[TS] The Return of The Gamer - Chapter 114
Let's play solo queueRyu Jin-hyuk recalled that day.
"“Excuse me.”"
"“…Me?”"
"“Yes, you.”"
On that day when everything felt so empty, Ryu Jin-hyuk met her at a convenience store.
"“Have this.”"
"“Huh?”"
"“You look like you need some water.”"
The cold temperature of the bottled water he received then.
Those reddish-brown eyes that seemed not of this world.
The long, flowing silver hair as she ran away.
Ryu Jin-hyuk remembered all of it.
No, he couldn't forget it even if he tried.
The cheer, or rather lack thereof, on that day became an opportunity for Ryu Jin-hyuk to brace himself, and he eventually came to this point.
‘It's definitely her, the person who gave me water at the convenience store back then.’
To not recognize that unique appearance at once… even he thought it was absurd.
‘No, maybe it's understandable.’
That female fan he met by chance, is she a Grandmaster, or even a Challenger?
Even a passing dog wouldn't believe that story.
‘……Still.’
Ryu Jin-hyuk soon accepted it alone.
He must have been interested and passionate about League of Legends to the extent that he, Ryu Jin-hyuk, recognized her too.
That's why she gave him the bottled water.
It felt like the puzzle pieces were finally fitting together.
‘There are still questions, though…….’
He knew the identity of the strange sense of déjà vu he felt from Outlaw’s appearance.
But, what about the other déjà vu?
Ryu Jin-hyuk himself knew what that déjà vu was.
He didn't know why, but Outlaw's gameplay kept making him think of Prisoner.
Was it simply because she's a good jungler?
Of course, that possibility was high, but for some reason, Ryu Jin-hyuk couldn't help but have other thoughts.
Logically, it shouldn't be possible, but that's how it kept appearing to him.
"You're completely absorbed."
As Ryu Jin-hyuk was staring blankly at the broadcast screen, Choi Won, who had come over unnoticed, smirked.
"…It's not like that."
"Sure it isn't."
Choi Won, with his usual sly face, tapped Ryu Jin-hyuk on the shoulder.
"If that's the case, why don't you just send her a friend request?"
"…No thanks, what's the point."
A pro gamer suddenly sending a friend request to a new female BJ… it wouldn't be good for either of them in many ways.
"Then how about targeting her by matching the queue?"
"Are you crazy?"
"No, I think you are. There are strange rumors going around these days. Take it easy."
"……."
Ryu Jin-hyuk was speechless at Choi Won's sharp words.
Did it look that way?
He felt the need to restrain himself.
"…Alright."
Ryu Jin-hyuk nodded and turned off the broadcast window.
The fact that he was still concerned about Outlaw was true, but it seemed that the gazes around him weren't favorable towards him watching her openly as he had been doing.
‘There will be a day when we meet.’
Whether it's in solo rank or a competition.
Anywhere.
It was a baseless certainty, but Ryu Jin-hyuk felt that way for some reason.
* * *
The game was found.
[Game Found!]
[Accept / Decline]
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BOQ Sergeant has joined the lobby.
SSC Super has joined the lobby.
MAX Lineover has joined the lobby.
Outlaw has joined the lobby.
SY Trainee No. 7 has joined the lobby.
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-The members aren't bad
-Trainee No. 7, she's been hot lately
-? Never seen her before
-Fr fr, unheard of
-There's a highlight reel on YouTube, go check it out
-Yeah, you watch it
-I won't
I turned my gaze to the ban-pick screen, leaving the peaceful chat room as always.
‘Uhm…….’
The lines were a bit twisted, but not too bad.
Sergeant and Super.
Because there were two top laners.
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[Ban List]
Nadal-Lee / Lisk
Jeongsu / Kessas
Jui / Kennen
Shaku / Trash
Jedu / Wukong
+
Bans have been completed.
Our team is the first pick.
In other words, the bottom team.
Sergeant made his pick without saying anything, even though he was the first pick.
It was typical of his usual team-oriented style.
[Jae-Sun]
Uhm…….
It’s not a bad pick, but frankly speaking, Sergeant isn't a player who receives high praise for his mechanics.
It was also a bit worrying to be honest, that such a player confidently first-picked Jae-Sun.
‘Well, it's solo rank…….’
There are almost no people who are good from the start.
Whether it's solo rank or anywhere else, you have to try it to improve.
Sergeant's Jae-Sun pick could be seen in that sense as well.
For amateurs, the solo rank is not just a place to raise points but also a place to broaden the champion pool for pros.
[Malphite]
[Aphelios]
The picks taken by the opponent's first and second picks were Malphite and Aphelios.
Malphite, who counters most AD champions, was picked second after Jae-Sun.
Above all, Malphite's champion difficulty is almost the lowest, unlike Jae-Sun.
The lower tiers even have a trend called “The Stone Faith”.
‘We need AP.’
In fact, Jeongsu, who can be considered the only AP marksman at the moment, was banned.
In other words, it means that we need to have a hard AP champion in the mid or jungle, or both, in order to balance the team.
[Sylas]
A good choice.
It might be a little difficult in the laning phase since he's a mid first pick, but the Sylas pick is strategically good considering that he's basically an AP champion and there's a Malphite on the opposing team.
‘Okay, then…….’
[Morgana]
Lineover picked Morgana.
With this, the meaning of the opposing Malphite pick was half blocked.
Soon, it was the opposing team's third and fourth pick.
[Yashuo]
[Diana]
Yashuo, Diana. And the Yashuo-Malphite combination was completed.
They created a composition with an advantage in the top lane matchup while also having tremendous team fight power.
‘The opponent's ban-pick is not bad.’
Of course, our team's ban-pick wasn't bad either, but what was clear was that the opposing team was leading the ban-pick right now, and we were clearly following along with the ban-pick.
‘An AP champion that can have an advantage against Diana…….’
For now, since there is Sylas, it might not be necessary to pick an AP champion, but still, in order to reduce Malphite's destructive power, the damage balance distribution seemed necessary.
Thinking about all those conditions, a few champions came to mind.
‘Okay, let's go with this.’
[Ekko]
An AP champion that can have an advantage against Diana, and a champion that looks pretty good with the current composition.
Of course, Ekko can't take the jungle initiative against Diana.
That’s because Diana is basically strong against assassin-type champions like Ekko.
However, Diana isn't that high of a tier because of the constant nerfs, and Ekko has gained momentum in terms of growth due to the jungle speed buff that happened recently.
If it was a 1:1 mid lane fight, picking Ekko against Diana wouldn't have been a good choice, but this is the jungle.
There is much more to consider other than just a 1:1 fight.
And…….
Finally, the ban-pick was completed.
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[Allies / Enemies]
Top : Jae-Sun / Malphite
Jungle : Ekko / Diana
Mid : Sylas / Yashuo
ADC : Ezreal / Aphelios
Support : Morgana / Leona
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For now, the overall structure is quite unfavorable on the top side, and favorable on the bottom side.
Of course, even if the bottom side is favorable, it's only limited to the laning phase, and if a battle is engaged, the story will be different.
From the start, the opponent’s Leona was picked in response to Morgana being the second pick, so it seemed that the opponent also intended to concede some points to the laning phase.
‘For now, we should focus on growth, focusing on the top side in the early stages.’
As I took a moment to breathe, the chat room finally came into view.
-Everyone, breathe now
-Did I hold my breath alone?
-Phew
-No way the streamer's face is so serious in the ban-pick lol
-Ha
-Fr fr lol
-Phew
-Ha
It seemed that the serious atmosphere had spread to the viewers as well.
‘It's better this way.’
Although the game started like I was running away, the atmosphere wasn't so bad.
I think there will be a chance to tell the rest of the story related to YSG that I haven't yet spoken about.
Even though I haven't done anything good, I can't live like a sinner forever.
‘Well, it's better if the viewers don't ask.’
If anything, I was more drawn to that.
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Jungle Slave - Malphite
Top Lane Education Master - Diana
qq7785dd55 - Yashuo
GTD LastOrder - Aphelios
SY GuineaPig - Leona
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After the loading screen with familiar IDs passed once.
-Welcome to the Summoner's Rift!
The game began.