I Won't Believe It
Danbi's last hope, Saturn's level 6 ultimate gank, ended in utter futility. Saturn failed two ganks in a row, and the game essentially exploded. It was just a normal game, so the red team couldn't keep dragging it out with unyielding willpower—especially not when Lizer, the so-called king late-game carry, racked up five kills just from laning alone. And that wasn't all. The bottom lane got shredded by the nightmare combo of Gerard ADC and Karista support, and after failing two ganks and feeding kills in return, Saturn had lost his own jungle. If he went in and ran into Lee Sin, he'd just die!
In the end, with four out of five enemies overwhelmingly fed, the red team had nothing left to do.
Enemy team surrenders: 4 Yes / 1 No!
At the 20-minute mark, the surrender popped up like they'd been waiting for it. After Saturn's failed gank, Danbi died two more times and never even showed up on lane again. No surprise there—she didn't type a single word in chat. She must've realized that typing more would just make her look even more pathetic.
"Ah, that was fun."
"You were bitching about not being able to go mid?"
"The tool's a luxury item, so ADC Mage was fun too."
"Tool?! Respect the support's rights! Anyway, Yunho did great out there. You sure you're a noob?"
"Honestly, better than Hyun-su? He calls ganks way better, and did you see him turn that Saturn gank around?"
"If that was Hyun-su, he'd have died instantly and we'd get counter-ganked."
"I'm not that bad, c'mon."
Honestly, I had no idea what I even did during Saturn's gank. If anything, it felt like he messed up...
"Next game, Yunho on ADC?"
Jeongwoo asked if I was taking ADC next, per our deal. Yeah, promise is a promise.
"Let's queue quick—the PC bang time's running out."
"Hold up. Yunho, you got any ADCs you can play?"
What ADCs did I even know? None.
"ADC? I got nothing... What champs you got in rotation?"
"Seri Fortune, Azriel, Karista."
"Gimme a sec to check skills and pick."
Seri Fortune was a pirate chick with dual pistols—double-edged sword, basically. Passive: One Shot of Love. Q: One-Two Punch. W: Glide. E: Bullet Rain. Ult: Bullet Barrage. Aside from passive, her only non-attack skill was Glide, and even that was an aggressive buff for attack speed and movement speed. The passive One Shot of Love added extra damage on basic attacks to other targets. No real survival tools—just dive in with move speed and melt them with autos. Lizer at least had spell vamp; this one had zilch.
Azriel was a blonde mage-type, but felt totally different from typical ranged dealers. She attacked with Q: Mystic Arrow, a short-cooldown skill. Hitting it even reduced all other skill cooldowns by 1 second—Lizer of ranged dealers. Difference? She had Spell Teleport, a blink. Longish cooldown, but a few Mystic Arrows and it'd be back up.
Karista I'd seen already, so I had some prior knowledge. But... honestly, way too early for me right now. Reading her passive Attack Stance—dashes toward click target on basic attacks—I just skimmed the rest. Q: Piercing Spear (big spear toss). W: Soul Warden (ghost summon for vision). E: Rend (extra damage based on basic/Piercing Spear hits, no cap—literal shredder). Ult was weird: contract a champ, yank 'em to you, then yeet 'em invincible the whole time. Total cheese.
"Done reading? I recommend Azriel personally—whaddya think?"
Separate from Taekjun's rec, I'd decided on Azriel the moment I read her skills. Needed to land them, sure, but the short-CD poke reminded me of Lizer. Sure, Azriel was an outfighter kiting with superior Q range; Lizer was short-range infighter. Different playstyle, but perfect for me branching out—similar feel, fresh mechanics.
"Yeah, Azriel sounds good."
"Let's go then."
*
Taekjun hadn't planned to put Yunho on ADC originally. Hyun-su whined, but listened when told; newbies needed to master one lane before roaming—that was his philosophy.
But after the first game—Yunho calling ganks to Han-gil, baiting Danbi's skills during the gank with movement and positioning, then turning it to kill Saturn—he changed his mind.
Need to test him.
Taekjun wanted to gauge Yunho's talent, so he recommended Azriel—all non-targeted skills. She was newbie-friendly thanks to busted Spell Teleport survival and generous Mystic Arrow hitbox. Lizer relied more on brain than mechanics—all targeted skills meant less handwork.
So Yunho's game sense was solid. Now, check mechanics.
Normally, Taekjun played carry-or-fun supports, but this ranked-like game, he'd go textbook support: Sorca. Two heal skills, passive move speed toward low-HP allies—pure enabler. Q Starfall gave waveclear, but she was boring, so he'd never touch her... except perfect for testing Yunho. Push lane hard, observe skill hitrate.
About two minutes into laning, Taekjun realized: Yunho's talent wasn't ordinary.
Sorca's Starfall hit enemy + minions together for poke and clear. Taekjun planned minimal trades, push slow, watch Yunho's skillshots.
But Yunho fired Mystic Arrows relentlessly from the start. Even diamonds like Taekjun struggled in minion waves. Yet Yunho nailed every angle—slight enemy poke from behind minions? Arrow to the face. Plus constant auto-harass.
Before Taekjun even set up, Yunho's mechanics alone forced them back. Enemy had to farm under tower.
But Azriel's Mystic Arrow outranged tower. Yunho kept spamming whenever the enemy peeked even a pixel. Most landed.
They weren't bad—match history showed Gold duo. Unwinnable for a noob: experience, runes, talents all superior.
Yet Yunho's hitrate and ruthless autos dominated. Enemy support Sonia recalled first at low health, no minions. Yunho's last doubts on mechanics vanished.
This could work.
Flash—Spell Teleport—auto—Mystic Arrow. Seri Fortune, mid-recall, died faster that way. Timing perfection. Sonia recalled first; Yunho dove the instant Seri tried.
Game surrendered at 20. Yunho: one death (overused teleport), but kills made up for it.
Everyone's PC time nearly up—Yunho needed dinner—so 5-stack ended. Taekjun waited for the other three to skip, then asked Yunho:
"Yunho, that first kill—you timed it?"
"Huh?"
"You dove right after Sonia recalled."
"Oh, that..."
"She could've healed Seri. Obvious: send Sonia home, solo the ADC, right?"
Taekjun was floored—Yunho said it like it was basic. Clip that play, post to forums as "noob gameplay"? Instant "fake" comments and downvote terror.
"...Yeah. Anyway, I'm out."
No retort, so Taekjun turned to leave—but Yunho grabbed him.
"Hey."
"What."
"Did I actually do well today???"
Yunho's tense voice drew a chuckle—like a kid nervous for homework check. Scared friends would ditch if he sucked? Taekjun wiped his grin.
"You're a fucking talent, kid. Time's up—I'm gone."
*
Taekjun swore while calling me good. Sis earlier, now him—both said I had talent, did great.
Reminded me of starting Go. Pure newbie placing stones, got "You're good," "Got talent."
But I had none. Those were polite lies.
So I won't believe this time either. Won't swallow that sweet poison.
I believed it once—wings clipped, dream shattered, crashed.
Still... feels nice. Praise does that.
Probably just polite, like before. That's what I'll believe.
How good can a noob be, anyway?
...Gotta believe that. Otherwise, I'd dream again.
And dreaming's too scary now.