Chapter 87: MSI Finals (4)

“Yu-seong, Yoo-chan, are you serious? They’re playing Ashe Braum; why would you push for XP at level 1 and get zoned?”

“But if we hadn’t taken that XP, they would have hit level 3 first and dove us with Sejuani when the cannon wave arrived.”

“Then you should have considered taking the dive. Getting rooted like that meant we couldn’t do anything until five minutes.”

“How can Zilean tank a dive…”

“You picked Zeri. You should have played with the mindset of supporting the side lanes even if it meant falling behind.”

“That’s true. I’ll do better next game.”

“Phew, at least you did your job in the bot lane. Don’t let up in Game 2; let’s play aggressively.”

Back in the waiting room after Game 1…

…the initial excitement had subsided, and everyone was calmly reviewing our mistakes.

‘I think I played well in mid…’

The biggest threat when facing VXG was the champion Hoon picked in Game 2 after losing Game 1.

“Seo-ha, what are you going to do in Game 2? Ban Corki?”

It was Corki.

His empowered W, Super Package, available after eight minutes on a five-minute cooldown, was also known as “Valkyrie.”

While technically on a five-minute cooldown, its damage output was on a completely different level compared to Rumble’s ultimate, The Equalizer.

‘The core of VXG’s strategy.’

The main reason Corki was picked in professional play was to time his Package delivery with dragon spawns, guaranteeing either the objective or a favorable trade in a teamfight.

However, with the introduction of the Rift Scuttler, it wasn’t as effective a strategy.

‘But they’ll definitely use it.’

I was certain VXG would pick Corki in Game 2, even if it meant giving up Scuttlers.

He was picked in the LPL Spring Finals, and my past life experiences…

…the memories of being repeatedly blocked by them…

…told me everything I needed to know.

The reason I hesitated to push for the ban was…

“If we ban Corki, either Lucian or Jinx will be open.”

“But it’s practically a rule that Hoon picks Corki in Game 2.”

My teammates, having reviewed VXG’s data before the tournament, also knew Corki was a likely pick.

But using a ban on a bottom-tier champion like Corki meant leaving other high-tier picks open.

‘Losing the first game and then picking Corki is what makes it so effective.’

The team that loses the previous game gets side selection. Naturally, if VXG lost Game 1, they would choose blue side.

And then they’d say, We’re picking Corki; are you going to ban it? If not, we’re locking it in.

If we banned it, they would first-pick a higher-tier champion.

“Let’s do this.”

---

“We’ll continue our coverage with Game 2.”

“Game 1 was a spectacular match worthy of the grand finals.”

“Indeed! It was the exciting match everyone was hoping for! Intense mind games, flashy plays from both teams, it was amazing!”

[Para getting POG in Game 1, for real?]

[Let’s get three POGs and the MVP title!]

[I fell in love with the POG finger heart; please take responsibility.]

“So, in the upcoming Game 2…”

“…will we see the LCK’s nightmare, VXG, and Hoon’s signature Game 2 champion?”

“VXG doesn’t actually have a high win rate in best-of-five series. They lose the first game more often than not. But they’ve often put teams on tilt with their Game 2 drafts.”

“We’re curious to see if they’ll do the same in the finals.”

[I hate seeing Hoon picking Corki and freeloading.]

[Corki is trash tier right now. Being able to survive the laning phase against someone like Orianna and carry teamfights on him is pure skill.]

[Ugh, are we going to watch another endless series of dragon fights?]

[YK was guaranteed to win, but they lost because of Corki; that was ridiculous.]

[But they’ve been picking Corki in Game 2 for two years, and nobody has been able to counter it?]

“I believe the reason VXG’s Game 2 Corki works is their synergy.”

“Synergy? What do you mean?”

“VXG’s strength is their textbook gameplay. They never lose in standard matchups.”

“They definitely have that aspect to their play.”

“ARK won the first set, but that was because VXG didn’t anticipate Para’s monstrous plays. They actually won the dragon fight they had set up.”

“As you said, they’re a scary team. ARK needs to stay focused.”

[ARK fighting!]

[We’ve seen them win Game 1 and then lose the next three for two years; let’s not repeat that.]

[YK and RG, step aside, The Great Seo-ha Gallery is taking over.]

“Let’s move on to the draft! VXG bans KSante, which ARK favors, and also bans Orianna?”

“They’re being blatant. We’re picking Corki. We even banned Orianna; what are you going to do?”

“ARK needs to make a decision.”

“ARK’s final ban is Camille. They’re letting Corki through.”

[Honestly, it’s more risky to ban Corki and leave Lucian or Camille open.]

[Giving Spread Camille is worse than giving them Corki.]

[Honestly, Para would crush Corki mid.]

“As expected, VXG picks Corki.”

“What is ARK planning? How will they respond…?”

“They pick Yone!”

“Picking a non-meta champion? If you’re picking off-meta, then we’ll pick a champion we’re good at, even if it’s not top tier, That’s Para’s response.”

“Is Yone a good pick against Corki?”

“Corki’s Valkyrie has a higher potential in teamfights assuming equal scaling, but considering Yone’s strength in skirmishes after his first item, his ability to control side lanes, and Para’s skill on the champion, it’s a viable pick.”

“I see.”

[Here we go!]

[Solo queue in shambles.]

[With Para on Yone, we’ve practically already won.]

[100% win rate Yone looks like a joke to you?]

[Para’s Yone has never lost a game since CK.]

---

[ARK]

TOP: Ornn
JG: Lillia
MID: Yone
AD: Aphelios
SUP: Lulu

VS

[VXG]

TOP: Aatrox
JG: Maokai
MID: Corki
AD: Ashe
SUP: Braum

“Their teamfighting is really strong.”

“But if we focus on counter-engaging, we’re not bad either.”

“If Maokai ults and Corki uses Valkyrie, we’ll get wiped, won’t we?”

“Aphelios needs to poke with Lulu’s buffs and create a lead.”

“Let’s avoid any early mistakes and see how it goes.”

We let Corki through for two reasons.

We could gain an advantage in early Scuttler fights, and Yone could handle him in lane.

‘I’ll snowball my lead in the mid game.’

Corki’s power spikes were Manamune and Luden’s Tempest.

But with two items, Yone’s dueling potential was much higher.

And the early game matchup was even more in Yone’s favor.

‘I’ll end this quickly.’

This game hinged on Lillia and my ability to snowball a lead.

And the best way to do that was…

‘One kill and it’s over.’

A single solo kill would create a massive snowball, but my opponent, also a top-tier mid laner, was playing passively.

As the game progressed, we both reached level 6.

Even though he preferred a passive playstyle, Yone could bully ranged champions in lane, so Corki’s health was below half.

I had set the stage; all I needed was the kill. We received a call that the enemy jungler was bot side.

‘The moment they feel safest…’

…is the most dangerous.

He would think that if he just pushed the wave and recalled, he could safely finish the laning phase.

He’d give up this Scuttler, but once he got his first item, he’d use Valkyrie with Ashe and Braum to secure the dragon.

But I knew that, so I intentionally traded aggressively and stacked my Q.

Then, I unleashed my Q3.

‘He took the bait.’

I discovered something while playing Yone against Hoon in my past life.

He would always try to dodge point-blank knock-ups with a mobility spell.

Because a point-blank Yone knock-up couldn’t be followed up with his ultimate consistently.

‘He likes to use his mobility spell to dodge in that brief window.’

But I knew that.

And with mechanics far surpassing my past life…

[Seal Fate!]

With a yellow spark, I teleported behind him and immediately followed up with my ultimate.

Q-Flash-R.

A combo that reduced the knock-up delay and guaranteed my ultimate.