[TS] Obsessed Gamer: The Ultimate Return – Chapter 374

Contrary to popular belief, Gragas doesn’t have particularly good lane sustain until his first recall.

In fact, if a champion’s sustain is everything, then it means he’s not all that strong in early laning phases.

After all, Gragas is not a no-cost champion; he’s a mana-consuming champion, and his sustain relies heavily on mana.

That’s why, in a typical game, Gragas’s strengths start to shine after his first recall when he buys Eye of Luden.

After that, he can show insane sustain based on his unending mana and can start chipping away at the enemy while looking for kill opportunities.

To achieve that, the importance of the early level 1 laning phase was crucial, and I pulled it off.

Literally cleared the first condition for victory.

The second task is to endure the laning phase well until the first recall.

If I can do that, I should be able to achieve victory as well.

I’ve already gotten past the most important hurdle, but that doesn’t mean the laning phase against Akshan is easy.

After all, Akshan is one of the champions with a very strong laning phase, and Gragas’s early sustain couldn’t withstand Akshan’s pokes.

In a way, it was an unfair laning phase, but there was no point in whining about it.

After all, Akshan would face some unfairness later too.

‘Don’t ever get hit by Q.’

It’s impossible to dodge all of Akshan’s pokes, but I have to avoid what I can.

Especially his non-target skill, Q.

The point is to bait out his skill with movement.

If he uses his skill, it’s my turn from there.

Of course, Akshan could save his Q until the end, but that would leave him open to getting hit by my Q and losing in the trade.

No matter how clever Akshan is, there’s only so much sustain he can have, and as time goes on, it’s actually Akshan who becomes disadvantaged.

The laning phase continued.

Although I still seemed to be on the receiving end of Akshan’s pressure, it was far more manageable than it had been at level 1.

[Level 3]

Akshan hit level 3 first, and then I achieved level 3 without any major variables.

The timing for me to step forward and eat the experience was set.

It’s when the enemy minions are nearly dead.

Right before they die.

Will he poke at me? Or eat the minions?

I force him into an endless choice.

Of course, there’s no correct answer to that choice.

There’s only proof of the results.

If he pokes me, he’s correct for forcing me to have to recall.

Or if he gives up poking and focuses on denying CS to win the game, then that’s correct too.

[Level 5]

After enduring and enduring, the opportunity finally came.

Of course, I’m not talking about a kill opportunity.

Akshan, who had relentlessly poked me, was nearly out of mana.

His health could be managed with nimble footwork, but mana isn’t something you can play around with.

Akshan had been moving a lot to avoid regaining mana from the Comet runes, and it was effective.

And then, the cannon wave came.

As I started to step forward after having focused solely on eating minions, Akshan instinctively felt something and retreated slightly.

He sensed that I was trying to push the lane to catch a recall at the right time.

Both sides weren’t in great condition, but if it turned into an extreme sustain battle like this, Gragas would ultimately win.

Akshan, knowing this too well, began to push the lane forcibly, abandoning the denial stance.

At that moment, Akshan fell into a trap.

Having touched a lane that had already been reset by the turret once means he can’t time his recall before pushing it.

I knew that all too well, of course, and immediately threw a barrel at Akshan and recalled after dashing back.

Akshan was already out of mana.

He couldn’t even use his Q skill to clear the wave, and he couldn’t force my recall either.

But even if he tried to set up a slow push now, I had already timed my recall perfectly, so I would return to a fully healthy lane and cause him a lot of trouble.

If he were to recall along with me, he’d already disturbed the lane, meaning he’d suffer a loss too.

Soon enough, Akshan had no choice but to push the lane forcibly to catch a recall timing.

This meant that the first recall, which I caught first, allowed me to receive an easy wave as soon as I returned to the lane, but if he didn’t push, Akshan would suffer even more lane damage than I would, so he was literally caught between a rock and a hard place.

Having smoothly ended the first recall phase, I returned to lane.

This recall only cost me two nearby minions.

Effectively, I suffered no loss.

In situations where the opponent can’t actively push the lane while you recall during a cannon wave, you hardly lose anything even when returning to lane.

Of course, Akshan wasn’t unaware of this, but he lost in the mind game of recalls with me, resulting in this situation.

The lane reset once, but I didn’t push the lane.

After all, Akshan’s lane return speed was quite fast, so I figured it wouldn’t be easy to shove the lane into their turret.

Instead, I set up a slow push, stacking my minions.

By simply creating a big wave, it was basically the same as gaining lane dominance.

Finally, Akshan returned to lane.

As I started poking with my Q, Akshan had no choice but to watch the big wave coming toward him.

The CS difference between Akshan and me was only 6.

Considering the champion matchup, it was practically an insignificant difference.

So, we both hit level 6, and naturally hit level 7 without any issues.

Since the Gragas vs. Akshan matchup is basically about sustain, it’s tricky to engage in aggressive trades until a decisive moment appears.

And then…

As if it was waiting for this moment, the danger zone began to close in from the edge of the map.

‘Now is the important part.’

Finally, Sudden Death began.

Originally, in a 1v1 Tournament, the victory goes to the first player to secure 2 kills or destroy the opponent’s turret, but once Sudden Death starts, the game can end with just 1 kill.

Even if you respawn in the fountain after a kill, you’d already be outside the safe zone.

Right now, the situation favored me, as my condition was relatively better.

After all, I had safely picked up items on my first recall, so I had to have the advantage in terms of sustain.

Moreover, as the safe zone shrinks, I had the advantage to create variables through my ultimate.

‘But, the opponent likely knows that too.’

The safe zone was slowly approaching.

Akshan stepping forward was a part of that.

For Akshan, the approaching Sudden Death safe zone meant he’d inevitably expose himself to Gragas, so he made a play to act faster.

‘But.’

A bold move always comes with risks.

Knowing that my opponent would likely be moving aggressively, all I had to do was slip in a combo against the overcommitted Akshan.

I tossed a barrel in the middle of my minions.

Akshan might find it strange to see a barrel fly wide of its target, but soon he, through my E flash ultimate combo, found himself right in the spot where I had thrown the barrel.

Boom─!

With a full charge barrel hit, Akshan was naturally drawn into the midst of my army of minions, making it impossible for him to win this fight.

Although Akshan quickly used his flash to escape, the danger zone was already too close.

There was nowhere to run.

-First Blood!

As soon as Akshan died, the game halted and the victory message popped up.

[Victory]

-Waaaaa!!!

The cheers from outside the booth echoed loudly through the venue.

I won.

I had defeated Europe’s Andro, who was touted as a strong contender in the 1v1 Tournament, in a 1:1 match.

“Phew…”

Even after taking off my headset, my heart raced, perhaps still pumped with adrenaline.

As I sat there for a moment in a daze, I realized I was getting up and heading towards Andro’s booth.

While walking toward the booth, the cheers from the audience made me stop in my tracks unexpectedly.

Those cheers were directed at me.

Of course, I had heard crowds cheer in the lower leagues, but the difference in audience size made the pressure entirely different.

-Outlaw! Outlaw! Outlaw!

Fans from all over the world were chanting my name.

I felt like I might burst into tears for some reason, but I suppressed it as I made my way to Andro’s booth.

Andro extended his hand for a handshake.

“Good game.”

“Ah… good game.”

It was a short handshake, but at that moment, I truly felt acknowledged as a professional gamer.

Ah, this is just the beginning.

My life as a professional gamer has just started.

-Outlaw! Outlaw! Outlaw!

Amidst the cheers, I headed towards the waiting room.

My steps felt incredibly light.