Chapter 86: MSI Finals (3)

“[The Great Seo-ha!]

[Haha, why pick Gnar? If Sylas steals his ult, he can use it even without rage lol]

[Instant Gnar ult (1.2 AP ratio)]

[Yeah, yeah, Noona’s carrying again today.]

[That was insane.]

“Wow, we need to see that play again in replay.”

“To break it down, Para had a general idea of Sejuani’s position, so she moved forward to bait the ultimate and dodged it with her E. It was also a smart decision to wait for Gnar’s ult instead of stealing other ultimates.”

“Are you saying she intentionally didn’t steal other ultimates to wait for Gnar’s?”

“Exactly. ARK’s top-side composition isn’t great for focusing down a single target in a 3v3 river skirmish, so stealing Gnar’s ult was the best way to create a game-changing play.”

“Such attention to detail!”

[The Great Seo-ha!]

[Para’s game sense is on another level.]

[If they beat VXG today, can we call Para the most beautiful player in the world?]

[She’s definitely the most beautiful player now…]

“Although they couldn’t secure the kill on Sejuani, ARK will likely finish securing the Scuttlers.”

“The bot lane was falling behind, but this play in the top side made up for it.”

“Now that you mention it, there’s a slight CS difference in the bot lane.”

“Ashe Braum can be a very strong laning duo depending on their level 1 execution, and VXG’s bot lane is excellent at that.”

“Both teams are returning to farming after the Scuttler fight.”

[Is it about killing a melee minion at level 1 and then freezing the wave?]

[If you do that, the enemy can’t hit level 2 and gets crushed.]

[But to do that, you have to land Ashe’s W and Braum’s Q at level 1.]

“Uh oh, Sejuani is approaching mid again.”

“Sejuani’s ultimate isn’t up, but Akali’s is. They’re probably looking for a pick. This might be their only chance.”

“Do you think they can get it?”

“Sylas only has his level 1 ultimate, so he can’t steal Akali’s. That significantly reduces his ability to dodge, and Sejuani has Flash. They could burst him down with a quick engage.”

[If Akali bought an anti-heal item, Sylas will be in trouble if he gets engaged on.]

[Doesn’t Sylas have no Flash?]

[It’s a dangerous position for Para without Flash.]

“Hoon is using his shroud preemptively to bait Para.”

“VXG’s mid and jungle have drawn an invisible line. If Para crosses it, she’s dead.”

“I wonder if Para is aware of this…”

[Wow!]

[She’s not even using her E to check the shroud.]

[Danger sense activated!]

[She just knows.]

“Incredible, Para. How can she avoid stepping forward even after the shroud disappears?”

“I think it’s because of Akali’s anti-heal item.”

“Anti-heal item?”

“In professional play, where rotations and map movements are crucial, players usually rush their first item.”

“That’s true.”

“But Akali bought an anti-heal item even though she was slightly behind after the Rift Herald fight. That means she’s determined to kill Sylas.”

[Intense mind games.]

[This is the finals…?]

[Para is in good form today.]

---

Despite our significant early lead from the Scuttler fight, the enemy team wouldn’t give up easily, securing a decisive victory in the third dragon teamfight.

The game dragged on past the 45-minute mark, a point where a single teamfight could decide the outcome.

“Once Baron spawns, let’s have KSante tank and push for vision.”

“Xin Zhao can just dive and hope for the best. I can give him my ult.”

“No, give your ult to Sylas or KSante. It won’t matter much if I survive.”

Both teams had lost inhibitors in the back-and-forth skirmishes, making the upcoming Baron crucial.

“Elder Dragon spawns in two minutes. Whoever takes Baron can either push for the win or use it to secure Elder.”

As Kim Do-jin said, giving up Baron at this point would likely mean losing the game.

It was incredibly difficult to defend against a Baron-empowered minion wave and champions.

We continued the standoff for several seconds after Baron spawned.

As Gnar’s rage bar filled up, the enemy team started taking Baron.

‘Are they trying to force a fight before Mega Gnar expires?’

They were probably aiming to fight when Gnar transformed into Mega Gnar.

But waiting for his rage to deplete could mean giving up the Baron, so we had to fight.

I had just used Gnar’s ult, so I was hoping to steal Ashe’s. I pressed E to move forward, when…

“Protect Sylas!”

As if waiting for this exact moment, Sejuani flashed and ulted me.

I was caught off guard and almost died, but…

“Whoa, my reaction time is insane.”

Park Jin-hwan’s KSante used his E to reach me, and his W’s unstoppable effect negated both Sejuani and Ashe’s ultimates.

The fight ensued.

“Let’s fight!”

“Ashe has no Flash! Focus her!”

“I’m going for Akali!”

There was no way for a composition that relied on landing a single ultimate and bursting someone down to win after wasting two ultimates.

‘The biggest threat now is…’

…Gnar, even without Mega Gnar, could still deal significant damage if left unchecked.

But the enemy tanks weren’t protecting him, so I relentlessly chased him down.

Sylas, at this stage of the game, could spam his E, so I pursued him relentlessly.

[An enemy has been slain!]

We aced the enemy team.

“We can end the game if we push mid.”

“Let’s stay focused and do our best in the next game.”

“This isn’t the same VXG we saw against PG.”

“We’re just better.”

---

LOL Gallery

Title: Para is so adorable; ARK fans come in!

Your honor, it’s me; take me away.

[Lol, but her Game 1 performance was insane.]

[She single-handedly carried.]

[The moment she dodged the gank in mid, Xin Zhao stole all of their red-side jungle camps and snowballed the lead.]

[Delicious gameplay.]

LOL Gallery

Title: Caster’s insane save!

(KSante using his W to block enemy ultimates and save Sylas)

Sigh… I’m sorry for calling him a tank-only top laner.

He’s just a good boy protecting his team…

[If you give Caster KSante, you deserve to lose.]

[His decision to flank and catch Akali at the end was also insane.]

[He was a mountain, so reliable.]

[They probably planned to win by giving Ashe resources even if they gave up KSante.]

[But then Zilean just pressed R.]

[KAI’s champion pool is surprisingly as diverse as Para’s; he’s good at all the old champions.]

LOL Gallery

Title: Para’s visuals today

(GIF of Para taking off her headset after Game 1)

Para usually ties her hair in a ponytail for important matches, but today, she has a hime cut! With the makeup, she looks like a princess.

[My wife.]

[This guy is persistent.]

[With that face and those League skills, how can Hoon even live…?]

[Actually, Hoon is handsome if he loses weight…]

[That’s all part of Hoon’s skill budget. Stop the slander.]

[For real, crossdressing Hoon after weight loss would even beat Para.]

[Sir, this is a Wendy’s…]

---

“What’s so funny?”

“Oh, uh, nothing.”

At Seino’s question, Choi Eun-seo quickly closed the forum she had opened after the game.

‘Gotta check the forum reactions after the match.’

She had been browsing the forum, but she didn’t want Seino to know about it, so she pretended she hadn’t.

She had discovered a Seino fan forum before, and it would be disastrous if Seino stumbled upon it.

“Did you enjoy the first set?”

“Yes, totally! I’m going to try playing League when I get home today!”

Choi Eun-seo had tried to change the subject by asking for her impressions, but Seino seemed to have been paying close attention to the match.

If Seino, with her basic game knowledge, found it entertaining, it must have been a great match.

“Para is really good, isn’t she?”

“Huh?”

“I heard that Chinese player is incredibly famous, but Para completely dominated him.”

‘He was getting outplayed in the first set.’

But Choi Eun-seo, who watched almost every LPL match and had followed international tournaments for the past three years, knew something else.

The scariest aspect of VXG in a best-of-five series was the champion they picked in the mid lane after losing the first game.

“Want to make a bet?”

“A bet?”

“How about guessing their mid lane pick for Game 2?”

“The pick?”

“Yeah, if one of us gets it right, the other buys coffee.”

“Okay!”

Seino, confident in her improved League knowledge from watching all the MSI matches, readily accepted the bet.

“I’ll gladly accept this coffee.”

In the end, Seino had to buy Choi Eun-seo coffee.

‘You need to be an LPL fan to know that.’