Chapter 57
Chapter 57
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 57
Chapter Title: An Ace's Difference
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The match was a festival of mistakes.
[Oh?! The enemy is ambushing in that bush! Ah…!]
[Did he not see that?]
[There was vision, but I don't think the player saw it.]
*Ping…*
[Huh? Did the Golden Stopwatch just get used?]
[Looks like it. Did something happen?]
[Nothing happened… Ah! I think he got startled by his own Ezreal's ult and pressed it.]
They were completely failing to read the map, dying repeatedly at obvious timings.
In their nervousness, they would get startled by their own teammates' skills and waste single-use items.
And there was much more.
They spammed key skills into thin air, bought items with overlapping effects, and used mobility skills only to fail to get over a wall…
It was natural for amateurs to be nervous, but to Lee Shin, it was far too much.
‘…This is unwatchable.’
Lee Shin frowned.
A performance so bad it was painful to watch!
But surprisingly, the other students' reactions weren't bad.
“No, if you go in there…!”
“Ugh, so close!”
The students were watching with sweaty palms, completely engrossed!
Since the tournament itself had the nature of an inter-school competition, it was easy to draw the audience in, regardless of the level of gameplay.
And as if to prove this enthusiasm, the large auditorium was now packed with spectators.
The match ended soon after.
The caster looked at the highlight reel appearing on the screen and began to speak.
[The game is over. It was quite a close match, wasn't it?]
[Indeed. It was a fierce battle with constant reversals. We couldn't predict the outcome until the very end.]
‘…That’s because they kept throwing the game back and forth.’
Lee Shin retorted inwardly.
A fight to see who could be less bad!
Honestly, it was a sloppy game that was hard to watch.
Of course, a winner and a loser were inevitably decided.
2 wins, 1 loss.
One team from Yeonhui University and two from Godae University advanced to the main tournament.
Now, the only remaining preliminary match was the one for Group D, which included Lee Shin.
The match began immediately after the loser's interview.
[We will now begin the Group D match.]
The ban and pick phase.
Hwang Dong-min asked.
“Shin.”
“Yes.”
“What do you want to play?”
“I can play anything.”
“Really? Then should we save the top pick for last and try to counter?”
“I don’t mind.”
“Okay. Let’s do that.”
The draft proceeded quickly.
Their bot lane settled on a standard Ezreal-Lux combination, while the mid and jungle picked Zad and Kaessus, champions with strengths in assassination and scaling, respectively.
The caster, who had been watching the draft closely, spoke up.
[The fourth pick, Zad, is locked in. Zad and Kaessus is not a common combination, but they’ve picked it anyway. What are your thoughts, commentator?]
The commentator answered simply.
[It’s just a solo queue pick.]
[Will there be any synergy with the current composition?]
[Not typically. They tend to highlight each other's weaknesses.]
[Uh… then why did they pick it?]
[Because this is an amateur tournament. Sometimes, simple strategies like this can be quite effective, contrary to theory.]
Indeed, looking at the results of the previous matches, the teams that didn't overthink things and simply picked champions they were good at were the ones who won.
Lee Shin's team took this as a lesson and applied it directly to their draft.
However, the opposing team was a bit different.
A tank in the top lane and a strong laning AD carry.
On top of that, a mid-jungle duo with strong 2v2 influence in the early to mid-game.
The commentator, watching the draft, muttered with interest.
[This is quite standard.]
[Pardon?]
[It doesn't feel amateurish. It’s a composition that seems to have the overall strategy in mind.]
The commentator was a former professional player who had been in the first-division league. His words carried weight.
The caster, wracking his memory, let out a sound of realization.
[Ah…! Now that you mention it, I think I’ve seen this combination often in professional tournaments.]
[It does appear quite often.]
The Godae University team had assembled a standard composition.
But that wasn't necessarily a good thing.
[It could also be their downfall.]
The caster asked, puzzled.
[Why is that? If pros use it, doesn't that mean it's already proven?]
[In theory, yes. But the pilots executing it now are not pros.]
[Ah…]
[Without an understanding of strategy, a standard composition doesn't mean much. In fact, their lower champion proficiency could hold them back.]
[I see.]
[Still, the fact that they picked it suggests they have something to show… We'll have to see in-game to find out.]
While the commentator and caster were talking, Lee Shin's final pick was locked in.
[…Nunu?!]
[It’s Nunu.]
The caster said, flustered.
[Uh… is this a mistake? Kaessus has already been picked.]
[I don't think so, there was still plenty of time left. We have to assume it was an intentional pick.]
[Is he planning to go jungle?]
[…I’m not sure. It could be mid Nunu and top Zad. We’ll have to wait and see.]
After the champion swaps were complete, Nunu’s confirmed lane was top.
The commentator pondered for a long time before speaking.
[…Even I’m having a hard time understanding the intention behind this one.]
[Pardon?]
[It's not like he has great scaling… and if the idea was to harass the enemy tank, there were better picks for that.]
[Maybe they're aiming for team fights?]
The caster offered his own speculation, but the commentator immediately refuted it.
[A tank is better for team fights.]
[…You’re right.]
It had the advantage of roaming, but if that was the plan, it would have been better to play him in the mid lane.
In short, Lee Shin's top Nunu was a pick with few discernible advantages.
The commentator offered a formulaic response.
[…It seems they chose a pick that suits their playstyle rather than one that is theoretically good.]
[Was it the right choice?]
[Well, that depends on the result.]
It was an incomprehensible choice, but if they won, the reason wouldn't matter.
In a situation where they had to prove the reason for the pick, just as the commentator said.
[The game begins.]
The game started.
* * *
Kill score: 20 to 6.
Turret trade: 9 to 1.
Gold difference at 20 minutes: over 10,000.
It was a loss for Lee Shin's Yeonhui University team.
After the one-sided match came to an end, the caster spoke.
[…That was overwhelming.]
[Yes.]
[Overall, it felt like the Godae team was several levels above. What do you think was the reason?]
The commentator answered simply.
[The difference of a true ace.]
[A true ace… Right. There was the only Challenger tier player in the tournament. Kim Ha-seong. He was the mid laner for the Godae team.]
[No. I’m not just talking about the difference in tiers. That was a secondary issue.]
[Pardon?]
The mid laner was certainly skilled, but the tiers of the other lanes were correspondingly lower.
Especially the jungler, who needed to synergize with the mid laner, was Bronze.
Normally, this would offset the ace's ability to carry.
But this time was different.
[Regardless of tier, he was a player who knew how to win a team game.]
From the well-reasoned draft to knowing when to look for a team fight, how to distribute resources, and when to make the call to end the game.
All these decisions were rational.
In the eyes of the commentator, a former pro gamer, all of this was crystal clear.
Thanks to that, the difference in the mid lane snowballed at a tremendous speed, ending the game before the 20-minute mark.
[Ah… so you’re saying, they had strategy. Is that it?]
[It’s not just that they had it; they were good at it. But this isn't something you can learn just by playing a lot of games.]
[Are you saying it’s innate talent?]
[No. The opposite.]
[……?]
It was something that had to be learned.
[It has to be learned?]
[Yes. You could play solo queue for a hundred years and never figure it out.]
[Ah…! Right. They do say that competitive play and solo queue are two different games.]
[Yes.]
The commentator nodded.
[That's why it's a bit surprising. Judging by his age, he doesn't seem to be a former pro.]
[I agree.]
[So I'd guess he was either on an amateur team, or perhaps he was a trainee for a pro team in the past.]
The commentator's guess was spot on.
While preparing for the second game, a tournament staff member came over and revealed part of a pre-game interview.
[Ah… we have some breaking news. It seems he actually does have experience as a pro team trainee.]
[Oh, really?]
[Yes. He was a trainee for about two years… but before he could make his pro debut, the league was downsized, and he had no choice but to return to his studies.]
[…No wonder he was so good. His play felt very clean and refined. You could tell he’d been taught.]
The viewers reacted immediately to the conversation between the commentator and caster.
-It's true… I searched it up and found it. SKK Academy, Kim Ha-seong. He quit two years ago.
-Is this for real?
-No wonder he was so damn good.
-Hey, but can our school win this?
-You think?
He had never stepped onto the professional stage, but with countless scrims under his belt, his competitive experience was on a different level compared to an average person.
Even the audience could tell, but for those playing against him, the difference was even more palpable.
That was why Lee Shin's team had crumbled in just 20 minutes.
Hwang Dong-min, who had faced Kim Ha-seong in the mid lane, couldn't withstand the intense laning pressure and fell apart early on.
He was behind by more than three levels and was solo-killed multiple times.
On the other hand, Lee Shin's Nunu, which the commentator had questioned, fought surprisingly well against expectations.
Of the six kills Yeonhui University's team had managed, four were Lee Shin's solo kills against the enemy top laner.
Considering the enemy top laner's skill level (he was Gold), dominating the lane was naturally easy.
However.
‘Still, it’s difficult.’
The opponent was capable of strategy, and because they used it to push the tempo, the game ended faster than he could demolish the enemy top laner.
But Lee Shin wasn't particularly worried.
He had no strong feelings about the tournament in the first place, so he wasn't hung up on winning or losing.
If they lost, it would be over quickly, which was nice. If they won, that wouldn't be bad either.
That's why.
After the strategy session ended, during the draft phase for the second game.
Lee Shin spoke to a troubled Hwang Dong-min.
“Sunbae-nim.”
“…Yeah?”
“Should I try a different pick?”
Hwang Dong-min turned his head.
“Suddenly? You did well on Nunu.”
“I don’t think just doing well is going to be enough.”
“…That’s true.”
“So I think I need to play an anti-carry pick. The enemy mid laner is good… but besides him, everyone else is just so-so. What if we intentionally make it a 4v4 game?”
“…Anti-carry?”
At Lee Shin's new suggestion, Hwang Dong-min asked with a piqued expression.
“We could win with that. What are you thinking of playing?”
“Alastar.”
“……That’s a support.”
“You can play him mid. Or maybe AD Lablanc.”
“…!?”
Hwang Dong-min's expression turned to one of shock.
Lee Shin quickly added.
“I’m not trolling, sunbae-nim. I’m a true one-trick with this.”
“……A one-trick?!”
“Yes. I’ve played this one champion for hundreds of games.”
Despite his explanation, Hwang Dong-min still looked unconvinced, so Lee Shin showed him his match history.
“I-It’s real… So you got to Platinum with this?”
“Yes.”
“……”
“Sunbae-nim. This is actually really good.”
He couldn't deny that it was a troll pick that went beyond just a fun pick.
But it wasn't so bad that you could say it had no strengths at all.
Lee Shin had played hundreds of games with it and had discovered several strengths beyond pure enjoyment.
“I can’t imagine it… but if you say so. But can it work against a Challenger?”
“I haven't tried, so I don't know.”
“…Ah, right.”
“Should I try it? I’m confident. Besides, it’ll be tough if we just do what we did before.”
“……”