on Kai. However, he didn''t bring them up. There was no reason to take unnecessary risks when they could just slowly and surely grind their enemy to dust.


    "Let''s keep poking her," Yuel said. "I see some ways to go in for a kill, but they might be luring us into some sort of trap. I don''t see a reason to take the risk."


    "Yeah, sounds smart," Lars agreed, as uncharacteristic as it was. If even Lars wasn''t gung-ho about going for a kill here, then Yuel definitely had no reason to go overboard. They should just take this game slowly and beat their opponents into submission step by step.


    "Tch, they always run," Kai clicked her tongue. [What a bunch of wusses.]


    [That''s so odd,] Vincent tilted his head. Kai had many openings in her defense while under the effect of Pheromone Buster, so Chessmaster should''ve made a move by now. Even though Vincent has been doing his best to cover up for Kai, he was far from boasting godlike defense like Aegis. Therefore, Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception should''ve discovered something by now.


    "Can''t you initiate already?" Kai asked.


    "I can," Vincent said. "But, remember what happened last time? How do you suppose I get in their face without having the tables turned on me?"


    "Git gud."


    "Of course, the one and only answer to every video gaming problem," Vincent chuckled and shook his head. "I''m searching for openings. But, their formation is so tight they must be the reincarnations of legendary Roman soldiers. If you got any bright ideas, I''m all ears."


    "... not really," Kai had to admit the enemy was playing solid. Her aggression didn''t shake their formation at all and didn''t create any openings for an initiation. The two guys just kept playing the patience game and spaced Kai out. [No balls, huh.]


    In the end, the entire 2v2 match transformed into a battle of attire. Kai pushed and pushed and pushed as hard as she could, but the enemy spaced her out and poked her to oblivion. Eventually, she had to give up and return to base. Naturally, the enemy used that opportunity to push hard.


    After this pattern repeated itself enough, Yuel and Lars eventually sealed the deal.


    ¡ºVICTORY¡»


    The usual message popped with fireworks and confetti to celebrate the occasion. But, it felt hollow somehow.


    "We won, right?" Lars asked.


    "I believe so," Yuel nodded. "Look, the message says we won, right?"


    "Yeah, seems about right..."


    Yes, they definitely won. They played the patience game and overpowered their opponents through counter picking and coordination. They could''ve gone for stronger plays but they still won, so that didn''t matter, right? Right...


    With this awkward feeling, the "friendly" match reached its conclusion.

 124 The First Step Toward the Competitive Scene

    After the 2v2 was over, everybody gathered at the center of the basement room.


    "Good game," Vincent congratulated everybody with a smile that looked a little forced.


    "Yeah, good game, my dudes." Lars followed up.


    "Good game," Yuel followed the protocol even though that wasn''t exactly what he''d call a "good game". He and Lars should''ve completely stomped their opponents to prove their skill but none of that happened this match.


    "Bad game," Kai was the only one to speak her mind. "I got bodied pretty hard there. Good spacing and defense, bastards."


    Nobody retorted to these words. Everybody shifted their eyes away to not deal with this statement. It pretty much summarized how everybody felt about this match. It was one-sided aggression from Kai and Vincent. Meanwhile, Yuel and Lars just played defense until the opponent made an obvious mistake which was easy to punish.


    But, these were details. The fact was: Yuel and Lars won. They proved they were the stronger Bot duo. That should be enough to convince Kai.


    "Considering we won," Yuel started. "Don''t you think it''s better if Lars and I play Bot on the team?"


    "Not at all," Kai shrugged. "It was just one game. You were alright, but nothing outta this world. I''m sure I can get you next time."


    "C''mon, dude," Lars objected. "We totally dominated that game. We''re the best duo!"


    "Not really. We just lost at the selection screen, that''s all. You did a good job counter picking, I''ll give you that."


    "Hey, that''s rude," Lars insisted. "We totally played better."


    "Didn''t feel that way to me," Kai stuck to her guns. "But yeah, you''re not bad. If you can play other roles this well, you gonna get spots on the main team for sure."


    "But, that''s shit, yo!" Lars exploded. "We''re one of the best Bot duos you''ll ever see! We gotta be playing-"


    "It''s fine," Yuel placed a hand on Lars''s shoulder. "We can also play Top and Mid, but Support and Carry are where we''re at our best."


    "Okay then," Kai nodded. "Then, our current formation will look something like this: Me and Vincent in Bot, you guys in Mid and Top and... I guess Luke will do as a Jungler." Kai had a difficult expression for a moment but then sighed like she accepted reality.


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    "Anyway," Kai continued. "Let''s wrap it up for today."


    "Yeah, I second that," Vincent nodded repeatedly. "Man, I''m done from all that cleaning. I''m telling you, the human race wasn''t made for such labor. We''re intellectuals, we''re born to sit in comfy chairs all day. That''s the destiny of our species!"


    "That''s just you being a lazy ass," Kai remarked.


    Everybody left the basement clubroom and Kai locked up.


    "Club activities only officially start next week," Vincent explained on the way to the surface. "So, we don''t have a real schedule for now."


    "How about we meet after school every day?" Yuel suggested.


    "Every day? That may be a stretch for some..."


    "I like that," Kai said. "We gotta train hard if we wanna get past the first round."


    "Or to win the regionals," Yuel raised the bar. Passing the first round meant nothing. He didn''t care Stratus was a low tier team with a weak history. Yuel had to win the regionals no matter what, or else his Classmancers career will be in danger.


    "By the way," Kai said. "About the roles, I don''t mind trying Yuel as Support."


    "Huh?" Everybody replied with a puzzled expression.


    "I mean, you saw how this clown plays Support, right?" Kai pointed at Vincent. "No initiative at all."


    "Hey, hey, hey," Vincent objected. "I was playing it smart to not get us killed. It was the ultimate plan!"


    "The ultimate defeat plan, yes."


    "Geh, that''s mean..." Vincent twisted his lips. "But honestly, you got a point. Yuel is the Elite Support here, so if you form a duo and practice I think you can make a better duo than we are right now. And, I''ll get to play Top so I won''t have to babysit anymore."


    "Are you implying something?"


    "Nothing, nothing," Vincent whistled innocently. "Okay, so it''s decided then! Kai and Yuel will be the Bot duo."


    "Let''s not jump to conclusions," Yuel objected. It was undeniable that Yuel would contribute the team much more as a Support than as a Top Laner, regardless of whom he was paired with. But, if he just goes and accepts this offer...


    "What?" Lars asked.


    "No, nothing," Yuel shifted his eyes away. This was a sticky situation. Yuel wanted to play Bot with Lars more than with anything, but if push comes to shove and the captain refuses to hand over her precious Carry role...


    "We need to test the various arrangements first," Yuel said. "After we play some Ranked, we''ll get a better idea how to compose the main team."


    "Sounds reasonable," Vincent nodded. "As expected from Chessmaster, always the logical one! I''ll make sure to play like Bronze tier so I get switched out of Support, haha."


    "I''ll kill you," Kai shot a glare. Everybody laughed.


    They parted ways with Kai at the gate but Vincent stuck around for a while longer.


    "About that match," Vincent started. "You guys played fine, but I''ll be honest: it wasn''t that inspiring."


    "What''s that supposed to mean?" Yuel raised an eyebrow.


    "When I watched you play against the Leopards, you guys kicked some serious ass. You were the Golden Duo! The unstoppable force! The young athletes who''ll change this town forever! But, in this game? You were just ''alright''. Like, still good, but not really amazing, know what I mean?"


    "No idea," Yuel scoffed. "We played in a way that secured victory while minimizing risks. If you think that''s not the right way to play, then you simply don''t understand how the game works."


    "That''s not what I mean, but... Hmm..." Vincent produced some thinking noises. "Alright, let''s leave it at that. I''m turning here, so see you guys tomorrow."


    They parted ways with Vincent and headed toward the bus station. The entire time, the loud goof hasn''t uttered a single word. Even now, that they were alone, there was nothing but silence.


    "You okay?" Yuel asked.


    "Yeah," Lars answered. "Except, I don''t get it, dude. Why the heck did ya give up on our roles so easily? What was that shit?"


    "I didn''t give up on anything. I''m still going to push so that both of us play Bot together."


    "Then, why not give it to them straight? We hafta make Kai change her mind and let us play."


    "Yes, we''ll do that. But, I figured there''s no need to rush it," Yuel explained. "After today''s match, Kai recognizes that our Challenger rank isn''t for show. That earned us guaranteed spots on the team, which is already more than we had in StormBlitz."


    "Yeah, but these spots ain''t Bot roles."


    "Yeah, for now," Yuel said. "Kai really wants to play Carry and she''s a tough nut to crack. But, if we keep showing her what we can do, eventually she''ll have to give in. She wants the team to win at the regionals, so we''ll have to prove her it''s absolutely necessary for the two us to play Bot if she wants the team to keep advancing."


    "Oh, so we playing the long game here," Lars nodded. "Okay, gotcha. Basically, we gotta keep kicking butts and show off how good we are."


    "Yeah, basically."


    "This feels so unfair, tho," Lars pouted. "Why everybody wanna play Bot so much? Like, c''mon, there are five roles in the game, ya know?"


    "Carry is a special role, it''s all in the name," Yuel said. "In a way, Carry is like the ace of the team. Isn''t that the reason you play it too?"


    "Nah, I just like shooting stuff."


    "You can ''shoot stuff'' as Mid too."


    "Yeah, but your shots don''t do much. You can''t just walk into somebody face and go like BANG BANG BANG in their face. Ya only got a couple of spells that deal super damage and those are savage, but the basics are kinda lame."


    "I see," Yuel nodded. In other words, Lars liked playing marksmen the most because they made the game resemble a shooter. While there were some selfish players like Taison who were mesmerized by the "ace" status of Carry, Lars just wanted to have fun with the role that worked best for him.


    "Not gonna lie, tho," Lars added. "Being able to quickly take down the towers and push for the win is hella cool too. So yeah, I love that feeling of powah too."


    "Understandable," Yuel nodded. It was a similar but still very different from what Yuel was talking about. Lars probably didn''t care as much about the social position that came with being the Carry because he was always in the center of attention anyway.


    Lars used to be the ace of his basketball team too, so it''s like he was born into playing such roles in every game. He always got that position without even going out of his way to pursue it. It''s like being born into a rich family and never being concerned with earning money because it''s always available.


    On the other hand, Kai felt like a poor person who stumbled upon a treasure chest and wanted to keep it to herself no matter what. Her obsession with the Carry role reminded of Taison. But, hopefully, her motivation wasn''t fueled by a cheap desire to show off.


    Either way, the fact remained that Kai was standing in the way of Yuel and Lars''s ambitions. She was the captain and she was hellbent on being the Carry.


    The initial impression from the 2v2 was that Kai was a solid player without any glaring weaknesses. However, she wasn''t as skilled as Lars. So, she might outdo the goof in terms of game knowledge and occasional decision-making, but she didn''t have enough overwhelming strength to rival the wild beast.


    In time, Kai will surely come to accept that. Once the team starts losing in official scrimmages, Kai will come to understand the extent of her skill and that Lars was better suited to be the team''s Carry.


    "But," Lars started. "What if Kai gonna insist on being Carry? Whatcha gonna do then? Play Support for her?"


    "That''s..." A question Yuel didn''t want to deal with. Especially, because there was a possibility of that happening with how stubborn Kai was.


    Objectively, Yuel should play Support regardless of whether his lane partner was Lars or Kai. He was confident he''ll contribute to the team much more as a Support than as a Top Laner. Even Vincent, the current Support, agreed 100% with that sentiment.


    However, subjectively, this was a nasty decision to make. It felt like betraying his partnership with Lars. They talked before about how each of them should always aim to be the best in his own role even when the other wasn''t around, but this just felt wrong.


    "I don''t know," Yuel admitted. "We''ll just have to make sure it doesn''t reach that point."


    "Yeah, sounds about right," Lars thrust a fist. "C''mon dude, let''s do it! We gonna win our spots and win the revenge match against Athena and Aegis! After that, we gonna become da best in the world!"


    "Shooting far, huh," Yuel smiled wryly and bumped fists.


    They made a small step today but a very important one. The circumstances surrounding the transfer and the club were far from ideal, but at least their situation was far better than before. In StormBlitz, they would have spent this entire year being stuck on the bench. Meanwhile, in Stratus, they have already secured themselves spots on the first-string on day one.


    All there was left to make this perfect was getting their Support and Carry roles. Then, they''ll be in a position to win matches against other teams from the region and eventually reach the revenge match against StormBlitz. This time, Yuel and Lars will defeat Howard and Ellen!


    At first, there was doubt about how far Yuel and Lars will be able to pull a weak team like Stratus. But, surprisingly, the team members Yuel met so far were rather competent.


    Kai was a solid Diamond quality player who clearly didn''t get to that rank from being carried by others. For the first half of their match, her positioning and decision making were airtight, to the point Yuel couldn''t find a single weakness to exploit.


    And, despite being a total clown, Vincent exhibited sharp judgment and careful planning. Such high quality was far from how Yuel imagined Stratus, the "lowly team" that always got eliminated during the first round of the regionals.


    With Yuel and Lars added on top of these two, together they''ve already formed a solid four-man team. They needed just one more skilled member and their team will have a real chance of aiming to the top!

 125 Luke, the Meme Jedi

    On the second day of school, the Classmancers club gathered in the basement room again. Yuel, Lars, Kai, Vincent, and one more guy.


    "Heya," The guy saluted with a smile. "The name''s Luke."


    "Yo, dude. I''m Lars."


    "Yuel."


    "So," Luke grinned. "I heard you hacked your way into the club? I thought selections are like next week."


    "We''re just guaranteed to pass," Yuel explained. "We''re Challenger rank, so you''ll be hard-pressed to find any freshmen who are higher than that."


    "Whoa, Challenger!?" Luke jumped. "... how high was that again? Is it higher Diamond?"


    "Yes, it''s higher Diamond," Yuel retorted sharply. What kind of question was that? Everybody knew the ranks went from Platinum to Diamond to Challenger. [I have a bad feeling about this...]


    "Yeah, dude," Lars tuned in. "How ya don''t know that? Challenger is like top tier, yo."


    "Yeah, sure sounds like it," Luke nodded. "I just don''t really remember all the ranks that are far above my own LUL."


    [Far above?] Yuel''s fears began turning into reality. "What rank you are?"


    "I''m stuck in like Gold II, I think."


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    "You think?"


    "Yeah, I don''t really keep track, haha. Ranked is for tryhards, man."


    "..........." Yuel just stood there like a short-circuited robot. He had no idea how to respond to this absurdity. Ranked was for "tryhards"? Then, what did this guy think about the competitive scene? Seriously, this guy...


    "So," Lars took over the conversation because Yuel''s brain stopped working. "What role ya play?"


    "Whichever role I feel like that day," Luke shrugged.


    [What do you mean "whichever you feel"?] Yuel felt like he was about to blow up. [Serious players should start off by maining a couple of roles to bring them up to a competitive level! Who recruited this guy!?]


    "You don''t have a main role?" Yuel asked.


    "Hmm, I guess you could say I play Top and Jungler the most. After all, that''s where all the spicy memes are at."


    [Memes?] Yuel was losing all hope in humanity. Calling people tryhards for paying Ranked and talking about memes... Yeah, it wasn''t hard to imagine at what level this guy was playing. How did he even get into the club?


    Well, this was Stratus, after all. It was the team that failed to pass the first round at tournaments for a reason. Luke must have gotten in because he had an alright rank during his first year, but he hasn''t made much progress since then. Considering the condition of this club, it wasn''t hard to imagine why.


    "Doesn''t seem like Bob is coming today," Kai gathered everybody. "We got five people, so let''s go to Ranked as a team."


    "Roger!" Luke saluted and leaped on one of the two computers in the room. "First! I''mma play on this one!"


    That left only one other computer available. Fortunately, Yuel already predicted this situation and prepared for it.


    "You brought your laptop, right?" Yuel asked Lars just to be sure.


    "Yep," Lars took out his fancy gaming laptop out of the bag. "Good call telling me to bring it. I don''t wanna go through all that controller aiming nonsense again."


    "I hope you didn''t forget the charger?"


    "... Whoops."


    "As always, huh," Yuel shook his head.


    "Meh, it gonna be fine. Gonna last me at least two hours."


    "Just make sure to check the battery isn''t about to run out before we queue. We don''t need a deserter."


    "Yes, mom," Lars chuckled while installing his laptop on a desk. He connected his wireless basketball-skinned mouse and was ready to go.


    According to Lars, the laptop''s thin keyboard apparently wasn''t as nice as his PC''s keyboard. But, overall, his performance on the laptop was on par with his strong PC performance. Today, by playing on a laptop, he should be able to put on a strong performance that''ll convince Kai.


    [I wish I had a good laptop like this.] Yuel sighed. He could ask his mom to buy one, but if he tells her it''s for Classmancers, she''ll give him the evil eye for sure. So, Yuel just sucked it up and played on tablet when there was no PC available. But, no matter how used he got to playing on tablet, there was no beating playing a MOBA on PC.


    "Can I use the remaining PC?" Yuel asked.


    "Fine by me," Kai shrugged. "I like controller better anyway."


    "I prefer PC but I''m fine with a controller too," Vincent nodded.


    And so, it was decided. Yuel and Luke used the basement''s computers whereas Lars was on his fancy laptop. The rest were on tablets.


    It was weird to play on such a mixture of platforms. Compared to this poor arrangement, the 15 oldie PCs they had in StormBlitz looked like a luxury.


    "Yo, I can''t connect," Lars pouted. "Yuel, do something. Make this dude work."


    "Let me see," Yuel checked the connection error Lars was getting. It seemed to be an internet issue. There was no option to connect the laptop with an ethernet cable, so Lars had to rely on the school''s wifi.


    The laptop properly recognized the wifi and Lars even successfully logged into the wifi on his own, but the reception was poor. Even normal internet didn''t work for him.


    "It must be the Ultimate Anti-Signal door again," Vincent opened the basement''s door wide. Surprisingly, that helped. The wifi still only had 4 bars, but it was good enough.


    The group formed a party and queued into Ranked together. The matchmaking was probably going to be wild. It had to find "fitting opponents" for a mixed team that had anything from Gold to Challenger in it. What criteria was it even going to use to search for a good match? This was surely about to be clown fiesta.


    "We have to decide our roles," Yuel pointed out while they were waiting.


    "Right," Kai said. "I''m Carry. Who wants to be the Support?" She threw glances at both Vincent and Yuel.


    "Yuel said he was dreaming to do it," Vincent gave Yuel a pleading look. Yeaaaaah, no.


    "I''ll take Top," Yuel said. "You''ve been playing Bot together, so you''ll be a much better Support for her right now. Maybe I''ll practice with her later, but first I want to see how we all perform in positions we''re comfortable with."


    "Geh, okay," Vincent''s shoulders sunk. "Guess it''s time to be blamed for everything."


    "I''ll only blame you if you suck," Kai said. "But, you always suck."


    "Why thank you, that''s really encouraging."


    Everybody cracked a laugh.


    For the rest of the roles, it was decided Lars will be Mid and Luke will be Jungler. It was scary to entrust an important role like Jungler to a guy like Luke, but there was no other choice. A devastating defeat was incoming...


    After a while, the matchmaking finally matched them with somebody. As usual, when queuing up with a full team, it was likely to run into a full premade team. That was the most balanced way to go about it because cooperation and communication were more important than any disparity in ranks. A five-player premade got a huge advantage over a four-player premade by default and it was hard to compensate for that gap with something simple like a higher average rank.


    It was easy to tell the enemy team was premade because all the players there belonged to the same guild: TheRangers. They also all had golden names, which meant they were recognized as part of the competitive scene in one way or another. Perhaps they were another middle school club, though that name didn''t belong to any team from this region.


    Either way, they were likely going be tough opponents. Unfortunately, it was impossible to see their ranks because they set their accounts to private like most competitive players do to avoid being researched.


    Hopefully, that team wasn''t made of strong competitive level players. Otherwise, this match will probably be very one-sided...


    Any other day, Yuel would want to play the absolute best opponents he could find. But, not right now with the current experimental lineup. Yuel and Lars weren''t at their strongest roles and were likely to mess up. They weren''t ready to face serious opponents yet.


    "I feel like I haven''t played Mid in ages," Lars scrolled through the list of mages with a dumb smile.


    "Yeah, it''s been a while since I played Top too," Yuel nodded.


    They played Mid and Top at the club throughout the year but, in the last two months, they focused exclusively on their main roles. They grinded in Ranked to reach Challenger IV and they prepared for the selection match against Howard and Ellen. There was no time to be distracted by secondary roles.


    "If you think you''re rusty," Yuel said. "Go with Aero. Hard to mess up too badly with it."


    "Yeah, sounds good." Lars nodded and locked in Aeromancer.


    [As for me,] Yuel glanced at the enemy''s Knight pick. Assuming that was the enemy''s Top Laner, then Viking served as a decent counter. Viking was much stronger in combat once he got in and he could also poke Knight from afar with axe throws. On top of that, Viking could even chase a mounted Knight by sticking the axe on the Knight.


    With all that considered, Yuel went for the Viking pick. The enemy picked Lancer and Electromancer. The Electromancer was a direct counter-pick to Lars''s Aeromancer because Thunderstorm countered Hurricane quite heavily. However, aside from that one advantage, Electromancer didn''t have any particular advantages over the Aeromancer, so it wasn''t much of a deal. Lars shouldn''t have much trouble warming up as Aeromancer in this matchup.


    Next, Kai picked Pirate. There was no particularly deep reasoning behind it. Pirate was just a solid pick overall and Kai seemed to like it. There was a chance the enemy would ban it during the second banning phase to prevent Yuel''s team from picking it, so it was a good call to pick it early.


    After the second banning phase was over, it was the turn of Yuel''s team again.


    "You want to go first?" Vincent asked Luke.


    "Hmm, let''s see," Luke scrolled the list of classes. "What do I feel like playing today?"


    [How about you check the enemy''s composition and try countering them?] Yuel made a face but stayed quiet. It was the first time he was playing with this group, so he wanted to see how each of these guys was reasoning during drafting. So far, Luke was coming off as a Lars-level goof when it came to drafting. Maybe he was even worse...


    "Oh, I know," Luke smirked. "I feel like playing Rogue today."


    "Excuse me?" Yuel blurted before his brain even finished processing the information.


    "Rogue, you know," Luke cracked a laugh. "That stealth class that kinda exists but nobody on Ranked remembers it, haha."


    "Nobody ''remembers'' it for a good reason," Yuel said. "It''s a D tier class. It''s a meme."


    "Yeah, that''s why it''s cool!" Luke nodded. "Memeing it out against tryhards is the best!"


    [This guy is giving me a headache.] Yuel rubbed his temples. Memeing with Rogue? Against high ranks? What kind of absurdity was that? Even though this was just a warmup match to test the waters with this team, there were things Yuel couldn''t let stand.


    "No need to worry," Vincent tuned in. "Luke pretty much always goes for memes but he does just fine. After all, he''s the Meme Jedi!"


    [Oh, this is so reassuring.] Yuel rolled his eyes. So, Luke was just a memer? Then, he was practically useless for competitive matches...


    "Don''t worry," Vincent insisted. "He''s one of these guys who take memeing seriously. That''s how he got promoted from being a Meme Jedi Knight to a Meme Jedi Master. His Rogue is actually pretty nasty."


    "Is that so," Yuel lost the will to object. [On a scale of one to ten, how much do I trust Vincent''s assessment? Somewhere around minus five thousand billion.]


    "So, we''re good?" Luke checked with everybody. "I''mma pick Rogue then."


    "Wait," Yuel squeezed what little willpower he had left to prevent this match from becoming a total disaster. "At least, save the Rogue for the last pick. Rogue already struggles enough as it is, so we don''t want to let our opponents counter pick it.."


    "Oh, smart," Luke nodded. "If they pick something like Lumi it''d be total ass."


    "Then," Vincent said. "I''ll go with Vanguard."


    After that, it was the enemy''s turn to pick their last two classes. They went for Elf and Cryomancer.


    Thankfully, they couldn''t possibly guess that Luke was planning to go with Rogue, so they didn''t pick any hard counters. A pick like Lumimancer could''ve countered Rogue pretty hard with its ability to reveal enemies and blind everybody around him. So, by picking Rogue last, the team dodged that bullet.


    "Okay, done," Luke locked-in Rogue with zero hesitation. The enemy team must be laughing right now, thinking this was some trollish insta-lock.


    Was there any chance this match won''t be a disaster? Vincent claimed that Luke was the Meme Jedi, which apparently implied the guy was amazing when playing memes. But, Vincent''s credibility was a flat zero, so...


    It felt like the loading screen was counting down until an embarrassing show begins..


    The lineups:


    Yuel: Viking


    Lars: Aeromancer


    Luke: Rogue


    Kai: Pirate


    Vincent: Vanguard


    Enemy Top: Knight


    Enemy Mid: Electromancer


    Enemy Jungle: Lancer


    Enemy Carry: Elf


    Enemy Support: Cryomance

 126 Warding Openings

    The club''s first match as a team began. The most important member to pay attention to was Luke. Not only because it was the first time Yuel saw Luke in action, but also because Luke picked Rogue of all things. According to Vincent, Luke''s Rogue was actually solid, but Yuel had his doubts.


    "A Sentry Ward right off the bat?" Yuel asked.


    "Yep," Luke replied. "Gotta make sure I got at least one safe route for approaching Mid."


    "I see," Yuel wasn''t sure what to say. It didn''t seem like a bad play but it was unconventional and therefore difficult to judge.


    A Sentry Ward had twice the cost of a basic Ward. Therefore, the typical approach was to use cheap Wards during the early-game and only start using Sentry Wards from around mid-game. Then, during late-game, warding always turned into a counter-warding war of Sentry Wards.


    Yet, Luke went ahead and purchased a Sentry Ward right at the beginning of the game. It was a peculiar move which, surprisingly, made some sense. The purpose of this early Sentry Ward was to counter Stealth Wards, which the enemy was undoubtedly going to purchase at some point to counter Rogue''s stealth. After all, using Stealth Wards was the 101 of countering any Jungler with stealth.


    [At least, Luke is putting some thought into it.] This was already more than Yuel expected. It showed Luke knew some Rogue tech which was only available to the high-level memers. Yuel considered similar openings for Rogue before but, generally speaking, it felt like the cost-reward wasn''t in Rogue''s favor here.


    Still, it was good to know Luke had a game plan in mind. As for the other goof...


    "Say," Lars titled his head. "What do I buy with Aero? Two Wards or two MP Potions? Or, one of each? How did that thing go, again?"


    [He already forgot how to open the game as a Mid Laner?] Yuel sighed. This was the birdbrain goof at its finest. Yuel even went through the trouble of creating a build preset for every class Lars played so that the goof won''t need to stress over it, yet Lars still found a way to get lost in the options.


    "Tell me," Yuel started. "I''m what world would a Mid Laner begin the game without at least one ward?"


    "Oh, right," Lars nodded. "My bad, was thinking as a Carry for a moment there, haha."


    "Really now," a Yuel made a face. Well, it wasn''t exactly wrong. The Carry could open the game with anywhere between zero to two wards in the current meta, depending on how he agreed to split the burden of warding with the Support.


    However, for a Mid Laner, starting off with at least one ward was pretty much mandatory. Mid was the only lane that was sandwiched by jungle on both sides, so it was the most susceptible to ganks. Therefore, the Mid Laner was responsible for warding at least one side of it, while somebody else could land a hand on the other side. Or, depending on what the team agreed on, the Mid Laner might have to ward both sides himself.


    This was all elementary meta knowledge, but Lars clearly just followed Yuel''s presets without thinking much about them. That goof probably didn''t really understand the deeper meanings behind all these meta decisions. Sigh.


    [Sometimes, I feel like I should babysit him less so he actually learns how to play.] Yuel shook his head.


    "When deciding whether you start with one or two wards," Yuel said. "You need to consider what''s more important: an MP Potion to outlast your lane opponent on lane or an extra ward to defend against ganks."


    "Mhm, mhm," Lars nodded with profound understanding. "So, how many wards I need?"


    [You didn''t even try to think about it!] Yuel wanted to facepalm all the way through his skull. "If you play it right, you should be able to outclear the Electromancer. This means, you''ll likely get many opportunities to advance up the lane and that means a higher chance of being ganked. Also, Aeromancer''s skills aren''t particularly costly and you''ll only need Whirlwind most of the time to clear minions. So, if you take all that into account, what do you think you need more? An MP Potion or a Ward?"


    "Hmm, that''s like some advanced math problem."


    [Are you being serious right now?] Yuel squinted his eyes.


    "Haha, just kidding!" Lars smacked Yuel on the shoulder. "Of course I gotta buy... Potion of Strength! The only real answer. It gonna let me rek that dude real fast, yo!"


    "Really funny," Yuel rolled his eyes.


    While Lars was joking around, he properly bought a Ward as he should. It seemed the goof had at least a minimal level of common sense.


    They wasted quite some time on this banter but, fortunately, matches had a countdown until they truly began. So, that gave players enough time to prepare before minions spawned. Thanks to that, Lars wasn''t going to lose anything of note from heading out of the base a little late.


    Still, there were some advantages to heading out of base early. It provided an opportunity to reach enemy territory early and sneak a ward onto their side of the map without their knowledge. A normal Ward couldn''t expose other wards, so the enemy won''t be able to clear this early sneaky ward.


    However, it was rare to pull off this sneaky play without running into danger. So, it took a daredevil player to go for that line of play. Like, for example, a certain Rogue who bought boots and a Sentry Ward as soon as the game began and darted toward enemy jungle on his own.


    "Where exactly are you going?" Yuel asked.


    "Told ya," Luke said. "I gotta secure a safe ganking route. So, lemme just place this right here and get out. Perfect."


    Luke retreated from enemy territory as soon as he placed his Sentry Ward. Fortunately, he took precautions and entered stealth before venturing into enemy territory. Therefore, nobody caught him in action.


    With that stealth on, this was actually a relatively safe play. A bold play, but a safe one. The placing of the Sentry Ward was also on point. It was right in the middle of an important crossroad which was often warded by Mid Laners to defend against ganks. It was highly likely the enemy team will drop a ward there sooner than later.


    And, since Luke placed a Sentry Ward, his ward will expose whichever ward the enemy may place there. That''ll allow him to remove the enemy ward as soon as the laning phase begins. Not bad.


    Meme Jedi or not, Luke definitely had a thought-out game plan. It was more than could be said about a certain goof who couldn''t tell left from right unless Yuel held his hand. Sigh.


    "Hehe, gottem," Luke smirked as his Sentry Ward revealed the enemy Electromancer heading into the jungle. As expected, the enemy placed a ward there and it was a Stealth Ward.


    "That''s 80 gold down the drain for ya, pal." Luke plucked out the Stealth Ward. That alerted the enemy about the presence of a Sentry Ward in that spot but there was absolutely nothing they could do about it right now.


    [In theory], somebody on their team could earn 120 gold and immediately return to base and buy a Sentry Ward to counter Luke''s Sentry Ward, but that was too inefficient of a play when the laning phase just began. Whoever was going to volunteer for that back-and-forth play was guaranteed to miss out on some important early-game farm.


    Not to mention, unlike a Stealth Ward, a Sentry Ward couldn''t reveal stealthed players. So, even if the enemy counter Luke''s Sentry Ward with a Sentry Ward of their own, the end result will remain that the area won''t be protected from stealthed ganks. So, it was still a win situation for Luke anyway.


    Considering all that, the enemy probably won''t do anything about Luke''s Sentry Ward. It wasn''t worth the effort. Especially, not for countering a meme like Rogue.


    However, by not securing a Stealth Ward in such a critical spot, the Mid Laner left himself open to stealth ganks that could sneak up to him at any point. In other words, Mid Lane was completely exposed from Top Jungle''s side and the poor Electromancer will have to live in constant fear of Rogue ganks. Yuel should definitely arrange a gank there at the first opportunity that presents itself.


    [If Howard was in charge of the enemy team, would he have insisted to counter that Sentry Ward?] Yuel smiled wryly as a pointless thought passed by. He shook his head and concentrated on the enemy Knight on his lane.


    Knight''s passive, Chivalry, slightly increased the defense of nearby minions. As a result, the Knight had a lane advantage over Yuel''s Viking by default. Therefore, if Yuel only focuses on clearing minions, the Knight and his buffed minions will overwhelm him.


    Instead, Yuel made sure to harass the Knight from range. Every time the Knight stepped too close to the frontline, Yuel tossed an axe at the guy. The axe stuck itself deep into the Knight''s armor and dealt damage over time, as well as slowed down the Knight''s movement.


    However, such aggression didn''t go by unnoticed. The Knight''s loyal minions responded to such assaults by focusing their fire on Yuel. They abandoned their fight with Yuel''s minions and rushed to strike Yuel down.


    However, that was all part of the plan. While the enemy minions were busy running forward to reach Yuel, they weren''t attacking anybody during that time period. On the other hand, Yuel''s minions continued focusing their fire on the enemy minions.


    Especially, the bowmen weren''t affected by the enemy''s movements at all. In fact, they welcomed the enemy''s advance because it just made their lives that much easier. The closer the enemy got, the easier it was to snipe them.


    On top of all these advantages, this game plan also drew all the minions to Yuel''s side of the lane. They got too far away from the Knight, so his Chivalry effect didn''t reach them. If the Knight wanted to maintain the Chivalry aura on them, he''d have to advance on the lane to the point of overextending.


    However, only a fool would wander into the Viking''s domain like that. If the Knight dares to come any closer, Yuel will catch him with Takedown and toss the fool into the Turret''s range. That should easily convert into a kill. If not, it''ll at least bring the Knight low enough to force him to recall. In that case, Yuel will win the lane.


    This Knight seemed to understand all of that, so he obediently waited for the minions to come to him. It''d be great if Yuel could score a kill or two with this simple tactic, but at the same time, that''d make the match a little boring. Where was the fun when his lane opponent couldn''t pose a challenge?


    The only downside to Yuel''s game plan was that the enemy minions managed to sneak a few shots on him. However, it was a small price to pay compared to the huge lane advantage he was going to win from this exchange. Not to mention, Viking''s passive, Battle Ecstasy, boosted his power and defense depending on how much HP he lost. So, being bold and aggressive like that actually played to Viking''s strengths.


    Once Yuel finished clearing the enemy minions on his side of the lane, he advanced toward the enemy side along with the few minions who survived the clash. Naturally, the enemy Knight had no choice but retreat to his Turret. There was nothing that guy could do alone against Yuel and his brigade.


    While the Knight was hugging his Turret, Yuel used this time to venture into the enemy jungle and drop a ward at an important crossroad. Three paths converged on that crossroad: one leading to Top, one leading to the enemy''s Wolf Camp and another leading to the enemy''s Wraith Camp.


    By gaining vision over such a tactical area, Yuel will know when the enemy Jungler was nearby. Whether the Jungler was just farming camps or coming to the lane for a gank, Yuel will be able to tell with this one ward. It was a critical meta ward that was pretty much placed by every Top Laner.


    In fact, the enemy Knight has most likely already placed a similar ward on Yuel''s side of the jungle while Yuel was busy luring all the minions to his side. Yuel already informed the team of this possibility, especially Luke who was the most likely to pass through that area while jungling.


    After placing down this important ward, Yuel immediately returned to lane as if nothing happened. [I just stepped into the jungle for a moment and then returned. Nothing suspicious.]


    Of course, any experienced player could tell Yuel went to place a ward, but the enemy had no proof. Maybe Yuel just pretended he went to place a ward but he actually hasn''t done anything? On high-level of play, such mind games were a legit tactic. Every bit of paranoia a play could seed in the opponent''s mind was useful.


    Even though he returned to lane, he couldn''t help his minions much with the push. They got a few hits on the enemy Turret, but the Turret bombarded them while the Knight cut them down. Needless to say, the little guys didn''t last long.


    However, brought the tower''s HP down by about 5%. It was better than nothing. If Yuel keeps getting opportunities like this every time, he and his minions will eventually shave off all of the tower''s HP.


    During the second minion wave, Yuel repeated the exact same routine. He threw an axe at the Knight, which drew the enemy minions to his territory. There, he finished them off with the help of his minions.


    Once he won the exchange, he advanced all the way to the enemy Turret area together with his minions. However, he didn''t dare to step into the Turret''s firing range. The Turret''s bolts dealt devastating damage during the early-game because players had a low level, so Yuel didn''t want to take the risk.


    Nevertheless, his presence all the way out here was of utmost importance. By advancing all the way out here with his little army, Yuel pressured the opponent into retreating all the way to the Turret. Without Yuel leading this herd, the Knight might have chosen to clash with the minions in the middle of the lane to halt their advance. That would have cost him some HP but he would have gained more exp and gold and would have prevented any damage from reaching his tower.


    That''s why Yuel traveled to the very border of the enemy''s tower and stared down his opponent. It was nothing more than pressure but it worked. The Knight could try to retaliate, but that was ill-advised against a Viking and this Knight was smart enough to understand that.


    Speaking of pressure from afar, there was somebody who could apply great pressure on Yuel in the current situation: the enemy Jungler. Yuel was extending deep into enemy territory. So, if the Lancer were to pop out of the jungle right now, Yuel would have a very bad time.


    And indeed, just as Yuel checked the mini-map, the ward he placed revealed the Lancer hanging out nearby in the jungle. Based on the direction the Lancer was moving in, it was likely the Lancer was heading toward the lane. This was the right time to scoot.


    By the time the Lancer reached Top Lane, Yuel has already retreated all the way to his side of the lane.


    [Sorry, no dice.] Yuel wasn''t going to be caught by such a low effort gank. The Lancer''s presence applied enough pressure made him retreat but that''s all he was going to get out of that play. And honestly, even as a pressuring tactic, this Lancer''s play was on the weaker side.


    [He didn''t have to walk all the way to the lane.] Yuel shook his head.


    The Lancer should have realized he won''t be getting any kills as soon as Yuel began retreating. At that point, the Jungler''s presence has ready served its purpose as a pressure tool, so there was no reason for him to keep traveling toward the lane. It was a waste of his precious time as a Jungler.


    [I wish I could see his rank.] Yuel''s team was a mish-mash of different ranks, so there''s a good chance the system matched them against a team with a similar salad of ranks. If so, this Lancer might be among the lower ranks on the enemy team.


    That''s something to keep in mind. If enough evidence accumulates to suggest that this Lancer was the enemy''s weakest link, it''ll be a good idea to focus him first.


    The next minion wave arrived. This time, the Knight decided to switch things up. He was fed up with Yuel''s aggro tactics, so provoked Yuel''s minions with Honorable Duel before Yuel got to execute his usual plan. The provoke effect made the minions focus the Knight, so he retreated toward his side of the lane to lure them away, similar to Yuel''s tactic.


    "Two can play this game! See? I can lure minions too!" That''s probably what the Knight was thinking right now. His play was essentially a copy of how Yuel has been handling the past two waves.


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    However, there was one key difference. Unlike the Knight, Yuel wasn''t afraid to advance along the lane with his minions.


    [A nice try but you chose poorly.] Yuel smiled meaningfully. It was cute how the Knight tried to switch things up this round but that only made him fall into Yuel''s trap. This was a great opportunity for Yuel to press onward and deliver a devastating blow.


    He chased the retreating Knight and threw an axe at the guy. The axe dug deep into the Knight''s armor and got stuck in it. Now, it was time to activate the follow-up skill: Axe Blitz!


    Yuel blinked across the lane and appeared right in the Knight''s face. Now, both Yuel and all his minions were about to run over the Knight! If Yuel had access to his ult, he could summon additional soldiers and this would have turned into a complete slaughter. Unfortunately, he was still at Lv.4, so he had to make do with the manpower he had at hand.


    The Knight realized the danger and tried to dash away with Shield Bash, but Yuel was faster. He already buffered the input for his Takedown during the blinking animation, so it came out as soon as Yuel appeared in front of the Knight.


    The Knight began transitioning into the dashing animation of Shield Bash, but the Viking wrapped his arms around the enemy''s metal armor and slammed the Knight into the ground. It dealt sizeable damage and dazed the Knight, making him recover slowly from this assault. So, for a brief moment, the Knight was completely vulnerable.


    In that short period of time, all of Yuel''s minions caught to the Knight and were ready to strike. A flurry of slashes and shots followed! Yuel slashed, his swordsmen slashed and his bowmen fired. There was no mercy to be found in this gang assault.


    Yuel also made sure to body-block the Knight''s escape route, so the Knight had a hard time retreating from the scene. Shield Bash was on cooldown because Yuel''s Takedown interrupted it after it was already activated, so the Knight''s only real option was to slowly run away while being swarmed from all sides.


    The Knight could use his Noble Steed to ride away but that''d suicide. He''d receive extra damage while mounting the steed, so all many attacks hitting him would become even more devastating. He''d die on the spot.


    Yuel half-hoped the Knight would commit this mistake. But, for the better or the worse, this Knight was more competent than and simply rolled past Yuel''s body-blocking.


    [He''s not bad.] Yuel nodded to himself. [If he rolled away just a little earlier, he might have gotten away. But, he''s done for.]


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    ¡ºFIRST BLOOD!¡»


    Yuel drew the first blood of the match, so the team was off to a strong start in Top Lane. However, how will Lars fare as a Mid Laner? And, what else will Luke bring to the table with his "high-level memeing"?


    The answers to these questions will dictate the direction this match will take.

 127 Educated Memeing

    Lars started the match off on the wrong foot. It seemed the goof has completely forgotten what it meant to be a Mid Laner, to the point he wasn''t sure whether he should buy a ward at game start. On top of that, he wasn''t sure where to best place his ward and had to consult Yuel on that as well.


    All of this created a very concerned image. There was no doubt the goof will mess something up really bad, or so Yuel thought. Surprisingly, once Lars actually arrived on the lane, he was like a changed man.


    Lars cast Whirlwind at the perfect spot to make it hit both the enemy swordsmen on the front and the enemy bowmen on the back. The whirlwind was just barely wide enough to cover the entire minion wave but Lars placed it almost perfectly. His aim was slightly off on the first minion wave and one bowman escaped the reach of his whirlwind, but Lars corrected his mistake right away on the following wave.


    Not only that, but he always cast Whirlwind preemptively before the two minion waves clashed in the middle of the lane. Normally, players waited for the minion waves to assume their combat positions and then placed their Whirlwind accordingly. That ensured they could properly summon the whirlwind in the right area.


    But, not this guy. Lars summoned the wind just briefly before the minions arrived and made sure the whirlwind will hit the entire wave once it grows to its full size.


    By doing so, Lars optimized his wave clearing speed. It made his wave clearing about one second faster. That didn''t sound like the most impressive thing in the world but, on high levels of play, such a difference could be huge. Clearing the lane just a couple of seconds faster than the opponent opened the door to many opportunities.


    However, Lars didn''t stop there. He followed up on his Whirlwind with quick basic attacks and didn''t drop a single shot despite moving around to juke enemy shots, as expected from the "200% accuracy" sniper. He was shooting nonstop without ever lifting his finger from the left mouse button, yet each and every shot connected. If Yuel attempted such a stunt, he''d undoubtedly miss at least 70% of the shots.


    [And that''s why I don''t play Carry.] Yuel smiled wryly. He had more than another trouble landing one "quick shot" without lifting his finger, so many of these in a row would probably even miss against a stationary target.


    Not to mention, Lars wasn''t just shooting fast without a plan. He made sure to mix up his targets to not miss any last-hits. He fired at every swordsman to bring them all low and then he last-hit each of them in order. The ongoing ticks of damage from whirlwind helped him secure the last hits on the entire wave.


    All in all, this was an amazing display of how to do laning right as an Aeromancer. Yuel was proud. Nowadays, everybody naturally expected Lars to be this efficient with his last hits while farming, but it wasn''t always like this.


    It took Yuel a long time to drill the importance of efficient farming into Lars. It almost felt like converting a non-believer. But, once Lars FINALLY developed the correct mindset, the result was nigh flawless execution.


    At some point, Lars no longer had to "think" about last-hits anymore. He just practicing farming routines until it became second nature for him to deliver last-hits to all minions. He became a terminator.


    This strong display of flawless farming completely dispelled Yuel''s initial worries. Perhaps Lars a monkey who didn''t understand the fine details about warding and smart tactical decisions, but his execution was godlike. His execution alone was strong enough to carry him as a Mid Laner even against Diamond and Challenger ranks.


    However, if a class had a tool with some advanced some tricks to it, those didn''t always register in the goof''s brain right away. If Lars played a class regularly, he eventually nailed all the high-level tricks Yuel taught him. Alas, Lars could be trusted to forget all about them after two weeks if he didn''t touch the class.


    "Don''t forget to use Jet Stream," Yuel said. "It''s important to not let Electromancer land basics."


    "Oh, right," Lars nodded. He didn''t ask what Yuel meant by this advice, so at least he remembered the gist of it.


    Just as the enemy Electromancer was about to fire another beam of electricity, Lars cast Jet Stream between the Electromancer and his swordsmen. Just like with the rest of Lars''s execution, the timing and placement of Jet Stream were perfect.


    The Electromancer''s bullet of electricity passed through the trail of wind and slowed down until it vanished entirely. The attack failed to reach Lars''s swordsman.


    That was one of the great advantages of Jet Stream during the laning phase. Jet Stream slowed down enemy projectiles that went through it and made them dropped off earlier.


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    Even though Electomancer''s basic attack was a shot of electricity, that was was just animation. In practice, the Electromancer''s shot was a projectile like any other ranged basic attack. Therefore, Jet Stream slowed it down and reduced its range.


    This put the Electromancer in a tough spot. The Jet Stream was like a wall that stood between him and Lars''s minions. In order to make his shots reach Lars''s minions, the Electromancer had to somehow play around Jet Stream''s slowdown.


    One option was to rotate to the other side of the lane. The Electromancer has been firing at minions from the bottom side of Mid Lane, so Lars created the Jet Stream accordingly to block shots from that direction.


    Therefore, if the Electromancer rotates to the top part of the lane, his shots will reach the minions from there. However, such rotation required time. Especially, with Lars''s Whirlwind still raging in the middle of the lane. The Electromancer would have to go all the way back to his side of the lane to go around the whirlwind, which would be a huge waste of time. His entire minion wave will be gone in the meantime.


    Therefore, the Electromancer couldn''t rotate all the way from the bottom to the top. Instead, he advanced to the frontline despite the risk. From there, his shots traveled far enough to reach the minions even after passing through Jet Stream.


    However, that put him in a dangerous position. He was right within Lars''s reach. While Jet Stream reduced the range of enemy projectiles, it extended the range of allied projectiles. Therefore, as soon as Lars wiped out all enemy minions, the Electromancer became the next prey!


    [Let''s go, yo!] Lars fired Squall without warning. The huge gust of wind counted as a projectile, so passing through Jet Stream boosted the heck outta its speed and range. And, it even increased Squall''s power because Squall was best pals with Jet Stream. In other words, this was one heck of a powerful shot, yo!


    Bam! The gust of wind crashed into the Electromancer like a truck! It took out a nice 20% HP and left the guy staggering. It was time to go for a kill, yo!


    Lars darted forward and fired at his slowed prey. He totally gonna get some heavy damage in there and- Oh, the dude vanished. What a party pooper.


    The Electromancer bailed the heck out of there by blinking away. Man, that escape skill was so cheap. Why none of Lars''s main classes had a blinking ability? Lame.


    But okay, this was a good start. The Electro dude was down to 80% and this was just the second round. Lars just gotta keep pressing hard like that during every minion wave and he''ll crack that dude eventually.


    "That was some hard pressure," Luke commented. "You totally owning that guy in Mid."


    "Heh, thanks," Lars flashed his teeth. "Too bad I don''t have a way to finish the job, though. Dude gonna blink away every time like this. Where''s my anti-blinking ability at?"


    "Haha, I feel ya," Luke chuckled. "Happens every single time. You about to kill the guy but he just goes NOPE and blinks away. Ruins my day every time."


    "Feels bad, dude."


    "But hey," Luke smirked. "If the guy doesn''t have blink, I can end his whole career. Think you can force him to retreat with blink again during the next wave?"


    "Yeah, no problem."


    "Cool. You don''t mind if I sneak up to the guy after he blinks and kill him, right?"


    "Sure," Lars gave a thumbs up. "Get dat cheap blinking dude."


    "Haha, will do."


    The next minion wave arrived and Lars repeated the same routine. He summoned a whirlwind to take care of the minions and placed a Jet Stream to block off the Electromancer''s shots.


    And so, the Electromancer advanced to the frontline again and put himself at risk. The poor dude had no choice, really.


    Lars hoped dude will get sick of this and pick a fight with him, but that Electromancer acted composed. Meh, what a boring dude. Avoiding fights in this position was probably the smart thing to do but where''s the fun in that?


    Just like last time, Lars cleared the lane first. Then, he fired Squall!


    [Oh! Dude actually tried to blink away before I shot.] Lars grinned.


    The Electromancer saw Lars''s Squall from a mile away and tried to blink preemptively. But, too bad! Lars fired Squall right after last-hitting the last enemy minion. It was an instant follow up with zero delays! Ain''t nobody fast enough to dodge that stuff on time.


    Lars barely had any time to aim but his Squall landed on the Electromancer without trouble. That''s a given because he had 200% Accuracy! Also, he was that... Eh, how did Vincent call that special ability, again? The Gungun Sniper? Something like that. It was da stuff!


    The Electromancer was already down to about half HP. But, dude ain''t gonna retreat or something lame like that, right? Half HP was still plenty so that Electric Boogaloo dude should keep trying to contest the lane. Who knew? Maybe dude will come up with a good counter plan to Lars''s shenanigans. That''s when things gonna get fun for real.


    "Ahoy there," Luke greeted. At some point during the entire exchange between Lars and the Electromancer, Luke snuck into Mid Lane while stealthed. Right as the Electromancer finished his blinking, his back was wide open to be wrecked by Luke!


    "Got ''em!" Luke dropped a smoke bomb in front of him. The smoke only hindered enemies so Lars could clearly see the slaughter that followed.


    Slash! Slash! Slash! Luke ran his dagger all across the Electromancer''s back. The strikes were swift and dealt a crapton of damage because they came from behind. Electroman over there was screwed!


    Without his blinking ability, the Electromancer didn''t have any other escape tools. His only options were to either stand and fight or to run for his life. Naturally, dude chose to get the heck outta there. Nobody gonna blame him because what kind of crazy mage dude wanted to deal with a Rogue at close range? That''s like asking to be brutally executed.


    But, escaping wasn''t that easy. The smoke from Smoke Bomb slowed down the Electromancer and Rogue was a naturally fast runner. So, Luke stuck to the dude''s back like glue. It was over.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Executed!" Luke pumped a fist. "How ya like my meme now, huh? Pretty neat, right?"


    "It''s just one kill," Yuel was quick to ruin the party. Just because Luke scored one kill with a Rogue didn''t suddenly make Rogue a good pick.


    "Man, you''re so hard to please," Luke made a face.


    "Yeah, he really is," Lars chuckled. "He won''t praise ya unless you win the entire game. And even then, he gonna make sure it doesn''t sound like real praise."


    "Sounds like a tough customer."


    "Yeah, dude is a hella tough customer, haha," Lars nodded. "But, I think that kill was sick, yo! You rekt that dude!"


    "Danke, danke."


    [They''re making too big of a deal out of it,] Yuel thought. [It was just one kill under convenient circumstances. Anybody with decent execution could''ve pulled that off.]


    Nevertheless, Yuel had to admit that Luke surprised him for the better in this play. Yuel''s first impression of Luke was that of a memer who didn''t know any of the meta conventions. However, so far, Luke was proving to be a solid player. Well, aside from the fact he picked a low tier class for memes.


    Rather than the actually kill itself, what impressed Yuel was the way Luke organized that gank. The idea behind this entire play came from Luke. It was Luke who placed a Sentry Ward to secure himself a ganking route for Mid and it was Luke who asked Lars to exhaust the Electromancer''s blink.


    So, Luke was no amateur, that''s for sure. Maybe Yuel could even trust Luke to execute even tougher plays.


    "Well," Luke started. "I''mma go steal their hyenas. Looks like their Lancer gonna come to defend Mid, so that camp gonna be free."


    "Wait," Yuel said. "Do you mind waiting near the lane for a little while? Say, around the corner in the jungle."


    "And why would I wanna do that?"


    "There''s a good chance the Lancer will think you''re gone and that might make him overextend. If he does, you can gank him and get another kill."


    "Sounds cool, but how do you know he''ll overextend? He''s coming here to defend the lane, so I don''t think he''s going to take any risks."


    "This Lancer seems a bit inexperienced," Yuel explained. "He might commit that kind of mistake."


    "How do you figure? You know the guy?"


    "No, it''s based on what I''ve seen of him so far."


    "Wut. Dude, the game started like a few minutes ago. You telling me you already figured out that guy? Are ya an ESPer?"


    "I know it may sound a bit far-stretched and I may be wrong, but..." Yuel pursed his lips. This was a familiar barrier. Every time he played with new teammates he ran into this issue.


    [Feels like this hasn''t happened in ages.] Yuel smiled wryly. Everybody in StormBlitz got used to way Yuel analyzed things, so he hasn''t justified himself in a long time. But, with this new crew, he had to prove his worth again from scratch.


    "You should give it a shot," Vincent joined the conversation out of nowhere. "You may not believe it, but Chessmaster got the Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception!"


    "Mystic Eyes?" Luke asked. "No idea what that does but, not gonna lie, sounds cool."


    "It goes like this," Vincent explained. "You see, everything in existence has a weakness. Humans, air, will and especially opponents."


    "Not sure I get it but sounds deep so I''m digging it."


    "Right? That''s the spirit," Vincent nodded. "In short, his eyes can see the weaknesses of things. As long as something exists, he''ll reveal you all of its weak spots!"


    "Savage!" Luke bandwagoned the silly hype train. "Alrighty then, you just want me to wait behind a wall near the lane, right?"


    "Yes," Yuel said.


    "You got it, fam," Luke gave a thumbs up. "Still not sure about the entire thing but let''s give it a shot, why not. If it fails, you own me one."


    "Sure," Yuel nodded. If his quick analysis of the Lancer''s skill was off, then this play won''t convert into a kill and Luke will lose the opportunity to steal the Hyena Camp. However, it was such a low-risk high-reward opportunity that Yuel just had to go for it. These are the kinds of plays he should prioritize from now on when shot-calling.


    Luke left the lane through the jungle, making it look like he''ll be gone for good. However, once he was sure nobody on the enemy team could see him, he rotated around a nearby jungle wall and laid in wait. Unless the enemy had a ward nearby, they had no way to know Luke was lurking over there. Therefore, as far as the Lancer was concerned, only Lars was in Mid right now.


    As Yuel suspected, the Lancer did more than just defend. After clearing the remains of the minion wave, the Lancer stayed on the lane to clear the following wave. He even approached the frontline to execute a sweep attack on Lars''s swordsmen. The mad lad had no fear in him.


    "Looks like you were right on the money," Luke grinned. "So, I''m up?"


    "Just a moment," Yuel said. "He still hasn''t used his leap. It''ll be tough to chase him down."


    "Nah, it''ll be super easy, barely an inconvenience. I''mma just teleport behind him with my ult and be like ''Nothing personal kid'', haha."


    "That may work, but..." Yuel had to choose his words carefully.


    Rogue''s ult, Phantom Strike, was a great tool for chasing. The Rogue blitzed in a straight line and struck the first enemy player in his path. If the strike hits the target''s back, it''ll also stun them and allow the Rogue to follow up with additional slashes from behind. Those hits dealt extra damage thanks to Rogue''s Backstabber passive. So, it was a solid tool for chasing down an opponent and finishing them off.


    However, the success rate of such a play heavily depended on the player''s execution. Luke will have to properly land his Phantom Strike in the heat of the moment and kill his opponent as fast as possible. The last part of this confrontation might take place in the enemy''s Turret area, so if Luke takes too long - he''ll wind up dead instead.


    It wasn''t like this play demanded crazy mechanical skill, but Yuel didn''t have a full grasp of Luke''s skill level yet. So, entrusting this memer with such a play invited some risks. Instead, Yuel wanted to secure this play more tightly.


    "To make sure we definitely get the kill," Yuel explained. "It''s better if we bait out Lancer''s leap before you gank. That''ll make it easier for you to secure the kill and should allow you to keep your ult."


    "Sounds tight," Luke nodded. "So, watcha got in mind, Mystic Eyes?"


    [Mystic Eyes?] Yuel made a face. "Lars, scare the Lancer with your ult. Go to the jungle and launch Hurricane from there."


    "Oh!" Lars exclaimed. "So, it gonna be like a Sniper Hurricane?"


    "Something like that."


    "Sick, yo! I''m on it." Lars snuck away from the lane toward the nearby jungle entrance.


    From this position, the Lancer shouldn''t be able to see Lars''s actions. He was busy clearing minions right now, so he ignored Lars''s peculiar activity. That was a mistake, yo!


    "Okay, I''mma go for it," Lars began casting Hurricane. It took the wind a couple of seconds to gather, but once formed - this bad boy was gonna travel through the wall and wreck everybody on the lane! It gonna be top-level shenanigans!


    "Alrighty, I''m ready," Luke got closer at the lane. He was ready to assault the Lancer at a moment''s notice. All the chess pieces were in place. Now, it was just a matter of executing this kill.


    Lars unleashed Hurricane on the lane through the wall. The raging winds expanded as they traveled across the lane and sucked everything in like a black hole. Even though the Lancer saw the tornado coming, he couldn''t simply outrun the gravitational pull of Hurricane. His only option was to leap away Lunge unless he wanted to get sucked in and receive heavy damage. Either outcome would be a win for Yuel''s team.


    The Lancer picked the smarter choice and leaped away with Lunge. Little did he know that Luke was awaiting him on the other side of the lane. Just as the Lancer landed, Luke popped out from the jungle and slashed the Lancer in the back for heavy damage.


    For a moment, it looked like the Lancer was considering giving Luke a fight. As a Lancer, It wasn''t unreasonable to expect to win against a Rogue in a 1v1 situation. However, he immediately abandoned that idea when Lars returned to the lane. The Lancer must have realized that if he stays and fights, he''ll run into a nasty 1v2. So, retreat was his only option.


    The Lancer darted toward his Turret. But, Luke was hot on his trail and slashes at his back nonstop. With each slash dealing extra 30% damage thanks to Backstabber, the Lancer couldn''t bear this pressure for long.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Got ''em!" Luke raised a hand.


    "Ez!" Lars high-fived.


    "Not bad," Yuel said.


    "I swear," Luke made a face. "Can this guy even praise anybody? Like, ever?"


    "Gotta work super hard for that," Lars laughed.


    "Gotta say, though," Luke went on. "These Mystic Eyes are some cool shit. Dunno if it was a good guess or whatever, but you read that Lancer like a book. Kinda scary, to be honest."


    "You can call it ''educated guessing''," Yuel said.


    "Heh, then you call my playstyle ''educated memeing''."


    "I''ll keep that in mind."


    "Or," Vincent barrage in. "You can call it the Meme Force!"


    "I''d rather not," Yuel denied that nonsense on the spot.


    By opening the game with three kills, the team created a rather unbeatable position. Kai and Vincent performed well on their lane as well and got a couple of kills with the help of Luke''s ganks. The team was destroying the opposition across the entire map.


    Contrary to Yuel''s initial concerns, their first match as a team ran smoothly. Luke was a memer but he knew how to play the game. If he starts using higher tier classes, he''ll become a solid Jungler for the team.


    So far, the team seemed promising. There was still one member Yuel hasn''t met yet and the club will recruit one freshman this year. So, contrary to its reputation, Stratus was looking like a solid team right now.


    At first, Yuel was concerned about the fact this team has never passed the first round of the regionals. However, now, he was much more confident about this team''s chances to reach far at the tournament. Will Yuel and Lars manage to pull this team all the way to nationals? Only time will tell, but Yuel absolutely had to make it happen.

 128 Cautious Duo

    Thanks to the huge early-game advantage, Yuel''s team dominated the match with leisure. They scored many more kills as the match went on and pressed the enemy from all sides.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Yeah! Got ''em!" Luke pumped a fist as he took down another unsuspecting opponent from behind. He was playing such a low tier class and yet the enemy couldn''t shut him down. As much as Yuel hated to admit it, Luke has been putting on a strong display.


    Rogue''s biggest issue was how fragile the class was. It relied heavily on the element of surprise and had to score multiple early kills to get going. If the enemy successfully starves the Rogue during the early game, the Rogue will start lagging behind during the mid-game. And, once Rogue starts lagging behind, it was terrible at catching up.


    On top of that, even when the Rogue managed to get going during the early game, its future was still uncertain. There was a chance he''ll snowball out of hand and will go on a killing spree, but that only happened on low levels of play. On higher levels, the enemy would counter Rogue with Stealth Wards and that''d tie the Rogue''s hands. Even if the Rogue gets fed, it''ll be pointless if he can''t sneak up to opponents from behind to assassinate them.


    But, the way Luke played almost made it look like Rogue actually worked. He scored three kills during the early game and kept going with that momentum for the rest of the match. His performance alerted the enemy team and made them deploy countless Stealth Wards, but that didn''t faze Luke in the slightest.


    "Hehe, found it," Luke plucked out yet another Stealth Ward. At some point, Yuel lost count of how many wards Luke has destroyed throughout the game. The number definitely hit the double digits.


    This was Luke''s counter-strategy against Stealth Wards: excessive counter-warding. Every time he returned to base, he always bought two Sentry Wards before heading out. By using educating guessing, he found out where the enemy placed Stealth Wards and exposed them with his Sentry Wards.


    That led to excessive warding. However, unlike Julia''s bad habit of over-warding, here it was a legitimate tactic. However, that didn''t mean it didn''t involve some big sacrifices.


    Luke slowed down his build a lot to buy all these wards. That was unthinkable for Rogue, a class that wanted to get strong as quickly as possible. Nevertheless, Luke used this heavy counter-warding strategy and that allowed him to freely sneak around the map. He made up for the gold he spent on wards by securing easier kills all across the map.


    Alas, Luke was just one player. He couldn''t possibly beat the warding of the entire enemy team on his own. And, he wasn''t a superhuman either, so it''s not like he correctly guessed the location of every single enemy Stealth Ward. He needed some backup to win this warding war.


    [Where else did the enemy place Stealth Wards?] Yuel wondered as he examined the map. Most of the important crossroads in Bot Jungle have been covered by Luke''s Stealth Wards, but Top Jungle barely had any wards on the enemy side. The enemy team was no pushover and also counter-warded every now and then, so Top Jungle was most likely heavily warded.


    To counter-ward, the enemy had to place Sentry Wards of their own because only Sentry Wards could expose other Sentry Wards. Therefore, in every area where the enemy has recently taken out an allied Ward, they assuredly placed a Sentry Ward of their own. It was important to counter-ward those wards eventually, but they weren''t Yuel''s focus at the moment.


    Where did the enemy place Stealth Wards in Top Jungle? Even though it cost them extra gold, they define bought some Stealth Wars in addition to Sentry Wards. No matter what they thought of Rogue''s tier, they were definitely wary of Luke''s momentum and wanted to shut him down. Therefore, they had to resort to Stealth Wards.


    Optimally, they''d place Stealth Wards in the most strategic jungle locations which had lots of traffic. However, such spots became warding war zones, so the enemy has already invested money into warding them with Sentry Wards.


    Placing a Stealth Ward near a Sentry Ward was inefficient for two reasons. First, it didn''t grant the team any additional vision in the area. Second, the enemy would have an easy time taking down both wards at once with vision from a single Sentry Ward.


    Therefore, despite how good these strategic warding spots were, the enemy usually avoided populating them with Stealth Wards. So, where did they place their Stealth Wards instead? This called for a process of elimination.


    Every major strategic spot, where the enemy has recently placed a Sentry Ward, most likely didn''t have a Stealth Ward anywhere near it. So, Yuel simply had to target the strategic spots that had secondary priority.


    [Found it.] Yuel cut down an enemy Stealth Ward in front of a jungle entrance. It was a good warding spot for monitoring who went in and out of the jungle through this entrance, but it didn''t tell much beyond that and therefore wasn''t a top priority warding spot. However, this ward was definitely great for alerting about an incoming gank from a stealthed opponent.


    Indeed, the enemy chose wisely by placing a Stealth Ward here. Unfortunately for them, it''s because this spot was so good for a Stealth Ward that Yuel could single it out and take out the ward.


    He applied the same reasoning to other parts of the map and took out a fair share of Stealth Wards. Together with Luke''s efforts to take out Stealth Wards, the enemy had virtually not anti-stealth vision on the map and that allowed Luke to rampage.


    "Hey, man," Luke said. "I see ya also take out their Stealth Wards. Thanks, makes my life much easier."


    "It''s not like I''m doing it for you," Yuel said. "Having many Sentry Wards boosts the entire team''s map vision, so it''s good for everybody."


    "Yeah, of course," Luke nodded. "Anyway, it helps me out a lot, so thanks."


    "You welcome," Yuel pursed his lips. It wasn''t like he supported the game plan of a memer or anything. He just counter-warded for his team and happened to prioritize spots with potential Stealth Wards because that made Luke more effective at scoring kills.


    "Oh, it''s so touching," Vincent raised his voice. "The ever serious Chessmaster goes out of his way to help a memer so they can win the match together! Such friendship!"


    "Nothing of the sort," Yuel objected. "I still stand by my point that Rogue is a bad pick. But, since we''re already stuck with it, I might as well do what I can to prevent it from blowing in our faces."


    "Come on, admit it," Vincent smiled meaningfully. "You actually want to see Luke do well this game."


    "Not really."


    "I also thought he''d be a problem at first. But, after seeing him play, I was convinced - he''s the Meme Jedi!"


    "Great, now how about you explain that in plain English?"


    "Haha, the Eternal Party Pooler strikes again," Vincent shook his head and switched off his dramatic tone. "Basically, the guy is really dedicated. He plays memes but he plays them well. He almost makes them look legit."


    "He does seem to know what he''s doing. But, the way I see it, he just preys on opponents who don''t know how to counter him. It won''t work against higher-level opponents."


    "True, but isn''t it inspiring? He''s like a lone ranger who only got junky tools at his disposal but nonetheless stands up against evil and fights his hardest! Through hard work and dedication, he has become a master of his junky tools and turned them into weapons of mass destruction!"


    "I''d relate to that ranger more if he didn''t choose to use junky tools just because he thought that''s more fun."


    "But, that''s what makes the tale so great! He could''ve chosen anything but he went for the bottom of the barrel! He challenges the world with the weakest set of tools!"


    "Whatever you say," Yuel shrugged. Maybe a part of him really did root for Luke and wanted to see Rogue perform well. After all, by the end of the day, it''s not like Rogue was a completely worthless class beyond salvation. It underperformed compared to other assassin classes because it had glaring issues, but it was still borderline playable.


    In his earlier days, Yuel researched Rogue extensively in training mode because it was a class that gave players a lot of trouble on low levels of play. A team had to know how to ward and maintain a minimal amount of coordination in order to not be run over by a Rogue. Therefore, Yuel wanted to get his hands on as many countermeasures as possible to increase his win rate with randoms online.


    However, once Yuel started playing with Lars and reached Ranked, Rogue has pretty much faded to obscurity. Legends said Rogue still terrorized Bronze and Silver ranks to this day but Yuel didn''t get to experience much of it.


    So, Rogue became a niche meme pick and all of Yuel''s in-depth research became irrelevant. But, what if he could use all the knowledge he accumulated to turn this niche class into an anti-meta pick? Maybe he could turn Rogue into a sleep hitter class, the same way one pro turned Shadow Walker into S tier back when nobody was paying too much attention to it.


    Unfortunately, that went nowhere. Part of it was because their group lacked a good Jungler at the time, so nobody could truly test out Yuel''s ideas for Rogue. He tried some of them himself but he lacked the mechanical skill for executing some of the intense high-risk high-reward plays he had in mind.


    After various attempts, Yuel had no choice but agree with the consensus: Rogue was an underperforming class which was about as good as a meme pick. Even Dan, the Jack-of-all-Trades who played every single Jungler role, regarded Rogue as a meme pick for when he felt like having fun. It was never a pick for serious matches.


    Therefore, it was interesting to see Luke''s spin on this class for a serious Ranked match. The way he handled Rogue almost made it look like Rogue was actually working.


    However, that''s also what also made Luke kinda irritating. This showed he was skilled enough to put on a solid performance even on a high level of play. Yet, he restricted himself to playing memes and refused to realize his full potential. It was dumb. If Luke played meta classes, he would have been a force to be reckoned with.


    "Is there a reason he only plays memes?" Yuel asked in a lower tone.


    "Yes, indeed," Vincent nodded. "You see, Luke had a mentor who passed away. The mentor''s last wish was for Luke to master the Meme Force and to become the greatest Meme Jedi who''ll restore balance to the meta!"


    ".............."


    ".......... well? What do you think?"


    "Please remind me to never ask you anything ever again."


    "Haha, will do," Vincent cracked a laugh. "Well, the guy just likes memes. What can I tell you."


    "Nothing useful, it seems," Yuel concluded. Luke was just the type of player who only wanted to mess around with memes and have fun with the game. He seemed to have all the necessary qualities for being a strong competitive player but he had zero interest in realizing his talent.


    Unfortunately, not everybody took Classmancers as seriously as Yuel and Lars. For the two of them, Classmancers was a serious sport and they wanted to become pros in it. However, for most other kids, Classmancers was just a pastime. Even though Luke clearly put a lot of effort into researching Rogue and bringing this meme class to its current level, Classmancers was still just a hobby and Luke only cared about messing around like a brat.


    Will this kind of player be effective in competitive matches? A smart Rogue could outdo some opponents in Ranked even against high-level opponents. However, the competitive scene was a different story. The amounts of counter-play and adaptation there were on an entirely different level.


    Therefore, there was no chance Luke will reach far with his memes. Low tier classes were low tier for a reason. They had weaknesses that competent players knew how to exploit. Even if Luke can catch the enemy off-guard the first time by bringing out a meme, on the second round the enemy will counter him and completely shut him down. As a result, the entire team will be screwed.


    A team with a weak Jungler was half as effective as it could be. This was a problem. A huge problem.


    Was there any chance at all of convincing Luke to take the game more seriously and pick up meta classes? Yuel had no idea how to approach this issue. Maybe Luke will just naturally develop a more competitive mindset as the team plays in official scrimmages. Yuel could only pray.


    Either way, as far as the current match was concerned, Luke was putting on a strong performance. He has scored five kills by the time they reached the mid-game. Yuel also scored two kills while Kai scored three. It was their first time playing together but the entire team was on a roll! Except for one player.


    Lars also has been putting on a strong display but something was missing. Unlike the rest of the team, he was still sitting on zero kills. He had four assists and he hasn''t died even once, so it''s not like he doing poorly by any means. However, he wasn''t on a rampage either. It was unusual.


    Normally, when the team was holding the upper hand so convincingly, Lars was out there on the front, pulling the entire team after him. He was always the first to ride the momentum and dominate the match. In this kind of situation, he should have been snowballing right now.


    Yet, Lars was weirdly docile this game. Even though he still landed shots like a sniper and oppressed any opponent in a fight, there was something amiss. He was lacking spark. He was playing strong but he wasn''t dominating. This was a far cry from the usual mechanical beast who crushed the spirits of its prey.


    [Maybe it''s because he''s not the Carry?] Yuel wondered.


    In a sense, the team''s Carry was like the ace. When the Carry pushed hard and eliminated objectives, the entire team benefitted from that and it created a huge momentum. On the other hand, a mage couldn''t take objectives nearly as convincingly and had to contribute in other ways


    Then again, scoring kills served a similar purpose as well. When a teammate repeatedly scored kills and removed enemy players from the board, it generated a huge momentum. And, unlike destroying objectives, killing enemies was something both marksmen and mages could do equally well.


    So, there was no good explanation for Lars''s tame plays. That hungry beast should''ve been riding the team''s momentum and rampaging right now. Yet, he hasn''t scored a single kill yet. He only got some assists.


    "Why you didn''t chase?" Yuel asked after Lars let the Electromancer get away with low HP. "You could''ve gotten a kill."


    "Yeah, maybe," Lars said. "But, he was going to the jungle so it was kinda dicey. Maybe they were gonna gank me or something."


    "That''s certainly possible, but..." Yuel couldn''t believe he was hearing these words from Lars of all people. When did this overconfident hunter become scared of chasing into the jungle? Normally, Lars would disregard everything around him and chase his prey to the end of the world to get the kill. How bizarre.


    "You know," Yuel continued. "We''re winning right now, so the other team is struggling against us on every lane. You really think they got the spare hands to lure you into a gank like this?"


    "I dunno," Lars shrugged. "Better safe than sorry, yo."


    "That''s...." Yuel opened and closed his mouth. "Sure." That''s all he could say in response.


    Lars''s argument made perfect sense but that''s exactly what made it so disturbing. As much as Yuel wanted Lars to be more thoughtful and take fewer risks, he never wanted to hear words like "better safe than sorry" from Lars. It was unsettling.


    [I hope it''s just this match.] Yuel prayed.


    Perhaps Lars was fine with just assisting this game because Luke has been stealing the show with his Rogue ganks. It wasn''t exactly what one would expect from a beast that was always hungry for kills. But, it''s not like Lars dragged the team down or anything. Even though he let some kills go, he overall contributed greatly to the team''s momentum by overwhelming his opponents.


    Besides, maybe Lars was still switching gears from Carry to Mid. He had his hands full with playing Mid correctly, so asking him to dominate the entire game was too much right now.


    So, he''ll definitely get used to it by late-game, right? Before long, Lars will surely awaken his true bestial instincts and will tear his opponents apart. Or, so Yuel hoped.


    "Oh, crap," Lars turned around and cast Jet Stream. "Gotta scoot!"


    "Why?" Yuel asked. "You still got over 30% HP. You could''ve killed that Knight and then retreat."


    "But, I''m all alone here, dude," Lars said. "What if somebody ganked me before I finished off that dude?"


    "Yeah, that could certainly happen, but..."


    "Also," Lars added. "If that Knight could get close to me even once, I''d be dead meat for sure."


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    "I''m pretty sure that Knight is nowhere as skilled as you," Yuel objected. "You should''ve been able to take him down unless there''s something I''m missing here."


    "Nah, ya right, I probably would have rekt him. But, it felt hella dangerous, so I thought it''s better to leave it alone for now."


    "I see," Yuel frowned. There was nothing he could argue here. Lars sensed danger and judged it was safer to retreat instead of chasing the kill. It was such an otherworldly occurrence that Yuel needed a couple of minutes to process this bizarre information.


    Lars? Retreating of his own volition from a position where he had a decent chance to score a kill? What''s next? Cows will rain from the sky?


    [But, maybe that''s a better mindset to have.] Yuel tried to convince himself.


    Even though this retreat seemed excessively defensive, the mentality behind it was sound. Lars deemed the situation dangerous and prioritized securing his own survival over securing the kill. At such a late stage of the game, even a single death was fatal. So, it made sense to be more cautious than usual.


    It felt weird when that goof wasn''t going wild and carrying the team, but maybe sometimes it was for the better. The team was holding the upper hand right now, so there was no need to take unnecessary risks. All they had to do was pressure the opposition into submission with their lane advantage and that''ll net them win. Eventually.


    In the end, even though the team gained such a big advantage early on, the match dragged out for a while. The enemy team refused to give in despite their huge disadvantage and kept defending to the bitter end. It was an admirable fighting spirit, as expected from players who got golden names.


    Yuel had some ideas on how to break the enemy''s defenses faster but those harbored risks. So, he kept them to himself. There was no need to take any risks when his team was already holding the high ground. He only gave shot-calls when the risk-reward of the call was strongly in favor of the reward.


    Eventually, the team broke through the enemy defenses and sealed the deal. It felt like the match should have been over at least ten minutes earlier. Nonetheless, a win was a win. Stratus'' first match as a team was a success! Sort of.

 129 The Challenge of Gauging Teammates Skill

    The team played a few more ranked matches together. They retained the same positions across all games: Yuel as Top, Lars as Mid, Luke as Jungler, Kai as Carry, and Vincent as Support.


    The more games Lars played, the more natural he became as a Mid Laner. He no longer had to ask how many wards to buy or where to place them. At least, not every five minutes.


    He still often turned to Yuel for advice, but there was nothing wrong with that. Yuel had much more game knowledge in that area, so it made perfect sense to consult him.


    "Hey, Chessmaster," Vincent called out. "I think they got a Sentry Ward around here. Where did they place it? What do your Mystic Eyes see?"


    "I''m not an oracle, you know," Yuel made a face. "Based on how the enemy has been moving, I''d say it''s somewhere around here." Yuel drew a rough circle on the mini-map.


    "Alright, sounds promising," Vincent placed his Sentry Ward in the center of Yuel''s circle.


    "Yep, it''s right here, alright" Vincent cut down the enemy''s exposed Sentry Ward. "The Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception never fail! They reveal all the wards in existence!"


    "It was just an educated guess," Yuel retorted. He didn''t appreciate his deductions being associated with some nonsensical superpower.


    It was all deduction, really. Yuel remembered the few occasions when the enemy team reacted to incoming ganks ahead of time and matched that data against the positions of the gankers at the time. No mystic powers were involved.


    But, Vincent wasn''t the only one to frequently consult Yuel.


    "So, tell me, man," Luke said. "What are the power levels of these guys? Who should I be focusing?"


    "The game just started a few minutes ago," Yuel retorted. "How do you expect me to know?"


    "C''mon, don''t keep secrets," Luke grinned. "I know ya got all these guys figured out. Who is the weakest link?"


    "You think too highly of me," Yuel made a face.


    Ever since Yuel advised Luke to gank the Lancer in their first game, Luke developed the impression Yuel had some godly powers to deconstruct the entire enemy team in an instant. That gank was just one occasion of noticing that the enemy Lancer might be less skilled than the rest of the enemy team, but Luke thought it was some sort of superhuman read. Sigh.


    "I did notice one thing," Yuel said. "Their Vampire seems to hang much longer in Bot Jungle than in Top Jungle. Maybe he''s waiting for an opportunity to gank Bot, so he hangs out nearby for a while."


    "That all ya got?" Luke made a face.


    "I told you I don''t have anything solid yet."


    "I mean, I guess that''s something," Luke shrugged. "Alrighty then, I''mma go see if I can surprise the guy."


    Half a minute later, Luke indeed found the Vampire hanging around in Bot Jungle. He snuck up to the Vampire while in stealth and delivered a surprise attack which almost led to a kill. Unfortunately, Vampire escaped in the last moment by turning into a bat and flying away.


    "Welp," Luke shrugged. "Couldn''t kill the guy but at least he''s out of the game for a while and his ult is down. Okay, time to steal some of his camps!" He fearlessly ventured into enemy territory and attacked jungle camps.


    [That was impressive judgment.] Yuel thought.


    Luke took a small piece of information and converted it into a strong play. The idea of ganking the Vampire in Bot Jungle crossed Yuel''s mind several times but he wasn''t sure Luke will be able to execute such a play. After all, Luke was playing Rogue again. However, Luke had full confidence and his own skill and almost ripped the Vampire asunder with that surprise attack.


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    With that considered, did Yuel misplay by not ordering this gank earlier? He wasn''t the official shot-caller of the team yet but he nonetheless carefully observed everybody''s performance and called the shots as necessary. So, he should''ve been the one to arrange the gank on the Vampire but he failed to do so.


    [Is there any way I can tell for sure when this kind of play will work out?] Yuel was at a loss. If he could always confidently order such attacks, the team would win so many more exchanges.


    Alas, Yuel didn''t know how to calculate the outcome of such fights because he couldn''t measure Luke''s skill. There was no telling whether that memer would be able to give the Vampire a fight in a 1v1 situation.


    Yuel could only predict the outcome of such fights when there was a big skill gap between the two players. For example, Lars was much stronger than the majority of the players they met in Ranked. So, Yuel could trust Lars to win 1v1s against virtually any opponent they encountered. However, the same couldn''t be guaranteed for Luke.


    [I better find a way to measure player ability for both allies and enemies.] Yuel concluded. He had no idea how to go about this at the moment but it was an important side project for the future. If he finds a way to accurately estimate the outcome of such fights, it''ll push his shot-calling quality through the roof.


    However, for now, Yuel could only rely on the knowledge he had at hand. It was up to Luke to make use of the info Yuel provided. Sometimes, things worked out great and Luke made a strong play. Other times, Luke overestimated himself and things blew up in his face.


    "Ah, shit!" Luke cursed as the enemy Viking turned the tables on him. He followed Yuel''s prediction regarding the Viking''s position in the jungle and snuck up to the enemy while stealthed.


    Yuel''s prediction was on point and Luke approached the enemy carefully, so all the odds were in their favor. With all that considered, the gank was definitely going to be a success, right? Wrong. The gank blew up in Luke''s face.


    The Viking was aware of Luke''s position and struck first. The Viking grabbed Luke with Takedown despite Luke''s stealth. There must have been a Stealth Ward somewhere in that area. Yuel failed to take that possibility into account.


    The Viking smashed Luke into the ground and summoned a group of warriors through his ult. The warriors ganged on Luke and ripped him apart.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "One does not simply gank a Viking," Luke sighed and shook his head.


    "That''s why I didn''t want to suggest it," Yuel said. "It wasn''t an impossible kill to score but there wasn''t enough data to determine whether you''ll succeed."


    "Meh, at least your info was on point," Luke said. "You never know what gonna happen, so I just went ahead and gave it a shot. Didn''t quite turn out like I hoped but hey,: no pain, no gain."


    [That''s not exactly a healthy approach for competitive play.] Yuel mentally retorted. In a serious competitive match, a single misstep like this could spell defeat. There would be no time to run experiments like this to gather information.


    Therefore, it would be ideal if Yuel could predict such outcomes ahead of time. Naturally, it was impossible to correctly predict 100% of the outcomes. However, if he can get it right at least 80% of the time, it''ll become a weapon. He''ll gain access to a large variety of new options and will be able to mobilize his teammates much more efficiently.


    What did Yuel need to ascend to that level? At the moment, he had no idea. It was obvious he needed a deeper understanding of his teammates'' mettle but that was easier said than done. There was no better example than Luke to illustrate the biggest problem at its finest.


    Luke was playing meme classes and had an overall lacking competitive spirit. Nevertheless, in the first match, he exhibited a profound understanding of how to play Rogue even against high-level players. He practically generated the team''s entire momentum on his own, to the point Rogue looked like a strong class.


    However, in the second match, things were different. This enemy team was much better prepared for dealing with a Rogue. They placed Stealth Wards in more secluded areas which were harder to guess, which made them hard to clear with Sentry Wards.


    Yet, despite their obscure locations, these Stealth Wards did a fine job exposing Luke''s gank attempts. Only a few of his gank attempts went smoothly. Most of the time, the enemy turned the tables on him before he got to try anything.


    So, in this match, Luke''s performance was in tune with the fact he was playing a meme. Unlike the first game, he didn''t come across as a reliable Jungler and Yuel didn''t feel confident entrusting this memer with big plays. In fact, over time, Rogue became a liability this match because Luke fell behind and couldn''t do his job as a Jungler.


    ¡ºDEFEAT¡»


    The outcome was only natural. A Jungler who couldn''t get kills or help on the lane was like a waste of a player slot. The rest of the team played well, so this defeat was mostly thanks to Luke''s Rogue. Once he got shut down, he had a hard time catching up. Such was the harsh life of a Rogue player.


    However, Luke''s Rogue was only one reason for the team''s defeat. In theory, with flawless godlike shot-calling, Yuel should''ve been able to guide Luke toward making plays that would''ve salvaged the situation. Even a simple Pawn could threaten the Queen if the board state was arranged appropriately.


    So, what Yuel could''ve done differently to arrange more favorable situations for Luke? Unfortunately, this wasn''t a competitive match so Yuel didn''t have any data on the enemy in advance. But, even if he had the data, could he have drawn any smart conclusions to that end? Could he have successfully estimated how Luke will fair against these opponents?


    [Could Howard do it?] Yuel pondered.


    Howard definitely had a deeper understanding of his own teammates, that''s how he mobilized them so efficiently. To be able to defeat Howard, Yuel had to reach the same level of understanding. Only then, his shot-calling would truly rival Howard''s. But, how could Yuel reach that level? He couldn''t begin to tell.


    Either way, based on the outcome of this match, it was clear Luke''s Rogue, as amazing as it was, had a limit. It worked against some teams in Ranked but the truly competent teams will eat him alive. Therefore, it was best for him to drop his memes and switch to a proper meta class. And yet...


    ¡ºLegendaryMemer picked Rogue¡»


    "Again?" Yuel asked. "You saw how hard the previous team countered your Rogue. You still want to play it?"


    "Of course," Luke answered without batting an eye. "I like picking a class and sticking with it the whole day. Makes it easier to git gud."


    "I feel ya, dude," Lars said. "Practicing one class the whole day is hella fun. Really makes ya feel like you''re getting better."


    "Yep, exactly," Luke nodded. "I feel like I fine-tune my game after every match. By the end of the day, it''s like I''m the number one player with that class!"


    "Totally!"


    [Maining one class a day, huh.] Yuel smiled meaningfully. It wasn''t a bad practice and Lars really loved it.


    In fact, Lars was doing exactly that right now. Yuel only advised picking Aeromancer for the first match in order to get Lars used to Mid. However, Lars stuck with Aeromancer for the following matches as well. It seemed he wanted to keep polishing his Aeromancer skills until he was satisfied.


    And, truly, Lars''s Aeromancer became better and better with every game. During the first game, Lars''s laning was impressive but his teamwork during team fights was on the weaker side. However, after the game, Lars figured some things out thanks to a healthy dose of criticism from Yuel. In the next game, Lars properly did his job as an Aeromancer during team fights.


    But, Lars still had many other flaws he had to iron out. For example, his lack of rotations. Aeromancer could rotate quickly so Lars should do that more often. That was the next bit of criticism Yuel gave Lars.


    "Yo, my dude, I came to help," Lars rotated to Top Lane and ganked the enemy Knight from behind. The gank was a little too predictable and the enemy slipped away, but at least Lars showed an initiative to rotate. This was a big step-up compared to the previous games.


    Truly, Lars has been showing great improvement with every match. It was impressive.


    [I know this is in part because Aeromancer isn''t one of his main classes, but still...] Yuel found this gradual powering up interesting.


    Lars had complete mastery over Trickshooter and Gunslinger so, with those two, he could draw out his maximum power from the get-go. On the other hand, with secondary classes like Aeromancer, Lars''s initial performance was shabby and he first had to "get into the zone" with the class.


    This had big implications for competitive play. It implied Lars would greatly benefit from playing multiple games in a row with the same secondary class. And, on the flip side, it also meant Lars usually couldn''t draw out his full strength right away with such a class.


    Even back during the selection match against Howard, this was probably a big factor. In the last match, Lars went with Seraph, a class he played almost as rarely as Aeromancer. It was a class that could barely even called "secondary" for Lars, so Yuel didn''t expect a mind-blowing performance.


    But, what if Lars could have played Seraph better back then? Even if just a little? If Yuel made Lars warm-up as Seraph before the match and gave the goof more pointers, perhaps Lars would have performed slightly better. That extra bit of powerup might have made all the difference between victory and defeat.


    [I have to keep this in mind for the future.] Yuel made a mental note.


    Unfortunately, all this line of thought proved to him was how complicated this topic was. He wanted a way to gauge his teammates'' skills to mobilize them more efficiently during a match, but there were countless parameters in this formula. He had to take into account how skilled the teammate was in general, how much experience they had with every class, how warmed up they were with each class, and the list went on. It was like an unsolvable math problem with too many variables.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Great job!" Vincent exclaimed. "I told you, you should always trust the Meme Force, Luke."


    "Haha, damn right," Luke grinned. "Didn''t think I could take that guy from 80 to 0 like this but he really wasn''t a big deal."


    "It''s because he wasn''t dedicated enough," Vincent stroke his imaginary beard as if he was a sage. "That guy was just playing top tier, I could sense that in each of his plays. But you, my boy, are different. You''re playing a meme but you''re dedicated to it in flesh and soul. That''s why you reigned supreme!"


    [I guess that''s one way to gauge skill,] Yuel rolled his eyes. [Maybe I should also start coming up with silly skill names and gauge players based on their list of ''talents''. Yeah, right. Not going to happen.]


    And thus, the question of gauging teammates'' skills remained unresolved. If Yuel could find a way to better estimate the abilities of his allies and compare them against their opponents, his shot-calling will improve by at least ten times. He''ll be able to optimize the fights his teammates pick and to predict ahead of time how most battles will play out.


    Alas, this seemed like an impossible task to solve. It required some sort of deeper understanding that Yuel couldn''t quite grasp at the moment. Was this challenge even possible for a human being? How did Howard do that?


    Unfortunately, nobody was there to answer these questions. For now, Yuel had no choice but to stick with the usual tactics. He planned his shot-calling around weaknesses in the enemy''s formation and struck where it hurt the most. This approach was always effective, aside from when he was fighting Howard.


    The next time Yuel clashes with Howard, will it be enough to only target enemy weaknesses? Will he be able to break through Aegis with just that? Probably not. Yuel had to up his game for the next fight and he felt like the answer laid in optimizing the way he mobilizing his teammates.


    But, how to improve in that area in a meaningful way? At the moment, he couldn''t begin to tell...

 130 The Road Ahead Is Still Long

    The first day of club activity ended after ten matches. From start to end, Luke stuck with Rogue. It was truly a "class of the day" routine, as advertised.


    Out of the ten matches, Luke was shut down in three games, played fine in five games and put on a strong performance in the other two. In other words, the enemy ripped him apart about 30% of the time. This was a small sample and Yuel will have to get more data by examining Luke''s match history, but this didn''t look promising.


    If these were the statistics in Ranked, what will be the numbers in a competitive environment? In a best-of-three match, the enemy team will have more time to adapt to any unusual picks Luke goes for. So, at the very least, picking Rogue more than once in a match was out of the question. Hopefully, his routine of one class a day didn''t extend to competitive matches.


    But, even if Luke mixes up his meme picks between rounds, the memes will surely become an Achilles heel for the team. Luke was the best Rogue player Yuel has ever met in Ranked and the guy even made Rogue look strong in some of the matches. If only Luke picked a meta class and practiced it as extensively as his Rogue, he might become one of the more threatening players in the region.


    [I''ll have to find a way to convince him.] Yuel concluded. This was of utmost importance because the club was small and so it was almost guaranteed Luke will end up as the team''s Jungler.


    There were only two more candidates left for Yuel to meet. The first was Ben, whose name was the only thing Yuel knew about the guy. Ben was supposed to be another junior member of the club but he hasn''t shown himself in the clubroom even once so far.


    [I hope I''m wrong, but I have a feeling that guy isn''t serious about this.] Yuel couldn''t draw any other conclusion at the moment. Perhaps Luke was easygoing and uncompetitive but at least he bothered to show up for club activity and play seriously with the team. That already made him a million times better than Ben in Yuel''s book.


    There was one more member Yuel hasn''t met yet, for that member hasn''t been recruited yet. The club was allowed a maximum of seven members, so they''ll recruit one more member next week. Yes, only one. It was a far cry from getting five freshmen like StormBlitz always did.


    [Oh, I guess they might get seven this year.] Yuel smiled wryly. His defection with Lars left two open spots in StormBlitz so the school might allow them to recruit seven members this year.


    Fortunately, that didn''t concern Straus and their chances of winning the regionals. No matter whether StormBlitz will get seven freshmen or twenty, none of them will make it into StormBlitz''s main lineup. The senior team of Howard, Ellen, Gilbert, Roi, and Dan was too solid to be invaded by a rookie. Julia miraculously made it in despite being a junior, but she had the skill to justify that and even then her position on the team was a tad shaky.


    Unlike StormBlitz, Stratus didn''t boast a threatening lineup of seniors. The only seniors in the club were Kai and Vincent. Nonetheless, these two were solid veteran players and they''ll definitely be on the main team. Likewise, Yuel and Lars will definitely be on the main team even if they don''t get to play their main roles.


    So, realistically, there was only one spot open on the main team. Between a skilled memer, a guy who never shows up for practice and a freshman, right now the memer sounded like the best pick. It was unfortunate but that was the situation.


    [I have to find a way to change Luke''s mindset. The sooner, the better,] Yuel concluded as the club wrapped up its activity for the day.


    The club didn''t have a fixed schedule at the moment so they spontaneously agreed to gather tomorrow again. If it were up to Yuel, he would have insisted to hold club activity every single day. However, he wasn''t the captain and there was no telling how the other members will take it. Hopefully, Kai will establish a training regime that has at least three days a week.


    The club adjourned but the day wasn''t over yet. It was still only 5 pm, so there were at least seven more hours for Yuel and Lars to practice.


    "You want to play some more?" Yuel asked.


    "Totally!" Lars nodded without thinking twice. "Mid is cool and all but I''m tellin'' ya, I was born to play Carry."


    "Tell that to Kai, not me. I already know."


    "Yeah, I gotta figure how to convince that stubborn gal," Lars scratched his head. "Maybe I gotta challenge her to like a hundred 1v1s and whoever wins more gets to be the Carry."


    "I doubt that''ll convince her."


    "What, you think a hundred matches is too little? Then, a thousand 1v1s! Let''s goooo!"


    "That''s not the problem," Yuel said. "Being better at 1v1 doesn''t mean you''re a better Carry. Just look at Taison."


    "What about Tai? I totally rek that dude in 1v1!"


    "Right, of course you do," Yuel rolled his eyes. "Let''s lie low for now. No need to compete for roles just yet. I''m sure Kai will come around after seeing you play some more."


    "I sure hope so. Anyway, I had enough Mid for one day. I wanna go wild with Shooter and Slinger and stuff!"


    "Shooter and Slinger? Sounds like you wanted to bully some people."


    "Haha, gotta assert dominance, yo!" Lars pumped a fist. "Ah, but whatcha got at home? I''m sick of them noodles."


    "Oh, but they''re no ordinary noodles. They''re instant noodles! They''re like noodles with insta cast."


    "Yeaaaah, go preach your noodle religion somewhere else, dude," Lars rejected the cult recruit. "Okay, let''s grab a burger or something on the way."


    "Sure."


    They took a short stop along the way for Lars to buy himself a burger. He even went all out and bought himself two.


    "Here," Lars shoved one burger into Yuel''s face.


    "You want me to hold it?"


    "Nah, it''s yours, dude."


    "Huh? I didn''t..." Yuel twisted his lips as he accepted the burger. Refusing was awkward but accepting it was awkward too. "How much was it? I''ll pay you back."


    "Just eat it, yo," Lars shoved the burger toward Yuel''s mouth. "Gulp down dat bad boy and forget whatever difficult stuff you''ve been thinking about all day."


    "Huh?" Yuel blinked.


    "You''ve had this super serious expression this whole time," Lars narrowed his eyes and turned his forehand wrinkly. "Ya look like this, dude."


    "I don''t think I do but okay," Yuel chuckled and took a bite from the burger.


    "So, what''s eating ya anyway? I thought we had pretty good matches today. The other guys at the club are pretty cool."


    "Yeah, they''re alright. They do have some issues, though."


    "What a shock. Yuel thinks players got issues. More news at 11. I swear, yo. You''d make the best player in the world sound like a total scrub if you analyze him."


    "Because everybody got weaknesses," Yuel said. "But, only focusing on weakness isn''t always enough."


    "Wait, wut? I thought that''s like your super skill and stuff. How did Vincent call it again? The Supah Eyes of Weakness Lecture?"


    "Yes, exactly. You nailed it," Yuel sighed. "It''s true I''ve been focusing on enemy weaknesses for most of my shot-calling. But, today I felt that wasn''t enough."


    "How so?"


    "It''s a bit hard to explain." How was he going to convey such a high-level tactical concept to a goof with zero understanding of tactics? Yeah, that wasn''t going to happen.


    The core of the issue was the difficulty to calculate the outcomes of certain plays. For example, the plays in which Luke attacked isolated targets with his Rogue. Yuel took the Rogue''s kit into account and compared them against the various weaknesses of the opponent, but that''s about all he could do. Beyond that, he didn''t have any concrete data to work with. Therefore, it was difficult to estimate whether Luke had a chance to win these fights. Sometimes Luke won, other times he didn''t.


    "In short," Yuel tried to convey this in plain English that even a monkey could understand. "I feel like I don''t see the entire picture. There is a lot of data about the players that I know exists but I can''t see it."


    "Can''t see it?" Lars scratched his head. "What [do] you see, then?"


    "A chessboard, I guess." That sounded awkward, especially considering Yuel had a silly nickname like Chessmaster. "I can see my teammates'' positions on the map and I know what tools their classes got available, but that''s about it."


    "So wait," Lars titled his head. "If you see the map like a board, then you also see everybody else like pieces?"


    "Um, sort of." This was getting more and more awkward by the moment. Yuel should have just kept his mouth shut.


    Viewing allies as "chess pieces" had a terrible connotation behind it which Yuel didn''t mean to imply. It''s not like he was thinking of allies as pawns. It''s just that, by drawing an analogy with a chessboard, it helped to simplify the game analysis for him.


    "That''s pretty cool!"


    "... huh?"


    "Ya really all like a supah Chess Dude and all that."


    [Seems like the Chessmaster connotation flew over his head.] Yuel smiled wryly.


    "So, if everybody is like chess pieces on your map," Lars pointed at himself. "What piece am I?"


    "The Queen."


    "Eeeeeeeeeeh!?" Lars jumped. "What the heck, yo? Why not something cool like Knight or King? I''m not a girl, yo!"


    "The Queen is the strongest piece in chess. She has the most overwhelming strength and often dictates the flow of the game."


    "Well, if you put it like that, it does sound kinda awesome," Lars crossed his arms. "But, why the heck the Queen is the strongest dude? I thought the King was the most savage dude around there."


    "That''s just how it is."


    "What a weird game," Lars shrugged. "So, why you think it''s not good to see the map this way? Your shot-calls have been working like a charm."


    "Sometimes they do, sometimes they don''t. Also, there are many shot-calls I would have liked to make but can''t."


    "Like what?"


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    "For example, imagine there''s an opportunity to send a teammate to gank somebody. But, it won''t be a smooth gank and the ganker will have to beat the target in a 1v1 to seal the deal. In scenarios like these, it''s hard to predict whether the gank is going to succeed for sure so I can''t carelessly ask somebody to go for it."


    "Just lemme at ''em and I''mma kick their butts!"


    "Yeah, you make that kind of judgment easy most of the time," Yuel smiled wryly.


    As far as giving Lars orders was concerned, it really felt like playing chess. Lars could be trusted to beat virtually anybody when he had an advantage, so Yuel only had to consider the positions, resources, and tools of the enemy to determine the outcome. If an enemy was within the Queen''s attack range, that enemy was guaranteed to be executed.


    "But," Yuel continued. "Not everybody is going to win 99% of their fights like you."


    "I win 200% of my fights, yo!"


    "Sure," Yuel chuckled. "Anyway, that''s my problem. I''d like a better way to tell the outcomes of such situations."


    "Man, sounds like ya wanna be an oracle," Lars shrugged. "Ya think it''s even possible to tell such stuff?"


    "I think Howard can. At least, to some degree." Yuel gazed at the clear blue summer sky. "It''s like the board he sees is different from mine. We both look at the same map but we see completely different drawings."


    "Deep, yo," Lars nodded with admiration. "No idea what the heck you''re on about, but it sounds cool."


    [Went right over his head, huh.] Yuel didn''t expect much in the first place so it was fine. He just wanted to get this off his chest.


    "So, if you think Howard got the answers, why not ask him?"


    "I''d rather die."


    "Haha, I get that. I wouldn''t wanna ask Ellen for shit either. I''d rather get completely wrecked than ask her for help."


    "Exactly," Yuel nodded. He knew it was childish of him but he couldn''t bring himself to ask Howard for advice on something like this. Besides, that guy probably won''t grace Yuel with an answer anyway. So, in the end, it was up to Yuel himself to figure this out.


    "I wonder what the dudes at StormBlitz are up to," Lars said. "I still haven''t spoken to July. She doesn''t answer my calls. She only sent me like one message saying she''s okay. Is she really, though? Think I should visit her?"


    "I''m not sure that''s a good idea," Yuel wasn''t sure how to explain it to this thick-headed goof. "I think she doesn''t want to see you right now."


    "But why? Did I do something bad to her without realizing? She hates me or something?"


    [It''s the opposite, you dummy.] Yuel sighed. "She just blames herself really hard for our defeat. You both were the pillars of the team''s offense in the third game, so after you died she felt she had to fill in your shoes. But, she couldn''t carry the team to victory so she feels like she didn''t live up to your expectations."


    "But, that''s wrong on so many levels," Lars said. "July was a beast that game. She did way more than anybody expected."


    "Yes, I tried to explain that to her as well. But, she''s stubborn like that."


    "Feels bad, man. I hope she''ll let it go."


    "I''m sure she will," Yuel averted his eyes. Most likely, Julia has already overcome her slump but not the way Lars imagined it. The last time Yuel spoke to her, she was clearly set on destroying Yuel and Lars the next time they meet. Gulp.


    "Okay, mphfhf!" Lars shoved the rest of his burger into his mouth. "I''m fueled up! Time for some Carry action!"


    They went to Yuel''s place and played Classmancers late into the night as the Bot duo they should have been in the club as well. For now, Yuel was fine with playing by Kai''s rules during club activity. However, in their free time, they''ll keep practicing Bot.


    By the time the middle school tournament comes around, they''ll definitely reclaim their rightful spots as the team''s Support and Carry.

 131 The One They Left Behind

    That same day Stratus got its first practice as a team, StormBlitz also had its first day of club activity. Some of the members were late on the news so they were shocked by Yuel and Lars''s transfer.


    "Lol," Roi smiled awkwardly. "You''re kidding, right?"


    "No," Howard said. "They left. They attend Skyline now."


    "Wait, Skyline?" Dan raised an eyebrow. "Isn''t that the school with that really weak team? What was its name, again? Status?"


    "Stratus," Howard corrected. "Yeah, it''s a team that never passed the first round of the regionals. A sad story."


    "Ans they went to play there?" Roi''s jaw dropped.


    "Yep," Gregory tuned in. "They couldn''t hold the L so they ran away, kek."


    "I wouldn''t write them off just yet," Howard said. "Two skilled players can make the whole difference between a strong team and a weak one. Especially, when said players are the Bot duo and one of them is the shot-caller."


    "Pft, yeah, right," Gregory waved his hand. "You telling me these two losers gonna pull a team of even bigger losers and actually get somewhere? Please."


    "You never know."


    [Tch, that undying favoritism,] Gregory clicked his tongue. [Does he think Yuel is a superman or some shit? Man, I can''t wait for these scrubs to be crushed in their first round. That''ll show everybody how trash they really are.]


    "Hi," A girl''s voice entered the room. It was a familiar voice but it belonged to an unfamiliar face.


    "July...?" Ellen jumped from the chair and cautiously approached the unknown specimen.


    In truth, everybody could tell it was Julia because there was only one thing that changed about her. However, that one change was something that almost made her unrecognizable.


    Julia had no hair! Okay, that''s an exaggeration. She had hair but it was uncharacteristically short. Julia used to sport a long beautiful ponytail but it was gone. Instead, she almost looked like a tomboy.


    "My," Ellen examined the girl from every side. "What happened to your pretty hair?"


    "What do you think? I cut it."


    "Yeah, I can see that," Ellen''s smile twitched. "But, why? It looked great on you."


    "I got tired of it. Of everything," Julia strode into the clubroom without exchanging a single glance with Ellen. "I felt like having a change of image. What do you care?"


    "Ah, well..." Ellen was dumbstruck. This was cold. The temperature in the room just dropped by five degrees.


    "About what you were just said," Julia stopped in front of Howard and Gregory. "Lars and Yuel will do just fine. They''ll drag that shitty ass team out of the bottom."


    "Huh," Howard didn''t show any reaction, probably because he had the same opinion. But, the other guy insisted on denying this prediction.


    "Yeah, right," Gregory sneered. "These guys only gonna make it to second round tops."


    "No, they''ll get as far as needed," Julia''s eyes glinted like a sharp blade. "Until they run into us. Then, we''ll crush them like cockroaches."


    The entire room was dead silent. Nobody knew how to react to this bizarre declaration. Julia was clearly missing a screw or two right now. The girl was wilding.


    "Heh," Howard smirked. "I like that attitude."


    "Indeed," Ellen smirked. "Let them crawl all the way up from the bottom to reach us. That''ll only make crushing them that much more fun, right~?" Her angelic smile belonged to Lucifer himself.


    [A-Am I in a horror movie right now?] Gregory gulped. A shiver ran through him.


    Howard, Ellen, and Julia were all smiling innocently but Gregory could tell. In their heads, they were imagining how they''d rip Yuel and Lars apart, limb by limb. [Note to self: never get on these guys'' bad side.]


    "So," Howard addressed Julia. "Can you play aggressively on-demand now?"


    "Try me," Julia shrugged. "Actually, playing aggressive is all I feel like doing right now. Lemme at some of these idiots online. I''ll reap them apart."


    "That''s good to hear," Howard nodded in satisfaction. [If she can utilize her hyper offense at will, then I got my hands on one heck of a beast. She might even turn out to be a key player on our path toward winning the nationals.]


    "That''s great, July~" Ellen hugged the girl. "If you can rampage at will during official matches, we''ll crush all our opponents~"


    "That''s my intention," Julia nodded. "Lemme fight and I''ll crush all the idiots that stand in our way."


    "Aren''t you getting carried away?" Gilbert joined the conversation. "Don''t forget that Mid doesn''t belong to you."


    "Huh? Who are you, again?" Julia scoffed. "Oh, right. Some weak senior who can''t hold onto Mid."


    "What was that?" Gilbert twitched.


    "Hey," Howard stepped between the two of them. "Play nice, now. I didn''t pick both of you for Mid so you fight and drag each other down. You should think of each other as partners who share the same role."


    "Hmph," Julia crossed her arms. "I don''t think this team needs more than one Mid. I''m more than enough to carry the team."


    "Aren''t you confident, girl," Gilbert''s eyes turned sharp. "I also don''t see any reason to have two Mid Laners. One reliable and consistent Mid is everything the team needs."


    "Pft, ''consistent''? That''s all you got going for you?" Julia cracked a cold laugh. "That''s why you can''t hold the spot for yourself. To play Mid for real, you need to be strong enough to push and pressure the enemy. They''re supposed to shit their pants when they see you coming at them."


    "I have a different philosophy about that."


    "That''s why you suck, you-"


    "ENOUGH." Howard''s voice cracked like a whip. Julia and Gilbert jumped and froze solid. "You two have different strengths and weaknesses. So, who I choose to utilize will depend on the situation at hand." He speared both troublemakers with his glare. "Am I clear?"


    "Y-Yeah," Julia shifted her eyes away.


    "Yes..." Gilbert answered in a low voice.


    "Alright," Howard nodded in satisfaction. [These two will be a handful, I can already tell. But, having both of them as options is huge. Gilbert will be great for matches where we need to be consistent and versatile, whereas Julia will be great when we need to go on the offensive and pressure the enemy team. Really, if somebody could just fuse them into one person that''d be ideal.]


    "Say," Julia started. "You mind letting me play online with the first0string today? I''ll show you what I''m capable of, to erase any shadow of a doubt about who is the better Mid."


    [This girl...] Howard sighed. It''s like he was talking to a wall. Then again, this was her first day on the first-string and she was probably mad about Yuel and Lars leaving her behind. So, Howard could give her a pass for now.


    "Alright, we can start with that today," Howard said. "Show us what you got."


    "Gladly!" Julia''s eyes lit up. She was ready to wreak some havoc. It''s like she bottled anger and frustration and wanted to unleash it on others.


    [Why didn''t she follow Yuel and Lars?] Howard wondered. These three were inseparable, so he expected Julia to follow the guys to the ends of the earth. Even though transferring schools was a big deal, it didn''t sound like something that''d stop Julia.


    Did she stay behind because she valued her position on the first-string more than her friends? That''s sketchy, considering how madly in love she was with Lars. And, she pretended to not care about Yuel but she definitely had a sweet spot for him as well.


    So, no matter how Howard looked at it, he couldn''t find a convincing reason for Julia to stay. What made her turn her back on the guys and stay behind?


    It was an important question that needed answering but now wasn''t the time. Howard wasn''t close enough to Julia and she was acting too cocky at the moment. It was better to make Ellen ask all these questions later and forward the answers to Howard.


    Per Julia''s request, Howard put her on the main team for today''s practice. This will be a good opportunity to see how Julia fits into the team and what flaws she''ll have to work on.


    For the practice, the team queued into a Ranked match.


    [Okay, I''ll show them.] Julia took a deep breath and locked in Electromancer. In this very first match, she''ll prove everybody she was superior to Gilbert in every way. She''ll definitely secure the Mid spot on the first string, no matter what. She didn''t stay behind in StormBlitz just to be somebody''s substitute. She''ll become the team''s main and only Mid Laner. Gilbert will be her substitute at best.


    As the drafting phase went on, Julia''s lane opponent was decided.


    [Warlock, huh. Let''s see.] Julia tapped into all the knowledge she had regarding this matchup. Yuel drilled the importance of matchup knowledge into her, so it became second nature to start every game from analyzing her lane opponent.


    Warlock had Eldritch Nightmare as a panic button, so it might be difficult to score too many kills on him. He''ll probably just mash the ult button in a pinch without thinking twice. No matter how good Julia was, it''ll be hard to score a kill on an opponent she couldn''t see.


    [Seems like I''ll need some Stealth Wards.] Julia pondered. Due to how the darkness effect of Eldritch Nightmare worked, a Stealth Ward actually exposed the enemies inside it. So, by placing a Stealth Ward on the lane, Julia will be able to see the Warlock even as he tries to flee in the darkness.


    However, Stealth Wards alone weren''t good a solution. She could only carry two wards at a time and she had to ward around Mid too, so she couldn''t spend all her efforts on warding Mid against Eldritch Nightmare. She needed something extra on top of Stealth Wards.


    ["I''ll pick Lumimancer to counter Warlock''s ult."] A voice resounded in her head. ["If you get a chance to kill him but he uses his ult, tell me and I''ll counter it."]


    That''s probably what that idiot would have said. He always went for the opponent''s weakness and made sure to support both Julia and Lars. According to him, the Support shouldn''t only care about the Carry; he should help out Mid to the best of his ability.


    Therefore, to counter a Warlock pick, Yuel often went for Lumimancer. Of course, he didn''t do it for Julia or anything. It was a solid counter-pick that was going to play a role in many different scenarios. Nevertheless, Yuel always stressed that Julia shouldn''t hesitate to ask for his Luimancer''s services if she ever gets a chance to kill the Warlock.


    [He always said that stuff even though he knew I never go on the offensive.] Julia smiled wryly. With her old defensive playstyle, she rarely ever got any chances to kill her lane opponents. Whenever got a kill, it was because the enemy committed a mistake or overextended so Julia punished them.


    Nevertheless, Yuel always dropped that piece of advice to her because he knew Julia could do more. She always refused to show her aggressive side in battles but Yuel knew she had that side to her. That''s why, every single time, Yuel made sure to remind her: ["If you want to go on the offensive, I can help you with that."]


    Yuel never pressured Julia about it but he clearly wanted to see her play more aggressively. They''ve spent a lot of time training together, so he knew what she was capable of. Alas, Julia''s unjustified fear of Lars''s reaction always held her back. If only she pulled herself together earlier and started playing aggressively from the beginning, perhaps things would have turned out differently during the selection match.


    [No, that doesn''t matter anymore.] Julia shook her head. What''s done was done. In the end, Julia got a spot on the first-string while Lars and Yuel fell short. Therefore, she had to prove she was worthy of being here. She didn''t get here just because the competition for Mid was easier or anything lame like that. No, she was here because she was worthy. And, she''ll prove beyond a shadow of a doubt by dominating the first match today.


    "Howard," Julia called. "Can you pick a Lumimancer? It''d really help me if you can counter the Warlock''s ult when he uses it to escape."


    "You want me to help you secure kills?" Howard asked. "Not quite the main reason I''d pick Lumi for but alright. It''s a good counter pick in general."


    "Thanks," Julia said. With that, the stage was set. She''ll get as mileage as possible out of Stealth Wards but, if it turns out that''s not enough, she''ll rely on Howard''s ult to counter Eldritch Nightmare. She was going to score at least twenty kills this match!


    [No, calm down.] Julia took a deep breath. As much as she wanted to go on a killing spree right here and now, she had to take it easy at first. Before anything else, it was mandatory to win lane advantage and pressure the opponent into a corner. Then, her onslaught will begin.


    First, she hit the enemy swordsman minions with basic attacks to place Electric Charges on them. In addition, she advanced to the frontline to reach one of the bowmen on the back and placed an Electric Charge on him as well. It was a risky but extremely important move for maximizing her lane clearing speed.


    Once the stage was set, Julia fired Chain Lightning at one of the swordsmen. The beam of electricity struck the first swordsman, then bounced toward the second swordsman and then hit the third swordsman. For the fourth and last bounce, the Chain Lightning jumped toward the one bowman with an Electric Charge on him.


    Since this was was the final bounce, the spell exploded after hitting the bowman. It dealt damage to the entire pack of bowmen. It also placed an Electric Charge on each of the bowmen. Now, the entire enemy wave was charged with electricity. It was time to blow them up!


    Julia activated Electrical Explosion and detonated all Electric Charges. The explosions eliminated the entire enemy frontline and almost killed off the backline as well. This was a great opportunity to charge forth!


    Julia advanced while shooting at the bowmen, then shifted her attention toward the Warlock. The guy has already spent both of his damaging spells on the minion wave and he was still at Lv.2 so he didn''t have any other dangerous tools at his disposal yet. Julia had to push now!


    [Die, dumbass!] She opened a relentless attack. The Warlock had no idea what hit him. Was he gonna fight or retreat? He seemed kinda lost. What a fool!


    Hitting the Warlock naturally triggered the enemy minions and made them target Julia. But, who cared? All these bowmen were on their death bed anyway. Julia''s minions will soon eliminate these idiots so she only had to focus on the Warlock.


    After mulling over it for a moment, the Warlock finally concluded he was outnumbered and began his retreat. Julia couldn''t get a kill on him yet, but she chased him down all the way to his Turret and made sure to get as much damage on him as possible.


    [Okay, this works.] Julia nodded to herself. She couldn''t get the kill but she deleted a nice chunk of the Warlock''s HP. If she repeats this routine a few more times, she''ll eventually crush that bug.


    During the next minion wave, Julia repeated the same routine and outcleared the Warlock. Her wave-clearing skills were top-notch thanks to a certain nagger forcing her to practice them for every class she played. It was all a huge pain in the neck but, thanks to all that hard work, Julia was dominating the lane right now.


    With her lane advantage, she slowly but surely ground her opponent out of HP. Unfortunately, she couldn''t find a chance to kill him before he hit Lv.5 and unlocked his ult. However, he was at 30% now and he still hasn''t shown any signs of retreating. Good.


    [He probably really trusts his panic button.] Julia smirked. [Too bad because your ult ain''t gonna save you this time.]


    Julia was still carrying the Stealth Ward she bought at the beginning of the game. It was patiently waiting for the Warlock to press his panic button. Julia just had to pressure the guy into a deadly situation and she was going to do so with the upcoming minion wave!


    As before, Julia cleared the wave at maximum speed by applying Electric Charges, making Chain Lightning bounce around and blowing up the entire wave with Electrical Explosion. She didn''t out-clear the Warlock as much as before because his damage output increased considerably as he leveled up but she still gained lane advantage.


    Now, right as the enemy wave was about to perish, it was the time for an all-out assault! Julia pulled out all the stops and blinked right in her opponent''s face with Thunderclap!


    [Die, idiot!] She opened a quick assault with basic attacks. That idiot had no idea what hit him! It took him like five years to realize he was being wrecked.


    The Warlock''s HP fell below 20% and Julia was right in his face so, of course, he resorted to his panic button: Eldritch Nightmare. Darkness erupted from the Warlock and stretched around the lane. It robbed Julia of all her vision of the surroundings.


    But, that''s what she had the Stealth Ward for. She placed the ward as far ahead as possible in the direction of the enemy tower. The Warlock was going to retreat over there for sure, so the Stealth Ward will expose all his movements.


    [Found you.] Julia smirked as the Warlock''s figure became visible within the darkness. The Stealth Ward did its job.


    "Take that, idiot!" Julia fired a ball of electricity at the Warlock''s back. Easy hit. The guy didn''t even try to juke because he didn''t expect anybody to shoot him in the darkness. "Surprise, dumbass!"


    Zap. Another hit! The Warlock was down to 10% HP. Julia had to land like two more hits and it''d be a sealed deal. Unfortunately, it wasn''t that easy.


    [Shit, I can''t reach from here.] Julia clicked her tongue. Even though she countered the stealth aspect of Eldritch Nightmare with a Stealth Ward, that didn''t negate the other effects of Eldritch Nightmare. One such effect was the disorientation it caused to all enemies inside the darkness. Because of that crap, was Julia lagging behind the Warlock and couldn''t shoot the guy to death. What a pain!


    [Darn, I thought I''ll get this done without wasting my ult. Oh well.] Julia sighed and went for plan B. She activated Thunderstorm and summoned it as far ahead as was humanly possible in the direction of the enemy tower.


    In the darkness that was enveloping the entire area, Julia couldn''t see the clouds she summoned or the lightning that struck at the target location. However, the loud sound of the lightning echoed throughout the area and the Warlock was visibly shaken by this line of attack. He stopped running in a straight line and rolled aside from Thunderstorm''s area.


    [Can''t you just die? Like, please. Freakin'' get dead already.] Julia made a face. She hoped the Thunderstorm would finish the guy off but he was a persistent bastard. Only the first lightning struck him and reduced him to 2% HP. So, he was literally a few pixels away from death but he clung to his life. What a stubborn fool.


    The lightning that struck the Warlock applied an Electric Charge on him but Julia''s Electrical Explosion was still on cooldown. So, she couldn''t blow up the guy from afar. Instead, she had to do things the hard way and close the distance despite her decreased movement speed.


    Since the Warlock rolled to the side to avoid Thunderstorm, his retreat has been slowed down just enough. Julia rolled forward to close the distance and fired a ball of electricity as soon as she recovered.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    "Ha! Get fucked!" Julia pumped a fist. The darkness vanished and revealed the victorious scene. Julia was standing tall while the enemy Warlock was lying on the floor like a helpless loser. That''s one kill! Nineteen more to go.


    "GAE-" A shout resounded from the nearby jungle.


    "Ah!" Julia jumped and turned around. Crap! The enemy Lancer was here! His lance was pointed straight at her and he has already started casting his ultimate. This was bad!


    Could Julia take this guy on? No way. She spent her entire kit to get the kill so she had nothing right now. She gotta get outta here as quickly as possible!


    [O-Okay! I gotta retreat. Switch gears from offense to-]


    "BOLG!" The Lancer blitzed forth. His spear penetrated through Julia''s stomach and delivered a grave injury. It reduced her HP from 70% to 20% in one fell swoop! Not only that but it debuffed her stats across the board. This was bad! Bad! Bad! BAAAAAD!!!


    [Run! Run, dammit!] Julia erased any thoughts about fighting the Lancer and turned her back to the enemy. She had to retreat. That was her only option right now. Any thoughts about fighting had to perish. She fought and killed the Warlock but now it was time to scoot!


    By the time she began her retreat, the Lancer stabbed one more time. Just great, she was already down to 13% HP. The Lancer needed like two more hits to finish her off. She had to get the heck outta there!


    "Run toward the Jungle," Howard ordered.


    "Huh?" Julia blinked. Wasn''t it safer to escape along the lane back to safety?


    "Dan will get there in time to help."


    "O-Okay," Julia didn''t have the time to figure out what Howard was talking about. Her brain was a mess so she didn''t trust herself to come up with a better way to survive. If Howard thought it was safer to flee toward Top Jungle, so be it.


    Whish! Another stab in the back. She was down to 5% HP. It was over. She was slowed down, weakened and her HP was hanging by a thread. It was hopeless. She scored a kill but now she was going to give the enemy a kill. Damn, how pathetic...


    It was coming. She couldn''t see the Lancer behind her but she knew. The finishing blow was coming.


    "Coming through!" Dan popped up from behind a jungle wall. He passed by Julia and activated Lionfolk''s ultimate: The King''s Dominion. Julia didn''t have the luxury to turn around to check what happened but she could tell by the roaring sounds of lions. Dan must have formed the ring of lions right between Julia and the Lancer.


    "Phew," Julia sighed deeply. "I''m safe. Thanks."


    "No problem," Dan said. "You better thank Howard. He''s the one who told me to rotate here."


    "Ah, I see," Julia nodded. "Thanks, Ho-"


    "Take a turn to the right there," Howard ordered. "He might still chase you with a leap if it''s not on cooldown."


    "Oh, right," Julia was still in a bit of a daze but she did as she was ordered. Howard''s suggestion made her venture even deeper into the jungle, which meant she was getting farther and farther away from her lane.


    It felt like she was putting herself in more danger by delaying her retreat but her defensive instincts gradually kicked in and she grasped Howard''s plan. Since Julia was slower than her pursuer, it was pointless to take the shortest path to safety because the enemy would catch up to her anyway. Therefore, it was safer to deviate from the optimal route and confuse the pursuer.


    This should have been the 101 of escaping during such tense situations but Julia''s brain fudged up there for a moment. If she were properly focused on surviving from the moment the Lancer showed up, she would have grasped all of that on her own and would have picked a similar escape route by herself.


    Honestly, this was kinda embarrassing. She had to work harder on her ability to transition from offense to defense and vice versa.


    Fortunately, the enemy didn''t chase. Maybe his Lunge skill was on cooldown or maybe he didn''t have the balls to dive deeper into enemy territory. Either way, Julia escaped alive and recalled to base.


    [Phew. Safe.] Julia took a deep breath once she was back at the base. [Okay, I did it! One kill and zero deaths. Easy.]


    She was off to a strong start. Now, only nineteen more kills to score! Julia will push forward in full throttle and decimate all her opponents!


    [Gotta admit, though. Howard is pretty amazing.] Julia nodded to herself. While she was 100% concentrated on her offense the entire time, Howard arranged a safety net for her ahead of time. For this rescue operation to be successful, Howard had to order Dan to rotate toward Mid ahead of time.


    [This is what it means to play with Aegis.] Julia smiled wryly. This was completely different from having Yuel in the lead. That greedy dumbass only focused on the team''s offense so Julia always had to be mindful about her defense and make sure she doesn''t screw up.


    But, with Howard in charge, she could attack to her heart''s content. As long as she followed Howard''s shot-calls, she was guaranteed to survive even after messing up. Such was the power of Aegis, the absolute defense.


    Therefore, this game, Julia could go wild and attack as much as she wanted. The goal was a 20/0 KDA!


    In the end, she only got 10/2/2. Still, she pretty much dominated the entire game and scored kills left and right. The enemy team killed her twice but that didn''t stop her from attacking again and again after respawning.


    Thanks to her numerous kills, the team easily pushed all the way to victory.


    "So," Julia turned to Howard. "How was it?"


    "Solid performance," Howard said. "You sure proved you can play aggressively and your aggressive playstyle is a force to be reckoned with. I wouldn''t want to be your opponent while you''re wilding like that."


    "Thank you."


    "But, you seem to struggle a bit with switching from offense to defense on the spot."


    "Ack, well..."


    "But, aside from that, your offense is very impressive. I take it you have no problem playing like that whenever the team needs you to?"


    "Of course, no problem," Julia''s eyes flashed like a blade. "I''m ready to destroy enemies whenever you need me to."


    "My," Ellen wrapped herself around Julia. "What a cute instrument of death we got ourselves here~"


    "So," Julia ignored the snake wrapped around her and continued. "You agree I''m the better Mid Laner, right?"


    "Too early to say," Howard answered. "It was just one match. I''ll have to see more of your performance to tell for sure how effective you are."


    "Okay, got it. So, if I keep scoring lots of kills every match, you''ll be convinced, right?"


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    "Hmm, maybe," Howard didn''t give any promises but it was clear he was impressed by the spectacle Julia showed during the previous match. So, as long as she keeps showing him strong plays, he''ll hold her in high regard. Eventually, she''ll take the Mid Laner role all for herself.


    She absolutely had to get it, no matter what. As the one who was left behind in the club and got a chance to take a spot on the first-string, Julia definitely had to make this count. She''ll prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that she was superior to Gilbert in every way and will claim the Mid Laner role all for herself. That''s the least she could do to justify being here.


    Then, once that''s dealt with, she''ll clash with Yuel and Lars in an official match and will destroy them both!

 132 Afterword

    This is the end of volume 6. I see that some people liked the transfer to a new school, while others still think it was a huge mistake. There''s no right or wrong there, both have their ups and downs.


    I actually came up with plot outlines for both of these routes before finally deciding on the transfer. It was a difficult decision because it involved a huge paradigm shift, but I concluded it''ll allow me to take the story in a more interesting direction.


    The main argument for staying in StormBlitz was that Yuel and Lars could serve as situational subs when the team needed stronger offense. In fact, Julia became exactly that.


    Logically, this makes sense. However, Howard would not let that happen. He is smart enough to understand the advantages of having such flexibility, but there''s no way he''ll give up his position for it, especially not to Yuel.


    Yuel understood, so he knew there''s no chance he''ll get to play on the first string unless something drastic happens. That''s why the transfer looked so appealing to him.


    Of course, things aren''t exactly going smoothly in the new club either. But, the situation definitely improved. In Stratus, Yuel and Lars are already guaranteed to play on the first-string. All that''s left is to reclaim their main roles, then they''ll be ready to take the regionals by storm!


    Volume 7 will focus more on getting to know the members of Stratus and their abilities. Especially, the freshman that''ll be joining the club this year. Yuel will find himself in some though spots thanks to his lacking communication skills, but these situations will prompt him to improve in that area! Hopefully.


    I''d like to thank everybody for sticking with the story for so many volumes. As you can tell, there''s still a long road ahead. I know the story''s pacing might seem slow at times, but I hope the eventual payoff for all the buildup will make up for it.


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    There won''t be any changes in the chapter release schedule for the time being. Hopefully, I''ll be able to start posting two chapters a week by the time we get to volume 8.

 133 Ben the "Delinquent"

    On the fourth day of school, Yuel and Lars went to the clubroom again after school. So far, the club has been gathering like this every day, which was something Yuel really appreciated. The more the team gets to practice the stronger it''ll become.


    Unfortunately, this routine will probably only last until Kai makes a proper schedule. But, for now, the team had a frequent and fairly fruitful training regime.


    The one thing that constantly annoyed about the club was the clubroom. Unlike proper clubs, their clubroom was tucked away in the basement. So, every time, Yuel and Lars had to venture into the school''s basement to reach their clubroom. That is, if one could even call that place a "clubroom". It was just a storage room, really.


    "Heya," Lars greeted everybody as he entered.


    "Oh," Vincent turned around and saluted. "Welcome to the Den of Undiscovered Potential!"


    [Again with that nonsense.] Yuel shook his head.


    Kai and Vincent were already here, which wasn''t surprising since the seniors studied on the first floor of the school. Meanwhile, Luke wasn''t here yet even though he had to travel the same distance as Yuel and Lars. Judging by his laid-back attitude, he was probably in no hurry. No surprises there.


    However, there was one surprise in the room: an unfamiliar face. There was a chubby boy Yuel hasn''t seen before. This must be Ben, the elusive last member of Stratus who skipped every meeting so far.


    "Oh, hi," Ben raised his hand timidly. "I heard we got two transfer students. That''s you?"


    "Yep, that''s us," Lars pointed at himself. "The name''s Lars."


    "Yuel," Yuel stated briefly. It sure took a long time to finally meet Ben even though he was supposed to be a part of the same club. What was Ben''s deal?


    "Um, I''m Ben," Ben shifted his eyes away to avoid Yuel''s gaze. "Nice to meet you..."


    [He''s not quite how I imagined.] Yuel frowned.


    Considered Ben skipped the last two days of practice and hasn''t provided a good reason for that, Yuel expected a delinquent who didn''t take the club seriously. Yet, this timid guy couldn''t be farther away from that image. Yuel even felt bad a little for judging the guy like that.


    "May I ask why you missed every club activity so far?" Yuel had to make this straight.


    "Ah, well..." Ben flinched and his eyes moved from side to side. "I, um, had some stuff I had to do take of..."


    "Like what?"


    "Er, well..." Ben stumbled over his words. "Some friends asked me to help them out at the basketball club, so I..."


    "You''ve been helping them out for three days?"


    "A-Ah, yeah, um, you see..." Ben was at a loss. This was awkward. It almost felt like bullying.


    [Should I keep pressing?] Yuel wondered. He still hasn''t gotten any answers. What did Ben mean by "helping the basketball club"? What did Ben have to do with it? He was supposed to be a member of the Classmancers club. Or, maybe this school allowed students to register to multiple clubs?


    "I don''t get it," Yuel said. "How are you connected to the basketball club?"


    "Well, I got a few friends there and..."


    "... and?"


    "And, um..." Ben was visibly fidgeting. What was he hiding?


    "He just had important stuff to do," Vincent butted into the conversation. "Let''s leave it at that, shall we?"


    "And, you''re okay with it?" Yuel asked Vincent and Kai.


    "It''s fine," Kai said. "He had things he had to do, so it can''t be helped." Her words felt forced. It''s like she was pushing herself to let this slide.


    "But," Yuel insisted. "He missed days of practice. It''d be one thing if he gave a legit reason but I haven''t heard any yet. The club is already small as it is and you''re going to let a member go rogue like that? If that''s your attitude, this club will never get anywhere."


    "I-I...!" Ben desperately tried to say something. "I''ll make up for it! I''ll stay extra hours if I have to. And, I practice at home too, so I won''t fall behind. I promise."


    "Really," Yuel frowned. What could he even say to that? This image of a timid and earnest boy clashed with the delinquency of Ben''s actions.


    No matter how Yuel looked at it, Ben didn''t come across like a troublemaker who''d skip club activity on purpose. Yet, he did so anyway. Why? What did the basketball club have to do with any of this? Yuel couldn''t comprehend.


    Regardless, Ben promised to work hard and even claimed he practiced at home to make up for the lost hours. If he was truly this motivated to improve and play well, maybe he was alright.


    "May I ask what''s your rank?" Yuel asked.


    "It''s Platinum IV."


    "I see," Yuel nodded. This was acceptable. It was quite a lot more promising than Luke''s Gold I.


    Yuel wanted to know some more about Ben''s circumstances but it felt like Vincent and Kai wanted to kill the topic, so he couldn''t do anything but sigh and let it slide. He''ll have to gauge Ben in action today to form a proper opinion.


    "Okay," Yuel said. "Let''s just move on to today''s training. What roles do you play?"


    "I can play Top," Ben said. "I can do Jungler too, but not so well. And, um, Support, I guess."


    [Doesn''t sound like you''re too pumped for Support.] Yuel noted to himself. It felt like a personal attack against Yuel''s favorite role but it wasn''t unusual. Even among players who could play Support well, many didn''t enjoy the role as much as others. After all, it could easily be the most unrewarding role ever when the rest of the team isn''t coordinated enough. On top of that, being blamed for everything was common and far from fun. Yuel went through all these struggles before so he perfectly understood.


    "So, you prefer Top?" Yuel asked.


    "Yes, if possible," Ben nodded.


    [I''m the Top Laner at the moment, though.] Yuel frowned. It wasn''t like he yearned to be the team''s Top but that was his role for now. So, he had to practice it in case he ends up playing it in official scrimmages.


    "I also play Top," Yuel said. "So, how do you want to do it? Do we take turns?"


    "I''m fine with turns," Ben nodded.


    "You can take turns with me too," Vincent told Yuel. "I''m fine with sitting the first game out."


    "I see." The timing of this offer was a tad too convenient. It was as if Vincent could tell how much Yuel wanted to play Support. Did Yuel''s thoughts surface on his face? Either way, this was good. Getting practice as both Top and Support was ideal.


    "Are you also going to take turns?" Yuel asked Kai. "It''s good to switch with Lars from time to time so you can both gain experience as Mid and Carry."


    "Maybe," Kai shrugged. "But, today I''m only playing Carry."


    "I see," Yuel didn''t let the disappointment to show on his face. This was the club''s fourth day of activity, yet Kai hasn''t played anything but Carry this entire time. That was the main reason Yuel didn''t bother taking turns with Vincent until now.


    What he really wanted was to play Bot together with Lars so they could get experience with their main roles while playing as a team. Also, it''d be a great opportunity to show off how strong they were as a duo, which should convince Kai to give up on the Carry role.


    Unfortunately, none of that was achievable at the moment. Kai insisted to hold onto the Carry role like it was her baby so it might take a while before Kai agrees to part with it. Therefore, for now, Yuel will play with the hand he was dealt and play Support for Kai. It should be an interesting experience in its own right.


    Luke arrived in the clubroom five minutes later and so lineup for the first match was decided.


    Top: Ben


    Jungler: Luke


    Mid: Lars


    Support: Yuel


    Carry: Kai


    "Good luck with your supporting," Vincent whispered as he passed by Yuel. "Kai can be a bit of a handful but try your best."


    "That goes without saying," Yuel nodded. No matter who his lane partner was, he had every intention to do everything in his power to secure victory.


    Nevertheless, this warning made him cautious. Was Kai a difficult Carry to handle? Based on her aloof and rather selfish attitude, there was no doubt it won''t be easy to handle her.


    Then again, when was a Carry player ever easy to handle? Lars and Taison were rascals who had to be babysat or else they''d mess everything up. The only Carry Yuel ever played with that made his life easy was Ellen, who was competent enough to make good decisions for herself but still made sure to cooperate and plan ahead with Yuel.


    Though, with that pairing, Yuel often felt like he wasn''t too relevant because Ellen could handle most things by herself just fine. Both Yuel and Ellen were good at analyzing opponents, so Yuel''s analysis only added a little bit to what Ellen already figured on her own.


    Where did Kai fall on the Carry scale? Was she a needy Carry who required a lot of attention? Or, was she a competent Carry who mostly acted independently?


    Either way, Yuel will do his utmost to support her. For that, they absolutely had to have good communication.


    "What are you doing?" Kai asked.


    "Making sure we can properly communicate," Yuel brought over a chair and a table.


    "Seems excessive to me but whatever floats your boat," Kai shrugged.


    The team queued into Ranked and soon found a match.


    "Let''s pick Top first," Yuel advised. His team was going first, so classic theory advised to pick a versatile high tier Top Laner or Support which had no obvious counters.


    "So, I''m first?" Ben asked. "Um, is Vanguard alright?"


    "Sure," Yuel couldn''t decide whether he liked the fact Ben asked for everybody''s input or disliked how unsure Ben sounded. It almost felt like Ben didn''t know what he was doing and just picked something because he was put on the spot.


    But, that couldn''t possibly be the case. After all, Vanguard wasn''t the kind of class anybody would pick on a whim. It was a rather unpopular defensive pick for Top Laners because of its slowness and self-sacrificial nature, so Ben definitely knew what he was going for. The uncertainty in his voice was probably just a part of his timid nature.


    The enemy team also followed standard theory and picked classes for Top and Support: Knight and Lumimancer. That didn''t give Yuel any ideas for effective counter picks. Thus, for now, they''ll just go ahead and pick something solid.


    "What''s today''s meme?" Yuel asked.


    "Let''s see, let''s see," Luke scrolled through his custom filter of "Jungle Memes". "Jungle Druid sounds like fun. Yeah, I''m feeling it!"


    "I see," Yuel sighed in defeat. After playing with Luke for the past few days, Yuel came to terms with Luke''s "meme of the day" routine. At least, for now.


    Rogue, Cryomancer, Archer and now Druid. There was no end to Luke''s arsenal of meme Junglers. Though, surprisingly, Luke played all these classes far better than Yuel expected. Luke countered Stealth Wards as Rogue, he found the right moments to set up ganks with Cryomancer and he went for a heavy crit-oriented build with Archer to burst down enemies. So, considering this impressive performance, Yuel began accepting that impractical playstyle.


    So, for now, Yuel will let Luke meme and see where that goes. But, for competitive matches, Luke will eventually have to pick up meta classes. There was no doubt about that.


    And so, Luke picked Druid for jungling, of all things. Druid already had a niche secondary pick as a Top Laner, but a Jungler pick was even rarer than that. The only justifications Druid had for being a Jungler were the CC from Nature''s Grasp and the split-pushing potential of Awaken the Ents. Same as with most memes, it had a chance to be viable and sometimes even strong, but the chances of that happening were too slim on the highest levels of play.


    "I feel like working on my Electro next," Lars said.


    "Sounds good," Yuel approved. The past few days, Lars has been getting into shape as a Mid Laner by playing some of the lower difficulty mages. Today, he should be ready to tackle a class that demanded a higher execution like Electromancer.


    The enemy team next picked Vampire and Pirate, which were possibly supposed to be counter-picks to Druid''s Nature Grasp. Vampire could use Coffin Slumber to negate any damage after being pulled in, which would buy enough time to assess the situation and decide on the best line of play.


    Pirate had even better ways to counter Nature''s Grasp. For one, it could quickly dodge the branches of Nature''s Grasp with Backfire Cannon. Alternatively, it could unleash Kraken in the enemy''s face after being pulled.


    There was no telling for sure regarding the Vampire, but the enemy definitely picked Pirate to counter Druid. After all, from their point of view, the Druid seemed like the most likely candidate for being the Support.


    Yuel''s team already had Vanguard and Druid, so either of those would normally be assumed to be the Support. The Pirate pick was decent against Vanguard as well, so it covered both bases.


    But, too bad for them. Neither of those was going to be the Support. Yuel left his pick for last, hoping he could counter-pick the enemy''s Bot duo.


    "Who do you want to play?" Yuel asked Kai.


    "Impaler," Kai locked her pick before Yuel even got a chance to comment.


    [Wow, an insta-locker.] Yuel made a face.


    It wasn''t like Impaler was a bad pick here. In fact, the Impaler''s Iron Maiden could serve as a counter to Pirate''s Backfire Cannon when applied smartly, so this was a solid choice. Nevertheless...


    "You didn''t give me a chance to comment on your pick."


    "Hm?" Kai tilted her head. "What did you want to say?"


    "Well..." Yuel frowned. In truth, he didn''t have anything to say about this particular pick. "Nothing, I guess."


    "Huh. Okay."


    [I didn''t get the point across, did I?] Yuel sighed. Well, that''s alright. He wasn''t particularly silver-tongued and Kai wasn''t exactly the easiest person to socialize with, so it was only inevitable to run into such issues. Yuel will just have to work on this one step at a time.


    [So, I have to work with an Impaler.] Yuel went over the list of Support options. He wanted a class that''ll either counter the enemy''s composition or will supplement Kai''s Impaler. Or, optimally, a class that''ll do both at once.


    Impaler''s main gimmick was its Impale skill, which launched a big spear that knocked back enemy players. When Impale pushed an enemy into a wall, it dealt extra damage and stunned the player. The rest of the Impaler''s kit was designed to combo off from this initial play.


    Therefore, a good way to support an Impaler was by helping them execute this setup. In other words, help them push an opponent into a wall. Which Support could help with that? Naturally, Cryomancer came to mind.


    Ice Wall was treated like a wall, so pushing an enemy into it with Impale gave all the same benefits. On top of that, Cryomancer''s Ice Coffin added another optional layer to the Impaler''s combo.


    "I''ll take Cryo," Yuel said. "Tell me when you need an ice wall for pushing somebody."


    "Sure," Kai didn''t show much reaction.


    [I''m picking Cryo for you, you know.] Yuel made a face.


    Well, not receiving proper gratitude was common for a Support. By the end of the day, he didn''t really pick Cryomancer specifically for Kai. He made this pick to increase the team''s overall chances of victory. So, it was fine. A little irking, but fine.


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    The enemy team wrapped up the drafting phase with a Sorcerer pick for Mid. It didn''t come across as a counter to anything in particular, so it was probably just a preference of that Mid player.


    With that, the match began. How was Ben going to perform? How well with Yuel be able to cooperate with Kai as his partner? These were the main topics Yuel wanted to explore in the upcoming match.


    Yuel''s team:


    Top: Ben (Vanguard)


    Jungler: Luke (Druid Meme)


    Mid: Lars (Electromancer)


    Carry: Kai (Impaler)


    Support: Yuel (Cryomancer)


    Enemy team:


    Top: Knight


    Jungler: Vampire


    Mid: Sorcerer


    Carry: Pirate


    Support: Lumimance

 134 Clunky Cooperation

    The online match began and there were multiple elements of uncertainty about it. How well will Yuel and Kai be able to cooperate in Bot? How well will Ben play in Top? How well will Luke play his meme Jungle Druid? And, how will Lars handle a mage with more delicate execution like Electromancer?


    In short, literally everything was uncertain about this match. But, Yuel couldn''t focus on everything at once.


    Based on the experiences of the last few days, Luke probably knew how to play Jungle Druid. He has already started the game on the right foot by buying Smite, a utility skill that''ll greatly help him clear jungle camps.


    One of the big reasons Druid was a meme as a Jungler was due to its poor camp clearing speed. So, Luke practically had to buy Smite to be able to do anything at all. As always, the guy lived up to his memeing quality, for the better and the worse.


    As for Lars, it was always easy to trust that mechanical monster to handle anything that required execution. Even if he fails to do the optimal Electromancer setup on his first try, he''ll optimize it in no time. He was that kind of natural beast. At most, Yuel will have to throw a few reminders in Lars''s way in case that goof forgot some of the finer details of the execution.


    With all that considered, Yuel didn''t have to worry too much about Lars and Luke''s performances. The more interesting topic was Ben. As a Top player, Ben will compete with Vincent for that spot once Yuel regains his rightful place as the Support. So, which one of the two was the better Top Laner for the team?


    Right off the bat, Ben''s absence from every club meeting thus far was a bad first impression. However, Ben wasn''t a delinquent and it seemed he genuinely felt bad for missing club activities. Therefore, it was better to ignore the bad first impression and analyze Ben objectively. Was he a better Top than Vincent? That''s all that mattered right now.


    Unfortunately, Yuel played on the opposite side of the map from Ben, so it might be hard to analyze Ben''s skill properly. Worst case, he''ll have to watch the replay later.


    For now, he''ll concentrate on cooperating with Kai in the lane. This was a fresh experience and a good opportunity to better understand her as a player.


    Speaking of Kai, she started off on her own while Yuel was still busy thinking about the situation. He didn''t even get a chance to see what she bought.


    "Why two wards?" Yuel asked while going over Kai''s starting items.


    "Why not?" Kai shrugged. "We gotta ward, you know."


    "Yeah, but it''s better to let the Support spend money on wards. We can split the burden of warding if you want but I have no problem warding everything myself."


    "I prefer to do some of the warding myself. There are some areas on the map I wanted warded at all times, so I want to make sure they''ll be warded."


    "You can just ask me to ward there."


    "It''s okay, I''ll handle it. You just ward where you think is best."


    "Fine," Yuel gave up. He didn''t know how to continue this argument. For some reason, Kai was deadset on doing some of the warding herself. This was rather rare.


    Normally, Carries didn''t like warding and wanted to focus on laning, kills and pushing. Lars never ever suggested to ward anything himself. He always left everything to Yuel. And, Taison was the exact same way. As far as they were concerned, warding wasn''t their job. Somebody else will always ward Bot for them and that somebody was the Support.


    So, it was nice to see a Carry who valued warding for a change. With that said, a Carry shouldn''t ward too much, especially not during the early stages of the game. After all, there was a reason the Support started off on the same lane as the Carry in the meta.


    Most Carry classes were relatively weak during the early game and their top priority was to get their build online and become a force to be reckoned with. The faster a Carry can start pushing objectives, the better. Spending gold on wards delayed the Carry''s build so it wasn''t something a Carry should do often early on.


    Hopefully, Kai only was this persistent about warding herself during game start. If she keeps buying two wards every time she returns to base, they''ll need to have a talk about it.


    After Yuel and Kai cleared the Ogre Camp together with Lars, they went to Bot Lane. The enemy arrived there earlier, which wasn''t surprising. Pirate''s clearing speed was a little faster than Impaler''s during the early game and there was nothing anybody could do about that fact. It was math.


    With that in mind, Yuel and Kai had to play smart and crack the enemy down one step at a time.


    During the laning phase, Kai didn''t take any risks. She cleared the minions safely but efficiently. She stayed in the rear and fired basics on the enemy frontline. Impaler''s passive, Deep Wounds, lowered the target''s defense by a flat amount for a brief time. So, first of all, Kai hit every enemy swordsman in order to lower all their defenses.


    Then, she followed up with Impale and shot her spear through the line of swordsmen. It was a good farming tactic but, unfortunately, Impale didn''t deal that much damage. Especially, not during the early game. Pirate''s Backfire Cannon was much stronger, so that''s how the Pirate dominated the lane despite Kai''s efficient setup.


    Every time, a couple of minions from the enemy team outlived all allied minions. That''s when the enemy''s pressuring began. The Pirate and Lumimancer advanced along with their minions and tried to get as much damage as possible on Yuel and Kai.


    So, Kai always retreated to the Turret in a timely fashion. From there, she did her best to kill the minions before they enter the Turret''s area.


    [Is the plan to keep playing defense during the early game?] Yuel wondered. He didn''t get to see much of Kai''s performance in Bot because he was always playing Top, so he had no idea how she normally handled disadvantageous early game scenarios. He should''ve watched some replays, but he deemed it irrelevant at the time. However, now that he was her Support, these things were very much relevant.


    [She got a poker face 24/7, so I can''t tell what''s on her mind.] Yuel squinted his eyes. No matter whether things were going well or poorly, Kai''s expression remained static like a statue''s.


    "What?" Kai glanced at Yuel.


    "Nothing," Yuel averted his eyes. He was trying to read her expression but it probably looked like staring to her.


    "Something on my face?"


    "No, it''s nothing."


    "Huh." Kai dropped the topic and returned to her tablet.


    In truth, there was one thing about Kai which always bothered Yuel: the black sporty cap. Why was she wearing a cap all the way down here in the basement? Surely it wasn''t going to help her against the sun. No sunlight reached this godforsaken clubroom.


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    Thinking of it, Yuel has never seen Kai without the cap. Did she wear it to class as well? There was no school rule against it so nobody would stop her.


    "What?" Kai turned to him again.


    "Ah," Yuel jumped. The girl had some sort of radar for sure. "I was just wondering about your cap."


    "Wanna buy one too? They sell ''em at the mall around here. It''s pretty neat."


    [Is it just me or she''s very good at missing the point?] Yuel wondered. "No, I don''t need one. I was just wondering why you''re always wearing that cap, even when you''re at the club."


    "Why not?"


    "Because we''re in a basement."


    "And?"


    "Well, as you can probably tell, there''s no sunlight down here."


    "I''d be surprised if there was."


    [This girl...] Yuel didn''t know what else to say here. "Do you ever take it off?"


    "When I shower or go to bed."


    [I feel like the first mention was unnecessary.] Yuel''s cheek burned a little as a rude image flashed through his mind. Though, even in that brief steamy snapshot, he still imagined Kai sporting that black cap. He never saw her without that cap so, even in his mind, he couldn''t imagine how she looked without it.


    With that, the small talk died down. Yuel didn''t get to the bottom of the cap mystery and didn''t get to see any reactions from Kai. She was one tough customer to deal with.


    By the time both sides reached Lv.4, Kai''s clearing speed became on par with that of the enemy Pirate. In fact, hers was a bit faster because she has been doing a great job utilizing the Impaler''s passive to weaken the swordsmen''s defense. So, this time, she was the one to clear the minions first.


    This was a great opportunity to strike. Yuel should bring this up and-


    "I''ll attack," Kai announced before Yuel could make his move.


    "Okay," Yuel followed along. "Then, let me create an ice-" He was too late. Kai already advanced to the frontline and activated Iron Maiden, which summoned the metallic torture device right behind the enemy Pirate.


    Before the Pirate realized he was trapped, Kai fired her large spear in his direction. The impact pushed the Pirate back and shoved him right into the iron maiden. The Pirate''s back rammed into the torture device and the metallic doors burst open. The iron maiden swallowed the Pirate whole as if he was a snack.


    CRUNCH. It sounded like a smashed waffle. After delivering the damage, the iron maiden broke apart and revealed the stunned Pirate. This was the cue to go all out!


    Like before, Kai didn''t waste any time and threw spears at the stunned prey. So far, her attack was well-executed. But...


    [I''m the Support. I should be initiating these kinds of plays.] Yuel made a face. It wasn''t a rule set in stone, but it was usually the Support''s role to initiate fights.


    Yuel could''ve spared Kai the trouble of spend MP on Iron Maiden if she gave him time to cast Ice Wall instead. It didn''t matter what kind of wall Impale shoved its target into, the impact would stun all the same. Sure, the Iron Maiden dealt some additional damage but it wasn''t even enough to help to secure the kill so it was practically useless.


    So, the Ice Wall play would have been superior overall. Yuel had more MP to burn and his resources were less important than the Carry''s. On top of that, while Yuel was creating the Ice Wall, Kai could''ve already fired her Impale to lower the opponent''s chances of dodging.


    There was a brief recovery animation after casting Iron Maiden, so it took a moment before Kai followed up with Impale. The only reason this play worked out was that the opponent was too slow to react. Most players would have been able to dodge that telegraphed Impale.


    [Well, I''ll go over it later.] Yuel shifted his focus to the situation at hand. The enemy Pirate was stunned and Kai was driving him with spears but that alone wasn''t going to do the job. The Pirate will have a chance to escape once he gets out of stun.


    Therefore, to properly secure the kill, Yuel got close to the Pirate. He waited right until the Pirate''s stun was about to run out and activated Ice Coffin, spreading chilling air in front of him. The cold hit the Pirate and froze the guy in place. From one stun into another. Nasty but beautiful.


    This gave Kai enough time to seal the deal.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Yes." Kai nodded in satisfaction. It was a quiet and brief celebration but Yuel noticed it. After all, the girl has been sitting there like a statue this entire time, so this was the first time she expressed any human emotion.


    [At least she celebrates when she wins. I guess she''s a human, after all.] Yuel chuckled.


    "Here it is!" A loud voice boomed. "The first blood goes to Stratus! Despite playing as a duo for the first time, Beat and Chessmaster showcased perfect synergy as they took down CrazyDriver!"


    [Perfect synergy? More like, barely any synergy at all.] Yuel mentally retorted. The one spreading fake news was Vincent, the only one in the room who wasn''t in the match. He was following the match closely by sticking his face to Luke''s PC monitor.


    "With this play, Stratus seized the momentum!" Vincent went on with his nonsense. "What other surprises will this team deliver today!?"


    [Are you supposed to be a commentator?] Yuel made a face. Who was Vincent even commentating for? It felt like he was being loud for the sake of drawing attention to himself.


    However, Vincent''s grin made it look like he genuinely enjoyed following the match and commenting on it. So, Yuel didn''t say anything. But, that didn''t change the fact that "perfect synergy" couldn''t be farther away from describing the recent play Yuel and Kai pulled off.


    "Next time," Yuel said. "If you want to get a kill with a stun combo, let me make an ice wall first."


    "Hm? You mean, instead of the iron maiden?"


    "Yes. There''s no need for you burn MP on Iron Maiden if I can make a wall for you. I got plenty of MP to spare and, even if I run out, it''s not a big deal if I leave the lane to recover. On the other hand, if you recall to base, we''ll be surrendering lane control to the enemy. So, it''s better to exhaust my MP instead."


    "Huh, that''s a noble sacrifice you''re willing to make."


    "That''s my job as the Support," Yuel chuckled. "You know, to babysit the Carry."


    "I don''t need no babysitting."


    "It''s just a term. If you prefer, you can think of me as somebody who works under you and that it''s better to work me to the bone when it saves you trouble."


    "That''s a pretty masochistic mindset you got there."


    "That''s just how it works," Yuel said. It''s not like he wanted to slave away for the Carry, it''s just that this was the optimal arrangement for ensuring that the Carry will grow strong and healthy. So, since this strategy was so effective, it was attractive enough to make Yuel ignore the fact he essentially had to work under the Carry. Though, in his experience, he was usually more of a babysitter than a worker. Especially, when playing with goofs like Lars and Taison.


    This Bot duo arrangement meant the Support had to work hard for the sake of the Carry, but that''s part of what made the role complex and fun to master. He had to ward, protect the Carry, initiate fights, and much more. It was a lot of work and he had to do all of it at the same time during the early-game. It was a lot of responsibility and rather difficult, but that''s what made it rewarding.


    As such, Yuel didn''t appreciate it when the Carry stole some of his work. Even Ellen, who was mostly an independent Carry, still spared the time to strategize with Yuel about their upcoming plays. Ellen barely needed any babysitting compared to the other Carry goofs but she still made Yuel slave away for her as needed.


    That was a world apart from what Kai just did. She just charged in all by herself without taking Yuel into account at all.


    Sure, Kai did give him a heads up about her plan of attack. But, then she just went through with it without even giving Yuel a chance to react. Kai just made a last-moment announcement and had zero intention of discussing it or asking for help. That wasn''t how things should work.


    "The next time you want to attack," Yuel said. "Make sure to inform me ahead of time. It''s better if I initiate things because that''ll put me in the most danger."


    "You''re really raring to die, huh," Kai smirked.


    "As I said, it''s always better to burn the Support''s resources rather than the Carry''s, no matter whether''s it''s MP or HP."


    "I don''t need you to sacrifice yourself for my sake."


    "It''s not like I''m doing it for you. It''s just more optimal. As the Support, my job is to get all the hits for the Carry during the early game. I make sure you can get enough farm during the early-game and you carry the team during mid-game. That''s how we optimize the team''s chances of winning."


    "Okay, I''ll keep that in mind."


    "Please do," Yuel concluded the conversation on that note. But, did the message really get across? Kai''s tone was as aloof as ever, so it was hard to tell. Yuel will have to be more assertive the next time they get a good opportunity to initiate.

 135 The Supports Role in Bottom Lane

    Despite Yuel and Kai''s clunky cooperation during their first offense, they successfully took out the enemy Pirate. That was a huge early achievement and a First Blood to boot. It created a solid momentum for the team.


    With the Pirate out of the picture, they shifted their focus toward the remaining enemy on the lane: the Lumimancer. It was a 2v1 situation, so Yuel and Kai could go for another aggressive play here. Unfortunately, the Lumimancer blinked away with Flash before Yuel could initiate anything. What a shame.


    [This guy seems very cautious. Perhaps overly cautious.] Yuel took a mental note. Back when Kai attacked the Pirate, the Lumimancer didn''t even try stepping in to rescue his partner. And now, with his partner dead, the Lumimcancer immediately retreated all the way back to his Turret. There was no doubt he was the defensive type.


    Not getting involved against Kai''s assault might have been a smart choice because Lumimancer didn''t have any good tools from rescuing the Pirate from the situation. However, if he truly valued his Carry, he should''ve at least interfered with Blinding Light or Ray of Light before blinking away.


    Judging by Kai''s skill, such interference most likely wouldn''t have fazed her. However, the Lumimancer couldn''t have possibly known that. He should have at least tried.


    Therefore, this Luminancer was either a scaredy-cat or not so experienced. He''ll probably be one of the weak spots of the enemy team. To test his theory further, Yuel wanted to push hard.


    During the next minion wave, Yuel''s side held an overwhelming advantage thanks to Kai''s clearing speed. The Lumimancer couldn''t contest her on his own, especially not with a defensive Support build. So, Kai won the lane with ease.


    "Let''s push the Turret," Yuel suggested.


    "Huh?" Kai gave him a look. "It''s dangerous."


    "A little, but probably not too much."


    "The Lumi is still there, though."


    "Yeah, but think about it: what kind of scary thing a Lumimancer can really pull?"


    "Um, well," Kai cocked her head. "There''s not much, huh."


    "Exactly. Also, I got a feeling he''ll not dare to fight us."


    "A feeling?" Kai raised an eyebrow. "Are you a mind reader?"


    "It''s just a theory based on circumstantial evidence. Looking at how he''s been playing so far, he seems to have a very defensive playstyle."


    "How do you figure?"


    [Here we go again with questioning.] Yuel sighed. Every single time he played with somebody new, he had to justify himself. He has already convinced Luke and Vincent to trust his observations but Kai was a new challenge. [Well, I didn''t many opportunities to convince her before so I better start doing that now.]


    "Remember how that Lumiancer didn''t help out the Pirate?" Yuel asked.


    "Yesh, I guess he didn''t do much back then," Kai sounded indifferent. They clearly weren''t on the same page regarding what that piece of evidence implied.


    "It was more than just ''not doing much''. He maintained distance the whole time and retreated as soon as we took out the Pirate."


    "You mean, as soon as [I] took down the Pirate."


    "Sure. Anyway, it implies that Lumimancer doesn''t like stepping to the frontline unless he''s forced to."


    "Sounds like jumping to conclusions to me," Kai shrugged. "You''ve seen him play like that just once and you''re already talking like you''ve known him for years."


    [This will never get easy, will it?] Yuel sighed. As always, making somebody trust his analysis was difficult. It always felt like he was a shady salesman who came to sell something wonky and had to prove his credibility.


    As far as others were concerned, Yuel was simply making a wild guess. It made sense for them to think that way but knowing that didn''t help him find a solution to the problem. He had confidence in his analysis but, in the end, most of them were just theories. There was always a chance he was wrong so he couldn''t go ahead and proclaim "I''m 100% sure I''m correct! Follow my plan!"


    [In times like these, vocal supporters like Vincent are really helpful.] Yuel''s eyes naturally laid on the loud clown, who was busy hyping up the match right now.


    Back when Yuel had to pitch his sale to Luke, it was Vincent who ultimately convinced Luke to cooperate with Yuel''s shot-call. What argument did Vincent use back then? It was something very convincing, which went something like...


    "I got the Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception!" Yuel declared... Yeah, right. As if he could spout such nonsense out loud. It was mind-boggling that something so asinine managed to convince Luke.


    [Would Vincent be able to convince Kai as well?] Yuel wondered. [No, I shouldn''t rely on others to do my work for me. I have to resolve this myself. Somehow.]


    Thinking back on it, this was one of the first challenges Aron posed on Yuel during StormBlitz''s entrance exam. Already back then, Aron noticed this communication issue and pushed Yuel to work on it. However, after Yuel proved his worth in front of the entire club, this problem died out and he never had a chance to work on it. Or, rather, he didn''t want to work on it. He hoped to keep playing with the same people for a long time and to never again be forced to convince anybody of anything.


    But, now the problem returned to bite him in the butt and he wasn''t ready. So, Yuel had to figure a way to solve it himself. He won''t always have other people nearby who can do the marketing for him. He had to learn how to sell people on his skill.


    So, how should he sell his current idea to Kai? How could he convince her to push against the Lumimancer without any further evidence regarding his defensive playstyle?


    [Wait, didn''t Vincent say something else to Luke as well?] Yuel searched his memory. Indeed, there was something else Vincent said besides the whole nonsense of the Mystic Eyes. Vincent also told Luke to "give it a shot".


    In other words, Vincent didn''t fully sell Luke on the idea right away. Instead, he just asked Luke to play along and see what happens.


    "You''re right," Yuel finally spoke up. "I''ve only seen that one play, so my impression of this Lumimancer might be wrong. But, that''s why we should push him now and see what happens. If I''m right, he''ll back off and we''ll get to push for free. If not, we won''t lose anything."


    "Hm, I suppose," Kai took a moment to think it over. "Okay, I''m game. Let''s poke him and see how things go."


    [Yes!!!] Yuel pumped a fist. He did it! He convinced somebody to follow his plan! All by himself! No cheats or audience help! Yuel really did it on his own! [Did you see that, Aron? I can do it!]


    It was a small thing but for Yuel it was huge. Finally, he overcame one of the most annoying hurdles ever. He probably won''t run into this problem again for a while but it still felt satisfying to beat it. Now, he''ll know how to deal with this issue in the future.


    [I just need to ask them to give it a shot.] Yuel nodded to himself. It was such a basic thing but it didn''t occur to him until now. In his mind, his reads of the enemy''s behavior were akin to educated guesses and he wanted to test them. However, he failed to convey that sentiment to others, so he was always met with resistance. He''ll definitely have to avoid problems like that in the future if he wants to become a shot-caller on the same level as Howard.


    Following Yuel''s idea, he and Kai invaded the enemy''s Turret area. As Yuel suspected, the Lumimancer didn''t get in their way. The guy maintained his distance and only fired at minions from afar. He''d have to commit and advance to the frontline if he wanted to hit Kai or Yuel and he clearly had no intention of doing so.


    "No balls, huh," Kai shook her head.


    Thanks to this push, they shaved off 20% from the Turret''s HP. Hopefully, all these plays will convince Kai to trust him a little more as her Support. Yuel made it clear he''ll properly ward the area, he helped her secure a kill on the Pirate and now he also came up with this great push opportunity.


    So, it was about time this lone wolf started trusting him, right? Unfortunately, things weren''t so easy.


    Shortly after they finished pushing the Turret and retreated, the enemy Pirate returned to lane. The tug of war on the lane began once more but this time Kai had a clear advantage. She out-leveled the Pirate by one level so her attacks were stronger.


    On top of that, Pirate was a class that relied on getting ahead through extra gold. So, without that advantage, it was a rather subpar class. That one early kill Kai scored on the Pirate set the guy back in a big way.


    Kai was leading in the wave clearing by a mile. But, right before she finished the entire wave, she advanced toward the frontline for no apparent reason. She summoned an iron maiden behind the Pirate and fired Impale at him.


    Yes, just like that. Out of the blue, she opened an attack without planning ahead or even warning Yuel. This was even worse than last time.


    "Wha..." Yuel was taken aback. Didn''t they just talk about this a few minutes ago? [Damn, I''m too far away to extend the stun with Ice Coffin. The Pirate will get away.]


    Yuel scanned the mini-map. Fortunately, Luke wasn''t too far away.


    "Luke," Yuel called out and drew a path on the mini-map. "Can you come here to gank along this path? The Pirate will probably retreat soon."


    "Alright, gotcha," Luke replied. "You gotta have to help me if he got HP, though. I can''t burst for shit."


    "Right." With any normal Jungler, a simple gank should be able to finish off an injured opponent. However, Druid was a "setup" type of ganker. He could stop an enemy in their tracks but he needed somebody else to help with the damage. So, it was up to Yuel to arrange the follow-up.


    Kai drilled the stunned enemy with flying spears and then went for her ult: A Thousand Impales. Countless spears penetrated through the ground below the Pirate. They cut through the Pirate and knocked him into the air. The damage was high because the Pirate was hit while stunned and, on top of that, he was air-bound now.


    So, this gave Kai another opportunity to fire at the helpless Pirate. But, the Pirate performed a Dodge Roll in mid-air and dodged her next spear.


    Nevertheless, the knock-up effect was strong enough and slowed down the Pirate''s escape. This gave Yuel more than enough time to catch up and secure the kill. However, unlike him, Kai didn''t seem too interested in chasing.


    "Kai," Yuel called out. "Let''s chase the Pirate. We can get a kill."


    "Can we?" Kai tilted her head. "I think he gonna get away. See? He used Backfire to get out."


    "I asked Luke to gank. We can catch up."


    "You''re so sure about it," Kai was as uncooperative as ever. This was the time for Yuel to pull his new trick.


    "Let''s just give it a shot. The Lumimancer is also retreating and the enemy Jungler is on the other side of the lane, so we won''t be in any danger if we chase. We either get the kill or we don''t. We won''t lose anything."


    "Huh, I guess t," Kai nodded and joined the chase, albeit with a slight delay.


    [Okay, now everything is riding on Luke''s setup ability.] Yuel nodded to himself. It was difficult to consistently land Nature''s Grasp due to its thin width, so it''ll be interesting to see how Luke fares. If he was truly the almighty memer he claimed to be, he better nail this play.


    Fortunately, Luke got to the scene on time. He cut off the Pirate and fired Nature''s Grasp right before the Pirate reached his Turret. It was a hit! The branches grabbed the Pirate and dragged him back toward the Druid. Checkmate. The Pirate was captured.


    Yuel erected an ice wall right in front of the Pirate to stall him even further. Unfortunately that alone wasn''t enough. Kai had to be the one to deal the finishing blow but she was too far away because she started late. From this position, the Pirate might still get away if nothing was done.


    But, Yuel already determined this was a checkmate. The final move to guarantee the kill was to apply extra CC on the Pirate. While the Pirate was maneuvering around the ice wall, Yuel caught up and unleashed Ice Coffin.


    That''s it. The Pirate was down for. Kai arrived at the scene and delivered two heavy blows.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Good job, guys!" Luke saluted to Yuel and Kai.


    "Thanks," Kai said.


    "It was a solid gank," Yuel nodded in approval. "Have to say, you know your Jungler Druid."


    "C''mon, man," Luke laughed. "You make me blush."


    "Ya better tape that, dude," Lars chuckled. "Dude never praises anybody. If ya got his seal of approval, it means ya pro level material, yo."


    [I''m not THAT bad, am I?] Yuel made a face. It''s true he tended to criticize players a lot but he''d drop a nice word every now and then when somebody did well. Especially, when somebody pulled off a difficult skill-shot like Nature''s Grasp. Yuel had to practice for a long time before he started landing that thing on enemies.


    In the end, this uncoordinated play miraculously converted into a kill. However, that didn''t mean Kai''s solo attack was good. Far from it. That play was irresponsible and wasteful in every way. There were other, much more efficient, ways to secure a kill there. But, instead, Kai went In alone and wasted a lot of resources for no good reason. Kai even wasted her ult on this. It was so unnecessary.


    "What was that play?" Yuel asked. "You should''ve told me you''re going to aggress."


    "Ah, right," Kai agreed but there was no hint of remorse in her tone. "I saw the Pirate had bad positioning so I went for it without thinking much. I didn''t want to let that opportunity slide. You''re right, I forgot to inform you."


    "It would be great if you refrain from that kind of solo activity. We''re supposed to work as a pair. As I said, you should use my resources when you can. You even wasted your ult there."


    "Yesh, I thought I''ll get him after the ult but he reacted well."


    "If you just told me you were planning to attack, I could''ve arranged the same setup as last time. We would''ve secured the kill without wasting your ult that way."


    "I don''t see the amazing line of play you had in mind," Kai admitted. "But, you''re the Challenger here so I guess you know what you''re talking about."


    "I''d like to believe so. Anyway, please, don''t go for solo plays like that while I''m here. Let me initiate the fight and set up the kill for you."


    "You''re really bossy for a Support," Kai gave him a look.


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    "I''m pretty sure that''s how the optimal dynamic between the Support and Carry should be. What do [you] think the Support is?"


    "The guy who got stuck in Bot with the Carry because there aren''t enough lanes for five players."


    "Sounds like a very sad story."


    "I know, right?" Kai chuckled. "What I really think about the Support? Well, not much, really. They''re here to help me out from time to time, that''s about it."


    "That''s all?" Yuel blinked. That was a disgustingly low evaluation of the Support''s importance. Worst of all, it didn''t even sound like Kai was trying to make fun of the role or anything. She just genuinely didn''t find much value in the Support''s presence. [Wow, this is... I have no words.]


    "So," Yuel started. "You don''t trust your Support to help you out and create opportunities for you?"


    "Sometimes. But, I rather not rely on that," Kai shrugged. "I can win fights and get kills on my own. I don''t need somebody to ''babysit'' me."


    "Babysitting is just a snazzy term. It''s not that anybody is underestimating the Carry. It''s just that the Carry is the pivot of the team and usually vulnerable during the early game. So, the Carry is very important but also very fragile by design."


    "I''m not fragile."


    "I''m talking about the classes, not the players," Yuel shook his head. "Marksmen are designed to have the highest DPS but, in exchange, they''re some of the easiest classes to kill. A Carry who lags behind is going to drag the entire team down, so it''s crucial to prevent that from happening. That''s where the Support comes into the picture and takes the job of guarding the Carry."


    "You''re lecturing me like I don''t know all that stuff," Kai rolled her eyes. "Looks you take your ''babysitting'' quite literally, huh."


    "Well," Yuel smiled wryly. "Let''s just say that some of the Carries I played with are... a little special."


    "Like Lars?"


    "Like Lars," Yuel chuckled. In the case of that goof, being a Support was truly "babysitting" in every sense of the word. When they just started playing together, Lars''s decision-making was godawful and Yuel had to lead the guy 24/7. Fortunately, the goof was steadily learning and, right now, he was even playing independently in Mid without getting any advice from Yuel.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    Lars scored a kill in Mid. Yuel didn''t catch all the details but he knew Lars has been pressuring the enemy hard for a while now. At some point, the enemy Sorcerer must have become fed up with the situation and attempted to assault Lars. However, Lars struck back and crushed the Sorcerer.


    Yuel wasn''t involved in this process at all. Lars handled everything himself from start to end. Truly, the goof has been growing into a fine player. It was a little emotional, like watching your baby grow up.


    "You know," Yuel smiled. "When Lars started out, he was terrible. A literal baby who couldn''t tell left from right. So yeah, in his case, I''d say I had to ''babysit'' him in the truest sense of the word."


    "You have my condolences," Kai said.


    "But, he has improved a lot since then and I only give him advice every now and then. So, at this point, he''s good enough to just go out there and get kills by himself as you do. In fact, no offense, but he''d likely do a much better job than you at securing kills on his own."


    "You sure like singing praises to that guy. How about you just marry him?"


    "It''s just a fact," Yuel said. "Fight him 1v1 and you''ll understand how easily he can overwhelm most opponents. And yet, when he plays Carry, he still relies on me, his Support. He knows that, no matter what amazing plays he can pull off on his own, he''ll be able to do even more if he cooperates with the Support."


    "Is that so," Kai shrugged. "In the end, it''s the Carry who gets the job done. The Support is just there to provide some help."


    "Even though the role is called ''Support'', the Support and the Carry are partners. They''re supposed to consult each other and decide on a game plan together. It shouldn''t be the Carry''s one-man show while Support is just kinda there to help sometimes maybe. No, the Support and Carry are supposed to work together."


    "Did you flip some sort of ''lecturer switch''?" Kai made a face. "Alright, I get it already. I''ll make sure to tell you the next time I attack."


    "I''m trying to say that''s not good enough," Yuel insisted. "You shouldn''t only focus on [your] plays and inform me about them as if I''m an afterthought. It''s fine if you want to be the one to call the shots and decide when we go on the offensive but make sure you make that judgment with both of us in mind."


    "Not gonna lie, you''re such a bossy Support," Kai sighed. "I dunno. What you''re saying sounds too idealistic to me. I''ve played more than enough matches where I got bitten in the ass for trusting the Support to do stuff."


    "Is Vincent a bad Support?"


    "Nah, that idiot is fine," Kai said. "Like, he''s not amazing and I can already see why he''s praising you as the superior Support. But, he gets the job done. He usually follows up on my plays in time and helps me out. That''s all I need."


    "But, he doesn''t call you out for making selfish plays, does he? I see."


    "To be honest," Kai said. "You''re the first Support I met who cares about that stuff so much. Ben played Support for me before and he didn''t say anything either. He just did his job and helped me out as a proper Support should."


    "So, you''re saying I''m the odd one out?" Yuel smiled wryly. From what he could tell, Vincent and Ben preferred playing Top so Support wasn''t their main role. And, even it were, Yuel most likely had a deeper understanding of the role than them. So, it made sense he came across as a very different type of Support.


    "I understand," Yuel said. "You''re not used to playing with a Support who dictates you how to move."


    "Oh, so you actually understand how bossy you are."


    "But, how about you give it a try this game?" Yuel asked. "Tell me ahead of time when you want to go on the offensive and let me initiate. Then, judge for yourself how effective that approach is."


    "Sounds like a pain," Kai rolled her eyes. "But, alright. You''ve been making some good calls so far. I can play along with that."


    "Thank you," Yuel meant that sincerely but it felt rather sarcastic. Why did he even have to work so hard to convince his lane partner to cooperate? It should have been common sense for the Support and Carry to work together on everything.


    [Has Vincent never brought that up before when playing with Kai?] Yuel wondered.


    Vincent wasn''t a bad Support. During the past week, the Bot duo of Kai and Vincent has been doing perfectly fine. However, it seemed like Vincent allowed Kai to get away with her selfishness and did his best to followed up on her plays.


    That was admirable in its own way because Yuel couldn''t stand playing like that. He believed the Support and Carry were equals on the lane and had to cooperate on everything to draw out their maximum potential. It wasn''t the Carry''s one-man show.


    [At least, Kai is listening.] Yuel only had that to console him.


    Despite Kai''s self-centered way of thinking while making her plays, she lent an ear to Yuel and even agreed to try doing things his way. Truly, the phrase "give it a try" became Yuel''s trump card today. He should use it every time he tries to convince somebody to make a play.


    Now, with Kai convinced, the responsibility fell on Yuel''s shoulder. His supporting this game was going to either make or break it. If he puts on a strong show, Kai will be more willing to cooperate from now on. On the other hand, if he messes up, it''ll be tough to make her trust her Support ever again. The next play will critical.

 137 The Human Shield

    Yuel focused almost entirely on dealing with Kai during the early-game. And, he also got to gank Mid so there was some action there too. But, how were things going in Top? Nothing seemed to be happening over there.


    Every time Yuel checked the mini-map, he immediately disregarded the situation in Top as "nothing of interest" and went on with his business. Neither Ben nor his opponent was controlling the lane, neither of them got into fights and there weren''t any serious ganks coming their way. It was a chill and isolated laning phase for those two.


    "So, tell me," Vincent came close. "How are you liking Ben''s performance this game?"


    "It''s hard to say," Yuel answered. "He''s not doing anything wrong, but he''s not winning anything either."


    "Yes, exactly!" Vincent''s voice boomed. "He is the Eternal Peacemaker! He has the ability to negate all conflicts on the lane to have a peaceful laning phase with any opponent!"


    "So, he''s good at freezing lanes," Yuel translated that to human language. Vincent''s eccentric description aside, the meat of his words seemed to be right on the money.


    Yuel couldn''t analyze Ben''s playstyle in detail from across the map, but it felt like Ben was playing in a way that demotivated conflict. Ben always stayed far enough from the enemy to show he had no intention of going on the offensive. On top of that, the distance discouraged the opponent from aggressing on Ben because any assault felt like it''d require a great commitment that might result in overextension. So, most likely, that''s why the enemy avoided confrontation.


    At first glance, none of this looked particularly special. It was common for Top Lane to progress slowly and methodically. There was a reason players often joked about being "stuck" in Top as if it was a jail.


    But, considering Vincent went out of his way to come up with a silly nickname like "Eternal Peacemaker" for Ben, it implied Ben had a knack for creating a stalemate against many opponents. If so, it was an interesting technique to examine. How often did it work? Was it something Ben did on purpose or by nature? The answers should reveal themselves as they keep playing together.


    The team gained many kills during the early game so victory was all but assured. They were leading in every possible area: exp, gold, and map control. They even rotated to Top as a gang and smashed the status quo over there by pushing all the way to the enemy Golem.


    Nevertheless, the game reached the team-fighting phase because the enemy was stubborn. This is where the mid-game began and mistakes became way more critical. And, unfortunately, the team in the lead wasn''t immune to committing such grave mistakes...


    "Okay, let''s go!" Lars exclaimed. "I''mma push Top all the way to the win!"


    "Wait, they might-"


    "Let''s goooo!" Lars opened an attack against the enemy Sorcerer. The Top Golem was down and only one enemy was defending the lane. So, it was a great opportunity to push hard, yo! He gonna kick this Sorcerer outta here and push all the way to- oh, crap! A wild Vampire appeared!


    The Vampire released a horde of bats. That stuff was bad! It gonna blind and slow and stuff! Lars rolled away as fast as humanly possible and just barely dodged that stuff. Phew, he was safe!


    Okay, not really. It was a 1v2 situation and the enemies were coming right at him!


    "I told you to not rush it," Yuel made a face. "I hope you know what you have to do here."


    "Of course," Lars nodded. "Gotta take ''em both down, yo!"


    "Really now."


    "Haha, just kidding ya," Lars blinked away with Thunderclap. "I''mma retreat like a good boy."


    "Good," Yuel said so but immediately changed his mind when a giant bat rammed into Lars. "Actually, not good. Not good at all."


    The giant bat turned back into the Vampire and held Lars in place to suck the goof''s blood. Meanwhile, the Sorcerer caught up and unleashed Magie Orb on the immobile goof. The magical orb deleted 20% of Lars''s HP and slowed him down.


    "These guys are serious," Lars cracked a dry laugh. "Okay, here goes nothing!" He activated Thunderstorm ahead of himself and dashed through it. The enemy won''t dare to step into that storm of damage so he might gain some distance.


    Unfortunately, he was already down to just 25% HP. Just a couple of basic attacks from these dudes and they gonna finish him off. The situation was wack and there ain''t nothing he could do about it.


    [Okay, then I''mma dodge all their shots- aiya!] A bat rammed into him as soon as he formed that thought. This was bad! They gonna barrage him down! He gotta slip away somehow!


    Thanks to the slowdown the Sorcerer inflicted on him, both pursuers caught up in no time and got Lars within their firing range. He juked some of their shots by zigzagging around but that was no more than a momentary delay for them. They kept landing shots and Lars already dropped all the way to 5%. He was so dead, yo!


    But, at that moment, a savior appeared! A big armored dude greeted Lars from the jungle. It was Ben!


    "Yo, Ben, my dude!" Lars called out. "Can ya get these two off me?"


    "E-Eh?" Ben jumped from the sudden attention directed at him. "Um, yeah, I''ll do my best."


    [This will come down to the wire.] Yuel thought. A Vanguard could get Lars out of this sticky situation but it required the Vanguard player to have the right mindset for this operation. Namely, a mindset of self-sacrifice.


    Could Ben pull this off? Yuel considered giving them specific orders that''ll salvage the situation for sure but ultimately decided against it. This was a great opportunity to test Ben''s mettle and mentality. Since the guy picked Vanguard, he had to be able to play the part. As such, there was only one thing Yuel was willing to do for them to make this play a little easier.


    "Ben, I''m rotating over there with Luke," Yuel informed. "So, no need to be afraid of engaging the enemy."


    "T-Thank you," Ben still sounded pressured by this situation but, nevertheless, he went ahead to engage the enemy.


    First, Ben activated his ult, "Hold the Line!", to mitigate the damage dealt to Lars. The Vampire landed the decisive shot that should have killed Lars, but the defensive aura cut the shot''s damage by more than half. Thanks to that, Lars was still alive and clung to the few remaining pixels of HP on his life bar.


    But, Lars wasn''t out of the woods yet. Another killing shot was incoming! This time, from the Sorcerer. This attack will kill even with mitigated damage, so it was up to Ben to judge the situation correctly and react to it.


    Did Ben have what it took to shut down this play? It''ll be fine if he didn''t have the mastery to pull off the right play in such a clutch situation, but it''ll be interesting to see whether Ben at least had the right idea in mind.


    And, indeed, Ben had it. He stepped in between Lars and the Sorcerer without hesitation. The decisive killing shot smashed into Ben without reaching its intended target. It was a beautiful body-block!


    [So, he got it.] Yuel nodded. That body-block was a self-sacrificial play that required Ben to be comfortable with putting himself on the line for his teammates even during stressful situations like these. This body-block play had to be the first thing on Ben''s mind for him to be able to pull it off in a timely fashion like this.


    "There it is!" Vincent made some noise. "The Invincible Human Shield! No attacks shall reach you when the Human Shield is there to protect you! You saw that!?"


    "Yes, I saw," Yuel said.


    "Isn''t it amazing!? In such a tight situation, during such a critical time, the Invincible Human Shield is keeping his teammate alive against the enemy''s fatal blows!"


    "Yes, yes. You can pipe down now," Yuel shook his head. It felt like Vincent was desperately trying hard to make Yuel see Ben in a more positive light. That was so unnecessary.


    By now, the negative first impression of Ben being the "delinquent who skips practice" vanished without a trace. A player, who could put himself on the line for his teammates in the heat of the moment, couldn''t possibly be some selfish delinquent who didn''t take the game seriously. There must have been some good reason why Ben skipped the first few days of practice and that''s why Kai and Vincent let it slide.


    Unfortunately, the danger hasn''t passed yet. Lars was still at death''s door with enemies chasing him. However, from this position, things should be much more straightforward for Ben.


    Ben activated Provoke to shift the Vampire and Sorcerer''s attention to himself. While the enemies were busy shooting Ben, Lars successfully slipped away. That left Ben behind in a 1v2 situation but Yuel and Luke were right around the corner to help.


    Yuel originally gave Ben the heads up about the incoming backup just to make sure Ben won''t be afraid of using Provoke in a 1v2 situation. However, turned out it was unnecessary. Ben properly understood that, in situations like these, he should be willing to become a disposable pawn if it meant saving a teammate with DPS.


    As promised, Yuel and Luke ganked the lane and got a kill on the Sorcerer. Unfortunately, none of them was a damage dealer because Luke was memeing with Druid, so they couldn''t finish off the Vampire. Oh well.


    "Good job, my dudes," Lars gave a thumbs.


    "What do you mean ''good job''?" Yuel narrowed his eyes. "You almost died and dragged Ben down with you."


    "Haha, I guess."


    "Don''t you ''haha'' me. I''m adding this match to the list of matches we''re reviewing this weekend."


    "Welp, RIP my weekend, haha..." Lars scratched his head. "But hey, it all turned out fine in the end, right? We got a kill and I got away alive-" Just as he started saying that, a mounted knight charged at him! It was the enemy Knight on his steed!


    "Oh, crap!" Lars was just about to recall to base but these dudes refused to give him a break! "Gotta get the heck out!"


    Alas, there was no chance for him to outrun the horse...


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "Haha, whoops," Lars scratched his head. "Maybe I shouldn''t have pushed Top back there after all."


    "You don''t say," Yuel made a face. "You should be grateful you survived for as long as you did."


    "Yesh, ya right," Lars turned to Ben. "Thanks a lot for the help, dude. Saved my butt back there."


    "Sorry," Ben hung his head. "You still died."


    "Nah, it''s okay. It was all my fault anyway. Ya did all you could."


    [Ben really did well.] Yuel silently agreed. He had to see more before passing judgment but, so far, Ben was proving himself as a solid Top Laner.


    Will Vincent be able to top this impressive performance? It''ll be interesting to see. For now, Yuel was favoring Ben over Vincent for Top, if only because Vincent was a thousand times louder.


    In the end, despite Lars''s mess up, the team still maintained the momentum it created during the early game and pushed toward victory with ease. Once the game was over, Yuel suggested Ben and Vincent to switch.


    "Ah, but..." Ben stuttered. "I understand." He slowly got up from his chair with the face of an abused pug.


    "I''m fine with letting Ben play today", Vincent said. "I''ll just commentate and help you guys out."


    "You don''t want to play?" Yuel asked.


    "Of course I do. But, Ben missed a couple of days of training so I think it''s a good idea to let him play a little more."


    "Hmm, that''s true," Yuel agreed reluctantly. He really wanted to compare how Ben and Vincent played Top but there was no reason to rush it.


    "Um, it''s okay," Ben sheepishly spoke up and motioned at the chair. "You should play. It''s my fault I missed training."


    "C''mon, that''s not really..." Vincent didn''t finish the sentence. He just glanced away with an awkward expression and let the silence sink in.


    "Besides," Ben smiled wryly. "Yuel is asking you to play instead, so he must be thinking I''m baggage to the team."


    "That''s not true at all," Yuel was quick to shoot down that absurd misunderstanding. Thinking about it, he didn''t convey his intentions properly when he asked Ben to step down. So, maybe Ben just assumed the worst due to his timid personality.


    "You actually played very well," Yuel said.


    "R-Really?" Ben jumped as if it was a shocker.


    "Yeah, dude!" Lars smacked Ben on the shoulder. "You were sick that game! Also, just so ya know, it''s super mega ultra rare for Yuel to praise anybody so it means you were totally lit!"


    "T-Thanks," Ben shook for a moment from Lars''s smack but tired to put on a smile nonetheless. Yuel perfectly understood that feeling. This technique of a smack on the back, invented by Trever and inherited by Lars, was cursed. It packed so much positive friendly energy that it hurt. Like, a lot.


    "You really played well," Yuel repeated to make sure there were no further misunderstandings. "I only suggested you switch out because I want to see how Vincent plays Top, that''s all."


    "So, you wanted to compare the two future candidates for Top, right?" Vincent wore a meaningful smile.


    [This guy and his big mouth!] Yuel felt exposed. He was trying to be careful with his wording but this needlessly observant clown exposed his hidden agenda! Ughhhh!


    "What does that mean?" Kai turned to Yuel. "You''re planning to switch to Support?"


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    "Well, I''m still considering a lot of things," Yuel gave the most evasive answer that came to mind.


    "Is that so," Kai dropped the topic. It seemed like Vincent''s implications flew way over her head.


    "You want to take my Support spot?" Vincent asked. "Please, by all means. I''ll even pay you for it."


    "Wow," Yuel smirked. This was an opportunity to pay back that clown. "You hate supporting Kai so much you''d rather pay me to get away?"


    "Huh, is that so?" Kai shot Vincent a look.


    "Ahahaha," Vincent produced a long hollow laugh. "Didn''t know Yuel was such a jester. Maybe he got the Mystic Mouth of Jesting Perception and I didn''t notice!"


    "You didn''t answer the question," Kai pointed out.


    "Right, I didn''t answer the question..." Vincent shifted his eyes around as if searching for an excuse he hid somewhere in the room. "What I was trying to say is that Yuel is a much better Support than me, so I rather have him play Support for the team. I meant I''d be willing to throw money at him if it meant increasing the team''s chances of winning the regionals."


    "Is that so," Kai nodded with her usual stoic expression. Did she really buy that? Impossible to tell. At least, she dropped the subject at that.


    ["How do you like the payback?"] Yuel silently threw the question at Vincent.


    ["My bad. I won''t bring this up again."] Vincent seems to imply something along these lines with his apologetic bow.


    With that, Yuel''s secret agenda of taking over Bot with Lars remained a secret. Well, everybody must have realized these two were shooting for it, but Yuel didn''t want to constantly remind them about it. For now, he and Lars will lie low and play by Kai''s rules. Then, once the opportunity presents itself, they''ll take the Bot roles for themselves in one fell swoop!

 138 Problem Kids

    The club activity went on. Ben continued playing Top for three more games so that gave Yuel more insight. It didn''t change the fact Yuel will have to go over replays as well. But, at least, playing alongside Ben gave him a rough idea of Ben''s level.


    As Vincent implied, Ben was very good at freezing lanes. In every match, Top lane was locked in a status quo during the early-game. Sometimes, even during the mid-game.


    Even ganks didn''t take place in Top because the situation was never inviting. Junglers from both sides occasionally tried to set something but that rarely went anywhere. Truly, Ben had the Eternal Peacemaker ability!


    [Ugh, I feel like I''m losing brain cells from thinking in these terms.] Yuel shuddered. Why did Vincent''s analysis always have to be so accurate and yet so dumb at the same time? Sigh.


    Of course, it wasn''t like Ben had any superpowers the way the clown suggested. From what Yuel could tell, Ben just played carefully and peacefully, so it established a comfortable status quo in the lane. Neither side wanted to commit to any risky plays so they maintained the stalemate. As a result, the lane remained frozen.


    As expected, this playstyle didn''t work against every type of opponent. During the third match, Ben faced an extremely aggressive lane opponent. It was clear the guy was out for blood because he picked Dark Knight. There was no chance a Dark Knight player would ever agree to a truce on the lane during the early-game because that''d be equivalent to losing.


    Therefore, the Dark Knight didn''t play nice. He aggressed on Ben at every opportunity and fished for a kill.


    "Ah, oh!" Ben flinched as the Dark Knight pushed him back to the Turret. It took Ben a while to react to the Dark Knight''s sudden aggression, so he lost a lot of HP before getting away. It seemed like the thought of fighting back didn''t even cross Ben''s mind, which made sense in a Vanguard vs. Dark Knight matchup. So, Ben did well to retreat.


    Unfortunately, his retreat was too slow and he lost unnecessary HP in the process. On top of that, he was forced into defending under his Turret and the enemy was about to invade it.


    Ben had to make a difficult decision: should he stay to defend the lane with just 30% HP and risk getting killed? Or, should he recall to base and let the Dark Knight push the Turret for free?


    "Um, I," Ben mumbled something but Yuel couldn''t make it from across the room. They weren''t playing with headphones like in a tournament, so Yuel couldn''t pick up that low voice.


    "I see, I see," Vincent nodded repeatedly as he approached Ben''s seat. "You need some help over here, right?"


    "Um, yes," Ben nodded. "A gank could help. Or, maybe someone could defend the lane while I recall. Oh, but only if you''re free, of course. Don''t want to bother you..." His voice went from quiet to complete silence. However, Vincent was going to make up for it with his loudness.


    "Everybody, you heard the man!" Vincent''s voice boomed. "Ben''s Eternal Peacemaker was shattered! The opponent is wielding the Dark Anti-Peace Sword of Doom! He''s going ham on the lane and plans to pressure Ben into submission! So, what will Chessmaster''s call be!?" He stretched a hand toward Yuel as if shoving a microphone in Yuel''s face..


    "A gank won''t work here," Yuel said. Since Luke was sticking to his Druid Jungler meme, he was still a "set-up" type of Jungler who could only set up a kill for the laner. So, Luke didn''t have the strength to scare away the Dark Knight. On top of that, Ben played a defensive class, so he won''t get a kill even with Luke''s setup.


    "Luke, can you defend Top for a bit?" Yuel asked.


    "No problemo," Luke gave a thumbs up. "On it, pal."


    "Then, I...?" Ben asked sheepishly with a glance. He probably had the right idea in mind but didn''t voice it for some reason.


    "You should recall to base," Yuel said clearly to avoid any random misunderstandings.


    "Alright, will do," Ben began recalling as soon as Luke approached the lane.


    [Do I really have to say every little thing out loud?] Yuel wondered.


    Ben didn''t come across like a dumb player so he must have understood what Yuel had in mind when asking Luke to defend Top. Nevertheless, Ben waited for extra confirmation. Why?


    Frankly, this indecisiveness was a tad annoying. Ben couldn''t even properly ask for help when the enemy overwhelmed him in the lane. Instead, Vincent ended up doing all the communication work for Ben.


    It felt like Ben became a high-maintenance player once the enemy interrupted his "peaceful" game plan. In other words, he felt at home while the lane was frozen and played well in this climate. However, once aggression came from the enemy side, Ben started losing himself. He''ll definitely have to work on this if he wants to become a competitive player.


    For now, Yuel had to think of Ben as a timid player who didn''t always speak his mind even when the situation was rough. Yuel played with some kids like that back in grade school, so he had some experience dealing with that. He simply had to pay extra attention to Ben and make the right calls in Ben''s stead as needed. Not exactly fun but it was what it was.


    "Ben, you''re been pressured again," Yuel pointed out. The Dark Knight aggressed again and pushed Ben back to the tower.


    "Um, sorry," Ben shrank.


    "You need help, right?" Yuel asked.


    "It''d be great, but it''s my fault it came to this, so..."


    "That''s irrelevant," Yuel stated. "You should request help when you need help."


    "But, I don''t want to bother you with my problem..."


    "Let us decide for ourselves whether it''s a bother or not. Somebody may be available to help you out. If not, they''ll just decline the request. But, if you never inform us you need help, we''ll definitely not be able to help on time."


    "You''re right..." Ben nodded but then fell silent like a statue. He still wasn''t going to call for help? Sigh.


    "Luke," Yuel called out. "Can you defend Top again?"


    "On it, chief," Luke rotated to Top and defended it in Ben''s stead again.


    "Thank you very much," Ben threw a glance at Yuel and then averted his eyes again.


    "Rather than thanking me," Yuel said. "It''d be great if you start calling for help yourself."


    "You''re right. I..." Ben paused and his voice became quiet like a mumble. "I''ll try my best."


    "Please do." There was no way Yuel would be able to pay attention to the Top Laner the whole time during the early-game. It''d be like remote babysitting.


    No, that won''t work. Ben had to step up his game and start asking for help of his own accord. The guy was blaming himself too much for everything as if he was carrying the entire world on his shoulders. This had to stop.


    Yuel also had confidence issues at times regarding his plays but he felt like the most confident person in the world compared to Ben. It was unfortunate because Ben gave the impression of a promising player aside from that


    Though, at the same time, Ben''s IGN sounded uncharacteristically bold: Fatty. There was a good chance some kids made fun of him for being obese, yet the guy went ahead and plugged that into his IGN. What an absolute mad lad. It was so odd.


    Either way, Ben was quite the handful as a teammate at the moment. He had the right mindset of putting himself on the line as a tank and his playstyle of freezing lanes was quite impressive, but the rest of his game plan felt average at best and unpolished at worst. So, overall, he was alright but not amazing. There were still many areas Ben had to polish before he''d be ready to be a competitive player.


    Hopefully, Vincent was better prepared as Top for the competitive scene. He switched places with Ben after three matches so it was time to see him in action. Will this loud clown do a better job? He was dumb but also surprisingly sharp. It was hard to tell what to expect from him.


    "Hey, Chessmaster," Vincent called out during the drafting phase.


    "I''ve been meaning to ask, why are you always using nicknames?" Yuel raised an eyebrow.


    "Because it''s cooler!" Vincent pumped a fist. "When we enter a serious match, we transcend our outer selves and become one with our virtual selves!"


    "Oooooooh!" Lars exclaimed. "Yeah, I''m feelin'' it! When I play, I become one with my guns!"


    "Yeah," Luke nodded. "And I become one with my memes! We transcend humanity itself!"


    "You got it, dude! Evolution, yo!"


    "Science, bruh!"


    [Is it too late to transfer schools again?] Yuel felt like facepalming into a wall.


    "Anyway," Yuel turned to Vincent. "What did you need?"


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    "Huh? Oh, I forgot."


    "You did, huh."


    "No, wait! I remember now!" Vincent raised his voice again. "It was a request of utmost importance with the balance of the universe at stake!"


    "Just spit it out already."


    "Right. So, I want to pick Spellblade first, if you don''t mind."


    [All that noise for something small like that!?] Yuel felt like choking the guy. "Sure, Spellblade is good for an early pick."


    "Marvelous! Then, I''m locking in"


    Contrary to the entire spectacle surrounding it, Vincent''s Spellblade pick was very normal. In fact, picking Spellblade early was one of the class''s few strong points. It wasn''t a particularly strong class in the current meta but it was a versatile pick that could be played as either Top or Mid, so it gave the enemy team very little information when picked first.


    The rest of the drafting phase proceeded according to schedule. Lars picked Electromancer because that''s the class he was practicing today. Luke picked Druid again because that was his "meme of the day".


    Kai picked Pirate, a solid tier A class. Thinking of it, she has been picking a different class for every single match. Impaler, Trickshooter, Elf and now Pirate. She was a versatile Carry and she played all these classes at roughly the same level. That was a great quality for a competitive player.


    [I wish Lars could play this many classes with his full power.] Yuel thought.


    Right now, Lars could only play Trickshooter and Gunslinger at an insane level. He was so good with these two that he probably could rival some pros. However, the rest of his classes weren''t nearly as intimidating. The day Lars brings most of his Carry classes to that level, he''ll transform into a real monster. But, that day was still far away.


    For now, Kai''s consistent performance with so many different classes was one of the few advantages she had over Lars as a Carry. On average, across all Carry classes in the game, she might even be better than Lars. Unfortunately for her, being consistently good with many classes didn''t make her a superior Carry. Her flexibility was great but it had nothing on Lars''s explosive strength that carried games.


    [Am I playing favorites too much?] Yuel wondered. The Lars vs. Kai debate could wait for later. Right now, he was Kai''s Support so he had to play alongside her. [What will go along with her Pirate pick?]


    Yuel found himself asking this question every game. Even though Kai started cooperating more with Yuel and even let him initiate from time to time, their teamwork was far from perfect. Heck, far from decent even. Kai still acted independently way too often and forced Yuel to adapt to her in the last moment. Honestly, it was a pain.


    Like this Pirate pick, for example. Kai didn''t exchange a single word about it with Yuel. She went ahead and picked it just because. Worst of all, it wasn''t even a bad pick or anything. Pirate indeed had decent options against Gunslinger so Yuel couldn''t say anything.


    [Is this how they always played Bot in this club?] Yuel threw a glance at Kai and Vincent. These two seemed to have experience as a Bot duo, yet Kai has been playing selfishly the entire time. Has Vincent never brought this to her attention? If so, he wasn''t a dedicated Support player.


    [I give up.] Yuel sighed. This wasn''t his business anyway. He didn''t join this club to work on his supporting skills for a new Carry. Even though he wanted to win matches and improve the club''s teamwork, there was no point in stressing over one troublemaker.


    Thus, Yuel picked Paladin. It was a solid class he liked so he was comfortable with it and that''s all that mattered. Kai was no longer part of the equation for him. Not at all.


    [Justice Strike combos well with Kraken, though.] Yuel smiled wryly. No matter what he told himself, he still sought the option that complemented the Carry. After all, as the Support, he couldn''t carry the team to victory himself. Therefore, he had to do everything in his power to help out his teammates instead, especially the Carry. This mentality was so deeply rooted in his mind that it became as natural as breathing.


    But, he wasn''t going to stress over combo plays anymore. They''ll pull those off if they manage but he wasn''t going to work hard with that blockhead to make every play count.


    "If I stun the Carry with Justice Strike," Yuel said. "You may want to follow up with Kraken to make sure we stun him long enough to seal the deal."


    "Sure," Kai replied. As always, it was hard to tell much from her blank expression. Did she agree with this suggestion? Did she think it was a good combo? Was she going to cooperate to make it happen? Who knew.


    "In general," Yuel continued. "If I initiate with Justice Strike, you should follow up on it."


    "Who died and made you boss?"


    "I''m just stating the obvious. If I successfully initiate, we have to capitalize on that. You got a bad habit of not participating sometimes for no reason."


    "Yeah, when the initiation is ass. I''m not gonna follow up on a crappy initiation that may lead nowhere."


    "It''ll definitely lead nowhere if you don''t follow up on it."


    "I''ll follow up on whatever looks good to me. It''s my follow-up so I can do whatever I want with it."


    "I see," Yuel made a face. "So, if it''s not some amazing initiation with a thousand percent success chance, you won''t even bother."


    "Wouldn''t go that far but, basically, yeah. It better look promising or I don''t care for it."


    "Gotta say, you''re one heck of a spoiled princess."


    "Excuse me?" Kai turned around. "What did you just call me?"


    "Spoiled?" Yuel answered with a question.


    "A spoiled what?"


    "... princess?" Yuel said reluctantly.


    "Is that so," Kai returned to her tablet. "Please don''t talk to me ever again, ktnx." She took out her earplugs and replaced them with huge headphones. These headphones were so big she probably wouldn''t even hear an atom bomb going off right beside her.


    "Um," Yuel found himself gaping like a fish. [Okay, this was sudden. Did she find it THAT insulting?]


    Was it the word "spoiled"? Or, the word "princess"? Or, something about the combination? Yuel couldn''t even begin to tell.


    "Hey, Chessmaster," Vincent called out with a wry smile. "It''s not cool to bully the cap."


    "I wasn''t bullying anybody."


    "Well, you made her activate her Soundproof Reality Marble, so you must have said something. She can be difficult like that sometimes."


    "You don''t say," Yuel sighed. If Kai were a class in Classmancers, her difficulty would definitely be rated "Difficult". No, probably even "Challenging", the rare difficulty that only a select few classes had.


    "She won''t pay any attention to you while she''s in her Soundproof Reality Marble," Vincent explained. "Just do what you can to support her."


    [How about I just quit and go home?] Yuel really wanted to throw the match but that''d be bad sportsmanship. No matter what problems his teammates posed, he was a competitive player and he had a role to fill on the team. Therefore, even if Kai was going to treat him like air, he''ll play to the best of his ability until the bitter end.


    "I''ll give you some pointers about her later," Vincent said. "So, just bear with her for now."


    "No need to worry so much. I''ve dealt with worse." This reminded Yuel of the time he paired up with Trever in the scrimmage against the Leopards. Back then, he had to bear through a lot of bullshit. It was a terrible experience but it toughened him up. Therefore, Yuel was only mildly irritated with Kai''s entire conduct. Yeah, only mildly. No problem at all. None at all...


    [Why are girls always so difficult to deal with?] Yuel sighed. Seriously, every girl he ever dealt with has been a handful. Julia, Ellen, Ignis and now Kai. It''s like he had the worst possible affinity with females. Vincent could''ve easily given him an ability like "Zero Pheromone Affinity" and it''d be hard to laugh it off.


    [Well, it is what it is.] Yuel will just have to get this over with. He was more interested in observing Vincent''s performance in Top anyway, so Kai''s sulky attitude only gave him more incentive to focus on that.


    On this note, the fourth match the day began.

 139 The Ungankable

    During the fourth Ranked match of the day, Kai dialed up her independence up to eleven. She blocked out everybody in the room by wearing gigantic headphones and hasn''t exchanged a single word with Yuel ever since the match started.


    If this were a serious tournament match, Yuel would do everything in his power to fix such a situation. However, this was just a Ranked match and, at this point, he was fed up with Kai''s attitude. They won''t be playing as a Bot duo in official matches anyway, so there was no reason to bother doing anything special.


    Yuel simply played his part as the Support and aided Kai to the best of his ability. He saved her from sticky situations with Aegis and Divine Shield way too often to his taste. Kai wasn''t just ignoring Yuel, she also dialed up her aggression. Until now, she was a balanced and calculated player. But, ever since she put these big headphones on, she has been aggressing on her opponents left and right and has been putting herself in danger every time.


    Fortunately, most of the time, Kai knew when to retreat. With a little help from Yuel, most of her retreats were successful. However, with such an aggressive playstyle, it was just a matter of time before a disaster strikes...


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    [Here it comes.] Yuel braced for impact. Even though this was a result of Kai''s reckless aggression, she''ll definitely pin the blame on him. After all, he was the Support. How the hell he didn''t perform a miracle to save her, right?


    [It''s coming. Any moment now.] Yuel kept waiting. And waiting. And waiting. But, Kai didn''t even glance at him. She entirely filtered out of his existence.


    [So fun.] Yuel rolled his eyes. He couldn''t even tell whether being ignored like this felt better than being unjustly blamed for Kai''s death. At the very least, not blaming Yuel right away gave Kai some dignity points. But, due to her radio silence, it was unclear what she was really thinking. Maybe she was ranting about Yuel in her head.


    Either way, the silence kept Yuel more motivated to keep supporting Kai than insults ever could. So, on top of doing his best to keep Kai alive, Yuel also tried initiating some attacks with Justice Strike but Kai ignored all of them. She turned out to be one heck of a moody brat.


    This gave Yuel all the more incentive to not focus too hard on Bot. Instead, he followed the unfolding events in Top. It was more interesting to see how Vincent fared as a Top Laner. Will that clown be able to put on a more impressive performance than Ben? It wasn''t a high bar to pass but also not a particularly low one.


    Some aspects of Ben''s playstyle were great, such as his ability to freeze lanes and his willingness to sacrifice himself for the DPS classes. Did Vincent bring anything to the table that''ll surpass that?


    Vincent played Spellblade this game, a class he personally requested. For Ranked, Spellblade''s versatility was a good tool so Yuel saw no issues with that pick. It seemed that, unlike Ben''s defensive playstyle, Vincent leaned toward a balanced playstyle, similarly to how Gilbert played Mid.


    Vincent took full advantage of Spellblade''s versatility by switching back and forth between the Spell and Blade stances depending on the situation. He stayed in the backline and fired from afar in Spell stance whenever the Viking showed signs of aggression or when there were signs of an incoming gank. On the other hand, when things were quiet, Vincent didn''t hesitate to switch to Blade mode and advance to the frontline. His situational awareness and decision-making were polished.


    However, with just this type of adaptation, Vincent couldn''t gain any advantage in the lane. He played safer when the opponent aggresses and he played more aggressively when the opponent was neutral or defending. Unfortunately, it didn''t seem like Vincent was going to win any substantial lane advantage any time soon.


    [Should I say something?] Yuel wondered. There were many things Vincent could try to turn this situation in his favor. But, this was supposed to be a test of Vincent''s skill so, for now, it was better to stay quiet and watch how Vincent handled the situation.


    An interesting development came up. The enemy Viking booted his ult in the middle of the lane in order to catch Vincent off guard on the frontline. However, Vincent must have sensed the danger ahead of time and that''s why he maintained his distance. That put the Viking''s ult to waste. At least, in part.


    The ult summoned a crew of strong viking warriors who attacked the closest enemies in range. These warriors prioritized attacking players over minions, but Vincent was out of their range, so the warriors opted to fight Vincent''s minions instead. These vikings were tougher than the average minion, so they took out Vincent''s entire minion wave.


    Thanks to that, the Viking seized lane advantage. His attempt on Vincent''s life ended in failure, but he still won something from this exchange: his minion wave was healthy while Vincent''s wave was gone. So, the Viking decided to ride this momentum and push along with his minions.


    This was a great opportunity for Vincent to mount a counterattack. The Viking was overextending and Luke was nearby in the jungle. So, it was possible to kill the Viking with a gank.


    "Hey, Vince," Luke called out. "I''mma gank. Let''s get that guy."


    "It''s okay, don''t bother," Vincent said. "It might look like he''s just overextending but don''t be fooled. This player got the Ungankable ability! Not a single gank will catch him off-guard! It''s an Anti-World personal skill that overwrites reality every time somebody tries to gank him. It makes every gank fail against him!"


    "Wow, sounds like a tough nut to crack," Luke nodded as if Vincent''s words made perfect sense.


    [Is he really buying this?] Yuel rubbed his eyes to make sure this was real but nothing changed. Darn it, his attempt to "overwrite reality" with his Eye Rubbing personal skill ended in failure.


    "Wait," Yuel said. "Are you really giving up the gank because of this?"


    "Yeah," Luke answered nonchalantly. "Didn''t you hear? That guy is the Ungankable! Ain''t nobody gonna gank him to death."


    "And you base that off what?"


    "On Vince."


    "In other words, on a load of nonsense," Yuel narrowed his eyes. That was some impressive blind faith right there. Yuel could only dream about people following some of his less straightforward tactics like that.


    "I see how it is," Vincent said. "Chessmaster, you''re doubting my capabilities as the Arbiter of Talents, do you not?"


    "There''s not a single thing I don''t doubt when it comes to you."


    "Haha, that''s a little mean," Vincent chuckled but then shifted his expression into a dramatic one. "Then, a demonstration is in order. Meme Jedi, I summon thee! Rain your terror upon this land!"


    "You want me to gank, after all?" Luke asked.


    "Indeed, my friend. Let us partake in futileness so we can prove this opponent''s might."


    "Alrighty then," Luke advanced toward Top Lane.


    The enemy Viking responded right away. He rolled toward his side of the lane and sprinted into the distance. By the time Luke arrived, there was nobody to gank anymore.


    "Well, crap," Luke clicked his tongue. "Ain''t gonna catch up to that dude from here."


    "As I said," Vincent smiled in satisfaction. "He is the Ungankable! Even though it looked like you''ll be able to catch him, his Anit-World skill overwrote reality into one in which the gank fails."


    "Yeah," Luke nodded. "Sure felt that way."


    "So?" Vincent threw a glance at Yuel. "How do you find this demonstration of the Ungankable skill? As I said, this fellow will not lose to half-baked assaults like these. We can''t catch him with simple ganks."


    "It was really a timely retreat, I''ll give him that," Yuel had no choice but to admit. "But, this was just one attempt. So far, I''ve only seen you fail one other gank before that. Two failed ganks don''t say much."


    "That''s where you''re mistaken, Chessmaster," Vincent claimed. "It''s not just two ganks that failed. From the moment the game began, the Ungankable created an invisible barrier around the lane that denies all incoming ganks. The two incidents you refer to are merely the ones in which our Meme Jedi committed to a gank."


    "A barrier?" Yuel raised an eyebrow. "This makes less and less sense with every passing moment."


    "Actually," Luke started. "I kinda see it now."


    "Oh, you do? Please explain."


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    "You''ve been seeing me hang a lot around Top, right? Well, I''ve actually been trying to gank, but it always felt like I won''t get that Viking. As soon as I started getting closer to the lane, he started retreating as if he saw me coming from a mile away. It''s as if dude got a camera installed here and he watches my every move!"


    "I see," Yuel nodded. "Their team must be warding well. Or, maybe that Viking is just cautious by nature and always retreats at the first sign of danger."


    "No, no, no," Vincent insisted. "It''s the Ungankable! The Anti-World personal skill!"


    "Of course it is," Yuel rolled his eyes. "Anyway, if he''s being so cautious, you just need to plan the gank in advance."


    "You''re wasting your time, Chessmaster," Vincent claimed. "You won''t get a proper gank on the Ungankable no matter how many times you try."


    "You really believe that?


    "No, but it sounds cool so I''m saying it."


    [This guy...] Yuel sighed. "Anyway, let''s try again. I''ll help you plan the gank ahead of time."


    "It''s futile, Chessmaster. Not even your Mystic Eyes will be able to crack the Ungankable."


    "Doesn''t matter," Yuel said. "Even if the gank fails, it''s not a total waste. It still makes the enemy retreat, so that allows you to regain lane control."


    "True, but it also makes the Jungler waste his precious time," Vincent said. "Instead of rotating here, the Meme Jedi could''ve ganked Mid instead. There he got a real chance of getting a kill."


    "That''s... true, I suppose," Yuel didn''t have a counterargument at hand. The enemy Sorcerer has been pushing Lars around in Mid, so a gank over there might be the better choice.


    "Anyway, now you know," Vincent said matter-of-factly. "The Ungankable can never be ganked!"


    "We''ll see about that." There was no such thing as an ungankable opponent. Superpowers or special talents like that didn''t exist. Everything could be explained with logic and reasoning.


    The Viking was difficult to catch off guard with a gank? Then, either he or his teammates were warding well. Or, maybe he had a habit of playing defensively when he sensed even the slightest hint of danger. Julia often discouraged ganks by employing such tactics. If Vincent played against her, he''d probably dub her "Super Ungankable".


    But, that didn''t mean Julia was immune to ganks and the same applied to this Viking. Yuel just had to arrange an advanced scenario that''d catch the Viking off-guard.


    For starters, they had to decrease the number of wards around Top Jungle. When he recalled to base in order to recover, Yuel bought two Sentry Wards and headed toward Top Jungle first instead of returning to Bot. It wasn''t like he was contributing much when he was playing with a partner who refused to cooperate, so he might as well rotate around the map to help others.


    [As I thought.] Yuel took down two enemy wards. The fact he hit the jackpot with both his Sentry Wards attested to how heavily warded this area was. There were probably other wards around as well but, at least, Yuel now secured one safe route for ganking.


    Of course, the Viking was aware of Yuel taking the wards. So, how will the "ungankable" player react to this development? More or less how Yuel expected. The Viking retreated from the frontline and shortly vanished from the lane.


    "Did the Viking recall?" Yuel asked.


    "Not sure," Vincent answered. "He went around a wall, so I couldn''t see him. He had around half HP, though."


    "Okay," Yuel heard what he wanted to hear. The Viking assuredly recalled to base to heal up and purchase Sentry Wards. The almighty "ungankable" player must have deemed it too dangerous to remain on the lane with just 50% HP while he doesn''t have enough jungle vision.


    "Luke, can you rotate to Top?" Yuel asked. "I want all three of us to push the lane while the Viking is gone."


    "Sure thing," Luke finished off the Hyena Camp he was farming and joined Yuel and Vincent in Top Lane.


    In terms of raw damage, a Druid wasn''t going to help much with pushing. Even with the power items Luke built for jungling, Druid''s attacks were slow and didn''t speed up the push by much. However, when Druid used his ult, it became a completely different story.


    Luke activated Awaken the Ents, which summoned giant tree minions on the lane. They prioritized the enemy Turret above everything and smacked it hard. Their damage scaled with Luke''s, so they were more aggressive than one would normally expect thanks to the power items in his build. They were trashing the Turret pretty bad.


    The enemy Lancer rotated toward the lane to stop this hard push, but Yuel''s wards exposed him. The guy was about to walk into a big surprise.


    "Make sure you pull him outside the Turret''s range," Yuel said.


    "Sure thing," Luke gave a thumbs up. "I may be memeing but I know what I''m doing."


    Luke positioned himself near the jungle wall and waited for the Lancer to approach. As soon as the Lancer stepped within range, Luke fired Nature''s Grasp through the wall. The branches assaulted the Lancer and grabbed him toward Luke through the wall.


    [Clean hit.] Yuel nodded. Memer or not, Luke sure knew how to pilot his Druid. In fact, Luke was probably more skilled with Nature''s Grasp than Yuel will ever be. Sad, but true.


    Right as Luke finished pulling the Lancer, Yuel struck the poor guy with Justice Strike. It silenced, slowed down and lowered the Lancer''s defense. The Lancer hasn''t dealt enough damage yet to warrant a stun from justice Strike, but this nonetheless tied his hands.


    Vincent followed up on that by activating Aero Barrage, firing three wind blasts in a row. Each hit had a small knockback effect and Vincent landed them all, so the blasts pushed the Lancer far away from the Turret''s area.


    The Lancer found himself in a 1v3 situation, silenced, slowed down, and far from any safe area. It was over for him.


    Unfortunately, Vincent was the only one here who could deliver any sizeable damage. So it was up to him to wrap this up. Yuel and Luke just delivered some basic attacks on the Lancer to pretend like they were contributing to the process.


    To do this quickly, Vincent activated Pyro Trail from his Spell stance. It set his body ablaze and spread flames around him. Then, he used his ult, Paradigm Shift, to switch to Blade stance. From there, he used the skill Pyro Blade, which set his sword ablaze.


    Covered in flames from head to toe, Vincent now had the ideal Spellblade setup for close-quarters combat. He closed onto the helpless Lancer and burned the poor guy to ashes.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    Yuel and Luke made sure Vincent got the kill because, unlike them, Vincent was a damage dealer.


    "There goes one half of the Silver Duo," Vincent announced. "What a tragic finale."


    "Silver Duo?" Yuel asked.


    "Indeed. LaneVortex and LaneSnapper are two halves of a whole," Vincent explained. "You can even tell by their names. They might even be twins! Yes, that has to be the case."


    "So, you''re saying the Lancer and Sorcerer are a pair?"


    "Indeed. They haven''t impressed me as much as you and Gunz, but their cooperation is nonetheless something to behold. Therefore, they''re the Silver Duo!"


    [Interesting observation.] Yuel thought. He hasn''t seen the Lancer and Sorcerer cooperate too much this game but they did seem to synchronize some of their plays. That fact, combined with their similar names, probably led Vincent to believe there was some sort of special connection between them.


    [I''d gladly investigate that angle in more depth but the "Ungankable" comes first.] Yuel shifted his attention back to Top Lane.


    After trio killed the Lancer, they kept pushing the Turret along with Luke''s Ents.


    ¡ºAn enemy Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    They took down the tower and gained momentum but Yuel hasn''t achieved his main goal yet. He wanted to force the Viking into coming to defend the lane and then gank this "ungankable" player. However, the Viking didn''t take the bait.


    While the trio was pushing, the Viking refused to come back and defend. Instead, he went around and plucked out Yuel''s Sentry Wards. After that, he returned to defend the lane, but he did so from the Golem''s area.


    "Man, what a tower hugger," Luke shook his head. "He''s the type of dude who sees you taking his stuff and just waits until you''re done. Seriously."


    "So it seems," Yuel nodded.


    The enemy Knight traveled all the way from Bot to join the defense effort in Top. So, Yuel, Vincent, and Luke had no choice but to give up on this offense now.


    [So, this Viking rather let us push his lane than put himself in danger. Interesting.] Yuel had to come up with more advanced ways to lure that elusive Viking. It was like solving an interesting chess puzzle. The enemy piece he wanted to get was guarded by multiple lines of defense and Yuel had to find a sequence of moves that''ll break through that formation.


    To that end, Yuel continued pressuring Top. He bought more Sentry Wards to keep up the warding war and he repeatedly borrowed Luke''s help for ganking the lane. Alas, killing the Viking proved more difficult than expected.


    "I''ll grab him," Luke fired Nature''s Grasp and it was spot on... but the Viking rolled away!


    "I''ll cut him off," Yuel appeared from the other side of the jungle and hammered with Justice Strike. However, right before the attack connected, the Viking activated his ult and summoned a brigade of strong mobs.


    "This is awkward," Vincent said. The trio surrounded the Viking but they couldn''t approach him carelessly. Whoever steps into the range of these vikings will be mobbed to death.


    "I''ll tank them," Yuel ran in and aggroed all the enemies onto himself. Meanwhile, Vincent and Luke closed in on the Viking.


    However, this Viking was quite the artist. He blended with the crowd of vikings and used them as cover. As a result, Vincent''s Aero Barrage struck against the mobs instead of the intended target.


    In the end, they somehow brought the Viking down to 20% HP but the silence from Justice Strike wore off. As soon as he was free to use his skills, the Viking threw his axe as far as humanly possible and blinked to it. Yet again, the "Ungankable" escaped a gank alive.


    Nevertheless, Yuel kept trying various gank variations on this Viking. He even made sure Luke bought Blink for a Blink + Nature''s Grasp initiation.


    Luke cast Gaia''s Protection on himself and blinked into the enemy Golem''s area. He fired Nature''s Grasp at the fleeing Viking and pulled the target to the edge of the Golem''s area. Vincent finished the job from there.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    Finally, they toppled the "ungankable"! So, turned out this Viking wasn''t so "ungankable" after all.


    "You see?" Yuel said. "There''s no such thing as an ''ungankable'' player. Everybody can be ganked to death."


    "Indeed," Vincent nodded. "If you keep ganking the same player the entire game, of course you''d kill them eventually. But, what did it cost you? Everything."


    "Did it?" Just as Yuel asked, bad news popped up on the screen.


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    This was just the beginning. A flood of bad news followed...

 140 The Arbiter of Talents

    After countless failed attempts, Yuel and the team finally toppled the "ungankable" Viking and scored a kill. However, focusing this hard on ganking Top Lane had a price...


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    The enemy Ranger took Kai out. Last time Yuel checked on her, Kai was doing just fine in Bot. Alas, it seemed she overextended at some point and that was her undoing.


    And, these weren''t the only bad news. The flood kept coming.


    The enemy Sorcerer joined hands with the Lancer to chase Lars out of Mid. They nearly killed Lars but he somehow got out of the lane alive. Unfortunately, with the remainder of the team gathered near Top, Lars''s retreat from Mid left the lane completely unprotected.


    ¡ºAn allied Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    Mid Turret fell but the Sorcerer and Lancer didn''t stop there. They cooperated to maximize their wave clearing speed and pushed onward toward the Mid Golem. The Sorcerer pulled minions into one area with Dimensional Collapse and the Lancer swept through them.


    [As Vincent said, these two have solid teamwork.] Yuel nodded to himself.


    Vincent called these two the "Silver Duo" and claimed they were a pair to watch out for. In other words, long before anybody else, that clown realized the danger of the Sorcerer & Lancer duo. Yuel got this information a long time ago from Vincent but he didn''t have a chance to verify it, so he didn''t prepare any countermeasures.


    If Yuel were warier of letting these two join hands, he could''ve prevented this strong push. Alas, it was too late now. The Sorcerer and Lancer were busting their way through Mid and that put the entire game at danger.


    By the time the team regrouped to defend Mid, the enemy already pushed all the way to Mid Golem. The Sorcerer and Lancer retreated after running into the defenders but it was too early to celebrate. Instead of giving up on the offense, they rotated to Bot and joined hands with the Elf in order to push the Bot Turret.


    So, while Yuel and the rest were busy clearing Mid, the enemy invaded their territory through Bot. This was a losing position. The Sorcerer and Lancer were on a roll and there was no good way to shut them down.


    Yuel''s team still held an overwhelming advantage in Top thanks to all the pressure they''ve been applying there against the "ungankable" Viking. However, in exchange, they completely lost their positions in Mid and Bot. Eventually, the pressure from both lanes overwhelmed them.


    ¡ºDEFEAT¡»


    "My bad," Yuel apologized. "I shouldn''t have focused on their Viking so much. I even dragged Luke into it."


    "No problemo, man," Luke waved his hand. "I also wanted to challenge the almighty Ungankable. I wanted to take the guy out with my meme force but, lemme tell ya, dude was one tough nut to crack."


    "C''mon, dude," Lars pouted. "You should''ve helped me out a little over here. That Sorcerer dude sure knows how to play Mid. I''m telling ya, dude gave me a real hard time. He must have been maining the class from birth, haha."


    "Heh, got it," Luke said. "Next game, I won''t let Yuel drag me into silly stuff"


    "So, Chessmaster," Vincent smiled meaningfully. "I take it you''re satisfied with your futile struggle against the Ungankable? You may have lost the fight but you earned something of irreplaceable value."


    "Like what?" Yuel asked.


    "You have learned about my absolute accuracy as the Arbiter of Talents! If I say somebody got a special power, you better believe they do. I''m not just goofing around giving people random abilities on a whim."


    [You kinda do, though.] Yuel retorted silently. With that said, there was no denying Vincent was right on the money with both about the "Ungankable" and the "Silver Duo". Even though that clown always made noise and blew everything out of proportion, there was some value in his analysis. Perhaps, the same way Yuel had a knack for discovering the enemy''s weaknesses, Vincent had a talent for figuring the enemy''s strong points.


    [Nah, I''m probably giving him too much credit.] Yuel shook his head. [For now, I''ll listen to what he has to say about the opponents we meet so I gather statistics about the accuracy of his analyses.]


    In the next game, Vincent dubbed the enemy Chronomancer as the "Ultimate Rotator".


    "He is here! He is there! He is everywhere!" Vincent made noise. "The Ultimate Rotator always strikes the right lane at the right time! If you ever feel like gambling on the possibility that no enemy will rotate to your lane, perish that thought at once. You''ll lose your entire life in that gamble!"


    "True story, dude," Lars nodded. "That Chrono dude always comes over here at the worst timing possible. I could''ve gotten like two kills by now if not for him. Instead, I almost died twice from his ganks. Dude is wild."


    "Yeah," Luke tuned in. "He also always rotates faster than me to the interesting events. The guy is running on nitro, I''m tellin'' ya."


    ["Ultimate Rotator", was it.] Yuel wondered. On paper, there was nothing unusual about a Chronomancer being able to pop up all over the map to gank on-demand. That was one of the class''s main strengths because it could greatly boost its movement speed with Haste.


    With that said, this particular Chronomancer was indeed persistent with his rotations. Every time the team started gaining an advantage in a particular lane, the Chronomancer showed up and shut down that momentum. He truly had the worst timing imaginable.


    [Okay, let''s assume for a moment this Chrono player is really an "Ultimate Rotator".] Yuel''s body jerked in response to using that silly title. Nevertheless, he pressed on with that line of thought. It was all for science and victory.


    According to Vincent''s description, the "Ultimate Rotator" was good at rotating to the most relevant lane in a timely fashion. Then, how will that "Ultimate Rotator" deal with a scenario where two lanes were attacked simultaneously?


    "Luke, wait," Yuel called out. "Don''t gank Top yet."


    "Hm? But I''m right around the corner."


    "I know but please stay over there for a moment. I plan to gank Mid and I want to synchronize our ganks. This way, we get to pressure two lanes at the same time."


    "Oh, how brilliant!" Vincent exclaimed. "No matter how godlike are the rotating skills of the Ultimate Rotator, one man can''t possibly be in two places at the same time. Ergo, a double gank across two lanes shall break down the Ultimate Rotator!"


    "Wording aside, yes, that''s the gist of it."


    "Absolutely brilliant! As expected from Chessmaster, the man who holds the Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception! He tore apart the Ultimate Rotator like it was nothing!"


    "We haven''t even executed the play yet."


    "Oh, that''s right. My bad. I was running ahead with the script, haha."


    "Heh," Luke smirked. "This sounds like a plan so count me in! I''ll wait with my gank. Give me the sign when I should go all in."


    Yuel rotated to Mid and gave Luke the green light. The simultaneous gank began. Luke ganked the Monk in Top whereas Yuel ganked the Sage in Mid.


    The Chronomancer could only defend one of the lanes and he chose Top. So, he thwarted Luke''s gank. Meanwhile, Yuel successfully trapped the enemy Sage with Ice Wall and stunned the target with Ice Coffin. From there, Lars swiftly executed the Sage. The double gank was a success.


    [Okay, this is how we''ll attack while that Chrono is alive.] Yuel concluded. Delaying a gank on purpose had its downsides but it boosted the surprise element. Striking two lanes at exactly the same time was bound to take the enemy off-guard and hinder their decision-making.


    Even though it was assured this Chronomancer will rotate to one of the two ganked lanes, he might hesitate for a moment while making the decision. That''ll delay his arrival no matter which lane he picks and that might prove fatal.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Phew, I got him." Vincent exhaled. By the time the Chronomancer showed up on the lane, Vincent was already delivering the killing blow to the enemy Dragonborn. If the Chronomancer showed up just a few seconds earlier, he would have stopped this kill. But, apparently, the Ultimate Rotator was cracking under the pressure from the frequent double ganks.


    [We got him.] Yuel smirked. No matter what "special abilities" Vincent claimed these players had, everything boiled down to playstyle and skill. As long as Yuel knew what to look out for, he could find a way to counter it.


    As such, Vincent''s information was very useful. Everybody noticed the Chronomancer was on point with his ganks but Vincent was the only one who hammed it up as an "ultimate ability". It was silly but, if not for this grandiose setup, Yuel wouldn''t have taken enough interest in how the efficiently Chronomancer rotated.


    Of course, Yuel would have eventually caught on and figured that himself. But, thanks to Vincent''s shenanigans, Yuel began countering the Chronomancer much earlier into the game. It played a big role in making the path to victory smoother.


    "Say, Vincent," Yuel called. "Are there any other special abilities the enemy got?"


    "Oh? Oho? What''s that? Is the ever doubting Chessmaster seeking the advice of the Arbiter of Talents!?"


    "N-Not really," Yuel shifted his eyes away. "I was just wondering what else you think about this team. Even though your information is total fantasy, it''s still information."


    "You hurt my feelings. Sob." Vincent pretended to wipe a tear. "Alright, other abilities, you ask? Let me activate my third eye. By connecting my brain to the records of Akasha - all shall be revealed before me!"


    [Is it too late to regret my actions?]


    "I see, I see it!" Vincent waved an arm theatrically. "It''s faint but there''s a glimmer of potential there. You may think BacksideSniper is just your typical Ranger, but nay! He is none other than the Platinum Split-Pusher!"


    "So, you''re saying that Ranger is good at split pushing."


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    "Indeed. At nightfall, when a lane is deserted, the Platinum Split-Pusher strikes from shadows!"


    "Why is he only ''platinum''? Does it mean he''s not good enough to be ''ultimate''?"


    "Indeed. That youngling still has a long way to go before he masters the art of split-pushing. Will there come a day when his potential reaches ultimate levels? Will he terrorize the pro scene with his relentless split pushes!? Only time will tell."


    "I see," Yuel filtered out the nonsensical commentary and only focused on the meat of the analysis. Long story short, the enemy Ranger was good at split-pushing. Or, at least, he had a habit of doing that often enough to leave a lasting impression on Vincent.


    [I wonder, how did Vincent conclude this Ranger is good at split-pushing?] From what Yuel could recall, that Ranger has only split-pushed twice so far and neither occasion left any particular impressions on Yuel. It was true that the Ranger''s split-pushes were quite effective but that''s about all Yuel had to say about them. It didn''t feel like they deserved a title like "Platinum Split-Pusher".


    But, maybe the exact reasoning didn''t matter. Yuel was no stranger to drawing quick conclusions from minimal observation. Often times, his teammates were left unconvinced even after he explained his reasoning to them.


    [So, that''s how it feels to be on this side.] Yuel smiled wryly. Truly, it was difficult to force himself to act upon dubious information he couldn''t fully comprehend. Not to mention, the information came from a clown who spouted nonsense like "Ultimate Rotator" and "Platinum Split-Pusher" with a straight face.


    [Remember, this is just a test.] Yuel tried to convince himself. This wasn''t a life-and-death match he had to win no matter what. Right now, his top priority was to test Vincent''s mettle and judge who deserved to play Top for the team.


    So, all that mattered right now was whether Vincent''s read was correct. If that Ranger was truly all about split-pushing, then he should have certain habits associated with that. For example, a player like that might jump on any inviting opportunity to split-push. After all, everybody liked playing to their strengths.


    Lars was defending Bot alone in Kai''s place at the moment so this was the perfect opportunity to test Vincent''s analysis.


    "Lars, retreat into the Jungle."


    "Why, tho?"


    "I want to see how the Ranger reacts," Yuel explained. "Don''t go too far away, though. Pretend you''re rotating to Mid but stop around here." He drew a route on the mini-map.


    "Okey-dokey." Lars finished clearing the minion wave and ran into the jungle. Things were about to get interesting.


    From the Ranger''s point of view, this was most likely a rotation toward Mid. On top of that, such a rotation would leave Bot completely undefended. Therefore, this was a golden opportunity to push Bot while everybody else was busy elsewhere. So, if that Ranger was truly such an amazing split-pusher, he should take the bait.


    At the very least, the Ranger had already arrived on the lane to defend against the incoming minion wave. It wasn''t proof the Ranger will go on to push the lane but it was a start.


    "So, how long do I wait?" Lars moved in circles while waiting behind a jungle wall.


    "Depends on the Ranger," Yuel said. "If he overextended after clearing the wave, go for him."


    "Okay, sounds like a plan," Lars moved around in even faster circles. This beast was clearly hungry for some meat.


    While Lars was waiting for the Ranger''s next move, the Lancer and Sage in Mid began retreating. The Ranger must have filled them in about Lars''s "incoming rotation" to Mid so they were bracing themselves for a gank.


    [That''s a nice bonus.] Yuel nodded to himself. Forcing the enemy in Mid to retreat was going to help the team big time, regardless of how the situation with the Ranger will turn out. Unlike in the previous game, when he was too focused on toppling the "Ungankable", Yuel didn''t let himself get caught up in trivial stuff this time. Winning came first and testing Vincent was second.


    "Oh, dude is going for it!" Lars licked his lips. He sensed a tasty prey. The Ranger assumed the area was clear and pushed onward after he cleared the minion wave.


    [He took the bait.] Yuel smiled meaningfully. "Gank him as you see fit."


    "You bet I will!" Lars has completely shifted into predator mode. All that mattered to him now was to tear that Ranger apart.


    Once the Ranger approached the Turret''s area, Lars jumped out of the jungle and opened an attack with Thunderstorm. The battle ended in just a couple of seconds.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    [At this point, I can''t call Vincent a clown anymore, can I?] Yuel smiled wryly. Well, the guy sure acted like a clown but his ability to analyze enemies was serious business. To be honest, now it was hard to tell who was better at analyzing opponents: Yuel or Vincent?


    [No wonder they sent him to spy on the Leopards and StormBlitz''s scrimmage last year.] In fact, even back when Yuel first met Vincent, that clown already said a bunch of interesting things.


    For example, Vincent said Yuel had the "Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception". It sounded so dumb that Yuel immediately wrote it off on the spot. But, now that Yuel better understood what that title implied, it was kinda scary. This implied that, just by watching Yuel play in the scrimmage against the Leopards, Vincent somehow figured that Yuel was good at spotting enemy weaknesses.


    [Is that guy for real?] A shiver jolted through Yuel. It was the kind of information no observer could possibly get. Even players from the Leopards probably didn''t understand the true nature behind Yuel''s tactics. Yet, Vincent figured it out with ease.


    What other types of information did that clown have up his sleeve? This was getting interesting.


    "Say," Yuel addressed Vincent. "Are there any other weaknesses you spotted in their team?"


    "Weaknesses? That''s your field. After all, you''re the one and only heir to the Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception!"


    "Then, you got any other interesting information you''d like to share? More silly names you got in mind?"


    "Hmm, not really," Vincent shrugged. "The rest of that team feels normal. They''re decent but nothing stands out about them. Maybe they haven''t solidified their playstyle yet."


    [Weird.] Yuel thought. [I can list at least two weaknesses for each of the remaining opponents but Vincent got nothing?]


    For example, the enemy Sage had a slow reaction time. That became apparent when he and the Lancer began their retreat from Mid to dodge Lars''s "gank". The Sage was so slow with the retreat that Lars could''ve actually catch him if there was a real gank on Mid.


    On top of that, the Sage didn''t pay much attention to the camps around Mid. That made it easy to steal the Griffin Camps, which were supposed to be heavily contested by both teams for extra exp and gold. So, Yuel has been advising Luke to steal the Griffin camps every time they spawned. Thanks to that, Luke maintained the same level as the rest of the players despite being a meme Jungler with a slow camp clear.


    In addition to these faults, the Sage also seemed rather panicky. He was the type to press all the buttons when somebody launched a surprise attack on him. That has already happened twice this game and Yuel confirmed it was a recurring pattern by arranging a few more surprise ganks on Mid.


    So, there were at least three glaring flaws with the Sage. Yuel had a similar list for the rest of the enemy team, save for the Ranger who came across as a rather high ranked player. But, even though there were so many visible flaws all over the place, Vincent''s amazing analysis skills didn''t pick up any of them.


    [Did I give him too much credit?] Yuel couldn''t wrap his head around it.


    Vincent was capable enough to make observations that even escaped Yuel. And, Vincent drew conclusions that Yuel hasn''t reached yet. Yet, at the same time, Vincent failed to notice basic tendencies that even Lars figured out.


    "I''mma gank that Sage," Lars grinned. "Betcha he gonna mash buttons again. Just gotta dodge that stuff and kick his butt. Gonna be ez."


    "You do you," Yuel approved.


    Yes, even Lars noticed the Sage''s tendency to unleash the entire kit when in danger. Yet, Vincent didn''t give that tendency a name or even half a name. Why not call it something like "Panic Masher"? Anything, really. This was a mystery.


    Nevertheless, the fact remained Vincent had a good observation, even if it worked in mysterious ways. It''ll surely become an asset for the team during tournament matches so it gave Vincent a lot of points as a Top Laner compared to Ben.


    On top of that, Vincent''s skill seemed more refined than Ben''s overall. He didn''t come across as exceptionally skilled but his plays were more polished than Ben''s, probably because he was one year older.


    With all that considered, the winner was obvious. Vincent should be the one to play Top for the team after Yuel returns to his rightful spot as the Support. Of course, that''s provided the moody captain will even let him play Support after today.


    [Still radio silence, huh.] Yuel threw a glance at Kai. She was silent like a wall and her huge headphones seemed to completely isolate her from the environment. It''s like she was in an entirely different dimension.


    Playing Support for such an uncooperative Carry was a huge pain in the neck. Yuel has been doing everything in his power to set up favorable situations and reach out to her with a helping hand, but Kai just slapped it away. Yuel thought they''ll patch things up by playing together enough but Kai was stubborn.


    [Getting on the captain''s bad side is the last thing I want.] Yuel sighed. This endangered his plans of taking over Bot with Lars. If this dictator starts hating them, she might insist on locking them away from Bot for the rest of the year. Not only that, but she might even refuse to accept them into the club at all. After all, club recruitments haven''t even officially started yet; Yuel and Lars have just been freeloading here, pretending to be official members.


    [I''ll have to think up a solution by tomorrow.] Yuel nodded to himself. Hopefully, Kai will cool down after a good night''s sleep and they''ll be able to talk this out. Though, did Yuel even have the necessary communication skills to mend things? The last time he tried to be friendly with a girl... yeah.


    Nevertheless, he had to do something about this situation. He couldn''t let miscommunication drag him and Lars down. They had to fit into this new team and be accepted as the official Bot duo. To that end, being on good terms with the captain was absolutely necessary.


    So, Yuel will do something about it. He had to. He''ll talk to Kai tomorrow and sort things out. Hopefully...

 141 Kuudere?

    "What''s with the long face, dude?" Lars asked on the way home.


    "Seems like I got into a fight with Kai." Yuel said.


    "What did ya do?"


    "Nothing I''d consider offensive," Yuel shrugged. "But, she started ignoring me afterwards. Actually, she also ignored the rest of the team as well."


    "Yeah, I saw that part," Lars nodded "I tried calling her a few times to set up ganks but she didn''t even look my way. These huge headphones are srs bsns. I betcha she wouldn''t notice an explosion even if it went off right in front of her."


    "No kidding."


    "But, I thought she just wanted to listen to loud music or something. I also sometimes dial the volume up and play some hard rock to get myself pumped in shooters. Can''t hear anything else when I do that, haha."


    "Yeah, I remember you used to do that when we started playing Mancers. I always had to talk you out of it."


    "Yep, it wasn''t the brightest idea for such a team heavy game, haha. Anyway, I didn''t realize you two were fighting. You should''ve told me. I''mma patch things up in no time!"


    "Can you? Really?" Yuel narrowed his eyes. "What will you tell her?"


    "I''d be like ''Yo, my dude. This is a team game. We gotta work together and stuff!'' Something like that."


    "The straightforward approach, I see," Yuel smiled wryly. It was a primitive way to resolve things but it probably would have worked for Lars. However, not so much for Yuel. Kai would probably call him out on "lecturing" again.


    It was funny. When Lars was trying to explain something, it always came off as simple and positive. However, when Yuel tried to deliver the same message? People treated him like a pretentious lecturer. Why? Was it his tone? His face? Sigh...


    Either way, Lars''s idea didn''t quite provide Yuel with a solution. The only thing he knew for sure was that he had to confront Kai face-to-face and talk things out.


    The problem was that he didn''t quite understand the problem. Did he say something that offended Kai? Or, did she just think he was getting too bossy for a Support? If only somebody could tell him...


    "Hey, Chessmaster," Vincent caught up to them. "You forgot about me."


    "I did?" Yuel asked.


    "Yeah. I told you I''ll give you a tip or two about Kai, remember?"


    "You were serious about that?"


    "Of course I was," Vincent said.


    "Sorry, it''s hard to tell with you sometimes."


    "I get that a lot."


    [What a surprise.] Yuel thought. After all, that clown''s defining feature was spouting random nonsense 24/7. So, it was never clear when to take his words seriously and when he was messing around.


    "So," Vincent said. "What did you say to her? I missed that part."


    "I''m not sure what triggered her," Yuel said. "The last thing we talked about was my initiations and how she didn''t follow up on them. She said she only follows up on initiations that satisfy her unreasonably high standards, so I called her something like ''spoiled princess''."


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    "Oh boy," Vincent shook his head dramatically as if all hope was lost for humanity. "Yeah, that''s a no-no."


    "What part of it? I was just giving fair criticism."


    "The ''spoiled princess'' part," Vincent said. "You see, Kai doesn''t like being treated as a girl."


    "But she [is] a girl," Yuel said. [Though, I had some trouble figuring that out the first time I saw her. That cap she wears makes it difficult to tell from afar.]


    "Yeah, she''s a girl. But, she doesn''t like it when you bring up that fact. Especially, when you do so in a negative light."


    "Any reason behind it?" Yuel asked.


    "Yeah, she lowkey hates boys. And, by lowkey, I mean she gets totally upfront about it and even developed the Pheromone Buster ability that makes her play aggressively against makes."


    "Wait, she hates ''boys''?" Yuel raised an eyebrow. "As in, males in general?"


    "I''m not sure about adult men but she has a beef with boys her age," Vincent explained. "I don''t have all the details but apparently she tried to fit in with the boys before as a fellow gamer. But, these brats chased her away because she''s a girl."


    "Oh, I''ve seen that kind of thing before," Lars said. "Dudes be like that sometimes. I remember some dudes from my class who didn''t wanna play Mancers with July back in grade school. I always thought it was dumb, so I made sure to play with her even though she wasn''t that good back then."


    [Wait,] Yuel blinked. [So, back in grade school, Lars played with Julia even though he knew she had many flaws as a Support? And, he did it because other boys refused to play with her? First time I heard about it.]


    In other words, by becoming Lars''s Support, Yuel took away the only boy in their class who was willing to play with Julia. So, no wonder she hated Yuel''s guts. It was more than just taking away the closest role to Lars. By invading that private space and criticizing how Julia played, Yuel must have made her feel unwanted just like other boys did. That wasn''t his intention in the slightest. Yikes.


    "So," Vincent continued. "I hope you understand why calling her a ''princess'' was a no-no. You criticized the way she plays and that''s fine. But, then you added ''princess'' and welp..."


    "I see what you''re saying," Yuel nodded. Even though none of this was Yuel''s intention, he made it sound as if Kai''s shortcomings were somehow related to her being a girl. That idea hasn''t crossed his mind even for a moment but, considering Kai''s past experiences, it wasn''t hard to see why she might think that way.


    In other words, this wasn''t exactly Yuel''s fault but it also kinda was. Now, that he learned what rubbed Kai the wrong way, he should be able to clear things up. He just had to explain he said ''spoiled princess'' on a whim and it had nothing to do with everything he criticized about Kai''s plays. The gender of the player didn''t matter; only their skills did.


    "Welp," Vincent said. "You started off on the wrong foot but I''ll try to get in a few good words for you. Hopefully, that''ll make Kai forget about it."


    "Can you really do that?" Yuel asked. "I had the impression she doesn''t particularly like you."


    "Nah, we''re on good terms. At least, I think we are," Vincent cracked a dry laugh. "She''s just kind of a tsundere with people. Or, maybe a kuudere. Not sure which fits her more."


    "A wut?" Lars asked. "That ain''t no English, yo"


    "Yes, it isn''t," Vincent smiled like a know-it-all and turned to Yuel. "You know what I''m talking about?"


    "I''ve heard the terms before," Yuel said. "Those are names for character archetypes, I believe."


    "Yep, you''re right on the money. These are archetypes from anime."


    "The heck is an anime?" Lars asked.


    "Wha-!?" Vincent jumped. "How could you not know about it!?" He turned to Yuel. "You know what an anime is, right?"


    "Anime, animation," Yuel tried to recall via association. "Oh, I believe it''s how people call Chinese cartoons?"


    "WRONG!" Vincent thundered. "I mean, you''re close but also TOTALLY WRONG. It''s Japanese and it''s way more than just a cartoon!"


    "How so? It got some live action mixed in?"


    "No, no, no," Vincent crossed his arms it into a big X. "They''re leagues and bounds above your average cartoon! Just drawing a comparison between these two is blasphemy!"


    "Wow, dude," Lars laughed. "You sound kinda obsessed with that stuff,"


    "Of course I am! It''s the best thing ever! The most superior form of art that was handed to humanity by god itself! And, of course, said god was probably little girl."


    "Wut. Why, tho?"


    "Because anime."


    "Haha, I don''t get it but sounds like a meme."


    "Anime is all the rage nowadays," Vincent claimed. "You fellows are totally missing out. Actually, I bet you even watched some without knowing. Like, One Peace."


    "Oh, yeah!" Lars exclaimed. "I watch that one sometimes. Shit is hype as heck! Didn''t know it was one of these ''anime'' things. I get whatcha saying now. It''s a pretty damn solid cartoon."


    "IT''S. NOT. A CARTOON." Vincent insisted.


    "Objectively speaking," Yuel said. "It''s a cartoon that''s made in another country."


    "Yes but no. It''s a superior form of art! The ultimate entertainment!"


    "From what little I''ve seen, it''s mostly about some teens yelling nonsense,"


    "You''ve probably seen shonen then," Vincent nodded with understanding. "It''s a genre that works way better for someone like Lars. You''ll probably like something more tactical or philosophical. Here, I''ll make you a list: Kill Note, Code Guess, and Psycho Licence. Go watch all of those."


    "If I feel like it."


    "DO IT."


    "How did we even start talking about any of this, again?" Yuel asked. "I thought we were talking about Kai."


    "Oh, right," Vincent finally stopped his fanboyism.


    [Is it even physically possible to not get on a tangent while talking to this guy?] Yuel sighed.


    "So, as I was saying," Vincent continued. "Kai is kind of a kuudere. In short, it''s an anime character that acts distant toward people but, deep down, actually cares about them."


    "So, you''re saying Kai ''not liking you'' is just a front? And, that you''re actually good buddies?"


    "Yep, exactly!"


    "I think this guy is in denial," Yuel whispered to Lars.


    "I know, right? Haha." Lars nodded.


    "Laugh all you want," Vincent shook his head in disappointment. "You ignorant plebs simply don''t understand the deep and sophisticated culture of dere types."


    "I''m sure," Yuel rolled his eyes.


    "Remind me why I''m even bothering to help you?" Vincent made a face. "Maybe I should just stay out of this and let you use your Lv.1 Communication skill to resolve the problem with Kai."


    "Sorry, my bad. Please help me out." Yuel hated to admit but he felt he won''t be able to resolve this problem by own. His countless failures with Julia taught him a harsh lesson. His Communication skill was indeed at Lv.1. Or, maybe even worse.


    "Alrighty," Vincent said. "I''ll appease her as much as I can but you still have to talk to her face-to-face. Don''t expect me to do miracles here."


    "Of course," Yuel nodded. Naturally, he would have liked if the problem just resolved itself on its own. Unfortunately, things didn''t work that way in life. No matter how much Vincent will help to improve the situation, Yuel will ultimately have to sort things out himself. What a pain...


    "Alright then," Vincent saluted. "I''ll go catch Kai, See you tomorrow, fellow warriors of Valhalla." He vanished around the corner.


    [It''s amazing he can say these things with a straight face as if it''s totally normal.] Yuel shook his head.


    "Hey, Kai!" Vincent called out while panting. "Wait a sec... Oh, she''s in her Soundproof Reality Marble again."


    Kai was wearing her big black headphones over her black cap. These magical headphones were imbued with Anti-Sound materia to reject the rest of the world. Such was the power of the Soundproof Reality Marble! It had the power to overwrite the sounds of the world and turn them mute! It was an EX rank Noble Phantasm!


    "Hey!" Vincent tapped on Kai''s shoulder. Kai jumped a little and turned around.


    "You okay?" Kai took down her headphones.


    "Y-Yeah, perfectly fine, h-haha..." Vincent panted hard. He had to dash hard after Kai to catch her before she leaves school. It was a real struggle. He had to jog for a straight minute to get here. It was like 60 seconds of jogging! In fact, it was 60, 000 milliseconds! 60,000! It''s like he performed an Olympic feat!


    "Are you done dying over there?"


    "Hey, don''t kill me off like that!" Vincent''s breathing stabilized for the most part but this was a traumatic near-death experience he''ll carry with him for the rest of his life. Physical exercise was scary.


    "Okay, I''m good now," Vincent raised his back. "I''ve returned from the dead!"


    "How unfortunate."


    "Rude, haha. I see somebody is full of venom today. Are you still in a bad mood because of Yuel?"


    "I was never in a bad mood," Kai turned away. "I just didn''t feel like interacting with that guy anymore, that''s all."


    "I heard what he called you," Vincent said. "I kind of get why you were angry at him."


    "I wasn''t angry. I just felt like he wasn''t worth my time. He has been lecturing me the whole time and then insulted me. So, didn''t feel like interacting with him anymore."


    "In other words, you were angry."


    "I wasn''t angry."


    "You totally were, though."


    "I wasn''t. But, you''re sure making me angry now."


    "Good, good. Let the anger flow through you."


    "Did you come here to make fun of me?" Kai brought up her soundproof headphones.


    "Alright, alright," Vincent said. "I just wanted to clear some things up regarding Yuel. He didn''t mean to insult you."


    "Oh, really? Because ''spoiled princess'' is quite an obvious insult if you ask me."


    "Yeah, he sure didn''t mean anything good by it. But, he wasn''t trying to imply anything about you being a girl."


    "Really," Kai narrowed her eyes. "He criticized every play I made, he argued with me about everything, and, at the end there, he called me a ''spoiled princess''. Pretty sure he was trying to imply I''m just SO terrible at the game because I''m a girl."


    "No, no, no," Vincent waved his arms. "That wasn''t his intention at all. I just talked to him about it."


    "What, are you his lawyer or something?"


    "Haha, something like that," Vincent chuckled. "Call me Vincent Wright, Ace Attorney."


    "More like, Ace Busybody."


    "Heh. Anyway, you just gotta trust me on this one. Yuel didn''t mean to imply anything about your gender when he said what he did."


    "If you say so," Kai shrugged.


    "Oh? You sound oddly agreeable," Vincent smiled meaningfully. "Have you already figured it yourself from playing with him?"


    "Sort of," Kai shifted her eyes away. Truth to be told, much of her irritation regarding Yuel died out as they continued playing. Because, no matter how Yuel viewed Kai as a player, he never stopped trying to cooperate with her as her Support.


    Every time Kai went on the offensive, Yuel followed up to the best of his ability with CC and bodyblocking. Every time Kai was in danger, Yuel didn''t hesitate to stand in the enemy''s way and take all the damage upon himself even if it meant dying. It was almost noble.


    So, despite how insulting his words came across, his attitude was a world apart from the boys who used to make fun of Kai. Once these bastards started going, they blamed everything on her and refused to cooperate. They rather leave Kai to die every time instead of taking any hits for her even though she was the Carry.


    Their message was clear: "This girl sucks at the game so I won''t put myself in danger for her. She better just get rekt." They made it crystal clear they didn''t want her around, both inside and outside the game. Even when she joined this club, the first year was rough because the seniors treated her like the worst player in the world.


    But, Yuel was different. Despite how much he criticized Kai''s conduct and even after he called her "spoiled princess", he kept on trying to get something done in Bot Lane together with her.


    It was the first time Kai met a boy like him. At some point, she started feeling bad about ignoring him. But, it was awkward to change her stance all of a sudden after giving him the cold shoulder for so long, so she kept her soundproof headphones on. She was waiting for that inevitable moment when Yuel gives up on her and starts treating her like a lowly useless player. But, it never happened and Kai ended up looking like a stubborn fool.


    "Yuel is just straightforward like that," Vincent explained. "He wants to win. It doesn''t matter whether his teammates are boys, girls or aliens. Yuel remains focused on the end goal and utilizes his team the best he can. Truly, he is a Chessmaster."


    "You''re saying we''re like chess pieces to him?"


    "I wouldn''t go that far. But, when it comes to matches, he definitely cares the most about his teammates'' skill so he''s not the type to dismiss anybody based on gender. If you''re good, you''re good. If not, he''s going tell you that straight in your face. Dude just doesn''t care. He wants to win and, if his teammates make mistakes, he''ll call them out on it."


    "Well, he could be a little nicer about it," Kai said. "People are going to think he''s hostile."


    "Yeah, he''d definitely benefit from a lesson or two at subtlety. I bet he got into many similar fights for being too blunt."


    "I wouldn''t be surprised."


    "So, are we good now?" Vincent asked.


    "Yeah, I''ll just assume his remark wasn''t meant to write me off as a player based on gender. Still find that hard to believe, though."


    "Can''t blame you after everything that happened at the club."


    "The seniors back then were the worst scum on earth."


    "Well, I wouldn''t go [that] far. But true, they had a few undesirable traits in their attitude."


    "What a complicated way to say they were uncompetitive and selfish sacks of shit."


    "Wow, wow, that''s harsh," Vincent said. "They weren''t that terrible."


    "They were the worst this world ever had."


    [I see somebody is still holding a grudge.] Vincent smiled wryly. Most likely, it''s this club that solidified Kai''s hatred toward boys. She had to bear through some unpleasant experiences here, both before entering the club and during her first year.


    Thankfully, it seemed Kai was willing to give Yuel another chance. Since Vincent tipped Yuel about Kai''s past, they should be able to sort things out from there. Hopefully. Either way, Vincent did everything he could for these two.


    "You two better talk it out face-to-face," Vincent said.


    "Right," Kai glanced aside. She was obviously thrilled about it.


    [I bet she feels awkward after ignoring him like this.] Vincent smiled meaningfully. There was a good chance Kai developed some level of respect toward Yuel''s dedication to the Carry and to victory. Despite their little feud, Yuel kept on playing his best while Kai went full radio silence mode. She must have realized it was childish of her.


    With this, the quarrel between Kai and Yuel has been resolved. At least, almost resolved. These two still had to talk it out and there were no guarantees how well that''d go. They both had a Communication skill of Lv.1 at best.


    Still, Vincent has done everything he could so he was satisfied. Once Kai and Yuel sort out their misunderstanding, the team will grow ever stronger. With Kai''s Rhythm Reader and the strength of the Golden Duo on the team, Stratus might actually make history this year and pass the first round of the regionals! Nay, they might win the entire thing! Maybe even take the nationals! The time of Ragnarok was nigh!

 142 Troublesome Pair

    A day has passed since Yuel and Kai had their little feud. Yuel had more than enough time to reflect on his words. After learning a little about Kai''s past from Vincent, it was clear where Yuel went wrong.


    [Question is, did I use that specific phrase on purpose?] Yuel smiled awkwardly. He couldn''t say for sure what was his thought process at the time.


    Most likely, he had a rough idea that Kai will hate being called a "spoiled princess" so he chose jab at her with that. Kai was acting extremely stubborn and selfish at the time so he wanted to pay her back for all the trouble she was giving him. Therefore, of all things to say, he naturally picked the one he felt would hit her at least a little. He didn''t even actively think about it. It came naturally.


    [Is that what Vincent calls the Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception?] Yuel sighed. Apparently, he was a natural at rubbing people the wrong way. That was probably why he never managed to get on good terms with Julia. Sigh.


    Either way, he should just apologize to Kai and get this over with. Intentional or not, Yuel said something he shouldn''t have and learned his lesson.


    It was best to sort things out before club activity. Therefore, Yuel called Kai for a talk during lunch break.


    "Alright," Kai left her chair without any objections and without asking anything. It almost felt like she was prepared for this.


    [Is this a good sign or a bad one?] Yuel knotted his brows.


    Kai showed him to an isolated area in the school''s backyard. It was a good place to hold that kind of conversation without any prying eyes.


    "I''m sorry about yesterday," Yuel said. "I didn''t mean to imply anything special by what I called you yesterday. It was just me expressing my dissatisfaction with some aspects of your playstyle. Aside from these few specific things, I do think you''re a solid player overall."


    "It''s alright," Kai glanced away. "I figured later you probably didn''t mean to say I''m bad because I''m a girl."


    "Players can be good or bad regardless of gender," Yuel stated. "All that matters is how they perform."


    "Fair enough."


    "Then, we''re good?"


    "Sure," Kai said. "But, you''re still going to insist that Lars is better than me and should be the Carry, right?"


    "......" Yuel frowned. It felt like he was about to step on a mine. "... yes, I still hold that opinion. Not because he''s a boy or anything. I just believe he''s better suited for being a Carry. On the other hand, you fit Mid like a glove."


    "But, I''m going to continue playing Carry," Kai stated matter-of-factly.


    [For now.] Yuel retorted in his mind. Once the team faces strong opponents and hits a wall, Kai will surely agree that Lars should be the one to carry the team.


    "Do you want to play Support for me?" Kai asked.


    "Eh?" Yuel blinked for a moment. "Come again?"


    "Are you deaf or something?" Kai awkwardly shifted her eyes away. "I asked if you want to play Support with me as the Carry. I''ll be honest, I don''t care for your bossy attitude. But, you''re good at what you''re doing."


    At first, Kai thought Vincent was clowning as usual when he was raving about Yuel and Lars. However, after playing with Yuel as a duo, it became clear where Vincent was coming from.


    Yuel had a level of dedication to his craft the likes of which Kai has never seen before. Not to insult or anything, but Vincent couldn''t play Support on such a high level. In fact, none of the other Supports she ever played with even came close to the level at Yuel organized plays. It''s like he saw the game as a chessboard and aligned the pieces just right to gain the upper hand.


    On top of that, Yuel had a firm and selfless belief in his role as the Support. He valued the Carry above everything and thought of himself as a resource the Carry should rely on during the early-game. It was an odd way to think about your own role but Kai grew to appreciate it over time.


    There was something pure about the way Yuel handled the Support role. It''s like he was willing to become a cog in the system for the sake of victory. He wasn''t thinking much about scoring kills himself or looking good. For him, the fun was when everything went according to plan and he won.


    It was a mindset befitting a professional player. With a Support like him, Kai will surely be able to perform well as a Carry. It''ll take some work to improve their teamwork but, after that, they''d be ready to take on any Bot duo from the region.


    That''s why Kai absolutely wanted Yuel to become her Support. However...


    "I don''t think that''s a good idea" Yuel answered. "If you continue playing Carry, then it''s probably better for me to be the Top Laner."


    "So, you really think I''m that bad, huh." Kai''s grimaced.


    "Uh, no. I mean..." [Why do I have a feeling I said something unnecessary?] Yuel gulped. Was he going to cause new drama between them? He came here to apologize, yet here he was adding new more fuel to the fire. [GG, me. 10/10.]


    "I meant that, as far as tournament matches are concerned, it''s better for me to be in Top than to support you. Our teamwork is far from ideal, so I believe I''ll be able to get more mileage out of Top Lane But, I can play Support for you during practice from time to time if you wish. Who knows, maybe we''ll eventually be able to establish solid teamwork that''ll let us become competitive pair." Yuel spoke nonstop. Was any of this convincing enough? Did he dodge the bullet? His tongue danced madly as if trying to run away from disaster.


    "Is that so," Kai nodded lightly. "You''re always thinking about the competitive scene, aren''t you?"


    "That''s where we''ll be tested. The rest is just preparation for that stage."


    "Right," Kai agreed. "So, you''re saying nothing is set in stone. If we learn how to bear with each other in lane, you''ll play Support competitively with me?"


    "Possibly," Yuel chuckled. ["Bear with each other", huh. It seems she understands how difficult it''s going to be for us to cooperate on a competitive level.]


    "Very well," Kai concluded. "I''ll try adjusting my playstyle to your satisfaction, you slave driver."


    "I''m not a villain you have to appease. You don''t have to change anything. As I said, your self-sufficient playstyle suits Mid like a glove."


    "But, I''ll keep playing Carry."


    "Is there a reason you''re so hellbent on that role?"


    "I..." Kai chewed her lips and glanced away. "That''s just the role I want to play the most. What, is that a problem?" Girls can''t play Carry or something?


    "Nah, that''s silly talk. Gender got nothing to do with actual skill. You''re either good or you''re not," Yuel said. [Though, her answer didn''t sound sincere. I better ask Vincent if there''s a deeper reason behind her unbending insistence to play Carry. I just can''t see it as her forte.]


    "So yeah, I''ll keep playing Carry," Kai stated again. "And, I''ll become a Carry that passes your impossible exam."


    For Kai, this was a rare opportunity to improve. Yuel was a Challenger level player in both rank and skill. He wasn''t just one of those lifeless fellows who get their high rank by grinding 50 hours a day. He actually had the skill to back up his rank. His game knowledge, decision-making, and execution were all flawless as far as Kai could tell.


    Therefore, by playing alongside such a strong player, Kai will surely improve as well. Everything Yuel criticized about her self-sufficiency was harsh but also true. She had a habit of only trusting her own skill and doubting everybody else''s.


    After all, it was hard to trust others to do their job without messing shit up. She got burned from that so many times before. There were just so many terrible players online that it gave her a headache. After playing with so many idiots, it was hard to fully trust her teammates even when they were club members.


    Vincent used to call her out on this in the past. But, one day, she got salty from losing a match and lashed at him for nagging. Ever since, Vincent piped down and never brought it up again.


    But, Yuel didn''t back down. He kept nagging and nagging and nagging like it was a fun pastime for him. He wasn''t afraid of criticizing her even after getting into so many arguments with her. When it came to Classmancers, Yuel was the serious competitive type who wouldn''t compromise on anything.


    Therefore, playing alongside a nagging player like that should help Kai develop as a player. Vincent was an alright Support, but he won''t call her out on her selfish plays anymore. But, Yuel will. He''ll criticize her, maybe even borderline insult her, until she fixes her flaws. That''s the kind of hash military regime she needed.


    [Look at me being selfish like this.] Kai smiled wryly. In order to overcome her self-centered playstyle, she was acting selfishly and asking Yuel to play Support for her. The irony.


    With that, their small quarrel has officially resolved. They both understood that they''ll most likely bump heads ahead a few times in the future, but they were now clearly aware of that and should be able to resolve their problems on their own. There will no longer be any need for a middleman like Vincent. Hopefully.


    The school day ended and it was another day of club activity. This was the fifth day in a row that they gathered together to play. It made the club seem even more serious than StormBlitz''s training regime, but in truth, it''s just that the club hasn''t decided on its schedule yet. Even though Yuel would have liked the club to practice five days, even six days, a week, he had to respect the capacity of the other club members. So, a full week of club activity was unlikely.


    In fact, already today, two club members were amiss.


    "Luke said he''s not coming today," Vincent notified. "He said he had plans with his pals today."


    "What about Ben?" Yuel asked.


    "He... also had plans with his friends, it seems," Vincent averted his eyes. "He messaged me that he might miss today''s meeting but we''ll see."


    So, it was only Yuel, Lars, Kai, and Vincent here today. They didn''t even have enough members to form a full team. That''s how small this club was. With just two members amiss, they couldn''t even do real team practice. This was a joke.


    [I don''t know how the school expects this team to win anything in tournaments with such a small number of members.] Yuel shook his head.


    To make things worse, the school cut down the member limit by two this year. The club was only allowed to have up to seven members, so they were only allowed to recruit one more freshman this year. It was terrible.


    Thinking of it, they haven''t yet decided how they were going to handle the recruitment. Since they didn''t have enough members to practice with a full team anyway, they might as well sort this out.


    "Say, Kai," Yuel started. "Club recruitments start next week, so I was wondering how we''re going to do it."


    "It''s gonna be pretty straightforward," Kai pulled out some papers. "We''ll pass these application forms and then pick the highest rank players among them. You two actually gotta fill them too, for the protocol."


    "Oh, man," Lars held his head. "Why do I gotta fill in stuff? I bet I''m gonna get a failing mark."


    "It''s not an exam, you know," Kai pointed out.


    "You underestimate my power!"


    "You really do," Yuel nodded. "This specimen over here hasn''t gotten a single passing mark in his entire life." [That''ll start changing this year, though. I''ll make sure to work him to the bone in preparation to Ivy Hugh''s entrance exam.]


    "So, Yuel," Lars shoved the paper in Yuel''s face. "You fill it for me!"


    "I''m sure it''s easy enough even you can fill it," Yuel took the paper to check it out. As expected, the form was very basic. It required the student''s name, gender, rank, player ID and had some space to write why they wanted to join. There was also a multiple-choice question about how long they''ve been playing.


    All in all, basic and straightforward. That was both a good thing and a bad thing. It made the selection process easier for everybody but it didn''t give the examiners much data to work with. It was a far cry from the StormBlitz''s over-the-top entrance exam, but that one was silly in its own right.


    "So," Yuel started. "We''re just going to pick the highest-ranked player based on what they filled in?"


    "That''s the plan," Vincent said. "Of course, we''re also going to verify they really got the ranks they claim to have."


    "So, that''s what the player ID is for."


    "Yeah, exactly. As expected from Chessmaster! With your mystic eyes, you accessed the records Akasha and unveiled the hidden truth behind the player ID field!"


    [I literally just put one and one together.] Yuel ignored the clown and went over the form again. It was simple but also a tad lazy.


    For example, it failed to explain how to acquire the player ID. It sounded trivial but Yuel knew at least one goof who had no idea where to find the player ID back when they were applying to StormBlitz. However, StormBlitz''s registration form had a short explanation so even Lars could figure it out on his own.


    "Can we still edit this flier?" Yuel asked.


    "Yeah, we gotta submit it for approval on Monday," Vincent said. "I was planning to spice it up a little before then. I mean, it looks kinda basic, right? We should make it flashy and cool! Check out this design!" He brought up his tablet to show some... peculiar things.


    There was a dark blue background with a shining red eye in the center. It looked like a recruitment poster for a cult. It was only missing a headline like "Come worship Satan!".


    "So, what do you think?" Vincent shoved the tablet into Yuel''s face. "Neat, right? I worked on it for hours in Photoshop."


    "That''s a lot of hours wasted," Yuel said.


    "Oh, c''mon. It''s awesome! The coolest stuff you''ve ever seen in your entire life!" Vincent insisted and turned the tablet to the others. "You all agree, right? It''s the best design ever! Can also be used for a poster, too."


    "Um," Kai shifted her eyes away. "I don''t know about that."


    "Nah, it sucks, dude," Lars grabbed the tablet. "It''s missing guns in it! Ya gotta draw it like this!"


    Lars scribbled some stuff on the screen with his finger.


    "Here ya go," Lars showed off his masterpiece. "Now it looks sick!"


    Now, in addition to the big red eye in the center, there were also stickman arms coming out of the background. Each hand had a different type of gun. From what little Yuel could understand about this Picasso style drawing, there was a handgun, a shotgun, and a bazooka.


    "This is...." Vincent lowered his head and trembled as he examined the image. He must have felt like his masterpiece was violated.


    "This is... great!" Vincent exploded. "I like it! A bunch of mysterious arms coming out of the shadows holding guns! It''s like some cross-dimensional monster is invading our world and he comes equipped with guns!"


    "Yeah, exactly!" Lars tuned in. "This Big Eye Dude is coming and we gotta 1v1 him to save Earth!"


    [What does any of that have to do with Classmancers?] Yuel rubbed his temples. This duo of goof and clown will be the end of him.


    "We don''t need that kind of silly stuff," Yuel argued. "It''s just a registration form. It should be easy on the eyes and straight to the point. Where did you even plan to place the text with that background?"


    "Oh, right," Vincent rotated the tablet from side to side. "Hm, yeah. I didn''t really think about that, haha."


    "GG," Yuel rolled his eyes. "You only didn''t think about the most important aspect of what an application form should be. 10/10."


    "Oopsie," Vincent scratched his head. "But, it''s okay. I''ll figure something out by Monday."


    "How about you just pick a basic background and call it a day?" Yuel glanced at Kai. She was the captain so she had the final say.


    "Yeah, I agree," Kai got the message. "I didn''t think this idiot was serious at first. This whole thing is hella dumb, to be honest."


    "Nani!?" Vincent jumped. "You thought I spent so much sweat and blood in Photoshop just to create something I wasn''t planning to use!?"


    "Yeah, I guess."


    "Wha..." Vincent''s jaw dropped and forgot how to rise up.


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    "I mean, you always get excited over stupid stuff and drop them after you had your share of fun. Nothing new."


    "Definitely looks like the type to me," Yuel nodded.


    "Wait, you two are double-teaming me!?" Vincent staggered backward as if an invisible blow hit him. "When did you two become so buddy-buddy?"


    "Never." "We didn''t."


    "Look, you''re even synchronized and everything!" Vincent made noise. "It''s hard to believe you had a fight just the other day."


    "We didn''t have a fight," Kai objected. "But, I guess this is all thanks to a certain busybody who stuck his nose in our business."


    "Exactly," Yuel followed up. "Now, you got two people with common sense teaming against your atrocious art. How does it feel?"


    "Feels like I dug my own grave," Vincent chuckled. "Alright, alright. Let''s just pick something simple and boring because that''s more practical and formal and everything. Damn party poppers."


    "Honestly," Yuel said. "The design is the last thing I care about. There are more important things this form is missing."


    Yuel smiled wryly as he looked at basic flier again. It was a world apart from the intense preparation required for StormBlitz''s entrance exam. It was almost laughable.


    But, for such a small club, selecting new members by rank was as valid of an approach as any. All Yuel could do to improve the procedure was to iron out this registration form. He already had some upgrades in mind since he discussed some topics with Howard before.


    So, even though Yuel abandoned his responsibilities in StormBlitz and wasn''t going to take a part in the entrance exam prepared for, he''ll at least use that experience to upgrade Stratus''s selection procedure.

 143 The Reserved Spo

    After everybody shot down Vincent''s absurd design ideas for the club''s registration form, Yuel carefully examined the flier from start to end to reveal all its flaws.


    \"Rather than the design,\" Yuel said. \"The fields are a little lacking. For example, there''s no field asking for the player''s main role.\"


    \"True,\" Vincent admitted. \"The captain from last year said he wanted to keep the form as simple as possible because there are lazy bums who give up on the spot if they see a long questionnaire.\"


    \"Oh, I know the feel!\" Lars nodded repeatedly. \"Totally gives ya that exam PTSD, doesn''t it? Ya see all these questions and you''re like ''Daim, I didn''t know there''s a quiz exam today!''\"


    \"But, that wouldn''t make you give up on registering to a Mancers club, would it?\" Yuel asked.


    \"Nah, no chance. I''d even write an essay if I had to! Ain''t gonna give up on Mancers like that, yo.\"


    \"Right, that''s what I wanted to hear,\" Yuel nodded. \"So, the people who give up on the club just because the form is a little long aren''t worth our time. May as well give up on them.\"


    \"Harsh,\" Vincent nodded with a sense of respect. \"Though, I can''t help but wonder. Why do you want to know their main roles? We''re going to pick the best player by rank anyway.\"


    \"The more data, the better,\" Yuel explained. \"Knowing the main roles of the candidates will help us make more educated decisions. For example, if there are two players with close ranks, we can prioritize one of them based on the main roles they play. Say, Mid and Jungler are the more desirable roles for the club at the moment. We got enough people who can play other roles.\"


    \"Oh! I see, I see,\" Vincent nodded. \"Knowing what they''re maining will help you pick the optimal tools for the team. As expected from the Chessmaster! Always thinking practically.\"


    \"Sure,\" Yuel shrugged. \"Another thing that''s missing is an explanation for how to retrieve the player ID from the game.\"


    \"Isn''t that something anybody with half a brain would know?\" Kai raised an eyebrow and threw a glance at the others.


    \"I''d think so,\" Vincent agreed.


    \"Yeah,\" Lars nodded. \"Even I know how to do that stuff.\"


    \"Oh, you sure do,\" Yuel nodded. \"But, when did you learn it, again?\"


    \"Hm?\" Lars cocked his head. \"Dunno, I probably knew all along. Yeah, I was born with that knowledge! The first word I said as a baby was my player ID, yo!\"


    \"Yeah, right. You actually didn''t know how to get it until you had to fill it for our entrance exam\"


    \"Seriously?\"


    \"Yeah, seriously. You even asked me for some help because you somehow went into the wrong menu at first.\"


    \"Did I? Don''t remember for the life of me.\"


    \"Of course you don''t,\" Yuel sighed. \"Anyway, it''s better to add a brief explanation on the form. Something small that explains how to navigate to the profile screen and where you can find the ID on it. It''ll save us a lot of trouble. You don''t want every other candidate to ask you how to retrieve it.\"


    \"Sounds good,\" Kai said. \"Now that you mention it, I think there was a freshman last year who came to me and asked what''s their player ID was.\"


    \"Oh, I remember that! It was pure gold!\" Vincent burst into laughter. \"She gave that poor kid a look that''s like ''Are you dumb or something?'' and he ran away. The poor kid got scared for his life. Kai is such a bully.\"


    \"I-I didn''t mean it like that,\" Kai turned away. Her white cheeks turned reddish. \"It''s supposed to be common knowledge, okay? Not my fault he was asking dumb questions.\"


    \"Maybe that boy was destined to become one of the best players in the world but you scared him away. Maybe you even ruined his entire Mancers career! He was going to be next Maker!\"


    \"Yeah, yeah. I''m sorry. Sue me, okay?\" Kai grumped. \"Maybe retrieving the player ID isn''t that obvious to everybody.\"


    \"The more you know...\"


    \"Anyway,\" Kai killed this stupid topic. \"I agree with Yuel''s suggestion. Let''s add something about how to get the player ID. It should lower the number of people who come asking stupid questions.\"


    \"Which is great,\" Vincent snickered. \"This way, you won''t scare anybody away.\"


    \"Would you drop it already!?\" Kai hissed. \"Besides, it''s not like there are going to be that many real candidates this time.\"


    \"Why is that?\" Yuel asked. \"Something is different this year?\"


    \"Everything is different,\" Kai answered. \"The school cut down the number of students we can recruit to three and we already got ourselves two transfer students who are Challenger rank. That leaves only one spot open.\"


    \"So, what of it? That doesn''t mean we have to do any less work.\"


    \"It does, actually,\" Kai claimed.


    \"How so? We still have to go over all the applications, right?\"


    \"No, only the applications by girls.\"


    \"Huh?\" Yuel blinked. \"What gives?\"


    \"Because, the last spot is reserved to a female player,\" Kai explained. \"You took the two spots for males, so the last one will be a female.\"


    \"Wait, I thought you were selected based on rank?\" Yuel raised an eyebrow.


    \"Yeah, based on rank within each gender group.\"


    \"Huh,\" Yuel crossed his arms. \"Is that how you''ve always been doing things here?\"


    \"No, that''s how [I] chose to do,\" Kai stated. \"I believe that''s the fairest way.\"


    \"I''ll to disagree with you on that,\" Yuel said. \"Why does gender matter? We should take the best players we can get our hands on. I''d even say that picking players solely by rank is lazy as well. We should test each and every one of them personally.\"


    \"That''s asking for a lot from such a small club,\" Kai said.


    \"Yes, I agree,\" Yuel nodded. \"That''s why I didn''t push that idea. But, if we''re not going to hold a proper entrance exam, we should at least be effective at picking the ''best players''. Their rank matters but their gender doesn''t.\"


    \"Sure, that''s probably the safest way to raise the club''s level,\" Kai nodded. \"But, it''s not fair. The available spots should be divided by gender. Otherwise, girls will never make it in.\"


    \"Well, you made it in, right? Because you''re a good player, not because you''re a girl.\"


    \"Oh, yeah. I made it in,\" Kai sneered. \"But, you want a funny story? The seniors of that year only allowed boys to apply. They were trying to keep it as a boys-only club.\"


    \"That''s dumb,\" Yuel said. \"Then, how did you make it in?\"


    \"I couldn''t let it stand and applied anyway. They couldn''t guess I was a girl from my name, so they let me pass because I was Gold II back then. By the time they learned the truth, it was too late and the school didn''t let them change anything.\"


    \"Wow, dude,\" Lars nodded repeatedly. \"Ya showed ''em derps who''s da real boss! You''re even the captain now and everything!\"


    \"Thanks,\" Kai glanced away with a wry smile. Apparently, she wasn''t telling this story to boast or anything. This must have been the objective truth of how things went down.


    \"Yeah, it''s all true,\" Vincent answered Yuel''s questioning eyes. \"Kai snuck into the club like it was Mission Impossible.\"


    \"That''s really impressive,\" Yuel had to agree. The girl wanted to play Classmancers so much she pretended to be a boy to break through the discriminating rules. It was a respectable dedication.


    [Is that the \"harsh experience\" Vincent was alluding to regarding Kai and boys?] Yuel wondered. [It''s sure nasty. Wouldn''t be surprised if I developed gender bias too after something like this. But, sorry to say this, but it still doesn''t give any legitimation to her new policy.]


    \"I understand that previous captains made asinine rules for the selection process,\" Yuel said. \"But, it should be enough to just get rid of that filter. We''ll open our sign-ups for both boys and girls. That should do it.\"


    \"No, it''s not enough,\" Kai insisted. \"Even if girls are given a chance, most of them won''t be able to compete with the boys in terms of rank. There aren''t many girls our age playing Mancers and the boys often don''t want to play with them, so girls don''t get to progress as much in Ranked even if they''re dedicated players.\"


    \"That''s...\" Yuel didn''t know what to say to this. From his experience, boys didn''t have any problem playing with girls. He and Lars treated Julia seriously like a fellow player and she progressed far in Ranked together with them.


    However, then there was Lars''s story about how many boys in grade school didn''t want to play with Julia because she was a girl. On top of that, Taison and Gregory often made fun of her simply for the fact she was a girl. These two were scumbags in general and acted hostile toward everybody, but it felt like they ridiculed Julia more than anybody else.


    So, perhaps Kai had a point. Even if girls were given a fair chance to apply to the club, they had a huge disadvantage compared to boys. They had a lower rank, less experience and probably overall less exposure to Classmancers. Therefore, no matter what criteria the examiners were to use, most girls would fall short by default.


    Interestingly, StormBlitz''s entrance exam didn''t take any of this into account. Was it an oversight or a deliberate choice? Considering how seriously StormBlitz valued competition, there''s a good chance the people who came up with the entrance exam deliberately chose to prioritize the most promising candidates instead of pushing for more gender equality.


    Honestly, Yuel shared the same sentiment. For clubs with such a restricted number of allowed members, it was absolutely necessary to recruit the best candidates possible for winning tournaments. As harsh as it sounded, these clubs didn''t have the luxury to pull inferior players to the competitive level. They had to prioritize the candidates who either knew how to play or exhibited great potential.


    But, it''s not like Kai''s idea was entirely unreasonable. She claimed that girls had an early disadvantage when it came to Classmancers and that gatekept them from joining. However, if they [did] manage to join, these girls could perhaps become amazing players.


    By now, Yuel has met a number of strong female players: Julia, Ellen, Ignis, ComboBreaker and even Kai herself was a solid player. Was it possible some of them only made it this far because somebody played favorites for them? It was hard to imagine but it might be the case.


    In fact, Yuel once heard a peculiar rumor. Apparently, Ellen strongly pushed for Julia to be accepted into StormBlitz. It seemed there was another promising candidate who competed with Julia for the last spot and most of the club favored him, but Ellen used her usual manipulative shticks to get the club under her thumb. Supposedly, thanks to that, Julia was accepted into the club over that other guy.


    There was no telling how much truth there was in this tale, but it sounded plausible when a fox like Ellen was involved. Back then, Julia had plenty of flaws in her playstyle, so it won''t be surprised if another candidate was better than her at the time.


    Nevertheless, Julia was the one who ultimately got into the club and she flourished there She developed immensely throughout the past year and even got all the way to the first-string. It was amazing progress that could''ve been denied for Julia if Ellen didn''t play favorites.


    [This all feels so skewed.] Yuel shuddered. He understood the \"fairness\" argument behind giving at least one girl a chance to get in but, at the same time, it''ll have to be done at somebody''s expense. The club might get a candidate who was a genius player but the guy won''t make it in because he had the wrong gender. It didn''t feel right.


    [This topic is a dead end.] Yuel sighed. No matter what arguments he came up with, there was no clear-cut answer to this dilemma.


    \"I understand what you''re saying,\" Yuel finally spoke. \"But, if you reserve the last spot for a girl, you deny the chances of all freshman boys. Isn''t that unfair?\"


    \"You''re free to step down if you think that''s unfair,\" Kai shrugged. \"It''s you and Lars who are taking the male spots right now. You can always quit if you think that''s unfair.\"


    \"Wowie, harsh,\" Lars scratched his head. \"It''s really kinda our fault, isn''t it? Some newcomer dudes not gonna make it because of us.\"


    \"Well...\" Yuel didn''t a retort at hand. The club could only get three new members this year and two of the slots have been occupied by transfer students. Not exactly the epitome of fairness either.


    Because of Yuel and Lars, two promising freshmen were going to be denied entry this year. Even if some of these freshmen were more talented than Yuel and Lars, they won''t make it in because Yuel and Lars were a year ahead in terms of experience. It was a cruel world.


    \"Still,\" Yuel said. \"At least, Lars and I are high-level players and got our spots thanks to skill. I admit we got an unfair advantage compared to freshmen but at least it''s guaranteed we''re going to be more valuable for the team in this year''s tournament. Compared, accepting a girl regardless of talent just doesn''t sit right with me. It robs others of a chance even though they could''ve contributed more to the team.\"


    \"Winning isn''t everything\" Kai stated. \"A club is also supposed to be an environment where players can improve. That''s important too.\"


    \"I''d agree with you if we weren''t talking about a club that can only get up to seven members. We barely got any wiggle room to work with. Seven is so close to five that we might be forced to deploy the freshman in the tournament.\"


    \"Use a freshman in the tournament?\" Kai raised an eyebrow. \"Surely you jest.\"


    \"Think about it. If Lars and I hadn''t joined, you would have had three freshmen this year. You''d have to deploy at least one freshman, no way around it.\"


    \"Yeah, I suppose so.\"


    \"And, in general, having only seven club members is dangerously close to five. We can''t ignore the possibility we''ll have to deploy the freshman to matches,\" Yuel glanced around the room to confirm Luke wasn''t here. \"Take Luke, for example. Do you really think we can entrust our Jungler position to somebody who plays memes? He''s a decent player. But, for competitive play, he''s practically a joke. Our opponents are going to hard counter him every time because he chooses to play suboptimal classes.\"


    \"Well, that''s...\" Kai had nothing to say back to that.


    \"So, wouldn''t it be great if we get a more serious Jungler? In fact, I''d go as far as saying we should prioritize searching for a Jungler among the freshman. That''s why I added a role field to the registration form. I know this is me putting the tournament before everything else but this tiny club needs every help it can get.\"


    \"That''s true, but...\" This time, it was Kai''s turn to be stumped.


    [This is a little frustrating.] Yuel frowned. It felt like he saw eye-to-eye with Kai about the state of the club and they agreed what was more important for winning the tournament. Nevertheless, ultimately, each of them prioritized something different. Yuel wanted a strong freshman, preferably a Jungler. Meanwhile, Kai insisted on getting a girl for more equality.


    \"Oh! The everlasting battle of Barong and Rangda!\" Vincent stretched his arms theatrically. \"No matter how many times they strike each other down, they revive and resume their eternal battle!\"


    \"Are you implying we''re getting nowhere??\" Yuel made a face. It was rude but true. It didn''t seem like Yuel and Kai will be able to reach an agreement.


    \"You both make valid arguments,\" Vincent said. \"But, the club doesn''t belong to you two, you know. We''re also here.\"


    \"Right,\" Yuel nodded. He just realized he has been treating Vincent and Lars like air all this time. These two, despite being a clown and a goof, were also important members of the club and must have had their own opinions.


    \"So,\" Kai turned to the other two. \"What do you two think? Not that it means I''m going to change my stance just because you disagree.\"


    [Tyrant detected.] Yuel rolled his eyes.


    \"Hmm,\" Lars crossed his arms and thought hard about this problem. Or, at least, he pretended to. \"I dunno. No matter who we gonna pick, we still gonna take the nationals, yo!\"


    [He wasn''t thinking at all after all!] Yuel facepalmed.


    \"So,\" Kai said. \"You''re fine if we give the last spot to a female, right?\"


    \"Eeeeh,\" Lars scratched his head. \"I mean, probably? I think all dudes should get a fair chance. But, I know girls have it harder sometimes because some dudes in grade school are like ''ew, girls''. Sad story, yo.\"


    \"In short, you got no real stance,\" Yuel said.


    \"Welp, I guess I don''t. I''mma let the smart people handle this one. No matter who joins, I know we gonna win in the end.\"


    \"That''s some confidence,\" Kai noted.


    \"Yes, foolish baseless confidence. The usual.\" Yuel shrugged. \"What about you, Vincent?\"


    \"Hmhmhm~\" Vincent giggled suspiciously. \"So, mortals, you have come to seek the advice of the Old One?\"


    \"Okay, Vincent got no valuable input either. Moving on-\"


    \"Alright, alright!\" Vincent begged. \"Here''s what I think: you both got some good points so we probably won''t agree on anything at this rate. Then, how about we first get some data to work with? Let''s wait until we have the list of candidates and then decide.\"


    \"Sounds like you''re suggesting to postpone the inevitable,\" Yuel said.


    \"Perpahs. But, want to hear an interesting story? Last year, the club already allowed girls to apply. Do you see any female Juniors here?\"


    \"No.\"


    \"Right, because only two girls applied and they weren''t even Lv.50 so they didn''t even have a rank. So, nobody vouched for them. Even Kai didn''t shill for them.\"


    \"Of course,\" Kai crossed her arms. \"There''s a limit to how lenient we can be. Lv.50 is a little out there but there''s no excuse for not being at least Lv.30. You get that far alone in like two/three weeks if you''re at least a semi-serious about the game.\"


    \"I see,\" Yuel nodded. \"So, at least you got a standard. It''s not like you''re going to just accept any girl that shows up. We can work with that.\"


    \"You want to set minimum requirements?\" Kai asked. \"I''m down. As far as I''m concerned, if she''s at least Lv.30 then it''s good enough.\"


    \"I think we should set Lv.50 as the minimum,\" Yuel argued. \"It should be somebody who is at least qualified for Ranked.\"


    \"Lv.50 can be pretty rough alone, I know that from experience. You have to carry all these toxic assholes who think they know what they''re doing just because they''re ''higher level''. It''s a pain in the ass.\"


    \"Yeah, I know that feeling,\" Yuel nodded. He had plenty of such experiences while grinding in Casual mode. He only started making real progress once Lars and Julia joined the effort. If he continued grinding alone, it would have taken him a long time to hit Lv.50. In fact, he might have quit the game before reaching that point.


    \"Okay, Lv.30 is fine, I guess\" Yuel conceded. \"But, we shouldn''t give them a free pass. We need to hold at least a minimal test to confirm their motivation and see serious they are about the game.\"


    \"Something like an interview?\"


    \"I suppose. Maybe play a match or two together to get a feel for how they carry themselves.\"


    \"Sounds like a hassle if we have to do it for every single candidate.\"


    \"I wouldn''t worry too much about that,\" Vincent said. \"Remember, last year we only got two female candidates. Who knows how many we''re getting this year? Might as well be zero.\"


    \"Hey, don''t jinx it,\" Kai grumped.


    \"I think Vincent is onto something,\" Yuel said. \"It might be premature to discuss the selection process now. Let''s see how many students actually apply and then make our decision.\"


    \"Fair enough,\" Kai nodded.


    With that, the judgment was postponed until next week. The group finished polishing the registration form and played a few Ranked matches together, then called it a day.


    Will any girls apply to the Classmancers club? Will any of them be skilled enough to get Yuel''s approval? Only time will tell.

 144 Romeo and Juliet, Again

    Friday came to an end. It was the last day of the school week and therefore the last day of club activity. Granted, clubs were allowed to gather on Saturdays too but the team has practiced more than enough this week so they skipped on Saturday.


    In the end, they more or less agreed on how they''ll handle the selection process. They''ll prioritize picking a female to abide by Kai''s sense of equality but they won''t just approve of any female player. The candidate will have to be at least Lv.30 and show enough determination.


    In addition, Yuel was planned to look over the highest-ranked male candidates regardless. If any of them is close to Platinum, they''ll become a promising player. Therefore, if the female candidate is nowhere near that level, Yuel will have to push for that high-ranked candidate to be accepted instead. That''ll surely get him into another argument with Kai...


    [I kinda wish no girls apply for the club this year.] Yuel felt a little guilty thinking like this but he simply didn''t attach any special value to female players. As far as he was concerned, female candidates were only going to make the selection process more awkward due to Kai''s special rule. If no girls apply, the club will be able to peacefully pick the best candidates based on rank and skill.


    \"Hey,\" Lars smacked Yuel on the back. \"What''s with the long face? I thought you guys resolved all that difficult stuff?\"


    \"We did, kind of. But, that doesn''t mean I''m satisfied with it. I still think we should pick the best player regardless of gender. Actually, I''m surprised you didn''t agree with me on that. Would you be fine with losing your opportunity to join a club just because you''re a boy?\"


    \"Hell no,\" Lars shook his head. \"I''d challenge everybody in the club to a 1v1 and claim my spot!\"


    \"So, you''re in my camp after all.\"


    \"Yeah, but I get where Kai is coming from too, ya know? If we didn''t play with July back in grade school, she probably would have dropped the game ages ago. She didn''t have any girlfriends to play with and most boys in the class didn''t take her seriously.\"


    [I think she kept playing because she was interested in a certain goof.] Yuel smiled wryly. \"I get what you''re saying. But, I don''t think this tiny club has the luxury to push for gender equality. We have to pick the best players we can get.\"


    \"Yeah, I agree with that, too.\"


    \"You agree with everything, don''t you?\"


    \"Haha, that''s not true. It''s a difficult topic, okay? Gimme a break here, yo.\"


    \"Sure, sure.\"


    \"This whole conversation today made me realize something,\" Lars looked far into the distance with a soft smile. \"I''ve been kinda taking July for granted all this time. She was always hanging around and, at some point, she started playing a hella solid Mid.\"


    [That''s because Ellen and I coached her in private.]


    \"So, at some point, I stopped thinking of her as a girl and treated her like another strong dude on the team.\"


    \"You probably should never tell her that,\" Yuel advised.


    \"Hm? I meant I had total respect for her as a strong player, yo.\"


    \"Yeah, but... Well, let''s just say I warned you.\"


    \"Hm, okay,\" Lars shrugged. \"Anyway, I''m saying July became a natural part of our group and then a part of the club. But, if you think about it, she''s a girl but she spent so much of her free time hanging out with us two. It was probably rough.\"


    \"Why?\" Yuel asked. \"I don''t think we ever treated her poorly.\"


    \"Nah, but she''s still a girl, ya know? She was the only one in our group. It must have been all sorts of lonely. Like, I can''t imagine being stuck as the only boy in a group of girls like that.\"


    \"Yeah, that may be a little...\" Yuel pursed his lips. Judging by his experiences with girls so far, he''d be executed in a week if he were stuck in such a group. Gulp.


    \"So, I was thinking today,\" Lars said. \"Maybe we put too much pressure on July in the selection match and that''s why she broke down like this. She hasn''t been answering my calls ever since. Any luck on your side?\"


    \"No. She seems to be adamant about not contact us,\" Yuel said. He didn''t mention Julia''s parting words about crushing both of them at the regionals. She clearly didn''t want to see their faces right now. Especially, Yuel''s face.


    \"Maybe it''s my fault,\" Lars hung his head. \"I was cheering her on and everything but maybe that put too much pressure on her.\"


    \"I think she was happy to get your support.\"


    \"Yeah, I hope. But...\" Lars fell silent for a moment and then exploded. \"Okay, that''s it! I''mma go see her face-to-face and tell her I''m sorry for everything!\"


    \"Right now?\"


    \"Yep, right now! Wanna come?\"


    \"No, I''ll pass,\" Yuel averted his eyes. \"I''m the last person she wants to see right now.\"


    \"C''mon, don''t be like that. I know July acts mean to you sometimes but I think that''s because she really likes ya.\"


    [The one she really likes is YOU.] Yuel sighed. \"I just don''t want to make it more award. I''m sure she''ll be happier to meet you alone.\"


    \"Welp, if you say so,\" Lars went ahead. \"Okay, I''mma go catch her on the way from school. I''ll drop by your place later.\"


    \"Good luck,\" Yuel said. \"By the way, she lives in that direction.\"


    \"Ah, whoopsie! Haha,\" Lars backpedaled and headed in the direction Yuel pointed.


    \"Do you even know where she lives?\"


    \"Nope! But, I''mma find her with my ace detective skillz!\"


    \"You could just ask, you know.\"


    \"Nah, where''s the adventure in that?\" Lars chuckled. \"But yeah, you''re right. Okay, Mr. Watson, help me solve this mystery. Where''s the scene of the crime?\"


    \"What kind of detective needs help finding the scene of the crime?\"


    \"Good point, haha!\"


    Yuel gave the address and entered it into a navigation app on Lars''s phone to make sure the goof won''t get lost. Though, it was probably safe to trust in Lars''s ability to find the place. This goof was gifted with a strong sense of direction.


    \"Then, I''m off!\" Lars waved and dashed away.


    [I hope they can talk things out.] Yuel prayed. Even though Julia declared herself as their \"enemy\", Yuel still wished for her to overcome the trauma of the selection match and make full recovery. Julia played well and didn''t deserve to suffer so much just because she couldn''t bring victory in that one match. Hopefully, meeting Lars will energize her.


    \"Okay!\" Lars stopped in front of a tall building and checked his phone. [Seems like the right place.]


    \"Whoa...\" Lars gazed upwards. Such a tall skyscraper. This big boi stretched all the way to the moon! It felt like his gaze was sucked into another dimension. If Vincent were here, he''d dub this building the Tower of Babel, yo!


    [That''s some fine building, lemme tell ya.] Lars nodded repeatedly. His old man bought a hella cheap apartment back in the day, so Lars was living in some generic building. It was big enough and all but it didn''t compare to this gigantic tower. This was the future! It was one step away from building space colonies, yo!


    [But, I didn''t come here for sightseeing.] Lars looked around. [I wonder if July already went in?]


    \"Ah, Lars...\" A familiar voice.


    \"Oh!\" Lars jumped and turned around. It was Julia! ... or, so he thought. \"Huh? Wut?\" He rubbed his eyes.


    A girl stood in front of him. Her voice and face seemed familiar but, at the same time, she looked like a totally unrecognizable person.


    \"Oh, I get it,\" Lars said. \"You must be July''s older sister, right?\"


    \"I ain''t got no sister!\" The girl exploded. \"It''s me.\"


    \"No way. Where did your hair go?\"


    \"Why everybody reacts like this. I still got a bunch of hair,\" The girl pulled her hair to show she still had some left. Well, of course, she did; she wasn''t bald or anything like that. But, her trademark ponytail was nowhere in sight. Like, whoosh. Gone. Just like that. And, it seemed like she shortened the rest of her haircut too so it gave her an unexpected tomboy-ish look.


    \"That''s one heck of a makeover you did there,\" Lars said. \"It''s almost like you took off a wig, haha.\"


    \"Does it really look so weird?\" Julia glanced away. \"You don''t like it?\"


    \"Nah, it''s cool,\" Lars gave a thumbs up. \"Just gonna take some time to get used to. Like, a few months probably, haha.\"


    \"It''ll grow back by then\"


    \"Yep and that''s when I''ll get used to it!\"


    \"Heh.\"


    \"Oh! You smiled!\" Lars grinned. \"So, you''re doing okay? Me and Yuel were super worried about you.\"


    \"You were?\" Julia fidgeted. \"Sorry, I should''ve answered your calls.\"


    \"Nah, it''s okay. We were all feeling like crap after that selection match. I wanted to bury myself after all the dumb stuff I did that match.\"


    \"Really? But, you played so well.\"


    \"Nah, whatcha talking about? I kept walking into Ellen''s traps left and right like a total tool.\"


    \"But, you''ve been dominating the games otherwise,\" Julia insisted. \"In the first two games, you dominated the early-game and, in the last game, you were killing it during the late-game.\"


    \"Yeah, I had my moments,\" Lars said. \"But, in the end, I fudged up big time and let Ellen walk all over me. So, it all came to nothing. I messed up and we lost the game.\"


    \"That''s not really...\" Julia chewed her lips. [So, Lars also blames himself for his mistakes. Even though he was so amazing back then...]


    The way Julia saw it, Lars was the pillar of the team''s offense the entire match. He dominated through sheer strength and that allowed the team to push closer to victory. Without him, the team couldn''t have gotten anywhere.


    And yet, Lars was blaming himself over the couple of small mistakes he committed. Even though he has done so much good, he was still troubled by the few fatal mess-ups near the end of the match. In other words, he was feeling the same frustration that has been eating Julia from inside this whole time.


    \"That''s why,\" Lars continued. \"I really wanted to say sorry for all that.\"


    \"Eh?\" Julia blinked. \"Sorry? For what?\"


    \"After I died at the end there, all the responsibility was dropped on you. Nobody else was alive and you''ve been playing all sorts of aggressive that game, so everybody just naturally expected you to carry the game to victory. That must''ve been some hella pressure to deal with.\"


    \"And, I failed to deliver ...\" Julia hung her head.


    \"Nah, no need to feel bad,\" Lars came closer and grasped Julia''s shoulders. \"You did great!\"


    \"E-Eh!?\" Julia jumped.


    \"You were put on the spot after I died but you held really well! It''s the first time I saw you play aggressive like that and you probably weren''t used to carrying the game and all. Heck, I still get goosebumps sometimes when people place all that heavy responsibility on me.\"


    \"Really?\" Julia blinked. Wasn''t Lars a natural at that kind of thing? She always thought that carrying the team came naturally to him because he was a superman of unrivaled strength.


    \"Yeah, it can be hella rough,\" Lars nodded. \"Knowing that the entire game is riding on your performance makes ya sweat, no joke. And, just because I derped at the end there and died, all that pressure suddenly dropped on you. Heck, I was even rooting for ya and everything, telling you how you can totally do it. I''m the worst.\"


    \"N-No! That''s not true at all!\" Julia practically shouted. \"Ah, I mean, I... I was happy that you rooted for me.\"


    \"Really?\"


    \"Yeah, it was reassuring,\" Julia smiled softly. \"If not for your support, I might have caved under pressure on the spot. But, because you and everybody kept believing in me, I could focus on the fights and keep trying my best. Though, in the end, my best wasn''t quite enough...\"


    \"Thanks!\" Lars hugged Julia.


    \"W-W-W-W-W-Whaaaaa....!\" Julia trembled like a helpless kitten.


    \"Thanks for fighting your best till the very end,\" Lars let go and smiled at her. \"Even though it should''ve been my job to close the game and it was unfair to dump everything on you, you never gave up. You''re a really amazing player.\"


    \"T-Thanks,\" Julia felt like her face became a toaster. [Oh god, am I turning red? Please tell me I don''t look like an expired tomato!]


    \"That game taught me a huge lesson,\" Lars said. \"From now on, I gonna make sure I''m more careful about stuff. Being the Carry is a huge responsibility so I shouldn''t charge into every fight like this. It''s more fun to play wild like this but it gets me killed and then somebody else gotta clean up the mess afterward. I don''t want that.\"


    \"I see,\" Julia reluctantly agreed. She understood where Lars was coming from but, at the same time, she couldn''t help but feel it was a waste. Lars''s straightforward attitude of rushing into trouble without a second thought was a big part of his charm. He always challenged the impossible and came on top, that''s the Lars which Julia fell in love with.


    \"Ya know, it''s kinda awkward things turned out like this,\" Lars scratched his head. \"I really wanted to keep playing with you on the same team.\"


    \"I also...\" Julia''s stopped herself. [Will it sound bad if I say it? After all, they didn''t exactly choose this.]


    As much as Julia resented the boys for transferring without her, she understood it wasn''t a decision they made because they wanted to. If they had the choice, they would''ve stayed in StormBlitz just like her. But, they didn''t make the first-string so there was nothing promising for them in the upcoming year.


    Compared to them, Julia had options. She could either stay on the first-string or transfer with them. Her situation was completely different. Therefore, for somebody with such luxury to say she would have liked to keep playing with the boys felt pretentious. It''s like she was some mighty queen who was willing to grace the commoners with her presence.


    So, Julia remained quiet and accepted Lars''s kind words. Truly, it was unfortunate things turned out this way. Putting aside her fiasco with Yuel, Julia was still on good terms with Lars. In fact, it felt like Lars saw her in a new light during the selection match and respected her more than ever as a player.


    Alas, they were playing for different teams now. They were enemies.


    \"How is the new school?\" Julia asked. \"It has a Mancers club, right?\"


    \"Yeah, it sure does,\" Lars said. \"It''s in the basement.\"


    \"... huh?\"


    \"Yep, haha. The school hates us so much it didn''t even give us a proper clubroom. So, we hang out in the basement. We call it the Den of Undiscovered Potential!\"


    \"That sounds... interesting,\" Julia forced a smile.


    \"It''s hella cool, yo! It''s like we''re an underdog team that''s undercover right now. Then, one day, we gonna appear outta nowhere and take the world by storm!\"


    \"Is that so,\" Julia replied vaguely. Lars was probably pushing himself to appear positive because all that stuff sounded horrible.


    Julia always thought StormBlitz was a pretty budget club but being forced to literally play in the school''s basement? Yikes, that''s a whole new level of budget. Julia felt a little guilty for it, but this news made her glad she stayed in StormBlitz. [No way I gonna hang out in a basement for some game, even if it''s Mancers. No thanks.]


    \"Welp, that''s what the school thinks of our club''s level right now,\" Lars shrugged. \"Everybody thinks we''re some scrubs who ain''t even gonna pass the first round. But, we gonna prove ''em all wrong! We gonna take the regionals by storm, yo!\"


    \"I''m sure you will,\" Julia smiled.


    \"So,\" Lars stretched a hand. \"Let''s both do our best. Let''s keep winning at the regionals and eventually play each other!\"


    \"Yeah,\" Julia accepted the handshake. Lars''s hand was big and warm. Julia would have loved to hold onto it for a while longer to enjoy its touch. But, she wasn''t allowed to. They were opponents now, so this wasn''t the time for her to bare her feelings.


    \"Also,\" Lars continued. \"You should come play with us like before at Yuel''s place.\"


    \"Eh? But, we''re playing for different teams now.\"


    \"Hm? So what?\"


    \"Well, we''re kinda enemies now.\"


    \"Nah. That only applies to the tourney, right? Other than that, we''re still buddies and everything.\"


    \"Well....\" Julia made a difficult expression. The competition between clubs wasn''t confined solely in the tournament itself. There were also scrimmages and data gathering. Arguably, the most important part of the fight began before the tournament itself. But, all these things didn''t seem to bother Lars so Julia remained quiet.


    \"I''ll come if I feel like it,\" Julia glanced away.


    \"Cool,\" Lars nodded. \"I really wanna fight against that aggressive style you showed at the selection match.\"


    \"Eh? You do?\" Julia jerked from the mere mention of it. The amount of yelling and cursing she did at the time... It was so embarrassing.


    \"Yeah,\" Lars nodded. \"That stuff was sick! Ya even gave Tai a run for his money. I never knew you were at such a high level in fights. We definitely gotta spar sometimes!\"


    \"I''ll think about it,\" Julia smiled faintly. Maybe not everything about the selection match was a disaster, after all. At least, it helped Julia come to terms with her aggressive side and she discovered that Lars was supportive of it. In fact, he was overly hyped about it for some reason.


    Too bad that match ended up separating them. Julia planned to win and look good in front of Lars, then confess to him while he was still celebrating the victory. She believed she had a higher chance of scoring that way.


    However, they lost and the defeat tore them apart. Thus, Julia lost her opportunity, possibly forever.


    [Maybe I should tell him now?] Julia gulped. Despite all the empty promises she has been making about meeting up with Lars and Yuel again, she knew she probably won''t ever dare to show her face at Yuel''s place again. Therefore, right here and now, it might be her last chance to confess her feelings to Lars.


    [Nah, that''ll be awkward as hell.] Julia stopped herself. Even if Lars returned her feelings, what''s next? It won''t change the fact they were enemies. They won''t be able to maintain a relationship like that.


    Besides, Julia didn''t deserve it. She promised herself she''ll confess to Lars if they win the selection match. But, they lost. And, on top of that, her numerous mistakes played a big part in that defeat. Therefore, she didn''t deserve to confess to him now.


    \"Welp, I gotta go,\" Lars said. \"You wanna come?\"


    \"Training with Yuel again?\"


    \"Yep, as always.\"


    \"Nah, I''ll pass,\" Julia smiled wryly. She''ll pass on this invitation today. And tomorrow. And every other day after that. She won''t show her face there ever again. She and Lars were heading in opposite directions now.


    \"Hey, what''s wrong?\" Lars asked.


    \"E-Eh?\" Julia turned around and wiped her eyes. \"A-Ahaha, just something got into my eye. Okay, now it''s gone.\" She turned to Lars again, wearing the best smile she could muster.


    \"Okay,\" Lars smiled back. \"Then, I''mma go now. Make sure to drop by sometimes!\" He shouted from afar as he waved goodbye.


    \"Sure,\" Julia retained her smile until Lars vanished from view. Then, her lips quivered and a tear fell down her cheek.


    Why? Why did things have to end like this? Despite everything that happened, she was still on such good terms with Lars. In fact, Lars appreciated her more than ever as a strong player after that selection match. He even wanted to duel with her so much.


    If Julia tried harder, she probably could have salvaged her relationship with Yuel too. The three of them could go back to being good friends who gathered together every day to play Classmancers for hours.


    [When did I start thinking of that as a fun pastime?] Julia smiled wryly. She only ever complained about the crazy amounts of training the boys have been doing. But, at some point, this daily routine became precious to her and she never realized that until she lost it. If only she figured all of that earlier, she could''ve...


    [Nevermind. What''s done is done.] Julia wiped her tears and stared in the direction Lars disappeared in. This might very well be the last time she got to talk with him like this. The next time they meet, they won''t be friendly like that with each other; they''ll be opponents.


    Maybe it''ll be easier to patch up this relationship after Howard and Ellen graduate. But, right now, both sides were at each other''s throats and Julia belonged to the camp of Lars''s sworn enemy. There was no way they could casually hang out together without that fact looming over them.


    [Goodbye, my love.] Julia exhaled deeply. This was reality and she had to accept it. Until the end of this year, she had to forget everything about her feelings toward Lars. Instead, she''ll train her hardest to monopolize the Mid spot on StormBlitz and get a chance to fight against Lars at the regionals. That''s what Lars wished for as well.


    [And, this will give me a chance to murder both of them!] Julia grinned madly. With all said and done, she still couldn''t get over how the boys transferred on their own and only informed her post-facto.


    So, this will also be a good opportunity to give them a piece of her mind. She was the only junior who made it into StormBlitz''s first-string, so she had to be worthy of that spot. In other words, she had to be able to mop the floor with Yuel and Lars in a real match. Only that way she''ll prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that she deserved to be here.


    [Let''s meet again at the regionals and have a blast.] Julia turned around and dashed into the building. After gobbling down her lunch, Julia sat down in front of her computer. It was time for some Classmaners!


    Even though she just finished a long day of training at the club, she already wanted to play again. The day was still young and the weekend was upon her, so she''ll get lots and tons of practice. By the time the regionals come, nobody will stand a chance against her. She''ll dominate the competition and prove she deserved to stand at the top along with the rest of StormBlitz''s first-string.


    \"Time to murder some idiots, ahahaha!\"


    \"July? You said something?\" Her mom asked from the living room.


    \"Ack! It''s nothing, mom!\" Julia quickly shut the door and returned to her desk. Phew, that was a close one.


    And so, Julia spent the entire evening playing Classmaners until she dropped.

 145 Terrible Marketing

    Monday came around. It was time for the clubs of Skyline Junior High to start recruiting new members.


    Each club captured a spot to advertise the club. Some spread along the hallways, others filled the schoolyard and some even took control of entire classrooms. They all prepared tables, flyers, posters, mics and everything else they could get their hands on. Compared to that, the Classmaners club...


    \"This area will be free,\" The club advisor, Ms. Stone, showed them to an area in the middle of nowhere on the schoolyard. \"That''s the best the school could give. Just do your best. Good luck.\"


    \"You think that hag even try negotiating anything better?\" Luke rolled his eyes.


    \"Shh! She''ll hear you!\" Vincent waved his arms around and tried to hide Luke from view. Thankfully, Ms. Stone has already vanished from view.


    \"I gotta agree,\" Kai crossed her arms. \"This sucks. We''re surrounded by enemies on all sides.\"


    \"''Enemies'' is a little...\" Vincent scratched his head. In a way, Kai was right. All the clubs competed over the same general audience: the freshmen. And, thanks to this amazing arrangement, the Classmancers club was lost out here in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by dozens of other clubs.


    Just to reach their table, a freshman would have to pass through at least three different clubs along the way. What were the chances of such an adventurer reaching its destination with all these temptations along the way?


    Not to mention, the sun was blazing hot today. Most students stayed inside the building as they toured around, so the number of possible candidates was already cut down by more than half. These were all rough circumstances for the club.


    However, it was too early to give up! This was no club of quitters. They shall overcome this ordeal and find all the strongest players in the area! The Den of Undiscovered Potential shall suck all these players in like a black hole!


    \"Alrighty,\" Vincent fished inside his backpack. \"This is what I prepared for today.\"


    He took out the registration forms. They were updated to the latest format they agreed upon on Friday. Yuel was a tad cautious of leaving this clown with the responsibility of printing everything but Vincent proved himself.


    Of course, just in case, Yuel has already checked where he could print some copies at school. He even brought money with him to pay for it as needed. Thankfully, it was unnecessary in the end.


    \"Oh!\" Lars grabbed a registration form and nodded in approval. \"This looks sick!\"


    \"I have to admit,\" Yuel nodded as well. \"It''s well done. Surprisingly.\"


    \"Please,\" Vincent objected. \"I think ''surprisingly'' was unnecessary there.\"


    Vincent indeed printed the registration form as they agreed on but he also added some extra flavor to the design. Thankfully, it wasn''t any of the terrible designs he showed them last week. This time, the design was simple and effective.


    The form had one of the official Classmancers wallpapers and stylized text for better visibility. There were no silly terms or edgy images plastered on it. Just a simple and well-edited background that caught the eye.


    In fact, it was so well-done that Yuel wanted to keep a copy. Lars shared the same sentiment and acted before Yuel finished the thought. The goof stuffed like five flyers into his backpack while everybody else was busy appreciating them out. Truly, these flyers were well-made; astonishingly well-made.


    \"You made then yourself?\" Yuel asked.


    \"Nah, I asked my mom to fix something,\" Vincent admitted. \"You all didn''t like my godlike photoshop edits, so I figured I''ll let a pro handle it.\"


    \"That was definitely the right choice,\" Yuel nodded.


    \"I have a feeling you''re making fun of me.\"


    \"You think so?\"


    This wasn''t even the end of pleasant surprises. Vincent fished in his bag some more.


    \"I also brought these,\" Vincent took out big posters of Classmancers. \"I''d put them on a wall... if we had one!\"


    \"We can use them as a table cover,\" Kai suggested.


    \"My poor, poor posters,\" Vincent pretend to be teary-eyed while caressing the posters like his babies. \"Reduced to the rank of a mere tablecloth. Not like this.\"


    With that, everything was ready. At least, as ready as it could possibly be under the harsh circumstances. They had a (terrible) spot to advertise from, their table was covered with a big nice-looking Classmancers picture and they had a bunch of eye-catching flyers which doubled as registration forms.


    \"So,\" Yuel started. \"How do we go about it?\"


    \"Normally,\" Kai said. \"Some stay behind to collect registrations while others walk around and hand out the flyers.\"


    \"I''ll stay to guard the fort,\" Luke announced right away. He already grabbed himself a chair from somewhere and sat down.


    \"Okay,\" Lars grabbed a bunch of flyers. \"I''mma run all over the place and advertise the club to everybody! The goal is to make at least half the school register!\"


    \"You know we can only get one new member, right?\" Yuel asked.


    \"No problem! If the school sees how popular the club is, it''ll raise the limit for sure! All the clubs gonna be combined into the Classmancers club, yo!\"


    \"That won''t happen but keep up that spirit.\"


    \"Make sure to recruit girls too,\" Kai reminded. \"As we agreed, girls will get a priority.\"


    \"Yes,\" Yuel added. \"But, only if they''re at least Lv.30. Don''t bother recruiting girls who never heard of the game.\"


    \"Okey-dokey!\" Lars saluted and dashed off with the stack of flyers. \"Seeya dudes later!\" And poof. He was gone.


    \"I''ll walk around too,\" Vincent took a stack of flyers. \"I trust Lars, the Sun Messiah, to cover the schoolyard. So, I''ll walk inside the building and see who I can convert.\"


    \"Are you sure you''re not just going to slack off?\" Kai narrowed her eyes.


    \"You hurt my feelings, m''lady,\" Vincent acted as if a blade just pierced his chest. \"I''m the most passionate in here about recruiting! I seek to add as many new potentials as possible to our Den of Undiscovered Potential!\"


    \"But,\" Yuel retorted. \"You''re not passionate enough to do it under the sun.\"


    \"Unlike you three, I don''t possess an Anti-Sunlight Noble Phantasm.\"


    He was probably referring to the fact Yuel, Kai and Luke were all wearing sports caps. For Kai, this was the norm and she even wore the cap in classes. However, Yuel and Luke came especially prepared for the worst-case scenario today. Compared to them, despite how well Vincent prepared with the flyers and everything, he forgot to bring a cap for outside activities. It was the miscalculation of the century!


    \"Well,\" Vincent glanced at Yuel and Luke. \"If any of you kind gentlemen is willing to lend me their cap, I shall gladly walk down this scorched land and bear the infernal sun in order to spread the word about our secret cult!\"


    [When did we become a \"cult\"?] Yuel made a face. [Then again, what kind of club holds activities in the basement? Illuminati team confirmed.]


    \"So? Anybody wants to lend me their cap?\" Vincent asked again but only from Yuel and Luke. Kai wasn''t even an option for some reason.


    \"No way, man,\" Luke waved his hand in dismissal. \"I ain''t giving up my cap here. My brain gonna melt without it. It''s hot as hell today.\"


    \"Agreed,\" Yuel nodded. \"I rather keep my cap too.\"


    \"Alrighty,\" Vincent shrugged. \"Then, the building is my domain. You, the chosen ones who carry the legendary rank S Anti-Sunlight phantasms, shall stay outside and resist the sun''s infernal blaze!\"


    Vincent took a stack of papers, shoved them into his backpack and strode toward the school building. Even though Lars and Vincent both took big stacks with at least thirty flyers, there were still plenty of flyers left behind on the table. Just how many copies did Vincent print? He was really into this whole thing despite knowing they''ll get only one member at best.


    There were three members around the table and the big stack of flyers was calling them. Somebody should probably take them for a walk but nobody volunteered. Eventually, one of them broke the silence.


    \"You should go around and advertise too,\" Kai pushed the stack of flyers toward Yuel.


    \"How about you do it while I stay here?\" Yuel pushed the stack back in Kai''s direction.


    \"That won''t do,\" Kai pushed the stack toward him again. \"I''m the captain so I have to stay in the base.\"


    \"Nobody outside the club knows or cares about you being the captain,\" Yuel pushed the flyers back. \"Besides, this isn''t some military operation. You can walk around without any risk to your life.\"


    \"The captain''s job is to organize the operation. Leg work is for the grunts.\"


    \"I''m not even an official member. You should be grateful I''m even helping out.\"


    \"Oh, I''m very grateful. Now, how about you do some actual work and take a stroll?\"


    \"I don''t believe leg work is my strongest suit.\"


    Wham. Half of the flyers slipped off the table due to their tug of war.


    \"Are you guys, like, five?\" Luke made a face.


    \"I don''t wanna hear that from somebody who acts like he came here on a vacation,\" Kai shot him a look. \"Where did you even did that chair from?\"


    \"Grabbed from one of the classes.\"


    \"That makes us look really unprofessional,\" Yuel said. \"Everybody is standing in the other stalls.\"


    \"Hey, you two are standing,\" Luke chuckled. \"That''s good enough to create a serious image. Haha.\"


    \"Now, seriously,\" Kai said. \"We need at least one more person to walk around. Two recruiters aren''t enough.\"


    \"Sure seems like it,\" Yuel agreed. The entire school was like a war zone right now.


    \"Come join the soccer club!\"


    \"Our basketball club went to nationals two years in a row!\"


    \"Free cookies over here for anybody who signs up!\"


    It felt like huge armies were fighting for the freshmen''s attention. Meanwhile, the Classmancers club only deployed two soldiers to the field. No matter how much ground Lars and Vincent cover, they won''t be able to win this war.


    \"Wait,\" Yuel looked around. \"Where''s Ben?\"


    \"Um,\" Kai glanced away. \"He''s busy with other things.\"


    \"Like what?\"


    \"Well...\" Kai left the question hanging for a while. A long while.


    \"I bet he''s helping his pals from another club,\" Luke said. \"What did these guys join, again? I think it was basketball.\"


    \"Probably,\" Kai nodded reluctantly.


    \"Basketball again?\" Yuel raised an eyebrow. Last time, Ben already excused his absence from club activity with that \"basketball\" excuse. [He''s at it again? What gives? He''s part of the Mancers club, not the basketball club.]


    \"Why does he keep hanging around the basketball club?\" Yuel asked.


    \"That''s...\" Kai started but didn''t finish again.


    \"Let''s just say,\" Luke leaned back on his chair and took out sunglasses. \"It''s better to not get involved.\"


    \"Are you supposed to be a tourist or something?\" Yuel made a face. With the cap, sunglass, and that laid back pose, it felt like Luke only came here for sightseeing and getting himself a tan.


    [Seriously, this whole procedure is so lame.] Yuel sighed deeply. Everything about today was so unorganized that he wanted to cry. It was miles away from how everything was handled in StormBlitz. Even after the club carefully went over the details on Friday, they still found themselves in this messy situation and had to improvise on the spot.


    It wasn''t entirely their fault, though. Even though they undoubtedly could''ve prepared better and agree on the roles ahead of time, the school itself was largely responsible for how messy everything was. Instead of letting the club borrow a proper space in which they could advertise themselves and get applications, this entire procedure became a battle royale.


    It was a raging sea of people flowing all over the place. Loud shouts. Wild hand motions. People dashing. It was like an active war zone. Yuel will be swallowed whole if he dares to step in there. Gulp.


    In the middle of this whole chaos, the Classmancers club only had a tiny stall that was composed of just one table. They were like a needle in a haystack. No surprise nobody paid any attention to them. Did people even realize they were recruiting?


    \"Come to the Tennis club! We got hot boys!\"


    \"Swimming is the healthiest sport! Come to the swimming club if you want to be fit!\"


    \"Soccer! Come play soccer! Soccer!\"


    Compared to these loud advertisements, the Classmancers stall was completely silent. Literally nothing about it drew anybody''s attention. It was a total disaster.


    \"So?\" Luke motioned with his chin while lying back on his chair with his sunglasses on. \"Anybody gonna call people over or what?\"


    \"That''s...\" Kai pursed her lips. No matter how Yuel looked at her, she definitely wasn''t the type to raise her voice and shout out loud. And, Yuel wasn''t the type either.


    \"How about you do it?\" Yuel asked.


    \"Me?\" Luke pointed at himself. \"Alrighty, I guess I could. How much ya gonna pay me for it, though?\"


    \"Let'' see,\" Yuel rolled his eyes. \"How about I don''t nag you regrading your meme picks? For each person you bring in, that''s one day free of nagging.\"


    \"You know what? You got yourself a deal,\" Luke gave a thumbs up and stood up. \"CLASSMANCERS CLUB! Do you wanna play a video game during club activities? Then come to the Classmancers club!\"


    \"Wha,\" Yuel frowned. Luke''s volume was high enough to make some heads turn but what''s with these terrible lines!? Advertising the Classmancers club as some lazy \"gaming club\" was the last thing the club needed!


    \"You know we''re searching strictly for competitive players, right?\" Yuel asked.


    \"Welp, you ain''t gonna get any competitive players if you got no players at all.\"


    \"... I suppose that''s true,\" Yuel had to concede. Even though this was terrible marketing, at least it got the attention of some people. A few students came to the stall to hear more.


    \"What''s that Class thing?\"


    \"Is this really a video gaming club?\"


    Unfortunately, it mostly attracted the wrong kind of crowd. No offense to any of these students, but they weren''t the target audience. Yuel would gladly convert each and every one of them into a high-level Classmancer player but that was impossible with the club''s strict limit.


    \"Yes, this is a club for the game Classmancers,\" Kai confronted the crowd. \"But, we only search for competitive players who already know how to play.\"


    \"Eeeeh? That''s a bummer.\"


    \"Hey, I think I heard of the game before. Does that count?\"


    \"Well, I haven''t played this one but I''m Gold in League of the Ancients. So, I''m kinda a pro. Does that count?\"


    The freshmen raided the stall with their curiosity.


    \"No, no, and no,\" Kai shot down each and every one of them. \"We can only accept experienced players. If you want to complain to anybody, complain to the school for its strict rules.\"


    \"Meh, that''s dumb. Let''s go.\"


    \"You have no idea what you guys are missing. I''m totally a pro player. LotA is way better than that crap anyway.\"


    One by one, the students left and the crowd thinned out. Only three candidates remained to sign up. They actually had some experience under their belt so they were relevant. One was a Lv.43 player, another was Silver III and the last was a rather impressive Gold V.


    \"That''s twelve days free of nagging for me,\" Luke reminded.


    [He was serious about that part?] Yuel smiled wryly. \"But, only three people registered.\"


    \"Hey, I didn''t say anything about how many register. I brought in twelve, so I get twelve days of peace.\"


    \"Heh, fair enough,\" Yuel produced a dry laugh. It was amazing somebody actually put in the work just for the sake of not getting nagged by Yuel. Perhaps he should exploit this kind of deal more often.


    At any rate, even with Luke doing a loud advertisement, they failed to attract a large crowd. Were they really going to recruit anybody at this rate? Not to mention, not a single girl has applied so far...

 146 No Female Candidates

    \"So, we really gonna play a video game for club activity?\"


    \"That sounds fun as heck! The best club!\"


    That was the mentality of most candidates who came to apply for the Classmancers club.


    \"....\" Kai was dead silent. She handed out the registration forms like a robot and didn''t utter a single word the whole time.


    \"Something wrong?\" Yuel asked.


    \".....\" She glanced at him, then returned to the registration forms. \"No, nothing.\" She sighed.


    [Yeah, sure. \"Nothing\".] Yuel rolled his eyes. \"You''re disappointed that this is all we got? I admit it''s pretty weak. Back in StormBlitz, we held a big entrance exam and lots of people attended.\"


    \"That''s not the issue,\" Kai said. \"Did you notice how many girls applied so far?\"


    \"I believe there weren''t any.\"


    \"Exactly. Not a single one. Nada. We got like ten applications but not a single one of them was a female.\"


    \"I see,\" Yuel didn''t know what to say. Kai''s prophecy seemed to be on point: very few girls at this age had any interest in Classmancers.


    However, it was too early to draw any statistics from just one sample. Even if boys were more interested in the club on average, surely some girl will eventually show up as long as they continue drawing people''s attention. But...


    [Do I really want to find such a girl?] Yuel wondered. As far as he was concerned, picking the most capable candidates was the entire purpose of going through such a selection process. So, prioritizing a player''s gender over their skill went against that belief.


    But, at the same time, he wanted some girls to apply to dismiss Kai''s statement. He wanted to prove that enough girls had an interest in the game. But, why? It had nothing to do with him. He shouldn''t have cared in the slightest. And yet...


    [Why do I keep thinking about Julia?] Yuel knotted his brows. Somehow, every time this topic came up, his mind couldn''t help but wander back to Julia.


    According to Lars, some of his classmates in grade school didn''t like playing Classmancers with Julia because she was a girl. That undoubtedly stifled her ability to improve at the game. After all, without a supporting group to play with, it was difficult to improve or even get motivated enough to play. Even Yuel started off by playing with some of his classmates, though that story didn''t go so well...


    Anyway, having other people to play with was incredibly important when starting out, especially in a team-based game like a MOBA. It was a thousand times harder to be invested in the game when you didn''t have any teammates to share your good and bad times with.


    And, Julia didn''t have that privilege at first. She only had Lars, who agreed to play with her unlike the rest of the boys. But, Lars wasn''t exactly the sharpest tool in the shed so he couldn''t give Julia much advice on how to improve.


    So, it came as no surprise that Julia''s skill was so unpolished when Yuel met her. Back then, Yuel thought she was a terrible player who had no idea what she was doing. But, given the kind of stifling environment she played in, it only made sense she struggled to develop as a player.


    If Kai''s theory was correct, there were many girls like Julia who couldn''t get into Classmancers due to the similar gatekeeping. And, most of them weren''t lucky enough to meet a nice goof like Lars or a knowledgeable coach like Yuel. So, these girls never got, and might never get, into Classmancers even though they could''ve really enjoyed the game and even reached a high level at it. That was unfortunate.


    [Still, it''s not my business. It really isn''t.] Yuel tried to convince himself. But, the thoughts kept creeping back to his mind. Even though it was ineffective and illogical, a part of him wanted a girl to join the club so she could flourish in a proper competitive environment. Or. at least, as \"competitive\" as one could call a tiny club that was tucked away in the basement.


    \"Maybe we need to do some advertising that''s aimed specifically at girls...\" Yuel mumbled without thinking. Oops! He really didn''t want to step into this conversation but he did anyway. Darn it...


    \"Like what?\" Kai asked.


    \"I''m not really sure,\" Yuel said.


    \"Well,\" Luke started. \"For starters, it''d sure help if we had an actual girl here to advertise the club.\"


    \"What''s that supposed mean?\" Kai gave him a look.


    \"I mean, look at how ya dressed. Jeans, a T-shirt, and a cap. Anybody would mistake ya for a boy from afar.\"


    \"Yeah, most likely,\" Kai nodded, probably missing the point.


    \"So, ya think this kind of presentation gonna draw any girls? They gonna see a bunch of ''guys'' here and hard pass on the whole thing.\"


    \"I''d like to think that those who are serious about the game will come over here regardless.\"


    \"I think you''re overestimating grade-schoolers,\" Luke shrugged. \"I knew a bunch of guys who played Classmancers with me on a decent level back in grade school. But, during summer break, we didn''t get to play much and almost everybody moved on to play the latest trending games like Forknite. Actually, I kinda joined them too. I only stayed loyal to Classmancers because I''ve gathered so much juicy memeing material that it''d be sad to throw it all away.\"


    \"So,\" Kai crossed her arms. \"You''re saying there might be girls out there who used to play but lost interest by now because of whatever.\"


    \"Yep, both boys and gals. It be like that sometimes. Mancers is a tough game for grade-schoolers so these dudes need every little bit of motivation ya can give them.\"


    \"You got any specific ideas?\"


    \"Welp, it''s too late now but you should''ve dressed in something cuter.\"


    \"Cuter?\" Kai raised an eyebrow.


    [The guy got balls.] Yuel gulped. This didn''t sound like a conversation that was about to go well...


    \"Yeah, cuter,\" Luke said. \"Could''ve worn a skirt or something to give some girly presence in here. I bet it''d even draw some boys in, huehue.\"


    \"W-Wha,\" Kai trembled. \"There''s no way I''d wear something like that! I''m not here to sell myself.\"


    \"Well, too bad,\" Luke shrugged. \"You could''ve drawn some customers for sure.\"


    \"I''m not a poster girl, you know.\"


    They somehow into a lengthy argument over that point. Yuel had to think of something fast before this negative atmosphere drew away the few people who bothered to apply.


    \"How about we just emphasize that part?\" Yuel suggested. \"We''ll advertise that both genders are welcome. Could you please do that, Luke?\"


    \"You want me to yell stuff again?\" Luke sighed but stood up anyway. \"Alright, I''ll be your marketing guy for today. But, remember: each freshman I bring in equals one day without yo nagging.\"


    \"Right, right\" Yuel nodded. [I suggested this deal on a whim but it might become an issue if I can''t criticize Luke''s memes for too long. Scrimmages will begin in two months, so I need him to be ready to play seriously by then. Well, I''ll figure something out. Hopefully.]


    \"CLASSMANCERS CLUB!\" Luke shouted. \"Boys and girls! Ladies and gentlemen! Everybody, come play this awesome video game that''s way better than Forknite!\"


    Again, the shoutout attracted a crowd. However, this time, there were only five students and only two of them had sufficient experience to be relevant. And, again, there wasn''t a single girl among them.


    Luke shouted again and again in different variations but it was to no avail. Not a single girl ever showed any interest in their stall.


    \"Can I get a new flyer?\" A boy asked. \"I messed up my ID number.\" He passed a flyer back to Kai but she didn''t accept it.


    \"..........\" She just stood there silently, like a robot whose power ran off.


    \"Um, sorry?\" The boy waved the flyer in front of Kai''s face.


    \"Oh, right,\" Kai took the flyer and handed him a new one. Despite her stoic expression, it was easy to see her melancholy. Meanwhile...


    \"Alright!\" Luke pumped a fist. \"This makes it 30 people. So, that''s 30 days of invincibility! Maybe I can make it all the way to 300 and that''ll cover the entire year!\"


    [Seriously? I swear, the lengths some people would go just to not change their playstyle.] Yuel shook his head.


    Still, Luke''s motives aside, there was no denying he was helping them a lot. He drew people in while Yuel and Kai answered everybody''s questions and handled the registration. All in all, they turned out to be a nice team.


    Alas, despite their hard work, they couldn''t find a single girl for the club. They even went as far as making Luke shout an advertisement that was specifically aimed at girls.


    \"CLASSMANCERS CLUB! Boys and girls, everybody is welcome! We even got one girl on the team!\"


    Somehow, that only seemed to draw more boys than usual. However, still, zero girls.


    \"Let''s take a break,\" Kai said. She adopted Luke''s technique and snatched a chair from one of the classrooms. It was probably bad to take chairs without permission like that but Yuel''s knees were crying in pain. He couldn''t take this anymore so he became an accomplice and snatched a chair as well.


    Once everybody sat down, a wave of tiredness descended on Yuel. Everything felt foggy. The skin-torching heat. The ceaseless noises of the busy crowds. His aching knees. And, above everything, of promising applications.


    [Just let me rest like this for the rest of my life.] Yuel leaned back on the chair and closed his eyes. Apparently, the others shared his sentiments. They didn''t even want to talk about their current progress.


    \"Phew, my throat is dead,\" Luke gulped down his whole water bottle in one go. What a hard drinker.


    \"Tch!\" Kai clicked her tongue while typing furiously on her phone. Apparently, she just missed a note in a rhythm game. How did she even have the strength to do anything right now? Or, maybe she was just trying her hardest to distract herself from reality?


    Meanwhile, Yuel flipped through the forms they got so far. They got 12 applications, which wasn''t that bad all things considered. In order to save themselves time later, he already sorted the flyers by player rank. The highest rank was Gold III while the worst was an Lv.20 player.


    The Gold division was perfectly acceptable for a grade-schooler so it seemed promising. If there was anybody in Platinum, that player would be talented for sure and Yuel would prioritize them above anybody. However, that was too much to expect from a grade-schooler. Yuel and Lars only got to Platinum in grade school by grinding a lot together, along with Julia...


    [So, there really won''t be any girls applying?] Yuel should have felt relieved. No girls meant they''ll be able to pick the best players out of the bunch. However, his heart stung. Maybe this time, if a girl joins the club, he''ll be able to properly...


    \"Ah!\" Yuel jumped. There was something bizarre in the crowd. Long black noodles, floating in mid-air!


    No, wait. That was just somebody''s hair. Long and messy black hair, that nearly hid the entire face. Little black eyes peered through the long bangs. They seemed to be staring at the club''s table.


    It was a girl! A pale and ghostly one, so much that she almost blended into the environment, but she was definitely there!


    The skinny hairball fidgeted back and forth as she eyed the table. Did she want to sign up? She definitely did, right!?


    \"Hey!\" Yuel called out in the girl''s direction and grabbed a flyer.


    \"What''s wrong?\" Kai asked.


    \"There''s a girl there who seems interested.\"


    \"Really!?\" Kai jumped. \"Where!?\"


    \"There,\" Yuel pointed toward the girl as he kept moving.


    \"Huh? Where?\"


    \"There. You don''t see her?\"


    \"Hmmmmm,\" Kai squinted her eyes. \"I''m not sure who you''re referring to.\"


    \"That girl over there, with the black hair.\"


    \"Can''t say I see anybody.\"


    \"Me neither,\" Luke even pulled up his sunglasses. \"You sure you ain''t imagining stuff?\"


    \"Huh?\" Yuel was taken aback. What''s with these reactions? The girl was clearly still there. \"Over there, the girl with the long black hair. The one that looks a little pale.\"


    \"I don''t see anybody like that,\" Luke shrugged. \"Pale and long black hair? My guy, are you sure that''s not a ghost?\"


    \"A-A ghost?\" Kai jumped. \"H-Huh, no way. They don''t exist. Is that supposed to be a prank?\"


    \"No, she''s really there,\" Yuel insisted. How came they couldn''t see her? Sure, there was a big sea of people walking around and that pale girl was a little difficult to notice at first. However, once Yuel locked down on her, she stood out like a sore thumb with that long black spaghetti hair.


    \"Fine, I''ll just go to her,\" Yuel set out with the flyer in hand. \"Hey, do you want to apply for the club?\"


    \"E-Eh?\" The girl''s eyes popped wide. It''s like she was shocked by the mere fact somebody could possibly address her.


    \"A-Ah,\" The girl gapped like a fish and slowly retreated deeper into the crowd.


    \"Wait, I just-\" Yuel broke into a run as the spaghetti hair girl vanished in the busy crowd.


    \"S-Sorry!\" Yuel bumped into somebody but he didn''t slow down. He swam through the sea of people to find that elusive girl. Where could she possibly go!? She was just there a moment ago! That black hairball should stick out easily even with so many people around.


    Where? Where did she go!? She might be interested in joining! If she does, Yuel will have a chance to redeem himself for how he treated Julia. This time, he''ll properly keep in mind that the other person was a girl and will coach her accordingly without getting on her bad side...


    [What am I even thinking?] Yuel stopped. It was dumb. That girl wasn''t Julia. What happened between them couldn''t be repaired anymore. Even if he recruits a girl to the club and properly converts her into a competitive player, so what of it? Whom would that satisfy? Nobody but him.


    Maybe the others were right and Yuel hallucinated the whole thing. Or, maybe it was a ghost. That pale girl barley looked like a living person.


    \"Heh, haha...\" Yuel produced a dry laugh. He was thinking so hard about recruiting a girl it made him imagine a girl in the crowd. 10/10. Maybe the sun was too strong today and he was in the process of getting sunstroke. It was dumb. All of it.


    [Whatever.] Yuel sighed and shook his head. Still, he couldn''t help but wonder: did he really imagine that girl? Even with his selfish interests clouding his mind, he was sure he saw a girl eying their table back there. Or, did he? He didn''t even know anymore.


    [Well, I''ll just leave it here.] Yuel found a nearby billboard and pinned the flyer on it. Maybe that spaghetti hair girl will see it here.


    [Heh. Yeah, right.] Yuel shook his head and walked off. That girl probably didn''t even exist. She was nothing more than a figment of his wishful thinking.


    Unbeknown to him and without anybody noticing, the flyer he put on the billboard mysteriously disappeared a few seconds later...

 147 The Mysterious Candidate

    The big day of club recruitments was over. On the following day, the Classmancers club gathered in the basement clubroom to go over the applications. Everybody was present, except for Vincent who went to fetch additional applications from the school secretary and Ben who was missing again for whatever reason.


    [Is Ben even really a part of the club?] Yuel sighed. At this point, it felt like Ben was a part-time member at best. But, it got tiring to ask the same questions and get the same vague answers every time so whatever.


    By the time everybody arrived, Kai was already there flipping through the application forms. She carefully went over them over and over but it was futile. She won''t find what she was searching for. Yuel knew that because he organized the papers yesterday.


    \"Huh,\" Kai sighed and slapped the papers on the table. Reality dawned on her: there wasn''t a single competent female candidate.


    Surprisingly, five girls applied for the club. It was a small number but way higher than anybody expected. Alas, their experience with the game ranged from \"I don''t know what this is about\" and all the way to the pro level of \"I heard about it, I think\" In other words, completely useless.


    \"Who even let these girls apply?\" Kai asked with a frown. She had to blame somebody for raising her hopes like that only to let them crash and burn.


    \"A few gals gave me forms,\" Lars said.


    \"And, you didn''t tell them we only want experienced players?\"


    \"Nah, I said everybody is welcome, haha.\"


    \"You''re really something...\" Kai shook her head. \"How did you even get so many girls to sign up anyway?\"


    \"I dunno. They just came to me and asked questions and stuff.\"


    [I think they were hitting on you.] Yuel rolled his eyes. It wasn''t just Julia, Lars was popular with girls in general. So, there was a good chance all these girls approached him and \"signed up\" just to start a conversation. They had no real intention of joining and they didn''t care about Classmancers in the slightest. Alas, the goof was too thick-headed to notice any of that.


    \"So,\" Kai narrowed her eyes. \"Why did you let them sign up if they clearly don''t know the first thing about Mancers?\"


    \"Well, they all looked nice and interested so I thought I''d give them a chance.\"


    [Yeah, I''m sure.] Yuel nodded. [They looked interested in YOU, not in Mancers.]


    \"Whatever. I bet you''re happy now?\" Kai handed the stack of papers to Yuel. \"Looks like we''re picking our new member based on rank. You''ve even already ordered the applications in descending rank order so we know exactly who that is.\"


    \"Yeah,\" Yuel nodded and glanced at the top application on the stack. It was the current favorite, the Gold III player.


    \"Gotta say,\" Kai continued. \"Good job sorting the applications. Made it very clear how far at the bottom all the girls were.\"


    \"That wasn''t my intention.\"


    \"No, it''s fine, really,\" Kai glanced aside and smiled wryly. \"Just goes to show how damn hard it is to find any decent female players our age. It''s a good wake-up call. I really gotta stop dreaming about the impossible.\"


    \"There''s still the applications Vincent will bring,\" Yuel tried to console.


    \"You really expect to see anything different there?\"


    \"Who knows,\" Yuel dodged the question. In truth, he didn''t expect anything. If even Lars, the girl magnet, could only draw get girls of this caliber, there was little hope.


    This should''ve made Yuel rejoice. After all, it meant they''ll pick the most promising candidate for the club and that''ll reinforce the club''s skill level the most.


    And yet, it was unfortunate. A part of him wished that the most competent player to apply was a girl. Or, at least, that one of the girls who applied was competent enough to compete with a Gold III. That would have worked out the best for both him and Kai.


    A few minutes later, Vincent came in with more application forms he collected from the school secretary.


    \"Let me look,\" Kai snatched the papers right away and flipped through them one by one. Then, she slammed the papers on the table and walked away with her arms crossed. It wasn''t hard to guess why.


    Male. Male. Male. Male. Male. Yuel flipped through the papers and that''s all he saw.


    [About what I expected.] He put the papers down. There wasn''t even anybody in Gold rank so none of these applicants added anything of note to the selection process.


    \"Sorry,\" Vincent apologized to Kai. \"That''s all they had. Even with my Information Blackhole, I was unable to draw in any additional applications. I shall commit seppuku to repent!\"


    \"It''s not like it''s your fault,\" Kai shrugged. \"That''s just the reality of things. I should''ve it''ll turn out like this.\"


    [So, this whole \"gender selection\" thing is over.] Yuel glanced at the basement''s door. No matter how much he stared at it, nobody was going to come and bring a new stack of applications. It was over. No competent girls ever applied so the highest rank player will be selected... wait.


    [Is it just me or there''s somebody at the door?] Yuel narrowed his eyes. He could swear he saw somebody peeking into the room from outside.


    \"Somebody there?\" Yuel asked as he approached the door.


    \"...!\" Something jumped near the door. There was somebody there after all! It looked like a big black hairball but it was actually a human.


    [Didn''t I see it somewhere before?] Yuel could swear he saw that long messy spaghetti hair before but he couldn''t recall the specifics.


    \"You came here to apply?\" Yuel asked as he drew closer to the door. However, that only made the spaghetti hairball retreat.


    \"Wait!\" Yuel instinctively broke into a run and the black critter did the same.


    \"Gone...\" Yuel looked around but there was no trace of the wild creature he just saw. Was he hallucinating? Thinking of it, something like that happened yesterday...


    [Right! It must be that girl from yesterday!] Yuel smacked his forehead. [How could I forget? It was such a bizarre experience, too.]


    It was the same girl he saw in the crowd yesterday and failed to catch. Did she perhaps come to try applying again?


    [Shoot, I scared her away.] Yuel pursed his lips. This was bad. Kai will definitely blame him for scaring off potential female candidates.


    \"Dude,\" Lars called out. \"Whatcha doing over there?\"


    \"Well,\" Yuel glanced nervously at Kai. \"I thought there was somebody who came to apply...\"


    \"Did you start hallucinating candidates?\" Kai asked.


    \"Poor guy,\" Luke chuckled. \"I bet he saw a young version of Maker, the legend himself, coming to apply, haha.\"


    \"That''s quite the ability,\" Vincent nodded. \"I shall dub it the Mystic Eyes of Candidate Perception!\"


    [What''s with these reactions?] Yuel shuddered. It was like only he saw that black hairball spying on them. Thinking of it, he experienced something similar yesterday too. For some reason, only he saw that girl in the crowd. Frankly, it was getting rather unsettling. Brrr.


    Just as he was about to write off this entire incident, he noticed a piece of paper on the floor. Did it belong to that spaghetti hair? Upon closer inspection, it was one of the flyers Vincent printed.


    Wait, could it be...!? That girl''s application form!? Yuel dashed like a madman and grabbed the paper. It was indeed an application form!


    Gender: Female


    Rank: Platinum V


    \"Y-You gotta be kidding me...\" Yuel stuttered. He rubbed his eyes but the form didn''t vanish and its contents didn''t change. It was the real deal! A girl applied and she was competent enough to rival Platinum league!


    \"If I was just hallucinating, then explain this,\" Yuel smirked on his way back into the clubroom.


    \"What is it?\" Kai took the flyer. Her expectations have been betrayed far too many times by now that she didn''t expect to see anything of note. However, the contents of this flyer almost made her eyeballs pop out of their sockets!


    \"Wha!?\" Kai dashed toward the door and frantically checked the surrounding area. Alas, the mysterious spaghetti hair girl was gone for. \"There was really somebody here? It''s not your idea of a prank or something, right?\"


    \"Why would I bother,\" Yuel said. \"Besides, we''ll know for sure once we check her account.\"


    \"Right! Let''s do it!\" Kai took out her tablet and entered the player ID from the paper.


    \"Oh, there''s a result!\" Kai''s jumped.


    [Never saw her express so much emotion before.] Yuel smiled wryly. Though, admittedly, he was mad curious too.


    Kai searched the player ID from the application form and found a user who went by \"BlackFlower\". Unfortunately, some of the account''s profile info was set to private so they couldn''t see everything about BlackFlower. For example, it was impossible to see her match history.


    However, they could still find out the important parts. BlackFlower was Lv.62, so she was qualified for Ranked. However, as for the actual rank...


    ¡ºQualifying¡»


    \"Huh?\" Kai cocked her head. \"Does that mean she hasn''t finished the qualifier?\"


    \"So it seems,\" Yuel frowned.


    When a player entered Ranked for the first time, they had to play ten \"qualifier\" matches to help the system estimate their skill level. Based on these ten matches, the player''s initial rank would be anywhere between Bronze V and Gold V.


    Back when Yuel and Lars started out, they were assigned Silver II and Gold V respectively. The system forbade players from doing the qualifier in parties, so each of them had to pull through on their own. Lars had an easy time carrying games with his skill but Yuel had to rely more on his teammates and that cost him games. The only matches that went well for him were the ones where he carried as Top.


    It wasn''t exactly a pleasant experience but it was behind them now. However, it wasn''t behind BlackFlower. She was still stuck in the middle of the qualifier process.


    \"So, her Platinum rank is a sham,\" Yuel concluded.


    \"That''s...\" Kai bit her lip and kept scrolling through BlackFlower''s profile. \"Wait, she IS Platinum! In Duel.\"


    \"And she wrote that as her rank?\" Yuel raised an eyebrow. \"Seriously?\"


    \"Thinking of it,\" Vincent said. \"We didn''t actually specify we''re asking for the rank of the MOBA mode.\"


    \"Oh, I remember that stuff!\" Lars nodded. \"I also wanted to write I''m Diamond when I was applying to StormBlitz. It was my Duel rank.\"


    \"Right,\" Yuel recalled that silly exchange. \"I had to stop you back then.\"


    \"Yep, haha.\"


    \"So,\" Luke started. \"Whatcha gonna make out of this? Duel rank doesn''t really say much but it''s something, I guess.\"


    \"Platinum in Duel is decent for a freshman,\" Kai argued. \"I was around Platinum III in Duel when I joined. Besides, we already agreed we''re going to pick a female if she''s at least Lv.30.\"


    \"We agreed to [test] a female who is at least Lv.30,\" Yuel corrected. \"But, I agree. Platinum in Duel shows at least some promise.\"


    With that said, the ¡ºQualifying¡» status didn''t sit right with him. BlackFlower was already Lv.62. In other words, she hit Lv.50 a while ago and had enough time to climb all the way to Platinum V in Duel. And yet, she hasn''t finished the qualifier for the MOBA mode during all this time. Why?


    \"Can you check her play rate in each mode?\" Yuel asked.


    \"Let''s see,\" Kai switched tabs. \"It''s... Err...\"


    BlackFlower was sporting an impressive 92% play rate in Duel. In other words, she has been exclusively playing Duel. The rest was split among the game''s other modes and only 4% was on the main MOBA mode. Needless to say, this was concerning.


    \"So,\" Yuel concluded. \"She got to Lv.62 almost entirely by playing Duel.\"


    \"So it seems...\" Kai clearly wanted to refute that but it was the cold truth.


    The game awarded player exp regardless of which mode the player played so it was possible to get to Lv.62 by just playing Duel all the time. Apparently, that''s how BlackFlower did it.


    \"It''s like she has been playing a completely different game,\" Yue said.


    \"But, that doesn''t mean she''ll be bad in the MOBA mode,\" Kai argued.


    \"I never said that. I still think we should call her over and test how well she plays.\"


    \"Agreed,\" Kai nodded. \"I''ll catch her tomorrow during lunch break.\"


    \"Catch her?\" Vincent chuckled. \"You make her sound like a rare Pokemon.\"


    \"She''s a shiny legendary,\" Kai chuckled. \"Good job spotting her, Yuel.\"


    \"You guys really didn''t see her?\" Yuel asked.


    \"No,\" Kai shook her head. \"I haven''t seen anybody.\"


    \"Yep, me neither,\" Lars said.


    \"Nope,\" Luke shrugged.


    \"Kukuku,\" Vincent cackled. \"Actually, I believe my Information Blackhole picked something up back then! But, the signal was so faint I wasn''t sure whether I should bring it up.\"


    \"In other words,\" Yuel said. \"You didn''t see squat.\"


    \"... no, I didn''t,\" Vincent admitted.


    It was so weird. There were five people in this room, so how came Yuel was the only one who saw that spaghetti hair girl? It was a mystery.


    Either way, it was decided: they''ll call the girl over and test her mettle. There was a lot of uncertainty surrounding this candidate, but they''ll learn her worth for sure tomorrow.


    With that out of the way, the club spent a couple of hours grinding Ranked and adjourned for the day.

 148 Tracking Down the Elusive Candidate

    The club agreed to test out the elusive girl who went by BlackFlower. She was the only real female player to apply for the club. In fact, she was even Platinum V! But, that was in Duel.


    Meanwhile, in the MOBA mode, she was still in the qualifier. So, what was her actual skill level? The club will have to test her thoroughly.


    According to the application, the girl''s name was Nia and she was in class 1-B. On the following day, Kai went to 1-B during lunch break.


    \"Why are you tagging along?\" Kai asked.


    \"Just think of me as your advisor,\" Vincent said. \"I''m just here to make sure you don''t scare anybody off.\"


    \"Huh? Why would I?\"


    \"Let''s just say you can be pretty direct sometimes. Too direct, in fact,\" Vincent smiled meaningfully. \"Remember the guys you chased away last year when the club was recruiting? Poor fellows. All they did was ask you a couple of questions.\"


    \"That''s ''cause their questions were dumb,\" Kai crossed her arms. \"How can somebody play Mancers seriously and not know where to find their player ID? Them clowns. No wonder none of them passed.\"


    \"Whew, ruthless,\" Vincent whistled. \"You see? That''s why you need somebody who is all smiles and sunshine to tag along. That''ll make you look less intimidating. You can think of me as your standup partner. Together, we''re the Two Senior Mancers!\"


    \"Whatever,\" Kai shrugged. \"Just make sure you don''t get in the way. I don''t want to hear any of your usual nonsense. You know these things rub people the wrong way.\"


    \"Understood. I shall seal away my powers as the Arbiter of Talents and close my Information Blackhole until the right moment arrives!\"


    \"There won''t be such a moment.\"


    Eventually, they reached class 1-B. Alas, they had no idea how Nia looked because Yuel was the only one who ever saw this elusive girl. So, they had to ask around.


    \"Hm? Nia? Was there somebody like that in our class?\"


    \"Oh, isn''t that the black-haired girl? Sorry, don''t know much about her.\"


    \"Hmm, I don''t see her. Maybe she went to the cafeteria.\"


    Their first attempt ended in failure. Apparently, Nia wasn''t in the classroom. Kai and Vincent arrived here as soon as launch break began, yet they still somehow missed their target. What an elusive girl this Nia was.


    \"Why didn''t she fill in her phone number?\" Kai sighed and put away the application form. They only knew Nia''s name and classroom, nothing else. The phone number field was left blank so the only way to contact this phantom girl was by catching her in person.


    \"So, we do a stakeout?\" Vincent asked.


    \"What else can we do?\" Kai took out a sandwich and began eating in front of the classroom.


    \"Somebody sure came prepared,\" Vincent commented.


    \"I figured that may happen. What, you didn''t bring your food?\"


    \"Nope,\" Vincent scratched his head. \"But, it''s quite alright! I shall sacrifice my lunch break for the sake of summoning the ever-elusive BlackFlower! Only by starving myself for half an hour while everybody else feasts on their lunches, I can summon the dark energy required for manifesting BlackFlower!\"


    \"If you''re that hungry, just go bring it.\"


    \"Nay! I shall overcome this ordeal given to me by the ancient gods!\"


    \"Whatever you say,\" Kai shrugged and took another bite off her sandwich.


    [Grrr.] Vincent squinted his eyes. As hard as he tried, he couldn''t unglue his eyes from Kai''s sandwich. However, he''ll bear through this torture! By making a sacrifice to the evil gods, he shall summon for the blackest flower of them all! He''ll be able to see the phantom girl which only the chosen ones could lay their eyes on!


    Fifteen minutes later, Vincent was still suffering. They questioned every girl who passed by the classroom but none of them was their target.


    GROOOOOWL. Vincent rubbed his aching stomach.


    [Kukuku, as expected from my Perfect Clockwork Body.] Vincent forced a smile. His body knew exactly when to alert him about lunchtime being overdue. He was like a natural walking clock! But, he won''t be able to bear this much longer...


    \"Wouldn''t it be funny if she''s not at school today?\" Vincent said.


    \"It''s weird,\" Kai crossed her arms. \"We can''t even confirm whether she''s supposed to be here today. It''s like nobody knows her.\"


    \"Maybe she''s actually a ghost.\"


    \"T-There''s no way. Ghosts can''t fill in a registration form.\"


    \"One should never underestimate the power of ghosts! Say, if she belongs to the Portelgiest family, she could manipulate the objects around her. So, she could''ve have moved a pen to scribble on the paper.\"


    \"Sure, sure,\" Kai rolled her eyes. \"Damn, if only we knew how she looks like.\"


    \"Welp, there''s one person who claims he saw her,\" Vincent took out his phone. \"Let''s call Yuel to help us out here.\"


    \"Good idea.\"


    [Kukuku. I finally got you, K! You have fallen for my elaborate plan!] Vincent snickered. [With Yuel here, we''ll pinpoint our target right away and wrap this mission up before lunch break ends! That way, I''ll have enough time to enjoy my lunch! All according to keikaku.]


    Yuel arrived a few minutes later.


    \"Can you tell if she''s in here?\" Kai asked.


    \"Use your Mystic Eyes of Phantom Perception to unmask this ghost for us!\"


    \"Let''s see,\" Yuel peered into the classroom.


    Frankly, his memory of the girl was a little hazy. He only saw her twice and it always in a hurry. However, he did remember a couple of key details, such as her messy black hair. So, he concentrated on finding a girl with long spaghetti hair.


    At first glance, there was nobody like that in the classroom. But, this girl was always needlessly difficult to spot for some reason. So, Yuel walked around the classroom and carefully examined every nook and cranny.


    Eventually, he found it. Tucked away at the corner of the room, hidden behind waves of students, there was a table. Behind it, the familiar sight of a long and messy black hair.


    \"There she is!\" Yuel almost broke into a run. It felt like the girl might vanish at any moment if he doesn''t hurry. The seniors followed right behind him.


    \"Oh, she really got messy black hair,\" Kai tilted her head. \"Can''t believe we missed her.\"


    \"Indeed, what a mystery,\" Vincent frowned. \"To think that a mere human could possibly escape the pull of my Information Blackhole. Nay, impossible! This is further proof this girl is no human! She''s a ghost!\"


    \"Pipe down already,\" Kai stepped in front of the group. This was her chance to make a good first impression the girl; she couldn''t let Vincent''s nonsense ruin this important moment.


    \".......\" The girl didn''t budge. Even though Kai was standing right in front of the table, Nia didn''t even raise her head. She was completely absorbed in her smartphone. Her fingers danced on the touchscreen at blinding speed.


    \"Oh, we found Shining Finger!\" Vincent whispered a tad too loudly in Yuel''s direction. A few students threw funny looks at them.


    [I don''t know this guy.] Yuel averted his eyes and maintained a poker face.


    \"Excuse me?\" Kai called out.


    \"......\"


    \"Hey.\"


    \".......\"


    \"Nia?\"


    \"Hm?\" The spaghetti hair finally moved. Nia unglued her eyes from her phone and slowly raised her head. \"Eh?\" She looked at the three pairs of eyes locked down on her. \"Eh? Me?\"


    \"Yeah, you,\" Kai said. \"I wanna talk about your application to the Classmancers club.\"


    \"Eh? Ah, that''s, um...\" Nia froze like a statue. \"So, you got that...\"


    \"Yeah, we did,\" Kai nodded. \"We checked your profile and you look promising, so we''d like to-\"


    \"You looked into my profile!?\" Nia jumped. \"Oh, no! I knew I shouldn''t have written that! I better change my password and everything.\" She returned to her phone and began tapping at lightning speed.


    \"Huh?\" Kai raised an eyebrow. \"Nobody can get your password just by looking at your profile.\"


    \"You never know. The internet is a scary place. Hackers everywhere.\"


    \"I don''t think that''s how it works...\"


    [It sure as hell doesn''t.] Yuel made a face. [How did she even arrive at that conclusion? That explains why her account had increased privacy settings.]


    \"Anyway, about the club,\" Kai tried to wheel the conversation back on topic.


    \"Yes?\" Nia glanced at Kai while keeping her fingers on the touchscreen.


    \"We consider recruiting you but we''d like to see how you play first. Can you drop by at the club after school?\"


    \"Hmm. Ok.\" Nia gave a weak answer.


    \"You know where the clubroom is, right?\"


    \"Is that basement place your clubroom?\"


    \"Yeah. Unfortunately, it is.\"


    \"So, a basement clubroom? Weird.\"


    \"Tell me about it,\" Kai sighed deeply. \"But, don''t worry. The place is alright. You''ll get used to it.\"


    \"But, I''m not a member yet.\"


    \"Oh, right,\" Kai smiled awkwardly. \"Anyway, make sure to come.\"


    \"How?\" Nia examined the trio. \"How did you find me?\"


    \"Huh?\" Kai raised an eyebrow. \"You left your name and class when you registered.\"


    \"I know, but...\" Nia fell silent for a moment. \"Nevermind.\"


    \"Speaking of which, you forgot to fill in your phone number.\"


    \"I didn''t forget,\" Nia claimed.


    \"Then, why is it blank?\"


    \"Because I didn''t fill it.\"


    \"What, on purpose?\"


    \"On purpose,\" Nia nodded. \"If you give your number to an organization, you''ll start getting spam messages.\"


    \"Huh, ''organization'', you say...\" Kai forced an awkward smile.


    \"And,\" Nia continued. \"People might hack your phone.\"


    [Again, that''s not how these things work.] Yuel sighed. [This girl is... peculiar, to say the least.]


    \"Anyway,\" Kai returned to the topic. \"Do you mind giving me your phone number? It''ll make things so much easier for both of us.\"


    \"Only if you give me your phone number too,\" Nia said with suspecting eyes. It''s as if they were about to exchange war prisoners.


    \"Sure,\" Kai exchanged phone numbers with Nia. \"Alright, see you after school.\"


    The trio left on that note.


    \"Interesting girl,\" Vincent said.


    \"''Interesting'' is definitely one way to describe her,\" Yuel nodded. [Though, I''d personally go with \"peculiar\".]


    \"There''s one thing I still don''t get, though,\" Vincent crossed his arms. \"How come Kai and I didn''t spot her earlier?\"


    \"Well, the classroom was quite packed,\" Kai said. \"Besides, she was literally tucked away at the very corner there.\"


    \"True, but Yuel gave us a rather accurate description of her,\" Vincent insisted. \"He said ''a girl with long and messy black hair'' and, indeed, we found a girl with long and messy black hair. She should''ve stuck out like a sore thumb. Yet, we couldn''t find her until Yuel came here.\"


    \"Well,\" Kai shrugged. \"I guess we don''t have a future as detectives.\"


    \"No kidding.\"


    \"So, you decided how we''ll test her?\" Yuel asked. Naturally, he already had some ideas in mind but he decided to let the captain have her say first.


    \"Let''s start with 1v1 matches,\" Kai said. \"That''s where Nia should be most comfortable\"


    \"I''m fine with that,\" Yuel said. \"But, we''ll have to eventually test her in 5v5 as well.\"


    \"Yeah but let''s go one step at a time, okay? First, a 1v1.\"


    \"I see somebody is being really cautious,\" Vincent smiled meaningfully. \"Afraid of scaring away the shiny Pokemon?\"


    \"Something like that,\" Kai said. \"As for Nia''s opponent, I''ll do it.\"


    \"Not sure I agree with that,\" Yuel objected. \"I have a feeling you might go too easy on her to make her look better, even if unintentionally.\"


    \"For sure,\" Vincent tuned in. \"Kai always goes easy on female players. She is the Softhearted Amazon!\"


    \"Who''s softhearted?\" Kai shot him a look. \"But, alright, fair enough. I might end up going a little too easy on her by accident. So, who do you suggest instead?\"


    \"Anybody would do,\" Yuel said. \"Personally, I''d like to see how well she fares against Lars.\"


    \"Whoa!\" Vincent exclaimed. \"Throwing her to the lion''s den right off the bat!? She''ll be slaughtered by the Beast of the Apocalypse!\"


    \"Yeah, that''s definitely not happening,\" Kai waved her hand. \"How about you play her?\"


    \"Honestly, I''m not well-versed in 1v1,\" Yuel admitted. \"I read a few Duel guides yesterday to catch up to the current meta but I don''t have enough experience to properly test somebody on it.\"


    \"Then,\" Kai turned to Vincent. \"How about you do it?\"


    \"Little ol'' me?\" Vincent pointed at himself. \"Can''t say I''m exactly a pro in Duel. I''m only Gold II.\"


    \"That''s higher than me,\" Yuel said.


    \"Yeah, I know, but...\"


    \"Wait, you know my Duel rank?\" Yuel raised an eyebrow.


    \"Hmhmhm,\" Vincent smirked. \"Of course I do! Never underestimate the knowledge of my Information Blackhole! It absorbs all and everything!\"


    \"So, what rank am I?\"


    \"Gold IV.\"


    \"Correct...\" Yuel felt like he was stalked. [This guy likes keeping tabs on everybody, huh.]


    \"Anyway,\" Kai cut in. \"You''re almost the same rank as Nia so it''ll do.\"


    \"Welp,\" Vincent shrugged. \"I suppose I shall do it then. The Arbiter of Talents shall pass judgment on this fresh meat!\"


    After school, the clubmates gathered in the clubroom. Per usual, Ben was the only one missing.


    \"She''s late,\" Kai tapped her foot. Maybe Kai wasn''t persuasive enough when she talked to Nia? Thinking back on it, Kai was extremely straight to the point and didn''t do anything to make the club sound more appealing. Maybe she should''ve tried hype it up some more, the way Vincent does with everything. [This is SO not my thing, though.]


    \"What are we waiting for?\" Yuel asked.


    \"For the star of the show, obviously,\" Vincent said.


    \"Yeah, we can''t start without Nia,\" Kai nodded.


    \"But, she''s already here,\" Yuel pointed toward the door.


    \"Huh?\" Kai raised an eyebrow. \"No she isn''t... wha!?\"


    Nia was indeed there, with her smartphone in hand and her fingers busy. She was standing behind the wall so only half her frame was visible but it was clearly possible to see her. Yet, somehow, both Kai and Vincent failed to spot her until Yuel pointed at her.


    \"Unbelievable!\" Vincent staggered backward dramatically. \"She''s really here! The ever-elusive phantom girl!\"


    \"She''s been standing there for a while now,\" Yuel pointed out. \"I was busy settings things up so I thought one of you would call her over. But, you never did.\"


    \"Really?\" Lars wiped his eyes. \"I didn''t notice either, dude.\"


    \"I think I literally passed by her and didn''t see her,\" Luke testified. \"Maybe she''s really a ghost?\"


    \"Hey, that''s rude\" Kai was quick to defend.


    \"It''s ok,\" Nia mumbled as she entered the room. \"I''m used to it.\"


    \"Huh? Used?\" Kai asked.


    \"Everybody says I got weak presence,\" Nia put down her phone and stared at Yuel. \"But, you saw me. How?\"


    \"Well,\" Yuel started. \"I''d like to think that seeing a person who literally stands in front of you is kinda basic.\"


    \"Nay, nay, nay!\" Vincent exclaimed. \"Clearly, it''s because he''s the successor of the Mystic Eyes of Phantom Perception! It allows him to see that which can''t be perceived with the naked eye!\"


    [How many different \"Mystic Eyes\" can one person even have?] Yuel rolled his eyes.


    \"Anyway,\" Kai turned to Nia. \"You''re here, so let''s start. You''re good at Duel, right?\"


    \"Yeah, I can Duel,\" Nia nodded.


    \"Alright, so let''s start with that. You''ll play Duel against one of us so we can gauge your skill.\"


    As agreed, Vincent will be Nia''s opponent. He was one of the most neutral testers here and he seemed to know Duel a little better than Yuel. On top of that, it should be easier for Yuel to analyze Nia from outside the match rather than doing so during the heat of battle.


    \"As the Arbiter of Talents,\" Vincent stretched his arms dramatically. \"I shall be the one to pass judgment on you today!\"


    \"Um, ok...\" Nia backed away a little.


    \"Pipe it down,\" Kai smacked Vincent''s shoulder. \"You''re scaring her.\"


    \"Haha, my bad,\" Vincent flashed a smile toward Nia. \"Don''t worry, it won''t be anything difficult. Just play a normal 1v1 against me and show me what you got.\"


    \"Hm,\" Nia nodded weakly in response.


    \"Do you prefer to play on tablet or PC?\" Vincent asked as he pointed toward the two PCs in the room.


    \"Hm...\" Nia stared at the two PCs for a moment, then glanced at everybody else in the room and then examined the rest of the room. \"Tablet.\"


    \"Oh, really?\" Vincent echoed the question Yuel his mind. \"Alrighty then, I''ll play on tablet too to keep it fair.\"


    \"Wait,\" Yuel cut in. \"PC is the platform we''ll be playing on at tournaments so it''s best to test her on it. I don''t see a reason to not do it. We got exactly two PCs to spare.\" He gave Nia a long questioning look.


    \"Um, but...\" Nia averted her eyes.


    \"Give her a break,\" Kai said. \"I also like playing on tablet more because I like controllers, so there you have it. If she can play well on tablet, I''m sure that experience will translate to PC as well; no need to worry. \"


    \"Fine,\" Yuel wasn''t entirely convinced but he let it slide. Kai was extremely protective of Nia so he didn''t feel like starting a fight. As far as he could tell, there wasn''t a single good reason to not play on PC during the exam so it was alarming. It''ll be bad if turned out Nia was skilled with a controller but struggled with a keyboard.


    \"Alrighty,\" Vincent said. \"And so, it begins! The fateful match! Information Blackhole vs. Black Flower!\"


    \"Would you drop that shit already?\" Kai jabbed. \"You''re just making everybody uncomfortable.\"


    \"Oh,\" Vincent realized that Nia has already backed away all the way to exit. \"My bad, my bad. It''s just a friendly test match, that''s all. Really.\"


    \".....\" Nia still had some suspicion in her stare but she slowly returned to the clubroom with cautious steps.


    \"Set up your tablet wherever you want,\" Kai said.


    \"Hm,\" Kai nodded and walked further into the room. In fact, she walked so far she literally reached the corner of the basement. It was half a room away from everybody else, a tiny isolated spot suited from hiding.


    \"Not sure I''d recommend that spot,\" Vincent said. \"The wifi down here is rather whimsical so it might not reach over there at all.\"


    \"We just have to keep the door wide open,\" Kai moved the metallic door. \"Do you get any reception over there?\"


    \"I think it''s okay,\" Nia nodded weakly.


    \"Yeah, it seems fine,\" Yuel confirmed by looking over Nia''s shoulder.


    \"E-Eh!?\" Nia jumped. \"Ah, um...\"


    \"What?\"


    \"Um, why are you here?\"


    \"What do you mean? I need to see how you play,\" Yuel answered plainly.


    \"Um, but...\" Nia shifted her eyes from side to side. Her entire body stiffened like a statue.


    \"You can watch from over there,\" Kai dragged Yuel away. \"It''s a 1v1, so you can pretty much tell everything she does from Vincent''s screen.\"


    \"I suppose. But, it''s easier to watch everything from her perspective.\"


    \"Just give her some space, will you?\" Kai lowered her tone. \"She looks nervous enough.\"


    \"Fine,\" Yuel obediently retreated. He will be able to watch the replay later anyway, so it wasn''t neccessary for him to breathe down on Nia''s neck while she was already nervous about the exam.


    [We''re such nice examiners.] Yuel smiled wryly as he recalled his experience with StormBlitz''s entrance exam. Back then, Aron pressured Yuel by asking to justify every single move Yuel made. It was already stressful enough to play alongside seniors and Aron applied further pressure on top of that with all his difficult questions. Ugh.


    [Maybe it''s really better if I maintain some distance.] Yuel concluded. He could see himself asking Nia all sorts of questions and distracting her. The girl already looked so pale like she could faint at any moment. She definitely didn''t need any more pressure on her.


    Once Nia and Vincent took their seats, the entrance exam was about to begin. What kind of show will this Platinum rank duelist put on?

 149 Duel Exam

    Nia''s entrance exam was about to begin. Vincent created a 1v1 lobby and Nia joined in. Since Nia seemed to be uncomfortable with people around her, everybody gave her space and huddled behind Vincent to watch the game unfold.


    "With so many eyes on my monitor, I feel like I''m the one being tested here," Vincent said. "I can feel the nerves kicking in."


    "No need to worry," Kai said. "Go ahead and perform horribly. That''ll make Nia look good."


    "And, you''d be satisfied with that kind of result?"


    "Of course not," Kai said. "But, maybe that''ll at least calm her down a little. I mean, look at her."


    "Yeah..." Yuel didn''t even know what to say. Nia curled into a ball on top of the chair as if she wanted to become a hairball. Was she that nervous? Or, was it some sort of ritual before the match? And, why did she put her legs on the chair like? Also, how come her parents never bothered to take care of her messy spaghetti hair? So many mysteries.


    In a proper Ranked Duel, each player was allowed to ban three classes, similar to the first round of banning in Ranked MOBA. However, to make life easier, Kai convinced everybody to let Nia skip this part for the exam.


    [Unfortunate, but oh well.] Yuel shook his head. There was a lot of information to be extracted from how one handled the drafting phase but knowing how to draft was way more advanced than just knowing how to play. Lars was the definitive example of that. That goof had zero drafting ability but insane in-game skill. One of those cases when a book couldn''t be judged by its cover.


    With no banning phase, each player was allowed to pick any class they wanted.


    [Alrighty, what do I go for?] Vincent stroked his chin. [I like me some Viking in Duel, but I feel that might be too aggressive for a test. The girl already looks nervous enough. I don''t want to bully her.]


    In the end, Vincent went for Knight, the solid all-rounder. It should be good enough to pose a challenge for properly testing Nia''s mettle without making her sweat bullets.


    Meanwhile, Nia picked Rogue.


    "Rogue, huh," Yuel wore a difficult expression.


    "Hey," Luke exclaimed. "Before you start trash-talking my boi Rogue again, just so you know: it''s not a meme in 1v1."


    "Yeah," Kai tuned in. "I wouldn''t call it ''high tier'' but it''s definitely up there in Duel."


    "I didn''t even say anything yet," Yuel made a face. Though, admittedly, thoughts like that did cross his mind at first. "I''m more surprised it''s an assassin pick. They''re not easy in 1v1."


    "That''s true," Kai frowned and crossed her arms. "I hope Nia knows what she''s doing. What are her most played classes?"


    "Nobody knows," Yuel said. "She set most of her info to private."


    "Oh, right," Kai sighed.


    "So," Vincent started. "Knight is considered a tough matchup for Rogue, right?"


    "I''d say so," Luke was the first to answer. He probably considered himself the No.1 Rogue expert in the group. "Assassin vs. Bruiser is always rough. Like, when you''re an assassin and can''t kill your target fast, then WTF you''re even supposed to do there, amirite?"


    "Maybe we should ask if she wants to change classes," Kai suggested.


    "She must have picked Rogue because she''s confident in it," Yuel argued. "A big part of being good in Duel is being able to adapt to any type of opponent. If she says nothing about this matchup, then I say we let her play. Worst case, if she loses because of the bad matchup, we''ll take that into consideration."


    "Fair enough," Kai agreed but she was tapping her foot rapidly. Somebody was clearly nervous about the whole thing.


    Frankly, even Yuel thought the odds weren''t in Nia''s favor. In the few Ranked Duels he played, he always picked a bruiser and felt his easiest matchups were assassins. He didn''t win every such matchup but his win ratio against them was definitely higher than against other roles.


    Assassins were usually solid counters to marksmen and mages and those. in turn, countered bruisers. It was a rock-paper-scissors relationship and sometimes victory was decided all the way back on the selection screen.


    However, an advantage was nothing more than just that, an advantage. It didn''t dictate the entire outcome of the match. The players who were truly good at 1v1 were expected to adapt and handle their bad matchups smartly.


    Yuel didn''t invest enough time into Duel to reach that level but Nia has been primarily a 1v1 player according to her stats. Therefore, she had to be able to handle an assassin vs. bruiser matchup. Otherwise, it''d put her adaptation skills into question.


    [Knight? What a pain.] Nia pouted. [Drat, they''re doing it on purpose. They must''ve found out I play assassins and picked a bruiser to bully me. Didn''t I leave my stats on private? They must have hacked my account somehow! The internet is truly a scary place.]


    [Maybe I should just slip away?] Nia eyed the door. [I bet they won''t even notice. I''ll just go outside and disappear. It''s better than being publicly executed like this. I bet they also pit me against their strongest Duelist just to make it a pain. Gufu...]


    Nia broke out of her curled posture and lowered her feet to the floor. However, she stopped herself midway.


    [Am I going to run away again?] Nia trembled. There she was, undertaking an entrance exam for joining a club. Somehow, she already got this far. So, shouldn''t she try just a little harder until the end?


    The exam was shaping up to be a mean one with that Knight pick but it wasn''t like she didn''t have a chance at all. She has fought many Knights before and beat some of them. It was a wack matchup but not a hopeless one.


    [I-I''ll give it a try.] Nia nodded to herself. This was a rare opportunity that might never come again. Back in elementary school, she never joined a club even though it was supposed to mandatory. It wasn''t mandatory so nobody forced her into anything. Everybody forgot she even existed and she herself was too timid to reach out to anybody.


    But, this time was different. The people from this club noticed her and even found her in her classroom. How? It was like magic. They must have had some sort of secret weapon their side. Maybe some sort of magical human tracking machine that reported Nia''s position in real-time via GPS. The horror of super technology!


    [No, no, no.] Nia shook her head. It''s okay. They just happened to notice her when she was applying to the club. And, they just happened to find her in her class because they searched very hard. There wasn''t any kind of demonic neo technology involved in the process, right? Right?


    ¡ºREADY?¡»


    ¡ºFIGHT!¡»


    The match began.


    [No idea how they find me every time, but...] Nia curled back into a ball on top of the chair. [This is a chance to join a club for once. So, even though this matchup is a pain, I gotta win somehow.]


    [Um, what do I pick here, again?] Nia browsed the shop. She needed a good starting item to deal with a bruiser, the pesky type of opponent who won''t quickly die from burst damage.


    [Can I check real quick?] Nia sneakily glanced at the group on the other side of the room. Good, nobody was paying attention to her. This called for a stealth mission!


    She sneakily took out her phone and booted the Tipmancer app. Then, she inputted the matchup between Rogue and Knight for Duel mode. The app suggested building Muramasa as the first item for the Rogue player.


    [Ok.] Nia nodded and purchased Muramasa right away. It had about everything she needed: attack power, attack speed, penetration, and defense stealing. This should let her contest the Knight at close quarters.


    With an Lv.3 Muramasa and a Smite utility skill, Nia set out of the base. Where should she start off? The blue buff or the red buff? Naturally, blue was the only safe option. Walking all the way to the Ogre Camp in the center of the map was too risky. She never did that despite always entertaining the idea for a moment before shooting it down.


    [Are they gonna invade?] Nia cautiously approached the Wraith Camp. Invasions were such a pain to deal with so, hopefully, this examiner won''t bully her. It was already rough enough that she''ll have to deal with a Knight this match.


    [Ok, looks clear.] Nia nodded to herself and proceeded to clear the Wraith Camp. This was the part where Rogue kinda sucked and needed help. That''s why she bought the Smite utility skill, which dealt heavy damage to one minion and then unleashed a weaker AoE shockwave which hit other minions in range.


    She hammered the Supreme Wraith with Smite and the shockwave hit the rest of the wraiths. That deleted over 80% of the boss''s HP right away and reduced the other wraiths to half health. Nia wrapped things up by with a couple more basic attacks.


    [OK, done.] She collected the blue buff and proceeded to the lane. Her opponent arrived on the lane at around the same time as her, also sporting a blue buff.


    [That''s quite the getup.] Nia made a face. The enemy Knight was wearing an expensive black demonic skin with flame effects erupting from every part of its body. He almost looked like a Dark Knight, except even more evil and infernal.


    It was... really cool, actually. Though, the guy had to be loaded to allow himself that kind of stuff. This skin was quite expensive compared to the usual ones. Maybe it was one of those cases when the child bought a skin with his parents'' credit card without their knowledge? So, maybe he was stealing money from his own family to buy skins!? There were many such stories floating around the internet. Scary how far some people would go.


    [Interesting customization.] Vincent processed the Rogue''s looks with his amazing Skin Analyzer ability. Everybody thought he was just the Arbiter of Talents, but nay! He was also the Detective of Customization! By analyzing how players customized their characters, Vincent could deduce everything about his opponents! It was elementary!


    Alright, not really. Vincent was sure it''s possible to learn many things about a player by looking at their customization, but his Skin Analyzer personal skill wasn''t high level enough to yield any useful results.


    All he could tell was that Nia edited the default Rogue skin quite a bit. The Rogue''s default black robe was painted in light brown, making it blended well with the desert-themed environment of the 1v1 map. Similarly, the black hair was painted blonde and the dark eyes were changed into bright silver.


    All in all, it didn''t look like Nia used any premium customization parts but she sure repainted everything she could get her hands on. It was an oddly bright take on Rogue, a class normally associated with sneaking around in the darkness. Though, in its own odd way, this bright skin actually blended with the environment like a chameleon; it made the Rogue look more sneaky than ever. Instead of hiding in the darkness, this one was hiding in plain sight!


    [So, I''ll be dealing with a Rogue, eh.] Vincent naturally jerked. Anybody who played Classmancers had more than a couple of bitter experiences against Rogue for it was the "noob stomper" class until a certain skill level. Once players learned to buy Stealth Wards against Rogue, its effectiveness dropped drastically and it was reduced to a meme.


    However, that was only as far as the MOBA mode was concerned. In Duel, Rogue apparently wasn''t that bad. Vincent was no expert by any means, but if Kai vouched for a Rogue pick in Duel then it had to be rather effective.


    How should Vincent approach this? Unlike in the MOBA mode, he hasn''t met that many Rogues in Duel so his matchup knowledge was lacking and rusty. Even by tapping into the boundless knowledge stored in his Information Blackhole, he couldn''t draw out a solid answer. But, it wasn''t like his Information Blackhole didn''t store such info or anything. It''s just that Vincent was too rusty at the moment and therefore unqualified to access such information.


    His first instinct was to buy a Stealth Ward to counter the Rogue but then he realized it was rather pointless. Stealth Ward was a counter to Rogue in the MOBA mode because the map was big and it was hard to tell where the Rogue will strike from. But, in 1v1, there was only one opponent to keep tabs on, so it was much easier to keep the Rogue in check at all times.


    "I''m surprised you didn''t buy Stealth Wards," Yuel said.


    "Kukuku," Vincent smirked. "For the one who possesses boundless knowledge and the ability to absorb all information, Stealth Wards are unnecessary! I shall expose the Rogue with the powers of my third eye!"


    "He''s right," Kai said. "It''s a waste to buy Stealth Wards in Duel. Better spend that cash on finishing your build faster. It''s not like 5v5 where there are lots of things to keep track of."


    "Is that so," Yuel crossed his arms. "I usually buy a Stealth Ward and place it on the lane to make the Rogue''s life harder. Am I the only one who does that?"


    "I don''t do that stuff," Lars shrugged.


    "Me neither," Kai agreed.


    "I see," Yuel pursed his lips. If the two best Duelists here didn''t do that, then maybe it was truly a misplay and Vincent was actually playing correctly right now. Yuel made a mental note to research this topic later.


    The laning phase began and minions from both sides clashed in the middle of the map. This was going to be the tough part for Nia due to Knight''s Chivalry passive. Vincent''s minions had superior defense so they were going to overwhelm Nia''s minions. What counter did she have for this matchup?


    "What item did she start with?" Yuel asked.


    "Let''s see," Vincent brought up the status screen. "Whew, Muramasa. Somebody is planning to go all-in against me."


    "Looks decent," Kai said.


    [Does Kai even play assassins/bruisers in Duel to know enough about this matchup?] Yuel wondered. [But, I have to agree. A Muramasa start seems solid. That''s probably what I''d pick as well in this situation.]


    Muramasa didn''t have any particular strong points but it provided all the stats Rogue wanted against a bruiser: attack power, attack speed, penetration, and a passive that stole some of the target''s defenses with every hit. It should give Nia just enough power to contest the lane and it''ll also be a great tool for the eventual 1v1 against a Knight.


    But, Vincent didn''t make it easy. He went straight for Mistmail as his first Lv.3 item. Its passive lowered the attack speed of all nearby enemies, which was a great tool for reducing Rogue''s effectiveness in close quarters. If a Rogue couldn''t land multiple fast hits in succession on the target''s back, it was difficult for it to seal the deal. Especially, against a tanky opponent.


    On top of that, it put Nia in a sticky situation during laning. Rogue was a melee class so it had to advance to the frontline to clear minions, just like Vincent. However, if they both get to the frontline, the aura effect of Mistmail will reach Nia and lower her attack speed, which will slow down down her ability to clear the minions. If Vincent clears the wave first and then catches Nia isolated in the middle of the lane, she''ll have a very bad time.


    [I hope this doesn''t come across as bullying.] Vincent smiled wryly. When it came to countering his lane opponent, Vincent had plenty of experience as a Top Laner. So, at least in that area, he''ll give Nia some challenge. Countering his lane opponent was the only way somebody as untalented as him could possibly defeat opponents so it was the only way he knew how to play.


    [Welp,] Vincent smiled wryly. [Worst case, if it gets too difficult for her, I''ll just lower my level a little. Though, it''s going to be a challenge to sneak that past the Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception. Eh, I''ll figure something out. Probably.]


    So, how will Nia deal with this challenge? How will she contest Vincent during the laning phase despite her numerous disadvantages? This was shaping up to be a tough exam...

 150 Dealing with the Knight Matchup

    [Going to the frontline sounds like all sorts of trouble, so let''s not do that.] Nia nodded to herself. She had no interest in contesting the Knight for a temporary lane advantage; it was useless for her anyway. All that really mattered was scoring a kill on that guy and then push hard for the win.


    So, instead of heading to the frontline, she''ll wait near her Golem and make the minions come to her. That''ll be much less of a pain to deal with.


    Nia tossed a smoke bomb on the Knight. The explosion dealt slight damage to him and made his minions seek revenge on Nia. But, unbeknown to the minions, that was exactly what Nia wanted from them.


    She retreated to her Golem and lured the minions into its fire range. Once all the enemy swordsmen stepped into the danger zone, Nia booted her Stealth for a moment to erase the minions'' aggression.


    [Hehe, that''s right,] Nia smirked. [Even though you''re bots, even you can''t detect me.]


    Her momentary stealth state confused the minions and made them forget they were targetting Nia just a moment ago. So, instead, they returned to their natural game plan: attacking whichever enemy minion was closest to them.


    While all of this was going down, Nia''s minions chased after the invaders and caught up to them at the Golem. Since all minions were close to each other right now, the battle broke out right there in the Golem''s area. Instead of stepping out of the area to avoid heavy damage, the enemy minions remained in the lion''s den while clashing with their opponents. These bots were too dumb to realize they were in a deadly situation.


    "So, that''s how she''s going to do it," Vincent nodded to himself. "Beautiful! I like this counter. What do you all think?"


    "It''s not bad," Yuel admitted. He used a similar tactic against Knights when he played Top so this was a solid advanced tech.


    "But," Yuel said. "She took it a bit too far. I understand she wants to clear the minions faster but was it really neccessary to lure them all the way to the Golem? She''s losing exp and gold this way."


    "It''s fine," Kai objected. "Losing some farm early on isn''t a big deal in 1v1 if you can make up for it later."


    "Not gonna lie, I''m not a fan of that stuff," Lars said. "You gotta take ALL the farm, yo! Last-hit all the things!"


    "Not everybody can play by your high standard," Kai said.


    [Hmm.] Yuel frowned. [It''s hard to judge this play when the two best Duelists here don''t see eye to eye about it.][I suppose it''s a passable approach for this Rogue vs. Knight matchup.]


    In the end, Nia cleared the enemy swordsmen way faster than they killed her swordsmen, all thanks to Golem rampaging around and tossing boulders. After that, she stayed under tower and let her surviving minions fight on their own. It was a battle of 2 swordsmen and 3 bowmen vs. 3 bowmen.


    [I rather not let these swordsmen reach my bowmen.] Vincent was itching to step onto the frontline to block the path of the incoming swordsmen. The bowmen minions were rather squishy, so they''d die fast if the swordsmen get close.


    With that said, Vincent couldn''t just run ahead and aggro the swordsmen because said swordsmen were closely accompanied by three bowmen behind them. If Vincent steps forward, he''ll aggro that entire dangerous gang. The DPS of three bowmen focused on one target was nothing to sneeze at, especially during the earlier parts of the game. Even as a Knight with Mistmail, he didn''t want to soak all that damage.


    Ultimately, Vincent stepped back and waited for enemy swordsmen to arrive. He had no choice but use his minions as a meat shield in this situation. He was like a Chessmaster and the bowmen were his disposable pawns, muhahaha!


    Once all the enemy minions focused their fire on Vincent''s bowmen, he charged to the frontline with Shield Bash. He slammed his shield against one of the swordsmen and killed the already-injured warrior on the spot. Meanwhile, his bowmen shot down the other swordsman.


    [Phew, safe.] Vincent breathed in relief. None of his bowmen was lost in this exchange so it turned out much better than he expected.


    To wrap things up, Vincent followed up with Blade Swing to cut through all three enemy bowmen in one fell swoop. Along with the backup fire from his bowmen, he swiftly finished off all the enemy minions. However, he only had one and a half bowmen remaining after that whole exchange. This tiny group of survivors was far from enough to properly push the enemy Golem.


    Nia didn''t show any signs of coming out to fight the bowmen, so there was no opening for Vincent to attack. He just let his bowmen venture into enemy territory alone and get bombarded by the Golem. The bowmen merely got two shots on the tower before dying.


    With that, the first minion wave was over.


    "It turned out pretty equal," Vincent summarized.


    "Not quite," Yuel objected. "She missed a lot of farm with this approach."


    The game punished players who farmed while hugging their tower. All exp and gold earned from minions inside the Golem''s range were reduced by 30%. So, even if the player scored last-hits on these minions to benefit from x1.2 earnings, that still put them at around 85% of the normal earnings. In other words, by luring the minions to her Golem, Nia threw away over 15% of the farm she could''ve easily gotten.


    "Geh, I think I fried my brain with all them numbers," Lars rubbed his temples. "In short, she missed a lot of farm, right?"


    "Yes."


    "Well," Kai crossed her arms. "If you finished showing off your math skills, let me just say that optimizing farming is not something you''d expect from a freshman."


    "I suppose you''re right," Yuel agreed. "I just had to mention it because it might become an issue for her going forward. It''s alrighty to trade some farm for extra safety, but she''ll have to mount a counter at some point if she wants to win. Otherwise, Vincent will eventually outlevel her and destroy her Golem."


    "Yeah, I''m quite aware," Kai made a face. "Thanks for explaining it to me like I''m a Bronze tier from kindergarten."


    "So," Vincent got everybody''s attention. "Do you guys want me to test anything specific? Or, do I just let her maintain this routine to see if it goes anywhere?"


    "Sure, why not," Yuel said. "So far, the situation is in your favor in terms of farm. As long as she keeps using that tactic, you''ll win by default."


    "Fair enough," Vincent nodded. "Alrighty, I''ll keep doing my thing and see how deep the rabbit hole goes."


    During the next minion wave, Nia repeated the same routine. She dropped a smoke bomb on Vincent to lure the enemy minions to her Golem. Once they invaded deep enough into the danger zone, she entered Stealth to make them forget all about their aggression.


    Everything played out exactly like last time. Yet again, only one and half of Vincent''s bowmen survived. They got a couple of hits on the enemy Golem before perishing. What brave soldiers they were.


    Even after just two waves, the gap in their farm was already becoming apparent. Vincent leveled up to Lv.7 in the middle of that exchange while Nia only hit Lv.7 at the very end. In a couple of waves, Vincent will outright beat her by one level. If Nia had any counter tactic in mind, she better execute it sooner than later.


    Alas, the outcome of the next minion wave was exactly the same. Yet again, Vincent let Nia do her thing and carefully observed her moves. But, she did nothing new.


    [He''s not biting.] Nia pursed her lips. Most opponents got irritated by such a defensive tactic and invaded at this point. However, this Knight patiently observed her without overextending. He was like a predator eying his prey. Scary.


    [Is he judging my every move? Along with everybody else over there?] Nia felt cold sweat on her forehead. These examiners monitored every single move, every twitch, she made. They judged everything and will fail her for the smallest of mistakes. They might even fail her for just breathing. Or, even worse, they might forget to grade her at all...


    [I-I''ll show them!] Nia clenched her controller. If all that Knight gonna do is stand there and laugh at her, she had an idea of her own. The Knight was already down to 80% from her repeated smoke bombs, so he''ll be within kill range after just another one bomb. That''s when she''ll make her move. The hunted will become the hunter! She''ll overtake the bully!


    When the next wave came, Nia executed her routine per usual. She threw a smoke bomb on the Knight, lured the minions to her Golem, and finished them off. Then, instead of waiting in the safe zone, she retreated deeper into her lane and went around the corner.


    "Oh, she''s gone," Vincent glanced at the mini-map. "It appears she''s planning to use this time to farm the Wraiths. They''re right about to respawn."


    "Man, talk about disrespect," Luke shook his head. "She''s practically handing you the lane for free."


    "What do I do?" Vincent asked everybody. "Do I go ambush her at the Wraiths?"


    "I don''t think you need to go that far," Kai was quick to object. "It''s just an exam."


    "But, a mistake is a mistake," Vincent argued. "I can''t just let her get away with it, right?"


    "Shouldn''t you just push?" Luke suggested.


    "Yeah," Lars said. "I''d totally use this time to push hard. Gotta make them regret leaving the lane behind like that. She should''ve stayed and fought till the bitter end like a true duelist."


    "That works," Vincent nodded. "I can feel the Golem begging me to invade."


    "To be fair," Kai said. "I''d probably push too. If my opponent is the type to neglect the lane for some side farm, I''ll capitalize on it every single time."


    "Alrighty then," Vincent concluded. "I''ll push like my life depends on it. Here comes doomsday!"


    Vincent charged ahead of his minions with Shield Bash and slammed the enemy wave. The enemy began firing at him but that''s exactly what he wanted. To make the most out of this opportunity, he wanted to keep his minions as healthy as possible for the invasion. The longer his minions survive in the Golem''s area, the more he''ll be able to push. Therefore, he tanked all the incoming damage to keep his minions at perfect health.


    [Is this really okay?] Yuel wondered. He didn''t say anything on the topic but the others knew better than him how to play Duel, but it felt like everybody was rushing it a little. Just because Nia walked away from the lane didn''t necessarily mean she went to farm the Wraiths. [I agree that''s the most likely scenario but it''s better to stay vigilant. A single misplay can cost the entire match here.]


    Despite the worry, Yuel kept these thoughts to himself. Maybe he was overthinking it and what the others suggested was the superior line of play. After all, Lars and Kai ranked much higher than him in Duel so they should know better. Besides, the opponent was a freshman. What kind of tricky could Nia possibly pull?


    "Alrighty," Vincent finished off the enemy wave. He lost a chunk of his HP in the process but, in exchange, all his soldiers were at full health. The healthier they were, the more Golem hits they''ll be able to tank for him.


    Without further ado, Vincent charged into the Golem''s area with his loyal army. The minions tanked the Golem''s slams and boulders while Vincent hacked away at the Golem''s legs.


    Even though this was the same Golem from the MOBA mode in terms of design, it was quite smaller and didn''t hit as hard. Therefore, it took the Golem quite a while to kill all of Vincent''s minions. On top of that, the Golem''s HP and defense were nowhere as tough as those of the MOBA Golem. Thus, its HP plummeted quickly from all the attacks. If all goes smoothly, Vincent might bring this Golem all the way down to 30% HP.


    However, that was too easy to be true. While Vincent was busy attacking the Golem, an invisible figure crept up to him from behind. Once the invisible assaulter got within range, it struck from the shadows!


    "Whoa!" Vincent jumped. A blade sliced his back! Nia was right behind him! [She''s back so fast!?]


    [Got you.] Nia smirked. She stuck to the Knight''s back and slashed away at it. Thanks to Rogue''s passive, Backstabber, each of her attacks dealt 30% more damage. On top of that, her Lv.3 Murasama stole defenses on each successful hit, making the Knight even more vulnerable. This guy done goofed and he was about to pay for it!


    "Darn, this is rough...!" Vincent turned around and dashed out of the Golem''s area. He couldn''t strike back from this position due to the Golem''s looming presence. If he lifts but a single finger on Nia, the Golem will be all over his business. Vincent will turn into dead meat within seconds. Therefore, his only option was to get the heck out of there!


    "What a marvelous trap!" Vincent made noise while running away. "I shall dub it the Ultimate Bait-and-Switch!"


    "It''s just a basic bait," Yuel said. As he feared, everybody jumped to conclusions regarding Nia''s absence from the lane. Despite being a freshman, Nia was Platinum rank in Duel. It wasn''t a rank anybody could easily get to while playing poorly, especially not with assassin classes. So, it was no surprise Nia could pull off such a basic bait tactic. And, yet...


    "You saw that!?" Kai pointed at the screen. "Wasn''t that a pretty high-level play?"


    "Yeah!" Lars exclaimed. "Dude totally fooled me, yo!"


    [Are these guys seriously Diamond and Challenger ranks in Duel?] Yuel made a face. If they could fall for such a simple tactic then even Yuel had a chance against them...


    "Welp, I''m pretty much done for," Vincent''s HP dropped to 20%. He successfully got out of Golem''s range but Nia was still breathing down his neck. Even though continuously dishing out attacks slowed her down, she kept up with Vincent due to Rogue''s superior movement speed. Vincent wasn''t going to shake her off just by running.


    "This is my last stand!" Vincent made noise. "Let''s us see if you can stop my magnificent escape plan!" He rolled forward just as Nia''s next strike was about to land. That made her whiff the attack and created some space between them.


    However, it wasn''t enough by itself. Vincent''s Golem was still far away and there was nowhere to hide. If they both keep running, Nia will easily catch up to him and seal the deal. Therefore, Vincent had to pull out his secret Noble Phantasm!


    "Come forth, Sleipnir!" He summoned a black demonic horse via his ult. It was dangerous to mount Sleipnir in front of the enemy because he was more vulnerable to attacks than ever during the mounting animation. However, from this distance, it should be safe enough.


    If Vincent can just get on the horse and ride away, he''ll get out of this sticky situation and- Whoa! A blade from behind!


    Nia instantly closed the distance with Phantom Strike and stuck her dagger into his back! Since the attack landed from behind, it activated an extra effect of Phantom Strike: it stunned Vincent on the spot! That allowed Nia to follow up with further attacks.


    "Alright, now I''m officially done for," Vincent smiled wryly and raised his hands in resignation. "GG."


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    ¡ºFIRST BLOOD!¡»


    "Yes!" Kai pumped a fist but immediately hid it away. "Ah, ahem. She did well."


    "She totally pawned ya, haha," Luke laughed. "She sure knows how to Rogue. I already like that girl."


    "Yeah, that was smooth as heck," Lars nodded.


    "Was it, really?" Yuel wondered. "I thought invading the Golem back there was rather risky. It was predictable something like this might happen."


    "Now that I think about it," Vincent crossed his arms. "That''s true. I feel that push was way too brave for me. Love me or hate me for it but I normally don''t play like that. So, I''m shocked I didn''t stop myself. Don''t tell me you guys pressured me into it on purpose?"


    "Nope," Lars shrugged. "Pretty sure I would have pushed as well."


    "Yeah," Kai agreed. "I would have gone on the offensive as well. Nia just outplayed you. Deal with it, scrub."


    "By the sound of it, she would have outplayed you too in this situation," Vincent pointed out.


    "Huh, guess that''s true," Kai somehow forced these words through her teeth. "But, I''m sure I would''ve retreated without dying, unlike a certain someone."


    "If you say so," Vincent rolled his eyes. [Typical Kai. With that said, perhaps her Rhythm Reader would have indeed rescued her out of this predicament. The Rhythm Reader vs. the Ultimate Bait-and-Switch! It''ll be the battle of the century!]


    Alas, no matter how hard he tried to laugh it off, something about this turn of events still bothered him. Vincent didn''t consider himself a particularly skilled player but he prided himself on his ability to analyze his opponents'' offense and adjust his defense accordingly. As such, he should''ve picked up on Nia''s sneaky attack plan and played more cautiously. Yet, he failed to do so.


    [Did she outsmart both my Arbiter of Talents and Information Blackhole skills!? Impossible! None should be able to escape their gravitational pull!]


    Yet, it was a fact: Nia outplayed him. With ease, on top of that. Did Vincent underestimate her because this was just an exam for a freshman? No way. At least, that wasn''t his intention.


    Then, did he go for that risky play because everybody else talked him into it? Maybe he cracked a little under peer pressure. But, that couldn''t be all because the idea of an ambush didn''t even cross his mind when Nia left the lane. It''s like he couldn''t even think of such a basic scenario. It was so odd.


    [Welp, maybe I''m just overthinking it.] Vincent shook his head. Everybody made mistakes and he was no exception. [No problem! Next time, my flawless Information Blackhole shall reveal all her cunning tricks!]


    While Vincent was waiting to respawn, Nia had a great opportunity to make something big happen. How was she going to capitalize on this situation? Will she use this time to push the lane? Or, will she steal one of the camps?


    Unfortunately, none of the observers could tell because they had to watch the game from Vincent''s point-of-view. Thus, nobody could pass any judgment on Nia during this critical situation.


    "That''s why I wanted to watch from her point-of-view," Yuel ranted.


    "It can''t be helped if she feels uncomfortable being watched," Kai was quick to object. "It''s always more stressful when others watch you play."


    "Yep, I know the feel," Luke nodded. "Always feels like ya gonna fudge something up when ya got eyes on ya."


    "I suppose," Yuel was no alien to this feeling. When somebody was there, watching and judging every twitch he made, it had a chance to affect his decision-making. For example, sometimes, he went for the safe option to look good in front of the crowd rather than gamble on riskier play with a higher payoff.


    So, there was no question that watching Nia closely would most likely hurt her performance. Then again, Yuel survived StormBlitz''s exam while being interrogated by Aron nonstop the whole time. So, being silently watched wouldn''t kill Nia.


    "You can just watch the replay later," Kai said.


    "I know," Yuel said so but he wasn''t satisfied. That''s why, while everybody was waiting for Vincent''s revival, Yuel focused on his own tablet. He has sneakily joined the game as a spectator shortly after it began. This way, he could see the entire map from an omniscient point-of-view.


    Unfortunately, spectator mode had a delay of one minute for this match. So, his tablet was still showing Vincent carelessly pushing Nia''s Golem. However, shortly after that, it''ll show exactly what Nia planned to do with this huge opportunity she got.


    Will she push? Or, will she take the red/blue buffs? This was where her playstyle and decision-making will be tested in a big way.

 151 Vanishing Presence

    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    ¡ºFIRST BLOOD!¡»


    "Phew," Nia breathed in relief. That was a little scary but it was over; she got that Knight. [Hmph, that''s what you get for trying to counter-pick me.]


    Okay, what''s next? She had the entire map to herself so she could do whatever she wanted right now. What was the best play in this sort of situation?


    In Nia''s experience, taking the red buff was generally a helpful move. Therefore, she headed toward the Ogre Camp at the bottom of the map. She made quick work of the Ogres there with the help of Smite and returned to lane to clear the incoming wave.


    [That guy should still be dead.] Nia double-checked and tripe-checked the status screen to make sure the Knight still had a respawn counter on him. [Ok, he''s still out. Let''s push for now.]


    With her buffed attack power, Nia took out the enemy minions in a blink of an eye. With nobody to threaten her, she rotated around the enemy minions to strike them from behind for extra damage. The small fry fell one after another like flies.


    Almost all her minions survived the clash so this was a great opportunity to push hard. However, Nia decided against it. Instead, she left her minions behind and went to farm the Wraith Camp on her side of the map.


    [Better not risk it.] Just as she thought that, the enemy Knight returned to the lane to defend his Golem. Had Nia invaded together with her minions, the Knight would have caught her there and would have ended her whole career. Scary.


    [Phew. Bullet dodged.] Nia sighed in relief while casually murdering the wraiths. There was nobody around to seriously threaten her so there was nothing to be wary of.


    With that said, her HP dropped to 40% from all the recent fights she participated in. This was a no-no. She couldn''t return to the lane in such a bad shape so she recalled back to the base.


    By the time she returned to the lane, it was time for another minion wave to clash.


    [She''s playing decent so far.] Yuel nodded to himself while spectating the match from his tablet. [A little too safe to my taste but decent nonetheless.]


    Instead of rushing to push the Golem, Nia chose the safe approach of securing both red and blue buffs. There were countless players in Duel who overextended as soon as they scored the first kill so Nia''s cautious decision was a smart one. Though, maybe she was just too cautious for her own good in general. That might be a playstyle weakness but it was too early to judge.


    In real-time, on Vincent''s screen, the minion waves already clashed at the center of the map. Nia has just returned from the base with full HP. Now, how will she fight from this advantageous position?


    Thanks to her kill and the extra farming, she made up for all the exp she lost during the laning phase. In fact, she got ahead of Vincent by now. On top of that, she had both the red and the blue buff. So, the power and cooldown of her skills were enhanced. She had the high ground in every way imaginable so she could go for another kill attempt.


    Of course, Vincent understood that too. Hence, he didn''t advance to the frontline like before. Instead, he cautiously hanged at the edge of the frontline and waited to see what move Nia will make.


    But, nothing of note was happening. Nia didn''t leave her Golem area to clear minions and she didn''t go into stealth to sneak up to Vincent. So, it didn''t look like she was planning to aggress on him any time soon.


    [She''s not going to take advantage of her buffs?] Yuel wondered. Even though Nia went out of her way to get both buffs, it didn''t seem like she was going to capitalize on them. She kept played defensively, just like before she got the buffs.


    [So, he''s not going to try getting revenge.] Nia twisted her lips. She hoped the Knight would be mad and do everything in his power to get a kill on her. Lots of players she fought in Duel were simple like that. Punishing them for such overextension and taking the game right there was the most fun; free victory.


    Unfortunately, this Knight was cautious. He saw Nia as a threat, probably because she had the red buff. In other words, as long as she maintained this kind of advantage, the Knight actively registered her as a "threat" and paid attention to her. He must have been intently staring even at the slightest twitch she made. Scary.


    "Brr," Nia glanced around to make sure nobody else was watching her. Whether it was inside the game or outside of it, being stared was irking. She had to erase her presence anew.


    "Oh? What''s this?" Vincent tilted his head. For some reason, Nia retreated back to her Golem area. "Is she luring me in?"


    "Maybe she''s taking precaution," Yuel said. "Her red buff should be running out soon."


    "Oh, so we''ll be back to square one then," Vincent nodded. "Alrighty, I see how it is. She''s going to keep turtling then."


    "So it seems," Yuel didn''t like that. Even though that incident was much due to Vincent''s carelessness, Nia successfully scored one kill off him. She should''ve taken full advantage of that momentum because she might not get a chance to generate another one. Vincent was more vigilant now and won''t fall for the same trick again.


    [I guess this is going to be a fatigue match.] Vincent smiled wryly as Nia executed her favorite tactic again. She tossed a Smoke Bomb on him to aggro the minions toward herself, then fled to the Golem area to lure them to their death.


    Even though Rogue was a dangerous assassin, the way Nia was playing made that fact irrelevant. Her job boiled down to luring minions toward her side of the lane and swiftly taking care of them. It was an interesting way to take advantage of stealth mechanic but it made her come across as a rather harmless opponent, quite the opposite of what an assassin player should aspire to be.


    All Vincent had to do was deal with the leftover minions after Nia finishes her routine. It was a tad tedious to kill all these minions on his own but, at least, he got the exp advantage this way. He just had to optimize his farming during these situations to eventually out-level Nia and then dive under her Golem.


    While the enemy minions were busy shooting at his minions, Vincent snuck up to them from behind and struck them down. It was the Secret Ninja Art! He was playing like the real assassin here!


    Until now, Vincent has been farming the minions cautiously because he thought Nia might launch an attack at him at any moment. However, at this point, it was clear this "assassin" wasn''t going to lift a finger. She was like air and there was no need to pay much attention to her. Vincent just had to focus on the minions and optimize his farming.


    As expected, the entire exchange ended without much action. Both sides finished clearing minions and awaited the next wave. Nia''s red buff was already gone, which made her even less of a threat. At this point, there was definitely nothing to worry about. At this rate, Vincent will have this one in the bag without even doing anything.


    The next wave arrived and Vincent already prepared for it by advancing to the front. He planned to strike the enemy minions as soon as they focus their attention on his Dark Army of Evil. He was going to sacrifice his little demons for the sake of outvaluing his opponent! Muhahaha! Their deaths won''t be wasted!


    [He advanced!] Nia clenched her controller. This was the moment. Has she erased her presence enough to pull this off? It was scary not knowing for sure but she had to give it a shot.


    As usual, Nia started off by dumping a Smoke Bomb on Vincent and his minions. That made the minions venture on a long journey to seek revenge for their master. And, Nia was the target of their malice. Scary.


    However, as long as she had Stealth, she could erase her presence against anybody; even bots couldn''t find her. She was like a professional ninja. Nin nin.


    [Alrighty, she''s at it again,] Vincent smiled wryly as the familiar smoke obstructed his field of view. At this point, he didn''t even care about the fact he couldn''t see his surroundings for a brief moment. After going through this routine so many times, he could tell exactly what was going on out there by using his third eye.


    Surely, Nia was retreating toward her Golem and Vincent''s minions were chasing her. He also ventured through the smoke toward the enemy side of the lane so he could farm the enemy minions as soon as possible.


    [He''s advancing?] Yuel wondered. It made sense that Vincent wanted to start farming as soon as possible but it felt a little careless. After all, defensive or not, a Rogue was still a Rogue. It was a dangerous assassin that could kill even a bruiser from close quarters under the right circumstances. Hopefully, this wasn''t the beginning of another unfortunate incident...


    [Alrighty, out of the smoke.] Vincent reached the light and could see the lane again. As expected, his minions have already reached the enemy Golem. And, as always, Nia went into stealth to deflect attention away from herself right before the minions got to her.


    Nothing new was happening here so Vincent simply proceeded with his plan. He snuck up to the enemy minions and hacked away at the unsuspecting foes. It was the easiest laning of his life. He didn''t even really have to contest with-


    SLASH


    "Eh!?" Vincent blinked. That wasn''t the sound of his basic attack. No, that slash came from somewhere else. It came from behind!


    SLASH


    "Wha!?" Vincent jumped. It was impossible! Unfathomable! Nia was right behind him, driving her dagger through him!


    "W-When!?" Vincent turned around in a hurry. This couldn''t be! What was this Phenomenon Intervention!? Nia was supposed to be all the way back at her Golem right now, clearing minions like always. How could she be all the way out here!? It was First Class Magecraft!


    Wait, was this even really BlackFlower attacking him!? Maybe this was her secret evil twin, WhiteFlower! Yes, that explained everything! Nia had a twin who waited in the shadows this entire time and snuck up to Vincent while he had all his attention concentrate on her! What a ploy!


    SLASH


    [Anyway, real talk, this is pretty damn bad!] Vincent gulped. First, he had to hide his back from this mysterious assaulter. Whether this attacker was BlackFlower, WhiteFlower or GrayFlower, it was still a Rogue. Therefore, the damage from behind was devastating. He fell down all the way to 60% HP before he even got a chance to blink!


    [I-It''s okay, I can turn this around.] Vincent clenched his mouse. [No matter what kind of magecraft or tricky you use, you shall not take down the Demonic Knight! No mere assassin can topple a knight!]


    Vincent was the bruiser so he had a natural advantage at close-quarters. Rogue''s damage was high but it was a squishy class. If Vincent just turns around and lands a couple of good hits, he''ll turn the entire situation around.


    Therefore, to start off this Battle of Ragnarok, he opened an attack with Shield Bash! Alas, it gloriously missed! The enemy rolled away in the nick of time to dodge it.


    [A marvelous dodge! As expected from a sneaky assassin! However, this was only the first taste. Now comes the coup de grace!]


    Vincent followed up with Blade Swing, the skill with the most original name in the entire game! It did exactly what it said on the tin: a sword slash! What a surprise!


    The slash connected and took a little over 10% HP of the mysterious enemy. Honestly, Vincent expected it to do way more against a Rogue.


    [Oh, it must be Muramasa doing its work. The cursed blade of the jealous blacksmith, infused with the desire to acquire anything and everything from his opponents!]


    The few surprise attacks the enemy unleashed at the beginning of the fight were crucial. They stole some of Vincent''s defenses and transferred them over to the assaulter. This was such a nasty setup. Not only it made Vincent more vulnerable to incoming attacks but it also made the Rogue tankier than it should ever be.


    Vincent hasn''t built much power yet so even a little bit of extra defense was super effective against his attacks. Darn, this was a disaster! A tragedy! Historians will be hard-pressed to find a more disastrous event in humanity''s entire history!


    [I have to get out of here. Now.] Vincent rolled away toward the jungle. Since the enemy has already spent their Dodge Roll, she won''t be able to close the distance right away. So, if he just mounts Sleipnir fast enough- STAB!


    "Excuse ma!?" Vincent jumped. The predator was already right behind him! And, her blade was digging deep into his back, delivering hefty damage! Unbelievable! How did she always appear behind him like this? Did this mysterious assaulter possess the ability to stick the enemy''s back like a glue!? It must have been a ghost! A phantom! A stalker from the depths of the abyss!


    Well, in truth, Vincent heard the swift dashing sound so he knew that was the work of Rogue''s Phantom Strike. The enemy blinked right after him and delivered a heavy blow, as well as stunned him because it was an attack from behind.


    [I don''t feel so good.] Vincent gulped. He was already down to 25% HP. It was pointless to summon Sleipnir in this situation and he didn''t have any other escape tools at his disposal. On top of that, this heavy Knight had no chance of outrunning the nimble Rogue. It was over.


    In a last-ditch effort, Vincent turned around and attacked the ghostly assailant. He had no chance of getting away so he might as well get some damage in. Unfortunately, this mentality was a lot more useful in the MOBA mode than in 1v1 so it didn''t do much for him...


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Welp," Vincent threw his back backward. "That was interesting indeed. I still have no idea what attacked me. Was it a doppelganger? A shadow clone!?"


    "Huh? What are you on about?" Kai raised an eyebrow. "Who else could it be? Nia just did you in."


    "No, no, no. That''s impossible."


    "Huh?"


    "She wasn''t there. At least, she wasn''t supposed to be there," Vincent insisted. "Wasn''t she clearing the minions at the Golem?"


    "No," Yuel said matter-of-factly. "She went into stealth as usual to deflect the aggro but then she snuck up to you while still in stealth. Did you even check whether she was really at the Golem?"


    "I thought I did..." A jolt ran through Vincent. He checked Nia''s position right before he charged ahead, right? He saw her clearing minions at the Golem area, right?"


    Actually, maybe he didn''t look. He got so used to that trite routine that he just charged in. After all, there was no doubt in his mind that things will play out exactly the same way as before. So, he just went along with it as if that was the case.


    [That''s so not like me.] Vincent smiled wryly. How did his Information Blackhole fail him during such a critical moment? He was supposed to be capable of observing all the information that existed in this world and even to get a glimpse of the records of Akasha! And yet, he missed something so simple that was happening right under his nose. It was unreal.


    Worst of all, this wasn''t the first time. His previous death was just as embarrassing. This was the second time he failed to consider the possibility of Nia sneaking up to him.


    What was wrong? Did his Information Blackhole not work today? Or, maybe...


    "Are you doing this on purpose?" Yuel asked.


    "Not at all," Vincent claimed. "There''s something supernatural going on here. I haven''t discerned its true nature yet but my senses are tickling as the Arbiter of Talents. That girl got ''something''."


    "Is that so," Yuel rolled his eyes. As far as he was concerned, all that happened both times was Vincent lowering his guard for no good reason and paying dearly for it.


    Yuel has seen similar scenarios before so it''s not like he was condemning Vincent per se. There was a vicious fox in StormBlitz whose specialty was to train the opponent to get used to a certain routine. Then, she subverted things at the most critical moment to pull the rug from under them. It felt similar to how Nia was playing.


    Except, the way Nia did things didn''t look nearly as impressive as Ellen''s tricky. Not to mention, Vincent should have been the cautious and observant type who wouldn''t fall for such basic tactics. Even Ellen surely would have had trouble tricking him like that.


    As such, frankly, these two deaths felt like intentional feeding. However, Vincent seemed bewildered by these developments as well. So, unless he was an Oscar-winning actor, he clearly didn''t intend to die during any of these incidents.


    "I wonder," Vincent turned to the others. "Was I the only one surprised by that ambush?"


    "That came outta nowhere for me too," Lars admitted. "Dude just popped outta thin air, yo!"


    "No kidding," Luke nodded. "I bet the girl was all like ''You''ll never see it coming~'' while sneaking up to you."


    "I agree," Kai nodded. "It was unexpected. Though, I would''ve dealt with it way better than Vincent did."


    [Wait, nobody expected something like this to happen?] Yuel frowned. To him, it was obvious that Vincent should tread carefully because Nia might launch an attack at any moment. Especially, considering she has already pulled a fast one on him last time. He should''ve been on maximum alert.


    Therefore, the moment Vincent came out of the smoke and Nia was nowhere in sight, it sounded the alarm in Yuel''s head. He had a feeling Nia was about to try something. Everybody else should''ve seen that as well yet they were acting oblivious. Why? How come?


    After this second death, the match was as good as decided. Vincent''s respawn countdown was much longer this time around, so Nia had all the time in the world to capitalize on this opportunity. She had enough time to take the red buff, push Vincent''s Golem, destroy it, and even bring her minions to his Colossus before he revived to defend.


    After Vincent''s Golem fell, Nia''s minions gained heavier armor and flaming weapons. With this empowered army, she had no trouble pushing through the upcoming enemy waves and take down the Colossus.


    ¡ºDEFEAT¡»


    "Welp," Vincent smiled wryly. "That was sure interesting."


    With that, the first part of Nia''s exam was over.

 152 The Second Tes

    Nia''s 1v1 test match against Vincent came to an end. Surprisingly, she gained the upper hand and won the entire thing.


    "Welp, she sure got me," Vincent smiled wryly. "She''s rather impressive for a freshman."


    "All I saw was you making a lot of mistakes," Yuel said.


    "I''d like to claim otherwise but I''m disappointed with myself as well," Vincent admitted. "It''s unfathomable for me to make such mistakes. That girl, BlackFlower, definitely has some sort of power!"


    "Of course she does."


    "And, it''s such a fearsome power that even my Information Blackhole can''t discern its true nature! Even after an entire match, her specialty remains shrouded in darkness!"


    "So, even the great ''Arbiter of Talents'' can''t figure it out, huh."


    "Indeed! Such blasphemy!" Vincent flailed his arms dramatically. "To think that I, the Arbiter of Talents, would fail to comprehend the talent of another player. Unheard of! We must be living in the wrong timeline!"


    [He''s sure making a big deal out of it.] Yuel thought. In a way, this indeed a peculiar occasion.


    Normally, the moment Vincent saw something he considered impressive, he attached a silly name to it and hyped it up through the roof. Yet, in Nia''s case, he claimed he couldn''t quite "figure it out". It almost made it sound like Vincent really analyzed all these abilities he coined a name for. Almost.


    Still, there were definitely some odd circumstances surrounding Nia''s performance. She didn''t only take Vincent by surprise but, apparently, her plays were also unexpected for everybody else watching the game. Even Lars and Kai, the best duelists here, attested that Nia''s plays came out of left field for them.


    Perhaps Kai sugar-coated things to make Nia look more skillful, but Lars had no reason to make things up. He said Nia''s plays caught him by surprise so it was probably the case. Though, it''d still be interesting to see what''d happen in practice. Because frankly, right now, none of this sounds particularly convincing.


    "So," Kai started. "Since Nia won, we all agree she passed, right? Right."


    "She only won because Vincent has been messing up left and right," Yuel argued. "Nia does know how to play, I''ll give her that. But, it''s hard to judge whether she''s really skilled enough to compete against the Gold players who applied to the club."


    "Even a win isn''t good enough for you, huh." Kai gave him a look.


    "I''m just saying we shouldn''t rush to conclusions. It''s unclear how much of that victory was Nia''s skill and how much of it was Vincent clowning around."


    "Hey, hey, hey," Vincent objected. "I was playing with every I had. I even tapped into the dark witchcraft of hell to receive demonic powerups so I could vanquish my opponent!"


    "You mean that demonic skin you were wearing?"


    "Indeed! It''s an artifact from the depths of hell itself! Only the most qualified of players can don it!"


    "Well, seems like being a total amateur is good enough to qualify."


    "Gaaaaaaaah!" Vincent staggered backward as if he received a heavy blow. "Seriously, though. Even I don''t really comprehend what just transpired there. How did I mess up so badly? Was it me? Or, was it Nia''s elusive special ability? Does she possess some mysterious ability that can even nullify my Information Balckhole!? These questions will keep me up at night if I don''t get to the bottom of it right away. "


    "Wait," Kai frowned. "You also want to test Nia again?"


    "Indeed! We must get to the bottom of this case and expose the truth! But, don''t get me wrong. I believe she has already played well enough to pass. However! As the Arbiter of Talents, my hunger for the truth hasn''t been satisfied! I demand to know more! I see for myself exactly how she fools her opponents into committing such terrible misplays."


    "So, you want to play her again?" Kai asked.


    "If possible, I rather observe the unfolding events from the side. That''ll increase my efficiency as the Arbiter of Talents by 50%!"


    "Then, who gonna play her?" Kai looked at everybody.


    "I suggest Lars," Yuel jumped the opportunity.


    "That''ll be too harsh," Kai objected. "Even if she''s good, fighting Lars will make her look bad. He''s a Challenger rank player."


    "Actually, he''s only Diamond in Duel," Yuel correct.


    "Hey, I''m almost there!" Lars exclaimed. "Diamond I, yo! Just gotta win a few more matches and I''m Challenger no problem. Here, gimme 5 minutes and I''mma become Challenger!"


    "I know, I know," Yuel said. "Anyway, I still suggest Lars. If Nia plays poorly and can''t get anything going against Lars, we''ll simply conclude her skill level in Duel is somewhere between Vincent''s and Lars''s."


    "Sounds like you just want to bully her," Kai gave him a look.


    "Don''t worry, dude," Lars flashed his teeth. "I ain''t gonna go full hardcore mode. But, don''t expect me to lose on purpose either."


    "I don''t know about this," Kai crossed her arms. Her fears were understandable. She has already faced Lars before so she knew what manner of monster he was in combat. Even in MOBA mode, Yuel and Lars have won many Ranked matches simply from Lars terrorizing his lane opponents and destroying their fighting spirits.


    Nevertheless, Yuel really wanted to see how this duel will play out. If Nia can make Lars commit the same mistakes Vincent made, that''ll imply she had amazing potential. In such a case, Yuel would approve of her on the spot.


    "I admit," Vincent said. "I''m also curious about how this fight will play out. The elusive BlackFlower vs. the unbeatable Gunz! Who will reign supreme!?"


    "Fine, whatever," Kai sighed in defeat. "Let''s have them play." She checked around the room. "Huh? Where did Nia go?"


    Nia was nowhere to be found. She should''ve been sitting on the chair at the corner of the room, yet the chair was empty.


    "Vanished!" Vincent exclaimed. "The phantom candidate disappeared without a trace! It''s a locked-room mystery!"


    "Except, the door is open," Yuel pointed out.


    "Oh, right! Nice deduction, detective Chessmaster. From that, we can conclude the culprit escaped through the unlocked door!"


    "Not really," Yuel walked around the table to the opposite side of where everybody was standing. There, he founded a black hairball.


    "Eavesdropping on the examiners is bad taste, you know," Yuel said.


    "G-Gufu!" Nia jumped and drew away. "I-I wasn''t eavesdropping. That''s a rude accusation."


    "Sure. Then, what were you doing down there?"


    "Just taking a rest."


    "A rest? On the floor behind our table?"


    "That''s how I like it. My favorite pastime"


    "Okay then," Yuel rolled his eyes.


    "B-Besides!" Nia pointed at him. "How? How did you find me?"


    "How did I ''find you''? Then, you admit you were hiding?"


    "G-Gufu!" Nia took an invisible hit.


    "I actually wonder too," Luke said. "How the heck did ya find her so fast? I didn''t see anybody and I was the closest."


    "Indeed," Vincent nodded. "Even my all-absorbing Information Blackhole couldn''t tell Nia''s position. It''s like she escaped into the fifth dimension to dodge me!"


    [What''s even the fifth dimension?] Yuel made a face. Anyway, this was peculiar. Yet again, there was this unsettling feeling. For some reason, only Yuel could spot Nia right away.


    Admittedly, even he didn''t notice when Nia snuck away from her chair and crept all the way over here. Her footsteps must have been light a feather. It was like she entered real-life Stealth mode. Real-life Rogue confirmed.


    Still, once Yuel started looking around, it didn''t take him long to spot that black spaghetti hair. But, he was the only one to find her so quickly. For the others, it was as if Nia vanished into thin air or escaped into the "fifth dimension", whatever that meant.


    [I probably just had the best angle for spotting her. It''s not like anybody went out of their way to search for her too hard. I was just in the best position to see her, that''s all.]


    "I guess she was just in my field of view," Yuel shrugged.


    "Impossible," Nia argued but immediately regretted speaking up. "Ah, I mean. Umm. Nevermind."


    "Anyway," Kai wheeled the conversation back on topic. "Nia, we''d like you to duel one more time. Is that alright?"


    "Ok," Nia nodded dimly and returned to her chair without asking anything else. She probably heard all the details while spying on them so she knew what''s up.


    "Also," Yuel added. "Can you please pick something other than Rogue for the next match?"


    "Ok," Nia nodded dimly without showing much emotion. It was difficult to tell whether this request bothered her or not.


    Nia''s Rogue play was decent but Yuel had to make sure it wasn''t the only class she played. Rogue was a solid class in Duel but a meme in the MOBA so it''ll be more reassuring if Nia knows how to play a more useful class.


    "So," Lars leaped onto the chair in front of the PC. "What do ya guys want me to pick? Trickshooter? Gunslinger?"


    "That''s going overboard," Kai objected. "Are you trying to bully her?"


    "But, dude looks kinda strong and all. She even beat Vince."


    "It will be a slaughter," Vincent theatrically stretched his arms toward the ceiling. "Shall you pick thee strongest classes, thee shall crush her spirit and make her rethink all her life choices."


    "Exactly," Kai nodded. "Even good players can get discouraged after fighting your Shooter and Slinger."


    "I agree," Yuel said. "No need to go overboard for an exam. Just pick something decent like Pirate."


    "Okey-dokey," Lars locked in Pirate. "Jeez, didn''t know my Shooter and Slinger scare dudes so much, haha."


    Meanwhile, Nia returned to her personal corner at the far end of the room and curled up on the chair.


    [Ok, no Rogue.] Nia scrolled away from her favorite pick. [Then, maybe Ninja? Hmm, I need something good. Shadow Walker? Eh, it''s such a hit-or-miss...]


    Nia titled from side to side on the chair while scrolling through the roster of assassins. Based on what she heard, her new opponent was going to be a much bigger fish. She was about to fight a high-level competitive player! A pro-caliber duelist! Scary.


    Nevertheless, she had to do it. This was a rare opportunity to properly join a club. The people here liked bullying a little but they didn''t seem like bad people. Maybe she''ll even be able to make some friends here for a change!


    [I have to ace it.] She clenched her controller. No matter how strong her opponent will be, she had to give them a hard time. She''ll stealthily sneak up behind them and strike them down like a ninja! Nin nin.


    In the heat of the moment, Nia landed on Ninja and locked in. This class had some issues in Duel but it had stealth so that made it top tier for Nia. Her stealth worked on the previous examiner so it''ll surely work on the new guy as well. After all, that pro duelist couldn''t spot Nia behind the table just a few seconds ago. He''ll never find her!


    In fact, nobody there saw her; she hid like a pro. If they held Olympics for hide-and-seek, Nia will surely be a runner up. Back in kindergarten, nobody could find her when playing hide-and-seek. At some point, everybody just gave up and had to hold the L. Though, sometimes, the other kids kinda forgot about her and left, leaving her behind in her hideout...


    A-Anyway, her new opponent couldn''t find her just now so this wasn''t an impossible fight. On the other hand, that other guy in the group...


    [How did he find me?] Nia grumped. She hid so perfectly behind that table and yet the mean-looking boy saw through her camouflage. [How dare he. Next time, I''ll hide so well he''ll not find me in a million years!]


    With that irrelevant resolve, Nia headed into her second exam.

 153 Shadow Clone

    The match between Lars and Nia began. Nia picked Ninja for its OP stealth whereas Lars went for Pirate. Or, at least, it should''ve been a Pirate...


    "Haha! What''s with this dude?" Lars laughed at his own character. He was playing on Vincent''s account so the Pirate had quite the... interesting design. "Pft, haha! This looks so weird!"


    "That''s the High Seas Commentator!" Vincent said. "He plunders all the hot moments of the match!"


    "Sick, yo!" Lars gave a thumbs up.


    The Pirate was wearing a slick suit, like those dudes delivering news on TV. He was holding a microphone instead of a pistol and when he fired basics, he talked into the mic to produce sound notes that flew forward.


    When switching to the "cutlass", this newsman attached a stand to his mic and waved it around to attack. Stuff was hilarious. 10/10 skin.


    After Lars finished messing around with this silly skin, he focused on the match at hand.


    "Ninja, huh," Lars smiled mischievously. "This gonna be interesting. I''mma go invade her blue camp."


    "Wait," Kai was quick to object, as always. "No need to be so aggressive. We''re here to test her not to beat her up."


    "But, ya gotta invade in these situations," Lars said. "I got da range so I gotta use it against her."


    "I agree that invading is a strong play here," Kai said. "But, if it works, it''ll put her in a terrible position right from the start. Dying in the first minute of the match always feels like shit."


    "Haha, true dat," Lars nodded. "Okay, I''mma give her a break and play nice. Don''t expect mercy from me on lane, though. That dude can sure fight so I wanna go all out, yo!"


    "Just don''t overdo it..." Kai''s almost sounded pleading. She knew first hand how overwhelming Lars was as an opponent so she prayed this beast won''t crush Nia to the point of no recovery.


    While Lars was on his way to his Wraith Camp, Nia was also in the middle of making her first big move.


    [Pirate. What a pain.] Nia twisted her lips. [Now, it''s proven: they''re bullying me.]


    As an assassin, fighting a marksman was either the most fun thing ever or a total disaster. If Nia can get close enough to strike, she''ll destroy that guy in a blink of an eye. However, when the marksman was the cautious type who knew how to properly position himself, he''d just stay away and space Nia out. There was very little an assassin could do against marksmen like that. [Ban marksmen from Duel pls, ktnx.]


    [What do I build against Pirate?] Nia checked her surroundings. [Ok, clear.]


    She stealthily took out her phone and inputted the Ninja vs. Pirate matchup in the Tipmancer app. It gave her a build recommendation and a few tips.


    [Imperial Spear. I see, the classic.] Nia nodded. This was the standard Ninja opening so there was nothing special recommended against a Pirate opponent. That made some sense because Imperial Spear was such a great setup for Izuna Drop, Ninja''s ultimate.


    There was only one interesting note against marksmen in general. Tipmancer warned against early invasions. That made sense because marksmen had a huge advantage when ambushing assassins. They struck from afar so the assassin couldn''t immediately retaliate.


    [I bet this tip right here is why so many Platinum marksmen have been invading against me recently. They all must be using Tipmancer too. Cheaters.]


    Interestingly, this tip worked both ways. Assasins also had a great benefit from invading marksmen as long as they could get close undetected. Not all assassins had the tools for it but any assassin with stealth could pull it off. And, Ninja was one such class.


    [Should I try it? If I get an early kill, it''ll make the game that much easier. But, what if he notices? I haven''t erased my presence yet. The invade may fail and then I''ll die instead. Too risky.]


    Nia gave up on that idea and quietly headed toward her Wraith Camp. It was better to take this slow and safe like she has always done. Instead of going all-in with an invade, she should focus on playing around the enemy''s potential invade instead.


    [Let''s see.] Nia hid behind a corner and spied on her Wraith Camp. There was nobody around but that didn''t mean anything yet. Her opponent might be lurking nearby and waiting for her to step into the camp. She couldn''t risk it.


    The wraiths spawned in the camp at the same time minions spawned on the lane. So far, still no sight of the enemy Pirate. Was he there? Was he lurking around in the shadows and waiting for an opportunity to jump her!? It was too scary to test out.


    Therefore, instead of approaching the camp by herself, Nia activated Shadow Clone. It summoned a copy of the Ninja and sent it running forward. Naturally, Nia directed the clone toward the Wraith Camp.


    [This should bait him out if he''s there.] Nia cautiously advanced toward the camp as well. She was stealthed while her clone was alive so there was no risk of the enemy spotting her right now. Instead, the enemy could see the clone and will hopefully focus on it.


    But, nothing happened. The clone ran into the Wraith Camp and attacked the wraiths. There was no sign of the enemy Pirate in the area.


    [He''s not invading? Really? Ok then.] Nia looked around one more time and proceeded to clear the Wraith Camp together with her clone. The clone died pretty quickly but at least it tanked hits and dealt some damage to the wraiths. That helped Nia clear the camp a little faster. [Thank you, my twin. Your efforts will not be in vain.]


    After getting the blue buff, Nia retreated deeper into her side of the map and circled around the walls to arrive on the lane from a safe position. It took longer this way but she didn''t want to risk running into the Pirate in the middle of the jungle. This was an important exam and her opponent was a marksman so she had to tread carefully.


    By the time she arrived at the lane, the Pirate was already there, waiting to bully her. She didn''t dare to come any closer. It was scary.


    Instead, she let her minions clash at the center of the map and watched the unfolding events from afar. The Pirate was helping his minions by covering fire but Nia just stood at a distance and did absolutely nothing for her allies.


    [What a funny skin.] Nia thought as she watched the Pirate do his thing. Instead of a gun, he was holding a microphone and firing heated up commentary at the minions.


    "What a shot!" "Beautiful last-hit!" "Such a high-level!" Every other shot was accompanied by a one-liner like this. It was rather silly but funny to watch. It helped Nia pass the time as she waited for her Shadow Clone skill to come out of cooldown.


    By the time Shadow Clone came online, Nia''s entire minion wave was already gone. So, she just retreated to her Golem and waited for the incoming enemies. Once the enemies stepped into the Golem''s area, Nia summoned her clone and assaulted the invaders together with her dear twin sister.


    When Shadow Clone was used in broad daylight like this, the enemy obviously knew which Nia was real and which was a fake. So, even though the enemy couldn''t shoot the real Nia because that''d aggro the Golem, the Pirate was free to attack Nia''s sister without any risk because she was just a bot.


    At least, hopefully, that''s what the enemy thought. In practice, the Golem treated Nia''s clone the same as the real deal. So, no matter whether the Pirate shoots Nia or her dear sister, the Golem will make quick work of them!


    Nia caught many amateurs off guard with this strat. She lured them into the Golem area and made the shoot the clone, which aggro''d the Golem on them and deleted at least half their HP. It was easy to go for an early kill from such a position.


    Alas, this Pirate didn''t commit such a mistake. He focused on shooting the Golem and let both Nias clear his minions. Tch, what a smart fellow.


    "I''m glad you didn''t fall for it," Yuel commented. "It''d be a very sad game if you attacked the clone."


    "Hey, who did you think I am?" Lars grinned. "I ain''t Challenger for show, ya know? I know some stuff too. Attacking the clone under tower is a newbie mistake. I''ve graduated from that ages ago, yo!"


    [So, you actually fell for that before?] Yuel chuckled. With that said, it was hard to blame Lars for it because most people fell for that on their first time. Even Yuel got burned by that interaction once.


    In his mind, the clone was a minion so it should''ve obeyed the rules of any normal minion. In other words, attacking the clone shouldn''t have triggered enemy minions and towers. Therefore, with a high-damaging "mob" on the lane, it only made sense to focus on it first before pushing the tower.


    That''s why Yuel carelessly shot the first clone he ever encountered. Unfortunately, that triggered the entire enemy wave on him and he had to run for his life. It was one of these embarrassing mistakes that will stay on his mind for life. After living through this dangerous situation, there was no way he''d ever forget the game treated the clone as a real player for minion aggression purposes.


    This special characteristic of Shadow Clone was the only way a Ninja could compete against a long-ranged opponent during the laning phase. During the next minion wave, Nia stayed in the back again but, this time, she sent her clone to the frontline to clear minions


    Even though Ninja was a melee class, Shadow Clone allowed the class to do remote farming like this. The clone had much lower HP than Nia so it could easily die to minion fire. But, that wasn''t an issue because the enemy minions saw the clone as a real player. That made them prioritize other minions first.


    Thus, the clone stayed out of harm''s way as it slashed away at the enemies. The clone''s stats were just a percentage of the original''s so it couldn''t clear the wave as quickly as Nia could''ve had. Nevertheless, the power of Ninja''s basics was rather high and Nia bought Imperial Spear for extra power so the clone cleared the minions fast enough. On top of that, all the farm the clone earned went directly to Nia.


    [I wish there were more automated remote-controlled options like this in the game.] Yuel thought. Sending somebody else to do all the hard work for him was the best. A class like that would rely primarily on the player''s ability to strategize and less on their mechanical skill. Yuel would have mained the heck out of such a class. Unfortunately, there was no such class for Support.


    Nia''s clone vanished after a while but it did its job. The enemy''s entire frontline was gone and it became a battle between bowmen.


    [Your efforts won''t be in vain.] Nia silently thanked her departed twin sister. Even though Nia didn''t participate in the farming at all, she earned solid exp and gold thanks to her sister''s efforts. Nia still had to clear the rest of the enemy wave under tower and suffer a farming penalty for it, but it wasn''t so bad.


    And so, this routine repeated itself. During every minion wave, Nia sent her dear sister to wreak havoc on the frontline while Nia herself only cleared the remains afterward.


    "You''re not going to attack her?" Yuel asked.


    "Hmm, I dunno," Lars tilted his head. "Like, I''m getting some damage on the Golem every time so it gonna die eventually. This ain''t like the hax Golem of MOBA that heals itself all the time faster than Wolverine. This smaller Golem dude plays it fair. He knows to admit defeat like a real man."


    "True, you''ll eventually take the Golem down at this rate. But, you don''t want to try scoring any kills on her? In all the times I''ve seen you play Duel, you''ve always tried to get in the enemy''s face and kill them."


    "Nah, why take the risk?"


    "Why indeed," Yuel frowned. He had nothing to retort with. There was really no reason for Lars to go out of his way and aggress on the enemy here. That''s just put him in unnecessary danger.


    So, Lars''s laid-back attitude made perfect sense. But, that''s exactly what was so scary about it. When did this goof learn to play patiently like this? It was still one thing when Yuel especially asked Lars to play patiently. But, for the hungry beast to be cautious like this of his own accord? Unfathomable.


    [I feel like I''ve been thinking that a lot lately.] Yuel realized. Over the past two weeks, it felt as if Lars''s hyper-aggressive approach to the game has been dying out. Instead of chasing every kill, Lars opted to keep himself alive even if it meant giving up on tempting opportunities.


    [The selection match is probably still on his mind.] Yuel thought. He understood the feeling because it was the same for him. Even though this was just a test match for Nia, Yuel couldn''t help but wonder whether Nia had some amazing defensive skills and was going mount a devastating counterattack the moment Lars aggresses. Even though a freshman shouldn''t have any amazing skill like that, Yuel couldn''t erase the possibility from his head no matter how hard he tried.


    Lars was probably concerned by the same thing. That''s why he chose the slow and careful approach. If he can win without taking any risks, he''ll take that route.


    And so, the same routine repeated without interruption. Both sides farmed slowly and cautiously. Each and every time, Lars won the exchange and landed a few shots on the Golem. It was a slow process but a safe and effective one. The Golem''s HP has already dropped to 50%.


    [If Nia plans to make a move, it should be sometime around now.] Yuel thought. There was no doubt that Nia will try something soon. She was the type to play defense for a long time and then suddenly to go on the offensive; that''s how she caught Vincent off-guard last game. Will the same tactic work against Lars?


    [Another wave, another slow burn.] Lars smiled wryly. Honestly, he was itching to jump in with his guns blazing. Or, with his mic blazing, in the cast of his High Seas Commentator skin. Gonna commentate the opposition to death, yo!


    But, he didn''t dare. There was no telling what sort of trap he might run into. It was unnecessarily risky. If things keep going like this, Lars will eventually win. So, it was better to take it easy and slowly poke the Golem to death.


    [The usual plan. How surprising.] Lars yawned as he saw the Ninja clone dashing toward his minion wave. Yet again, this wave gonna play out exactly the same as before. There was nothing for him to do but shoot the minions and wait until they push all the way to the enemy Golem.


    There won''t be any action or any surprises here. It was the usual Ninja clone wave-clearing tech. Zzz. He could do this in his sleep.


    Same as always, he just fired at the enemy minions from afar. He gonna wrap this up quickly and advance toward the-


    SLASH!


    "Wha!?" A blade cut across his back! From where!? How could there be somebody standing behind him!?


    The Ninja clone was right over there, clearing minions. And, as always, the real Nia was... nowhere in sight, actually! She was right behind him and she was about to end his whole career!

 154 Vanishing Phantom

    SLASH


    Outta nowhere, a dagger cut through Lars from behind! Nia was behind him and she gonna wreck if he doesn''t act fast!


    "Crap!" [She gonna go for that airdrop move! I gotta get outta here!]


    [Ok!] Nia nodded to herself. She successfully infiltrated enemy territory and delivered the opening strike. The passive of her Imperial Spear boosted the damage of her abilities by 50% after landing a basic attack so it was time to end this with Izuna Drop!


    Nia thrust her arms to wrap herself around the enemy. After that, she gonna leap into the air and-!? Wha!? She only caught air! The enemy disappeared!


    "Eh? Wha..." Nia blinked. How? What? [But, Izuna Drop is supposed to be a guaranteed follow up after the opening attack...]


    "Phew!" Lars exhaled after barely escaping in the nick of time. He rolled away as soon as the ambush hit him and just barely got out of the range of Nia''s Izuna Drop.


    "Hell yeah! Safe!" Lars pumped a fist.


    "Such reaction speed!" Vincent exploded. "Did you all see that!? An instant roll after getting hit from behind! Ultra instinct at its finest! Nobody could pull off such as stunt except for the Insane Beast of the Apocalypse!"


    "#JustLarsThings." Luke joked. By now, everybody got used to seeing Lars pulling off such inhuman miracles.


    [Not going for Izuna Drop right away was greedy.] Yuel thought. [Then again, landing one hit from behind and then doing Izuna is probably fast enough to catch most people off-guard. It takes a special kind of reaction monster to dodge such a play on reaction.]


    Lars thwarted Nia''s assassination plan but the battle wasn''t over yet. Nia was deep in Lars''s territory so, of course, he was going to capitalize on this awesome opportunity!


    "Let''s rock n'' roll, yo!" Lars pointed his mic-slash-pistol at Nia. From now on, the prey gonna be the predator, yo!


    [How? It should''ve hit...] Nia trembled. Ever since she first started using this assassination tactic, this was the first time she failed to land the Izuna Drop after the opening attack.


    Of course, it''s not like she always landed Izuna Drop on everybody every time for zero effort. For example, there were times she failed to sneak up to her opponent because they were too cautious of her presence. But, whenever she successfully got to her opponent''s back while in stealth - it was over. Nia started with an opening basic attack from behind to trigger the damage boost of Imperial Lance and then wrapped things up with an Izuna Drop that always landed without an accident.


    In fact, even landing two strikes before Izuna Drop usually worked. Nia only stopped doing that after some Diamond rank opponents started dodged it recently. It became risky to rely on a setup that only worked 90% of the time so she opted for the one that worked 100%. At least, it should''ve worked 100%...


    [Was this setup dodgeable this entire time? That''s...] Nia''s entire life was a lie. She has executed this setup at least a hundred times by now. So, as turned out, in each of these times her opponent could''ve easily countered her with a simple Dodge Roll? No way...


    BLING


    "Ah!" Nia jumped. A sound note struck her. The commentator Pirate was shooting fiery commentary at her!


    [Bad. Bad. Bad! What do I do!?] Nia never imagined her setup could be countered like this. What should she do in this alien scenario? This situation was yikes through and through.


    Thanks to this failure, Nia found herself deep in enemy territory at her opponent''s gunpoint. Her opponent was a marksman who successfully created some distance between them. With all of that in mind, should she try attacking anyway? No way. She''ll die.


    [I have to escape. But, where!?] The Pirate was blocking the path ahead while the enemy''s Golem area was behind her. She was sandwiched, stuck between a rock and a hard place. Great.


    Her only viable escape options were the jungles on her sides. But, were they [really] viable? Could she even escape through- BLING! Another shot!


    [S-So fast!] Nia was moving back and forth to juke the enemy''s shots but they were so fast and accurate. [I-I have to do something!]


    BLING! Another shot was coming!


    "A-Ack!" Nia squeaked and hit Shuriken Flip like a panic button. The Ninja flipped backward and threw a Shuriken toward the Pirate.


    [Oh noes, I did it again!] Nia wanted to smack herself in the forehand so badly right now. Shuriken Flip wasn''t meant to be used as a panic button like this but she did it anyway. This was a disaster. The end was nigh.


    At least, the backflip made her fly all the way into Bot Jungle. So, she got outside the range of the Pirate''s shots. Or, so she thought.


    "Ya really using that?" Lars grinned after sidestepping the random shuriken. "Then, I gotcha, dude!"


    Lars turned his back toward the Ninja and activated Backfire Cannon. The knockback sent him flying toward the jungle and that made his close the distance in an instant.


    "E-Eek!" [H-He''s already here!] Nia jumped. So fast! So accurate! This monster gave her the chills. She had to get out! Get away! As far as humanly possible!


    "Release the-"


    [Nuuuuuu!] Nia instinctively rolled away upon hearing that opening phrase. The Kraken was coming! She had to evacuate the premises on the double.


    She successfully rolled away but silence followed. There was no follow up to the Pirate''s opening line. The Kraken didn''t come.


    [A feint!?] Nia wanted to smack herself so hard in the forehead right now. [Of course, Pirate can cancel the Kraken. What was I thinking!? Stupid, stupid, stupid.]


    It was over. She was stripped of her options against the Pirate''s Kraken. There was nothing else for her to pull anymore.


    [Did she just stop?] Yuel wondered. After Nia recovered from the roll, she showed no signs of moving. She just stood there like a statue.


    "What''s up, dude?" Lars asked. "Welp, guess I just do it?" He fired away at Nia. There was no need to waste his Kraken if he could wrap this up with basic attacks.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    "That was weird," Lars said. "You think maybe her controller stopped working or something?"


    "Doesn''t look like it," Yuel said. "I think she realized she got outplayed and gave up."


    "Gave up? Just like that?"


    "Apparently," Yuel glanced at Kai. What sort of defense was this biased attorney going to pull this time?


    "H-Huh," Kai averted her eyes without saying anything. Even she couldn''t come up with an excuse this time. No surprise there; giving up in the middle of a fight like this was uncompetitive and outright disrespectful. There was no excuse for such a thing.


    In fact, from the moment Lars first thwarted Nia''s sneak attack by dodging her Izuna Drop, her movements became sluggish. It was like she had a very specific plan of attack in mind when she started but, when things didn''t go as planned, she became lost.


    But, it''d be cruel to hold this against a rookie like her. Yuel also used to freeze like this before when he thought his flawless plan was about to fall apart. Besides, anybody would be astonished by seeing Lars doing Lars things for the first time.


    In short, all these faults could be attributed to being a rookie; no need to criticize them too harshly. What was way more interesting about this entire exchange was the way Nia snuck up to Lars and caught him off guard. If she had gone for Izuna Drop right away from stealth, this fight would have played out differently.


    "She almost got you," Yuel said.


    "I know, right?" Lars laughed. "Almost gave me a heart attack. I thought I was dead meat when she popped outta nowhere."


    "Was it really that unpredictable?" Yuel asked.


    "Totally didn''t see it coming."


    "You should''ve figured something was up when she sent her clone forward but didn''t break stealth. Remember, Shadow Clone''s cooldown is reduced if the stealth ends earlier so she always went out of stealth right away to minimize cooldown. So, her staying in stealth for even a second should''ve been a red flag."


    "Yeah, makes sense," Lars nodded.


    "So, what happened? How did her gank surprise you?"


    "I dunno. It just came outta nowhere, yo."


    "But, you saw she was stealthed. You should''ve suspected something was afoot."


    "Hmm. Yeah, probably."


    "Probably? Wait, don''t tell me you didn''t check whether she was there after she made the clone."


    "I''m pretty sure I did. At least, I think I did. Hmm. I did, right?"


    "You asking me?" Yuel made a face. This was going nowhere fast. What was it with Lars and Vincent? When it came to Nia, it''s like they lost their ability to analyze the situation. It was so bizarre.


    "You all saw that setup, right?" Yuel turned to the others.


    "It was hard to tell, man," Luke shrugged. "Wasn''t she like at the corner of the screen the whole time? We couldn''t even see her half the time from this perspective."


    "Is that so," Yuel thought back on Nia''s routine and realized that Luke was right. Most of the time, Nia stayed on the far right side of the lane. When she sent her clone toward the minion wave, the clone had to travel diagonally to reach the wave. Meanwhile, Nia remained tucked away at the edge of the lane. Therefore, she was always barely visible from Lars''s point-of-view while he focused on the minion wave.


    Did Nia play like that on purpose? This stunt didn''t work on Yuel in the slightest but it seemed to lower others'' guard. Was this a 200 IQ ploy? Or, did Nia just have a knack for decreasing her presence?


    "Kukuku," Vincent stretched his arms as if to present somebody. "As I thought, BlackFlower got something! Even though I''m the Arbiter of Talents, her talent has been eluding me for a long time. But, that''s only natural, for her talent is none other than Vanishing Phantom!"


    [Here we go again.] Yuel rolled his eyes. Though, admittedly, he was a little curious to hear what Vincent thought of Nia. Just a little curious. Better not give that clown too much credit.


    "So, you want to hear it?" Vincent wore the smug of a know-it-all. "You want to learn the truth behind her magic, don''t you!?"


    "Get on with the program already," Kai urged.


    "Alrighty, listen, and listen well. Her ability is..." *dramatic pause* "To erase her presence! It''s like a high ranked Presence Concealment ability!"


    "Whoa! Cool!" Lars exclaimed. "So, what does it do?"


    "I bet he got no idea either," Yuel shrugged. "What does it even mean to ''erase presence''? Such nonsense."


    "I see, I see," Vincent nodded. "So, Chessmaster wishes to challenge me to a debate. Very well! I, the Arbiter of Talents, accept the challenge!"


    "It''s not a debate. I''m just saying you''re making random stuff up. That???s facts."


    "Then, pray tell, how comes nobody noticed Nia''s plan? As you said, it should''ve been pretty obvious. But, everybody was shocked. How come?"


    "That''s..." Yuel didn''t have an answer. He was asking himself the same thing and it stumped him. How was it possible that only he saw Nia''s attack coming? There was no reasonable explanation for that.


    "You also felt it, right?" Vincent asked. "Sometimes, Nia just naturally slips out of your mind like she was never there in the first place."


    "Can''t say I felt that way."


    "Seriously?" Vincent frowned and turned to the others. "You all felt that too, right?"


    "Totally, man," Luke said. "It feels like if I don''t focus on her I gonna forget she''s even there, haha."


    "She does have a rather weak presence," Kai agreed.


    "Ergo, there''s no mistake in my conclusion," Vincent concluded. "Nia is the Vanishing Phantom!"


    "That''s rather flimsy evidence you got there," Yuel argued. "As I said, I don''t recall feeling that way about Nia."


    "I suppose that is a valid point," Vincent nodded. "This is indeed peculiar. Why can Yuel always see Nia despite her Vanishing Phantom?"


    "Let''s see how long it takes you to blame that on a new type of mystic eyes I got."


    "Oh! But of course! It''s because you got the Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception! As long as somebody exists, your mystic eyes shall fully expose their weaknesses no matter how weak their presence is!"


    "What a load of nonsense," Yuel sighed. But, maybe there was a grain of truth to Vincent''s observations. Of course, not the part about the "Mystic Eyes" but rather Yuel''s ability to thoroughly analyze the situation.


    In his mind, Yuel saw the match as a chessboard. At all times, he thought about the positions of the pieces and the possible lines of play for them. As such, he always kept in mind where Nia should be positioned on the board. And, when he failed to find her at the expected position, that alerted him immediately.


    Any occurrence like that meant he had to fix his mental chessboard according to the new data, Also, that naturally begged the question of how such disparity occurred in the first place. That''s probably what helped him consider the possibility of Nia''s sneak attack.


    So, perhaps Vincent''s analysis wasn''t that far-off after all. Indeed, Nia was the "Vanishing Phantom". Or, in human language, she was good at sneaking around unnoticed and lowering the opponent''s guard. Except, that didn''t work on the way Yuel kept track of the game.


    But, was it even possible to have such a talent for sneaking around in a third-person video game? Well, maybe it wasn''t impossible. In a way, it was similar to how Yuel would sometime notice that an opponent was distracted and used that opportunity sneak up to them without them noticing.


    Even though each player was controlling an avatar with a poker face, it was still possible to read them to some degree based on their movements and tendencies. Nia probably relied on tells like that to slip away without altering her opponents, That could explain how she snuck up to Lars and Vincent so easily.


    For now, this was just a theory based on circumstantial evidence. Yuel had to see more proof to draw a solid conclusion. And, the next part of this exam will surely be interesting.


    After Lars completely crushed Nia in that 1v1, how was she going to recover? What sneaky new plan to attack will she devise to win the next clash?

 155 Coming Out of the Shell

    [What a monster.] Nia thought. That Pirate was something else. He thoroughly destroyed her without batting an eye. Could she even do anything against that guy? No way...


    ¡ºYour Golem has been destroyed!¡»


    [Great. Even lost my Golem. I''m through.]


    This was just one of these times, wasn''t it? From time to time, she ran into Platinum ranked opponents who clearly weren''t Platinum. They were either Grandmaster smurfs or future Grandmasters who haven''t earned enough points yet. These guys had tech that was outta this world.


    Every time Nia run into one of those, they mopped the floor with her as if she was a scrub who picked the game just the other day. These were painful games. Nia even sometimes felt like dropping Classmancers for good after these.


    Judging by the way this Pirate was playing, he was clearly a Grandmaster-in-training as well. No normal person could possibly dodge Izuna Drop so quickly while being surprised by a back-attack. It was simply impossible; it definitely went against the laws of physics and all that.


    [What do I do?] Nia curled into a ball as she waited for her respawn. Her sneak attack plan backfired in the worst way possible. For the rest of this match, she couldn''t rely on this setup anymore. The Imperial Spear into Izuna Drop was no longer a viable combo.


    But, Nia''s entire game plan for this match relied on pulling off that combo; she even bought that Imperial Spear specifically for it. The spear greatly boosted the physical damage of her next ability after landing a successful basic attack so it was supposed to power up the follow-up Izuna Drop from dangerous to deadly.


    But, that Grandmaster level Pirate could dodge this setup. It should have been an unreactable transition from one move into another, yet that Pirate could interrupt it with a Dodge Roll.


    Was there any chance that one dodge was a fluke? No way. It was impossible to dodge like that through sheer luck. This Pirate was definitely a monster with the inhuman reaction neccessary for thwarting Nia''s setup. Scary.


    Not to mention, once Nia''s surprise attack failed, the Pirate counterattacked right away without wasting a moment. In a blink of an eye, Nia turned from the predator into the prey. It was terrifying.


    [I heard them say this player is good, but this is...] Nia shuddered. What was she even supposed to do against this? She couldn''t possibly beat such a Grandmaster level opponent.


    This, right here, wasn''t an entrance exam; it was bullying. They set Nia up against a terrifying opponent just so they could laugh at how badly she was about to lose. Maybe she shouldn''t have applied to this club, after all...


    [I should just go home. Nobody will notice anyway.] Nia brought her feet down to the floor and clenched her controller.


    [Yeah, I''ll just stand up and walk away. No point staying here just to be bullied like this.]


    Despite these thoughts, Nia didn''t budge. She remained frozen in place. Her Ninja has already revived but she just stared at it blankly.


    Was she going to run away again? Despite everything, this was a rare opportunity. For the first time in forever, somebody actually noticed her and invited her to join a club. She won''t get many other chances like this.


    On top of that, it was a club for a game she liked. Admittedly, its MOBA mode was quite a pain because everybody always blamed her for everything. But, Duel was fun. Sneaking up to unsuspecting opponents and taking them down in one-shot was the best.


    In addition, the club was small so she won''t have to be around too many people. Also, this basement room was nice. It felt like she could easily hide here from the rest of the world whenever she needed to. Playing here felt almost as safe as locking herself away in her room.


    [But, I gonna lose...] Nia jerked. [That monster is going to walk all over me. Everybody will think I''m the worst player ever. They''ll laugh at me and kick me out. I...]


    ¡ºSURRENDER¡»


    Nia put down her controller. This was for the best. If she was going to embarrass herself like that in front of a crowd, she might as well quit before things got ugly.


    "Huh?" Kai blinked. "A surrender?"


    "Heh, looks like she is shook," Luke chuckled.


    "It was just one death," Yuel said. "The match barely started so she had plenty of time to make a comeback. Can''t say I''m a fan of this quit."


    "Did I go too far?" Lars scratched the back of his head. "She almost got me back there so I went all serious on her."


    "You did fine," Yuel said. "I didn''t suggest you as her opponent just so you let her win. I wanted to see a proper game in which the examiner doesn''t make an amateur mistake that gets them killed."


    "Hey, hey, hey," Vincent exclaimed. "I made no such mistake. I''m telling you, it''s all the Vanishing Phantom! She erased her presence from my mind and snuck up to me!"


    "Yeah, sure." Yuel rolled his eyes. "Frankly, I also wanted to test how Nia handled stressful situations. As we all know, fighting Lars can be rather discouraging. So, I wanted to see how that goes.???


    "That''s cruel," Kai said. "It''s like you threw her to the wolves on purpose. I knew I should''ve stopped this shit. What if she leaves because of this? Actually, where did she even go?"


    "She''s gone," Luke scanned the room with hand-binoculars. "Her tablet isn''t there either."


    "Oh! She must have vanished from this realm!" Vincent made noise. "As expected from the one and only Vanishing Phantom! She can completely erase her existence, both inside and outside the game!"


    "What if she left?" Kai shot a glare at Yuel. "It''d be your fault."


    "She didn''t leave," Yuel replied calmly. "She''s hiding behind me." He turned around and exposed the sneaky mouse.


    "H-How?" Nia trembled. "You got eyes on your back too?"


    "I saw you sneaking in this direction."


    "Tch, failed. What a tough ''it''."


    [When did this become a game of hide-and-seek?] Yuel narrowed his eyes.


    "Phew, good thing you didn''t leave," Kai hurried to Nia''s side. "Sorry about that match. That guy is too strong so pitting you against him was a mistake." Kai gave Yuel the evil eye while explaining the situation.


    "I see," Nia nodded and sheepily peeked at Yuel through her long bangs. "He''s the bully."


    "All I want is to hold a proper exam," Yuel sighed. It felt like anything he says will be used against him. It was easier to just take the hit here and let them see him as the villain of this story. After all, he was the "Chessmaster" so it was only fitting.


    "I say we had enough," Kai put down her foot as the captain. "We saw Nia play well against Vincent earlier. It should be enough to convince anybody of her skill in Duel." She addressed everybody in the room but her eyes lingered on Yuel the most. After all, he was the "troublemaker" around here.


    "Alright, fine," Yuel wasn''t satisfied with the outcome but at least this match proved one thing: Vincent didn''t mess up on purpose or by accident. Nia truly had a knack for lowering her opponent''s guard and sneaking up to them undetected. If not for Lars''s quick reaction, he might have also lost the duel.


    For now, that was enough to prove that Nia wasn''t a complete amateur. The items she built, the way she farmed, and her sneaky playstyle were all decent enough for a freshman. However, Duel alone wasn''t a good indication of whether a player was fit to play Classmancers. After all, it was a team game.


    "Then, let''s move on to the main MOBA mode," Yuel said. "That''ll be the true test. She proved she can play Duel but we need to make sure she can play MOBA too."


    "Yeah," Kai agreed this time. "So, let''s..." She paused and looked around. "Huh? Where did she go?"


    "Behind you," Yuel pointed.


    "Huh? No way. She was over there just a moment ago- Whoa!" Kai jumped after turning around. Nia was really standing behind her! When did that happen!?


    "Ahem," Kai was quick to compose herself. "We want to test how you play in MOBA mode as well. Is that alright?"


    ["Is that alright?"] Yuel raised an eyebrow. [Aren''t the examiners supposed to dictate what''s going to be on the test?]


    "MOBA..." Nia mumbled and glanced downwards. "I, um, kinda tired after the previous matches..."


    "You only played two Duels," Yuel said. "And, you forfeited almost immediately in the second game."


    "Um, yeah, but, err..."


    "It gotta be test anxiety or some shit," Kai said. "Even a basic match can drain you when you know you''re being tested."


    "Y-Yeah! That." Nia nodded repeatedly and her spaghetti hair flailed like tentacle arms.


    [This girl seems nice.] Nia nodded to herself as she stared at Kai''s back. [If I stay behind her, I won''t get bullied as much. Especially, by that main bully over there.] She stared at Yuel with narrow eyes. [That guy must be the ringleader of all the bullies. Scary.]


    [She has only played two matches and she''s already tired? Seriously?] Yuel wondered. Exam or not, two Duel matches should be nothing for somebody who played the mode regularly. [I sure hope she''s not trying to avoid the MOBA exam.]


    "Cut her some slack, dude," Lars said. "She played slick for a rookie. She even almost got a kill on me. Can ya believe that?"


    "No, to be honest, I still find that hard to believe. You were careless back there. I''d never think you''re almost a Challenger in Duel when you play sloppy like this."


    "Ouch, haha," Lars laughed it off and turned to Nia. "GG there. But, why did ya quit? You still had a chance."


    "I lost," Nia mumbled. "You''re too strong. You must be a Grandmaster."


    "Yep, I''m a Grandmaster! Just haven''t grinded up there yet. But, in terms of skill? I''m totally up there."


    "Of course you are," Kai rolled her eyes.


    "Believe it, yo. Wanna 1v1 me?"


    "I''m down. Let''s get it down after the exam."


    "You got it! First to ten let''s go!" Lars turned to Nia again. "You totally should''ve kept fighting. You could''ve gotten me."


    "I don''t think so." Nia averted her eyes.


    "Yo ninja skills are top-level, I''m tellin'' ya. That sneak attack was the real shit. I somehow dodged it but I was legit worried how I gonna deal with it next time. Really wanted to keep playing against ya and see where it goes. You''re hella good, yo!"


    "T-Thanks," Nia felt her cheeks heating up. Even though that guy was a total duel monster who thoroughly destroyed her in that 1v1, he actually seemed like a nice person.


    Maybe Nia really should have tried harder. Even though her sneak tactic failed the first time, she was actually kinda close. If she just went for the Izuna Drop right away from stealth, she could''ve taken about half the enemy''s HP. So, she should''ve tried that attack at least one more time before quitting.


    [I ran away. Like always.] Nia slumped. That''s how it was every time for her. Every time she sensed trouble, she ran away and hid. That was so much safer and easier than confronting stuff.


    But, where did all that running bring her? Nowhere. She became a phantom. One of the boys here called her such and he on point. Nia was the elusive phantom who always ran away when things turned rough.


    So, was she going to ran away from this club too? Honestly, the upcoming MOBA exam sounded scary. Whenever she played online, everybody always blamed her for every little thing she did. Even something as simple as breathing was a sin somehow. It was awful.


    Even after she muted the chat, she could still hear their voices in her head.


    ¡ºjungler is brain dead¡»


    ¡ºyeah jungler is a troll¡»


    ¡ºJungler uninstall game ktnx¡»


    It has been a long time since she turned off the chat option entirely. And yet, these insults have been eating away at her to this day. Was she really that bad? Was she making her teammates'' lives miserable? Was it better if she didn''t exist?


    Nevertheless, she kept playing because Classmancers was otherwise a fun game. Though, already back then, she has been gradually shifting toward Duel mode. Fighting 1v1 was just way more relaxing. There was no chance of disappointing any teammates and she was the only one who could blame herself.


    But, grinding levels through Duel took long because the mode gave less player exp. So, Nia kept playing MOBA as well. She globally muted her teammates for all games and kept grinding to Lv. 50.


    At Lv.50, Ranked mode got unlocked. That was supposed to be proof that Nia finally became decent at the game. Surely, her teammates in Ranked would recognize her skill.


    So, Nia unmuted the chat for the Ranked qualifier. After all, when properly utilized, the chat and the pings were useful tools that helped teamwork. So, for important qualifier matches, Nia hoped the team would use the chat to great effect.


    Alas, it was a mistake. The complaints and slurring were more severe than ever.


    ¡ºomg jungler kys¡»


    ¡ºjungler go play pacman¡»


    ¡ºtnx for putting us in bronze¡»


    Nia quit the qualifier after just two games. It was horrible.


    Why did everybody have to be like that? It wasn''t even like Nia did poorly in these two games. As long she got to play Jungler, her KDA was generally positive. She finished most games without dying much and with a bunch of kills on her record. So, she generally did just fine as a Jungler.


    The same couldn''t be said for playing other roles so maybe the complaints were warranted there. But, as a Jungler? Nia was actually doing great. Or, at least she thought she was. Her teammates seemed to disagree.


    After suffering two toxic qualifier matches like that - she quit. She didn''t touch Classmancers for two weeks after that. At the time, she thought she was done with this toxic game.


    However, after trying out some other PvP video games, she found herself playing Classmancers again. Why? She couldn''t tell for sure. Most likely, because it felt like a waste to drop the game after pouring so many hours into it.


    In every new game she picked up, she had to learn the characters, abilities, and meta from scratch. It was such a chore. Every time she performed poorly and her team lost, she couldn''t shake the feeling she would''ve easily turned things around if only this was Classmancers.


    Not to mention, other online games weren''t any better in terms of toxicity. Everybody was usually quiet during the first couple of levels of the game. But, once her account leveled up a little, complaints started pouring like a waterfall. Sometimes the toxicity was directed at her, sometimes at other teammates; it was such a disgusting environment.


    Worst of all, Nia felt like she was becoming one of these toxic players too. These environments were drawing the worst out of her.


    Therefore, she dropped team-based games altogether and focused on 1v1 modes. That''s how she came to main Duel in Classmancers. It wasn''t quite as diverse and interesting as the MOBA mode but it was fun in its own way. Besides, sneaking up to opponents and striking them before they realized what happened was just the same in Duel as it was in MOBA. That was the most fun part of Classmancers.


    Best of all, there was nobody there to rant about her performance or insult her. She alone composed the entire team and was the only one who could criticize herself. So, instead of playing the Ranked MOBA mode she unlocked at Lv.50, she instead focused on the Ranked Duel mode that was unlocked at the same time


    It was rough climbing the ranks with just assassin classes but she made it all the way to Platinum. She actually achieved something; it was fun. Nobody could deny her achievement or say she was terrible at the game.


    In fact, nobody could say anything because there was literally nobody else there. Nia played all by herself. In every match, there was only her and her opponent. Some opponents sent her hatemail but that''s about it.


    ¡ºgo play assassins creed you cheap sneaky bastard¡»


    ??must be fun playing like a rat¡»


    ¡ºi swear imma find you irl and stab yo ***¡»


    [Some of these people are insane. Scary.] Nia always made sure to report any player who talked like this. It always creeped her out even though she knew these people will never find her in real life. After all, sometimes people didn''t notice her even while standing right in front of her. She was that sneaky. Nin nin.


    Still, she occasionally picked out of the window to make sure nobody was coming. It was scary.


    However, as for the insults themselves, they were just lame. These were the words of salty scrubs who got whooped hard. They should just go cry in a corner.


    "You asking if it''s fun being sneaky like this?" Nia smirked. "Of course it is. QQ noob."


    It was awesome. Every time she snuck up to an unsuspecting opponent and cut them down - it was the best thing in the world! She could do that all day. Well, at least until she got tired and needed a nap.


    Still, despite how fun Duel was, occasionally she couldn???t help but think back on the team-based MOBA mode. Toxicity aside, there were a bunch of fun moments she experienced there which Duel couldn''t offer. For example, highlights like ganking an opponent with a pincer together allies. Or, friendly interactions like rescuing an ally by ganking their lane.


    Moments like these were rare but they made Nia feel like she mattered, like she changed somebody''s day for the better and that they were grateful to her. It was like somebody actually noticed and acknowledged her presence.


    None of that was possible in Duel. The only emotion she could spark in this mode was the hatred of her defeated opponent. That was also a form of acknowledgment but it wasn''t the positive type. It was more like Nia fighting against the world all by herself. Sigh.


    How great it''d be if she could play the MOBA mode in a more positive environment. If only she wasn''t always surrounded by a bunch of randoms who always claimed they knew better than her and thought it was alright to threaten people over the internet. Seriously, the FBI should monitor the game and put people like that in jail.


    Once in a while, Nia gave the MOBA mode another shot. However, she only played in Casual and always kept the chat muted. Her teammates probably always blamed her for everything but she didn''t see the complaints so she didn''t care.


    Okay, maybe she cared a little. Even without seeing the messages, she felt like they were insulting and blaming her. Sometimes, not knowing what they were saying about her felt even worse. She couldn''t help but imagine the worst.


    Still, Nia didn''t dare to unmute the chat. She kept it off and avoided all interaction with her teammates. She only used pings to announce where she was rotating and when she was about to gank a lane. That was more than enough.


    Or, was it? Wouldn''t it be better if she properly communicated with her teammates and they planned things together? After all, it was a team game. They should all be playing the game together.


    But, instead, Nia was playing by herself. Without any communication, her teammates were as real as bots. If only she could unmute the chat and talk to them, plan with them, and celebrate victory with them. Maybe she could even make some friends this way.


    Alas, it was impossible. Everybody acted like a toxic scum online so she avoided them like the plague.


    But, perhaps in this club, she''ll be able to get that dream realized. There was that girl with the black cap and the smiling blonde guy. They seemed nice. At the very least, they weren''t bullies.


    The others also seemed fine for the most part. There was that one bully who always criticized Nia for every little thing she did but the others kept him in check.


    That''s why, instead of running away like Nia has been doing her entire life...


    "O-Okay," Nia spoke up. "I can do the MOBA test. I just need a few minutes to recharge."


    And so, Nia took the first step. This was a rare opportunity that could only occur once in a millennium. She had to seize it. She''ll pass the exam and join a real club for the first time in her life! Hopefully, the MOBA exam won''t be scary...

 156 Hide-and-Seek Grandmaster

    "I can do the MOBA test," Nia declared. "I just need a few minutes to recharge."


    [Recharge?] Yuel raised an eyebrow. [Are you a robot?]


    "Are you sure about it?" Kai asked. "You don''t have to push yourself. You just went through two difficult duels."


    "It''s okay. I think."


    "You think?"


    "Um, I mean," Nia stumbled over her words. "I-I''ll do it! But, it''d be nice if I can get a little break to recharge."


    "Sure, there''s no rush," Kai nodded. "Tell us when you''re ready."


    "Ok," Nia put down her school bag and fished inside. Meanwhile, Kai approached Yuel.


    "Did you blackmail her into it?" Kai asked.


    "I didn''t do anything," Yuel said. "And, that''s actually rude. I''m not some kind of a bully."


    "Not sure Nia agrees on that one and I see why. You''re not exactly being friendly this exam."


    "Why everybody has to be like this..." Yuel sighed. It felt like everybody here was making him out like some kind of villain. All he was trying to do was hold a proper exam that''ll test everything they needed to know about Nia''s skill.


    [I bet Aron went through similar criticism before.] Yuel smiled wryly. Back during StormBlitz''s entrance exam, Yuel thought Aron was quite the bully examiner. Aron asked questions nonstop and made many remarks, some of which came off as rude. At the time, it felt Aron was getting a kick out of bullying freshmen.


    But, now that Yuel was in the same shoes, he realized that wasn''t the case at all. Aron merely tried to gauge Yuel''s skill to the best of his ability, the same thing Yuel was trying to do with Nia right now.


    Unfortunately, when the examinee was so difficult to judge, it forced the examiner to push harder to gather more useful data. However, doing so made it look like Yuel was pressuring Nia for fun. That wasn''t his intention at all.


    [Seems like my high-level communication skills strike again.] Yuel sighed. He really had to work on that area but he wasn''t sure how.


    Being good at communication would be a great plus for a shot-caller. As frustrating as it was to admit, everybody felt more motivated to follow the lead of somebody charismatic. That''s why everybody liked Howard as their shot-caller over Yuel.


    The only reason people agreed to follow Yuel''s calls was that he proved his ability time and again. But, that almost felt like submitting them through force. It shouldn''t be like that. Teammates should work more naturally with each other. If only Yuel could better convey his intentions without coming off as an evil criticizing nagger, everybody will be happier.


    [Actually, maybe I should start right here and now.] Yuel nodded to himself. This was a good opportunity to operate out of his comfort zone in order to improve the situation. He should clear things up with Nia and explain he was merely trying to test her in different ways to get a better read on her.


    [What is she up to anyway?] Yuel approached the curled mass of black hair. Nia was sitting hunched at the corner and making some weird noises.


    [Oh, she''s eating something.] There was a brown bar of chocolate in her mouth and she was munching on it with tiny but swift bites. She looked like a hamster.


    [Pft, heh. No, stop. Put on a serious face. Ahem.] Yuel cleared his throat and straightened his posture. Then, he approached Nia.


    Munch. Munch. Munch. Then, a pause. Nia slowly raised her black eyes and eyed him through her messy bangs.


    "I-I''m not giving it," Nia curled up further and pressed the bar of chocolate to her chest.


    "I didn''t come for that," Yuel said. "I just wanted to say that... Well..." Words didn''t come. He knew what he had to say but the words got lost somewhere at the back of his head.


    "Kukuku!" A suspicious laughed resounded from behind. "Just as my calculations showed! If I follow the trail of the Mystic Eyes, I can find the Vanishing Phantom!" Vincent popped out of nowhere.


    "So, that''s what you meant by ''recharging''," Vincent took a quick look at Nia''s chocolate and jotted something down on his tablet. "Alright, duly noted. The fuel for the Vanishing Drive is chocolate! You got a favorite brand?"


    "Anything goes as long as it''s good," Nia opened a pocket in her bag and revealed a pile of wrapped chocolates. "These are good."


    "Hohoho, that''s quite the collection! You always carry that many with you?"


    "My mom works at a sweets shop, so..." Nia took a long, hard look at the chocolates inside the bag. She was carrying so but she always ate them by herself. Didn''t other kids tend to share their snacks with their friends? Who knew. She never had such friends to share with.


    One time, she dumped a huge pile of chocolate on her table in class. She was hoping to share some sweets with others and make friends like that. It was a 200 IQ bribery tactic.


    But, that didn''t quite work out as she hoped. The chocolates successfully drew everybody''s attention and made them remember Nia exists. But, they only came to ask for chocolate and then left as soon as they got it. Nia didn''t even get to exchange a single word with them. Her grand chocolate bribery ploy fell through.


    But still, sharing snacks was something friends did, right? She got plenty to spare and the people in this club actually talked to her and were mostly nice, with a few exceptions. So, maybe this was the kind of situation where she should share chocolate?


    [This will also be like bribery for the exam.] Nia smirked. This should increase her chances of passing the scary MOBA exam. If everybody learns Nia carries snacks around and shares them, they''ll surely want her in the club so they can eat snacks all day long!. It was the perfect bribe.


    "Um, you want?" Nia stretched her hand in Vincent''s direction. "This is good stuff."


    "Hey, thanks," Vincent accepted the bar of chocolate. "Oh! This is indeed high quality! No doubt, it''s the chocolate of aristocrats! I shall dub you the Phantom of Chocolates! Nay, the Chocolate Phantom!"


    "Hah..." Nia wasn''t sure what to make of that. "I got more. So, if others want too..."


    "Got it," Vincent turned around and made a hand megaphone around his mouth. "Free chocolates! Free chocolates here! You''ve never tasted anything like it!"


    Not a moment passed and everybody was there.


    "Yo, what''s up?" Lars came over. "Oh! This thing is sick! Thanks, dude."


    "Not bad, not bad," Luke nodded. "Can I try that one too? And, this one also looks great too."


    "Thanks," Kai also took one.


    There was enough for everybody. In fact, there was way more than enough. There was virtually no end to the chocolates pouring out of Nia''s bag.


    [Why do I carry so many?] Nia smiled wryly Perhaps, all this time, she has been waiting for an opportunity to share the chocolates with others. Or, maybe she was just lazy and preferred to load her bag to last a week or two.


    [OK, I bribed them.] Nia nodded to herself. [Now, they''ll let me pass for sure. And, maybe they''ll even become my friends. Just in case, I should offer them some more.]


    Nia went on another round of giveaways for everybody. Except, there was one boy she refused to give anything to. It was that bully guy. He didn''t deserve anything.


    The entire time, the bully kept glaring at her as if judging her every move. He must have been trying to submit Nia through the intensity of his gaze. Scary.


    "I-I''m not giving you any," Nia puffed her cheeks.


    [I see I''m very liked.] Yuel sighed. Somehow, he managed to create the image of a bully even though he was merely trying to hold a proper entrance exam. Why did things always turn out this way?


    [No, not this time.] Yuel nodded to himself. This time, he won''t let it end here. He''ll speak up and try to clear up the situation. Yes, he will... once he figures what to say. Any moment now. Any moment.


    "What?" Nia looked at him with suspicious eyes.


    "Ah, well," Yuel shifted his eyes away. This was such a pain in the neck. Why did he even have to justify himself? He was trying to do the right thing here, yet everybody treated him like a villain for it. It was so wrong.


    Nevertheless, he had to suck it up and go through with it.


    "I''m sorry," Yuel almost coughed while pushing these words through his throat. "You seem to think I''m being mean to you but that''s not my intention. All I want is to properly test your skills. Pitting you against Lars was a great way to see how you fare against a strong duelist, that''s all there is to it. It''s just a part of the exam."


    "Suspicious," Nia gave him a look. "Are you trying to act nice to get chocolate?"


    "No, I just wanted to clear things up. For some reason, people often mistake my intentions and make me out like some terrible person."


    [Maybe because you really are.] Nia shifted her eyes away. Well, maybe she was judging him too harshly. After all, she has just met this boy so she didn''t know much about him. Maybe he just looked like a mean stalker bully but, in reality, he was a nice person. Maybe.


    Besides, Nia only got to apply to the club thanks to Yuel. Back when the club was recruiting members outside, he was the one who noticed Nia in the crowd. At the time, she was curious about joining the club but couldn''t muster the courage to step forward.


    Then, Yuel called out to her. That spooked the heck outta her, so she ran for her life! But, the guy chased her like a trained professional stalker! She had to use her advanced ninja techniques and hide in the shadow of the crowd to shake him off.


    After she successfully erased her presence, the pursuer gave up and left. But, before doing so, he put a flier of the Classmancers club on one of the boards. Nia snatched that thing and filled it in.


    Next, she went to hand the registration paper to the club. But, she got nervous about coming in. After all, all these guys were a bunch of strangers.


    So, the plan of attack was to sneak into the club, leave the paper on one of the tables, and slip away unnoticed. But, yet again, Yuel spotted her with his hawk eyes! That gave her the spook of her life and she ran for her life again. That guy was like a neo technology security droid! Scary.


    While running away, Nia dropped her application form. Yuel must have picked it up and passed it to the others. If he truly were a terrible person, he would have tossed that flier into the trash and that would''ve killed Nia''s chances of getting into the club. Yet, Yuel cared enough to handle the application and the club even called Nia for a test despite her late registration.


    So, Yuel wasn''t a bully. Probably. At least, it didn''t seem he had bad intentions.


    "Here," Nia stretched a hand holding a chocolate bar. "Peace?"


    "Peace," Yuel accepted the treat. The chocolate was really sweet, even a little too sweet to his taste. But, it was solid. No wonder Nia was addicted enough to carry an entire factory in her bag.


    While Yuel was enjoying the chocolate, Nia stared at him the entire time. Her little black eyes peered through her long spaghetti bangs. It was as if she was analyzing an otherworldly creature.


    "I got something on me?"


    "Hm? No. I thought it''s curious that aliens like chocolate too."


    "Aliens? What aliens?"


    "Then, are you a droid? A terminator sent to enslave mankind!? Scary."


    "Excuse me?" Yuel made a face. "I thought we made peace and you understood I''m not trying to pull anything."


    "Hm?" Nia tilted her head. "How''s that related?"


    "You tell me. What''s all this about aliens and droids?"


    "You gotta be one of those."


    "I''m not, though."


    "Don''t lie."


    "I''m not lying..."


    "Impossible," Nia puffed her cheeks. "Then, what manner of creature are you?"


    "I believe I belong to the Homosapien species."


    "An esper, then."


    [How''s that the conclusion!?] Yuel nearly chocked on the chocolate.


    "Most people can''t find me even when I''m on standby," Nia explained. "But, you can track me even when I hide. Gotta be some supernatural power."


    [What''s more "supernatural" is your ability to hide all the time.] Yuel rolled his eyes. Just like Nia was surprised about being found by Yuel, he was astonished by the very opposite: how came nobody but him could ever find Nia?


    [Not to sound like Vincent, but this really makes her seem like a phantom.] Yuel shook his head. It was as if Nia could turn into thin air in front of their very eyes. Was this girl some sort of esper? [Heh, now who is being silly? There has to be a logical explanation for this.]


    From what Yuel could tell, Nia had a habit of placing herself at the edge of people''s field of view. Even now, while she was just taking a break to stuff herself with chocolate, she chose to sit at the corner of the room. Why? No idea. But, that''s what she was doing.


    Being tucked away at the corner like this made her relatively difficult to spot. And, that''s how Nia generally "vanished" in his experience. She often positioned herself in some obscure location that would be easily overlooked unless somebody was actively searching for her there. And, even then, it might take them a while to spot her there. She was most likely a Grandmaster in hide-and-seek.


    But then, why this trick didn''t work on Yuel? Perhaps his observation skills were slightly better than the others''.


    [Thinking of it, everybody used to complain when I was ''it'' in hide-and-seek.] Yuel smiled wryly.


    Whenever he was ''it'' and began his hunt, he started by carefully scanning his surroundings. Often times, he could spot at least five kids hiding nearby before he even took a single step.


    "John behind the statue. Alex under the table there. Jack pretending to be a middle schooler in that pack over there."


    "Man, what the..."


    "This guy sees everything, I swear."


    The boys came out of their hideouts one by one and admitted defeat. Though, it was often followed by a fair share of ranting.


    Yuel never understood what was the problem with his way of doing things. As "it", his job was to quickly and efficiently expose the hiding spots of others. It only made sense to start the game by carefully analyzing his surroundings and calling out everybody he saw.


    In a way, that''s how he often found Nia as well. Back when he spotted her in the crowd, it was when he desperately searched for candidates all over the place. And, it was the same story when he spotted Nia in the hallway. He was just hoping for more people to apply so he found that someone. That''s all there was to it.


    "You must be good at hide-and-seek," Yuel concluded.


    "Wha!?" Nia jumped. "How did you know?"


    "Well, I''m an esper so I can read your mind."


    "Scary," Nia shivered. She didn''t actually believe that nonsense, right? ... right?


    "I''m good at hiding" Nia admitted. "Normally, you need an entire army to search the area to find me. That''s how good I am."


    "Impressive."


    "Yeah. When we played hide-and-seek, I sometimes even stayed hidden all the way into the night. They never found me. And, once I came out, nobody was even there anymore. They must have rage quit."


    [It sounds more like they completely forgot about you and left...] Yuel had no idea what to say about this story. At the very least, it confirmed his suspicion: Nia was a natural pro at hiding. That''s all there was to this "Vanishing Phantom" mystery.


    "The same way you''re good in the ''hide'' part of hide-and-seek, I''m good in the ''seek'' part" Yuel explained. "That''s how I can find you faster than the others. It''s simple as that."


    "That''s it? Really?" Nia stared at him in suspicion. "I think you''re still hiding something."


    "You''re the one doing the hiding here." Yuel sighed. Apparently, there was no convincing this girl. For the world to make sense, Yuel had to be some sort of, esper, alien or robot. Oh well.


    What''s interesting about this whole thing was how Nia''s Grandmaster hide-and-seek skills seemed to extend to Classmancers in a way. By taking advantage of the stealth mechanic, she vanished from the enemy''s sight and snuck up to them when they least expected it. The stealth empowered her natural hiding skills for double the effect.


    So far, she has caught Vincent and Lars off-guard by playing this way. But, will her playstyle prove effective against other plays in the MOBA mode? They were about to find out in the upcoming test match.

 157 The Monk vs. Orc Matchup

    After Nia finished "recharging" by stuffing herself with chocolates, her MOBA exam began. It was agreed she''ll play Jungler because, according to her, it was her best role.


    "You should sit closer," Yuel said. "It''ll be hard to communicate when you''re all the way out there."


    "I like it here," Nia curled into a ball on her chair. Instead of sitting in the center of the room with everybody else, she remained tucked way in her favorite corner.


    "Give her a break," Kai said. "Do you have to nitpick everything? Just let her play the way she wants. She can still hear us from here just fine."


    "Fine," Yuel sighed in defeat. It felt like every comment he made today just painted him as a villain. Maybe he should lie low for a while and silently observe Nia''s performance.


    "Got any classes you prefer?" Kai asked.


    "Um, Rogue?"


    "Oh! Atta girl!" Luke gave a thumbs up. "A fitting Jungler sub for me, no question."


    "Let''s not do that," Yuel couldn''t hold it in. "Please."


    "This time, I gotta agree," Kai nodded. "Rogue is a little weak right now."


    "Oh, right" Nia checked something on her phone. "I think it was considered low tier in MOBA?"


    [Wow, imagine not knowing that.] Yuel couldn''t believe what he just heard. If there''s one thing everybody and their mom knew about the current tier list, it''d be Rogue''s rough placing on the tier list. Virtually every player went through the experience of getting stomped by a Rogue at low levels and thinking it was OP at first, only to later realize it was actually pretty easy to deal with.


    Then again, Nia didn''t even play Ranked yet. She was still stuck in the qualifier of the MOBA mode. so maybe that lack of knowledge was reasonable. Somewhat.


    "Looks like it''s really bad. Then..." Nia flipped through something on her phone. "Ninja is okay, right?"


    "Yeah, much better," Kai approved.


    "If we go for Ninja, we better pick it last during drafting," Yuel advised. "That''ll hamper the enemy''s ability to counter it. Ninja isn''t the kind of class that''ll be banned unless somebody on the other team got a very specific beef with it so we can safely pick it last."


    "That''s surprisingly considerate for you," Kai said.


    "Why, thank you," Yuel forced a smile. This felt like cold war. It wasn''t like he and Kai were fighting per se, but it felt like Kai would jump on every little opportunity to call him out. When did Yuel become the villain here? All he was trying to do was host a proper exam. Sigh.


    They couldn''t queue into Ranked as a team because Nia was still stuck in the qualifier, so they went for Casual mode instead. However, Yuel insisted for it to be a Casual match with drafting because clashing with a random unknown team was far from fun or interesting.


    Draft Casual was essentially the same as Ranked, just didn''t have the pressure of losing rank points from losing. Many players liked chilling in this mode when they weren''t in the mood for some serious grinding. Therefore, it was very much possible to run into a couple of high-level players in this "Casual" mode.


    It took the system a while to match them with somebody but it ultimately did. The drafting phase began.


    The enemy''s first pick was Viking, most likely for Top. Viking was also a common Jungler pick but most people picked it for Top, especially when it was an early pick. So, Viking will most likely be Yuel''s lane opponent.


    The counter pick Yuel went for was Monk. It had the ability to escape from clutch situations by becoming temporarily invincible, so Yuel will be able to get away if the Viking gets too close. In addition, it could attack minions from afar with Chakra Bullet so that''ll give him lane advantage while farming.


    Later into the drafting phase, the enemy picked Aeromancer. Naturally, Yuel counter picked with Electromancer.


    "Aeromancer and Electromancer, name a more iconic duo," Vincent chuckled.


    So far, the team has been holding the upper hand in the drafting. Yuel''s Monk countered Viking while Lars''s Electromancer countered Aeromancer. The entire game might be decided by those two advantages.


    As expected, the enemy didn''t ban Ninja. So, it''ll be the team''s last pick for Nia. The enemy only had one more class to pick so there was little chance for a surprise. At least, that''s how it looked until the last pick was made...


    "Orc!?" Yuel jumped. This was terrible. He didn''t account for this possibility. This meant the earlier Viking pick was for Jungler, not for Top. It was unclear whether the enemy planned this from the beginning. But, either way, they managed to deliver a devastating surprise with that final pick.


    Orc was dangerous. It was an infamous early-game bully, second only to Dark Knight in its brutality. A pick like this implied the enemy was aiming to end the game early.


    This was bad. Yuel picked Monk mainly due to its ability to get away from Viking''s close-quarters pressure but that wasn''t as relevant against Orc. Unlike the Viking, Orc didn''t rely on bursting down a single opponent from point-blank. Its attack power was continuously high throughout the early game, so it didn''t need to search for an opportunity to get close and kill his lane opponent. Instead, he simply wrecked everybody in his path, minions and players alike.


    Worst of all, Monk was a relatively slow lane clearer, that was the compensation for the ability to clear from afar. Viking wasn''t a particularly fast clearer either so, in that matchup, the extra attack range would have played a huge role.


    But, against Orc''s overwhelming clearing speed? The extra range was practically useless. This was going be one hell of a laning phase, that''s for sure.


    "I got counter picked hard," Yuel explained everybody the gist of the problem.


    "To think that somebody out there was able to outsmart the great Chessmaster!" Vincent made noise.


    "It''s just bad luck," Yuel said. "It''s impossible to account for everything when there are so many classes in the game. Besides, Orc is a rather rare pick in the current meta even though it''s a decent class. Didn''t expect to see it."


    "All I hear is excuses."


    "I guess you''re right," Yuel smiled wryly. No matter how he twists it, this was clearly his mess up. [I''ll have to reflect on it later.]


    But, until then, his top priority was to deal with the situation at hand. How should he defuse an Orc in this matchup?


    Just like Dark Knight, Orc was a class that could easily snowball during the early-game but fell off later into the game. So, as long as Yuel survives through the early-game without any unfortunate incidents, things will work out. However, with his Monk pick...


    "Nia, I''ll need you to gank Top a lot," Yuel said.


    "Me?" Nia looked around as if expecting to find somebody else with the same name.


    "Yes, you. You''re the Jungler so you got the most flexibility in terms of ganks. I''m not sure I''ll be able to stall Orc by myself so prioritize Top for ganks. We have to make sure he''s constantly scared of the possibility of being ganked. That''ll make him think twice about pushing."


    "Ok," Nia replied briefly. It was hard to tell whether she understood the importance of her role in all of this but at least she didn''t object. As long as she ganks Top every now and then, it should put enough pressure on the Orc and stop him in his tracks.


    The drafting phase came to an end and the match began. Yuel started off with Giant Warhammer, a primitive item that offered nothing more than sheer power and a little bit of penetration at Lv.3 It was the most aggressive option he could go for during the early-game for such a low price. Though, even this much power probably won''t bother the Orc much.


    Once Yuel arrived on the lane, the enemy''s onslaught began. The guy knew he had the upper hand and utilized his advantage right away.


    The Orc darted toward Yuel''s swordsmen and brought down his axe. Wham! A swordsman was gone. Just like that, in a single hit, one of Yuel''s frontline minions was gone.


    The Orc swung his axe again. Another swordsman was gone. Then, a third strike. Yuel''s entire frontline disappeared. Such was the terrifying strength of an early-game Orc. While it wasn''t as overwhelming as Dark Knight''s ability to clear an entire wave with Dark Blast, the brute strength of these basic attacks was more than enough to bully most lane opponents.


    While Dark Knight''s lane bullying strength laid in his powerful Dark Blast, Orc''s strength laid in his high attack power. Orc''s passive, Gang Up, boosted his attack power for every nearby ally. It was similar to Warrior''s passive, except it buffed based on the number of allies instead of the number of enemies.


    And, the buffs were much greater. While Warrior only gained a little bit of power from nearby enemy minions, Orc gained twice the amount. Together with Orc''s already higher base attack power, that made Orc a terrifying force during the early-game. He crushed every minion in his path like they were ants.


    Yuel''s Monk had no chance of contesting the lane against this. In fact, no Top Laner held a real chance except for Dark Knight. All Yuel could do was stay behind and shoot minions from afar.


    Monk was a melee fighter like most bruisers but he had the Chakra Bullet skill which fired a ranged shot. The Monk charged his fist with wind energy and thrust it forth. A blast of wind shot from the fist and slammed into a minion. Unfortunately, the damage was far from impressive, even with the Giant Warhammer in his build. The damage was just slightly higher than that of his basic attack.


    However, the good news was that Yuel could shoot multiple times in a row because Chakra Bullet was a toggle ability. Once turned on, all of Yuel''s basic attacks became ranged. So, he stayed in the rear and repeatedly thrust his fists to generate blasts of wind.


    Unfortunately, this great effect didn''t last forever. Each shot of Chakra Bullet cost one point of Chakra, which was a special resource that replaced MP for the Monk. The Monk started the game with just 6 Chakra and got 1 Max Chakra per level so, right now, Yuel could only shoot seven times before running out.


    On top of that, unlike MP, Chakra didn''t replenish over time. Instead, the Monk had to meditate to restore it. After exhausting all his Chakra, Yuel retreated to his tower and stopped moving. Shortly, the Monk went out of "combat mode" and sat down to meditate. Staying in this pose gradually restored Yuel''s Chakra.


    Monk''s low amounts of initial Chakra was the main reason it was subpar in the early-game. On paper, a bruiser who could fire ranged attacks like that should be able to bully most melee bruisers on lane. However, the number of shots was greatly restricted and the Monk had to take a long break before he could start his engine again.


    Monk will become much scarier around mid-game once it starts carrying loads of Chakra but, until then, it didn''t bring much to the table. Since Yuel expected to face a Viking, he wasn''t too concerned with the early-game when he drafted Monk. After all, Viking was also a mid-game class because his true power only kicked off once he got his ult up. So, Yuel thought he wouldn''t have to worry about anything until the mid-game. How wrong he turned out to be...


    WHAM. The Orc swung a huge war hammer in front of him. The assault blasted off all of Yuel''s bowmen in one hit. The little guys flew all across the lane like lifeless ragdolls.


    Yes, that''s right. Orc had more than just one-shot basic attacks in his arsenal. He also had access to a cone AoE attack via the Sledgehammer skill. The cone attack dealt less damage than his basics but it still allowed him to take out Yuel''s entire group of bowmen in one hit.


    This Orc player sure knew what he was doing and was pulling out all the stops. It was frustrating but that''s how Orc should play against weaker opponents. Gaining this sort of lane advantage was the entire purpose behind picking a class like Orc in the first place.


    Yuel didn''t even try to contest this strength. Instead, he retreated to his Turret and sat down with his legs crossed. The enemy''s upcoming push was inevitable so Yuel could only brace himself for the worst. The enemy will come to him and he''ll be ready to greet them after he restores his Chakra back to full.


    Yuel already hit Lv.3 so his max number of Chakra Bullet shots was at eight. Before the enemy formation got to raid his tower, Yuel stood up and fired at the rushing minions. The more minions he takes outside the Turret''s range, the better.


    Against an Orc, it was inevitable to let some minions invade the tower and lose farm as a result. So, Yuel tried to keep those losses to a minimum by sniping incoming minions before they got in. He managed to clear the enemy''s frontline in time but the three bowmen invaded and began their assault on his Turret.


    Yuel''s Chakra was exhausted again so he had to deal with these invaders personally. In other words, get in there and punch these invaders in the face. But, as he got closer, a whip lashed at him.


    Orc used Scourge to deliver a line attack by whipping in front of him. Since Yuel was the only target in range, the whiplash also stunned him for a brief moment.


    But, that''s all the attack did to him. It dealt alright damage and it briefly stunned Yuel but the Orc couldn''t follow up on this attack in any way. After all, even though Yuel was stunned, he was still under his tower. As such, the Orc didn''t dare to come any closer to attack for that''d incur the Turret''s wrath.


    So, at first glance, this whiplash was nothing more than a poke. But, this kind of single poke without follow-ups was rather pointless against Monk, who had increased HP5 during Meditation. The next time Yuel mediates, he''ll quickly heal up this damage and return to full health. So, as far as hindering Yuel was concerned, the damage of this poke did nothing.


    However, that wasn''t the end of the skill''s effect. After lashing with the whip, the Orc kept the whip in hand instead of returning to his default axe. In other words, his basic attacks temporarily transformed from axe swings to whip lashes. That gave him extra reach and he had every intention to make the best of it.


    [I see this guy is pulling out all the stops.] Yuel frowned. He didn''t have a good answer to this move. This Orc player definitely knew how to make the most out of this matchup; most likely a high rank.


    The Orc ignored Yuel''s presence and invaded the tower''s area with a scourge in hand. He took advantage of the extra range and whipped the Turret from a distance. This way, he didn''t have to venture too deep into the tower area to get hits on the Turret.


    [Should I spook him?] Yuel wondered. It''ll be bad if the Orc feels too comfortable with this situation and turns it into a routine. If this repeats for a couple more waves, it won''t take long for the Orc to tear down the Turret with his high damage. The guy even built Ninja Tabi, the shoes that increase attack speed. Clearly, the guy had every intention to bring the Turret down as quickly as possible.


    Therefore, Yuel ignored the enemy minions and went after the Orc instead. All his Chakra was exhausted so he could only attack with fists. So, he had to be in the Orc''s face to deliver any damage.


    That''d be a risky situation. Even though Monk was a bruiser, Orc won''t need to work too hard to take him down. That''s how crazy Orc''s early-game damage was. He''d need about five or six attacks to kill Yuel.


    Granted, it could''ve taken more hits than that if Yuel built a defensive item first. However, he hoped to contest the lane so he went for Giant Warhammer, the most aggressive early game option he had. It helped him to clear minions faster and lose less farm but it also left him more vulnerable against the Orc in fights.


    Therefore, if possible, Yuel rather avoid getting too close to the Orc, even under tower. The fewer chances the Orc gets to hit him during the early game, the better. Nevertheless, Yuel had to take the risk this once in order to slow down the Orc''s future pushes.


    Against most opponents, it was enough to show them that they''d become a target whenever they push the tower. That usually made them retreat right away. So, Yuel made it very clear that he was going to charge at the Orc to. Hopefully, that''d scare the guy away before Yuel even gets there.


    Unfortunately, this Orc didn''t budge. He kept whipping the tower without a care in the world. Ballsy of him. Very ballsy.


    [You''re one of those, huh. I see.] This opponent had no fear. Or, at least, he pretended to have no fear. So, there was no choice but to go all the way against him. Yuel had to prove he had the upper hand in this position and that he knew how to take advantage of it.


    While Yuel was approaching, the Orc cracked his whip again. However, this time, the lash wasn''t aimed at the tower. The thorny whip shot right at Yuel!


    "Wha!?" Yuel jerked. He was supposed to be the one delivering the attack, yet the Orc beat him to the punch! So cheeky!


    However, hitting Yuel was a grave mistake. It triggered the tower and made it focus its fire on the Orc. If they fight under these conditions, Yuel will win with ease even against Orc''s high damage output. No matter how strong it was during the early-game, there was no beating the damage of early-game Turrets. These guys were the true top tier early-game fighters of this game.


    For the better or the worse, this Orc wasn''t just a reckless fool. He dashed out of the tower''s area after landing that risky hit. The tower wasn''t fast enough to snipe him so he got away scot-free. On top of that, Yuel couldn''t get to the Orc in time to land any hits. Thus, the Orc suffered literally no damage whatsoever from this exchange.


    WHISH. The thorny whip cracked again and slashed Yuel. This time, the attack came from outside the tower area. The Orc took advantage of the scourge''s superior range to reach Yuel from all the way over out here.


    [He isn''t just a cocky aggressive player. He knows what he''s doing.] Yuel concluded. This Orc forced Yuel to come to close and then struck twice while maintaining distance. That was almost 40% HP gone. Even after Yuel mediates, this will leave some marks.


    Still, despite the negatives, Yuel successfully drew the Orc away from the tower area. Now, he just had to take care of the remaining minions and the push will be over. Or, so he thought.


    [This guy...] Yuel frowned. The Orc stepped into the tower area again as soon as Yuel shifted his attention to the minions. Such goddamn persistence! This guy was dead set on taking any damage he could get on the tower. This created a dilemma.


    [Do I clear the minions first? Or, do I keep zoning him out and let the Turret handle the minions? Unfortunately, he''s not going to let me do both at once.][Let''s see then, which approach will keep my tower safer?]


    Yuel couldn''t answer right away. Based on a rough estimation, the damage from minions was likely more dangerous, especially from the bowmen. Normally, their damage was nowhere near that of an Orc???s. However, they were a gang and their dealt extra damage to towers. So, these little guys seemed to be the greater threat here.


    Yuel took out the minions one by one and let the Orc freely hit the Turret. Once only two minions remained under the tower, the Orc ceased his attacks and retreated. And so, the invade has been successfully deflected. However, it''ll have lasting effects.


    Yuel''s HP was at 60% after all the pokes, which was effectively around 70% HP after he meditates. But, much worse than that, the tower fell to 75% HP during this push. That was the real disaster of this exchange.


    Technically, the game was designed in such a way that Turrets were extremely sturdy during the early-game compared to the damage output of minions and players. So, it shouldn''t have been possible to push a Turret too hard during the first couple of waves. However, when almost the entire pack of minions made it to Turret and the pusher was an Orc, it was possible to delete a quarter of the Turret''s HP on the very first wave.


    This was bad. Three more pushes like that and the Turret''s HP will crumble. Yuel had to find a counter to this Orc''s cocky tactic but he was drawing a blank for now. There was one idea to try during the next wave but it won''t help him win lane advantage; it''ll merely stall the Orc a little. That won''t fix the issue in the long run.


    The real solution would be to kill the Orc. Or, at least, to scare the Orc away before he wipes out Yuel''s troops. But, by himself, Monk didn''t have the tools to pull anything like that against an Orc. To achieve that, a gank was necessary.


    As such, Nia''s help was mandatory. She''ll need to gank the Orc and drive him away. That''ll also serve as a great test for her Jungler skills. She mained assassins, so she had to be good at ganking to make the most out of these classes.


    Will Nia be able to turn the tides around and help Yuel reclaim the lane?

 158 Uncooperative Jungler

    Yuel''s first exchange with the enemy Orc was far from pleasant. He fell to 60% HP, which he restored to 70% after Meditation, and his Turret was at 75% HP. All of that from just one push.


    At this rate, he''ll lose the lane in a couple of waves. And, just like with Dark Knight, Orc was a class that was absolutely not allowed to gain the upper hand during the early-game for it''ll easily snowball from there. Yuel had to shut him down now.


    The best way to handle this predicament was with a gank from the Jungler. Orc was susceptible to ganks due to his lack of mobility so he''ll be a sitting duck if he keeps pushing as aggressively as last time. Nia should have no problem taking him out.


    However, a Ninja needed its Izuna Drop ult to deliver a proper burst-damage gank. That wasn''t an option yet.


    "Nia, can you gank my lane once you hit Lv.5?" Yuel asked.


    "Um, I can try," Nia replied in a weak tone.


    "It''s very important. If we can''t shut down the Orc, he''ll snowball and win the entire game on his own."


    "Scary," Nia nodded. She took out her phone and started typing something with one hand.


    [Texting isn''t something you do during matches.] Yuel frowned.[ Is she even taking this seriously?]


    It seemed that Nia set herself an automated route toward her destination so she didn''t actually have to press any buttons until she gets there. Still, messing with a phone was surely going to distract her. What if the enemy jumps her all of a sudden along the way? There was no way she''ll be able to react in a timely fashion.


    But, Yuel had more pressing issues to deal with on lane so he let that slide for now. Before anything, he had to properly stall the Orc to actually survive long enough for Nia''s eventual gank. Losing 25% Turret HP after every push was out of the question. At this rate, he''d lose the lane before Nia even gets there.


    So, this time, Yuel focused entirely on the enemy minions. He didn''t give the Orc the time of day and only attacked minions. Thanks to that, he thinned the enemies faster and forced the to Orc retreat earlier than last time.


    The Turret still lost nearly 15% HP from this push but it was an improvement. In addition, with each level, Yuel should be able to get a slightly better result because Monk gained one extra Chakra to spare with each level.


    [Okay, I can hold for a while like this.] Yuel nodded to himself. With that obstacle out of the way, the rest depended on Nia''s gank.


    While Yuel was busy holding the fort, Nia...


    [Tipmancer, reveal your secrets.] Nia inputted the details of the upcoming operation at lightning speed.


    Ganker: Ninja


    Target: Orc


    Location: Top Lane


    There were additional fields she could fill to provide a more detailed description of the situation but there was no time for that. She needed answers ASAP so she hit "Advise" after filling only the minimal information.


    In just two seconds, Tipmancer revealed everything there was to know about this gank. It was truly amazing. While people have been making all sorts of tier lists for the game, the real S tier class of the game was undoubtedly Tipmancer. This broken app knew how to win any matchup. Totally broken, pls nerf.


    [This doesn''t look so good.] Nia gulped as she skimmed through tips regarding handling the Orc. She stopped for a moment to farm the hyenas and set an automated path to the next camp, then returned to reading Tipmancer''s advice.


    There was a big warning regarding ganking Orc during the early game: Don''t get hit! The fight will be over in a couple of hits if the Orc gets close and hits you, especially if you''re a squishy assassin.


    Therefore, the best approach was to deliver a sneak attack and kill him in one shot. But, he was a bruiser so he was tanky enough to survive bursts. There was even a table that showed the estimated damage Izuna Drop dealt to Orc throughout the early, mid, and late game.


    [I don''t like these numbers.] According to this table, at no point in the game will Izuna Drop be a lethal threat to Orc. It''d take about 30% of his HP at most. And, after the Izuna Drop animation ends, the Ninja will land right beside the Orc, so that bully will be in a great position to smack Nia hard. She won''t have a chance to win in that fight.


    An alternative approach Tipmancer suggested was to do a hit-and-run. Nia could go for Izuna Drop and then get the heck outta there with Shuriken Flip. But, that''ll be such a waste of time. She won''t even get a kill from it so it won''t help anybody. It was better to spend that time farming or ganking somebody else.


    "Are you planning to gank anytime in this decade?" Yuel asked.


    "Eh? Ah, um..." Nia pursed her lips and curled into a ball. She done goofed. While she was busy thinking about Tipmancer''s advice, she already hit Lv.5 and unlocked Izuna Drop. However, she was nowhere near Top so she wasn''t in a position to deliver a gank even if she wanted to. Oops.


    She could start heading there now but the Orc has already wiped out the entire minion wave there. Didn''t the minions arrive on lanes just a few seconds ago? Just how strong was that monster? Scary.


    With how the situation developed, Yuel had no choice but to retreat to his Turret and let the Orc push to his heart''s content. The Orc didn''t think twice about it and invaded into the Turret area.


    [I could try ganking now, but...] Nia twisted her lips. It looked like a good opportunity to gank but it really wasn''t.


    Even though the Orc was overextending, he had a brigade of loyal minions who were ready to protect him with their lives. On top of that, Nia''s Izuna Drop was incapable of critically injuring the Orc according to Tipmancer. She''ll only put herself in danger by jumping into the fray. Gulp.


    "I''m still waiting," Yuel said.


    "Gufu," Nia shuddered. What was he expecting from her? Was Yuel asking her to get a kill in this situation somehow? No way. Impossible. Even Tipmancer said so.


    [Maybe he''s trying to get me killed?] Nia eyed the guy in suspicion. This could be a ploy to get Nia killed and so she fails the exam.


    Yuel claimed he wasn''t intentionally bullying her but there was no telling for sure. Maybe he was just a silver-tongued mastermind and toyed with her. He even had a nickname like Chessmaster. Suspect. Very suspect.


    [Maybe he''ll just forget about it if I say nothing.] This secret tech actually worked on many people. As long as Nia stayed quiet and erased her presence, they eventually forgot all about her. It was like a real-life stealth effect.


    "Where are you going?" Yuel asked.


    "Ah! Um, eh..." Crap! Exposed! Nothing got past the Chessmaster. This guy had clairvoyance confirmed.


    "I want to go back to farming," Nia''s tone dropped to the level of mumbling. Uh-oh. This wasn''t going to end well, was it?


    "Why didn''t you gank?" Yuel demanded. "Your Shadow Clone was out of cooldown so you could sneak up to him and go for Izuna."


    "But, that wouldn''t kill..."


    "So? I didn''t ask you to get a kill. I only asked you to gank. We must show the Orc that it''s dangerous to overextend like this every time."


    "But, he might counter-attack and kill me."


    "Just get out with Shuriken Flip afterward. Remember, Orc doesn''t have any mobility options for chasing."


    "I guess..."


    "With that said, it''ll be ideal if you stay on the lane for a while to keep intimidating him. Then, I could advance to attack him and he''ll have a very bad time."


    "He''ll just kill us both."


    "It''ll fine," Yuel claimed. "Orc is crazy in the early-game but not [that] crazy. He can''t 1v2 us like it''s nothing. We can take him down."


    "But, he got all these minions too."


    "They''re a problem for sure. Optimally, you should gank before he clears the wave. But, even if he does get the minion advantage, you''ll just have to quickly create some distance after the Izuna."


    "And then I''ll die."


    "You won''t," Yuel sighed. It felt like they were stuck on the same point for an hour now. This girl was cautious to unreasonable levels. [This is like Julia all over again.]


    With that said, a lot of beginners seemed to suffer from a similar issue. It was common for new players to overextend and get severely punished for it, then overcompensate for that by playing ultra-cautious. It was their way of learning a lesson from their mistake.


    It didn''t help that get killed during a match often made teammates flame and insults the newbie''s performance. This created an environment in which some players adopted an overly safe playstyle that minimized the chances of being called out by their teammates. This stagnated the newbies'' growth because playing overlay safe will never teach them how to correctly commit to attacks. So, ultimately, playing safe like this only made their performance suffer.


    All of that, for what? Just for the sake of avoiding any flaming from teammates. Caring about these trolls was a weak attitude but, admittedly, Yuel was guilty of it as well at one point. It took him a while to overcome that barrier and start taking more calculated risks.


    [So, how am I supposed to convince Nia to go through with this gank?] Yuel frowned. That was a next-level challenge.


    When it came to Julia, Yuel has known for a long time that she could play aggressively and has been trying to encourage her to unleash it. Alas, she never did. It was a miracle Julia pulled it out during the selection match and almost won them the game. Until the very end, Yuel couldn''t convince the girl to play more proactively.


    So, what chance he had of convincing Nia to go on the offensive? Especially, when the risk she was worried about was quite real. There was truly a chance the Orc will focus Nia after she Izunas him. If this early-game monster catches up to her and delivers a few hits - Nia will be gone.


    However, that shouldn''t happen as long as Nia handles the situation appropriately. Judging by her performance in the duels with Vincent and Lars, Nia should be competent enough to pull this off. Besides, even if she fails, that''ll just let her know what she had to work on and will help the club estimate her skill. After all, this was an exam meant for gauging Nia''s skill.


    [Right, we''re supposed to be testing her. Winning is secondary.] Yuel had to remind himself. For a moment there, he got carried away and prioritized winning above everything. It must have been because this Orc counter-pick ruffled his feathers. He was completely outplayed in the drafting phase by being baited into counter-picking Viking. That was embarrassing. He had to turn things around somehow to make up for that mess-up.


    After all, exam or not, this was supposed to be a simulation of a real serious match. Winning was the ultimate goal and everything else revolved around it. In many ways, Nia was going to be judged by how much she contributed toward the team''s victory. Or, by how much of the team''s defeat was caused by her misplays.


    So far, it wasn''t looking good for her. It was mandatory to gank the Orc as often as possible to keep that early-game bully at bay but Nia refused to do so. That''s one strike. Also, she refused to listen to Yuel''s advice. That''s another strike. One more and she''ll be in the red.


    [As I feared, her experience from Duel doesn''t translate well to this mode.] Yuel shook his head. What was he supposed to do here as an examiner? Should he keep pushing Nia to execute the gank she was so scared of? Or, should he just let her do her thing and see where that goes?


    [Somebody, please. Convince her to do the damn gank.] Yuel sighed. It was his problem so he had to deal with it somehow. He [might] be able to turn the tables on the Orc by himself with Asura Strike, his ult, so maybe he''ll be able to spare Nia the trouble of ganking. Maybe.


    Instead of ganking Top, Nia just focused on farming. And farming. And, then some more farming. She didn''t gank any of the lanes. It''s like she was a farming bot and nothing more. Was that her idea of playing Jungler? If so, it was really sad. She should''ve at least picked a bruiser instead of an assassin then. At least, a well-fed bruiser will be useful in team fights during the mid-game.


    This routine has gone on for a while. Despite Yuel''s best efforts to stall, the Orc''s oppression continued. Every new minion wave was an uphill battle. The Turret already fell down to 25% HP.


    Meanwhile, Nia hasn''t ganked even once. Not just Top Lane, but not any other lane as well. There were no ganks whatsoever from her.


    Though, at least she was well-fed. Her farming followed a very scripted but effective flowchart. It''s like she memorized the jungle farming meta and repeated it over and over.


    If Yuel were her opponent, he could have easily taken advantage of this predictability. However, it was hard to notice and punish something like that during the early-game so it was fine. Predictability aside, efficient farming was always a delight to behold.


    Still, what about the ganks? They were the main reason to pick an assassin in the first place. Yet, Nia hasn''t shown herself to the enemy in a long time. At this point, they might even think she''s AFK.


    [They should''ve forgotten about me by now.] Nia nodded to herself. People always forgot about her after enough time has passed; that was the best time for a surprise attack!


    [Let''s see. Who looks like a good target.] Nia examined the states of the lanes. Top Lane was definitely out of question. The Orc over there was completely dominating the lane.


    On the other hand, the Aeromancer in Mid was feeling himself a little too much. He was down to 60% HP but didn''t show any signs of retreating. It felt like he wasn''t considering the possibility of a gank in the slightest. What a great target.


    [Is she going to gank Mid?] Yuel wondered as he saw Nia rotating. From what he could tell, there weren''t any great gank opportunities in that area. The Aeromancer wasn''t overextending and he hasn''t shown any signs of being careless against ganks, at least not from what Yuel could tell. Did Nia figure something that Yuel missed?


    [I don''t see it.] No matter how Yuel examined the mini-map, he couldn''t find anything that could convince Nia to go for a gank. Was it the Arromancer''s 60% HP? Maybe she just wanted to shoot for it and see if it works? After all, ganks didn''t need to have a 100% success rate to be attempted, that''s exactly the point Yuel was trying to get across to Nia.


    [I really want to ask her about this decision but it might distract her.] He knew first-hand how irking it was to be questioned about every little thing during an exam. Aron bombarded him to death with questions during the StormBlitz exam. Ugh.


    [Let''s just see how it goes and ask questions later.] Yuel concluded.


    [Ok, I got in.] Nia created a clone and sent it off into the jungle; she didn''t need the help of her trusty sister right now. All she needed from Shadow Clone was the stealth effect.


    She carefully snuck up behind the Aeromancer. As expected, the guy didn''t show any signs of thinking about retreating. He was totally oblivious to the fact Nia was standing right behind him. She was like a ninja. Nin nin.


    [Now, I go for a strike and then Izuna... Ah, but the Izuna follow-up isn''t guaranteed.] Nia shuddered as she thought back on her duel with Lars. For the first time in her life, an unsuspecting prey dodged the second part of her sneaky setup. The transition from a basic attack into Izuna Drop should''ve been unreactable for human beings but Lars somehow dodged it anyway. What a monster. Scary.


    [Guess I''ll have to play it safe from now on.] Nia went for Izuna Drop right from stealth. The Ninja hugged the Aeromancer tight and launched high into the air like a missile, all the while spinning like a fidget spinner.


    After reaching max height, the Ninja and Aeromancer began dropping. Right before hitting the ground, the Ninja jumped away and let the Aeromancer crash into the ground head-first. The guy''s neck must have cracked. That was a severe injury that''d send the guy straight to the hospital. It was such a satisfying high-damage ult to pull off.


    But, it wasn''t over yet. The Izuna Drop only erased 35% HP. The guy still had another 25% to spare. So stubborn.


    [Take that.] Nia slashed the staggering Aeromancer. It took his animation longer to recover from the devastating crash so Nia got to sneak in a free guaranteed jab. This one was a scientifically guaranteed follow-up, even the frame data backed it up.


    After finally getting on his feet, Aeromancer started running right away. He activated that speed buff ability he got and dashed for his life. But, he won''t get away. Nia gonna get this kill here!


    [I gotta kill as much as I can to me pass this exam.] Nia was very much aware that she wasn''t amazing when it came to most things in the MOBA mode. However, sneaking up to unsuspecting targets and finishing them off was definitely one specialty she had.


    Therefore, if she gets a bunch of kills with this method, it''ll make everybody think she was some amazing Grandmaster-level player. A masterful plan, no doubt.


    So, for the sake of her plan, she couldn''t possibly let the Aeromancer get away. As the Aeromancer ran by her, she slashed his shoulder. Then, she gave chase and slashed his back. That''s already down to 6% HP.


    Normally, at this point, the guy would be already dead. However, since Nia skipped the opening attack before going for Izuna Drop, she was missing one more hit for sealing the deal. And, the Aeromancer already started gaining lead thanks to his speed buff. What a troublesome prey.


    But, that''s where the Ninja''s last ability came into play! Nia activated Shuriken Flip. The Ninja threw a shuriken at the Aeromancer''s back and the blade got stuck in there. That should do it.


    Except, it wasn''t enough. The shuriken was always slightly weaker than normal attacks so the Aeromancer survived the hit with like 1% HP. He literally had a few pixels of HP left.


    [Looks like I''m going all the way.] Nia activated Substitution Jutsu, which was available only while a shuriken was stuck in an enemy. She blinked right behind the Aeromancer by switching places with the shuriken! Then, she delivered the final blow to the guy''s back.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    [Yes! I did it!] Nia pumped a little fist but made sure to hide it. [Ok, this is a good start.] She definitely made a good first impression on the examiners, right? Right?


    "Great job," Kai was the first to shower with praise. She even smiled a little.


    "Ya rocked that dude, yo!" Lars exclaimed.


    "The Vanishing Phantom strikes again!" Vincent made noise. "The enemy didn''t even realize what struck him!"


    [They all actually saw my kill and praise me for it.] Nia clenched her controller. Her palms trembled a little and there seemed to be something in her eye.


    Whenever it was Nia''s turn to show off what she could do, everybody always forgot about her and skipped her turn. Say, there was that one time they painted stuff in grade school and had to present their work in front of the class. Nia put lots of effort into that piece of art and thought it turned out great. But, the teacher skipped her turn for no reason.


    Well, maybe she was partly to blame on that one because she was hiding under a table at the time. After all, presenting her hard work in front of others was scary.


    Still, it was the same story with everything she ever did. Nia never got to impress anybody and nobody paid attention to her. It was such a conspiracy. Everybody clearly did everything in their power to rob Nia of her glory.


    But, this time was different. She scored a kill and everybody clearly saw it. And, unlike real people, the game system wasn''t a bully so it didn''t discriminate against her. The system voice announced loud and clear how Nia got that kill and everybody heard it. This was great! Finally, she got to be in the spotlight if only for a moment! Joining this club was the best decision she has ever made in her life!

 159 Rampaging Orc

    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    [Nia really pulled it off.] Yuel couldn''t believe the message on his screen. He simply couldn''t piece this jigsaw together. How did Nia decide this was a good opportunity to gank? Nothing about that Aeromancer suggested he was going an easy target.


    At 60% HP, it was only natural to assume the Aeromancer was on the lookout for ganks. Was this a fluke? Maybe Nia just gave it a shot and the gank happened to work. Besides, even if she failed to secure the kill, the Aeromancer surely wasn''t going to stay and fight her after being ganked. So, this gank was a safe move for Nia either way.


    [Now that I think about it, the arguments in favor of this gank seem to be pretty simple.] Yuel smiled wryly. It was simple but, for some reason, he didn''t think of this gank. Something about this play bothered him but he couldn''t put his finger on it.


    Maybe it was actually all Vincent''s fault with his "Vanishing Phantom" nonsense. It made Yuel expect something from Nia even thought it was silly. She was neither a phantom nor she had the ability to vanish. She was simply good at making the enemy lower their guard, that''s all.


    If Nia starts pulling off similar kills left and right, there will be more reason to believe she had a special talent. Until then, this successful gank was nothing more than a safe play that happened to reap great benefits. Yuel had far more concerning things to discuss anyway.


    "Good work getting that kill but why didn''t you inform anybody about your rotation?" Yuel asked. "At the very least, you were supposed to tell Lars that you were going to gank Mid."


    "You''re one of those, aren''t you," Nia muttered. Every now and then, she met these pesky players who told her to communicate more during the match. She hasn''t heard this complaint in a long time because she has been muting everybody but there it was again. Where was the mute button for real life?


    "It won''t be a real surprise attack if I tell people," Nia said.


    "Excuse me?" Yuel raised an eyebrow. "What kind of logic is that? You''re trying to surprise the enemy, not your allies."


    "If I tell anybody, they''ll spill the beans by acting all weird on lane. The surprise attack gonna get telegraphed."


    "I know what you mean," Yuel had experiences like that when starting out. When he informed a laner about his plans to gank their lane, the laner thought this was the best time to aggress on their opponent. After all, backup was on the way so this was the best time to initiate an attack, right? Wrong!


    In this kind of scenario, the laner''s job was to keep the incoming gank under wraps and ensure it''ll succeed. And, intimidating the gank''s target into retreating was the exact opposite of achieving that. That only made it harder for the ganker to reap any rewards from the gank and it might even stop the entire gank dead in its tracks.


    Therefore, when playing with randoms online, sometimes it made sense to not inform a problematic laner about an incoming gank. At low levels, doing so might have brought Nia better results. However, with high-level players, this was a non-issue.


    "You need to have more faith in your teammates," Yuel said. "We''re all serious players here. We know what to do when an ally is coming for a gank."


    "Hmmmmm," Nia twisted her lips. It looked like she understood what Yuel was saying but wasn''t entirely convinced yet.


    At the very least, she proved she knew how to deliver decent ganks and secure kills. This was already more than Yuel expected from somebody who focused on Duel. With that said, none of this helped his situation in Top Lane.


    "So, when are you planning to gank Top?" Yuel asked.


    "Um, eventually."


    "When is that ''eventually'' coming? I''m losing the lane over here."


    "Then play better."


    "Yes, of course. Player better. Just watch me win this whole thing by myself. The easiest I''ve ever done in my life."


    "I believe in you."


    [This girl.] Yuel lost all hope again. That successful gank on Mid must have been a fluke. Nia clearly didn''t know how to jungle correctly. At this rate, she''ll doom the entire match.


    Yuel only had one more trick up his sleeve for reversing the situation in Top but it was a shaky tactic. He''ll have to rely on the full strength of his ult, Asura Strike, to take the Orc down. However, he had to level up some more before Asura Strike truly becomes lethal. By the time he gets to the required level, it might already be too late...


    For now, the situation in Top was as awful as ever. The Orc pressured Yuel hard and there was nothing he could really do about it on his own. Only an intimidating gank could turn this situation around but Nia was Nia.


    Meanwhile, she had no problem ganking other lanes...


    ¡ºI''ll gank Bottom Lane¡»The Ninja announced. It was one of the in-game macro commands for communication purposes. It was a tad redundant when the entire team was gathered in the same room but that''s how Nia chose to inform of her incoming gank.


    [Well, at least she listened.] Yuel nodded in approval. Nia took his critique to heart and tried to fix the issue in her own way. That was already a step forward.


    "You coming over here?" Kai asked. "Great timing. Let''s give this guy some heat."


    Kai retreated to her side of the lane to lure the enemy in. That opened more space behind the enemy for Nia to exploit. It was the textbook set up for a gank and it was effective.


    Kai even executed it beautifully by hiding her intentions during the retreat. She repeatedly walked back and forth while flinging spears at the enemy Pirate. These movements looked more like Kai was spacing her opponent out rather than retreating.


    However, for every two steps she took back, she only took one step forward. As a result, she gradually retreated as planned, one step at a time. The retreat was unnoticeable enough to not raise the enemy''s suspicion.


    In fact, it made the Pirate pursue Kai a little. He must have believed Kai was scared of fighting him head-on and that he had the upper hand right now. Foolish.


    In this way, the Pirate was down to 50% HP but ventured way too deep into enemy territory. Normally, he should be considering the possibility of an incoming gank in this situation even without any warning signs. Yet, this Pirate continued fighting Kai without a care in the world.


    [Did I overestimate him?] Yuel wondered. Based on his observations so far, this Pirate player has been putting on a solid performance so far. The guy always went toe-to-toe with Kai in fights and never put himself at unnecessary risk.


    Yet, against Nia''s incoming gank, the Pirate has been acting incredibly sloppy. It''s like he was planning to hand over his life to Nia on a silver platter.


    [Gotcha!] Nia hugged the Pirate from behind and took him for a ride. They spun fast as they shot toward the sky.


    BAM! The Pirate crashed into the ground, right in front of an iron maiden. Kai set it up ahead of time while the Pirate was still in the air.


    As soon as the Pirate hit the ground, Kai fired a large spear at him. The impact shoved the Pirate into the iron maiden and the deadly torture machine ate him alive.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Great job," Kai said. "You''re really good."


    "KS."


    "Huh?"


    "That was my kill," Nia pouted. "You took my kill. Bully."


    "Ah, yeah" Kai shrugged. "You could say that was really a ''KS''. As in, a ''Kill Secure''. I didn''t steal it. Just made sure we get the kill for sure."


    "I could''ve gotten it for sure myself."


    "You couldn''t. He would have started moving once he recovered from the drop."


    "I would''ve caught him," Nia insisted.


    "Maybe. Or, maybe he would have slipped away. This guy is actually pretty slippery. I haven''t gotten a single kill on him until now."


    "I would have gotten the kill," Nia didn''t let go. "That was a KS. Bully."


    "Alright, alright," Kai sighed. "My bad. I''ll leave the kill to you the next time you gank."


    "Promise?"


    "Promise." Kai nodded. She was normally rather peculiar about scoring kills but she was willing to give that up to make Nia feel better.


    [She''d do anything to get Nia to join.] Yuel smiled wryly. Compared to Kai''s attitude, he made himself look like a villain because he wasn''t pampering Nia and constantly pushed her to make certain plays.


    But, that wasn''t his fault. The lane matchup of Monk vs. Orc was simply that terrible. So, ganks were a must for punishing this Orc''s overextensions. It was impossible to win this matchup without Nia''s help.


    An alternative solution was to make Lars gank Top. Unfortunately, the enemy Viking kept Lars busy the whole time by pressuring Mid with ganks. So, if Lars dares to rotate out of the lane, he''d either run into the Viking in the jungle or they''ll miss each other and the Viking will arrive on an unguarded Mid Lane. From there, he''ll be in a great position to help the Aeromancer push the lane hard with his ult.


    As such, calling Lars out of lane just like that was extremely risky. Similarly, Kai and Vincent were too far away to provide a gank on Top and they already had their plates full in Bot anyway. Therefore, as long as Nia refused to cooperate, there was no chance of getting any other gank on Top. Yuel''s only hope was to somehow resolve this situation on his own.


    By the time he hit Lv. 8, his Turret was already down to 10% HP. He has been getting better and better at defending the Turret with every level. By now, his max Chakra was more than double the amount he started with. This meant double the Chakra Bullets to snipe incoming minions with.


    By clearing out most of the minions before they got to invade the Turret, Yuel stopped the Orc from diving under tower and landing hard hits on the Turret. However, a couple of enemy minions always made it to the Turret and delivered chip damage. So, Yuel was still fighting against the clock.


    At this rate, the chip damage from the minions will fell the Turret. Something had to be done about this.


    At Lv.8, Yuel could store up to 13 Chakra. Therefore, his Asura Strike will deliver 13 lightning-speed strikes within a second. In terms of damage, it''ll roughly equivalent to hitting the Orc with 9 basic attacks. Since the Orc didn''t build any defense, that''ll take about 60% of the guy''s HP; nothing to sneeze at.


    But, it won''t kill and therein laid the problem. Even if Yuel successfully delivers Asura Strike, he''ll have no Chakra left and therefore nothing to use against the Orc except for basic attacks. With the Orc''s attacks being at least three times stronger than Yuel''s, it was clear who''ll remain standing by the end of the fight.


    One option was to go YOLO and build power items to boost the damage of Asura Strike as much as possible. However, that''ll only leave Yuel more vulnerable to Orc''s heavy attacks. So, even though this idea crosses his mind every now and then, he ultimately decided against it. After all, going for risky ideas was the very reason he was here, in this club, in the first place. If only he played smarter and safer against Howard, he could''ve won the selection match...


    [That''s in the past.] Yuel shook his head to exorcise the negative thoughts. What''s done was done. He lost terribly in that match and learned an important lesson from it. From now on, he''ll prioritize safe and surefire plays. He won''t take risks that only had a [chance] of paying off. Just as these plays were likely to pay off, they were even more likely to blow up in his face. He couldn''t have that.


    So, his only real option here was to keep stalling to Orc. If he successfully defends the lane until mid-game, things will become much better from that point onward. His Asura Strike will become strong enough to be lethal and it''ll stun as well. That''s where Yuel''s retaliation will begin.


    Alas, this Orc player knew he couldn''t let this happen. Once Yuel''s Turret dropped below 10%, the Orc activated his ult: Last Stand. The Orc roared and intoxicated his allies, making them unkillable for a short time.


    The minions'' HP won''t drop below 1 no matter how many times Yuel hits them. As such, he couldn''t clear out the invading bowmen. They get into the Turret''s range and fired away at the tower.


    The Turret unleashed huge bolts on these brave invaders but the bowmen didn''t even flinch. Their HP plummeted from the big hits but it never reached all the way to zero. It''s like they forgot that dying was a mechanic in this game.


    Meanwhile, the Orc followed the lead of his bowmen and snuck into the Turret''s range as well. While the Turret was focusing all its fire on the undying bowmen, the Orc was free to strike the tower at leisure. At this rate, they''ll take down the Turret!


    [There''s only one thing I can do here, but...] Yuel bit his lip. Instead of attacking the unkillable bowmen, he focused on the Orc.


    Unlike Paladin''s Aegis, Orc''s Last Stand didn''t grant immortality to the Orc himself. On top of that, the immortality effect on the minions will wear off immediately if the Orc falls. Therefore, threatening the Orc was the only available line of play here.


    Yuel reached the Orc and unleashed Asura Strike. The Monk went into a frenzy and fired 13 lightning-speed jabs in an instant. He trashed the cocky Orc and erased 60% HP in a blink of an eye.


    But, that wasn''t nearly enough to kill. The Orc still stood firmly and lashed at the crumbling Turret. He had no intention of stopping this invasion!


    [If you''re not going to retreat, I''ll just have to finish you off.] Yuel continued his assault by throwing basic jabs. Even without any Chakra, Monk''s jabs were fast and strong enough to be a threat, especially with the power build Yuel focused on for the early-game. If the Orc doesn''t do anything about this, Yuel might even kill the guy before the Turret crumbles.


    Since Yuel aggressed on the Orc, the immortal bowmen switched their focus from the Turret onto him. The damage from their arrows was unpleasant but at least Yuel tanked it for his Turret. As such, even though the Turret only had 3% HP left, it still stood tall. Yuel saved it from crumbling by tanking the lethal arrows.


    Alas, the Orc had more than enough power to bring down the Turret all by himself. He only needed two hits and it''ll be over. Therefore, Yuel had to quickly take out that overconfident guy no matter what!


    Yuel repeatedly jabbed at the Orc but the guy didn''t budge. The Orc remained rooted in the same spot and lashed away at the Turret. It was hopeless.


    ¡ºAn allied Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    The Turret crumbled. The Orc barely made it through the heat of attacks with just 25% HP but he was very much alive. Yuel still needed at least three more hits to seal the deal. As such, the Orc was in no mortal danger yet. However, he was in no condition to complete against Yuel''s 85% HP either. Retreat was the only option.


    The Orc rolled away and made a run for it. Yuel itched to give chase but decided against it. The three pesky bowmen were still firing at him so he had to clear them out first. By the time he punched them all down, the Orc was already gone.


    [Darn it.] Yuel clicked his tongue. The game hasn''t even reached the mid-game and they already lost a Turret. What a mess. And, to think that all of this could have been easily averted with a couple of good ganks from Nia. Alas, she graced him with none.


    "If you ganked the lane at least once in a while, we could''ve stopped this from happening," Yuel addressed Nia.


    "Not my fault," Nia muttered and glanced away. "You should''ve played better."


    "Played better? It''s one of the worst possible matchups. Everybody knows that. It''d still be one thing if I was playing against a weak player who picked Orc just to stomp other weak players. But, this guy knows exactly what he was doing. I need ganks to keep him at bay."


    "There weren''t any good chances to get kill there."


    "I told you, I don''t ask for kills," Yuel sighed. How thick-headed was this girl? "All I needed from you was to establish your presence in the area. You had to condition the Orc into being scared of your ganks. But, you didn''t do squat and that gave him the green light to go all-out without worrying."


    [Well, it''s scary.] Nia twisted her lips. Orc was a very dangerous individual during the early-game. Even Tipmancer said to be careful about going through with this. Basically, it meant Nia should only gank Orc if she was really sure about it, or else she''ll wind up dead. Dying would be the worst possible impression for an exam so she had to avoid it any cost.


    [I bet he''s really trying to make me fail.] Nia knotted her brows. Yuel was asking her to gank that skilled Orc player so she dies and makes herself look bad. Even though Yuel claimed he wasn''t a bully, Nia had to press doubt on that.


    [Or, maybe that''s part of the test? He''s telling me to make this dangerous play but actually wants me to refuse? Yeah, that gotta be it. He''s not a real bully. He''s just acting like one for the exam.] Nia nodded to herself and continued dismissing everything Yuel had to say.


    It was all a test. Nia just had to stick to her guns and keep doing things her way.


    It was too bad Yuel lost the lane to the Orc so early like that but that wasn''t Nia''s fault. She has been ganking other lanes to great success so far. She even has already gotten two kills! Well, one of them was stolen from her but still.


    As long as she keeps getting kills like that on the other lanes, there was no need to walk into the lion''s den with the Orc gank. They''ll just win the game by pushing the other lanes.


    "Fine," Yuel sighed. "If you''re so against it, then keep playing as you see fit. But, mark my words: we''ll lose if you do nothing about the Orc."


    Nia just curled into a ball and didn''t say anything. It was ok. Everything will be ok. This was just an exam. She''ll keep getting kills and they''ll eventually win this game. No problem.


    [So stubborn.] Yuel sighed. Why did Nia so vehemently refused to gank the Orc? It was as if somebody seeded paranoia in her head and made her think the Orc was the scariest monster in the world.


    Maybe she had some bad experiences against it? Or, maybe she read somewhere about how dangerous it was to gank Orc? After all, about any guide that brought up this topic mentioned the risk the ganker had to take when ganking Orc.


    But, that didn''t mean Orc shouldn''t be ganked. It was just a warning, nothing more. It meant the ganker couldn''t be careless because that''d be easily punished by death. However, as long as the ganker did things right, there wasn''t much to worry about.


    [Well, this game will teach her a hard lesson.] Yuel didn''t bother arguing any further. He could already see the inevitable checkmate their team was going to suffer at this rate.


    "Careful, everybody," Yuel said. "The Orc is likely going to push another lane once he returns. I suggest playing it safe until we confirm his position."


    Yuel followed his own advice and retreated back to his Golem. He could use the Orc''s brief absence to push forward along the lane but he didn''t want to run the risk of being ganked. After all, his Turret was gone now so, if he has to run away from a ganker, that''d be a long road back to allied territory.


    As Yuel suspected, the Orc didn''t return to Top. Instead, the guy targeted Mid.


    "The big boss is here, yo!" Lars exclaimed. "Oh crap, he''s together with the Viking! And the Aero dude is coming too! They all gonna invade!"


    "Get out of there," Yuel ordered. "Orc + Viking is too dangerous."


    "Geh. You saying I gotta let these dudes do whatever they want on my turf?"


    "Yes, unfortunately. The Orc is well-fed, thanks to a certain somebody who refused to stall him with ganks. He''s also not in a hurry to return to lane so he''s going to pressure you there for a while. And, this guy is daring in particular, except he knows how to be bold without overextending much."


    "Lame," Lars retreated to the backline as ordered.


    The enemy didn''t waste any time. As soon as the Orc and Viking met on the lane, they went directly after Lars''s Turret. The Viking summoned a brigade of savage warriors and they invaded the Turret''s area.


    The Orc followed their lead and assaulted the tower as well. With normal minions and Viking''s warriors gathered together in one area, they buffed the Orc''s Attack Power through the roof thanks to his passive. Each of the Orc''s basic attacks deleted 10% of the tower''s HP. And, that was on top of attacks delivered by the Viking, his warriors, the Aeromancer, and all the minions. The Turret''s HP vanished within seconds.


    Rushing towers like this was a common Orc tactic. When the team had a class that could summon minions, it was common to flood the lane with them and let them charge at the tower along with the Orc. Even though the enemy was clearly overextending by doing this, it was usually difficult to punish such a play.


    Lars could''ve countered this play by summoning a thunderstorm to hit all enemies in range. Alas, the enemy baited the ult out of him before this attack. So, they knew very well he couldn''t do anything to them.


    With the tower about to crumble, the only real option Lars had was to begin an early retreat.


    "Yo, I''m getting mobbed here," Lars grinned. This all-out supah attack was sick! It''s like an entire army invaded. It was an unstoppable flood, yo!


    "But, no way I gonna give it to them for free!" Lars advanced and fired at the Orc.


    "No, don''t," Yuel objected. "The tower is done for. You have to retreat."


    "Dude, you wanna let them take the tower for free like that?"


    "Unfortunately, we got no choice. Since a certain somebody refused to shut down the Orc during the early-game, he''s becoming unstoppable now."


    "Don''t worry, I''mma stop this dude," Lars made a promise based on unfounded confidence, as usual. However, his attitude turned 180 the moment the entire enemy army focused their fire on him. The one attack he landed on the Orc aggro''d all the enemy minions on him! Whoopsie!


    "Nevermind!" Lars darted the heck outta there! He retreated all the way to the Mid Golem. Dang it, the tower was really done for...


    ¡ºAn allied Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    The Orc hasn''t scored any kills yet, but he has already taken down two Turrets before mid-game. That provided his entire team with lots of extra gold, which allowed them all to get ahead. This was the beginning of the end.

 160 Tipmancer is Law

    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    Vincent was the first to fall during the Orc rampage. He did his best to keep Kai alive and she indeed successfully escaped death. However, in the process, the Orc claimed Vincent''s life and destroyed the Bot Turret. The team lost control over every lane. It was a disaster.


    From this mess, the game immediately transitioned into the team-fighting phase. However, with no Turrets to fall back to, Yuel''s team was forced to defend deep within their territory. Everybody fell back to the Golems and formed the last line of defense.


    It was such a desperate situation even though it all started from something so small. Just because Nia refused to gank the Orc during the early-game, the guy was allowed to snowball this hard and demolish all three Turrets.


    And, what was the culprit in question doing the entire time while the team was being pushed back? Nothing. Nia kept farming jungle camps as if the defense didn''t require her help.


    "Nia, the team is defending right now in case you haven''t noticed," Yuel said.


    "Mhm, I see," Nia nodded. "Good luck."


    "When I say ''team'', that includes you too."


    "But, I can''t defend."


    "Come again?"


    "Ninja can''t defend much," Nia claimed. "I only got the clone to get in some damage but that''s about it. It won''t help much."


    "Yes, you''re right. Assassins are notoriously weak for those sorts of situations but your presence here will still have meaning. You''ll help to clear minions faster and the enemy will have to be wary of potential burst damage if they get too close."


    "I prefer to farm."


    "I, too, prefer to do something other than sitting under Golem all day. But, we don''t have that luxury right now. In the first place, whose fault do you think this situation is?"


    "Hmm, I dunno," Nia shrugged.


    "Really now," Yuel narrowed his eyes.


    "Is your bickering going to help us win?" Kai asked in a cold tone.


    "No, I suppose not," Yuel sighed and gave up the topic. He''ll have plenty of time to blame Nia later. Right now, he had to find a way to turn this situation on its head. For that, they had to deflect the enemy''s fierce push. Any extra pair of hands will make a big difference.


    "Nia, we need you to come back to defend," Yuel said.


    "But, it won''t help much."


    "It surely won''t, not with that attitude," Yuel was [this] close to blurting some things but he took a deep breath to calm himself. "Since when you don''t like defending? You played solid defense in 1v1."


    "Duel is different. There, I can just wait and then go for the kill. But, that''s not gonna happen when a group is pushing. Even Tipmancer recommends searching for ganks instead of helping defend."


    "Tipmancer?" Yuel raised an eyebrow.


    "Ah, um," Nia fell silent.


    "What was that about Tipmancer?"


    "Shoot..." Nia twisted her lips.


    "I see now," Yuel nodded. Finally, a lot of things made sense all at once. "So, that''s what you''ve been doing on your phone this whole time,"


    "Are you a stalker?" Nia gave him a suspicious look.


    "I just notice things. Listen, Tipmancer is a great tool for people who are starting out. There''s a lot of wisdom stored in there but you have to be able to think for yourself as well. Don''t take Tipmancer for a bible. It only gives general guidelines, nothing more."


    "It''s written by people who know better than me."


    "Yes, most likely. But, said people aren''t here right now. They don''t know what''s going on in this specific match so they can''t adjust their advice accordingly. I assume it was Tipmancer that told you to be careful about ganking Orc?"


    "Yeah."


    "That''s a great example of what I''m talking about. There''s nothing wrong with warning players about the dangers ganking Orc. But, you have to think beyond that. Yes, it''s dangerous but also necessary. Otherwise, things end up like this."


    "I, I didn''t..." Nia mumbled and curled into a ball. She hasn''t played the MOBA mode much in the past year so she didn''t know any of these things. Yuel was just bullying her. It wasn''t her fault.


    "It''s fine that you didn''t know the finer details. After all, you''ve been focusing on Duel. But, that''s precisely why you should''ve listened to me and ganked Top."


    "But, it was scary. Orc is dangerous."


    "Even so, you had to take the risk. Or, you still think it was better to avoid confrontation? Look where it led us. We''re in this tight spot because you refused to gank the Orc. This entire situation is pretty much your fault."


    "My fault?" Nia''s lips quivered. What was this? Why? She thought the people here were nice. Unlike the bullies online who blamed her for everything, the people of this club actually praised her for things. She thought they might even become friends.


    But, yet again, everybody placed the blame on her. It wasn''t her fault they all lost their lanes. It totally wasn''t. She couldn''t do the impossible and kill that Orc, she was no miracle maker. He was a scary dangerous guy. Nia couldn''t get a kill on that bully.


    ¡ºjungler uninstall game¡»


    ¡ºjungler cyka feeder¡»


    ¡ºreport jungler¡»


    The messages surfaced in her head again. These hateful messages were the reason she didn''t like MOBA mode. In this mode, everybody blamed everybody. And, everybody blamed Nia. Everybody was a bully.


    Even now, in real life, the same thing was happening.


    "Zero ganks. GG. We lost because of the Jungler." That''s how Yuel''s criticism sounded. Somehow, all the fault laid with Nia even though that didn''t make any sense.


    Nia''s KDA was 1/0/1 right now. She hasn''t died even once and she technically scored two kills, even if one was stolen by Kai.


    So, Nia was doing great! She wasn''t feeding and she even got some kills! So, how could anybody possibly blame her for the team''s situation? It didn''t make any sense. As long as she was doing fine, none of the team''s problems could possibly be her fault.


    [He must be salty because he''s doing bad. That''s why he''s taking it out on me.] Nia concluded.


    "It [is] your fault," Yuel insisted. "You had the means to stop the Orc from snowballing to this point and I asked you to do so numerous times. But, you''ve been ignoring me."


    "That''s not..." Nia fell silent and continued farming jungle camps. That boy was just a bully. There was no need to negotiate with bullies. She''ll simply press a real-life "mute button" on him.


    [Maybe all of this is a mistake.] Nia thought. Maybe she shouldn''t have applied to this club, after all. Everybody here pretended to be nice but they just bullied her. Sob.


    "Hey, dude. Don''t take it too hard," Lars smiled toward Nia. "Yuel always sounds harsh like that. He sometimes talks like you''re the worst player in the world but he''s saying all of that to help ya improve."


    "Is that so," Nia wasn''t convinced in the slightest. Yuel was a bully, no two ways about it.


    But, maybe he wasn''t an intentional bully. Maybe he wasn''t saying all that stuff just to make Nia feel bad; he actually believed everything he was saying.


    [Wait, isn''t that worse?] Nia shuddered. It meant Yuel truly believed everything was Nia''s fault. Even worse, Yuel kinda seemed like the type of guy who knew what he was talking about. So, maybe some of his criticism was actually valid. But, wait, in that case...


    [Nonono.] Nia shook her head. That was impossible. Yuel was a bully. End of the story. Because, if not...


    "Are you done complaining?" Kai asked Yuel. "Scolding her for early-game mistakes isn''t going to help our situation. Do that after the game. It''s just distracting."


    "My bad," Yuel realized anger took control over his mouth at some point. There was nothing more infuriating than an uncooperative teammate.


    Yes, Nia was lacking in knowledge regarding the MOBA mode and that was fine. However, the way she refused to listen to Yuel''s advice just because of some half-truths written in Tipmancer was just grrrrrrrr!


    [It''s like she thinks my game knowledge is a joke compared to that app.] Yuel stomped. Yes, of course. Only Tipmancer knew exactly what Nia should be doing. Compared to that the boundless wisdom of that basic app, Yuel''s advice was rubbish and should be ignored.


    But, Kai was right. Getting mad about it didn''t improve their situation in the slightest. What happened, happened. Yuel had to think of active solutions for the current stage of the game. This was an exam for learning more about Nia but it was also a serious match. They all wanted to win here.


    The enemy formation had a couple of openings. By now, Yuel figured out many of the enemy''s patterns. They''ve been constantly switching their pressure from one lane to another in order to make the defenders run all over the place like headless chickens. It was an effective tactic but it followed a rather obvious flowchart.


    Unfortunately, there weren''t any good opportunities to punish this predictable routine. Yuel could try sending Lars to a strategic location and let the beast wreak some havoc over there but it was risky. There was a chance the enemy will catch the goof with a pincer and then the game will be over for sure.


    This team needed both Lars and Kai to be alive in order to deflect all the incoming pushes with their DPS. Without one of them, the enemy will easily penetrate the team''s defenses by focusing on two lanes at the same time.


    [Can Nia do something about this?] A part of him wanted to make Nia take responsibility for the mess she created. But, it wasn''t just that.


    As an assassin, Nia was the best candidate for delivering a surprise attack on the enemy and shift the tides of war. Also, she refused to defend so it''d be great if Yuel could find some actual use for her in this situation.


    But, nothing came to mind. Or, rather, he had no idea how much he could trust Nia to pull off the various plays he had in mind. Their interactions were already rather charged, so the worst he could do right now was to send Nia to her death by giving her a mission that was beyond her skill level.


    Nia already thought of him as a "bully", so he didn''t want to make his reputation any worse. Besides, it was unlikely Nia had the necessary skill to turn this around anyway.


    "Chessmaster, if I may," Vincent interrupted Yuel''s thoughts. "I got the ultimate suggestion. It might help you open your eyes and reach out to the truth!"


    "Oh really," Yuel rolled his eyes.


    "You should make use of the Vanishing Phantom!"


    "Bye."


    "No, wait! I''m serious."


    "I''m sure you are serious." [A serious clown.]


    "You saw how BlackFlower''s ganks went, right? Didn''t you find them peculiar?"


    "In a sense," Yuel refused to let himself get dragged into Vincent''s nonsense. Nevertheless, he had to admit the clown had a point. The two ganks Nia delivered earlier were quite odd.


    First, she caught the Aeromancer off-guard. It was as if the very idea of being ganked didn''t even cross the guy''s mind. On top of that, it was impressive how none of the enemy wards caught Nia''s rotation toward Mid.


    Similarly, the gank on Bot didn''t make much sense either. The enemy Pirate was left in. 1v1 situation against Kai, yet he overextended without a care in the world. It was so uncharacteristic compared to the solid playstyle he has been exhibiting until that point. Yet again, it seemed as if the possibility of being ganked by Nia didn''t even cross the guy''s mind.


    "Tell me honestly, could you make any of these gank calls?" Vincent asked. "Did you see an opportunity for a good gank in any of these situations?"


    "Not quite," Yuel admitted. These two ganks were an enigma. The only way to explain them was that the enemy slipped hard on these two occasions. They didn''t make any sense otherwise.


    "These were no coincidences," Vincent proclaimed. "It was the Vanishing Phantom! The enemy forgot about Nia''s existence and let her sneak up to them!"


    "Perhaps." Naturally, Yuel didn''t accept a silly explanation like "Vanishing Phantom". Nevertheless, the enemy definitely lowered their guard against Nia''s ganks. Twice.


    But, maybe it wasn''t so surprising. After all, Nia has been lying low that entire game. For a long time, she only focused on clearing camps and didn''t gank a single lane, despite Yuel''s pleading. As a result, the enemy didn''t see much of Nia''s presence and might have assumed she wasn''t the type to take the initiative.


    But, then she suddenly appeared, as if out of the void, and scored a kill. And, then another kill. Honestly, it was impressive how she cut through the enemy''s solid defense as if it was butter.


    "So, you should make use of it!" Vincent insisted. "Make use of the Vanishing Phantom! The enemy must have completely forgotten about her existence by now. Am I not right, BlackFlower?"


    "Eh? Ah," Nia was taken aback for a moment. Was it a custom here to call each other by in-game nicknames? It was kinda weird but also kinda cool. It''s like they were a part of a secret organization.


    "What say you, Black?" Vincent asked again. "You think the enemy forgot about you by now?"


    "Um, maybe," Nia said. She wasn''t a mind reader so she didn''t know for sure whether the enemy team has completely forgotten about her. Still, judging by their movements and lack of aggression toward her, it was safe to say she wasn''t high on their list of priorities.


    "Alrighty, then let''s change the question then: you think you can sneak up to any of them unnoticed?"


    "Probably."


    "There you have it," Vincent turned to Yuel. "The Vanishing Phantom is ready to be unleashed!"


    [Yes, Nia''s vague answers sure convinced me.] Yuel rolled his eyes. Nevertheless, at this point, anything was worth a try. There was little chance of coming back from this position anyway.


    To mount a comeback, the team needed a big and unexpected game-changer. Besides, Nia was completely neglecting the defense so this was a good way to put her to some use.


    "If you really think you can sneak on them," Yuel said. "Why you haven''t done so yet?"


    "It''s scary," Nia pouted. "They always group up after moving. Zero openings. They''re like trained agents."


    "I see." That observation was spot-on. The enemy team didn''t leave any noticeable holes in their defenses while pushing lanes. Whenever they shifted their focus from one lane to another, they always made sure nobody was left alone for too long. So, if Nia was waiting for an easy isolated target, that wasn''t going to happen any time soon.


    The only time to strike was during the rotation itself. While the enemy was traversing through the jungle alone, they were vulnerable to a gank. However, such moments were brief and it was necessary to predict the enemy''s movements ahead of time to catch them.


    Apparently, Nia lacked the ability to make such predictions at the moment. That was understandable since doing so required a fair amount of experience. In fact, from all the players in this club, most won''t be able to make the right call at the right time.


    However, Yuel could. He could tell the enemy''s offense was strong but calculated, hence predictable. By now, he studied the entire flowchart of their movements.


    Every time the enemy attackers had to face three defenders on a lane, they rotated somebody to another lane. That kept the defenders busy and slowly, but surely, cracked the defense down.


    The enemy used two types of rotations. They either rotated one attacker to a lane that already had attackers it it, or they rotated two or more attackers to an empty lane. It seemed their golden rule was to always ensure there were at least two attackers on a lane. They never left a teammate behind to push a lane alone.


    It was a rather timid style of offense for a team that picked a rushdown class like Orc. It didn''t feel like they were rushing too hard to close the game early. They took their time to enjoy the advantage of the Orc''s strength and used it to gradually crack down the defense of Yuel''s team.


    It was a smart way to utilize their high ground. They knew they didn''t need to recklessly rush to victory. They just had to make sure the game won''t reach late-game. These players were no amateurs, as proven by their golden names.


    Nevertheless, not pushing for a quick win was a mistake in this situation. Without Nia to help with the defense efforts, this situation was as good as a 4v5 for Yuel''s team. The enemy should''ve taken advantage of their numbers to break through.


    [Maybe they haven''t realized Nia isn''t here to defend?] A funny thought crossed Yuel''s mind. Normally, something like that was unthinkable. The enemy team has proven its competence so they couldn''t possibly miss something so simple.


    ["Vanishing Phantom". Yeah, right.] Yuel cracked a dry laugh. Was he really going to accept that kind of nonsense?


    As unscientific as it was, it was undeniable that Nia has successfully snuck up to many players today. She definitely had [something] going for her. Perhaps it was a skill Yuel couldn''t quite comprehend because he didn''t possess it himself, the same way others couldn''t understand the way Yuel always spotted weaknesses right away.


    [It''s worth a shot.] Yuel concluded. If Nia was truly the "Vanishing Phantom", she should be able to pull off a gank on a stray target. If not, it''ll simply prove she wasn''t as amazing as Vincent claimed. It''ll show that her "Vanishing Phantom" wasn''t as effective against competent players with good map awareness.


    Yuel just had to arrange the right scenario for testing it on and he already had an idea in mind. If it works, it might shift the entire momentum of this match.

 161 Surpassing Tipmancer

    It was time to put Nia''s "Vanishing Phantom" to the test. By dragging the game out with a safe offense, the enemy gave Yuel plenty of time to think and analyze them. By now, he could narrow down their possible moves to just a couple of options. Their flowchart became crystal clear.


    Right now, three enemies were pushing Mid and two were pushing Top. According to the flowchart, there were only three "legal moves" the enemy could make from this position:


    1, From Mid, send one attacker to Top.


    From Mid, send three attackers to Bot.


    From Mid, send two attackers to Bot and one to Top.


    No matter what, their next move had to come from Mid. The enemy vehemently refused to push any lane with a full group of five and they never left a teammate alone on a lane. Following these two golden rules, the only legal move they had was to move somebody from Mid to another lane.


    No matter which of these moves the enemy goes for, it was guaranteed only one opponent will travel from Mid to Top at most. Of course, there was still the chance all three of them will travel from Mid to Bot. However, if anybody was going to Top, it''d be one only one person. That was the target Nia had to gank.


    "Nia, here''s your isolated target," Yuel drew a path on the mini-map leading from Mid to Top through the jungle. "One of them will most likely rotate along this path soon. If you start heading there now, you''ll be able to gank them."


    "How do you know?" Nia peered at him with her suspicious little eyes from behind her long bangs. "Are you an oracle?"


    "Something like that."


    "ESPer."


    "Yeah, sure. Anyway, they''ll pass through here," Yuel drew the path again just to make sure. "Can you gank them?"


    "Who is it going to be?" Nia asked.


    "Hmm, that''s a tough one. I can''t tell for sure."


    "I thought you saw the future."


    "Sure, I can. It''s just a little blurry at the moment so I can''t make out the details."


    "Suspicious," Nia kept staring at him as if he was trying to pull her leg. Was Yuel really [that] untrustworthy in her eyes? Sigh.


    "If I had to guess, it''ll probably be the Aeromancer." [It might be the Orc if the enemy wants to rush Top Golem but I feel like I shouldn''t mention that.]


    "Hrmmm," Nia titled from side to side on her chair. "Sounds bogus."


    "Just play along with it," Vincent said. "You see, just like your ability to vanish, Chessmaster here got a special power too."


    "A special power?"


    "Indeed!"


    [Here we go again.] Yuel sighed. The circus was in town.


    "The same way you got the Vanishing Phantom, Chessmaster got the Mystic Eyes of Weaknesses Perception! He must''ve already downloaded the enemy''s entire game plan and dissected it like a mad scientist! He knows every weakness there is and he can tell exactly where to strike!"


    "Really?" Nia blinked.


    "Something like that." Yuel averted his eyes. If this kind of nonsense can convince Nia better than Yuel''s reasonable explanation, then so be it.


    "Just give it a try," Vincent said. "Don''t worry. If his prediction is off and you misplay because of that, we''ll blame it on him, not you."


    "Sounds good," Nia nodded. "Ok, I''ll try."


    "Marvelous!" Vincent made noise. "A combo between Vanishing Phantom and Mystic Eyes! This play will go down in history!"


    Nia followed the plan and rotated toward the jungle area between Top and Mid.


    Meanwhile, the situation in Mid was getting desperate. The Aeromancer and Orc were wreaking havoc with their attacks while the Cryomancer was zoning the defenders with the fact he could freeze anybody who approached. Getting hit by his Ice Coffin guaranteed death in this situation so the defenders couldn''t advance to the frontline. As such, Yuel''s team had to get another defender over to Mid in order to deflect the enemy''s siege.


    But, that''s exactly what the enemy was waiting for. They waited for three defenders to gather in Mid so they could shift their attack to a lane with weaker defense. Even though Yuel knew this, he had no choice but to rotate to Mid. It was like negotiating with terrorists. If he doesn''t comply, the enemy will simply break through Mid.


    The moment Yuel approached Mid, the enemy made their move. As he predicted, one of the attackers backed away and rotated from Mid. However, it wasn''t the Aeromancer. It was the Orc! Oh lord...


    "You said it''ll be Aero," Nia pouted.


    "I said there''s a good chance it''ll be Aero," Yuel corrected. "Anyway, that doesn''t change the prediction. You got yourself an isolated target to gank."


    "But, it''s the Orc."


    "And?"


    "It''s risky. He gonna kill me."


    "You''re still on about that?" Yuel sighed. "It''s already the mid-game. Orc isn''t nearly as dangerous at this point. Also, he invested most of his build into offense so he''s barely a bruiser anymore. He''s more like an assassin with a thin layer of tankiness."


    "Really?" Nia started at Yuel with her little suspicious eyes.


    "That''s something Tipmancer doesn''t tell you, does it? Don''t get me wrong, I think Tipmancer is a great tool for beginners. In fact, I''m glad you''re taking the game seriously enough to use a guide. But, you have to be able to think past what Tipmancer tells you. This app won''t spell out everything for you. There are things you can only learn by playing a lot and thinking for yourself."


    "Is that so," Nia clenched her phone. The Tipmancer app was still displaying the warning against ganking Orc.


    As Yuel said, that advice hasn''t changed from the beginning fo the game. But, that''s only a given. After all, Tipmancer didn''t know the current state of the game. It couldn''t advise Nia whether it was safe to gank Orc now.


    [Is that how you betray me? I thought we were friends.] Nia grumped. All this time, she has been relying on Tipmancer for most things in this mode. It had lots of wisdom so Nia blindly trusted everything it fed her. She thought of it as a mentor and a good friend.


    But, in the end, it was just an app. It couldn''t compete with the knowledge of people who knew every aspect of the game. So, maybe Yuel was right. Maybe it was really safe to gank the Orc now.


    But, should she trust that bully? This guy has been firing complaints at her the entire game. But, maybe he had a point. Maybe Nia relied on Tipmancer a bit too much.


    "O-Okay," Nia gulped. "I''ll gank him. But, not my fault if I die."


    "You''ll be fine," Yuel said. "Just make sure you hit him with a basic attack before Izuna to proc Imperial Spear."


    "Eh? But, that''s..." Nia clammed up. Just earlier today, she tried doing this exact set up against Lars. It was the classic Ninja setup she has been using since forever: a slash in the back that proc''d the damage boost of Imperial Spear, which made the follow-up Izuna Drop that much deadlier.


    However, Lars dodged that setup. He reacted right away to the basic attack and rolled outside the range of her Izuna Drop. That''s when Nia learned the appalling truth: this setup was fake as heck. It wasn''t guaranteed at all. All this time, she has been landing it only thanks to her opponent''s slow reaction.


    "It doesn''t work..." Nia mumbled.


    "Yes, I saw that exchange you had with Lars earlier," Yuel said. "But, don''t worry. Lars is a special kind of superhuman. Most players can''t react to that. I haven''t seen anything about this Orc to suggest he could do so."


    "Really?" Nia was taken aback. It''s like Yuel just read her mind. How did that guy notice such a small detail while watching Nia play? Totally a stalker.


    Still, it was amazing how much attention Yuel was paying to the finer details. Tipmancer would never be able to notice such small things and give Nia the appropriate advice. If not for Yuel''s words just now, she would have completely given up on the whole Imperial Spear + Izuna Drop combo.


    "Ok, I''ll try." Nia went into stealth after summoning a clone and ran to intercept the Orc. She''ll put Tipmancer aside for now and trust Yuel''s judgment on this one.


    [Let''s see if the enemy counters this.] Yuel glued himself to the screen.


    In truth, this was a rather risky gank. If the enemy team was properly paying attention to their backs, they''d catch Nia red-handed and counter her before even she gets to the scene.


    Nevertheless, if anybody had a chance to execute such a gank right now - it was Nia. She was an assassin and everybody else was busy defending. So, she had to be the one to try it.


    Everything was riding on her ability to sneak up to the target unnoticed. If she truly had the "Vanishing Phantom" talent Vincent was raving about, she should be able to pull this off. The entire play was riding on that hope.


    [Ok, he hasn''t noticed.] Nia nodded to herself. The Orc continued along the path to Top without suspecting a thing. Nia''s existence has completely vanished from his mind by now. She was like a phantom.


    [The Imperial Spear setup is safe on this guy. It''s safe. No problem. Lars was an exception to the rule. I can do it here.] She repeated over and over in her head like a mantra. Her palms became sweaty. Her heart hammered. She was about to attack that super mega dangerous Orc and she was about to use a non-guaranteed setup. Le gulp of the gulps.


    But, she''ll trust Yuel''s judgment on this one. Worst case, if things go south, she''ll just blame Yuel for this. No problem.


    [Here goes nothing!] Nia ran her dagger across the Orc''s back. It forced her out of stealth but it also activated the passive of Imperial Spear, which made her next ability x1.5 stronger for a brief time.


    Next, Izuna Drop! Nia wrapped her arms around the enemy and gave him the hug of death! She launched toward the sky with her new friend and spun like a hurricane. Then, they both crashed into the ground and the Orc received heavy damage. Over 70% of his HP was gone in an instant!


    [A-Amazing.] Nia was surprised by her own damage. As Yuel said, this Orc wasn''t tanky at all.


    But, it wasn''t over yet. The Orc still had a little bit of HP left. Nia had to deliver a few more hits to seal the deal. And, to do so, she had to get close to the Orc.


    [This is mid-game. Orc is only scary during the early-game. Nothing to be scared of.] Nia hammered these thoughts into her brain as she slowly approached the Orc


    [I-I did it!] She landed a hit before the Orc got a chance strike back! She had this in the bag! Just a little more and it''ll be over- ah! The Orc vanished! Her next attack sliced through empty air!


    [Darn Blink!] Nia cursed as she turned around. The Orc teleported a fair distance away and began running. He was retreating. In other words, he was scared of Nia right now.


    [I''m stupid.] Nia smiled wryly. All this time, she thought the Orc was the scariest monster in the world because of Tipmancer''s advice. She didn''t realize how easy it was to turn the odds against the Orc with one well-executed gank like this. What the heck was she even doing the entire game until now?


    [Just look at him. He''s shook.] Nia smirked. She terrorized that poor Orc. The guy was fleeing from her as if she was the reaper.


    But, he won''t get away. Nia should''ve scored this kill on the Orc at least ten minutes ago. It has been delayed long enough. So, she''ll definitely score it now!


    Nia activated Shuriken Flip and threw a shuriken at the Orc''s back while backflipping. As soon as the shuriken got stuck in the Orc''s back, Shuriken flip was temporarily replaced with Substitution Jutsu on her skill list. It let her instantly switch places with her shuriken. So, a moment later, she appeared right behind the Orc!


    She delivered one guaranteed slash to his back after the substitution and then chased him down from there. It was so easy. Seriously, what was Nia so scared of until now?


    This Orc was a slowpoke. His natural running speed was lower than Ninja''s and he didn''t have any mobility skills. Even if Nia couldn''t kill him with ganks during the early-game, she would''ve easily slipped away from him after ganking.


    In this mode, Orc was nothing like the OP broken class he was in Duel. And, he wasn''t nearly as scary as Tipmancer made him out to be. Yuel was right about it all along.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    "I-I did it." Nia clenched her controller. She really did it! She took down that "scary monster". If only she listened to Yuel from the beginning, she would''ve shut down this Orc a long time ago.


    "Sorry," Nia mumbled. "I should''ve done this earlier."


    "Good thing you finally realized that," Yuel said and he really meant it. There were far too many players out there who refused to admit their faults no matter what. So, even though it took her an entire match, it was great she finally learned the lesson. That alone already made her a better competitive player than at least 90% of the playerbase.


    "What a beautiful combination!" Vincent made noise. "The Mystic Eyes of Weakness Perception discovered the enemy''s path and the Vanishing Phantom struck from the shadows! No team can possibly defend against this magnificent combo!!"


    [I admit, it turned out nicely.] Yuel nodded in agreement, but he rather die than admit that to Vincent''s face. Also, even though Yuel and Nia were the ones who organized and executed this gank, it was actually Vincent who suggested the idea.


    Yuel couldn''t think of a good way to gank the enemy team until Vincent suggested to use the "Vanishing Phantom". That sparked the idea of using Nia for a difficult gank.


    In truth, Yuel expected the enemy to shoot Nia down. He came up with the best gank he could and minimized the risk as much as possible, but it still didn''t feel like a smooth plan. The enemy team has been putting on a formidable defense the entire game while pushing forward, so they should''ve had some Stealth Wards scattered around to shut down Nia''s ganks.


    But, apparently, there were none. The Orc had no idea Nia was coming after him. Somehow, she broke through the enemy''s calculated defense without doing anything special at all. It was truly as if she had a special power like "Vanishing Phantom", even though that was silly talk.


    Still, if Nia truly had a talent like that, it could be huge. It was nothing but wishful thinking at the moment, but perhaps this "Vanishing Phantom" will be effective at shaking up Howard''s unbreakable defense. With Yuel''s Mystic Eyes and Nia''s Phantom, they might be able to break through Aegis!


    [Ugh. I feel like Vincent''s clownery is becoming contagious...]


    Unfortunately, in the end, Nia woke up too late. The team failed to turn the game around and the match ended in defeat. Much of the fault laid with Nia''s passiveness but nobody held it against her after her solid performance during the late game. Even Yuel gave her a pass. For the most part.


    Overall, Nia committed a huge mistake during the early-game but she ultimately realized that, admitted to it and learned from it. That was enough to prove she was serious about the game. Nia definitely had what it took to play competitively. At least, she probably did...


    "Tired..." Nia''s head dropped and she fell silent.


    "Did this chick just fall asleep?" Luke laughed. "How can you even sleep like that? Man, she got talent! Haha."


    "Let her rest," Kai said. "She did well. You all agree with her joining the club, right?" She looked at every club member in order. Everybody gave her a nod until it came to Yuel''s turn.


    "She''s still rough around the corners," Yuel said. "We lost this match because she refused to cooperate during the early-game. But, she''s willing to learn and her mechanical skill seems decent. I say she passes."


    "Good," Kai loosened her fists. "For a moment there, I thought I''ll have to smack some sense into you."


    On this note, it was decided: Nia became the last member of Stratus. It was still unclear whether she''ll make it onto the main team for tournament but, either way, she''ll surely become an important asset for the club. Her "Vanishing Phantom" might even break through Aegis!


    [Yeah, right.] Yuel smiled wryly. [But, we''ll see once we get there.] He had every intention to help Nia develop her jungling skills. If her ability to sneak under the enemy''s nose becomes a serious threat, she might become the ace Yuel needed for beating Howard.

 109 Afterword

    This is the end of the (long) 5th volume. Some readers complained this match has gone on for too long and I understand where they''re coming from, but I hope it was overall an enjoyable read.


    Find authorized novels in Webnovel£¬faster updates, better experience£¬Please click www.webnovel.com for visiting.


    Contrary to what most of you might be thinking, the consequences of this match will be quite big. So, look forward to them in the next volume!


    The schedule of chapter releases will remain the same and there won''t be any special breaks before the next volume.


    I''m reminding I opened a discord server: https://discord.gg/QCKYeBj. You''re free to stop by to talk about Classmancers.


    Also, if you haven''t already, please consider rating the story and leaving a review. It''s a niche story with a small following, so every single review is very impactful.

 163 Ranked Solo Queue

    Nia has officially joined the club. She became the seventh and last member of this tiny basement club.


    Following that, Kai decided that club activities will be held thrice a week. It was the standard for sports clubs, but it was unfortunate. This team had to cram as much practice as possible to get anywhere at the regionals. They should practice every single day they have.


    "What? Practice every day?" Luke produced a dry laugh. "Man, you''re high."


    "Sounds tiring," Nia agreed.


    "I get where you''re coming from," Kai said. "But, that''s too much. We''re a school club, not the pro league."


    "Resting is also a part of a pro''s work," Vincent said.


    [Well, about what I expected.] Yuel sighed. Only Lars supported Yuel''s suggestion. They have been practicing together daily anyway so, for them, that was the norm. However, for the rest, it was too much.


    In the end, everybody rejected Yuel''s suggestion, except for Ben who didn''t object but didn''t express agreement either. He just stayed quiet during the whole thing. Not that it mattered, since daily practice was impossible for him anyway. He has been attending club activity once in a blue moon and Kai let him get away with it for some reason. If things continue like this in the upcoming weeks, Yuel will have to raise the topic again.


    With the club now having 7 members, or at least 6.5 because Ben was only sometimes there, it became impossible for everybody to practice at the same time as one team. Yet, they were also too few to be split into two full teams of five. This was so sad. They couldn''t even hold 5v5 practice matches like this.


    Back in the day, StormBlitz''s restriction of 15 club members seemed harsh. But, compared to this situation, StormBlitz was a paradise. They had enough members to train three full teams simultaneously. Seriously, what was Stratus supposed to do with just seven members? Sigh.


    In the end, their training regime remained the same as before. They formed a team of five players and went into Ranked. After every match, they substituted the members who were on standby. This way, everybody got to play.


    However, there was one troublemaker who couldn''t play Ranked with the others yet.


    "You better use your breaks to finish the qualifier," Yuel told Nia.


    "But, solo queue is such a pain." Nia pouted. "Does it really matter what rank I get?"


    "It matters for the system," Yuel explained. "As long as you don''t finish the qualifier, it can''t estimate your rank, so it struggles to find a match for you. We already got a mish-mash of ranks here, and you see how sometimes it takes over five minutes to find a proper match."


    "Gufu... Ok, got it. I''ll do it," Nia mumbled with a sulking face.


    "I can look over your qualifier games," Kai suggested. "I''ll drop you a few tips and stuff."


    "Oh, that''s nice," Nia nodded. [At least, somebody will be on my side. Because, my own team will always be 100% against me.]


    The worst thing about the qualifier matches was that Nia had to play with a bunch of randoms who all gonna hate her by default. Even before the match started, they were already set on bullying her...


    ¡ºJungler¡»


    She jammed the message into the lobby chat as soon as the room loaded. Thanks to this secret ninja technique of preparing the text while waiting in the queue, she got to call her role before anybody else! Nin nin.


    But...


    ¡ºI''ll take jungler¡»


    Some other guy declared as if he was the king. Unfortunately, he had the say because his turn was earlier in the drafting order. The game placed "better players" earlier in the drafting phase, based on some vague system that estimated skill. That system was clearly a bully.


    "Gufu," Nia hung her head. Just great. She just started the qualifier again and people were already bullying her. Why couldn''t the game match her with reasonable people for a change?


    Nia called the Jungler role before anybody else. She carefully prepared the message ahead of time and jammed it into the chat as soon as the lobby appeared, only for everybody to ignore it. Welp, if she isn''t playing Jungler then it''s over.


    ¡ºOk GG¡»


    ¡ºwut¡»


    ¡ºI can only play jungle¡»


    ¡ºgit gud then¡»


    "Classic online, huh." Kai smiled wryly. "It''s been so long since I last had to deal with this crap. My condolences."


    "It''s ok," Nia put down her controller. "I''ll just AFK then."


    "That''s going a little too far, don''t you think?" Kai frowned.


    "Well, I either AFK or end up feeding with some role I can''t play well," Nia shrugged. "They gonna hate on me anyway and we gonna lose. So, faster to just AFK."


    "I agree that your teammates will probably complain no matter what. But, aren''t you a little too quick to give up? You really can''t play any other role?"


    "Nope."


    "How much have you tried?"


    "Enough to know they''re not for me," Nia said. "I can''t disappear when I have to stay on lane all the time."


    "Why do you need to ''disappear''?"


    "So I can appear again and get a kill."


    "That a Jungler''s mindset, alright," Kai nodded. "But, you just gotta think differently for other roles."


    "That''s not fun," Nia pouted. "I want to surprise them and get kills."


    "Is that so," Kai had a lot more to say but she pursed her lips.


    Nia''s attitude wasn''t healthy and definitely not competitive. No matter what role she had to fill in, she ought to play to the best of her ability. Going AFK was unacceptable, especially during qualifier matches. There was a chance it was a qualifier match for some of her teammates as well so she was about to ruin their chances of scoring a high rank.


    But, Kai didn''t want to attack Nia with this. At long last, there was another girl in the club. So, Kai had to act like a nice older sister.


    It was clear Nia went through a lot of shit online, same as Kai and pretty m much everybody else who ever played solo queue. So, it was important to show her that, unlike that toxic online environment, playing in a club was a fun and friendly experience.


    Hopefully, with time, Nia''s way of thinking will evolve and she''ll understand why AFKing in this situation was bad sportsmanship. Over time, she should start feeling more comfortable around her clubmates and will become more open to criticism. Until then, there was nothing wrong with spoiling her a little and letting her get away with things.


    Unfortunately, one thick-headed dumbass didn''t get the memo...


    "If you AFK on purpose, you''re the worst type of human being," Yuel proclaimed.


    [Jeez, thanks for helping me give a warm welcome to our newcomer.] Kai felt like strangling that guy. Yuel was actually echoing Kai''s own thoughts, but did he have to bring it up right now? Zero delicacy.


    "I dunno what to do with other roles," Nia picked up her phone; Tipmancer was already running. "For Jungler, it explains jungling paths and stuff. For other roles, it only says how to farm efficiently and gives a few matchup tips here and there. Dunno what to do from just that."


    "Just follow these guidelines," Yuel said. "Farm safely and recall when you''re low. Then, farm again."


    "But, I also need to rotate sometimes and all that, right?"


    "No need to rotate at first," Yuel said. "If you don''t know your role and class well enough, you don''t have to go for any amazing plays. Just stick to the fundamentals and you''ll get the job done. A player with solid fundamentals will contribute to his team way more than somebody who goes for crazy plays and fails miserably. Keep it simple and you''ll do just fine."


    "I see," Nia curled into a ball on the chair. "Ok, I can try. Looks like I can pick either Mid or Support."


    "Pick Mid," Yuel said. "Support is not very beginner-friendly. If you don''t know how to create opportunities and initiate, you won''t get much done."


    "Ok," Nia typed in the lobby chat in blazing speed.


    ¡ºI''ll Mid¡»


    ¡ºi called mid tho...¡»The teammate at the bottom of the list complained.


    [Cry me a river.] Nia scuffed. She had zero sympathy for any of these randoms. They took her main role even though she called it first, so she''ll take whatever she wants now.


    ¡ºI called Jungler first and didn''t get it, so...¡»


    ¡ºi can''t support¡»


    ¡ºgit gud then¡»


    [Haha, goteem!] Nia smirked. That''ll teach these bullies. She was giving them a taste of their own medicine.


    [That was uncalled for.] Kai frowned. This exchange reminded her of her younger immature self, who wasted way too much time bashing her teammates whenever they called her out on the smallest of things.


    ¡ºmid is feeding gg¡»


    ¡ºYou think you can do better? 1v1 me after this, big boy¡»


    [I really used to write that kind of crap, huh.] Kai smiled wryly.


    Like many newcomers to this game, she went throughout the life cycle of flaming people, then blocking everybody and then, finally, getting over it and learning how to ignore the idiots. At least, for the most part. Sometimes, she still couldn''t help but get into petty arguments with them. Especially, whenever they brought up her gender. Them bastards.


    That aside, there was one truth everybody knew: trash-talking your teammates didn''t bring any benefits. It only created a negative atmosphere and motivated people to feed on purpose, AFK or steal kills just to spite. It wasn''t a healthy attitude to play with.


    [I probably should say something.] Kai stared at Nia''s snarky rebuttal in the chat. That "git gud" part was uncalled for. That last guy didn''t do anything to her. He was merely pleading to not play Support because he wasn''t good at it, the same way Nia pleaded to play Jungler because she wasn''t good with other roles.


    [I also don''t like Support so I feel the guy.] Kai thought.


    Support was the only role in the game she couldn''t play well, so she knew where that guy was coming from. It was such an odd role because it couldn''t get anything done on its own. It constantly had to rely on others to do everything. It required so much faith in others that it was practically unplayable with a team of strangers.


    If Kai were in Nia''s shoes, she''d definitely go for Mid over Support and disregard her teammate''s plea as well. Nevertheless, making a scene out of it with "git gud" was unnecessary. Playing Support was already a pain and this attitude will only make the guy less motivated to do anything.


    Honestly, if Kai were that guy in the last pick, she''d go for something like Lumimancer or Aeromancer for Support so she could build it like a Mid Laner. That actually worked somewhat well for her before.


    [Doesn''t seem like the other guy plans to answer so I''ll just let it slide.] Kai shrugged. She was waiting to see the guy''s reply but nothing came. So, it was fine to bury this topic.


    "You better keeping such thoughts inside," Yuel came to ruin the party by criticizing Nia. "You''re both playing for the same team. No need to insult each other. It only creates bad blood."


    "They started it," Nia pouted. "They took my role even though I called it first."


    "I understand that," Yuel nodded. "It''s a thing that happens often in Ranked and that''s why you need to learn to play all roles."


    "What a pain."


    "Well, excuse me, prin-" Yuel coughed and glanced at Kai. That was dangerous.


    "Prin?" Nia tilted her head. "Prinny?"


    "I meant to say that you shouldn''t act so spoiled. In Casual, you could insta-lock a Jungler as soon as the selection screen appeared. But, things don''t work that way in Ranked. There is a drafting order and you have to respect it."


    "I don''t like it." Nia pouted.


    "Yeah, it can be a pain," Kai agreed. "When you play with randoms who don''t know what you''re good at and take all your roles, it always feels like they got an agenda going against you."


    "They usually don''t, though," Yuel said. "It just so happens that the roles they don''t like playing are the same as yours. So, no reason to be hostile toward the last guy. You both don''t like playing Support and that''s fine. It''s not his fault somebody took your Jungler role even though you called it first.


    "Hm, right," Nia lowered her head. She wrote that "git gud" reply at the heat of the moment because she was mad about her stolen role, but it wasn''t the last guy''s fault. It was that thief above her that deserved all the hate. He was the one who committed a robbery in broad daylight and got away with it. A professional bully with a diploma.


    "Sorry," Nia mumbled.


    "It''s alright," Kai said. "Sometimes, this game can bring out the worst in you."


    "No point apologizing to us," Yuel said. "It''s that guy over there who deserves an apology."


    "Eh? But..." Nia chewed her lips. It was so weird. On paper, Yuel was right. Nia acted like a bully and should''ve apologized. If that player was standing in front of her right now, she''d apologize without a problem.


    But, apologizing on the internet? In a Classmancers chat? Did no one ever.


    "No need to elaborate," Yuel said. "Just explain you can''t play Support either."


    "Hmm," Nia twisted her lips while her fingers hovered over the touchscreen.


    [He really gonna make her apologize for it? Wow.] Kai couldn''t believe this was real life.


    It made sense to clear things up with your teammates but Kai would never ever be able to apologize to some random on the internet. In fact, nobody ever apologized to her either. People in the chat only knew how to flame each other. Sometimes, [very] rarely, they also praised their teammates for a good kill or such. That was the epitome of intelligence for chat interactions.


    Honestly, the idea of apologizing never even crossed Kai''s mind. She had a bunch of stupid outbursts in chat throughout her career but she has never considered taking her words back and apologizing for them. Even if she realized she was in the wrong, she just hoped her teammates will sweep things under the rug and forget all about it.


    [This guy really comes up with bizarre ideas.] Kai shook her head. [And, it seems like Nia is actually going to follow on that advice.]


    Nia typed her "apology" at lightning speed.


    ¡ºjk I also can''t support. It''s hard. GL¡»


    ¡ºokay I''ll try¡»


    [Maybe this guy isn''t so bad after all.] Nia thought. He didn''t curse her to death for making him play Support, unlike Nia did (internally) to that robber who stole her Jungler role. So, turned out she really lashed at the Support guy for no reason.


    [She twisted that "apology" around rather smoothly.] Yuel thought. Instead of taking her words back, Nia pretended she was joking about the whole thing. The idea didn''t even cross Yuel''s mind.


    "Good job," Yuel said. "That should keep the team more positive."


    "Yeah, you did really well!" Kai was deeply impressed. "I gonna steal that ''just joking'' tech, if you don''t mind."


    "Sure," Nia nodded. "Ah, there''s no time!" With all this talk, she only had 30 seconds left to pick her class! Oh noes!


    "Um, Mid..." She filtered down the class list by the "Mid Laner" tag and scrolled through it with a difficult expression. "I don''t play any of these."


    "You''ve surely played Mid before, right?" Yuel asked. "You have to know at least one class."


    "Oh, right. I played some Wizard before. She''s pretty simple."


    "Makes sense," Yuel nodded. After all, Wizard was designed as a beginner-friendly mage and the in-game tutorial recommended starting with it.


    However, Wizard was considered low tier in the meta because it was too simple for its own good. Still, for somebody who didn''t play Mid much, it was a solid pick that could put in some work. It was better for Nia to pick a familiar low-tier class over a high-tier class she never played.


    "Go for it," Yuel said. "Wizard is considered low tier but it''s easy to handle so you should be fine. Besides, it''s a legit counter to Pyromancer so you got an advantage there. Oh, and you should hurry up."


    "Ack! Right!" Nia locked-in right the countdown hit 3. "Phew, made it."


    "Good," Yuel nodded.


    "What''s with the sudden interest?" Kai asked Yuel.


    "Just killing time while waiting in queue," Yuel shrugged. "Though, I [am] a little interested in how Nia performs as Mid."


    "Wanna watch over her match instead?"


    "I don''t mind."


    "Alright, let''s switch then," Kai stood up. "I wanna play some."


    "Sure," Yuel wasn''t sure where that came from but he accepted the offer and traded places with Kai.


    "Just make sure you''re not too harsh with her," Kai said. "Remember, she''s not used to playing Mid."


    [Or, playing the MOBA mode in general.] Yuel added. "Yeah, I know."


    "Alright," Kai joined the others in the center of the clubroom. As frustrating as it was to admit, she was no-good as Nia''s guide right now. She was too conscious of Nia being a fellow girl, to the point she let Nia get away with too many things. Therefore, it was better to let somebody who freely spoke their mind to supervise Nia''s qualifier.


    For the better or the worse, Yuel was the type who knew little restraint and had zero tact. If he didn''t like something or disagreed, he immediately spoke up. He had little in the way of delicacy and he often came off as harsh but his criticism was usually honest and on-point. That kind of input will help Nia improve during her qualifier. Hopefully.


    Knowing Yuel, that professional nitpicker might get too serious with his criticism and discourage Nia from playing. But, nah. He knew better than that, right? It won''t happen, right? Hopefully not...

 164 Playing Ranked with Randoms

    Nia''s qualifier match began. It was her third qualifier in total and she has lost the previous matches. So, she better start winning if she doesn''t want to get stuck in Bronze.


    To help with that, Yuel watched over her match like a coach. While the match was loading, Nia glued herself to her phone.


    "Tipmancer again?" Yuel asked.


    "Mhm," Nia gave him a small nod but her eyes kept scanning the details in the app. It had some good news and some bad news.


    The good news: Wizard had a favorable lane matchup against Pyromancer during the early-game. Wizard''s passive, Wisdom, granted flat magic power and penetration right off the bat. That put Wizard slightly above the competition early on and her spells also had a better range than Pyromancer.


    However, there were also huge bad news: the enemy Dark Knight in Top Lane! That thing was a monster. Even without Tipmancer, Nia had more than enough terrible experiences fighting that early-game bully. It was a super OP class. It was best to steer clear of it.


    "What Tipmancer got to say about this lineup?" Yuel asked.


    "Pyro ez. DK scary."


    "Yeah, I had a feeling it''d be something along these lines. Wizard got a good matchup against Pyromancer and Dark Knight has a dangerous early-game, something like that?"


    "Mhm."


    "Well, that omits some crucial information."


    "Such as?" Nia titled her head.


    "For starters, Pyro will only be a favorable matchup for you in the first ten minutes or so. Before long, its burst damage will outdo the Wizard. So, if played smartly, a mid-game Pyro will have the upper hand against Wizard."


    "That''s terrible. Nobody told me about that," Nia pouted as she scrolled back and forth on her screen. There was no such advice in Tipmancer. Where did Yuel draw that info from? It gotta be some ancient alien wisdom, no doubt.


    "Tipmancer can''t teach you the entire game," Yuel said. "It''s a nice app but, like any app, it has to be constantly maintained and updated. So, whoever fills it up with info can''t cover too many specific interactions. They have to be as general as possible to make sure the info is correct and will remain correct in the upcoming patches. It''s the same thing with the info you find on the wiki. It''s either going to be very surface level or if it covers something specific, there''s a chance it''s outdated.


    "Hmm," Nia twisted her lips. "So, I have to kill the Pyro a bunch of times until mid-game?"


    "That''s one way to overcome the problem. But, that''s unrealistic in general."


    "Why?" Nia tilted her head.


    "You won''t always fight players who are easy to get kills on."


    "Hmm, how about this Pyro, then? Can I beat it?"


    "How should I know? The match hasn''t even started yet."


    "I thought you knew everything."


    "Pretty sure I''ve never claimed such a thing."


    "Disappointing," Nia said. "Ok, I''ll try to outlevel him early somehow."


    "That''s the idea," Yuel nodded. "The other thing Tipmancer probably doesn''t mention, is that your team will have to pressure Top to prevent Dark Knight from snowballing. You have to prevent an unfortunate development like the one with the Orc during your entrance exam."


    "But, it''s dangerous to fight DK early."


    "True, but somebody has to challenge it."


    "Don''t wanna." Nia puffed her cheeks.


    "That''s okay. This isn''t supposed to be your responsibility anyway. The Jungler is supposed to handle that part. I was just giving an example for another important thing to keep in mind that Tipmancer won''t teach you."


    "Tipmancer is a sham," Nia put down her phone. "How do I install you on my phone instead?"


    "Sorry, but your phone doesn''t have enough memory to store all my game knowledge."


    "Show-off," Nia gave him a look and returned to the game. The map loaded and she started off at the base. "Tipmancer recommends one Ward and one MP Potion to start off. Does it lie?"


    "No, that''s a good start," Yuel said. "Tipmancer can be trusted to give you decent openers, at least."


    "It also says to start with Magi Boots."


    "Not sure I agree with that one," Yuel crossed his arms. "It''s the standard opening so you can''t go wrong with it. In that sense, I get why it''s recommended. But, when you fight a Pyromancer on lane and have to get ahead during the early-game, you need to be more aggressive."


    "So, I buy Staff of Ages?"


    "No, no, that''s going too far. That''s a super late-game power item. It scales your magic power by percentage so it''s not that good early. Not to mention, it''s expensive. Even at Lv.1, you can''t afford the Ward and MP Potion along with it."


    "True, true," Nia nodded. "So, what do I get?"


    "I''d go with Necronomicon," Yuel said. "It got decent power and MP, so it should help you bully the Pyromancer."


    "Bullying isn''t nice."


    "You have to do it, though. Otherwise, you won''t win the lane."


    "I didn''t say I won''t do it," Nia smirked. Her enemies will take any opportunity to bully her so she''d do the same to them. An eye for an eye.


    "Good," Yuel nodded. "Just make sure to return to base as soon as you can upgrade Necronomicon to Lv.3. You have to start stacking as early as possible."


    "Ok," Nia purchased Necronomicon and proceeded to buy a Ward and an MP Potion. But, there was a little problem. "I don''t have enough. Can''t buy."


    "Oh, right. Necronomicon costs extra 50 gold now at Lv. 1. My bad."


    "I thought you were the superior app," Nia gave him a disappointed look.


    "I sincerely apologize for only being a human," Yuel smiled wryly. "It used to cost less until the balance changes last year. That''s why Tipmancer rarely suggests any specific matchup builds. You never know when the build becomes irrelevant in future patches."


    "So, do I buy it, or...?"


    "Stick with Necronomicon. If memory serves, the cost increase was specifically to discourage players from buying it alongside an MP Potion. Necronomicon + MP Potion + Ward was a very common opener due to how much sustain it gave. But, Necronomicon alone should suffice. You can skip the MP Potion."


    "Ok," Nia finished the purchase and joined the Carry and Support at the Ogre Camp. Or, at least, that was the plan...


    "Eh?" Nia tilted her head. [Hello? Red buff? Anybody?]


    The Elf and Paladin on her team passed by the Ogre Camp without stopping. They went on to Bot Lane.


    "Um, aren''t we supposed to take the red buff?" Nia asked. "Is Tipmancer lying to me again?"


    "No, it''s correct," Yuel said. "The meta is to begin at the red and blue camps."


    "Ok," Nia went on and reached the Ogre Camp. But, she was alone there. Even though her allies could see her there on the mini-map, they didn''t budge. Nobody came to help.


    "This takes me back," Yuel smiled wryly. "Lv.50 players, qualified for Ranked and still don''t know the meta opening. Brilliant."


    "They need more Tipmancer in their life."


    "Not even kidding," Yuel sighed deeply.


    "I guess this isn''t happening," Nia turned to leave the camp.


    "Wait, there''s still time," Yuel argued. "Try pinging the camp with a ''group-up''."


    "Ok, um," Nia pressed a button. Then another button. Then a different one.


    "You press right on the dpad to open the chat. That also lets you ping the map."


    "I-I remember that." Nia pressed in a hurry.


    [When was the last time this girl pinged anything?] Yuel made a face. Well, at least she managed to pick the correct ping on her own.


    ¡ºGroup Up!¡»An exclamation popped on the mini-map, accompanied by a voice line. However, the Bot duo didn''t budge.


    "Spam it a few times," Yuel advised.


    "Ok," Nia repeated the ping multiple times in a row. By the fourth time, the Paladin turned around and began heading in the camp''s direction. The Elf followed suit.


    As a result of this delayed communication, they cleared the Ogre Camp a little late. But, they still had enough time to return to lanes before the minions clash. Nia just had to take the power buff and...


    "Ah, mine..." Nia grumped. The Elf just went ahead and snatched her red buff! Robbery! Send halp!


    "Yeah, this happens sometimes," Yuel sighed. Low-level Ranked was such a clown fiesta.


    "These bullies...!" Nia mashed a macro.


    ¡ºThanks!¡»


    ¡ºThanks!¡»


    ¡ºThanks!¡»


    ¡ºThanks!¡»


    ¡ºThanks!¡»


    "Enough already," Yuel said. "Head to your lane."


    "I don''t want to play with these people anymore," Nia pouted.


    "I feel you but you can''t throw away your Qualifier. You don''t want to be stuck in Bronze, do you?"


    "Gufu..." Nia sighed in defeat.


    "It''s okay. You''re a Wizard, Nia. Even without the power buff, you''ll outclear the Pyromancer early on."


    "I guess," Nia dragged herself to lane. She felt so robbed here. Even though she was the one who brought these clueless scrubs to the Ogre Camp, they robbed her in broad daylight. Dang it!


    This Qualifier was off to a great start...

 165 Reckless Low Rank

    After getting over the fact that bully Elf stole her precious red buff, Nia headed toward Mid. Along the way, she placed a ward in one of the intersections Tipmancer recommended as top priority warding spots.


    And so, the laning phase began. She had to deal with a Pyromancer.


    "Do you know how to farm with Wizard?" Yuel asked.


    "Yeah, it''s in the app," Nia glanced at her phone again. "I slow them down before they arrive using Quicksand and then hit them with Windstorm. Ah, but they''re all already here..."


    Since Nia''s team was slow at taking the red buff, the minions from both sides have already reached the center of the lane and clashed. Ideally, a Wizard was supposed to slow down the incoming wave with Quicksand to pack them into one spot, then blast them away with Windstorm from afar. This setup guaranteed that both spells hit the entire wave so it maximized damage.


    Alas, the enemy minions have already assumed their battle positions. The swordsmen fought on the frontline while the bowmen stayed behind. With such a distance between the frontline and the backline, it was impossible to hit all minions at once with Quicksand; the radius of the spell wasn''t big enough at low levels.


    With that said, Nia could still hit the entire wave with Windstorm thanks to its amazing reach and width. It wasn''t optimal damage but it wasn''t that bad. Probably.


    "Do you know how to farm in this scenario?" Yuel asked.


    "Hmm," Nia''s eyes naturally gravitated toward the phone beside her. However, she couldn''t find any further instructions regarding farming. The only advice in Tipmancer was to do the Quicksand play into Windstorm. There was no mention of what to do when the wave was already there and it was too late to use Quicksand.


    "Oh, I know," Nia claimed. "I''ll just hit them with the wind. Better than nothing."


    "Wait. Get closer to the swordsmen and make sure they''re within the first half of Windstorm, the half that knocks back. That''ll send them flying toward the bowmen."


    "Ok," Nia cautiously advanced toward the frontline with Windstorm ready in target mode. The targeting animation was neatly split into two parts to inform the caster where the first half of the spell will hit. That half had a knockback effect, which was crucial for this operation.


    Nia fit all the enemy swordsmen within the first half of the spell and unleashed a storm. The winds slammed into the swordsmen and shoved them to the backline. At the same time, the other half of the spell hit the bowmen in the back without repositioning them.


    This clustered all enemy minions into one packed area. It was time for Quicksand! Nia encircled the minions with a deadly quicksand. It damaged them over time and slowed them down, which made it harder for the swordsmen to return to the frontline.


    [Her mechanical skill is decent.] Yuel nodded to himself.


    Nia''s execution was swift but accurate as she chained one spell into another with next to no delay. In Yuel''s younger days, he used to mess up whenever he tried to chain spells quickly like that. Even though he knew exactly what he should be doing, he was always either too slow or rushed too much in fear of being too slow. Either way, it often ended up as a disaster. Even now, he wasn''t so fluent with casting multiple skills in a row unless it was a specific setup he practiced a lot.


    [That feel when you know the right thing to do but often mess up, while there are players like Nia who don''t know what to do but still pull it off somehow.] Yuel smiled wryly. To be honest, he was a bit jealous of people who had such a good gaming sense. Perhaps he wasn''t blessed with one or maybe he failed to develop one as a kid because he didn''t play video games much before Classmancers. Either way, it has been giving him a lot of trouble, and despite all the regular practice he has been doing, the issue haunted him to this day. Sigh.


    [At least, Nia won''t need much coaching in that area.] Yuel concluded. The main thing Nia lacked was game knowledge regarding the main 5v5 mode. That Yuel had in spades and will gladly share. So, given Nia''s already-decent execution, she''ll level up into a solid player in no time as long as she keeps absorbing knowledge from Yuel.


    The Windstorm plus Quicksand play almost wiped out the entire enemy wave. Such was the strength of an early-game Wizard. Its spells had both an amazing range and they hit hard thanks to the extra magical power coming from Wizard''s passive. This power advantage was only going to last Nia a couple of waves but it''ll be a big factor in gaining early-game momentum.


    "You won the lane," Yuel announced. "The Pyromancer should be retreating now, so you can push on."


    "Um, but he''s coming closer?"


    "Say what?" Yuel narrowed his eyes. This Pyromancer had no fear and showed zero respect toward Nia''s lane advantage. Instead of retreating to the tower as he should, he approached the frontline to unleash his spells. What an absolute mad lad.


    [Low ranks. Right.] Yuel smiled wryly. Of course, things like that often happened at lower ranks. Most players here didn''t know the importance of defense so they didn''t fall back at the right time. Most likely, that Pyromancer was only thinking about reclaiming lane control by wiping out Nia''s minions.


    Of course, it made sense to try reclaiming the lane whenever the opportunity presented itself. However, one also had to consider the resources they''ll spend to achieve that and the risk they''ll be putting themselves in. Apparently, such judgments were beyond this Pyromancer''s current level, so he charged at Nia''s minions.


    With no enemy minions left on the lane, Nia''s soldiers naturally focused their fire on the incoming Pyromancer. Their damage was devastating in the early-game, especially against a squishy target.


    "You can probably kill him right here with Fireball," Yuel said. "Wait until the minions approach him and shoot him while he''s casting his spells."


    "Ok," Nia advanced a little and waited for her loyal minions to begin their assault.


    The swordsmen reached the Pyromancer and the enemy was about to retaliate. That''s when Nia unleashed Fireball. The spell connected and erased 25% of the Pyromancer''s HP.


    [Okay, he''s rattled.] Yuel could tell by the Pyromancer''s sluggish movements. Clearly, that guy didn''t expect Nia to aggress on him so quickly. The huge damage made the Pyromancer hesitate. He was no longer so sure he wanted to stay here and spend time unleashing his spells on the minions. However, he couldn''t decide whether to retreat or not. So, Nia should capitalize on this situation and-


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    It was over in a matter of seconds. Yuel didn''t even need to say anything. Nia advanced on her own and attacked the Pyromancer along with all her minions. The Pyromancer ultimately decided to flee but he was only Lv.2, so he didn''t have Burning Spirit to make a quick escape. As a result, Nia wiped him out with ease.


    [Good reaction there.] Yuel thought. Contrary to the way Nia has been relying on Tipmancer for every little thing, she went after that kill of her own accord and made a fast judgment on the spot. Did her experience as an assassin main kick in? She saw an opportunity for a kill so she seized it without a moment''s hesitation.


    "I push now?" Nia threw a glance at Yuel.


    [And already back to asking for guidance.] Yuel smiled wryly. "What do you think? Should you push right now?"


    "Yeah. The Pyro is dead so I can attack the tower."


    "No, retreat. Their Jungler should be nearby."


    "Ah, yeah, I guess," Nia retreated without objection and only her loyal minions kept charging forward. Shortly, the enemy Vampire appeared from the jungle and slaughtered the little soldiers. Sad story.


    [About what I expected.] Yuel nodded. The Vampire''s timing was in line with the textbook jungle-clearing routine. First, the Jungler cleared the Wraith Camp together with the Top Laner. Then, he usually went to clear the Wolf Camp near Top. After that, it''s the Hyena Camp near Mid.


    Considering how little time has passed from the beginning of the match, it was only natural the Vampire was somewhere around the Hyena camp. Whether he has finished clearing the camp was anybody''s guess but, either way, it was safe to assume the Vampire might be nearby. That''s why Yuel claimed that pushing Mid was a bad idea and he was right on the money.


    Yuel deduced all that basic stuff on the spot, but it was understandable for a newbie to not be able to do so yet, especially a player who mostly played 1v1. Yuel will simply have to teach her, one thing at a time. Nia''s gaming sense seemed to be sharp enough to quickly pick things up.


    The next play he had in mind for Nia was also heavily based on game knowledge. It''ll be a good learning experience for her and, shall it succeeded, it will grant her a big advantage for the rest of this match.

 166 Vol.8 Ch.4: Delayed Kill

    By killing the Pyromancer, Nia forced the enemy Vampire to rotate to Mid and defend the lane. At first glance, it didn''t look like she achieved much. Yes, the exp and gold from the kill were nice but she failed to take control over the lane due to the Vampire''s timely rotation. She did remove the Pyromancer from the game for a while, but respawn times were short during the early game; the guy will be back in business in no time.


    In truth, what Nia achieved was a great position. However, there was little chance she knew how to best capitalize on it. On the other hand, Yuel knew exactly what could be exploited in such scenarios.


    Following the textbook jungling routine, the Vampire was supposed to go after the Griffin Camp after finishing the Hyenas. It was a neutral camp in the center of the map which was highly contested by both sides for extra gold and exp. Around this time, the junglers from both sides were supposed to gather around the Griffin Camps and the Mid Laners usually assisted in contesting the camps. Fortunately, the Lionfolk on Nia''s team knew the meta and was already on his way toward one of the camps.


    There were two Griffin Camps, one in Top Jungle and one in Bot Jungle. As such, usually, one of two scenarios occurred: either both sides targeted the same camp and a battle broke out, or they peacefully resolved the conflict by trading camps, each taking one.


    However, right now, Nia''s side could take both Griffins with ease.


    "Help out the Jungler at the Griffin," Yuel said.


    "Ok," Nia entered the Top Jungle. The Griffin was standing right around the corner so Nia didn''t even have to stray too far from the lane to get to the camp.


    Since she unleashed her entire kit on the Pyromancer, everything was still on cooldown. So, she only backed up the Lionfolk with basic attacks. It wasn''t a huge contribution but it helped to defeat the Griffin a little faster.


    Besides, nobody was even there to contest the camp. That was only natural, since the Pyromancer was dead and the Vampire was stuck defending Mid. These two were the prime suspects who were supposed to come here and fight for the Griffin, but neither of them had the leisure to do so right now.


    As such, Nia and the Lionfolk killed the Griffin with little effort. However, it wasn''t over there.


    "Signal that you want to attack the other Griffin as well," Yuel said.


    "Hm, sure," Nia followed the instruction and pinged the other Griffin Camp with an "Attack" instruction.


    The Lionfolk didn''t respond with any macros, messages or even pings. But, he seemed to understand the message because he headed in the direction of the other Griffin Camp.


    [At least, he didn''t steal my role for nothing.] Nia thought. It wasn''t like she forgave the guy, far from it. But, at least, he seemed knowledgeable and cooperative enough. The system placed him first during the drafting phase for a reason.


    Nia and the Lionfolk rotated to Bot Jungle and attacked the Griffin there. By now, the Vampire has finished clearing the lane and could contest the Griffin Camp. It was apparent he considered doing so, judging by the way he traveled toward Bot Jungle as well and stared down at Nia and the Lionfolk attacking the Griffin.


    However, the Vampire didn''t dare to contest the camp. A smart decision. It''d be foolish to walk into this dangerous 1v2 situation. Vampire didn''t have any tricks for winning such a fight.


    And so, Nia and the Lionfolk secured the second Griffin. That put both of them ahead of the competition. As long as they don''t commit any grave mistakes, they''ll maintain this advantage for a long time. It meant they''ll always be able to buy and upgrade items slightly before their opponents, so they''ll constantly be a little stronger.


    "This is how you capitalize on such situations," Yuel said. "I hope you understand why this worked."


    "Yeah, it''s smart," Nia nodded. "Never saw it in Tipmancer."


    "You wouldn''t find something so specific in Tipmancer. It''s the kind of thing you learn by watching others play or by experience."


    "Noted," Nia nodded.


    Due to the short respawn times during the early-game, the Pyromancer returned to the lane along with the next minion wave. This time, Nia was already prepared for the incoming wave, so she executed the proper Wizard farming technique, the one advised by Tipmancer.


    First, she summoned a quicksand underneath the approaching swordsmen. It slowed them down and made the bowmen catch up to them. Before long, the entire wave was running through the damaging sand.


    To finish things off, Nia unleashed Windstorm on the entire wave. She positioned herself as far away as possible while firing to take full advantage of the spell''s range.


    [He can burst me down if I get close so let''s not do that.] Nia nodded to herself. A Pyromancer with a full kit out of cooldown was scary. She has faced many Pyromancers in Duel and they were always a pain. This class was like a marksman, mage, and assassin all packed into one. That''s what you call #balanced.


    [But, gotta say, this range feels good.] Nia smirked. This Wizard gal completely outranged that cheap Pyromancer. With just two spells, she almost wiped out the entire enemy wave and Pyromancer couldn''t do anything about it. [Ha! Serves you right. Maybe next time you won''t pick this dumb OP class.]


    Despite the huge lane advantage Nia established, this Pyromancer was full of himself. His wave was almost dead but he still advanced to the frontline to unleash his spells on Nia''s minions. What a brave guy. Or, maybe he was just dumb?


    [Giving me a free hit? Ok.] Nia activated Fireball and fired it at the Pyromancer. It erased a nice 25% HP. Fireball had a relatively short cooldown, so that Pyromancer might eat another one if he stays here for too long.


    [She''s adapting.] Yuel nodded to himself. It seemed Nia already got used to Wizard. It was evident by how she correctly bullied the Pyromancer with her range without any advice from Yuel or Tipmancer.


    Of course, part of it was the Pyromancer''s obvious overextension. Instead of drawing the fight to his side of the lane and safely bursting minions from there, he set foot on the frontline and put himself at risk for no reason. Such foolishness.


    Unfortunately, Nia couldn''t punish this overextension with a kill right away. She spent two-thirds of her kit on the minions and just now fired her last remaining spell. Still, that 25% HP the fireball took was nothing to sneeze at. Three more hits and the Pyromancer will be dead. If he keeps overextending like this, he might wind up dead during the next minion wave.


    This was an extremely dangerous situation for the Pyromancer, yet all these considerations seemed to go way over his head. Instead of retreating, he unleashed Flame Wave and Pillar of Fire on Nia''s wave. The spells delivered sizeable damage that almost rivaled Nia''s, but the range difference was a huge factor.


    Compared to how Nia safely bombarded the enemy minions from afar, the Pyromancer had to venture into the frontline and put himself in danger to get any work done. Naturally, that reckless action was rewarded with a fireball to the face.


    BAM! Another 25% HP gone. The Pyromancer was too late to retreat from the frontline.


    [He''s so weak.] Nia giggled to herself. This was felt like fighting a Bronze rank scrub in Duel. There was zero logic to his plays and he apparently had zero matchup knowledge. Nia was the stronger one here. She could easily push here for free!


    "Wait," Yuel said. "No need to get carried away. We don''t have vision of the enemy jungle around Mid. The Vampire might be planning to rotate over here. I haven''t seen him for a while now."


    "Oh, ok." Nia retreated without pressing onward with her minions. For a moment there, she forgot there were other players involved in this match. That was dangerous.


    Just a few seconds later, the Vampire really showed up on the lane. Luckily, Nia was already outside his reach. With no target to gank, the Vampire only helped the Pyromancer clear out the remaining minions and then left.


    "Phew," Nia sighed in relief. "Almost died."


    "Yeah, pretty sure that would have been death if you didn''t retreat in time," Yuel nodded. "More than anybody, the Mid Laner must always watch out for incoming ganks. Mid is gankable from two sides, so it''s always safer assume a gank might be coming unless you know exact positions of all enemies."


    "You really know a lot about this game," Nia nodded.


    "Well, I''m hoping to become a pro player one day. And, it all starts from taking the regionals this year."


    "That''s an ambition. But, doesn''t this team suck? I heard it never wins."


    "That''s in the past," Yuel proclaimed. "This year, Stratus got a decent team. Though, the clubroom conditions are terrible, not going to lie."


    "Hm?" Nia titled her head. "What''s the problem with it?"


    "Are you serious? Just look at this basement."


    "I like it. It''s dark and calm."


    "That''s not a healthy environment for club activity."


    "Hmm, ok." Nia shrugged and returned to the game. The next minion wave was incoming.


    Yet again, Nia easily gained the upper hand thanks to her spells'' high damage and long range. Her Quicksand and Windstorm combo eliminated the enemy bowmen and brought the swordsmen one hit away from dying. Meanwhile, the Pyromancer didn''t get lift a finger on Nia''s wave because he was way out of range. Serves him right.


    Even with only 50% HP left, the Pyromancer wasn''t afraid of advancing to the frontline to clear minions. What an absolute mad lad. Nia could easily reduce that HP to a measly 25% with a single Fireball.


    But, she didn''t do so. Instead, she attacked the enemy swordsmen with basics and let the Pyromancer farm on the frontline. Once all enemy minions were down, Nia retreated to dodge any potential ganks. As Yuel said, she always had to watch out for those when in Mid.


    "Any reason you didn''t shoot him?" Yuel asked.


    "He''d just run away afterward," Nia said.


    "True, even this suicidal fellow will probably figure he better recall when he''s left with only a quarter of HP. But, so what of it? You''ll win the lane either way."


    "It''s a waste. I can kill instead."


    "But, you can''t kill him immediately," Yuel glanced at Nia''s level. She was going to hit Lv.5 with the next wave. "I see. Interesting approach. Okay, that''s an option."


    [Did he really figure my plan?] Nia stared in suspicion. [ESPer confirmed. Or, maybe an alien.]


    "Okay," Yuel continued as if he didn''t just read Nia''s mind. "If you''re not going to pressure him right now, might as well take the hyenas in Bot Jungle while the Pyromancer is busy clearing."


    "Sounds good," Nia retreated from the lane and headed to Bot Jungle. There was no need to worry about the Pyromancer pushing because all his minions were out of the picture, so Nia could do whatever she wanted right now. She could even take a nap and nothing would happen. Probably.


    After farming the hyenas, Nia hit Lv.5. That unlocked her ultimate: Meteor. It was a key part of her evil plan.


    It was a good thing she leveled up to Lv.5 over here without the Pyromancer seeing it. The guy might become wary of her if he sees her leveling up. The game played a special animation for that to make it easier to see when enemies and allies leveled up. The animation showed the exact level the player reached, so now it showed Lv.5. If the Pyromancer were to see this, he''d realize things were bad for him.


    Granted, the Pyromancer could still check her level on the status screen. But, that required him to be actively interested in her level. Frankly, he didn''t seem smart enough for that kind of stuff.


    "This should help you plan, right?" Yuel smiled like a know-it-all.


    "Ah, um, yeah," Nia stared at him in suspicion. Did Yuel suggest to farm the hyenas because he figured Nia''s Lv.5 plan? Definitely a mind reader. Scary.


    When the next minion wave arrived, Nia executed the usual routine of Quicksand into Windstorm. The Pyromancer didn''t suspect a thing and advanced to the frontline like always. This fool had no idea what was coming.


    Nia fired Fireball, which erased 25% of the Pyromancer''s HP. However, this Pyromancer knew no fear. He just ignored that damage and proceeded to clear the wave. After all, until now, Nia didn''t have any means to quickly delete the remaining 25% HP.


    But, things were different at Lv.5. Nia unleashed Wizard''s ultimate: Meteor! The Wizard stretched her arms toward the sky and summoned a huge meter.


    The Pyromancer panicked and rightfully so. He activated Burning Spirit in a feeble attempt to escape but it was too late. The radius of Meteor was too big to escape from it on reaction without a leap skill. It was over.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»

 166 Delayed Kill

    By killing the Pyromancer, Nia forced the enemy Vampire to rotate to Mid and defend the lane. At first glance, it didn''t look like she achieved much. Yes, the exp and gold from the kill were nice but she failed to take control over the lane due to the Vampire''s timely rotation. She did remove the Pyromancer from the game for a while, but respawn times were short during the early game; the guy will be back in business in no time.


    In truth, what Nia achieved was a great position. However, there was little chance she knew how to best capitalize on it. On the other hand, Yuel knew exactly what could be exploited in such scenarios.


    Following the textbook jungling routine, the Vampire was supposed to go after the Griffin Camp after finishing the Hyenas. It was a neutral camp in the center of the map which was highly contested by both sides for extra gold and exp. Around this time, the junglers from both sides were supposed to gather around the Griffin Camps and the Mid Laners usually assisted in contesting the camps. Fortunately, the Lionfolk on Nia''s team knew the meta and was already on his way toward one of the camps.


    There were two Griffin Camps, one in Top Jungle and one in Bot Jungle. As such, usually, one of two scenarios occurred: either both sides targeted the same camp and a battle broke out, or they peacefully resolved the conflict by trading camps, each taking one.


    However, right now, Nia''s side could take both Griffins with ease.


    "Help out the Jungler at the Griffin," Yuel said.


    "Ok," Nia entered the Top Jungle. The Griffin was standing right around the corner so Nia didn''t even have to stray too far from the lane to get to the camp.


    Since she unleashed her entire kit on the Pyromancer, everything was still on cooldown. So, she only backed up the Lionfolk with basic attacks. It wasn''t a huge contribution but it helped to defeat the Griffin a little faster.


    Besides, nobody was even there to contest the camp. That was only natural, since the Pyromancer was dead and the Vampire was stuck defending Mid. These two were the prime suspects who were supposed to come here and fight for the Griffin, but neither of them had the leisure to do so right now.


    As such, Nia and the Lionfolk killed the Griffin with little effort. However, it wasn''t over there.


    "Signal that you want to attack the other Griffin as well," Yuel said.


    "Hm, sure," Nia followed the instruction and pinged the other Griffin Camp with an "Attack" instruction.


    The Lionfolk didn''t respond with any macros, messages or even pings. But, he seemed to understand the message because he headed in the direction of the other Griffin Camp.


    [At least, he didn''t steal my role for nothing.] Nia thought. It wasn''t like she forgave the guy, far from it. But, at least, he seemed knowledgeable and cooperative enough. The system placed him first during the drafting phase for a reason.


    Nia and the Lionfolk rotated to Bot Jungle and attacked the Griffin there. By now, the Vampire has finished clearing the lane and could contest the Griffin Camp. It was apparent he considered doing so, judging by the way he traveled toward Bot Jungle as well and stared down at Nia and the Lionfolk attacking the Griffin.


    However, the Vampire didn''t dare to contest the camp. A smart decision. It''d be foolish to walk into this dangerous 1v2 situation. Vampire didn''t have any tricks for winning such a fight.


    And so, Nia and the Lionfolk secured the second Griffin. That put both of them ahead of the competition. As long as they don''t commit any grave mistakes, they''ll maintain this advantage for a long time. It meant they''ll always be able to buy and upgrade items slightly before their opponents, so they''ll constantly be a little stronger.


    "This is how you capitalize on such situations," Yuel said. "I hope you understand why this worked."


    "Yeah, it''s smart," Nia nodded. "Never saw it in Tipmancer."


    "You wouldn''t find something so specific in Tipmancer. It''s the kind of thing you learn by watching others play or by experience."


    "Noted," Nia nodded.


    Due to the short respawn times during the early-game, the Pyromancer returned to the lane along with the next minion wave. This time, Nia was already prepared for the incoming wave, so she executed the proper Wizard farming technique, the one advised by Tipmancer.


    First, she summoned a quicksand underneath the approaching swordsmen. It slowed them down and made the bowmen catch up to them. Before long, the entire wave was running through the damaging sand.


    To finish things off, Nia unleashed Windstorm on the entire wave. She positioned herself as far away as possible while firing to take full advantage of the spell''s range.


    [He can burst me down if I get close so let''s not do that.] Nia nodded to herself. A Pyromancer with a full kit out of cooldown was scary. She has faced many Pyromancers in Duel and they were always a pain. This class was like a marksman, mage, and assassin all packed into one. That''s what you call #balanced.


    [But, gotta say, this range feels good.] Nia smirked. This Wizard gal completely outranged that cheap Pyromancer. With just two spells, she almost wiped out the entire enemy wave and Pyromancer couldn''t do anything about it. [Ha! Serves you right. Maybe next time you won''t pick this dumb OP class.]


    Despite the huge lane advantage Nia established, this Pyromancer was full of himself. His wave was almost dead but he still advanced to the frontline to unleash his spells on Nia''s minions. What a brave guy. Or, maybe he was just dumb?


    [Giving me a free hit? Ok.] Nia activated Fireball and fired it at the Pyromancer. It erased a nice 25% HP. Fireball had a relatively short cooldown, so that Pyromancer might eat another one if he stays here for too long.


    [She''s adapting.] Yuel nodded to himself. It seemed Nia already got used to Wizard. It was evident by how she correctly bullied the Pyromancer with her range without any advice from Yuel or Tipmancer.


    Of course, part of it was the Pyromancer''s obvious overextension. Instead of drawing the fight to his side of the lane and safely bursting minions from there, he set foot on the frontline and put himself at risk for no reason. Such foolishness.


    Unfortunately, Nia couldn''t punish this overextension with a kill right away. She spent two-thirds of her kit on the minions and just now fired her last remaining spell. Still, that 25% HP the fireball took was nothing to sneeze at. Three more hits and the Pyromancer will be dead. If he keeps overextending like this, he might wind up dead during the next minion wave.


    This was an extremely dangerous situation for the Pyromancer, yet all these considerations seemed to go way over his head. Instead of retreating, he unleashed Flame Wave and Pillar of Fire on Nia''s wave. The spells delivered sizeable damage that almost rivaled Nia''s, but the range difference was a huge factor.


    Compared to how Nia safely bombarded the enemy minions from afar, the Pyromancer had to venture into the frontline and put himself in danger to get any work done. Naturally, that reckless action was rewarded with a fireball to the face.


    BAM! Another 25% HP gone. The Pyromancer was too late to retreat from the frontline.


    [He''s so weak.] Nia giggled to herself. This was felt like fighting a Bronze rank scrub in Duel. There was zero logic to his plays and he apparently had zero matchup knowledge. Nia was the stronger one here. She could easily push here for free!


    "Wait," Yuel said. "No need to get carried away. We don''t have vision of the enemy jungle around Mid. The Vampire might be planning to rotate over here. I haven''t seen him for a while now."


    "Oh, ok." Nia retreated without pressing onward with her minions. For a moment there, she forgot there were other players involved in this match. That was dangerous.


    Just a few seconds later, the Vampire really showed up on the lane. Luckily, Nia was already outside his reach. With no target to gank, the Vampire only helped the Pyromancer clear out the remaining minions and then left.


    "Phew," Nia sighed in relief. "Almost died."


    "Yeah, pretty sure that would have been death if you didn''t retreat in time," Yuel nodded. "More than anybody, the Mid Laner must always watch out for incoming ganks. Mid is gankable from two sides, so it''s always safer assume a gank might be coming unless you know exact positions of all enemies."


    "You really know a lot about this game," Nia nodded.


    "Well, I''m hoping to become a pro player one day. And, it all starts from taking the regionals this year."


    "That''s an ambition. But, doesn''t this team suck? I heard it never wins."


    "That''s in the past," Yuel proclaimed. "This year, Stratus got a decent team. Though, the clubroom conditions are terrible, not going to lie."


    "Hm?" Nia titled her head. "What''s the problem with it?"


    "Are you serious? Just look at this basement."


    "I like it. It''s dark and calm."


    "That''s not a healthy environment for club activity."


    "Hmm, ok." Nia shrugged and returned to the game. The next minion wave was incoming.


    Yet again, Nia easily gained the upper hand thanks to her spells'' high damage and long range. Her Quicksand and Windstorm combo eliminated the enemy bowmen and brought the swordsmen one hit away from dying. Meanwhile, the Pyromancer didn''t get lift a finger on Nia''s wave because he was way out of range. Serves him right.


    Even with only 50% HP left, the Pyromancer wasn''t afraid of advancing to the frontline to clear minions. What an absolute mad lad. Nia could easily reduce that HP to a measly 25% with a single Fireball.


    But, she didn''t do so. Instead, she attacked the enemy swordsmen with basics and let the Pyromancer farm on the frontline. Once all enemy minions were down, Nia retreated to dodge any potential ganks. As Yuel said, she always had to watch out for those when in Mid.


    "Any reason you didn''t shoot him?" Yuel asked.


    "He''d just run away afterward," Nia said.


    "True, even this suicidal fellow will probably figure he better recall when he''s left with only a quarter of HP. But, so what of it? You''ll win the lane either way."


    "It''s a waste. I can kill instead."


    "But, you can''t kill him immediately," Yuel glanced at Nia''s level. She was going to hit Lv.5 with the next wave. "I see. Interesting approach. Okay, that''s an option."


    [Did he really figure my plan?] Nia stared in suspicion. [ESPer confirmed. Or, maybe an alien.]


    "Okay," Yuel continued as if he didn''t just read Nia''s mind. "If you''re not going to pressure him right now, might as well take the hyenas in Bot Jungle while the Pyromancer is busy clearing."


    "Sounds good," Nia retreated from the lane and headed to Bot Jungle. There was no need to worry about the Pyromancer pushing because all his minions were out of the picture, so Nia could do whatever she wanted right now. She could even take a nap and nothing would happen. Probably.


    After farming the hyenas, Nia hit Lv.5. That unlocked her ultimate: Meteor. It was a key part of her evil plan.


    It was a good thing she leveled up to Lv.5 over here without the Pyromancer seeing it. The guy might become wary of her if he sees her leveling up. The game played a special animation for that to make it easier to see when enemies and allies leveled up. The animation showed the exact level the player reached, so now it showed Lv.5. If the Pyromancer were to see this, he''d realize things were bad for him.


    Granted, the Pyromancer could still check her level on the status screen. But, that required him to be actively interested in her level. Frankly, he didn''t seem smart enough for that kind of stuff.


    "This should help you plan, right?" Yuel smiled like a know-it-all.


    "Ah, um, yeah," Nia stared at him in suspicion. Did Yuel suggest to farm the hyenas because he figured Nia''s Lv.5 plan? Definitely a mind reader. Scary.


    When the next minion wave arrived, Nia executed the usual routine of Quicksand into Windstorm. The Pyromancer didn''t suspect a thing and advanced to the frontline like always. This fool had no idea what was coming.


    Nia fired Fireball, which erased 25% of the Pyromancer''s HP. However, this Pyromancer knew no fear. He just ignored that damage and proceeded to clear the wave. After all, until now, Nia didn''t have any means to quickly delete the remaining 25% HP.


    But, things were different at Lv.5. Nia unleashed Wizard''s ultimate: Meteor! The Wizard stretched her arms toward the sky and summoned a huge meter.


    The Pyromancer panicked and rightfully so. He activated Burning Spirit in a feeble attempt to escape but it was too late. The radius of Meteor was too big to escape from it on reaction without a leap skill. It was over.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»

 167 The Importance of Bullying the Lane Bully

    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    "Yes!" Nia pumped a little fist. Her Meteor flattened the Pyromancer like a pancake! She did a thing! Even though she was playing Mid in the MOBA mode, she got stuff done. Maybe this mode wasn''t so terrible after all.


    "You can push now," Yuel said. "The Jungler just went to clear the wolves near Top. He won''t get here any time soon."


    "Ok," Nia pushed forth along with her minions. As Yuel said, there was no Vampire gank this time. The path was clear.


    [This is some deep stuff.] Nia nodded to herself. Figuring out when it was safe to push was so difficult in this mode. In Duel, it was always safe to push when the opponent was dead and it was semi-safe for a while after the opponent recalled.


    But, in this mode, she had to constantly take the entire map into consideration. Unexpected ganks could come from anywhere and she always had to be on the lookout. Playing Mid was scary.


    Nia damaged the Turret as much as possible until all her minions died, then she retreated. This push netted her 30% progress on the Turret. Not too shabby.


    By now, she has earned enough gold to upgrade Necronomicon to Lv.3. It was best to do so as fast as possible to start collecting stacks so Nia recalled to base.


    [Good judgment.] Yuel stayed silent throughout this play. He was about to suggest a recall but Nia figured it out herself. Her MP was running low and she had to get a Lv.3 Necronomicon as soon as possible. So, she had good reasons to recall and the Pyromancer was going to be dead for a while so this was a great time to recall. Good thing Nia could figure something this simple on her own.


    "Can you please show me the situation in Top?" Yuel asked.


    "Ok," Nia pressed L2 to go into X-ray mode. It made some walls semi-transparent and made it possible to see figures through them.


    Despite how it looked, this wasn''t a wallhack. It was a nice quality-of-life feature which made it easier to see the situations on other lanes. The vision it granted was affected by fog of war so it only showed things that allies and wards could see.


    [Too bad it doesn''t show all enemies at all times.] Nia thought. That would have made her life a thousand times easier. She would no longer have to worry about ganks every second.


    Still, this X-ray-like mode was a great way to check what was going in faraway lanes. Unlike in MOBAs with RTS point-of-view, it was impossible to drag the camera toward another lane. So, this X-ray thingy was Classmancers'' alternative.


    In Top, the X-ray view showed the allied Knight flashing in blue, indicating he was a friend. Meanwhile, his opponent, a Dark Knight, was glowing in mean red. Clearly a villain.


    "Uh-oh," Nia said. Things weren''t looking so hot over there.


    The evil Dark Knight erased the entire minion wave with a single blow. All the little blue figures vanished and there was nothing left behind. This wasn''t a battle, it was a slaughter. Dark Knight was a top-level bully like that.


    Without any friends to help him, the Knight had no choice but to retreat. But, the Dark Knight wasn''t done, far from it. The villain aggressed on the poor Knight!


    Fortunately, the Knight got away to his Turret. Needless to say, the poor guy was living through hell over there. Feels bad man.


    "Can I see their stats please?" Yuel requested.


    "Sure," Nia opened the status screen of the match. It showed that Nia has already scored two kills this game and was at zero deaths. A top-level player, no doubt.


    "The Knight isn''t doing so well," Yuel said.


    "Yep," Nia nodded. "So, can I return to lane now?"


    "Wait, it doesn''t bother you?"


    "It gave me some Vietnam flashbacks. DK is always a bully."


    "He''s in a terrible position," Yuel said. "If things keep going like this, it''s only a question of time before the Dark Knight scores a kill there."


    "Feels bad," Nia knew that feeling very well. Every time she fought a Dark Knight in Duel, she had to brace herself for some guaranteed bullying during the first half of the fight. But, once she survived through that, it usually became ez. That is, provided she lived long enough to reach that point...


    "Normally, it''s the Jungler''s job to defuse a Dark Knight," Yuel glanced at the mini-map. "But, he''s hanging around Bot right now."


    "Yeah, probably planning something," Nia turned her X-ray view toward Bot while moving sideways back to lane.


    Their Jungler, the Lionfolk, was getting into a position to strike. The lion-man leaped across a wall and landed on Bot Lane, right on top of the enemy Ranger. It was a rather nice gank, especially for a Ranked Qualifier.


    Alas, the allied Elf and Paladin were a bit too slow in following the Lionfolk''s opening attack. It took the Paladin way too long to jam in his Justice Strike. This was a clear case of class unfamiliarity.


    In the end, the gank didn''t turn out that well.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    The Lionfolk traded his life to kill the Ranger. Not a terrible trade but also not a particularly favorable one at this stage of the game.


    During the mid/late game, trading a Jungler for a Carry was definitely favorable because the Carry was like the Queen, the strongest and most valuable piece of the team. However, early into the game, the Carry didn''t have nearly the same value.


    As such, the Jungler was arguably more important during this stage of the game. All laners were stuck in their lanes as they fought for lane advantage. Meanwhile, the Jungler was the only one who had the freedom to roam around and change the tides of battle wherever he visited.


    Especially, in this match, the Jungler was of utmost importance. One of his primary jobs was to help the Knight at the lane to make sure that the enemy Dark Knight won''t snowball. Alas, now that the Lionfolk lost his life in that Bot gank, the Knight won''t be getting backup anytime soon.


    If the Dark Knight player was smart, he''ll push hard in the upcoming wave. Granted, it was hard to find a "smart" Dark Knight at low ranks. Many played the class at low ranks because they thought it was OP.


    Still, if the Dark Knight decides to push hard for whatever reason, there won''t be anybody to stop him.


    "Rotate to Top after you''re done with the wave," Yuel said. "Somebody has to keep that Dark Knight in check."


    "Eh? You want me to gank DK?"


    "Yes, we have to bully the lane bully out of the lane. With the Jungler dead, you''re the only one who can do it. Your lane is the closet to Top."


    "But, it''s dangerous," Nia twisted her lips. "Even Tipmancer warns against it."


    "You and your Tipmancer again," Yuel sighed. "Yes, there''s always some risk involved when ganking a Dark Knight. But, it''ll be fine. You got range. Worst case, you can always escape."


    "Hm, I guess. But, I don''t think I can kill him from that much HP."


    "It''s fine. This gank isn''t for killing. You only need to stop his offense and discourage him from pushing for a while. Bonus points if you can make him recall."


    "But, if it''s a waste if I don''t get a kill. I could be farming instead."


    "True, you''ll be sacrificing some farm and maybe even some lane advantage for this rotation. But, it''s not a waste. Your team will gain a tactical advantage from this. It''s like sacrificing a piece to get a better position."


    "Not sure I get it," Nia pressed her legs against her body and curled into a ball. This gank was scary. She has been doing so well thus far in the game, so why throw herself into danger like this? She might lose all the advantage she worked so hard to get. And, she won''t even get a kill from this. What a total waste.


    "Remember yesterday''s match with the Orc?" Yuel asked. "You refused to gank him and he ended up snowballing to the point of no return. While you were out there ''maximizing your farm'', the Orc was running amok and the team lost. Do you want that to happen here with the Dark Knight?"


    "Ah, um," Nia didn''t have a retort. It was all true. Despite how well Nia thought she played yesterday, the team suffered a terrible defeat and it was all the fault of that bully, the Orc. Even though Nia managed to score one kill on him during the mid-game, it was already too late at that point. That Orc single-handedly took the entire game. Somebody had to stop that madman earlier.


    But, was it really Nia''s responsibility? Couldn''t Yuel just play a little better back then and stop the Orc from snowballing to that point? How hard could it be?


    Well, maybe that wasn''t exactly fair. After all, Dark Knight and Orc were infamous bullies. So, it was normal to have a hard time against them in lane. Nia knew first-hand how stressful these matches could get.


    "O-Ok," Nia gulped. "I''ll give it a try. But, not my fault if I die."


    "Don''t worry, you won''t die as long as you don''t do anything stupid. But, if you do mess up and die, that''s on you."


    "Then I''m not going, hmph" Nia puffed her cheeks.


    "Just do it already. Even if you fail, think of it as a learning experience for next time."


    "Ok, I guess," Nia gave up and followed the nagger''s commands. [If I die, it''s totally your fault.]


    And so, Nia rotated toward Top instead of returning to Mid. She had the option to cut straight through the jungle to reach Top quickly. But, instead, she took a roundabout path by zigzagging all over the place. Every time she was about to pass through an intersection, she circled around it instead.


    "What are you doing?" Yuel asked.


    "Dodging wards," Nia explained.


    "You''re guessing where they placed wards?"


    "Nope. Tipmancer lists the best warding spots, so..."


    "I see," Yuel nodded. Despite the wasted time, this was a good way to rotate toward a lane. Avoiding wards along the way was the 101 of scoring kills with ganks.s


    But, that was only relevant when the goal was to actually score a kill. In these scenarios, the ganker sacrificed speed for a higher chance to secure the kill. It was something Junglers often had to do to get value from ganks, especially if they were assassins.


    However, Nia''s gank was different. The goal wasn''t to assassinate the Dark Knight. Of course, it''d be great if she manages to score a kill on the guy but that shouldn''t be the focus. The goal was to intimidate the Dark Knight into retreating. To that end, it was crucial to get to the lane as quickly as possible.


    Compared to that urgency, getting revealed by a ward along the way was merely an inconvenience. Either the Dark Knight will anticipate Nia and choose to fight in an unfavorable 1v2 situation, or he''ll begin his retreat early. In the first scenario, Nia might get a kill on him. In the other scenario, the Dark Knight will get away scot-free. BUt, removing him from lane was the entire purpose of this gank in the first place.


    So, it was like a win-win situation. Even if a Ward spots Nia, it won''t interfere with her gank much. In fact, it might even help her out by instilling fear into the Dark Knight.


    Showing herself to the enemy via a ward could be used as a high-level mind game. For example, it might make the enemy retreat without Nia actually lifting a finger. She could let a ward expose her, scare the enemy into retreating, and then return to Mid. This could have achieved the desired result without making Nia lose anything.


    Alas, while Yuel was busy thinking about all these angles and tried to come up with a way to impart this knowledge to Nia, she already made it all the way to Top. Despite all her roundabout running, she still got to Top relatively fast. It seemed she was quite familiar with this route so she took all the optimal cuts and corners. Quite the trained assassin.


    [So, I''ve arrived.] Nia gulped. Was she really going to jump into the lion''s den by attacking the Dark Knight? Scary.

 168 Hide-And-Seek in the Jungle

    "Ok, what now?" Nia was right around the corner but didn''t dare to set foot into Top Lane. She just stood there and watched how the Dark Knight was pushing the Top Turret and the injured Knight was maintaining distance in fear of being killed.


    Judging by the Dark Knight''s lack of reaction toward Nia''s rotation, it was safe to assume her stealth route worked splendidly. The Dark Knight didn''t even seem to consider the possibility of an incoming gank. The guy was drunk on his early-game strength and overextended hard without a care in the world.


    "Ping that you''ll attack the lane and go for it," Yuel said. "You might get a kill here but no need to put yourself in danger. Just strike hard to scare him and then retreat as necessary."


    "Ok," Nia nodded. In other words, this was going to be yet another standard sneaky gank. The enemy hasn''t noticed her yet, so her job was to finish the Dark Knight off without giving him a chance to strike back or flee. It''ll be an assassination!


    Nia opened the attack by summoning quicksand underneath the Dark Knight. No matter whether the guy was planning to attack or retreat, the slowdown will hinder him.


    After that, Nia shot a fireball at the slowed Dark Knight. It deleted 20% HP. The Dark Knight was now down to 40% and the ticks from Quicksand kept reducing his HP even further.


    [Solid execution.] Yuel nodded. [Now, if the Knight just joins the offense- Oh, I guess that''s not happening. Alright then.]


    Instead of following up on Nia''s attack, the Knight used this time to recall. It seemed he was asking Nia to defend the lane for him. If so, he should''ve said something. Nia properly pinged her plan to attack the lane but the Knight was on radio silence.


    [Low ranks, I swear.] Yuel shook his head. Still, even with that small issue, the gank turned out well overall. The Dark Knight was down to 35% HP and, despite his immense early-game power, his hands were tied. He''d have to get close to Nia in order to deliver any damage but she had ranged basics and the knockback from Windstorm. He won''t be able to get in against her.


    But, apparently, none of that concerned him. The Dark Knight blitzed straight at Nia, ready to draw blood!


    "W-What now?" Nia stuttered as she took a step back.


    "Now, you kill him," Yuel stated matter-of-factly. "He''s running low and his skills cost HP. He''ll become dangerous if he gets close but you can knock him away with your wind. You should be able to deal with him."


    "B-But, he gonna take me out in a few hits," Nia retreated while firing basics at the approaching monster. If that thing catches up to her, she''ll be dead meat!


    "Don''t worry," Yuel said. "He doesn''t have any mobility skills. And, even if he somehow gets close, you can- wha!?"


    The Dark Knight vanished! Then, he appeared right in front of Nia''s face!


    [A concealed Blink!?] Yuel jumped. [Darn, I should''ve considered that possibility!]


    This was a grave miscalculation. Back when Yuel was checking the Dark Knight''s status, he noticed the Dark Knight hasn''t fully utilized all earned funds. However, the idea of a cloaked Blink didn''t even cross his mind. After all, a Dark Knight had to get his build online as soon as possible.


    Yet, this Dark Knight was confident enough to delay his build and go for Blink. He must have been aiming to score more kills this way because he didn''t have any other ways to close distance to enemies. Unfortunately, this plan happened to serve him very well in this situation. Nia was in a real pinch.


    "A-Ah!" Nia jumped as a fog of darkness appeared in front of her. The Dark Knight, coated in black miasma, towered over her and swung his dark blade without further ado. In just one basic attack, 17% of Nia''s HP vanished without a trace!


    "Eh, ah," Nia kept opening and closing her mouth like a fish out of water. What. Why. Bad. Very bad! [G-Gotta get outta here!]


    Nia turned her back to the enemy and ran like her life depended on it. But, that bully had no mercy! The dark blade slashed through her back, deleting another 17%. She was so dead! So freakin'' dead! [I knew I shouldn''t have ganked this monster! Fuuuuuuuu!]


    [What is she doing?] Yuel frowned. Instead of creating as much distance as possible, Nia just casually ran away. At this rate, a third slash will hit her. "Roll away!"


    "Ah, oh! R-Right!" Nai activated Dodge Roll and jumped forth. But, she was just a moment too late. A third slash hit her and that''s another 17% gone. Just three hits and she was down to 49%!


    At least, with this roll, she created some distance between herself and that monster. Or, not!? The Dark Knight rolled right after her! He closed the gap in an instant!


    [Nice reaction time.] Yuel frowned. Between the cloaked Blink and this clean execution, this player might actually be a unicorn, the nonexistent decent low-rank Dark Knight player. But, not all hope was lost. "Knock him away with Windstorm."


    "Eh? Oh, right, knockback," Nia clumsily turned around and activated Windstorm. She did everything in a haste and almost missed the target at first. Fortunately, she corrected her aim in the last moment and unleashed the winds right in the Dark Knight''s face.


    The Dark Knight brought down his sword once more and then got blown away. Nia lost another 17% but at least she got that monster off her. Some of the spell''s damage reflected onto her due to the Knight''s Nightmare but it didn''t even matter. With how strong the Dark Knight''s basics were, she was and remained one hit away from dying.


    [That Dark Knight is playing decent but Nia''s responses are all over the place.] Yuel frowned.


    Even with the cloaked Blink surprise, things weren''t supposed to turn out like this. The Dark Knight should''ve gotten at most one hit thanks to the surprise element, nothing more. After conceding one hit, Nia should''ve immediately rolled away or pushed him back.


    [The Dark Knight can just barely cast Sheol with his remaining HP.] Yuel assessed the situation. [But, Nia is still one hit away from the insta-kill threshold.]


    Nia was at 32% HP, far enough from the 20% insta-kill threshold. Meanwhile, the Dark Knight was down to 11% HP, just barely above the 10% he needed for casting Gate of Sheol.


    The HP difference almost made it look like Nia had the upper hand but their damage output was the bigger factor. While the Dark Knight could finish Nia off in about two hits, she''d need about four basics to do the same. With her range advantage, she might land two hits before the Dark Knight closes on her but it won''t be enough.


    Ideally, Nia should maintain the current distance while firing away at the enemy. His Nightmare will gradually wear off his HP so Nia will be able to come on top. However, this dangerous line of play required Nia to play swiftly and efficiently. So, considering how sluggish she has been so far in this fight...


    "Yeah, retreat," Yuel nodded as Nia already turned her back to the enemy. Running away was the safer play here. There was no need to take unnecessary risks. The Dark Knight was already worn out and won''t be able to return to lane, so Nia''s gank has achieved its goal.


    But, it wasn''t over yet.


    "E-Eh!?" Shivers zapped Nia. STOMP. STOMP. STOMP. Heavy metallic sounds resounded behind her. The Dark Knight was chasing her!


    "This guy..." Yuel had no words. That Dark Knight was one hell of a confident guy. It''s as if the possibility of dying didn''t even cross his mind.


    In any normal situation, it''d be easy to punish the Dark Knight for such overextension. However, Nia wasn''t performing right now for some reason. She was stuck in some sort of panic mode. So, there was no way she''d be able to fight properly.


    [H-He''s getting closer!] Nia shuddered. The metallic sounds grew louder and louder. Was she imagining it? Didn''t Yuel say Dark Knight was a little slower than Wizard? Then again, Yuel was also the one who promised that nothing bad will happen in this gank. Lies! All lies!


    [It''s ok. It''s ok. Ok, ok, ok.] Nia tried to take a deep breath but ended up coughing instead. This situation was too much. She could feel the grim reaper breathing down her neck. She was so screwed!


    Despite the nonsense Yuel claimed, the metallic sounds were definitely getting closer. At this rate, that bully will catch up to her! She won''t be able to simply outrun him. Instead, she''ll have to juke that monster.


    Luckily, this was a nice part in the jungle. There was a small roundabout right ahead with a wall in the center. [Let''s play hide-and-seek. I''ll warn you ahead of time: I''m pretty good at this game.]


    Nia ran around the wall. However, instead of retreating deeper into allied territory, she kept running along the wall. She circled around it and returned all the way into enemy territory!


    The heavy metallic sounds were loud enough to inform that the monster was still hot on her trail. Compared to that, Nia''s steps were quiet as a mouse''s. [That''s what you get for wearing metal boots while being ''it''. That makes it easy to hear you coming.]


    While Nia could clearly hear the Dark Knight from a distance, the Dark Knight couldn''t hear her steps. Therefore, he couldn''t tell Nia just circled around that roundabout. With this maneuver, she was going to slip away!


    As she approached the corner of the wall, she rolled toward it and quickly vanished around the corner. Then, she pressed her back against the wall and began recalling.


    The hide-and-seek began. The Dark Knight only had a couple of seconds to find and catch her.


    [Does she really expect to get away like this?] Yuel wondered. This was an insane gamble. Instead of exhausting the Dark Knight''s Nightmare with a long jog, Nia opted for this gimmicky hide-and-seek maneuver.


    It was impossible to make out all the details because Yuel was limited to Nia''s POV. Based on the footsteps, the Dark Knight just passed the first corner. So, an odd view greeted him, an empty one.


    The Dark Knight was expecting to find out where his prey headed net. Instead, he found nobody. Nia was sneakily recalling on the other side of the wall, out of his field of view.


    This was a huge gamble based on mind-games. If the Dark Knight immediately sees through her ploy, he''ll catch up to her before she finishes recalling and will strike her down. However, how many players were able to figure something like that on the spot? Yuel wasn''t sure he would have made it in time either.


    Judging by the lack of metallic stomps, the Dark Knight came to a halt. It seemed he was lost. Most likely, he was checking all the possible escape routes that made sense. However, there was no trace of Nia in any of them.


    Logically, there''d be only two explanations. One, his prey somehow widened the gap between them. But, that shouldn''t be possible while Nightmare was on. It increased the Dark Knight''s movement speed enough to run faster than Nia.


    So, there was only one real option left: the possibility that Nia circled around the wall and ventured back into enemy territory. But, was that really possible? After all, it was such a risky and ballsy move.


    Honestly, neither theory seemed realistic at first glance. So, it was easy to understand why the Dark Knight was perplexed.


    Ultimately, it remained unclear what the Dark Knight thought of this peculiar development. Before they could see the guy''s next move, Nia finished recalling and was back at the base. Safe!


    [That shaved off a few years off my life.] Nia sighed in relief. Phew, she somehow dodged death. And, she definitely never ever gonna do that kind of thing again! That was pure suicide. Yuel was such a bully.

 169 The One Who Delivers Surprises Hates Being Surprised

    "Phew. Safe." Nia took a deep breath upon returning to base. These few seconds of recalling were the longest moment of her life. "That was scary."


    "Nice escape," Yuel said. "Though, you took a big gamble there."


    "He didn''t find me so I won," Nia said. This was a common technique she employed during hide-and-seek when she didn''t feel like going far. Instead of hiding in some desolate spot, she just snuck around the "it" and touched the home base once the "it" stepped away. She only stopped doing it because some kids kept complaining about how cheap it was. Though, she still resorted to that strategy from time to time because it was funny. It''s like she was a ninja. Nin nin.


    "Besides," Nia pouted. "I wouldn''t have to take any ''gambles'' if I didn''t gank that lane in the first place. I didn''t even get a kill. I knew it was a bad idea."


    "It turned out a little different from how I imagined it but it wasn''t a bad idea."


    "How come? I got nothing there, not even a kill. Nothing. Only almost got killed."


    "That''s not true," Yuel insisted. "You reduced the Dark Knight to critical health. He can''t keep farming like this so he has to return to base. That''s a huge deal. Not only it''ll let the Knight push now, but it also sets the Dark Knight back. Every second of farming the Dark Knight loses will hurt him dearly in the near future."


    "Sounds like shilling," Nia gave him a look. "There wasn''t anything impressive like that"


    "Very well," Yuel smiled meaningfully. "Perhaps you can''t see the bigger picture at the moment. But, in time, you''ll come to understand the importance of this gank. Even now, look at the Knight pushing the lane hard."


    While Nia was busy ganking the Dark Knight and running away, the Knight recalled to base, healed up and now returned to the lane. There was no lane opponent to contest him, so he pushed full gas. His minions had superior defense thanks to his passive, so most of them survived the clash against the enemy wave, and they all advanced together toward the enemy Turret.


    And, this was the only beginning. Perhaps Nia couldn''t see the ripple effect this will cause but taking lane advantage was huge against a lane bully. Dark Knight''s entire purpose in life was to dominate the lane in order to get ahead and now Nia robbed him of that higher ground.


    "Meanwhile, the Pyro is doing whatever he wants in Mid," Nia ranted on her way to defend her lane. "Byebye my lane advantage."


    While she was amiss, the Pyromancer returned to lane and pushed hard. Thanks to that, she lost all the lane advantage she built earlier. At least, that''s how she saw it.


    [It was a trade, not a loss.] Yuel reasoned. Following his instructions, Nia traded her lane advantage for an opportunity to rotate to Top and slow down the Dark Knight. It was like an exchange of resources: she traded one pile of lane advantage for one free rotation.


    In the greater scheme of things, this rotation will reap greater benefits for the team than holding onto a short-lived early-game lane advantage. However, with a newbie''s limited ability to see the greater picture, Nia couldn''t grasp how this exchange worked.


    "I''m not doing that again even if you ask," Nia pouted.


    [Grumpy much?] Yuel smiled wryly. "If you want to win against a team that has a Dark Knight, you [will] gank him as neccessary. Look how much the Knight managed to push thanks to your gank."


    "Hm, I guess he did some work," Nia twisted her lips. The Knight brought the enemy Turret down to 60% before the Dark Knight returned. This progress was only possible because Nia drew away the Dark Knight.


    "I could''ve stayed in Mid and do the same, though," Nia claimed.


    "True, a valid observation. You could''ve used that time to push Mid just as hard. But, the difference is that you have a favorable matchup in lane while the Knight doesn''t. Look how quickly you regained lane control as soon as you returned."


    "Well, I guess." Nia didn''t have anything to say to that. Even though she left the lane undefended and gave the Pyromancer so much time to establish lane control, she easily reclaimed control upon returning. Her Quicksand and Windstorm made quick work of the incoming minion wave and her Fireball smacked the Pyromancer.


    It was that easy to reset the situation, almost as if Nia never left the lane. The only penalty her lane suffered for that rotation was that her Turret lost 5% HP. No biggie.


    "As you see," Yuel lectured. "You didn''t lose much, but you helped the Knight get a lot of damage on the Top Turret."


    "I guess." Nia finally started seeing things Yuel''s way. Or, so he thought. "But, I almost died. That would have ruined everything."


    [So damn stubborn.] Yuel grimaced. "Your fight with the Dark Knight came down to the wire only because your reaction was sloppy. You just froze back there."


    "Ah, um," Nia curled into a ball on top of the chair and mumbled. "I don''t play Wizard much, so I didn''t know what to do..."


    "Fair enough," Yuel said. "But, now you know how to handle yourself. So, if you have to gank again, you''ll be able to defuse him no problem."


    "Maybe."


    [She''d never win the "Ms. Confidence" title, that''s for sure.] Yuel crossed his arms and thought back on the fight with the Dark Knight.


    Naturally, the fact Nia wasn''t entirely used to Wizard played a role in her slow decision-making. However, even aside from that problem, it felt like Nia just short-circuited there for a moment.


    A similar thing happened before when she was dueling Lars. When she tried to sneak up to him but he dodged her Izuna Drop, it felt like Nia was lost. She understood she had to retreat but her retreat was incredibly sloppy.


    That instance couldn''t be blamed on class unfamiliarity. After all, Ninja was one of her main classes. So, that one was all Nia. She failed to properly react to that development, just like what happened against the Dark Knight. It was surprising, considering Nia otherwise displayed a sharp gaming sense.


    [Is it nerves? Does she buckle under pressure?] Yuel wondered. Perhaps, the girl who loved launching surprise attacks on people actually hated being surprised herself.


    [Thinking of it, Julia had a lot of that too when she was starting out.] Yuel smiled softly. It took him a long time to help that girl overcome her stage fright. Instead of confronting it, Julia chose to flood the map with wards so she could reduce the number of unexpected developments. That approach partially got rid of the problem but it was costly and didn''t help her overcome the core issue she had.


    How should Yuel go about helping Nia overcome this? The one and only surefire method was to put her through many such difficult situations and force her to overcome them until she becomes more comfortable with them. Perhaps, that''d help her build up some confidence as well. At least, that''s the kind of experience that helped Yuel level up and be able to reason more calmly under pressure. Though, admittedly, some developments still threw him off at times.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    Nia killed the Pyromancer for the third time.


    "Good job," Yuel nodded.


    "This guy is kinda wack," Nia shrugged.


    "So it seems. Let''s see," Yuel checked the mini-map. "Take their red buff."


    "Can''t I just push?"


    "It''s better to use this opportunity to steal their camp."


    "But, I might run into somebody."


    "The Vampire just went far toward Top so no need to worry about him. The others are in their lanes. So, the camp is totally free. You can take it without any worries."


    "Not sure I can trust you on these things," Nia peeked at him with her black eyes through her long spaghetti bangs.


    "Don''t worry, this is much safer than the time with the Dark Knight. And, getting the buff is going to make laning a breeze from there onward."


    "Hmmmm." Nia twisted her lip. "Ok, I''ll try."


    She left the lane and traveled to the enemy Orc Camp. As Yuel said, the camp was undefended and free for the taking. At least, until Nia made her move.


    There was a good chance the enemy will spot her traveling toward the camp and will try to engage her there. That''s what Yuel was aiming for.


    As long as Nia doesn''t fold under the pressure of the sudden attack, she should be able to get the red huff and get away without any problems. However, if she reacts poorly and fails to disengage correctly, her life might be at stake. It should be a good learning experience.


    If Yuel wanted to advise a safe play, he''d simply tell Nia to take the Ogre Camp on her side. However, going after the enemy''s red buff was the high-risk high-reward play right now. Nia didn''t object so she seemed to understand the appeal of this play.


    If all goes well, Nia will experience a little bit of danger and also get to reap great benefits, provided she handles the situation appropriately. On top of that, she???ll get a great confidence boost after she overcomes this challenge.


    However, things didn''t quite go as he planned...


    "That''s sure a roundabout path you''re taking," Yuel commented.


    "Dodging them wards."


    "I see," Yuel frowned.


    In an ideal world, it was indeed the best to play around enemy wards here. However, in practice, traveling in circles like that wasted a lot of time and there was no way to guarantee she''ll really dodge all enemy wards. So, generally, it was best to take the shortest path at the risk of being revealed by wards.


    Nevertheless, if Nia truly dodges all the wards along the way, that''d make this play ten times safer. It''d still waste some precious time but it''ll potentially keep the entire play hidden from enemy eyes. It''ll be pretty neat, actually.


    After traveling through a long and sneaky route, Nia finally reached the Ogre Camp. All the while, there were no signs of movement from the enemy team. Both the enemy Ranger and Lumimancer remained in Bot. Apparently, Nia successfully snuck around the enemy''s wards. She turned this high-risk high-reward play into low-risk high-reward one.


    [This is both impressive and disappointing.] Yuel smiled wryly. On one hand, Nia improved Yuel''s play and transformed it something amazing. On the other hand, she didn''t get to face any danger so there was no opportunity to practice stressful situations.


    [Drat! And double drat!] Yuel shook his head. He felt like a villain whose plans have been foiled. Though, this was an interesting development in its own way.[ I''m willing to bet real money that Vincent would attribute this achievement to the "Vanishing Phantom". It sounds like something straight out a fantasy movie, but it seems to have something real to it.]


    Based on her playstyle so far, Nia didn''t seem to like frontal confrontations. Therefore, she always snuck around like this. And, as a result, she became proficient at playing around enemy wards, and sneaking up to players in general.


    That was her way to "deal" with the problem. She wasn''t good with stressful situations, so she found ways to minimize and avoid them. No stressful situations = no stress = easy life.


    Teammates like that can be a pain to command but maybe Yuel needed this kind of resistance at times. He had a bad habit of going for risky plays so somebody like Nia, who refused to put herself at risk, might be a good counter force. It might lower the chances of Yuel requesting a risky play from her that''ll lead to disaster. She''ll either object to it or find a way to lower the risk with her high-level sneaking skills.


    Though, at the moment, Nia was still too rebellious to Yuel''s taste. She refused to cooperate even with plays that were perfectly reasonable. However, that''s only due to her lack of experience in the MOBA mode. If Yuel properly helps her grow as a player, Nia might become a great asset for the team. In fact, she might even take the Jungler spot from Luke, the walking meme.


    It was still too early to tell but the potential was definitely there. It was up to Yuel and the rest of the club to help Nia develop into the fearsome player she could become. To that end, the first step was to make her more cooperative and increase her trust in Yuel''s shot-calling.


    That just became harder to achieve after Nia had an unpleasant interaction with the Dark Knight while following Yuel''s instructions. Nevertheless, she listened to his suggestion about stealing the Ogre Camp and this play went by smoothly. Hopefully, that redeemed Yuel a little. Hopefully.

 170 Help the Team to Help Yourself

    "Good," Yuel nodded in approval as Nia wiped out the enemy Ogre Camp without any interferences. "Now, you can push Mid even harder with the extra damage. It was a good idea, right?"


    "I guess," Nia said. "Maybe you can suggest ok plays sometimes after all."


    [This buff really helps, actually.] Nia nodded silently as she wiped out the entire enemy wave. The enemy swordsmen were beefy and have been surviving her spells recently, but with the power buff, these guys stood no chance. Nia deleted them from existence and advanced toward the enemy Turret.


    "You better retreat now," Yuel said. "Their Vampire might be coming for a gank."


    "Ah, right," Nia completely forgot that all sorts of randoms could gank her outta nowhere at any time in this mode. Scary.


    She got out of there just as the Vampire arrived. Phew, bullet dodged. Sometimes, Yuel''s advice was on point like that. It''s like he saw the future or something. Illuminati confirmed.


    While the enemy Vampire was busy cleaning up the lane, Yuel advised stealing both Griffins. Nia did so and outleveled all enemies as a result. This put her in a great position.


    [I''m kinda rocking this game.] Nia stopped for a moment to appreciate this rare occurrence. She usually had a rough time playing any role other than Jungler but this game was easy. Almost [too] easy, even.


    Half of it was thanks to the Pyromancer feeding her. However, the other half was undeniably thanks to Yuel''s advice. If not for those, the Vampire would have ganked her to death at least twice by now. Also, she wouldn''t have gotten ahead in farm because she wasn''t paying enough attention to the Griffins.


    [Maybe he''s not just a nagging bully.] Nia had to hand him that much. Maybe, just maybe, Yuel didn''t ask her to gank the Dark Knight with bad intentions. Maybe it was really a play that had to be done despite how scary it was.


    [I almost died, though.] Nia shuddered at the image of the demonic knight breathing down her neck. That monster nearly caught her and ripped her apart. It was pure bullying.


    [Even if it was supposed to be a good idea, I don''t want to do it ever again.] Nia gulped. Just the thought of going up against that demon again gave her chills. There was no reason to put herself through such unnecessary danger. She''ll just keep winning in her lane and eventually push all the way to the Colossus. Simple and easy, just like she liked.


    Unfortunately, it turned out things were neither simple nor easy.


    [Mid is ours but the other lanes are lagging behind.] Yuel analyzed the state of the map.


    In Bot, the situation was almost even. Both sides got about the same amount of damage on each other''s Turrets and held roughly the same KDA. However, the enemy Ranger was half a level higher than the allied Elf, probably due to being better at landing last-hits. This wasn''t a concern for the immediate future, but there was no telling when the situation might turn for the worse. A gank on Bot will be needed sooner than later to turn the momentum around.


    But first, there was the situation in Top. As expected, it was quite terrible. Ever since the Dark Knight returned to the lane, he has been pushing in full throttle. As soon as he wiped out the minion wave, he aggresses on the Knight with everything he got and even dived under tower.


    It was a bold overextension but the Knight didn''t punish it. Instead, he backed away from the dangerous invader and farmed from a safe distance under tower. That was a lot of wasted farm and it gave the Dark Knight a huge momentum, which was the last thing they wanted to give this lane bully


    At this rate, the Top Turret will fall and the Dark Knight pick will pay off greatly for the enemy team.


    Of course, the Dark Knight also ideally wanted to score some kills before mid-game. However, destroying a Turret gave the entire team a lot of gold and robbed the enemy of crucial map vision, so it was worth much more than plain kills. This Dark Knight had to be stopped at any cost.


    Unfortunately, the allied Jungler wasn''t too enthusiastic about ganking Top. He gave it a few shots and always retreated right away. The low effort ganks stalled the Dark Knight a little at a time but they didn''t force him to leave the lane. There was a need for a harder and more decisive gank.


    [Nia needs to gank.] Yuel concluded. At the moment, Nia had the most leeway with her lane control and she was a strong damage dealer to boot. She''ll be able to scare away the Dark Knight with ease, just like last time.


    ["Last time", huh.] Yuel smiled wryly. Last time, the way Nia played nearly gave Yuel a heart attack. She choked in that situation and barely got away. Not to mention, this Dark Knight was bold enough to buy Blink and it should be out of cooldown by now.


    [Do I tell her to go through with it again?] Yuel rubbed his temples. On one hand, this was a play that absolutely had to happen. On the other hand, Nia might fudge it up and die, thus losing the lane advantage she built up and feeding the Dark Knight. Worst of all, she''ll blame Yuel for her death and conclude that his shot-calling was poop, not exactly the reputation he wanted to build here.


    [With how this simpleton thinks, I bet she''ll stay happy as long as she just keeps doing well in Mid. Even if her team loses, she''ll probably think she played well and blame it on her allies. A classic amateur mentality. Sigh.]


    When a player was doing well, it was their responsibility to aid the teammates who struggled. There was no point protecting an easily earned lane advantage while the rest of your team was clobbered. That''s called winning the battle but losing the war.


    It''d be one thing if Nia was playing in Bot. In that case, helping Top would be difficult. However, from Mid, she was in the right position to deliver this much-needed gank.


    [She has to do it.] Enough mulling over it. If Yuel allows Nia to keep messing around in Mid without saving Top, he won''t be able to forgive himself. Without that gank, Nia will assuredly lose the match and learn nothing. Even worse, she''ll walk away from the game thinking she did great and that there was nothing wrong with how she played. That was unacceptable.


    [She''ll surely hate me for this, but...] Yuel took a deep breath and braced himself. "Nia, you need to gank Top."


    "Again?" Nia twisted her lips.


    "Yes, unfortunately. The Knight is getting clobbered over there. We''ll lose the Turret at this rate."


    "So it seems."


    "It''s a really bad situation there. I''m surprised he''s not spamming ''Help!'' macros. That''s the classic."


    "Who knows, maybe he does. I muted everybody."


    "Wait, you also muted the macros and pings?"


    "I used the global mute."


    "That explains a lot..." Yuel facepalmed. No wonder her team was as vocal as a graveyard. Even for a Qualifier match filled with low ranks, it was way too quiet. Everybody here was an Lv.50 player, so at least some of them must have learned to use macros and pings by now.


    "I understand muting the chat, but muting the pings and macros? That''s criminal."


    "I dunno. I just muted everything because I''m sick of all these online bullies."


    "Yeah, I understand that feeling. But, you better keep macros and pings on. Well, there''s no time to fix that now so just head to Top."


    "Do I have to?" Nia pouted.


    "Yes, you absolutely have to. In fact, I''d go as far as saying it''s your responsibility."


    "It''s not my lane."


    "Right, but it''s still your team''s lane. If he loses Top, it''s going to affect the entire team."


    "Yeah, but..." Nia twisted her lips.


    "Imagine it was the opposite. Say, you had a rough matchup in Mid while the Top Laner had the easiest matchup of his life. Wouldn''t you expect him to help you out?"


    "If I''m losing the lane it''s my fault."


    "Perhaps. But, your team can''t win all three lanes all the time. Some teammates will do better in their lanes and some will do worse. But, the ultimate goal is for the entire team to win."


    "Duh, I know that."


    "Then, what do you think would be better for the team in that hypothetical situation? For you to keep struggling in Mid alone, eventually lose the lane and bring ruin upon the entire team? Or, for the Top Laner to stop thinking only about his lane and come help you out so the team can win?"


    "Winning is better, of course."


    "Right? So, go gank Top. If you don''t, you''ll lose the whole match. A Dark Knight with momentum is a lot scarier than a Wizard with momentum. You might be thinking you''re doing great right now but, if you don''t help your teammates out, the enemy will kill them first and then gang on you. I wish you luck in that 1v5"


    "1v5..." Nia shuddered. She never thought of it this way but it made sense. No matter how hard she wished to avoid confronting the Dark Knight, that bully won''t remain in Top the entire game. Eventually, that he''ll come after her as well.


    "I know it''s hard to care about the team when you''re playing with randoms," Yuel said. "So, at least care about yourself. Help your teammates to help yourself."


    "Help them to help myself..." Nia mumbled. If she can shut down the Dark Knight now, she''ll make her own life easier later down the road. It was like attacking a baby dragon before it got a chance to mature into a monster that''ll tear her apart. It sounded like a good plan, actually.


    "Ok, I''ll try," Nia took a deep breath and headed toward Top. It''s ok, there was no point being scared of the Dark Knight now. She''ll have to face that demon sooner or later anyway, so better do it now before he gains momentum.


    [Sneaky as always.] Yuel smiled as he watched the irregular jungle route Nia took. She made many twists and turns in a blind attempt to dodge wards.


    Normally, it was futile to try dodging all the wards and it was better to save time by taking the shortest route. But, Nia made it work, as the Dark Knight hasn''t shown any signs of being aware of her incoming rotation.


    With all his recent reckless pushing, the Dark Knight was down to 60% HP. However, the guy feared nobody and kept pushing as hard as he could. The Knight couldn''t punish this overextension without getting closer and putting himself at risk, so he stayed back at the tower this entire time with his 50% HP. Most likely, he was waiting for an opportunity to recall to base and get out of this predicament.


    "Don''t forget to announce that you''re attacking," Yuel said.


    "Ok," Nia pinged Top with an "Attack!" emote. However, there was no reply from the Knight. Rather, they couldn''t see the reply because Nia muted everything.


    As such, it was impossible to tell what the Knight was planning to do with this situation. Was he willing to put his life on the line in order to strike back at the Dark Knight? Or, was he planning to use this opportunity in order to recall?


    Either way, Nia had to initiate the attack.


    [This better not turn out like last time.] Nia shuddered. Her small fingers trembled as she targeted her Quicksand...

 171 Fighting for the Same Goal

    Nia opened an attack on Top Lane. She summoned a quicksand underneath the Dark Knight and fired a fireball at him. That alone should bring the Dark Knight low enough to discourage him from fighting back. Except, the fireball didn''t hit!


    Even though the Dark Knight didn''t see Nia''s incoming rotation, he was prepared for the possibility. As soon as the quicksand formed at his feet, he blinked toward Nia and slipped past her fireball!


    "A-Ah!" Nia jumped. Again, the demon stood in front of her. The iron-clad knight was coated in a dark miasma, ready to lay waste to everything his path.


    A heavy slash. Just like that, Nia lost 25% HP. These attacks became even more dangerous than before! This Dark Knight packed himself with tons of power items! It was true terror!


    I-I have to get outta here! Nia trembled. This was impossible. The power gap between them was too much. She had to run for it. Run. Run. RUN!


    "Blow him away with wind!"


    "Ah, r-right!" Nia turned around and activated Windstorm in the Dark Knight''s face. The demon slashed her once more, then the winds pushed him away. Phew, Nia created some distance between them.


    However, this was far from over. She had 50% HP left and the Dark Knight was hot on her trail. He''ll rend her asunder if he gets close, so she had to get as far away as humanly possible!


    The Dark Knight gave chase. This madman had no fear. Even though his HP was hanging at 35%, he was confident he was on top of the situation and there was nothing to worry about.


    And, he was right. He was going to completely decimate Nia at this rate. She had run for her life!


    "Wait," Yuel said. "Ult him."


    "E-Eh? Now?" Nia flinched. This wasn''t the time to pick a fight with the demon. She was about to die! She had to scram!


    "Do it."


    "O-ok!" Nia turned around and cast Meteor. The radius of the spell was huge so she didn''t even need to spend any time aiming it.


    A giant meteorite rained from the sky and crashed on the Dark Knight. It erased 25% so the Dark Knight was down to 10% now. But, he was very much alive and he wasn''t happy about this development.


    As if in retaliation, the Dark Knight raised his blade and swung it downwards from afar. A black slash of magic flew straight at Nia!


    "Dodge-" Yuel was too late. The Dark Blast hit Nia straight in the face and eliminated 30% oh her HP.


    He made a good trade. Yuel frowned. The Dark Knight realized he couldn''t dodge the Meteor in time, so he opted for exchanging blows with Dark Blast. It cost him an additional 5% HP but he landed a hit. Now, he only had to land one more to finish this.


    I should''ve told her to Dodge Roll right away. Yuel frowned. Darn it. Now, this situation became needlessly difficult.


    The good news was that Dark Knight was now below 10% HP, which meant he no longer had access to Gate of Sheol. That was the option Yuel had to seal above all else. However, in the process, Nia ended up putting herself in even more damage than before. She was now one hit away from dying.


    Originally, Yuel wanted her to stay and fight the Dark Knight to the death after the Meteor. However, with the situation coming down to the wire like this, that''d be suicide.


    But, it should be fine. Yuel glanced at the mini-map. Help was on the way, that was the backup plan in case something goes wrong. For now, Nia should just focus on retreating.


    "Retreat- huh," Yuel smiled wryly. Nia has already started running away five hours ago.


    "Guguguuuu," Nia trembled while clutching her controller. It''s like she was going through a panic attack from this whole thing


    "No need to worry at this point," Yuel said. "He has to turn off Nightmare with such low HP and he already spent his Blink, so he can''t catch up to you."


    "I-I don''t trust anything you say anymore!" Nia ranted with ragged breathing. It''s like she was gasping for air.


    "If my estimation is correct, the Dark Knight should be dropping dead right about... now."


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    "Eh?" Nia came to a halt. The Dark Knight fell. The demon was defeated. Huh? What? How?


    "You better start recalling."


    "Ah, oh, right," Nia shook her head and returned to earth. Even though she just dodged the Dark Knight, this was no time to relax. She only had 20% HP so it was best to get the heck outta there.


    "How did you like that play?" Yuel asked.


    "It was terrible," Nia pouted. It put her through some real stress. She was sure she''d die over a hundred times over there. This called for a breather.


    Let''s see what I get. Nia blindly fished inside her bag and pulled the first snack she landed on. With her years of experience, she could tell just by the touch it was a bar of Cnickers.


    "The match isn''t over yet, you know," Yuel said.


    "Mfmf." Nia stuffed her mouth with the bar of chocolate and quickly bit away at it like a hamster. She couldn''t hold her controller properly while doing this, so she stood idle at the base and wasted precious match time.


    "Ah~" A shiver ran through Nia. She could feel the sugar seeping into her veins. A fuzzy feeling enveloped her and made her feel protected, like a warm motherly embrace. Except, her mom wasn''t there when she opened her eyes again. Real Life was such a disappointing video game sometimes.


    "Calmed down?" Yuel asked.


    "Mm," Nia gave a small nod and proceeded to purchase a Sentry Ward. She only got enough gold to buy it thanks to the short break she took, so at least that time wasn''t in its entirety.


    "I admit, I underestimated that Dark Knight," Yuel said. "He sure knows how to pilot the class. But, it turned out fine in the end. He didn''t have a real way out of that situation. It was checkmate in a couple of moves."


    "How did he die?" Nia checked the log. "Oh, that guy was there?"


    "Yes, the Knight was chasing the Dark Knight the whole time. I saw it on the mini-map so I figured we have to prepare the stage for the Knight. That''s why I asked you to cast Meteor despite the risk."


    "You trusted him to do the job? But, last time, he ran away."


    "True, I couldn''t tell his intentions 100%. But, he had more HP than last time and he was chasing the Dark Knight, so I figured he''ll go for it."


    "Too trusting."


    "Perhaps. But, you have to rely on your teammates sometimes. After all, you''re both fighting for the same goal. So, it only makes sense he jumped on an opportunity to take out the Dark Knight."


    "Hm, I guess," Nia replied vaguely as she returned to her lane. It didn''t seem like she was entirely convinced yet.


    "Remember, you don''t have to do everything yourself," Yuel went on. "When you rotate to gank a lane, it''s not just about you attacking the enemy. You also got your teammates over there. You have to trust them to do their part of the job."


    "Risky," Nia said.


    "True, risky but necessary. It''s a team game for a reason."


    "Hm," Nia''s reaction remained unclear but, hopefully, she began understanding the concept cooperating with her allies. There were many bad apples online but not everybody was an uncooperative scumbag.


    It feels like Kai all over again. Yuel sighed. For whatever reason, both Kai and Nia didn''t understand the basic concept of splitting the burden with teammates and relying on others. Kai always went about her plays the hard way and handled everything herself, whereas Nia outright avoided plays she deemed too difficult for her alone.


    Was this a result of playing online alone for too long? At one point in time, Yuel also relied mostly on himself. He was sick of how nobody on his team ever did their job, so he resorted to carrying the team on his own shoulders.


    During that dark age of his past, he absolutely hated playing Support. It was such an interesting and complex role, yet he couldn''t do anything with it unless his teammates had at least half a brain. Unfortunately, they often didn''t.


    Thankfully, Yuel was blessed with the opportunity to meet Lars. That was when his entire world flipped on its head. He finally got a Carry he could trust and with whom he could pull off strong plays. And, Julia was also there to provide more stability in Mid, even though things weren''t that smooth with her at first.


    Truly, Yuel was lucky to meet Lars and Julia so early in his Classmancers career. If not for that fateful meeting, he might have grown too used to playing "alone" in this team game. He''d keep hating Support and would try to handle everything himself, just like Kai and Nia.


    Unlike Yuel, Kai and Nia played alone for too long before meeting anybody trustworthy to play with. Perhaps, it was harder for them to find kids to play with because they were girls. Or, maybe they just didn''t have the right personalities for reaching out to others.


    Either way, they both crawled all the way to Lv.50 with the negative mentality that "teammates were wack" and "nobody could be trusted to do anything". This caused them to develop terrible habits.


    It was a shell they absolutely had to break out from. On the competitive stage, there was no room for solo play. Everybody had to work together in order to win.


    Five minutes after the enemy Dark Knight fell, Nia''s match reached its conclusion. The team pushed hard through Mid and Top until the enemy defenses crumbled. Due to that one death, the Dark Knight lagged behind everybody for the rest of the game and became mostly irrelevant. It was like 5v4 game.


    ¡ºVICTORY¡»


    "Remember this victory," Yuel said. "I know you still want to complain about the ganks I asked you to do, but you only won the game thanks to them."


    "Ok," Nia averted her eyes. She understood what Yuel was saying but it was hard to digest. After all, she almost died in both of these ganks and she failed to get any kills. It was such a pointless risk. It was awful.


    And yet, these plays undeniably helped the team win this match. Her ganks, as risky and seemingly pointless as they were, stalled the Dark Knight and didn''t let the demon to get out of control. So, he never had a chance to grow into a true monster and hunt down other lanes. By smithing the Dark Knight down in Top, Nia indirectly protected herself and her lane from future threats.


    This outcome was a world apart from how things played out during her entrance exam with the Orc. Back then, she let the Orc run free and that monster overwhelmed Yuel. After that, the Orc came to hunt everybody else and spread terror throughout the entire map.


    If only Nia listened to Yuel''s advice back then and ganked the Orc, perhaps she could''ve prevented that tragedy. Too bad she couldn''t turn back time to find out. Oh well. From now on, she''ll be more open-minded about Yuel''s advice. At least, she''ll try to be...

 172 Alone Against a Dark Knigh

    Nia won the Qualifier match but it was too early to celebrate. She still had six more matches ahead of her and she has already lost the first three, so she had to work extra hard to not end up in Bronze. To make sure that doesn''t happen, Yuel stayed by Nia''s side to give her advice.


    "Go to the advanced settings," Yuel said. "Here, you can choose what you want to mute."


    "Oh," Nia nodded. The basic "Mute All" option muted everything: chat, pings, and even the voiced macros. As much as Nia wanted to have a peace of mind during matches, she had to agree this was overkill.


    "You can keep the chat muted, that''s probably what you wanted in the first place. But, turn the rest on. It''s not much of a team game if you can''t coordinate anything with your teammates."


    "Mhm," Nia nodded and followed the orders.


    Turning the pings on was definitely important. However, as for the voiced macros, she wasn''t so sure. There were a bunch of smartasses who used the macros to flame, like spamming a sarcastic "Thank you!" or a "Your rock!" into "Cancel that!". Those were so annoying.


    However, those were much rarer than chat flaming and it was usually at least somewhat funny. So, Nia turned it on anyway.


    With that, she was ready to face her next qualifier match.


    [Please don''t match me with people who steal roles.] Nia has already typed "Jungler" in the chat in preparation. As soon as the match lobby loaded, she jammed it in! Nobody was able to beat the speed of her stealthy tech!


    However, being fast didn''t help her. Ranked drafting had a specific order and Nia wasn''t anywhere near the top of the list. The second player on the list called Jungler after her but he had the privilege to pick it first, so he ignored Nia''s call and went for Ninja. What a bully.


    Since the system shoved Nia to the bottom of the list again, so she had only two roles to pick from: Top and Support.


    [Nobody wants to play Support, huh.] Yuel smiled wryly. He had the urge to gather all the people who rejected the Support role and personally lecture them about the depth and complexity of the role.


    Unfortunately, it wasn''t a role that fits everybody. It required playing with a vastly different mindset than other roles and the Support player had to have sufficient game knowledge and experience to make the role be of any help. So, as much as Yuel would have liked to see more people give it a try, he had to concede that Nia was better off playing Top.


    "I can Vampire," Nia selected the class but hasn''t locked-in yet.


    "Vampire? For Top?" Yuel knotted his brows. "Well, it [is] considered a bruiser and it got sustain, but it''s not that tanky. You sure?"


    "Mhm," Nia nodded multiple times. She was dead set on playing Vampire for some reason. It was primarily a Jungler class so maybe Nia had some experience with it.


    "Sure, why not," Yuel shrugged.


    Vampire Top was borderline meme territory but this pick had a few merits. For one, Vampire''s basics were ranged attacks so it had range advantage over most Top Laners. However, in exchange, it had a lower attack and endurance. So, this was almost like bringing a Carry class to Top. It could either go extremely well or turn into a disaster right away.


    The enemy team left their Top pick for last, a thing that would normally be frowned upon in competitive matches. But, this was Ranked and teams were formed out of random players, so meta drafting could be dammed.


    "Ah," Nia twitched once the enemy picked their Top Laner. Oh noes. Nonono. Bad. Bad. Bad!


    It was a Dark Knight. Out of all things, it had to be that bully. Nia was done for.


    "This is a great chance for you to feel for yourself what it means to deal with a Dark Knight in Top," Yuel snickered. "What did you use to say about ganking Top? That the Top Laner should ''play better'' and not get overwhelmed by the Dark Knight?"


    "Geh..."


    "So, this is your chance. Show us how it''s done. Deal with that Dark Knight yourself. It''s easy, right?"


    "Gufu..." Nia curled into a ball. "Bully."


    "Well, it''s not all bad," Yuel said. "Vampire got range, so at least you can maintain distance whole farming. That''s a huge deal against a Dark Knight.


    "Oh, so I countered-picked him. I also countered picked that Pyro last game. Maybe I''m genius at counter-picking? Gotta be it."


    "Sure, sure," Yuel rolled his eyes. Yeah, [counter-picked the Dark Knight before the opponent even picked it. Truly, such a godlike level of counter picking.]


    With that said, counter-picking Dark Knight ahead of time during the Qualifier and at low ranks made sense in general. It was a popular "noob stomper" class because he usually required the enemy team to cooperate in order to take him down. And, with how well-organized teams of random people were... yeah.


    "Hm, Tipmancer doesn''t have anything for this matchup," Nia twisted her lips. Recently, the more she was using Tipmancer, the more it felt like a sham. Like, the advice was legit and all but there wasn''t nearly enough of it. It felt like Yuel stored way more useful game than this entire app.


    "I''d go aggressive," Yuel said. "Something like Giant Warhammer."


    "Hm?" Nia tilted her head. "Shouldn''t I buy defense to survive his attacks?"


    "You can try that but it probably won''t go well. Your clearing speed is mediocre but your opponent''s is off the charts, so you need as much power as you can get to race him. Of course, you won''t be able to beat him even with Warhammer but at least his minions won''t get to push much."


    "So, it''s like ''offense is best defense''?"


    "Yes, you can put it that way. Play safe from afar but be aggressive with clearing minions."


    "Sounds all kinds of weird but I think I get it," Nia nodded.


    As expected, the matchup was rough. The Dark Knight wiped out her entire minion wave with a single Dark Blast. Nia had to retreat to her Turret before she even got to sneak in a single hit on the enemy minions.


    She resorted to firing at the incoming wave from her tower area. The little bats she sent flying packed a punch thanks to Giant Warhammer. Nevertheless, it didn''t stop the enemy from invading her Turret. And, along with the minions, the Dark Knight also fearlessly jumped into her territory and hacked away at the Turret.


    [I swear, players in low ranks got no fear.] Yuel smiled wryly.


    Perhaps, that Dark Knight took into account it was risky for Nia to shoot him. Vampire wasn''t too tanky despite being classified as a "bruiser", so Nia couldn''t absorb too much minion fire, especially not during the early game. But no, this player probably didn''t think about any of that.


    That guy probably assumed the opponent will have to respect him because he was a Dark Knight. It was a typical arrogance that came with being a Dark Knight player. Back in the day, Gregory used to play it a lot and always acted like he was the strongest player in the world.


    [Boy did he rage when he played against a competent team that shut him down.] Yuel chuckled. Unfortunately for Nia, her random team wasn''t the competent type. She got zero aid from her peers against the Dark Knight.


    ¡ºHELP!¡»¡ºHELP!¡»¡ºHELP!¡»


    ¡ºGANK!¡»¡ºGANK!¡»¡ºGANK!¡»


    No matter how much she spammed the macros, the Jungler didn''t show any signs of caring. That antisocial Ninja only cared about his own farming and left Nia to die.


    "Maybe he muted everything," Yuel wondered.


    "What kind of Jungler mutes pings and macros?" Nia glanced aside.


    "I know, right? Crazy people." Yuel chuckled. "So, looks you''re on your own against this Dark Knight. Feeling like chances are in your favor?"


    "Not really..." Nia twisted her lips.


    "Right, because they really aren''t. You need this guy to mess up big time to get anything going here. Otherwise, you''ll be like a lamb to slaughter. So, you see why it''s so important for somebody to land a hand in Top against a Dark Knight?"


    "Guh. This class is broken. Can''t he pick an honest one?" Nia pouted.


    "It''s a noob stomper class, same as Rogue. You''re not playing the game for real unless you know how to deal with these classes."


    "Then, guess our Ninja isn''t playing the game for real," Nia glanced aside.


    "Look who''s talking," Yuel gave her a look. "Anyway, if the Jungler doesn''t gank then you''re in trouble. Our Mid isn''t doing too hot over there so he doesn''t have the luxury to help you either."


    "So, GG?"


    "Hey, don''t write yourself off like that yet. Just because it''s a tough position doesn''t mean you don''t have any chances of coming on top. You might be able to handle it yourself somehow."


    "Like how? I wait for him to run low on HP and then attack?"


    "Yes, that''s a valid approach," Yuel nodded. "I take it you have a lot of experience dueling Dark Knights?"


    "More than I care for," Nia shuddered. Back when she was just a naive greenhorn who jumped into Duel unprepared, Dark Knight players were everywhere. It was the most broken thing ever. Just thinking back on it gave her the yikers.


    "Considering you reached Platinum, I suppose you learned know to deal with Dark Knight?"


    "Yeah, it''s easy," Nia nodded. "I just ban it."


    "That''s... not quite what I was hoping to hear," Yuel frowned. So, Nia''s solution to Dark Knight was never fighting him. Huh.


    Ranked Duel allowed each player to ban three classes, so it made sense to ban problematic classes. In fact, Dark Knight''s bloated ban ratio at low levels made many players use it as justification to complain about the class being OP, even though Dark Knight wasn''t nearly as dominant on the highest level of play.


    In Duel, Dark Knight was undeniably strong. However, it suffered greatly from the fact the game started at Lv.5, which was halfway toward mid-game. Unless the Dark Knight managed to establish an overwhelming advantage in the first couple of minutes, he was doomed.


    Alas, at low levels, players didn''t know how to defuse a Dark Knight and it ran all over them. Therefore, it became a popular ban. People rather avoid a Dark Knight than learn the matchup. It was a valid, but the less skillful, approach to ranking up.


    Unfortunately, Nia chose to do exactly that. In other words, she didn''t [really] have much experience dealing with a Dark Knight on her own. Yuel will have to hold her hand here.


    "At least you know the general idea," Yuel said. "Your best shot is to patiently wait for the Dark Knight to run out of HP or to overextend. I take it you learned it from Tipmancer?"


    "Mhm," Nia nodded. "This strat kinda works but not really."


    "Yeah, I know what you mean. This matchup can be frustrating sometimes. In this mode, it''s even harder because you start at Lv.1."


    "So, what do?"


    "Just do it. Defend and wait. Let''s see what kind of Dark Knight we got on our hands and find an opportunity to strike him down."


    "Ok." [That''s my favorite pastime.] Nia nodded to herself. Turtling and waiting for the opponent to make a mistake was her prime strategy in Duel. At some point, people lowered their guard and committed a grave overextension, which Nia immediately punished with a kill.


    But, that was a lot way easier to pull off with an assassin class. Vampire was assassin-ish when built with power items, but it was still a world apart from a proper assassin with burst damage. So, even if this Dark Knight overextends, will Nia be able to properly punish him and get a kill...?

 173 Playing the Patience Game

    The laning phase continued with a dark cloud of uncertainty hovering over Nia. Every time, she managed to sneak in one shot on the Dark Knight before he unleashed Dark Blast and wiped out her entire army. Then, she had no choice but to retreat and continue firing from under tower.


    The Dark Knight fearlessly invaded with his minions and ravaged the Turret with his black blade. With every wave, Nia''s Turret lost a bigger and bigger chunk of HP.


    [In most cases, these would be punishable overextensions.] Yuel thought. If Nia were playing a class with heavier CC or more burst, she could''ve given that Dark Knight a hard time. Alas, Vampire didn''t have such tools until Lv.5 so Nia had to play patiently.


    Surprisingly, she didn''t complain about this routine. In fact, it seemed she liked playing like this. Perhaps, turtling was her preferred playstyle, seeing as she also used it against Vincent and Lars back when she dueled them.


    Eventually, Nia hit Lv.5. Alas, by now, the Dark Knight was already at Lv.6 and halfway to Lv.7. On top of that, Nia''s Turret was down to 40%. This was a terrible position.


    Still, as bad as it was, Nia successfully reached this position without any big losses. She was Lv.5 and had full HP. What little HP she lost to stray shots from minions was healed up via Bloodthirst, Vampire''s passive life-stealing. So, she was perfectly healthy but the same couldn''t be said for the Dark Knight.


    With great power came a great price and the Dark Knight has been slowly but surely paying it. With each Dark Blast he fired, 5% of his HP was sacrificed. In due time, he''ll wear himself out. He was already down to 70% at this point.


    Fortunately, the guy didn''t start off with a life steal item. His only ways to recovery were either killing Nia or using potions, which he didn''t seem to have on him. So, as long as Nia stays safe in the back, the Dark Knight will exhaust himself in a couple of waves. That''s when Nia will get her chance to strike him down.


    Unfortunately, her Turret was in danger. If things keep going on like this, her Turret will crumble in a couple of waves. Not only she''ll lose the lane, but it''ll also rob her of any good opportunities to kill the Dark Knight before mid-game. Something had to be done before it comes to this.


    "You have to spook him a little," Yuel said. "We can''t let him keep pushing the Turret without worrying about anything. Next time he invades, Night Horde him."


    "Hm, I don''t wanna," Nia twisted her lips. "That''ll remind him I''m here."


    "Yes, that''s the idea. We have to remind him that you''re here to defend the lane or else he''ll keep doing as he pleases."


    "I''m ok with that. As long as he doesn''t notice me, it''s good. That''ll let me surprise him real good." Nia snickered.


    [So, she''s waiting for him to lower his guard completely and then strike.] Yuel nodded to himself. That must have been the true nature of what Vincent referred to as "Vanishing Phantom". By playing passive like this for long enough, Nia made her lane opponent lower their guard and then delivered a fatal blow.


    But, how trustworthy was this technique, really? If it was up to Yuel, he wouldn''t bet the entire lane on something like that. Instead, he rather poke the Dark Knight out of the tower''s area.


    However, Nia was the one playing and she was the most familiar with her own playstyle, so it was her call. Besides, Yuel was curious to see whether it''ll work this time as well. Still, there was one issue.


    "It''s good and all if you want to stay low," Yuel said. "But, if you keep letting him do as he pleases, he''ll take the tower out. Waiting for the right moment to deliver your strike is pointless if you''re going to lose the lane before that opportunity ever arrives.


    "I was planning to attack this wave." Nia tilted her head. "I think I can get him."


    "You do?" Yuel raised an eyebrow. "Remember, you''re not an assassin. You don''t have burst."


    "Yeah, but I got CC. I did something like this before. I think it''ll work."


    "Is that so," Yuel wondered. He didn''t see the play she had in mind. The Dark Knight has already wiped out Nia''s wave and she was in the middle of retreating. What could she possibly pull this time that she couldn''t do before?


    Yuel wanted to ask but he stayed quiet. He didn''t want to distract Nia during this important moment. Soon, the answer will reveal itself on its own.


    As usual, the Dark Knight followed his minions into the Turret''s range. Nia didn''t have enough damage output to kill all the enemy minions on their way to the Turret, so she had no choice but to allow this scenario to play out every time. The repeated successes must have fueled the Dark Knight with confidence; he didn''t even think twice about invading the Turret.


    [He''s not paying any attention to me.] Nia was convinced. Based on how the Dark Knight didn''t bother to throw a single glance in her direction this entire time, it was safe to assume she has completely erased her existence from his mind. This was the opportunity to strike!


    [I can see it. That should be a kill.] Nia replayed the scenario time and again in her head. [First aggro. Then stun. Then slow down. That should be at least three Turret shots. He''s dead.]


    Thump. Thump. Nia''s heart quickened. It should be good, right? She wasn''t missing anything in her estimation? Yeah, it should be good.


    [Here goes nothing.] She took a deep breath and waited for the Dark Knight to start a new swing. Now! She rolled forward!


    The Dark Knight was already in the middle of swinging his blade so he couldn''t stop. He successfully brought down his sword but an unexpected obstacle appeared in front of him. Nia rolled right between him and the Turret!


    "Wha-!?" Yuel jumped. What kind of suicidal play was this!? [But, wait. From here she can...!]


    The black blade cut through Nia and erased 15% of her HP. It packed a punch but Vampire had decent HP so it was nothing. The only thing that mattered was that the Dark Knight''s attack connected. Even though unintentionally, the Dark Knight undeniably struck Nia. He laid a finger on her under the watchful eye of the Turret!


    WHAM. The Turret fired a giant bolt in response. This one wasn''t aimed at the minions. BAM! It crashed into the Dark Knight and deleted 15% of his HP! The guy was in deep trouble now.


    And, this wasn''t the end. The Turret will continue its lethal vendetta on the Dark Knight. That bully had no choice but to flee with a tail between his legs.


    But, Nia didn''t give him the chance. As soon as she recovered from the roll, she activated her ult, Night Hunt. She transformed into a giant bat and crashed into the Dark Knight from point-blank! This CC ability, which was normally intended for traversing some distance, was used as a point-blank insta-stun!


    [Brilliant!] Yuel found himself gasping. [She caught him. The Turret is onto him and he can''t move. He''ll have to eat at least two more shots.]


    After bumping into the Dark Knight, Nia reverted back into her Vampire form and hugged the Dark Knight tight. She sucked his blood and locked him in place. Meanwhile, the Turret fired without mercy.


    BAM. Another 20% HP gone! Each shot was stronger than the previous when a Turret was focused on a player. The Dark Knight was already down to 30% HP. Combined with the ongoing damage from Night Hunt, the next turret shot will seal the deal.


    The enemy minions didn''t appreciate this development in the slightest and opened fire on Nia. They did everything in their power to pressure her into leaving their master alone. However, it did nothing. Nia started this fight with full HP, so even heavy fire from an entire minion wave wasn''t going to be too lethal.


    BAM. The third and last turret shot connected.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    The Turret dealt the final blow but everything about this play was Nia''s achievement. It was amazing. How did she even come up with such a play? Such a bizarre idea didn''t even cross Yuel''s mind in this situation. It was art in the making!


    [Seems like I didn''t need to use Horde in the end. Oh well.] Nia shrugged and switched her focus to the angry mob that was slashing and firing at her. Thanks to these little guys, she dropped all the way from 85% HP to 60%. That wasn''t very nice of them, was it? [Time to exterminate.]


    "Wait," Yuel said. "Lure them outside the tower. You''ll get more farm from killing them there."


    "Oh, ok," Nia ran outside the tower area and dragged all the minions with her. Then, she wiped them out one by one.


    Finally, the lane was clear. Nia stood there alone. She was victorious! She sized the lane all by herself against a Dark Knight! She did it! Now, she could go ahead and take the enemy Turret-


    "Their Jungler is rotating over here," Yuel warned. "You may want to recall for now."


    "Ah, um, sure," Nia twisted her lips. [There goes my epic chance to push. This mode is such a pain. Even if I beat my opponent, it doesn''t guarantee anything. Such rewarding. Gufu.]


    Nia followed Yuel''s advice and recalled to base. By the time the enemy Lancer arrived in Top, there was nobody to greet him.


    "Do I just upgrade ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»?" Nia asked.


    "Yeah, that''s good enough," Yuel nodded. "That aside, may I ask how in the world you came up with that play?"


    "What play?"


    "The one where you rolled into the Dark Knight''s swing. That was something else."


    "Ah, I had to aggro him so figured I could just roll in there."


    "Just like that?"


    "Yeah. Figured he wasn''t paying attention so I could sneak in."


    [She sure makes it sound simple. But, that was far from a simple play.] Yuel still couldn''t wrap his head around what just happened there. It was indeed simple but, at the same time, it had a hint of brilliance to it.


    It reminded of the crazy stunts Lars occasionally pulled in the heat of the moment. However, none of Nia''s actions there were partially mind-blowing or even particularly risky. She had a big life lead, so things like being hit by the Dark Knight and aggroing the entire minion wave weren''t a true danger. It was a creative play but also a safe and calculated one.


    [Was it a fluke?] Yuel wondered. [No, she was too confident about it for it to be a fluke. So, it had to be a tech she learned from somewhere, right? After all, she said she did something like this before.]


    "I''m sure Tipmancer didn''t teach you that kind of play," Yuel said. "Where did you pick it up?"


    "Hm, dunno," Nia shrugged. "I just remember tying something like that before and it worked. So, I did it again. Ah, but last time I was a Drow, though."


    "With Drow?" Yuel raised an eyebrow at first but then it clicked. She probably blew up the Drow''s phantom right in the enemy''s face in order to stun them. Another smart tower jailing play.


    Did Nia really invent that play all by herself? If so, there was more to Nia than met the eye. In fact, Vincent would immediately jump on the opportunity to make up a silly name for that "ability". He''d probably call her something silly like "The Tower Jailor!"


    With every passing play, Nia was shaping up to be a more and more interesting player. Even though the club initially prioritized her over other candidates for her gender, she has been exhibiting a lot of potential. Her skill was raw and unpolished at the moment, but if Yuel helps her learn the game and solidify her foundation, she might transform into a scary player.

 174 The Junglers Help

    Nia killed the Dark Knight and secured lane advantage. However, it didn''t last for long. The Dark Knight returned to terrorize the area after Nia got to do only one small push on his Turret.


    [Will her gimmick work a second time?] Yuel wondered. Last time, Nia caught the Dark Knight off guard with that suicidal roll. Will the Dark Knight be dumb enough to fall for it again? This was a qualifier match, so there was a chance this Dark Knight wasn''t the sharpest tool in the shed.


    Unfortunately, the Dark Knight cooked up a counter of sorts. After he eliminated Nia''s entire minion wave, he backed away and let his minions push on their own. He didn''t dare to get close to Nia, which stopped him from overextending. It was overcompensation but the guy clearly learned a lesson. Nia''s play successfully seeded terror in him.


    Though uncharacteristically defensive for a Dark Knight, this response made a lot of sense. Even without joining any pushes from now on, he has dealt more than enough damage to the Turret at this point. Nia''s Turret was hanging by a thread and she couldn''t stop the minions from invading because the Vampire lacked fast AoE clear. So, even without the Dark Knight''s help, the minions delivered damage on the Turret with every push.


    [This isn''t good.] Nia sulked. The team''s Ninja didn''t go out of his way to gank Top, so nobody was there to help her stop the invaders. It was over.


    ¡ºAn allied Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    In the end, the Turret crumbled. Despite all her efforts, Nia lost her important line of defense.


    Wham! A dark slash wiped out her entire army again. And, this time, she couldn''t even fall back to her Turret to defend. Her line of defense was now all the way back near the base, at the Top Golem. She had no choice but to retreat all the way back there and surrender lane control to her opponent.


    Even in this desperate situation, there was no news from the team''s Jungler. The guy was sleeping on this whole development.


    "We lost," Nia pouted and started a surrender vote.


    "Wha-!?" Yuel was taken aback. "Cancel that at once. It''s too early to give up."


    "It''s less than 10 minutes in and they''re already pushing the Golem. GG. We''re ded."


    "I agree, that''s a severely disadvantageous position to play from. But, it''s no reason to give up."


    "Hrm, ok," Nia canceled her surrender vote. Only a few MOBAs out there allowed people to change their surrender votes like that before the voting was over. The game allowed even Nia, the one who initiated the voting, to change her mind.


    Truly, this feature was a godsend. With its help, Yuel convinced many of his online teammates to not give up even when the circumstances seemed dire. By changing the mind of at least one person, it was possible to avert a disaster.


    Thankfully, only one other person voted for surrender. The vote remained anonymous so they couldn''t tell who on their team was the quitter. Most likely, it was somebody who was currently flaming Nia in chat for the situation in Top. After all, with all said and done, losing a Turret so early into the game was demoralizing. In a competitive match, it assured defeat.


    However, this was just a qualifier match with players of unknown caliber, so anything could happen. That Dark Knight only won the lane thanks to the Dark Knight''s early-game advantage. Other than that, he wasn''t a particularly impressive player.


    On top of that, the one time he died seemed to have shaken him badly. He probably won''t be taking any risks in the near future. So, despite losing the lane, Nia was still indirectly stalling the Dark Knight.


    The Dark Knight was overwhelming the team right now but his power advantage won''t last forever. Once they hit mid-game, the guy will be exposed as the mediocre player he was. At that point, Nia''s team will mount a counter-attack. Hopefully.


    "Phew, finally," Nia sighed as the Dark Knight finally decided to give her a break and stop pressuring her at the Golem. The guy turned around and vanished into the jungle.


    [Is he recalling?] Nia wondered. [Well, not like I care.] She turned around and ran into the base. She was so close to the base it was faster to get there by foot than via recalling.


    "I wouldn''t be so happy about this," Yuel said. "There''s a chance he went to steal your camps. Or, even worse, to gank Mid. You need to call missing and warn Mid."


    "Oh, ok." Nia used a macro for missing enemy in Top and a ping that told their Sorcerer to watch out. Alas, that didn''t quite help...


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    The Dark Knight rent asunder the Sorcerer and proceeded to attack the Turret.


    ¡ºAn allied Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    "See? Told you." Nia pouted. "We''re ded."


    "This is indeed rough," Yuel didn''t have any reassuring words to spare this time. Dark Knight was a "noob stomper" for a reason. A dysfunctional team like this had a very hard time dealing with this harbinger of doom.


    ¡ºA surrender vote has started for your team.¡»


    This time, it wasn''t Nia. The Sorcerer initiated the vote. Though, his reasoning was probably all the same: "I lost the lane so it''s over."


    [Such a weak will.] Yuel shook his head. As he thought that, another player voted in favor of surrendering.


    "What''s that supposed to mean?" Yuel asked. "You''re throwing again?"


    "But, we lost," Nia pouted.


    "You haven''t lost until you see the¡ºDEFEAT¡» message on your screen. Stop acting like every little problem means the end of the world."


    "Hrm, ok," Nai withdrew her vote again. Another player placed a surrender vote but two weren''t enough to decide a surrender. Yet again, the team dodged a disaster.


    "Defend Mid for now," Yuel said. "You''ll have to play the patience game for a while."


    "I dunno how we gonna win with two Turrets down..."


    "It''s rough but not impossible. You just have to wait until mid-game. The Dark Knight will become much less of a threat by then and you''ll be able to-"


    ¡ºTheGoldenStar (Sorcerer) has left the game!¡»


    "Wow," Yuel narrowed his eyes. "People ragequit even during qualifiers? I heard that makes the system think poorly of you."


    "Ok, now we''re ded for sure, right?"


    "If he doesn''t return then, unfortunately, yes. Give him a couple of minutes. If he''s not back, you''re free to surrender."


    If it were up to Yuel, he''d fight 4v5 to the bitter end. However, that''d be playing on uneven ground so it was reasonable to quit. A 4v5 of this type was an "unrealistic" scenario as far as competitive play was concerned, so there wasn''t much practical knowledge or skill to gain from it.


    Three minutes later and there was still no sign of the Sorcerer returning. So, the team surrendered. It was an anticlimactic and unfortunate finale.


    [Thanks for nothing, ThePoopStar.] Nia grumped as another red X appeared on her qualifier record. After this match, she now had one win and four defeats.


    "Gufu..." Nia sunk in her chair. At this rate, the devs gonna invent a new Wood league below Bronze and throw her in there.


    "You''re not queueing for another game?" Yuel asked.


    "Break time," Nia put down her controller and fished in her bag. She threw a glance at Yuel and returned to her fishing. Then, she pulled out a bunch of chocolates.


    "Hrm," She stretched a bar of chocolate toward Yuel.


    "Why, thank you," Yuel accepted the offer. "I see you don''t discriminate against me this time."


    "It''s payment for replacing Tipmancer."


    [So, I''m just an app, huh.] Yuel smiled wryly but accepted the payment for his hard work. Frankly, it wasn''t easy dealing with Nia so a reward was nice. The dark chocolate hit the spot. [Just how many different snacks this does girl carry in her bag, anyway?]


    "Yo, we''re done with the match," Lars called out. "Wanna join us for the next one?"


    "No, you can go ahead," Yuel said. "I rather watch Nia''s matches some more. She got a lot to learn."


    "Welp, okay then," Lars shrugged. "Let''s go, my dudes! Another ez victory!"


    [They seem to be doing well.] Yuel thought. Ben was in the clubroom for a change so they formed a full team even without Yuel. The fact they were on a winning streak only proved how little difference Yuel made as a Top Laner. Even Ben, with his relatively unpolished skill, was more than enough for the team to fare well.


    After a needlessly long half-hour break, Nia queued into her 6th qualifier match. This time, the other players respected her early role call and let her play Jungler.


    "Guh, Tipmancer still saying Rogue isn''t that good right now," Nia scrolled through the Jungler tier list.


    "It''s correct," Yuel nodded. "Rogue is lacking some tools to be truly competitive."


    "Weird. I played it a bunch before discovering Tipmancer and it worked. I even steamrolled sometimes."


    "I''m sure you did. Rogue is like Dark Knight, it''s good at steamrolling uncoordinated teams. Especially, teams which don''t ward enough."


    "Sounds decent."


    "Yes, it''s a nice advantage to have in online matches. But, in the end, it suffers from the same problems Dark Knight got, except for Rogue the payoff is much lower. Even when Rogue gets ahead early, it''s not going to be as dominating as Dark Knight."


    "Sad story," Nia said. "I''ll take Ninja then, since Shadow is banned as always."


    "That works."


    This match proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that Ninja was one of Nia''s best classes, both in Duel and in MOBA. She knew how to farm camps efficiently and she frequently snuck up to enemies for a gank. She lay low during the early-game, then went on a killing spree during the mid-game.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    She snuck up to the unsuspecting Electromancer and smashed him into the ground with Izuna Drop. It was over in a matter of seconds.


    [He should''ve hugged the tower with that HP.] Yuel criticized the Electromancer. The guy refused to fall back despite being at 60% HP. It''s as if he didn''t even consider the possibility of being ganked by Nia.


    And, this wasn''t a one-time occurrence. Almost every kill Nia scored had a similar pattern. For some reason, the enemy team never saw her coming. The way she blended into the background and made her enemies lower their guard was impressive. It almost felt like a real superpower. Almost.


    ["Vanishing Phantom", huh.] Yuel smiled wryly. Even though he understood the theory behind it, the way it played out in practice took him aback every time a new. If this approach works in the competitive scene as well, it''ll be huge.


    Unfortunately, despite Nia scoring kills on Mid and Bot, their Top was in a difficult situation. The enemy Monk has been pressuring their Knight for a while now and Nia has been neglecting the lane. Her excuse was that she "won''t get any kills" there. A silly argument. Yuel will have to eventually tell her to-


    "Hm, Top is in trouble," Nia mumbled. "Anything I can do about it? I don''t think I can get a kill on that Monk."


    "Ah," Yuel blinked. Yes! Finally! Nia saw the light! "If you can''t convert a gank into a kill, just pressure him into retreating. If you feel like experimenting and want to optimize time, you can just send your clone over there and scare him away, without actually going all the way over there yourself."


    "Oh, that''s smart," Nia nodded. She snuck up toward Top and sent a clone in the direction of the lane. [Will this work? Hehe, will be funny if it does.]


    The trick worked like a charm. Even though the Monk has been confidently dominating the lane the entire match, he ran away like a scaredy-cat the moment he saw the approaching Ninja clone. He had no way to tell whether this was the real Nia or not and, either way, it was a big red flag.


    From his perspective, either that Ninja was the real deal and was coming to kill him, or it was a clone, which implied the real Ninja was nearby in stealth. Either way, it was a dangerous situation so it was safer for the Monk to retreat and surrender some lane advantage.


    "Kuku, it really worked," Nia smirked. "I didn''t get a kill, tho."


    "That again?" Yuel spat a sigh. "As I said, a Jungler''s job isn''t just to get kills. Sometimes, you have to apply pressure on lanes even if you won''t get kills from it."


    "Yeah, I kinda get it now," Nia said. Ganking a lane for something other than a kill or split-pushing seemed weird at first, but it was actually pretty effective sometimes. Just by spooking the Monk with her clone, she stopped the guy''s aggression and let the allied Knight regain some footing on the lane. It was a little hard to immediately appreciate the consequences of this play as the Jungler, but their Top Laner surely appreciated this gesture. She kinda knew how it felt because she played Top just the other match.


    Just like this Knight, Nia was pressured hard on lane during the previous game and needed some help from the Jungler. However, that Jungler had none to spare. That scumbag neglected Top and never helped her out. Maybe he was scared of the Dark Knight (a legit concern) or maybe he didn''t see any opportunities to get kills. Either way, Nia got stuck in Top alone without any help. It wasn''t exactly what one would call a fun experience.


    So, now Nia understood that any help she could give the Knight this match will be much appreciated, even if she couldn''t get a kill for herself this way. Still, she had no idea how to go about making such weird unintuitive plays. So, good thing she had the Yuelmancer app with her, the successor to Tipmancer!


    Yuel was a tad harsh and liked lecturing like he was some professor, but he knew a lot. So, it was a good idea to consult him as often as possible. He had all the answers to everything. Nia should definitely make it into a habit to ask him for advice on every little thing. Ez high-level decision making.

 175 The Plans for Nia

    Nia''s 6th qualifier match proceeded smoothly. She got some kills on Bot and Mid and also chased away the Monk, who has been dominating Top. The enemy team couldn''t establish their footing for the rest of the game and Nia''s team rode their momentum all the way to victory.


    ¡ºVICTORY¡»


    "Ok," Nia nodded. Now, she had 2 wins and 4 losses. Not exactly an amazing score but she was getting toward that sweet 50-50 ratio. The last thing she wanted was to end up in Bronze. Everybody said that place was MMR hell. Scary.


    For her 7th match, some schmuck stole her Jungler role again. Nia called the role as soon as the selection screen loaded but the guy just went ahead and took it anyway. Everybody online was a bully.


    This time, she ended up as the Carry. This wasn''t so bad, actually. Marksmen were kinda like ranged assassins. They usually didn''t have as much single-target burst, but their basics were fast and hit like a truck, so they were fun to play.


    "Ranger is ok?" Nia asked.


    "Yeah, it''s fine," Yuel nodded. "What''s wrong? You''re not consulting Tipmancer''s tier list this time?"


    "Figured you know the tier list like the back of your hand so it''s faster to ask."


    "Heh, I see," Yuel wasn''t sure how to feel about it but it was probably a good thing, right? Little by little, Nia grew to trust his knowledge and opened up to him. That''ll make it easier to teach her new things going forward.


    [Yuel is a pretty good app.] Nia nodded to herself. [It''s faster to ask him stuff than to search on Tipmancer. I better use him for everything. Ez life.]


    The upcoming match seemed promising. She nabbed herself a Ranger and she had the trusty Yuelmancer app in hand, which knew literally everything there was to know about the game. The odds were in her favor. Or, so she thought.


    "Eh? What''s he doing?" Nia blinked. Her Support, the Paladin, just straight up charged into enemy territory all by himself. [Um, hello? You forgot to ping that you''ll be attacking...]


    ¡ºAn ally has been killed!¡»


    "Derp," Nia mumbled.


    "Derp indeed," Yuel nodded. "I have a bad feeling about this match."


    Unfortunately, Yuel''s hunch was on point. That Paladin was a total wack. He kept aggressing during random situations without any shot-calls. He always either wound up dead or get heavily injured, barely getting away thanks to Nia''s help. It was a shitshow.


    "Supports are the worst," Nia pouted.


    "Ahem," Yuel cleared his throat. "I play Support."


    "Ah. Well, I hope you play good Support."


    "I''m much better than this Paladin, that much I guarantee."


    Thanks to the Paladin''s amazing supporting, Nia constantly found herself in 1v2 situations and eventually lost the lane.


    ¡ºAn allied Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    No amount of advice from Yuel could possibly fix this predicament. When one player on the team was playing stupid and it was the Support of all people, the team was doomed.


    ¡ºDEFEAT¡»


    "Fun," Nia dropped back on the chair and put down the controller. "That''s enough for today."


    "You''ve only played three matches," Yuel said.


    "Yeah, that''s a lot..." Nia used her small palm to cover a yawn. "Nap time." She curled into a ball on top of the chair and fell silent.


    "Don''t sleep here."


    "Zzz."


    [Wait, did she literally fall asleep like that?] Yuel raised an eyebrow.


    The girl became a black hairball. Her faint breathing could barely be heard under her long spaghetti hair. It was such an odd sleeping posture. Did she practice it at home? If not, it was a miracle she could fall asleep like this.


    "What''s wrong?" Kai asked. "Did you knock her out with your lectures?"


    "I did no such thing. She just said she needed a nap so there she is, napping."


    "Huh?"


    "Yeah, exactly. She flat out passed out in this awkward posture."


    "Huh, alright then," Kai didn''t even know what else to say. "So, how is her qualifier?"


    "Two wins, five losses"


    "I thought you''re here to help her glide through it."


    "I''m no magician. Not much I can do about Junglers who don''t gank and Supports who have no brain."


    "Fair enough," Kai nodded. "So, how is she? Pretty good, right?"


    "She''s alright," Yuel said. "There''s still a lot to work on but she''s willing to learn, that''s the most important thing."


    "Yeah, exactly," Kai nodded. "So, it''s official. Nia is the new member of Stratus."


    "No objections here," Yuel said.


    "Splendid!" Vincent spread his arms theatrically. "The Vanishing Phantom joins the Den of Undiscovered Potential! With her on the team, we shall be able to deliver invisible ganks!"


    "Sick, yo!" Lars exclaimed even though he probably had no idea what this was even about.


    "That''s cool and all," Luke said. "But, that''ll only be relevant in like two years, right? After all, you got yours truly for jungling."


    "Oh," Vincent lowered his hands. "Yes, indeed. We already got ourselves the Meme Jedi! Maybe the Vanishing Phantom can be a secret tech in some matchups or something."


    [The Meme Jedi, huh.] Yuel wondered. There was no denying that Luke was a solid player and he played his memes well. But, memes were memes. No matter how effectively one could wield a Rogue in Ranked, the enemies at the competitive scene will eat it alive. Luke''s memeing skills might be enough to take out some weaker teams but they''ll not work on the strongest teams in the region.


    So, something had to change. Either Luke will have to pick classes which were at least mid-tier or, perhaps, Nia will have to play Jungler instead.


    [Can we really entrust her with something like that?] Yuel shuddered. It sounded like suicide. With that said, Nia definitely had the knack for being an assassin-type Jungler and she was willing to learn. If Yuel tutors her well, Nia might become strong enough to play as the team''s Jungler this year.


    [But, Luke is one year of experience ahead of her and he can learn new things as well. Decisions, decisions.] Yuel couldn''t tell what will be the best for the team. The best-case scenario would be for Luke to start using legit Jungler classes while Nia improves enough to be a viable secret tech. [I need to try working on both fronts at the same time. Though, I promised to not nag Luke about his meme picks for a while, so I''ll focus on Nia for now.]


    Time passed by. Seconds turned into minutes and minutes into hours. Nia kept sleeping on the chair like a hairball. It was bizarre but apparently it worked for her.


    Meanwhile, Yuel joined the others for a few games in Ranked. After they finished five games, the spaghetti hair monster woke up from her extended slumber.


    "Ah," Nia''s little eyes peered through her long bangs. She looked kinda drunk. "Ah, oh." She fished in her bag and took out a bar of chocolate. Crunch. Crunch. She slowly bit away at it like a hamster.


    "You awake?" Kai asked.


    "Yep," Nia nodded. An electrifying jolt shot through her after she finished the bar of chocolate. The sweetness spread through her body and tickled her senses.


    "We''re wrapping up for today," Kai announced.


    "Oh, I see."


    "You should keep playing at home," Yuel said. "Finish that qualifier so you can join us in Ranked tomorrow. If you need more advice, you can come play at my place."


    "Whew whew!" Luke whistled. "Somebody here is a predator!"


    "Huh?" Yuel blinked.


    "Disgusting," Kai scoffed at him for some reason.


    "What did I do now?" Yuel frowned. "I just want to help her in the qualifier and teach her new things along the way."


    "Oh, I''m sure you gonna teach her aaaaall sorts of stuff." Luke winked.


    "Shame on you, inviting a lady you''ve just met to your place," Vincent shook his head. "Not very gentlemanlike of you."


    "Yeah, Yuel is a bold bro," Luke nodded. "The girl just joined and dude is already hitting on her! Haha."


    "Scary," Nia created some distance and eyed Yuel with suspicion.


    "Wha, that''s not..." Yuel sighed. "She just got a lot to learn about the game and I''m sure I can teach her. There are no ulterior motives here. Besides, we won''t even be alone. Lars will be there as well."


    "So, it''s a threesome!?" Luke jumped.


    "I''m disappointed in you," Kai averted her eyes as if Yuel was too disgusting to even look at.


    "Hey now," Lars intervened. "Don''t do my dude dirty like that. He''s already married."


    "Oh, so you two already married? Congrats" Luke clapped.


    "Haha, dude, pls," Lars lightly smacked Luke on the back. "Our dude Yuel here is married to Mancers! He ain''t gonna cheat on the game with some girl."


    "Indeed, indeed," Vincent nodded with profound understanding.


    "Yeah, he''s a total Mancer nerd," Luke agreed. "We shall dub him Nerdmancer!"


    "Makes sense," Kai nodded. "Sorry for doubting you like that."


    "So," Yuel narrowed his eyes. "Are we done with the ''making fun of Yuel'' hour? I just wanted to help Nia improve but okay, fine. I suppose it was indeed premature of me to ask a girl I''ve just met to come to my place. No need to make me out like some Cassanova for it. I guess Lars and Ben are the only ones who believe in me."


    "Oh, um, I just..." Ben mumbled. He has been standing on the side the whole time without saying a word. "You really like giving advice so I figured it''s just that."


    "Yes, exactly. At least somebody here is on my side," Yuel scoffed. "Anyway, jokes aside, feel free to come over if you want some help."


    "I dunno about that," Nia was still giving him funny looks. She didn''t happen to take the jokes seriously, did she? Sigh.


    "It''s alright, no need for that," Kai said. "You can come to play at my place instead. I''ll teach you stuff. That''s safer than staying at that predator''s place, don''t you agree?"


    [Will these guys drop it already!?] Yuel waved an angry fist.


    "Hm, ok," Nia nodded to Kai''s words.


    [And she accepted, just like that.] Yuel sighed. He had to admit defeat here. All he wanted was to help Nia with learning Classmancers. He had no ulterior motives whatsoever. Sigh. Whatever.


    Yuel just had to wait until Nia trusts him enough to start joining him and Lars for their afternoon practice. At her current level, she definitely needed that extra boost of training to catch up to the rest. Hopefully, she''ll understand that eventually...

 176 Pulling up the Weak

    After officially joining the club, Nia had to register her "golden nickname" in the game. However...


    ¡ºThis name is already in use¡»


    "Hm?" Nia titled her head. "Somebody stole my name?"


    "Looks like it," Kai said, "You''ll have to come up with a new one."


    "But, I like BlackFlower..." Nia sulked.


    "If you''re in need of nickname suggestions, I got plenty to spare!" Vincent said. "For starters, how about Vanishing Phantom?"


    "Hmm, I dunno?" Nia twisted her lips. "Ah, how about Vanishing Flower?"


    ¡ºThis name is available¡»


    "Ok, I''ll take it then," Nia said.


    "You really like having ''flower'' in your name, huh," Kai said.


    "Flowers are nice," Nia smiled softly. "They''re all quiet and chill fellows."


    "Huh," Kai wasn''t sure what to make of it so she just let that comment slide.


    And so, Nia became an official member of Stratus through and through. She got her golden name and attended club practice.


    "You should take this opportunity to rotate to Top," Yuel lectured during a match. "When the enemy laner is dead but our laner isn''t there to take advantage of the situation, it''s often a good idea to rotate there and push the lane yourself."


    "Oh, smart," Nia nodded and followed the instructions. She rotated to the undefended Top Lane and pushed the enemy tower along with allied minions.


    ¡ºAn enemy Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    "Good job," Yuel nodded. "What do you plan to do next?"


    "Hmm, return to the jungle and farm?"


    "Is that your favorite pastime or something?" Yuel smiled wryly. "Now is a good time to gank Mid. Their Lancer will most likely rotate to defend Top, so it''s a great chance to force a 2v1 situation in Mid."


    "Oh, I see," Nia nodded and ganked Mid.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    With some help from Lars, Nia dealt the killing blow on the enemy Sorcerer and got the kill.


    [This is going well. Too well, even.] Nia never had a MOBA match that went so smoothly. She delivered one play after another and everything just clicked. Just by following Yuel''s advice, she dictated the entire momentum of the match.


    "That''s the kind of power Junglers have," Yuel lectured. "Depending on your decisions, the entire flow of the match might change. So, you have to make sure you learn from all these examples."


    "Can''t I always just ask you for advice? That''s easier."


    "Sorry, but that won''t fly in a serious match. I won''t have the time to tell you every little thing."


    "Tch, bummer. What an unreliable app." Nia pouted.


    "That''s why you have to learn to do all of this on your own," Yuel said. "If you want to keep practicing after club hours, you can drop by my place after school so we keep playing."


    "I''ll think about it."


    [A polite decline. I see.] Yuel sighed. He has been spending most of his club time on coaching Nia, with the intent of turning her into a full-fledged Jungler. However, she still had a lot to learn. If she doesn''t start practicing past school hours, she might not be ready in time to participate in the upcoming scrimmages. That''ll be a huge waste of practical experience.


    Nia opened up to him bit by bit and now listened to his advice without resisting, but she didn''t consider them close enough to hang out together. Or, perhaps she didn''t think she needed that extra practice because she didn''t feel the same urgency that was eating Yuel. Either way, it was unfortunate.


    [So, I have to find a way to get her up to speed with what little time we got during club activity.] Yuel concluded. As a whole, Nia showed more promise as a Jungler than a certain memer. So, she had a real chance to-


    "Heeeeey! Earth to Yuel," Lars called out. "The next match is ready."


    "Ah, right," Yuel shook his head and returned to reality. Before he realized, school was over and he was back at home, playing with Lars. [Darn it, who gave time the right to fly so fast? It must be passing the speed limit. I''ll sue.]


    "What''s keeping ya busy all the time?" Lars asked. "Ya don''t even review our games half the time lately. Not like I''m complaining, but ya know."


    "I was looking up guides for jungling and taking notes," Yuel explained. "Nia still has a lot to work on, so I''m trying to find the best way to teach her."


    "Whew, that''s some dedication. Are ya like her coach or something?"


    "I guess I am."


    "Heh, ya sure like the girl," Lars smirked and jabbed lightly. "When''s the wedding? I gonna be yo dude of honor, haha."


    "Again with that nonsense?" Yuel rolled his eyes. "I just want to get her up to speed so she''s ready to play on a competitive level as soon as possible."


    "Ya sure pouring everything ya got into this one thing. I don''t even remember the last time you criticized anything about my plays. It''s all Nia, Nia, and Nia 24/7."


    "What, you want me to scold you more often?" Yuel asked. "I thought you hated that."


    "Heh, of course I hate that stuff. But, ya know, gotta face the harsh truth every now and then so I can git gud. If ya ain''t there to tell me I''m doing something wrong, who will?"


    "I suppose that''s true."


    "Yep, it totally is, But, instead of doing that, you spend all day fawning over your girlfriend. Not cool, dude."


    "She''s not my girlfriend."


    "Sure feels like one, she even made ya forget what we''re training for. We got a huge battle ahead of us, remember? We gotta wreck Athena and Aegis and all that jazz! Did ya forget all about them?"


    "Of course not," Yuel shook his head. "Everything I''m doing is for the sake of securing victory in that match."


    "Yeah, sure feels like it when ya ignore me and focus on yo girl the whole day."


    "What, you feel lonely?"


    "H-Huh?" Lars jumped and glanced away. "T-That''s ain''t what I''m saying, yo." He cleared his throat. "I just want ya to focus on what''s important. We gotta win that rematch no matter what. So, we gotta practice super hard every day for that thing."


    "Yeah, I agree."


    "But, instead, you''re all over Nia 24/7. You ain''t even scolding me on stuff, like that greedy rotation I did to Mid in the last match. I got my ass royally whooped there in a 1v2."


    "That rotation wasn''t so bad, actually," Yuel argued. "It didn''t turn out well because the enemy was prepared for it, but it could''ve been a solid play otherwise. So, I didn''t feel there was a need to say anything. I was sure you knew exactly what went wrong there."


    "Wait, you actually remember that play? I thought you didn''t even see it because you weren''t paying attention, haha."


    "Of course I saw it," Yuel said. "But, it was an alright rotation so I said nothing. Sure, it was a tad risky but it was fine. In general, you''ve been making much safer decisions recently so I have much less reason to worry."


    "Seriously?" Lars blinked. "So, like, ya tellin'' me I''m playing like a pro and stuff?"


    "Well, ''pro'' is a stretch. But yes, you play way better than before," Yuel said. "That''s why I don''t review our matches as often recently, which brings me back to Nia. You''re in a great good spot right now, but Nia got a long road ahead of her. So, I need to guide her. If she improves enough, I believe she has the potential to help us in the rematch against StormBlitz."


    "Oh! For real!?" Lars''s eyes glittered. "She got some secret weapon and stuff!?"


    "Perhaps," Yuel said. "At the very least, I prefer her over Luke right now. He''s a good player but his memes won''t cut it in a competitive environment."


    "Welp, dude is the Meme Jedi. He gotta use memes."


    "I admit that, for a memer, he''s a strong player. But, that just won''t work on the highest levels. He has to start taking the game more seriously or Nia will take his spot."


    "Haha, so that''s how it is!" The familiar dazzling grin returned to Lar''s face. "So, you''ve been training Nia to increase our chances of winning the rematch! I see it now. So, ya didn''t forget about our goal after all."


    "Of course not," Yuel asserted. "We''ll get our rematch at the regionals and claim victory."


    "Hell yeah! That''s more like it!"


    "The thing is, to properly train her, I need Nia to become more cooperative. No matter how many times I asked, she doesn''t want to join us for after-school training. But, I don''t think she''s just being lazy. Maybe she''s still wary of me? I can''t tell for the life of me."


    "Well, it makes sense. She''s a girl and all," Lars shrugged. "Not gonna lie, I also won''t feel comfortable going to some girl''s place a few days after meeting her. It just be like that."


    "I suppose you''re right," Yuel had to concede. Maybe he was too used to how Julia always came over to train. Then again, the only reason she came here was to spend time with Lars. Also, Julia was at least the same year as them. Meanwhile, Nia was just a freshman. That surely added another layer of awkwardness.


    "I think ya rushing it, dude," Lars said. "Just keep teaching her like you''re already doing. I''m sure she''ll appreciate how much of a walking encyclopedia you are"


    "Thanks, I guess."


    "But hey, we gotta improve too, ya know?" Lars insisted. "You don''t have any special training ideas for us? Like, sitting under a waterfall or climbing the Everest!?"


    "How any of that is going to help us improve at the game?"


    "I dunno, dude. That''s what they always do in cartoons and stuff, and it works!"


    "Too bad we''re not living in a cartoon," Yuel shook his head. "For now, I don''t have anything special in mind. As I said, your performance has been decent recently so I haven''t found any glaring flaws to work on. Just keep polishing yourself as a Carry and you''ll be fine."


    "Ya sure about that?" Lars asked. "Don''t wanna rub it in or anything, but we did kinda lose to Athena and Aegis..."


    "Yes, but we were close," Yuel insisted. "I think we''ve reflected enough on our mistakes from that day. You''ve been working on your decision-making and I''ve been working on my shot-calling. We''re heading in the right direction. We''re already in a much better place than we were a few weeks ago."


    "Really? Sick, yo!" Lars grinned. "Can''t wait to test this out in a real match! When are we fighting StormBlitz? Let''s bring the fight to them!"


    "All in due time," Yuel said. "I think we''re both doing fine right now, so I rather focus on Nia and the rest of the club. We have to pull them up to our level before we can start worrying about ourselves."


    "Gotcha, dude!" Lars nodded. "Okay, the next match is starting! Let''s rock n'' roll!"


    Confident in their respective abilities, Yuel and Lars continued polishing their skills the straightforward way: by playing Ranked. However, unbeknown to them, three unexpected visitors were about to show up and shake up their confidence...

 177 Senior Visitors

    "Excuse me, is this the Classmancers club?" A tall boy entered the basement, followed by two other boys who were just as big. They didn''t look like middle schoolers. Maybe high schoolers?


    "Yeah, who''s asking?" Kai confronted the unfamiliar invaders.


    "Hey, what''s up?" A different boy flashed his teeth toward Kai. "We came to check on our wild juniors. Heard they wound up here."


    "Yo, Trever!" Lars jumped. "What''s up, dude!? Haven''t seen ya in ages!"


    "Same here," Trever bumped fists with Lars. "I see ya two are still brats as always."


    "Hey, we''re already second-year, yo! Totally adults and all that."


    "Haha, yeah, right. Y''all just a bunch of kids for me." Trever raffled Lar''s hair like an older brother in control of the situation. It was quite the feat. Not many could stand their ground like that against Lars.


    [Wait, Aron and Trever?] Yuel blinked in confusion.


    "Long time no see," Aron strode through the room and stretched a hand toward Yuel.


    "Yeah..." Yuel accepted the handshake. [Ugh, he''s sure gripping it.] Yuel tried to maintain a smile but he didn''t enjoy this greeting even one bit. There was something behind it. Aron''s eyes pierced Yuel from above like those of a hawk.


    There was another guy with them, a familiar face. Who was that, again?


    "That''s Alex," Aron introduced. "You may remember him as Freezer. You fought him in the scrimmage with the Leopards."


    "Right," Yuel nodded. He vaguely remembered that player. Freezer was a strong Warlock player who fared poorly as an Electromancer, which suggested he might have been a one-trick pony. That''s about all the interaction Yuel had with the guy.


    "He''s with us, fighting honorably for the Knights!" Trever added.


    "Oh, sick!" Lars exclaimed. "It''s like old rivals join hands to form the ultimate team!"


    "Right? Right!?" Trever nodded repeatedly.


    "So," Kai turned to Yuel. "Who are these guys?"


    "Ha!" Vincent pulled out his tablet. "Let me educate you, o lost lamb!"


    "Who''s a lost lamb?" Kai jabbed.


    "Geh. Anyway, behold! The power of my Information Blackhole!" Vincent flipped through the data on his tablet. "First, I present you Frown, the Late-Game Terminator! He''s the former leader of StormBlitz!"


    "They''re from StormBlitz?" Kai frowned. "So, spies?"


    "No need to worry," Aron assured. "We''ve already graduated so we''re not associated with StormBlitz."


    "Nothing stops you from feeding them information," Kai gave him a look.


    "True," Aron retorted calmly. "That is, if there''s anything worthwhile to even say about this team."


    "What''s that supposed to mean?"


    "Nothing," Aron glanced away.


    "May I continue the presentation?" Vincent asked.


    "Yeah, go on, kid," Trever nodded. "Tell ''em all about how awesome I am!"


    "Alrighty. In this corner, we got Wild Dragon, the Momentum Surfer!" Vincent presented with his hand. "He''s the same year as Frown. He didn''t get to play on the main team last year, but he performed splendidly on the second string against the Leopards! At least, for the most part."


    "Wow, wow. What''s that ''for the most part'' crap supposed to mean?" Trever wrapped his arm around Vincent''s shoulder in a (not really) friendly gesture. "Got something to tell me, eh?"


    "A-Ahaha, my apologies," Vincent was quick to back away. "Wild Dragon was also the captain of the second-string and the team prevailed against the Leopards'' hard-boiled second string! It was quite a sight to behold!"


    "Yeah, that''s more like it!" Trever grinned and smacked Vincent on the back, this time with a friendly intention. Probably.


    "Guh! I-I''m glad the presentation was to your liking," Vincent almost tripped from the impact but found his footing in the last moment.


    [Did these "friendly gestures" of his level up?] Yuel broke out in cold sweat. His back started to ache in memory of all the "friendly smacks" he received over the last year.


    It was like this: "Good job, kid!" Smack. "Nice call there, kid!" Smack! "We did it, kid!" SMACK.


    [Brrr.] Yuel shuddered and naturally backed away from Trever.


    "And, for our last guest," Vincent scrolled for a few moments on his tablet. His expression grew visually nervous. "Ahem, from the Leopards, you said? Let''s see... Oh, right! Of course! He is none other than Freezer! He played on the Leopards'' second string last year and performed splendidly as... Um, let''s see," Vincent scanned the tablet quickly. "Right, as a Warlock! He aided his teammates in team fights and all that!"


    "Such a forced introduction," Alex rolled his eyes. "Just admit I didn''t leave much of an impression and move on."


    "Ah, no, no!" Vincent was quick to object for no reason. "It just slipped my mind for a moment, that''s all."


    "It''s fine," Alex said. "I know I played like a total noob back there. Mark my word, it won''t happen again."


    "Yes, of course! I believe in you!" Vincent kept hamming it, most likely to cover up for the pretty obvious fact he barely remembered anything about Freezer.


    "That''s an impressive rundown," Aron commented and turned to Yuel. "What''s up with that guy?"


    "You could say he''s a fanboy, I guess," Yuel had no idea how to describe it better. "He watched our scrimmage last year and jotted down some notes."


    "Is that so. Impressive."


    "Oh, you like my Information Blackhole?" Vincent turned to Aron like an excited kid. "It has the powers to unveil all the secrets of this world!"


    "If you say so," Aron subtly shot down Vincent''s theatrics.


    [Slick.] Yuel thought. [I better take a page or two from Vincent''s book.]


    "Alright, I get the picture," Kai said. "So, we''re being visited by three competitive high-schoolers. What''s the occasion?"


    "Straight to the point, aren''t we? I like it," Aron nodded in approval. "We came to check on our foolish juniors." He glanced at Lars for a moment, then gave Yuel a long judging look.


    ["Foolish"?] Yuel gulped. [Had a feeling this wasn''t exactly a "friendly visit"...]


    The fact Aron was here, in this rundown clubroom, meant he knew everything. He knew how Yuel abandoned his responsibilities as StormBlitz''s vice-captain and defected to this godforsaken basement club. There was no chance Aron will think favorably of this decision.


    "Imagine my surprise," Aron continued. "I was paying a visit to the club I left in your and Howard''s care, only to discover you were no longer there. Instead, you transferred to another team and Gregory was assigned vice-captain."


    [So, Howard picked Gregory.] Yuel sighed. It was indeed an unfortunate turn of events for StormBlitz. On paper, Gregory had the skills to be a decent vice-captain. However, as for his attitude...


    "I just had to confirm it for myself," Aron approached Yuel and towered over him. Gulp. "Did you really transfer here just because you didn''t get a spot on the first-string?"


    "Y-Yes. We didn''t want to warm the bench for another-"


    "Foolish," Aron frowned. "Honestly, I''m disappointed. I expected more from you. I thought you had a head on your shoulders."


    "Well, I..." Yuel caved in. He expected something to this effect but Aron''s words were harsh beyond measure. Deep down, Yuel knew how extreme, borderline stupid, their transfer was. But, he wanted to believe it was the right choice. He really did...


    "You were already a vice-captain on a strong team," Aron continued. "You only had to wait one year before you could become its captain and play on the first string."


    "Yeah..."


    "I was hoping to see you bring the team all the way to the finals and finally destroy the Leopards'' unbeatable record. Instead, you threw everything away and abandoned your responsibilities. For what?"


    "I..." Yuel lowered his head. He didn''t have a retort for any of this. Truly, if taken at face value, his actions were beyond asinine. Agreeing to an extreme idea like transferring schools was very much unlike him.


    But, he and Lars had their convictions. They had their reasons for going through with this idea; reasons that Aron won''t be able to comprehend.


    "Hey," Lars wrapped an arm around Yuel''s shoulder and grinned at Aron. "No need to be so harsh on my dude. I''m the one who came up with this idea."


    "You?" Aron frowned. "Actually, why am I surprised. Only a fool would think of pulling something dumb like that."


    "Ouch, haha," Lars laughed. "Ya just don''t understand my brilliant idea, yo!"


    "Brilliant, you say?"


    "Yeah, it''s da best! We joined an underdog team and we gonna beat all the top dogs! It gonna be like in the movies, yo!"


    "Hey, sounds rad!" Trever chuckled. "It''s like ''the team that gonna change the town forever'' and shit!"


    "Yep, totally!"


    "Haha, you two are mad lads, I''m tellin'' ya."


    "I wasn''t aware we came here to encourage them," Aron shot a glare at Trever.


    "O-Oh, haha," Trever scratched his head with an awkward grin. "Right, so, bad decision, you two. Shouldn''t have tried playing the heroes and all that." Despite saying so, he snuck in a playful wink for Lars.


    "I don''t understand the point behind this gig," Aron continued. "I know you and Howard got some rivalry going on, but what is this transfer supposed to prove, exactly?" He looked around the basement clubroom and grimaced. "You left one of the best teams in the region to join... [this]. A team that has never passed the first round at the regionals and is tucked away in the basement in shame. What part of this idea is ''brilliant''?"


    "Yes, I know all that," Yuel put away Lars''s encouraging hand. "Thanks. I''ll be fine." He whispered.


    Yuel took a deep breath and clenched his fists. He couldn''t hide behind Lars here. He had to stand his ground against Aron on his own. Otherwise, he might really start regretting this decision.


    "I admit, this was a huge gamble," Yuel said. "As you say, I had an important position on one of the best teams in the region. And, I abandoned all of that to defect to a low tier team that''s infamous for losing. It does sound rather absurd, doesn''t it?"


    "It does indeed," Aron nodded. "I expected more from you. I thought you were a realist. Do you really believe you can take on Howard''s StormBlitz with this team?"


    "Yes, I do," Yuel met Aron''s piercing gaze without flinching. "I''m well aware it''ll be an uphill battle, but I believe this team has what it takes to beat Howard''s StormBlitz. This year, Stratus got Lars and me. And, there are two competent seniors as well." He presented Kai and Vincent.


    "Oh?" Aron raised a questioning brow.


    "As you saw, Vincent here is great at collecting intel and figuring out players'' specialties. Why do you think he called you a ''Late-Game Terminator''?"


    "Hm, I see," Aron nodded in approval. Truly, it was impressive that a random kid he never played against knew about Aron''s strong late-game. He had to give credit where credit was due.


    "And, our captain, Kai, is also an impressive player," Yuel continued. "She got solid fundamentals and she''s great at adapting to her opponents. Fight her long enough and she''ll learn to dodge everything you throw her way."


    "Is that so," Aron was at a loss. [Is this really the same Yuel...?]


    "The other juniors..." Yuel paused. [Well, one is a memer and the other skips practice half of the time, but...] "They''re serious about the game and improve every day. I''m sure that by the time the tournament comes, they''ll be on par with players from the best teams in the region." [At least, I hope so.]


    "Hm, I see," Aron pursed his lips.


    "And, there''s our promising freshman," Yuel presented Nia, who was sitting in the corner like a kitten hiding from unfamiliar humans.


    "Who?" Aron looked puzzled for a moment. "Oh, that girl over there."


    "If she keeps developing her talent, she might become one of the players to look out for this year."


    "Hm," Aron didn''t retort to Yuel''s bold statements. How could he even say anything? All of this came out of left field. To think that Yuel, of all people, would...


    "Wow, is this real life?" Vincent blinked. "Did Chessmaster actually just praise all of us?"


    "So it seems..." Kai was at a loss for a moment as well.


    "Bro totally vouched for all of us like a champ!" Luke gave a thumbs up. "Don''t worry, man. I got your back covered this year!"


    "Me too," Ben mumbled with a smile.


    "Ya showed ''em, dude!" Lars smacked Yuel on the back. "How ya like that, Aron? We totally gonna take the regionals this year!"


    "You seriously believe all this nonsense?" Aron asked.


    "Yes, I do," Yuel affirmed.


    "Interesting. Then, how about you show me how strong your team really is? There are three of us here, so how about we hold a little 3v3 to see if you''re as good as you claim to be?" [That should wake you up from your daydreaming.]


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 178 The Seniors Draf

    "A 3v3?" Trever jumped like an excited puppy. "Count me in! Let''s teach these kids a lesson or two or twenty!"


    "Hey, who ya calling a kid?" Lars grinned. "Bring it on, dude! I gonna make sure this floor looks all sparkly after I''m done mopping it with ya!"


    "Heh, cheeky brat. Want a piece of me, eh!?"


    "Bring it on, dude!"


    They stared each other down like two peacocks about to leap on each other. They were rearing to go at a moment''s notice. Compared to them...


    "A 3v3?" Alex scratched the back of his head. "What a drag. I thought we only came here to greet your juniors before we go to ProCenter."


    "Sorry about that," Aron apologized. "But, you can''t let that pass either, can you? These clueless brats claim they can bring the weakest team in the region and all the way to the top like it''s nothing. Somebody has to teach them how the real world works, don''t you agree?"


    "Yeah, whatever," Alex shrugged. "Let''s wrap it up in five minutes and get going."


    "Heh!" Trever snickered. "Five minutes is too long for these kids."


    "Yeah, ya got that right," Lars nodded. "We only need two minutes to whoop yo asses, yo!"


    "The idiots are rearing to go as always," Aron turned to Yuel next. "What do you say?"


    "Gladly," Yuel accepted right away. "It''s not every day we get to practice against players of this caliber. We even got enough people for a 5v5 if you want."


    "No, let''s keep it at a 3v3. No offense, but I don''t want demotivated soldiers on my team. Your clubmates will be rooting for you."


    "Fair enough."


    "Let''s set things up then," Aron walked toward his camp.


    "Let''s do it, yo!" Lars jumped high in excitement, almost grazing the ceiling with his fingers. "Been a while since we got ourselves some good ass challenge!"


    "Yes, that''s true," Yuel nodded. This was going to be their first high-level match ever since they transferred here. Unfortunately, it won''t be a proper 5v5 but the 3v3 mode had its own depth and was considered competitive enough for people to hold tournaments with cash prizes. It''ll be great practice either way.


    "Who''s your third player?" Kai asked while giving him a look. She clearly wanted to play.


    "I wouldn''t mind facing such legendary players," Vincent smiled meaningfully.


    "Lemme at these guys!" Luke pumped a fist. "I''ll show ''em what''s up."


    Ben was also there, silently affirming how his fighting spirit.


    [Well, I''m glad they''re all so eager.] Yuel smiled wryly. [But, there can only be one. Who do I pick?]


    The 3v3 mode had a map with only two lanes. The usual formation was 1-1-1: One Top, one Bot, and one Jungler. Lars will definitely be a laner. As for Yuel, he could either jungle or lane.


    [If I want to play it safe, Kai is the best option.] According to his evaluation, Kai was indisputably the best player on the team after Yuel and Lars. She was at least one league above the rest. No matter whether she lanes or jungles, she''ll be the strongest pick for this team.


    At the same time, this was a rare opportunity to get some experience against high-level players. Playing such a match will greatly benefit a freshman like Nia. In addition, it was a great opportunity to test her "Vanishing Phantom" against real competitive players and see whether it had any footing to stand on.


    [But, I can''t do that now, can I?] Yuel smiled wryly. After making such a grandiose speech in front of Aron, Yuel couldn''t possibly let the club suffer an embarrassing defeat. He had to go for the win here.


    "Kai, you''re up," Yuel said.


    "Good choice," Kai nodded. "Let''s show these pompous bastards we got this."


    "As expected from Chessmaster," Vincent nodded. "Picking the most secure path to victory. Too bad I wasn''t chosen to become a warrior of Valhalla, but I''m sure Kai will do a better job anyway. Go catch them, tiger."


    "Meh, y''all sleeping on the power of memes," Luke shrugged. "Welp, I''ll leave this one to you, cap. Make us proud!"


    "Okay!" Lars thrust a fist. "Let''s do this thing!"


    "Sure," Yuel locked his fist with Lars''s.


    "Is that what we''re doing?" Kai glanced aside with an awkward expression. "Fine." She sighed and locked her fists with the boys.


    With the team decided, match preparations began.


    "Hey, Lars," Trever called out before departing. "I''ll be taking Bot, so seeya there! That is, unless you scared, haha."


    "The only one here who got a reason to be scared is you, dude," Lars pointed at Trever. "Bot it is! Let''s have a good one, yo!"


    "You got it."


    Both teams parted ways and set up their tablets on different ends of the room. There were only two computers in the room, so they agreed that everybody will be playing on tablets.


    "Just to make it clear," Aron said. "We don''t go easy. This isn''t a friendly match. Yuel and Lars aren''t the types to pull any punches, so treat it like a tournament match."


    "Ya got it, fam," Trever gave a thumbs up.


    "What a drag," Alex sighed. "Why are we doing this, again? I thought you only came here to check on your juniors before we go to practice."


    "C''mon, man," Trever shook his head. "Ya thought we''d come all the way here and not even play a round with the kids? I betcha Aron planned all of this from the start, am I right?"


    "Perhaps," Aron maintained a poker face.


    "Well, that''s cute and all," Alex said. "But, you drag me into this?"


    "Apologies, that wasn''t in plans," Aron admitted. "I had a 2v2 in mind. But, after hearing Yuel''s little speech of confidence, things changed."


    "Heh," Trever chuckled. "Little Yuel sure grew up, huh. Who would have thought he''d be able to speak up and vouch for his pals like that?"


    "It was indeed a surprise," Aron frowned. "And, I''m not sure it''s entirely a pleasant one."


    "Huh? Why not?"


    "We''ll see," Aron turned to Alex again. "Anyway, sorry for dragging you into this. Just think of it as a warm-up for today''s practice. These brats might be middle-schoolers but they pack a punch."


    "Whatever," Alex shrugged. "Let''s just get this over with."


    [Maybe this a chance to redeem myself for that scrimmage.] Alex smiled wryly. The last time he played against Chessmaster and Gunz, he put on a shabby performance. His Warlock was decent but the moment it was banned, Alex crumbled and performed as good as a Bronze player; it was a disaster. So, this time, he''ll show these kids what he really packed.


    To speed up the setup process, both teams agreed to blind drafting.


    "A Trickshooter is coming," Aron said. "With all classes available, there''s no way they won''t go for their best classes. For Lars, it doesn''t get any better than Trickshooter."


    "Yep, no question about that," Trever agreed.


    "I hope you remember with which classes you had the most success against his Shooter."


    "Sure do. My Ranger and Pirate gave the kid the most trouble."


    "Is that so," Aron stroked his chin. "Go for Pirate, then. It''s the safer out of the two."


    "C''mon, you worry about me? We''re playing some middle schoolers, remember? I can handle myself. Ranger is da way!"


    "I know you like your Ranger, but it''s not as useful in Clash. There won''t be as many opportunities to clear camps on such a small map, so Ranger''s passive is wasted."


    "Hmm, guess you got a point."


    The map of Clash, the 3v3 mode, only had two lanes. In essence, it was almost like the regular MOBA map but without the middle lane. It was as if Top Jungle and Bot Jugnoe were combined into one and shrunk in size. And, the smaller the jungle, the fewer camps it had. Thus, there was no much point for Aron and Trever to employ their trademark "Two Junglers" tactic this game. Aron alone will suffice.


    "Okay, Pirate it is," Trever said. "I think it had a higher win ratio anyway."


    "I assumed as much," Aron nodded. Both classes had a way to stump a wild Trickshooter, but Pirate was the safer class and the one that came online faster. So, even though Ranger was Trever''s favorite, his Pirate performed better in most situations.


    "Keep in mind," Aron advised Alex. "Yuel will decide their classes and he''s the calculating type. He''ll use any data in his disposal to counter pick."


    "You mean Chessmaster, right?"


    "Yes."


    "I remember something to that effect. He was the shot-caller during that scrimmage, wasn''t he?"


    "I''m surprised you figured that out." After all, neither team was directly told who was the other''s shot-caller.


    "Just a hunch," Alex said.


    "Heh, this guy and his ''hunches''," Trever smacked Alex on the back. "A finna mind reader, I tell ya."


    "Anyway," Aron continued. "Keep that in mind. Yuel loves using data and he will never NOT counter pick you when he can."


    "Never... Not counter..." Trever counted on his fingers. "Aha! So, ya saying he always counters everybody, right?"


    "Indeed."


    "Haha, totally figured that one out!"


    "Oh look, we got a genius here," Alex rolled his eyes. "Well, that''s a nice tidbit but how are you gonna make use of it?"


    "I won''t, unfortunately," Aron said. "Since all classes are go, it''d be dumb to not pick my best. Yuel knows I fancy Lion and I''m sure he''ll try to counter pick, but that''s fine. It''s not like Lion got any hard counters, so the most Yuel can do is prioritize classes that can get out of the ult. Besides, they''ll pick Trickshooter either way so at least one of them will be vulnerable to my ult."


    "Reasonable," Alex said. "Though, it sounds like none of us is going to counter-pick the counter-picker at this rate. I mean, I only played a couple of matches against them so we don''t know each other."


    "Fair enough. Just keep in mind that if you gave Yuel any information at all during that scrimmage, he''ll use it to counter pick you this match."


    "Seriously? You say he gonna remember whatever dirt he gathered on me all the way back then?"


    "Most certainly. His memory is impeccable when it comes to things like that."


    "No kidding," Trever added. "I swear that brat remembers literally every millisecond of his life from the moment he was born. I''ve even seen him reproduce full chess matches from memory. Kid''s a genius, no joke."


    [I believe many chess players can reproduce matches from memory, but it sure sounds impressive.] Alex thought. "Alright, I hear you. I was sure Warlock is a no-brainer pick here but Yuel saw me play it." [Even worse, he probably thinks that''s the only class I can play.]


    Back during the Leopards vs. StormBlitz scrimmage, Alex was far from his top shape. He barely practiced during club activity and mostly played Warlock because of how easy it was to perform with it. So, back then, Warlock could indeed be considered Alex''s one and only viable class.


    The moment Warlock was banned and Alex switched to Electromancer, he started messing up all over the place. The enemy picked up on that and took advantage of this weakness. Franky, it was probably Alex''s most embarrassing performance ever.


    But, it was an important experience. Thanks to being thoroughly destroyed back then, Alex realized where he stood and that he became a shell of his former self. That was the wake-up slap he needed. Since then, he returned to his daily practice in the hope of regaining his form.


    Unfortunately, he didn''t make it in time for the regionals. He improved a lot but it wasn''t enough to make him count among the first-string. If only he kept working hard like that throughout the entirety of middle school...


    Either way, all of that was in the past. Alex has regained his form since then. In fact, he was better than ever, if he might say so himself. Warlock remained his best class, it was like a buddy who supported him during his darkest hours. However, Alex made to polish his skill with other classes to roughly the same level; he was no longer a one-trick pony.


    "When you say the guy likes counter picking," Alex inquired. "How much are we talking about? Does he like it enough to pick Lumimancer as a laner against a Warlock?"


    "Possible," Aron answered. "Against a Support Warlock, you''ll see a Support Lumi every single time. Against Mid Warlock, it depends. Mid Lumi isn''t exactly high-tier pick and Yuel generally prefers sticking to high tier, so it depends on the rest of the lineup. If you ask me, he''s much more likely to go for it in a 3v3 if he believes you''ll pick Warlock."


    "Figured," Alex said. "Alright, I''ll go with Sorcerer then. It''ll kill any funny ideas like countering with Lumi or Pyro."


    "Sounds good," Aron nodded.


    With that, the seniors'' team was decided:


    Aron (Frown): Lionfolk


    Trever (WildDragon): Pirate


    Alex (Freezer): Sorcerer


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 179 Safe Draf

    Both sides finished setting up their tables and began preparing for the match. For Stratus, the three representatives for the match were Yuel, Lars, and Kai.


    "O brave warriors of Valhalla!" Vincent stretched his arms theatrically. "You have been chosen to fight for all of us! Godspeed in your battle! Break a leg!"


    "Yeah, good luck," Luke gave a thumbs up. "Show ''em we''re not the crappy team everybody always says we are."


    "Good luck," Ben said timidly.


    "Mhm," Nia followed up with a supportive nod.


    "S-Sure," Kai said. "We''ll show them. No problem."


    "You okay, dude?" Lars asked. "Relax. It''s are just Aron and Trever. We got this!"


    "R-Right."


    "I wouldn''t say they''re ''just'' Aron and Trever," Yuel said. "Aron was the leader of StormBlitz last year and Trever had the skill to be on the first-string. They''re not ''just'' anything. They''re strong opponents who represent the pinnacle of our competitive scene."


    "Y-Yeah," Kai stiffened. [Damn, I wasn''t prepared for this. Where the hell did this super high-level match drop on us from? Dammit. After everything Yuel said about the club, too...]


    Back then, Yuel went out of his way to stand up for the club in front of these skilled seniors. They claimed this team had no future in the upcoming regionals, but Yuel, as uncharacteristic as it was, boldly objected to those claims and insisted this club had a bright future ahead of it.


    [I should''ve been the one to say that. I''m the captain.] Kai pouted. But, what''s done was down. Yuel sent a declaration of war to the seniors. Now, this small team of representatives had to prove its mettle. As the captain, Kai absolutely had to make sure they''ll come on top.


    As Yuel said, their opponents were mighty. They were players from StormBlitz and Leopards, the two strongest teams in the region. So, it''s like Kai and the rest were about to face grand-finals quality opponents right now! T-This will surely go well...


    "C''mon dude," Lars complained to Yuel. "Ya just scaring her with yo big talk for no reason. So what if they''re from Storm or Leo? They ain''t nothing, yo! I can whoop Trever all by myself, believe it!"


    "I''m not saying we''re going to lose. I just..." Yuel noticed Kai''s pale face. She was clutching the edge of her cap and her fingers trembled. Could it be? Was the captain having a nerve break? Well, players of this caliber might indeed sound intimidating until one gets to fight them.


    Yuel and Lars were already used to that by practicing with StormBlitz every day. However, a small low-level team like Stratus probably didn''t have many opportunities to produce players of that caliber. So, perhaps Kai has played on this level. Will she be alright?


    "It gonna be fine, dude!" Lars smacked Kai on the back.


    "Agh, gah!" Kai staggered forward from the impact and almost crashed into the ground.


    [Did this idiot just smack her for real!?] Yuel facepalmed. [She''s still a girl, you know.]


    "Ahh," Kai rubbed her back. "The hell was that for!? It hurts!"


    "Good, ya already look more alive," Lars grinned. "I tell ya, Trever''s secret smack tech works like charm every time. C''mon, ya can give me one too me too if ya want." He turned his back to Kai.


    "You want to be smacked?" Kai made a face. "You sure got funny hobbies."


    "Smack me, mommy!"


    "Heh, idiot," Kai slapped Lars''s back.


    "Yeah, that''s the stuff!" Lars gave a thumbs up. "That''s how ya send all your energy around! We gotta give some to Yuel too."


    "I''ll pass," Yuel was already ten meters away from the danger zone.


    "No, no. We have to do it," Kai insisted. "We have to make sure we all got energized, right? Besides, double the smacks double the energy, right?"


    "Um, guys?" Yuel gulped as he took another step backward. The two predators were about to jump him! GAH! DOUBLE SMACK! He felt the impact all the way in his soul!


    [That''s what you get for stressing the shit outta me.] Kai took a deep breather. [Alright, I think I''m fine now.]


    All this smacking business was funky, but it somehow helped her relax. It didn''t change the fact she was about to face legendary opponents, but at least she wasn''t alone on this battlefield. She had two Challenger rank teammates who were just as strong, if not stronger, than their opponents.


    And, Kai played with these boys on a daily basis and kept up with them. Therefore, she surely was on the same level as well. As such, there was nothing to be afraid of. She just had to play as usual and she''ll deliver results, even against these strong opponents. Yeah, even against these grans-finals quality players from legendary teams-


    [Drop it already.] Kai shook her head. It didn''t matter who her opponents were. She just had to play her best, that''s all there was to it. If they were really grand-finals quality, then it just meant Kai will also be at that level after she mops the floor with them!


    [I just need to get my mind off that shit.] She plugged an earplug into one of her ears and booted heavy metal. Yeah, this was the stuff! Fuck these guys! She gonna destroy them like the nobodies they were!


    "Okay," Yuel started. "We need to decide on the lineup now. Trever already tipped us that he''s going to play Bot, so that''s where Lars will play."


    "Hell yeah!" Lars pumped a fist. "Lemme at that dude! He thinks he''s some hot stuff now because he''s at high-school, but I''mma show him!"


    "Also," Yuel continued. "Bot will be the Carry lane. The meta is similar to MOBA here in that sense."


    "Huh?" Kai turned down the metal. "Hold it right there. I''m the Carry."


    "Ah," Yuel forgot. Right, Kai had that odd fixation on being the Carry. That completely escaped his mind when he was picking the third member for the team. If he remembered it back then, he might have opted for somebody else in order to sidestep this conflict.


    "Hey, dude," Lars turned to Kai. "I''m the only one here who can handle Trever. I joke and all about him being a scrub, but dude is tough like a bull. Ya ain''t taking him down easily."


    "You''re implying I''m not good enough?" Kai frowned.


    "Weeeeelp, err..." Lars scratched the back of his head and glanced at Yuel. He knew all too well that giving it straight to Kai might lead to a fight.


    [Yeah, I better change the direction of this discussion.] Yuel thought. How could he convince Kai without outright saying she wasn''t good enough yet?


    "Lars fought Trever on a daily basis back in StormBlitz," Yuel explained. "So, he knows this matchup well. Trever is a momentum-heavy player so he''s good at steamrolling you if you let him. It''s better to let somebody with experience handle this one."


    "Tch, fine," Kai clicked her tongue. "So, I''ll take the other lane."


    "Yes, that''ll be best," Yuel nodded. "I''ll be the Jungler. I assume Aron will be their Jungler, so you''ll be up against the last guy. Alex, I believe."


    "You know anything about him?" Kai asked.


    "A little. We only played a couple of matches during a scrimmage. He came across as a decent player, especially in team fights. But, he only played Warlock and performed poorly after we banned it."


    "So, a Warlock specialist? Talk about being cheap."


    "I can''t say for sure whether he only plays Warlock, but I''m pretty sure that''s his favorite class. So, without bans, there''s a good chance he''ll go for Warlock. It also happens to be a strong pick in Clash. It''s much harder to deal with a Warlock as a small team."


    "So, I''m most likely fighting a Warlock," Kai crossed her arms. "Kinda sucks. Are there even any hard counters to it? Can''t think of one from the top of my head."


    "Pyromancer can do a good job with its fast clear."


    "Oh, yeah. Pyro sounds dope."


    "But, I wouldn''t go for it. There''s a bigger threat we have to address first. Namely, Aron. With no bans, he''s most likely going to pick his favorite as well: Lionfolk."


    "Yikes, caging." Lars made a face. As somebody who mained Trickshooter and Gunslinger more than any other class, he didn''t appreciate Lionfolk''s ult in the slightest. That thing was hax. It didn''t leave these classes any way of escaping.


    "If we add Lionfolk to the equation," Yuel said. "Pyromancer becomes a bad pick because it can''t escape from the ult."


    "Yeah, doesn''t sound like a smart pick," Kai agreed. "What else we got?"


    "This may sound a little weird, but how do you feel about Lumiamncer with a power build?"


    "Like, Lumi Mid?"


    "Yes, essentially. It''s borderline low-tier territory but it''s definitely not a meme build. It got its niche in the pro scene"


    "Yeah, some people like this stuff," Kai nodded. "It''s even kinda viable. I''ve picked Lumi before for Support but ended up building power because our Carry was wack. The damage scaling is a little sad for a mage but it can get things done."


    "You think you can play it well?"


    "Hmm, not sure about that," Kai pondered. "To be honest, out of the two options, I rather pick Pyro. I got way more experience with it."


    "But, it loses hard to Lionfolk."


    "Yeah, it sure does," Kai frowned. "Well, Lumi should be fine."


    "Okay, let''s go with that then," Yuel turned to Lars next. "As for you..."


    "I''mma go with Gunslinger, yo!" Lars gave a thumbs up. "They never gonna see it coming! They think I only got Trickshooter up my sleeve but I''mma blow their socks off!"


    "Between Gunslinger and Trickshooter, I agree that Gunslinger is the better option."


    "Yep, Trever never saw my sick Gunslinger skills!"


    "Unfortunately, both classes are no good in this matchup."


    "Huh?" Lars blinked. "Wut?"


    "As I said, Aron will most likely pick Lionfolk. Does either Trickshooter or Gunslinger have any way of escaping the lion cage?"


    "Ah, welp, not really..."


    "Exactly. If you pick either of those, you''ll be a sitting duck for Aron''s ganks. You need something else."


    "Wha!? No way! These are my best classes!" Lars made noise. "I mean, I know I''m good with other classes too but this is Trever we''re talking about. I talk all sorts of shit but dude is legit hella strong. I ain''t gonna take him down with some bootleg class. I need da best stuff, yo!"


    "That''s a viable concern," Yuel nodded. "But, no matter how strong your class is going to be, it will come to nothing if you''re too vulnerable to ganks. Suppose you gain the upper hand against Trever with Gunslinger, what will happen next? Aron will focus your lane and you''ll constantly be in danger of dying unless you play it safe. The map in Clash is small enough for a Jungler to constantly apply pressure on one lane."


    "Geh, that really doesn''t sound fun," Lars made a face. "You''re saying Boss Dude ain''t gonna let us fight? This sucks, yo. Can''t ya help me out with that somehow? You gonna jungle, right? So, you should come and counter Aron''s ganks and stuff."


    "True, I could try scaring him away with counter jungling. But, there''s a limit to how many times I''ll be able to pull that off successfully. As the attacker, the initiative will always be on his side. Not to mention, it''s not that easy to counter a Lionfolk''s gank in the first place."


    "Yo, that class is busted. Oh, wait! I know! I''mma just buy Blink! Gonna blink outta the cage every time! Ez."


    "A valid idea," Yuel nodded. "We all should buy Blink just in case. The bad news is that Blink alone isn''t enough. You know how long Blink''s cooldown is, especially if you don''t level it."


    "Yeaaaah, only takes it like a year or two to come online."


    "Exactly. Aron''s ult will come out of cooldown much faster, so you won''t be able to compete against all his ganks with just Blink."


    "Geh, that blows. Why neither of my classes can deal with Lion?"


    "You tell me. You decided to main these two."


    "Gah, you''re right...." Lars hung his head. How could this be happening!? He finally got a chance to show off his mad Gunslinger skills to Trever, but now he couldn''t pick the class!? Nuuuuuu!


    "But," Yuel continued. "If you tell me there''s no way you''re going to win the lane against Trever with any other class, we might have to bite the bullet and go for Gunslinger anyway."


    "Nah, no problem," Lars gave a thumbs up. "I can take on that dude with any class! I can even Archer him to death!"


    "Jokes aside, what do you think your chances are?"


    "Welp, ya know how me and that dude play. We always go head-to-head in some intense matches, so it''s anybody''s guess who gonna come on top."


    "So, it''s about 50-50," Yuel crossed his arms. It has been a while since the last time Yuel checked these 1v1 statistics. At the time, Trever had a higher win ratio, standing at around 60%. The only class with which Lars had a positive win ratio was Trickshooter. With everything else, it seemed like Trever was slightly better.


    But, that was over two months ago. Lars has trained a lot since then. In just the last couple of weeks, Lars grew up a lot. The defeat at the selection exam made him understand the importance of playing safer and improved his decision-making tenfold.


    In the first place, Lars was the more mechanically skilled fighter out of the two. Trever only won these duels thanks to his robust experience and sharp decision-making. So, the way Lars was now, he had a very real chance of besting Trever.


    "So," Yuel continued. "You''re fine with something other than Trickshooter and Gunslinger?"


    "What choice do I have?" Lars shrugged and shook his head. "If I constantly gotta think about Aron''s Lion ganks then RIP. Ain''t gonna get anything done like that."


    "Indeed," Yuel smiled meaningfully. Just a few weeks ago, it was unfathomable for Lars to agree to something like this. This goof surely would have insisted he could somehow deal with Aron''s ganks despite not having the escape tools.


    However, the Lars right here and now was astonishingly reasonable. He understood the problem at hand and was willing to make sacrifices in order to overcome it. The goof was growing up!


    "So, which class you''d like?" Yuel asked. "You need something with a leap or a blink in its kit."


    "Hrmmmmm. Oh, I know! I can try Seraph! Dude can literally fly out of the lockdown! I was actually thinking about making it my third main class. Last time, it worked like a charm."


    "Oh, you''ve been practicing Seraph?"


    "Ah, welp, not yet. But, but, but! I totally gonna! I''mma become the No.1 Seraph in world, believe it!"


    "So, your Seraph is still at about the same level it was during the selection exam. In that case, I''d advise against it. Seraph has a rough early-game and you have to really know how to handle it."


    "Yeah, I know, I know," Lars smiled wryly. "That''s why I don''t play it much. Dude feels hella weak early. But daim, once late-game hits, bruh becomes a beast! Everybody is free kills, yo!"


    "Out of curiosity, how''s your win rate with Seraph against Trever?"


    "Geh..." Lars''s head dropped.


    "Figured," Yuel nodded. "In that case, you better pick something else. Aside from how you''re likely to lose to Trever, picking Seraph also means we have to stake everything on the late-game. And, you remember who is very strong in the late-game?"


    "Of course I do. How did Vince call it, again? Oh yeah, the Late-Game Destructor!"


    "It was Late-Game Terminator," Vincent corrected. He and the rest of the club were gathered around the representing team to show their support.


    "Putting aside the silly name," Yuel continued. "We both know how strong Aron gets in the late-game."


    "Yeah, dude becomes a killing machine. He can even beat me 1v1 at that point, can ya believe that?"


    "Of course I can. I''ve seen that happen."


    "Boss Dude is wild, I''m tellin'' ya."


    "And, that''s why we don''t want to bet everything on the late-game."


    "We sure don''t, haha."


    "So, any other class you feel confident in?"


    "Hmm, lemme see," Lars crossed his arms and tilted his head. "Um, what other classes can escape the lion stuff, again?"


    [Of course he doesn''t have that kind of information at the ready.] Yuel thought. [After all, I always handle these counter picks for him when we play. I really spoil him too much in that regard, huh. And, seems like I''ll be doing it again. Oh well. In for a penny, in for a pound. ]


    "Judging by your stats," Yuel scrolled on his tablet. "Your Elf performs pretty well."


    "Welp, I''d be surprised if it didn''t. After all, I''m a pro sniper, yo!"


    "So, you like this pick?"


    "Eh, ''like'' is a strong word," Lars smiled wryly. "I mean, I really dig the first-person view and all but I don''t like the turtley playstyle, ya feel me? Always feels cheap as heck."


    "But, you [do] perform nicely with it."


    "Yeah, I guess," Lars shrugged. "It''s just ez like that. And cheap. I rather run in with guns blazing than sit at my tower all day."


    "Sometimes, you have to sacrifice a little bit of fun in order to increase your chances of winning."


    "Yeah, I know. But, it''s like geeeeh."


    "How''s your win rate against Trever with it?"


    "It''s okay, I guess. He sure knows this matchup tho, so he ain''t gonna lemme do my thing in peace."


    "That''s to be expected," Yuel nodded. "That''s a high-level player for you."


    "Nah, dude got nothing on me, yo."


    With that, it was decided that Lars will go with Elf instead of pulling one of his aces. It was a difficult decision and they''ll surely suffer the consequences if Lars''s Elf can''t win against Trever. Nonetheless, it was a much safer pick against Aron''s Lionfolk so it had a much higher chance to get things going.


    For the last pick, Yuel went for Viking. Any team composition needed at least one frontliner, even if it was a small team of three. In fact, this only further reinforced the idea that Aron will most likely pick Lionfolk, as it was a bruiser class that could serve both as a Jungler and a semi-tanky frontliner. Yuel picked Viking for the same reason.


    In addition, Viking could escape the Lionfolk''s cage of lions by tossing his axe outside and blinking to it. On top of that, Viking was dangerous at close-range due to his destructive ult, so that balanced out the defensive picks of the rest of his team. This should cover all bases.


    With that, the team''s lineup was decided.


    Yuel (Chessmaster): Viking


    Lars (Gunz): Elf


    Kai (Beat): Lumimancer


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 180 Fangless Lineup

    Both sides finished composing their teams and the match began loading. At this point, everybody could already see what the others picked.


    "Say what!?" Trever roared. "Yo, Lars! Where''s your Shooter at!?"


    "My Elf is more than enough for ya!" Lars shouted back across the room.


    "Heh, a cheeky brat like always," Trever''s eyes glinted dangerously. "Guess I have to spank that kid real hard this match."


    "Calm down," Aron said. "Don''t let such a small thing trigger you."


    "But, he''s totally taking me lightly! He should know better than anybody that only his Shooter got any real chance against me."


    "Don''t let them tilt you before the match."


    "Wait, you think they''re doing this on purpose?"


    "I wouldn''t put it past Yuel," Aron said. "Anyway, there''s a good reason he went for Elf. Just look at the rest of their line up."


    "What about it?" Trever tilted his head.


    "It''s anti-Lion," Alex pointed out. "Somebody got their ass counter-picked."


    "Indeed," Aron frowned. Everybody in StormBlitz knew he favored Lionfolk, so he expected some counter-picks and calculated the payoff accordingly. But, even for Lars to counter-pick? That wasn''t in the considerations.


    It threw a wrench in Aron''s plans but it was alright. It just meant he''ll have to work a little harder to secure kills, that''s all.


    "So," Trever started. "You''re saying Lars wussed out because of your Lion? Dodge me with that shit."


    "Yuel must be the one behind the wheel. Honestly, I''m also surprised by how defensively Yuel chose to approach this match. Pretty sure a couple of months ago these two would''ve had gone all out against us without batting an eye. It appears they''ve learned a lesson or two since then."


    "Heh, I bet losing Howard''s ''selection match'' burned them pretty hard."


    "So it seems," Aron nodded. After learning about the whole situation with Yuel and Lars''s transfer, Aron asked Howard for replay footage of that selection match.


    There were many things to say about that match, but one of the biggest causes of Yuel''s defeat was the team''s reckless offense. Lars kept falling for Ellen''s baits, Julia went on a rampage and Yuel''s shot-calls lacked on the defensive front.


    Judging by their picks this match, it appeared as if they''ve learned a hard lesson from that match. This time, they didn''t neglect to fortify their defenses. Though, the way they were doing it almost felt as if...


    "Gotta say," Alex started. "That''s one heck of a defensive lineup they got there. It might work for them once we fight on lanes, but if we go for an early 3v3? What they gonna do about it?"


    "You suggest an invade?" Aron asked.


    "Just wondering what''s your take on this. It feels like we got the upper hand here by a mile."


    "Hm, true. I can see the setup." Aron ran a couple of simulations in his head. The enemy''s lineup was indeed ill-suited for countering an early invasion. Yuel designed that lineup primarily around countering Lionfolk, not much else.


    [Actually, that''s not quite true. I can give Yuel a little more credit than that.] Aron smiled thinly. That peculiar Lumimancer pick was most certainly an attempt at counter-picking Alex''s Warlock. So, it doubled both as a Warlock counter and a Lionfolk counter.


    Unfortunately for Yuel, Alex saw that coming from a mile away. He was no longer the same one-trick pony he used to be in high school; he had options now. His Sorcerer pick was most likely going to walk all over the Lumimancer.


    On top of that, Lumimancer wasn''t a burst damage mage, especially not in the early-game. That was a huge factor when considering an invade. The enemy''s only dangerous DPS player was Lar, but even he wasn''t much of an immediate threat in the early-game. Elf was a Carry who specialized in shooting targets from afar, not killing opponents from point-blank


    So, the one and only dangerous player for close-range combat was Yuel with his Viking. His ult summoned a gang of mobs, who were strong enough to make up for the power difference in early- game. He most certainly made this pick specifically to cover up the lack of offense in his lineup.


    Unfortunately for him, this was only relevant for Lv.5 onwards. The 3v3 mode started at Lv.3, so Yuel didn''t have access to Unstoppable Raid right away. So, even though this ult will eventually become a strong tool, at game-start it simply didn''t exist in the equation.


    "Hm, I believe we can really do it," Aron concluded. "They don''t have much in the way of countering an aggressive team at game start."


    "Wow!" Trever jumped. "We invading!?"


    "Keep it down."


    "Oh, right. Ahaha," Trever laughed awkwardly and glanced at the enemy camp. Phew, nobody heard him. "So, we really gonna do it?"


    "What do you think?" Aron turned to Alex. "Are they going to be prepared for it?"


    "If I had to guess: no, they won''t be. Their lineup makes me feel like they''re already too scared of your presence alone. They''re too busy quaking in their boots to even consider an invade."


    "I see," Aron nodded. "Your read says they''re not prepared and my analysis says their counter options are limited. Let''s give it a shot."


    "Woohoo!" Trever pumped a fist. "Sick, let''s do it! I''mma show Lars he gotta respect his elders and pick his best stuff against me!"


    Meanwhile, in the other camp...


    "This sucks," Kai ranted. "So much for that ''Warlock counter-pick'' idea."


    "Yes, that didn''t turn out well," Yuel frowned. The Lumimancer pick was supposed to be a hard counter to Warlock, but Alex went for Sorcerer instead of all things.


    It''d still be one thing if Freezer just went for any other class that wasn''t Warlock. But no, Freezer went specifically for Sorcerer, a class that hard countered both Pyromancer and Lumimancer if played correctly. It''s like he was expecting these counter picks and went for a counter of his own.


    [Is that Aron''s work? No, he shouldn''t remember the second-string''s scrimmage that well.] Yuel frowned. Even though Aron went over the replays of that scrimmage, surely he didn''t remember minute details like this.


    On the other hand, Alex himself had a good chance of figuring out something like this. If he anticipated Yuel to be the type who goes for hard-counters, it wouldn''t be odd for him to hard-counter the hard-counters. This felt like that time during the scrimmage, when the Leopards hit StormBlitz hard with their "mixup" strategy. Back then, they also used Yuel''s smart drafting against him.


    [Was Alex the one behind that trick as well? If so, this guy might be more dangerous than I gave him credit for.]


    "So," Kai lifted her chin. "How are you gonna compensate me for this terrible pick? It was your idea."


    "I agree it''s a bad matchup, but it''s not the end of the world."


    "Do I need to remind you that Sorcerer can reposition minions like nothing?"


    "I know."


    "And, you know what''s very important for a Lumi to be able to farm well?"


    "Minion positioning..." Yuel sighed. "Look, I get it. This can be a tough matchup, but no use crying over spilled milk. We don''t know yet how good he actually is with Sorcerer. As I said, last time, he seemed like a potential one-trick pony who could only play Warlock. Maybe something has changed since then, maybe it didn''t."


    "So?" Kai made a face. "How we gonna deal with this?"


    "I''ll make sure to gank your lane often if you struggle. How does that sound?"


    "Better than nothing."


    The team headed toward the Wraith Camp near Top Lane. The plan was for all three of them to assault the camp and quickly get the blue buff for Kai. Then, Yuel and Lars will continue to the Ogre Camp below and get the red buff for Lars. This was the meta opening in Clash mode. Or, at least it was as meta as it could get for a mode that wasn''t truly deemed competitive.


    There was still time before the wraiths spawn, so Yuel used this time window to scout the jungle and place two wards in key locations. He placed the first ward close to Bot Lane. This ward kept watch on the Wolf Camp for any counter-jungling and also covered one of the common gank routes when targeting Bot.


    "I''m warding the route to Bot," Yuel informed Kai. "I''ll ward the griffins with my other ward, so you have to take care of warding Top if you think it''s necessary."


    [So, you''re saying our Bot Laner is more important than our Top, huh.] Kai gave him a look. "I planned to ward Top myself anyway."


    "Okay," Yuel nodded.


    Yuel placed his second ward near the Griffin Camp at the center of the map. This was a neutral camp that''ll surely be contested by both sides, so it was important to keep tabs on it. On top of that, the camp laid on a central path that cut nearly the entire jungle in half, making it a great route for rotating from one side of the map to the other.


    [Aron isn''t placing one?] Yuel wondered. He expected to run into Aron somewhere out here but there were no enemies in sight. Aron should know how the meta of Clash worked, so it''d be odd for him to not place a ward here.


    Maybe Aron was running late? Or, maybe he has already placed a ward here before Yuel? It was possible, considering Yuel was slowed down by his bickering with Kai.


    [No signs of an invade so far.] Yuel nodded to himself after examining the area. To efficiently invade at game start, the invader had to pass through one of the areas Yuel warded, for they covered the shortest paths both horizontally and vertically. However, there was not a single soul in sight. Good.


    Yuel returned to the Wraith Camp and took the frontline against the wraiths that were about to spawn. Three. Two. One. The countdown hit zero. Minions spawned on both lanes and so did the wraiths


    However, as soon as the wraiths emerged, a magical tune resounded nearby. An ominous black sphere appeared out of thin air in the middle of their formation. It was the Sorcerer''s Magia Orb!


    [An invade!?] Yuel jumped.


    "Crap-!" Even Lars wasn''t fast enough to dodge. As soon as the orb appeared, it imploded into a black hole and pulled everybody in. The entire team, and one of the wraiths, got sucked in and crashed into each other at the center of the gravity pull!


    It was the beginning of a very disadvantageous game-opening...


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 181 Devastating Invade

    A Magia Orb appeared out of nowhere and imploded, making everybody bump into each other. They all lost over 20% HP from this four-way collision. Yuel only lost a little over 20%, but his squishier allies lost around 30%. It was damage from just one spell but it was devastating. Alex must have built as much power as humanly possible to pull this off.


    "Yo, these dudes are invading!" Lars exclaimed.


    "Yeah, we kinda noticed!" Kai gritted her teeth. [Shit! This is the worst opening ever! I gonna give these invaders a piece of-]


    The enemy''s attack wasn''t over yet. Before the team got a chance to reorganize, a big lion man crashed on them from the sky like a meteor! The impact was so strong it knocked all of them into the air!


    "Damn, this can''t be happening!" Kai clenched her controller. No way! What kind of game opening was this!? They''ve already dropped below 70%! "Didn''t you check for invades!?"


    "I did, but..." Yuel bit his lip. Back when he was scouting there area, there was nobody in sight. These guys didn''t take any of the standard invade routes. They must have taken a long roundabout route that circled around Yuel''s wards. Darn it!


    "Heh, how you kids like this little surprise party?" Trever dashed into the scene with his pistol pointed at the sky. All these air-bound targets were free real estate!


    Naturally, the prey he targeted first was none other than Lars. "Lemme show you what happens when you don''t pick your strongest class against me!"


    Bam! The bullet flew at Lars. Hitting a falling target was quite the art, but Trever has mastered it a long time ago. His aim was spot on!


    [No dice, yo!] Lars performed a Dodge Roll to the side in the middle of his fall!


    "Wow! You gotta be shitting me!" Trever exclaimed. His bullet was so-well placed, yet Lars dodged it in the nick of time! What an absolute mad lad!


    [Figured something like that might happen.] Alex was already prepared with a Magia Orb floating in front of him. He estimated where Lars was going to land and unleashed a magical force that sent the orb flying across the area. It was heading straight toward Lars''s future landing spot!


    [Yo! No way!] Cold sweat ran down Lars''s forehead. Where did this Spetznaz assault team come from!? They didn''t give anybody a breather! It was one attack after another!


    There was no telling how dangerous this orb was because Sorcerer''s damage was always weird like that. It might even kill Lars on the spot the moment he lands on the ground! Stuff was crazy, yooooooo!


    "Heh, haha." Despite the enormous danger, a grin surfaced on Lars''s face. This pressure! This danger! Yeah, this was how things gotta be! It was the first time he felt this rush of adrenaline since the selection match. This invade was sick!


    "Phew!" Lars exclaimed loudly as the black orb failed to graze his feet. It was hella close! [But, just like I thought. No way that dude could be fast enough to guarantee that hit. Too slow, dawg!]


    "Well, I tried," Alex shrugged. "It''s up to you now."


    "You did good, my man," Trever turned his back to the enemy and prepared to close the distance with Backfire Cannon. "I''ll chase him down from here-"


    "Change of plans," Aron said. "He''s too far now. Take out the mage instead."


    "Tch, fine," Trever canceled his fun chasing plans and shot the Lumimancer instead.


    While Lars just barely escaped from the brink of death, Yuel and Kai landed on the ground after being knocked up by Aron''s Majestic Leap. However, that wasn''t the end of this calculated attack. As soon as they hit the ground, a deafening roar thundered!


    "Shit!" Kai cursed. She pressed buttons but they did nothing. The Mighty Roar inflicted her with fear and made her automatically run away from the Lionfolk as if she was scared of him. [Huh! Nonsense. I can take that guy out no problem. Just let me control my damn character!]


    [This invade is too high level.] Yuel grit his teeth. They have been had, no two ways about it. [We have to get out of here as fast as humanly possible.]


    As soon as the fear effect ended, Yuel hurled his axe across the area and was about to blink toward it. However...


    [You wanna fight, huh!?] Kai activated Blinding Light. The Lumimancer began shining, preparing to unleash a blinding burst of light. It was going to hit Aron but it was a waste of time. She had to retreat!


    "Blink out of here!" Yuel ordered. "We won''t win this fight."


    "I know that! Damn," Kai cursed through gritted teeth. [Yeah, the hell I''m doing? I gotta scram!] It didn''t matter how embarrassing this defeat looked, for she''ll get these guys next time. For now, retreat at full gas! No time to even look back!


    Thanks to her own stupidity, she let the Lionfolk claw her once before she got away. That cost her 8% HP. With all the accumulated damage, she was already at death''s door with just 30% HP. A couple more hits and she was a goner!


    Before her Blinding Light finished charging, she activated Flash and blinked the hella outta there. She ultimately unleashed her Blinding Light at her the target location, but there was nobody to hit there. It was a waste of MP but oh well, at least she got out of the danger. Or, so she thought...


    "You ain''t getting away, babe!" Trever was right on the case! The chick blinked far away but she wasn''t entirely outta reach yet. Trever turned his back in her direction and activated Backfire Cannon.


    Bam! The impact sent him flying toward the cute mage chick! This cannon was such a bro, he knew what''s up.


    [Damn, is that after me?] A shiver ran on Kai''s back. She knew these situations very well. When Backfire Cannon resounded from behind like that, nine times out of ten it was used for chasing. Bad news!


    [But, I can''t turn back.] Kai pressed onwards without wasting a moment. Turning around to confirm the details will only slow her down. [No time to check. Gotta press on.]


    Meanwhile, Yuel saw everything from his position. Trever closed a lot of distance in an instant with the Backfire Cannon tech. This chase might be cutting it a little close.


    Fortunately, Yuel was in a great position to interfere.


    "I''ll stall him," Yuel announced and took off toward Trever.


    "Wha-!?" Trever jumped as two muscular hands wrapped around him from behind. "Hey! Hands off, macho!"


    But, it was to no avail. Yuel hurled Trever away from Kai. That halted the chase in its tracks.


    [Okay, I''m out.] Yuel finally blinked to the axe he threw a few seconds before. With that, the invade has been thwarted. Even though everybody sustained heavy injuries, they were all alive and safe.


    "Dang it, yo!" Lars ranted. "These dudes walked all over us! Lemme at them!"


    "You''ll die if you go in there now," Yuel said.


    "So what, we just gonna let ''em take our camps free of charge like that?"


    "Unfortunately, we have no choice," Yuel frowned as he watched the enemy take the Wraith Camp belonging to Yuel''s team. There was a good chance they''ll also take out the Ogre Camp afterward, leaving Yuel''s team with zero buffs at game start. Frankly, this was a terrible opening.


    "Nothing we can do to stop them. Let''s just clear the hyenas over here," Yuel suggested. "I don''t see them invading any deeper right now."


    "Geh, fine," Lars was still pouting but he followed Yuel to the nearby Hyena Camp and they cleared it together.


    "Well, that was a huge blunder," Kai stated. "You should''ve scouted better against an invade."


    "I checked all the likely invade routes," Yuel said. "But, it seems I overestimated the distance between Bot Lane the Wraith Camp on this smaller map. I didn''t expect them to invade from there. That''s mode unfamiliarity for you."


    "Nice excuses."


    "Oh, yes? Then, where''s your excuse for not blinking out of the fight right away? What was the point of that Blinding Light you wasted?"


    "That''s..." Kai glanced aside. "Just keeping these guys on their toes and all that."


    "Yeah, a smart thing to do instead of immediately getting away. Sure."


    "It''s been a while since I played Lumi, alright? Blinking wasn''t the first thing that came to mind."


    "I can say the same about Clash mode. I haven''t played this mode much, so I don''t have enough experience on scouting invades here."


    "YO. MY DUDES." Lars smacked both of them on the back. "Save that stuff for after we win. We got a crappy start but we''re still kickin''. If we let that small thing get to us, we gonna lose the whole thing."


    "Right," Yuel nodded.


    "True that," Kai threw Yuel one last look, then returned to the game. "So, where do we go from here? Can I go straight to lane?"


    "Yes, that seems like the best line of play," Yuel nodded. "Lars, you better recall to heal up before going to lane."


    "Roger!"


    "As for me, I''ll get straight to jungling since I haven''t lost much HP."


    And so, the delayed laning phase began. Both laners were already at a disadvantage in terms of level and buffs.


    [This is definitely what you call starting the game on the wrong foot.] Yuel bit his lip. Despite what he said about mode unfamiliarity, this invade was unmistakably his fault. He had to make up for it as soon as possible to set the record straight.


    After he and Lars cleared the Hyena camp, Yuel went straight after the griffins in the center of the map. Normally, these stronger creeps were supposed to be challenged only after cleaning the Wolf Camp near Bot. However, Aron probably had his hands full with clearing the buff camps on his side of the Jungle, so it should take him a while to get to the Griffins. Or, so Yuel hoped...


    [Tch, he covered that opening.] Yuel clicked his tongue as his ward by the Griffin Camp revealed Aron. Instead of returning to his side of the jungle, Aron first stopped to farm the griffins. It seemed he was intent on leaving Yuel''s team with zero chances of winning.


    [These guys don''t pull any punches.] Yuel gulped. This match was the real deal through and through. On top of that, it felt like their opponents were rather familiar with Clash mode. And, they clearly had plenty of experience playing together, as evident by the smooth teamwork during that invade. Not to mention, that team was composed of talented high-schoolers with more experience in general.


    In short, the circumstances were rough. Yuel''s team was inferior in every possible regard here. Even the counter-picking attempts turned out so-so. Yuel successfully counter-picked Aron''s Lionfolk, but the lane matchups were far from favorable.


    [This is perfect.] Yuel smirked. This disadvantageous match was a great simulation for where Stratus and StormBlitz were standing right now. If Yuel and Lars wanted a realistic shot at beating a powerhouse like StormBlitz with their new inferior team, they had to be able to overcome tough matches like this.


    [Now, how do I turn this terrible position around and start building an advantage for the team?] The match has just started and there was a lot of work ahead of them!

 182 Remote Intimidation

    Lumimancer wasn''t exactly a great mage for laning. However, when Kai heard about the likely Lionfolk pick from the enemy, she embraced this obscure pick. In fact, she even had some experience playing as a power Lumimancer. She liked picking the class when she was stuck playing Support with randoms.


    As per usual with online matchmaking, she was often stuck with an idiot Carry in the lane. So, she gave up on playing Support for them and went for a power build. It was a surprisingly viable approach with Lumimancer that even allowed her to carry a few games. It has been a long time since she last had to resort to such measures, but the memory of the power Lumimancer was burned into her mind, probably because it was surprising that it worked.


    So, despite being rusty, Kai remembered the general routine. As soon as she arrived on the lane, she cast Ray of Light around the clashing swordsmen. Bright sunlight shone upon everybody in the area, damaging enemies and healing allies.


    Lumimancer''s clearing speed was on the slower side but it had this nice gimmick to it. It took Ray of Light a while to clear the enemy swordsmen, but the spell constantly healed allied swordsmen and kept them alive. So, by the end of the clash, the swordsman survived with decent HP.


    At least, that''s how things should have played out. However, her lane opponent ended up being a Sorcerer, of all things. This was going to be fun...


    Zap! A black sphere emerged out of thin air. The Sorcerer tactically placed it between his swordsman and bowmen. A moment later, he used Dimensional Collapse and the orb exploded inwards, generating a sudden gravity pull. It sucked in the swordsmen and the bowmen, making them bump into each other in the center.


    Due to how many minions bumped into each other, the entire minion wave received heavy damage. However, that wasn''t the worst part of it. With the swordsman pulled back, they left the healing area of Ray of Light. Meanwhile, the enemy swordsman advanced.


    And so, Kai''s slow-burn wave-clearing has been stripped of its one and only redeeming factor: the healing. With her swordsmen now fighting outside the reach of Ray of Light, they had no advantage over their opponents.


    In the end, her frontline collapsed first because she failed to out-damage the Dimensional Collapse. So, she had no choice but to retreat behind her bowmen and eventually all the way back to the Turret.


    [Yeah, about what I expected.] Kai frowned. This was why she didn''t like this matchup the moment she saw it. The Sorcerer''s ability to easily reposition minions was the worst thing possible for a Lumimancer who was trying to farm. What the hell she was supposed to do about this?


    "So, turns out he knows how to play," Kai directed that at Yuel. "Still waiting for my compensation."


    Once Yuel finished off the Wolf Camp, he headed toward Top.


    [Where would Aron place wards?] Yuel analyzed the mini-map on the way. Most likely, Aron was the one responsible for most of the warding on the enemy team, the same as Yuel for his team. So, if Yuel can read Aron''s warding patterns, he''ll be able to sneak by most of the wards.


    Fortunately, Aron was the calculated type, the same as Yuel. As such, Aron has most likely placed his wards in the best meta spots. Therefore, Yuel just had to look at his own wards and mirror their locations; that was probably close to how Aron placed them as well.


    One ward was definitely around the griffins. It was such an important central location that Aron (or at least somebody from his team) definitely placed a ward over there.


    Next, where would the other wards be? Yuel placed his own second ward near the Wolf Camp, right above Bot. It granted him vision of the camp and alerted Lars of any invaders heading to Bot. Since the enemies were aware of Lars''s skill, they will most certainly focus their ganks on Bot to keep him in check. As such, it was of utmost importance to prepare against ganks on Bot.


    Yuel discussed his warding plans ahead of time with the team, so Kai knew there won''t be a ward on her side of the jungle. As such, she went ahead and bought one herself. Quite the initiative right there. This was one of those cases when her self-sufficient nature was great. She was born to play Mid, no question about it.


    With all of that in mind, how did the warding looked on the enemy''s side of the map? Probably quite similar. Aron must have covered two areas just like Yuel did, then another teammate covered the remaining one. So, it was natural to assume the enemy will spot Yuel rotating to Top no matter which path he takes.


    [Too bad I''m not ganking Bot. It''d be much easier.] Yuel sighed. The two lanes had slight asymmetry in their layouts. Bot had a jungle entrance in the middle of the lane so Yuel could easily gank from there without venturing into enemy territory.


    However, Top Jungle didn''t offer such an option. A thick wall separated the lane from the jungle across nearly the entire lane, so the best entrance for a gank laid in enemy territory. Of course, he could also enter the lane from allied territory, but such a telegraphed gank won''t achieve much.


    In conclusion, Yuel''s best option was to approach from the enemy''s side of the jungle. However, that side was most certainly heavily warded against ganks from all directions.


    [I wish I had stealth.] Yuel chewed his lips. Even though he promised Kai a gank, it wasn''t so easy. Nevertheless, he had to do something. This Lumimancer vs. Sorcerer matchup was rough. The game just started and Kai has already lost substantial lane control.


    Fortunately, Aron was probably far from the middle of the jungle right now. Due to the enemy''s invasion at game start, Aron still had plenty of jungle camps to clear; they kept him busy for a while.


    As such, Yuel had some leverage here. He had the option of going for a slow "gank" without fully committing to it right away.


    [Let''s try scaring him a little.] Yuel decided. It didn''t seem feasible to get a solid gank going right now, so the second-best option was to scare Alex and make the guy retreat. That should help Kai regain some lane control.


    In order to not waste too much time on this experiment, Yuel cut through the center of the map, passing by the empty Griffin Camp. Soon, he arrived in the middle of the enemy jungle. There was no doubt that a ward caught a glimpse of him somewhere along the path and alerted the enemy. However, that only made the gank narrative more believable, so it played in Yuel''s favor.


    What the enemy wards should have shown was Yuel heading toward Top on the enemy side of the Jungle. In other words, it had to be an incoming gank.


    "Alex, the Viking is heading in your direction," Aron alerted.


    "Yeah, saw it," Alex stared at the mini-map for a couple of seconds.


    With how the matchup was shaping up in Top, it was only natural for the enemy to start ganking as soon as possible. If they do nothing, Freezer will run away with it for zero effort. It''d be awesome, honestly.


    Alas, the opponents were serious players so they won''t give up so easily. Well, that made things fun in their own right. It gave Alex a reason to actually try.


    Considering how seriously the other team took this much, they''ve surely discussed how to handle the disadvantageous matchup in Top. So, clearly, a gank was heading towards Alex and he had to retreat. Or, did he?


    [Something about this gank feels lazy.] Alex thought. [Chessmaster. He was the shot-caller from the scrimmage, right? He should have good map awareness and know where wards go.]


    If so, was there any chance this calculated player didn''t consider the possibility of a ward near the Griffin Camp? No way. In fact, there''s no doubt that he placed a ward over there too. So, he should''ve guessed that Aron placed a ward over there as well.


    And yet, Chessmaster ran straight through the warded area anyway. He didn''t even try sticking to the edges of the walls or anything to minimize the chances of being spotted. It''s almost like he was asking to be spotted.


    [Is he trying to scare me?] Alex wondered. There was a chance this whole "gank" was just a fraud and Chessmaster had no intention of ganking Alex right now.


    With that said, not taking precautions against this potential gank would be a huge risk. Sorcerer didn''t have any mobility skills to speak of, so any Viking that gets close will have no trouble killing Alex. Therefore, he had to retreat now if he wanted to get away.


    Even though there was still some uncertainty about the enemy''s intentions, he slowly backpedaled from the middle of the lane. A new minion wave was on its way and he should have been on the front to quickly clear it out, but he chose to withdraw from the optimal farming position. However, he didn''t go all the way back to his tower.


    "Why so slow on the retreat?" Aron asked. "He''s coming after you."


    "Is he, really?" Alex asked. "I have a feeling it''s a magic show. He showed he''s on the way to alert me, but I don''t think he''s really coming."


    "Hrm, I wouldn''t put it past him."


    "Had a feeling," Alex nodded. "And yet, I still have to retreat at least a little. He can always change plans midway based on my reaction. What a nasty way to apply pressure."


    "I''d intercept him but I''m too far," Aron shook his head. "He probably took my positioning into account as well."


    "You think he snuck in some wards on our side?"


    "Possible. Or, he estimated it based on he would be doing right now in my shoes. For the better or the worse, we''re both the types who prefer sticking to optimal plays."


    "You mean, the boring bunch," Trever chuckled. "You gotta play with your heart more."


    "We already got one troublemaker to cover that area," Aron retorted. "Anyway, Alex. I trust your judgment on this one. I can''t tell whether this is Yuel''s ''magic show'', as you called it. But, I can at least confirm it''s a possibility when Yuel is involved."


    "Good enough for me," Alex nodded. He stuck to his guns and didn''t retreat all the way. Nevertheless, this partial retreat messed up his ability to continue the efficient farming routine he has been using until now.


    The two minion waves clashed in the middle of the lane, but Alex was too far to place a Magia Orb in the middle of the enemy formation. As such, he couldn''t take advantage of Dimensional Collapse to pull all enemy minions to one spot.


    Fortunately, Dimensional Collapse wasn''t the only spell Sorcerer had for farming. There was an alternative, the long-range option: Repelling Force. Alas, with this one, it was much harder to hit the entire minion wave in one shot, especially from this range. Alex had to perfectly calculate the distance and angle to fire an orb that''ll travel through the entire minion wave.


    It was possible on paper but extremely difficult to pull off. A slight miscalculation of a couple of pixels will make his spell miss a third of the enemy wave. That''s how tight the aim had to be.


    [Execution, huh. What a pain.] Alex sighed. [But, gotta do what I gotta do.]


    After the fateful scrimmage with StormBlitz, Alex learned an important lesson. No matter how good of a player he thought he was, it was a child''s play to shut him down by banning Warlock, the only one class he really played. He should''ve known that all along, but in Ranked nobody targeted him specifically so Warlock bans only happened every once in a while.


    On the other hand, in a competitive match, the enemy was going to use any information at their disposal to strike where it hurt the most. Somebody in StormBlitz, perhaps Chessmaster, saw Alex playing a solid Warlock, so they banned the class. Poof! Gone! Just like that, with a click of a button, they stripped Alex of his strongest tool. And, at the time, his only tool...


    It was a fitting slap in the face for his laziness. He thought he could coast by maining one easy class, but that mentality came back to bite him in the ass. That''s why, ever since, he has been raising his mastery in every meta mage class, for both Mid and Support.


    A few months ago, executing the Sorcerer''s alternative farming routine would have been beyond him. His orbs would have missed the target by at least half a screen.


    However, the way he was now - he could pull it off. It was still a drag, but he could do it. He had to do it. After all, he practiced it along with countless other setups.


    First, he created a Magia Orb in front of him. It was crucial to align the orb on the same axis as the enemy minions. Otherwise, it won''t be possible to send this thing flying in a way that''d hit the entire enemy wave. It was like knocking down bowling pins; he had to aim for the center.


    After carefully placing the orb, he unleashed Repelling Force. A magical gust erupted at his command and rammed into the deployed orb. The impact shot the orb forth, right into the enemy wave.


    [Hmm. I''d give myself a 7/10.] Alex judged. His orb successfully passed through the enemy wave, but the angle wasn''t perfect. The orb only hit two of the swordsmen and two of the bowmen. So, only 4/6 of the targets ate big damage.


    It wasn''t the best result but it was satisfactory. After all, hitting the entire minion wave with one orb was borderline inhuman. The orb had to be [perfectly] centered on the minions and graze the ones on the sides [just] enough to register as a hit. Pulling this off every time would be godlike mastery. Even in Practice mode, under optimal conditions, Alex could only do that once in three attempts on a good day.


    In fact, even in the pro scene, that was uncommon. Only the absolute highest level Sorcerer pros could nail this reliably. Most of the time, if a pro player had to resort to Repelling Force for framing, they created two adjacent orbs and sent both of them flying forward. One orb swept through the left side of the minion wave and the other through the right, with both grazing the center for double damage. That was the most surefire way to do this.


    It was a good setup and Alex practiced it, but he had no time to set it up here. It required two deployed Magia Orbs, so at least one of them had to be placed in advance. Alas, Alex didn''t foresee this development, so he wasn''t prepared.


    [Next time I''ll be ready.] Alex nodded to himself. All in all, he delivered an adequate response to this whole "gank" pressure situation. His Sorcerer was finally viable for competitive-level gameplay. That was good to know.


    Thanks to this semi-successful backup farming option, Alex came out of this situation with minimal losses. It took more than a low-budget magic show to scare him into surrendering lane control. After all, he was Freezer; his specialty was to freeze lanes from disadvantage.


    Though, for that skill to come into play, the enemy first had to actually force Alex into a disadvantageous situation. After all, what point was there to freezing a lane when he could gain an advantage so easily?


    [Alright then, let''s see if these kids have what it takes to give me trouble.] Alex cracked his neck. Was that Viking coming here? Or, was it just a smokescreen? Either way, Alex was ready to face whatever nonsense these guys had in store. He''ll avoid ganks and he''ll maintain lane control, that was his silent promise.

 183 What Happens When You Get Close

    Yuel applied remote intimidation on Freezer and successfully made the guy retreat, denying the most efficient Sorcerer farming method. However, that''s all this play accomplished. Freezer simply resorted to a backup farming method and didn''t lose much.


    [So, he can farm well even from that position.] Yuel frowned. This was the second time Freezer made Yuel''s calculations go awry. First, the guy didn''t pick Warlock. And now, Freezer was playing a solid Sorcerer.


    [I have to reevaluate him from scratch.] Yuel concluded. Freezer was undeniably playing a strong Sorcerer and that''s something the team will have to deal with going forward.


    Now, back to the gank at hand. Should Yuel go through with it? Freezer hasn''t retreated all the way to the Turret, so there was still an opportunity to strike.


    [No, there''s no point.] Yuel judged. Freezer didn''t flee all the way, but he was close enough to his Turret. From this position, he was ready to retreat all the way if another ward spots Yuel approaching.


    On top of that, Freezer bought Blink at the beginning of the game to compensate for the lack of escape tools in Sorcerer''s kit. He was prepared to bail out of there at a moment''s notice. So, this gank wasn''t meant to be.


    [Still, let''s keep him on his feet.] Yuel turned around and threw his axe across the open space in the center of the jungle. The flying axe didn''t trigger a sound alert for the enemy even if a ward spotted it, so this was a great trick for slipping out of the area without informing the enemy.


    Yuel activated Axe Blitz and blinked to the axe. That''s it, easy as that. In a blink of an eye, he was out of enemy territory.


    However, the enemy still thought he was hanging around there and waited for his next move. They saw Yuel going deep into their territory, but where did he go next? Hopefully, that mystery will distract them a little.


    "Heh, the kid is sure playing the patience game." Trever chuckled. "How long you think he gonna wait for his gank over there?"


    "Don''t be stupid," Aron retorted. "He must''ve already left."


    "Yeah." Alex nodded.


    "Huh? When? How?" Trever asked. "We got that whole area warded."


    "Ever heard of blinking?" Alex rolled his eyes. "He''s playing Viking, remember?"


    "Oh! I see what''s up. Yeah, he can blink outta there. But, you sure he actually did it? I didn''t see anything."


    "Pretty sure I saw his axe passing through. It was hard to tell, though. I would appreciate a validation."


    "On it," Aron passed near the suspicious area on his way from Bot to Top. "He''s not here."


    "So, what''s the deal?" Trever raised an eyebrow. "Was it all empty threats? Lame."


    "It was a win-win for him," Alex explained. "Either I retreat and lose lane advantage, or I stay and run the risk of getting my arse ganked. He forced me into a worse position without lifting a finger. A nasty play."


    "It''s not that special, he was merely applying pressure with his presence," Aron argued. "It''s a standard thing high-level Jungler do. Though, he did take good advantage of our wards'' vision, I''ll give him that."


    "Oh c''mon." Trever made a face. "Will it kill you to praise the kid for once?"


    "He''s just good at using the situation to his advantage, as always. It''s at least nice to see he hasn''t dulled much after transferring to this team. But, I''m yet to see anything new from him."


    "Man, you and your insane standards. I bet if I asked what you think of Maker, you''d also say he''s nothing special."


    "Actually, I do think he''s overrated," Aron said. "His mechanical skill stands out and he''s solid across the board, but ''best player in the world''? Not sure about that one. He usually comes on top through sheer execution. That''s amazing in its own right on such a high level of play, but it''s not what I''d qualify for the ''best in the world''."


    "Gotta disagree with you on that one," Alex said. "Maker is a machine. Almost every move he makes is flawless. Sure, you notice that the most when his execution gets a chance to shine. But, if you pay attention to the smaller details, you''ll see the true genius behind every little move he makes."


    "Totally!" Trever exclaimed. "Bro is an insane beast!"


    "Sounds like blind worshipping to me," Aron shrugged. "We need to sit down and analyze a match together so you can show me exactly what you mean."


    "That''s a date," Alex nodded.


    "Eh, count me outta that one," Trever waved his hand.


    "Alright, enough chatter," Aron said. "Let''s focus. We can''t give them any openings. Yuel will strike at the smallest hint of distraction."


    The game went on. Since Yuel''s intimidation tactic forced Alex into subpar farming, Kai won the lane exchange this time and pushed forward with two surviving archers. But, it was a short-lived advantage.


    On the next wave, Freezer regained lane control with ease. Kai''s small push amounted to nothing. On the other hand, Freezer always brought a bunch of minions to her Turret with every push. This matchup sucked.


    "So," Kai addressed Yuel. "When you gonna deliver a real gank? These empty threats only go so far. I''m still losing the lane. Hard."


    "Yes, I''m aware," Yuel said. "Unfortunately, he''s not showing any good openings. His defense is tight."


    "That''s a nice excuse but it doesn''t help my situation. You told me to pick Lumi, so now come up with a solution for this bullshit. I can''t play like that."


    "I don''t have any at the moment. You have to bear with it for a while longer until something changes."


    "And, how long that gonna take? Five years?" Kai clicked her tongue. This was so dumb. She was the captain, the representative of the club, yet the enemy was clobbering her like nothing. This was the worst first impression ever against these senior players.


    Worst of all, none of this shit was even Kai''s fault. It was all Yuel and his stupid idea to pick Lumimancer. There was a good reason this was a niche, borderline meme, Mid pick. It had way too many terrible matchups.


    "I shouldn''t have agreed with this terrible pick," Kai shook her head. "Dunno what I was thinking back then. Your advice sucks."


    "If I recall," Yuel said. "You considered picking Pyromancer. Please enlighten me about the amazing matchup it got against Sorcerer."


    "That''s..." Kai grumped. True, Pyromancer also sucked in this matchup.


    Unlike the Lumimancer, Pyromancer had a fast clearing speed. However, its range was awful, so picking it against a good Sorcerer was practically like asking to be bullied.


    "Still," Kai had to have the last word. "At least, with Pyro I could dare and try some things. With Lumi, I''m stuck doing nothing."


    "Well, you can dare with Blinding Light from close range."


    "As if that gonna do me any good. It doesn''t have nearly the same damage as anything from Pyro''s kit"


    "If you want to increase your clearing speed, Blinding Light is your ticket."


    "Fine, alright. Let''s try that shit." On the next wave, Kai advanced to the frontline along with her minions.


    She didn''t bother placing her Ray of Light anymore because the Sorcerer was going to move her minions away anyway, so it''d be a waste of MP. Instead, she advanced toward the enemy frontline and booted Blinding Light. Her Lumimancer glowed as it charged solar energy.


    [Daring, aren''t we?] Alex cracked his neck. [You''re either underestimating me or you''re running out of ideas. Well, either way, let''s see. I place one there and one near the minions, then blow them all up. Not enough to kill, but that''s a nice setup right there.]


    Alex didn''t go for the usual Dimensional Collapse. Instead, he waited a moment for Magia Orb to come out of cooldown and placed a second orb a short distance away from the first.


    [He''s not doing the pull?] Kai heard the distinctive sound of a new orb popping up. So, before activating the first orb, the enemy added another one.


    [Is he going to ult?] A shiver ran through Kai''s arms. This wasn''t good. The enemy allowed her to advance to the frontline, but he planted her escape route with bombs. One bomb was no big deal, but two was a whole different story. Their explosions will resonate, making each deliver double damage. In other words, it''ll be quadruple explosion damage!


    [I''ll be toast if I let that thing hit me. How do I play around this?] There weren''t many places for her to escape to. She could either head deeper into enemy territory or enter the jungle.


    [Oh, the jungle is blocked. Damn.] Kai stared at a tall wall and the wall stared back her. In this mode, Top Lane had the same kind of barricade as MOBA''s Mid Lane. The jungle was only accessible from her side of the lane but not from the center.


    [Oh, but I got a blink! Right.] Kai nodded. [Alright, that''s the plan.]


    Kai finished unleashing Blinding Light on the enemy frontline, then headed toward the side of the lane. She approached the jungle wall and blinked through it! Or, at least she tried.


    "Huh?" She tried to place the marker beyond the wall but it kept giving her the red color. [What gives? How thick is this damn wall?]


    It was no use. She couldn''t place her blink destination beyond this stupid wall. This sucked.


    [Guess I''ll just wait it out. These orbs aren''t going to hang out there forever.]


    "RAAAAWR!" A wild lion leaped on her from beyond the wall!


    "Oh, shit!" Kai rolled aside right away. Thankfully, she dodged the Lionfolk''s crash. Phew, that was a close call.


    [How the hell did this guy even make it past this stupidly thick wall?] Kai cursed internally. That leap sure had some range to it.


    But, it was alright. She cleanly dodged that thing by rolling. Yes, by rolling... back to her own side of the lane!


    "OH FUUU-" BAM! Two explosions boomed simultaneously. Kai got caught up in the very center of this mess! The explosions resonated in the area they overlapped and torn space itself asunder.


    Over 80% of Kai''s HP vanished. It''s like she never even had any. All her efforts to keep herself healthy went down the toilet.


    At least, the horizon was clear now so she could retreat. The Lionfolk was right behind her, so she didn''t risk it. She activated Flash and blinked the heck outta there. She should be safe now- WHAM! A loud impact resounded behind her!


    [I heard this before today.] Kai recognized the sound of the Sorcerer unleashing a magical gust to fire one of his orbs. That guy was trying to snipe her from across the lane! There was a good chance it''ll be fatal!


    [He gotta be thinking I''ll run toward the Turret, right? Then...!] Instead of running toward the bottom side of the lane where her Turret was, Kai turned toward the top half of the lane.


    A moment later, the orb arrived. However, it missed. Phew! That was a close call. That thing almost did her in.


    "Well, that was an attempt," Alex shrugged.


    "Too bad," Aron said. "You would have gotten her if you didn''t lose that 50-50 gamble at the end."


    "You think it was a 50-50?"


    "It wasn''t? Hrm, I suppose you could choose between shooting left, right or at the center, so that brings it down to around 30%."


    "Not my point. Pretty sure my prediction was on point. But, this girl dodged on reaction."


    "She couldn''t see your shot, though."


    "Maybe she heard it? This thing makes noise."


    "Possible," Aron said. "Thinking of it, she rolled out of my leap too. I doubt she saw it coming. So, it appears she really has a good reaction, possibly to sound. Noted."


    "She''s not one of your juniors, right?" Alex asked.


    "No, she seems to be a part of this club."


    "Not too shabby for the infamous Stratus."


    "I suppose," Aron pursed his lips. Maybe Yuel''s overconfident talk about the team''s chances wasn''t just empty words. Judging by how this girl carried herself, she was on a decently high level, definitely higher than what Aron expected to see from this bottom tier team.


    Nevertheless, as a whole, the trio''s performance has been on the weaker side so far. Starting from Yuel''s overly cautious draft and down to their passive game plan, they hadn''t impressed much so far.


    [Hrm. Maybe I''m being overly harsh.] Aron thought. [After all, they got a mid-game comp so they have an excuse for taking the early-game slow. They''ll have to start showing their true worth in the next couple of minutes. So far, things don''t look good for them.]


    Even mid-game won''t change the fact the Lumimancer had a terrible matchup against the Sorcerer. So, that girl will most likely keep struggling for the rest of the game. On the other hand, Lars had a chance to shine. He has been playing surprisingly defensive thus far, as a proper Elf should. Was he going to pull something soon?


    [If they''re planning to start something soon, it''ll come from Bot.] Aron concluded. [I''ll have to eye it carefully.]


    In this position, the enemy''s best shot at victory was for Lars to defeat Trever in Bot and start a strong push. However, Aron won''t let that happen. He''ll shut down any silly idea these kids had. They won''t get to mount any attacks.


    Before mid-game even hits, Aron will make sure to throw them into a hopeless situation. They won''t get any chances. They''ll lose, brutally and thoroughly. Hopefully, that''ll wake up Yuel and Lars from their daydreaming.

 184 Lars Playing Defense?

    "Damn it," Kai cursed while healing up at the base. After the Sorcerer''s ult reduced her to 15% HP in one fell swoop, she had no choice but to return to base and surrender the lane entirely. This sucked. This entire matchup was ass.


    "How did you like playing on the frontline against a Sorcerer?" Yuel asked.


    [Bitch, you mocking me!?] Kai clenched a fist. "Oh, it was FUN. Some DEADLY fun."


    "About what I expected," Yuel nodded.


    "You [knew] that''s how it gonna turn out, huh? That''s why you egged me on to try that. Fucker."


    "I didn''t tell you to go for it. I just mention you had the option of using Blinding Light to speed up your farming. The decision was entirely yours alone. Though, I admit it did yield some insightful data."


    "Oh, I''m so happy I could be your guinea pig! So, where''s the salary for my hard work?"


    "Look, you can blame me all you want but you had to take this risk eventually," Yuel explained. "Or, you''re saying you were comfortable with the lane situation and didn''t want to change anything about it?"


    "I sure as hell didn''t want to change it from ''losing lane control'' to ''freaking dead''."


    "You simply tested one of your options and it failed. Now, you know you have to look elsewhere. It''s all part of figuring out how to beat your opponent. Nothing unusual."


    "You know," Kai shot him a glare. "I really hate how you make all of that sound like it''s not your problem. You''re the one who forced me into this stupid matchup!"


    "Again, please explain to me how amazing your Pyromancer would have been in that situation. Lumimancer at least got a blink to escape. With Pyromancer, you''d be already dead."


    "Tch," Kai clicked her tongue but didn''t say anything.


    "C''mon, my dudes," Lars intervened. "Give it a rest. We''re supposed to fight these guys, not each other."


    "Yeah, you''re right," Kai nodded.


    "I wasn''t fighting anybody," Yuel shrugged. "But yes, enough with this bickering. We got a match to win. Look, Kai. I''ll keep thinking about a solution for your lane situation, so just hang in there."


    "Got it," Kai sighed and gave it a rest, for now. With that, the quarrel died out.


    [Okay, now I can focus on my fight again.] Lars nodded to himself. His lane situation was far from ideal either, so he had his plate full with enough negative crap. Listening to his teammates'' complaints on top of that made everything a thousand times more irritating.


    [We''re all having a bad time it seems. Dang it.] Lars twisted his lips. He thought he was doing his job probably, he was playing like a role model Elf. He stayed in the back and sniped minions from afar through Elven Sight. It wasn''t exactly the most fun thing in the world but it was an efficient way to win the lane.


    Yeah, that''s right. Dude legit took out a sword and fought the minions at close range, knowing that Lars could snipe him at any moment. Zero respect whatsoever.


    [Dat daredevil.] Lars grinned. Duels with Trever often turned crazy like this when Lars picked Elf, which was a big reason it wasn''t such a great class for 1v1.


    Sure, it was great to enter a first-person view and snipe people from across half the lane. But, Elf was too passive of a class. It had super long shots, but they were kinda wack. During the early-game, Elf''s attack speed was too slow to instill fear in the opponent. That''s why Trever was doing whatever the heck he wanted. This part of playing Elf always felt awful.


    [That''s how you play against an Elf, kid.] Trever grinned as he cut down one minion after another. Normally, it''d be considered suicide to clear minions at melee range with an enemy Carry on the lane. However, against an Elf, it was best to go all in. It was impossible to contest the Elf''s range, but it wasn''t hard to beat its early-game clearing speed.


    The fastest way to farm with Pirate was by cutting minions down with the cutlass, so that''s how Trever went about it. He was disrespecting the heck outta his opponent by placing himself on the frontline like this, but it didn''t matter.


    [Try it. Shoot me. I dare you.] Trever grinned. Most Elf players wouldn''t dare. It''d cause too much chaos and Elf wasn''t good with chaotic scenarios.


    [Crap, he wins the exchange every time like this.] Lars grumped. With the increased attack speed and power of the cutlass, Trever always cleared the lane faster than Lars. So, it was always Lars who had to retreat to his Turret and continue farming from there.


    [I feel like such a wuss.] Lars made a face. It''s like he was scared of Trever and ran away for his life every time. The truth was, he didn''t actually lose any lane advantage from this routine, for he always shot the minions down they reached his tower area. But, every retreat felt like a defeat, as if he lost a fight against Trever. Dang it!


    [Is that all you ever gonna do?] Trever scoffed. [Boring. The Lars I know would''ve gone on the offensive a long time ago. Where''s yo fire, kid?]


    [I so wanna shoot this dude!] Lars''s finger itched. It''d be so easy to just switch his aim from the minions onto Treve. In fact, the only reason Lars hasn''t landed a single shot on Trever this far was thanks to his careful aim. Like, that dude was right in the middle of the crowd, wreaking havoc left and right. It was so easy to hit him by accident. Therefore, Lars carefully adjusted that each and every beam he fired to not even graze Trever.


    That was nice shooting practice in its own right, but It stopped being fun whenever Lars thought on why he had to play like this: minions. The only thing stopping him from snipping the heck outta Trever was the danger of aggroing the enemy minions.


    Even though Lars was like a kilometer away from the minions while sniping them, these little dudes WILL find him and WILL chase him if he dares to lay a finger on their boss. It was like mafia. Lars didn''t want to sleep with the fishes.


    So, the best way around this was to clear the minions first and then snipe Trever. But, that was impossible. Elf didn''t have the necessary clearing speed for that during the early-game. Especially, not against a wild Pirate who brought a sword to a gunfight. Dang it.


    [That''s all you got?] Trever shook his head in disappointment. [If that''s how you gonna do it, I''mma take matters into my hands. Get ready to be wrecked. kid!]


    As a new minion wave was arriving, Trever was ready to greet it with his cutlass. As soon as the two forces clashed with each other, he jumped into the fray to do some killing. Or, at least that''s what Lars should be thinking! Instead, Trever bolted toward the frontline to bodyblock the next shot!


    "Wha-!?" Lars jumped. Just as he was about to fire his gun, a wild Trever appeared! Dude legit came in between Lars and his next target. [Crap! Gotta change targets!]


    In the last split-second, Lars re-adjusted his aim and sniped a different minion. Phew, bullet dodged. That was a close one.


    [Did I guess wrong?] Trever wondered. He was a pretty damn sure he stepped right to where Lars was about to shoot. Yet, Lars''s shot somehow traveled aside and hit a completely different minion. [Wait, can it be? Did he run away from the challenge and changed his target at the last moment? If it''s this brat, it''s possible.]


    It was as impressive as it was disappointing. Trever even went to the frontline and made himself such an easy target, yet Lars sidestepped the challenge. The brat ran away from the fight.


    [The Lars I knew would''ve landed the shot for sure. Even if he didn''t want to fight, he would have jumped the gun. But, here he was cautious. Super cautious, ready for anything. Well, if that''s how it gonna be, I''ll just force you to come at me! Let''s see how long you can keep this shit up. ]


    [Is this dude for real?] Lars''s grin twitched. This time, Trever wasn''t just paying a visit to the frontline. Nah, dude was legit jogging toward Lars like there was nothing to fear. [Ya gotta be kidding me!]


    This was insane. Did Trever really think Lars won''t shot? Dude was pushing it.


    [I can totally wreck ya.] Lars fired toward Trever. But, the shot passed by Trever''s head and hit an enemy minion behind him. [Warning shot, yo.]


    [Did he just miss? From this range?] Trever wondered. [No, not this brat. He avoided me on purpose. Again. Well, if you think you can keep playing like this, I got some bad news for ya!]


    Once Trever got close enough, he turned his back to Lars and unleashed Backfire Cannon. He gonna fire straight at that weakling and smack some sense into him!


    BAM. The impact sent Trever flying backward, right toward Lars!


    "Crap-!" Lars didn''t see it coming. Such aggression! Trever was totally wilding here! [I''d shoot you super damn hard, but I know I ain''t gonna win like this.]


    As much as Lars wanted to stay and give Trever a good fight, he knew the odds were stacked against him at close range. As the Carry, Lars absolutely couldn''t die here. Not only that''d hand the lane to Trever on a silver platter, but it''d also destroy the team''s chances of winning.


    The team needed a Carry in order to push forth for the win. Without one, they''ll not be able to seal the deal. If only Lars didn''t die during the selection match, they could''ve won and stood at the top of StormBlitz.


    But they ended up here, at the very bottom of the food chain. And, Lars got a chance to carry the team again. This time, he''ll do it right and won''t let the opponent taunt him. If the safest way to handle this situation was via retreating, that''s what he outta do. His life didn''t belong just to him here.


    [I''ll just get you later. Look forward to it, yo!] Lars replied to Trever''s aggressive Backfire with an evasive Dodge Roll. He turned around and rolled toward his tower area.


    WHISH! A blade cut through air. Trever delivered an immediate slash upon arriving at his destination. but his blade didn''t slice through anything.


    [Quick on your feet, as always.] Trever sneered. [But, you just gonna run away? Seriously? Alright then, I''mma make your life hell then!]


    "RELEASE THE-"


    "Gah!?" Lars heard the loud ult cue behind him. The big squid dude was coming! It was bad!


    [Dang it, what do I do!?] He hasn''t even reached his tower area yet. If he the squid dude catches him all the way out here, it''ll be all over! He absolutely had to dodge that thing! He couldn''t let himself get killed right now!


    [Gotta burn all my escape tools, yooooo!] Lars turned around and booted Elven Leap. His Elf performed an elegant backflip, flying high through the air. [Okay, pretty sure I reacted fast enough. That squid ain''t gonna be touching mah spaghet. Or, he ain''t even gonna show up...]


    The giant Kraken should have erupted from the ground to smack Lars, but there was no sign of anything happening. It was a feint!


    "Gah!" Lars jumped on his chair so hard he almost fell off. Of course Trever would use a feint the first chance he gets! [Why did I leap right away!? Nuuuuuuuuu!]


    "Pft, lame," Trever canceled his ult and rolled after the backflipping Lars. [What are you doing falling for an easy feint like this? You''re supposed to be better than that.]


    As soon as Trever recovered from the roll, he unleashed the Kraken. The giant squid emerged on the scene and slammed down its tentacles.


    "Crap!" Lars did his best to run but it was to no avail. His Dodge Roll was still on cooldown so there was no escape from the big squid dude!!! He was so dead...

 185 Playing the Long Game

    SLAM. A heavy tentacle crashed on Lars and shoved him into the ground. He was completely immobile now, a perfect sitting duck for Trever.


    "Dang it! I messed up real bad," Lars admitted.


    "Don''t worry, it should be fine," Yuel said. "He can''t kill you with just that. Retreat to the tower as soon as you stand up. I''ll come to replace you on the lane."


    "So, I gotta run, huh," Lars smiled wryly. In his head, he understood how this stuff worked. He was playing Elf, a defensive Carry class. Therefore, he always had to run away from earl fights like this. It was lame but it was the best way to secure victory. He understood all that, and yet... meh, whatever. "Okay, I''mma retreat."


    As soon as the heavy tentacle released him, Lars made a run for it. He didn''t even turn back to check on his opponent. There was neither time nor need for that. He was at a disadvantageous position, so he had to get outta here before he loses for real.


    [Not even gonna shoot at me or anything? Weak.] Trever shook his head. [Well, it''s smarter to retreat fast like that, so I''ll give him that much. But, gotta say, he sure accepted his defeat pretty fast here.]


    In the past, Lars used to bite back his attacker even in the direst of situations. Even when the enemy cornered him and all the odds were stacked against him, Lars found it in himself to retaliate. Naturally, Lars died a bunch of times thanks to these stunts.


    However, this fierce attitude was a part of what used to make Lars a formidable opponent. He was the kind of opponent who could make a comeback from any situation and pull off a miraculous win. It was dangerous to lower your guard against this beast for even a moment.


    However, the Lars in this game felt less like a vicious wolf and more like a timid puppy. His famous mechanical skill was definitely present, as evident by how efficiently he cleared minions and how fast he reacted to Trever''s Kraken. Nevertheless, a certain spark was missing from Lars''s plays. He felt like a fangless beast.


    [I hope it''s just because he''s playing a shitty class like Elf.] Trever tried to convince himself. [He probably learned he gotta play Elf defensively during the early-game, so maybe that''s weighing him down. Then again, why did he even bring Elf to this fight? C''mon, kid. You know your Elf got nothing on me. Where''s your Shooter at?]


    "Is his leap down?" Aron asked.


    "Oh," Trever came back to earth. "Yeah, he just used it to get outta my fake Kraken. Haha, goteem!"


    "I believe I asked you to inform me when he spends his leap. That''s kind of a big deal for me."


    "Yeah, yeah, my bad. Things were going so well I thought I might actually kill him myself, haha."


    "Spare me the excuses," Aron said. "I could''ve rotated for a gank if you told me earlier."


    "That''s some next-level hindsight you''re using there," Alex commented.


    "Alright, alright, my bad! Stop chewing me out, you two. Next time, I''ll make sure to broadcast to the entire universe that Lars spent his leap. Happy now?"


    "Yes." Aron nodded. "So, what distracted you so much?"


    "Nothing, really."


    "I know you can be an airhead sometimes, but it''s not like you to forget something so basic."


    "Not sure if you''re praising me or insulting me," Trever narrowed his eyes.


    "Just giving you some tough love," Alex smirked.


    "I don''t need any love from another dude, thank you very much!" Trever made a disgusted face. "But yeah, guess I was kinda caught up in the moment. I went hard on the offensive and all, so I was all about beating that weakling to a pulp."


    "Lars isn''t posing a challenge for you?" Aron frowned. "That Lars, of all people?"


    "Yeah, his Elf is always wack like that. Though, he got a little better at playing defense, I''mma give him that."


    "Lars and ''defense'' in the same sentence. What an oxymoron."


    "A what? A ''moron''?"


    "Yeah, exactly that." Aron didn''t feel like teaching basic English right now. "Hrm, this is peculiar. If Lars is playing defense as well, it seems their entire game plan revolves around defending during the early-game."


    "Wouldn''t expect that from Yuel in a million years."


    "True, it''s rather unusual. Maybe he''s experimenting with new things."


    "At our expense? Wild," Trever grinned. "He should know he gotta go all-out against pros like us."


    "Oh, I sure he knows," Aron said. "And yet, that''s how he decided to approach this match. It almost feels like he''s not confident about using his usual rushdown tactics at this level of play."


    "Well, I dunno and I don''t care. We just gotta kick their asses all the same!"


    "True that," Aron nodded. Whatever reason Yuel had for picking a defensive lineup for this match wasn''t Aron''s concern. This was a match and Aron had to win, simple as that. If the enemy was playing defense, then Aron simply had to take down a defensive team, that''s all there was to it.


    Meanwhile, Lars successfully escaped death and Yuel rotated to back him up.


    "Yo, I made it," Lars breathed in relief as he arrived at his tower area.


    "You should recall," Yuel said. "I''ll fill in for you until you return."


    "Okey-dokey," Lars began the recalling. "Not gonna lie, dude almost got me there. I totally fell for that squid play, haha."


    "It happens. After all, it''s a 50-50 mixup."


    "Nah, dude. That ain''t no mixup. I can totally react to the Squid Dude if he actually shows up. But, I was real nervous back there for no reason. Damn, lost like half HP to that thing. Lame."


    "At least you''re not dead."


    "Whoa, somebody is being super nice today for a change?" Lars''s blinked in disbelief. "Where''s the usual lecture? Who are you and what did you do to my dude?"


    "There''s nothing for me to lecture you about," Yuel shrugged. "From what I saw, you were playing just fine. You maintained your distance and didn''t fall for taunts. And, you also reacted correctly by retreating from the fight."


    "Well, yeah. But, you''re forgetting the part where I got smacked hard by the Squid Dude."


    "Yes, you didn''t get away scot-free from that surprise attack. But, that''s just because Trever is that good of a player."


    "Nah, that dude ain''t nothing. I can take him out with my eyes closed!"


    "Sure," Yuel shrugged. "The bottom line is, you played just fine. All the recent practice you''ve been putting into playing smarter seems to be paying off. Maybe playing Mid in the club has a positive effect on you."


    "But, I totally lost the fight..." Lars twisted his lips. On one hand, it was awesome he got the approval of the harshest critic in the world. On the other hand, it didn''t feel right.


    Sure, Lars played decent defense as an Elf should. Yes, he didn''t fall for any of Trever''s taunts and he stuck to the basic (yet effective) plan of "snipe everybody from afar". And true, Lars quickly retreated from that dangerous close-range fight, which was a good call and all.


    But, none of that changed one important fact: Lars totally lost that entire exchange. He fell for the Kraken feint, lost half his HP, and now had to dump the responsibility of defending the lane on Yuel. If this wasn''t the definition of playing like a total potato, then what was?


    "It''s all about the long game," Yuel said. "You can lose a hundred fights if necessary. All that matters is that you win the war."


    "Yeah, I guess." It was one heck of a weird idea, but it actually kinda worked sometimes. As long as Lars played it safe and didn''t let his lane opponent gain a huge lead, it was still anybody''s game.


    Lars came face-to-face with that fact more often than ever as he played Mid at the club. He wasn''t quite pro material when it came to Mid, so a lot of Diamond and Challenger dudes whooped his ass at first. To combat these mad lads, Lars had to be patient and make sure he didn''t die. Even when his opponent gained the upper hand in the lane, it was fine as long as Lars didn''t do anything dumb that got him killed.


    Once mid-game arrived, the game became all about team fights. So, Lars no longer had to fight against the strong Mid Laner dude by himself. At this stage of the game, he worked together with his dudes to defeat villains! It was like ["Avengers, assemble!"] kind of stuff, yo!


    So, even though Trever totally mopped the floor with Lars in their brief exchange, everything was fine. This was just the beginning of the game and Lars hasn''t lost much in that fight, aside from his pride as a pro-level duelist. He''ll make a comeback in no time. Ez.


    However, not everybody felt the same about this development.


    "Damn," Kai ranted. "We''re getting pushed around all over the place."


    "True," Yuel agreed. "But, we haven''t let them push much. So, they haven''t established any real lane control yet"


    "Yeah, for now," Kai said. She had to concede that despite drawing her and Lars out of their lanes, the enemy didn''t get to push much during either of these situations.


    In Top, before the enemy ganked her, Kai cleared out the enemy minions. Thanks to that, the enemy didn''t have a frontline that could tank the Turret. On the other hand, in Bot, Yuel quickly rotated to defend the lane while Lars was retreating.


    So yes, both of these times the enemy didn''t get to push much. But, was that really something to celebrate?


    [You can spin it as you wish.] Kai thought. [But, it''s clear me and Lars are having problems at our lanes. We didn''t lose advantage this time, but who knows what''ll happen next time. Yuel should realize that too. How can he be so calm about this? ]


    "You got a plan?" Kai asked.


    "Not in particular," Yuel admitted. "We just keep doing our thing. Our team composition got better tools for team-fights, so that''s where we should take the initiative. Until then, we just need to keep ourselves alive and defend the lanes."


    "Playing the waiting game, huh," Kai carefully examined the lineups of both teams. "Yeah, we can give them some heat during a team fight. But, what we gonna do until mid-game? We''re not going to get away scot-free every time we lose lane advantage. At some point, they''ll break through."


    "We just have to make sure that won''t happen."


    "You serious?"


    "Yes, one hundred percent serious. I believe this is the best we can do right now."


    "You gotta be kidding me..." Kai shook her head. It''d still be one thing if they were playing defense because they had late-game focused classes. But, Lumimancer and Elf? These were mid-game classes, cut and dried. And, pretty much the same applied to Yuel''s Viking as well.


    The enemy''s Lionfolk and Pirate were also mid-game classes. Even worse than that, Sorcerer was a class that became strong during mid-game and even stronger at late-game. Once he starts spamming Magia Orbs with practically zero cooldown, everybody gonna have a bad time. As such, waiting won''t do them any favors. They had to act. Now.


    [The hell is Yuel smoking? That''s some useless shot-caller.] Kai sighed. [Seems like I gotta make something happen myself. There''s no way we gonna win if I keep letting this Sorcerer walk all over me.]


    Since she recalled to the base to heal up, this gave her the opportunity to gear up before her opponent did. As such, right now, she should be slightly superior to the Sorcerer in terms of sheer stats. Therefore, it was the best time to strike that guy down!


    During the next minion wave, she''ll shoot for it. Freezer gonna pay for last time! This time, he''ll be the one running with his tail between his legs!

 186 Desperate Assaul

    Kai returned to the lane, only to be greeted by a group of minions hacking away at her Turret. While she was gone, the Sorcerer eliminated her next wave and his minions pushed forth.


    For some reason, Freezer himself didn''t advance with his minions to push harder. He remained in the back and watched how his soldiers bravely fought and died for his cause. He didn''t lift a finger to help them.


    [Do you think you can take it easy against me?] Kai clenched her controller. This damn Sorcerer sure had some nerve. Just because he had a matchup advantage he was acting cocky. [I''ll make you regret not taking advantage of this opportunity. You should''ve pushed while you had the chance.]


    "Can you enlighten me why you didn''t push?" Aron asked. "You had a great opportunity."


    "Yeah, a great opportunity to push," Alex nodded. "Also, a great opportunity to get ganked."


    "Yuel is defending Bot right now, so no need to worry about that."


    "He''s not the only one who could''ve ganked me. There''s the lass over there who just returned."


    "You were cautious about a gank from a Lumimancer?" Aron frowned.


    "Call it a hunch," Alex smiled thinly. "Don''t expect her to go down without a fight. She strikes me as the type who wants to bare her fangs. That''s exactly how she got in trouble last time."


    "I see your angle. Then again, is a Lumimancer gank really something to worry about? She doesn''t have any hard CC."


    "And, I don''t have any escape tools," Alex shrugged. "Sure, I bought Blink, but I''m not supposed to put myself in situations that force me to spend it."


    "Of course," Aron nodded. "You got a point, you have to be extra careful as a Sorcerer. I feel like I haven''t played the class in ages. I only ever think of Sorcerer as an easy gank target."


    "Yeah, exactly. I got a huge attack range but I''m screwed if anybody gets close. Life sure can be a pain."


    "Fair enough," Aron nodded. "Then, what''s the plan? You''re going to take the tower done via chip damage?"


    "Maybe. Or, maybe somebody will finally get a kill on her to open up the lane."


    "I like how you say ''somebody''. Last time I checked, you''re in the best position to get that kill. You know that her Flash counters my ult, so I can''t pull anything big."


    "I don''t see myself getting a kill on her either," Alex shrugged. "At least, not until she makes a serious mistake. She''s not an amateur."


    "Is that so. Then, you think you''ll have to drag it out until mid-game?"


    "Most likely. Unless [somebody] figures how to kill her with a gank."


    "Sorry, but [somebody] is currently unavailable. He rather not deal with targets that have a low cooldown blink."


    "Then, we wait," Alex shrugged. "This girl is mechanically sound, but I wonder about her mental fortitude. That Blinding Light she pulled last time came out of the blue. It might be a sign she''s getting nervous."


    "Maybe. Just a hunch. I feel like she''s out for blood."


    "Then I''ll keep an eye on your lane," Aron said. "Maybe she''ll do something stupid again."


    [Alright, here''s the next wave.] Kai spotted enemy minions jogging in the distance. This was her cue. During this wave, she''ll turn the tables around!


    As usual, the Sorcerer created a Magia Orb in preparations for the incoming minions. The orb damaged enemies who passed through it, so this was an extra bit of damage that Kai''s frontline had to suffer every time. There wasn''t anything could do about it, so she let her swordsmen run face-first into the orb and eat damage.


    As the two sides clashed, Kai activated Ray of Light as always. However, she didn''t place this one near her allies. Instead, she summoned the light farther into enemy territory. The ray of light covered the entire enemy force. This method briefly maximized her clearing speed.


    In the long run, this was less efficient than basking her minions in the light too. However, for the first couple of seconds, this method actually generated more lane advantage. She wasn''t planning to drag out this clash, so those few seconds were all she needed.


    [She''s up to something.] Alex thought. He was about to make his Sorcerer snap his fingers and activate Dimensional Collapse, but he stopped himself at the last moment. [No need to rush. Let''s see where she''s going with this.]


    [No pull?] Kai wondered. The way she placed Ray of Light made the enemy minions receive continuous damage, so it should''ve tempted the Sorcerer to pull minions away ASAP and break this disadvantageous formation. But, instead, he let his minions suffer in the blazing sunlight. Why?


    [Is he preserving MP?] Kai wondered. The Sorcerer has been using his spells repeatedly and even unleashed his ult once, so it was taking a toll on him. He was down to 40% MP, so it wasn''t unreasonable to start preserving MP at this point.


    But, how he planned to handle the wave without his spells? Surely he wasn''t going to come closer and clear minions with basic attacks?


    [Yeah, thought so.] Kai nodded. The Sorcerer didn''t show any signs of budging from his spot. This easygoing fella had no intention of working hard for anything it seemed.


    Then, what was the big idea? Was he going to let Kai take control of the lane? Just like that?


    Wait, maybe he decided to go easy on her because he had the upper hand this entire time? Even worse, maybe he was disrespecting her and didn''t see her as a threat because she was a girl?


    [Damn, I''ll show you!] Kai activated Blinding Light and sprinted toward the enemy minions. Dazzling light enveloped her and she was about to unleash it on the entire enemy wave!


    [Same desperate move again?] Alex wondered. Since the girl came to the frontline out of her own volition, he could easily block her escape route again with Magia Orbs.


    Except, this time, he didn''t have his ult to blow the orbs up. The ult needed 40 more seconds in order come out of cooldown. So, did the Lumimancer girl decide to gain some lane control while his ult was down?


    [No, I don''t think she''s doing all of this just for some lane advantage.] Alex shuddered. [There''s more to this play. I know it.]


    His senses tingled like crazy. This girl wasn''t putting on a small aggressive show to clear the lane faster. No, she was hungry for blood. She was an avenger, a wild beast. Players like her could go for the craziest of plays. Like, for example, charge straight at Alex and unleash literally her entire kit on him.


    [I better play this one safe.] Instead of placing his next Magia Orb close to himself, Alex summoned the orb a short distance away, close the jungle wall. If anything happens, this orb will be his lifeline.


    "Listen," Alex started. "I think their Lumi might be trying to-" WHOOSH! The enemy vanished in a flash of light! [Damn, I knew it...!]


    A moment later, the Lumimancer appeared right in front of his eyes! She was still cloaked in bright light, for she was about to unleash her Blinding Light! She was going all-in!


    [Get off me!] Alex targeted the Magia Orb he just placed and activated Dimension Collapse. That should drag away the blood-hungry beast.


    Alas, he was but a moment too late. The Lumimancer unleashed an explosion of light right in his face! The entire screen went pitch white. All sounds ceased to exist. He couldn''t even confirm whether his Dimension Collapse properly pulled the enemy away.


    Either way, he had to make a run for it. It was impossible to fight back in this situation, not while his entire screen was pure white.


    [Does this situation warrant a Blink?] Alex wondered as he ran toward his Turret. At least, he hoped he was running toward his Tower. He couldn''t see anything, not even the mini-map. He had to rely purely on his sense of direction. Fortunately, he has fought enough Lumimancers and Warlocks to not be shaken by something like a temporary lack of vision.


    So, he was pretty confident he was running in the right direction. He should be able to get away alive, no problem. Still, just to be on the safe side, it might be a good idea to blink away and create more distance between him and his pursuer, whose location he couldn''t discern.


    [It''s not like Lumi got anything scary off-hand, but I don''t wanna eat damage from her basics. Not to mention, their Viking might be coming after me.] Alex decided to shoot for it. He aimed his Blink into the white unknown and warped forward.


    "Aron, I hope you see what''s happening here," Alex said.


    "On my way," Aron informed.


    Meanwhile, Kai''s onslaught continued.


    [Damn it!] She cursed internally. As soon as she blinked in to unleash her Blinding Light on the Sorcerer, a force pulled her away from her prey. [Why the hell did he even place an orb all the way over here? Bastard!]


    Nevertheless, her Blinding Light + Flash combo worked out. White particles of light surrounding the Sorcerer, indicating he was currently blinded. Kai could still press this attack further!


    Once blinded, most opponents lost their sense of direction and either wobbled around or fired blind attacks all over the place. But, not this guy. He calmly turned around and ran toward his Turret.


    [So, that''s the competitive level for you, huh.] A slight shiver ran through her. Cheap tricks like that weren''t enough throw off a true high-level player. Her opponents today weren''t like the randoms she fought in Ranked. These high-schoolers meant business.


    And, Kai was playing against these very opponents right now. After the club has been forcing her to sit on the bench for two years just because she was a girl, Kai finally set foot on the competitive level. And, she was about to prove, right here and now, that she wasn''t some lowly opponent to mess around with!


    [I''ll bring his HP down with basics, then ult him to death. Let''s go!] Kai chased the Sorcerer and fired balls of light at him.


    Normally, she wouldn''t have been able to chase like that for long, since attacking while moving slowed her down. However, Blinding Light not only blinded the target, it also slowed them down. Therefore, she was able to keep up with the fleeing Sorcerer even though she was shooting him.


    Since the Sorcerer was blind to everything around him, he couldn''t tell that Kai was firing and landing hits on him. If he keeps nonchalantly running away like this, she''ll definitely- WHISH! The Sorcerer vanished into thin air!


    "Damn" Kai cursed. That damn Sorcerer blinked away. Even blinded, he must have known that Kai was chasing and firing at him.


    [Smartass. Try dodging this then!] Kai unleashed the last weapon she had at her disposal - Solar Wrath, her ult. It was a map-scale spell that struck every enemy in the game. The damage wasn''t crazy but it had the extra benefit of revealing all enemies on the map for a while thanks to synergizing with the Lumimancer''s passive. It was extremely useful for confirming kills and exposing the positions of all enemies.


    In addition, after Solar Warth delivered its initial damage, it kept applying small DOT for a while as long as the targets stayed in the sunlight. They had to find a shadowy location and walk into it to kill the DOT effect earlier. In retrospect, Kai probably should''ve fired Solar Warth before she even blinked in to maximize damage.


    [Damn, I really haven''t played Lumi in a while, huh.] Kai clicked her tongue. She didn''t have anybody but herself to blame for that one.


    After unleashing her entire kit on the Sorcerer with varying degrees of success, she brought his HP all the way down to 70%. For a Lumimancer, a non-power class by design, this wasn''t too shabby. If she lands a few more basics on that slippery bastard, she''ll drop him down to 50% and he''ll have to consider recalling. Finally, she''ll win the lane!


    "What are you doing?" Yuel asked in a stern tone.


    "Nothing much. Just cleaning up the mess you created when you made me pick this class."


    "You have to get out of there. Their Lionfolk is coming for you."


    "Ah, shoot!" Kai was so engrossed in the chase that she failed to pay any attention to the rest of the map. Her Solar Warth revealed that the Lionfolk was on his way to Top!


    [Shit, he''s already this close!] Kai gritted her teeth. She definitely overstayed her due. The lion was coming to make her pay the piper!

 187 Rescue Gank!

    [I''m probably done for.] Kai turned around and began fleeing, but she didn''t hold much hope. She has spent her entire kit on the Sorcerer, so she didn''t have any tools to combat the incoming Lionfolk. That lion was going to rend her asunder.


    But, that didn''t mean she''ll go down without a fight. She''ll fight for her survival until the very last moment! She thwarted this Lionfolk''s gank once before, so she''ll do it again.


    [Alright, so I got her within leap range.] Aron gauged that he could reach his prey with a Majestic Leap from this distance. However, he didn''t hurry to take the leap.


    The last time he tried to gank this Lumimancer, things didn''t quite go as planned. This girl was quick-witted enough to dodge Majestic Leap on reaction. So, if Aron leaps on her now, she might dodge it.


    "Her blink is down, yes?" Aron asked.


    "Yeah, but her Dodge Roll is still intact," Alex said.


    "Got it," Aron frowned. In other words, the Lumimancer still had a way to quickly dodge Aron''s leap. She''ll definitely roll away as soon as Aron jumps.


    [Hmm, Alex suggested she might be reacting to sound cues. If so, she doesn''t actually wait to confirm where I''m jumping.] That just might be the Achilles heel of that girl''s quick reaction time. [It''s worth a shot.]


    "Rawwwrr!" A lion roar thundered from the jungle.


    [Alright, he''s jumping!] Kai rolled forward as soon as she heard the cue. [He won''t catch me alive- wha!?]


    WHAM! The lion-man crashed right on top of her! How!? She was sure she rolled away on time. And yet, the guy landed exactly at the spot where she finished her roll. Impossible!


    [Did he predict where I''m going to end up after rolling? Nah, no way. That''d be...] Kai gulped. That''d be too much, even for a competitive player. This must have been just a stroke of bad luck. Yeah, that''s all it was.


    [I-It''s just a flesh wound. I can still get away!] Kai continued running toward her Turret as if nothing happened. [Screw that Lion. I''m not dying here!]


    [Unfazed, huh. I see.] Aron nodded. The Lumimancer didn''t slow down in the slightest even after he hit her with his calculated leap. She should''ve been surprised by the way Aron nailed her positioning, but she didn''t let it get to her.


    [Not bad. You''re actually forcing me to work for the kill.] Aron nodded in approval. However, despite the girl''s solid performance, she won''t get out of here alive. She overextended and she was going to pay for it with her life.


    Aron clawed her back, reducing her below 80% HP. Then, he rolled after her.


    "Wha!?" Kai paused for a moment as a big hairball rolled ahead of her. At that moment, she understood - there was no escape. This predator won''t let her get away. This lion was a trained killing machine.


    [If that''s how it gonna end, might as well stand and fight.] Kai stopped to glance behind her. [Good, the Sorcerer didn''t chase. This is a 1v1. I can still make something happen...!]


    [She stopped?] Aron blinked. He recovered from the roll but found himself too far away from the target. His Mighty Roar won''t reach her from this distance.


    The next moment, a ball of light struck his chest. The Lumimancer chose to stand her ground and fight him head-on!


    [Is she planning to duel? Interesting.] Aron thought. Given the situation, trying to fight back was indeed her best bet. It had a tiny chance of success, which was more than could be said about her chances of simply escaping.


    "I''m on my way," Yuel announced. "Try to hold him down."


    "Easier said than done," Kai fired another ball of light while backpedaling away from the Lionfolk. Her weak attacks barely did any damage, so there was little hope of beating this guy in a 1v1. [Yuel better actually gets here on time.]


    [Nice spacing.] Aron got close enough to deliver an attack, but the Lumimancer backstepped at the right time to just barely dodge it. [I can see why Yuel thinks highly of her. Putting aside her silly overextension, her technical skill is on point.]


    On top of that, the way this girl was moving was rather smart. She has been slowly but surely drawing Aron toward the jungle without making it too obvious.


    [So, there''s going to be a gank.] Aron concluded. This was shaping to be much harder than he expected. Dealing with a Viking gank wasn''t in his plans.


    [It appears I have to use my ult. What a shame. I wanted to save it for Lars.] Aron activated The King''s Dominion. A blockade of lions formed around the area. It denied all entry and escape. This was over.


    [Darn, just a second too late.] Yuel bit his lip. He got Top Lane within the range of his axe throw, but Aron summoned the lion blockade just then. This was over. Given Aron''s skill, he''ll confirm the kill from that position for sure. There was nothing Yuel could do about it.


    Sure, he could jump into the lion''s den and try to make a change there. But, it was pointless. He''ll save nobody and will put himself at unnecessary risk. The enemy''s gank was successful.


    "Are you here yet?" Kai asked as she kept spacing out the lion man. "What''s taking so long?"


    "I''m here, but it''s..." Yuel opened and closed his mouth. Even though this was clearly the enemy''s checkmate, Kai kept fighting hard for her life. It felt wrong to drop the curtain on her and inform her that this was a dead end. Not to mention, Yuel has done nothing but bicker with her ever since the game started.


    [If I don''t go through with this gank, she''s going to be even madder.] Yuel sighed. [Perhaps I should gank anyway.]


    It most likely won''t help the situation and he''ll be wasting resources, but at least he''ll show Kai that he was trying to make a difference. Trying and failing will probably be easier for her to digest than telling her she was a walking dead at this point.


    [Am I really doing this?] Yuel''s brain sounded the alarm. It was futile. It''ll be a terrible misplay. He knew all of that. And yet, his body moved.


    In the first place, the reason Kai recklessly aggressed on the Sorcerer and found herself in this sticky situation was her dissatisfaction with Yuel''s game plan. It reminded him of the selection match. Back then, Yuel forced Roi to play Dark Knight for the sake of his rushdown game plan. But, Roi didn''t appreciate the pick, and that ultimately made him perform worse than usual.


    Back then, Yuel never went out of his way to patch up the situation. He dismissed Roi''s rants and trusted the guy to snap out of it and start performing. But, Roi''s performance remained mediocre at best. Maybe if Yuel just talked to Roi a little more back then...


    [Let''s try it this time.] Yuel steeled himself. He was very much aware he was about to throw himself into unnecessary danger, but it was for the greater good. Hopefully.


    "I''m here," Yuel announced and flung his axe. He couldn''t pass through the barricade of lions by foot, but his axe had no problem slipping through. The axe stuck into the ground inside the cage of lions and Yuel activated Axe Blitz, blinking right to his axe. One moment he was in the jungle, and in the next, he found himself inside the lion''s den.


    "About damn time," Kai ranted. "Get this guy off me."


    "On it," Yuel positioned himself between Kai and Aron. He would have used Takedown to toss Aron away, but CC didn''t work on the Lionfolk inside The King''s Dominion. Therefore, Yuel had to shield Kai with his own body.


    [You challenge me on my own territory?] Aron frowned. This was peculiar. Yuel should''ve known better than to jump into this cage in a futile attempt to rescue a teammate who had one foot in the grave. What got into him?


    [Is this some sort of 4D chess? Or, is he just underestimating me?] Aron shook his head in disappointment. It was nothing more than another foolish play from the enemy side. First, the Lumimancer recklessly overextended, and now Yuel ganked for no good reason. Was this the level Yuel''s shot-calling fell to? Hopefully, he actually had a plan in mind, something beyond Aron''s wildest ideas.


    [Either way, I''ll be taking my kill.] Aron approached the two prisoners of his lion cage. However, he didn''t run at them right away and made sure to stick close to the walls of the cage.


    "He''s going to fight close to the wall," Yuel explained. "Once I send my minions at him, let''s attack one of the lions here to break out of here."


    "I like the sound of that," Kai nodded.


    [Here goes nothing.] Yuel activated Unstoppable Raid and summoned six savage viking warriors. Aron was the closest target available, so they all rushed toward the lion man.


    [Surely you''re aware I know how to counter a play like that?] Aron retreated further toward the wall of lions. The lions didn''t let any enemies through, but they had no intention of stopping Aron. They opened enough space for him to wiggle his way in. The tall lion man was now mixed among his four-legged brethren.


    However, that didn''t discourage the viking warriors. They kept rushing at Aron, fully intent on striking him down. They didn''t have the brains to realize they were heading right into Aron''s trap.


    The moment the vikings approached the wall of lions - claws assaulted them! The lions retaliated! They weren''t there just for decoration. Any foe who dared to approach had to meet their claws.


    However, that fact didn''t faze the vikings. They kept trying to chase Aron even though it was futile. Aron was buried deep behind his lions, so the vikings couldn''t quite reach him. Their target was right in front of them, less than a meter away, yet their weapons couldn''t strike him.


    The vikings couldn''t process this information and kept futilely running against the wall. All the while, Aron''s lions cawed away at them. And so, just like that, Aron defused the Viking''s dangerous ult without a scratch.


    [Now, let''s see what they''re up to.] Aron shifted his focus to the two prisoners of his cage. [Attempting a breakout. I see.]


    Yuel positioned himself in front of one of the lions and slashed the beast. Meanwhile, the Lumimancer was providing support fire from behind. They were trying to take down that lion to rip a hole in the prison???s wall; a solid idea. As far as his limited options were concerned, Yuel probably made the best lines of play available to him during this gank.


    Nevertheless, none of this was going to save the Lumimancer, that''s why this play was a guaranteed misplay. It might have brought him results against less skilled opponents, but not against Aron. Yuel should have known that, and yet...


    [I don''t see how the infamous "Chessmaster" is going to twist this one.] Aron stopped second-guessing himself and just went for the kill. [The Lumimancer isn''t getting out of this alive.] He declared matter-of-factly.

 188 The Hopeless Gank

    While the Lumimancer was busy shooting the lion blocking her escape, Aron snuck up to her.


    "I can hear him creeping up to me," Kai said. Cold sweat ran down her forehead. A Grim Reaper in a lion''s skin was coming after her.


    "Just keep shooting," Yuel distanced himself from the lion and ran in the opposite direction. "I''ll stop him."


    "Oh?" Aron smiled meaningfully. So, Yuel was going to intercept, that''s sharp decision-making. Well, except for the fact Yuel signed up for this hopeless gank in the first place. Aside from that glaring flaw, the rest of Yuel''s decisions have been up to par so far. Truly, it was mind-boggling. Yuel both committed a terrible mistake but also made many smart decisions from there onward.


    "Do you need help over there?" Alex asked.


    "Hrm," Aron frowned. "That could help, but save it for later. My ult is still up, so I can handle this myself." [Time to remind Yuel whose domain he invaded.]


    Aron was heading toward Kai at first, but he switched targets the moment Yuel entered the scene. Now, he was going straight after the cocky invader!


    [Me!?] Yuel flinched. A flurry of sharp claws fired at him! Each slash was swift and powerful, such was the strength of the king in his domain. Stat-wise, Yuel and Aron were supposed to be on equal ground. However, inside The King''s Dominion, Yuel was like a mouse challenging a lion.


    On top of that, Aron was a better duelist than Yuel, so skill won''t save him either. Nevertheless, Yuel had to stand his ground. He had to keep shielding Kai to help her get out of this predicament.


    "We can get out now!" Kai announced. Finally, the needlessly tanky lion they''ve been attacking decided to kick the bucket. They penetrated a hole in the barricade! Time for a breakout!


    [Tch, so persistent.] Aron clicked his tongue. He didn''t expect the enemy to pave an escape path so quickly. Even though the situation should''ve been a total dead-end for them, these two kept pushing forward as far as they could.


    In fact, with this achievement, they successfully shook Aron''s confidence. Maybe, just maybe, there was a chance he won''t be able to kill the Lumimancer by himself. These two cracked a hole in his absolute domain.


    However, all their hard work only proved the futility of it all. Yuel worked so hard just to keep the Lumimancer out of Aron''s claws, but that''s all he achieved. Unfortunately for him, Aron wasn''t the only threat on the lane.


    "Change of plans," Aron addressed Alex. "You take out the girl. I''ll handle Yuel."


    "Works for me," Alex nodded. "I''m already in position to shoot whoever comes out."


    "Good," Aron approved. There was no need for him to worry about the girl anymore. It turned into a real 1v1 between him and Yuel.


    Aron''s stats were already superior thanks to The King''s Dominion, and now he got even stronger. Meanwhile, Yuel only became weaker. This won''t even be a fight, it''ll be an execution. Aron, the king of this domain, shall execute the fool who dared to invade his territory.


    [Is he going all out against me!?] Yuel jerked. This wasn''t supposed to happen! Aron''s goal was supposed to be Kai, not Yuel. [Is he going to let her go? No, that''s not like Aron. He''d never let his prey escape like that. Then, what is- ugh!]


    A flurry of claws fired at Yuel. He had to create some distance or else he''ll be the one to die here! So, he rolled to the other side of the lion cage.


    [Okay, what''s next?] Yuel recovered from the roll, but the enemy was hot on his trail. It seemed like Aron has truly given up on pursuing Kai. But, was such a thing really possible? Would Aron let a dying enemy slip away from him?


    [No chance, not unless he has a different way to confirm the kill... ah!] It finally struck him.


    "Kai, wait-" It was too late. While Yuel was stalling the warden, Kai has already made her escape out of prison.


    [Finally outta there.] Kai sighed in relief. It sure was a close one. She just barely escaped the clutches of death back there. If not for Yuel, she would have been done for.


    But, that didn''t matter. She was out! She was alive! Hell yeah! She exited the cage through the opening in the wall and set foot outside.


    ZAP. A familiar magical sound. A magical orb collapsed inwards, dragging everything in the area toward itself. It was Dimensional Collapse!


    "Wha-!?" Kai wasn''t given enough time to react. The mini dark hole pulled her in without her consent!


    [This is bad!] Kai saw clearly what awaited her ahead. There was another orb, lying in wait for its prey. She saw the threat from a mile away, but she couldn''t do a single thing about it for she couldn''t move during the gravitational pull. She was heading straight toward the second orb!


    [It''s a little overkill, but I rather not take any risks with you.] Alex thought. If he all he wanted was to erase what little remained of Kai''s HP, he merely had to land one shot with Repelling Force.


    However, last time he tried to confirm such a hit on her, Kai dodged his shot from afar. She must have reacted to it by sound and there was just enough time to move aside. It''d be pretty embarrassing if the same thing happens again, wouldn''t it? Aron won''t let him hear the end of it. Therefore, he had to do everything in his power to prevent the Lumimancer''s escape.


    That''s why he first pulled her with Dimensional Collapse. While the Lumimancer''s movements were sealed, he unleashed a burst of magic and sent a Magic Orb flying right at her. An easy guaranteed hit.


    "D-Damn!" Kai saw it all. The unleashed magical force and the orb darting toward her. She saw everything, but she couldn''t even budge. The black orb rammed into her and snuffed out her remaining HP.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Shit!" Kai punched the chair arm. This play wasn''t supposed to end like this! She aggressed on the Sorcerer to reclaim the lane, but she wound up dead in the process. Now the entire lane belonged to that bastard. [I reap what I sow, huh.]


    Thinking about it, what did she even expect to happen? It should''ve been obvious that opponents of this caliber would shut down her flimsy offense on the spot. Her entire plan was suicidal.


    In fact, it was a miracle that Yuel nearly got her outta that disaster. For a moment there, she really thought she''ll get away scot-free. It felt like Yuel made all the right decisions in that situation. And yet, it wasn''t enough.


    [Guess that''s how deep of a hole I dug myself,] Kai hung her head. [Speaking of which, did Yuel get away?] She switched her view to Yuel''s perspective, a luxury only the dead possessed.


    [Damn, this Lion shifts his focus fast. Just a moment ago he was chasing me, but now he''s all over Yuel,] Kai gritted her teeth. [You better not die here. I don''t want that to be my fault as well.]


    [As I feared.] Yuel frowned. It was only logical to assume that Freezer will wait outside. Yuel knew about that possibility all along, but there was nothing he could''ve done about it. So, he wanted to believe it won''t happen. So naive.


    [Seriously, why did I even bother going through with this gank?] Yuel sighed. Even though he knew the odds of getting Kai out of here alive were slim to none, he still went for it, as if to convince her that he was wanted to help her lane situation.


    Thanks to this misplay, the enemy was about to score not one but TWO kills. The cage of lions was still up, so Aron still maintained an immense boost of power. Not to mention, Freezer was right around the corner and could join the offense at any moment. This was beyond hopeless.


    [But, I can''t let it end with two deaths. I have to get out.] Yuel was already down to 40% HP. Aron''s swift and sharp assaults were rapidly draining his HP. [I can''t keep soaking this damage. But, there''s nowhere to run.]


    A wall of lions stood in Yuel''s path. Just beyond them laid the road to his Turret, but he couldn''t cross through them or even get closer. The moment he approaches, the lions will lash at him.


    But, this wall won''t stand here forever. The effect of The King''s Dominion should wear off in a few seconds. Yuel just had to find a way to stall Aron until then.


    Normally, Yuel could''ve gone for Takedown and tossed Aron away. However, as long as The King''s Dominion was in effect, Aron was immune to CC here. So, Yuel had to handle this one with fundamentals.


    [Except, there''s nowhere to run anymore.] Yuel bit his lip. [I can''t start running in the opposite direction, that''ll only take me farther away from my tower. But, I can''t just stand here and wait. Turning into a sandbag isn''t an option either. I don''t have enough HP to tank many more hits. If only I could make Aron whiff a few attacks...]


    But, was that even possible? Could Yuel somehow make a player of Aron''s caliber whiff attacks in this situation? Actually, there was one way. Yuel experienced it on his own flesh about a month ago.


    Back when he fought against Howard''s sister, Yuel whiffed a bunch of attacks. For some ungodly reason, his Knight struggled to land any counters against Ignis''s Warrior. As it turned out, the reason was the slight difference in attack range between the two classes.


    On paper, Knight and Warrior had the same "melee attack range", that''s how it appeared on the wiki. However, turned out that the specific numbers hiding behind that generalization slightly differed across various melee classes.


    After suffering an embarrassing defeat at Ignis'' hand, Yuel dug deeper into this topic and found the ranking of the attack ranges of all melee classes. Indeed, Warrior''s range was slightly superior to Knight''s. And, there were many other interesting bits of info on that list. Yuel made sure to memorize the entire thing.


    So, there was one thing he knew: Viking''s attack range was superior to Lionfolk''s. And, the difference was big enough to have practical applications. Yuel even practiced this specific matchup before when he was verifying the listed rankings in training mode.


    It wasn''t enough to just know which classes had a superior range. The differences between their attack ranges were so minute, that they normally didn''t play a role in combat. Nevertheless, if the player with the superior range could reliably keep their opponent at maximum range, they could bait their opponent into whiffing, just like Ignis did to him.


    Since Yuel has been playing Top a lot lately, he decided to practice such interactions for some classes; Viking was one of them. It wasn''t easy to translate this theoretical knowledge to practice. However, if Yuel fully concentrated on this task, he could pull it off once or twice. Probably.


    [Not like I have any other options here.] He gulped. There was nowhere to run and he couldn''t allow himself to get hit anymore. It was a sink-or-swim and he had to swim!


    [Okay, examine the distance of our feet.] Yuel took a deep breath. [Now!] He swung his axe at the incoming predator.


    [Oh? You''re challenging me?] Aron raised an eyebrow. [Hrm, I suppose that''s your last resort. Very well. Then, prepare yourself!]


    Aron shot a counterattack right away. His Lionfolk swung his long arm and clawed right through Yuel. At least, that''s what should''ve happened. In practice, his claws cut through empty air.


    [What? Did I get out-spaced?] Aron frowned. [Was it intentional?]


    "Y-Yes!" Yuel would''ve pumped a fist if he had the luxury to do so. But, time was of the essence. He made Aron whiff one attack and now it was time to run the hell out of here!


    The effect of "The King''s Dominion" came to an end and the lions dispersed. The path ahead was clear! Go go go!


    [Cheeky brat.] Aron clicked his tongue. [You''re not getting away!]


    "Sorry," Alex casually jogged after the two of them from afar. "Can''t help you with this one. I''ve spent all my spells."


    "No problem," Aron said. "I''ll get him. I''m faster."


    [It''s not over yet.] Yuel knew. Aron''s Lionfolk was faster on foot. It won''t take long before Aron catches up and continues his relentless assault. That''s why a little bit of a tricky was necessary.


    [He''s about to catch up.] Yuel estimated. [Three. Two. One. Stop!] He halted in place and turned around to face his pursuer!


    "Wha-!?" Aron blinked. [Did he give up? Very well, then I''ll- no. Wait!]


    Aron realized what was about to happen, but it was too late. He was already within the Viking''s reach.


    "Haaaaaa!" the Viking roared as he grabbed the lion man with both arms. Then, he hurled the beast far away, to the other side of the lane. It was Takedown!


    [Tch. not bad.] Aron landed a fair distance away from his prey. Naturally, Yuel didn''t waste any time making his escape. Aron gave chase for a little while but then gave up. It was over. Yuel reached the Turret area, he was untouchable now.


    [That''s a polished Viking you got.] Aron thought. Viking wasn''t a Support class, so Yuel wasn''t supposed to excel this much with the class. Then again, Top was Yuel''s secondary role, so perhaps it was no surprise he could perform well with one of the highest tier Top Laners. [I''ll keep that in mind for our next fight.]


    [Phew.] Yuel sighed in relief as he finally reached his tower. [Can''t believe that gimmick actually worked. He probably didn''t expect me to play Viking like this, so he let his guard down. It won''t happen again, that''s for sure.]


    Aron was like a self-correcting killing machine. Every time he was outplayed, he stored the data of that play in his database and processed a solution. The next time he comes across the same situation, he''ll counter it without fail. That''s how the killing machine always built itself up into an unstoppable late-game terminator.


    However, this game was only about to hit mid-game. So, for now, it was still possible to outplay Aron with tricks like these. That''s the only reason Yuel escaped death this time.


    Unfortunately, escaping alive was all Yuel ever achieved from this gank. He just managed to escape, nothing more. He didn''t score any kills and he couldn''t save Kai. It was a pointless gank, just as he feared.


    For a moment there, he thought he might actually pull Kai out of that predicament, but he should''ve known better. Against opponents of Aron''s caliber, that gank was hopeless from the beginning; it was borderline suicidal.


    Everybody was surely going to diss him hard for this terrible misplay. Or, so he thought...

 189 Shot-Callers Miscommunication

    "Good job getting out alive," Kai said. "I thought we were both goners."


    "Yeah, I did get away," Yuel said. "But, I didn''t really help."


    "Hey, you tried," Kai averted her eyes. "Gotta admit, you were pretty sharp back there. Almost pulled me outta that crap."


    "Um, sure," Yuel was taken aback for a moment. What on earth? This was the part where Kai was supposed to complain about his failure to help. And, about the fact he went for such a hopeless suicidal play. In fact, everybody should criticize him for making that mistake.


    "That rescue operation was slick, yo!" Lars nodded. "Gave me the shivers. Almost pulled it off, almost! But dat Aron, I''m tellin'' ya. Real killer."


    [What''s going on?] Yuel looked around in confusion. It''s as if he wandered into some crazy alternate reality, one in which his gank was an acceptable play. It was crazy.


    "Yeah, man," Luke tuned in. "That gank was something else. Learned a bunch from it."


    "It was really nice," Ben nodded.


    "Such a splendid display of comradeship!" Vincent made noise.


    [I can''t tell if these guys are serious or making fun of me.] Yuel made a face. Though, admittedly, their words felt nice. It was rare for others to praise his plays in this manner.


    Normally, everybody only ever praised his shot-calls and reads. However, here they were praising his... What, exactly? "Comradeship"? The fact he didn''t give up on Kai until the very end?


    It was the same praise people gave him whenever he fought for the life of his Carry to the bitter end. For him, it was just a tactical decision. He judged that he could keep the Carry alive at the expense of his own life and that doing so would benefit the team more than his own survival. Therefore, he struggled until the very end despite the odds stacking against him.


    There was nothing particularly genius or amazing about these plays, but others often praised him for them. That never made much sense, but Yuel just went along with it. He assumed his teammates understood the tactical decision he made and simply praised him for it, nothing more.


    However, the current situation was different. His decision to gank Top was objectively a misplay. He calculated ahead of time that the chances of success were slim-to-none and it indeed failed in practice. Even worse, this misplay cost the team a lot of momentum because Aron injured Yuel heavily, forcing him to recall to base. So, for a short time, this game became a 1v3 situation with only Lars left to hold the fort. It was a terrible position.


    Yet, his teammates praised such a play? Even though it was so helplessly foolish?


    [Ah, I guess they just didn''t know.] Yuel smiled wryly. In this entire club, only he figured that the gank was a hopeless suicidal play. The rest must have thought there was a real chance of success, that''s why they sang him praises for his futile efforts. [Ignorance is bliss.]


    Unfortunately, he failed to get her out. And yet, Kai still seemed grateful enough. She appreciated the fact he tried so hard to get her out of that predicament, regardless of the fact he failed. So, maybe that play wasn''t a total waste after all.


    [Interesting. So, misplays can have an unexpected benefit like that.] Yuel nodded to himself. He felt like a scientist who has just discovered a new element of nature. It was such a bewildering reveal.


    But, none of that changed one important fact: Kai''s reckless charge at Freezer was foolish and irresponsible. It put her in that losing situation and cost her her life. This was a huge issue and it had to be addressed.


    It was a shame to ruin this positive atmosphere, but Yuel had to clarify the situation. He couldn''t let this slide, for it''d send the message that Kai''s play was acceptable; it definitely wasn''t.


    "Kai, what was the big idea there?" Yuel asked as carefully as he could. "You were asking to get ganked."


    "Ah, well..." Kai averted her face and scratched her nose. "It wasn''t my brightest idea ever, I admit."


    "That''s putting it lightly. It was suicidal."


    "Hey, whose fault you think it is that I gotta go for these desperate plays? My lane disadvantage ain''t gonna resolve itself, you know."


    "Yes, but dying sure improved your situation."


    "I thought I could get him," Kai clicked her tongue. "That damn Freezer turned out to be pretty good. It''s like he saw it coming."


    "He does seem to have an acute game-sense," Yuel nodded. Freezer hasn''t done much this game, but each of his actions was remarkably on-point. He was always in the right position, at the right time, and using the right skill.


    "But, of course he''s good!" Vincent exclaimed. "After all, Freezer possesses the Third Eye of Truth! He can see through anything and always make the correct play!"


    "Sounds a little too invincible, don''t you think?" Yuel asked.


    "He might as well be." Vincent nodded with a dramatic expression. "Have any of you actually outplayed him this game so far? Nay, I say."


    "That''s..." Yuel didn''t have a rebuttal. Indeed, they haven''t made Freezer sweat this match at all. It always felt like he was on top of the situation.


    Back during the scrimmage with the Leopards, Freezer''s sloppy execution seemed like the main thing holding him back. And, there was no trace of that weakness in this match. So, at least so far, Freezer truly passed himself as an opponent without any weak points to speak of.


    "Actually, I dodged one of his shots," Kai said.


    "Oh, correct!" Vincent nodded. "True, there was one such unexpected exchange. Your Rhythm Reader bested the Third Eye of Truth in that scenario! No matter what truths his third eye might reveal, they''re powerless against the reality-bending Noble Phantasm that is Rhythm Reader!"


    "So, you''ve only surprised him once with impressive mechanical skill," Yuel said. "But, the second time you failed to dodge his attack, hence you failed to escape alive."


    "I didn''t fail," Kai objected. "That bastard didn''t even give me a chance! He pulled me in with one ball and smacked me with another. I couldn''t even move."


    "Huehue," Luke cackled. "Sounds like he crushed ya with his balls."


    "Oh, shut it," Kai rolled her eyes.


    "Freezer''s skill aside," Yuel wheeled the conversation back on topic. "Kai, you should''ve known it''ll end poorly if you charge at him like that."


    "Well, what else was I supposed to do, genius? He had all the lane control and you weren''t exactly helping me. Sure, you made him retreat a little every now and then, but that didn''t change anything. You should''ve come to gank for real."


    "That wouldn''t have..." Yuel didn''t finish the sentence. According to his analysis, ganking Top wouldn''t have borne any fruit for the team. However, that was just his own personal estimation of the situation. Kai didn''t see things the same way, so she wanted a gank.


    Despite that, Yuel didn''t provide her with one. He kept repeating the same "remote intimidation" tactic without fully explaining his reasoning to Kai. No wonder it didn''t instill much confidence.


    As the shot-caller, it was part of Yuel''s job to do something about that situation. At the very least, he should''ve reassured his teammates that he had a plan and that everything will be alright. Yet, he hasn''t done either of those. He just kept playing silently, keeping his in-depth analysis in his own head.


    In truth, he had all sorts of ideas in mind. The matchup in Top was indeed terrible and things were rough in Bot as well. However, their team composition should be able to hold the upper hand in team-fights, so it was a good idea to wait for mid-game.


    Alternatively, instead of struggling to defend two lanes, they could abandon one and concentrate all their forces on the other. It was a gamble, but it could''ve given them the spark they needed for gaining momentum. More than anything, it would''ve instilled Kai with more confidence about the future of the match.


    In the end, Yuel deemed that plan too risky and dismissed it. Unfortunately, he didn''t have any other bright ideas aside from waiting for mid-game. Therefore, he went passive. He decided there was not much for him to do at that point in the game, so he just remotely supported Kai by intimidating Freezer, without truly resolving her problem. He didn''t do anything to give her any hope.


    So, no wonder Kai decided to take matters into her own hands. She lost all faith in Yuel, so she had to do something about the situation herself. All that piled pressure gave birth to her reckless kamikaze attack.


    [If it were Howard in my place, he''d know how to instill confidence in his teammates.] Yuel bit his lip. Even though that reckless attack was undoubtedly Kai''s fault, Yuel shared some of the blame as well. If only he did a better job reassuring his teammates about the future of this match, they wouldn''t become so frustrated with the current situation. It was a grim failure on his end.


    [I still have a lot to learn.] Yuel sighed in defeat. Why was it so difficult to properly guide his teammates? The answer was obvious: they weren''t chess pieces. They were human beings, with their own minds and ideas. Therefore, they needed more than just flat orders in order to perform. Even though Yuel should''ve known that, he made the same old mistake. Darn it.


    "Hey, dude," Lars called out to Kai. "I know how it feels. I also wanna charge in and beat the heck outta Trever. But, ya can''t just decide to do that stuff by yourself. You gotta tell us whatcha planning so we can help ya."


    "Huh, well..." Kai shifted her eyes away.


    "The guy is right, you know," Luke tuned in. "Where''s your communication at, cap?"


    "Indeed, such solo plays are no good," Vincent added. "It was like a play made by a pouting child rebelling against his parents."


    "Alright, alright, I get it already," Kai made a face. "Yeah, it was a dumb play and I should''ve discussed it first. I was just trying to get something done, okay? Jeez, you guys are assholes."


    [They''re siding with me?] Yuel blinked. This was rare. Normally, he was the received end of the large group. It seemed his pointlessly valiant efforts during the rescue-gank moved these guys. So, even irrational misplays had some uses, huh. [I don''t think I''ll ever be able to deliberately make such plays, though.]


    "Alright already, I''m sorry and all," Kai said. "Anyway, do we have an actual plan now or what?"


    "As I said before," Yuel started. "The plan is to beat them during the mid-game with our superior team-fighting potential. Though, the current situation threw a little wrench in that plan. Even with better composition, we''ll have trouble pushing them back from this disadvantageous position."


    "Gah! Will you drop it already? I apologized."


    "I''m just stating the facts as they are," Yuel stopped for a moment. [Maybe continuing with this line of thought isn''t the brightest idea. The team already feels discouraged enough as it is.]


    According to his analysis, Kai''s death and the loss of Top put them in a jeopardy. In a small and limited mode like 3v3, he couldn''t find any immediate solutions to this disadvantageous situation. Most likely, whoever gained momentum first in this mode often carried all the way to victory.


    However, saying any of that out loud will only put a damper on the team. All of it was facts and felt important to share, but maybe Yuel should keep this to himself. After all, Lars was no stranger to taking reckless independent actions when push came to shove. So, painting this situation as hopeless might motivate the goof to pull something crazy. That wild beast has been restraining himself pretty well recently, but there was never to tell for sure.


    "They''ll most likely take Top Tower now," Yuel explained. "Sometime after that, I expect all three of them to push Top for the win. So, we''ll have to gather there and fight back. As I said, we got an advantage in team-fights, so we just have to beat them. We win the team-fight, we win the game."


    "Okay, I like it!" Lars gave a thumbs up. "Let''s kick up their butts, yo!"


    "I suppose that works," Kai nodded.


    [Did I do it?] Yuel wondered. [Did I reassure them about the future of this match?]


    At the very least, he wasn''t met with any objections, that was a start. But, was it really a good idea to not disclose all the facts with his teammates? According to his analysis, their chances of fighting back this momentum were slim to none.


    [I suppose that''s something for me to mull over.] Yuel smiled wryly. He was the shot-caller, so it was up to him to figure out a winning game plan and calculate the risk-reward ratios. His teammates didn''t have to know their chances were exceedingly low. As long as Yuel brings victory in the end, all this discouraging analysis was irrelevant.


    [Easier said than done, though.] Yuel frowned. If they fight 3v3 while defending Top, they were bound to lose. Even with their team-fighting advantage, it was unlikely they could beat Aron''s experienced team. At best, it''ll be a continuous draw and the enemy will gradually pressure Yuel''s team into submission.


    So, they needed an alternative. But, what else could they do in this small game mode? There were only the three of them here, nobody else to rely on. Yuel didn''t have many pieces to work with.


    [Should I try backdooring?] Yuel wondered. Viking''s ultimate made it great for split-pushing lanes. So, while the enemy is busy attacking one lane, he could blast through the other lane.


    [But, that means leaving Kai and Lars without a frontline.] Yuel shook his head. That idea was a bust; way too risky. It seemed their only option was to stand their ground and fight to the bitter end.


    [We''ll just deal with it as it comes.] Yuel nodded. [For now, I need to focus on the situation at hand. What will Aron do after claiming Top?]


    Naturally, the enemy was going to start by demolishing the Top Turret. But, what''s next? Kai was dead and Yuel had to heal up at the base. So, it left Lars all alone to hold the fort.


    [Aron will try taking Lars out.] That was the only reasonable conclusion. Aron could capitalize on this advantageous situation in many different ways, but he was definitely going to target Lars next. After all, Aron knew all too well how dangerous Lars could be. The faster he kills the beast, the better.


    "Lars, watch out," Yuel warned. "Aron will try ganking you sooner than later."


    "Lemme at him, yo!" Lars exclaimed. "I''mma avenge you guys no problem, believe it!"


    "Yeah, yeah. Anyway, keep your distance from the jungle. Don''t let them lure you in."


    "Roger. I''mma sit here like a tank. 200% immovable! Ain''t nobody gonna pull me into the jungle!"


    "Good," Yuel nodded.


    And so, one of the most critical periods of this match began. If the enemy can take Lars out, the game will be over right then and there. However, if Lars survives, there will still be a chance. It''ll be an uphill battle from there, but they''ll have a chance to pull it off during team-fights.


    [Please, Lars. Just don''t mess up...!]

 190 Dragging the Turtle out of His Shell

    Aron and Alex successfully killed the enemy Lumimancer, as well as injured the Viking enough to make him recall. The horizon was clear.


    "That was easy," Alex said.


    "It sure was," Aron nodded. "I''m still confused about the point behind that rescue attempt."


    "He tried to save the Lumi, duh."


    "Obviously, that was the goal. But, Yuel should know better than going for such a hopeless gank. There was no chance of saving the Lumimancer in that situation."


    "I agree, his chances were bleak," Alex nodded. "But, it probably looked doable for most people."


    "Except, Yuel isn''t ''most people''," Aron frowned. "He should''ve known that this play won''t fly against me. I was expecting a twist, but there was none. It was a plain misplay."


    "Are you sure you''re not giving the guy too much credit? He''s only in second year, right?"


    "Yes, but even as a freshman, his judgment has always been exceptional. This is very much unlike him. It''s almost as if his decision was..." [Fueled by something other than rational reasoning.]


    Aron didn''t dare to voice that thought out loud. That wasn''t the Yuel he knew. As a shot-caller, Yuel''s strongest quality was his ability to always think rationally and use objective judgments. So, he couldn''t have possibly regressed into the type of player who made emotional decisions out of sheer optimism. Because, if so, he wouldn''t be Yuel anymore.


    "You''re sure making a big deal out of it," Alex shrugged. "You know, even a broken clock is right twice a day. Maybe he misjudged the situation in the heat of the moment. He had to react fast, so he made a hasty decision."


    "I suppose that''s possible."


    "Besides, he nearly got the Lumi out. I''m not so sure you would''ve confirmed the kill on your own back there."


    "I would have gotten the job done if I focused the Lumi," Aron objected. "But, it was easier to leave her to you. No point pushing myself and risking a misplay."


    "Either way, you agree that, without me in the picture, there was a slight chance of them getting away, right? Maybe that''s what he was counting on."


    "It was obvious to everybody that you''ll get involved in that situation," Aron argued. "Yuel wouldn''t miss something so obvious."


    "Maybe he gambled on the chance I won''t make it?"


    "Perhaps," Aron sighed. "Anyway, we''re getting nowhere so let''s move on."


    "Agreed," Alex nodded. With the Lumimancer out of the picture and the Viking back at the base, the Top Turret was there for the taking. "So, we''re taking the Turret with the next wave, right?"


    "You take it," Aron turned his back and strode toward the jungle. "I''ll use this opportunity to gank Bot."


    "Wait, I''m not sure I can take the Turret alone," Alex said. "The Viking might return to defend."


    "No big deal. You''ll take the Turret sooner or later. We''re in no hurry."


    "Just play safe like you always do and you''ll be fine."


    "What a drag," Alex sighed. He was hoping to score the Turret now and have an easy ride on the lane from there onward, but Aron didn''t care for realizing this utopia. Oh well. "So, I guess that Elf player is such a big deal?"


    "You can put it that way," Aron said. "As long as he''s alive, you can never be too sure about anything. He''s a wild card. But, if we take him out now, the game is as good as over."


    "Sounds greedy," Alex shrugged. "I rather take the tower in front while I can, but you do you."


    "I''m sure you can take it alone."


    "We''ll see how it goes."


    On that note, Aron left Top and headed toward Bot through the Jungle.


    "I''m rotating to Bot," Aron announced.


    "Yeah, I heard," Trever nodded.


    "Lure Lars toward me."


    "We really hafta gank him? I can take him out myself. He''s free as heck today."


    "Oh, really? Then go ahead. I''ll wait."


    "Tch, okay, okay," Trever made a face. If it were so easy, he would''ve kicked Lars''s turtling arse ages ago. But, Lars''s defense has been proving to be surprisingly airtight.


    Of course, part of it was Elf being broken with his asinine attack range. Even an infant could pick up this hax class and shoot arrows from across half the universe. Shit was dumb as fuck. Nerfs pls?


    But hey, Trever wasn''t some scrubby scrub who''d lose to cheap stuff. He had more than enough experience fighting pesky elves. Especially, experience in crushing the smarty-pants players who picked Elf for Duel, thinking they gonna cheat the system with Elf''s range. Nah-uh, not gonna happen against Trever. He gave them the business every time.


    The counter to Elf was straightforward: just get in and wreck him from close-range! Ezpz. Well, it wasn''t [that] easy in practice, but Trever knew how to be aggressive enough against these campers. After all, he was the WildDragon! He knew how to cause a storm or two.


    Nevertheless, the players who [really] knew how to play Elf gave him trouble from time to time. Turned out Lars became one of these filthy campers. The brat''s Elf used to be much more active and daring, but now he was properly maintaining his distance and all that lame shit.


    To make things worse, Lars was still the usual aimbot. So, not only he had asinine range but his shots hit home every single time. His farming was the epitome of Elf effectiveness. Trever could clip that stuff and title it "A PRO ELF PLAYER FARMING LIKE A MACHINE!!!!" and nobody will doubt it''s legit pro-level material. That''s how good it looked.


    So yeah, even for Trever, it wasn''t exactly easy to deal with Lars''s Elf today. It was unclear what was possessing the kid, but his defense was on-point. He didn''t fall for any of the usual baits and he nothing tempted him to start pushing.


    To make things worse, Lars bought himself some crit after returning to base. The crit chance wasn''t high but, but it''ll hurt like hell if it connects. One unlucky shot and Trever will lose like 30% HP.


    Until now, Trever has been enjoying the ez lane advantage. He fearlessly charged in with his cutlass and cleared minions from melee range. Lars never dared to shoot him in fear of aggro-ing the minions, so Trever had the leisure to wreak havoc on the frontline without fearing anything or anybody.


    However, Lars''s newly obtained crit chance changed everything. Now, Trever actually had to be careful, because even a single hit could be lethal. Lars knew that too, so he no longer played nice. As soon as Trever approached the edge of Elf''s obnoxious attack range - BAM! A laser beam straight in the chest!


    [Nice shot, bastard.] Trever grinned but cold sweat formed on his forehead. The aim was pitch-perfect, even from this range. Luckily, this shot wasn''t a critical hit. And yet, Trever lost almost 15% HP from that hit. [Damn, I don''t wanna find out how much a crit would deal.]


    The attack aggro''d Trever''s minions on Lars''s ass, but Lars dealt with them cleanly. The brat built high attack power and some of his shots crit''d, so he shot most of the minions down before they reached him.


    Trever could''ve charged in to attack alongside his goons, but he decided against it. There was a pretty damn good chance Lars will immediately switch focus to Trever and snipe again without fail. Trever could legit die from three unlucky crit hits right now, so advancing was too reckless.


    So, this situation didn''t leave Trever with many options. His best shot against an Elf was to get close, but he couldn''t approach an opponent who had an aimbot installed in his brain. Therefore, the best Trever could do was to maintain his slight lane advantage by clearing minions a little faster. Unfortunately, that didn''t move things anywhere.


    "Yeah, to be honest, a gank would be nice," Trever finally accepted Aron''s offer. "So, you just need me to bring Lars into the jungle?"


    "Yes, that''d be ideal," Aron said. "I don''t have my ult, so my options are limited. It''s best to force him into an area from which he''ll find it hard to escape."


    "Roger," Trever saluted. "Food delivery coming in a minute. Don''t forget to prepare your tip."


    "You make baiting sound so easy."


    "C''mon, it''s Lars we''re talking about. He''s even easier to bait than me, haha."


    "I''m glad you''re so self-aware," Aron frowned. "How about your work on that flaw of yours?"


    "Can''t fix my genetics, man," Trever laughed it off. "Anyway, I''m on it. Show me where you want your food delivery and I''ll get it there."


    "Somewhere around here would be ideal," Aron drew an area on the mini-map.


    "Gotcha. Food incoming!" Now, all Trever had to do was lure Lars into the jungle. A little taunt should do the trick.


    When the next minion wave arrived, Trever advanced to the frontline with a cutlass in hand.


    [Crit damage?] Trever sneered. [Pft, who cares about that flesh wound? I''m going all in! Pulling all the stops! Not scared of you!]


    That''s the story Trever tried to sell to Lars by doing an in-game taunt and advancing to the frontline. It was just a bait, he had no intention of truly putting himself at danger. Therefore, he stopped advancing a little early.


    ZIP! A laser beam flew straight at him! But, it vanished into thin air right in front of his nose.


    As absurd as Elf''s attack range was, it still had a limit like every other shot. With Trever''s experience dueling this crappy class, he could more or less see that range with the naked eye. So, as soon as he stepped into the danger zone, he backpedaled out of Lars''s. By the time the laser reached him, he was already out of range. This kind of pro play should go straight into a "Top 10 Plays" video. Too bad nobody was there to witness this sick move.


    [Heh, you mad?] Trever stepped within Lars''s attack range again. ZIP! Another laser! But, it failed to reach again. Trever stepped outside the attack range in the nick of time.


    [You ain''t gonna get me like that, kid.] Trever kept repeating this taunt over and over. He stepped in, then immediately stepped out.


    [C''mon, turtle. Come here.] Trever grinned. [Any moment now.]


    "Dang it!" Lars missed another shot. Or, more accurately, his shot failed to reach the target. One second, Trever was cleary within range and the beam traveled right at him. Yet, in the end, it failed to reach. WHAY!?!?!?!?


    [Grrr, dude is toying with me.] Lars grumbled. He really wanted to get some big hits on Trever to pay back for their previous fight, but dude kept sneaking outta range. Dang it!


    [I know I can just ignore his shenanigans, but... Actually, no. No way I can ignore this, yo!] Lars had to get at least some damage in. Even with his new crit item, he was still behind in terms of wave clearing speed. So, he had to get something going.


    Trever was offering himself on a silver platter over there, so Lars just had to get his laser beams to connect. Once they land, they''ll wreck the heck outta Trever''s HP. Therefore, Lars absolutely had to make something happen here! It was such an awesome opportunity!


    [But, I ain''t hitting nothing as long as he moonwalks outta range every time.] Lars clicked his tongue.


    To make matters worse, Trever started shooting while moving. Of course, he didn''t shoot Lars due to the big distance between them, but dude had no trouble reaching Lars''s swordsmen with his bullets. So, every time Lars whiffed a shot, Trever used that time window to snipe a minion. Then, right before it was Lars''s turn to shoot again, Trever walked into attack range again and stole the spotlight, making Lars whiff yet another shot...


    [Ya really hate Elf, doncha? That''s why ya play like this.] Lars smiled wryly.


    Truth to be told, Elf was a pretty damn annoying class to deal with. Dude''s range was that of a sniper, so Elf players always camped far in the back and snipped people from half a map away. Basically, exactly what Lars was doing right now.


    [I became the evil I swore to destroy.] Lars chuckled. A few months ago, playing defensively like this would have been unfathomable for him. After all, he was always all about dat sweet, sweet offense. Blitzing into the fray, getting some shots in, bam, bem, boom, and done! Get the kill and get out. That''s how true fights were meant to be!


    However, such an approach didn''t quite work for Elf. This dude had super long range but his attack speed was nothing to write home about. And, in general, dude was kinda lame during the early-game. Lars used to play offense as Elf in that past, but that always blew up in his face.


    So, he always thought Elf was a lame class. But, the selection match against Ellen taught him an important lesson: defense was kinda important too. No matter how strong he was, he couldn''t just charge in and win against any opponent. Even if he was "stronger", the enemy could beat him by playing smart defense or by baiting Lars into dumb stuff. That''s how Ellen got him every single time during the selection match.


    That''s why Lars had to play more patiently. He had to stay in the back at first and calmly assess the situation. He''ll only start charging in once he''s absolutely sure he can get things done.


    It turned out Elf was one of the best classes for playing like that. It gave Lars the leisure to kick back and observe his prey from afar while getting them minions cleared. It was ez life.


    Most of the time, this laid-back attitude riled up the opponents and they opened an attack on him. From there, Lars just had to catch them overextending and turn the tables on them. Pulling that off always felt hella good! It totally made up for having to play like a passive turtle at first. Mounting that sweet counter was satisfying as heck, yo!


    [Guess that''s how they recruited me into this Turtling Elves cult.] Lars smiled wryly. This strat worked pretty well, so he started employing it more often. Yuel encouraged him a lot too, so at some point Elf became one of Lars''s frequent picks. It might even join the ranks of Trickshooter and Gunslinger one day.


    But, for now, it was still a work-in-progress with many rough edges. Experienced opponents snuck by Lars''s range advantage and forced the fight into closer quarters. In those, Elf had a tremendous disadvantage compared to most marksmen, and Trever did exactly that the last time they clashed. Dude was an avid Elf Hater, so he knew how to handle this turtling.


    Fortunately, Lars dodged a bullet back then and got outta that desperate situation alive. It was a testament to how much he has been playing Elf over the past month. His defense actually became pretty damn solid. Even the supreme criticizer, the guy who complained about every small misplay Lars ever made, praised Lars a few times for his well-executed defensive plays. Hell yeah!


    With all that said, Lars still wanted to score ''em kills. After all, playing defense all day won''t win him the game. He had to go on the offensive at some point.


    That''s why, he absolutely gotta land shots on Trever while that cocky senior was showing an opening. Dude was popping his head in and out, as if asking to be shot. So, Lars gonna drill him with laser beams!

 191 Peek-A-Boo Bai

    [Dang it, not again!] Lars pouted. Another one of his laser beams failed to reach Trever. His timing should''ve spot-on, but Trever still got outta range in the last microsecond. What a mad lad.


    "Phew, close!" Trever exhaled in relief. That laser beam nearly grazed him.


    "Are you sure you know what you''re doing?" Aron asked. "Your stunt looks needlessly risky."


    "Well, tell me, genius, how else you suggest I drag that Turret over here? That kid joined the dark side, I''m telling ya. He became one of these cheap turtling Elf players. Absolutely disgusting."


    "So, your idea is to play a risky peek-a-boo against him?"


    "Don''t worry, I got this!" Trever claimed. "I''ve used this strat on a bunch of cheap Elves. It always gets to them eventually. These turtling bastards are always thirsty for getting some hits in. They can''t resist it when you tempt them over and over like this."


    "To me, it looks like you''re asking to be shot," Aron frowned.


    "Don''t worry, he won''t hit. Trust me, I''m a pro Elf-slayer."


    "If you say so," Aron wasn''t convinced in the slightest but he went along with it for now. Trever might be an idiot, but he usually knew what he was doing when it came to Classmancers, especially to 1v1s. It was safe to leave this one to him. Probably.


    Meanwhile, Aron continued his rotation toward Bot. Hopefully, by the time he gets there, he''ll have a juicy target to gank.


    [Dang, dude is good.] Lars clicked his tongue. While he was whiffing shots left and right, Trever has been sneaking shots on Lars''s minions. By now, half of Lars''s army has vanished without a trace, while Trever''s remained almost entirely healthy. This was going south fast.


    [Okay, looks like we''re playing that kind of game.] Lars smirked. This was a challenge and Lars gonna accept it without batting an eye. He gonna find a way to land shots on this professionally trained Elf-killer!


    [Okay, just as he gets closer, I also step in and then...!] ZAP! Lars fired a laser beam. This one gotta reach for sure!


    ... but, it whiffed. The laser beam vanished into thin air right before grazing Trever. So close, yet so far. Gah!!!


    [Getting hotter.] Trever smiled nervously. A drop of sweat formed on his forehead after seeing that shot. It was too close to comfort. Trever was so surprised he forgot to take advantage of Lar''s whiff and didn''t shoot any minions this time.


    Lars was catching on. But of course, leave it to Lars to figure a counter in the heat of battle. This was the first time Trever used this baiting strat against Lars''s Elf, and it might even be the first time the kid comes across such an Elf-counter play. Nevertheless, he already found the answer.


    [He''s only going to get faster from here on.] Trever predicted. [Which means, I gotta play it safer.]


    [Okay, there!] Lars took a step forward and fired a laser beam. This time, it had to hit! Yet, it didn''t...


    "What the...?" Lars mumbled. [What gives!? I totally had him, yo! The game gotta be acting up or something.]


    [Phew, still safe.] Trever exhaled in relief. This time, he only took a half-step forward before immediately retreating. That little trick threw off Lars''s timing just enough.


    [Oh, right. Almost forgot to shoot the minion.] Trever fired at the last enemy swordsman left standing. He had to deliver at least one shot on enemy minions every time Lars whiffed a shot. Doing so put Lars on a timer. The moment the kid loses his entire army, he''ll also lose this golden opportunity to get "easy shots" on Trever, as he''d have to retreat.


    Lars surely knew that, so it put pressure on him. The kid was going to snap any moment now. Any moment.


    "Man, this dude over there, I''m tellin'' ya" Lars grinned awkwardly. This was one heck of a high-level challenge. It was hard to tell for sure from this distance, but Trever probably employed some tricks to throw off Lars''s timing and sense of distance. So, even though at first glance it looked like Lars had many golden opportunities to land easy shots, Trever made sure that wasn''t the case.


    To make things worse, Lars''s minion wave was running out of gas. The last swordsman was about to fall, then the entire enemy wave will run over his bowmen. This ain''t looking swell.


    [Do I just ignore his derpy distractions and focus on farming?] That was an option. Lars has barely attacked enemy minions during this wave, so the enemy''s army was still big and healthy. He gotta start clearing them eventually. The earlier he starts, the better.


    However, doing so meant giving up on this juicy opportunity to score a bunch of hits on Trever. Gah, this was such a tough dilemma!


    If Lars is lucky enough, he''ll need like three crits to smack Trever outta existence. And then, he''ll finally be able to take over the lane! He had to pull it off somehow...!


    [Well then, if ya gonna keep running back and forth like some sneaky cat, I just gonna go come at ya!] Lars started moving forward. But, he moved slow. Like, painfully slow. So slow that he almost couldn''t tell whether he was really advancing or not.


    Such was the payoff for the amazing range during Elven Sight. The skill granted the ability to snipe people across half the lane and first-person view for extra accuracy, but the Elf''s movement became like that of an injured turtle. The slowdown on this thing was like 80%, no kidding.


    Fortunately, just a couple of steps should be good enough. That should eliminate the small extra distance his laser beams failed to cross. And now, he gonna shoot! This time it gonna hit for sure!


    [You ain''t hitting me with that shit.] Trever stepped away from the shot and made it whiff. [Nice thinking there, but you ain''t gonna close the distance between us when you''re moving like a brick stuck in mud. I see your every move!]


    [Dang, I''m too slow.] Lars twisted his lips. [What do?]


    The idea of closing the distance was good, but it didn''t quite work. Trever easily reacted to the slow movement and slightly retreated to maintain the same distance. There was no doubt this dude trained for years in order perfect this anti-Elf technique.


    Meanwhile, Lars was just scrubbing it out here in the field. It was the first time an opponent used such a bold technique against his Elf. So, he was practically figuring things out on the fly.


    But, no problem! He still had his range. He just had to make Trever misstep somehow. Ezpz.


    [If ya gonna backpedal all day, I''mma just snipe yo bois.] Trever shifted his focus to the minion wave and fired at the bowmen in the back. Zap! The laser beam exploded hard in the bowman''s face. A critical hit! Deleted that bowman from existence.


    [Not gonna keep trying? Smart.] Trever was deeply impressed. If this were the Lars from a few months ago, that kid would have kept attacking for sure. After all, Lars always played like a beast hungering for kills.


    But, today''s Lars was patient and had some actual decision-making going for him. It seemed the brat was growing up to be a fine man.


    [I raised that boy.] Trever felt proud. After all, he has spent more time training with Lars in the club than anybody else. They and Taison used to play 1v1v1 for hours. Good times.


    [Heh, this sure makes things more interesting.] Trever grinned. Lars was supposed to chase Trever like a fool and get baited toward the jungle, but the brat decided to play smart today. That threw a wrench in Trever''s plans.


    But, that''s how things gotta be! Where''s the fun when there''s no challenge, right? If Lars even dared to dream about getting anywhere in the regionals this year, he better be able to do at least this much.


    Now, the ball was in Trever''s court again. How should he respond to Lars''s counter? For this bait tactic to work, he had to convince Lars to advance as close as possible toward the jungle. And, for that, he had to put himself within Lars''s attack range in a convincing manner, even more convincing than before.


    "Telling you right now," Trever turned to Aron. "Dragging this turtle all the way to the jungle might be asking for too much. I can get him to the entrance at best."


    "Got it," Aron nodded. "I''ll get closer then."


    "Okay then, let''s get this little party started!" Trever grinned. This was a do-or-die. A single misstep will cost him dearly, possibly his life.


    [On second thought, maybe I should give up on this? With all said and done, it''s Lars I''m dealing with.] Trever gulped. A shiver danced on his skin. [Nah, I ain''t no quitter. In for a penny, in for a pound. Let''s settle this!]


    Trever charged in! He ran straight at Lars, who was currently busy sniping the bowmen.


    "Coming from the front door!?" Lars jumped. His first-person field of view was focused on the minions, so he only saw Trever''s figure at the very corner of the screen. And, that figure suddenly grew bigger!


    [I see you''re finally done with ''em tricks.] Lars smiled dangerously. [Okay, let''s settle this!]


    Lars shifted his aim toward the incoming enemy. From this range, he gonna hit Trever for sure. There was no way dude could step outa range at the last moment this time, he invaded too far for that. It was over, yooooooooo!


    Zap! A laser beam darted at Trever! It gonna hit for sure!


    [No dice, kid.] Trever saw it coming and rolled aside.


    [Dang it! You''re good, but...!] Lars immediately shifted his aim ahead of the rolling Pirate. He just gotta snipe Trever the moment the dude recovers from the roll! Yeah, right there! Zip zap zup!


    [You and your damn aimbot...!] Trever backpedaled as quickly as humanly possible upon recovering, but it was to no avail. Lars''s aim was pitch-perfect, especially with the first-person view of Elven Sight. It was undodgeable.


    Whish! 15% HP gone. Luckily, it wasn''t a critical hit. One of those bad boys would wreck Trever in one hit. Phew, safe. Still, this was a terrible situation for him to fight in.


    Nevertheless, Trever had to press on. He gonna swim through this disadvantageous current and emerge victorious! It sucked he couldn''t fight Lars head-on in a fair duel, but that''s what you get when fighting a long-ranged turtle. Gotta play dirty and lure them to their deaths with a little bit of trickery.


    [Not my favorite playstyle, but it not my fault.] Trever shrugged. [Blame yourself for playing that disgusting Elf. I gonna mop the floor with your Elf!]


    Trever braced himself and started... retreating! Yeah, that''s right. Retreating right in the enemy''s face was the ingenious plan for beating this pesky Elf. It sounded dumb, but it was a legit tactic.


    By getting this close, Trever forced Lars to pay attention to him and ignited the flames of battle. Naturally, Lars took the bait and immediately switched gears into combat mode. There was no doubt the brat will keep firing at Trever.


    And, once the target gets slightly out of range, Lars will step forward. Just like that, one step at a time to keep Terver within range. These slow steps will add up and before long Lars will find himself in front of the jungle! That was the brilliant bait plan.


    "Ya ain''t getting away, yo!" Lars fired at the fleeing target. Whish! The laser beam cut through empty air. "Dang it, yo! Stop moving so much, dude!"


    Even with Lars''s 200% accuracy, it was difficult to land consistent hits on a top-level juker like Trever. Dude was zig-zagging like a fly on steroids.


    [Heh, been a while since I fought a dude who can dodge shots like that.] Lars grinned. This was the epitome of high-level combat right there! Few opponents gave a hard time to Lars''s flawless aiming, but Trever was definitely one of them. A worthy opponent, no doubt.


    [But, I ain''t gonna let you keep doing that all day!] Lars shifted his aim at the last moment. [If ya always gonna switch directions once you hear the shot, I''mma just adjust my aim to that!]


    Instead of predicting where Trever was going to be in the next moment, Lars estimated where Trever will end up after switching directions at the last moment. In other words, he predicted the prediction Trever was gonna make! Prediction-ception, let''s gooooo! ZAP!


    [Should be about now.] Trever didn''t change his direction this time. He kept running straight along the predictable route. Normally, that''d be the silly thing to do. However, against a highly skilled opponent like Lars... Whish! The laser beam flew right past him. It missed..


    "Heh, read you like a book, kid," Trever smirked. They have fought each other enough for Trever to get a good feel for Lars''s quirks. The kid was always quick to adjust and start predicting his prey''s juking, it usually worked well for him. But, that meant all Trever had to do was predict the prediction Lars was gonna make about his own prediction! The outplays were real!


    "Yo freakin''...!" Lars returned to shooting along the predictable straight line. Whish! Another miss!


    [Too predictable, kid.] Trever snickered. [You gotta mix things up better.]


    [So, we''re playing that game, huh.] Lars nodded. [Okay, you''re on!]


    So, what was coming next? Straight or direction change? Well, surely Trever won''t keep running in a straight line thrice in a row, right? Then, it had to be a direction change!


    Zap! Missed. Trever kept running in a straight line for the third time. What an absolute mad lad! The poker mind games were real.


    "Okay, then next I''ll- Whoa! Craaaap!" Before Lars realized, enemy minions swarmed him! The little dudes got mad at how Lars hit Trever a few seconds ago and came seeking revenge. This ain''t good, yo! The bowmen already landed a few shots on him and the swordsmen were about to ram him as well!


    Fortunately, Lars came prepared. He rolled away from the minions in the direction of his prey. Then, he activated Camouflage, a Utility Skill he bought back when he returned to base.


    A layer of fog veiled his body for a moment and the minions forgot he ever existed. It was the same effect as in all these stealth games, in which the guards completely forgot the player exists once he leaves their field of view.


    Since Lars also rolled outside the minions'' aggro range against players, they didn''t resume targeting him. Instead, the little dudes marched toward his tower.


    [Okay, back to shooting Trever!] Lars had to give up on his Elven Sight stance for the sake of executing that Dodge Roll, but that didn''t mean he was going to give up on the chase, far from it.


    He has already brought Trever down to 70%, so he had a huge life lead. Not to mention, he also had the threat of critical hits on his side. So, no chance Trever gonna win against these odds!


    [Let''s see ya try winning this!] Lars went all in!


    [Good shit.] Trever nodded as he turned around to assess the situation. An Elf without Eleven Sight was just a subpar Carry. Trever could easily contest an Elf like that.


    But, he wasn''t going to. After all, he''d still have to deal with Lars here. Even without Elven Sight, this brat was going to pose a challenge for sure.


    [I mean, I''m sure I can beat him no problem.] Trever nodded to himself. [But, let''s just go for the guaranteed kill instead of risking it on something unexpected. This kid has gotten lucky against me before, so anything is possible.]


    And so, Trever kept running toward the jungle. His bait tactic was about to work out. Lars was already halfway there. Just a little more and Aron will be in a position to jump him!


    [Sorry, but it''s over for ya, turtle boy!]

 192 Aint Gonna Take That Bait, Yo!

    [You ain''t gonna fight me?] Lars wondered. Even though he no longer had the advantage of Elven Sight, Trever didn''t dare to fight back and continued running away like a scaredy-cat. [Heh, seems like ya know you got no chance against me! This gonna be a wrap! Oh, wait a sec here...]


    Lars realized something. When the heck did he get all the way over here? The entire time, he was trying to stay away from the jungle to discourage ganks on him. Yet, for some reason, he found himself all the way over here, a short distance away from the jungle entrance. He gonna end up in the jungle if he keeps chasing!


    [No, no, no! Bad news!] Lars hit the brakes. Suddenly, all the shenanigans Trever has been pulling on him made perfect sense.


    Trever didn''t just mess around with Lars with all that peek-a-boo nonsense. Everything was a part of this bait master plan! Slowly, but surely, Trever drew Lars toward the jungle.


    ["Yo, my dude! Aron might gank yo lane!"] Yuel said something like that, didn''t he? Most likely, Aron was lying in wait nearby. The lion was waiting for an opportunity to leap on Lars and tear him apart.


    [Yeah, that ain''t gonna happen.] Lars turned around and ran back to his side of the lane. He won''t be baited by this nonsense ever again! Ellen has burned him enough times during the selection match. It was unfortunate, but he gotta give up on the chase and retreat.


    "Okay," Trever turned around to confirm the situation. "Let''s see how close the kid got... Oh. Umm, wut?"


    Lars was no longer heading toward the jungle. Instead, he turned his back to Trever and casually headed toward his tower. The heck was going on here?


    [Who is this kid and what did he do to Lars?] This was unfathomable. Lars? Giving up on a juicy chase like that? What the actual freak...?


    "Seems like he isn''t going to bite..." Trever found it hard to breathe life into these words. That''s how alien, absurd, and uncanny this situation was. Lars? Not jumping on such a delicious bait? Impossible.


    "Yuel probably told him to retreat," Aron said.


    "Oh, yeah, that''d explain it," Trever nodded. That''d make much more sense than Lars choosing to retreat on his own volition. [Phew, okay. He''s still the same ol'' brat. It gotta be the smarty-pants kid who is ruining my ingenious bait plan.]


    With that said, Lars has been definitely playing like a turtle this match. Did Yuel order that too? Well, probably to some degree. But, in the end, it was Lars who agreed to play this way. And, he was the one who agreed to retreat in this situation instead of chasing a juicy target.


    Worst of all, Lars turned his back to Trever while retreating. It''s as if the kid had lost all interest in Trever as an opponent.


    [You mocking me!?] Trever clenched his controller. [You better watch your back, kid!]


    "I''m going in!" Trever announced while flying like a bullet across the lane.


    "Excuse me?" Aron frowned.


    "I''m going iiiiiin, bro!" Trever shouted. "I''ll show him what players like him deserve! I''ll rip that damn turtle apart, piece by piece!"


    "Have you lost it? Look at your HP."


    "Heh, one point of HP is all I need. This turtle ain''t gonna lay a single finger on me!"


    Trever switched from gun to cutlass during the flight and slashed Lars with the momentum!


    "Wha-!?" Lars jumped. He heard the cannon and turn around to see what''s up, but the next moment - Trever already slashed him across the chest! Wait, wasn''t Trever only trying to lure Lars toward the jungle? Where did this attack come from!?


    "This ain''t good, dude!" Lars reported while rolling away by instinct and dodging the next slash. "Trever is going super hard on me!"


    "Yeah, I see that," Yuel knotted his brows. This was an unexpected development. Until now, Trever has been channeling his inner Ellen by adopting her "poke-and-bait" playstyle. However, once Lars showed clearly that he wasn''t going to bite, Trever did a 180 and switched to full-blown aggro mode.


    "Do you think you can get away alive?" Yuel asked.


    "Well, I definitely gonna try as hard as possible!"! Lars recovered from the roll and broke into a sprint. As frustrating as it was to admit, he couldn''t take on Trever head-on from this range. He had to reach a safe spot first and create some distance- BAM! A shot from behind! Trever has already switched back to his pistol and fired!


    [Dang it!] Lars couldn''t see the shot coming from behind, so he had no idea in which direction dodge. Nevertheless, he gonna juke it! Somehow! [If Trever can dodge stuff without looking, I can too! ... ouch. Damn.]


    Lars made a sudden break to the left, but it was too late. The bullet drilled into his back and took a nice 15% of his HP. Combined with the damage from the surprise attack from earlier and the previous damage minions dealt him, Lars was already down to 60% HP. Meanwhile, Trever was still hanging at around 70%.


    Just like that, in a matter of three seconds, Trever flipped this entire situation on its head. From being at HP disadvantage, he became the one in the lead. Also, from being the prey, he became a predator! What an insane beast!


    To get this dangerous pursuer off his back, Lars had to resort to extremes. He''ll have to root Trever down with his ult and make a run for it.


    "Don''t use your ult yet if possible," Yuel requested.


    "Whoa! Stop reading my mind, dude!"


    "It''s a panic button that''s great for situations like this, so of course you''d think of using it. But, unless you really have to, don''t spend it. I''m rotating to gank, so it''ll come in handy."


    "Oh, you''re coming over here? What about Top?"


    "It''s practically lost regardless of what I do," Yuel explained. "I [might] just barely stop Freezer from taking the tower, but it''ll be left with next-to-no HP anyway. On the other hand, here we got an opportunity to get a kill."


    "Oooooh!" Lars shivered in excitement. Things were about to get interesting!


    Lars was at a disadvantageous position right now, he practically became the prey. But, once Yuel arrives, they gonna flip the table all over Trever''s ass! It gonna be a counter to Trever''s counter! Hell yeah, they got this!


    "Okay, gotcha!" Lars said. "I''mma stay alive and drag him over to our side. Let''s give him a shocker!"


    "Yes, that''s the plan."


    Lars just had to survive until Yuel arrives. But, there was a catch. He couldn''t just retreat all the way back to his tower. That''d just make Trever give up on the offense and leave.


    So, Lars will have to keep Trever occupied over here for a while. In other words, they gotta fight! Finally, Lars was given a legit reason to bare his fangs without being scolded for it. At long last, Lars and Trever gonna get a real fight going today!


    [Okay, judging by where the bullet came from, I bet he''s somewhere around...] Lars turned around and took a quick aim. [Here!]


    "Wow, wow, wow!" Trever just barely hit the brakes in time and changed directions to avoid the incoming shot. Thankfully, the laser beam missed him. "Damn, son! That was close! What the heck?"


    That was one heck of a surprise shot. Lars fired that thing as soon as he turned around, without any warning. He probably had a fraction of a nanosecond to aim, but he almost landed a hit anyway. Yes, that''s how it gotta be! That''s Lars, alright!


    "You''re finally going to fight?" Trever grinned. "Okay then! Let''s do this shit!"


    "Wait, don''t-"


    "LET''S GO! LET''S GO! LET''S GOOOOOO!!!"


    "And, he isn''t listening..." Aron sighed. Once Trever got hyper like this, there was no talking sense into him. It''s as if the idiot threw away what little intelligence he had and became a beast in mind and body.


    "Think you got me? No dice!" After sidestepping the laser beam, Trever fired an immediate counter-attack! He got this one! The easiest fight of his life. Lars ain''t gonna lay even a single finger on him!


    "Geh, it actually hit!?" Lars was sure he could sidestep in time, but bullet darted at him at lightning speed. It''s almost as if Trever sidestepped Lar''s beam a little before Lars actually fired it, that''s what allowed him to deliver such an immediate counter.


    [Nah, no way.] Lars''s smile twitched. [I was just a little slow this time. Just hafta warm up. I''ll get the next one! ]


    Lars fired back as soon as he recovered from the attack animation. This time, he gonna hit for sure! Alas, he didn''t. Trever sidestepped the laser-like some Olympic pro. Next, a counter was coming!


    [This time it ain''t gonna--Crap! No way!] Lars sidestepped that thing as fast as humanly possible, but the bullet still grazed him. What the heck, yo!? These bullets gotta be bending the time-and-space of reality or some supernatural shit like that!


    "Haha, what''s wrong, kid?" Trever laughed. "That''s all ya got!? Weak!"


    [Even though Trever loses most of his reason in this state,] Aron analyzed. [This hyper state isn''t without merit]


    Trever was a very emotional player by nature. When he was in a slump, he played like the worst player on earth. However, when he was in the groove, he was unmatched. He even made Lars look weak.


    Unfortunately, the more gung-ho Trever became, the worse his map awareness became. He only had his eyes on the enemy in front of him and little else. No matter how many times Aron tried to speak reason to his fool, it all went in one ear and out the other.


    [No point even trying.] Aron sighed in resignation. He''ll just have to cover up for Trever, that''s the most he could do. As long as he keeps Trever alive, Trever will surely get a kill here. Even Lars was no match for that wild barbarian.


    The real challenge was for Aron to guarantee Trever''s safety. There was no doubt that Yuel has already caught wind of this development. The way Lars suddenly shifted from running away to going on the offense indicated was suspicious. It was probably an order from the infamous tactician.


    Most likely, the enemy''s plan was similar to what Aron and Trever tried to pull just now. Lars will stall Trever as a decoy while Yuel rotates there to gank.


    Viking had it easier than Lionfolk when it came to assassinating an enemy inside enemy territory. Yuel didn''t even require that Trever comes close to the jungle. He could simply blink in and throw Trever to his side of the lane. Then, they''ll finish Trever off.


    [So, I have to block Yuel off.] Aron concluded. As long as he keeps Yuel away from the lane, the gank won''t come to fruition and Trever will be able to continue his 1v1 against Lars. Judging by the flow of the fight so far and based on Trever''s excited state, he was going to win this one for sure. That is, as long as it remains a pure 1v1 without any external factors.


    [Seems like my job here is to ensure there won''t be any such "external factors".] Aron nodded to himself and headed toward the enemy side of Bot Jungle. There are only two possible entry points for Yuel: either travel across Bot Lane directly from the base, or cross the jungle and enter the lane through the jungle entrance.


    Aron had to account for both scenarios to be on the safe side, but he prioritized the path through Bot Jungle. Yuel will most likely come through this path. There was one very simple reason to believe that.


    Upon returning to base, Yuel had a decision to make: where to go next? At the time, the situation was as such: Lars and Trever were peacefully farming in Bot without any notable incidents. At the same time, Top was left undefended after the Lumiancer''s death, with Alex planning to push hard.


    Clearly, at the time, the more urgent area of interest was Top. So, that''s where Yuel should''ve headed toward. Even if he decided to gank Bot instead, the decision probably came somewhere along the way to Top.


    As such, Yuel was most certainly somewhere in the jungle right now. The fastest route to Bot for him would through Bot Jungle. So, this was the best ambush spot.


    With that said, Aron gave himself some leeway by positioning himself rather close to Bot Lane. As slim as it was, there was a chance Yuel would try to invade the lane through the lane itself. Aron had to be prepared to intercept the invader regardless of where he was going to come from. It won''t be a true counter-play unless he thoroughly shuts down all of Yuel''s approach options.


    Once he thwarts Yuel''s gank and Trever kills Lars, the curtain shall fall on Yuel''s team...

 193 Shutting Down All Options

    [I see Aron is heading to Bot as well.] Yuel frowned. One of his wards revealed Aron in Bot. The lion was most certainly heading to gank Bot and he was much closer to the lane than Yuel. This was bad. Lars had to retreat right away! ... or, maybe it wasn''t necessary?


    [Wait, he''s not going in?] Yuel wondered. Instead of continuing toward Bot, Aron stopped in place and moved around in small circles. It''s as if he was waiting. But, for whom? Obviously, for none other than Yuel.


    [He saw through me.] Yuel deduced. [So, he rather stall me and let Trever handle the fight? That''s quite the faith he''s showing in Trever all of a sudden. Still, if that''s Aron''s verdict about this situation, then it''s probably correct.]


    As much as Yuel wanted to claim that Lars was unbeatable in duels, he knew it wasn''t that simple. Trever held the higher win-ratio whenever these two fought 1v1, except for when Lars used Trickshooter. So, even though Lars''s Elf improved a lot over the past few weeks, the odds probably still favored Trever.


    [Do I cancel the entire thing and tell Lars to retreat?] Yuel bit his lip. [I came so close, but...] He stopped around the corner. Once he passes through, he''ll have no choice but to run into Aron. A fight will break out immediately.


    Will Yuel be able to handle Aron by himself? Hard to say. Without his ult, Viking didn''t have any particular advantages over a Lionfolk in a 1v1. In fact, Lionfolk was better suited for 1v1s due to the strong debuffs of Mighty Roar. If Aron lands Mighty Roar, even without the Superiority bonus. Yuel most likely won''t be able to win from that position. It''ll effectively be a checkmate.


    With all of that considered, charging through the front was extremely risky. At the same time, he didn''t have time to go around and reach Bot through another entrance. It was a "go hard or go home" situation.


    So, what was the right line of play? Should he try to break through? Or, should he cancel this entire operation? Darn, such a difficult dilemma had to strike him during such a critical time...!


    [He''s late.] Aron thought. [Did he choose to go through the lane, after all? No, that shouldn''t be possible, there''s not enough time for that. He has to come through here. Then, where is he?]


    Aron carefully examined the mini-map. There was no sign of Yuel whatsoever. Aron sufficiently warded his side of the jungle, so there was no chance of Yuel circling around to gank from there either. Besides, that''d take way too much time and it was even riskier than approaching through the lane.


    [Wards, huh.] Aron looked around him. On his side of the map, he warded the area that was mirroring his current location. So, most likely, Yuel did the same here. Perhaps he was taking his time because he knew Aron was lying in wait here. If so, this was a misplay from Aron''s side.


    Either way, if Yuel really wasn''t approaching Bot due to Aron''s presence, then it counted as a success in its own right. After all, Aron only came here to stall Yuel. He had no interest in turning this into a big fight.


    [He might even be right around this corner.] Aron entertained the idea. He had the urge to verify this theory, but he didn''t against it. There was no need to trigger a fight of his own accord. Better let Yuel rack his brains over this difficult situation.


    [You sure you got enough time to think about it?] Aron smiled dangerously. [If you don''t start running soon, Trever will make quick work of Lars.]


    Indeed, the battle between Trever and Lars was advancing at high speed. Lars already fell all the way to 35% HP. Meanwhile, Trever stayed true to his declaration and didn''t get hit even once ever since this close-quarters duel started. He was still hanging around 70% HP.


    "Dang it!" Lars exclaimed. "What did this dude eat for breakfast today!? He''s mopping the floor with me! I ain''t hitting nothing!"


    Lars fired again. His aim was spot-on. Well, of course it was. After all, that''s 200% accuracy for you. Lars''s shots never miss!


    But, sometimes they got dodged. Trever moved aside just in time to evade the laser beam. Then, he dished out a counter right away!


    [Crap, so fast! But, I can handle it!] Lars just barely sidestepped the incoming counter shot. This thing caught him off guard twice already, but the third time''s a charm. He finally adjusted to Tever''s lightning speed counters, so now he gonna dodge them and strike back!


    "Wow!" Trever exclaimed as a laser beam almost grazed him. He sidestepped it by a hair''s breadth. [Dangerous stuff, kid. Can''t believe you can really dodged that counter. But, that doesn''t matter. if you can dodge my counter, then I can dodge your counter-counter. How''s that? Pretty rad, right? Hahaha! Damn, this is fun!]


    [Yo, this dude is wilding!] Lars couldn''t believe his eyes. He finally countered the counter, but Trever dodged it! No, wait. Trever didn''t [just] dodge it. He fired back as well! It was a counter to the counter-counter! Fuuuuuuuuuu!


    Lars saw it as it was happening, but he couldn''t react in time. Bam! A clean hit on his torso. That''s another chunk of HP gone. Dang it, Lars was too damn slow! He might even die with the next hit! He was cutting it way too close.


    "Dude, where are ya at?" Lars called out "I''m not doing so hot over here."


    "Ah, I..." Yuel bit his lip. There wasn''t enough time for him to estimate the risk-reward factors of this play. All he knew was that, if Lars dies here, the game will be over right there. Was that a risk he could afford to take?


    No, definitely not. Risks like these were the whole reason Yuel and Lars lost the selection match in the first place. They had to play safer, they had to become smarter. Otherwise, they''ll be forever chasing Howard and Ellen''s shadows.


    "Pull out," Yuel said. "Aron is blocking my route so I can''t gank. Sorry."


    "Well damn," Lars forced smile but it twitched nervously. If Yuel ain''t coming, it meant Lars was legit stuck here in this losing 1v1 situation all by himself. [Alrighty, then. I just gotta get out. Ez.]


    Lars has been saving his ult for a chance to pin Trever down and finish the dude off, but it couldn''t be helped. It had to be used right here and now.


    Lars activated Nature''s Embrace. Normally, it summoned branches at the target location to root the target. However, since Lars had this sick sci-fi skin, the branches were replaced by robotic arms. The robot apocalypse was coming, yo!


    "No way!" Trever exclaimed. Metallic arms erupted from the ground and held him in place. "Gag! Screw this stupid unreactable bullshit...!"


    Nature''s Embrace had a rather lackluster effect of merely rooting the target. However, its selling point was its disgustingly short casting duration. This stupid shit was unreactable even for Trever. Goddammit, Elf was such an infuriating class! Trever finally had his groove going, but the Elf said NOPE. Damn it!


    "He ult''d?" Aron asked.


    "He sure did! And, he''s running for his life like a little bitch. Come back and fight, dammit!"


    "So, they canceled their plans," Aron concluded.


    "Plans? What plans? Just gimme the kill, dammit! Don''t make me angry, boy. Just be a good kid and die like you should!"


    Alas, Lars quickly got out of Trever''s firing range and it was impossible to chase due to that stupid rooting effect. Just awesome. Fun and interactive.


    [I''mma Kraken yo ass, boy!] This was Trever''s last resort. His basic attacks could no longer reach, but his Kraken had the neccessary range. [C''mon, big squidy! Get this shit done!]


    "RELEASE THE-"


    "Oh! It''s coming!" Lars exclaimed. The Big Squid Dude was about to pop outta the ground and smack Lars down! Or, was it? There was no telling, because Trever could simply cancel the ult in the last moment like last time. So, Lars had to guess where it was a feint or not...!


    Lars turned around while he was running, to be ready to boot Elven Leap at any moment. If this Kraken was going to be the real deal, Lars would have to jump right away! Now, everything was down whether Trever will cancel or not.


    [Oh, actually...] Lars realized there was a huge distance between him and Trever. From this range, even the Big Squid Dude would just barely reach. So, if Lars leaps away now, Trever won''t be able to reach him with the Kraken anymore, even if he cancels this one and casts it again.


    [Yeah, no need to play the guessing game on this one.] Lars went for Elven Leap right away.


    Most of the time, he could react to Kraken and dodge with Elven Leap in the last moment. However, this entire situation made him a little agitated, especially the way he kept losing to Trever left and right. Not to mention, he was in the middle of fleeing for his life, which made timely dodges even harder. His usual sharpness definitely has been dulled, so it was safer to jam that Elven Leap right here and now.


    [Already leaping?] Trever raised an eyebrow. That was fast. The kid didn''t even wait to see whether the Kraken was actually coming.


    Due to how telegraphed that dodge was, Trever had enough time to cancel the Kraken on reaction. And now, he''ll unleash the Kraken at Lars''s landing spot and wreck that brat!


    ... or not. Lars was way outta range. Even Kraken couldn''t reach him anymore. And, Trever couldn''t chase because the stupid robotic arms were holding pinning in place.


    "God freakin''....!" Trever cursed. "He fuckin'' jumped outta here!"


    "Of course he did," Aron has already foreseen this development. The moment Lars used his ult to root Trever, it became clear Yuel gave the green light to exhaust every tool in his kit in order to guarantee a safe escape.


    Believing that Trever was the only immediate threat, Lars didn''t hesitate to burn his last escape tool. Unfortunately for the guy, Aron was already in position. Before Lars even landed, Aron already leaped toward his landing spot!


    "RAWWWWR!" A lion roar thundered.


    "Crap! No way!" Lars exclaimed. A big lion dude was flying towards him! And, there was no way to dodge! Fuuuuuuuuu!


    [Aron went to the lane!?] Yuel gasped. Since he and Lars agreed to cancel the operation, Yuel was already rotating towards Top to salvage what little remained from the tower. So, he was no longer keeping watch on Aron. What a mistake!


    [He tricked me well.] Yuel bit his lip. There was a reason he let down his guard about Aron. Before leaving Bot Jungle, he saw Aron leaving the area as well. It seemed like Aron gave up on the idea of ganking the lane, he even made sure to retreat toward his side of the jungle.


    But, turned Aron didn''t give up at all. On the contrary, Yuel''s retreated gave Aron the green light to go ahead and gank hard!


    [I messed up.] Yuel facepalmed. He underestimated Aron. That killing machine will never let its prey escape so easily. Aron will always find a way to track down his prey and strike them down.


    [Dang it, yo! I gotta roll as soon as I land!] That was Lars''s only hope. He had to Dodge Roll as soon as he lands.


    But, it was futile. Aron''s leap was flawlessly timed and positioned, as if calculated by a supercomputer. Lars wasn''t given even a nanosecond to attempt a Dodge Roll. The lion crashed on him like a meteor.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Damn, no way!" Lars smacked his forehead. "I was just about to get away, too."


    "Sorry, my bad," Yuel apologized. "I should''ve kept tabs on Aron."


    "Nah, I blew it harder to be honest," Lars shook his head. "How the heck did I let Trever mop the floor with me like that? Shame! Shame, I''m tellin'' ya! It ain''t supposed to be like that."


    "You should know better than anybody that your win rate against him isn''t exactly stellar."


    "Yeah, guess he kinda win more often. Still, it ain''t supposed to be one-sided like that. He royally kicked mah butt there. He must''ve entered the zone or some shit. Daaaamn...."


    "I see," Yuel didn''t catch the finer details of the fight, so he had to take Lars''s word on this one. This fight taught Yuel one thing: Lars was a far cry from his maximum strength when using an Elf for 1v1. The same probably applied to any other class that wasn''t Trickshooter or Gunslinger.


    In Ranked, this wasn''t a visible issue because there weren''t many who could stand up to Lars in a fight, even in Challenger rank. However, against a competitive duelist, this level of fighting wasn''t always going to cut it. So, Lars will have to polish his dueling skills with all the Carry classes he played frequently.


    [Better add that to the training menu.] Yuel made a mental note. In an ideal world, Lars would play Trickshooter or Gunslinger in every match at the regionals. However, for the better or the worse, the banning phase existed.


    It was a strong weapon in Yuel''s hands, but it was also an Achilles heel for Lars. It stopped the beast from using the classes he performed the best with. As a result, it was necessary for Lars to level up his skill with as many Carry classes as possible until the tournament.


    Of course, asking Lars to reach the same godlike level he had with Trickshooter and Gunslinger would be too much But, even 70% of that skill would be huge. Yuel had to make sure he integrates this into their training menu in the upcoming weeks.


    [Also, I''ll have to reflect on many of my decisions in this match.] Yuel made another mental note. Frankly, his shot calls were a disaster in this game. On paper, his judgments seemed solid and he mostly went for safe and effective plays, just like he wanted. Yet, nothing clicked for some reason. It was one bad move after another.


    ¡ºAn allied Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    The Top Turret crumbled. Then, Bot Turret followed shortly. The game was a wrap.


    The team defended until the bitter end, but it was hopeless. Even though they should have had an advantage in team fights, it didn''t mean much while they were stuck on the defensive. Between Sorcerer''s Resonance Ignition and Pirate''s Kraken, the enemy was overloaded with ways to turn the defenders'' lives into hell.


    ¡ºDEFEAT¡»

 194 Reflecting on the Match

    ¡ºDEFEAT¡»


    "Well, that was an attempt," Kai shook her head in resignment. "Would have gone way better if we didn''t get counter-picked so hard."


    "Perhaps," Yuel had to admit he played it a little too safe during the drafting phase. Especially, the way he made Lars pick Elf over Trickshooter or Gunslinger.


    Elf was effective at getting away, which kept Aron at bay as planned. However, the cost was too big. Yuel knew the statistics, he knew that Lars could only reliably beat Trever with his top classes. And yet, he chose the safe option and it cost him dearly.


    "It was a splendid match!" Vincent tried to inject positivity into the air. "It may have looked one-sided at times, but I''m sure you made these high-schoolers sweat! With just a few tweaks here and there, you could''ve taken the entire thing! Your names would have gone down in history!"


    "You said it," Kai nodded. "If not for the terrible matchup, I would have destroyed that guy."


    "Oh? You sure sound confident." The high school team approached the group. "You got some spank, I''ll give you that much."


    "So," Kai shot the boy a glare. "You were that cocky bastard with the annoying spacing, weren''t you?"


    "I was the Sorcerer, if that''s what you''re asking," Alex answered.


    "Dammit. I''d beat you no problem if the matchup wasn''t literal dogshit."


    "Confident, aren''t we," Alex glanced aside in disinterest. "You got mechanical skill, I''ll give you that much. I can see you giving me trouble in 1v1."


    "I''d whoop your ass in a duel."


    "Maybe. But, your teamwork is a shitshow. Who just goes ahead and suicides like that?"


    "That was..." Kai bit her lip and averted her eyes. There was no doubt Alex was referring to that one time Kai got frustrated with the lane situation and charged in for the kill. Looking back on it now, that was such an embarrassing performance. That decision-making was on the level of a Bronze player.


    "T-That was just a slip. I got a little angsty there," Kai said.


    "You make one dumb misplay like that and GG the tournament," Alex said.


    "Yeah, I know that much," Kai muttered. "It won''t happen again. Fight me one more time and see for yourself."


    "Nah, sounds like a drag," Alex shrugged. "Besides, it won''t prove anything. It doesn''t matter how good you are in 1v1 when laning, it''s all about teamwork. In fact, I don''t remember beating you even once by myself. I always borrowed Aron''s services for that. I mean, it comes free of charge, so why not."


    "You know," Aron frowned. "It''d be great if you tried to establish lane control yourself sometimes."


    "Why bother? You''re the Jungler, you do it for me. My only job is to keep the lane in good condition."


    "This guy..." Aron sighed.


    "Wait, you don''t fight for lane control?" Kai raised an eyebrow. "What kind of dumb playstyle is that?"


    "I''m more than satisfied with handling other things, you know," Aron retorted. "But, I''ll admit the way you do it usually works."


    "Of course it does. I set up the lane for you, so you have an easy life."


    "So, you rely on the Jungler to win the lane for you?" Kai asked.


    "You can put it that way," Alex nodded. "That''s why I picked this nickname. ''Freezer'', because I freeze lanes. Neat, right?"


    "Indeed, it is art in the making!" Vincent joined the conversation out of nowhere. "I must apologize, for I failed to recognize your talent right away, even though it was right under my nose! I can''t even begin to describe my shame"


    "Um, sure?" Alex was visibly confused.


    "Haha, what''s with this guy?" Trever laughed.


    "Ignore him. He just likes making noise," Kai awkwardly averted her eyes. As the captain of the club, it was a little embarrassing when people asked what the heck was wrong with Vincent. "Pipe down already," she demanded.


    "But, don''t you think Freezer is amazing!?" Vincent typed furiously on his tablet like a madman.


    "Amazing? Aaaah..." Kai wasn''t sure how to react to this one. The idea that somebody could be so proud of his "ability" to freeze lanes was beyond her.


    Also, he apparently trusted others to win the lane for him. Kai knew she had to increase her faith in her teammates, but dumping her responsibility on others? That was just lame. She''d much rather seize the lane with her own two hands. That''s how she always proved her worth as a strong player who could compete with any boy.


    But, as Alex said, this was a team game; Kai couldn''t win it all by herself. The playstyle of endlessly freezing the lane and trusting somebody else to win it was too extreme to her taste, but it had the correct mindset at its core. Freezer relied on his allies and made them split the burden. It''s something Kai almost never did. She''ll have to work on that.


    "Seems like you''ve achieved enlightenment," Alex said. "Atta girl."


    [This asshole is totally looking down on me.] Kai made a face. "Yeah, I learned a thing or two. Things won''t turn out the same next time."


    "It better not. Your opponents will eat you alive at the regional if you keep this up."


    "Well then," Aron took over the conversation. "I believe Alex covered everything I had to say about your performance. Then, let''s move on to the next target."


    "Oh!" Trever grinned. "We gonna shame the kids one by one and stuff?"


    "I call it constructive criticism. If it happens to be unpleasant to listen to, that''s their fault."


    "Haha, you ain''t wrong," Trever darted toward Lars and body locked that kid. "Well then, I got a lot to say about this damn brat over here."


    "Ya ain''t got nothin'' on me, yo!" Lars slipped through Trever''s arms.


    "Let settle this like men!" Trever assumed a fake boxing stance.


    "You''re on, dude!" Lars did the same.


    [What is even...?] Kai made a face.


    [The goofs and their usual nonsense.] Yuel sighed. This sudden development didn''t faze him in the slightest, which said a lot about the environment he was exposed to on a daily basis back in StormBlitz.


    "In the left corner, we got Gunz!" Vincent became the announcer at some point. "In the right corner, we got WildDragon! The two fighters go a long way back, I''m sure they used to spar a lot. Old friends turned foes! Who will take the national championship!?"


    "Haha, this kid is hilarious!" Trever laughed. "Love it."


    "I know, right?" Lars nodded in agreement. "He almost got dat commentator voice too. I betcha he gonna become da best Mancers commentator in the world, yo!"


    "Heh, we''ll see about that," Vincent wore a complex expression for a moment, then snapped out of it and continued the hype. "Alright!. Ready. Set. Fight!"


    "I gonna start off with a heavy blow, better prepare your defense," Trever started shadow boxing. "So, tell me. What in the bloody hell was that turtling? Who raised you that way!?"


    "Not my fault," Lars stepped back and dodged a swift uppercut. "That''s how you gotta play Elf." He thrust a slow punch, directly at Trever''s face.


    "Defense ain''t your playstyle, kid!" Trever sidestepped and launched a hook counter. "You play more aggressive!"


    "Different playstyles for different classes, yo!" Lars didn''t dodge. Instead, he drew closer and stuck to Trever like glue. This made the hook whiff.


    "Different, shmifferent," Trever created some space again and lunched a straight punch. "You really think you can beat anybody with this so-called ''playstyle'' you used? I mopped the floor with you, boy!"


    Lars didn''t dodge. He didn''t block either. But, the punch was heading straight toward his face! Wham! It connected!


    "Ah, I think I put too much power on that one..." Trever got carried away in the heat of the moment. The fake boxing punches turned real at some point. "You okay there?"


    "...." Lars didn''t answer. He just stood there.


    "Hello? Did I knock you out? ''


    "Heh, you wish," Lars said. He successfully intercepted the punch... with his forehead! "Ya right. I played like a Bronze scrub back there. Also, gotta admit, you''re a pro Elf killer, no question."


    "You bet I am. This broken class sucks ass and I hate it with everything I''ve got. It got range and escapes for days. Freakin'' turtling galore."


    "Haha, I feel ya," Lars smiled wryly. "Turtles are the worst."


    "Look who''s talking, the freakin'' Turtle Godfather himself!"


    "Haha, harsh. C''mon, I didn''t turtle that hard. I just maintained my distance and shot ya from afar."


    "That''s, like, the 101 of turtling. You were a damn turtle, bro. Admit it."


    "Maybe a little," Lars glanced away. "But hey, that''s how ya make the most outta Elf."


    "So, the most you can do with Elf is get your ass whooped?" Trever smirked. "That''s some rad payoff right there, haha! Should''ve picked a class you can actually play."


    "Welp, you''re a guest here and all. Didn''t wanna beat the crap outta ya with Shooter, haha."


    "Heh, you sure learned how to talk back" Trever''s eyes glinted dangerously. "I''d eat your Shooter for breakfast any time! 1v1 me, bro!"


    "You''re on!"


    The two goofs ran off and picked up their tablets. The show was on!


    "Are they seriously going to do it now?" Kai narrowed her eyes.


    "Just let them be," Yuel said. "That''s how these two always are."


    "Huh, boys," Kai rolled her eyes. Then, her eyes laid on Alex. "How about it? Think you can take me on?"


    "I''m sure I can," Alex shrugged. "But, not feeling it right now. Too much of a hassle."


    "Huh, all talk and no backbone."


    "Yeah, yeah," Alex dismissed the antagonism. He clearly had zero motivation to duke it out with Kai. It seemed like duels weren''t his idea of a fun time.


    "Let''s ignore them and move on," Aron laid his eyes on Yuel. Harsh judgment was incoming...


    "Let''s hear it," Aron said. "What do you think were your biggest mistakes?"


    "Well..." Yuel wasn''t sure where to start. Everything went wrong in that match. He couldn''t even tell what was a real mistake and what was merely a case of bad luck.


    "Don''t tell me you can''t figure out what you did wrong."


    "Of course I can, it''s just..." Yuel pursed his lips. He had a lot of things on his mind, but he didn''t want to say anything unnecessary. "To start off, I got outplayed by the counter-picks."


    "More like," Aron corrected. "You drafted too safe by focusing on counter picking my Lion."


    "So, you figured that one," Yuel smiled wryly.


    "Seems like you also tried to counter my Warlock," Alex shook his head. "That would have been a smart move a few months ago. But, I''m not the same one-trick pony you saw back in that scrimmage. Sorry, couldn''t let that one fly. Nothing personal."


    "Yeah, I messed that up," Yuel admitted. He underestimated Alex. All the information he had about Alex''s playstyle and weaknesses was based on that one scrimmage they had months ago. So, Yuel should''ve taken this outdated data with a grain of salt.


    "Though, I would have won the lane either way," Alex claimed.


    "You wish," Kai hissed. "I''d kick your ass if I wasn''t stuck with Lumi."


    "Keep dreaming, girl," Alex ignored her sharp glare.


    "Frankly, I''m very surprised by some of your picks," Aron said. "You chose Elf over Trickshooter for Lars, even though you know his win rate against Trever. Can''t say I agree with that one. It''s true this pick made my life harder as far as ganking is concerned, but you paid for it with lane advantage."


    "You might be right," Yuel admitted. "I didn''t expect Trever to overwhelm Lars so hard. That one is on me."


    "I ain''t got overwhelmed, yo!" Lars shouted in their direction in the middle of an intense 1v1 against Trever. "My Elf is just ain''t good enough yet, that''s all. Just watch y''all, I''mma turn it into one of my best classes! Gonna wreck everybody, yo!"


    "So, you gonna become a high-level turtle?" Trever sneered. "You disgust me, kid. Take that!"


    "Ya ain''t hitting me while the show is on, yo!"


    "Gah, stop moving all around the damn screen!"


    The two went back and forth, making enough noise to fill up the room. Vincent and Luke gathered around them and added to the loudness with some cheers.


    "Putting these guys aside," Aron returned to the topic. "In short, you played it too safe with that Elf pick."


    "Yes, that''s how it turned out, unfortunately," Yuel nodded.


    "In general, many of your decisions were too safe. You started the game on the left foot and didn''t do anything to turn the situation around. I was expecting you to make one of your infamous gambles. Say, to give up on Top and focus all your forces on Bot."


    "So, you anticipated that," Yuel smiled wryly. "I considered that but deemed it too risky. Sounds like you were prepared for it, so good thing I gave up."


    "I wouldn''t be so sure about that," Aron objected. "Just because I was aware of the possibility doesn''t mean I had a strong counterplay at hand. I thought about it a lot throughout the match but never quite found an effective response to such a play. It would have made things hard for us, that''s for sure."


    "You''re overestimating this play. Or, maybe you''re thinking about a higher-level version of what I had in mind. According to my estimation, it had a very real chance of backfiring and leading us to immediate defeat."


    "Is that so," Aron frowned. "Compared to your usual high-risk plays, it didn''t seem that much riskier."


    "It''s thanks to these high-risk plays that we ended up here," Yuel lowered his eyes.


    "I see," Aron nodded. It seemed like Yuel learned some harsh lessons during the selection match against Howard. Aron received a replay of those games from Howard, so he watched the entire thing. There were indeed multiple occasions in which Yuel''s shot-calling led to disaster.


    However, there were also many other scenarios in which Yuel''s ballsy calls allowed the team to establish an unexpected advantage. But, Yuel must have found it easier to dwell on the times things went wrong, such was human nature. Each and every small defeat he suffered that match hurt a lot, for it pushed him a step away from the competitive scene.


    On top of that, Howard played safe and compact. It was hard to deliver a fatal blow to his team, even with a high-risk attack. And, every time he foiled the enemy''s high-risk assault, Howard mounted a swift and devastating counter, shattering the attackers'' confidence.


    So, it was hard to blame Yuel for the conclusions he reached. Indeed, high-risk plays weren''t the best approach for taking Howard out. Nevertheless, it has been Yuel''s greatest tool until now. Was he going to give up on it? Aside from fighting Howard, it should serve him well in many future matches. It was too useful of a skill to throw away like this.


    [Is he that hellbent on beating Howard?] Aron frowned. [Hmm, yes, I suppose he is. He even transferred schools for that. But, is abandoning his forte really the right thing for him to do? I can''t tell.]


    "Then, let''s move on to the worst thing I saw," Aron continued.


    "That defensive gank when I tried to save the Lumimancer, right?" Yuel delivered the blow before Aron had the chance. "That was a mistake. 100%. I deserve every piece of criticism you want to shoot my way."


    "I''m glad you''re aware. That''s not like you. What made you go through with it?''


    "It''s hard to explain," Yuel shifted his eyes away. "I guess I wanted to be an optimist for a change, considering how bad our situation was."


    "Is that so," Aron left it at that. Overall, it seemed like Yuel was well-aware of his faults. He was still in the middle of molding his new risk-less approach to shot-callings, so that''s why things turned out the way they did.


    But, were things really alright like this? The way this match played out irked Vincent. Yuel should''ve been able to achieve much more, but he remained too passive and let defeat claim him.


    "Is playing safe your idea of winning the regionals?" Aron asked. "Fortifying your defense and preventing unnecessary risks is good. But, that alone isn''t going to win you games. I think you''re not fully applying all the lessons from your match with Howard."


    "You watched it?"


    "Howard sent me the replays, so I dissected them in my free time."


    "And, what did you see?"


    "I saw one chaotic team fighting another well-organized team."


    "My shot-calling was that bad?" Yuel bit his lip. He knew he made a lot of mistakes,,s but he didn''t think it was THAT bad.


    "The shot-calling itself was fine. It worked well most of the time, but still failed a few times. That''s par for the course with you. But, I also had the feeling your team didn''t quite mesh well. You played like a group of cogs that didn''t fit together."


    "You''re saying our teamwork was bad?"


    "You and Lars worked together well, as always. But, the rest of the team seemed sluggish. Roi and Dan made a lot of mistakes, the kind I normally wouldn''t expect to see from them. I dare say, it almost looked like they were throwing the game."


    "They were?" Yuel was taken aback. "But, they played decently overall. True, a little worse than I would have liked them to, but they did their part."


    "The fact you didn''t even notice that attests to how unorganized your team was. You commanded them with shot-calls, but you didn''t keep them united as the captain. Players can easily grow frustrated when playing in a negative environment," he turned to Kai ."Isn''t that the kind of thing that made you charge in with that desperate attack?"


    "Yeah," Kai admitted. "I felt Yuel''s game plan was going nowhere, so I took matters into my own hands."


    "So, it''s my fault you became reckless?" Yuel frowned.


    "I''m not trying to pass the blame or anything. That play was still dumb and that???s all on me. But, if you''re asking what led me there..."


    "I see," Yuel didn''t know what to say to this. Somewhere at the back of his head, he knew his communication with the team wasn''t stellar in this 3v3. Apparently, the same issue occurred during the selection match as well, without Yuel even noticing. He was too busy thinking about plays and counter plays that he didn''t have time to spare for his teammates.


    "It''s a problem you''ve had since day 1," Aron said. "You always distance yourself too much with your shot-calling. It''s like you''re a robot giving orders. The orders might be good, but they''re worthless if there''s nobody to execute them"


    "So, I have to work on teamwork and communication," Yuel summarized.


    "Yes, that''s the gist of it," Aron nodded. "Deciding whether you want to change your playstyle to something more defensive is your call, but there''s no doubt you have to work on your ability to keep the team united. You have to make your teammates run like oiled cogs."


    "I understand." [At least, I think I do.] Yuel will have to check the replays of the selection match again. He has dissected these videos so many times by now, but he never saw the things Aron was talking about. Perhaps the errors he committed that day were greater than he thought.


    "Are we done here?" Alex asked.


    "Yes, that''s all I had to say," Aron said. "As it stands, I don''t think you''ll get far at the regionals. But, the year has just started and you have scrimmages ahead of you. You still have time to shapen up. If you improve enough before the regionals, let''s have another bout."


    "Deal," Yuel said.


    "Hey," Kai exclaimed. "I''m the cap, so I''m supposed to accept the challenge."


    "Sure," Yuel rolled his eyes.


    "Mark my words," Kai glared at Alex. "Next time, we''ll blast you to bits."


    "You know what they say," Alex shrugged. "A dog that barks never bites."


    "You little...!"


    "Leave that for the rematch," Aron stopped the two. "C''mon, Trever. Let''s go."


    "Just a sec! I''m about to wreck this kid!"


    "I think ya mean you''re about to get [wrecked] by this kid!" Lars launched a swift shot that decided the duel.


    "Shit, your Shooter packs a punch like always," Trever jumped off the chair and waved angry fists. "You should''ve come at me with this fair class, instead of picking that broken turtle."


    "Don''t worry, I''mma kick yo butt with Elf next time."


    "Ain''t happening, kid. And mark my words, by then I gonna become good enough to mop the floor even with your Shooter."


    "Heh, no chance!"


    On that note, the high schoolers left. Yuel, Lars, and Kai all received their fair share of criticism and got things to work on. They''ll learn from their mistakes and turn Stratus into the strongest middle school team in the region by the time the regionals come around!

 195 Upgraded Training Regime

    "You guys practice after school, right?" Kai asked.


    "Yep, we sure do," Lars gave a thumbs up. "Every day, all day!"


    "Huh. So, hm..." Kai''s eyes shifted from side to side as she was trying to weave the right words. "I was thinking..."


    "Yeah?"


    "Maybe I should... Well, maybe I should join you too."


    "You wanna join da special training?" Lars flashed his teeth. "No problem! The more, the marrier, right?"


    "It''s fine by me," Yuel said. "But, there is one condition: Lars and I will be playing Bot. We use our after-school practice for these roles, seeing as we barely get to play them at the club."


    "Huh, well," Kai crossed her arms. Well shoot, that was a direct blow to her motivation. She was the team''s Carry, so she had to practice that role as much as possible. No matter how much Yuel and Lars were going to beg, she won''t surrender the most important role to them.


    With that said, she clearly needed more practice. The 3v3 against the high-schooler showed she still had glaring issues to work on. Namely, her inability to cooperate with her teammates. It was embarrassing to admit, but her teamwork was stuck at Silver rank.


    [Actually, it should be at least Gold rank.] Kai forced herself to believe that. But, she didn''t sound very convincing even inside her own head. Well, with her experience, it was no wonder her teamwork skills barely developed.


    After playing with so many disappointing teammates online, it became second nature for her to handle everything herself. In fact, even this very club was filled with a bunch of useless scrubs in the past two years. Those guys made it in only because they somehow reached a decent rank by the time they applied to the club, but that only bloated their egos and made them think they were some hot shit. Spoiler: they weren''t.


    Thankfully, all of them graduated by now, and the club was left with mostly decent players. Even though it was to jab Vincent about things and complain about his performance, Vincent was actually a decent player. And so was Ben, if they ignore the unfortunate circumstances that made him regularly miss club activities.


    Luke was the only questionable player due to his memeing, but he was also a solid player at his core. The skill was definitely somewhere deep down there, buried under a pile of memes and bad jokes. Probably.


    With these players in the club, Kai developed a little faith in her teammates over the past year. But, it was far from enough. When push came to shove, she forgot about her allies and placed all the work on her own shoulders.


    It reminded her of how these pesky team projects at school always went down. Kai always made sure to recruit only serious teammates whom she trusted to handle the work. Yet, she always somehow found herself doing 90% of the project by herself. That was plain dumb.


    For the better and the worse, the same mentality carried over to Classmancers. In order to secure victory, she didn''t mind taking a larger load upon herself. Doing so gave her more control over the development of the match, as well as guaranteed that whoever handled the most important task was a capable player. Namely, her.


    That''s why she insisted to play Carry. It was in charge of the most important task in the game: carrying the team to victory. Without a strong Carry, the team was bound to get stuck no matter how well everybody else played. She has suffered through enough Carry teammates who were suicidal dumbasses. The stupidity of these guys cost the game to the entire team. So dumb.


    So, Kai had to play Carry. She was the only one she could blindly trust to get the job done. She wasn''t a flawless player by any means, but she knew her worth. Kai could handle most adversaries, no question about it.


    And yes, she could totally also handle that high schooler Sorcerer she fought the other day. She only lost because of the terrible matchup, nothing more. The next time they meet, she''ll mop the floor with his stoic face!


    Ignoring all of this, Yuel set an ultimatum: Kai had to surrender the Carry role to Lars if she wanted to join their after-school practice. That was hard to swallow. Or, maybe it was actually a fitting starting point for her personal special training?


    After all, the thing she had to practice above anything else was her ability to trust her teammates and how to safely share some of the burdens with them. By surrendering the Carry role to Lars, it meant she had to trust the guy to carry the team. It''ll be a frustrating environment for her to play in, but in a good way. It''ll make her more used to this irritating feeling and maybe she''ll actually grow to trust others with that critical role.


    Besides, with those two guys, it should be easier to develop trust. Kai highly valued Vincent, Ben, and even Luke. But, her faith in them was nothing compared to the one she held in Yuel and Lars.


    These two were on a completely different level, they meant business. They didn''t come here to play around and have some good laughs with the others. No, they joined the club with one goal only: to win at any cost. Their thirst for victory was potentially even greater than Kai''s.


    Therefore, Kai could trust them to do their best in any given situation. At least, she thought she trusted them. In truth, the match against the high schoolers begged for different.


    Once things started going south against the high schoolers, Kai gave up on Yuel. The guy wasn''t coming up with any decisive solutions, so how could Kai keep believing in him? In addition, she was also disappointed by how hard the enemy Carry pushed Lars around. If it were Kai playing Carry, she''d whoop that guy''s ass.


    So, as both her teammates were underperforming, Kai decided to take matters into her own hands. That''s how she came up with that dumb idea of diving head-first against the Sorcerer. But, it was futile. She couldn''t achieve anything by herself there. She required the help fo her teammates.


    Unfortunately, Classmancers wasn''t like those team projects at school. Her only "enemy" when it came to school projects was her time and motivation. As long as she pushed herself to get stuff done, she passed with flying colors.


    On the other hand, Classmancers was a competitive game in which Kai will constantly face increasingly stronger opponents. No matter how good she becomes, she couldn''t win 1v5. This was a team game and every teammate had a role they had to fulfill. Kai couldn''t, and shouldn''t, do everything herself.


    [I feel like thinking about all this crap drains all my energy.] Kai sighed. She has been reflecting on all of these things since yesterday night. It even kept her up at night.


    The defeat they suffered at the hands of the high schoolers was just THAT frustrating. Especially, since most of it was Kai''s fault. If only she didn''t charge in like an idiot...


    All that hard thinking led her to today, to her request to join Yuel and Lars in their after-school training. Kai had to develop solid trust in their abilities and learn to rely on them even during the most desperate of times. Anything less than that won''t fly on the competitive scene.


    "Okay, have it your way," Kai said. "Lars can play Carry. But, if you make us lose games, I''m taking over."


    "Deal," Lars nodded.


    "Hoho? What is this I spy with my little eye?" Vincent waltzed into the conversation. "You three are planning to go on some special training? Are you going to master the ultimate technique that''ll let us win the regionals!?"


    "I just need some more high-level practice, that''s all," Kai said. "These guys are Challenger and I''m Diamond V, so if we queue together we''re going to play against higher rank players. It''s way better than these random matches we get when we queue together. Our ranks are all over the place."


    "Oh, I see, I see. Other than Yuel and Lars, the rest of the members are like commoners compared to your majesty."


    "You all just gotta grind more, dammit," Kai gave everybody a look, then returned to face Vincent. "Especially you. The heck you''re still stuck in Platinum for?"


    "Hmm," Vincent gave the question serious thought. "I suspect this is the fault of my dark energy."


    "Your what?"


    "The game system must be sensing my all-consuming dark knowledge! It knows I''m the Arbiter of Talents, the one who can judge the skills of players at a single glance. However, such a sinful existence can''t be permitted. After all, it''s the system''s job to gauge player skill and match them."


    "Can you give us the short version of your bullshit?"


    "In other words! The system won''t let me go any further because it doesn''t want this competition! The world is not yet ready to be judged by moi!"


    "Dunno what you''re smoking but you better get off that shit," Kai narrowed her eyes. "Anyway, there''s no ''special training''. I just want to practice more on a high level."


    "I see, I see," Vincent nodded. "In that case, perhaps I shall join you as well. I wouldn''t mind getting my feet wet in some top-level gameplay."


    "I''m not sure my place can handle four people," Yuel frowned. His room was definitely out of the question. They could use the living room, but his mom scolded him before for not leaving it tidy afterward. Still, this was a great chance to level up the team. He couldn''t be the one standing in way of this opportunity.


    "Eh, I can probably make it work," Yuel said. "I''ll be playing Support, though."


    "Of course, of course," Vincent nodded. "Take it. The role is all yours. You have inherited the right to it from birth. Just give me Top and I''m a happy man."


    "What about the rest?" Yuel struck while the iron was hot. "If enough people want to stay and practice, maybe we should just extend our practice hours in the clubroom?"


    "Oh, what a brilliant idea!" Vincent typed furiously on his tablet. "Stratus suffers a devastating defeat at the hands of representatives from Gordon High, but their fighting spirit burns ever stronger! They extend their training hours and undergo special training, for the sake of winning the rematch and taking the regionals by storm!"


    "More practice?" Luke made a face. "Sounds like a pain. This ain''t a job, ya know? We''re just middle schoolers. We gotta live and stuff."


    [As always, such a hard worker.] Yuel narrowed his eyes and questioned the next person with his silent gaze.


    "Um, I''m fine with more practice," Ben answered timidly. "I have to make up for all the practice I missed, so..."


    [Then just stop missing practice.] Yuel ranted internally. It has already been weeks since the year started, yet Ben''s special circumstances remained a mystery. The only saving grace was the fact Ben seemed genuinely serious about the game and wanted to improve, so Yuel let it slide (for the most part).


    "Stay longer after school?" Nia twisted her lips. "Hmm, I don''t exactly hurry home, so ok. But, only if I get a one hour nap somewhere in there."


    "Sure," Yuel narrowed his eyes. [How much can this girl sleep? She takes a brief nap every two or so matches.]


    "And so, it''s decided!" Vincent announced loudly. "The majority of the club wants extra special training! Therefore, we shall stay in the club from morning to midnight! Even skip classes for it!"


    "Skip school? Heck yeah!" Lars pumped a fist. "I''mma camp over here, yo!"


    "We''re not skipping anything," Kai struck down the silly suggestion. "But, it really seems like [most] of us are fine with extending training hours."


    "Why you giving me that look?" Luke averted his eyes and scratched his head. "I''m not trying to be the villain, you know. Practice is slavery, and I''m not one to promote slavery."


    "Whatever floats your boat," Kai shrugged. "I won''t force anybody to stay overtime. If you want to stay, you stay. If you don''t, you don''t. Deal?"


    "Hell yeah," Luke regained his vigor. "Democracy, baby!"


    With that, it was decided the club will practice longer. Yuel also wanted the club to start practicing every single day, but that''d probably be overkill for most of them.


    They began the intense training regime by staying one extra hour compared to before, then gradually pumped it up to three hours. With three training days a week, this increase amounted to nine extra weekly hours in total. Not too shabby.


    Though, for Nia, this amount reduced to six hours a week at best. The girl wasn''t joking about taking a nap in the afternoon. Whenever the time approached three o''clock, she knocked herself in an instant, like a machine that ran out of batteries. Hopefully, this won''t become a problem if the team has to play matches at this hour...


    That aside, the upgraded training regime visibly improved the team''s overall skill level. If they keep this up, they''ll be ready to take on anybody at the regionals!

 196 Gunslinger Surprise

    On top of extending the training hours in the clubroom, Kai also joined Yuel and Lars in their after-school practice. She started by joining them only on the days that club activity was off, but it gradually became an everyday routine.


    "You two are really addicted to Mancers, huh," Kai shook her head. "It''s already seven and you''re still playing."


    "Gotta train, yo," Lars said. "Next time, I gonna rek Trever! Just ya watch."


    "I prefer to use the word ''serious'' over ''addicted''," Yuel corrected. "We want to play the game professionally, so we have to start working toward that goal as early as possible."


    "Yep!" Lars nodded. "Early bird catches the steak, yo!"


    "Yeah, something like that."


    "Pros, huh," Kai smiled wryly. Even though she just called them "addicts", Kai herself was also still here, still playing Classmancers. She was quite the addict herself, honestly.


    But, the two boys trained way more than here. Even after she left, she kept training. And, even on the days Kai took a break and didn''t join them, those two were still training. They worked so hard it felt more serious than a job. If Luke saw this, he''d call the police on them for promoting child labor.


    And still, despite how much Yuel and Lars trained, there were players out there who posed a challenge to these guys. In fact, such players existed in this very region, like the high schoolers they fought in the 3v3.


    And, this wasn''t just restricted to high schoolers. Even among middle schoolers, there were surely players from the Leopards and StormBlitz who were equals to Yuel and Lars. Therefore, the two had to constantly train and better themselves, or else they''d drop off from the top of the competition. It was rough.


    Even though Kai was also training way harder than any middle schooler should, she didn''t hold a candle to the efforts of these two. Occasionally, the thought of training more crossed her mind. But, she always turned lazy in the end. She couldn''t become like these two fanatics, she needed her breaks. Some days were better spent listening to music, playing rhythm games, and practicing guitar.


    Classsmancers was undeniably a big part of her life, but it was only one part. And, it was possibly a temporary one. There was no telling whether she''ll still be playing the game three or five years from now. Maybe she will, maybe she won''t.


    Unlike Yuel and Lars, she didn''t have a clear goal in mind like becoming a pro player. She was thinking of maybe becoming a guitarist, but who knew what the future held. She loved music, but producing it sometimes felt like a chore. Playing guitar wasn''t a child''s play, she learned that on her own flesh, quite literally. Her fingers had lots of blisters.


    [I''m glad for their hard work, though. It makes matches that much easier.]


    When Yuel and Lars were in charge of Bot, they were responsible for carrying the team to victory. Kai usually wasn''t a fan of leaving this important role to others, but this duo made her feel at ease. Between how hard they''ve been training and how strong they played, it felt fine to leave this critical role to them.


    When Kai queued into Ranked only with Yuel and Lars, the caliber of their opponents was completely different. The guys were Challenger V and she supplemented that with a Diamond V, so the matchmaking had no reservations about pitting them against strong opponents.


    Throughout many such fierce matches, there were occasions when even Yuel and Lars couldn''t carry the game to victory. For example, when they ran into familiar faces...


    "Oh snap, it''s Trever and Aron!" Lars exclaimed. "We gonna get our revenge match right here and now, yooooo!"


    "Freezer is here too," Kai''s eyes glinted like a polished blade. "Let''s get them."


    "I wouldn''t say this counts as a real revenge match," Yuel noted. "We''re both playing with randoms, so anything can happen. But yeah, let''s get them for sure."


    [Damn, why does that bastard have to play Support this match?] Kai ranted about Freezer''s position. Instead of being Mid like he should, the guy was playing Support for WildDragon, the guy named Trever, if memory served.


    [He''s totally dodging the fight. He even picked Warlock and everything. Wuss.] Kai scoffed.


    "Heh, look," Trever chuckled. "It''s our bois! And that chick, too. Are we gonna give them a rerun of last time?"


    "A rerun? That''ll be hard to do, given our different positions," Aron noted.


    "Oh c''mon, details. I mean, we gonna whoop their asses, right?"


    "I don''t mind waiting for them to self-destruct like last time," Alex shrugged.


    "Goddammit, you two!" Trever waved an angry fist. "Where''s the hype? Where''s the fighting spirit!?"


    "We just have to win, that''s all," Aron said.


    "Yeah, they''re just another enemy to beat," Alex shrugged. "Can''t say they impressed me much in our last fight. I''m not expecting much."


    "Yeah, I feel you," Trever nodded. "They fought real lame last time. And, Lars is on Gunslinger this time, so no Trickshooter again. This gonna be ezpz."


    "Say, about your Gunslinger," Yuel started. "You haven''t shown Trever yet how much you improved it, right?"


    "Nah, don''t think I did," Lars said. "Maybe I mentioned that my Slinger became dope, but that''s about it. He probably ain''t seen it."


    "So, Trever will underestimate it," Yuel deduced. "We can use it our advantage. Can you lay low during the early game? Don''t do anything too high-level. Just play your Gunslinger on the same level you play most Carries."


    "Eh, the same level as others..." Lars tilted his head. "Not sure how I''mma do that, but I''ll try. Basically, you wanna make sure he doesn''t notice my Slinger is awesome, right?"


    "Yes, that''s the plan. We can catch him off guard later."


    "Hehe, being smart and all. I like it! Okay, let''s do this thing!"


    Yet, as soon as the match started, Lars has already shown off his godly Gunslinger skills. He landed a headshot on every single enemy minion in the wave, clearing the minions way faster than one would normally expect from a Gunslinger.


    [Is that what you call "lying low"?] Yuel made a face. [Then again, is there even a Carry class with which Lars doesn''t pull off amazing feats? I hope Terver will write it off as #JustLarsThings.]


    "Damn, son," Trever grinned awkwardly. "Are you seeing all these headshots?"


    "Yeah, it''s pretty good," Alex agreed.


    "Pretty good? [Pretty good!?] You try pulling that shit this consistently, I challenge you."


    "Never implied I can do it," Alex shrugged. "Anyway, seems like his Slinger will be a problem after all."


    "Nah, that''s just Lars for ya," Trever nodded proudly. "The brat plays all his stuff at this level. I admit his head-shooting accuracy skyrocketed since the last time I''ve seen his Slinger, but it''s not that different from his other classes. He ain''t got nothing on me!"


    "You sure about that?" Alex asked. "I get the feeling these headshots aren''t where it ends. What if he can also nail headshots like this while fanning the hammer?"


    "Pft, yeah, right," Trever waved his hand. "Ain''t nobody can land these shots consistently. Even pros struggle against that shit."


    "He can, actually," Aron stated matter-of-factly. "I remember seeing him land many headshots during Fan the Hammer in the selection match."


    "For real?" Trever blinked multiple times. "Nah, no way. He was probably lucky. Or, I dunno, maybe he chugged on a bucket of coffee or something, haha."


    "If you say so," Alex was way more convinced by Aron''s input. [I better be on the lookout for when this Slinger decides to go on the offensive.]


    The laning phase proceeded without any major incidents. Trever and Lars exchanged blows here and there, but so far Lars hasn''t pulled anything that was out of this world. It appeared as if the two were evenly matched. In fact, on the surface, it even felt like Trever had the edge. However...


    [I haven''t seen him use Fan the Hammer even once in a fight.] Alex knotted his brows. This was peculiar. Gunslinger''s biggest strength was his ability to barrage the opponent and kill them within a matter of seconds. Yet, Lars has been avoiding that line of play for some reason, he only occasionally used Fan the Hammer to clear minions.


    "What did I tell you?" Trever wrote it off. "He can''t use that Gatling gun in a real high-level fight. That nasty recoil would make him miss everything. You probably saw him score that kind of stuff on some scrubs."


    ???I wouldn''t call Ellen a ''scrub'', but sure," Aron gave it a rest. There was no point arguing about this. If Lars has the ability to pull off such stunts, he''ll do it sooner or later. The only question was: what was Lars waiting for? Why didn''t he go for the aggressive Fan the Hammer right away? Perhaps it was a bait of some sort.


    "We''ll see how it goes," Alex still had his doubts. To be on the safe side, he stuck to Trever like gumshoe, ready to protect the Carry as needed.


    However, maintaining this formation proved difficult. The enemy Paladin went on some aggressive sprees, many of which involved hitting Alex. It felt like this Paladin was trying to get Alex out of the lane. This was a red flag. Something was afoot.


    [Alright, show me your true face.] Alex decided to give the enemy what they wanted by retreating into the jungle, pretending he was going to recall. His HP was at 20%, so it''d be wise to recall in this situation, especially since it seemed like Trever was holding the upper hand in the fights against the Gunslinger.


    However, there was a chance this was merely a false impression the enemy planted into his mind. So, by pretending he was going to recall, Alex will force their lane opponents to show what was their hidden agenda.


    The enemy Paladin saw Alex retreating, so he retreated as well. In order to bring Alex down to 20%, the Paladin had to aggress multiple times with Justice Strike, which caught the attention of nearby minions and made them retaliate hard at the offender. As such, after repeating this aggression over and over, the Paladin was down to 15% HP by now.


    [It''s like he''s sacrificing himself in order to take me out.] Alex thought. Knowing who was controlling that Paladin, it was very much possible that''s exactly the case. For Chessmaster, their exchanges might have looked like nothing more than a favorable trade of pieces.


    "Okay, you''re good to go," Yuel said while recalling. "There''s time before the Warlock returns, so you can duel Trever."


    "Hell yeah, about time!" Lars''s eyes lit up. "Time to show this dude what a real Slinger pro can do!"


    "You wanna go, kid?" Trever licked his lips. "Let''s do this shit!"


    As soon as the two minion waves were gone, Trever opened his attack. Lars dodged the first bolt with Dodge Roll, but he didn''t roll just to escape. No, he actually drew closer! The brat was in full battle mode!


    [This is how it outta be!] Trever grinned. [No more of that lame turtling business. Let''s fight like real men! Come at me!]


    Before Lars even recovered from the roll, Trever followed up with Wolf Companion. He ordered his trusty wolf to jump on Lars! If the wolf pins Lars to the ground here, the fight will be as good as over.


    [Game over, kid.] Trever grinned. [But, c''mon. I wanna see you dodge this shit. Let''s see what you can do without your roll.]


    [Easy!] Lars rolled again right away! This time, he used Combat Roll, Gunslinger''s personal rolling skill.


    [Ack, right. He had that.] Trever was a tad too hasty with his wolf. [No matter. You got this close to a Ranger, so prepare for some heat, boy!]


    [Let''s get the show started! Time to rock it!] Lars spun the hammer of his revolver and started shooting. Bam! Headshot!


    "Whoa! Lucky brat," Trever was taken aback for a moment, but this was no time to be impressed. Landing the first shot was the easy part of Fan the Hammer. It''s the follow-up shots that were a problem, thanks to the nasty recoil.


    [Heh, no problem.] Trever was assured. [I just gotta keep my feet moving as I shoot. This way, there''s no way he -] BAM! Another headshot!


    "Say what!?" Trever jumped so hard he almost slipped off the chair. A second headshot in a row? Right away!? What kind of luck was that!? Damn, this was bad. These shots were no joke. Each dealt over 20% HP. They were more like bombs than bullets. Damn it!


    [No, relax.] Trever took a deep breath and resumed his offense. [It was just a fluke. He just happened to land two headshots, that''s all. He can''t possibly get another one]- BAM! A third headshot!


    "WHAT THE FLYING FUCK!?" Trever yelled at the screen. "That''s a nice aimbot you got there, kid...!"


    The third hit in a row stunned Trever in place thanks to the effect Combat Roll. With this, he became a sitting duck for Lars! The fight was a wrap... or was it?

 197 Managing the Team

    Lars scored three headshots in a row with Fan the Hammer after doing a Combat Roll. The third shot stunned Trever in place.


    [I knew this won''t end well.] Alex sighed. [Time to rescue the idiot.]


    He returned to the lane from the jungle and booted Eldritch Nightmare. The dark magic painted the entire area pitch black.


    "Wha-!?" Lars exclaimed as the target in front of him vanished. He couldn''t see shit in this darkness, yo! "I thought the Warlock wasn''t coming yet. What gives!?"


    "He shouldn''t be here yet," Yuel frowned and checked the Warlock''s status. There was no sign of Teleport, so the Warlock didn''t cheat his way back to lane by teleporting to a Checkpoint Ward. Then, how did he make it back so fast?


    [Did he hide in the jungle this entire time?] Yuel glanced at the Warlock''s remaining HP. Or rather, the value Lars saw moments before his screen went black. The Warlock only had measly 22% HP, which meant he never recalled. In order words, Freezer was laying in wait for nearly a minute, waiting for an opportunity to strike.


    [Were we too obvious for him?] Yuel couldn''t believe it. Nobody on the enemy team should''ve been aware of Lars''s Gunslinger skills, yet Freezer was prepared for it. Somehow.


    [Oh, right. Aron watched the replays of the selection match.] Yuel smacked his forehead. He completely forgot that critical detail. Good thing Trever still underestimated Lars''s Gunslinger, or else this entire plan would have blown up in their faces.


    "Retr- Yeah, good," Yuel didn''t even need to say anything. Lars canceled Fan the Hammer and pulled out of there as soon as the darkness coated the area. The goof''s defensive plays were becoming better by the day.


    With that, the two sides disengaged. The three hits Lars landed brought Trever all the way down to 30% HP, so he had to consider recalling. Meanwhile, Lars was still at 60% after eating damage from Trever''s shots, so he could still remain on lane and keep pushing. In the end, despite the unexpected developments, the lane advantage tilted in Lars''s favor after this exchange.


    "Damn, the hell was that shit?" Trever ranted. "You saw that shit? Three headshots in a row! Three! I was moving, too! What''s wrong with this kid?"


    "I told you," Aron said.


    "Hey, you didn''t tell me he could literally triple headshot me in a 1v1!" Trever ranted.


    "I also warned you things seemed fishy," Alex added.


    "Heh, you and your sixth sense shenanigans. Thanks for the save, bro."


    "You''re welcome," Alex nodded. "I say you better recall."


    "What, and hand the lane over on a silver platter? Uh-uh, not happening."


    "Well, I''m recalling," Alex started up the effect. "If you want to stay and get headshot to death, that''s your thing."


    "Damn, guess I have to recall?"


    "Yes, you have to," Aron said matter-of-factly. "I''ll defend against the next wave."


    The Bot laners left and Aron came in to replace them. It was good fortune that Lancer was a jungler who was rather adept at clearing minion waves. Also, Gunslinger''s clearing speed was on the slower side during the early-game, so Aron successfully minimized the enemy''s advance.


    "Dang, sorry," Lars apologized. "Didn''t get to push much."


    "It''s fine," Yuel said. "I''m about to get there, so we can start pushing together before the enemy regroup."


    "Okey-dokey."


    The unexpected Gunslinger play caught the enemy off guard and almost made them lose lane advantage, but it also exposed Lars''s secret weapon. Even the ever-proud Trever had to admit that Lar had some mad headshooting skills. Trever will definitely play more cautiously from now on.


    "This is Shooter all over again," Trever shook his head. "This kid picks random ass classes and turns them into S tier. What''s next? He gonna make Archer look broken? Jesus."


    It was annoying, but Lars''s Gunslinger required the same amount of caution as his Trickshooter right now. In other words, playing the patience game and avoiding confrontations without a life lead or other big advantages.


    With Alex already playing safe before any of this even started, the lane became frozen. No matter how hard Yuel tried to arrange a fight, the enemy duo rejected the baits.


    [Damn, the hell are these guys doing over there?] Kai ranted internally. Yuel and Lars had such a great opportunity to pay back these high-schoolers for the embarrassing 3v3, yet they weren''t making any progress.


    There was that one impressive barrage of headshots from Lars which seemed promising at first, but Freezer shut it down at the last moment. Nothing of note happened ever since.


    As it stood, Yuel and Lars couldn''t gain the upper hand in the lane by themselves. To make things worse, the enemy Jungler closely cooperated with Bot. Meanwhile, the random Jungler on Kai''s team wasn''t paying much attention to Bot.


    [Looks like it''s up to me to go over there and trash these guys.] Kai concluded. [Especially, that Freezer bastard. Gonna wreck him good.]


    Her lane opponent, an Aeromancer, was just a boring turtle. The guy didn''t dare to contest her and only farmed from afar. He was probably waiting for Kai to get angsty and overextend.


    [Sorry to break it to you, but I''m not that kind of scrub.] Kai retorted. As an Electromancer, she had the upper hand in terms of farming speed, so she held the lane advantage the entire time. There was no reason for her to be frustrated by the situation.


    Sure, it was a little annoying that she couldn''t find any opportunities to strike down that damn turtle, but it was alright. If the Aeromancer keeps playing passively like this, Kai will eventually out-farm him and steamroll his ass. So, no need to push it.


    Instead, Kai could make use of her lane advantage to rotate to other lanes. Namely, rotate to Bot. She''ll go in there and gank these bastards! They''ll never see it coming!


    [Alright, this is a good opportunity.] She wiped out the minion wave before the Aeromancer even batted an eye. Now, she had the luxury of rotating to Bot and ganking the guys over there.


    "You plan to rotate over here?" Yuel asked.


    "Yeah, that''s the idea," Kai said. "Somebody gotta help you out with a gank or two, seeing as you''re making zero progress."


    "It would''ve been great if you discussed it with us first."


    "Well, I am now."


    [Will she ever learn to not make solo plays without warning?] Yuel made a face. Then again, the mere fact she was considering ganking of her own volition was a big step forward. It meant she trusted Yuel and Lars to seal the deal with the help of her gank. She trusted her teammates to do a thing! Woohooo!


    [Seriously, good thing I got used to keeping tabs on her.] Yuel returned to earth. If he didn''t catch this rotation in time, it would''ve ended in a disaster. It would have been a repeat of Kai''s reckless play from the 3v3, a play Yuel should''ve stopped before it was conceived.


    "I appreciate your intention to help," Yuel said. "But, don''t do it now. Their Lancer is still loitering nearby. I think he''s waiting for this rotation."


    "Seriously?" Kai backed away from the jungle. "What''s with these guys? Sometimes, it feels like their reads are straight from the pro league."


    "Actually, the skill gap between the best high-schoolers and C-League pros isn''t that big. And, there''s no question we''re facing some of the best high schoolers from our region, even though they''re just freshmen. That''s the level we''ll have to be able to beat if we want to take the regionals."


    "So, what do we do?" Kai asked. "You guys are pretty much stuck over there."


    "As much as I''d like to beat them head-on, I don''t think that''s happening this game. We''ll have to play around them and strike the weaker links of their team. Namely, the Aeromancer and the Viking."


    "Feeding on the weaker prey, huh," Kai smiled wryly. "Sure, that works. So, do I start pressuring this Aero?"


    "Actually, I was thinking of making you gank Top."


    "Really? We practically got two players sitting on that lane. You want me to go there too? Sounds like a waste."


    "Yes, it''s precisely because it''s a waste that I want you to go over there," Yuel explained. "Our Top and Jungler are stalling the Viking, but they''re not gaining much from this stalemate. So, our Jungler is just wasting time over there."


    "You can say that again," Kai nodded. "I''m surprised you haven''t told him to rotate outta there."


    "I''d gladly do so, but our Vanguard is struggling against that Viking by himself. He needs somebody to help him out and the Vampire is doing a passable work, but it''s not going anywhere. That''s why, it''d be great if you rotate over there and help them score a kill."


    "I see how you think," Kai nodded. "You want to ''waste'' even more manpower on Top to finally get things moving and free the Vampire from babysitting the lane."


    "Yes, exactly."


    "Okay, I''m game."


    And so, Kai headed toward Top.


    [The girl is rotating to Top in the end?] Aron frowned when a ward exposed the enemy Electromancer passing through Top Jungle. This wasn''t quite how he envisioned things going down.


    For a while now, it was looking as if the Electromancer has been meaning to rotate to Bot. Given how she recklessly charged at Alex back in the 3v3, Aron assumed she was going to do something dumb like that again. After all, the conditions were quite similar.


    In fact, at one point, the girl indeed started rotating toward Bot. Aron was convinced he scored jackpot at that point and prepared to intercept the fool. However, the girl aborted her rotation midway and returned to base instead. What a shame.


    Nevertheless, it was a good sign. It meant Aron''s analysis was on point: the girl was burning with revenge and wanted to shake things up in Bot. And so, confident in his analysis, Aron hanged around Bot Jungle to intercept the Electromancer''s next attempt.


    Yet, instead of rotating to Bot, the Electromancer suddenly decided to head to Top. Why? Nothing of note was happening in Top. The lane situation over there remained as stale as before.


    [Did Yuel make her change her priorities?] Aron wondered. Knowing that smarty pants, it''s possible all of the Electromancer''s previous "rotation attempts" toward Bot were just for show. They planted a false idea in Aron''s mind and made him stick with a bad play.


    [They got me.] Aron admitted silently.


    The Viking in Top has been holding his ground against the enemy Vanguard and Vampire, but he won''t last if the Electromancer is added into the mix. So, retreat was the only option.


    ¡ºRetreat top lane!¡» Aron ordered via a macro.


    "Go around their Wolf Camp," Yuel advised. "He has already realized you''re coming, so you have to catch him during his retreat."


    "Already way ahead of you," Kai shifted her destination as soon as the Viking showed signs of backing away. She won''t be able to catch him before he gets to the tower, but she might catch him behind the tower, provided the Vanguard and Vampire do their job and pressure the Viking hard enough to scare him away.


    [I don''t trust them for shit, though.] Kai thought. She''ll probably have to spook the Viking from behind and land some damaging hits on him. Then, retreat as fast as possible. That''s probably the best she''ll get out of that situation. After all, there was no way the Vanguard and Vampire will properly pressure the Viking out of the tower the way Kai needed them to do. Oh well.


    ¡ºAttack top lane!¡» Yuel pinged the map multiple times in succession in order to draw a path from the Vanguard and Vampire to the enemy tower.


    ¡ºOkay!¡»¡ºI''ll attack!¡»Two macros came in response. Following on their promise, the Vanguard and Vampire advanced to pressure the Viking under tower. They seemed to understand exactly what Yuel was asking them to do, even though they haven''t exchanged a single real word.


    [Did he really just make some randoms do his bidding?] Kai blinked. [Then again, these are high ranked matches. So, of course, players here would be more reasonable than usual. Still, I feel like Yuel has been getting better at making people do his bidding recently. Maybe just my imagination.]


    The Vanguard invaded the tower and tanked the shots. Meanwhile, the Vampire dived under tower and assaulted the Viking. This was a play those two could''ve executed ages ago, but it wouldn''t have borne much fruit by itself. It was too easy for the Viking to leave the tower and retreat deeper into his territory.


    However, this time, somebody was there to intercept the Viking behind the tower. Kai was lying in wait at the jungle entrance behind Top Tower, waiting for the prey to arrive. It was a pincer!


    The Viking has already spent his Axe Blitz earlier to get away from the Vampire, so he couldn''t blink past her. Kai unleashed Thunderstorm and the rest of her kit on the fleeing foe. It was over in a matter of seconds.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    From there, they were in a great position to push Top together.


    ¡ºAn enemy Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    They had to end the attack there, but this opening they created in Top was huge.


    Kai also eventually outfarmed the Aeromancer in Mid and sized lane advantage, further boosting the team''s momentum. By that point, the team held the upper hand in 2/3 of the map. Even though Yuel and Lars couldn''t quite win against Trever and Alex, the rest of the team generated an advantage on other lanes. In the end, that''s what counted more.


    ¡ºVICTORY¡»


    "Yes!" Kai pumped a fist, a rare occurrence. "We showed them."


    "Yeah, we rekt ''em, yo!" Lars gave thumbs up. "Even though I didn''t really get to rek Trever."


    "He was very cautious of your Gunslinger, that''s a win in its own right," Yuel said. "It stopped him from playing wild and forced him to be too defensive even when he had to push. I took advantage of that multiple times throughout the match, in case you haven''t noticed."


    "Oh yeah, of course I saw it!" Lars nodded. "Stuff was wild!"


    "You really saw it?" Yuel blinked. "Can you give an example of where I took advantage of Trever''s passiveness?"


    "Sure can! So, like, there was that one time when... No idea! Haha."


    "Figured," Yuel sighed. This topic was still too advanced for the goof. Well, at least Yuel knew what he did and it paid off in the end. [How''s my team management now, Aron?]


    "Dang, they got us good," Trever smacked his knee. "Their team felt so organized. Are they a party?"


    "No, they''re not," Alex said after running a quick check. "Only the three familiar faces were in a party."


    "Really? So, we were stuck with the worse randoms, huh. That blows."


    "It''s a little more complicated than that," Aron said. The random players on both sides were slightly weaker than the trios. However, Yuel utilized his teammates to great effect this match, more so than usual.


    [He didn''t go for any of his usual big risk plays, but he still went on the offensive when he had a good opportunity. He''s already looking better than the overly defensive Yuel we fought two weeks ago] Aron nodded in approval. It seemed like the 3v3 served as a good wake up call.


    [Also, seems like Yuel got the girl under control. She''s hasn''t done anything reckless this time around.] Aron smiled dangerously. [I feel our rematch might turn out to be interesting, after all.]


    ¡ºGG Chessmaster¡» Aron wrote in the after-match lobby.


    ¡ºGG¡» Yuel smiled meaningfully. Aron gave his stamp of approval on this match. This meant Yuel was heading in the right direction. If keeping the team under control and utilizing teammates better was what stood between him and beating Howard, Yuel shall polish those skills to perfection.


    After he reviewed the selection match yet again, Yuel realized he owned much of their defeat to how unorganized the team was. On the surface, everything was well-planned and they operated smoothly. However, underneath this illusion, there were numerous cracks he didn''t notice at the time


    To prevent such a disaster from striking ever again, Yuel had to get rid of this weakness and improve his team management skills. He had to go beyond merely supplying his teammates with good shot-calls. He had to carefully pay attention to them, figure their quirks, and instruct them efficiently based on all these additional factors.


    It was easier said than done, but it had to be done. Howard was superior in this area at the moment, but that had to change.


    [I''ll use the upcoming scrimmages to master this. By the time I get to the regionals, I''ll be on a whole different level!]

 198 Scrimmages About to Begin!

    Winning scrimmages determined the seeding of each team for the regionals. The more wins, the higher the seed. The higher the seed, the easier it''ll be to make it to the finals.


    In a sense, the scrimmages were like the beginning of the regionals. By winning a lot during this phase, a team could easily secure itself a high spot at the regionals.


    This system was in place to lower the odds of a good team being eliminated early. For example, it prevented StormBlitz and the Leopards from running into each other early in the tournament.


    Last year, the Leopards and StormBlitz were the first and second seed respectively, so they were guaranteed to run into each other only at the finals. Any lower seed had to beat both of these tycoons in order to take the regionals.


    [As much as I''d like to take on strong teams, I rather avoid the Leopards if possible.] Yuel thought. His primary goal was to get a rematch against Howard. In addition, he promised his mother to take the regionals this year, that was the condition for transferring schools. If he fails to deliver, he''ll have to stop playing Classmancers...


    Unfortunately, dodging the Leopards at the regionals won''t be easy. Even if Stratus becomes the second seed, they''ll still have to fight the third seed at the semi-finals. And, the third seed will assuredly be either the Leopards or StormBlitz in that hypothetical scenario. So, Stratus will have to fight back-to-back against these two teams in the semi-finals and in the finals.


    [We need to get the first seed.] Yuel concluded. Only this way, the team will have a chance to dodge the Leopards at the regionals. However, getting first seed pretty much meant proving they were currently the strongest team in the region, so it was like a catch-22.


    Each team had to partake in at least three official scrimmages and the win rate was going to determine the seeding. In the case of a tie, the seeding from previous years will be taken into account. And, given Stratus'' history...


    [We''ll lose in every single tie.] Yuel frowned. The only way around it was to arrange more scrimmages in an attempt to increase their win ratio. For example, winning 2 out of 3 matches yielded 67% win rate, whereas winning 3 out of 4 yielded 75%.


    So, even if a team couldn''t beat one of the strong rivals in the region, it could prey on the weaker teams to boost its seeding. The only time this method didn''t work was when the rival team had a perfect 100% win rate. In that case, said team could only be beaten via a tiebreak. Or, worst case, it was possible to challenge the team to a scrimmage and that''ll serve as a tiebreak that relies on skill, not legacy.


    There was only one good thing about being considered weak: it meant all other teams will want to scrimmage with Stratus. The reason? Easy wins. Stratus was the was "bottom tier" team, so everybody would gladly farm them.


    In fact, Stratus'' reputation was so bad, that some teams with some self-respect didn''t even bother requesting a scrimmage with them, like StormBlitz did last year. It was a "waste of time", as Aron put it. Even though it meant StormBlitz could get an easy extra win that way, it won''t teach the team anything and it won''t help the players improve. It was questionable whether it''d even work as sparring for StormBlitz.


    [It''s sure not fun to be ridiculed like that, but this is good for us.] Yuel thought. He didn''t want to hold a rematch with Howard during a mere scrimmage anyway. They''ll settle everything at the regionals.


    However, unlike StormBlitz, the Leopards traditionally held a scrimmage with Stratus. In fact, their custom was to hold a scrimmage against every single team in the region. Their coach pushed this idea and the other schools complied.


    [So, we''re going to run into that wall sometime soon.] A shiver ran through Yuel. He still remembered the scrimmage he had against the Leopard''s second-string. It was such an intense bout. Surely, this year they won''t disappoint either.


    Rather, the Leopards will be even fiercer this year, for this time they''ll come at Yuel with their first-string. It''ll be the kind of first-string that could defeat StormBlitz, just like it happened last year. Yes, that''s right. The Leopards beat a StormBlitz lineup that had powerhouses like Howard and Aron in it.


    Granted, this year''s players will be different because only seniors played on the Leopard''s first-string. Nevertheless, the coach, Rodriguez, has been proving himself as a producer of champions, year after year.


    Granted, a lot of this depended on Rodriguez''s decision. The Leopards might send their second-string to deal with a "weak team" like Stratus. That''ll be maximum insult.


    [Even if they pull something like that, we''ll simply draw out their first-string into the fight.] Yuel promised. [They won''t run over us with a second-string team, that I promise.]


    Aside from StormBlitz, most other teams in the region would happily jump on the opportunity to get an easy win off the "weakest team". So, Stratus should be flooding with scrimmage requests. Alas, everything was up to the club advisor to decide...


    "I scheduled your scrimmages. Write them down," Ms. Stone instructed. "You''ll be playing Taurus on January 5th, the Leopards on February 14th, and Tycoons on April 21st."


    "Only three?" Yuel asked. "Didn''t more schools ask to play against us?"


    "There were a few requests, but three scrimmages is all you need."


    "Um..." Yuel didn''t expect this to happen. "Could we please get more scrimmages?"


    "No," Ms. Stone didn''t give any openings for a rebuttal.


    [Lazy bum.] Yuel retorted mentally. There could only be one reason why this woman didn''t want to schedule additional matches: it be more bothersome to manage, that''s all. She''ll have to communicate with more schools, and she''ll have to accompany the team to ProCenter for every scrimmage. So, the more scrimmages, the more she''ll have to work. She clearly didn''t want any of that.


    "Lazy bitch," Kai ranted on their way back to the clubroom. "Would it kill her to give us at least one more scrimmage? Damn her. No wonder this club looks the way it does."


    "Yeah, it''s unfortunate," Yuel nodded. "Why do they always dump the supervisor job on somebody who doesn''t care about the club in the slightest? Sigh."


    "Well, at least we got proper dates. That''s something."


    "Better than nothing, that''s for sure," Yuel nodded. "So, we first play against Taurus."


    "Taurus, Leopards, and Tycoons. I feel like it''s the same order as last year."


    "Because it''s precisely is!" Vincent greeted them at the entrance to the basement clubroom. He pulled out his tablet and flipped through some notes. "Taurus, Leopards, and Tycoons. This was the exact order last year as well. And, the year before that. And, the year before-before that. Even the dates are similar."


    [Why in the world does this guy even gather all this info...?] Yuel made a face. Meanwhile, Kai wasn''t fazed at all.


    "So, she''s just recycling the same exact routine every year," Kai sighed. "Lazy hag."


    "Since you know so much about this," Yuel started. "I assume you also have detailed information about Taurus in that portable library of yours."


    "But, of course I do!" Vincent made noise. "After all, this is the tablet of the Information Blackhole! It records all events known to this mortal world. Its information is second only to the Akashic records themselves!"


    "So, summarize it for us," Yuel requested. In truth, he already knew some things about Taurus because he helped StormBlitz research them last year. However, it was always good to get extra info and hear another person''s perspective. Especially, this clown''s opinions were often on point, as unlikely as it sounded.


    "Alrighty," Vincent accepted the quest. "Gather, everybody! We shall hold a tactical meeting regarding our first opponent: Taurus!"


    "Oh man, we''re in for a history lesson," Luke sat down and pretended to take a nap. "Wake me up when we''re getting to the interesting bits."


    "I only wanna know who are the strongest players there," Lars grinned. "Gotta know who I gotta wreck, yo!"


    "Actually, about their lineup..." Vincent lowered his tablet. "I don''t know a single thing! All their players were seniors last year, so they''ve graduated."


    "Yeah, it seems we''ll be going in blind," Yuel nodded.


    "Indeed, such is our inescapable fate," Vincent nodded. "Nevertheless, if we analyze what we know from past years, we can estimate their current power level! Unlike us, their club is allowed to recruit tons and tons of members. As such, they''re far more likely to recruit talented players. Point in case: their team has been hitting Top 8 every year, sometimes even Top 4. They''re a worthy opponent, no doubt!"


    "Zzz..." Luke produced fake snoring noises.


    "Long story short, they''re good," Kai summarized. "But, they''re just Top 8 or Top 4 material at best. We gonna kick their asses."


    "Yeah, now ya talkin''," Luke woke up. "We got this. Let''s meme these guys to death, haha!"


    [Luke seems to firmly believe that he''ll be playing on the first-string.] Yuel thought.


    At first, this tiny club had no choice but to rely on Luke for Jungler. However, now it had an alternative: Nia.


    The girl was still rough around the edges, but she improved dramatically over the past month. She became more cooperative and came to accept that Yuel''s shot-calls had some wisdom behind them. Even if she didn''t always comprehend said wisdom at first, she usually followed his advice.


    In terms of skill, Luke was the better Jungler right now. However, his insistence on playing memes was his undoing. It wasted away his potential, for he constantly had to fight from a disadvantageous position. No matter how much Yuel lectured him about it, Luke didn''t budge. For that guy, playing Classmancers was all about playing memes.


    On top of that, Luke was the least serious club member during practice. Ben also deserved an honorable mention because the guy missed lots of practice days, but at least he stayed extra hours on the day he was present.


    But, Luke? You''ll never find that guy staying after 3pm. Everybody else willingly stayed overtime, but Luke was nowhere to be found.


    So, with all due respect to Luke''s skill, Yuel preferred Nia as the team''s Jungler. Especially, she should be playing in the upcoming scrimmages. It''ll be the best place for her to gain practical experience and develop as a competitive player.


    As the team captain, Kai was in charge of determining the lineup. Yuel was merely her advisor and they had some disagreements. However, on this topic, they both agreed: Nia should be the Jungler. At the very least, they should send her to play first to see how she fares. Worst case, they could always substitute her for Luke later.


    Still, this was a difficult decision to make, so they withheld their verdict until one week before the first scrimmage. However, the time has come. By now, they were wholly convinced.


    "Alright, I''ll announce the lineup," Kai stood in front of the rest.


    "Do we really need that shit?" Luke dragged himself to the meeting. "We already know who''s playing what."


    "Nay, nay, nay!" Vincent waved his arms. "This is a tradition! It''s proof that we''re a serious high-level club!"


    "Even though we''re totally not," Luke rolled his eyes.


    "Speak for yourself,." Kai gave him a look. "We''re aiming to win the regionals."


    "Heh, big dreams." Luke shrugged. "But hey, I''mma help you however I can. With my pro-level memes, of course!"


    "If we even gonna need your help."


    "Huh? What''s mean?"


    "Nothing," Kai shook her head. "Anyway, everybody here?"


    "Yep, I''m here!" Lars gave a thumbs up.


    "Here..." Nia raised her small hand.


    "... and what exactly are you doing over there?" Kai narrowed her eyes. Everybody was gathered around Kai in an arc, but Nia was hunched under a table for some reason.


    "I like it here."


    "Huh, okay," Kai shrugged and continued looking around. "Ben... isn''t here today."


    "So, he''s even going to miss such important days," Yuel criticized. "I won''t be surprised if he misses the scrimmage altogether."


    "Well, everybody who matters is here, so let''s begin. Here''s the lineup:"


    Carry: Kai (Beat)


    Support: Vincent (InformationBlackhole)


    Mid: Lars (Gunz)


    Top: Yuel (Chessmaster)


    Jungler: Nia (VanishingFlower)

 199 Who Will Be the Jungler?

    Support: Vincent (InformationBlackhole)


    Mid: Lars (Gunz)


    Top: Yuel (Chessmaster)


    Jungler: Nia (VanishingFlower)


    "Say what?" Luke raised an eyebrow. "I think you somehow got my name mixed up with Nia''s, haha."


    "Nope," Kai answered matter-of-factly. "For this scrimmage, Nia will play Jungler first. You''ll be a sub."


    "Wha..." Luke blinked and gave her a funny look. Heh. Hah. Haha! This was the joke of the year, that''s for sure. "You really gonna let this newbie play instead of me? Are you for real right now?" He gave Nia a look... Or, at least, he planned to do so. But, he couldn''t find her anywhere. The girl was under the table a moment ago, but she vanished without a trace. Goddammit, this stupid ugly vanishing bit-


    [Nah, calm down. No need to get mad.] Luke took a deep breath. [This is just a joke. Kai is just pulling my leg. And, if by any chance she''s serious about this shit, everybody else gonna side with me anyways. Everybody can see she''s clearly playing favorites for a fellow girl. Captain or not, ain''t nobody gonna let that shit pass.]


    "I''m serious," Kai said. "It was the most difficult decision of the lineup, but that''s how it''s going to be."


    "Hey, everybody, are ya hearing this nonsense?" Luke produced a dry laugh. "She''s playing favorites for Nia again."


    "No, she''s not," Yuel said. "I''d also like Nia to play Jungler. We discussed it thoroughly and agreed on this."


    "Hah, you did," Luke twitched. "Okay, then what about everybody else? Any of you think Nia should be the Jungler?"


    "Don''t worry, dude," Lars patted Luke''s shoulder. "You''re an awesome Jungler. I''m sure ya still gonna get to play some matches. Just show ''em what ya got during the scrimmage and they gonna pick ya next time for sure!"


    "That''s right," Yuel followed up. "Scrimmages are great opportunities for us to test team lineups. At the moment, Kai and I agree that Nia should be the Jungler. But, that may change depending on how the scrimmages play out. Nothing is set in stone yet."


    "In other words," Vincent made noise. "Our Jedi Knight must overcome a trial to become a Jedi Master!"


    "You guys are all so serious here," Luke smiled wryly. What a naive fool he was. All this time, he believed his Jungler spot was secured. After all, his only competition was some greenhorn freshman girl. He had this one in the bag. Ez.


    Except, he totally didn''t. This year, Stratus gonna be a serious team unlike the world has seen before. It was filled to the brim with tryhard energy and everybody was legit aiming for the top. They were serious when they were talking about taking the regionals.


    "Welp, alrighty then," Luke shrugged. "Less work for me then. Am I, like, excused from the scrimmage?"


    "Definitely not," Yuel answered. "As I said, we''ll be using the scrimmages for trying different things out. I''d like to see how you perform in a competitive environment as well. Aside from your meme picks, you [are] a good player. So, you might surprise and prove that your memes hold up in that environment."


    "So, it all comes down to whether I can get shit done with my picks, heh," Luke smirked. "Alrighty, ya got it. Give me just one shot, that''s all I need. I''ll prove you my memes got what it takes. I''mma take the world by storm! All these meta slaves gonna feel like scrubs after I mop the floor with their unoriginal picks, heh."


    "Yes, use the Meme Force!" Vincent hyped it up. "Fight on, Luke Memewalker!"


    [But seriously, I SO didn''t sign up for this shit.] Luke turned away and spat a sigh. This was supposed to be an easy-going club. Classmancers was just a game for him to meme in. Yet, somehow, he found himself in a situation where he had to prove his skill to everybody. How did things even come to this? [I blame Yuel''s tryhard aura. Sigh.]


    Welp, in for a penny, in for a pound. Luke signed up for this, so he might as well try to do what he could. As long as it doesn''t become a total pain in the arse, he''ll keep trying to improve his legendary memeing skills and aim for that spot on the first-string.


    After all, tournaments were cool and he never got to participate in any. Somebody like him, with average skill at best in every field, never had the opportunity to stand out from the rest. But, with Classmancers it was possible. The opportunity was right there, right in front of him. He just had to reach out a little harder to grab it.


    [Welp, I''ll just keep doing my thing and hope it works.] Luke concluded. Working hard was a pain in the arse, but he was a part of this club, so he better do what he can. Tryhards or not, he had pals in this club. So, if he can help them win without sacrificing much in the process, he''ll do it.


    "So yeah, congrats on the role and all," Luke addressed Nia, wherever she was. "But, ya better watch out! This memer is right behind ya, ready to take the role back!"


    "Y-You can have it..." A weak voice resounded from somewhere.


    "Say what?"


    "I-I''ll be fine without it. I can give it to you for free. That''s how generous I am."


    "The heck are you even at?" Luke looked under the table, behind the table, and over the table. There was no trace of the phantom.


    "She''s over there," Yuel pointed at the cardboard box sitting at the corner of the room.


    "Where? Behind it?" Luke checked behind the box from every possible angle. "Don''t see anything."


    "She''s inside."


    "Wha-!? You gotta be pulling my leg... or not." Luke opened the box and found a pile of black hair inside. Suddenly, the hair floated right in front of him! "Jesus almighty! This ain''t no horror movie here, girl!"


    "What are you even doing there?" Kai made a face. "Come over here."


    "Bully," Nia pouted and gave Yuel a look, blaming him for exposing one of her best hiding spots. Was it even impossible to beat this ESPer at hide-and-seek? Did Yuel place a bug on her so he could track her anywhere and everywhere!? She better contact the police...


    "What''s wrong?" Kai asked. "You should be happy about being picked."


    "I-I''m fine without it, thank you," Nia nervously glanced aside.


    "Huh? Why?" Kai blinked. "You''ve been practicing so hard all this time. You telling me you weren''t trying to become part of the main team?"


    "Um, no really?" Nia clammed up. Judging by everybody''s looks, something about her words struck them as odd. But, why? [Should I make a run for it? The door is open. I can break through before anybody notices...! Yeah, right.]


    Even Nia didn''t have the mastery to slip away unnoticed while so many eyes were locked on her. Well, probably. Who knew? Maybe it''ll work. 3, 2, 1... GO!


    "Hold it right there, young lady," Yuel said.


    "Guh! I only took one step..."


    "I''ve seen you slip away enough times to know where it was going."


    "Gufu..." Nia puffed her cheeks. Out of all the opponents Nia has ever faced, Yuel was proving to be the toughest. Perhaps he was the final boss of her entire stealth career!


    "So, let me get this straight," Kai continued. "You''ve been working your ass off in training and all, but you don''t even want to play competitively?"


    "I rather not," Nia answered. "It''s scary."


    "What''s so scary about it?"


    "Everything. You play on a stage. Everybody is watching. It gonna he uploaded to YouTube too. People gonna laugh at your misplays. Scary."


    "Upload to YouTube?" Kai raised a brow. "You''re overestimating this competitive scene. Some matches get uploaded, but it''s usually only the best teams. And, even though there''s an audience, it''s not that big."


    "But, it''s still there, right?"


    "I don''t think anybody gonna come watch any of our matches. At least, not until they realize we''re a team to watch out for this year."


    "But, at some point, they''ll come and judge everything I do. Scary."


    "Stage fright, huh." Kai scratched her head. [This is a problem. Maybe we''ll have to use Luke after all.]


    "Don''t worry, dude," Lars flashed his teeth. "Everybody''s nervous on their first time. You get used to it. Before long, ya gonna become addicted to that pressure. You gonna start going to tournaments just to show people how good ya are!"


    "Not everybody is like you," Yuel retorted. "Some people have stage fright." [Especially, a girl who always hides from everybody, even from her clubmates. Sigh.]


    "It ain''t just about me," Lars said. "I''ve seen a bunch of dudes in the basketball club who were scared shitless of playing at the regionals and stuff. But, once they got into it, there was no stopping them anymore! Stuff just works, yo!"


    "I agree that the best way to get used to something is to repeat it multiple times," Yuel said. "But, the first time is always the hardest."


    "Just gotta shoot for it, yo!"


    "If it was that easy, we wouldn''t be having this conversation..."


    The room fell quiet. Nobody had an immediate solution to Nia''s stage fight problem. For a scaredy-cat like her, the mere mention of a stage with an audience terrified her to the core. The mere possibility that some people will come to watch the scrimmage was horrifying. Frankly, this problem was probably beyond Yuel''s powers.


    "So, um," Nia spoke up sheepishly. "I think Luke should do it. He''s a good Jungler. Number one memer. Can beat anybody ez. Yeah."


    [Heh, I''ve never heard praising that sounded more forced than this.] Luke chuckled. [What''s with this chick? First she takes away my role, and now she''s pleading to give it back. What a troublemaker.]


    Welp, it suddenly became easy for Like to get his Jungler role back. He could just nod to Nia''s fake praise and that''ll probably seal the deals. Everybody else was at a loss regarding Nia''s problem, so they''ll probably give up and surrender the role to Luke.


    [Let''s be real, I''m the better player anyway.] Luke wasn''t trying to boast or anything, it was a simple fact. Nia was an alright player and she has been improving, but she was still a greenhorn compared to Luke. It wasn''t really her fault; everybody started out as total scrubs during the first year. Nia still had a lot of room for growth, but no substantial growth ever happens in a matter of days. It''d take months for her to get anywhere near Luke''s level, if not years.


    With enough time, this weird girl might become a better player than Luke. She has been training way more hours than him every day and all that jazz.


    However, at this very moment? Luke was a league above her. It wasn''t even a competition. Surely, even Yuel would agree with this assessment if he could put aside the meme issue for a second.


    So, for all intents and purposes, Luke should be the one playing in the upcoming scrimmage. And, in the scrimmage after that. And, in the regionals as well. Luke was Stratus''s Jungler, no question.


    And yet, Yuel and Kai unanimously voted for Nia over Luke. It was rare as heck for those two to agree on something like that. It''s like Hell and Heaven making a truce or some spooky shit.


    [I''m sure they also know I''m the better player, so they probably have their reasons.] Luke reasoned. Most likely, they wanted to see Nia in action and test how efficient her sneaking tech gonna prove in srs bsns matches. If it works against high-level opponents, it''ll be a riot. And, if it blows, they can always fall back to using Luke. Ez option select.


    In a way, Nia''s refusal to play could be seen as an early failure. The girl bailed out before the matches even started, that''s all there was to it. Luke was the backup plan all along, so he could just step in and assume his role as intended.


    [And, I''m fine with that shit? Really?] Luke smiled wryly. It''s like winning because your opponent defaulted. If he gets his role back like this, it ain''t gonna prove anything. Everybody still gonna think that Nia was the better player and that Luke''s memes were poop.


    [Welp, it''s ain''t like I gotta prove anything to anybody.] Indeed, he didn''t join the club to become number one or any such tryhard nonsense. That hassle wasn''t for him, it was pointless. No matter how hard one worked to get to the top, there was always somebody standing higher above. So, like, why even bother?


    In the first place, that''s kinda the reason Luke jumped on the opportunity to join this club. It was about playing a video game and the team was lazy, so he thought he wouldn''t have to get too serious about any of it. At least, that''s how it should''ve went...


    ["We gonna take the regionals this year!"] That''s the kind of nonsense these daydreamers have been saying. It was hella dumb. There was no chance this tiny team stood any chance against all the powerhouses out there.


    And yet, somewhere deep inside, their determination touched him. What if this crappy team really makes it to the top? What if its hard work will pay off in the end? Maybe, just maybe, they could go places if they trained hard enough. Lars and Yuel were two tycoons and Kai wasn''t too shabby either, so the team had some aces for sure. Maybe reaching the nationals wasn''t just a dream.


    Unbeknown to any of them, Luke has been deepening his research of the memeing arts recently. He couldn''t be assed to stay for long training hours in this basement clubroom, but that didn''t mean he was done with Classmancers the moment he left, far from it.


    After coming home and eating lunch, he dug up lots of memeing. info online. He also watched some top-level memers and tested interesting interactions.


    [Hasta la vista, tryhards!] That''s what he imagined shouting in his opponents'' faces after mopping the floor with them. They''ll never see it coming! Memes will reign supreme!


    Something small like tier lists won''t stop him! And, something as small as stage fright shouldn''t stop Nia either. If she loses against something silly like that, that''ll be a real shame.


    On the surface, Nia didn''t seem particularly interested in hitting it big in the competitive scene. But, just like Luke, she probably wanted to try her hand at some high-level matches and do well on the competitive stage. That''ll give them a cool story to brag about. ["Hey, listen! I was in this one tournament and I whooped some ass!"] Stuff like that.


    Therefore, Nia should go for it. She shouldn''t bail out using a weak excuse like stage fright. Dodging the serious stuff was Luke''s job around here, he didn''t appreciate others walking on his turf.


    [Welp, I ain''t gonna go out on a limb for her here.] Luke shrugged. [But, guess I''ll say what I can. I gonna get the role either way in the end. ]


    "Hey, Nia," Luke started. "You should give the tournament a shot. No need to worry if you mess up or anything. You got a reliable sub, don''t forget that. If ya can''t handle it, I''ll just step in to replace you. Ezpz solution, zero pressure."


    "Ah, right," Nia''s eyes opened wide. She didn''t even think about it. [Right, I can dump everything on Luke and slip away if I can''t take it anymore. Yeah, ez.]


    It sounded a little mean, but not really. Luke looked like a guy who could handle himself. So, Nia will try going far as she can, then bail out if things get rough.


    In truth, she wanted to try her hand at the competitive scene. It was a place where everybody played like crazy, right? There were definitely going to be a bunch of bullies out there, but the matches will be interesting. Nia will get a chance to sneak up on difficult targets and assassinate them. It''ll be fun. Probably.


    "I-I''ll try it," Nia decided. "I''ll try to play and see how it goes."


    "Great," Kai smiled. "So, we''re settled then."


    Nia sheepily turned to Luke. "T-Thanks."


    "Don''t sweat it," Luke scratched his cheek. [Damn, why is it that when I impress a girl with my chad aura, it can''t be some cutie? All we got in this club are a Bro Gril and a Ghost Chick. Life is harsh, man.]


    With that, the lineup for the upcoming scrimmage was decided. Nia will start out as the Jungler and perhaps Luke will replace her later. How long will she last? Will her stealth abilities work out? Everything was up to her mental fortitude, which wasn''t exactly her forte...


    There was only one last role left to decide, one which wasn''t tied to any specific position in the lineup. It was the shot-caller role. An optional position that not all teams had, but was highly recommended for high levels of play.


    Often times, the captain was expected to be the shot-caller. It only made sense that the one at the top would also issue global orders. However, in truth, the skillsets required for each role were rather different.


    Some had the aptitude to be both captain and shot-caller, like Howard. However, some only excelled in the tactical department and didn''t exhibit the necessary leadership. Yuel was one such example.


    On the other hand, Kai was a self-centered player who always pushed her own agenda through, no matter who opposed her. It was the trait that allowed her to get to the top of the club, but also one which restricted her ability to take others into considerations. She firstmost cared about her own situation during the game, so she had little time and ability to follow the situations of other players.


    Therefore, Kai was the captain but not fit to be a shot-caller. She had the highest authority, but she couldn''t issue many global orders for others, unless it was something involving her own lane situation. Kai didn''t like to admit that, but she knew it was true. Therefore, she agreed to let Yuel be the shot-caller, on a condition.


    ["If I don''t like your tactics, I''ll overrule them,"] Kai stated. Being the shot-caller made it clear whose job it was to monitor others'' situations and give them helpful advice, but it was nothing more than that. Being a shot-caller didn''t give that player the ability to make all the decisions for the team.


    [In short, she wants to stay in control.] Yuel smiled wryly. For Kai, being the captain meant something special, so she wasn''t going to compromise on the benefits that came with that role. Yuel will be like a dog on a leash, a leash that Kai had the authority to pull as she pleased in case he misbehaves.


    [Fine by me.] Yuel thought. Having absolute control of the chessboard was great, but it was hard to manage both roles at once. Yuel will focus on the tactics and Kai will handle disputes and such. It should take a load off his mind.


    "I''ll be the shot-caller," Yuel announced proudly to everybody. He explained to them the gist of what the role entailed.


    "But," Kai added. "If you have to choose between my word and Yuel''s, you know who to follow, right?" She gave each of them a serious look.


    "Yes, ma''am!" Vincent saluted.


    "Yes, ma''am!" Luke joined in for the lulz.


    And so, the club meeting came to an end. The lineup and roles were all decided. From now on, the team just had to train, train, train some more until their first scrimmage. Their first opponent Taurus!

 200 Bens Absence

    "I wish they paid me extra hours for this," Ms. Stone muttered under a heavy sigh. "Everybody here? One, two, three... You''re missing one. Where''s Ben?"


    "Should be on the way," Vincent said. "I haven''t heard anything-" Loud orchestra music interrupted his words. It lasted for just a couple of seconds, but that was more than enough to leave an impression. "Oh, I got a message. Let''s see here..." He fiddled with his tablet.


    "Ben is... not coming," Vincent wore a difficult expression.


    "Seriously?" Yuel couldn''t believe this guy. Just when Yuel started thinking that maybe Ben was alright because the guy has been staying extra hours during training, Ben went ahead and pulled this nonsense. Seriously, what was his problem?


    "So, we''re just going to ignore this?" Yuel asked.


    "Nothing else we can do," Kai averted her eyes pulled down her black cap. She was visibly frustrated by this development as well, yet she chose to let this crime slide.


    What was so special about Ben that let him get away with these repeated offenses? Kai wasn''t the type to keep quiet about such things, yet she acted all meek about it. This was so puzzling.


    [It can''t go on like this.] Yuel decided. [I have to get to the bottom of this tomorrow. Either Ben is part of the club, or he isn''t. I don''t know what lingering attachments he got for the basketball club and, frankly, I don''t care. If he wants to continue being a part of the club, he has to act like a proper club member.]


    Missing practice from time to time was still fine. Ben made up to it by being one of the hardest working individuals on the days he was present. He always stayed until the very end and he never lazed around, unlike a certain sleepy girl who always dozed off at 3 pm.


    That''s why Yuel was fine with Ben''s misconduct for the most part. Ben exhibited enough seriousness about Classmancers to pass as a club member, even with all his unexplained absences.


    However, missing a scrimmage was a whole different story. This club was small. With only seven members, it was easy to rotate players around and let everybody play a couple of matches in one scrimmage. In case Stratus gains an early lead, Yuel planned to let Ben play Top Lane in his stead, to let Ben gain some partial experience like the rest of them.


    Besides, the team might legitimately require Ben''s help this match. Based on past years, Taurus wasn''t an opponent to sneeze at. They will surely pose a challenge, maybe even enough to make Kai surrender Bot Lane to Yuel and Lars.


    If that happens, Vincent will take Top. He was a decent all-rounder Top Laner, but Ben''s defensive playstyle was better for certain matchups.


    "Don''t be so mad, dude," Lars patted on Yuel''s shoulder.


    "I''m not mad."


    "Nah, you totally are. I know dat look of total disappointment. It''s like ya thinking dude committed the worst crime in the world and now you''ve lost all faith in humanity and stuff, haha."


    "I''m just disappointed," Yuel sighed. "Despite all his unexplained absences, I thought he was a part of the club. But, now he pulls this."


    "Hey, Ben is a nice dude. I''m sure there''s a reason behind it."


    "Reason, huh." Was there really such a thing? It''s the excuse Kai and Vincent have been feeding Yuel since day one. The more time passed, the harder it became to swallow. Things couldn''t go on like this. Yuel will have to sort this out after the scrimmage.


    Unknown to Yuel, until a very short time ago, Ben had every intention to come to the scrimmage. In fact, he was giddy about it.


    [Today is the big day.] Ben took a deep breath. The mere thought of playing on a real stage gave him the shivers. But, it wasn''t just anxiety, it was excitement too.


    Playing on a big stage at ProCenter was like having one leg in the pro scene. ProCenter even hosted some real pro matches, it was that kind of serious place. And, their small middle school team was going to play there too. It was amazing!


    [I just hope we don''t mess up.] Ben gulped as he made his way to the bus station. [Well, we got strong players this year, so we should be fine. I''d like to play too, but I''m not as good as Yuel and Vincent yet. I need to practice harder.]


    Practice. That one word stabbed him like a knife. How many club practices has he missed over the past few months? He missed at least one day every week without fail, out of the three practice days they had. So, he worked about 30% less than everybody else. It was unfair towards them.


    Even though he regularly practiced at home after school, it didn''t make up for the amount of missed club activity. The level of experience he gained in the club was invaluable. He got to play alongside high-level teammates and faced strong opponents. No amount of solo training could make up for it.


    At home, he mostly played alone. Sometimes Vincent joined in with voice-call and they played together, but that''s about it. The friends Ben used to play with no longer played Classmancers. And, it was largely his fault. He made them quit. It was a sin he had to bear for the rest of his life. They had no intention of ever forgiving him for it. Speaking of the devil...


    "Hey, Meatball!" A cheery voice called out to him. Oh no. Please no...


    "H-Hi..." Ben replied timidly, but he didn''t stop to greet the speaker. He kept walking toward the bus station.


    It was a Slenderman situation. If Ben turns around, he''s dead. On the other hand, if he reaches the bus station first, he might still have a chance. It''ll be harder for these guys to pull anything in a crowded area.


    "Hey, Meatball. He just called ya, didn''t he?" An arm wrapped around Ben''s shoulder, like a snake entrapping its prey. It was over. They caught him.


    "What''s with the cold treatment?" The first boy, Mike, caught up. "That''s how you treat your friends?"


    "S-Sorry, I was in a hurry..." Ben mumbled. His forehead broke out in cold sweat. [Please, just let me go...]


    "Heh," The boy holding him, Larry, chuckled. "Hurrying to your girlfriend or something? Haha."


    "Pft, as if this fatso got any chance of scoring with anybody," the third boy, James, shook his head. All three of them were here. They were Ben''s "friends".


    "So?" Mike, the leader, interrogated. "What''s the hurry? What''s so important that you don''t have time to turn around and greet one of your homies?"


    "Um, I got a scrimmage today..." Ben answered timidly while trying to wiggle out of Larry''s tight grip. It was no use. They trapped him.


    "A scrimmage? Whew," James whistled. "Makes our Mancers club sound like a big shot."


    "Yeah, a big shot with zero wins in its entire history," Larry added with a mean giggle.


    "So, you''re playing today?" Mike demanded.


    "Um, maybe..." Ben answered honestly.


    "Wow, wow, would you look at that! Somebody is turning into a pro over here, khaha!" Larry laughed in his usual coarse voice. "I heard they''re holding ''em scrimmages at ProCenter and all."


    "No shit?" James''s eyes popped. "They get to enter for free?"


    "Yep. A great deal, right? Too bad we couldn''t make it into the club."


    "Yeah, too bad," Mike agreed with a stern tone. "If only we weren''t screwed over by some hyena."


    "Ah..." Ben''s gaze naturally fell onto the ground. His friends didn''t get into the club, but he did. It''s all because he was selfish. He wanted to get into the club so badly that he ended up betraying his friends. He was the worst. A total scum. He was the type they burned in hell for all eternity.


    "Well, a scrimmage is a big deal," Mike said. "Guess we have to let him go."


    "R-Really?" Ben blinked. He was expecting the worst, but they''ll let him go? Just like that? Really?


    "Yeah, ain''t gonna hold you up," Larry released Ben out of his unbreakable grip.


    "T-Thanks," Ben smiled. Turned out they were still his friends after all! [I''m so glad. Maybe they''ll forgive me if I perform well today. I''m the only one who made it, so I have to prove to them I deserve to be here. Maybe that''ll make them feel a little-] "Guh!?" Sharp pain traveled into his abdomen.


    "Ugh!" Ben crouched on one leg. His insides burned. [W-Why did he...?]


    "Hey, hey, what''s wrong, Meatball?" Larry asked in a joking tone. "Not feeling well? Man, get a grip."


    "I-I''m fine," Ben endured the pain and slowly stood up.


    "Here, lemme give ya a hand," Larry came closer and pulled Ben up. At first, it really seemed like he came to help. However, the next moment...


    "W-Whoa!" Ben found himself falling backward, crashing into the ground! Gah! Pain traveled across his back.


    "C''mon, Meatball. You''re so clumsy," James snickered. "All that weight is too much for your poor legs, doncha think? Can''t even lift yourself, haha." They all laughed.


    [I should''ve known.] Ben pursed his lips. His "friends" won''t just let him go.


    This was his punishment for betraying them. They''ll never forgive him for it, no matter what he does or how much time passes. Even if he becomes a pro player, they''ll still resent him for what he did last year.


    "You don''t look so good," Mike said. "Here, lemme help you get to the nurse room."


    "N-No need, I''m fine," Ben jumped on his feet and did his best to stand straight. He''d be lying if he said none of this hurt, but he had to stand firm. He knew all too well they had no intention of bringing him to the nurse. It was just an excuse to drag him away.


    "Hey now," Mike''s eyes turned sharp like a blade. "Here I am, going out of my way to help a friend, and you gonna spit in my face like that?"


    "N-No, I didn''t mean to..." Ben trembled. It was hopeless. The moment this gang captured him, there was no escape. [I should''ve left earlier for the station. I don''t think I can make it anymore...]


    "Then c''mon, let''s go," Larry pushed from behind, almost making Ben dive into the ground again. "Let''s get you checked and all that, hehe."


    "You should be thankful for having such caring friends," James added with a mean smile.


    "Y-Yeah, of course I''m grateful," Ben forced the words through his dry throat. It was all over for him. He won''t make it to the scrimmage today.


    As the pack of wolves dragged him away, all he managed to do was send Vincent a single message.


    ¡ºSorry, I can''t make it today¡»


    And so, Ben was absent from the team''s first scrimmage...

 201 Nerves Before the First Match

    "Nia, we''re here," Yuel addressed the black hairball that was curled up on the chair. "Hey, wake up." There was no response.


    "Earth to Nia," Kai joined the effort, but it was to no avail. Rather than sleeping, it''s more like Nia''s consciousness slipped into an entirely different dimension and took a nap over there. Nobody''s words reached her. She was slumber incarnate.


    "Haha," Luke was getting a kick out of this spectacle. "Hey Yuel, wasn''t it you who told her to take nap? Welp, you reap what you sow. Haha."


    "Ugh," Yuel didn''t have a retort. Indeed, he was the one who suggested Nia to take a short nap during the ride. It should''ve helped Nia save up energy before the scrimmage.


    This troublesome girl was notoriously known for falling asleep around 3 pm every day without fail, even in the middle of club activity. That absolutely wasn''t allowed to happen today. The scrimmage was set to begin around 14:30, so it''ll definitely go beyond 15:00. Nia had to stay awake throughout the entire thing. No naps allowed.


    So, Yuel tried to prepare for it ahead of time by letting Nia sleep during the ride. However, the idea backfired. Nia was stuck in her infamously uninterruptible slumber before the scrimmage even began...


    "Hey kids!" The bus driver shouted. "Are you coming off or what? I''m shutting the doors."


    "Just a second, driver dude!" Lars shouted across the bus. "We got a sleepy-head over here!" He and Vincent were standing at the bus doors like guards, preventing the doors from closing. This hooliganism was clearly testing the driver''s patience.


    "C''mon, Nia," Kai shook Nia''s shoulder.


    "Mufu..." Nia produced an alien sound and shook off the intruder. Then, she returned to her silent, peaceful slumber.


    [Seriously, this girl...] Yuel exhaled a sigh. Nia''s brain worked in mysterious ways. One moment she could be 100% concentrated on the ongoing match, then as soon as it was over - she shut down like a robot that ran out of batteries.


    "How about some chocolate?" Vincent suggested as he scrolled on his tablet. "According to my bottomless sea of knowledge, the first thing Nia always does upon waking up is to stuff herself with a bar of chocolate or five. It must be a spiritual ritual that recalls her soul from the Slumber Dimension and brings it back to Terra!"


    "Chocolate, huh," Yuel opened one of the pockets in Nia''s bag, the one from which she produced an infinite amount of sweets every day. As usual, the small pocket acted like a gate to another dimension, one that housed an entire chocolate factory in it. Where was she even getting all this chocolate from...?


    "Nia, it''s a Knickers," Yuel unwrapped the chocolate and waved it in front of Nia''s nose.


    Sniff sniff. Sniff sniff. Nia''s nose reacted to the stimuli. She was like a little kitten considering a meal.


    "Good morning," Yuel said. "We''ve arrived. Let''s go."


    "Mffmff." Nia nodded while taking small, but swift, bites at the chocolate. Eventually, she rose from the chair. The bus driver was ready to pop a vein at any moment and started walking towards them, so they fled the scene like a bunch of hooligans.


    "Man, that driver was about to unleash his ult on us, haha," Luke laughed.


    "Dude was legit mad," Lars laughed too.


    "Seriously, we''ve just arrived and you''re already causing trouble," Ms. Stone glared at them.


    "Sorry. Won''t happen again," Kai lightly bowed her head. It wasn''t her fault, but she had to take responsibility as the captain.


    "Hmph, as long as you understand," Ms. Stone scoffed and entered ProCenter. She strode with a confident posture across the various halls, as if she knew the place like the back of her hand.


    Ironically, this non-gamer woman was more familiar with this gaming center than the team. She has been supervising the Classmancers club for years now, so she got to visit this place at least thrice a year. Therefore, unlike the awe-struck team members, Ms. Stone quickly traversed the entire place, taking the shortest routes and making zero stops to look around.


    "Oh, behold!" Vincent pointed at some arcade machines. "They even got Dekken 8 and King of Warriors 15! Truly, ProCenter is the one and only multi-purpose gaming center!"


    "Actually, they got a bunch of those nowadays," Yuel corrected. With the rise of esports, competitive gaming almost became commonplace. To one degree or another, everybody gamed nowadays. Be it video games, mobile games, board games, or even chess.


    Yes, ProCenter even had a hall for playing chess. It was smaller compared to many other sections, but it existed and could house at least twenty matches at once. Not too shabby.


    Multi-purpose gaming centers like this have been popping up around the country in recent years. Apparently, it was an eastern trend that has been slowly creeping its way to the west. It was the same with how Classmancers was first accepted in schools in the east, only much later made its way to western schools.


    Still, little by little, things were progressing. In a couple of years, there were probably be more gaming centers like that in the region. Then, hopefully, teams won''t have to ride for nearly two hours in order to hold a scrimmage.


    "It''s here," Ms. Stone finally stopped and opened a big door. It revealed an empty stadium, with a big stage in the back. It was one of the smaller stadiums in ProCenter, definitely not on par with the ones they used for pro matches. Nevertheless, it was a serious stadium that was used for professional gaming.


    Finally, Yuel and Lars climbed all the way up here. This time, they weren''t here as the second-string. No, they were the first-string, the main fighting force. And, for all intents and purposes, this scrimmage served as the prelims for the regionals. The fight for the top started here!


    "We did it, we got here, yo!" Lars grabbed Yuel''s shoulders and shook them in excitement. "We gonna become pros, yo!"


    "Heh, that again," Yuel smiled. This secondary stadium was still far from the real pro scene, but it was the closest they''ve ever gotten to their goal. They''ll start by conquering the scrimmages, then conquer the regionals, and finally win the nationals. At that point, they''ll surely catch a glimpse of the pro scene.


    "Your waiting room is here," Ms. Stone led them behind the stage after exchanging a few words with some man, probably the organizer for the scrimmage.


    "Please be ready on stage five minutes before the match is set to begin," the man stopped to instruct them. "And, make sure to keep your room just the way you got it. I''ll be checking it after the scrimmage."


    Everybody nodded in understanding and entered the room behind the stage. It was spacious enough to accommodate at least ten people, with some comfy sofas and a big table in the center.


    "Make sure you don''t litter," Ms. Stone also warned them. "They check the rooms before they let you go. If they don''t like what they see, they''ll keep you here to do the cleaning work."


    "Bleh, sounds like a pain," Luke made a face. "Make sure y''all behave, guys."


    "That''s all," Ms. Stone headed to the door. "From here on out, follow the referee''s instructions. I''ll be staying at a nearby Cafe. Call me if there''s any trouble."


    "Got it," Kai nodded.


    "Good luck out there. Don''t feel too bad if you lose. That''s up to par for this club." She said something rather insulting with an innocent shrug. Then again, given the club''s past records, such low expectations were perfectly normal. Stratus was the biggest underdog of the region for years. Little did Ms. Stone know that this year will be different.


    "We not gonna lose," Kai proclaimed. "We''ll take the regionals this year, just you watch."


    "Bold words. I''ll believe it when I see it." On that note, Ms. Stone left.


    "Calling dibs on the sofa!" Luke darted across the room and leaped on the big sofa chair, the only one of its kind here. The sofa sank a little under him, making it look like he was floating on water.


    "Tch, I wanted that one," Nia muttered. That chair looked so comfy. She could easily have a comfortable nap over there. So... comfy.... zzz.


    "Did you just fall asleep while standing?" Yuel questioned.


    "Ah!" Nia jumped. "N-No such thing! Nothing to see here. Move along."


    "Seriously. How can you still be sleepy? You just slept for over an hour during the ride. "


    "That didn''t count."


    "Excuse me?"


    "It wasn''t that comfy. I''d give that sleep a 4/10."


    "Is that so," Yuel grumped. Turned out his master plan wasn''t very effective. Even after sleeping for so long on the bus, this girl was still somehow sleepy. In fact, she was sleepy enough to almost fall asleep while standing.


    "Are you going to be okay?" Yuel asked. "The match is starting in ten minutes."


    "T-Ten minutes..." Nia clammed up all of a sudden. "Oh, I feel even sleepier now. Yeah, so sleepy. Zzz."


    "Could it be you''re nervous?" Yuel asked.


    "Zzzzzzzz."


    "I know you''re awake," Yuel pinched her cheek.


    "Aiya!" Nia jumped like a kitten splashed by water. "It hurts."


    "Just to make it clear, you''re not trying to bail out at the last moment, are you?"


    "N-No way," Nia answered in a very unconvincing tone. "That huge scary stage didn''t scare me even one bit. Yeah."


    "So, you [are] nervous," Yuel sighed. "That''s normal. I also barely slept the night before my first scrimmage. But, this time it was much better. You get used to it."


    "Yeah, I''ll overcome it. By sleeping!" Nia already laid down on the big sofa.


    "No," Yuel retorted. "You''ll overcome it by playing matches and getting used to the atmosphere."


    "Goodnight. Zzz."


    [This girl will be the end of me.] Yuel sighed deeply. "Kai, can you please handle this troublemaker? Hm? Kai?" The captain was nowhere to be found.


    "With my Information Blackhole, I can tell that nature has called her," Vincent explained in a needlessly roundabout way.


    "Is that so," Yuel twisted his lips. [I hope she returns soon. She''s pretty much the only one here who can force Nia to move.]


    "By the way," Yuel started. "How are you doing? Nervous?"


    "Nervous? Such a cursed word doesn''t exist in my dictionary," Vincent waved his hand. "I''m more than prepared to set foot in the realm of gods and fight to the death!" Despite claiming so, his right leg was shaking wildly, like a rocket that''s about to take off.


    "There''s no shame in being nervous," Yuel said. "Everybody is like that on their first time."


    "Oh, so even the poker-faced, steel-hearted, Chessmaster experienced the horror of nervousness on his first scrimmage?"


    "N-No, not really," Yuel shifted his eyes away. "I just figured it''s a common thing"


    "Ya dudes all gotta relax," Lars placed his hands on Yuel''s shoulders and delivered a [DEADLY BONE-CRUSHING] massage.


    "Guh!" Yuel jumped. That grip must''ve dislocated his shoulders! It broke his back!


    But, it only hurt at first. A couple more seconds of that superhuman grip and it actually started feeling good, relieving some invisible weight from Yuel''s shoulders. Lars''s deadly massage was actually fairly effective, as long as one could survive it.


    "Oh! I know, I know!" Lars jumped around like an excited puppy. "Let''s do dat cool thing they always do in other sports! Ya know, where they gather in a circle and yell motivational stuff."


    "Is that really necessary?" Yuel frowned.


    "That''s a brilliant idea!" Vincent nodded repeatedly. "A huddle is the perfect way to instill the team with motivation and confidence! That''s why it''s so common in other sports."


    "Yeah, I also read something to that effect, but..." Yuel cast his eyes downward. He never actually got to experience anything like that himself. That''s a given, considering he could never get into any competitive sports teams until he discovered Classmancers.


    "Okay, let''s do it," Yuel said. It sounded like a barbarian practice, but it was popular in other sports for a reason. Classmancers was a team sport like any other, so they should get the same benefits from huddling, whatever they were.


    "But, what''s the speech?" Yuel asked.


    "Kukuku," Vincent cackled. "No idea! That''s up to Kai to figure. She''s the captain."


    [Somehow, I don''t see her as the type to deliver any grand motivational speeches...]


    "It''s okay!" Lars proclaimed out of nowhere. "Ya just gotta yell some stuff that sounds cool and everybody gonna get pumped! That''s how we did it at the basket club. Stuff like ''We gonna take the world championship, yooooooooo!''"


    "Pft," Yuel produced a muffled chuckle. The image of Kai shouting that line flashed through his mind. It was one of the most bizarre pictures ever. No way that''ll happen.


    A few minutes before they had to head out, Kai returned and the trio shared their idea with her.


    "Huddling, huh," Kai pulled her cap downwards. "Do I have to? Just get pumped on your own."


    "No can do, cap," Lars insisted. "Ya gotta tell us we gonna win and stuff!"


    "Indeed!" Vincent followed up. "The Captain class gives you the power to bend reality to your will with mere words! Shall you breathe your ideals into words, they will be unleashed onto the world!"


    "I''m not exactly a fluent speaker..." Kai''s words trailed off. Her cheeks turned a little reddish. [Damn, just when I finally claimed down.]


    [Can it be she''s also nervous?] Yuel wondered. Thinking of it, aside from being crowned with the title of the "captain", nothing about Kai made her particularly special compared to the rest. Just like everybody else, this was her first official match. She also needed a morale boost.


    "Hey, Lars," Yuel spoke up. "Maybe you should handle it this time? You were the captain in the basketball club, so you got some experience with it, right?"


    "Yeah, I can do it no problem," Lars turned to Kai. "Ya fine with that? I mean, it should be the captain''s job and all."


    "Yeah, I give you permission to handle it," Kai lifted her chin in a self-important manner. [Phew, bullet dodged.]


    "Okay, let''s gather, everybody!" Lars called everybody to the center of the room. Nia was still in a half-asleep mode, so Kai dragged the sleepyhead over there.


    They formed a circle and hunched a little, all following Lars''s example. It made them look like a baseball team before a match. It was kinda awkward, but it was an interesting experience in its own way.


    "Okay, my dudes!" Lars boomed. "It''s our first scrimmage and all. Ain''t nobody seen how good we are yet. The world ain''t ready for this smoke, yo! Let''s go out there and kick some fine ass! We gonna beat these dudes, then the regional, then the nationals, the world cup, and even the galaxy cup! Let''s go, yooooo!"


    "YOOOOOOO!" They followed up on the catchphrase and thurst their hands toward the ceiling. It was embarrassing but it somehow felt right in the heat of the moment.


    "Gufu, my ears..." Nia shook her head and rubbed her sleepy eyes. The thundering yell slapped her awake.


    "Okay, let''s go," Kai walked ahead of the team. There was no longer any trace of hesitation or nervousness on her face, and the same applied to everybody else. Right now, she was looking like a confident captain that everybody felt comfortable following. Lars''s silly over-the-top speech worked wonders.


    And so, Stratus set out for its first official scrimmage. Everybody, even Ms. Stone, thought this team will crash and burn like in previous years. However, they will be proven wrong. The Stratus of this year was nothing like the bottom tier team of the past. They''ll debut with a blast and take the world by storm! They''ll prove they had more than enough skill to compete even with the powerhouses of this region!

 202 "Friendly" Greetings

    "Ah, people..." Nia walked behind Kai while throwing nervous glances at the audience. Indeed, there were some people here now.


    Official scrimmages were publicly announced on a big screen and they were free to watch, so they naturally piqued the curiosity of some people. Some of them were scouts for high school teams, searching for promising middle schoolers. Others were spies from middle schools, coming here to research their rivals.


    [It''s safe to assume everything we show here today will be used against us in the next scrimmage.] Yuel thought. Some representatives from the Leopards were surely lurking in the audience right now. They''ll record everything. Therefore, if possible, it was best to keep some of the team''s tech a secret today.


    Unfortunately, Stratus wasn''t exactly a powerhouse team that had the option to go easy. They''ll have to go all-in from the very first battle to establish their footing. They''ve trained hard up to this point, but there was no telling where they stood compared to the competition. They''ll have to brace themselves for the worst and go hard from the start.


    "Oh, hey!" Lars exclaimed and ran to the edge of the stage. "It''s July! What''s what up, yo!?" He waved at the audience while shouting.


    [I-Idiot, shush!] Julia''s ears burned. She threw a bunch of glances around. Phew, nobody figured it was about her. She timidly raised a hand and waved back, then immediately retracted her.


    "That''s Julia?" Yuel blinked. It had to be a mistake. From this distance, the best way to recognize Julia was by her long ponytail. However, the girl Lars was waving to didn''t have one. She had a medium length straight hair. Judging by that, it couldn''t be Julia.


    "She did a makeover," Lars said. "I think the long ponytail was nice, but this look is more savage. She now looks like someone who totally gonna mop the floor with ya in a duel, haha."


    "I suppose," Yuel couldn''t help but stare at Julia''s uncanny new look. Right then, he felt intense bloodlust.


    [Don''t look at me, idiot.]


    "Ugh," Yuel instinctively glanced aside. Yeah, this was Julia alright, no question about it. She was the only girl he knew who could transmit her murderous intent like that across such a long distance.


    [Did she come to spy on us? It looks like she''s alone here.] Yuel scanned the audience but there weren''t any other familiar faces. It didn''t look like anybody else from StormBlitz''s first-string was here.


    [They probably consider this a low priority scrimmage.] Yuel smiled wryly. Even though data gathering was extremely valuable for teams, there was no need to bring the entire club to watch every single scrimmage. That''s the mentality StormBlitz operated on.


    [Maybe some of StormBlitz''s new recruits are here.] Yuel examined every single student, but there was no way to tell since their school didn''t have a uniform. Any of the middle schoolers here could be a spy from any middle school from the region.


    [Howard and Ellen didn''t even bother to come. I see how it is.] Yuel got the message, loud and clear. As of yet, Howard wasn''t thinking much of Stratus. As far as he was concerned, they were the weakest team in the region and the fact Yuel and Lars joined mattered little. [We''ll prove him wrong.]


    [I''m glad you made it.] Julia smiled softly after making sure nobody saw her. [You two deserve to play on the first-string. Now, let''s see how high you can pull that trainwreck of a team.]


    "Ms. Julia, ma''am!" Philip boomed loudly outta nowhere with a salute.


    "Agh! Damn you," Julia shot the boy a glare. This idiot almost gave her a heart attack! "What do you want?"


    "It''s my first time scouting a match, ma''am!" Philip exclaimed while shouting. "I''d be eternally grateful if you give me a pointer or two or three. What should I focus on? What kind of plays do I need to analyze? What is the best angle for seeing all the details!?"


    "Pipe down," Julia barked. "You''re drawing too much attention to us. Sit down."


    "Oh! I''m so terribly sorry, ma''am!" Philip sat down but continued making a lot of noise.


    [This guy...] Julia sighed. Why did she have to babysit this kid? She only came here to watch Lars playing on his new team. Yet, that damn Howard had to make Philip tag along and help with the scouting. What a pain. [Well, at least I can dump most of the menial work on him. I''ll just kick back and enjoy the match.]


    "You got the scouting forms from Howard, right?" Julia asked.


    "Yes, ma''am! I got it right here!" Philip presented the paper in question. It had many fields to fill up about the teams. Most of it was dry information like listing the roles and classes of each team. However, some fields were more subjective and asked the scout to rate individual players by different categories. Namely, Decision-Making, Mechanical Skill, and Teamwork.


    "I understand the spots where you fill in classes and such," Philip said. "But, how am I to rate somebody''s Decision-Making? I request aerial support, ma''am!"


    "Just use your head," Julia shrugged. "It doesn''t really matter. It''s all subjective. I just think of 5/10 as the ''average'' level for middle schoolers."


    "Whoa, amazing! You have so much experience that you can tell who is the average and who is above!?"


    "... sure." [I just kinda wing it. I''m sure Lars will get high scores. And, Yuel will be 1/10 in everything. I''m the one scoring, so my rules. Hmph.]


    "But, ma''am," Philip said. "I don''t know how good a 5/10 player would be."


    "Hmm, take GG as your baseline. I''d say that guy is a flat 5/10 in everything. Don''t tell him I said that, though."


    "Whoa, really? General Gregory is just a 5/10!? But, he''s such a strong player!"


    [Yeah, he''s ''strong'' when he''s showing off against freshmen like you.] Julia shook her head. "Anyway, it''s something like that. If you need a reference for somebody who is 10/10, no need to look far than at yours truly."


    "Eeeeh?" Philip gave her a dubious look. "You sure about that, ma''am?"


    "Huuuuh? You doubt me, boy?"


    "N-Not at all, ma''am!"


    "So, write it down. I''m a 10/10. GG is 5/10, Now, you got yourself a useful scale."


    "Y-Yes, ma''am! I understand, ma''am! I''ll do my best, ma''am!"


    "You like spamming the word ''ma''am'', don''t you."


    "Definitely, ma''am!"


    [This brat...] Julia sighed. Well, at least she could dump all the boring work on him and concentrate on the match. [Who knew that having underclassmen is so convenient?] Last year, Julia and the other freshmen had to do all sorts of menial work. However, this year, she was in charge! It felt great!


    [Okay, now let''s see how far they''ll get with this team.] Julia returned her attention to the stage. [Howard said Taurus isn''t a big fish. So, if Lars''s new team is any good, this game should be a wrap. If they lose, it''ll be the funniest and saddest thing ever. So, you better win this one, you hear? I want to be the one to crush you.]


    Both teams assembled on the stage. Stratus only had six representatives in total, whereas Taurus came at them with a brigade of 16 people. Only five were going to play from each side, but the sheer difference in numbers was overwhelming. It''s like an entire army was about to wage war against a puny squad.


    "We''re an entire platoon and you''re barely a squad." That''s the message they conveyed by bringing all these people on stage. They asserted dominance via numbers. The more players the club housed, the more likely it was to found talented players among their ranks. So, just by being a big club, they had an overwhelming advantage over a club that barely had enough players to form a team.


    [But, in the end, it''ll be our best players vs. their best.] Yuel reasoned. [I''m sure Lars and I are better than most of their players. And, maybe Kai is too. If so, we can definitely win. ]


    "Captains, please step forward," the referee instructed.


    [Alright, here goes.] Kai took a deep breath and stepped forth.


    From the other side of the stage, the Hulk was walking toward her. No, seriously. It was the Hulk! In the flesh! The guy was huge. He was like a golem wearing human skin.


    "Let''s have a good one," the giant stretched his big palm with a friendly smile. Contrary to his intimidating structure, he seemed like a nice guy.


    "Yeah, good luck," Kai regained her composure and shook the giant''s hand. [Phew, this went smoother than expected. These guys seem friendly.]


    But, as soon as she thought that, her ears caught a mocking cackle coming from the side of the stage. A boy from Taurus was laughing along with his pals and pointing fingers in Kai''s direction.


    "Check this out, haha," the boy laughed. "They got a chick for a captain! What a joke!"


    "Pft, haha," another dumbass burst out in laughter. "I heard this team is rock bottom, but that''s a whole new level of lame!"


    [These bastards.] Kai shot them a glare.


    "Ohhh, so scawy~! Help me, mommy!" the target of her glare pretended to shake, then continued to laugh even harder than before.


    "Hey!" Kai called out. "You fuck-"


    "Cut it out," the golem captain ordered his men. His smile vanished without a trace. It was replaced with pursed lips and a sharp glare.


    "Haha, but doncha think it''s hilarious, cap?" the hooligan continued spouting bullcrap. "It''s the joke of the year, haha! Hey, Jaiden, you agree, right?" He randomly addressed one of the younger-looking boys in the group, probably a junior.


    "Yeah, it''s definitely sad," the junior, Jaiden, replied. However, unlike the other cackling idiots, there was no humor in his tone. Nevertheless, his eyes remained locked on Kai and his glare was pregnant with obvious malice.


    [What''s with this one? He gives me the yikers.] Kai shuddered for a moment. Unlike the other idiots over there, this guy was more way more hostile despite being much quieter. What''s up with that?


    "Stratus is a joke team confirmed," Jaiden went on. "There''s no need for our seniors to waste time here. Let me and my pals take care of this."


    "Phaha!" the main hooligan smacked Jaiden on the shoulder. "Nice try, fam! But, no dice. We gonna be the ones playing this one. Try again next year, kid. Haha!"


    "Got it," Jaiden nodded but his gaze still lingered on Kai for a few long moments. His conviction didn''t waver in the slightest. He was dead set on crossing swords with Kai.


    "What you staring at?" Kai addressed the pack of idiots. "Never seen a girl play video games? C''mon, I''ll take you all on, fuckers!"


    "Woohoo, scawy!" the hooligan didn''t give a shit. "Catch me in Bot, girlie. I''mma whoop yo ass real good."


    "Bruce, enough," the giant captain ordered.


    "H-Haha, I''m just kidding, just kidding," Bruce retreated a little. The rest of the pack also quieted down and dropped the subject, save for one guy.


    "You gonna ''take us on''''? Try me," Jaiden stood his ground despite the captain''s threat. "I''ll mop the floor with you in five seconds."


    "Oh, you sure sound confident," Kai''s face twitched. "1v1 me. I''m Challenger in Duel."


    "Duel rank means nothing," Jaiden stated matter-of-factly. "Come at me in a real match and I''ll end your whole career, girl."


    "Jaiden, I said enough," the golem captain warned again, his tone sterner than before.


    "Tch, whatever," Jaiden shook his head and jumped off the stage. "Well, if I''m not playing, may as well take a stroll or something. This game gonna be a snoozefest confirmed."


    "Yeah, because it gonna be EZPZ," Kai retorted. "We gonna mop the floor with Taurus the entire day."


    "Yeah, right," Jaiden shrugged and continued toward the exit. He stopped for a moment to examine the rest of Stratus''s lineup. Apparently, something caught his attention, but the interest was short-lived and he soon left.


    "Hey, Jai! Wait up!" Two boys chased after Jaiden and vanished from the hall as well.


    "Who the hell hired all these clowns?" Kai sneered. "Is this the circus or something?"


    "Please, enough," the golem captain turned to Kai now. "I apologize for these guys. They''re just a bit nervous because it''s their first official match."


    "Tch, whatever," Kai shrugged and turned away. The giant captain didn''t do anything wrong, so she didn''t feel like taking it out on him. She''ll just have to teach these all bastards a real lesson.


    [That fucker said he''s playing in Bot, right? Perfect.] Kai nodded to herself. Rather than throwing baseless words at these scumbags, she''ll prove her worth in battle. She''ll end their pitiful lives!


    "Are both sides done with their trash-talking?" the referee asked with an amused smile. "Okay, both teams are warned. If you guys keep this up, I''ll disqualify you. You might even get banned from the regionals if you act like this, so watch your words."


    "I''m sorry," the golem captain apologized again. "I''ll keep my team in check. It won''t happen again."


    "My bad," Kai glanced aside. "I think the nerves are getting to me."


    "Let''s just have a nice and clean scrimmage, shall we?" the referee continued. "Alright, both teams can take their seats now."


    With that, the tension on stage dispersed. Yet, Kai could still hear that bastard, Bruce, laughing behind her back.


    [I''ll make this fucker regret he was born.] Kai promised.


    And so, after the "friendly" greet, the first game was about to begin!

 203 Overcoming Stage Frigh

    "Yeah, I''m alright," Kai tried to maintain a calm tone, but her eyes burned with hellish intensity. She was like a ticking bomb. "We''re going to erase these fuckers from the face of the earth."


    "Whoa, language, miss."


    "Fuck language. I gonna rip them apart, one by one."


    "Scary," Nia hid under a table. [Oh noes, a demon has possessed Kai.]


    "Motivation is good and all," Yuel said. "But, you really need to calm down. Otherwise, it''ll impact your performance."


    "Oh, I''m calm. Real calm. I''m calmness incarnate," Kai''s teeth rattled.


    "Everything''s okay, dude," Lars smacked Kai on the back. "We all know you''re da best! Ya eat scrubs like ''em for breakfast, yo!"


    "Y-Yeah," Kai''s aggression disappeared somewhere as she stumbled forward. It was hard to tell whether Lars''s encouraging words did this, or it was the pain in her back. The guy held nothing back with that smack. It was like he dropped a boulder on her back. Ouch.


    But, this was exactly what Kai needed right now. She was drowning in a spiral of negative thoughts and couldn''t get out, so somebody had to give her a push.


    [Yeah, what''s wrong with me? It''s not the first time this happens.] Kai nodded to herself. Boys made fun of her before, and will surely do so again in the future. She should''ve been used to this treatment by now.


    There was only one way to prove them wrong: to fight and destroy them! They''ll be running back to mama by the time Kai is done with them! They''ll think twice about ridiculing a female player ever again. Maybe they''ll even quit Classmancers altogether, that''ll be awesome. The world didn''t need filth like them playing the game.


    [Still, what was the deal with that one guy?] Kai thought back on the one boy who seemed... "different", for the lack of a better word. Apparently, his name was Jaiden.


    Unlike the main scumbag from Taurus, who started the entire fiasco to stroke his own ego or some shit, Jaiden''s hostility toward Kai was way more direct. That guy wasn''t trash-talking for fun. No, every word he spoke was pregnant with pure contempt,


    [Do I know him from somewhere?] Kai wondered. [Nope, doesn''t ring any bells.]


    Then, what did that guy hold against Kai? And, why did she even care so much? After all, it didn''t seem like Jaiden will even be playing today. He wasn''t an opponent she had to pay any attention to.


    "Heeeeeey, earth to Kai," Vincent waved in front of Kai''s eyes. "The ref is here."


    "Ah, right," Kai shook her head and proceeded to speak with the referee. They confirmed their starting lineup. Everybody who wasn''t participating in the upcoming game had to leave the stage. In Stratus''s case, that was only one player.


    "I''ll be rooting for ya all," Luke waved on his way out. "Show these scrubs who''s the boss around these parts!"


    "You have five minutes to warm up," the referee explained. "If this is your first time here, make sure you get used to the equipment. I don''t want to hear any excuses later, like how you weren''t used to the keyboard or mouse."


    Everybody followed the advice and logged into your practice mode to flex their fingers. Everybody, save for one.


    "Nia, what are you doing over there?" Yuel asked as he checked under the table.


    "Camping," Nia answered nonchalantly. She was curled into a ball at the very corner of the table.


    "You understand that you''ll have to come out eventually, right?"


    "No. Ask them to connect a tablet. I''ll play from here."


    "What are you on about?" Yuel reached under the table. "C''mon, get out of there."


    "No."


    "Why?"


    "It''s scary."


    [If only I got a euro for every time she uses that word.] Yuel sighed. "What''s wrong? The stage-fright is making a comeback?"


    "Gufu..." Nia clammed up even more, which meant Yuel hit the bullseye. Even after coming this far, Nia still wasn''t quite ready to face her fears. Sigh.


    [The others seem alright.] Yuel checked every teammate in order


    Lars looked gung-ho as usual, nothing to worry about there. Kai was tapping her feet and glaring at the monitor, but this was probably just her discharging her fury. Vincent looked calm and concentrated during his warm-up, which was a tad odd for the usually loud clown, but at least it meant he was taking this seriously.


    So, Nia was the only troublemaker.


    [Okay, so how do I approach this?] Yuel knotted his brows. He had no idea what to say to somebody with stage fright.


    The best advice he could give was to go through with the game despite the fear. Only by confronting the fear she''ll be able to conquer it. But, convincing her to go through with it was the entire problem in the first place...


    "This girl will be the end of me..." Yuel sighed.


    "What''s wrong, dude?" Lars asked. "Nia giving ya trouble again? Actually, where is she even at?" He looked around the stage and found nothing.


    "Over there," Yuel pointed under the table.


    "Oh! Haha, the heck are ya doing there?" Lars would have never found Nia over there if not for Yuel. The girl was tucked away at the very corner and her long black hair blended perfectly with the darkness. She became one with the dark realm, yo!


    "Her stage fright kicked in again," Yuel explained with a sigh.


    "Ah, that thing again?" Lars scratched the back of his head. "Welp, guess we gotta make her deal with it face to face." He leaped from his chair and reached his long arms underneath the table.


    "W-W-Whaaaaa!?" Nia shook in protest as the big arms reached toward her.


    "C''mon, let''s greet the audience!" Lars pulled Nia from under the table and picked her up. "Off we goooooo!"


    "W-Wait!" Nia kicked like a baby throwing a fit, but soon stopped because it might cause her to slip off. Lars ignored the protest and carried Nia all the way to the front of the stage. Then, he put her down and placed his hands on her shoulders, to make sure she won''t try to slip away.


    "Hey, what''s up, my dudes!" Lars addressed the audience with a booming voice. "Just wanted to introduce myself, since ya''ll probably have no idea who the heck I am. I''m Gunz, the Carr- I mean, the Mid Laner of the team! Watch me wreck all of Taurus by myself, yo!"


    This bold introduction made the audience crack some laughs. Though, one person didn''t feel like laughing.


    [Mid? What?] Julia frowned. What was Lars smoking? He was the Carry, he had to be. There''s no way he switched to Mid all of a sudden, right? ... Right?


    "You see?" Lars turned to Nia. "These dudes are alright. They''re just here to watch a good show. Hey, ya hear me? Heeeeey! Earth to Niaaaaaaa." He gently shook her shoulders. [This ain''t good. The girl turned into a statue.]


    It didn''t seem like Nia was going to budge. Everything was up to Lars again.


    "Also listen. everybody! This girl here is the Vanishing Flower!" His voice boomed. "She''s our Jungler and she gonna sneak up to ya before ya notice!"


    [That brainless oaf...!] Yuel facepalmed so hard it hurt his brain. [He just went ahead and blurted Nia''s specialty! Just great. Yeah, c''mon, let''s feed our enemies with free information. Sigh.]


    Lars didn''t care about any of that and went on. "She''s kinda new to all this stuff, so give her your full support, my dudes!"


    The audience produced some laughs and playful thumbs-ups. They probably thought it was a comedy skit of some sort.


    [Who is this girl?] Julia''s eyes turned sharp like a blade. Just a moment ago, Lars was carrying this girl in his arms like a princess. Where did this girl come from? What was her deal? Surely, she wasn''t Lars''s girlfriend or anything like that, right? Nah, no way. He wouldn''t be interested in such an ugly girl, right? [Right!?]


    "You see now?" Lars addressed Nia again. "These dudes ain''t scary. They''re just here to watch a hype match. They ain''t gonna do anything to ya."


    "...." Nia turned into stone. Her face was paler than usual, which made her look like a vampire. It felt like her soul was ready to flee from her body at any moment.


    "Khaha, your team got another chick?" A voice came from the other side of the stage. "Lemme tell you what, your team is wack." It was the leader of the hooligans who harrassed Kai earlier, his name was Bruce. He walked toward Lars and stopped in the center of the stage.


    "I heard ya gonna wreck us?" Bruce grinned. "I can''t just sit and let this trash talk fly, you dig? So, prepare yo ass. We gonna mop the floor with- Agh! What the-!?"


    "I apologize," the giant captain of the Taurus stepped forth and wrapped his thick arm around Bruce''s neck.


    "Hey, lemma go, you fat-"


    "You want to get the team disqualified?" the captain hardened his lock, making Bruce choke a little. "The ref warned us what''ll happen if we repeat the offense. Give it a rest already." He finally released the hooligan.


    "Geh," Bruce coughed as he caught up his breath. "Whatever. These fuckers ain''t worth my time any." He stomped away.


    "Yo, it gotta be rough being the cap with dudes like him around," Lars said.


    "Yeah, you have no idea," the captain nodded solemnly. He looked like a nice dude, but it felt like he shouldered a lot of crap to keep the club unified. Poor dude. Lars felt it, he really did. He was the captain of the basketball team at one point in time and it had no shortage of troublemakers. Being the cap was rough.


    "Anyway, back to... Hm?" Lars realized that the statue he was holding vanished without a trace. Nia snuck away at some point. Dat girl was a natural-born Ninja, no kidding.


    Before Lars noticed, Nia was already back in her seat. All life force was drained from her face. But hey, at least she wasn''t hiding under a table anymore. That''s some progress right there!


    "What were you thinking!?" Kai yelled. "You traumatized her!"


    "Nah, she''ll be fine," Lars claimed. "Sometimes, ''ya gotta throw da fish onto da land''. That''s what my basket coach used to say. When somebody had cold feet, Coach just tossed them into the fray and introduced them to the audience. It usually did the trick."


    "Such spartan discipline!" Vincent was deeply impressed. "Indeed, only those who come face to face with their fears shall be able to overcome them! Once they do, they shall receive Ares'' blessing of might!"


    "Yeah, exactly!" Lars had no idea WTF Vincent was on about, but it sounded hype so it gotta be right!


    "I can see this working on boys, but..." Kai didn''t continue that line of thought. She almost said that girls were more fragile, but that''d be wrong. Girls were also plenty strong. Anything a boy could overcome, a girl could overcome as well. So, if this Spartan method worked for boys, it had to work for girls as well.


    "You okay?" Kai asked.


    "Ah... Sure..." Nia slowly delivered the reply like a zombie.


    "Think you can play this game?"


    "Ah..." Nia opened her mouth, then closed it.


    Everybody''s eyes were on Nia back there. She stood in front of that big crowd and became the center of attention. The spotlight shined brightly on her, almost blinding her. It was the scariest experience of her life.


    But, she was still alive. She survived through that hell! So, compared to that scary experience, playing Classmancers on the stage didn''t feel like a big deal anymore.


    "I can play," Nia''s mumbled with a nod. She was already here, so she might as well go all the way. She has been practicing Classmancers, day and night, for the past couple of months. She improved a lot, so she should be ready to go. Should be.


    "Told ya it works," Lars gave a thumbs up.


    "It did make her more agreeable, that''s for sure," Yuel wasn''t entirely convinced yet, but at least Nia was no longer hiding under the table, that was a step forward. However, whether she successfully draws out her usual skill in the upcoming match remained to be seen.

 204 Stratus vs. Taurus, Start!

    "Can''t I just use my controller?" Nia pouted.


    "No, everyday play with mouse and keyboard."


    "What a pain," Nia twisted her lips in protest, but obediently leaned forward to reach the mouse and keyboard with her short arms.


    For some ungodly reason, this girl preferred to play Classmancers with a controller. After she joined the club, she played exclusively with a controller for a while. It took Yuel some time to notice that and call her out on it.


    [Good thing I forced her to use a mouse and a keyboard.] Yuel sighed in relief as he watched Nia move naturally in Practice mode and properly land hits on the dummies. Despite how much she protested at first, Nia now seemed comfortable with using mouse and keyboard.


    "Oh, this feels nice," Nia ran her fingers across the keyboard and moved the mouse in circles.


    "Yeah, they got decent equipment here," Yuel agreed. "For high-level games, the quality of the equipment makes a huge difference."


    [It probably feels good to type on it.] Nia brought up the chat window and placed both hands on the keyboard.


    ¡ºtest test test¡»


    ¡ºthis is nice¡»


    ¡ºeverybody is a bully today as always¡»


    [Well, as long as she''s getting used to the equipment...] Yuel smiled wryly and returned to his own warm-up.


    A few minutes later, the referee announced the beginning of the drafting phase. Taurus won the virtual coin toss and chose to pick first. Each team banned some popular high tier classes, then they proceeded to pick classes.


    "Hey, Zephy," Bruce smacked his pal on the shoulder. "I got a brilliant idea for ya. We gonna steamroll these scrubs real hard, khaha!"


    "Haha, I''m on board!" Zeph grinned. "Whatcha got?"


    "What if we go DK on their asses?"


    "You want me to DK?"


    "Yeah, do it, bro. It gonna be the joke of the year! We gonna finish them in like five minutes, khaha!"


    "Heh, that''d be a riot!" Zeph nodded.


    "Dark Knight is a risky pick," Raymond, the captain, acted like the party pooper he always was. "I think we better play it safe in the first round, to get a better feel for their skill level."


    "C''mon, what skill?" Bruce sneered. "These guys are clearly a joke. They even got two chicks on their team."


    "Female players can be as good as any other player," Raymond argued.


    "Bruh, are ya a feminist or some shit? Girls can''t video games for shit. Am I right, guys?"


    "Totally," Zeph nodded. "Never met a girl who actually knows how to play."


    "Right? Right?" Bruce nodded repeatedly. "They always say they''re gamers, but then ya let them play and they get the whole team killed. ''Skill'', khaha! Yeah, right."


    "Alright, Zephy, jam in that DK!" Bruce ordered.


    "Ya got it, fam!" Zeph picked Dark Knight and locked it in.


    Now, the turn passed to StormBlitz.


    "These bastards are making fun of us," Kai shot a murderous glare at the screen. Dark Knight as the first pick? Who''d do such a thing except for low ranks? These fuckers were asking for a beating.


    "Calm down, they''re doing it on purpose," Vincent said. "They''re trying to rile us up. I analyzed that guy using my Arbiter of Talents and concluded he got the Fury Inducer skill. It allows him to inject his opponents with anger and frustration, making their performance suffer."


    "In short, he''s one heck of a scumbag," Kai clicked her tongue. "His BS doesn''t work on me, though."


    [Actually, to me, you look both angry and frustrated.] Vincent commented silently. "Well, just try to keep calm, that''s all I''m saying."


    "Are you sure you don''t need to worry about yourself first?" Kai threw a glance at Vincent''s rapid foot tapping. It''s like his leg was having a seizure.


    "No, no, no, I''m tranquility incarnate."


    "Huh, if you say so," Kai rolled her eyes. "Anyway, Yuel, how we gonna respond to that DK pick?"


    "Hmm," Yuel threw a glance at Nia. "Seems like you''ll be helping me out a lot today."


    "Ok," Nia nodded. "If I can get Ninja that''d be dope."


    "Yes, Ninja is a good counter-pick."


    "Ok, then that guy is ded."


    "Good, exactly what I wanted to hear," Yuel nodded in approval. Even though Nia''s face was still a little pale, it seemed she was alright. She was ready to tackle this Dark Knight head-on.


    Over the past couple of months, the girl has gained more than enough experience against Dark Knights in Ranked. She was no longer scared of defusing them. In fact, she no longer saw the Dark Knight as a threat at all.


    [As long as she plays like her usual self, it''ll be easy to win the lane.] Yuel picked Knight, the safe and solid bruiser. Viking would''ve been a great option as well but the enemy banned it, possibly to prevent it from being picked against the Dark Knight.


    Next, Nia grabbed Ninja. It was usually better to wait a little longer before picking the team''s Jungler. However, Nia''s viable classes boiled down to stealth classes, so grabbing it early was the safest.


    The drafting phase went on, with both teams trying to outdo each other. Taurus picked Lumimancer as a soft counter to Nia''s stealth, whereas Stratus struck back by countering Aeromancer with Electromancer. The final lineup turned into:


    Stratus


    Chessmaster (Top): Knight


    VanishingFlower (Jungler): Ninja


    Gunz (Mid): Electromancer


    Beat (Carry): Impaler


    InformationBlackhole (Support): Cryomancer


    Taurus


    DragonMaster (Top): Dark Knight


    Messi (Jungler): Lionfolk


    Nirvana (Mid): Aeromancer


    TheLegend (Carry): Pirate


    TheMyth (Support): Lumimancer


    "Yo, look!" Lars pointed at the screen. "Looks like we''re playing against Messi, haha."


    "And against ''TheLegend''," Kai felt like throwing up. That was the enemy''s Carry, so it''s gotta be that bastard who looked down on Kai, right? [Yeah, no question about it. Can totally see a bastard with low self-esteem naming himself something like TheLegend. After I''m done with him, he''s really gonna become a legend. The title will be like "The Greatest Scrub That Ever Lived".]


    And so, the first game of the scrimmage kicked off!


    [Overall, our picks are better.] Yuel compared the lineups. [As long as we shut down the Dark Knight early on, we got this one in the bag.]


    Yuel entered the lane with his Knight. His opponent, the Dark Knight, was already there. Well, of course he''d be. After all, Dark Knight''s clearing speed was that much faster than the Knight''s. Back when Yuel and Nia were still halfway through clearing the jungle camps for the game-opening, the Dark Knight and his partner were probably already done.


    "How soon will you start ganking?" Yuel asked.


    "As soon as they forget I''m here," Nia answered.


    [And when that is, exactly?] Yuel sighed. Well, this was par for the course. Nia always lays low during the first portion of the match. According to her, this was an important ritual that lowered the enemy''s awareness of her.


    [It''ll be great if it works today, but I have my doubts.] Yuel knotted his brows. "Anyway, try to be ready to gank as soon as you have your ult."


    "Ok."


    [If she holds her end of the bargain, I''ll only have to deal with the Dark Knight alone until Nia gets to Lv.5.] Yuel nodded to himself. With a Knight, that was doable enough.


    The Dark Knight unleashed his Dark Blast. Normally, it''d be enough to wipe out Yuel''s entire minion wave. However, it didn''t. Yuel''s minions just barely hung onto life, one hit away from death.


    It was all thanks to Knight''s Chivalry, his passive. The flat defense boost it granted to nearby allies was enough to stop the Dark Knight from one-shotting the entire minion wave with a single Dark Blast. This huge benefit won''t last for long, but it''ll be around for the first couple of levels. Having some minions survive, even with mortal wounds, was a huge deal breaker.


    The swordsmen survived as expected, but Yuel''s bowmen were alive as well for some reason. They were supposed to be squishy enough to succumb to Dark Blast''s damage even with Chivalry in effect, but they remained unharmed.


    [Did he miss the bowmen?] Yuel wondered. The Dark Blast went through the entire frontline, but it didn''t reach Yuel''s rear. As a result, the bowmen remained at perfect health. [Is he dealing with tournament nerves, too? Or, maybe he''s not that good with Dark Knight? Either way, this might be easier than I thought.]


    As the enemy swordsmen approached to strike the bowmen, Yuel activated Honorable Duel to aggro the minions toward himself. The taunt made them waste extra time on moving toward Yuel, giving his bowmen more time barrage the distracted swordsmen.


    Thanks to this maneuver, Yuel got rid of all the swordsmen before they even reached him. All that''s left, was for the bowmen of both sides to duke it out with each other. The enemy bowmen got the first hit advantage, but otherwise, it was a close fight.


    To make sure the Dark Knight won''t invade any further alongside his remaining troops, Yuel advanced to the frontline to strike the bowmen down.


    "Heh, you dare getting close?" Zeph grinned. "I''mma show ya what happens when you get this close to DK!"


    [I see. He won''t let me do this for free.] Yuel nodded to himself. [In that case, let''s do it the quick and dirty way.]


    Yuel activated Shield Bash. He charged forth and slammed his shield into the three injured bowmen. The slam knocked them out in one hit. Triple kill!


    However, this brought Yuel dangerously close to the Dark Knight. Even though both classes had ''Knight'' in their names, one of them was much stronger than the other during the early-game. Therefore, Yuel had to run for his life!


    [Crap, he got away!] Zeph cursed as his prey rolled away, slipping right through his fingers. That damn guy invaded for but a moment, then instantly rolled the heck outta here. What a guy. [Okay, next wave it is. Next wave, I''mma push so hard ya gonna run all the way to your Turret, scrub.]


    [Okay, safe.] Yuel recovered from the roll and retreated further into allied territory, to maintain as much distance as possible between himself and the Dark Knight. Fortunately, the Dark Knight didn''t even consider chasing.


    [He''s pretty tame for somebody who picked Dark Knight in a competitive match.] Yuel thought.


    Dark Knight was a cocky, but viable, option in high-level play. However, to efficient, it had to be played correctly, only then the pick will be justified. The Dark Knight player had to be aggressive and push for as much early-game advantage as possible.


    So far, this DragonMaster player has been failing on that front. Was the guy waiting for something and merely observing Yuel''s skill until then? Or, maybe he was still warming-up? It could be nerves, too. After all, being nervous about an official match wasn''t a problem exclusive to Stratus. This was the first scrimmage of the year for Taurus as well, so they could be equally nervous.


    [I''ll get to the bottom of this in the upcoming waves.] Yuel concluded. If this Dark Knight truly happened to be a low-skill player, Yuel could start something on his own here, even without Nia''s help. That would be the best-case scenario, because it''d give Nia the freedom to focus on other lanes.


    Alas, things were never that easy on the competitive stage...

 205 Nerves on Both Sides

    [Missing the bowmen twice in a row? Interesting.] Yuel didn''t waste any time and charged in to taunt the enemy swordsmen. The plan was to drag them away while his bowmen shoot them down, the same as before.


    However, this time it wasn''t going to fly. The opponent acted boldly, as a Dark Knight should, and stepped in to intercept Yuel.


    [Don''t get any funny ideas, scrub.] Zeph ran in and swung his blade.


    [Close.] Yuel stopped in the nick of time and backpedaled before the black blade slashed his neck. He successfully made the attack whiff, but he couldn''t counter-attack. Dark Knight''s sword was a little longer than Knight''s, so if the Dark Knight couldn''t reach Yuel, then surely Yuel couldn''t reach the Dark Knight either. The laws of physics were a pain like that sometimes.


    Still, his opponent whiffed an attack. It created a small opening and Yuel grabbed it right away.


    Whish! Yuel charged forth and slammed his shield into the swordsmen. With a few follow-up shots from his bowmen, the enemy''s frontline vanished.


    But, there was no reason to stop there. Yuel darted toward the enemy bowmen as well and unleashed Blade Swing, reducing their HP to almost nothing.


    While all of that was going down, the Dark Knight only had enough time to recover from the whiff and assess the situation.


    "This freakin'' scrub, I''m tellin'' ya...!" Zeph''s face contorted. [You dare invade against a Dark Knight!? Lemme teach ya a thing or two!]


    Zeph didn''t hold any punches. He booted Nightmare and charged at the overextending foe. [When it''s this early into the game, DK totally wrecks Knight, right? Yeah, pretty sure he does. Haven''t played it in a while, but it''s a no-brain class anyway, so it''s all good! Heh.]


    [Too late.] Yuel was already in the middle of retreating to his side of the lane. However, continuing in this direction will make him run straight into the Dark Knight! But, it was fine.


    "How nice of you to come to me yourself," Zeph swung his giant blade at the approaching opponent. "Die, scrub!"


    [Predictable.] Yuel rolled forth, going under the horizontal slash.


    "Say what!?" Zeph roared. He felt like a dumb cat who let a mouse slip by him. "The heck!? Come back here, dammit!"


    Zeph turned around and gave chase. Both he and his opponent were clad in heavy armor, so they ran like damn turtles. However, Nightmare boosted Zeph''s stats, including his Movement Speed!


    [I''m fast as fuck, boi! Okay, maybe not THAT fast.] Zeph made a face. Sure, he was faster than usual and he''ll catch up to the Knight eventually, but that "eventually" gonna take a while. Dang it.


    "The hell!?" Zeph exclaimed. Two enemy bowmen stood there and shot at him, as if it was the most natural thing in the world. [Wait a freakin'' second here. Are you telling me this guy just out-cleared a DK? Dang it, this scrub be wilding!]


    Zeph gave up the chase and darted toward the bowmen instead. He cut them down swiftly, but not as swiftly as he hoped to.


    [Damn, even with Nightmare I need two hits to take them out?] Zeph made a face. One basic attack during Nightmare erased 90% of a bowman''s HP, but 90% was no 100%. So, he had to deliver a second strike to get rid of that tiny 10%. Damn, Nightmare ended up being such a waste here.


    [He''s making many small misplays.] Yuel criticized the Dark Knight. The guy was already down to 75% HP due to goofing around too much. That''s 30% HP lost.


    15% of it was spent on firing Dark Blasts, so that couldn''t be helped. However, the remaining 10% was unnecessary damage he received from Nightmare and Yuel''s bowmen. It was the kind of damage that a competent Dark Knight should be able to avoid.


    [If that''s his skill level, I can defend the lane by myself.] Yuel thought. [With that said, I''ll probably be able to ONLY defend, little else.]


    Even though Yuel clearly outplayed the Dark Knight during this wave, it didn''t give him any lane advantage. He merely avoided losing lane advantage, that''s all. Such was the reality of facing a Dark Knight on lane. It was an uphill battle with little hope of prevailing. No matter how many mistakes the Dark Knight commits, Yuel probably won''t be able to punish the guy in any meaningful way. Nia''s help was necessary for turning the tables on the enemy in a big way.


    To make things worse, it felt like DragonMaster has been gradually improving his Dark Knight. Little by little, the guy was getting better. During the third wave, his Dark Blast already landed on two bowmen.


    [Tch, still not good.] Zeph clicked his tongue. [So, I gotta shoot a little more to the right, got it. Man, where did all my muscle memory go? I know I haven''t played DK in like a month or two, but c''mon. The heck is wrong with me?]


    Zeph threw a glance at the right hand clutching the mouse. His palm was uncomfortable. It''s been this way ever since he sat down. His fingers were tightly wrapped around the mouse, as if they caught a prey they wanted to crush.


    [Why the hell am I clutching so hard? This ain''t no "Mouse Cushing" competition here.] Zeph forced his hand to loosen the grip. That''s when he noticed something peculiar: his hand was shaking a little.


    [The heck? Calm down, bitch.] Zeph smacked his hand. The hell was this shit? Was he nervous or something? Nah, no way. Like, this was his first match on a big stage and all, but there''s no reason to be nervous.


    [This gonna be an ez win.] He reassured himself. [Like, we''re playing against the scrubbiest team in the region. These guys ain''t nothing to worry about. We got this.]


    After repeating such thoughts a few more times in his head, his hand ceased its annoying trembling. Okay, now he was back to his usual self. [Time to tear this scrub apart!]


    During the next minion wave, Zeph properly landed his Dark Blast on the entire minion wave. Swordsmen and bowmen, - he annihilated everybody!


    "That''s more like it!" Zeph nodded to himself. A Dark knight gotta be like this. A symbol of terror, somebody who could eliminate everybody and everything in one shot.


    [It seems like he''s done warming up.] Yuel concluded


    From now on, it was probably going to be the familiar Dark Knight experience. Knight''s Chivalry effect was still enough to let his swordsmen survive Dark Blast, but not for long. The flat defense buff of Chivalry remained static throughout the game, whereas Dark Blast''s power increased with the skill''s level. In a couple of waves, the difference in power will be big enough and Dark Blast will eliminate Yuel''s entire army in one hit.


    But, not all was doom and gloom. Yuel made it this far without losing a single point of HP on his Turret. That was a huge deal against a Dark Knight. The first couple of waves were the best time for a Dark Knight to establish his lane advantage, but this guy took too long to wake up. He wasted that precious time and he won''t be getting it back.


    Everybody hit Lv.5 by now, including Nia. So, she was more than ready to deliver a gank on Top Lane.


    "Nia, are you coming to gank?" Yuel asked


    "Soon TM," Nia cleared the Hyena Camp in Top Jungle and continued toward Top. [Gank. Yeah, I need to gank that DK. That''s how we''ll win. Ez. Yeah.]


    For some reason, no matter how many times she repeated these words in her head, her hands still trembled. Why? Was she scared of ganking that Dark Knight?


    No, that couldn''t be it. Nia was already over that stuff. Yuel forced her to gank every Dark Knight in existence during club practice. By now, ganking Dark Knights was as natural as breathing.


    Then, why? Why did her fingers feel so numb? Why did shivers run across her arms? Simple, because tons of people were watching her. She felt like a clown cast on a big stage.


    [I can''t mess this up. Can''t mess up. Can''t.] Nia gulped. [They all gonna laugh at me if I do. They''re all bullies.]


    Everybody in the crowd must have been watching Nia right now. They were all wondering "Who the heck is this scrub? Can she even play?" They''ll ridicule her at the first sight of a misplay, no question about it.


    [I have to do this right.] Nia repeated. She had to get to Top, sneak up to the Dark Knight, and Izuna him out of existence. Yeah, that''s the plan. Get to Top, sneak up, Izuna. Top, sneak, Izuna. One, two, three. Top, sneak, Izuna.


    [Gufu, why is it taking so long to get there?] Nia twisted her lips. She has already executed that sequence of plays at least a hundred times by now, but only in her head. In reality, she was only midway to Top Lane. Faster! She had to get there faster, before she forgets all this stuff.


    [Nia is taking the short route?] Yuel raised an eyebrow. Instead of picking one of the roundabout routes, Nia cut straight through the jungle. Odd.


    [Well, it''s not a misplay by any means, but...] Yuel found this unsettling. It was like watching a Bishop move horizontally instead of diagonally; it was against the rules.


    There was no question that taking the shortest path when rotating saved precious time. However, it also increased the chances of passing by enemy wards and exposing the rotation. At the same time, taking a roundabout route slowed down the rotation but kept it hidden.


    There was a fair trade-off, so neither approach was more "correct" for rotating. Everything came down on the Jungler''s ability to estimate warding positions. If they had a good idea where wards will be, it was worth playing around these wards. On the other hand, if the Jungler was guessing blindingly, it was better to simply press ahead and don''t try any funny ideas.


    Nia has proven, time and again, that she was good at sneaking past wards. Yuel wrote it off as luck at first, but Nia kept proving her ability to get past wards was reliable. Her success rate was far from 100%, especially at higher ranks, but it was high enough to justify not taking the shortest route. So, nine times out of ten, Nia would pick a roundabout slower route.


    Yet, this very same Nia was taking the shortest path right now. Why? As far a Yuel could tell, there was no special reason to do so.


    [Do I say something?] Yuel was too baffled to form coherent thoughts. He felt like he should bring up this topic, but at the same time, he had no idea what he could possibly say. After all, Nia was the Jungler, so she should know what worked best for her in the current situation.


    "Shoot!" Zeph noticed the Ninja on the mini-map. The chick passed by one of his wards and they exposed her. [She''s coming here, ain''t she. Do I take the risk? I bet Bruce gonna call me a pussy if I retreat. At the same time, he also gonna call me feeder if I stay here and die. Can''t win that shit, haha.]


    Ultimately, Zeph chose to retreat. The Ninja was already at Lv.5, so Izuna Drop was a thing. The damage on that shit was no joke. Better scram.


    [Top, sneak, Izuna. Top, sneak, Izuna. One, two, three.] Nia kept reciting on the way. She had a clear image of that play. She was going to do it. It''ll be easy. No problem.


    "Hey, Nia," Yuel called out. "The Dark Knight is retreating."


    [Top, sneak, Izuna. Top, sneak, Izuna.]


    "Did you hear me?" Yuel frowned. The girl either muted everybody or was mentally not presented. The latter sounded like a joke, but it was a real possibility when it came to Nia. Her brain had a special function that allowed her to transfer her mind to another dimension, unreachable by others.


    [Good thing I made sure she sits beside me.] Yuel retreated back to his Turret, then elbowed Nia lightly.


    "E-Eh? Wha?" Nia blinked in confusion, as if she just woke up from a state of trance.


    "You hear me now?" Yuel asked. "Give up on the rotation."


    "Eh? Why?"


    "What do you mean ''why''? The Dark Knight retreated to his tower."


    "Oh..." Nia just realized. Indeed, the Dark Knight was all the way back in his turret area. When did he get all the way over there?


    "You didn''t notice?"


    "O-Of course I noticed," Nia averted her eyes. "I was just, um, going to for the wolves. Yeah."


    "There''s still time until they respawn."


    "T-Then, I was coming to help you push!"


    "That''d be pointless. We won''t win a laning contest against a Dark Knight even if we farm together.


    "Gufu..." Nia''s shoulders sunk. She had no other excuses to throw at him.


    "Is something wrong?" Yuel asked. "It''s not like you to rush a rotation like this. And, you usually pay more attention to your target. What''s the matter?"


    "Ah, I, um... N-Nothing, all green."


    "Are you still nervous?"


    "N-No I''m not," Nia insisted at first, then lowered her head in defeat. "Maybe. Just a little."


    [I swear, this girl. Every time it looks like she got over it, the stage fright strikes again.] Yuel sighed. Nia was always a tough customer like this.


    "Looks like your Spartan method didn''t quite work," Yuel informed Lars.


    "Yeah, it doesn''t always do the trick right away," Lars admitted. "Buy hey, it''s a start. We just gotta give her another push or two, then it gonna work, 200%"


    "So, got any more extreme ideas up your sleeve? Say, maybe straight up throw her into the audience?"


    "Haha, we should totally try that!"


    "Please no."


    "Haha, just kidding ya. That ain''t gonna do anything for Nia."


    "I agree," Yuel knotted his brows. This issue has been persisting for way too long. It had to be eliminated somehow.


    Thanks to Lars''s (questionable) methods, Nia mustered the will to sit at the table and play. However, her performance was a far cry from her usual self. The nerves hampered her decision-making. If things go on like this, she''ll eventually make a fatal mistake and bring ruin upon herself, or on the rest of the team.


    [What can I do for her? I don''t have any charisma that could put her at ease, and I don''t know any extreme relief tricks like the one Lars used. All I can do is watch her play and warn her whenever she''s about to commit a mistake.]


    "One play," Lars said. "If she pulls off one good play, it gonna make her feels awesome. I remember I was a little nervous the first time I played last year, but then I scored a kill and it felt awesome! From there, everything was smooth. So, just help her get that one play."


    "One play, huh," Yuel repeated. "Okay, sounds like a plan. I''ll try that. Thanks."


    "No problem, dude. I''d help ya out more, but this Aero dude over here is keeping me busy. Can''t catch a breather."


    "I see," Yuel glanced at the situation in Mid. Indeed, it wasn''t a favorable position. Both Mid towers were untouched, but Lars was lagging behind in HP. It wasn''t a serious difference just yet, but it might become a problem if things keep going on like this. Clearly, Lars had no time to spare to other matters.


    [He might need a gank over there sometime soon.] Yuel concluded. [But, I feel Nia is in no condition to gank anywhere right now. First, I need to make her successfully gank Top.]


    The immediate goal was clear. Yuel will help Nia execute a good gank on Top, which will hopefully alleviate her stress. Then, Nia should be ready to gank other lanes as well, including Mid.


    An easy and straightforward plan, at least on paper. But, will Yuel really be able to help out this troublemaker girl...?

 206 Inspire Confidence

    The Dark Knight has warmed up by now. His Dark Blast struck true, annihilating Yuel''s entire army in a single hit. The defense buff of Chivarly was no longer enough to keep anybody alive.


    Yuel had no way to combat a pressure of this magnitude. The only way to break out of this predicament was with Nia''s help.


    However, Nia wasn''t her usual self right now. The stage fright still haunted her. During the previous rotation, she chose the shortest route, which was uncharacteristic for a sneaky assassin like her. It''s as if the pressure was rushing her, demanding immediate results.


    Naturally, that didn''t work out for her. To perform well as an assassin, Nia had to be calm and composed. She had to carefully analyze her target''s movements and decide when was the best time to strike. Normally, she was proficient enough at that, but not right now.


    So, before Yuel could get anything going, he had to figure out how to make this girl calm down. In other words, he had to come up with some sort of pep talk.


    [That''s SO not my strong suit.] Yuel frowned. He knew how to efficiently command his teammates'' actions, but not their hearts. That''s probably why he was here, in Stratus, right now. Howard could do both, therefore he was StormBlitz''s captain.


    ["You played like a group of cogs that didn''t fit together."] Aron''s words echoed in Yuel''s head. Indeed, Yuel wasn''t good at keeping his team unified and motivated. He had a bad habit of assuming that his teammates were as motivated and as determined as him. Therefore, it was enough to come up with good shot-calls for them, the rest will work out on its own.


    But, his teammates were neither robots nor chess pieces. He couldn''t just give an order and expect them to execute it flawlessly. There were many factors involved when trying to make a successful play. Yuel always assumed he was taking them all into account, but he really wasn''t.


    There was much more out there. There were factors that went beyond skill, map state, build, level, match up, and all the other dry details. In particular, the one factor Yuel always neglected was the personal issues of each player. Unfortunately, those issues sometimes overshadowed everything else about a play, single-handedly determining its success or failure.


    It was thanks to problems like these that Yuel failed to defeat Howard during the selection match. And now, he was facing the same exact issue, this time with Nia. If she keeps playing sloppy like this, she''ll eventually bring ruin on the entire team.


    So, this problem had to be addressed, no question about it. But, how? What should Yuel say to somebody who was nervous about their debut in the competitive stage? What could possibly reassure this girl?


    After Aron pointed out Yuel''s biggest flaw, there was no choice but to start digging. Yuel searched many videos and articles that covered the various aspects of teamwork and team morale.


    Unfortunately, a lot of the videos were surface-level. They filled up 10 minutes of content with generalized advice, in order to squeeze in as many ads as possible. Still, it was better than nothing and Yuel tried to adopt some of those techniques.


    Unfortunately, he didn''t get to practice them much. Playing Ranked wasn''t stressful enough for the people in the club, so barely any serious issues surfaced. As a result, Yuel rarely ever had the need to fix anything.


    However, in this scrimmage, a major problem has already presented itself. And now Yuel, with his nonexistent experience, had to resolve it. What were the right words in this situation? What would make a nervous teammate calm down?


    [No, that line of thinking is probably wrong.] Yuel recalled one piece of advice that stood out. For best results, it was best to think on the personal level, to consider the person Yuel was trying to encourage. Generic one-liners of motivation would only go so far.


    So, what kind of person was Nia? What were the main things that unsettled her? What helped her calm down? By finding the answers to these questions, Yuel could come up with something that worked best for Nia. It''s like finding the enemy''s elemental weakness and striking it.


    [What makes her nervous?] Yuel thought back on what kind of girl Nia was. They spent a couple of months together in the club and Yuel used much of that time on teaching her game knowledge. So, he could claim with confidence that Nia was a tough customer. It wasn''t hard to point out at least one problem she had, or even twenty of those.


    First of all, she didn''t like being in the center of attention. Or, even being seen by others for that matter. To this day, she maintained the bad habit of vanishing within the clubroom by running away to some remote corner. Yuel moved aside many boxes and tables to minimize the number of good hiding spots in the clubroom, but Nia was like a cat, she always found new openings to squeeze herself into. Sigh.


    For somebody like her, playing on a stage was naturally uncomfortable. The gallery for this scrimmage was rather small, but it was there, with its eyes focused on the stage. That mere fact put heavy pressure on Nia. Therefore, it would be great if she learns to ignore the crowd and focus on doing her own thing.


    Another issue was Nia''s confidence. She had a natural aversion toward plays she wasn''t 10000000% sure about. Every time Yuel suggested a play that didn''t sound 100% fail-safe, Nia grumped in response and argued back. Recently, she was becoming more and more cooperative, but the core issue never truly disappeared.


    For example, it took lots and lots of training before Nia started feeling comfortable with ganking Dark Knights during the early-game. Only after she accumulated enough positive experience from repeating such ganks, she grew accustomed to executing them on-demand.


    Nevertheless, a part of her never stopped doubting. There were times when she tried to gank a skilled Dark Knight and things went horribly wrong. After that, for the rest of that day, Nia would refuse to gank Dark Knights.


    Such negative experiences burned themselves into her mind. Whenever there was the slightest hint that the enemy Dark Knight might a strong player, she became reluctant to execute a gank. It took a lot of requesting and pleading until she''d finally give in. Sometimes, even that didn''t help and she didn''t gank the Dark Knight the entire game...


    [Maybe she''s thinking this Dark Knight is strong as well.] Yuel considered. [After all, this is a competitive match. By default, it''s assumed that the enemy will be strong. Well, except for when people think about Stratus, I suppose.]


    Nia wasn''t the type to underestimate her opponents, she only knew how to overestimate them. She rather be safe than sorry. So, she must have assumed that DragonMaster was a strong Dark Knight player.


    [Is he, though?] Yuel pondered.


    At the beginning of the match, DragonMaster put on a weak performance. However, the guy has been steadily improving from there. By now, he played like a decent Diamond rank opponent. He cleanly wiped out Yuel''s minions and push hard alongside his minions. So, despite his slow start, DragonMaster was definitely a decent player. He won''t be an easy nut to crack.


    [But, that''s not something I should tell Nia.] Yuel smiled wryly.


    His past self would have honestly laid out all this information, to ensure his teammates had an accurate understanding of the situation. However, doing so will only have an opposite effect on Nia right now. Most likely, she was already overestimating the guy in her head. If Yuel adds more oil to the fire, he won''t be getting any ganks from her for the rest of the day.


    [So, do I tell her DragonMaster is weak?] That''d be a lie. But, was it a bad lie? Was there any harm to it? Not in particular.


    Some psychological articles about motivation encouraged such tricks. They suggested that, sometimes, it was a good idea to paint a more positive picture by bending the truth a little. It''d keep people motivated without outright lying to them.


    Yuel was rather averse to such practices because he believed objective information had great value. However, there were times when sharing objective information caused more harm than good. This was one such scenario. If he tells Nia that DragonMaster was at least a Diamond level player, she might wrongly assume that the guy was an ungankable monster.


    On the other hand, if he tells a little white lie and says that DragonMaster was a mediocre player, it''ll fuel Nia with confidence and help her calm down. It''ll probably boost the success chance of her gank as well, thus becoming a self-fulfilling prophecy. Yuel will claim that DragonMaster was weak, therefore the guy will end up looking weak.


    Besides, in the first place, terms like "strong" and "weak" were subjective in many ways. DragonMaster was a decent laner, but he didn''t seem particularly skilled in combat. Even somebody like Yuel managed to dance around some of DragonMaster''s attacks. The guy was playing it safe and compact, a mentality far removed from what the ideal Dark Knight should strive to be.


    As far as Nia was concerned, a target was "strong" or "scary" when it could mount a counter-attack that might get her killed. However, DragonMaster didn''t come across as a player who''d give Nia much trouble. In fact, there was a good chance he''ll avoid combat altogether and choose to retreat if ganked, just like he did last time.


    So, in Nia''s terms, DragonMaster definitely wasn''t a "strong" or "scary" player. So, it won''t even be much of a lie to tell her that.


    [Okay, let''s give it a shot.] Yuel took a deep breath. This sort of thing wasn''t his forte, but he spent the last couple of minutes thinking about all these angles, so he felt confident about this idea.


    "Nia, listen," Yuel started. "I know you''re still nervous, but-"


    "Am not."


    "Yes you are," Yuel gave her a look. "Anyway, listen. No need to be so tense. This Dark Knight should be your favorite type of target. He''s the type to retreat instead of fighting. So, even if you can''t get a clean kill on him, he''ll likely run away and you''ll be fine."


    "A DK who plays it safe? Weird."


    "I agree, but that''s how he plays. If you need proof, look no further than my tower HP. Look how healthy it is."


    "Ah, true," Nia cocked her head. Still at 85% HP? That''s one heck of a healthy tower against a Dark Knight. Normally, when Nia hasn''t ganked Top until this point in the game, the Dark Knight would bring the tower to 50% HP, sometimes even lower.


    However, this Dark Knight only reached a measly 85%. Part of it was definitely because Knight was a decent defensive pick and Yuel knew this matchup. But still, only 85%? That''s weak.


    [Yeah, I can probably make quick work of this guy.] Nia nodded to herself. That DragonMaster guy was supposed to be a big deal since he got to represent Taurus, but maybe he wasn''t all that. Besides, players who played defensively were the best. They usually let Nia get away scot-free even when she failed a gank.


    [But, I can still mess up.] Nia gulped. There were countless eyes spearing her from the crowd, judging her every twitch. If she fails to deliver a good gank, everybody will laugh at her and call her a noob. [Can''t let that happen. Absolutely can''t. ]


    "Also, if you''re worried about messing up," Yuel continued. "It''s okay. Everybody messes up once or twice during their debut match. You''re not the only one who is nervous. Even this Dark Knight seems on edge."


    "Eh? Really?"


    "Yeah, he seriously underperformed at the beginning of the game. I almost won the lane against him, can you believe that?"


    "No way..." [That DK sounds like a Bronze player.]


    "So, it''s fine," Yuel said. "Most of the players on stage are nervous to one degree or another. Even if you mess up a couple of times, nobody will hold it against you."


    "Ok," Nia nodded. So, she just had to do it, right? She''ll rotate to Top again and gank the heck outta that weakling Dark Knight. Maybe things won''t go that smoothly, but it''s okay. This was her first competitive match, so her teammates will understand. [After all, they''re like... um, f-friends, I guess?]


    "O-Oh!" A jolt coursed through Nia. That''s right, she was playing together with her friends right now. "Friends", something she never really had before.


    Sure, she used to be on good terms with some classmates, but she never hung out with any of them. However, the people in Stratus were different. She spent hours with them on a daily basis. Everybody here has already seen Nia fail countless times during club practice.


    Many failed gank attempts. Many poor decisions. They saw them all. Yet, they didn''t kick Nia out for it. Sometimes they got a little mad and Yuel lectured her for hours, but they never gave up on her.


    So, even if she fails to execute a flawless gank here today, it''ll be okay. It''ll be disappointing for sure, but she could try again and again until she gets it right.


    [The audience probably gonna eat me alive, but...] Nia braced herself. It was okay. She''ll be okay. This gank will definitely work...!

 207 First Blood on the Competitive Stage

    "Good," Yuel nodded, then quietly sighed in relief. [Okay, I think my attempt at pep talk worked. Now, we can take out this Dark Knight for good. I didn''t tell Nia, but the guy has been getting better and better throughout the match. We need to shut him down now, before he gets out of hand.]


    [I gotta get there fast.] Nia thought to herself as she traversed through the jungle. [Ah, but they got a ward somewhere in here, right? That''s how they saw me coming last time. Hmm.]


    "Can I take the long path?" Nia asked. "I think there''s a ward here somewhere."


    "There''s no rush," Yuel said. "Use the best route you can find."


    "Ok," Nia carefully analyzed the mini-map. There were a couple of intersections that served as common warding spots. Mainly, the pathways around the Overlord''s camp.


    The evil boss hasn''t spawned yet, but multiple jungle paths intersected nicely around his camp. In fact, they were so nice, that Nia tried to rush to Top through one of them last time. So, the enemy''s ward was most likely somewhere around there.


    [If they''re warding there, they''re probably not warding around our camps.] Nia concluded. There was no hard limit on the number of wards a team could place at the same time, but each player could only carry two normal Wards at a time. So, if they wanted to spam wards, they''d have to keep recalling to base and buy new ones.


    Nobody loved warding so much that they''d go through all that trouble. Besides, it cost a pretty penny. So, assuming the enemy warded the Overlord''s camp and their side of the jungle, it should leave Stratus''s jungle mostly devoid of enemy wards.


    [Ok, so I take this route.] Instead of heading straight to Top, Nia circled around allied jungle camps until she finally reached the lane.


    [Ok, here goes.] She took a deep breath and activated Shadow Clone. She pondered for a moment whether to send the clone to the lane, but ultimately decided against it.


    Sending the clone to the lane was a good bait against aggressive and confident opponents. This usually fell for it and focused their attacks on the clone, allowing Nia to sneak on them.


    But, according to Yuel, this Dark Knight was a defensive player. So, he''ll probably retreat at the first sight of her clone.


    [Sorry, my sister. You have to go over there.] Nia sent her twin sister deep into the jungle, never to be seen again. The clone was unnecessary for this gank. All Nia needed from the Shadow Clone skill was the stealth it granted.


    [Ok, careful now.] Nia entered the lane while stealthed. She was already so close to her target, yet the Dark Knight couldn''t see her.


    This was the competitive stage. The opponents were top-notch. So, there was a chance some of them could pull a Lars and dodge her setup. Scary.


    "Go for the full setup," Yuel said. "I doubt he got the mechanical skill to dodge the Izuna."


    "Ah," Nia blinked for a moment. How did Yuel know what she was mulling over? Mind-reading alien confirmed! Scary.


    [Ok, here goes...!] Nia emerged from the darkness and slashed!


    "Wha-!?" Zeph jumped. An attack!? From where!? There was nobody behind him the last time he checked. And, he was the type to often glance at the jungle, so nobody should''ve slipped past him. Yet, somebody did! In other words, it an unseen foe.


    [Fuck, it''s the Ninja!] Zeph figured. [Gotta get the hell out before I get Izuna''d!] He pressed space to perform a Dodge Roll, but it was too late.


    The Ninja locked her arms around the big knight and leaped toward the sky. They spun around like a fidget spinner on steroids, then crashed into the ground. It left Zeph at 40% HP. Fuckin'' great.


    And, that wasn''t even the end of it. As soon as Zeph recovered from the fall, a taunt effect reached him.


    "Let us fight honorably!" the Knight pointed his blade at Zeph.


    [What do you mean "honorably"? It''s a 2v1 here! Damn it.] Zeph ranted internally. The taunt forced his Dark Knight to chase the Knight and throw out basic attacks. Zeph temporarily lost all control over his character. The enemy didn''t waste this opportunity and struck hard.


    "Fuck it," Zeph dropped back on his chair. It was over. The faster he dies, the faster he''ll respawn. There was no point resisting at this point. He was dead.


    [Did he give up?] Yuel wondered. After the taunt wore off, the Dark Knight got a brief moment of freedom to act. He could attempt to roll away, but he chose to do nothing. [Well, it''s over for him either way. It just makes things easier for us.]


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºFIRST BLOOD!¡»


    Nia delivered the final blow. The girl liked scoring kills, so Yuel let her have this one. Besides, her gank was what enabled this play and she dealt most of the damage to the Dark Knight. Yuel just tagged along to help things go smoother.


    "I-I did it!" Nia trembled.


    "Woohoo!" Lars made noise. "Nice kill, dude! We''re rockin'' this!"


    "Marvelous!" Vincent hyperventilated. "As expected from the Vanishing Phantom! Silent, but deadly!"


    "It''s Vanishing Flower, though..." Nia mumbled. Her cheeks felt a little hot. [I-I just scored a kill! W-Well, it''s not such a big deal, right? I mean, I get kills all the time. So, why does it feel so... gufufufu!]


    Her heart raced and her body shook like she was having a spasm. It was just one kill, she scored plenty of those before. Yet, it felt like her first time all over again. That satisfying feeling of sneaking up to an unsuspecting opponent and striking them down before they realize what happened. It was the first time she pulled it off on such a grand stage, against a strong competitive opponent!


    [Maybe I can do it after all.] Nia clenched her mouse. [Maybe I can play competitively too!]


    "Good job," Kai congratulated briefly, then returned to the game.


    "Nicely done." Even Yuel, the bully who only ever had mean things to say, was praising Nia for this achievement. It felt great!


    Then, what about the audience? They must have all seen that flawless display of skill! They must be thinking Nia was some sort of genius, huehue.


    "Lame kill." Julia crossed her arms. "Is that DK blind or something? That gank was so obvious."


    "Hmm. Was it, really?" Pip scribbled in his notebook. He drew an ellipse, a rough illustration of the game''s mini-map. Then, he added some jungle walls in the form of thick lines. Finally, he drew a line from Mid to Top through the jungle.


    "I believe her rotation to Top looked something like this?" Pip showed the path to Julia.


    "Something like that," Julia couldn''t tell for sure. She was too busy watching the laners fight at the time. Especially, Lars. Why was he playing in Mid? And, why wasn''t he mopping the floor with that Nirvana guy? Just, why...?


    "That''s roughly how the Ninja rotated to Top," Pip continued. "But, Taurus only got wards here, here, and over here. So, she slipped by most of them undetected. The last ward would''ve caught her, but she was already in stealth at the time. I think that''s why the Dark Knight didn''t see it coming."


    "Huh," Julia carefully examined Pip''s scribbling. The sense of art left much to be desired, but at least it got the point across.


    [That girl sure chose an odd route.] Julia thought. Instead of heading straight to Top like a good Jungler would, the Ninja took a detour that passed through allied territory. It was a huge waste of time.


    Nevertheless, it was thanks to this peculiar route that the Ninja avoided all enemy wards. By eluding the enemy''s eyes, she secured herself a kill. It made up for the time she spent on her roundabout rotation route.


    "It''s probably a fluke," Julia concluded. "Maybe she was going for one of the camps and only then realized she should go gank."


    "But, the camps over there were on cooldown," Pip pointed out.


    "Well, this team isn''t exactly the sharpest tool in the shed, remember? Besides, the wraiths have already spawned, so maybe she was planning to wait for them. As a Jungler, it''s a pain to always run around like a headless chicken. Sometimes, it''s easier to stop for a while and wait a few seconds for a camp to respawn."


    "Yes, you''re absolutely right, ma''am!" Pip saluted, seemingly impressed with Julia''s words of wisdom.


    [Whatever it was, she wouldn''t have gotten past my warding.] Julia glared at the Ninja on the screen. That black-haired Rapunzel didn''t stand a chance against Julia. [I hope Lars isn''t thinking that girl is any good, because I''m way better.]


    Meanwhile, in Taurus''s camp...


    "Hey, Zephy!" Bruce thundered. "The hell was that shit, huh? Did you just let some chick beat ya?"


    "Not my fault," Zeph glanced aside. "She appeared outta nowhere and it became a 1v2."


    "Should''ve bought Stealth Wards, idiot."


    "With what money, exactly? I got enough now, but at game start? It''s either one Stealth Ward or two normal Wards."


    "Should''ve made the right call, fam," Bruce shrugged. "Also, I see you barely made any progress on lane. The fuck, man? How can you get that little tower damage with DK? You''re playing the class with the highest early damage, but you''re hitting like a lil'' bitch."


    "I told you DK isn''t exactly my best class," Zeph ranted. "Besides, this Knight player... He''s pretty good."


    "He''s [what]?" Bruce spat a laugh. "Hold up right there, man. Do you even remember what team we''re playing again? It''s Stratus, ya know? The weakest team, remember? It ain''t got any good players. Even their captain is a chick because all of them are damn cucks."


    "I was surprised too, but that bastard is really good. He countered a lot of my stuff."


    "Spare me yo excuses. You fucked up, just admit it."


    "Sure, whatever," Zeph sighed. There was no changing Bruce''s mind anyway. But, that didn''t mean Zeph will go down without throwing any dirt back. "Okay, then they''re all scrubs, right? So, where are your kills at? And, your amazing lane advantage? I don''t see shit."


    "Huh?" Bruce''s face contorted.


    "C''mon, it should be easy for you to win the lane against these ''scrubs'', right?"


    "Yeah, these guys are nothing," Bruce claimed with a straight face. "I''m just taking my time with them. Playing with my food, ya dig?"


    "Sure," Zeph rolled his eyes. Thankfully, Bruce didn''t see that gesture because he was too concentrated on the game. The situation in Bot was far from hot. So much for stomping some "scrubs".


    [I have a feeling he gonna eat his words soon.] Zeph thought. The enemy Impaler seemed like a fairly strong player, possibly on par with Chessmaster. She was apparently the team''s cap. Zeph and the rest laughed at how Stratus was run by a girl, but this damn chick packed a punch.


    [We called these guys trash, but look how we faring against them.] Zeph thoroughly examined the status screen and the mini-map. He has already purchased everything he needed from the shop, so he didn''t have anything better to do while waiting to respawn. Might as well kill some time looking at the numbers.


    In Top, Zeph died and gave the enemy a great opportunity to push. The Knight and Ninja joined forces and rushed Zeph''s tower. They brought it down to 70%, then scrammed before they got their asses ganked.


    [Shit, my tower got lower health now.] Zeph clicked his tongue. He has been working so hard to establish lane advantage, yet the enemy overthrew it in a single push. Such bullshit. Top Lane was done for.


    Next, in Mid, the enemy had some random dude named Gunz. He was fighting Taurus'' captain, the big boi Raymond. They were actively firing back and forth, but neither side established a clear advantage. In short, it was a stalemate.


    [These guys actually got someone who can give Ray a run for his money?] Zeph couldn''t believe it. Raymond was the best player in the club, no question about it. He was more dedicated to the game than any other senior, so he was supposed to be the team''s powerhouse, the unstoppable force that''d propel the team to the top.


    Yet, Raymond was struggling against somebody from a lowly team like Stratus. The heck was going on here? Was this some sorta bad dream? Was Zeph still sleeping or something? Nope, this was real life.


    [Is it just me, or Stratus is looking kinda strong right now? Where the heck did they get all these good players?] Zeph couldn''t wrap his head around this. Was their enemy really that good? Or, maybe the fault laid with Taurus. Maybe this year they were straight trash.


    [Nah, no way.] Zeph dismissed the thought. [It''s the guys from Stratus playing way better than they should be allowed to.]


    Anyway, to summarize, the enemy gained an advantage in Top and enforced a stalemate in Mid. So, the course of this game depended on the result in Bot. Will Bruce prove he''s a man and crush that captain chick? Or, will he eat his own words and get his ass whooped?


    Either way, Zeph will get a good laugh outta it.

 208 Kais Vendetta

    [That bastard said he was playing Carry, right?] Kai glared at the Pirate. [TheLegend, huh. Yeah, the name checks out. I''ll make sure he''ll become one hell of a legend by the time I''m done with him. It gonna be a legend about the greatest loser that ever lived.]


    Just thinking back about their brief exchange was enough to rile her up. Who the hell that scumbag thought he was!? He knew nothing about Kai, yet he disregarded her as trash just for being a girl. Boys like that were the worst kind of filth. SHE''LL MURDER HIS ASS!


    "Whoa, Beat," Vincent called out. "Where are you going? That''s dangerous."


    "Just shut up and support me," Kai advanced toward the frontline instead of clearing the minions. She was going to get an early start on that bastard and reap him apart!


    "W-Wait!" Vincent hurried after her. It all happened so suddenly, that he found himself too far away for providing proper support.


    [Not good. Her Pheromone Buster is acting up!] Vincent''s forehead began sweating. Kai''s unstoppable aggression might lead to an early kill, but it''ll more likely lead to her own death instead. [I have to do something about it! But, what?]


    "Heh, the hell?" Bruce sneered. "She''s coming at me herself? Is she asking to die or somethin''? Haha."


    The next moment, without any warning, something appeared behind him. He couldn''t see it, but he knew that metallic sound. It was an Iron Maiden!


    "Oh crap!" Bruce rolled aside by instinct. He fought enough Impalers to know what was coming next.


    "Shit," Kai cursed as she fired her spear. It was going to whiff, she could already tell. The enemy rolled aside the moment she started the throw animation. Damn it! The only good news was that the Pirate didn''t roll toward Kai. A close-quarters fight against a Pirate would''ve become an issue. Still, this was far from a favorable development.


    "Hah! Get cucked!" Bruce grinned as if he just won the lottery. "You saw that shit? Dodging on reaction like a pro!"


    "Yeah, sick," Bryan, the Support, gave his approval. "Though, you could''ve rolled at her and fought at close range. That way, you would''ve ended her whole career."


    "Huh, I guess I could do that. But hey, ain''t it amazing I can dodge on reaction like that? Ya gotta be a pro to roll like that!"


    "Yeah, of course," Bryan agreed reluctantly. He had to agree, for he knew what''d happen if he didn''t. "So, what we do we do next?"


    "Gonna get some revenge, obviously!" Bruce turned his back to the enemy and activated Backfire Cannon. BAM! He closed the distance to the Impaler in an instant!


    Bryan gave chase because he had no choice. He had to do what he could to prevent Bruce from dying. Well, not like there should be anything to worry about. Bruce could definitely hold his own against some chick who pretended to play games.


    "Haha, die, bitch!" Bruce drew out his cutlass and slashed at the Impaler from point-blank!


    [Damn, I can''t get away in time...!] Kai started backpedaling as soon as she saw the startup for Backfire Cannon, but she wasn''t fast enough. At this point, there was no choice but to roll away to create some distance.


    "Shit!" Bruce whiffed the attack. "Come here, you pussy!"


    The insult must''ve reached the enemy somehow, because she immediately turned around and hurled a spear at him!


    "Whoa! Damn!" Bruce jumped. Where did that shit come from!? He was sure the girl will keep running away like the pussy she was. This wasn''t in the plans! Fuuuuu!


    The spear impaled his shoulder. Damn, no way. That bitch actually landed the first hit on him! This shit ain''t gonna stand!


    "You wanna fight, eh? Eh!?" Bruce switched back to his pistol and fired. He gonna teach that bitch what it meant to mess with TheLegend!


    Bam! Clean hit! Smacked that bitch right in the chest.


    Whish! Another spear came flying at him right then!


    "Fu-!" The moment his brain figured he gotta dodge, it was already too late. The spear pierced his left arm.


    "Oh, yeah? That''s how it gonna be, eh!?" Bruce''s face contorted. "Two can play this game!"


    He fired back as soon as he recovered from the animation of the previous shot. Bam! Another hit, square in the stomach!


    Whish! Another spear back at him!


    [Fuck! Take this!]


    Bam! Whish! Bam! Whish!


    [They''re like mad dogs.] Vincent shuddered. It was wild. The two madmen barely moved around. Only their hands were busy, launching one attack after another without rest.


    There was no tactic and no elegance in this exchange of blows. They merely unleashed their anger at each other. It was an unsightly, low-level duel.


    [Is this the level you want to play on?] Vincent felt sad. Nevertheless, if things keep going like this, Kai should be able to win.


    Impaler''s early-game was strong thanks to its passive, Deep Wounds. It made Impaler''s basic attacks reduce the target''s Physical Defense by a flat amount, allowing the Impaler to deal higher damage over time by stacking these debuffs. So, in an ongoing exchange of blows, Kai should be able to overtake a Pirate at this early stage of the game.


    [Indeed, you might overtake this foe. But, only thanks to some numbers.] Vincent thought. [It won''t prove anything about your skill as a player. Is that what you want?]


    This was all the fault of that accursed Pheromone Buster ability that possessed her. It poisoned her mind and made her forget her elegant combat technique, her almighty Rhythm Reader.


    Of course, the enemy also deserved some credit here. It was TheLegend''s Fury Inducer ability that wrapped Beat''s mind. Intentionally or not, the guy was a natural at fueling his opponents'' anger. This talent was definitely a double-edged sword, but this time it worked in the enemy''s favor.


    Beat always had impaired judgment when she entered this moody mode. But, the Fury Inducer pushed her a step further, turning her into nothing more than a beast who only knew how to recklessly attack.


    Still, with all said and done, Beat was going to take the fight at this rate. Unfortunately, the situation wasn''t so simple. As the two mad dogs clashed, they drew the interest of nearby minions. The little soldiers won''t let this stand. Each side sought revenge for their captain.


    If the minions join the fray, this fight will most certainly end in a double KO. The power advantage Kai had will be overwritten by the extra damage from minions. That''s how scary the soldiers were during the early game.


    [And, as it happens, my clearing speed is too slow to do anything about this.] Vincent advanced to the front and unleashed Icicle Rain on the enemy minions, but that barely bothered them. The enemy army had every intention to keep hunting Kai down.


    [If I at least had Cryo-Freeze...] Alas, the game has just started. Vincent was only Lv.2, so there was no hope of using his ult. The only other spell he had was Ice Wall, but it won''t stall the enemy enough.


    [So, what do I do?] A shiver ran across his skin.


    This was this team''s first competitive match, the first time they set foot upon a grand stage like this. They had to prove their worth, here and now. It was imperative for them to start this on the right foot. If they mess up so early, they might lose morale for the rest of the day! It''ll be doomsday! The Armageddon! The SUPER DUPER BIG FAIL apocalypse!


    [So, what do I do!? I have to keep her alive somehow!] If only he knew ahead of time that Kai will aggress like this, then he would have leveled his Ice Coffin instead of Ice Wall. Normally, it was less useful at the very start of the game, so he left it for Lv.3. But, for this heated early battle, Ice Coffin would have been a game-changer.


    Alas, as always, the solo conductor told Vincent nothing about her plans. The team helped her calm down before the game and that therapy should''ve worked. But, as soon as the game started, this situation happened. Blast it all!


    [Yo, these minions are bad news.] Bryan calmly analyzed the situation. While Bruce was locked in a hectic fight with that Impaler chick, the minions were making their way into the fray. At this rate, the two aggressive dumbasses gonna get their asses whooped by the minions, haha!


    Jokes aside, this was bad. Bruce was playing dumb right now, but he gonna blame Bryan if something happens. That''s how shit always went. The Carry always blamed the Support for stuff.


    Seriously, this role was the worst. Bryan only played this shit because it was the only spot left on the team. Nobody wanted to touch this garbage, so Bryan volunteered. Or, rather, was pretty much forced to volunteer for it, since that''s what Bruce always made him play anyway.


    [Is it too late to change roles?] Bryan smiled wryly. Welp, what''s done was done. He just had to keep doing what he always did. Meaning, keeping Bruce happy. Or, else...


    [I''d clear these minions if I had the attack power for it.] Bryan sighed. [This damn role, I''m tellin'' ya. It''s always so weak and crap. How do people main Support? They gotta be legit insane.]


    Still, a man gotta do what a man gotta do. Bryan signed up for this shit, so he gotta see it through.


    The top priority was to keep Bruce alive. More than anything, Bruce hated dying, that''s something Bryan learned after years of experience. So, no matter what had to be done, even if Bryan had to put his own neck on the line, he had to make sure Bruce walks outta this alive.


    [Guess I gotta do one of ''em suicide moves, heh.] Bryan smiled wryly. Seriously, sometimes this role was the worst. But, he has been telling that himself for over two years now, so it became the norm. Sigh. [Here goes nothing!]


    Bryan activated Flash and blinked forward, right into enemy territory.


    "Wha-!?" Vincent couldn''t process the information in front of him. The Lumimancer? What was he doing all the way over here!? What was the plan? How should Vincent respond?


    "What''s up, fam?" Bryan fired a ball of light at the Cryomancer, then rolled the heck outta there.


    "Wha...?" Vincent blinked. The Lumimancer left as abruptly as he arrived. What was the big idea here? Did he come here just to shoot one basic attack at Vincent?


    [Oh, he came to aggro the minions!] It finally hit him when all allied minions started focusing their fire on the Lumimancer. That Lumimancer blinked in just to get a hit on Vincent and grab the minions'' attention! The minions prioritized nearby offenders first, so they forgot all about the Pirate and focused on the Lumimancer first.


    [What a bizarre play! He must have practiced this art for years to master it!]


    [Now, just to pray I don''t die from this shit.] Bryan chuckled nervously. One time out of five, this sort of self-sacrificial play would lead to his doom. It better not be one of those...


    All enemy minions focused their fire on Bryan because he was the closest offender. They forgot all about Bruce and chased Bryan instead. In that sense, the play was a success. It increased Bruce''s chances of winning the duel, without Bryan having to directly butt into it. Most importantly, it boosted Bruce''s chances of survival. Compared to that, Bryan''s survival could be damned.


    [This is a disaster...!] Vincent sweated bullets. With the Lumiancer distracting all allied minions, only the enemy minions were free to assault the duelists. In other words, Kai was in a pinch! At this rate, her demise was inevitable!


    [Wait, perhaps I could try this aggro trick too. I only need to intercept the minions and hit one of our foes.] Vincent looked around. [Not good. I won''t make it in time. They''re all too far away! An entire eternity stands between us!]


    It was hopeless! A disaster! The end of the world! There was no escaping from this Ragnarok!


    [But, I can''t Kai die here! What do I do!?] Vincent''s heart pounded. With each beat, the little villains took one step close toward Kai. They were almost there...!


    Vincent''s eye naturally laid on his kit. Oh, right! The Ice Wall! He still hasn''t used it. That was the solution!


    [I just need to build a wall!] Vincent carefully aimed at the Ice Wall. His hand was shaking. He felt drops of sweat dripping down his forehead. It was like Mission Improbable. He was the only one who could salvage the situation. Failure to do so meant Game Over.


    [T-There!] Vincent placed the wall. Alas, it appeared far from where he intended to place it. [B-Blasphemy! The devil must have struck my hand right before I clicked!]


    Instead of creating a divider between Kai and her foes, the clumsily-placed Ice Wall only stood between Kai and TheLegend. It didn''t stop, let alone slow, the incoming minions. The army was still marching!


    "Wha-!?" Kai jumped when her spear crashed into an ice wall and fell on the ground. "Hey! What''s that for!?"


    "Ah, err, yeah, about that..." Words refused to roll on Vincent''s tongue for some reason. Whoopsie-daisy. He messed up big time.


    Nay! This was no time to cry over spilled milk. He had to warn Kai before it was too late!


    "The minions! They''re coming!"


    "Huh? So what? Our minions are coming too... oh." Kai realized that something was off. For some reason, instead of targeting the Pirate, her minions were heading in the opposite direction. They won''t be providing her with backup any time soon.


    "Got it," Kai turned around and dashed from the area.


    "Bitch, you running away?" Bruce sneered. "Yeah, run back to mama, girl." He circled around the ice wall and gave chase, but soon gave up. That scaredy-cat was already at her Turret. Lame shit.


    "Hey B," Bruce called out. "Whatcha doing over there? You should''ve landed me a hand to finish off that bitch. And, when the hell did you lose so much HP? C''mon, man. Focus."


    "I was luring the minions away from you," Bryan made a face.


    "Oh, that''s cool. Thanks, champ."


    "You''re welcome."


    "But damn, I lost tons of HP," Bruce realized that obvious fact just now. "Let''s scram."


    "Already on it."


    The two retreated from the area.


    "Heh, this whole thing turned out kinda lame, but we got this shit," Bruce reassured. "That chick ain''t nothin''. I can mop the floor with her with my eyes closed."


    "Yeah, you gonna kick that ass next time," Bryan nodded. "She seems basic as fuck. We just gotta be ready for the next time she charges in like a Bronze player. Then, we gonna whoop her ez."


    "Yeah, exactly. You know it."


    The first clash in Bot concluded on this note. Even though both sides lost a lot of HP, Bruce and Bryan were confident that, next time, they''ll win no problem. That Impaler just caught them a little off guard this time, that''s all. They''ll be ready for her Bronze-ass plays next time. That chick was dead meat!

 209 Calming Down

    "Damn, I was so close," Kai cursed through her teeth. "If your stupid wall didn''t get in the way, I would''ve killed him."


    "Then, his minions would''ve killed you."


    "Hmph, who knows. I could''ve gotten away."


    "I find that hard to believe," Vincent insisted. "You were so focused on the fight that you didn''t see anything around you. It''s like you were locked inside a Reality Marble."


    "No idea what''s that, but yeah, I got a little one-tracked there," Kai frowned. Thinking about it, she should''ve taken the minions into consideration even before she delivered the first attack. But, murderous thoughts raged in her mind and clouded her judgment.


    "Yet again, the Pheromone Buster possessed you," Vincent shook his head. "You let the anger control you. That leads to the Dark Side, young Padawan."


    "Oh, shush already," Kai threw him a look. She finished clearing the minion wave and began recalling. "I''m going back to heal."


    "I hope you''ll also use this time to cool down."


    "I''m calm."


    "Indeed, as calm as a raging tornado that spins at the speed of light."


    "What does that even... Eh, forget it," Kai sighed. "I''m calm. I just felt like playing a little aggressive this time, that''s all. I knew that bastard is all bark and no bite. I had to put him in his place."


    "And, you didn''t deem it important to inform your Support about any of this?"


    "Ah, that''s..." Kai didn''t have a rebuttal this time.


    "With all due respect," Vincent started. "The way you played reminds me of one young and inexperienced troublemaker. She had a short-fuse and never cooperated with her teammates, always carrying everything on her own shoulders. I had the distinct impression that said troublemaker grew past such problems, but it appears I was gravely mistaken."


    "Do you have to talk like some pretentious poet?" Kai clicked her tongue. In truth, Vincent''s words merely echoed the same exact thoughts Kai has been wrestling with.


    Honestly? It was dumb of her to charge in like that as soon as the game started. She did have an early-game advantage, but that wasn''t the right way to use it. An advantage should be used for crushing the opposition, not for suiciding on them and getting a double KO.


    She could''ve cooperated with Vincent to increase the chances of securing a kill, but she didn''t. Why? Because it was her fight. That chauvinist Pirate called her names, so Kai had to beat that bastard to a pulp with her own two hands.


    Or, did she, really? What was the point? Aside from achieving a small vendetta, that sort of solo play had no value. Frankly, it was plain dumb.


    She thought she overcame this problem by now. Nowadays, she rarely got mad playing Ranked, even though most of her teammates were boys. These guys were alright. They all treated her as a serious player despite being a girl, so she started believing that boys were alright.


    But, all it took was meeting one bastard. Everything came down crashing the moment she ran into TheLegend. Kai snapped at that bastard before she even realized she was getting mad. Naturally, the pressure of standing on a big stage didn''t do her any favors either.


    For a moment there, Kai felt she was alone against the entire world. All the encouragement that Lars and the others gave her vanished without a trace the moment the game started. Anxiety took the reins.


    Was she really stronger than TheLegend? Could she topple him in a fight? No matter how much Lars praised her skill, words were just words. Kai had to support them with actions. That''s why she recklessly charged in the way she did. She was like a moth drawn to fire. That play was dumb beyond redemption.


    She wasn''t alone in this fight. Vincent was right by her side, supporting her. Nia, Lars, and Yuel were here too. Kai had dependable teammates who believed in her mettle and fought alongside her. And yet, she was distracted by something petty like taking revenge on some scumbag. She was risking the team''s chances of victory for nothing.


    [Alright, enough being stupid.] Kai took a deep breath. She''ll definitely make TheLegend pay for his insults, but she''ll do it properly. There was no need to rush things. She had time. Establishing lane advantage came first.


    "Sorry..." Kai mumbled.


    "Oh? What was that? I didn''t quite catch it," Vincent pretended stretching an ear toward her, even though he was wearing headphones. "Did the stubborn amazon just grace me with an honest apology?"


    "Are you asking to be punched or what?" Kai shot him a glare. "Besides, what''s the deal with you? That Ice Wall placement was terrible. What were you even trying to achieve?"


    "Oh, about that..."


    "Also, what took you so long? You should''ve placed the wall as soon as you realized things were heading toward a double KO."


    "Yes, about that..." Vincent shifted his eyes from side to side. "Welp, let''s just say that a higher force made me stay my hand until the right moment. God works in mysterious ways."


    "Mysterious my ass. Not only he slowed you down, but he also made you misplay. That ''God'' of yours sounds like a real dumbass. I''d like a word with him."


    "Haha, I''ll try calling him."


    "No need. I know exactly where he is. RIGHT. HERE." Kai slammed Vincent''s knee thigh!


    "Ouch! What the-!?" Vincent jumped. "I''m calling violence!"


    "You''ve been drilling a hole in the floor with all that stomping. Your leg just won''t stop shaking."


    "What are you saying? My leg is perfectly... relaxed..." Vincent fell silent. His leg started jumping up and down in the middle of the sentence.


    "You''re still nervous, huh."


    "A-Am not!" Vincent cleared his throat and forced his leg to stay still by force. "See? The Shaking Leg Syndrome has been successfully neutralized!"


    "No need to bluff. We''re all nervous in here."


    "No, no, no. I''m perfectly fine! The Arbiter of Talents doesn''t even have the word ''nervous'' in his dictionary!"


    "Better study it up then," Kai smiled wryly. [So, even this loudmouth can get nervous. Well, of course he can. He''s just good at bluffing with all the noise he makes.]


    Unlike Kai and Nia, who exhibited clear signs of nervousness, Vincent hid his nerves pretty well. Nobody noticed he was secretly wrestling with the pressure, not even Kai.


    [I should have figured it out sooner.] Kai thought. Today was the first competitive match for Vincent as well, so of course the guy will be nervous. In fact, he dialed down his loudness ever since they set foot on stage. It was easy to ignore that fact because it didn''t bother anybody, but in retrospect, it was odd. Why would the ever loud actor be silent now, of all times? Nerves, what else.


    "Anyway, calm down," Kai said. "It''s just a match."


    "Well, at the very least, I believe I''m calmer than a certain amazon who jumped the gun and nearly suicided on the enemy."


    "That was dumb, I admit," Kai nodded. "I''m over it already. Thanks for saving my ass back there."


    "Oh, it was nothing," Vincent bowed lightly. "The glorious knight is always here to help those in need."


    [He already looks better.] Kai nodded to herself. She was always the first person to make fun of Vincent about every little thing, but now wasn''t the time to poke at him. Even if it meant cracking her tough persona, she felt it was neccessary to treat Vincent a little nicer today.


    After all, in the past two years, Vincent was the only boy in the club who openly treated her as a serious player. The seniors looked down on her for being a girl and Luke parroted their stupid jokes. He didn''t harbor any ill will toward Kai, he was just trying to fit in with the rest. But, was any of it pleasant for Kai to bear? No, far from it. At the time, Kai hated the guy''s guts. And, to this day, she hasn''t fully forgiven him.


    Similarly, Ben lacked any backbone whatsoever. If any senior pressured him enough, he''d cave in and nod in agreement on any insults Kai received. He didn''t mean any of it and always came to apologize afterward, but that only made things more infuriating. Like, he was a boy, yet he was acting like a total submissive weakling. Pathetic, He was technically on Kai''s side, but his support was never felt.


    Vincent was the only one who stood up to Kai, loudly and confidently. Time and again, he claimed she had this amazing "Rhythm Reader" skill. He always volunteered to play with Kai, even when the rest were hosting a "boys only" party in Ranked.


    It was embarrassing to admit, but the reason Kai pulled through all that mistreatment and stayed in the club - it was all thanks to Vincent''s support. If not for that one goofy guy, Kai would''ve flipped a table and stormed outta that shithole a long time ago. So, as much as she enjoyed jabbing the guy and talking smack about him, she was genuinely grateful to him. Of course, she''ll never admit any of that to his face.


    To Kai, Vincent always came across as an immovable force who pushed through any problem with his weirdness. Nothing could ever bring him down. He was always upbeat and loud. That''s the kind of invincible weirdo he was.


    But no, Vincent was just human, just a teen like everybody else. When it hurt, he felt pain. When something bad happened, he felt sad. When it was his first scrimmage on a big stage, he felt nervous.


    This time, it was Kai''s turn to help him. She overcame the pressure by letting off some steam, but Vincent was still stuck in that mud. So, Kai had to pull that idiot out. That''s the least she could do for him right now.


    "Let''s take it slow for a while," Kai suggested. "I won''t charge in. We''ll focus on slow and steady farming, just the way you like it."


    "That''ll be much appreciated," Vincent smiled. [Phew, looks like I won''t have to worry about any stressful situations for a while. Praise be to the ancient gods.]


    With that, Kai and Vincent calmed down a little. However, the battle was still in its infancy. Will they maintain their composure to the very end and defeat their opponents in the next clash...?

 210 Baby Steps of Cooperation

    [Good, good.] Vincent nodded in approval. He liked slow starts like this. They gave him time to gather as much information as possible about his opponents. Once enough data is absorbed into his Information Blackhole, he shall pass his verdict as the Arbiter of Talents!


    "What the hell?" Bruce ranted. "You ain''t coming at me? Where did ya fighting spirit go??"


    "Maybe she''s scared," Bryan snickered. "She fought you once and that put her in her place."


    "Haha, probably. She gotta be quaking in her boots right now. Fear the Legend, bitch!"


    "This plays in our favor," Bryan explained. "Impaler is stronger in the early-game, but Pirate gonna own it during mid-game. You just gotta farm slow and steady, then you''ll win no problem."


    "C''mon, what''s with that weak ass attitude?" Bruce sneered. "You saying we gonna kick back and farm 24/7 till mid-game? No way, man. We go hard or we go home!"


    "You want to attack?"


    "Of course! That bitch started it, so I ain''t a man if I don''t finish this. I gonna teach her a lesson she never forgets!"


    "But, you can''t compete with her damage yet," Bryan reminded.


    "Pft, you think I need that shit?" Bruce snorted. "I''mma mop the floor with her even with this handicap, just watch."


    "You sure sound confident," Bryan smiled wryly. [There''s no stopping him, is there? Sigh.] "Okay, I''ll help you out."


    "Just keep their Cryo out of the way. I wanna rek that girl with my own two hands."


    "Sure," Bryan nodded. There was no talking Bruce outta this. Once the guy set his mind on something, there was no stopping him. That''s the reason he was the leader of the gang, but it was also one of his greatest weaknesses as a player. Oh well.


    Truth to be told, Bryan wanted to draw some blood too. Stratus was a crappy team, everybody knew that. So, Taurus better smash these guys like bugs. They gotta assert total dominance today. Fortunately, the enemy Carry was some Bronze level hot-head. This gonna be easy.


    That chick got the surprise element on her side last time, but it won''t happen again. This time, Bruce and Bryan will be the ones to open the attack! As soon as they finished clearing the minions, Bryan activated Blinding Light and blinked in using Flash.


    "Let''s go, let''s go, let''s goooooo!" Bruce turned his back to the enemy and fired Backfire Cannon, propelling himself into enemy territory!


    "They''re coming!" Kai rolled aside, in an attempt to dodge the glowing Lumimancer that appeared in front of her. Fortunately, she was fast enough to cast her gaze away from the blinding light. However, the explosion of light still grazed her and dealt minor damage.


    "Die, bitch!" Bruce was the next to show up. Backfire Cannon sent him flying close enough to reach his target with his cutlass. So, he drew his sword and slashed that rolling ass. The chick didn''t get any time to dodge this shit! She couldn''t even see it coming!


    [He switched to his sword.] Kai heard the sword being drawn. It was a distinct sound she was familiar with by now after facing countless Pirates online. So, a slash was coming.


    But, could she dodge the attack? Probably not. Still, this was a great opportunity to launch a counter-attack! She was guaranteed to hit him from this range while he was locked in the recovery animation. She could impale his cocky ass!


    [Ah, but I used my Iron Maiden on the minions.] Kai pursed her lips. To make the most of Impale, she had to shove the guy into some wall. But, she couldn''t create one right now...


    [No, wait! There''s Vince!] It struck her. The guy picked Cryomancer for this very purpose! Kai didn''t have to rely only on herself for creating opportunities, she could ask her Support to lend a hand as well.


    "Vince, make a wall behind him!" Kai barked as she turned around, spear in the ready. She didn''t have time to wait for a reply. She had to fire back, right here and now! There was no choice but to trust Vincent on this one.


    Yuel lectured Kai time and again about cooperating with the Support. He went on and on about how important it was to make use of the Support''s resources and share the burden. After drilling Kai''s brain with this info on a daily basis, she started getting used to it, little by little.


    Vincent seemed to welcome that change with open arms. He was always ready to help her out as much as he could. Therefore, a simple play, like Ice Wall + Impale, was something they''ve coordinated countless times since then. And, they''ll nail it again!


    Kai fired her spear without a moment''s hesitation. Even though she couldn''t even confirm that Vincent properly cast Ice Wall, she launched her spear. She trusted Vincent to do his part. It was blind trust, something that was alien to her a few months ago. But, through practice and experience, she finally realized it was possible to trust teammates in such a manner. It was a blind trust, but a well-founded one at the same time.


    Everything turned out exactly as she imagined. An ice wall appeared behind the Pirate and her spear shoved the bastard into the wall, stunning the hell outta him.


    [How you like that, huh!?] Kai threw another spear at the stunned target. [I''m SO going to kill you!]


    "Fuck! What the-!?" Bruce couldn''t believe what just happened. In a split of a second, that bitch turned around and hurled a spear at him. And, that shit shoved him into a wall. Yeah, a wall... that didn''t even exist there a moment ago! WTF!?!?


    "Let''s retreat," Bryan was already on his way back.


    "Huh? The hell!? You want us to run? From some chick!?"


    "They countered our play. We gotta regroup."


    "Tch, fine," Bruce also turned around. But, not before firing one more bullet at that damn bitch!


    [You wanna go? Let''s go!] Kai sidestepped the bullet and hurled another spear at the bastard.


    "Shit!" Bruce rolled aside to dodge, but the stupid roll came out late. "Can''t you move faster, you fat fucker!? What''s with these lags!? Damn it all!" He cursed at his own Pirate.


    "Hey, man," Bryan called out. "Don''t let the tilt get to you."


    "Huh? What tilt? You think some scrubby chick can tilt me?"


    "It''s because ya think she''s ''scrubby'' that she tilts ya," Bryan explained. "Looks like she ain''t as bad as you thought. Just gotta accept that and move on."


    "Pft, yeah, right. She just got lucky, that''s all."


    "Lucky, you say..." Bryan smiled wryly. No matter how he looked at that shit, it looked nothing like luck. That girl came across as a brainless aggressive scrub at first, but this time she was calm and efficient.


    First, that timely dodge against Bryan''s Flash + Blinding Light. Then, that swift counter on Bruce. Bitch shoved the poor guy into an ice wall that appeared like a split second before he rammed into it. Shit was wild.


    [So, yeah. Luck? I don''t think so.] Bryan shook his head. That girl had at least some skill, that''s for sure. Bryan didn''t want to give the chick any undeserved credit either, but he had to face the facts here. And, Bruce should do so too.


    "Nah, it''s all dumb luck, I''m tellin'' ya," Bruce insisted. "Next time, just gotta attack faster so you catch that bitch with yo spell. Got it?"


    "Sure," Bryan nodded. [Well, maybe I''m really overthinking this shit a little.]


    With all said and done, that chick played like a textbook Bronze player in their first fight. Maybe she just had a lucky dodge at the start of the fight, so it threw Bryan and Bruce off. Yeah, that''s probably it. That chick was trash. The next time they attack, they''ll mop the floor with that wannabe-player!


    "Nice Ice Wall," Kai said.


    "But, of course!" Vincent made noise. "Our very special ''Impale the Ice'' strategy has no weaknesses!"


    ["Special"? Impale + Ice Wall is like the 101 of combo plays in the game.] Kai made a face but didn''t say anything. It was a joyous moment, so Vincent was free to goof around this once.


    "Looks like you calmed down," Kai noted.


    "Yes, but of course! I''ve been calm from the moment I was born! I''m tranquility incarnate."


    "Yeah, yeah," Kai rolled her eyes. [Looks like we''re both good now. We''re ready to play these guys for real. Next time, we gonna mop the floor with their ugly faces! We''re getting that First Blood-]


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    ¡ºFIRST BLOOD!¡»


    "Huh?" Kai blinked. Was it Lars? Or, Yuel? No, it was... Nia!?


    "Woohoo!" Lars made noise. "Nice kill, dude! We''re rockin'' this!"


    "Marvelous!" Vincent hyperventilated. "As expected from the Vanishing Phantom! Silent, but deadly!"


    Everybody showered Nia with praise. It was the team''s first kill on the competitive stage. The first kill of the first scrimmage. It was a huge deal. It definitely gave Kai an adrenaline boost, making her feel even more confident that she gonna wreck all these bastards! But...


    [I should''ve been the one to score First Blood.] Kai pouted. She was the captain, so it was her job to keep morale high. Not to mention, she had a point to prove against all these bastards who looked down on her, so scoring First Blood would''ve been the perfect revenge against them.


    [Oh well. As long as the team is doing well. That''s what counts.] Kai smiled wryly and hurried to congratulate Nia as well. "Good job."


    Nia happened to be the one who ignited the team''s momentum, but it was up to everybody to keep this momentum going. So, Kai didn''t lose her opportunity to prove herself worthy of being the captain. She''ll tear TheLegend apart and increase the team''s momentum tenfold!


    "Play more aggressively from now on," Kai requested. "Try to get their Lumi out of lane so I can 1-on-1 the Pirate."


    "Are you back to the Dark Side?" Vincent asked. "I thought we agreed it was a bad idea."


    "Don''t worry, I''m calm now. I''m tranquility incarnate."


    "Yeah, right," Vincent pressed doubt on that one.


    "Just lemme 1v1 that guy and I''ll prove it to you. I''ve got a good grasp of what makes him tick. He''s trash."


    "Oh! So, your Rhythm Reader finished analyzing the targets?"


    "Um, yeah, that. Exactly."


    "Alrighty, then it means all preparations are set!" Vincent announced loudly. "We shall smite these evildoers with the power of rhythm deduction!"


    "No idea what you''re smoking, but sure, let''s roll with that."


    It was time to strike back at these bastards and score another kill for the team!

 211 Trust and Kill

    Instead of staying in the back all the time, he advanced to the frontline every now and then. Being a Cryomancer, that was enough to threaten the enemy. They wanted nothing to do with his Ice Coffin.


    This basic intimidation tactic worked surprisingly well. The enemy respected his Ice Coffin and backed away, making it harder for themselves to farm efficiently. It allowed Kai to easily outclear the Pirate and start an aggressive push. The enemy had no choice but to retreat to their Turret and clear the wave from there.


    After going through this routine three times in a row, enough was enough. The enemy decided to make their move.


    "Hey, fucker," Bruce approached the intruder. "Ya think you can just come here and invade our turf like that? I''mma kick yo- Gah! Shit!" Ice Coffin hit him right away and locked him in place! "You piece of shit! You think you can just do that to me!? Who do you think you are!?"


    Next, a giant spear came flying straight at Bruce! He couldn''t even budge. Fuuuuuu!


    "Ugh, this sure hurts," Bryan grimaced. He stepped in and body-blocked the spear. Even though Impale passed through minions, it couldn''t penetrate through players. Therefore, this little gig saved Bruce from the damage.


    "Nice one, fam," Bruce patted Bryan on the back. "Just keep me alive and I''mma make these shitheads regret they were even born!"


    "No problem, man," Bryan smiled weakly. [To be honest, I only did it because I knew he''d blame me otherwise. It''s his damn fault for getting this close to Cryo, but of course, it''ll be my responsible if something happens. Welcome to the life of a Support player. We got unfair bullshit in spades over here.]


    "Good one," Kai nodded. "Keep harassing them like that."


    "Roger," Vincent continued acting as if he owned the lane. Time and again, the TheLegend tried to confront Vincent, but it ended in a tragedy for him.


    "Damn, he''s here again!" Bruce roared. "I''ll end him!" This time, he rolled in! No way this Cryomancer scrub could hit him- FREEZE.


    "Wha-!? You gotta be shitting me! How!?" Bruce roared at his stupid ass Pirate. This useless piece of shit froze solid in the middle of the roll. "This damn Cryo is the luckiest bastard on earth!"


    [Or, maybe you''re the dumbest. Just some food for thought.] Bryan rolled his eyes. Though, he had to admit, this Cryomancer''s harassment was getting on his nerves too.


    That Cryo dude was sure something. He invaded left and right as if he owned the damn place, yet he always maintaining enough distance to get away from any punishing counters. Bryan has been carefully searching for a good opportunity to blink in and blind that fucker, but he couldn''t find any.


    "You want me to put myself at risk?"


    "Pft, risk. Talking like a real pussy. Grow a pair, man."


    "Okay, fine," Bryan didn''t exactly appreciate that remark. So, no choice but to do it, right? Otherwise, he ain''t a man. Very well. He wasn''t scared of some chick or a cocky Cryomancer. He gonna burn both these scrubs!


    During the next minion wave, Bryan took the initiative and advanced to the frontline.


    "I''m going in with guns blazing," Bryan informed. "Requesting artillery support."


    "We got ya covered, soldier. Haha," Bruce followed after Bryan. This time, they gonna take that cocky Cryomancer down!


    "Boss, the fish took the bait," Vincent informed. "What''s the plan?"


    "Separate them and freeze the Lumi," Kai said.


    "Divide and conquer? Brilliant planning, commander!"


    "Let''s aim for a kill here."


    "Indeed, let them taste the sweet embrace of death!" Vincent darted toward the frontline, just as he has done during the previous few waves. However, this time, he had a different goal in mind. It wasn''t just another ploy to trigger his opponents. This time, he and Beat were going for the kill! [Let''s give them the Blackhole \u0026 Beat special! I dub it the Black Beat!]


    [First, o great Ice Wall, divide the enemy forces!] Vincent summoned the ice wall of doom behind the Lumimancer.


    "Whoa!" Bruce exclaimed. "They walled you off!"


    "Huh!?" Bryan glanced behind him. A wall stood tall between him and Bruce. "Damn, what the- Shit!" A huge spear rammed into him and shoved him into the wall. There wasn''t enough time to process the situation, let alone dodge that shit.


    "Great, I''m stunned," Bryan muttered.


    "C''mon, bro. You''re better than that. Gotta dodge that shit."


    "Easy for you to say." [I don''t remember you dodging her spear either.] "Anyway, this ain''t good. They''re ganging on my ass here! Come help me out!"


    "I ain''t walking into that 1v2," Bruce said. "But, don''t worry. I''mma spook these scrubs with a Kraken! Ez save!"


    "RELEASE THE-" the Pirate yelled. Even though Kai and Vincent were on the other side of the ice wall, they could clearly hear the alarm. The Kraken was coming!


    "Stick to the wall!" Kai rolled forward.


    "Right behind you, cap!" Vincent rolled forward too. They were doing the exact opposite of running away.


    It was hard to guess whether this Kraken was real or just a feint. However, by sticking to the ice wall, they covered both options.


    "Khaha! Idiots!" Bruce laughed his ass off. "You''re really going in?! I gonna hit ya for real now, suckers!" He canceled the Kraken at the last moment and targeted it anew at the two foes.


    The ice wall stood in his way, so he couldn''t see his opponents directly. However, Bryan was on the other side of the wall, so he provided vision like a ward would. That''s right, Bryan was acting as Bruce''s eyes right now! That''s why they were the Ultimate BB Team!


    "Here it comes!" Bruce unleashed the Kraken at the new location! At least, that was the plan.


    BEEP. An annoying error sound. For some reason, this stupid game didn''t let him release the Kraken over there. What? Why!? He got both enemies right within range, it was the perfect setup! Yet, the game system was siding with the enemy for some reason. "What''s this bullshit!?"


    [Oh, shit. That stupid wall is in the way!] Bruce realized that the edge of the Kraken''s target location was touching the ice wall. "C''mon, are you for real!? This stupid wall...!"


    He tried to place the Kraken on both enemies without touching the wall, but it proved to be a challenge. And, while he was busy aiming, the enemies went separate ways near the wall, creating even more distance between each other. They were walking in opposite directions while barraging Bryan. Dammit!


    At this point, it became impossible to fit them both in the Kraken''s range. So, Bruce had to make a choice. Naturally, he gonna wreck that Impaler chick. That bitch deserved to die a hundred times over!


    "RELEASE THE-" the Pirate roared again.


    "It''s coming," Kai smiled nervously. "Go freeze the Lumi!"


    "On it!" Vincent used this opportunity to get closer to the stunned Lumimancer. The stun from Impale was about to run out, but Vincent had every intention to prolong it. [Now, divine winter, freeze the unclean!]


    He unleashed Ice Coffin on the immobile Lumimancer. It froze the poor sob in place. Playing the game? No such luxury was allowed around here. The guy had to remain immobile.


    "Fuck! Now they froze me too!" Bryan barked. "They ain''t letting me outta here, I''m telling ya." He was already at 20% HP, practically dead meat. If the Impaler gets two more shots on him, he''s a goner.


    Fortunately, not all hope was lost. The giant squid monster emerged from the ground and slammed that bitch into the ground. [Ha! That''s what you deserve! You gonna let me walk outta here alive- Ah, wait! No! NO!]


    [And now, the third and final spell of Armageddon!] Vincent made dramatic hand gestures, but only in his head. To the audience, it almost looked as if he was having a spasm. [I unleash upon thee the Icicles of Niflheim! They shall drive their cold claws into your skin and rend your soul asunder!]


    In practice, all Vincent did was activate Icicle Rain. It rained icicles in a straight line, some of which hit the Lumimancer. The damage wasn''t high, but still much better than Vincent''s weak basic attacks.


    The icicles deleted 15% of the Lumimancer''s HP, leaving him with just 5%. When it came down to that much, even Vincent could erase it with a single basic!


    [Beware of basics!] Vincent shot an icicle.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    "Damn..." Bryan slammed his head on the table. That shit was so lame.


    "Yo, my guy!" Bruce called out. "Watcha doing kickin'' the bucket over there!?"


    "What can I say? They caught me good."


    "Damn, now it''s a 1v2!" Bruce backpedaled from the scene. The enemy didn''t pursue him, so he got away unscratched. "Awesome. Now, I gotta sit under tower like some pussy until you return. Fun."


    [I didn''t die on purpose, you know.] Bryan made a face but chose to remain silent. It was impossible to reason with Bruce when he got angsty like that. If Bryan says the wrong thing, he might even get smacked for it.


    "Hey, Dyl!" Bruce called out to the Jungler. "Come over here and gank or something."


    "You want me to gank your 1v2 situation?" Dylan made a face. "I rather not."


    "Tch, yeah, guess it won''t fly," Bruce agreed. "But hey, at least hang around. If they go all out against me, you gank them."


    "You think they will?" Dylan asked.


    "Yep, these scrubs are dumb as a brick. They can go full offense outta nowhere for no reason. Can never predict what shit they gonna pull next."


    "Gotcha, I''ll hang around Bot Jungle until Bryan returns."


    "Thanks, fam." With that, a line of defense was built. As annoying as it was, Bruce had no choice but to sit under tower like a good boy and defend the lane. If these bastards decide to invade, Dylan gonna be all over their business with his Lionfolk. Ez kills.


    "Good job," Kai said.


    "Why thank you," Vincent replied with a smile. "Everything went according to keikaku. Oh, and ''keikaku'' means ''plan''."


    "Yeah, it worked out," Kai smiled wryly. [Would have been way better if that Kraken hit Vince instead of me. Then, I would''ve taken the kill myself. Oh well.]


    Their teamwork was still far from perfect, but things worked out nicely this time. Just a few months ago, Kai never considered such plays. After all, the success of this play heavily depended on somebody else, and said person was a total idiot to boot.


    But, Vincent was a trustworthy idiot. During her training, Kai picked up many duo tactics from watching Yuel and Lars play Bot. Then, she practiced them with Vincent. It didn''t go smoothly at first and they were out of sync on literally everything, almost making her give up on the whole idea.


    But, Yuel said these things took time and practice, so Kai had to keep trying. Yuel also helped them out by analyzing their mistakes. Of course, alongside a fair dose of criticism, in a classic Yuel fashion.


    At some point, it just clicked. Kai and Vincent started pulling off successful duo plays. Their synergy and execution weren''t nearly as good as Yuel and Lars''s, but Kai and Vincent became good enough to beat most Bot opponents in Ranked. Even the two schmucks from Taurus folded to them.


    Kai didn''t score this kill, yet this play was only possible thanks to her contribution. And, above everything else, this success was the fruit of her and Vincent''s hard work. It gave a different sort of satisfaction compared to scoring kills by herself, she couldn''t quite explain it.


    But, it felt good. With this kill, on this stage, it truly felt like Kai and Vincent became a genuine Bot duo. Kai originally insisted to play Carry for herself, but over time it became more than just about her. It wasn''t just about claiming the most important role on the team. It became about using this position to cooperate with her teammates and win games.


    Nia scored the first kill, Vincent scored the second, and next, it was Kai''s turn to score a kill. There was even a perfect target for her on lane: the scumbag Pirate, TheLegend. She''ll tear that dumbass apart!


    But, she didn''t have to do it all by herself. She''ll borrow Vincent''s strength as much as needed for this cause. Even if it''s not going to be a pure 1v1 win, it didn''t matter. Relying on the Support to gain the upper hand in lane was a part of the Carry''s job.


    Yuel told her something to that effect the first time he played Support for her. The Support was like an extension of the Carry''s body during the early-game, like another limb. By making good use of this extra limb, Kai will prove she was the superior Carry. She''ll erase that smug from TheLegend''s ugly face!


    "Next, let''s arrange a kill on that guy," Kai said.


    "Sure thing," Vincent nodded. "One more kill, coming right up!"


    They were riding a strong momentum. No, not only them. The entire team was riding this wave. They were going to push it all the way through!

 212 Removing the Jungler

    "Hmm," Kai frowned. A difficult dilemma.


    With the Lumimancer out of the picture, the Pirate went on the defense. He stayed far in the back and ran away at the first sign of danger, even when it was just Vincent advancing a little to farm the bowmen. TheLegend barked loud as if he was all that, but right now he was playing like a scaredy-cat.


    With the classes Kai and Vincent played, there were two common ways to pressure a defensive foe. Vincent could buy Blink to get in and freeze the Pirate. Then, Kai will follow up with the classic Iron Maiden + Impale play.


    That might work, but it first required Vincent to recall and buy Blink. In addition, the cowardly Pirate will have to overextend a little more for this attack to work. If they freeze him near his tower, it won''t help them whatsoever.


    The other line of play Vincent suggested was luring the Pirate to the frontline. A common way to achieve that was by pretending to retreat. However, it was questionable whether the Pirate will take the bait. In addition, to make the retreat look convincing, Kai would have to slow down her farming and potentially miss some last-hits. It wasn''t exactly the kind of payoff she was hoping for after they successfully eliminating the enemy Support. They earned lane advantage, so gambling it away like this didn''t sound inviting.


    On top of all that, the enemy Jungler was a Lionfolk. In both lines of play, there was a chance the Lionfolk will jump on them. They didn''t have any solid counter-plays if that happens. So, both ideas were risky.


    "For starters, we should eliminate the Jungler," Yuel said all of a sudden, as if he read Kai''s mind. "He didn''t come across as a strong opponent, so Nia can handle him."


    "Me?" Nia blinked. That came out of left field.


    "Yes, you. Their Lionfolk is camping around Bot, most likely waiting for Kai and Vincent to push and overextend. You should be able to take him out if you sneak up to him."


    "But, my Izuna isn''t up yet."


    "It will be by the time you get there."


    "Ah, yeah, probably," Nia nodded. "Ok, I can try."


    "Just make sure to go for the full setup with Imperial Spear."


    "Got it."


    "He should be hanging somewhere around here," Yuel circled an area on the mini-map. "Go into stealth as soon as you approach this area."


    "Ok." Nia set off.


    "Are you sure she can take him out by herself?" Kai asked. "The guy is healthy as a horse, so a simple gank won''t finish him off."


    ¡ºShe''ll at least keep him busy while you do your thing.¡» Yuel replied with a direct message.


    "Nia will eliminate the threat of being ganked by their Lionfolk," Yuel continued, this time out loud. "I recommend using this time to either push hard to try killing their Pirate."


    "Indeed, a marvelous plan!" Vincent made noise. "Shall we charge in and smite him down? Or, shall we reel him in like a siren and make him walk toward death of his own volition!?"


    "I doubt either will work," Kai shook her head. "That bastard isn''t the sharpest knife in the drawer, but he''s still a competitive player. He knows a thing or two. These basic tactics probably won''t cut it."


    "Mhm, indeed," Vincent nodded. "My Information Blackhole detects that our target erected formidable defensive protocols. It won''t be easy to hack through them."


    "Yeah, everybody and their moms can tell that," Kai rolled her eyes. [Damn, time is ticking and we haven''t come up with anything yet. How do we make that scaredy-cat to come out?]


    "Kai, can you handle that Pirate in a 1v1?" Yuel asked.


    "Huh? Of course," Kai lifted her chin. "That bastard got nothing on me!"


    "Vincent, do you agree with that assessment?"


    "Yes, of course," Vincent nodded. "At first, I was a little worried. However! Beat sealed away her Pheromone Buster for now. Therefore, she can tap into her Rhythm Reader ability as usual to destroy the opposition!"


    "Okay, then I''ll have one unconventional plan for you," Yuel shared. "That Pirate appears to be rather simple-minded, so it might work on him. It''s a little risky, but your side has the advantage now, so you got some leeway to try things."


    Yuel laid out the tricky plan. It took into account everything he figured thus far about TheLegend''s playstyle. If Kai can defeat the guy in a pure 1v1, she''ll score a kill here.


    "Oh! Such a devilish plan!" Vincent snickered. "As expected from the one and only Chessmaster!"


    "Yeah, that''s a good one," Kai nodded. "Let''s do it."


    The next minion wave arrived. This was their last chance to exploit the 1v2 situation before the Lumimancer returns. However, precisely because it was a 1v2, TheLegend played like a wuss and refused to take more than three steps outta his tower area.


    To force this bastard to come out and fight, they had to prepare a juicy bait. And, Yuel just supplied them with a great bait idea.


    "Time to put your acting skills to some use," Kai said.


    "Huhuhu," Vincent giggled suspiciously. "Indeed, I shall become the Ultimate Bait! I''m the bait of my sword!"


    "You don''t have a sword, though."


    "Tsk, tsk. This unenlightened peasant," Vincent shook his head.


    Before the minions reached the middle of the lane, Vincent ran up to confront them all by himself. This naturally alerted TheLegend and made the guy backpedal.


    [Are these fuckers finally coming?] Bruce grinned nervously. [Come, I''ll take you on! I''ll 1v2 your asses into oblivion!] He threatened them in his head but continued backpedaling. [Come if you dare! Come, bitches!]


    Unfortunately, the Cryomancer didn''t advance much further. The guy only approached the bowmen and froze them solid. Meanwhile, Bruce''s swordsmen were clobbering the guy like he was a punching bag.


    "Pft, do you see this dumbass?" Bruce cackled. "The hell is he doing? He''s getting his ass beat by these minions."


    "Yeah, WTF," Bryan cracked a laugh. "Maybe they''re trying to reduce the damage on their minions? Ya know, to push harder and all that."


    "I guess?" Bruce shrugged. "Well, since he''s this close, I might as well get some shots on him-" A wild Ice Wall appeared! "What the...? What are these guys up to?"


    The ice wall stood in Bruce''s way, stopping him from interfering with the lane. Even though that suicidal Cryomancer aggro''d all these minions on his ass, he didn''t want Bruce to participate in that party. "Heh, okay then. I''ll just let the minions mess you up."


    Thanks to the vision granted by minions, Bruce could see what was going on behind the ice wall. The Cryomancer continued tanking the swordsmen''s hits, while the Impaler snipped the frozen bowmen. It was hard to tell whether these guys came here with a plan or were just messing around.


    Eventually, with some help from their minions, the enemy wiped out Bruce''s gang. Meanwhile, the enemy''s gang was in perfect health because the Cryomancer took all the hits upon himself. What a maso.


    So, the enemy won lane control, but at what cost? The minions roughed up the Cryomancer so hard, the guy fell to 40% HP from tanking all that shit. Bruh let himself be royally screwed. Where was his self-respect? Bruce would never let some minions do him in like this. Never.


    "Oh, noes! I lost so much HP!" Vincent cried out theatrically. "How could this happen!? Oh lordy, I''m so dead!"


    "You don''t need to act it out for us, you know," Kai made a face.


    "Nay, it''s of utmost importance! To fool the enemy, you first fool your allies!"


    "Yeah, right," Kai rolled her eyes. "Get going already."


    "On my way!" Vincent headed toward the jungle. It was common practice to get out of enemy view when recalling, even when the intent was obvious. Doing so kept the enemy on their toes at least a little bit, since they couldn''t confirm that the player indeed recalled.


    No matter how confident they were, the "what if?" was stuck at the back of their heads. Maybe the player hid in the jungle and planned to gank? Or, maybe he rotated to gank another lane? If carelessly dismissed, both scenarios would lead to devastating results. Therefore, it applied pressure.


    "Yo, Dyl. Are you watching this?" Bruce called out. "It''s your chance. Go gank that Cryo boi."


    "Already on my way," Dylan rotated toward the area of interest. He has been hanging nearby the entire time, so getting to that dying Cryo was no sweat. He gonna catch that fool off guard!


    [He''s distracted.] Nia nodded to herself as she observed the enemy Lionfolk from within the jungle.


    Until now, the Lionfolk was cautiously moving around and scouting his surroundings. He was rather alert, so it was difficult to sneak up to him. However, all of a sudden, everything changed. It''s like he found himself a target and concentrated on it.


    [Ok, this is the moment.] Nia took a deep breath and dashed toward the Lionfolk''s back. The target was distracted, so the gank had a much higher chance of success. She snuck up to the guy in stealth and delivered a slash from behind!


    "Wha-!?" Dylan jumped. "Who!? Where did they- The Ninja!? Shit, I gotta roll-" It was too late. The Ninja already wrapped herself around him and leaped toward the sky.


    [Look, I''m all for being hugged by chicks, but this ain''t it, chief!] Dylan shouted internally. This shit gonna hurt so bad.


    "Vincent, lend her Nia a hand," Yuel advised.


    "Yes, of course," Vincent put the recalling plan on hold and ran toward the area of conflict. "This wasn''t in your script, but it makes it even better!"


    "It sure does," Yuel answered nonchalantly as if there was nothing surprising about this development. Wait, could it be...!?


    "So, it WAS part of the plan!" Vincent concluded. "You must have seen this possibility with your Mystic Eye of Future Perception!"


    "When did my ''mystic eyes'' evolve? I must have missed it."


    "Haha, but I''m right, right? Right? You knew this would happen."


    "I knew it [might] happen. I don''t have enough data about their Jungler, but I assumed he might be the simple type who''ll go for an ''easy kill''. I simply made sure my plan was bulletproof against that scenario, that''s all."


    "Bulletproof? More like, designed to capitalize on this scenario in the best way possible!"


    "The ''best''? I wouldn''t necessarily say so. This scenario invites its own share of complexities."


    "Like what?"


    "You''ll find out soon enough," Yuel said. "Focus on the fight first."


    "Roger," Vincent reached the area of interest just as Nia slammed the Lionfolk into the ground.


    [This is a great chance to freeze him with my Ice Coffin... if I had one!] Unfortunately, Vincent spent his entire kit on fighting the minions on lane. The only thing left was his ult, Cryo-Freeze, but it wasn''t a tool for combat.


    Therefore, the only support he could provide was firing basic attacks. It wasn''t much, but it''s better than nothing. At the very least, it forced the Lionfolk into a rough 1v2 situation. That alone will apply pressure on the guy.


    "Damn, they''re double-teaming me!" Dylan ranted.


    "These maggots keep messing with us," Bruce gritted his teeth. "You better get outta there. Don''t let these fucker kill ya, or else we gonna be in deep shit."


    "No need to convince me. I''m SO outta here!" As soon as Dylan was back on his feet, he activated The King''s Dominion. Lions popped into existence out of thin air and encircled the area, like policemen forming a blockade.


    "So long, suckers!" Dylan dashed toward the edge of the blockage. These lions were his pets, so they let him through the barricade no problem. On the other hand, when his pursuers tried to pass, the lions closed their formation tightly. Even a mosquito couldn''t squeeze through.


    The Cryomancer was totally stuck in there, he didn''t have any leap or blink abilities. As for the Ninja, she did have a leap. But, it was a short one and was intended for creating distance, not for jumping over obstacles. Could that skill even jump over the lions? Maybe with optimal positioning. That Ninja chick probably won''t be able to pull it off.


    WHISH. Just before he escaped the lion barricade, something hit him from behind. The enemy saw Dylan escaping, so they tried to get as much damage on him as possible. Understandable.


    [Too bad. I''m already outta here!] Dylan grinned. As soon as he was out, the lions closed the gap and the barricade was inescapable. Or, it should''ve been...


    SLASH. Something sliced Dylan from behind!


    "Whoa!? Who!?" He turned around in a hurry. "What? But she was... Oh." He finally realized his huge mess up. The "thing" that hit him before he escaped wasn''t some random ranged attack, it was Ninja''s Backflip Shuriken! The chick placed it on him like a tracking device and then blinked to it!


    "Damn you!" Dylan unleashed Mighty Roar.


    "Guh!" Nia shivered a little as the loud roar assaulted her. Even the screen shook a little. Scary.


    Maybe it was a bad move to chase here? She was now at close range, in a 1v1 situation, against this scary guy. And, now the Mighty Roar debuffed her too.


    [No, it''s okay. He''s low on HP.] Nia nodded to herself. Whenever she doubted herself, she should always ask what were her advantages in this position. That''s what Yuel recommended. It was a good tip. Nia had a bad habit of always thinking about the negatives, so it was a good idea to remind herself of the positives as well.


    [I can do it.] Nia continued the assault. Even with the debuff from Mighty Roar, she should be able to beat that Lionfolk in a 1v1.


    "Run to your mama already, girl!" Dylan clawed the Ninja girl, but she repaid him in kind with a slash. It seemed like she had no intention of backing away.


    [Crap, this is legit bad.] Dylan had to flee, no question about it. Running away from some chick was lame as heck, but what else could he do? He couldn''t die here, no way.


    "Watcha running away from that bitch?" Bruce criticized. "Kick her ass!"


    "I''m too low," Dylan said. "Even a Bronze player can beat me with this HP difference."


    "Heh, a Bronze player will beat ya any day if you always run away like a wuss."


    "Think you can do this better? Here, take my seat."


    "I''d totally show ya, but I''m busy over here too."


    "Sure, sure," Dylan rolled his eyes. Maybe he could''ve turned the tables on this girl if she were a total amateur, but this Ninja was actually kinda troublesome. She even killed Zeph in Top. She was clearly more dangerous than anybody gave her credit for.


    Considering all that, Dylan couldn''t handle her right now. This time, he had to retreat. But, he''ll remember this! Next time, that chick will be dead! Hella dead!


    "Tch, he got away," Nia muttered as she gradually fell behind. The debuff of Mighty Roar slowed her down, so she couldn''t catch up to the Lionfolk. "Boo. No kill."


    [It''s all good. The gank served its purpose.] Yuel nodded in satisfaction. "Kai, all green. Their Jungler has been dealt with. He got away, but it''s unlikely he''ll return to gank you with that HP."


    "Alright," Kai answered. "Thanks for the help, Nia."


    "Sure," Nia was still pouting about the missed kill, but being thanked felt nice too.


    [Now, it''s just you and me.] Kai concentrated all her attention on the Pirate scum. Nobody was going to come to save his ass anymore. This was a pure 1v1. That guy should realize that as well, so he''ll jump on the opportunity to fight her, expecting her to be some scrub. That''s when she''ll teach this scumbag the biggest lesson of his life!

 213 She Who Dodges Everything

    Kai even briefly placed herself inside the tower area while her minions were tanking it. But, TheLegend ignored her and worked on clearing the minions first.


    "Damn, what''s going on with you guys?" Bruce ranted. "Zeph died, Bryan died, and now Dyl almost died. The fuck are y''all doing?"


    "I warned you back then," Zeph shrugged. "These guys are better than you think. At least, the guy I''m fighting in lane is pretty damn high-level. To be honest, it doesn''t even feel like I''m playing against a middle schooler."


    "Bah, excuses." Bruce rolled his eyes.


    "I agree with Zeph," Bryan tuned in. "These guys know a thing or two. I''m not saying they''re better than us or anything, but they''re better than we expected. We gotta treat them like decent players. Seems like this year, Stratus ain''t gonna be a free win like we thought."


    "No way," Bruce insisted. "These guys got two chicks on the team and their captain is one too. Are you seriously telling me ya think these guys are good? Ain''t buying it."


    "Then, how about you show us how it''s done, boss?" Dylan suggested. "You''re 1-on-1 with that chick, right? Kick her ass. Show us that these guys got nothing for us."


    "Yeah, do it, big boy," Zeph added.


    "Prove that you''re a man," Bryan egged him as well.


    "Heh," Bruce sneered. "That''s the kinda low IQ thinking that''s keeping you guys at low level. Yeah, a ''1-on-1'', sure. Doncha see the two players in the Jungle over there? They can rotate here anytime. I ain''t dealing with that."


    "Fair enough," Dyl nodded and the rest agreed too.


    "Heh, dumbasses," Bruce grinned triumphantly. "Ya gotta use that brain of yours sometimes, ya know?"


    [You''re the last person I want to hear this from.] Bryan narrowed his eyes. The rest had similar thoughts.


    At his core, Bruce was just a dumbass. But, he was pretty strong, both inside and outside the game. He had this something about him that made people follow his lead. That''s what made him the leader of the gang. He wasn''t the official captain of the team, but most people considered him such.


    In theory, Raymond, the actual captain, was stronger. But, he rarely showed off his strength and he never boasted about it, so he didn''t come across as a firm figure of authority. On the other hand, Bruce took any opportunity to stand out and pretend he was the hottest shit ever. So, at some point, everybody started believing he was really all that, even though, deep down, they knew he was just a show-off jackass.


    "Anyway, don''t worry," Bruce grinned at them. "Once I get a proper 1v1 situation, I''mma mop the floor with that chick. She gonna uninstall the game after I''m done with her, khaha!"


    Meanwhile, on the other side, the waiting game continued.


    "He''s not coming," Kai muttered. "I don''t get it. I thought he gonna attack me the first chance he gets."


    "Yeah, it''s a little odd," Yuel frowned. Based on the data he gathered on TheLegend, the guy was prideful and would take any opportunity to prove he was the best in the world. Even his IGN screamed that mentality. So, he should''ve jumped on the opportunity to fight Kai 1v1. And yet, TheLegend was avoiding combat. Why?


    "Just a thought," Vincent started. "Maybe he''s wary about me and the Vanishing Phantom being nearby?"


    "Possible," Yuel agreed. "He does come across as the type who pretends to be confident and aggressive, yet hides away at the first sign of danger."


    "Tch, so he''s wussing on me?" Kai clicked her tongue. They finally arranged a great opportunity for Kai to 1v1 this bastard and get a kill, yet the bastard chickened out.


    "I wouldn''t say he''s being a wuss," Yuel said. "It''s a legit concern. I was considering asking Nia to gank Bot in case something goes wrong with the duel."


    "Wait, you don''t trust me to beat that bastard?"


    "I..." [Can''t tell for sure, honestly. I don''t know how strong he is. The last time they fought, they seemed pretty evenly matched. But, it was a wild brainless exchange of blows, so that data doesn''t work as a reference.]


    That was Yuel''s objective analysis of the situation. But, his lips remained sealed. He had a gut feeling. If he shares his real opinion, it gonna set Kai off. It won''t do the team any favors.


    It was of utmost importance for the team to maintain high morale and good relationships. Yuel was there before, he witnessed StormBlitz''s second-string crumbling apart due to internal arguments. The trigger for it was a couple of small in-fights, which accumulated into a huge blowout. Yuel refused to be a catalyst for another such tragedy.


    "It was just plan B," Yuel said. "[In case] something goes wrong with the duel, I wanted Nia to be nearby and gank."


    "So, you admit you don''t 100% trust me to beat that fucker."


    "Ugh..." What a tough customer this girl was.


    "Don''t worry about it, dude," Lars interjected. "Yuel always comes up with plan B, C, D, and all the way to Z probably. He always be trying to cover all possibilities like that."


    "Yeah, I guess," Kai wasn''t entirely convinced but she dropped the topic for now.


    [Kai seems very touchy about this fight.] Yuel thought. [Is it like a personal vendetta for her? That guy sure said some nasty things to her before the match, so I get where she''s coming from.]


    There was still one way to arrange her desired 1v1. However, it involved a risk. Yuel had to completely trust Kai to come on top in the fight, or else she''ll wind up dead.


    [Well, we got some leverage here, so we can take a risk or two.] Yuel thought. Not exactly the healthiest way to come up with plays, but they had breathing room to act a little wilder than normal. No to mention, if Kai nails this one and the team gets yet another kill, they''ll pretty much have the match in the bag at that point. Such an overwhelming early-game advantage will be nigh impossible to overcome.


    "There''s one way we can reassure their Pirate that we won''t gank," Yuel said. "Nia, Vincent, do you mind rotating together to Mid? Let''s see if we can start a big push there."


    "Works for me," Vincent said.


    "Um, I don''t have any skills," Nia pointed out. She spent her entire kit on the recent gank against the Lionfolk, so everything was on cooldown.


    "It''s okay, I don''t expect you to get a kill there," Yuel said. "I just want you to help push the Turret there, since Lars isn''t making much progress."


    "Hey, hey!" Lars objected. "I''m totally winning here! Believe it, yo!"


    "Anyway," Yuel continued. "The goal isn''t to get a kill, but just to get lane advantage. Also, I want you to rotate along this path." He drew on the mini-map.


    "This looks predictable as heck," Nia commented.


    "Yes, that''s exactly the point," Yuel nodded. "They probably got a ward around here, so they''ll see you rotating. That''ll reassure their Pirate that you won''t be ganking him while he''s fighting Kai."


    "Oh, such brilliant thinking!" Vincent made noise. "In this cold war with radio silence, you invented an encrypted system that can deliver a message to our foes!"


    "Let''s do it," Kai supported it without thinking twice. "You''re game?"


    "Yes, I''m ready to dictate myself to this cause," Vincent saluted.


    "Ok," Nia nodded.


    The duo traveled through Bot Jungle toward Mid, running along the route Yuel drew for them. It was 99% guaranteed that at least one ward will spot them along the way, so the enemy will be alert.


    "Look, they''re rotating to Mid," Bryan pointed out. "Ray, they''re coming after you."


    "Hrm, I see," Raymond began retreating right away.


    "You know what this means, right?" Zeph snickered. "These guys ain''t gonna be ganking Bot any time soon. So, you got the 1-on-1 you wanted, Bruce."


    "Hell yeah, I did!" Bruce grinned. "Time to show y''all scrubs how this shit is done for real!"


    [He took the bait.] Kai''s eyes glinted dangerously. This was it, the fight she has been waiting for. She could feel her heartbeat quicken. This was one enemy she absolutely couldn''t lose against, no matter what. She gonna mop the floor with this bastard''s ugly face!


    The Pirate ran straight at her. As soon as he was about to step into her range, Kai fired a spear.


    "F-Fuck!" Bruce couldn''t sidestep in time. He wasn''t expecting an attack from this distance. Shouldn''t the spear whiff from this far? Unfortunately, it didn''t. It hit him with the tip of its range. "Shit, I''mma kill yo ass!"


    Bruce fired back. However, his counter whiffed. "How the fuck did that miss!? Game, pls!"


    A split moment later, another spear darted at him. He reacted too late. The spear pierced his chest.


    [Shit, what''s going on!?] Bruce roared internally. This was bullshit. It ain''t happening! Was he gonna allow some chick to make fun of him like this? No way!


    "Die, you bitch!" Bruce pulled the trigger. However, his bullet missed again. How!? His aim was on point! It definitely was! Yet, for some damn reason, the bullet didn''t connect. It almost grazed the Impaler, but it didn''t touch her. It''s as if some invisible force moved the bullet away to make it miss. Why!? How!?


    [Alright, he''s flustered.] Kai could tell from the way the Pirate was twitching. For the avatar to spasm like this, it meant the player''s mouse control was unstable. Players like that were the easiest to read. When they stopped shaking and took careful aim, it meant an attack was about to come out. It was so hilariously telegraphed.


    BAM. A bullet came flying at her, but she already sidestepped it the moment the Pirate took aim. He wasn''t calm enough to notice her movements and adjust his aim at the last moment, so that bullet was going to whiff.


    Without wasting any time worrying about it, Kai countered by hurling a spear. The enemy''s attack whiffed, but hers connected perfectly. Counter hit! Too bad that clean counter hits like these didn''t deal bonus damage in this game.


    "Oh, there it is!" Vincent shouted loudly into the mic so everybody could hear. "The Rhythm Reader has awakened! With its power, Beat will dodge each and every shot flying her way!"


    "T-That ain''t happening! I didn''t whiff that! I didn''t do that shit!" Bruce moved erratically. What the flying fuck was going on here!? All these shots should''ve connected! He knew he placed them right!


    Yet, not a single one landed. He has already missed four shots and ate four counters in the face. He was already down to 30% HP. How did that shit happen!?


    "Heh, so much for ''showing us how it is done''," Zeph sneered.


    "S-Shut up!" Bruce had the urge to punch that fucker till he breaks the guy''s nose. This was bullshit! This ain''t happening! It ain''t real!


    "You may want to retreat," Raymond suggested.


    "Shut the fuck up! I got this shit!" Bruce insisted and fired again. However, the shot didn''t connect. Why!?!? FUCKINSHITDIEBTICH!!!


    [Am I legit gonna lose? To some scrubby chick!?] Bruce gritted his teeth. He refused to accept such a reality. It was nonsense. This wasn''t real life. It had to be some sort of mistake. [This bitch must be hella lucky. Yeah, that''s it! She''s just moving randomly like a scrub and that''s throwing me off. That''s how she "dodges" my shit. She''s winning thanks to scrub luck!]


    Bruce explained the bizarre phenomena to the best of his ability. There had to be some cheap trick to it. After all, he''d never lose to some basic bitch like that. This Impaler chick was just lucky this fight, that''s all.


    So, Bruce ain''t losing. It was all bad luck. Yeah, that''s all there was to it. Therefore, he shouldn''t feel bad about making a tactical retreat. After all, this fight wasn''t even fair.


    [I''m out of this bullshittery!] He activated Backfire Cannon and aimed it at the Impaler bitch. [Good thing I kept this bad boy just in case.] He originally planned to chase the Impaler with it once she starts feeling. But, in the end, he needed it himself to run away- Ahem, to tactically retreat! Yes, this was just a tactical retreat! It was smart! This bullshit situation was no place to stay in.


    [Running away!?] Kai summoned an Iron Maiden behind the Pirate as soon as she heard the metallic sound of a cannon. She instantly grasped the situation. Her enemy was planning to escape the scene with the help of his cannon. [Over my dead body!]


    "I''ll get you next time, bitch!" Bruce fired the cannon off. The recoil sent him flying across the lane! At least, it should''ve done that. But, for some reason, his flight was cut short. Like, hella short. He barely moved back at all!


    "Huh? Haha, what?" Bruce had no idea how to even begin reacting to this bullshit. First, his bullets refused to hit the target he was shooting. Now, even his Backfire Cannon didn''t work as intended. Did this stupid game bug out or something? Why the fuck was all this shit happening to him this fight!?


    [It''s over.] Kai fired Impale. The giant spear rammed into the Pirate and shoved him into the Iron Maiden. The torture machine swallowed the Pirate whole and executed him.


    ¡ºYou have killed an enemy!¡»


    She did it. She really did it. This was Kai''s first kill on the competitive stage. And, it was a kill on the most despicable scumbag from the enemy team, the bastard who called Kai trash.


    "Who''s trash now, huh? Huh!?" Kai lifted her chin. It was over. She prevailed against that bastard and proved her worth. In fact, she kicked his ass without getting hit even once. It was a perfect win! That''s how much of a loser that guy was.


    "Marvelous! Beat scored a PERFECT on TheLegend!" Vincent commentated. "Stratus is leading 3 to 0! Will they ride that momentum all the way to victory!? Who will the goddess of victory smile upon!?"


    "Oh, shut up already," Kai cracked a laugh. But really, the team was doing great this match. Taurus was supposed to be a decent team, but so far Stratus has been mopping the floor with these losers. The game was still in its early stages, but everybody could already smell the victory.


    [We won.] Yuel concluded. He could already see the checkmate from this position. It still required a little extra work from here, but it was an almost guaranteed checkmate.


    Early kills on Dark Knight and Pirate were a big deal. Both classes wanted to get ahead as fast as possible during the early-game, but these kills set them back. In particular, the Dark Knight was done for. He might still pose some trouble for a while with his early-game strength, but it was already guaranteed he won''t become a threat during mid-game.


    As for the Pirate, it was a class that started underpowered and relied on its passive to gain an incremental gold advantage. Once said advantage grew big enough to get ahead in the item build, Pirate could finally overpower the opposition. Unfortunately for TheLegend, being dead played against any such plans. He couldn''t farm while dead, so instead of getting ahead, he was only lagging farther and farther behind.


    By cutting the enemy''s manpower so sharply, Stratus secured themselves the high ground. Unless they commit some grave mistake in the upcoming minutes, a defeat was unlikely. Their worst enemy at this point could only be their own arrogance, so Yuel had to make sure nobody felt overconfident or too relaxed. They should proceed safely and steadily, without any unnecessary risks.


    If they keep doing so, they''ll eventually corner their enemies and get the win. No matter how Yuel looked at it, this was a checkmate. They were about to blast through their first competitive game as a team!

 214 Jaiden

    "C''mon, I''ll take you all on, fuckers!" Stratus''s captain declared boldly. Even though she was just some girl who surely didn''t even deserve to be captain, she still had the nerve to look down on Taurus. That''s why Jaiden couldn''t stop himself. He had to respond.


    "You gonna ''take us on''''? Try me," Jaiden stood his ground. "I''ll mop the floor with you in five seconds."


    "Oh, you sure sound confident. 1v1 me. I''m Challenger in Duel." What kind of dumb argument was that?


    "Duel rank means nothing," Jaiden stated matter-of-factly. "Come at me in a real match and I''ll end your whole career, girl."


    "Jaiden, I said enough," Raymond put his foot down. Maybe he was right. All this arguing getting childish.


    "Tch, whatever," Jaiden shook his head. Why was he even still on this stage? The seniors won''t let him play today and their opponent was trash tier. There was nothing interesting to see here.


    "Well, if I''m not playing, may as well take a stroll or something. This game gonna be a snoozefest confirmed." Jaiden jumped off the stage. There was nothing for him here. Merely standing on the same stage as Stratus was enough to irk him. That team was a joke. A hot-headed girl as captain? Pls.


    Jaiden came here today with excitement, ready to watch Taurus''s first scrimmage of the year. But, against opponents like that? The result was painfully obvious at a glance. There won''t be anything interesting to watch.


    [I need some fresh air.] Jaiden proceeded toward the exit. Along the way, he passed by Stratus''s side of the stage. There, he noticed two boys.


    One was a tall blonde dude, he looked like a social beast. He was jumping around in excitement and whispering something to his pals, possibly cracking a joke or two.


    The boy beside him was the total opposite, calm and stoic. He looked like the smarty-pants type.


    These two were polar opposites, like a sun and a moon. Logically, there was no reason to link these two. They had particularly nothing in common.


    [Then, why do they stand out?] Jaiden cocked his head. He could swear he saw these two somewhere before. But, where? When?


    [Maybe I saw them play before?] Jaiden knotted his brows. Did he ever watch any of Stratus''s matches? Well, he watched one. It was the Taurus vs. Stratus match from last year. It was a one-sided beating. Taurus mopped the floor with Stratus last year, as expected.


    [I don''t think these two played back then.] Jaiden searched his memory. He didn''t remember all the players by heart, but he had a hunch these boys weren''t related to that game. After all, the Stratus he watched last year was utter trash. Meanwhile, something in his mind whispered that these two guys were pretty good.


    It didn''t matter who these two were. Taurus will emerge victorious today, even without Jaiden playing or watching the match. A team run by some barbarian girl had no business winning. That fox must have swindled the boys into making her the captain. That''s how girls always got what they wanted, even when they didn''t possess a shred of the required skill.


    [Whatever.] Jaiden opened the door and left the stadium.


    "Hey, wait! Jai!" Two pairs of footsteps were on his tail. Nash and Rio followed him.


    "What''s up?" Jaiden turned around to wait for his pals. "You''re not watching the match?"


    "Heh, right back at ya," Nash cracked a laugh. "You''re always the first to get all excited about watching high-level gameplay."


    "Sure, I like watching some good matches," Jaiden nodded. "Emphasis on GOOD. We both know today gonna be a shitshow."


    "Haha, no doubt about that," Nash laughed. "I was hoping this year Stratus will have some fighting in them. Like, last year, we mopped them pretty hard, right? So, give us a challenge or something."


    "Why do you sound so proud? You didn''t even play that match."


    "Hey, neither did you."


    "True that. It sucks being young in a big club," Jaiden smiled wryly. The three of them were freshmen last year, so there was zero chance of them getting into the first-string. They had to be on the same level as Maker, the legend himself, to even stand a chance. Such was the reality of their big club.


    But, Jaiden and his pals were juniors this year. Having juniors on the first-string was uncommon in Taurus, but not unheard of. Therefore, the trio had high hopes for playing on the main team this year.


    But, no such luck. It wasn''t a question of skill, it was all about seniority. Bruce and his gang monopolized the first-string for themselves and didn''t let anybody else in. Well, they were decent players and all.


    [I don''t want to sound condescending or anything,] Jaiden thought. [But, I think me and my bros are a league above these guys. Well, maybe that''s just me.]


    In the first place, Bruce''s gang didn''t exactly earn their positions rightfully. Taurus had some better seniors, but Bruce''s gang pressed hard until they got what they wanted. Honestly, almost an act of terrorism.


    Raymond, the captain, was currently the only one on the team who was a real beast. The guy barely talked and his presence wasn''t always felt in matches, but he always got the job done. Perhaps, if he was a little more assertive, he could''ve made a name for himself in the region as one of the top players. Full respect for the cap.


    "So, what''s the plan?" Nash interrupted Jaiden''s thoughts.


    "I dunno," Jaiden shrugged. "Thought I''d hang out at the cafeteria. I need to cool down a little."


    "Yeah, you sure made a scene back there." Nash laughed. ???All like ''Oh noes, look! They got a girl captain! Literally a witch! I''m so shook right now!''. It was a riot, haha!"


    "I didn''t say any of that."


    "Yes you did, bro. Well, not exactly like that, but ya catch my drift. I thought you were over that shit?"


    "Yeah, I''m over it," Jaiden claimed.


    "Oh, yeah?" Nash snickered. "Then, why you have this look like you gonna murder somebody? Look, even Rio is scared."


    "I''m not scared" Rio gave Nash a look. "It was just... unpleasant to watch."


    "It was?" Jaiden blinked.


    "Well," Rio hung his head. "You were acting kinda like..."


    "Hmm," Jaiden wasn''t sure what to make Rio''s low voice. Rio could be rather blunt, especially around people he knew. So, for Rio to fall silent like this, it meant Jaiden really did something bad. "Sorry if I scared you. I did yell a little and all."


    "No, it''s just..." Rio considered his words carefully.


    "C''mon, speak up like a man!" Nash smacked Rio on the back. In a friendly manner, of course.


    "A-Ah!" Rio jumped. It didn''t exactly hurt, but it almost made his heart leap out of his throat.


    "Hey, what are you hitting him for?" Jaiden scolded.


    "C''mon, it''s just a friendly gesture," Nash shrugged and turned to Rio. "You''re a man, right? So, stand up and tell this bruh over here what you really thought about his lil'' stunt."


    "Geh," Rio glared back at Nash, but then sighed and straightened his back. The slam was uncalled for, but maybe that shock was exactly what Rio needed to sort out his thoughts.


    "You didn''t scare me," Rio told Jaiden. "But, you almost looked like... a bully." He gulped as soon as he finished talking. A shudder ran through him. [D-Did I just call Jaiden a bully!? Oh no, what have I done!? I should''ve kept it to myself. He''s so going to hate me...]


    "A bully? Seriously?" Jaiden smiled awkwardly and scratched the back of his neck.


    "Yeah, man," Nash added. "You looked like you were about to start a war, word."


    "Hey, I didn''t threaten anybody," Jaiden took a sip of the cola he bought. "Well, I guess I was kinda pissed, though."


    "Heh, ''pissed'' doesn''t even begin to describe it," Nash said. "You were out for blood. It''s been a while since I saw you like this."


    "It was disgusting behavior," Rio added with a cast-down expression. His words cut Jaiden deeper than any knife.


    "A-Ahaha, no, I was just..." Jaiden couldn''t come up with any excuses. No matter how he tried to spin it, he totally blew a fuse back there on the stage. He made a huge scene. It was unbecoming of him.


    "You still can''t forget all that shit with Storm, huh," Nash nodded knowingly. "It''s like they opened an old wound. Feel ya, bro."


    "Heh," Jaiden cast his eyes aside. This was a topic he hasn''t touched upon in a long time. He thought he buried that nonsense at the bottom of his brain, but just a little quarrel was enough to make everything resurface.


    It was an unpleasant topic. It''d be great if he just forgot everything and went on as if nothing happened. But, the bubbly fellow had to keep talking.


    "You totally should''ve gotten into StormBlitz," Nash continued. "Can''t believe some basic bitch stole your spot. You ever found who it was?"


    "No, I gave up on that," Jaiden looked aside. "I had a feeling I won''t be able to contain myself if I see her face-to-face."


    "Phew, then bullet dodged, man. I mean, you almost became a wanted serial killer, haha."


    "I see," Rio nodded in understanding. "So, you planned to kill her and take back your spot


    "Of course not!" Jaiden kicked Nash for suggesting that nonsense. "Yeah, I was mad as heck, but violence isn''t the answer."


    "Oh yeah?" Nash held out his leg. "Then what was that kick just now, you son of a biscuit!"


    "Just a friendly gesture," Jaiden snickered his pal. "Anyway, yeah, that whole thing with StormBlitz sucked ass. But, you know what? I''m glad I transferred. If StormBlitz is a club that picks girls over skilled players, then I want nothing to do with it."


    "Damn straight. These idiots have no idea what kinda genius slipped through their fingers."


    "Heh," Jaiden smiled softly. "And besides, transferring here wasn''t such a bad deal. I get to be in the same club as you guys."


    "Aww, you making me blush," Nash waved his hand.


    "Really, I mean it," Jaiden said. "It''s thanks to you two that I''m still playing. Honestly, that rejection from Storm was quite the shock for me. I was sure I gonna pass their exam no problem, but they went ahead and picked some girl who is apparently worse than me. And, there were the two guys who are apparently better than me. Though, who knows if they really did better than me in that exam, seeing how rigged it was."


    "Well, at least we know they''re good players," Rio pointed out.


    "Oh yeah, we saw them play last year on the second-string. They were pretty lit back there. Man, I wish we had a second-string too."


    "Why don''t we, really?" Nash asked.


    "Because it''s a hassle." Jaiden shrugged. "The school will have to book two stages host both first-string and second-string on the same day. So, they don''t feel like it."


    "Typical bullshit," Nash shook his head. Even though their school was nice enough to allow Taurus to recruit many members, it didn''t mean the school cared much for the club. It simply treated the Classmancers club a little more like a proper club than most other schools did, that''s all.


    "So, anyway," Jaiden returned to the topic. "It''s thanks to you two that I''m still playing. You even convinced the club to give me a late entrance exam."


    "No big deal, man," Nash said. "We didn''t even do much."


    "Actually," Rio smiled mischievously. "The captain back then didn''t like the idea. He didn''t want someone who failed to get into StormBlitz. He said it made the club look ''weak'' and such."


    "Oh yeah, I remember that shit!" Nash cracked a laugh. "Cap legit thought you were a scrub at first."


    "But, Nash argued with him," Rio smiled softly. "He even said stuff like ''Jaiden is the next Maker!'' and such."


    "I-I didn''t say shit like that!" Nash coughed and looked aside. "Well, I did tell them Jai is good, but not THAT good. You still have a long way to go before you reach Maker''s level, fam."


    "So, you vouched for me," Jaidem patted Nash on the shoulder and called the waiter. "Hey, bring me and my pals some cola. My treat."


    "Your treat? Noice!" Nash opened the cola bottle without reservation. "Thanks, man!"


    "I should be the one saying thanks," Jaiden said. "If not for you two, I would''ve probably quit Mancers."


    "But, it''d be such a waste," Rio said. "You''re an amazing player."


    "Don''t worry, all that dumb stuff is in the past," Jaiden reassured. "Now, I''m in a club with you two, so there''s no way I''m quitting. We gonna conquer the whole competitive scene together!"


    "Hell yeah, now you''re talking!" Nash brought his bottle up. The others followed and locked their bottles together. "For victory and stuff!"


    "F-For victory!" Rio did his best to shout with his low voice, but it came off like a mouse squeak.


    "Pft, haha!" Nash burst into laughter and spilled some cola on his shirt. "Oh, crap! Haha!" Everybody laughed.


    Being right here, alongside friends, was fun. The depressing past didn''t matter anymore. Jaiden somehow failed StormBlitz''s exam, but maybe it''s for the best. Thanks to that, he was now playing with his bros in the same club.


    All Jaiden was looking for was the highest level of competition. He wanted to test his mettle against the highest caliber of players. A strong team like StormBlitz was in a great position to face the strongest opponents, but Taurus could get to that level as well. Once Jaiden, Nash, and Rio join the first-string, they''ll wreck the competition in the region and go all the way to nationals! Then, they''ll win nationals too! They were unstoppable together! They were the Invincible Triangle!


    [Yeah, screw StormBlitz.] Jaiden concluded. [Once I run into them at the tournament, I''ll make them regret favoring some scrubby girl over me. I can accept the two guys who got in, they''re actually good... wait.]


    Something just clicked in Jaiden''s brain. It was unbelievable. He doubted his own sanity for a moment. Yet, he had a strong feeling he was right about it.


    Two boys passed the te third stage of StormBlitz''s exam. What were their names, again? Nah, Jaiden didn''t know their names. But, their IGNs! He saw them last year!


    It was in this very place, during the second-string scrimmage between StormBlitz and the Leopards. That match piqued his interest, so he went to watch it with everybody. Nash was complaining at first, saying that StormBlitz''s second-string gotta be scrubs. Honestly, Jaiden thought the same. He wasn''t expecting much.


    But, what greeted them there was a scene beyond their wildest imagination. Both sides went hard at each other, but StormBlitz dominated that show. It was amazing! They were winning against the strongest team in the region! Well, to be precise, it was just the second-string of the strongest. But, still! These were some crazy games!


    Especially, there was this one mad lad. His IGN was... Bulletz? Riflez? Something like that. Anyway, bruh was sick! His Trickshooter was godlike! Whenever he activated Trickshow, he became a raging typhoon!


    "Yeah! That''s my boy!" Somebody in the crowd cheered when the Trickshooter scored a kill. It was a familiar face. That guy played for StormBlitz on stage just a short while ago, then stepped down for some reason. Jaiden and crew had no idea what was the story behind it, but the guy piqued their interests.


    If memory served, the guy was soaked in water for some reason. It was a small detail, but it stuck because of how random it was. Did the guy take a shower or something?


    Anyway, Jaiden decided to approach the StormBlitz guy. Something has been bothering Jaiden for a while now, so he had to ask about it.


    StormBlitz had a limit of 15 members, he knew that for a fact from the explanations during the entrance exam. Five members were playing for the first-string, whereas another five were on the second-string on stage. The way Jaiden understood it, StormBlitz split the 15 equally across years: five seniors, five juniors, and five freshmen.


    So, one would assume that the first-string had five seniors and the second-string had five juniors. However, something peculiar happened to the second-string that day; they substituted a member.


    In other words, 11 club members participated in the scrimmage that day. Therefore, at least one of them had to be a freshman. Jaiden had to know which one it was.


    [Is that guy better than me? He better be.] That''s all he could think about back at the time. Jaiden failed to get into StormBlitz, unlike the guy who was playing for the second-string on stage. Who was that freshman? Was he really better than Jaiden? He should be. He gotta be. But, was he, really?


    "The freshman? Actually, there are two of them on stage right now."


    "What?" Jaiden thought his ears were deceiving him. Two freshmen made it into the StormBlitz''s second-string!? Wow! How good were these guys!?


    "It''s the Carry and Support duo", the StormBlitz guy explained. "They''re pretty good, right? Got nothing on me, of course, but they can kick some serious ass, haha."


    "The Carry and Support..." Jaiden mumbled. Impossible. That couldn''t be. The Carry was that amazing Trickshooter who was putting on an otherworldly performance. And, that Support player has been playing today from the start. Meaning, he was picked for the second-string over some Junior! These guys were fire!


    They were such an odd pair, too. The Carry dude was an energetic bro who moved around a lot and made noise. On the other hand, the Support was a stoic guy, sitting there all calm like a cold-blooded assassin. They made for an interesting pair.


    [Wait, an energetic guy and a stoic one?] Jaiden returned to reality. It wasn''t just his imagination. He DID see those two before! They were the two freshmen in that second-string scrimmage!


    But wait, what the heck were they doing in Stratus? Was there some sort of foul play afoot? Or, did they transfer schools for some reason? Anyway, this was huge!


    As he realized this unbelievable fact, Jaiden bolted out of the cafeteria.

 215 The Ex-StormBlitz Players

    "I realized something huge!" Jaiden shouted as she dashed toward the match hall. [It can''t be. But, what if it is? Then, this match might actually...!]


    ¡ºDEFEAT¡» ¡ºVICTORY¡»


    The giant letters were hanging on the screen. The match was already over. It was pretty fast for a high-level match. Matches only ended this early when one team was steamrolling.


    Earlier today, Jaiden was actually expecting a conclusion like this. Except, it was supposed to be backward. The ¡ºDEFEAT¡» was supposed to be hanging on the other side of the screen.


    But no, it was clearly on the left side, on the side Taurus played! They''ve lost. Taurus lost to Stratus, the lowly bottom tier team. No, it wasn''t just any defeat. Looking at the stats, Stratus thoroughly and utterly crushed Taurus. It was a one-sided slaughter from start to end.


    [The players'' names... Yeah, I was right!] A shiver ran through Jaiden''s spine. He had no idea how this was even possible, but he was correct! The two players from StormBlitz were here: Gunz and Chessmaster. They were the awesome freshmen who kicked some serious butt last year!


    But, what were they doing in Stratus? No, that didn''t matter. What''s more important was the fact they were here today, playing on the stage.


    [I gotta fight them!] Jaiden was determined. No matter what his seniors say, Jaiden had to participate in today''s match. He gotta go out there and wreck the two awesome StormBlitz players! That way, he''ll finally prove his worth. He was just as good- No, he was better than them! StormBlitz made a mistake when they didn''t pick them. He''ll prove it today, on this stage!


    "Phew, you''re so fast, man," Nash arrived shortly, panting as if he just finished a marathon. Rio also appeared after a while. He was jogging lightly, but still looked half-dead from exhaustion.


    "W-What''s wrong?" Rio asked while catching his breath.


    "Just look at the results, guys!" Jaiden pointed at the screen.


    "Huh? The game''s already over?" Nash took a deep breath and straightened his back. The next moment, his eyes almost popped outta their sockets. "We... lost?"


    "It looks one-sided..." Rio was speechless as well. Nobody predicted this result. Today''s scrimmage was supposed to be an easy win for Taurus. Yet, reality was the complete opposite.


    "I suddenly realized there are two big fish in Stratus," Jaiden shared his findings. "It looks like we''re in for a treat today! Guys, we gotta fight them! It gonna be awesome!"


    "Hell yeah!" Nash pumped a fist. "Let''s get these ex-Storm dudes or whoever they are!"


    "I''ll help too," Rio nodded.


    "You guys...!" Jaiden thrust a first toward. His pals locked their fists together with him. Together, they were the Invincible Triangle! There was no opponent they couldn''t beat!


    "Invincible Triangle for the win!" Nash also raised his arm.


    "Do we have to do it?" Rio reluctantly raised his arm.


    "C''mon, say the word!" Nash insisted.


    "Do I have to?" Rio shifted his eyes away. "It sounds kinda lame."


    "C''mon, c''mon, c''mon!"


    "Ugh..."


    "Haha, it''s okay," Jaiden came to the rescue. "The Invincible Triangle isn''t about saying the words, it''s about the heart! As long as he''s our comrade and fights by our side, Rio is also a part of the triangle!"


    "Um, anyway," Rio wheeled the conversation elsewhere. "How will we convince the seniors to let us play?" With that one question, he killed all the hype.


    "Ah, shoot. He''s right," Nash scratched his head. "Bruce and Co. ain''t gonna let us play today."


    "We''ll see about that," Jaiden strode toward Taurus'' waiting room. There was no way in hell the team was happy with this result. In fact, knowing Bruce, the guy was probably throwing a fit right about now. This was a great opportunity to ask about subbing in. Bruce and his gang were quite the quitters sometimes, so they might give up their spots. [Fingers crossed.]


    "You really wanna go in there?" Nash gulped. The trio stood in front of Taurus'' door. There was no doubt that an unpleasant atmosphere laid on the other side of this door. In fact, they could even sense miasma slipping through the door. But, it was just their imagination. Probably.


    "C''mon, let''s do it," Jaiden placed his palm on the handle. It felt a little wet. Or, maybe it''s his palm that was sweaty? "I''m opening it..." He slowly, very slowly, pulled down the handle. Gulp. [This isn''t going to be a pretty sight, is it?]


    "FUCK!" That''s the first word to greet Jaiden. BAM! Something went flying across the room. It crashed into a wall and fell on the floor. A wooden chair. Bruce just kicked it like a soccer ball.


    "How did that shit happen!?" Bruce ranted. "How did we lose to these punks!? They''re Stratus, the weakest team! This ain''t real. This ain''t real, yo!"


    "Please don''t break the furniture," Raymond, the captain, picked up the poor chair. It seemed like the chair wasn''t damaged, a fact that made Raymond sigh in relief.


    "Gaaaah! I can''t fuckin'' take this!" Bruce punched the wall next. "Oh shit! It hurts!"


    "Haha, idiot," Bryan cracked a laugh.


    "Whatcha laughing at!?" Bruce stomped toward Bryan with clenched fists. "This shit ain''t funny. We were owned by such a scrubby team. That''s bullshit!"


    "Yeah, it''s ridiculous," Bryan nodded. "But, I kinda accepted it halfway through. These guys ain''t half bad. I''ve been trying to tell you, but you don''t listen."


    "Because I don''t listen to bullcrap," Bruce stated matter-of-factly. "That''s ain''t real. We shouldn''t have lost. Not like this, man. Not like this."


    "Just accept it already," Zeph shrugged. "I dunno about your opponents, but I can say for sure that their Top is hella good. The others also seemed decent during team fights. Say what you want, but facts are facts."


    "Dammit!" Bruce cursed and dropped on the sofa. He tapped his leg nonstop and wore a glare intense enough to kill. That''s when he laid his eyes on Jaiden. "What? Came back to laugh at us, eh?"


    "Not at all," Jaiden answered as calmly as possible. "I just saw the match was over, so I came to check what''s up."


    "Nothing to see here. Piss off."


    [Charming as ever.] Jaiden rolled his eyes. "So, is Stratus strong this year?"


    "Hell no, they ain''t nothing," Bruce insisted. "We only lost because some idiots on our team fucked up big time."


    [Like you?] Jaiden looked aside and tried his best to not burst into laughter. Judging by how mad Bruce was, he was clearly frustrated by his own performance as well. That douche cared firstmost about his own reputation. Even if the entire world were to sink at this exact moment, Bruce wouldn''t give a shit long as he''s safe. On the other hand, if even the smallest misfortune hits him? It was a disaster! A crime against humanity!


    "Cap, what happened?" Jaiden turned to Raymond.


    "Hrm, it was rough," Raymond frowned and spoke slowly. It seemed he was also shocked by this development, even though it didn''t show as clearly on his stoic expression.


    "Did they catch you off-guard? Or, they had hard counter-picks?"


    "They did pull some unexpected plays and their picks were solid," Raymond said. "But, that''s not all. They were just really well-trained."


    "So, high-level players!?" Jaiden trembled. [As I thought, there are strong guys here today! Dang, lemme on the stage! Lemme play...!]


    "Tch, these scrubs ain''t high-level for shit," Bruce clicked his tongue in denial. He wasn''t going to accept that narrative, no matter what.


    "High-level or not," Dylan dropped his back on the sofa. "They sure did a number on us. Nobody expected this shit."


    "Was their Bot duo strong?" Jaiden asked, unable to contain himself.


    "The Bot duo?" Bruce grimaced. "Nah, they''re trash. But well, they''re probably the best that team had to offer. I mean, they did put up a fight against me, after all. While everybody else was losing to some scrubby shit out there, I was dealing with the enemy''s strongest shit and almost made it!"


    [Sure, sure.] Jaiden rolled his eyes.


    "That Bot duo was sure strong," Bryan nodded. "Especially, that Carry chick."


    "Huh? Chick?" Jaiden blinked. "Didn''t Gunz play Carry?"


    "No, he played Mid," Raymond confirmed. "He was my lane opponent."


    "Huh, weird," Jaiden scratched his head. "Do you remember what role Chessmaster played?"


    "Top," Zeph answered without hesitation. "That bastard is is a piece of work. Couldn''t make a dent in him with my DK."


    "Is that so," Jaiden had no idea what was going on. During the StormBlitz vs. Leopards scrimmage, Gunz and Chessmaster played Bot. That''s the position Jaiden saw them shine in.


    So, why Mid and Top this game? Maybe those were their sub-roles? Or, maybe Mid and Top were actually their best roles and Bot was the secondary position!? Whoa, just how good were these guys!? [I gotta play a game against them! Ten games, even! No, a hundred! Lemme at theeeeeeeeeem!!!]


    "Do you know those two from somewhere?" Raymond asked.


    "Yeah, but it''s kinda weird," Jaiden shared. "I realized it a little late, but I actually saw Gunz and Chessmaster last year. But, they were playing on StormBlitz back then."


    "Say WHAT!?" Zeph''s jaw hit the floor. "The hell? What are they doing in Stratus then?"


    "No idea," Jaiden shrugged. "Maybe they transferred."


    "Or, maybe they joined the match illegally," Dylan smirked. "The plot thickens."


    "Why would they do that, though?" Jaiden asked.


    "Beats me," Dylan shrugged. "But, won''t it make for a cool story if it''s true? Haha."


    "Wait, won''t that be against the rules?" Zeph leveled an important question.


    "It sure is," Bryan nodded. "Also, if you think about it, StormBlitz got a motive for doing this. They might be trying to help a lowly team to win. With less competition, it''ll be easier for them to get seeded higher."


    "Damn, these fuckers!" Bruce roared. "I knew something was fishy! So, that''s why they were so good! It''s Storm, so of course they gonna give us some trouble."


    [Wow, that''s the fastest 180 I''ve seen in my life.] Jaiden spat a sigh.


    "Hey, Ray!" Bruce called out in a demanding tone. "Go check with the ref the fuck these guys are doing here! We gonna ban their asses from this match! Heck, we might even get this whole scrimmage for free! Ez, haha!"


    "Yeah, I better ask," Raymond headed to the stage.


    When it came to verifying the identities of the scrimmaging players, the referees trusted the club supervisors. That left a big opening for exploitation. Nothing stopped the supervisors from bringing in strong players from other schools.


    [Dang it, maybe I shouldn''t have said anything.] Jaiden scratched his head. He also considered this possibility at first, but he quickly disregarded it because it didn''t matter to him. He just wanted to play against Gunz and Chessmaster, that''s all. Unfortunately, for the other people here, this situation was a huge deal.


    [Dang, but I really wanna play them!] Jaiden pouted. Whether this was legal or not didn''t matter. This was a rare opportunity to test his mettle against those two. They were the two guys who made it into StormBlitz when Jaiden failed. If they were really that much better than him, they gotta prove it in a real match!


    [But really, what are they doing here?] Logically, there were only two explanations. Either they were illegal players from StormBlitz, or they simply transferred schools. Jaiden couldn''t tell which sounded more plausible.


    [I think I prefer them to be spies from StormBlitz. Otherwise, it means these guys...] Jaiden clenched his fists. If the other option was true, he''ll be pretty dang mad.


    Raymond returned after a while. "I talked to the referee about this. We checked it with Stratus'' supervisor and she said they transferred to the school this year."


    "You gotta be kidding me..." Jaiden couldn''t believe his ears. So, Gunz and Chessmaster defected to another team? They passed StormBlitz''s entrance exam at the expense of other candidates, then they quit the club? Just like that? What the actual heck!?


    "The referee made a call to both schools to confirm, so there''s no mistake," Raymond explained. "They transferred schools."


    "Is that so," Jaiden clenched his fists. Now, he absolutely had to fight these guys. Who the hell they thought they were!? Getting into StormBlitz like that, then leaving as if it was worth nothing. Did they even realize how many players out there were desperately trying to get into StormBlitz and failed!? Gunz and Chessmaster were among the few who actually made it, yet they threw that opportunity away as if it was garbage. Unforgivable.


    "Can I play in the next match?" Jaiden requested.


    "If anybody wants to switch with you," Raymond looked around. His eyes naturally laid on Bruce, the Carry.


    "No chance, kid," Bruce lifted his chin. "I''m the Carry."


    "But, you lost last time," Jaiden said. "In less than fifteen minutes."


    "Hey, watch your mouth, kid," Bruce stood up and waved a clenched fist. Jaiden had to choose his next words wisely, or else that dangerous fist will come flying straight into his face.


    "I mean, I just thought you might want to take a break to calm down. You look pretty titled. We can sub as many times as we want during scrimmages, so no harm in skipping one game."


    "I ain''t titled."


    "I see," Jaiden backed off a little. He knew nothing good will come out from pushing that angle any further. Anything more than that might trigger Bruce for real and start a fight. [Let''s not do that.]


    Everybody in Taurus knew that, in order to survive, it was best to stay on Bruce''s good side. He was somewhat of a dumbass, but also strong as a bull. There''s no beating this dude. Only Raymond had the strength to pin down that mad dog, but it was questionable whether the captain will intervene if something happens.


    "So, you got any plans for the next game?" Jaiden asked.


    "Sure do," Bruce nodded. "We go all in and kick their asses!"


    [Brilliant plan. This guy is a natural strategist.] Jaiden rolled his eyes. "Not to rub salt or anything, but the team lost pretty bad last time. We have to adjust."


    "Oh, you betcha we gonna adjust, now that we know they got some big shots," Bruce said. "We just underestimated these guys a little last time, that''s all. Right, guys?"


    "I guess," Zeph said. "I only agreed to pick DK because I thought these guys were scrubs. No wonder I got my ass handed to me. You should''ve told us earlier, Jai."


    "My bad," Jaiden apologized. "I only figured it after the match."


    "Meh, it''s fine," Zeph waved his hand. "Next game, I''m going Dragonborn. Gonna wreck that Cheese-master."


    "Cheese-master, haha," Bruce laughed. "Yeah, you show ''em. Bryan, we also gotta step up our game. We gonna show ''em the true power of BB!"


    "You betcha!" Bryan locked his fist with Bruce''s. They were the Bruce-Bryan duo, the almighty BB! They had no business losing to some potatoes.


    [Well, at least they got their fighting spirit back.] Jaiden smiled wryly. He had mixed feelings about this. On one hand, he wanted his team to claim victory. On the other hand, he wanted to actively contribute to said victory.


    [Meh, it''s okay.] Jaiden shrugged. He and his pals might not make it into the first-string this year, but they still had next year. Until then, they''ll support the first-string from the bench.


    "Too bad they won''t let you play," Rio said as Jaiden returned.


    "Yeah. Like, c''mon," Nash shook his head. "You''re a better Carry than Bruce will ever be."


    "''Shh, he''ll hear you," Jaiden whispered. "It can''t be helped. We''re still juniors. This is the seniors'' last year, so they deserve to play. Besides, if we don''t play together, I''m not sure how much I''ll contribute by myself."


    "Don''t worry, man. You''re plenty good!" Nash gave a thumbs up. "But yeah, guess there''s no way they''re letting us play."


    "Maybe if Stratus beats them to a pulp next game..." Rio mumbled something scary.


    "Whoa, relax there, bro," Nash cracked a laugh. "I also wanna play, but that''s some extreme shit."


    In truth, Rio''s grim words merely echoed Jaiden and Nash''s true thoughts. A part of them was hoping to see Bruce''s gang lose badly in the next game. It might spark something. Maybe, just maybe, Jaiden and his pals will get a chance to play after that.


    "Anyway, we''re watching the next game," Jaiden announced. "Make sure to burn everything you see into your brains. We gonna play against these guys someday."


    "You betcha!" Nash gave a thumbs up.


    "Mhm," Rio nodded.


    On that note, the trio headed into the hall. For now, they were only there as part of the audience. Will they get a chance to show off their Invincible Triangle today? Maybe. Maybe not.


    Either way, Taurus gonna win today''s scrimmage, no matter what. Jaiden will do everything in his power to find Stratus'' weaknesses and bring them down.


    Especially, Gunz and Chessmaster, the two ex-StormBlitz players. Jaiden will bring them down no matter what, even if he has to do so indirectly. Hopefully, by doing so, he''ll finally be able to convince himself.


    He was a strong player. He wasn''t some scrub. He didn''t fail the StormBlitz exam because he was weak. That''s what Jaiden constantly told himself ever since. He had to repeat such thoughts like a mantra to not drown in the mud of negativity.


    Today was an opportunity to finally put all these statements to test. Was he good enough to compete against the boys who made it into StormBlitz? Or, was he merely deceiving himself the entire time?


    Also, there was Stratus'' captain girl. Naturally, she wasn''t the girl who got into StormBlitz at Jaiden''s expense. Nevertheless, this girl was also far from innocent. She probably got the captain position by acting cute in front of the boys or something. Disgusting.


    [I''ll put her in her place.] Jaiden swore.


    With that determination, he sat down in the audience and glared at the stage. He wanted to play up there so badly, but he wasn''t allowed to set foot in there today. The stage was so close, yet so far.


    But, he won''t give up. Quitting wasn''t in his dictionary. Even from the audience, he''ll find some dirt on Stratus and bring these guys down!

 216 Analyzing Taurus

    "You''re one smooth criminal, Lars," Luke grinned and smacked Lars on the back. "You never told us you got such a cute girlfriend!"


    "Haha, she ain''t my girlfriend," Lars laughed. "She''s a good friend and one heck of a player. She gonna be on StormBlitz''s first-string this year."


    "Whoa, for real!? Such a cutie!?" Luke''s eyes almost popped out of their sockets. "Man, and here I thought all the girls who play video games are-" He glanced around the room and noticed Kai and Nia were among the listeners. "Ahem. Anyway, cool stuff, bro."


    "So, she came to spy on us?" Kai asked.


    "Yes, among things," Yuel said. "Don''t worry, we haven''t told her anything."


    "I hope you didn''t," Kai gave them a look. For some reason, she seemed rather antagonistic about the whole affair.


    "So, shall we resume our secret meeting?" Vincent cut in. "We were in the middle of discussing our opponents'' strengths and weaknesses."


    "I said pretty much everything I had to say," Yuel admitted.


    Right before Julia arrived, Yuel shared intel about the various major flaws he discovered in their opponents. Most of Taurus'' players didn''t come across as high-level and their craft was unpolished in many ways.


    There was only one opponent who stood out from the rest. The captain of their team, Nirvana. The guy played solid Mid, enough to give Lars trouble. Yuel couldn''t find any glaring weaknesses in Nirvana''s playstyle.


    "What about you?" Yuel asked Vincent. "Did they have any ''abilities'' that stood out?" His skin crawled as he asked the question.


    [Did I seriously just ask that with a straight face?] Yuel cracked a weird laugh. After months of interaction with Vincent, Yuel concluded this was the best method for inquiring about the clown''s findings. Vincent definitely had the knack for spotting others'' strong points, but the way he laid out his findings always made Yuel lose brain cells.


    "Very well, so my turn has finally come," Vincent brought up his tablet. As soon as the game was over, he wrote down all the data he absorbed with his Information Blackhole, to make sure none of it will escape the gravitational pull. "Now, let me share the mysteries of the world with you!"


    "Didn''t you say there was barely anything important?" Yuel asked.


    "Well, yes. However...!" Vincent insisted with a dramatic tone, just to make a scene.


    "Cut to the chase already," Kai ordered. "We don''t have time for this."


    "Yes, indeed, time is of an essence," Vincent nodded. "If I don''t speak fast, the casualty of time and space will collapse and the world will implode into a black hole!"


    ".............." Everybody gave him a cold, silent stare. The invisible pressure felt like a knife pressed against his throat.


    "So, basically, they''re scrubs?" Luke laughed.


    "They totally are," Kai nodded.


    "Nevertheless!" Vincent continued. "My Information Blackhole picked up a few things. Firstly, TheLegend, the enemy Carry. I''m convinced his Fury Inducer skill extends beyond real-life Even inside the game, he often pretends to be almighty and that invokes the urge to smite him down. Even I nearly aggressed on him a couple of times when his plays showed no respect for our strength."


    "So, you''re saying he''s good at being a scumbag" Kai summarized. "That''s some ''talent'' right there."


    "Hmm," Yuel considered this seemingly useless information. "So, it''s like a taunt ability?"


    "Indeed!" Vincent nodded. "It alters causality to make his foes seek vengeance against him! Though, as far as causality-alteration skills are concerned, it''s definitely on the weaker side."


    "I see," Yuel nodded. In other words, TheLegend acted like a natural scumbag and that invited hatred from his foes. It wasn''t exactly a talent to be proud of, but it was indeed a "skill", in the sense that it could hinder the enemy''s performance.


    It was like a taunt effect that clouded judgment. It might cause an enemy to jump the gun and recklessly aggress on TheLegend, digging their own grave in the process. Kai was especially susceptible to things like that.


    "So, here''s what we should take from it," Yuel summarized. "Always think twice before you target TheLegend. Make sure you''re not being reckless just because you want to see the guy dead." Everybody nodded in understanding.


    "Next on the list," Vincent scrolled on his tablet. "Nirvana, the enemy Mid Laner. He has been lying low for the most part, but his performance was very strong."


    "That''s true," Yuel agreed. Most of the enemy team came across as half-baked, except for Nirvana. Stratus easily gained an advantage in Top and Bot, but not in Mid. It was a big part of why they couldn''t wrap up the game for a while.


    "As for his talents," Vincent continued. "It has to be the Silent Backer!" He shouted in excitement, as if this random combination of words meant anything. Everybody hit him back with the Silent Treatment attack.


    "Alright, I shall explain," Vincent cleared his throat. "Nirvana has been lying low during the first half of the game, despite being one of the more skilled players. Naturally, one reason for that was how Gunz gave Nirvana a hard time in lane."


    "Yeah, I totally rekt that guy." Lars gave a thumbs up. "Dude was strong, tho. He didn''t attack much, but his defense was on point."


    "Yes, he came across as a defensive player," Yuel agreed. Nirvana almost never actively initiated attacks, but he skillfully deflected incoming attacks.


    "But, there was a shift in Nirvana''s attitude during mid-game, was there not?" Vincent asked everybody.


    "There was?" Yuel frowned. He didn''t remember such a thing. Based on his analysis, Nirvana remained a defensive player from start to end. Even during the team-fighting phase, the guy didn''t show much initiative. That was one of the reasons it was so difficult to uncover any weaknesses in his play. Nirvana''s biggest "weakness" was his lack of initiative, that''s all Yuel managed to gather.


    "Nirvana continued playing defensively during the mid-game as well," Vincent continued. "However, there was something amazing about his performance. He was almost always at the right place, at the right time, ready to help his teammates in moments of peril. He backed up his allies from the shadows without expecting any gratitude. The lone ranger, Silent Backer!"


    "Yeah, dude was pretty cool," Lars nodded with a grin. "I''ve been trying to get a kill on him for ages, so I was watching his every move. No matter where we attacked, that Nirvana dude was always there to defend."


    "Yes, I suppose he was," Yuel thought back on all the major assaults they mounted on the enemy during mid-game. And truly, Nirvana was there to defend against many of them. It didn''t stand to Yuel at first, because he already branded Nirvana as a "defensive player" early on. However, it was indeed impressive.


    Nirvana didn''t just play defensively. He was often an active part of the defense force during critical moments. He often found his way to the scene of interest, as if predicting where Stratus will strike next.


    [He''s like Howard.] Yuel shuddered. [Or rather, a mini-Howard.]


    It didn''t seem like Nirvana was responsible for making defensive shot-calls the way Howard did. However, his ability to always reinforce the defense in the right place at the right time was very much like Howard''s. This type of opponent was guaranteed to be a pain in the neck.


    [So, I should always consider the possibility of Nirvana being there to defend unless I distract him first.] Yuel concluded.


    "Anything else?" Yuel asked Vincent. Putting aside that clown''s theatrics, his observations were proving to be valuable. They helped Yuel focus on pieces of information he didn''t pay enough attention to, bringing new facts to light.


    "Unfortunately, that''s everything my Information Blackhole absorbed," Vincent said. "I tried, I really did. I dug into the deepest layers of their subconsciousness, trying to unravel something of great importance. Alas, I failed to find anything else." His shoulders slumped. He probably wanted to come up with more silly talent names.


    "Don''t worry, man," Luke encouraged. "If you couldn''t find much, it just means these guys are wack, haha."


    "I agree with Luke''s assessment," Yuel said. "Taurus doesn''t seem to be a strong team this year."


    "Or, maybe we''re just too strong!" Lars flashed his teeth. "We trained a lot, so we''re DA BEST, yo!"


    "Heh, perhaps," Yuel chuckled. That''s right, they trained plenty and improved tremendously over the past couple of months. They were no longer the infamous bottom tier team.


    That''s why Julia''s criticism irked so much. She claimed Stratus won only thanks to Taurus being a weak team. And, supposedly, the victory wasn''t "decisive" enough. Seriously, what was she on about? Stratus utterly crushed Taurus.


    Well, Yuel did, in fact, take his time carefully cornering Taurus into submission. Stratus had an overwhelming lead, so he didn''t want to take any risks that might make them lose their winning position. Therefore, he focused on safe and steady shot-calls that didn''t harbor any risks.


    As a result, the game dragged on a little and they didn''t deliver the finishing blow until the very end. They won via sieging their enemies.


    But, was there anything wrong with that approach? No, there wasn''t. Siege was a famous military tactic for a reason. It was an effective method for conquering and it definitely worked in Classmancers.


    ["You got an early lead, but instead of attacking you just sat there doing nothing. That''s not like you."] That''s what Julia said. According to her, playing siege in that situation was uncharacteristic for Yuel. And, she was right. Or rather, she [would have been right] if they held this conversation a few months ago.


    Back during the selection match against Howard, Yuel was still stuck in the mentality of going for a quick kill after exploiting the enemy''s weaknesses. Striking fast and hard was his preferred way of competing. Not only in Classmancers, but in Chess as well. It was the playstyle he learned from his dad and the one that came most naturally to him.


    However, this very playstyle betrayed him. It led Yuel to his doom during the selection match. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn''t crack Howard''s unbreakable defense.


    Thus, the conclusion was obvious: this approach didn''t work on the highest level of play. Classmancers offered many ways to combat early-game aggression and Howard knew how to utilize them. That''s why, no matter how Yuel attacked, Howard always deflected the blows.


    Therefore, something had to change. Yuel had no choice but to face his defeat and analyze it. From that, he concluded his aggressive strategies won''t cut it against the strongest opponents. It was impossible to penetrate through Aegis via brute strength.


    On top of that, the current meta didn''t favor early offense either. According to statistics, most pro teams in A-League relied on defensive or balanced lineups. Few went with aggressive lineups.


    Therefore, Yuel had to adapt. If he truly wanted to defeat Howard, he couldn''t keep relying on a suboptimal game plan. He had to reinvent himself and his strategies. That was the only way to advance.


    Nevertheless, a part of him never stopped asking. "Was there a way to defeat Howard with a rushdown tactic? Maybe I just couldn''t find it?" Such pointless questions haunted him.


    During matches, something in him often tempted him to ramp up the aggression. Even when he was playing with caution, he couldn''t stop himself simulating what would happen if he were to suddenly switch to offense. It''s as if his instincts were screaming at him, asking him to strike as hard as possible at the enemy''s weaknesses.


    But, he had to keep such desires on a leash. It was tempting to strike every weakness in the enemy''s formation, but it often harbored risk. It was enough to fail once and the team will pay dearly. That was especially true against Howard, the captain who knew all about his teammates'' weaknesses. Anything Yuel tried to exploit backfired at him.


    That''s why Yuel reduced the frequency of such plays. They were tempting, but he stayed his hand. The risk was too high.


    But, Julia didn''t know about any of that. For her, Yuel remained a strategist who relied on aggressive tactics. He began straying from that path a little toward the end of the selection match, but it wasn''t enough.


    At the very end of the match, Yuel was tempted to continue the offense Julia started. A fatal mistake. Instead of forcing Julia to retreat, Yuel was stuck mulling over the options. As a result, he didn''t order Julia to retreat in time, and then...


    [I can''t repeat that mistake.] Yuel promised himself. [I have to adjust my strategies so they don''t fall prey to temptations like these.]


    Nevertheless, Julia was expecting him to put on an aggressive show today. And, by extension, that''s what everybody in StormBlitz was expecting too. Even though gathering intel probably wasn''t Julia''s top priority today, she was still a spy from the enemy team. She came here to observe the way Stratus played and report back to Howard.


    [We could feed them with a little misinformation.] Yuel smirked. If they shift to an aggressive playstyle and dominate the next game, it''ll convince Julia that Stratus had every intention to play aggressively, the way Yuel always did. Naturally, this information will be relayed to Howard and he''ll draw the same conclusion as well.


    As a result, StormBlitz will conclude that Stratus was an aggressive team and that''s the kind of matchup StromBlitz will be preparing for. However, it''ll be a grave mistake on their part. It might allow Stratus to catch them off-guard during their first game.


    [It''s probably nothing more than wishful thinking.] Yuel smiled wryly. [Still, I''d take any leverage I can get, no matter how small.]


    It was settled. He''ll try rushing down Taurus in the next game. Worst case, they''ll lose one game and learn from their mistakes. They gained some leeway by winning the first game, so it was fine to experiment.


    Of course, this wasn''t Yuel''s decision alone. He had to convince the entire team to follow this strategy. But, he had a strong feeling the captain will like this suggestion...

 217 Rushdown Plan

    "Oh! We gonna rush them down!?" Lars jumped in excitement.


    "Yes, I''d like to try rushing them down," Yuel already prepared some arguments for this seemingly random decision. "According to my analysis, the players from Taurus aren''t that high level. Vincent''s brief report about their abilities only further reinforces that notion. So, I say we should go all out and finish them quickly."


    "But, won''t that be incredibly risky?" Vincent asked. "I''m not sure how aggressive we''re talking about here. But, if it''s the kind of rushdown that requires an astronomical early-game lead, we might get severely punished for it. We can get away with things like that in Ranked, but do you believe we stand a chance in a competitive match?"


    "I also didn''t think it''d be viable against a competitive team," Yuel admitted. "But, after playing Taurus, I changed my mind. Against a team of this level, we can pull it off. And, since we can, we better do it. The faster we finish this, the less information spies can gather on us. And, it might even spread some misinformation."


    "Misinformation?" Vincent was instantly intrigued. "Oh, I see! This is the Playstyle Misinformation strategy, isn''t it!? We will fool spies into thinking that our preferred playstyle is aggressive, even though it''s not!"


    "Heh, that''s smart," Luke grinned. "We''ll make them study the wrong stuff about us. Them scrubs gonna come at us unprepared. Ez wins. I like that."


    "Indeed, it''s brilliant!" Vincent exclaimed. "I''m in. Let us unleash the most devastating rushdown strategy the world has ever seen!"


    "Yeah, let''s go!" Luke pumped a fist. "They tried to rush us down last game, so now''s our turn. Let''s knock their socks off!"


    "An eye for an eye, huh," Kai smiled dangerously. There was a sharp glint in her eyes. "Sure, let''s teach them a lesson for underestimating us. Nia, are you okay with that... huh."


    "Zzz..." Nia was curled up on the sofa chair like a cat. She knocked herself out as soon as they returned to the room. The pressure of the first game must have drained her out.


    "Her game plan won''t change much anyway," Yuel said. "So, it seems we''re all in agreement. Here''s what I got." He laid out the aggressive game plans he came up with after Julia''s visit.


    No, that wasn''t quite true. Yuel didn''t come up with those ideas on the spot just now. All these options were sitting at the back of his head for a while now, but he didn''t dare to let them out.


    In truth, he prepared various aggressive team compositions ahead of time. Even though he knew the team will stick with a more balanced game plan, he still wanted to have some rushdown options at the ready, just in case. What kind of case? He couldn''t even tell.


    "No much time left," Vincent interrupted.


    "Okay, we''ll discuss the rest on stage," Yuel nodded. "Let''s go."


    "Watcha gonna do about Sleeping Beauty over there?" Luke pointed at Nia, who was still fast asleep. Her breathing was so faint that one could mistake her for a corpse.


    "I can always sub in, just so you know," Luke winked.


    "Hey, Nia," Kai shook Nia''s shoulder, but there was no response. That was some high-level sleeping tech right there.


    "She must have slipped into another dimension, no doubt!" Vincent nodded to himself, as if the nonsense he just blurted made perfect sense. "From this day forth, she shall be known as Vanishing Sleeper!"


    Unfortunately, even Vincent''s loudness didn''t make a dent in Nia''s uninterruptable slumber. It really felt like she was in another dimension.


    "Should I carry her to the stage?" Lars suggested. He already showed he had no trouble carrying Nia, so he could easily do that again.


    "No need," Yuel opened a very specific pocket in Nia''s backpack and searched through it. "There we go." He took out a bar of chocolate and unwrapped it. Then, he brought it close to Nia''s nose.


    "Um? Hm..." Nia''s nose twitched. She was like a hungry puppy reacting to the smell of food.


    "Am!" Nia bit the chocolate, with her eyes still closed. Nom nom nom. She drilled the chocolate with her teeth like a hamster. In a matter of seconds, the entire bar was gone.


    "Hm..." Nia''s eyes remained shut. The girl just ate an entire bar of chocolate. In her sleep. Without blinking.


    [So, one isn''t enough today.] Yuel wasn''t concerned. He has witnessed this peculiar phenomenon before. Nia was very much capable of eating two bars of chocolate in a row without waking up. Eating snacks was as natural as breathing for her.


    "Here''s another one," Yuel brought a second chocolate bar toward Nia''s lips. She considered the foreign object for a moment, then gave a bite. Then another. And another. Soon, the entire bar was gone.


    However, there was still no sign of Nia waking up. Even two bars weren''t enough! This was new. The girl must have wanted to escape reality that badly.


    But, there was no reason for concern. Nia was properly reacting to the chocolate, same as always. There was still hope. Yuel just had to improve his tactic.


    [Very well. I accept the challenge.] Yuel was determined to destroy this curse of sleepiness. The better he becomes at this, the easier it''ll be to train Nia in the future. Therefore, he''ll absolutely overcome this ordeal!


    [This is a little cruel, but let''s give it a shot.] Yuel pressed another bar of chocolate against Nia''s lips. Naturally, the girl wanted to bite it. But, here came the twist! The moment Nia was about to take her next bite, Yuel pulled the chocolate away from her.


    "Ah?" Nia cocked her head. There should have been more chocolate there, she understood that even in her sleep. Nevertheless, her teeth hit nothing. How come? Maybe she already ate the whole thing and simply forgot? In that case, it was time to go back to sleep...


    [So, that''s how you''re going to play.] Yuel nodded. It was a strong move by his opponent. As expected, this match won''t be easy.


    However! He no intention of giving up. He was prepared to repeat this process as many times as it takes.


    [Here you go.] Yuel brought the chocolate closer again and let Nia take a bite, but only one. Then, he pulled the chocolate away again.


    "Hrm...!" Nia was visibly unpleased by this. She grumped for a moment, then her facial expression relaxed and she returned to sleep.


    But, Yuel refused to give up. He was confident in his newly devised strategy. He just had to push until his opponent folds.


    [Here it is again. Now it''s gone. Now it''s there. Now it''s not.] Yuel kept moving the chocolate back and forth. The sleepyhead won''t get to eat in peace at this rate.


    Nia could give up on this obnoxious snack, but she didn''t. She kept trying to bite it and got frustrated every time anew. Eventually, she got fed up with it.


    "Gimme!" Nia grabbed Yuel''s arm and held it still. Now, she could enjoy the chocolate in peace. But, it only took her a few moments to realize her fatal mistake...


    [I won.] Yuel smirked. In order to grab Yuel, Nia had no choice but to wake up. Finally, the sleeping princess was up!


    "What was that?" Kai made a face. "Is she your pet or something?" Everybody was curiously watching the entire exchange. They had no idea how to comment on it.


    "I-I just did what I had to do," Yuel coughed. "Anyway, wake up, Nia. The next game is about to start."


    "Game...?" Nia tilted her head, still half-asleep. "Where are we? Ah, right. Competitive match..." she mumbled, about to drift back into slumber.


    "C''mon, let''s go," Yuel pulled her up from the sofa.


    "Ok..." Nia nodded vaguely and slowly stood on her feet. It seemed like she hasn''t retrieved all her brain functions from the Slumber Dimension yet. But, she''ll be fine. Probably.


    Finally, everybody was up and ready. And so, Stratus headed into the second game. They were about to unleash some rushdown finesse on Taurus!

 218 The Tilting Dark Knight Pick

    Yuel''s team agreed to go with a rushdown formation during the break, but they didn''t have enough time to discuss all the finer details. So, they had to sort it out during the drafting phase. If they drag out every ban and pick, they should have plenty of time.


    "I''ll take Dark Knight," Yuel said. "But, I rather keep it a surprise, so I''d like to pick last if that''s alright."


    Nobody voiced any objections. Dark Knight was a risky class that had a chance to become viable only when the enemy wasn''t expecting it. Of course, such strictness only applied to the pro scene. There was a chance a team of Taurus'' level didn''t know how to properly counter Dark Knight, but there was no reason to gamble on that.


    "So, our first picks are my Druid and...?" Vincent asked.


    "Ninja for Nia," Yuel said. "Her pool of options is limited at the moment, so it''s best to grab her class sooner than later."


    "Got it," Kai inputted their decisions. As the captain, she was the one responsible for the drafting. She could''ve given the role to Yuel, seeing as he made the most inputs regarding their picks. But, Kai wanted to be a captain through and through on this competitive stage, so she kept the role to herself.


    The drafting phase went on. The enemy picked Dragonborn, Aeromancer, and Pirate. The Dragonborn was most certainly their Top Lane pick, which was good. It meant Yuel will be free to pick Dark Knight this game. There was a chance the enemy will ban the class, but it was unlikely.


    [As I thought.] Yuel nodded to himself in satisfaction. After Taurus lost so badly in the previous game, it was unthinkable for them to pick Dark Knight again. It was nothing more than an arrogant pick last time, seeing as their Top Laner wasn''t even that great with the class.


    In general, after suffering such a horrible defeat, anybody would instinctively pick a different class for the next game. That''s why DragonMaster went with Dragonborn.


    However, that logic didn''t apply to the Aeromancer and Pirate picks. Last game, Nirvana used Aeromancer and TheLegend sported a Pirate. And, it appeared like they were going for the same lineup again.


    Nirvana performed well, so it was understandable why he''d stick with Aeromancer. Yuel probably should''ve banned the class when he had the chance, but he had to ban other problematic classes first.


    There were some classes, like Cleric, which posed a threat to any rushdown plan. Such classes had to banned without question. The defensive strength of Aeromancer was a hindrance for rushdown as well, but it was fine because Lars was going to play Warlock. His primary goal in this game will be to help the team dominate team-fights, so he won''t have to push the lane early on anyway.


    "Is Pirate really alright?" Raymond asked Bruce again.


    "Yeah, yeah, and yeah! You already asked me like a billion times," Bruce made a face. "Besides, you already locked-in, so it''s too late."


    "I just don''t understand. Wouldn''t it be better to pick something else? Your lane opponent proved she can defeat your Pirate."


    "What, you think I gonna lose again?" Bruce sneered. "Don''t worry, I ain''t losing to that bitch a second time. She just caught me off-guard last time, that''s all. I was expecting these guys to be total scrubs, but turned out they got some chumps from StromBlitz. I ain''t going easy on them again."


    [The players from StromBlitz are in Top and Mid, not Bot...] Raymond retorted mentally but decided to let it slide. It was probably a matter of pride for Bruce. He seemed eager to get revenge on his opponent.


    [I don''t think that''s a smart idea.] Raymond thought. Bruce could come up with a thousand excuses, but in the end, Stratus''s Carry was just that good. Bruce should be thinking about how to counter her, instead of pretending he could beat her without any plans.


    [Should I say something? No, he''s not going to listen and it''s too late anyway.] Raymond sighed. Some captain he was. It was supposed to be his job to keep the team organized and lead them to victory, but last game he failed miserably at that. And, he had a bad feeling about the upcoming game, too...


    [I should''ve spoken sooner.] Raymond regretted his passiveness. [This Pirate pick will come back to bite us. I just know it.] And, since Raymond was in charge of the drafting, it''ll effectively be his fault.


    "Hey cap, you listening? It''s my turn."


    "Ah, yes, of course," Raymond came back to earth. "Which class, again? Vampire?"


    "Yep," Dylan nodded. "I would''ve gone with Lion again, but these cheapskates banned it. I must''ve scared them shitless last game, haha!"


    "Lion is a strong pick against their lineup, so it makes sense they banned it."


    "C''mon, let a guy dream!"


    "Oh, sorry," Raymond apologized. Everybody probably wanted to believe they were stronger than they actually were. They wanted to believe they''ll definitely win the upcoming game. Without that strong faith, they''ll recall the devastating defeat they just suffered at Stratus'' hand. It''d drain their motivation and make them succumb to despair.


    That''s probably why Bruce insisted to pick Pirate. It was one of his favorite classes, so he went for it without hesitation, despite everything that happened last game. It was his way of coping with reality. He wanted to believe he was strong enough to win a rematch. Bruce was always cocky like that, but in this situation, it wasn''t such a bad thing.


    [If only I could encourage them somehow.] Raymond bit his lip. As the captain, he was supposed to keep the team''s morale high. However, he didn''t have a way with words and wasn''t charismatic in general.


    Therefore, Raymond couldn''t reassure the team. He couldn''t motivate them or drive them forward. He had no idea how to do these things. As a result, each member had to do whatever they could to salvage themselves. They acted cocky and confident to not crumble apart.


    "C''mon, pick Lumi again," Bruce urged Bryan. "We gonna have a rematch! This time, we''ll show ''em!"


    "Sounds cool, but I don''t think it''s a good idea," Bryan said. Last game, he couldn''t do much for Bruce as a Lumimancer. It was primarily a counter-pick to the enemy''s Ninja and it wasn''t meant to be amazing in Bot. Stratus was supposed to be a bottom tier team, so Bryan thought he wouldn''t have to work too hard in Bot.


    But, them bastards were pretty damn strong. That Impaler chick even beat Bruce in 1v1, and she went with Impaler again the game. Bryan suggested banning Impaler to be on the safe side, but Bruce was all like "Nah, let her use her favorite class. That way, it gonna feel the best when I clap her!"


    Thanks to that stupidity, the team didn''t ban Impaler during the first banning phase and the enemy picked it as their third class, right before the second banning phase. That sucked. They''ll have to face that strong Impaler all over again.


    Knowing that, Bryan couldn''t pick Lumimancer again. He needed a more effective Support that could rescue Bruce from his own dumb misplays. No matter what Bruce said, that Impaler was a strong adversary. She pretty much kicked Bruce''s ass.


    And, the same thing will most likely repeat this game as well. Bruce claimed that chick was "lucky" and whatnot, but she was clearly quite skilled. Bryan didn''t want to admit it, but that girl was probably stronger than Bruce in a fight. It was hilarious that a girl their age could beat Bruce, but sometimes real life was stranger than fiction.


    With all of that considered, Bryan had to pick a Support class that will keep Bruce alive in things go south. Unfortunately, the enemy banned many of the best classes for achieving that. Paladin, Cleric, and Cryomancer were gone. Druid was taken. It''s as if the enemy knew Bryan will be gunning for one of these classes.


    [Damn it, I should''ve asked to pick earlier.] Bryan clicked his tongue. It was common practice to keep the Support and Jungler roles for last in order to counter pick efficiently, but this time it played against them.


    "Guess I''ll settle on Aqua," Bryan informed with a sigh.


    "Aquamncer? Got it," Raymond locked-in the team''s final class.


    [At least it''s somewhat of a counter.] Bryan thought. The enemy had a Druid, who could grant a shield to his allies. However, Aquamncer had the rare ability to make that shit disappear. So, if that Druid was Support, Bryan should be able to get some mileage out of Aquamancer.


    "Hey B, why not Lumi?" Bruce demanded. "We could''ve recreated last game''s Bot lineup."


    "And? Then what? Lose again?" Bryan rolled his eyes.


    "What''s with that pussy talk? Ya think we gonna fold to scrubs like that?"


    "Didn''t you say you''ll be taking them seriously now?" Bryan asked.


    "Yeah, I''mma be all serious. Doesn''t change the fact they''re scrubs, tho."


    [Underestimating them isn''t exactly being "serious".] Bryan sighed. [Well, whatever.]


    Bruce was always stuck in his ways, no changing that. In a way, his unfounded confidence was amazing. It was one of these annoying traits that made people respect him... sometimes. Specifically, the times when that confidence didn''t backfire and get his ass killed.


    Even though Bruce was in the wrong like half the time, sticking to one''s convictions like that was impressive. At least, Bryan couldn''t do the same. Hopefully, that overconfidence won''t cost them the next game...


    Next, it was Stratus'' turn to pick a class. It was the final pick of the drafting phase.


    [Aquamancer. I see.] Yuel nodded. It was a good play.


    Yuel specifically banned problematic Support classes. Aquamancer was on that list as well, but the team could only ban so many classes. So, Aquamncer was left open. The enemy didn''t fail to notice that and grabbed it. At least someone on the enemy team was paying attention.


    However, it didn''t seem like Taurus figured Yuel''s ultimate plan, the one he was keeping under wrappers until the very last pick. They weren''t expecting to face the very class they picked last game due to arrogance. Their reactions will probably be priceless.


    ¡ºStratus picked Dark Knight¡»


    "Say WHAT!?" Bruce jumped. "These fuckers are screwing with us!?"


    "Looks like they didn''t like our DK pick last time," Bryan cracked a weak laugh.


    "An eye for an eye," Raymond frowned.


    "Now they''ve done it!" Bruce raged. "They''ve SO done it! Okay, listen, guys. We''re mopping the floor with them next game. StormBlitz or ShitBlitz, I don''t give a fuck! We''re killing these fuckers!"


    "Hey, hey, calm down, bro," Dylan tried to reason. "Don''t let them tilt you before the match. It''s exactly what they want."


    "I don''t give a shit! We gonna destroy them this game!" Bruce yelled. "Zeph, you know what you hafta do, right? Mop the floor with that stupid ass DK! Make that scrub regret he was born!"


    "Sure," Zeph didn''t object. In fact, he was all for it! That Dark Knight pick was hella disrespectful. It was like an insult aimed directly at Zeph. The enemy Top Laner was confident he could trash Zeph in a fight. The nerve!


    Nevertheless, Zeph found himself strangely calm. He was boiling inside, but he didn''t feel like blowing up and yelling. Why?


    Probably, because Bruce was raging like a demon in his stead. The sheer fury Bruce expressed was enough to quell everybody''s anger. It helped them retrain their cool.


    [I''ll destroy that DK.] Zeph proclaimed silently. He already admitted that picking Dark Knight last game was disrespectful of him. Like, it wasn''t even his idea. Bruce pushed him to do that shit. Zeph didn''t feel like arguing, so he just went along with it.


    After clashing with Chessmaster, Zeph realized that disrespecting the guy with Dark Knight was a huge mistake. In fact, Zeph even developed some respect toward Chessmaster. Guy was hella good. Zeph wanted a rematch. This time, he''ll play with one of his best classes!


    Unfortunately, it seemed like Chessmaster didn''t feel the same way about Zeph. For him, Zeph was a weakling who deserved to be disrespected by a Dark Knight pick. That shit was lame. No respect for that bastard anymore.


    [I gonna make him regret this shit till the day he dies.] Zeph proclaimed.


    "C''mon! Let''s go hard at these fuckers!" Bruce kept making noise while the game was loading. "We gonna take this one by storm! These assholes gonna be running to their mamas after we''re done with them!


    "Yeah! Screw them!" "We gonna wreck their lives!" "They''re so dead."


    Bruce''s words riled up the entire team. Everybody was out for blood. They''ll tear Stratus apart and make these bastards regret they were even born!


    ===Stratus===


    Chessmaster (Top): Dark Knight


    VanishingFlower (Jungler): Ninja


    Gunz (Mid): Warlock


    Beat (Carry): Impaler


    InformationBlackhole (Support): Druid


    ===Taurus===


    DragonMaster (Top): Dragonborn


    Messi (Jungler): Vampire


    Nirvana (Mid): Aeromancer


    TheLegend (Carry): Pirate


    TheMyth (Support): Aquamance

 219 Outplaying Draconic Rush

    "Yo, let''s invade these fuckers!" Bruce suggested. "We can strike them down before they get a chance to put a fight! Gonna teach them what it means to fuck with us."


    "That''s not a good idea," Raymond objected. "Their lineup has a strong early-game. They have the upper hand at this stage of the game."


    "C''mon, don''t be such a wuss!" Bruce argued back and turned to the others. "Y''all wanna invade, right? Right?"


    "I agree with Ray here," Bryan said. "These bastards are clearly trying to end the game early with that lineup. It gonna be hard to beat them right now. We should just stall them until late game."


    "Yeah," Zeph nodded. "I wanna wreck them as much as you do, but we can''t be reckless."


    "Tch, fine," Bruce piped down and followed the regular game opening. He, Bryan, and Raymond traveled to the Orge Camp together.


    [I said all that, but I actually wanna start attacking that DK scum as soon as possible.] Zeph was giddy. A tremble of ecstasy ran through his arms as he imagined bringing down his blade and decapitating Chessmaster. That bastard deserved nothing but cruel death.


    Everybody else must''ve been eager to attack as well. But, they all managed to stop themselves and listen to reason. It was largely thanks to Bruce. The guy was acting like an enraged clown, so it made everybody realize how stupid and reckless their own thoughts were. It helped them to calm down and listen to reason.


    That''s probably one reason why Bruce was considered the "captain" of the gang. He was always the first to jump at anybody who trash-talked him or his homies. And, he was always the first to trash talk the enemy. In short, he was a dumbass in every sense of the word. But, a necessary kind of dumbass whose existence made everybody around him feel smarter.


    For example, after everybody shot down Bruce''s dumb invade idea, Zeph also woke up from his reckless delusions and developed some patience. He wanted to strangle Chessmaster ASAP, but he had to hold it back for now. There was no reason to rush. He''ll get countless opportunities to wreck that bastard during mid-game. For now, he had to focus on surviving through the early-game with minimal losses.


    [Dragon got an alright matchup against DK. No problems there.] Zeph nodded to himself. He had more than enough experience dealing with cheap Dark Knights in Ranked. Dragonborn was definitely one of the few classes that could give Dark Knight a hard time.


    In addition, Draconic Rush was an awesome attack that also granted brief damage immunity. It was hella convenient for contesting the lane against a Dark Knight.


    Not to mention, Dragonborn''s ult allowed him to turn into a dragon. That was a huge game-changer in any fight. Dragonborn was ten times harder to kill in dragon form.


    Seriously, this class was sick. People often banned it in Ranked. Nobody wanted to deal with an enemy that was so hard to kill. If Chessmaster thought he gonna get ez kills here, he was about to have a very bad time.


    "I must ask," Vincent addressed Yuel. "Was DK really a wise pick? A Dragonborn will prove to be a strong adversary for sure."


    "In a vacuum, Dark Knight is never a good pick," Yuel said. "But, we agreed on a rushdown strategy, didn''t we? There''s no better Top Laner for that game plan. I''ll just have to work a little harder than expected for my kills, that''s all. Nia, I''ll be relying on your ganks again."


    "Ok?" Nia nodded. She was fully awake by now.


    The tension of being on stage, in front of the scary audience, slapped her awake. This was no time to sleep. She had to play and prevail. She''ll sneak up to each and every foe without fail. Easy. No sweat. Yeah, easy. The team has already won one game, so they''ll win this one as well. Yeah, easy. No pressure. She wasn''t tense. Not at all. Yeah.


    [Okay, let''s see how this plays out.] Yuel focused on the incoming minion wave. This laning phase will probably go in one of two ways. Either the Dragonborn will be cocky and contest the lane all the time, relying on the defense of Draconic Scales to keep him alive. Or, he''ll play it safe and let Yuel dominate the lane.


    Both approaches were viable and had their ups and downs. Contesting the lane meant putting himself in danger, whereas playing safe meant allowing damage on his Turret. Yuel was fine with either scenario since he''ll get his early-game advantage either way.


    [Heh, that bastard.] Zeph sneered at his opponent. Chessmaster advanced to the frontline without a single care in the world.[ He probably thinks I''m scared of his DK. Think again, bastard!]


    As a Dragonborn, Zeph had nothing to be afraid of during the early-game. Nobody could destroy his draconic body, not even a Dark Knight. Therefore, he gonna attack! There''s no way he gonna let Chessmaster dominate the lane!


    He activated Draconic Rush and charged straight at the enemy wave. The impact pushed the swordsmen back, bringing them closer to the bowmen. With all enemies packed in one place, Zeph activated Draconic Flame. He swung a fire blade in a cone, burning all minions in one fell swoop!


    [How''s that, huh!?] Zeph grinned. [What''s wrong? You''re so shook you can''t even move? Haha, that''s what ya get! I ain''t scared of you!]


    [So, he''s the type of Dragonborn who contests the lane.] Yuel finished his observation. Before handling the enemy wave, his top priority was to discern what type of Dragonborn player DragonMaster was. With how fearlessly DragonMaster charged in, it was clear he was the aggressive type.


    [I can work with that.] Yuel moved to the side and found the perfect angle. Then, he unleashed a Dark Blast. The blast was supposed to travel through the Dragonborn and hit the minions behind him.


    "Heh! Think it gonna be that easy!? No way!" Zeph rolled aside. "You ain''t hitting me, fam. Too easy."


    [Nice reaction.] Yuel frowned. His Dark Blast rammed through the entire enemy wave, but it failed to hit the Dragonborn. [So, he''s going to contest the lane, but he won''t drop his guard. Interesting.]


    This made things a little tricker, but Yuel prepared himself for this. DragonMaster started the previous game on a weak note, but he slowly oiled his rusty performance. By mid-game, he became a decent opponent. It won''t be that easy to submit him with a Dark Knight.


    A new minion wave arrived. More than likely, DragonMaster was going to charge in with Draconic Rush again. The attack had a brief damage immunity duration, so countering it with Dark Blast wasn''t an option.


    There wasn''t anything Yuel could do to stop Draconic Rush, but he could prepare a counter ahead of time. A Dark Knight couldn''t allow an enemy to set foot on his territory and walk away unscratched. He had to dominate both sides of the lane, or else he wasn''t doing his job.


    As expected, DragonMaster charged in with Dragonic Rush again, pushing all minions along the way. That was the cue. Yuel unleashed a Dark Blast.


    "Whoa!" Zeph saw the dark slash flying straight at him. [Wait, for real? You gonna blast into my charge? It ain''t gonna do any damage, you know.]


    However, the next moment, Zeph realized something. His Draconic Rush was just about to reach its destination. However, the Dark Blast hasn''t hit him yet. It was still on its way, heading straight at him.


    "N-No way!" Zeph had a lump in his throat. This couldn''t be happening. No freakin'' way. His damage invincibility was about to run out, yet the Dark Blast was still on the way.


    "I-It''s gonna hit!" Zeph mashed his spacebar. He had to Dodge Roll that Dark Blast! It was going to hit him right after the damage invincibility ends! Such nasty timing...!


    Alas, it didn''t help. In exchange for having the amazing damage invincibility effect, Draconic Rush had a rather clunky recovery animation. It was impossible to quickly cancel it into Dodge Roll. In other words, Zeph became a sitting duck!


    Wham! Zeph had no choice but to eat the Dark Blast in the face. It deleted 15% of his HP.


    [Shit, how did he even time that!?] Zeph roared internally. A split-second too late and Zeph would''ve safely rolled away. This stunt required extremely precise timing. There''s no way somebody from Stratus could pull it off. [Gotta be a fluke. No way he can time it again.]


    [Delicate timing, but I got it.] Yuel nodded to himself. The Dark Blast he just fired was carefully calculated to hit the target at the best timing possible.


    Hitting the Dragonborn during Draconic Rush would easy, but it would be waste due to the damage invincibility. So, in order to launch an attack on a Dragonborn, it was neccessary to wait until Draconic Rush ended.


    However, if Yuel waited took long, DragonMaster would be free to Dodge Roll the Dark Blast. Given the guy''s performance so far, he probably had the reaction speed to pull that off. So, Yuel wouldn''t get any damage in this case either.


    Rushing was bad, but waiting too long was bad too. The optimal timing was firing Dark Blast right before the Dragonborn finished his Draconic Rush. The blast had to connect during the brief window of vulnerability, right when the Dragonborn was recovering from Draconic Rush.


    [I didn''t expect to pull it off on the first try, but I''ll take it.] Yuel nodded. It was difficult timing to pinpoint. In fact, he partially owned it to DragonMaster. The timing of the guy''s Draconic Rush was simply too predictable. That made everything easier. Yuel didn''t have to react on the spot. Instead, he predicted when the Draconic Rush was about to start and derived the exact timing from there.


    Zeph understood the gist of it as well, but he still couldn''t believe it actually happened.


    [No way he timed that shit. That''d be inhuman!] Zeph gulped. [Well, "inhuman" might be an exaggeration. I''m sure some pros can pull it off. Probably.]


    At the highest level of play, pros always pulled off amazing plays. So, perfectly timing Dark Blast on Draconic Rush wasn''t beyond them. But, a middle schooler doing that? A brat from the same region? Not even a Korean prodigy kid or some shit? No way. Simply impossible.


    [Gotta be a fluke.] Zeph concluded.


    To his credit, Chessmaster probably had the right idea there. There''s a good chance he was aiming for that specific moment. The guy seemed to be smart, so he probably knew it was a possible play. But, actually [landing] that shot with that perfect timing gotta be a fluke. It won''t happen a second time.


    Therefore, it was safe to charge like this again next time. If Chessmaster attempts the same trick, he''ll mistime it for sure and Draconic Rush will soak all the damage. Or, alternatively, the Dark Blast will come too late and Zeph will have enough time to roll away. Either way, the next Dark Blast won''t scratch him.


    [Here we go.] Zeph took a deep breath. The next minion wave arrived. He advanced to the frontline like before.


    First, he examined the Dark Knight''s movements. The startup of Draconic Rush was yet another vulnerable time window. Despite what haters liked to say, Draconic Rush wasn''t an easy "panic button". The damage invincibility was awesome, but it didn''t come out right away. Therefore, it wasn''t an easy button to press under pressure.


    Chessmaster surely knew that, so there was a chance he''d aim for this opening. Many opponents in Ranked did exactly that. After suffering many bitter experiences, Zeph had no choice but to learn how to play around this weakness.


    In time, he even learned to use this weakness as bait. He pretended to go for Draconic Rush, just to bait out the enemy''s skill. Then, he''d dodge the skill and go for Draconic Rush for real. Many greedy opponents fell for this 200 IQ bait.


    But, not Chessmaster. The guy was calm like still water. Basic baits didn''t tempt him in the slightest. What an annoying bastard. Why couldn''t he misplay more? Seriously.


    [Well, here goes then.] Zeph rammed into the enemy swordsmen with Draconic Rush. To be on the safe side, he started spamming the spacebar ahead of time. [Gotta roll as soon as I recover. Ez dodges.]


    WHISH. A heavy blade tore through empty space, leaving a trail of darkness in the air. As expected, a Dark Blast was coming!


    [Here goes!] Zeph finished the charge and began his dodge-roll. But, just a split second before that, the Dark Blast sliced through him.


    "You gotta be shitting me..." His lips trembled. There was no way. It was simply impossible.


    Zeph did everything possible in that situation. He spammed Dodge Roll ahead of time, so he should''ve rolled away at the first chance he got. But, such a chance never came. The Dark Blast hit first.


    And, it wasn''t just any hit. It was a hit that shaved off 15% HP. Again.


    [Is this guy for real?] Zeph shuddered. Was this level of execution even legal? Chessmaster gotta be some sort of cyborg with artificially enhanced motor skills, no other way to explain it. No human middle schooler should be legally allowed to pull shit like that. It should be banned! All of it!


    [Okay, that went well.] Yuel sighed in relief. There was no guarantee he''ll succeed the second time, but it went well. He would have liked to claim it was thanks to his mechanical skill, but that''d be a huge lie.


    A well-timed shot like this usually required superb execution, a thing Yuel didn''t possess. Lars would easily pull it off after a single day of practice, but not Yuel. It was simply impossible for him to react to Draconic Rush and fire his Dark Blast with precise timing. However, if he knew ahead of time when the shot was coming, it was a different story entirely.


    Fortunately, DragonMaster made life easy by being so predictable. The guy telegraphed his intentions by running forward right before activating Draconic Rush. He didn''t even try to hide his plans. He sprinted a little, then went for Draconic Rush.


    That gave Yuel enough time to prepare. Of course, even with all these advantages, he wasn''t going to perfectly nail it every time. But, so far, he scored two out of two. That should shake DragonMaster to the core.


    Eventually, DragonMaster will crack and commit a mistake that''ll cost him his life. Yuel just had to keep pressuring until then.

 220 Unbeatable Dark Knigh

    Usually, he''d bait out Dark Blasts with Draconic Charge. Some opponents aimed at him during the startup animation, so he learned to space them out properly. Sometimes he even baited them and dodge-rolled their blasts, then went for Draconic Rush.


    Other opponents tried to hit him while he was recovering from Draconic Rush, but they were always too slow. Zeph always dodge-rolled their asses. Ez.


    Most Dark Knight opponents realized that all their attempts were futile. So, the best move for them was not playing. They usually stopped contesting his Draconic Rush and let him run loose. This game plan was supposed to be bulletproof.


    But, Chessmaster proved there was a gaping hole in it. With precise timing, it was possible to land Dark Blast on Zeph before he regained the ability to roll. He always assumed that was impossible since none of his opponents ever exploited it consistently. But, turned out it was possible to perfectly time this counter.


    Everything Zeph believed in came crashing down. It rendered his entire matchup knowledge null and void. There was still a chance that the second hit was a fluke as well, but Zeph didn''t dare to test it. He has already lost 30% HP. Another 15% would hurt way too much.


    So, what were his alternatives? How could he charge in and strike the enemy minions without getting hit by Dark Blast? There had to be some way to deal with this shit.


    [In the first place, why do I have to make the first move?] Zeph realized a simple fact. [Man, I got way too triggered by that DK pick.]


    That Dark Knight pick was insulting enough to tilt. Chessmaster must''ve thought he could mop the floor with Zeph. It was so tempting to lunge on that bastard and tear his to shreds! But, Zeph had to be smarter than that. Recklessness wasn''t going to help him win.


    [Yeah, no reason for me to move first.] Zeph concluded.[ I''ll just wait for him to shoot, then I''ll charge through it. Ez life.]


    This was the more careful tactic he employed against good Dark Knight players. The tilt made him forget all about it. Also, it''s been a while since he last fought a decent Dark Knight. The class has mostly died out at higher ranks.


    Dark Blast was a relatively reactable attack and Zeph had plenty of experience playing against that broken shit. So, he should be able to pull off this plan no problem.


    [Is he waiting for me to make the first move?] Yuel wondered. [He''s adapting fast. This is definitely a matchup he''s more experienced with. That''s nice. It''s more interesting this way.]


    The enemy''s plan was probably something along these lines: wait for Yuel to start casting Dark Blast, then charge into it with Draconic Rush. That''ll allow DragonMaster to bypass the damage while slowing down the blast and preventing it from reaching the bowmen.


    Dark Blast''s casting animation was relatively slow, so mechanically skilled players could react to it. DragonMaster seemed to be decently skilled, so there was a chance he could pull it off.


    [Okay, I can play with that.] Yuel activated a skill. Dark energy gathered around him.


    [There it is!] Zeph grinned. Patience prevailed! Black miasma began to form around the Dark Knight. It was impossible to cancel Dark Blast once it started, so there was no turning back now. This was the cue!


    Zeph booted Draconic Rush and charged forth. He was going to crash into that Dark Blast head first! At least, that was the plan...


    [Got you.] Yuel smirked. He indeed activated a skill, but it wasn''t Dark Blast. It was Nightmare, a feint! The startup animations for both skills started with dark magic forming around the Dark Knight, so it wasn''t easy to tell them apart at a glance. Especially, not when the opponent was eagerly waiting for Dark Blast and wasn''t even considering Nightmare.


    Even though Dark Blast was "reactable" for skilled players, the "reaction" was still rooted in guessing. The opponent had to actively expect the Dark Blast and intently observe Yuel''s movements with that expectation in mind. It was necessary to spot the earliest hint of Dark Blast''s startup, or else it''d be too late.


    That''s why it was so easy to fake DragonMaster with Nightmare. Under normal circumstances, nobody would say the two skills had similar animations. However, at the time, DragonMaster was eagerly waiting for a Dark Blast. It was the only skill he was expecting. He was 100% concentrated on it. So, even the smallest similarity to Dark Blast''s animation was enough to make him act.


    Yuel fired a delayed Dark Blast at the baited Draconic Rush. same as before. The black slash sliced through DragonMaster right as he finished charing in. Clean hit.


    "What is even..." Zeph shuddered. Why in the world would a Dark Knight activate Nightmare in that situation? There was absolutely no reason to. "Did I just get baited? You gotta be shitting me..."


    Zeph used such a sophisticated tactic, but Chessmaster countered it in an instant. It was absurd. Impossible. Was that bastard some kind of mind reader? How was any of this even possible...


    "Ah, right. Gotta retreat," Zeph shook his head. No matter how unbelievable this situation was, he had to keep it together. He unleashed Draconic Flame on the enemy bowmen, then rolled the heck outta there.


    [Phew, just in time.] Zeph sighed in relief. The Dark Knight almost clobbered him. It was a close one. This was no time to space out.


    [Man, what the heck. I just can''t beat this guy 1-on-1. Nothing works.] A shiver ran through his spine. Everything he tried backfired on his ass. Chessmaster gotta be some sort of genius. There was no beating this mad lad.


    [Is this the level of the competitive scene here?] Zeph shuddered. Maybe he had it backwards all along. Maybe Chessmaster wasn''t that special. Maybe it was Zeph himself who royally sucked.


    [Nah, no way. C''mon, I''m Diamond II. I''m a good player.] Zeph tried to reassure himself. His rank was actually among the best on the team, second only to the captain''s almighty Challenger V. There''s no way Zeph was a scrub. It''s Chessmaster who was that good.


    [Well, no wonder he''s strong. That''s how good ya gotta be if you wanna play on StormBlitz.] Supposedly, StormBlitz''s entrance exam was some real bullshit. Even Jaiden didn''t make it in.


    [And, I know for sure that Jaiden is one heck of a player, so...] Zeph had no choice but to accept this reality. In a 1v1 situation, he had no chance against Chessmaster. That''s probably what Chessmaster thought as well, hence his disrespectful Dark Knight pick. As frustrating as it was to admit, Chessmaster had the right to pick Dark Knight against Zeph. The skill gap between them was too much.


    [I give up.] Zeph sighed. [Yep, can''t do this shit.] He was out of ideas and there was no point coming up with anything new, since Chessmaster will see through it in an instant. Chessmaster probably knew all the anti-Dark Knight countermeasures anyway, as well as how to shut them down. It was pointless to try anything sophisticated.


    [I''ll just go back to the basics. There''s only one surefire way to counter DK.] Zeph couldn''t win this fight by himself, so why fight alone?


    "Hey, Dylan, my guy," Zeph called out. "This DK over here is giving me some trouble. When can you gank?"


    "Gimme like a minute," Dylan said. "Gotta get to Lv.5 first, then I''ll be ready to bring some damage."


    "Sounds good," Zeph nodded. "I''ll lure him in the next wave, so be ready."


    "Gotcha.??


    [Okay, this should work.] Zeph thought. He couldn''t beat that Dark Knight by himself, but it didn''t mean he had to surrender the lane. If 1v1 was impossible, he just had to turn it into a 2v1. Ez solution.


    No matter how godlike Chessmaster was, he won''t beat both of them at once. They''ll end that bastard''s whole career! Zeph just had to be patient for now. With the next wave, his counterattack will begin!


    [Here it is.] Zeph grinned. The time has come. The next wave was approaching and Dylan was on his way to Top. [Good, good.]


    Once the wave arrived, Zeph took a passive stance. He didn''t advance to the frontline like before. Instead, he was chilling in the back. He had enough of these nasty Dark Blasts that ate 15% HP per hit. Shit was broken beyond repair. [Ain''t gonna let him hit me again. No chance.]


    [He changed his approach again.] Yuel nodded in satisfaction. He picked Dark Knight with the intention of thoroughly crushing the opposition, but it won''t be any fun if DragonMaster doesn''t put on a fight. There was only value in winning when both sides adapted and struggled to the bitter end. Any less than that won''t count as true competitive experience.


    [He''s probably inviting me to get ganked.] Yuel deduced. A ward revealed the enemy Vampire heading toward Top, so a gank might be on its way. DragonMaster was probably baiting Yuel into overextending and exposing his back to the Vampire. Getting hit by Vampire''s ult meant death in this situation.


    [Their Vampire is Lv.5, but the Dragonborn is still Lv.4.] Yuel assessed the situation. He was holding the upper hand in lane, which made it harder for his opponent to farm efficiently. DragonMaster was still a few minions away from Lv.5. In other words, he couldn''t transform into a dragon yet.


    [Okay, I''ll play along with this.] Yuel nodded. "Nia, are you good to start ganking?"


    "Yeah, no problem," Nia answered. "I''m about to hit Lv.5 and I think I''ve erased my presence pretty well."


    "Perfect,?? Yuel said. "Then, come over here. I need you to do me a little favor..."


    After he laid out the details of his plan, Yuel advanced along the lane together with his minions. In other words, he was playing right into the enemy''s trap. There was no doubt that the Vampire will appear behind him any moment now. There was little Yuel could do about that. But, it''ll be fine.


    "Heh. Hah. Haha!" Zeph laughed at his foolish foe.[ Seriously? That''s all it took to bait him? And here I thought the guy was some sort of genius. Turns out he''s just a basic scrub. We gonna rek him REAL good!]


    "He''s coming at me," Zeph reported.


    "Gotcha!" Dylan circled around the unsuspecting Dark Knight and activated Night Hunt. He transformed into a giant bat and darted toward his prey!


    "Got his ass!" Dylan rammed into the Dark Knight and dug his fangs into the victim''s neck. The intense bite paralyzed the Dark Knight. The guy became a tasty snack for the big bat.


    "You rock!" Zeph rushed to the scene. The tables have turned. Chessmaster was acting as the aggressor until a few moments ago, but now it was Zeph''s turn! "Game over, fam!"


    Zeph couldn''t win this fight alone. But, together with Dylan, it was a walk in the park. Dylan was holding Chessmaster in place, while Zeph was unleashing a flurry of slashes on that cocky bastard!


    "The Dragonborn is here," Yuel reported matter-of-factly. Even though the situation looked like a total disaster, he was in control of the situation. His opponents were as predictable as he expected, so everything was going according to plan.


    "Coming," Nia entered the lane in stealth. Her target was none other than the overextending Dragonborn. The guy dared to set foot on the frontline with just 60% HP, before even reaching Lv.5. He was practically begging to be killed.


    But, the guy himself probably didn''t realize any of that. He continued attacking Yuel without a single care in the world.


    "Haha! You''re dead, fucker- wha!?" Zeph swallowed his words. Something slashed him from behind. It was impossible, but it happened.


    This should''ve been a 1v2 situation. There should''ve been only three players here. Nonetheless, an unexpected fourth player appeared. An intruder that came outta left field. A stealthy assassin who crept right behind Zeph''s back!


    "S-Stop! Noooooooo!" Zeph''s cries fell on deaf ears. The assassin had no mercy to spare. The Ninja wrapped her arms around him and prepared to launch into the air.


    [W-Wait! I can break out of it!] Zeph''s instincts as a Dragonborn main kicked in. Transforming into a dragon cleansed all CC, including the grab of Izuna Drop. Yes! That was his ticket out! He just had to use his ult... oh.


    [I''m not Lv.5 yet. Heh. Haha. Fuck.] Zeph smacked his forehead. He messed up bad. Like, real bad. The tilt got him. He was too eager to unleash vengeance on the Chessmaster. If he was his usual self, he would have remembered that his top priority should''ve been hitting Lv.5. Also, he would''ve considered the possibility of an enemy gank and played around it.


    [Damn. I''m screwed.] Zeph sighed in defeat while the ninja was taking him on a tour through the sky They traveled high, then crashed into the ground like a meteor. Over 35% HP vanished in an instant.


    His Draconic Scales mitigated some damage, but it was a negligible amount. Against a single mighty strike, deducting a flat amount didn''t change anything. If only Draonic Scales provided percentage-based damage reduction... [Damn it all.]


    "Holy fuck, a counter gank!?" Dylan''s loud voice brought Zeph back to earth. "Damn, you better scram, bro."


    "R-Right!" Zeph shook his head. This was no time to sit here and complain. If he had the time to rant, he also had the time to run the heck outta here!


    That Izuna Drop was a lot of damage, but it wasn''t over for him yet. He still had a little over 20% HP. He could still make it out of here alive! He recovered from the stagger that followed the crash and broke into a dash.


    SLASH! A dagger cut through his chest as soon as he set out. That damn Ninja attacked him right as he recovered! She was a ruthless assassin.


    Thankfully, Draconic Scales reduced the incoming damage from her strikes, and this time it was actually helpful. The damn Ninja won''t be taking Zeph down so easily. He''ll survive through this shit and get outta here!


    "Death to the feeble!" A metallic voice resounded throughout the area. It froze Zeph''s blood.


    "No way..." Zeph could only mumble. He knew exactly what was about to happen. [What''s my HP, again? Oh yes, it''s below 20%. Haha. It''s over.]


    "Goddamit!" Zeph crashed into the table with his forehead. He didn''t want to watch that shit.


    Nevertheless, the system voice made sure to deliver the depressing news right into his ear.


    ¡ºEXECUTED¡»


    ¡ºFIRST BLOOD!¡»


    "Dyl, you better get outta there..." Zeph mumbled under his breath.


    "Well duh, I''m already out," Dylan said. "That was one awkward gank."


    "Yeah..." Zeph''s words trailed off. His mind short-circuited. He couldn''t form coherent thoughts. Or rather, he didn''t feel like thinking about anything.


    His entire laning experience this game was one disaster after another. The skill gap between him and Chessmaster was too much. He felt like an ant challenging a dragon. Chessmaster thoroughly and utterly destroyed him, in both body and mind.


    [Is everybody in StormBlitz at that level?] Zeph wondered. [Man, good thing we aren''t scrimmaging with them this year, haha...] He produced a hollow laugh as he slumped on his chair. Hopefully, the other lanes were doing better. If not, this game gonna be a wrap...

 221 Taurus Aggression in Bo

    ¡ºFIRST BLOOD!¡»


    These messages appeared outta nowhere on Bruce''s screen. One moment, Zeph and Dylan were delivering a hot gank in Top. The very next moment, Zeph kicked the bucket and Dylan fled the scene like a pussy.


    [The fuck happened over there?] Bruce was too busy with his own shit on lane, so he didn''t catch all the details. But, there was one thing he knew for sure. Zeph and Dylan done fucked up.


    "Yo Zeph, my guy," Bruce called out. "What are ya doing dying to a DK? Are you throwing the game, huh? Huh!?"


    Bruce''s anger transmitted clearly through his tone. Everybody heard that criticizing yell. But, Zeph didn''t respond.


    "Hey! Ya hear me? Heeeeeeey! Earth to Zephy Zeph!" Bruce shouted. "You fucker, are you asleep or something? ZEPH!"


    "Ah, sorry, I put you on mute, haha..." Zeph laughed awkwardly.


    "Watcha doing muting your cap, dumbass?"


    "Oh snap," Zeph realized he should''ve come up with an excuse instead of telling the truth. "Eh, I needed a moment to think about stuff."


    "It would''ve been great if you started with that ''thinking'' thing before dying, ya know."


    [I knew this shit was coming.] Zeph sighed. This was the reason he muted Bruce in the first place. Bruce was good at praising those who did well, but he unleashed hell on anybody who did poorly. Such was the harsh environment in this gang.


    "The fuck you doing feeding a DK?" Bruce ranted on. "It gonna screw us all if he snowballs!"


    "Yeah, sorry," Zeph didn''t argue back. "That DK is something else. I can''t beat him."


    "What''s with that weak talk?" Bruce demanded. "Are you''re throwing!?"


    "I''m not throwing anything," Zeph said. "That''s just how things are. Sorry, but I don''t see myself beating that guy. He isn''t an ex-StromBlitz player just in name, the guy knows his shit. I can''t outplay him."


    "Watcha wussing out about? StromBlitz or DerpFlitz, it doesn''t matter. He''s just a middle schooler like us. Nothing you can''t handle."


    [You can only say that because you haven''t fought him yourself.] Zeph retorted in his head.


    "Tch, whatever," Bruce clicked his tongue and turned to Bryan. "Alright, B. Looks like it''s up to us to carry this team. Let''s wreck these fuckers!"


    "You wanna attack?" Bryan frowned.


    "Yeah! Let''s beat the living crap outta these scrubs! I''ve been lying low till Lv.5, just like ya asked. Now, let''s go ham on their asses!"


    "Hah," Bryan sighed. [To think that Bruce actually agreed to play tame for once, but then that bullshit in Top happened. Thanks a lot, Zeph. Then again, it was probably a matter of time anyway.]


    Therefore, Bryan preferred to proceed slow and steady. He wanted to gradually build lane advantage and reach mid-game in a good state. Their lineup favored the mid-game much more anyway. The enemy was all about the early-game this time, including their pick for Bot.


    Impaler was stronger during the early-game, whereas Pirate went online during the mid-game. So, it was best to be patient here. Once mid-game hits, Bruce will unlock Pirate''s full strength and it''ll be time for a counter-attack.


    That was the best game plan here. It did imply they''ll have to play defensively and probably surrender some lane control, it''ll be worth it in the end. Bryan even convinced Bruce to follow that plan. At least, that''s what he thought...


    Bruce played tamely for a while, as if following Bryan''s game plan. But, in truth, he was like a ticking bomb. The whole time, he was searching for an excuse to throw that defensive game plan out of the window and go all-in. He only held it in until now because he was waiting to reach Lv.5 and unlock Kraken.


    Now, that Bruce finally got his Kraken, he thirsted for kills like as always. And, Zeph''s death served as a great excuse to seek revenge on the enemy. Sigh.


    "We gonna go hard at them in the next wave," Bruce declared.


    "What''s the plan, exactly?" Bryan asked.


    "Plan? We ain''t need no plan against these scrubs!" Bruce proclaimed. "I''mma just go in there and kick that chick''s ass. You cover me and all that."


    "You know they got a Druid, right? He might pull you at any time."


    "Hah! I wanna see him try. I''mma move all over the place. He''ll never catch me!"


    "Yeah, sure sounds like a bulletproof plan..."


    "I know, right? I''m a genius, haha!"


    "Definitely," Bryan rolled his eyes. He knew this pattern by now. There was no stopping Bruce once the guy set his mind on something.


    [Gotta pray that Druid sucks at pulling.] Bryan sighed. Nature''s Grasp was a difficult skillshot due to how thin it was. There was a chance Blackhole wasn''t skilled enough to confirm it across long distances. So, Bruce just [might ]get away with his recklessness. Still, it was so needlessly risky...


    "Alright, let''s do it then," Bryan gave in. [I''ll just have to trust him. I know Bruce is a decent player, just not the most stable. Maybe he can pull it off this time. Maybe.]


    Either way, Bryan had to focus on supporting. He won''t hear the end of it if Bruce dies here. Even though it was Bruce''s reckless idea, it''ll be Bryan''s fault if it fails. That''s how it worked. It was an unwritten rule.


    Arguing any further was only going to distract them at this point. Bryan had to concentrate 100% on supporting Bruce here.


    They''ve already discussed how to deal with the enemy duo in a case of a 2v2, so it''s not like they weren''t prepared. Bryan even picked Aquamancer as a counter to Druid''s shield. They''ve been mentally prepared for this scenario for a while now.


    [Besides, gotta admit, I''m kinda raring to go too.] Bryan smirked. The enemy struck out Zeph in Top, so Bryan felt like the team had to repay in kind by killing somebody too. Not to mention, there the debt from the previous game as well. Beat and Blackhole screwed with them last time. [Gotta teach these bastards a lesson or two.]


    "Okay, we''re doing this shit!" Bryan exclaimed.


    "Now ya talkin''! Let''s go!"


    The plan was set in motion. In the next wave, they''ll unleash hell on their opponents! They ain''t gonna lose a second time to these scrubs! Neither of these guys was from StormBlitz, so there was nothing to worry about.


    "If possible," Bryan started. "Try not making it too obvious that we''re planning to attack. Just clear minions as usual."


    "Haha, we gonna surprise them? Got it!" Bruce gave a thumbs up. He dialed down his aggression and concentrated on efficient farming, without showing any signs of hostility toward the enemy.


    In fact, maybe he even overplayed it a little. He was acting a tad [too] peaceful compared to how he played until now. But, it was fine. That''ll only confuse the enemy more. They''ll never see this attack coming!


    As with all waves thus far, the enemy side gained the upper hand. Impaler''s basic attacks were more effective than Pirate''s thanks to their defense-reduction property, so Beat took care of the swordsmen faster than Bruce. It usually triggered him, but not this time.


    "Huehue. Soon, soon," Bruce smiled creepily at this result. The wave didn''t matter. It was just the appetizer. Soon, he''ll move on to the main dish!


    With his frontline gone, Bruce retreated to the backline without putting on a fight. He allowed his opponents to advance into his territory for free.


    [You better be grateful I''m not charing you for this.] Bruce lifted his chin. [It??s a free tour in Bruceland. I hope you gonna enjoy yo stay, khaha.]


    Bruce stayed in the backline and barraged the incoming enemy frontline. Once he cleared all the swordsmen, it was time. Attack incoming!


    "RELEASE THE-" the Pirate''s voice boomed across the area. The Kraken was about to be unleashed!


    "W-Whoa!" Vincent jumped in his seat. On no! The mighty monster of the high seas was about to make its entrance! It''ll eradicate everything in its path! Vincent had to get away!


    He rolled away before the king of squids had a chance to strike. Meanwhile, Kai remained rooted in place. What was she doing!? They had to get out, or else the Kraken... will do nothing, actually.


    "A feint!?" Vincent dramatically smacked his forehead. He completely fell for that one. He didn''t possess the necessary reaction speed for dodging Kraken upon seeing it, so he had no choice to rely on the sound cue. It was a waste of a Dodge Roll, but at least he avoided the worst-case scenario.


    [I had a feeling it''s fake.] Kai nodded to herself. The Pirate''s loud threat didn''t faze her in the slightest. Kai has already proved she could dodge Kraken on reaction, so the enemy would have to be an utter idiot to Kraken her before baiting out her Dodge Roll.


    Since the Kraken feint had no effect, the Pirate charged at Kai himself, with the Aquamancer following closely behind. Finally, these bastards decided to make their move. Kai has been waiting to settle this!


    "Shield," Kai ordered.


    "Right away!" Vincent cast Gaia''s Protection, granting Kai a shield effect.


    "Alright, let''s mop them," Kai said so, but she actually took a few steps back. As much as she wanted to destroy that pretentious bastard calling himself "TheLegend", she knew better than to pick a fight in enemy territory. She had to back off to the center of the lane first.


    "Hah! Look at her quaking in her boots!" Bruce cackled. "We got this! Hey B, get rid of that shield, will ya?"


    "On it," Bryan threw a splash of water at the enemy Impaler.


    [I''d like to keep this shield, but...] Kai bit her lip. She could easily Dodge Roll that predictable Splash, but that''d leave her without a Dodge Roll against Kraken. It''d be like fighting naked. She won''t have anything left to defend herself with.


    Therefore, sidestepping the splash was the best she could do. But, it proved futile. The water struck her and washed off her shield.


    [Tch, she didn''t take the bait.] Bryan clicked his tongue. He expected the girl to Dodge Roll the Splash, then Bruce would wrap things up with Kraken. But, that girl was smarter than she looked. [Damn, these guys are a pain.]


    But, that''s also fine. The girl showed them she understood the importance of saving her Dodge Roll. That was insightful information in its own right. It meant she''ll not roll against anything that wasn''t Kraken. There was a great way to exploit that fact.


    "I gonna shower her," Bryan said.


    "Yeah, give that bitch a wash, khaha!" Bruce didn''t object. He wanted to settle this one-on-one with Beat, but he had no qualms about receiving some help. After all, the team''s achievements were his achievements, khaha!


    "Here goes," Bryan activated Rainfall around the Impaler. A heavy shower poured on the girl. It didn''t deal any damage, but it slowed down her Movement Speed and Attack Speed. Now, Bruce should have an easy time tearing her apart.


    [This is bad.] Kai frowned. With the heavy rain beating in her ears, it became harder to pick up the enemy''s sounds. She''ll have a harder time reading-


    SHOT. A bullet dug into her abdomen without warning.


    [Damn, they''re acting fast!] Kai grit her teeth. It was a difficult spot, but she had no intention of losing here. So, she immediately fired a spear!


    WHOOSH. The spear cut through the raindrops and darted toward the Pirate. But, it didn''t connect.


    "Hah! I can dodge that slow-mo crap with my eyes closed!" Bruce laughed. "How ya like that!?" He pulled the trigger again.


    [Damn, this Attack Speed debuff is bad news.] Kai ranted. But, not all hope was lost yet. She predicted that the enemy''s next shot was about to come out, so she just had to sidestep it-


    BAM. The bullet pierced her shoulder. No way...


    [I dodged that!] Kai ranted internally. [Damn, the Movement Speed debuff is bad news too.]


    "Impossible!" Vincent exclaimed. What he has just witnessed boggled his mind. Kai missed a counter shot and failed to dodge the follow-up. What happened to her Rhythm Reader!? Did the rain nullify her ability to use her special technique!? This was no good! [I have to hurry and provide backup!]


    [Not so fast.] Bryan activated a geyser right underneath the Druid''s feet, sending the tree guy flying. And, he gonna do it again, since he was using the Overflow version of the spell, the almighty Hot Spring Eruption! He had two more geysers up his sleeve. That Druid won''t be getting anywhere near the scene anytime soon.


    "My apologizes!" Vincent spoke in mid-flight. "It appears I''ve run into an obstacle."


    "Not like I was counting on you anyway," Kai already started retreating from the rain. There was no point with her Attack Speed and Movement Speed hampered this badly. She couldn''t land any hits and she couldn''t dodge anything. This was no position to fight in.


    Unfortunately, escaping from the rain wasn''t easy either. The slowdown was rough. The Aquamncer built an Lv.3 Chains of Infinity as early as possible, so the raindrops applied two layers of slowdown on Kai''s Movement Speed. It''s like she was moving through mud.


    What were her options in this disadvantageous position? How should she fight? There was only one thing she could say for sure: she won''t go down without a fight! She won''t let that Pirate scum kill her!

 222 Stealth Pincer

    BAM. A bullet flew at her. She could''ve tried to sidestep it, but she didn''t bother. Her current Movement Speed couldn''t keep up with her intentions. Instead, she counter-attacked on the spot!


    [Even if my shots are slow, you can''t dodge them while you''re recovering!] Kai hurled a spear through the rain. It impaled the recovering opponent through the chest.


    "Wha-!?" Bruce groaned. He didn''t even get a chance to react. "Damn, bitch! You wanna go!? Let''s go!" He fired again.


    [Damn, this is rough.] Kai still hasn''t left the rainy area. Her Impaler was running as fast as a snail in a wheelchair. She had no choice but to eat another shot. At the very least, she''ll deliver a timely counterattack!


    It took time, but her hearing learned to filter the monotone sound of the rain. It was one of those cool things about hearing. Apparently, the brain knew how to filter background noise or something like that.


    Thanks to that handy feature, Kai''s senses returned to being sharp again. By reading the rhythm of the enemy''s attacks and listening to the sound of his gunshots, Kai knew exactly when the next shot was coming.


    Normally, she relied on this timing to execute a last-moment sidestep. However, that trick was useless for a slowed-down turtle who could barely move, so she used this timing for something else. Namely, to fire a counter-attack!


    Actually, it was debatable whether it even counted as a "counter". Kai threw her spear at the same time as her opponent fired, maybe even a little earlier. In that sense, she wasn''t countering an attack that has already happened. Instead, she was "countering" an attack that [will] happen. She was outplaying the future!


    "Again!?" Bruce ranted. "Fuck! You''re SO dead! DEAD, I''m tellin'' ya!" BAM. He fired again.


    Kai the snail still hasn''t made it out of the rainy area, so she had to fire her future-countering spear again. It hit home without a problem.


    If they had this back-and-forth going from the start, Kai could''ve out-damaged TheLegend. Impaler''s basics were stronger than Pirate''s and they reduced the defense. Therefore, Kai would''ve won if they kept trading hit-for-hit.


    Alas, Kai messed up earlier. She didn''t establish this easy routine right away and allowed the enemy to deliver the first strike. It gave the Pirate just enough early life lead to maintain the high ground. With the rain slowing down Kai''s attacks, she probably won''t kill the Pirate first if they keep going blow-for-blow.


    The enemy landed five shots on her, leaving her at 50% HP. Meanwhile, she only landed three, bringing the Pirate down to 65% HP. With each counterattack, Kai closed the HP gap a little bit, but it probably won''t be enough.


    "You''ll die first," Yuel answered matter-of-factly. "He needs five hits at most, but you need at least six."


    [One hit short, huh.] Kai clicked her tongue. If she didn''t let the Pirate hit her twice earlier, she could''ve won this fight via counters. But, no point crying over spilled milk. Once she gets out of the rain, everything will be fine-


    WAAASH. Water erupted from the ground and knocked Kai high into the air! It was the second time already! It was that damn Overflow version of Aquamncer''s Geyser Eruption, which allowed him to summon three geysers in a row.


    The geyser not only knocked her upwards but also a little backward. She was back in the rain again.


    [You piece of shit...!] Kai wanted to hurl something at that Aquamncer. She finally made it out, but that bastard had to drag her back in. Goddammit!


    To make things worse, as she was about to land, another bullet flew at her! Normally, she''d Dodge Roll that, but she couldn''t spend her Dodge Roll before the enemy played his Kraken. Therefore, she had to eat this damage.


    Even worse, she couldn''t properly counterattack from this awkward landing position. The battle was already cutting it dangerously close, but the enemy has just gained a further advantage. Fuuuuuuuu!


    Yuel said the enemy needed at most five hits to kill, so that number has just gone down. Four more hits. Only four more and Kai will fold to that Pirate scum. No way. Absolutely no way. She couldn''t fall here..!


    "This is beyond terrible. It''s a disaster!" Vincent cried. "I shall summon the mighty Ents!"


    "You might as well," Kai nodded. "They forced me into a tight spot. Honestly, I... don''t see myself winning this one." She forced these difficult words through her throat. "I mean, it''s not a fair fight in the first place. It''s not like I''d lose otherwise."


    "But of course," Vincent nodded with understanding. "Alright, I''ll just get a little closer and-"


    "Wait," Yuel intervened. "No need to waste the Ents on this. Kai, keep countering like you''ve been doing. Help is going to sneak into your lane any moment now."


    Yuel pinged the mini-map to make sure they understood. The player heading their way was so elusive, that even her own allies failed to notice her at times.


    "Got it," Kai gulped. She''d be lying if she said she wasn''t nervous about entrusting her life to a freshman. But, it was better to take this risk than to waste Vincent''s Ents on this fight. There was no guarantee the Ents will even be enough to make the enemy retreat, so either solution harbored risk.


    Yuel''s judgment was reliable, Kai learned that over the past few months. So, if Yuel believed Nia could pull it off without a hitch, then Kai will believe that too.


    While still imprisoned inside the heavy rain, Kai continued struggling. BULLET. SPEAR. BULLET. SPEAR. The attacks flew at each other at the same. They repeatedly punched each other in the face without any regard for their injuries.


    Like before, Kai tried to get out of the rain in the middle of the fighting. However, this time, her main goal wasn''t actually to get out. She was retreating in order to lure the enemy into allied territory. The deeper this Pirate ventures, the easier it should be for Nia to kill him.


    Only 20% HP. That''s all Kai had left. Two more shots and she''ll perish. Meanwhile, the enemy was sitting at 50%. The gap grew too much. It was impossible to salvage this fight any longer.


    If they exchange two more punches, Kai will be the one to fall. Where was Nia at!?


    The next moment, It happened. WHISH. The sound of a dagger slicing through something. Out of the shadows, from an angle nobody was looking at, Nia popped into existence!


    "Wha-!?" Bruce jumped with a startle. Where? Who!? Damage flashed on his screen outta nowhere! "Fuck! Where did- Gah!"


    Next, a spear plunged into his chest. It was a pincer! He was surrounded!


    "Yo, B!" Bruce shouted. "The hell are ya doing all the way over there!? Help me- FUUUUUUUU!"


    Another slash from behind. Before he could even figure WTF was attacking him, it was already over. The Pirate collapsed on his knees and kissed the ground.


    ¡ºYou have been killed!¡»


    "Fuck! Shit! Damn it!" Bruce slammed on the table over and over. Why!? He was so close to killing that bitch! "GAAAAAAAAH! Damn you, B! Why didn''t you help me out!? You should''ve kept me safe!"


    "I..." Bryan was at a loss for words. He didn''t see any of this coming either. One moment, they were dominating the situation. Then, out of the blue, everything came down crashing.


    What led to this? A mere gank, nothing more. Something simple that Bryan should''ve been able to prepare himself for. And yet, Bryan failed to consider it for some reason.


    [It''s like some bad joke.] Bryan cracked a hollow laugh. He racked his brain so hard when coming up with this attack plan. He made sure they took everything into consideration. There weren''t supposed to be any loopholes. And yet, Bryan failed to account for the Ninja''s existence. Such a basic, amateuristic mistake.


    [No, wait.] Bryan suddenly remembered. [I DID factor her in, initially. I didn''t miss anything during my planning.]


    He thoroughly warded the jungle against incoming ganks. No gank should''ve slipped past his security cameras. He was so convinced of that, that he decided to not worry about ganks. In case a gank was coming, the wards will alert him ahead of time. Such was his absolute belief. Therefore, Bryan took a load off his mind by not thinking too hard about the possibility of a gank.


    And yet, a gank occurred. None of Bryan''s wards warned him about it.


    [Seriously, where did this Ninja come from?] Bryan shuddered. It''s like the girl popped into existence out of thin air. What path could she have possibly taken to arrive here undetected...?


    "Yo. Bryan!" Bruce barked. "The fuck are you standing there daydreaming!?"


    "Ah, shit!" Bryan snapped out of it. He remained alone in Bot and he was dangerously close to the center of the lane. The enemies shifted their focus on him, like a pack of wolves eying a helpless rabbit. [Shoot! Gotta get the hell outta here!]


    "Wait, why are you running!?" Bruce demanded. "Kill that Impaler bitch! I already did all the work. You just gotta shoot her a few more times!"


    [Are you asking me to die!?] Bryan ranted internally. [What kind of damage are you expecting from a freakin'' Support!? I got none. NONE, I''m telling you. I''m outta here.]


    Bryan ignored Bruce''s nonsense and continued toward Bot Turret. The Impaler and Druid were hot on his trail.


    Bryan didn''t have any escape tools, or any tools at all at the moment, so his only option was to keep running forward. Fortunately, his pursuers shouldn''t be able to catch up with him. Neither of them had any movement speed buffs. The Impaler''s ult could''ve meant trouble, but she had to spend it earlier against Dylan''s gank, so it should still be on cooldown.


    The main problem was the Ninja. She was fast on her feet, so she''ll catch up to him in no time. There was no escaping from her unscratched. If her Izuna Drop was out of cooldown, then Bryan was a goner.


    [She used Izuna in Top a short time ago, right?] Bryan tried to recall.[ It should be still down. It better be.]


    Bryan had no choice but to keep running. Ninja didn''t have any CC besides Izuna Drop. So, long as Izuna Drop was out of the picture, the Ninja shouldn''t be able to outright stop Bryan.


    But, she could strike him. A lot of strikes. The Ninja caught up to him from behind and delivered relentless slashes. This was a great time to roll forward!


    However, instead of propelling himself far ahead, Bryan only rolled a tiny distance forward. He smashed into a wall. The roll ended right there.


    [Iron Maiden!? With this timing!?] Bryan groaned.


    [I knew you''d roll with this timing.] Kai smirked. In these sort of situations, the fleeing prey almost always went for Dodge Roll as soon as the pursuer caught up. It made sense since it was a good way to evade an invisible attack. However, it was also predictable. Too predictable.


    Therefore, Kai rolled forward and activated Iron Maiden right as Nia was approaching TheMyth. She placed the torture machine ahead of the Aquamancer and interrupted his roll.


    If Kai also had Impale available right now, she could''ve followed up for some big damage. Alas, it was on cooldown. Still, they had something else they could follow up with on a dazed opponent.


    "Vince, pull him!" Kai called out.


    "Yes, sir!" Vincent aimed his Nature''s Grasp at the enemy. Once the tree branches pull in their foe, the trio will proceed to rip the guy asunder! It will bring them one step closed to victory!


    Vincent fired the branches. His aim was perfect if he could say so himself. The branches were heading right where the enemy stood, itching to grab the Aqumancer. The branches drew closer and closer and... missed!?


    "... eh?" Vincent blinked.


    "Huh..." Kai narrowed her eyes. "Did you really just miss?"


    "N-No, no way!" Vincent protested. "O-Oh, I see how it is! Our world must have merged with an alternate timeline, one in which I miss the shot. That''s why, even though I aimed right at the enemy, my shot missed!"


    "You aimed [right at him]?" Kai sigh in disappointment. "No wonder you missed. You gotta predict his movements at least a little and shoot to where you think he''ll move. This skillshot is too thin to hit otherwise."


    "O-Of course, that''s exactly what I did!"


    "Uh-huh," Kai rolled her eyes.


    In the end, the Aquamancer got away. Nia pursued the guy all the way to the Turret and delivered many slashes, but she only brought the guy down to 60% HP. They failed to score a second kill here. But, it was quite alright.


    "Good job, Nia," Kai said. "Thanks for the rescue."


    "No problem," Nia nodded with a small embarrassed smile. Failing to kill that Aquamancer was a sad story, but saving a friend felt nice too.


    "You''re not done there yet," Yuel said. "There''s still time until the next wave, so take the Dragon together. Then, push together on the next wave and take the Turret."


    "Wait, I need to recall," Kai argued. "I''m almost dead."


    "It''s okay, just push," Yuel insisted. "They can''t do anything to you while you got two bodyguards by your side."


    "I''m not so sure about that," Kai said.


    "Think about it. The Aquamncer doesn''t have the damage to kill you. Their Mid is stuck fighting Lars, so he can''t leave the lane. At best, the Vampire can gank you, he might even kill you. But, he doesn''t have his ult, so Nia and Vincent will easily kill him."


    "And, I doubt they want to feed Nia any more kills," Kai reasoned.


    "Exactly," Yuel nodded. "So, even though it might look like you absolutely have to recall, that''d actually be a misplay. There''s nothing to worry about right now, even at that HP."


    "I see your point," Kai nodded. "Alright, let''s do it!"


    "Indeed, we shall slay the dragon!" Vincent made noise.


    "Ok." Nia nodded.


    Everybody was in high spirits. They generated impeccable momentum for the team. On the other hand, in Taurus...


    [Phew, I made it.] Bryan sighed in relief upon reaching Bot Turret. That was a close one. It almost turned into a Double Kill.


    "Dumbass, why did you run!?" Bruce was complaining the entire time. "I had that Impaler literally dead. Why didn''t ya finish her off!? Now we look like a joke!"


    "If I stayed to fight, I would''ve died," Bryan explained.


    "What? Are ya saying you''re that much of a scrub?"


    "It got nothing to do with being a scrub. It was a bad situation..." Bryan was getting a headache. All the joy he felt from surviving the ordeal went down the drain. Only irritation remained.


    "In the first place, why ya didn''t cover me!?" Bruce demanded. "How did ya let that chick sneak up on me like that?"


    [Aaaaaaaaand here we go. Rants.exe started running.] Bryan sighed deeply. [Why do I even bother playing Support for this guy, again?]


    Bryan did everything in his power to secure Bruce''s victory in that fight. He heavily warded the area against ganks, he slowed down the Impaler to turn her into a sitting duck, and he spaced out the Druid. He did everything and beyond to serve that fight to Bruce on a silver platter. If anything, Bryan deserved praises of the highest degree.


    And yet, one small gank slipped by him and suddenly everything became Bryan''s fault. All the hard work he put into securing the fight vanished without a trace. All Bruce could see was the one mistake Bryan committed. Life was so unfair sometimes.


    [I''m fed up with this shit. I just hope they end us soon.] Bryan sighed. This game was already lost, anybody could tell. They started just a few minutes ago, but they were already 0-2 in terms of kills. To make things worse, the enemy''s team was heavily geared toward early-game, so this early advantage will only escalate from here.


    This game was hopeless...

 223 All Hope Crushed at the Early-Game

    Nevertheless, the game went on. And, a loud bug was buzzing in Bryan''s ear, demanding an answer for a stupid question.


    "Hey, are ya listening? Got nothing to say for yourself, huh!?" Bruce kept rambling on and on, but Bryan didn''t have the willpower to entertain that ungrateful dumbass. He came up with half-assed vague replies and tried his best to focus on the game.


    The three enemies in Bot ventured into the Jungle.


    "Enemies missing in Bot," Bryan reported. "They might be rotating to Mid."


    "Or going for Dragon," Raymond suggested.


    "Yeah, possible," Brayn agreed. "We gonna do anything about that, or...?"


    "There''s nothing we [can] do," Raymond said. "We''re in a 3v5. They earned that Dragon."


    "Hey, that Impaler is running low, right?" Dylan smirked. "I can probably kill her if I gank."


    "Yes please!" Bruce jumped. "Do it! Kill that bitch! Do it now!"


    "A good idea," Raymond said. "Except, how do you plan to escape from them without your ult."


    "Touche," Dylan gave up the idea as quickly as he brought it up.


    "Goddammit y''all," Bruce ranted. "Somebody, anybody, just shoot down that damn Impaler. Don''t put all my hard work to waste!"


    "Sorry, bro," Dylan apologized. "I think she''s out of reach for now."


    "Goddamit," Bruce finally gave the topic a rest. Though, he continued stomping with his foot mumbling to himself. The guy just couldn''t get over it.


    ¡ºAn enemy defeated the Dragon!¡»


    The message verified their suspicion. The enemy has taken the Dragon and there was nothing the team could do about that.


    Shortly, the Impaler and Druid returned to Bot. Even though the Impaler was hanging on a thread, she refused to recall.


    [Girl got balls.] Bryan laughed. It''s as if the Impaler was inviting them to attack. If Dylan rotated to Bot right now, he and Bryan could finish off that gal together.


    [Oh wait, the Ninja is also here.] Bryan noticed. [Never mind then. We better avoid this fight.]


    Shortly, the next minion wave arrived and all three enemies pushed together. There was nothing Bryan could do about this development. He chose to stay on the lane with his 60% HP and defend, but his presence barely had any impact. He couldn''t stand up to three enemies alone.


    "C''mon, kill her! She''s almost dead! Do it!" Bruce insisted and insisted and insisted.


    "And how do you suggest I do that without dying?" Bryan didn''t expect a real answer. He knew Bruce didn''t really think things through. Bruh was just spouting salty nonsense.


    Even though the girl was hanging onto 20% HP, there was no efficient way to kill her at the moment. Her two allies served as professional bodyguards, they''ll shot down anybody who dared to approach. The Impaler must have chosen to push with that in mind. There was nothing Bryan could do about it.


    "Meh, whatever," Bruce gave up. Or, so it seemed. "Hey, Dyl! Come gank Bot! I already rekt this Impaler pretty hard, so ya just gotta get a few hits in. Ez."


    "You want me to gank [that]?" Dylan made a face. "Sorry, my ult is down."


    "So what? Just go in there and shoot her and stuff!"


    "That''s kinda..." Dylan wasn''t sure how to retort to that nonsense. He should able to get in there and kill the Impaler, but his chances of escaping alive were slim-to-none. The Ninja and Druid will immediately gang on him and kick his ass. It was risky as heck.


    "C''mon," Bruce urged on. "Don''t wuss out. Ya got this. bro!"


    "''Got this'', huh. Yeaaaah." Dylan had no idea what to say. Arguing back will only trigger Bruce, but following his instructions meant death. Dylan had to inject some reason into this conversation ASAP.


    "Hey Bryan, what do you think?" Dylan asked.


    "Me?" Bryan grumped. [Don''t shift the responsibility to me, dammit.]


    "Ignore that guy," Bruce said. "He''ll distract them by defending while you sneak up to them. The perfect plan!"


    "Perfect, huh. Yaaaaah," Dylan rolled his eyes. He hoped that adding Bryan to the discussion will make Bruce see reason, but Bryan clearly wanted nothing to do with this. Dylan had to figure a different way to deflect this request.


    What would a pro player do in this situation? Bruce''s silly demand was [kinda] like an order from the team captain. Bruce wasn''t the official captain, but his word carried that much weight.


    [Because the real captain is acting oblivious all the time.] Dylan threw a glance at Raymond, who hasn''t spoken a single word on this topic. If Taurus was a proper team, Dylan could''ve relied on the captain to talk some sense into Bruce. Alas, Raymond was too passive for his own good. He was a captain only in name.


    Even if Raymond had an opinion about this, he didn''t share it. He was fully concentrated on his situation in Mid. Apparently, the ex-StormBlitz dude was giving the captain a hard time. He had his hands full.


    On top of that, Raymond''s motto was something like "let the players resolve things among themselves". A cute slogan, but it caused countless problems for the team and the club at large. It gave Bruce the "okay" to take the reins and order everybody around. Anybody who opposed the king had to suffer the consequences.


    [If I refuse to gank, Bruce gonna complain. If I gank and die, Bruce gonna complain. Fuck my life.] Dylan sighed. He was screwed no matter what he gonna pick. Why was life so unfair sometimes? Sigh.


    "C''mon, man," Bruce insisted. "Do it for your homie."


    "Okay, got it already," Dylan gave in. He''ll go there and get the damn kill, then probably die. Will that make Bruce happy? Probably not, but whatever.


    At least, it''ll become the team''s first kill this game. Their situation was a depressing 0-2, so getting one kill could brighten things a little. At the same time, one more early death will make a grim situation look even grimmer...


    [Whatever. Let''s just get it over with.] Dylan knew he was probably committing a misplay, but it wasn''t entirely hopeless. He might get a kill and escape alive. The odds were slim, but they existed. Worst case, if things go south, he''ll eject outta there right away.


    [Actually, wait. I can just go there, distract them a little, and then run away!] Dylan found a third option! It was brilliant! This way, he gonna keep everybody happy. It''ll even help Bryan with the defense efforts.


    With that ingenious plan in mind, Dylan made his way toward Bot Lane. Unbeknown to him, an enemy ward caught wind of his rotation...


    "He''s going to gank? For real?" Kai couldn''t help but ask out loud.


    "So it seems," Yuel also found that a little odd, but Taurus was no stranger to committing amateurish mistakes from time to time. It seemed as if their captain, or perhaps their shot-caller, was lacking in the decision-making department. Or, maybe they didn''t have a shot-caller at all. That''d explain why they seemed so disorganized.


    "Let''s kill him," Nia suggested.


    "Yeah," Kai nodded. "He''s probably going after me. Let''s strike him first."


    "Wait, let him come closer first," Yuel said. "Act oblivious for now and focus on pushing. Once he gets close enough, Vincent should place a shield on Kai and pull the Vampire."


    "A good plan, except I wouldn''t trust this doofus to pull anybody," Kai retorted.


    "Such harshness toward poor lil'' me," Vincent pretended to sob.


    "I agree," Yuel said. "His accuracy isn''t reliable."


    "Even the great Chessmaster belittles moi!?" Vincent pretended to sniffle. "I see how it is. Yes, it''s exactly as you say. After all, Mr. Blackhole is only good at gathering info. He''s a complete amateur when it comes to playing the actual game. [Sob.]"


    "That nonsense aside," Yuel continued. "Kai and Nia, be ready to attack in case the pull fails. Iron Maiden into Impale, or Shuriken Flip and into a blink. Or both. Your call."


    "Ok," Nia nodded.


    "Got it," Kai nodded as well. They were more than prepared. If that Vampire thought he gonna suck out Kai''s remaining HP, he better think again!


    Meanwhile, Dylan was on his way to Bot, believing he was being sneaky. The enemy didn''t show any signs of anticipating his arrival. They were pushing onward in full throttle. They won''t even know what hit them!


    Dylan entered the lane and crept from behind toward the overextending foes. All three pushers were looking straight ahead, unaware of the super sneaky forward who was about to score a goal. It gonna be a perfect crime!


    Just as he thought that, the Impaler turned around for some reason. It''s as if she sensed Dylan behind her back.


    "He''s here!" Kai announced. No matter how quietly the Vampire was trying to creep up to them, no sound could escape Kai''s acute hearing.


    "Roger!" Vincent activated Gaia''s Protection and placed a shield on Kai. That alone was almost enough to thwart the entire gank. But, that was only the beginning. They were going to mount a counterattack!


    Vincent opened the attack by firing Nature''s Grasp! And missed.


    "Again!?" Vincent exclaimed. The success rate of his pulls was unbelievably low. It was 0% for this game so far. How could that be!? Blasmephy!


    "Really," Kai sighed and summoned an Iron Maiden behind the Impaler. Next, she gonna impale that bastard! But, she stopped at the last moment. The guy rolled aside.


    "Damn, they''re onto me!" Dylan shouted while performing a panic Dodge Roll. He knew this gank was gonna be bad news, but he didn''t expect such a fierce counter-attack. He didn''t even have the chance to deliver one hit!


    Fortunately, he reacted fast and avoided the worst-case scenario, that of being impaled into the Iron Maiden. He rolled around the Iron Maiden, so no there was nothing to impale him into.


    [Damn, I can''t shoot Impale now.] Kai clicked her tongue. She was confident in landing the skillshot, but there was no wall to impale the target into. A raw Imaple will only push the Vampire father away from them. In other words, it''d help him escape. Dammit.


    [We messed this one up.] Kai sighed in defeat. Both she and Vincent failed to pin down the target. And, he rolled away so fast that Nia didn''t have a chance to throw a shuriken at him.


    [Speaking of Nia, where is she?] Kai looked around. [Oh, there she is.] The elusive Ninja was chasing after the fleeing Vampire. She must''ve really wanted that kill, huh.


    [Wait, isn''t that just the clone?] Kai took a closer look. Enemies couldn''t tell Nia''s clone apart from the real deal, but allies had an indicator for it. There was a small icon showing duplicating human figures, proving this was indeed a clone.


    Then, where was the real Nia? And, when did she even leave their side? Kai didn''t notice any of it.


    [Wait, she''s already over there!?] Kai couldn''t believe her eyes. Nia was already inside the jungle. She must have used Dodge Roll to get there so fast. Was she planning to intercept the Vampire in the jungle?


    "I''ll chase the Vampire," Kai told Vincent. "Stay here and start pushing with Ents."


    "Roger," Vincent unleashed "Awaken the Ents" right before allied minions entered the tower area. With the gigantic living trees tanking tower shots, even a push composed of only minions had deadly might.


    Meanwhile, a chase began in the jungle.


    [Damn, they''re both after me!] Dylan ranted internally as he glanced behind him. The Ninja and the Impaler were hot on his trail. He had to make a run for it! And so, he headed toward the nearby jungle entrance.


    Vampire had decent Movement Speed, but he was slower than Ninja. So, that damn Ninja might catch up to him. It was a bad idea to fight her at close range, so Dylan had to prioritize his escape.


    As soon as he entered the jungle, he made a sharp turn to the right. If he flees deep enough into the allied side of the jungle, his pursuers should give up.


    However, just as he thought that, a blade flashed in front of his face! It appeared outta nowhere and slashed him!


    "The heck!?" Dylan jumped. Who the hell was there!? He knew everybody''s positions through the mini-map, so nobody could''ve possibly been there at the moment. Yet, someone was.


    It was the Ninja! She was right in front of Dylan somehow. But, how!? Wasn''t she chasing him from behind just a moment ago... Ah!


    [A clone!? Did she scare me away from the lane so I run over here!?] Dylan couldn''t believe this was really happening in a middle school level game. [Anyway, this is bad. I gotta backpedal and find a different escape route... Oh, fuck my life.]


    The true gravity of the situation only hit him once he turned around. Turning around meant facing whoever was coming after him from behind. And, who stood there? The Impaler, naturally.


    Those two caught Dylan in a pincer! To make things worse, there were long jungle walls all around this area. There was nowhere to escape!


    [Shit, she gonna Impale the living shit outta me...!] Dylan booted Coffin Slumber by reflex. He summoned a coffin that swallowed him whole. That''ll prevent Impale from hitting him.


    [Wait, she didn''t even shot it yet...] Dylan face-palmed. He totally panicked. He pulled the trigger before the enemy even started their move. Thanks to that, Dylan became a sitting duck for his foes. Awesome...


    [He sure pulled that coffin fast.] Kai shrugged. [I didn''t even start aiming yet. Well, that makes things easier for me.]


    The Vampire willingly became a practice dummy for her, how nice of him. Kai and Nia repeatedly struck the coffin with basic attacks until they forced the Vampire out. Then, Kai fired Impale. It shoved the Vampire into a wall and sunned him. From there, it was an easy kill.


    ¡ºAn enemy has been killed!¡»


    Nia delivered the finishing blow. Kai gave the kill away because she has already scored a kill on the Pirate the last time they worked together. Not to mention, Nia really deserved this one.


    This entire pincer was practically Nia''s work. Well, perhaps it only converted into a kill so smoothly because Kai quickly followed on Nia''s play. Nonetheless, even without Kai being here, Nia would have surely given the Vampire a hard time in the jungle. It was a great play from her either way.


    "Let''s get back to pushing," Kai said.


    "Ok," Nia ran back the way she came. Her chase ended up being anti-climatic and short. But, at least it meant she had time to join the push efforts in Bot before Vincent''s Ents perish.


    With the three pushers joining hands and the Ents tanking tower shots, the enemy turret stood no chance. A single defender couldn''t fend them off.


    ¡ºAn enemy Turret has been destroyed!¡»


    One tower already down, long before the game even started approaching mid-game. This signaled the beginning of the end for Taurus. With this momentum, Stratus'' early-game composition easily pushed all the way to victory.


    That was the end of the second game. The scrimmage became 2-0 for StormBlitz. An easy 2-0 to boot. If things keep going like this, Stratus will end the day with a perfect 5-0. That''ll be a great way to open the scrimmaging season.


    However, that''s provided their opponents will fail to adapt and continue playing on the same mediocre level. And, it also depended on whether Taurus'' lineup will remain the same after this game...

 224 Jaidens Observations

    "Iwts, satwrating uwp!" Nash spouted some gibberish while stuffing his mouth with popcorn.


    "Hey, where did you get that?" Jaiden asked and thurst a hand into the popcorn box. "Gimme some." He grabbed a handful.


    "I want some too," Rio also grabbed a bunch without reservation.


    "Hey, hey, leave some for me!" Nash quickly shoved more popcorn into his mouth. He was planning the box to last him the entire game but, at this rate, everything will be gone before the game even loads!


    "C''mon, don''t be stingy," Jaiden grabbed some more.


    "Yeah," Rio also took some more.


    "This is robbery in broad daylight! You guuuuuys!" Nash complained, but he didn''t do much to stop his pals. He just sighed and resigned himself to this cruel fate. Welp, it''s not like he minded sharing with his friends anyway.


    While the trio was devouring the popcorn, the game began. Finally, Jaiden will get to see Gunz and Chessmaster play again. How good were these guys? How much did they improve? It gonna be fun to find out!


    Back in the drafting phase, Stratus made a pick that was both interesting and disappointing: Dark Knight. It''s a pick that always came across as BM. Jaiden was sure Stratus were feeling themselves too much and that this cocky pick will blow up in their faces.


    But, then the game loaded and something unexpected was revealed. Chessmaster was the one playing Dark Knight. That made things ten times more interesting.


    Did Chessmaster have the necessary skill to dominate in the lane against Zeph''s Dragonborn? Either his arrogance will be his undoing, or it''ll win Stratus the entire game. With how extreme of a class Dark Knight was, there was little chance for anything in-between.


    In fact, Stratus'' entire lineup was extremely early-game focused. There was no doubt they planned to quickly wrap up this game and they fully believed they could do that against Taurus. If these mad lads really pull it off, it''ll mean this year''s Stratus actually meant business.


    [Gaaaah! If only I was on stage right now too!] Jaiden roared internally. He wanted to be up there, on that dazzling stage reserved for the most competitive players. He wanted to clash swords with Stratus, to test his mettle against the ex-StormBlitz players, and to kick the ass of that captain girl, who surely secured her position through some sort of favoritism.


    Dang it, why couldn''t he be born one year earlier? Or, be some genius who could skip grades? Warming up the bench while watching the seniors play was such a torment! Gaaaaaaah!


    At least, the game itself was quite the spectacle. Chessmaster didn''t disappoint with his Dark Knight pick. He countered everything Zeph threw his way and thoroughly dominated the lane.


    "Zeph is a goner," Rio quietly said these ominous words.


    "Yep, he''s done for," Nash agreed. "That Chessmaster bro means business."


    "Hey, c''mon. Don''t sell our guy short like that," Jaiden argued. "Zeph can still make things happen. He just gotta switch to defense and wait for Dylan to gank. C''mon, Zeph! Don''t let that DK push you around like this!"


    Maybe the words somehow reached Zeph''s ears, because he fell back just like Jaiden asked. Zeph gave up the offense and focused on luring Chessmaster in.


    "Yeah, that''s how you do it!" Jaiden pumped a fist.


    "Heh, let''s see if he can start something going now," Nash smiled mischievously, like an excited kid waiting to see a magic trick.


    "He''s still doomed," Rio said matter-of-factly, as if Zeph''s defeat has already been set in stone.


    [Ever the optimist, heh.] Jaiden smiled wryly. Rio rarely ever focused on the bright side of things, but many of his predictions were frighteningly accurate. It wasn''t always clear how he reached the conclusions he did, but...


    ¡ºDragonMaster has been killed!¡»


    Just like this, the prediction came true.


    What transpired during that gank was too confusing for words to describe. Even from the audience, from where Jaiden could clearly see the positions of all players, he didn''t catch on that play in time.


    At first, it looked like Zeph and Dylan were about to give Chessmaster some heat. Their formidable opponent finally committed a misplay and overextended, giving Dylan a great opportunity to gank. And so, Dylan ganked with his ult, stunning Chessmaster from behind.


    It should''ve been a wrap right then and there, but it wasn''t. Far from it. In a blink of an eye, the entire situation flipped on its head. Stratus'' Ninja popped out of nowhere and trashed Zeph hard. He was dead meat.


    "Whoa! Where did that Ninja chick come from!?" Nash exclaimed. "Any of ya saw her coming?"


    "No," Jaiden admitted. "Not until she got very close."


    "Dang, so sneaky. Zeph is hella unlucky."


    "Unlucky?" Jaiden asked.


    "I mean," Nash said. "Bruh almost had it, then Ninja snuck up to him before anybody realized. Tough luck, man."


    "''Almost had it'', you say," Jaiden smiled wryly. "What if I told you it was probably staged?"


    "Wut?" Nash tilted his head. "Ya mean, someone paid Zeph to lose on purpose? It''s a rigged game!?"


    "What is this, WWE?" Jaiden laughed. "I''m saying Zeph was probably baited. You saw how Chessmaster overextended, right? I think it was on purpose. He was reeling Zeph in."


    "You pulling my leg. You''re saying that guy was on top of the situation all along!?"


    "I''m saying it''s possible," Jaiden nodded. "Rio, what do you think?"


    "I also think it was planned," Rio said. "The overextension was too obvious. Chessmaster doesn''t make mistakes like that."


    "You think so too, huh?" Jaiden nodded.


    "Whoa there," Nash said. "You guys are trying to spook me, aren''t ya? I mean, you telling me Stratus has a player who can pull stuff like that? That was some 200 IQ pro gamer move right there!"


    "I told you, Gunz and Chessmaster used to be in StormBlitz," Jaiden reminded. "These guys are something else. They can kick some serious butt."


    "Man, wish I could fight them myself. Like, right now!"


    "Me too, me too."


    Unfortunately, they had no choice but to remain as idle observers. They were juniors and they belonged to a club with many members. Therefore, their chances of setting foot on the stage were slim to none this year. Unless...


    Anyway, Chessmaster drew the first blood of the game. Well, to be more accurate, it was the Ninja girl who scored the kill. Chessmaster only got the assist.


    But, there was little doubt that Chessmaster was the one who staged the whole thing. He became bait to create that precious opportunity, so most of the credit belonged to him.


    That was a harsh opening for Taurus. A Dark Knight who dominated the lane this hard in the early-game was bad news. The team will have to shut him down ASAP, or else he''ll snowball out of control.


    As Jaiden expected, Chessmaster was proving himself as a formidable foe. So, how was Gunz doing? He was facing Raymond in Mid, the captain and strongest player in Taurus. This gotta be interesting.


    [Well, it IS interesting. In a way.] Jaiden thought.


    Gunz and Raymond constantly spaced each other out with their spells. They desperately searched for opportunities to strike each other and to increase their lane control, but without overcommitting to anything. Both sides were extremely cautious and refused to overextend.


    It looked like a boring deadlock on the surface, but a lot of high-level gameplay was going on underneath. Their spacing, timing, and execution were all top-notch. Nothing about their clashes was particularly flashy or intense, but there were many fine details to appreciate.


    [It''s not that exciting to watch, though.] Jaiden smiled wryly. Neither side committed to any big plays, so the lane remained frozen. There wasn''t a whole lot of "action" there. It was the kind of high-level fight that''d be interesting to analyze in detail from a replay, but at the moment it didn''t move the game in any direction.


    [Gotta say, Gunz is playing real tame there.] Jaiden thought. The Gunz engraved in his mind was a wild beast with overwhelming might. Always on the offense, always hungering for kills.


    But, not so much this game. Gunz was playing it safe. He was undeniably strong, he held his own against Raymond. And yet, something was missing from his plays. There was no spark there.


    It was weird. The first time Jaiden saw Gunz on stage, he thought he was no match for that beast. But, the way Gunz was playing now, the guy didn''t seem like such a big deal. He was strong, but not powerful. Jaiden could probably hold his own against Gunz if they right fought now.


    [Did he change his playstyle? Or, maybe he just plays more defensively in Mid?] There was nobody to answer Jaiden''s inquires.


    Next, Jaiden checked out Bot. That''s where Beat, the female captain of Stratus, was playing.


    [Thinking of it, they got two girls on the team. The Carry and the Jungler. I didn''t even notice.] Jaiden didn''t remember seeing another girl in Stratus''s lineup on the stage. The Ninja girl was sure an elusive one, both inside and outside the game.


    Anyway, back to Bot Lane. Bruce was about to initiate an attack on Beat. A little reckless of him, but it should work out. Bruce won''t let some girl embarrass him in a fight, will he?


    [Well, if things go south, I''m sure Bryan will help out.] Jaiden thought. The "BB" (Bruce-Bryan) duo was well-known in the club. Bruce delivered the aggression and mechanical skill, whereas Bryan brought in robust game knowledge and sharp decision-making. They complemented each other well.


    [Well, it sounds pretty on paper, but it''s usually more like Bruce running into trouble and Bryan doing everything in his power to prevent a disaster.] Jaiden cracked a laugh.


    Yeah, those two weren''t exactly the most amazing duo out there. But, Bruce''s reckless ideas, supplemented by Bryan''s effective support, worked out pretty well more often they should.


    This time as well, their attack on Beat started off on the right foot. Bryan was doing a great job weakening Beat with his rain and keeping her Support away with geysers. It allowed Bruce to easily mop the floor with his opponent.


    The fight was looking like a wrap. The slowdown from Rainfall was incredibly heavy, so Beat couldn''t even get away. And, every time she was about to step outside, Bryan pushed her back with a geyser. His setup had no openings.


    The fight between Beat and Bruce was essentially a wild shootout. Bruce fired a bullet at Beat, but at the same time Beat flung a spear at him. It''s as if the two were synchronizing their shots on purpose, to not give the other any time to dodge.


    "Whoa, look at that timing!" Nash exclaimed.


    "Yeah, it''s interesting," Jaiden frowned. [What are you doing, Bruce? You should be firing and dodging. You got the speed advantage in both attacks and movement, you gotta use it. Unless...]


    It was curious. The shots definitely seemed synchronized. The first couple of shots might''ve been a fluke, but it couldn''t be a mere coincidence after they''re fired this many. That synchronization was on purpose. But, why?


    Bruce shouldn''t have a reason to maintain such a routine, so it couldn''t be his idea. So, was the girl doing it? Was she timing her shots to land them during Bruce''s recovery animation?


    Given the slowdown inside the rain, Beat probably struggled to land any hits on Bruce by shooting normally. So, this routine of synchronized shots was probably her combat plan.


    [If she''s doing this on purpose, that''s pretty impressive.] Jaiden thought. Well, not [that] impressive, but not bad for a girl. She at least had some skils, which was more than Jaiden expected. At least, she wasn''t completely useless.


    [How is she doing that?] Jaiden carefully analyzed every shot. [She must be predicting Bruce''s timing somehow. Is he shooting at a constant rate or something?]


    If Jaiden were in Bruce''s shoes, he''d try switching up the tempo of his shots. That''d make it clear whether the girl was relying on prediction or reaction. Alas, Bruce continued shooting in the same exact way, oblivious to all these considerations. The guy was a simpleton like that.


    [Well, he''s going to win anyway.] Jaiden shrugged. Bruce had a head start because he landed two hits before this synchronized routine began, so he''ll kill Beat before she kills him.


    [As for her Support...] Jaiden checked around the lane. [He probably won''t be able to make a difference. Bryan is doing a great job spacing the guy out. So, it''s all over for their "captain". Good job, Bruce. Let her taste how REAL players fight!]


    However, right before the curtain fell on that play, something unexpected happened. An invisible shadow snuck up to Bruce and assaulted him! The Ninja appeared out of nowhere and slashed his back!


    "Again!?" Jaiden blinked in shock. This was so weird. He was in the audience, he could clearly see the movements of all players from both teams. Even though he was preoccupied with the situation in Bot, he should''ve spotted the Ninja girl rotating there.


    Yet, he didn''t notice her right until she appeared behind Bruce. Could it due to Jaiden not participating in the game? Maybe being a mere observer dulled his senses somewhat. That''s the only explanation he had for VanishingFlower''s unexpected appearances.


    [Anyway, this is bad.] Jaiden thought. The Ninja''s sneaky gank completely shifted the tides of battle. The enemy turned the tables on Bruce and killed him. It was an unfortunate turn of events.


    Bryan escaped the clash alive, but the enemy has already dealt a critical blow to Taurus. They killed Bruce and used that opportunity to take the Dragon. Nobody dared to get in their way during this 3v5 situation.


    With this development, it became apparent that the game was heading in a bad direction for Taurus...

 225 The Gangs in Taurus

    Nevertheless, even from down here, there were many things to study and analyze. Jaiden was going to do everything in his power to help Taurus win, even if he couldn''t set foot on the stage itself.


    [This is looking bad. Jaiden thought.


    The enemy killed Bruce in Bot and chased Bryan away. Next, they went after the Dragon. Nobody dared to stop them. Dylan seemed to entertain the idea of stealing the Dragon, but he ultimately decided against it.


    [Yeah, Dragon isn''t worth the risk. We can''t give them another kill. Jaiden thought. It was usually worthwhile to die in an attempt to steal the Overlord, but not Dragon.


    And so, nobody stopped the enemy from taking the Dragon. Next, the enemy trio consisting of Impaler, Druid, and Ninja rotated back to harass Bot.


    They were planning to push through with raw strength. Bryan couldn''t fend off all three of them alone. On top of that, Druid''s Ents will be able to tank the tower for quite some time. It was a hopeless situation.


    "We probably gonna lose Bot tower," Jaiden shared his opinion with his pals.


    "What? No way!" Nash objected. "I mean, the game is basically over if they take Bot this early."


    "Yeah, but how would you stop them?"


    "Well, hrrrrrm..." Nash crossed his arms and fell into deep thought. Or, at least, he wore a difficult expression that made it look like he was thinking real hard about it.


    "You''ll fry your brain if you try to think," Rio said quietly.


    "What was that!?" Nash barked. He didn''t quite catch what Rio said, but his instincts were telling him it was some sort of insult toward this genius here. "Just so you know, I actually came up with something!"


    "You did?" Jaiden and Rio blinked in unison as if they''ve just witnessed the paranormal.


    "What''s with that reaction?" Nash grumped. "Anyway, listen to this! It''s the ultimate counter! Basically, they gonna use the Invincible Triangle!"


    "You realize that''s our move, right?" Jaiden asked.


    "Yeah, but no choice! They gotta do it. Here and now!"


    "They don''t even have the three players in Bot for it," Rio pointed out.


    "Oh, now that you mention it..." Nash scratched his head. "Eh, hmm, oh, I know! They should just do the Invincible Square instead!"


    "The heck is that even?" Jaiden asked. "Also, a ''square''? Sounds like they''d need four players. There are only three players alive, you know"


    "Oh, yeah," Nash shrugged. "Guess they''re doomed then."


    [You don''t say, genius! Jaiden laughed. "Rio, what do you think?"


    "I have nothing," Rio admitted. "I''d suggest the Invincible Pentagon, but they don''t have enough players." He smiled mischievously.


    "Haha, sounds broken," Nash laughed.


    "There''s one thing I do know," Rio pointed at one of the screens. "This gank is a bad idea."


    "Yeah, it sure is," Jaiden frowned at what he saw. For some ungodly reason, Dylan was on his way to Bot. Even worse, he was apparently planning to appear behind the enemy. It was an incoming gank, no two ways about it.


    But, why? It was suicide. At best, Dylan will kill the injured Carry before dying. It [might stop the enemy from taking Bot Turret in this push, but the turret will stay on life support after that. It''ll easily crumble in the next push anyway.


    Dylan was one of the brighter dudes in Bruce''s gank, so he should''ve known all of that. Nevertheless, he was about to commit a terrible misplay that might cost him his life. Why?


    [Did somebody ask him to gank? I doubt it was Bryan. Jaiden knotted his brows. Bryan was undeniably the "brain" in Bruce''s gang, so he wouldn''t request a hopeless gank like that. In that case, there was only one logical conclusion: Bruce asked for it.


    [Is he really going to be Bruce''s lapdog here? Jaiden smiled wryly. Most likely, Bruce was throwing a tantrum right now and asking for something stupid like ["Kill that chick I fought!". He was a prideful dude like that.


    Bryan and Dylan knew that ganking the trio in Bot was hopeless. But, Bruce had control over them. Not because he was good at debating or could bring up reasonable arguments. Nah, he always just yelled real hard until he got his way.


    Everybody caved in against Bruce''s intimidating aura, even those who always hung out with him. Jaiden was on the receiving end of that treatment a few times as well. He also gave in most of the time. It was that much easier to simply shut up and do whatever nonsense Bruce was asking, instead of getting into a fight with that wild boar.


    That oppressing aura Bruce had turned him into the unofficial captain of the seniors. He was brash and strong to boot. Nobody could stand up to him, except for the real captain. But, Raymond was too much of a pacifist for his own good and didn''t intervene much in others'' businesses. He was a good guy and a strong player, but a terrible captain.


    On top of that, the club''s size was another reason why Bruce''s gang managed to seize this much control. Players from other teams often envied Taurus on that front. Most schools in the region restricted the sizes of their Classmancers clubs, but Taurus was allowed to have up to 30 members. The club was second only the Leopards'' in size.


    However, it wasn''t all sunshine and rainbows. In a big club, it was impossible for everybody to be close friends. There were simply too many dudes in there.


    As a result, the club always had multiple dominant groups. Like-minded individuals grouped together to form a circle of close friends. Sometimes, it felt like the club was split into multiple ganks contesting for territory.


    Forming such groups was only natural. Nobody tried to stop it from happening. However, for a competitive team sport, these groups were an issue.


    The "gangs" didn''t exist just to make friends. People in the same circle often played together and improved together. As a result, their affinity developed and they became great teammates.


    For example, Jaiden played the most with his best pals: Nash and Rio. Likewise, Bruce played the most with Bryan and Dylan, and recently with Zeph too. Of course, they also played with other clubmates every now and then, but everybody spent the most time playing with their closest friends.


    As a result, their game skill developed bias. They believed they couldn''t play their best unless they were alongside their best pals, and it was true to some degree.


    For example, Jaiden was definitely at his best when fighting alongside Nash and Rio. They were the Invincible Triangle together! But, without them? Jaiden didn''t consider himself particularly amazing.


    Still, that bias wasn''t a problem at first. Anybody was free to team up with anybody during practice. If anything, training alongside friends boosted motivation and made the training more fruitful.


    The problems started surfacing once the "gangs" entered their third year. It was time to decide who''ll compose the first-string and represent the club at the regionals.


    Logically, one would choose the best senior players for the first-string. However, what did it mean to be the "best"? In this club, where everybody formed circles of trusted comrades with whom they performed better, an objective "best" didn''t exist.


    For example, Jaiden believed himself to be the "best" Carry player among the juniors. However, that''s only provided he had Rio as the Support and Nash as the Jungler. As long as the three of them were together, their teamwork was top-notch and they crushed everybody with their Invincible Triangle!


    But, what if it was just Jaiden by himself? Paired with a different Support he wasn''t used to, and with a Jungler who didn''t cooperate nearly enough. Suddenly, it became an entirely different story.


    Was Jaiden still the "best" Carry among juniors without his pals by his side? He wanted to believe so, but it was impossible to prove. His strength laid in the trust and teamwork he built up with his best friends, so it was pointless to judge his own skill in a vacuum. After all, Classmancers was a team game. It was the strength of the team that counted, not the strength of each individual.


    Unfortunately, this problem wasn''t unique to Jaiden. Anybody who spent the majority of their time playing with friends developed a dependency on them. Every player felt that, to "play their best", they absolutely needed their friends as teammates. And, they weren''t wrong. Jaiden was really at his "best" only together with Nash and Rio.


    This was a huge hurdle when deciding on the team''s first-string. Who was the "best" Carry in the club? The "best" Support? The "best" Jungler? Jaiden could confidently claim that, among the juniors, the "best" at these roles were him, Nash, and Rio when they were playing together.


    But, individually? Without each other around? Was any of them truly the "best" in any of these roles? Jaiden couldn''t tell. That''s what made the selection process for the first-string so difficult.


    For example, if somebody wanted to put Jaiden on the first string, they''d have to consider adding Nash and Rio as well. Their participation was neccessary for unlocking Jaiden''s full potential. Not to mention, it was very likely for people to find Jaiden worthy of the first-string based on how he performed alongside his friends. Without them, he couldn''t even qualify.


    So, just by wanting Jaiden as the first-string''s Carry, it meant locking the spots for Jungler and Support as well. After that, only two options would be left: Top and Mid.


    But, what if the "best" Mid Laner in the club could only do his best when paired with his best pal Jungler? And, suppose said Jungler wasn''t Nash. Bam! A conflict right there.


    Who gonna get the Jungler spot now? Nash, who''d draw out Jaiden''s full potential? Or, that other Jungler who''d help the Mid Laner perform his best? There was no clear-cut answer to these cases. They were a huge headache.


    All the first-string candidates wanted to play alongside their friends. They banded together and stood their ground, fighting for the right to join the first-string as a group. Therefore, it was suitable to calls them "gangs". They fought each other for territory, with the first-string being the ultimate prize of this war.


    Well, "fought" might be a harsh word. For the most part, the gangs just competed against each other, each trying to prove their members'' worth. However, some gangs took the "fights" literally. Bruce''s gang was one such example.


    Instead of competing for the first-strong via sheer skill, Bruce was notorious for applying intimidation on the competition. He was like a terrorist. It was unclear whether his pals fully agreed with his actions, but they followed him through, perhaps out of fear of becoming his next targets.


    Thanks to that support, Burce''s gang climbed all the way to the top of the club. Anybody who dared to cross them had to prepare themselves. Verbal abuse, and sometimes even physical abuse, soon followed.


    Yes, Bruce was no stranger to starting real fights. And, he was strong too, one of the few areas in which he really distinguished himself. There was even a time he took on two guys at once and pummeled them hard. The captain was the only one in the club who could stand up to Bruce.


    [But, Ray never gets involved. Luke sighed. In such a problematic environment, a passive captain was like a curse. Raymond was a good guy, but way too passive for his own good.


    And so, Bruce continued intimidating clubmates without anybody there to punish him. With time, the other seniors understood they had no hope of making it into the first-string as long as Bruce''s tyranny continued. On top of that, the environment in the club became far from pleasant for them.


    Therefore, many of them started skipping practice. They didn''t want to be in the same space as the almighty tyrant. On top of that, they misused their status as "seniors" to dismiss any criticism toward their attitude.


    "I''ve been attending properly for two years, so I can slack off a little in the end, right?" They used bad excuses like that to justify their actions. Bruce''s gang sucked out all motivation from these guys. They barely even cared about Classmancers anymore at that point.


    Only two survived through these dark times: Raymond and Zeph. Bruce didn''t dare to do anything funny in front of the giant captain since everybody knew Raymond was the strongest in the club. Meanwhile, Zeph didn''t have any such insurance, so he simply jumped ship and wiggled his way into Bruce''s gang before it came to crush him and his former gang.


    And so, that''s how the current first-string came to be. Bruce''s gang was the core of the first-string, while Raymond and Zeph were the two survivors who made it through the harsh times.


    As far as skill was concerned, Bruce''s gang was "alright", nothing more. Not the worst, but not amazing either. Jaiden could name at least two other seniors who deserved to be on the first-string way more than these terrorists. Alas, said seniors have lost their passion for Classmancers by now, so the current clunky first-string was all Taurus had.


    Unfortunately, this team didn''t quite cut in a competitive environment. Even Stratus, the team considered to be the weakest in the region, was mopping the floor with the current Taurus. It was a sorry sight.


    [You hate to see it. Jaiden sighed. The first-string, the supposed representatives of the entire club, had their arse handed to them by Stratus. If only Jaiden and his pals were on that stage right now...!


    ¡ºDEFEAT¡»


    Taurus'' fate was all too predictable. After losing the early-game so hard, they had no chance of recovering against Stratus'' early game composition. The game was over in a blink of an eye.


    As expected, Gunz and Chessmaster performed well. Chessmaster dominated against Zeph and established the team''s early game momentum, while Gunz held his own against a powerhouse like Raymond and later went on a killing spree during team fights. Those two were on a completely different level, even though they were the same age as Jaiden and his friends. It was amazing, but also baffling at the same time.


    [If they''re so good, why leave StormBlitz? Jaiden still couldn''t wrap his head around that mystery. Players of their caliber should be playing for one of the strongest teams in the region, not dragging their feet in Stratus. Not to mention, these guys took Jaiden''s spot during StormBlitz''s entrance exam. They had the responsibility to see things through.


    [I can''t leave things hanging in the air like this! Jaiden jumped on his feet. Stratus'' members were in the middle of leaving their chairs, so he ran up to them. "Hey! Gunz and Chessmaster!" The yell caught the boys'' attention.


    "Yo, what''s up?" the tall dude, Gunz, flashed a smile.


    [Okay, they look friendly enough. Jaiden thought. "Can I ask you guys something?


    "I believe you just did," Chessmaster retorted.


    "Haha, don''t mind him," Gunz laughed. "Sure, ask away."


    "You two used to in StormBlitz, right?" Jaiden cut to the chase.


    "........" The two boys exchanged glances.


    [They''re probably wondering where I got my hands on this confidential information, hehe. Jaiden smirked.


    "Yeah, we were on StormBlitz. How do ya know?" Lars asked. "Are we super famous or something?"


    "I saw you playing on the second-string last year," Jaiden explained.


    "Heh, it feels like everybody and their moms saw that match," Gunz laughed.


    "No kidding," Chessmaster nodded. Jaiden had no idea what they were talking about, but it sounded like he wasn''t the only one who was mesmerized by that rare second-string scrimmage.


    "You guys gave the Leopards a run for their money," Jaiden grinned


    "Heck yeah, we kicked their butts! Ez!" Gunz gave a thumbs up.


    "I wouldn''t say it was [that easy," Chessmaster argued. "But yes, overall we had the upper hand in that scrimmage."


    [Good, looks like I buttered them up without even planning. Jaiden smiled mischievously. With these preparations in place, there was a good chance their lips will become loose. "So, how did you two end up in Stratus?"


    "......" Heavy silence again. The two boys looked at each other with difficult expressions. It felt like Jaiden stepped on a landmine. Nevertheless, he had to know the truth.


    "Reasons and stuff, ya know," Gunz finally gave an answer, or at least something that pretended to be one.


    "Reasons...?" Jaiden raised an eyebrow. That was as good as giving him nothing.


    "You''re from Taurus, aren''t you?" Chessmaster asked.


    "Yep, I''m a junior in the club."


    "In that case, I don''t see why we should share any information with the enemy."


    "Whoa," Gunz exclaimed. "Aren''t ya a little harsh on the dude? He just came here to talk."


    "Or," Chessmaster narrowed his eyes. "Maybe he came to extract information about us."


    "Fair enough," Jaiden nodded with an understanding smile. Chessmaster''s words were a little cold, but it seemed like he was a harsh guy in general. True to his nickname, he was a strategist. He must''ve suspected the possibility of an enemy ploy at every turn.


    "Then, how about this?" Jaiden suggested. "If Taurus wins today, would you mind telling me the reason you''re in Stratus? At least some of it?"


    "Why do you care so much?" Chessmaster asked.


    "I''m... something of a fan, I guess," Jaiden scratched the back of his head with an embarrassed smile. "It was cool how you gave the Leopards such a hard fight even though you were just freshmen. As a freshman myself at the time, it was very inspiring."


    "Okay, gotcha!" Gunz gave a thumbs up. "If ya dudes can beat us today, we''ll tell ya the whole story."


    "Seriously!?" Jaiden jumped. "It''s a deal then. My IGN is Renegade. You better remember it!"


    "You betcha!"


    "We should be going," Chessmaster cut the conversation short. It was only fair since Jaiden''s banter was wasting away their precious break time.


    "It was fun talking to you," Jaiden waved at them with a smile. "Catch you later. Hopefully, it gonna on this stage." On that note, Jaiden left.


    "An interesting dude," Lars said.


    "I can''t quite figure what''s his deal," Yuel frowned. "Have we met him somewhere before?"


    "Hmm," Lars titled his head. "Don''t think so."


    "I don''t remember him either," Yuel crossed his arms. "But, I have this weird feeling like I''ve seen him before."


    "Maybe you saw him in the audience last year?"


    "No, I think it was somewhere else. Hmm," Yuel was drawing a blank no matter how hard he thought about it. "Anyway, he''s definitely suspicious."


    "Hm? What gives?" Lars tilted his head. "He seems like a nice dude."


    "He slipped at one point," Yuel explained. "He said we were ''freshmen'' last year."


    "Yeah, we totally were."


    "Yes, but how did he know that?"


    "He just saw us play and... oh," Lars realized what was so peculiar about it. Most people wouldn''t just assume he was a freshman. Lars was pretty tall, so everybody always thought he was a few years older than his actual age. It was impossible to guess he was a freshman without being told.


    "Maybe he asked somebody?" Lars wondered.


    "Who, exactly?" Yuel threw the question back at Lars. "And, if he did ask somebody, it means he investigated us. I don''t like that."


    "Dang, he sure sounds suspicious all of a sudden."


    "Well, let''s ignore that," Yuel said. "He''s a junior, so he won''t be playing today. I doubt we''re going to see him again."


    "Are you sure about that?" Lars smiled meaningfully. "Dunno why, but I got this gut feeling. I think we gonna be fighting that dude today. He didn''t come here to declare war for no reason. At least, that''s how it felt to me."


    "We''ll see," Yuel didn''t believe that''ll happen, but that boy was clearly suspicious. It was possible he knew something about Taurus''s inner workings that''d let him sub in.


    Taurus had a big club, so they should have had plenty of seniors ready to sub in. Logically, they shouldn''t have any reason to sub in a junior. However, if they do sub Renegade in, it''ll imply he out-skilled most of the seniors.


    "C''mon, let''s go," Yuel said.


    "Wait, where''s July?" Lars scouted the audience. He was searching for a girl with a long ponytail. It took him a while to realize he was searching for the wrong target. "Oh, right. She cut her hair. Then... Oh, there she is!" He waved in her direction with a broad smile.


    [D-Don''t wave at me like that... Julia shrunk in her chair. She felt curious gazes checking her out. Oh god, she so wished for the chair to suck her in and make her disappear.


    [Well, at least he''s not talking to me directly-


    "Hey, July!" Lars called out and waved.


    "Wha-!?" Julia jumped in her chair. Oh no. Oh no! OH NO! Now, even those who weren''t paying attention started looking at her. What''s worse, they even heard her name! Nuuuuuu!


    "How was this game?!" Lars asked with a booming tone, disregarding Julia''s distress. "We totally beat these dudes, right? Did it look convincing enough?"


    "Um, hmm," Julia chewed her lips. It seemed like Lars was actually expecting an answer, but Julia wasn''t going to shout back toward him. Frankly, all she wanted was to get this awkward situation over with. So, she raised a thumbs up while averting her eyes. It was so embarrassing!


    "Heck yeah!" Lars triumphantly waved his fist at Julia''s response.


    [Maybe I shouldn''t have done it... Julia regretted her hasty action. She only gave a thumbs up because she wanted to end this embarrassing situation as quickly as possible. In truth, she wasn''t content with the way that game turned out. That wasn''t the kind of Classmancers he was meant to play.


    As a whole, Stratus dominated the game. There were a few dangerous situations, but that''s how Yuel''s strategizing usually looked like. It was always hard to tell whenever a dangerous play was a reckless misplay or just some calculated risk by Yuel.


    What really left Julia unsatisfied was the skill level of the entire thing. Namely, the skill level of Taurus. That team was trash. They didn''t pose a real challenge. It was difficult to estimate Stratus'' current strength like that.


    [If only somebody strong subbed in and pulled that crappy team together. Julia sighed. She knew it was not going to happen, but she prayed for it regardless.


    As if responding to said prayer, turmoil broke out in Taurus'' waiting room. The outcome of that in-fight will shake the foundation of the team to the core...