NOVEL NEXT Chapter 463
After OLZ’s defeat in the first set, the Legends of League community was set ablaze with excitement.
It wasn’t just that the team OLZ, currently riding high on their success, had lost, but more importantly, the gap in performance between SY and OLZ during the first set was beyond imagination.
– Daehwangsun lolololol
– Where did all the OLZ fans who were so loud go? They just burrowed away lol
– Honor dead movie.GIF
– Kekekekekeke
– Outlaw is really pathetic
– Honestly, OLZ is just a bunch of idiots without Outlaw lol
– They seriously suck
So far, in the Legends of League community, OLZ had been a superstar team comparable in popularity to SY.
How could such a team face off against SY, the original superstar team of Legends of League, and lose so utterly?
On the day of the match where SY fans clashed with OLZ fans, the winning team’s fans had no choice but to go wild.
– OLZ hit an all-time low today
– Looking closely, Outlaw seems to be in pretty bad shape too
– For real lol
– See? OLZ is just riding their luck. The moment they face a strong team, they get wrecked lol
– Daehwangsun! Daehwangsun! Daehwangsun! Daehwangsun! Daehwangsun! Daehwangsun! Daehwangsun! Daehwangsun!
In stark contrast to the festival atmosphere among SY fans, the mood among OLZ fans was deflated.
If the first set had been closely contested, things might have been different.
However, compared to the overwhelming performance OLZ had shown thus far, they crumbled surprisingly easily against SY, leaving few able to imagine a reverse sweep for OLZ.
– Just gonna get dumpstered
– Agreed
– I was expecting more; this is a letdown
– Is SY doing well or is OLZ just bad?
– Looks like both
– Haha lol
In this atmosphere, fans reached a single conclusion.
– If Outlaw doesn’t show up in the next match, they’re just gonna get dumpstered right?
– Log meta lol
– But can even Outlaw overcome this power gap?
Under everyone’s watchful eyes…
– It’s starting soon.
Finally, the second set began.
*
SY booth.
After winning the first set, the players gathered in front of the coaching staff for feedback.
“Everyone did well. If we keep this feeling for the next match, we should be good.”
The players nodded quietly in agreement.
SY’s supporter, GuineaPig, spoke up.
“I was worried, but it turned out better than I thought.”
“Right? I thought it was going to be tough.”
SY had also prepared thoroughly for the match against OLZ.
But whether it was due to their excellent preparation or not, the match ended up being smoother than expected.
“Still, we need to stay tense. OLZ is not an easy team.”
GuineaPig nodded at Rainbow’s words.
“Of course.”
No matter how strong a team is, there are times when they get stomped.
OLZ could also show a whole different side from the next match, so relaxation was not an option.
“Alright, it would be good to go with this feeling, but the opponent won’t keep the same ban/pick pattern. They’re likely to focus on the jungle again.”
That was a reasonable analysis.
The strongest pattern OLZ had shown during difficult times was picking valuable champions in the jungle and having the jungler carry the game.
“That’s why I’m thinking we should focus on jungle bans for the next match. Does anyone have other thoughts?”
The coach could only provide a direction for the bans and picks.
The players had the biggest say, as they were the ones playing the game.
It’s not uncommon for players to reject what the coaching staff insists on and instead go for whatever they felt like in-game.
“I think that would be good.”
“Me too.”
“What about Yoon-ki? What do you think?”
“I think that sounds best because Outlaw is really strong…”
“Alright, then it seems we’ll go with that for the bans and picks.”
Meanwhile, while discussions for the second set continued, Rainbow found it hard to fully concentrate.
It was too disappointing to have seen OLZ’s performance in the first match.
“There’s no way it could be like this.”
Rainbow had watched OLZ’s games and Outlaw’s solo rank replays more than anyone in SY.
That’s why he was confident.
Though the result of the first set stemmed from a mix of coincidence and OLZ’s poor performance, OLZ was not a team that would just fall apart like this.
Especially, Outlaw wasn’t.
“Alright, let’s all do well in the second set.”
The feedback time passed, and the coaching staff exited.
Rainbow’s eyes caught Outlaw’s nickname as he entered the in-game waiting room.
Although it had become a familiar nickname, it was still enough to stir memories in Rainbow.
Is this really all you’ve got?
No, it can’t be.
What I know of you is…
“…”
Rainbow’s gaze turned towards the booth beyond.
*
The feedback was over.
In truth, it was less about feedback and more about discussing how to approach the next match.
The remaining matches were far more important than the last one for us.
“Then that settles it?”
“Yeah. Let’s do it your way, Yujin.”
With Baek Seong-an’s agreement, the strategy I proposed was fully accepted.
To be precise, there wasn’t really anything else to do besides the strategy I suggested in the first place.
The atmosphere was still somewhat down, but it was a bit better than before.
“Let’s all give it our best.”
“Fighting!”
The only response came from Seo Yeon-woo, whose weak shout echoed hollowly.
And then…
The second set ban/pick began in earnest.
OLZ’s team was on red.
SY’s team was on blue.
In other words, SY had the first pick.
[바에고]
SY’s first ban was Viego.
Despite the change in sides, the focus on jungle bans seemed unchanged.
It was a statement of intent that they wouldn’t give that up.
“Just as I thought.”
They had anticipated the opponents’ focus.
What mattered was how we would respond to that focus.
In the first set, we invested heavily in bans towards the mid lane, which was their ace.
But ultimately, we couldn’t stop the opponent’s mid from growing or carrying the game, and it became a struggle.
So what if we changed our mindset?
“Let’s go with what we talked about earlier.”
[마오카인]
Our first ban was Maokai.
If the opponent was targeting the jungle, we’d take some jungle picks out ourselves.
Let’s see how we do within this limited champion pool.
But….
[우콩]
Despite being somewhat obvious, SY seemed entirely unbothered about changing their initial strategy.
Whether it was SY or our team.
Both were opting for bans and picks that were far from typical.
“If that’s the case, I want to take out Vayne as well. What do you think?”
[“That sounds good.”]
[“I think so too.”]
Given our agreed-upon ban/pick structure, Vayne, with crowd control, was a bit of a nuisance pick and needed to go early.
[바인]
They probably weren’t expecting us to ban another jungle pick, and SY’s surprise was slightly visible.
The opponents used all their available ban time before finally coming up with another valuable jungle ban.
[나달리]
Four jungle picks had already been banned.
Now our final ban could determine the overall direction of the game.
[“Yujin, what do you think?”]
Banning mid against Rainbow, known for having one of the best champion pools in the world, often proves meaningless.
Then how about flipping the idea around?
“What if we ban Sejuani altogether?”
[“Since we decided to do it your way for this game, I think that’s right. Let’s ban Sejuani too.”]
[세주아닌]
Thus, six jungle bans were born.
[마오카인] / [바에고]
[바인] / [우콩]
[세주아닌] / [나달리]
In many ways, this was no ordinary game situation.
And then…
SY’s turn to pick came.
[록턴]
Noticing that many jungle picks had been banned, SY started with a jungle pick.
Considering that in the current meta, Rakan wasn’t a first-pick level champion, SY throwing out such a bold move was surprising.
Perhaps it could be a mistake.
“We don’t need to rush into picking the jungle. Let’s do what we need to do first.”
[“Then I want to grab Orianna. Sound good?”]
“That sounds good.”
[“Okay, Yeon-woo, grab Orianna for me.”]
[“Sure.”]
[오리아난]
The primary mage champion, Orianna, who was banned in the first set, was now in our hands.
This could be seen as a result of changing our ban/pick strategy as well.
[“Then for the second pick, let’s grab an ADC. How about Senna, Jaem-min?”]
[“I prefer Zeri.”]
[“Alright, let’s go with Senna.”]
“Understood.”
[“…Why did you even ask?”]
Regardless, our second pick was set.
[세냐]
The flow of the ban/pick looked good. At least up till now.
[카사딤]
Until an unusual face popped up at SY’s second pick.
[“…This goes too far.”]