Rumors Spread About Me and Our Team
Stories about me were spreading, and stories about our team were spreading too. For a team that had barely scraped eighth place in the second division league, it was a huge deal.
Even Starforce, who had just returned after winning MSC, couldn't compete with this juicy bait.
Of course, not everything was positive. It started with accusations of us pulling every marketing stunt in the book, moved on to predictions that our team was doomed to fail, and even included somewhat softened versions of "how the hell are they supposed to win with three girls on the roster?"
Some of it even gave me pause for thought.
There were endless malicious comments. Stuff like "3 girls can’t win" was popping up.
Well, if we didn't deliver results, there was nothing we could do about it.
But there were plenty of positive reactions too, and from my perspective, the sheer volume of positivity—outweighing even the mountains of hate—was what surprised me most.
The media, naturally, couldn't ignore a story like this. My situation was a hot topic, but Arang's and Seohui's stories were just as big.
Arang was essentially the first woman to hit Challenger as a top laner, and Seohui was the first woman to debut as a starter in a major league—even if it was the second division.
If it weren't for me, either of those would have been massive news on their own.
Internet articles were pouring out like mushrooms after rain, and interview requests kept flooding in.
"No. We're not doing any interviews except official ECK ones. At least not until the season starts."
"Please understand. Interviews right now carry some risk, and it's better to stay low-key for the moment."
Of course, Coach and Manager Yoo were handling most of the rejections.
Sharpness was a hot topic too. Why on earth would a Worlds quarterfinal top laner join a second-division team? We couldn't hide the contract details, but the fact that Sharpness had signed with E Revolution Gaming was impossible to keep under wraps.
Speculation ranged from half-joking nonsense like "he joined for the girls," to "he's just sucking honey for half a year," or "he has friends on the team," and everything in between.
I genuinely had no idea why, but communities and media alike seemed to have endless theories about this mysterious signing.
I didn't want to say it, but the nasty gossip swirling around Jesus, me, and Proud was fodder too.
Honestly, I couldn't comprehend it, but to those idiots, the way I'd thanked Yuseung or smiled at Proud apparently held some huge significance.
Most of it was treated as idle gossip or bored jokes, but even that was irritating enough for me.
I wasn't checking communities, but with teammates teasing me right next to me, I couldn't avoid it.
"So, unnie, between Yuseung oppa and Proud, who's it gonna be?"
"Say that shit one more time, and I'll sew your mouth shut."
"But honestly, Pudge, this is your fault. Yuseung oppa wouldn't even flinch if you poked at him like this."
That meant two things: first, it was worth poking, and second, my reactions were hilarious.
I immediately disciplined Arang.
"Ow! That hurts! If my brain cells die, you're taking responsibility, Pudge?"
"Didn't get enough last time?"
"Spare me, please."
Some people just don't listen to words. Well, I only say that—I never actually punish them harshly, so it was half-joking on my end too.
Seohui tilted her head with a amused look.
"If you really hated it, you wouldn't put up with it even as a joke, right?"
"Seohui, keep it up, and next time I'll start calling your fights with Jang Seonho lovers' quarrels."
"I'll stop."
Effective.
Anyway, for all sorts of reasons, our team was at the eye of the storm, every member drawing attention, and a bizarre phenomenon was unfolding where every LoE community was feasting on one second-division team as prime bait.
Even with daily discussions, the topics never ran dry—communities were in full festival mode.
Every move we made was under the scrutiny of fans, antis, or just regular community ghosts.
Everyone except Phantom, Jang Seonho.
"Seonho, wanna grab something to drink?"
"Sure thing."
Jang Seonho was the only one on the team getting zero attention.
It made sense. Sharpness was a Worlds quarterfinal top laner with some hidden secret. Jesus was the captain from the start, and impossible to separate from my story. Me, Arang, and Seohui went without saying.
By comparison, Seonho was utterly ordinary.
Phantom Jang Seonho's debut was with the fallen powerhouse Iodine Forever. They didn't recruit him for his skill.
Seonho was a promising prospect, but he was brought in as a 1+1 deal for Saber, the hot prospect at the time—now Hansam Esports' mid laner. Saber couldn't adjust to the all-veteran Forever roster, and Seonho was the same age.
Bundled in like a discount promo, Seonho never played a single set before the team got relegated. The next year, IP Holsters picked him up like scratching a lottery ticket, and there he squandered his prospect status with abysmal play.
Relegated again. The first drop wasn't his fault, but the second one? Debatable.
Now joining the whirlwind team E Revolution Gaming, Seonho was just your average—actually below-average—ADC. Too ordinary to notice.
People figured they just picked up some cheap ADC off the bargain bin, and honestly, that was half-true. An ADC with two relegations? Total toxic stock.
If it weren't second division, saving the team would've been tough for him.
But Seonho wasn't weird—it was the team that was abnormal. The others were so distinctive that Seonho blended into invisibility.
Not getting negative attention was a plus, but feeling left out wasn't unreasonable. In fact, his bickering with Seohui had died down. She naively celebrated the peace, but Yuseung and I saw it as a bad sign.
Yuseung made a point to look after Seonho, who never refused. Now that I was a woman, I handled the girls; he took the guys. Made sense.
Not like I could hit the baths with them anymore, and bringing up guy stuff felt awkward in this body.
Anyway, Yuseung was handling his duties well—no issues there.
Our scrim results were solidifying nicely. No more blank scrim schedules; the rumors drew teams in out of curiosity.
Top first-division teams still ignored us, but we could scrim lower first-division and upper second-division squads.
Early results sucked, but we adapted fast, regaining our edge quickly.
The day we shut out an upper second-division team 3-0? Even I got a little hyped. How long had it been since something this minor excited me?
Anyway, no real problems.
Well, not problems, exactly.
"Argh! Lost here again!"
Arang had failed her Challenger promotion—fifth time. Not surprising. Her persistence alone put her at the top of our growth charts.
Me? Embarrassingly, still Grandmaster. I'd brushed Challenger like her but failed, and my inconsistency stalled me.
Seohui predictably had our lowest score. Hanseo hyung hit Challenger effortlessly and trolled Arang daily.
"'I don't listen to the weak,' was it?"
"Guhhh…!"
"Noob."
...Hanseo hyung had found a new stress reliever.
Yuseung had always been lower Challenger, but lately he'd soloed to the top pages.
The anomaly? Not a problem, but... Jang Seonho.
"Oh, Challenger."
"For real?"
He was our third to hit it. Not weird. Expected, even. Expected but weird. I'd been too busy to notice.
"Jang Seonho?"
"Yeah?"
"What's up with your match history?"
Why's this guy's history all mid and jungle?
At first, I was just jealous and impressed. But checking his account? Almost all mids and jungles.
You're an ADC.
"What's the big deal?"
"...Does it make sense for an ADC's history to be nothing but mid and jungle?"
I wasn't planning to nag about solo queue, but this wasn't normal. Still, curiosity won—I had to ask.
"Eh, whatever. Ranking as ADC is a nightmare."
Not wrong. In solo queue, ADC (bot lane) was one of the toughest to climb. Jungle, mid, and support could carry games; ADC thrived on setups, eating off others' plates. Top was better off than ADC in that sense.
But shouldn't you practice your own role to improve?
Was there even value in climbing like this? You're an ADC, not mid or jungle.
ADCs could reach top Challenger—solo queue #1 was Hansam's ADC Mamba. His excuse made sense but felt like a cop-out.
Couldn't climb as ADC, so you didn't try? Kinda rude thought.
Doubts crept in.
If he can hit Challenger this easily on mid/jungle, why debut as ADC...?
Couldn't call him out directly. No need to meddle, and it might upset him.
Decided to talk to Yuseung and Coach separately.
"Fine, whatever... Just don't slack on ADC practice."
"All roads lead to Seoul, right?"
True, but we needed to go beyond Seoul, much farther.
~
Anyway, we were cruising along.
Meanwhile, first-to-second division promotion/relegation happened. First division's 9th and 10th held off relegation—thankfully. Meaning second division's 1st and 2nd failed to promote.
The first-division wall was that high.
We couldn't assume it'd be easy for us.
One week and change until season start. No opening ceremony for second division; just a light interview schedule left.
That day was ordinary—no scrims.
"Oh yeah... Should've asked this ages ago, but it slipped."
"What?"
Coach suddenly called me over. Seohui was extra pissy today, so I figured it was my cue, left her with Arang, and followed.
What was he supposed to ask? Looking puzzled, Coach asked with dead seriousness:
"When's your period?"
"Coach, are you insane?"