“Who would have thought we’d really make it to the finals?”
It had been five years since Lee Tae-jin had taken charge of the LCK cameras.
Based on his experience, there were two cases when rookie players made it to the finals: either they debuted in a strong team, or the overall league level had diminished.
But what exactly was this girl?
“Loosen your grip, holding it like that will make it look shaky even with adjustments, and you’ll get trolled on community sites.”
Para, Yoon Seohwa from ARK, was part of a team that could be described as full of rookies’ brashness if viewed positively, or as a weak team of second-hand rookies if viewed negatively.
Moreover, this year’s LCK had sharpened its roster across all teams to reclaim international tournaments.
Despite all this, seeing her here in the final stage, checking the team members’ posture at the filming site, was almost unbelievable.
‘Was her confidence all just bravado?’
He felt a little angry when hearing her saying she would reach the finals before even completing her first professional year.
He had thought that she was disregarding him, someone considered an elder in the LCK.
Now, seeing her here, the girl had simply been stating facts.
‘The problem is the narrative.’
This finals match was between the new sensation ARK and the traditional powerhouse YK.
Under normal circumstances, the title would frame it as YK, the defending champions, being challenged by ARK.
However,
‘ARK is the dominant one.’
Just looking at the regular season results, ARK’s 2-0 record clearly showed a large gap.
With their playoff victories stacking up, it was obvious to everyone that ARK was the clear favorite.
‘Should the title reflect the results? Or maintain tradition?’
Unable to decide quickly, Lee Tae-jin paused the filming.
But no one complained at him.
After all, he was the one who flawlessly created the title video, avoiding any childish mistakes despite the pressure.
At that moment while everyone was waiting for his direction,
“Let’s resume filming. ARK players, please gather over here.”
Lee Tae-jin rose from his seat and took over the camera himself.
“Director, what’s the overall concept for this?”
To the new staff’s question, Lee Tae-jin looked ahead.
His gaze fell on Yoon Seohwa, who had let down her usually tied-back hair in loose waves during the match.
“Para Player.”
“Yes.”
“Do you feel confident?”
It wasn’t a clear question defining what confidence meant exactly.
Regardless,
“Yes.”
Her concise answer came with an expression of certainty.
Hearing that reply, a perfect narrative formed in Lee Tae-jin’s mind.
“What’s the broadcast today? Obviously the ARK cheering stream.”
[Is Para really going to win the championship?]
[Let’s go~]
[Para is known for being the finals MVP.]
“Do you all order fried chicken?”
With Hanbyeori’s question, the chat was filled with various food names.
‘Before the match, maybe because of it, but there aren’t that many people in the finals broadcast.’
Hanbyeori thought to herself that this was quite a decent start.
“By the way, ARK sent me this.”
Hanbyeori stood up and spun around.
She was wearing ARK’s jacket uniform, and what stood out was that the back bore the letters “h b ri.”
“They embroidered my initials; isn’t it so cute?”
[Crowd reaction]
[hbr isn’t it hbri, that’s the key part]
[I want one too]
“Let’s do one prediction before it starts?”
[?]
[What?]
[Dia plays analysis.]
“I may play at Diamond level, but it’s all physical issues—my brains are just barely outside Diamond level. Haven’t I said that multiple times?”
[Outside Diamond but has skill]
[Cold analysis is Hanbyeori’s thing]
[Honestly, it might just be a 3-0]
“Honestly, I hope we win 3-0, but I think YK will win the first game.”
Through hosting ARK’s cheering streams this season, Hanbyeori had developed an interest in watching LCK.
Because of that, she frequently watched matches even when they weren’t ARK’s, and
She was well-aware that despite ARK’s shine, this season YK had also proven to be a capable team.
[But last week they lost 3-0]
[That loss was quite significant]
[Yeah, you’ll never know till you see the playoffs]
[For real]
“Then, let’s go over each lane.”
[Damn, is this a proper analysis broadcast?]
[Let’s go~]
“First, top lane has Caster and Owl. This match revolves around who gets K’Sante, I think.”
[True that]
[Neither of them is a master artist]
[Watching the finals while feeling wronged is just chicken]
“And jungle is Lesser and Hunter. Honestly, it’s completely fifty-fifty here.”
[Both are S-tier junglers]
[But does Lesser lean towards brainpower more?]
[What nonsense, Lesser was ARK’s backbone without Para]
[Let’s keep the trolling down]
[With AP abilities, Lesser has an edge because he also uses tank junglers sometimes]
“The bottom duo… YK still has a slight edge, I think.”
[ARK’s bot lane is good too, but Pair Rope is just crazy]
[This could be fun if both sides unlock Aphelios and Jinx]
[I agree, a hypercarry marksman should be necessary]
“Midlane is the most important… But isn’t Seo Ha going to win this lane?”
[God exists and her name is Dae Seo Ha]
[Pumpkin is about to join the military, honestly, Para should step aside once ㅇㅇ…]
[Bye bye, military service]
[Is Pumpkin joining the military? Isn’t it public service?]
[If rechecked, it’s public service but he didn’t bother]
[But fundamentally, the champion pool difference is extreme. It’s a big problem if Pumpkin can’t handle Azir]
[True. If LeBlanc counters and all you have is poor fundamentals]
“Ah, it seems like it’s starting now. The title video is coming up. Let’s mute the notifications.”
[Let’s go~]
[There’s something big coming up!]
[Something small is coming, though… 3-0 prediction]
[Para’s beauty in the video feels surreal…]
[If we win today, let’s go Season 2 of the Father-in-law Special. Call Para again]
[Agreed, we should remaster Meat Eating Stream]
The endless seas in front of Yeongjong Island stretched out, with Inspiration Arena, the finals venue, visible on the other side.
And the YK uniforms were in view.
Between the faint sound of broadcast commentary and small murmurs, the players started their quiet conversations.
[LCK’s super team YK collapses to the geniuses of LCE!]
[They are stronger than expected. VXG is sweeping LCK’s king effortlessly]
“Does LCK’s championship title bore you now?”
“It’s strange that not winning that championship might be possible now. We thought we were the best this year as well.”
To Aul’s question, Hunter replied with a bitter tone.
Gradually, other team members joined them.
“Winning is important, of course.”
“But at the end of the day.”
“Isn’t our goal since two years ago just one thing?”
The international trophy, never claimed by anyone in the LCK for three years.
For that, YK had reunited this season.
“However, it seems like we might not even make it to the MSI.”
“Since we’ve been there for two years, who else would go?”
[YK secures a clean victory in the LCK!]
[YK! Taking the LCK’s No. 1 seed to the Worlds!]
[Third consecutive championship after last year! It’s YK again!]
[Two years of consecutive first-seed entries!]
“Is this lineup possibly the last one this year?”
“Unless there’s no military issue.”
“That’s my fault.”
“Yeah.”
“But shouldn’t we give Captain Taehyun (Pumpkin) at least one international victory in his final season?”
Saying so, Aul picked up the YK flag lying around and raised it.
As the scene shifted, ARK’s players appeared on the screen this time.
[ARK unfortunately failed to make it to the promotion stage!]
In a dim room, the four ARK players, excluding Para, were watching the video of their unsuccessful last season when they failed to secure promotion.
Their uniforms were from the ARK era before Para joined, and the commentaries reflected sympathy towards ARK for their missed opportunity.
“Remember those days? Now that we’ve made it to the LCK finals, how does everyone feel?”
The caster then turned to the team members and asked.
“I’m not sure.”
Lecher grinned faintly as he responded.
“I’m a bit nervous.”
“Now?”
Plea said she was nervous, and Kai, laughing, put an arm around her shoulder.
[ARK is just lacking that last edge! They’re undoubtedly a strong team but having a pillar player will make them stronger.]
Somewhere amid these comments, the door opened and someone stepped in.
As the ARK players turned around,
[Is this player insane!? What’s a champion pool!?]
[Top in solo kills! Top in DPM! Top in CS difference! This is Para, who just does everything!]
[LCK regular season domination!]
[Such an incredible player, and this is his rookie year!?]
[No words needed for this player!]
In a different mood from usual, Para, who always tied her hair long down her back during matches, was now standing there with it flowing loose.
“Let’s go. To win the championship.”
