[TS] Obsessed Gamer: The Ultimate Return – Chapter 288

Legends of League Champions Korea Summer Season Finals.

The throne of summer is widely regarded as far more important than that of spring. Not only is there the coveted Red Cup qualification for the first seed, but even if you end up as the runner-up, the circuit points are higher than those from the spring season.

In such an important match, the situation reached a score of 2:2.

The long-awaited final set.

“Wow, are they really going to pull off a comeback?”

Kim Jae-min said.


No one particularly disagreed.


After all, the pursuers are always more anxious than those being chased.

“‘Well, here we are!’”

“‘As expected, SY! They’ve got guts. Right? This is the finals! Who is SY? The previous year’s World Champion, right?! They can’t just hand over the throne like this!’”

“‘Exactly. Of course, even if SY were to lose in the finals, they could qualify as the second seed for the Red Cup through circuit points… but naturally, going for the first seed is better!’”

“‘Yes! And remember, SY unfortunately lost to SCV in the last Spring Season, and didn’t SCV disappointingly finish as the runner-up in MSL as well? I have no doubt that SY will show their strength against LCKR in the Red Cup this time!’”

“‘Yes. MAX is just as exciting! Even though they faced a potential reverse sweep, who would have expected MAX to push SY this hard? MAX, it’s not over yet!’”

“‘That’s right! Let’s check out the ban/pick now!’”

-Woooooo!!!

With the commentators’ thunderous cheers, the ban/pick phase began.

SY’s side was blue.

The 1st, 3rd, and 5th sets had been in the same realm.

Now, it seemed like both teams were ready to lay everything on the table as the first ban proceeded swiftly.

+

[Ban List]

Aphelios / Kuroki

Caitlyn / Akali

Jinx / Sandra

+

The intentions of both teams were glaringly obvious.

SY banned three bot lane champions, while MAX countered with three mid lane bans.

“‘Alright, this is where it gets important! What will SY bring with their first pick?’”

“‘Well, there’s Renekton, Karuma, and so many champions are left open that I have no idea.’”

“‘Yeah. I’m really curious to see what SY’s first pick will be…’”

[Twisted Fate]

“‘Ah, they go for this.’”

“‘Come to think of it, this was left open. There were so many champions available… haha!’”

SY’s first pick was Twisted Fate.


Although MAX invested three bans in mid lane, perhaps they missed it, but they ended up giving away Twisted Fate, which is currently rated as a tier 1 pick.

Next came MAX’s pick.

[Jhin]


[Karuma]

“‘Ah… they just completed such a strong bot lane combination instantly.’”

“‘Yeah. But while I can see it for Karuma, I thought they might go for Renekton; apparently not, though.’”

Now it was SY’s turn for picks 2 and 3.

[Lee Sin]


[Ezreal]

“‘Ah… should I find this entertaining… but nobody’s picking Renekton right now?’”

“‘Right. I don’t know whether they feel they can deal with him or what, but… Renekton isn’t an unbeatable pick; it’s just convenient to use most of the time.’”

“‘Exactly. Where’s the unbeatable pick? Even if a champion is rated as OP, it often doesn’t reflect in their actual win rate.’”

“‘Indeed. Picking OP champions is important, but more crucial is to pick according to the combination with your team and against the enemy.’”

MAX’s pick phase for the third pick came up.


Depending on this choice, MAX’s strategy and composition would begin to reveal themselves.

10, 8, 6…

The time was gradually running out.


At the very last moment, MAX made a pick.

[Baegah]

And just like that, it was locked in.


The commentators exploded with excitement.

“‘…Huh?’”

“‘Baegah! Baegah is here!’”

“‘Although this is based on solo queue data, Baegah is actually quite good against Twisted Fate!’”

“‘Oh, I think this is definitely bringing back nightmares for SY from the Spring Season!’”

“‘The difference now is that Baegah is being talked about as a pretty decent pick among players!’”

“‘Facing Baegah in the finals’ fifth set… the Rainbow player must be quite furious right now!’”

“They’re pulling out Baegah here.”

Baek Seong-an chuckled awkwardly.


In a way, he was the original source of the Baegah pick that SCV showcased during the Spring Season, so it made sense.

“How’s Baegah these days?”

“‘He’s definitely improved since spring. Now he’s good enough to be picked regularly instead of just as a joker pick.’”

“Oh, wow.”

As I let out a small sigh of admiration, Baek Seong-an looked at me with a peculiar expression.

“Why?”

“…Nothing. Just watch the ban/pick.”

As we momentarily got distracted, both teams completed their 4th and 5th bans.

+

[Ban List]

Renekton / Yuumi

Xin Zhao / Tryndamere

+

The remaining positions for SY were top and support.

And for MAX, it was top and jungle.


Reflecting that, both teams’ bans came out relatively straightforward.

“‘Now, what choice will MAX make…?’”

[Jarvan III]

“‘They’re starting with this one.’”

“Against a champion like Ezreal, it’s a bit ambiguous to pick last, but Jarvan III as a champion is just so well-balanced.”

Now, it was time for SY’s highly anticipated picks 4 and 5.

[Graves]


[Tahm Kench]

Had they perhaps prepared this in advance?


SY finished the ban/pick in less than three seconds.

“‘That was a quick pick, huh?’”

“‘Tahm Kench… SY has taken him this time!’”

“‘Did they prepare this, SY?!’”

Now it was MAX’s last pick phase.

Typically, the blue side gets to pick first, while the red side usually picks last.


Since SY utilized the advantage of the blue side to pick Twisted Fate, now it was MAX’s turn to counter SY’s pick.

““Yeon-woo, what’s a good counter for Graves?”

““Among meta picks, it’s a bit ambiguous, but you might try Jax.”

““Really?”

Well, currently, top Graves is crazy enough to beat even Jason, who was the former top king.

With Graves being picked first, it was only natural that MAX would have to worry no matter what top pick they selected.

“Given the situation, what would you do?”

“I’m thinking of picking something like Jax or Irelia.”

“Hmm.”

Should I say it’s very much like Seo Yeon-woo…?


But the real question remained whether MAX’s top solo player Woo-chan would bring those risky picks to such an important stage and moment.

There were solid reasons why picks like Jax or Irelia weren’t mainstream.

Is that why?

[Gragas]

MAX’s Woo-chan decided to take a step back.


Though Gragas would similarly struggle in the laning phase against Graves, it seemed like he aimed to create variables in teamfights.

Finally, both teams finished their ban/pick phase.

+

[SY / MAX]

Top: Graves / Gragas

Jungle: Lee Sin / Jarvan III

Mid: Twisted Fate / Baegah

Bot: Ezreal / Jhin

Support: Tahm Kench / Karuma

+

“Overall, looking at the early laning phase, SY might have a slight edge… but considering MAX’s bot lane combination and the growth variability of Baegah, it probably doesn’t mean much.”

“Yeah. So, this game is all about how TheOne’s Graves can decisively beat Woo-chan’s Gragas.”

“And the Rainbow’s Twisted Fate will have to help as well.”

As the commentators noted, the top lane would likely favor Graves as the game progressed, while in mid, Baegah would take over eventually.

Thus, it was essential for SY to influence other lanes before any unfortunate accidents occurred, like Twisted Fate falling to Baegah.

The primary stage chosen for that pressure was the must-win top lane.

“Wow, I’m seeing the Ezreal Tahm Kench combination in the tournament again.”

Kim Jae-min sighed lightly in admiration.

It was only natural, as the Ezreal Tahm Kench combo had once been a staple pick in the league but faded away with Tahm Kench’s rework.

“However, it’s a bit funny to see MAX picking Tahm Kench again after losing with him.”

“It shows confidence.”

You could say it was a case of, ‘that’s not how you’re supposed to use it.’

Of course, this is only a humorous take; the real reason was that there wasn’t a suitable support pick available.

“Which team do you hope wins?”

“Me?”

At Seo Yeon-woo’s question, I hesitated to answer.


Under normal circumstances, I would naturally support SY, but I didn’t know what to say now…

“I don’t know.”

Kim Jae-min interjected.

“I hope SY wins.”

“Why?”

“Because it would feel great if we could meet later after they win.”

“Is that so?”

While it felt like a classic Kim Jae-min comment, it also made perfect sense.

As we engaged in this trivial conversation…

-Welcome to Summoner’s Rift!

The highly anticipated fifth set finally began.