The One He Wants (3)
“Oh my, but all these boys are so handsome.”
“Hahaha.”
Yu Dahye laughed awkwardly at Kim Eunhye’s remark. Earlier, the P1 and KRX players had come out for a short greeting in front of the fans, and Eunhye must have gotten a fairly close look then.
Are they really that good-looking?
The players did get makeup before matches, but Dahye wasn’t sure it was enough to warrant calling them handsome. Still, pro gamers generally didn’t give off a rough edge—they looked soft and harmless in a way that adults tended to like.
“·····”
In a SOL tournament, ban-pick was nearly as important as the game itself. The fans held their breath and watched the screen.
“See that? Five wins two losses versus one win six losses. P1 is just that much better—don’t worry.”
“Mm.”
Dahye soothed Eunhye. Anyone could see this woman wasn’t here to enjoy the game so much as to watch her son get through the day without anything going wrong.
Graves.
Red-side P1’s final pick is jungle Graves!
They’ve been drafting champions that refuse to cede early priority in every lane—looks like P1 is putting their faith in jungler Oz’s carry potential this time.
Handing Graves to Oz, who’s been putting up monster performances all season. Can he live up to the expectation?
Meanwhile KRX has a composition with strong forced engage and the tools to melt a single target in seconds. This should be a fun one.
A first-place contender against a team fighting not to finish dead last. But every team went into ban-pick with a reason to believe they could win.
“KRX! One! Two! Three!”
“KRX fighting!”
“P1! One! Two! Three!”
“P1 fighting!”
As if to prove the difference in standings and star power, the roar from the P1 side of the arena was overwhelmingly louder.
“Thanks to Jimin, I get to watch a P1 match in person.”
“Yeah.”
Leaving aside the fact that she’d brought a middle-aged woman who barely knew SOL, today was a good opportunity for Dahye herself—something she’d been stressing for days.
“The ones with the red borders are P1. You can just watch them.”
“Mm.”
On blue side, KRX had locked in Gragas–Lee Sin–Syndra–Ashe–Braum. On red side, P1 had Kennen–Graves–Galio–Ezreal–Rakan.
As expected, P1 was executing the concept of shoving every lane and funneling growth into Graves almost perfectly.
Oh my, oh my.
Rapid’s skillshots this game are no joke either.
He’s been drawing eyes on Ezreal for a while now.
Ezreal skillshots that could completely twist a laning phase. With bot lane also winning, P1’s gold lead was climbing fast.
The more items Galio gets, the less Syndra has any answer for this kind of open shove.
Galio with a matchup advantage into AP. He cleared the wave in seconds and was taking vision before the enemy could contest it.
Sonic Wave!
Ah—if that Sonic Wave misses—
“Whoa.”
Dahye flinched. If that skill had landed, Kennen would have been dead on the spot—the kind of moment that could completely gut AP Kennen’s laning strength. It didn’t happen.
“Oh—oh.”
The fans murmured. Dahye reacted with rising anticipation. Eunhye leaned farther forward to peer at the broadcast screen as well.
Hero’s Entrance! And the taunt!
Galio shoved the wave and ganked bot. Combined with Rakan’s lightning-fast engage, Braum—who had already burned Flash earlier—had no answer.
Ashe! Ashe!
P1 snapped up Braum in seconds. Ashe, sitting under the bot tower, suddenly looked very lonely.
They got her!
P1!
“Waaaaaaaah!”
A roar erupted from the P1 stands. A game that had already been tilting their way was now fully in their grip.
Luca’s influence in Game 1 has been enormous again.
And then you add the aggression from the Rapid–Durandal duo—they’re just so strong.
The bot duo stomped the lane, then jungle or mid gouged the wound open. One of the winning formulas for P1 whenever Rapid started.
Weak laners. The one top-side gank that might have mattered had failed. Stuck with no good options, KRX’s Lee Sin was forced to farm in a shrunken jungle and simply wait out the clock.
KRX had no choice but to stand their ground with a dragon coming up. This wasn’t the time to keep measuring a growth gap that had already opened. But Ezreal’s poke kept landing hard. A teamfight that began with Ashe’s hard-earned Enchanted Crystal Arrow—and then Ezreal’s lightning-fast Cleanse reaction kicked off a vicious fight.
Kennen!
Zzzzt! Zzzzt! Zzzzt!
The fight opened, and Kennen Flashed on an off-beat straight into the enemy backline.
Aaaaaaagh!
They didn’t even put Exhaust on him?
Kennen’s finishing combo plus Graves’ ultimate for the cleanup—the teamfight was already over.
“P1! P1! P1!”
“Wow, they’re actually insane.”
“Hoo·····”
Dahye was awed by the flawless performance. Eunhye, finally sensing that the team was going to win, let out a long breath of relief.
One more in the fountain!
GG!
A game where the Graves–Lee Sin level gap had ballooned to three at one point. P1 had dominated cleanly, taken Baron, and closed it out.
Perfect performance from P1!
Oz’s monstrous growth, and the laners’ ability to execute the early game.
Blur put the disappointment of the last match behind him and put up a strong showing.
After all the buzz around Jimin in the previous series, if Blur keeps delivering like this—ah, Coach Jang Yaohwan is going to have a happy problem on his hands, isn’t he?
Aside from that recent off-stage incident that had kicked up so much noise, P1 had been sailing smoothly ever since the rookie call-ups. The casters were singing the praises of this legendary organization’s revival.
“Jimin should be coming out soon.”
“·····”
Dahye was certain, but Eunhye had only ever watched through streams—she didn’t really know at what point a substitution usually happened.
“Oh!”
“Ah.”
Both women, watching the P1 side, startled at the same moment.
“Kyaaaaaaaaaah!”
And then a massive roar. The two women sitting in the eye of that storm jumped for a completely different reason.
P1’s previous top laner stood up from his seat, and Jimin came in past the stage staff to start setting up.
“Jimin! Jimin! Jimin! Jimin!”
The fans took up his name in a chant.
“What on earth is this.”
“·····”
On Eunhye’s face, bewilderment still outweighed pride. Dahye looked straight at the center of all that cheering.
Are you seriously going to sit there with that dazed look on your face?
Sure enough, he was reacting to the fans’ sudden support.
“Ahem.”
Why are they doing this.
Jimin couldn’t hide the flustered look on his face at the sudden cheer.
“Ah—good work.”
“Yeah.”
Changmin, who had put up a strong Game 1, nodded.
“Popular, huh.”
“Haha.”
Jungler Minhyeok’s teasing. Jimin had to grit his teeth and finish setting up.
Game 1 POG goes to Oz!
Using his powerhouse laners as a springboard, he showed off that monstrous growth rate of his.
And P1 has made a player substitution.
“Waaaaaaaaaaaaah!”
The fans in the arena already knew about the swap. But the moment the broadcast put up the substitution graphic with Jimin’s name, they screamed all over again.
What an incredible ovation.
One of the two super-rookies P1 is so proud of—Jimin will be starting Game 2.
Ban-pick for Game 2 begins now!
Haha—KRX is snapping together a Lucian–Nami pair right away.
A composition that won’t get bullied in lane and can shove mid-lane standoffs. KRX knows the battlefield is bot.
P1 answers in kind—snapping up the bot duo of Draven and Nautilus.
Whether that Nautilus grab lands, and whether Draven can safely harvest his passive gold, is going to be the watershed.
And then·····
Ban-pick entered phase two. Using red-side advantage and their mid laner’s excellent champion pool, P1 was still hiding what would come out of top.
Ornn. KRX’s composition is complete.
Long range, strong in 5v5 teamfights.
And the final champion. What will they put in Jimin’s hands?
Gwen!
Oh—hahahaha.
The atmosphere on P1’s side was full of confidence.
“·····”
But for Jimin, this was a game with a lot more riding on it than usual. Waiting for the match to start, he glanced around. It didn’t take long.
Mom. And Dahye noona.
This was a first. Leaving aside how much money he made or how many people watched his streams—today he was showing his mother, live and in person, what her son could do with this game.
And of course it was Gwen—a pick that could show off so much in a single game. Countless hours of practice for this one pick, for the broadcast.
“·····”
He’d been the kind of person who felt outside pressure intensely since he was little. But becoming a pro had taught him that thorough preparation and real confidence could more than cancel that out.
P1 locked Gwen–Vayne–Sylas–Draven–Nautilus. KRX locked Ornn–Jayce–Azir–Lucian–Nami. Once again, P1 had brought a composition that could run a wide range of tactics.
Dredge Line!
They just keep hitting him.
Ah—Flash is burned.
“Oh, nice.”
“·····”
In a situation that had to be even more nerve-wracking than before, Dahye was busier than last game. The cheer from the P1 section hadn’t been as loud as she expected, but as a Diamond player herself she knew—KRX bot burning Flash in that setup was huge. Given how destructive P1’s bot had been today, there was no telling how far the laning snowball would roll.
If possible·····
It would be nice for Jimin to look cool in front of his mom, but first she just wanted the game to break open cleanly. Measuring how tilted a game already was when a super play happened—that was for the hardcore fans.
“That girl with the scissors—that’s Jimin moving around.”
“Mmh.”
Still, it was a relief he’d gotten Gwen, strong in both side lanes and teamfights.
Looking for Azir.
They try the toss, but!
In front of a Sylas who could steal an ultimate, using your ult first was rarely going to end well.
First blood secured!
Oz is flying today, isn’t he?
First blood put real momentum behind Vayne’s growth.
Meanwhile bot is still getting chewed down, top can’t stop Gwen’s growth—KRX is stuck in another desperately stifling Game 2.
Ah—and Jayce’s spear misses.
They’re just too good.
Dahye settled into a more comfortable posture. She’d expected it, but P1 was showing an overwhelming edge.
KRX sent their bot duo up for the second voidgrub wave. P1, itching for any excuse to fight, had no intention of backing off.
The fight that followed. Nami got hooked by Nautilus’s Dredge Line again.
Draven harvested his passive gold without dying. And the moment Ornn got caught in a brief CC chain and couldn’t get his ultimate off, KRX was forced into a full retreat. But P1’s champions excelled at the chase.
P1!
Azir barely scrapes out alive—though I’m not sure he should even be happy about that.
No—Gwen just took three kills in that fight.
“Ah, they won.”
“Everyone’s playing so well.”
The atmosphere made it clear P1 was steamrolling. Dahye could feel the woman beside her relaxing.
Alright, do something now.
A game they could shatter even if they left it alone. This time she wanted Jimin to show something. The way he always did.
A Gwen who had already won lane and then stacked kills—her scissors were harder than steel. She was already shoving Ornn off the map with her ultimate.
Top tower goes down like this.
P1’s tempo is just too fast.
Every time P1 looked for a play, a KRX champion fell. Sweeping every objective, P1 clearly wanted the game over as soon as possible.
P1 dropped the Herald mid and set up for the third-dragon fight.
Strike!
Sylas’s ultimate landed far cleaner than Ornn’s ever could.
Sylas pulled aggro for a beat and slipped right out. Draven took an aggressive forward position and dealt damage while Gwen stabbed straight into the enemy core—there was no way they weren’t melting.
No, this is just too perfect.
They’re collecting objectives and teamfight wins like it’s simply a given.
Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap!
P1 fans already certain of the win. The ones who’d won the fan-meet raffle were fixing their hair; the ones who hadn’t were already picturing the next match in their heads.
At least take the Gwen?
Gwen was holding the top-side standoff against Azir. While P1 was focused on Baron vision, KRX seemed to think Gwen had overstepped.
Gwen seems to have crossed the line a bit.
If you cross the line, you get punished!
Her level and items are a little scary, but still.
Azir, Jayce, Nami—a party assembled just to take down Gwen.
“She won’t just die on the spot.”
Dahye muttered to herself.
“Huh?”
Azir toss!
And Jayce!
Azir’s toss flung Gwen’s body into the air. Jayce charged in at the same time. Gwen reflexively threw out her ultimate—and then the scissors went to work.
“Waaaaaaaaaaaah!”
“She’s insane.”
The simultaneous detonation of two ultimate ticks and a flurry of snips sent a shiver through everyone watching. Jayce’s HP vanished in an instant. The fact that KRX’s CC chain hadn’t been a perfect one hundred percent was the fatal mistake.
That means Azir’s going down too! And Nami can’t even get away!
Jimin delivering another play that sets the fans on fire!
“Jimin just played that so well.”
“Yeah—haah—he’s good.”
When three enemy champions’ health bars disappeared in a blink and they dropped straight into the dirt, even a casual eye could tell how huge the play was.
Then the replay, and Jimin’s individual camera.
Hahahahaha.
Anyone would have the same reaction.
Even if you’re fed, three champions are on you—how do you stay that calm?
“It’s always weird how different he is when he’s playing.”
Dahye huffed a quiet laugh. Come to think of it, even when they’d first met through streaming, his speech had been a little spacey while his gameplay ran like a machine—that same jarring contrast.
“We won, right?”
“It’s over.”
The old warning about counting chickens early didn’t seem necessary anymore.
As the Nexus explodes—
GG!
P1 is just too strong.
Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap! Clap!
“Ah, that was so good.”
“·····Heh, he really joined a good team.”
“Jimin’s just that good, you know.”
“Aigoo.”
“·····”
Dahye glanced sideways. Eunhye looked thoroughly happy. When Dahye wondered why, she realized it was the way his teammates were coming over and making those praising gestures toward Jimin—that was what looked so good to her.
“Ah·····”
But POG didn’t go to Jimin. It went to mid laner Luca, whose Sylas had put on a dominant performance from start to finish. Machines didn’t hand out POG—players who already collected them often, players who could contend for first place, simply had higher odds.
“Is there anything else you need to do?”
“Jimin’s not coming out again.”
“Let’s get up.”
“But still—”
“That’s enough.”
“·····”
Dahye could wrap Jimin around her finger, but not his mother.
“What—your mother?”
“Yes.”
“Why are you only saying this now.”
“Haha.”
The coaching staff and teammates’ reactions made Jimin scratch his head. The two of them were still doing the POG interview up front—what a bomb to drop.
“I thought Mom would feel pressured, so I only passed it to the marketing team through Jiwoo noona.”
“You really are a strange kid.”
“Hehe.”
Jimin smiled at Hochang’s words.
Of course·····
It was his mom, and somehow Dahye had ended up there too. Dahye wouldn’t have wanted the cameras catching her and drawing attention either. If the cameras had zeroed in on a player’s mother and Dahye had been sitting right beside her, the interest would have been massive—she was far too pretty for that not to happen.
“Would’ve been nice if you’d gotten POG in front of your mother.”
“It’s fine.”
“Jun, you had a soft side like this?”
“Huh?”
Kang Jun, who’d been talking to Jimin, turned and looked at bot-laner Sangjin in confusion.
“There’s a player-family waiting room—have them wait there. It’s way more comfortable than most cafés.”
Yaohwan said.
“It’s alright. We already have a place to meet.”
“That so?”
Yaohwan nodded.
“·····”
Just thinking about meeting the two of them after this filled Jimin with nothing but anticipation. He’d get to do the fan meet with a natural smile on his face too—two birds with one stone, maybe.
“Hey, you look cool in the uniform.”
“Haha.”
“Good work.”
“·····”
Unlike the playful Dahye, his mother simply nodded with almost no change in expression.
“Did you say your goodbyes properly?”
“Yeah, but I have to head back soon.”
“Of course you do—you all live together.”
There wasn’t much time. He’d have to head back to the team building with his teammates before long.
“Watching from the stands earlier, there were a lot of girls cheering for you.”
“Ah—really?”
“That’s right. Our son’s really popular.”
“·····”
Mom and Dahye both had similar reactions. Maybe that was natural, since they’d watched the match together today.
But.
As a player, Jimin was grateful for the fans’ support—but those fans didn’t need to be girls. What he’d actually been hoping for was something else entirely.
So that’s how it is.
Of course. What had he even been hoping for?
“Hm? Is there something on my face?”
“Ah—no.”
When it came to Dahye, he was the same as ever—the kid who was really, really good at SOL, thrashing around with a child’s desire for attention, desperate to play together. No different from the very beginning.
Sangcheol had once said pro gamers were popular with girls, but that didn’t seem to be the direction Jimin wanted.
“Thanks for coming all the way out here with Mom.”
“What? Please. I like getting to watch a match where tickets are this hard to get.”
“·····”
Jimin forced an awkward smile.
SOL was a boundless world. And he would keep working hard to get even better. But what kind of effort did you have to put in to win her heart? He didn’t even know who to ask right now.
If this kind of thing worked like SOL—if you could just stack experience and gold—that would have been nice.
“The next match isn’t far off either.”
“Hm?”
Jimin answered his mother with a smile.
Right.
Complicated feelings could wait. There was work to do as a pro. The next match was against Gen.G Esports—the team that had ended this P1 first team’s spring last year.