The Mid Lane Gap (1)
From the top laner's perspective, what exactly is the mid laner? Our team's mid must roam over and secure kills. Of course, the last hit is mine. On the other hand, the enemy mid becomes priority number one for deletion the moment a teamfight breaks out, right alongside their ADC. And right now, our opponents' composition is mid and support. Take out the mid, and the support will self-destruct on its own.
The original plan was a sudden ambush to one-shot their mid. However—
—Thud!
"Got you."
Spencer, who should have been sent flying after taking my knee square to the face, didn't budge an inch. No—instead, she grabbed my collar with her right hand, holding me suspended in midair. Even the face that had just eaten my knee strike showed not a single scratch.
Truthfully, I had already sensed something was wrong the instant my knee connected. The sensation wasn't that of striking human flesh and bone. It felt like slamming into solid rock.
"What the fuck?"
"Did you really think I came unprepared?"
Her eyes looked down on me with the ease of someone who had done this far too many times. Her voice carried not a shred of tension, as if she were merely watching children play. That was the gaze and tone Spencer directed at me while I dangled in the air.
Then I caught sight of the open book in her hand. Slightly worn pages filled with countless sentences made of eleven syllables each. The left page had only a few, but the right was densely packed. Two of those sentences were completely blacked out with ink, as if refusing to reveal their contents—one on the left page, one on the right.
And now—
"How about we call this a draw?"
"Overwhelming power for the sake of destruction!"
Another sentence on the right page began to blacken out.
[You look dangerous!]
Shit.
I struggled desperately to break free. I kicked Spencer in the face again and again. I hammered at the arm holding my collar. I tried shoving her away with my legs. None of it worked.
The sentence in Spencer's book finished blacking out completely. At that moment, a purple sphere radiating an ominous aura formed in her left hand.
"Come to think of it, you said Hifumi, right? It just came back to me."
"What about it?"
Spencer opened her mouth again, apparently remembering what I'd said earlier.
"Did you pay the regular price?"
"You crazy bitch."
[This body accidentally pressed the single-pull button and it came out right away. Not that I needed it.]
Where the hell do you live.
With those words, Spencer moved to hurl the sphere in her left hand straight at me.
"It's over!"
"Over my ass—my Cheonghwi Stone's the one getting wrecked."
I grabbed Spencer's right arm—the one holding my collar with her left hand. At the same time, I thrust my right arm toward the incoming purple sphere. A translucent haze began to bloom from both of my palms.
Cheonma Repulsor — Double Piece.
Two explosions occurred simultaneously, producing only a single blast. Yet the sheer volume of dust that billowed upward proved two detonations had taken place. This time, it clearly worked. The sphere had been nullified by the Cheonma Repulsor and vanished without a trace. Meanwhile, the grip on my collar loosened slightly. I seized the opening, broke free, and created distance.
As the dust settled, Spencer's slightly surprised face came into view. Her right arm, which had taken the direct hit from the Cheonma Repulsor, bore a noticeable wound, though it wasn't fatal. Staring at the injury, Spencer spoke with genuine curiosity.
"Oh. You actually pierced through magic. People who pick weird champions really are different."
"You're seriously dead, you bastard."
Meanwhile, Jung Ayeon was attacking Jeong Bia with her summons. Eight different summoned beasts lunged at Bia with fangs and claws. Even in that desperate situation, Bia spoke with her usual composure.
"Ayeon, you've certainly grown."
"......Indeed."
Then, flames wrapped around both of Bia's hands.
"But did you really think I hadn't changed either?"
"What are you—!!"
Numbers rose above her head as she began smashing through the summons. With each number that appeared at short intervals, Bia slipped past attacks by a hair's breadth, driving punches and knife-hand strikes into the openings. She moved with dazzling footwork, redirecting incoming blows to strike other summons, even flipping through the air to evade. If Ayeon was a fake martial artist wearing only a dobok, Bia looked like the real deal who had compromised with the modern world. She danced as she fought. And that dance only stopped once all the summons had been destroyed.
I spoke to Ayeon, who wore a slightly surprised expression, as if she hadn't predicted this outcome.
"What kind of mid-support combo is this? It's just two goddamn bruisers."
"...Even I did not expect this."
"She looks more like a martial artist than you do."
"......Do not poke at a sore spot."
Ayeon simply lowered her head, unable to find a retort. Spencer, paying no attention, kept her eyes fixed on me and raised her left hand toward Bia.
"Hey! Hurry up and give it to me!"
"Got it."
Bia extended her right arm toward Spencer's left hand. The flames on Bia's right hand condensed into a small sphere and shot toward Spencer. When the sphere touched Spencer's left hand and burst, flames began to gather there. Spencer looked extremely satisfied as she gazed at the fire.
"Right now, I've become my favorite character—Fire Fist Ace!"
"Favorite character?"
That's Ace? Then I can't let this slide.
"Hey, Spencer. You know what?"
"What is it?"
I began grinning at her with the most malicious smile I could muster.
"Whitebeard is a loser."
"......What?"
Cracks appeared across Spencer's previously relaxed face. In an instant, her expression transformed into one filled with killing intent as she unleashed her rage.
"You! Take that back!!!"
As if responding to her fury, the flames on her left hand flared violently. Feeling the pressure, I obediently did as she asked.
"Ta~ken~ back~!"
"I'll kill you!!!!"
But even after I took it back, Spencer only grew more unhinged. She tucked the book she had been holding under her arm and raised her right hand, venting her anger on Bia instead.
"Hey! Why aren't you giving me the rest?!"
"I'm giving it now."
This time, a small sphere of flame formed in Bia's left hand, just like before. The moment she tried to launch it—
"Sister, aren't you being a little too relaxed?"
"What!!! When did you—"
Ayeon had already closed the distance and attacked alongside a summon. Ayeon reached for Bia's left hand while a summoned Korean water deer charged at Bia's body. In a panic, Bia prioritized dodging the summon, giving Ayeon the opening to slap Bia's left hand away with a punch.
—Smack!
"Ah!"
Ayeon wasn't strong enough to completely knock Bia's hand aside, but it was enough to throw off her aim. The flame sphere that should have flown toward Spencer veered off in the wrong direction.
Meanwhile, I had already started moving the moment Ayeon did. Spencer, who had been waiting for Bia's enchantment, finally realized something was wrong and began to react. But I was one step faster. I reached out and touched the incoming sphere with my right hand. Just like Spencer's left hand had been enchanted earlier, flames now gathered around my own right hand. It was strange—my hand was completely covered in fire, yet I felt nothing.
"NTR successful!!"
[My dear, is this not a yuri scene with an unwanted male intrusion?]
Ah, shit. The Second Hokage's gonna kill me.
"Uhyowww, this female is now minewww."
"You actually stole it from me!"
"For a blond delinquent, you sure have no resistance to getting NTR'd."
"Shut up! You devil bastard!!!"
Devil? The devil era is over. The current meta is nymphs.
"From now on, call me the Flame Nymph 'Infernoi'!"
"Shut it! A butterfly's wingbeat becomes a typhoon!"
Spencer had already opened her book again with her right hand and recited another sentence. Wind began to swirl around her left hand in response, carrying the flames along with it. I condensed mana into my own right hand to match, letting the flames spread across the gathered energy. Without a word, we both thrust our hands forward at the same time.
"Fire Fist!!!"
"Nymph Secret Art!! Fire Vortex King!!"
A flame storm and a flame explosion collided, canceling each other out and blasting us backward.
"Kyaaah!!!!"
"I'm flying awaaay!!!"
At that moment, Bia—who had just kicked Ayeon—quickly formed another sphere and tried to launch it at Spencer. This one contained viscous magma instead of ordinary flames.
"Spencer! Catch!"
"Hey!!!!"
But Spencer, who had been knocked down, suddenly exploded in anger.
"I told you not to give me magma!!"
"Is now really the time to argue about that?"
"Do not forget about my existence!"
"Ah!"
Ayeon, who had been sent flying, summoned a tiny squirrel-like creature that also resembled a spider and smacked Bia's hand, redirecting the sphere toward me. The summon didn't speak, but it sounded like it was barking.
"Barkbark! Damn it! I was counting on you!"
I reached out with my right hand once more. This time, magma gathered around it.
"I have descended! Magma Nymph 'Volcanoi'!!!"