[TS] The Return of The Gamer - Chapter 225

Why did we lose?

Because of insufficient skills.

How did we lose?

Because we couldn't stop the opponent's snowballing, which started with the mid lane.

Then, what should we do now?

Unfortunately, the answer to that has not yet been determined.

Regrettably, our team didn't have much data on what to do in this situation.

"……"

Losing isn't new.

Not just for me, but for our team, defeat is no longer unfamiliar.

However, that's only in the case of set losses, not match losses.

3:0.

2:0.

3:0.

3:1.

.

.

.

2:1.

3:1.

3:2.

So far, no matter what game we played, no matter who we played against, we always won in the end.

We didn't we even narrowly edge out SCV, the reigning champion of Spring, with a 3:2 victory after a fierce battle?

But today, we lost.

Still, since we won the first game, it's not a complete defeat.

The game itself seemed to have many promising aspects, except for one fatal flaw.

Yet, we lost.

"……I'm sorry."

Baek Seong-an, who could be said to have been the biggest contributor to today's loss, couldn't lift his head.

"It's okay. We just had a bit of bad luck."

Bad luck.

It wasn't exactly wrong. In fact, today's scrim against SY wasn't originally scheduled, and as a result, Baek Seong-an failed to adjust his condition.

Of course, even so, there were a few questions.

If Baek Seong-an had been in top condition, would something have been different?

'Maybe better than today...'

Would that alone be enough to turn the result of a loss into a victory?

Really, would it?

If you were to ask where the most important lane is in League of Legends, the mid lane would be the first to be mentioned.

There have been times when the influence of other lanes has been close to that of the mid lane, depending on the meta, but it has almost never surpassed the mid lane.

In other words, the impact the mid lane has on the game is always immense.

Just as we were thoroughly defeated by Rainbow a while ago, the mid laner who holds the lane dominance can do virtually anything.

"Hyung, don't be so hard on yourself. I didn't do well either. Wow, Longbow's Guinea Pig is amazing."

Kim Jae-min, who was next to him, chimed in with a cheerful voice.

Considering Kim Jae-min's usual personality, I thought he would be oblivious to the atmosphere and keep shouting about the mid lane difference... but I was mistaken.

'Well, we also lost in the bottom lane in the second and third games.'

Perhaps because he carried the first game, Kim Jae-min, who was in high spirits, overextended himself and gave up the bottom lane dominance.

It was because there was no way to win by doing such ridiculous things against SY's bottom lane, unlike against other opponents.

'Or, he might have done that on purpose to make up for the gap in the mid lane.'

Kim Ji-hoon, who usually plays cautiously, readily went along with Kim Jae-min's antics without any restraint, which was the biggest indirect evidence.

Kim Ji-hoon must have also felt that the game shouldn't go on like this.

Whatever the case, the fact that we were overwhelmed in almost all lanes was true.

"I didn't do well either. I even got solo-killed in the last game..."

As the top laner, who could be said to have done his part in all of today's matches, it was understandable that he would feel wronged, but Seo Yeon-woo also nodded his head.

It was also true that he had overextended himself in the last game and gotten solo-killed.

"...No. I'm really sorry today. I didn't expect it to turn out like this... sigh."

Baek Seong-an sighed deeply.

I'm sorry to say it, but I couldn't help but slightly narrow my brow at the smell of alcohol wafting from his sigh.

"That's enough, since we don't have any schedule today anyway, let's do a feedback session on today's games."

A scrim is just a scrim.

Rather, we have to overcome today's defeat to improve further.

"...Alright."

Baek Seong-an smiled wryly.

The full-fledged feedback session began.

"Rainbow definitely seemed to do something strange here, did you guys feel that way in the second and third games?"

"Yeah. They were just trying to push us down."

"Hmm. But we definitely need to come up with a good strategy when playing against a strong mid-lane team."

"I think so too."

The picks we had prepared for that purpose were the same as those of Malzahar and Veigar, but they were immediately blocked because they had already been indirectly exposed by SCV.

'Damn them.'

I plan to give them a good scolding without any mercy if we meet them in the tournament later.

"Couldn't the mid laner have come to help here? We could see the opponent's jungle position."

"I was under too much pressure... I felt like I would die if I went out."

"You still should have come."

"Sorry. I definitely think I made a mistake... I'll try to change it next time."

"Hyung, the mid lane call was missed. I thought you were coming down, so I played it safe and suffered a huge loss."

"I'm sorry about that too. I misread the opponent's movements."

It seemed like Baek Seong-an was getting scolded this way and that, unlike usual, but wasn't it all constructive feedback that would be beneficial in the long run?

After the feedback session ended...

"You all worked hard today. Since we don't have any evening schedule today, do what you all need to do. You can rest."

As the team members, exhausted, got up from their seats one by one because of the intense feedback, Kim Ji-hoon rarely spoke up.

"Seong-an hyung."

"Uh?"

"Let's go work out. You haven't been going lately."

"No, I'm feeling a bit... today."

"Aerobic exercise is the best for a hangover."

And so, Baek Seong-an was practically dragged to the gym by Kim Ji-hoon.

"I really feel like I'm going to die..."

"That's because you're not exercising enough."

Baek Seong-an struggled, but it was impossible to fight against a human weapon who could bench press 600 pounds, or rather, who has become even more muscular and could easily bench press 650.

It seemed like our team was giving good meals.

"Let's go."

"Wait, hold on!"

Baek Seong-an was dragged away weakly.

It seemed unlikely that he would walk out of the gym on his own.

* * *

SY's dorm.

"You all worked hard. Since we don't have any afternoon schedule today, everyone can practice individually."

"Yes."

"Yes."

"YunGi, what about you?"

"I'll be right back."

"Okay. You worked hard today."

YunGi, Park Yun-gi, the main jungler for SY and a Red Cup champion, remained seated on the sofa long after the feedback session ended, lost in thought.

It was because of today's scrim against OLZ.

He already knew that Outlaw was a good player.

But it was more than he had expected when experiencing it in a team game like this.

'……'

The jungler is a flexible position.

Is there any other position that is so strongly influenced by and can influence the team?

However, Park Yun-gi had a strange experience today.

It was a strange experience of being constantly pushed in the jungle, even though the team was winning.

Moreover, the mid laner, which could be considered the lane closest to the jungle, was overwhelming the opponent, but the jungle was being pushed? That's impossible.

'...Why?'

However, whether it was because he was already used to such a strange experience, Park Yun-gi felt a sense of deja vu rather than strangeness.

He knew a jungler who could give him this kind of experience.

'Prisoner.'

He didn't know why that name came up again now, but today, YunGi felt as if he were facing Prisoner.

'...Could the rumor be true?'

There's a saying.

That 90% of the rumors circulating in the League of Legends scene are true.

The rumor that Park Yun-gi is thinking about now is none other than the rumor that Outlaw is Prisoner.

Of course, most people dismiss the Prisoner = Outlaw theory as nonsense, but Park Yun-gi, who had faced Outlaw directly today, couldn't help but lend weight to that hypothesis.

It wasn't that their play seemed too similar.

To be precise, the overwhelming power that Prisoner showed, for some reason, was also felt from Outlaw.

'No... that can't be true.'

Park Yun-gi shook his head.

Because no matter how much he thought about it, it didn't make sense.

'If Prisoner is really Outlaw in the first place, why would he bother to wash his account?'

In the current League of Legends scene, the name Prisoner is well-known not only as the first 2000-point jungler but also as an old player.

But to abandon that name and start over?

There was no reason for it in the first place.

'Above all...'

Prisoner is a man.

Also, a man suffering from a rare disease.

Outlaw, who has an appearance that is enough to make men's hearts flutter, and who seems to be from another world, can't be matched.

"What are you doing?"

"Ah."

Ryu Jin-hyuk put his hand on Park Yun-gi's shoulder, who had approached him at some point.

Park Yun-gi unconsciously flinched, but then, seeing Ryu Jin-hyuk's face, a question came to mind.

It was because he felt that Ryu Jin-hyuk might know something.

"Hyung."

"Oh, why?"

"Um, maybe... no, never mind."

"Why? What is it? Just say it."

To say or not to say.

Park Yun-gi's hesitation didn't last long.

"…Maybe, is Outlaw Prisoner?"