Chapter 4

### Chapter 4: Solo Rank (1)

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Prisoner has joined the lobby.

SY Rainbow has joined the lobby.

meiuvanfairer55 has joined the lobby.

SCV BlackDog has joined the lobby.

SCV WhiteCat has joined the lobby.

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I see a few familiar IDs.

Among them, the most welcome ID was undoubtedly Rainbow.

The mid laner who won the Red Cup twice.

He was also a member of my friend list.

Sure enough, as soon as I started the queue, I was matched with him in the same game.

Usually, he would send a friendly whisper at this point, but today he remained silent.

'Well, he must be busy.'

It's not uncommon for people to do other things while waiting in the queue.

Next, my gaze naturally fell on SCV's bottom duo.

The so-called beast duo of SCV.

SCV is a team that consistently ranks in the upper echelons of the domestic league, achieving a remarkable fourth-place finish in this Red Cup.

If their quarterfinal opponent hadn't been the champions, SY, they could have easily won the cup.

Their bottom lane's destructive power is considered one of the best in the world.

"Easy win."

A Red Cup champion mid laner and a fourth-place bottom duo.

These were teammates I couldn't afford to lose to, even if I wanted to.

'The top lane is a bit concerning... but it should be fine.'

Given that I'm a solo rank veteran and this is the first time I'm seeing this ID, he's probably Chinese. I just hope he doesn't feed.

'I'm the first pick.'

Blue team, first pick.

It's a pick with many pros and cons.

The main advantage is that you can grab the OP champion of the patch first, but this only applies to team games. In solo queue, being the first pick means you're likely to be countered.

Thus, when you're the blue team's first pick, your options are somewhat limited.

You can either pick an OP champion that can't be countered,

or a champion that can play multiple roles and swap lanes,

or a champion that's safe to pick first.

'Hmm.'

Like any other lane, I don't particularly prefer being the first pick.

This is because your options are too limited.

If I were to swap with another teammate, it would likely result in a disadvantage for our team's lane matchups, so I silently examined the pick screen.

[Ban List]

Sylas / Kai'Sa

Shaco / Sylas

Cassiopeia / Mordekaiser

Taliyah / Aatrox

Kai'Sa / Thresh

'This is a rare opportunity.'

Recently, champions that are almost always banned have become available.

I need to go there.

Lissandra.

She requires considerable physical skill, which is why I usually don't play her, but this game looked like an easy win, so I picked her.

Of course, I don't intend to troll.

Lissandra is currently an OP champion in the meta and can swap lanes, making her a versatile choice.

The ban and pick phase began.

[Allies / Enemies]

Top: Jason / Sion

Jungle: Lissandra / Elise

Mid: Zed / Orianna

ADC: Tristana / Samira

Support: Nautilus / Leona

Overall, it was a decent ban and pick phase.

Our team, lacking a tank, could be considered a poking composition, while the enemy team had a tank and a standard team fight composition.

If asked which team was better, our team had the advantage in lane phase and positioning, while the enemy team had the upper hand in late-game team fights.

Welcome to the Summoner's Rift.

The game officially started.

True to the nature of a high-level game, there was no room for leisure.

The ping alarm went off.

We boldly invaded the enemy's red jungle through the top bush.

It was a surprise invasion, but the enemy team, being high-level players and current pros, was prepared.

All five of them were gathered, and a level 1 team fight ensued.

First Blood!

Among them, Rainbow's Zed stood out.

Flash, Ignite, Flash, Exhaust, Flash...

'He maxed W at level 1?'

Given that Zed usually maxes Q or E, this was a bold decision.

Double Kill!

Triple Kill!

Massacre!

Zed, who dominated the center of the battlefield, secured a triple kill.

The result was a 4-1 rout.

[MidEatingAndMeming: Zed is OP]

[ORD Ruma: Yea, right]

The enemy team, who didn't expect to see Zed's flash show at level 1, seemed to have given up on the game.

The snowball effect didn't stop there.

Nautilus, who had switched his trinket to a ward detector, destroyed all the enemy wards in the red jungle.

This forced the enemy jungler to start with blue and made his pathing choices more difficult.

Without knowing my path, he had to rely on luck to decide where to go.

Usually, in such situations, the laners would help the jungler, but the laners who had already given up a triple kill and used all their spells had no spare capacity.

Sure enough.

The enemy jungler, who failed to make the right choice, was already three levels behind me.

[Lissandra – Level 7]

[Elise – Level 4]

This was a rare sight in a high-level game, but the game had exploded so badly during the invasion that this happened.

Judging that this was a hopeless situation, the enemy team of five attempted to dive our top lane.

Our team was hit!

We were suppressed!

Normally, if the enemy team was this invisible, the laners would show some mercy, but...

Our top laner couldn't be expected to show any mercy.

[meiuvanfairer55: sorry]

At least he had a conscience.

'If so, it's only right to repay him.'

Now it was time for the mid and jungle to take action.

Just as the enemy team of five, who had finished the top dive, were hastily retreating, Lissandra and Zed blocked their escape route.

A 5v2 situation.

However, the enemy's health, ultimates, and spells were in poor condition.

I made the decision and entered the fray without hesitation.

'Now.'

In the blink of an eye, a combo that is sometimes called the Lissandra flash combo on YouTube sent three enemies flying.

It was Zed's solo show.

He methodically collected the enemy's flashes and narrowed the encirclement.

Samira, who was hit by the ultimate, exploded in one shot.

Dominating the battlefield!

The enemy team, having lost their ADC so easily, panicked and were picked off one by one.

I, having reset my cooldowns, used my skills again and joined the fray.

Divine Presence!

The enemy, sensing their defeat, tried to retreat, but there was nowhere to run.

Was this even a team fight?

Wouldn't it be more accurate to call it a hunt?

Such thoughts crossed my mind.

Legendary Appearance!

Finishing Move!

The result was a massacre.

A 5v2 team fight that was hard to believe.

The countless hooks that followed.

[?][?][?][?][?][?][?][?]

There are two reasons a hook can be landed.

Either the player performed terribly,

or they showed an incredible super play.

Obviously, our play was the latter.

Two players dominating a team of five was a significant achievement.

'...What? Why am I playing so well?'

I couldn't hide my surprise.

At first, I thought it was because the game was easy to win.

After all, a favorable game and an unfavorable game have different levels of difficulty.

But as the game progressed, an inexplicable feeling of alienation enveloped me.

My fingertips felt light.

It was as if the champion and I were one, and the champion moved according to my will.

I could see the enemy champion's movements clearly, and reacting to them wasn't difficult.

A sensation I had never felt before.

Of course, objectively, I am good at the game.

But my skill was based on long experience, practice, and personal research, not on combat or physical aspects.

But now, something had changed.

A distinctly different feeling from my previous self.

It's fun.

The game is, incredibly, fun.

'If this continues...'

I gradually fell into a state of flow.

Little by little, bit by bit.

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