BRRIIIING-BRRIIING-BRRIIING

The school bell rang, and Lin Feng immediately started packing up. He jammed his pencil case and textbooks into his bag as quickly as he could, got up from his desk, and ran to the door. But just before he could step through to freedom, he ran into An Xin. Blocking the door. She was standing right outside the classroom door with her arms crossed. She looked at the startled Lin Feng and smiled. 

“Slow down, Lin Feng. You’ll run straight into someone rushing around like that. Speaking of which… why are you running? And why are you in such a hurry? Planning on meeting up with someone after school? Who is this new friend of yours that you didn’t tell any of us about?” An Xin asked. 

“Mhm! You didn’t mention any plans to me either!” Tang Bingyao added. She was still at her seat in the third row, but all of her attention was on Lin Feng right now. 

Ouyang decided he needed to help Lin Feng out. Well, mostly. He also really wanted to hear what was going on and know who Lin Feng was going to see after school. Especially after he saw Lin Feng messaging in class. He got up from his seat and started to walk over. But was jerked back towards his desk. Yang Fan had grabbed the back of his shirt and yanked him back. Ouyang looked back at Yang Fang, who still had a tight grip on his shirt, and said “Lemme go! Bro Feng needs me!” 

Yang Fan gave Ouyang a serious glare before intensely whispering, “Have you lost your mind completely? You really want to jump into the middle of that? You want me to let you jump into the middle of that?” 

“Wha? Oh! OH! Yeah, no. Maybe not.” Ouyang replied, and then he quietly sat back down in his seat. I dodged a bullet there! I’m a good bro, and I want to be there for Bro Feng… but there’s nothing scarier than two women. Two jealous women. And Bro Feng didn’t ask me before he got himself into this mess! I would’ve told him to be more careful, helped him out. But he decided to do his own thing! So, as a bro, I don’t have any responsibility. What happens to Lin Feng is his own business. I’m staying far, far, far away! This whole thing is his own fault anyway! Who decides to message a third girl in the middle of class when they’ve already got two girls in the same class already? Bro Feng… that man is either a legend or a moron!

“What? Oh! I’m rushing ‘cause I’ve gotta get to the train! Hm… To get to where Fatty is. I’m going to meet up with him today. Hang out for a bit.” Lin Feng said, scratching his head. He didn’t understand what the big deal was or why everyone was so interested in him hanging out with Tian Tian. 

“Fatty?” An Xin asked, surprised.

Lin Feng nodded in high spirits. “Yeah! Fatty! You know, Tian Tian. God Roundy. Fatty! He’s not practicing today and he’s finally got some free time away from the House. So he messaged asking if I wanted to hang out today. I haven’t seen him in forever! Actually, do you wanna come too? You haven’t seen him in a while either, and the three of us haven’t spent time together in ages!”

An Xin was the coach of Lin Feng’s old team, so she was friends with Tian Tian as well.

Ohhh! FATTY! So that’s what’s going on here! An Xin thought. Of course! That makes so much more sense! Where would this clueless moron meet a girl anyway? And he definitely wouldn’t be texting a girl he met in the middle of class! I’m an idiot for even thinking that could be possible. LIN FENG TEXTING A GIRL! That’ll be the day Rake decides to take up a competitive shooting game and give up on League!  Of course he’s texting Tian Tian, this all makes sense now. Then she remembered Lin Feng’s invitation. Those two haven’t seen each other in four years. I should probably let them… But she hesitated for a moment. She wanted to see Tian Tian also. Wanted to hang out together like they did before. Nah. I should let today be just about the two of them and I shouldn’t meddle. We’ll all hang out together in the future! She looked at Lin Feng again and shook her head, “I’d like to come… but this was super sudden. I can’t today, I gotta be home early. But I’ll be there next time! ” An Xin made up a generic reason to excuse herself from the meetup today.

“You don’t want to come? Why not? Wait! Hm… why don’t you want to come? Are you not feeling well? What do you have to do at home that you need to be there early? You can just call them and let them know, they’ll understand! Wait… you don’t look sick.” Lin Feng asked. He couldn’t understand why An Xin didn’t want to spend time with two of her oldest friends. He was always planning to drag her along to meet up with Tian Tian. And he definitely did not buy her excuse that she had to be home early. It just didn’t make sense to him. Then his eyes widened as he experienced a flash of insight. He knew what was going on with An Xin! He slapped his forehead and yelled, “OOOOHHHH! I GET IT NOW! Did old Aunt Flo come to visit you?!”

All the Senior Class 7 students that still hadn’t left immediately looked over in Lin Feng and An Xin’s direction. Shocked.

An Xin froze. She’d known Lin Feng for a long time, and was more than prepared for how clueless he could be most of the time. But every once in a while, he’d pull something out that surprised even her. This was one of those times. She just didn’t know how to react to Lin Feng’s supposed epiphany. And then her face turned red. She took a deep breath and looked straight at Lin Feng. “Hey idiot. Do you want to die!?”

✹

Lin Feng saw An Xin’s face after he asked her about “old Aunt Flo”. He saw her face turn red. And then he heard the venom in her words. He knew, immediately, that he had messed up. He couldn’t think of anything to make the situation better. And he knew better than to say anything more. That would only make the situation worse. He continued to look at An Xin’s furious eyes for a few awkward seconds longer. 

Then he pivoted around and walked over to Tang Bingyao. “Tang Tang, do you want to come meet Fatty?” As far as he was concerned, Tang Bingyao and Fatty were both going to be on his new team. He saw no harm in introducing them to each other sooner rather than later. They’d have more time to get to know each other, and his team would come together that much faster.

Tang Bingyao was the only person other than An Xin in High School 13 who knew anything about Lin Feng’s past. She also knew who Fatty was. KG’s Top Laner and God Roundy, Tian Tian. And she knew that Tian Tian was Lin Feng’s best friend. She also knew that their history was stormy, and this was the first time Lin Feng would be seeing Tian Tian after many years. 

Tang Bingyao tilted her head. She thought about going for a moment. She wanted to meet the God Roundy in person. More importantly, she wanted to meet Lin Feng’s best friend. This isn’t the right time for that. Mhm! She shook her head. “No thanks. I have a lot of homework tonight.”

“Oh… Okay. That’s fine…” Lin Feng replied. He sounded a little dejected and disappointed. This was an exciting day and no one wanted to come with him! But he quickly perked up again. “That’s fine, I’ll go by myself.” It didn’t matter if everyone else was busy. He was going to meet Fatty today, and this was going to be their reunion after four long years! 

✹

Lin Feng and Tian Tian had agreed to meet up in front of an internet cafe. Lin Feng arrived at the designated meetup location first, and waited for Tian Tian outside. After a few minutes, he spotted Tian Tian walking over from across the street. Tian Tain was trying to keep a low profile, and blend in with the crowd. But his large body made that impossible, and his attempts at blending in only made him more conspicuous.

Lin Feng’s face lit up when he saw Tian Tian, and he started waving his arms around wildly. ”Fatty! Fatty! Over here!”

Tian Tian heard Lin Feng and looked around. He saw Lin Feng flapping his arms around everywhere, and his face also lit up with joy. He ran across the crosswalk and sputtered to a stop right in front of Lin Feng. A little out of breath.

“LIIIN FEEEENG!” Tian Tian cried out with the last bit of air in his lungs. Then he had to pause to take a few quick breaths. Once he got his energy back up, he wrapped Lin Feng in a giant bear hug! Then he pulled down his face mask.”I MISSED YOU SO MUCH!” His chubby and ruddy cheeks jiggled with emotion, and tears started welling up in his eyes.

Lin Feng chuckled. “I missed you too, buddy! I miss you too! Hey, you even got fatter!”

“Yeah, haha… I’ve been eating a bit more lately.” Tian Tian laughed, scratching his head in embarrassment. Then he looked Lin Feng up and down and said, ‘“Lin Feng, you’ve gotten taller!”

“Of course! I’m really good at growing up too!” Lin Feng replied.

After a few more minutes of excited small talk, they started trying to figure out what they were going to do today. Lin Feng had a rough plan ready, “Let’s go inside and play a few games together. Then I’ll treat you to dinner! We’ll have a feast!”

“Sure sure sure! That sounds great!” Tian Tian said while nodding excitedly. It didn’t really matter what Lin Feng decided to do today, Tian Tian was always going to agree. It had always been like that between the two of them. Ever since they became teammates years ago. Lin Feng led, and Tian Tian followed. And he was fine with it being that way. It didn’t matter to Tian Tian that he was the older one. Or that people made fun of him for being so easily led around. Following Lin Feng around was something he took pride in! He considered himself lucky to have a friend like Lin Feng who cleared the way for him!

✹

Tian Tian put his face mask back on before he walked into the internet cafe behind Lin Feng. The place was crawling with League players, many of whom followed the competitive scene. He was God Roundy. An LPL legend who had recently played in Worlds. Every single person in this internet cafe could recognize his face instantly. And if they did, they’d start swarming all over him. That would make it difficult to hang out with Lin Feng in peace.

Lin Feng understood the situation with Tian Tian without being told. He did his best to shield Tian Tian from view while they walked through the internet cafe. And then booked some game time for the two of them in a relatively remote corner of the internet cafe. They made their way to the corner and sat down.

Lin Feng settled into his booth and started turning the computer on. While waiting for it to boot, he looked over at Tian Tian and said, “Oh! Right! You remember BunBun, right? I thought I’d bring her along today, but she had something important to do at home. She would’ve been here right now if she wasn’t busy!”

“BunBun!?” Tian Tian’s eyes widened into saucers. “ BunBun? An Xin? BunBun’s here too? You saw her today?”

Lin Feng nodded. “YEAH! BunBun! She transferred over to the school I’m at. Really recently! We’re even in the same class! And she’s on the esports team with me! She even helped coach our school’s team for the Shanghai 16 School Tournament. Wait! Before I forget, she told me to tell you that she said hi.”

“Wow? I haven’t seen BunBun in forever. I miss her so much!” Tian Tiang said.

Lin Feng waved his hand. “It’s fine, she’ll be here next time and we’ll all hang out!” Then he paused for a second and added, “… I’ll bring Tang Tang along too, so you can meet her!”

“Tang Tang?” Tian Tian asked with a look of confusion. “Who’s that?”

“Oh! She’s also a classmate. Same class as me and BunBun! And she’s a great ad-carry too! She was on the esports team with me at the 16 School Tournie! But listen! She’s going to be the ad-carry for our new team!” Lin Feng explained excitedly. 

Tian Tian was surprised. “A girl?” He asked. 

“Yeah!” Lin Feng replied.

Tian Tian was intrigued and curious to know more about this phenomenal female ad-carry that he’d never heard of before. “If you say she’s good, then she must be good. But I’ve never heard of a Tang Tang before. Or any new female ad-carries. There aren’t many girls who play that position well enough to be competitive. Is Tang Tang a nickname? What does she look like?” As far as he knew, BunBun was the only unknown female player in the competitive scene. And the best female player that he could recollect.

“What does she look like?” Lin Feng rubbed his chin. He racked his brains around this question, and answered, “Oh, she’s okay. About the same as BunBun!”

If the boys from High School 13 heard what Lin Feng had said right now, they would have joined together to beat him into a bulb. They would have ripped his arms and legs off and kicked him until he resembled a tulip bulb! It was almost incomprehensible! Lin Feng casually stating that two of the goddesses from their school were merely okay in his eyes! 

Lin Feng and Tian Tian had already opened their League clients and logged in. Lin Feng waved his hand and said, “Forget about that for now! We’ll play a few games first! We can talk about all this stuff later. We haven’t duo-queued together in years!”

Monday morning, the start of a new week at the Shanghai Esports Association. Fang Hao walked into the building and rode the elevator up to his office. He opened up the doors to his office and walked in. Then he looked around his office and asked, “Back here already, eh?” He wasn’t speaking to anyone in particular, or himself. He just wanted to break the silence in his office with some noise. Fang Hao walked over to his desk and sat down in his chair. Then he sighed and looked out the window. The weekend always goes by so quickly, and the week goes on for so long. I miss my bed already. How long is it going to be until I get two days off again? Weekends like the one that just passed were a rare occurrence for Fang Hao. Those special weekends where he got two days off, he called those Golden Weekends. 

He looked at his desk, wondering if he should start clearing space for everything that was about to be piled on it. “Hah, I miss my soft bed already.” He just couldn’t bring himself to start.

Fang Hao reclined against the soft, plush leather of his chair and closed his eyes. He was preparing himself mentally for what was about to start. This was the one moment of peace he got every morning in this office. In the next few minutes, people would start walking in and filling whatever space existed on his desk with documents. Piling them high. Then he’d have meetings, phone calls, and constant reminders for what he had to check up on or provide input on. And any time in between all of that, he’d have to spend it working on the never-ending pile of documents. Once he started working in the next few minutes, that’s all he’d be doing for the rest of the day until he went home.

The life of an Esports Association President, eh? Not as glamorous or laid back as you thought it was going to be, is it Fang Hao? You thought all the work was getting here and then you could sit back and relax. Turns out the work was just starting out! You sucker! Fang Hao thought to himself before rubbing the Monday Blues out of his eyes and getting down to work. 

Shanghai was known as the Capital of China’s esports scene. Beijing also had a thriving esports scene, but it just wasn’t as competitive or as well-known as the Shanghai scene. The third largest city with an esports scene was Guangdong. But the city and the esports scene had taken major hits in the last few years, and was nowhere near what was happening in Shanghai or Beijing. Together, the three Presidents of the Esports Associations from Shanghai, Beijing, and Guangdong decided all things concerning China in the international scene. They also decided the country’s future in esports. Since Fang Hao was the President of the Shanghai Esports Association, he had as much power and influence as the President from the Beijing Esports Association. And significantly more influence and say in the country’s esports future than the President of the Guangdong Esports Association.

Fang Hao wielded near-complete authority when it came to China’s esports scene. But with that great power comes great responsibility, and the weight that comes from such responsibilities. But Fang Hao did not mind that weight, or the stress that came with being President of the country’s biggest esports association. Because this was the path he’d chosen for himself, and he’d willingly accepted all of that.

Fang Hao had devoted himself to esports from the very beginning. He’d been one of the few people who saw the potential in competitive video games, and worked to make sure China was ready to make a name for itself when the international scene came into being. He saw the potential in the Defense of the Ancients MOBA, but it didn’t capture his heart. Then League of Legends came out, and that’s where he saw China’s future in esports. He poured blood, sweat, and tears into the Esports Association. Devoted himself to climbing up the ladder until he was in a position where he could start influencing the scene. Then he continued to push until he climbed to the position he was in today as the President of the Esports Association. But for Fang Hao, this journey that he was on was not about fame, money, or authority. What he wanted more than anything was to spend his lifetime and his career cementing esports as a viable career path and international competition. One where China was known as a force to be reckoned with. Fang Hao was one of those rare people who climbed to the top of the corporate side of esports with a pure love of gaming and competition. 

And now that he had made it to the top, Fang Hao had one goal left to fulfill. One last dream. That was the rise of the LPL under his leadership. Then he could finally relax, having accomplished everything he set out to accomplish all those years ago.

Thinking about his dreams and the rise of the LPL naturally turned Fang Hao’s thoughts to the Finals of the Season 5 League of Legends World Championships. The game that took place last Saturday. His mood immediately plummeted and he no longer wanted to get himself into a productive headspace. Instead, he stared through the giant glass windows of his office out into the city of Shanghai. Hm… Season 5 Worlds… It did not feel great when SSK won that championship trophy. Again. But I’m not even mad at the LPL teams who made it all the way to Worlds. HoG, Dust, and KG all trained hard. They played hard. It wasn’t their fault they got knocked out. But still… there has to be something I can do! I’m so tired of Korea always winning! Why are we stuck in a place where we’re always behind them? 

Fang Hao regretted the fact that no matter what he did, the LPL could not overcome Korea. He started to wonder if the situation they were in today was his fault. Then he thought about the Season 1 World Championships. Season 1. Now that was a show! Our miracle team… those guys tore through every other team in their path until they made it all the way to the Finals. Everyone thought China was worth shit back then. We only got a pity ticket to the World Championships. But we sure showed them! Until the very end. Where Korea managed to knock us back and win again. Fang Hao sighed as he thought back to those days. And how they had made it to the very end of the World Championships and then lost to Korea 2-3. The Korean team they lost to was equally amazing. It was disappointing that they lost the Championship Trophy by only a single game. But they had firmly cemented China as an Esports Powerhouse! 

Thinking back to that moment, and what happened after soured Fang Hao’s mood even more. We made it to the very top back then! Everyone talked about us, the entire country was buzzing about esports. What did we do with all that energy? NOTHING! We didn’t capitalize on the momentum that the miracle team generated for us at all! And since then… well, since that one team and one Championship, we haven’t even had a team get to the Finals. Not a single LPL team in the Finals in the last four years!

Fang Hao sighed. “What a pity. We were so close…” Then his thoughts turned to what happened at the end of the Finals. When Lee Dojae handed the Summoner’s Cup to Rake at the end of the Finals. And made his speech about passing on the torch and the Dynasty of Rake. Dynasty of Rake… an unbroken line of champions! Fang Hao smacked himself in the face when he remembered that moment and Lee Dojae’s speech. “What a moron! How could someone be that pretentious? And his whole passing-the-torch bullshit? Where did that even come from? This new Rake is a winner and an actual legend. When was Lee Dojae a legend while he played as Rake? Is Lee Dojae delusional? Thinking he was the legend of his era? Back when that pretentious moron was playing DotA under the name Rake, the real legend was someone else! Lee Dojae was so far behind in second place that no one even cared that he existed! Now he’s up on stage spewing horseshit to rewrite history!”

Fang Hao was known for being a calm and composed leader. Everyone thought of him as someone who calculated and thought before he spoke, and believed that he never lost his temper. But that wasn’t always the truth. Fang Hao was calm and preferred resolving issues rationally more often than not. But even he had his limits, and a fierce temper that he constantly kept in check. His fuse was long and it took a lot to trip it. But it did happen every once in a while. The last time that he could think of right now was back during the Season 1 League of Legends World Championships. He was only the Vice President of the Shanghai Esports Association back then, but that didn’t stop him from going toe-to-toe with the bigwigs from the Global Esports Association. He went off on them and refused to back down until they agreed to let China’s miracle team play. Fang Hao took great pride in his actions that day. He had stood up for and represented a team that counted on him, and that single action built a reputation for China in esports!

As he thought back to that moment, Fang Hao chuckled at his younger self. But he didn’t regret his actions that day at all. He’d done what needed to be done for China’s Esports Association, and he’d continue doing what needed to be done to support the Shanghai Esports Association and China. But moments like that were only memories now. He’d been unable to do anything to get the LPL past the barrier they’d been stuck at for years. He shook his head to snap out of the thoughts of the past. The future is what matters! I need to do something for the LPL like I did for the miracle team back then! 

Fang Hao started working for the day. He flipped through the first file of documents on his desk and raised an eyebrow. Arrangements for the All-China University Tournament. Otherwise known as the Collegiate Cup. The sister-tournament to the Shanghai 16 School Tournament, but one that was meant for College and University level players, rather than high school students. This tournament used to be held once a year as an annual event. But it had been changed to a bi-annual event starting this year. More opportunities to compete would lead to better players filtering into the LPL was the reasoning. A month from today marked the start of the next All-China University Tournament!

Fang Hao looked through the details of this tournament and thought about Chu Fang again. As Vice President of the Shanghai Esports Association, Chu Fang was the person that Fang Hao trusted the most. And a potential successor once he decided he was done. Fang Hao had let Chu Fang handle the Shanghai 16 School Tournament entirely on his own. That was a relatively small event, but one that gave Chu Fang some much needed and valuable experience. Chu Fang did really well with the 16 School competition. I’ve heard nothing but good things about it. Hm… I should probably let him handle this next one too. He’s going to need to know how all of them work if he’s going to be President one day. Actually! Speaking of Chu Fang… 

Fang Hao remembered asking Chu Fang to send him information on the two teams that had made it to the Finals for the Shanghai 16 School Tournament this year. He turned his computer on and checked his email. And the message from Chu Fang with a document containing the information he requested was sitting right there. Chu Fang… what a responsible guy! He opened the PDF and skimmed over the names of the players. Let’s see who I’m going to keep an eye on for the next few years. Hm… WAIT! Fang Hao’s thoughts froze when his eyes skimmed over a name on the list. He stood up so fast that his chair hit the back wall of his office. And he continued to stand there, staring at his screen in disbelief. Staring at the name in disbelief. The name of High School 13’s Midlaner. “L-lin. F-feng…? Lin Feng? LIN FENG!?

A certain face popped into Fang Hao’s mind. Could it be… ? He quickly shook his head and took some deep breaths to calm himself down. “No, it has to be a coincidence. It can’t be, right?” But the possibility kept creeping back into his mind, refusing to disappear. His heart started racing. ”But what if it really is him!?”

　✹

Monday afternoon in High School 13. The students had already sat through most of their classes. The excitement from winning the Shanghai 16 School Tournament two days ago had mostly died out. Life had returned to its normal routine pace of classes, assignments and exams.

Lin Feng was stuck in class and starting to doze off. His eyes were heavy and every blink lasted longer and longer. Right as Lin Feng was about to drift off to sleep, his phone buzzed. The sharp vibration woke him up a little, and he checked his phone. A message from Tian Tian. That was exciting enough to completely wake Lin Feng up. He opened up the message and read it.

Fatty:「Lin Feng, what are you up to? I don’t have practice today! Wanna hang out? Get something to eat?」

After their knock out in the Semifinals of the Season 5 World Championships, KG returned to China. But they didn’t come home to mope around or go on vacation. They spent their time analyzing their games at Worlds, talking about what they needed to change up and what they needed to practice more, and setting up goals for next year’s Worlds. It was a lot of work and many hours of team meetings. Tian Tian had been busy ever since he got home. Until now. The first thing he did once he got a chance to leave the gaming house for a bit was to message Lin Feng to see if they could hang out.

Fatty wants to hang out? Lin Feng’s face lit up. He immediately replied to Tian Tian’s text.

Lin Feng:「Great! I’ll take the train over. Then we can decide on a place when we meet up!」

The two of them agreed to meet up after school and wander about until they found an internet cafe to hang out at.

Once he finalized plans with Tian Tian, Lin Feng put his phone away. But he sat there with a happy smile on his face. Then he looked around to see what everyone else was up to, and found Ouyang staring at him. Lin Feng scratched his head, confused by the suspicious glare Ouyang was giving up. He waited for Ouyang to say something, but nothing happened for a few awkward seconds. Eventually, Lin Feng decided to speak up. “Uhm… what’s up, Ouyang? What’s with the look?”

Ouyang inched himself closer to Lin Feng and asked, “YOU WERE TEXTING BRO! Who were you texting? I saw how you looked. The only time a bro looks that happy while sending a message is when he’s texting a girl. I know that look! No bro has that much fun texting another bro. You were really into those messages!” Then he paused and whisper-yelled, “YOU WERE TEXTING A GIRL!” He was loud, but not loud enough for the teacher at the front of the classroom to hear him. It was a loud whisper. And, unfortunately, just loud enough for An Xin and Tang Bingyao, sitting ahead of them, to overhear. Both of them turned around to look at Ouyang and Lin Feng.

The two girls had the same exact thought. Lin Feng was messing a girl…? They looked at each other, and then shook their heads. An Xin raised an eyebrow, and Tang Bingyao  scrunched up her nose.

The esports club arrived at the barbeque place much more glum than they intended. The original plan was to celebrate their victory with grilled meat. But watching Worlds and the unstoppable might of SSK put a damper on things. They walked in quietly, everyone lost in their own thoughts about Worlds and SSK. But the smell of grilled meat and the happy atmosphere of the restaurant soon snapped them out of it. They all ordered, and soon the conversation turned to the food that was about to arrive. Then the food arrived and everyone started eating. 

Lin Feng grabbed a pork belly rib and gnawed on it. Grease stuck to his lips and his fingers were a saucy mess. But he couldn’t care less as he took another bite. Superteam. Superteam. We were so good back in Season 1. Eleven and me… Those were the days. Fatty and me… He grabbed a piece of char siu and wolfed it down, completely ignoring the conversation around him. I’ma make a new team! A new superteam! Better than last time! A 2.0! 

An Xin tried to follow the conversation Ouyang and Liu Yue were having, but found herself glancing over at Lin Feng. Are you also thinking about our old team? I think about those days all the time. We had something great! She closed her eyes as a touch of a smile appeared on her face. We had a top 3 in the world player in each position! And we had you in the midlane. I don’t care what happened in those finals. You were the best. You really were. We lost, yes. But that was only because we got unlucky. You were the better Midlaner!

The food at the barbeque place tasted great, but An Xin wasn’t really hungry. She tried to get out of her own mind and looked over at Ren Rou, who was talking about how the LPL never really achieved anything in the world of League of Legends. We did. People just forgot. We were great in Season 1! We would’ve won, if we didn’t get so unlucky. Our team was better than SSK! And that’s an honest assessment. We were just better. But they got lucky. That was the difference. We lost because they got luck—

Lin Feng jumped to his feet and clenched his fists, shouting, “Don’t worry, guys! We got this! We’re going to win Worlds!” He wiped the grease from his lips with his sleeve. A fire burned in his eyes. He looked at his friends, each in turn, then proclaimed, “Trust me! We’re gonna climb to the top and win Worlds!”

Ouyang shook his head and said, “There he goes again. Bro, be a little realistic here. How are we going to win Worlds?” He sighed, letting his gaze fall down, and added, “You’re my bro. I don’t wanna make fun of you. But you’re kinda asking for it right now… What? You think HoG or KG will win it next year? Did you forget how SSK stomped them?”

An Xin looked at Lin Feng and smiled. Then she interjected, “HoG and KG aren’t good enough. You’re right about that, Ouyang. But why can’t a new team rise up? Who knows, maybe there’ll be a new superteam next season!”

Ouyang was stumped for words. He just stared at An Xin and then finally argued, “What’d ya mean, superteam? A team with five super players who can magically beat SSK? Tell me, where should these super players come from? The LSPL? Have you watched their games this season? They’re dogshit! Nightsong is a million times better than all of those ad-carries combined! You know, there’s a good reason why those teams aren’t in the LPL! And why we aren’t winning Worlds…”

An Xin shook her head and giggled. “Who said anything about the LSPL?”

There was a stunned silence. Everyone glanced at each other but no one said anything. It started to turn a little awkward when Lin Feng suddenly slammed his hand on the table and shouted, “There’s my team! I’m going to remake my team!”

Ouyang pointed at Lin Feng and asked An Xin, “Is this your superteam? Our challenger bro and hi—” Wait. Hold on! Remake? He abruptly turned to look at Lin Feng and said, “Yo. What do you mean, remake your team? When did you ever have a team?”

Lin Feng smiled at Ouyang and shook his head. You wouldn’t believe me if I told you, just like the Challenger thing all over again. I’ll just have to show it to you. He smiled and said, “Don’t worry about it. That’s not important. All that matters is that we’re going to win Worlds! I’m sure of it!”

Everyone started laughing and no one took Lin Feng seriously. Ouyang eventually raised a cup and proposed a toast to Lin Feng’s new superteam! This evoked a second round of laughter, after which Liu Yue chimed in with a joke. More laughter. Followed by another joke. They’d known Lin Feng for a couple of months now, and had grown accustomed to his wild and impossible-sounding claims. But they appeared to have forgotten that each one had been realized. Him being a Challenger. Them winning the Shanghai 16 School Tournament. All of it came true.

An Xin laughed. Not at Lin Feng, but at his friends. She knew Lin Feng better than anyone. She knew exactly what he was capable of. And winning Worlds, he was capable of doing that. We’re going to go back there. And this time, it won’t come down to luck. I have to get better, and come up with stronger strategies. There’ll be nothing left to chance.

Tang Bingyao was the only one who didn’t laugh. She looked at Lin Feng and knew he was serious; the determination in his voice told her that. He asked me to join… I always said no. She pursed her lips and looked at her friend. Her best friend. Do I want to play League of Legends professionally? Do I want to do that with him? With BunBun? She glanced over at An Xin and then nodded. I do. Mhm!

✹

High School 13’s esports team feasted and celebrated at the barbeque place until well after 3 A.M. They eventually paid the bill and started saying their goodbyes, until Lin Feng turned to look at An Xin. Everyone stopped talking. It was an almost reflexive move by now. They’d seen this exact scenario play out many times before in just the last week! A circle spread out around the two. No one wanted to be caught in the crossfire!

Lin Feng nodded at An Xin and said, “You coming over to my place again?

An Xin raised her eyebrows and asked, “You’re missing me already?”

“Missing? You? No,” Lin Feng denied, shaking his head. “I just wanted to know if I had to sleep on the couch again…”

On the couch? Wait… Ouyang’s eyes went wide. His desire for the latest bit of gossip clashed with his fear for An Xin. I need to know what happened the other day! Did he say something stupid while they were in bed together? WERE THEY IN BED TOGETHER? He was about to take a step forward when An Xin shook her head. She looked at Lin Feng and said, “You worked hard today. The least I can do is let you get a good night’s sleep in your own bed. I’m going to take a cab home and sleep in my own bed.”

“Oh, okay!” Lin Feng replied. Then he turned around to look at Tang Bingyao and said, “Tang Tang, let’s walk home together!”

Tang Bingyao chewed on her lips, thinking for a moment, and then nodded. “Hmm, sure.”

Liu Yue had snuck over to Ouyang and pulled him to his side, whispering, “Man, Lin Feng’s so lucky. When he tires out one, he just moves to the next!”

Ouyang grinned and replied quietly, “BunBun says no, so he takes Tang Tang. Haha! My best bro always has a girl wrapped around his arm!”

Liu Yue nodded and said, “And they’re both so pretty… Out of all the girls in our school, he gets the prettiest two… Three if you count his roommate. How the hell is he so good with girls…?”

“Yeah! He should teach his bros the magic! Maybe we can also get some hot chicks!” Ouyang whisper-shouted, dreaming of a life with a hundred gorgeous girls fighting each other for a night with him.

Liu Yue looked from An Xin to Tang Bingyao and then back at An Xin. “I wonder which one he’s gonna pi—”

“Enough, you two,” Ren Rou interrupted. She grabbed Ouyang by the ear and glared at Liu Yue. “Or maybe you want to speak up a bit, so BunBun can hear you?”

Ouyang and Liu Yue froze. They slowly, very slowly, turned to look at An Xin. She was saying something to Tang Bingyao. And more importantly, wasn’t looking in their direction. They still felt a chill run up and down their spines as they thought of An Xin’s scary smile. They shook their heads and said to Ren Rou,

“NoNoNo, haha…”
“Uhhh… I’ll shut up! I promise!”

✹

The streets were empty in the dark of night. The first winter chills lingered in the air and a white mist draped the street, refracting the light from the lampposts to a yellow haze. Lin Feng walked with his hands buried deep in his coat and his shoulders raised to protect his neck from the cold. He watched Tang Bingyao hop over the cracks in the pavement in front of him, smiling.

Tang Bingyao smiled. This feels right. She hopped over another crack and quickly glanced back at Lin Feng, making sure he was there. I missed this. It feels like so long ago that we… She shook her head. So much happened after BunBun transferred to our class. And after I bought Lin Feng chicken cutlet… She glanced over her shoulder but couldn’t make out Lin Feng’s face in the dark. He’s probably thinking about Worlds. He did seem a lot happier tonight, even after Rake won Worlds… She shivered from the cold chill in the air and stuffed her hands in the pockets of her jacket. Then she hopped over another crack and started smiling again. This feels right. He’s behind me. He has my back. Hmm, I didn’t think I’d miss this so much.

The streetlights jumped to green as Tang Bingyao approached. There was almost no one else out on the streets. She skipped over the street, humming to a calm melody. I finally feel myself again. This feels great! Mhm! She slowed down a little and looked up at the sky. No stars tonight. She giggled and nodded. We’ll become stars! I’ve thought about it enough. Way too much. Rou Rou was right. He’s a little clueless and I don’t really know what it is I want either. If something happens, it happens. And if it doesn’t, then so be it. Hmm-mm! It doesn’t really matter if nothing happens. I quite like things the way they are. But… I do want to stay by his side. I wonder if he still wants me to be his team’s ad-carry… I did carry in the Finals today. And he knew I would!

Tang Bingyao abruptly stopped and swirled around. Then she tilted her head and asked, “Lin Feng, are you really going to remake your superteam?”

“Huh?” Lin Feng blurted out. He looked at Tang Bingyao who was suddenly standing right in front of him, surprised. Guess I got lost in my thoughts again… “Superteam? Oh!” he exclaimed. Then he nodded and said, “Yeah! Of course!”

Tang Bingyao opened her mouth, but then paused. Come on, say it. You can say it. She bit her lips, a nervous feeling in her stomach, and then said, “Remember what you asked me before? I’ll do it. I’m in.”

“Uh? What did I ask you?” Lin Feng asked, trying to figure out what was going on. Did I ask her something today? No. I don’t think so. I told her to carry with Vayne, but that can’t be it. Can it? What were we talking about again? Superteam? If I’m rema— He slapped himself on the forehead and said, “OHHH! You’re talking about you being my team’s ad-carry!”

Tang Bingyao nodded. “Mhm!”

Lin Feng ruffled his hair and asked in confusion, “But hadn’t we already decided you were going to be the ad-carry?”

“Whuh?” Tang Bingyao mumbled. Did I… No! She shook her head and said, “No! You kept telling me yes and I said no! I never agreed to it!” She paused for a moment and then added, “But now I do.”

“I see!” Lin Feng laughed. “So it’s all good! Nothing’s changed! You’re the team’s ad-carry!”

Tang Bingyao stared at Lin Feng, speechless. Then she took a deep breath and then turned around. Hmpf! Stupid Lin Feng! She started hopping over the cracks in the pavement again with a little more aggression than before. I think I understand why BunBun beats him up so much…

Lee Dojae had done something truly vile! He’d used the Worlds award ceremony to show his supremacy to the rest of the world! Countless stream chats lit up with angry messages and questions about why Riot Games had allowed this! But this was only a cover to hide their despair. SSK had defended their world title. Rake had won Worlds for a record breaking third time. And there wasn’t a single team in the world who looked capable of beating them.

「Fuck… It wasn’t even close at the end… 」
「SCREW THAT! FUCK THOSE STUPID COCKY ASSHATS!」
「how much did they pay riot for this stupid fucking show!>?!?!!」
「… ssk was the best. UCH i hate to admit it…. but they got this through their own hard work…」
「:CCCCC how we evah gonna win????????? iz hopeless guys :C just give up」
「Is there really no one who can beat them?」

Countless professional players all around the world were also upset. They cursed and shouted and flung their monitors out of the window. But their anger didn’t stem from Lee Dojae being an arrogant prick, though they all agreed that he was. Their anger was aimed at their inability to compete against SSK. They’d been practicing every day for years, yet they weren’t even good enough to stand on the same stage as SSK. As a professional, as someone who considered themself as one of the best in the world, this was incredibly difficult and painful to accept.

In Taipei, Taiwan. Read XIII was the Jungler for Assassins. He’d played in Season 5 Worlds and made it all the way to the quarterfinals, where he eventually lost to KG. But he’d put in a strong performance. His team had done well. And they were overall happy with the result. Tonight, that changed for him. He’d watched the Finals. More specifically, he’d been analyzing how Mafa played in the Jungle.

“FUCKING HELL!” Read XIII yelled as he threw his mouse across the room and shoved his keyboard off the desk. “How the hell am I supposed to compete against that? FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!” I’m a King, just like Mafa! I should be just as good as he is! He gritted his teeth and slammed his fists down on his desk. “FUCK!” He pulled at his hair as he looked back at the stream. It zoomed in on Mafa holding the Summoner’s Cup. “ARGHHHH!” He smashed his fist into the monitor, cracking the screen. How is he so much better than me? WE’RE BOTH KINGS—

Read XIII suddenly had a moment of clarity. The anger disappeared from his body as he collapsed in his chair. No. I’m no King. I’m a fucking nobody next to him! He looked around the room at the damages he’d caused. He sighed and said, “Fucking hell. I train every fucking day, ever since I lost to Eleven during the Season 1 World Championships! All to get revenge on him… And look where I’m now… What a joke. I’m competing against a guy playing in the LSPL. Maybe that’s where I went wrong. Maybe I’ve been focusing on the wrong person this whole time…”

IN London, England. Team Legend had watched the finals of the League of Legends Season 5 World Championships together in their gaming house. They’d started watching that night with a drink and some chips, just there to watch a good game. And that was how they still felt after the first two games. Both Season and SSK showed strong performances. Legend’s players pointed things out they noticed and chatted about aspects of the game that they should put more time and effort into. That could help them win next year.

But that all changed in Game 3. And then Game 4. SSK was so much better than Season that it wasn’t even funny anymore! It looked like professional players giving a masterclass to a group of high schoolers! The laughter and chatter died down. No one touched the chips or took a sip from their drinks. They just sat there, stunned.

Legend’s Jungler finally grabbed his beer and chugged it down. Then he slumped back in his gaming chair and said, “Don’t mind Rake. Even Mafa is so insanely good. It’s… I don’t know, guys. I have no clue how to get that good…”

No one said anything for the next couple of minutes, until Demon finally broke the silence. “It’s not just Mafa. Even their Toplaner… That guy’s awareness in teamfights is better than mine… He might actually be better than me.”

Phoenix shook his head and sighed. He took a sip of his beer and then said, “Their Midlaner and Jungler. Their Toplaner, Support and ad-carry… All five of them are phenomenal players. And they only get better when they play together. They’re the world champions for a reason. Even on our best day we can’t beat them. Rip.”

IN Shanghai, China. Hermes had joined Nightsong in the Hand of God headquarters right as Worlds was about to start. They’d watched the games together and were now watching the replay together. During the first two games, they felt optimism. SSK and Season both looked beatable. There were openings and opportunities that the two of them felt confident they could exploit. But then Game 3 started. The dread they felt while initially watching it returned.

Hermes leaned back in his chair and sighed loudly. “Crap, Nightsong. Crap, that’s how I feel.” He shook his head and looked back at the monitor. Then he continued, “I thought it was back when we watched it live. But it only looks worse on replay. They’re playing it perfectly. I don’t… I don’t know, man. They’re next level.”

Nightsong stood up from his gaming chair and started laughing. “We’re idiots. You know that, right? We actually thought we could compete against them! HA! WHAT A JOKE! You know it, Hermes. Screw SSK. We can’t even beat Season! We’re…” He gritted his teeth and felt his stomach contracting. We’re not even good enough to beat Season! I was right. We’re trash! TRASH! He snorted and then said, “It’s true. You know it, Hermes. I’m the best ad-carry in China. And you’re the best Midlaner…” He started laughing again, shaking his head, and continued, “You know what’s funny? Those guys, there, on screen? They probably think about us just like we think about high schoolers. FUCK MY FLACID DICK! WE’RE TRASH! TRASH!”

Hermes looked up at his friend. You’re right. He pursed his lips. Then he shook his head and said, “We’re David. Season is Goliath. And SSK is Kronos. Hahaha. Crap. Crap. Am I really saying this? Crap.” He took a long, deep breath, then continued, “What do we do now? Continue training like nothing happened? What do we even train? Mechanics? Strategy? Champion pools? Team synergy? Awareness? Or do we just replace our coach and blame it all on him?” He paused for a moment, then added in a quiet voice, “Or maybe we’re just not good enough…”

Nightsong let himself fall down in his gaming chair. We’re little kids next to SSK. We’re the little kids… He thought back to the Shanghai 16 School Tournament. Back to the kids he’d seen playing. They weren’t half bad. That Lulu was actually really goo— “TRASH! SHUT YOUR UGLY PIEHOLE!” You’re better than this. You’re better than some stupid high schooler! You’re going to lift yourself up and find a solution. That’s what you do! You get better in the face of challenges. You don’t give up like a pussy!

Hermes looked up at his friend, spooked by the sudden outburst. But then collapsed back in his gaming chair and looked at the stream, half hoping to see SSK losing. It was still Game 3. And SSK was still crushing Season. “Crap,” he mumbled.

“Hey, Hermes?” Nighsong asked, looking over at his friend. “What do you think? Will we get some new talent on the team? I really want to believe that we stand a chance. But… It’s just… Well, just look at the screen! How are we going to beat them? And if we don’t, then who? We’re the best dickslapping, tentacle-fucking badasses China has to offer! We’re all there is!” He shook his head and added, “I’d just like to see us win for once. It doesn’t even have to be me. Just a Chinese team is enough.”

Hermes watched the end of Game 3 in silence. Then he finally turned and looked Nightsong in the eyes. “We’ll win. And if we don’t, another Chinese team will. Someday.”

✹

High School 13’s team exited the NetCow Cafe well after 1 A.M. The Finals of the League of Legends Season 5 World Championships had gone on for a little over two hours. They decided to have an afterparty at their favourite barbeque place around the corner before going home. It was the same place they always went to after a big win or a drink too many. The original plan was to go here to celebrate their victory at the Shanghai 16 School Tournament, but the World Finals had dampened their mood. It had once more shown just how big the gap was between them, the best high schoolers in Shanghai, and the professional scene.

Ouyang shook his head and grumbled, “I’d give up our win in the Shanghai 16 School Tournament for Season winning Worlds!”

Ren Rou rolled her eyes back and said, “If we’re going by that logic, I’d have rather given up our win for KG to win Worlds.”

Ouyang groaned and replied, “I don’t care who wins, just not SSK…”

Yang Fan adjusted his glasses and interjected, “It can’t be helped. SSK is the best team in the world right now. You saw it. Season just isn’t strong enough. And honestly, I don’t think there’s any team in the world who can really compete against SSK. We just have to learn to admit that.”

An Xin took a large gulp of her soda as she listened to Yang Fan’s analysis. She finally shook her head and said, “This really didn’t come as a surprise. We knew from the start that Season was most likely going to lose. SSK is the better overall team. They have five very strong players, each with deep champion pools.” She took another gulp of her soda and then continued, “Now look at Season. Yes, they have Autumn. But what else? Their other players are good, but not as good as the players from SSK. And their Toplaner and Jungler have relatively shallow champion pools on top of that. That just makes them easy targets. SSK knew exactly what they were going to be up against and could prepare for those specific scenarios.” She shrugged and added, “It was always going to be difficult for Season. SSK is just the better team.”

Yang Fan adjusted his glasses and said, “I agree. SSK was the better overall team.”

“This is mad,” Chen Ze said, lowering his head. “According to you, no one can beat SSK… They got the deepest champion pools, the best players, and the best coaching staff, and I don’t know what more! That’s mad, right? What are they? Some kind of superteam?”Lin Feng had been lost in his own little world ever since the World Finals began. He didn’t even really hear what his friends were talking about for most of the night. But when Chen Ze said the word “superteam”, he suddenly was back in the present. He looked over at his friend and mumbled quietly, “A superteam?” He smiled and nodded at himself. We had a superteam back in season 1. With me, Fatty, Eleven, those two in the bot lane… And An Xin as our coach. We should’ve been the best team in the world. We were! Worlds should’ve been ours! And we were still getting better so quickly… If we’d kept going, SSK wouldn’t have won tonight. I would’ve made sure of that!

Season had put a stop to SSK’s unbeaten streak! SSK’s perfect run ended in the Finals! The entire world of League of Legends, with the sole exception of South-Korea, took to the internet to share the joy. They crashed forums and message boards! And they flooded the stream chats of the various official broadcasts.

「SSK ISNT INRINSIBLE!!!!!」
「korean killleeerrrrrssssssssssssss」
「SUCK ON THAT! stupid koreans and their “eternal” reign… NOOOBBBBSSSSSS」
「lololololol ssk sucks!!!!! NA BEST REGION IN DA HOLE WITE WORLLDDDD!!!11」
「were gonna winnnn woorrllddddssssssss SEASON <33333」
「ROFLMAO!!! HARHARHAR!!!! ssk nubs. Confirmed.」

Lee Dojae sat in a skybox high up in the Mercedes Benz Arena, scrolling through the stream chats from various regions. Why are these people so stupid? Can’t they see that SSK is going to win this? He looked out the window at the venue down below, annoyed. 17,000 people here to watch SSK become World Champions… And tens of millions fans all across the world to witness Rake step up to the top of the esports scene again! But Season wasn’t giving him the show he wanted. He narrowed his eyes as he looked at Autumn. He really is talented. They only won the previous game because of his Thresh hooks. Three in one teamfight… That was fucking ridiculous! He pursed his lips, but then shrugged. Eh, whatever. It was just one good game from them. That won’t be enough. I personally trained Han Seho. Rake will carry this. SSK will become world champion and the name Rake will be synonymous for best in the world again!

Season wasn’t planning to give Lee Dojae what he wanted. The players sat behind their computers, completely focused. Their coach was talking them through the strategy for the next game, and telling them what to watch out for. His message was clear. If they wanted to win the Finals, and they did, then they had to win Game 3 and Game 4. They absolutely couldn’t let SSK gather any momentum!

Autumn tried to keep a calm expression and listen to his coach. But he couldn’t get himself to. He looked over the edge of his monitor at SSK. At Rake. They haven’t shown everything yet. We’re going at it with all we’ve got, but they’re still holding back. His eyebrows twitched and he frowned. How do we win this? It’s only going to get harder from here. We already threw everything we had at the first two games… And we only won the second one. How are we supposed to win two more? Can we even win two more…? He bit down on his tongue and shook his head. It’s going to be really difficult. But we can do it!

Rake sat up straight in his chair with his eyes closed. Their coach had already informed them of the strategy for the next game, and now his teammates were chatting together about bratwurst, beer, and the Oktoberfest. He didn’t participate. We’ve had our fun. I won’t let this go on. He took a deep, calming breath. Then his eyes shot open. Focused. He put his right hand on his mouse, feeling its weight in his grasp, and placed his left hand on the keyboard. It’s time to end this.

✹

High School 13’s esports team was watching the World Finals in a private room at the NetCow Cafe. SSK and Season had entered Champion Select. After a quick ban phase, which was again focused on banning Rake and Autumn’s favourite champions, they started locking in champions. Season’s first pick was Jarvan IV. Then SSK locked in Ahri and Lee Sin.

Ouyang’s eyes went wide. He threw his chair around and shouted, “Ahri and Lee Sin! SSK is copying BunBun’s strategy! THEY’RE STEALING OUR COMP!” He then turned back to look at the screen and continued, “Bros… They’re playing our team comp! Rake and Mafa are going to play our team comp!”

Liu Yue completely forgot about wanting to see Season win Worlds. He nodded fervently and said, “It’s awesome! We’re drafting the same champions as top, world class pro teams! Lin Feng and BunBun are our very own Rake and Mafa! Woo!”

Yang Fan adjusted his glasses and said, “The Ahri-Lee Sin combo is really strong in the current meta. But it’s also really hard to pull off. Then again, Rake and Mafa are arguably the best Mid-Jungle combo in the world. And Rake is the best player in the world. I really want to see how they’re going to play this game.” He then turned to An Xin and asked, “What do you think?”

An Xin smiled and replied, “Yep, you’re right. Those two are two of the best players in the world. Rake the Emperor and Mafa the King. And it was to be expected that the best teams in the world would notice how strong the Ahri-Lee Sin combo is right now. I’m kind of surprised we haven’t seen it earlier.” She paused for a moment and then added, “Rake and Mafa have been practicing this combo for weeks now, so they’re going to be a lot better at it than Lin Feng and me. I’m also curious to see how they do. And how much better they are.”

Lin Feng sat up straight in his chair, staring intently at the screen. “Better for now,” he said to An Xin. He didn’t smile, but he didn’t look worried either. There was only the strong determination that radiated from his eyes. “We’re going to beat them.”

✹

The first two games had given Season fans all the hope they needed. They even started whispering about winning the world title. And Korean Killers became the most searched term on the internet. Then Game 3 happened. Rake’s Ahri and Mafa’s Lee Sin worked together flawlessly. It was as if they were of one mind and body. They decimated Season in the mid lane, then went on to roam around the map, picking up kills everywhere.

SSK had complete control over Summoner’s Rift after only 10 minutes. The players from Season were afraid to even walk out of their base, terrified to get caught out by Ahri and Lee Sin. One Charm from Ahri was all it took to give yet another kill to SSK. This went on until the 26th minute, when SSK steamrolled Season’s base and destroyed their Nexus.

Back in the NetCow Cafe, Ouyang and Liu Yue sat next to each other with their mouths hanging wide open. They glanced at each other and mumbled in unison, “Wow!”

“What was that?” Ren Rou said, dazed. Game 3 of the World Finals had looked like a typical solo queue game. As if two Challenger players had created smurf accounts to toy around in Silver. It was an absolute slaughter and simply painful to watch.

“Mhm. SSK is really good,” Tang Bingyao noted.

An Xin nodded and then turned around to look at Lin Feng, who sat in the far back of the room. Are you ok? You haven’t said a word… She watched him sit there in silence, lost in his thoughts. He hadn’t said a single word all game. An Xin bit on her lip, then shook her head and looked back at the stream. You’ll get your revenge.

✹

The North American fans saw their hopes of an American World Champion evaporate in Game 3. Season had nothing to bring in from start to finish. Rake and Mafa demonstrated to the world what perfect synergy was! They tore Season apart with an absolutely stunning Ahri-Lee Sin display! And they helped SSK steamroll to a 26 minute victory.

「Come on, Season! You guys can do this! You have it in you! Just dig deep!」
「WERE THE KOREAN KILLERS! PLLSSSSSSS」
「ONE TIME! JUST ONE TIME! Please, God, I’m begging you! Let Season win this!」
「we can do this! Just gotta belliieeeevvveeeeeeeeee!!!!」
「Don’t give those Koreans another win! COME ON SEASON! I”M ROOTING FOR YOU!!!!」
「I’ll get a tattoo of Autumn on my ass if Season win this!」

But all the support in the world wasn’t going to carry Season to a win. SSK was just too good. Game 4 was almost an exact copy of Game 3. Rake and Mafa slaughtered Season’s Midlaner and then started terrorizing the rest of the map. Season had nowhere to go and soon found themselves pushed back into their base. But that didn’t save them either. In the 26th minute, SSK destroyed Season’s Nexus and crowned themselves World Champion!

The League of Legends Season 5 World Championship Finals ended in a 3-1 victory for SSK. They became the first team in League of Legends history to win the World Championships two times in a row, with their starplayer Rake achieving a record third world title!

The Mercedes Benz Arena shook, but it wasn’t an earthquake. The people in the stadium were just losing it! They were stamping their feet on the ground. They were jumping, dancing, and screaming their lungs out! There was a new world champion!

“SSK BEST IN THE WORLD!”
“RAKE MVP! BEST PLAYER IN THE WORLD!”
“MAFA FOR EMPEROR!”
“WE’RE THE BEST REGION IN THE WORLD!”
“WOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”
“WORLD CHAMPIONS! WE’RE THE WORLD CHAMPIONS!”

SSK’s members shot up from their gaming chairs, throwing their arms in the air to celebrate. They had defended their world title! Then Rake led them across the stage to shake hands with Season, before walking over to the middle of the stage and bowing towards each section of the audience. A show of gratitude to everyone who’d come out to support them. And the final bow was toward the camera, to thank the tens of millions of people who’d turned on the stream and were watching them.

From his skybox, Lee Dojae finally let out a long held breath. There wasn’t any real suspension at the end of Game 4, but he still got nervous. Now he smiled. I made the right choice. Han Seho is the perfect new Rake. Then he got up from his seat and mumbled, “Good. Now there’s only one more thing left to do.”

✹

The League of Legends World Championships host stood on the stage with a microphone in his hand. The audience had quieted down when he started talking, “Riot Games has invited a special guest this year for the award ceremony! You may know him for his achievements that have landed him a spot in the Esports Hall of Fame. He was the old team captain of SSK and also played with the online handle Rake! Give a warm welcome to Lee Dojae!”

Lee Dojae smiled as he heard the audience cheer at the mention of his name. He looked at the Summoner’s Cup in his hands. This is my moment. I’m starting a new era of esports. From one Rake to the next! From legend to legend! My name will live on forever! He nodded at himself, then slowly walked up on stage, waving at the audience.

The five main players on SSK’s roster stood in the middle of the stage, with the two coaches and substitutes behind them. All of them turned to look at Lee Dojae as he walked up on stage. They bowed towards him in respect and kept their heads down until he stood in front of them.

Lee Dojae smiled a little brighter. Then he walked up to Han Seho and said,  “Good. You didn’t disappoint me.”

Han Seho bowed again and replied, “I’m glad I met your expectations, sir.”

Lee Dojae nodded and said, “Then I’m handing this, and everything that comes with it, over to you.” He offered the Summoner’s Cup to Han Seho. To Rake. I’m giving it to myself.

Han Seho took the Summoner’s Cup and assured, “I accept it. You can entrust everything to me.”He then turned away from Lee Dojae and looked at the audience. There was a brief pause, just long enough for the camera to focus on him. Then he raised the Summoner’s Cup high above his head.

The Summoner’s Cup represented the passing of the torch from Rake Sr. to Rake Jr.. It was a moment that every Korean talk show had been hyping up towards! That every Korean esports fan had been waiting for! It was a reaffirmation that they were the best esports region in the world! No one could compete against them! And the world had to know that! This entire award ceremony was orchestrated to give a single message to every other region and every other professional player in the world: “Korea is number one! The rest of you noobs have fun fighting for second best!”

The camera focused on Han Seho and the large cup in his hands. Then it zoomed out and showed how the other members of the team gathered around their starplayer and celebrated the victory. One by one, they took the trophy and lifted it up above their heads. They were World Champions! Again!

Lee Dojae watched Han Seho celebrate the victory in the Finals of the League of Legends Season 5 World Championships with the rest of SSK. He nodded at himself and smiled. I made the name. And I won with that name. Now you have it. Take good care of it! And remember, Rake will always stand at the top! I will always stand at the top! Don’t ever let that change.

✹

Lin Feng watched every minute and every second of the League of Legends World Finals. How Rake destroyed Season’s Midlaner. How Rake annihilated Season. How Rake lifted up the Summoner’s Cup! I’m taking you down! Lin Feng clenched his fist and he started smiling. You’re good. Really good. But I have time. And I have the talent to beat you! His smile grew into a wide grin. I lost. Yes. You beat me! But that was four years ago. Now I’m back. A blazing fire of determination ignited in Lin Feng’s eyes! I’m coming for you!

High School 13 finally had a reason to install a trophy cabinet in the school lobby. For the first time in the school’s history, they had won an important tournament! Their esports club was the best in Shanghai! High School 13’s students were jumping around, hugging their friends and strangers alike, and screaming their lungs out! They only grew louder when Chu Fang walked up on stage with a large cheque worth ¥80,000 in his hands.

Chu Fang tried to silence the audience, so he could congratulate High School 13. But no one was interested in what he had to say. He finally gave up and handed the cheque to Ren Rou. Then he nodded at Lin Feng and said, “You’ve got a very talented team with you here. I’m looking forward to what you guys are going to achieve.”

Lin Feng grinned and replied, “I know, right? This is a great team! We’re going to win everyt—”

“Enough talking already! Hurry up! Hurry!” Ouyang interrupted. He shoved his smartphone in Lin Feng’s face and shouted, “Look at the man on the wall, bro! The clock, the clock. He’s got a tiny half moustache! You know what that means? THE TIME IS NOW 9:47 P.M.! Worlds is starting in an hour! Let’s make like a fox and skeeeeedaddle already! I don’t wanna miss it!” Then he grabbed Lin Feng and started pulling him away.

Ren Rou appeared behind Ouyang like the grim reaper. She flicked his ears and yelled, “Manners, Ouyang! Manners!” Then she turned to look at Chu Fang and bowed apologetically. “I’m sorry, sir. He’s just super excited. And…”

Chu Fang laughed and said, “Your friend is right, Worlds is starting soon. Alright, you kids go and have fun.” Then he looked at Lin Feng and added, “We’ll talk another time. Congratulations on winning the tournament!”

Ren Rou and An Xin made several more apologies as they watched Ouyang run for the exit of the electronics mall together with Lin Feng and Yang Fan. Then they nodded to the rest of the team and they all hurried out after Ouyang. They pushed past their fellow students who were trying to congratulate them, shouting apologies over their shoulders, and rushed out into the square outside. Where they saw Ouyang, Yang Fan, and Lin Feng hailing a taxi. They started running over to the boys, hoping to stop them before they could get in the cab.

Ren Rou took a moment to catch her breath and then shouted, “Ouyang! Don’t go yet! I…” She ran up to him, panting and puffing, then continued, “Don’t go! I thought it might be fun to watch the Worlds Finals together! Maybe we can go to the NetCow Cafe…”

Ouyang looked at her, surprised. Then he said, “Of course we’re going to watch Worlds together! Why else do you think I’m trying to get three cabs? And check this, cheesewhiz, I even thought ahead and  reserved a room for us at the NetCow Cafe two weeks ago! We can watch Worlds and celebrate our VICTORIIIIIIII! DEMMMACCCIIIAAAAA!”

Ren Rou looked at Ouyang. Did he really use his brain…? She scrunched her eyebrows, trying to register what he’d just said, before asking, “Really now? You actually did something right? This is new. You usually mess everything up.” She clicked her tongue and added, “This is a nice change of pace. Good job, Ouyang!”

“What? I mess what up?” Ouyang asked, confused. Then he grinned and said, “Rou Rou, why you gotta be so rude? Don’t you know I’m human too? When have I ever let you down? I’d never let a fair damsel like yourself down! The Order of the ChivalBros forbids it! And I’m the Sword-Saint BroKnight! The kinde—”

Ren Rou glared at Ouyang and cut him off, “Enough, you! Don’t make me take back my words.”

Ouyang was about to reply when Yang Fan interrupted him, “Hello? If you two are finished, I found a third taxi! We should get going before they start running the meter up for standing and waiting. We’ll meet up at the NetCow Cafe, ok?”

There was a fast round of approval. All nine team members wanted to watch the World Finals together. There was just something special about watching sporting events together with friends. An atmosphere that made good plays great and great games perfect. They split up in groups of three and shoved themselves onto the backseats of the cabs. Then the three taxis drove off into the night.

✹

There was a long line of people in front of the NetCow Cafe. Every League of Legends fan in the world wanted to see the Finals of the League of Legends Season 5 World Championships. It was the most watched esports event in the world! And although there was no Chinese representative in this Finals, the Chinese fans had gathered in large numbers, rivaling the record set during the Semifinals match between KG and SSK! Internet cafes were at maximum capacity and those who didn’t get in had gathered in small groups on the street, watching the official broadcast on their smartphones.

Ouyang pushed through the crowd, shouting, “Coming through! Coming through!” People turned around, annoyed, and by doing so left enough room for Ouyang to maneuver through. The rest of High School 13’s team followed his example. They pushed and shoved their way to the entrance of the NetCow Cafe, where they were stopped by two bouncers. Ouyang smiled proudly at them and said, “We have reserved a private room! It’s under the name: Ouyang and his bros!”

Ouyang leaned over towards the bouncers to scan the list they were holding. He spotted his name before they did and pointed it out. “There! Right there! See? I told you I reserved a room!” Then he turned around to the others and said, “We’re in our usual room!”

High School 13’s esports team entered the NetCow Cafe. Their first stop was the bar. They ordered drinks, most of them alcoholic, and some snacks. Then they pushed through the jam-packed hall to the private rooms in the back. There were still a couple of minutes left until the World Finals were starting. Ouyang rushed to boot up the computers and get the stream going, while the others got comfortable and waited for the game to start.

The official broadcast was brought up on the screen. Ouyang let himself fall down in his chair and relaxed for a brief moment. Then he swirled around and asked, “Yo. Who do you guys think is going to win?”

Yang Fan adjusted his glasses and said, “I think SSK has shown throughout the year that they’re the better team. The probability is that they’ll win it.”

Chen Ze nodded and agreed, “I think so too. Those Korean madmen are going to be really hard to beat.”

Liu Yue raised an eyebrow and said, “Koreans are going to beat the Korean Killers? As if! I think Autumn is going to carry North America to a win!”

Wei Dong shook his head helplessly. “Yeah Liu Yue, I kinda want to see Season win too. I think we all want to see them win again. No one’s rooting for those cocky Koreans. They’re so smug and walk around like they already know they’ll be winning it again. But they are really good. It’s hard to see anyone beating them.”

“Wei Dong has a point,” Yang Fan added, adjusting his glasses. “Korea has been dominating the scene for years now. As nice as it would be to see someone else winning the title for a change. I do think that if anyone can beat them, it is Season.” He hesitated for a moment. Then he turned to An Xin and asked, “You’re the coach. What do you think? Who’s going to Worlds?”

“Me?” An Xin asked. She looked at the stream that was showing highlights of SSK’s game versus KG in the Semifinals. The camera zoomed in on Rake’s LeBlanc. An Xin looked at Yang Fan and said, “I think SSK is going to win this one. Either 3-2 or 3-1.”

Liu Yue interjected, “Don’t forget that Season is also really good! You are all way too hard on them! They stand a good chance of winning tonight! I think they’re going to win!”

An Xin laughed and said, “That’s true. Season is a strong team… But SSK is stronger. Plus, Rake is at the top of his game right now. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him play better. Now that I mention it, I don’t think I’ve seen a single Midlaner win against him in lane this year.”

No one had a response to that. An Xin was right. Rake was in the best shape of his life. There wasn’t a single team that knew how to deal with him. He never had an off-day, and he always performed at a level that everyone else could only dream about achieving. The only sound in the room came from the official broadcast. The host was hyping up Rake. Everyone watched this in silence, until Ouyang eventually broke it. He’d turned to Lin Feng and asked, “Yo, bro, you think Season can stop Rake?”

Lin Feng was staring intensely at the image of Rake on the screen. But he didn’t look scared or lost or anxious. His jaw was set and his eyes radiated determination, maybe even a little hope. But then he noticed that Ouyang was looking at him and dropped back to his normal affable self. Lin Feng scratched the back of his head and said, “Oh, uh, I don’t know… Hm…. Uh, let’s watch and see.” He looked at the stream and added, “It’s starting! We should pay attention!”

✹

It was Game 1 of the League of Legends Season 5 World Championship Finals! The fireworks started in Champion Select, where all six bans were targeted at Rake and Autumn. But these two were Emperors! If they couldn’t play their favourite champion, they’d just excel at another and make the opponent regret not banning that one!

The game itself was even more exciting than the Champion Select! Everyone was sitting at the edge of their seats. For the first time this year, SSK was forced on the backfoot! Season came out with a strong plan and grabbed an early advantage in the bot lane!

But SSK wasn’t going to take that lying down. They responded with a devastating Mid-Jungle combo. Rake got several crucial kills in the mid lane thanks to ganks by his Jungler. And then the two of them started roaming around the map. They picked up kills in the top lane and bot lane. They even caught Season’s Jungler off guard in his own Jungle!

Season put up a bigger resistance against SSK than any other team in the LCK 2015 Spring or Summer splits. It even looked like they might win at one point! But SSK got the important kills and managed to play around the objectives better. In the end, it was a lost teamfight around the Baron pit that gave SSK the opening to end the game. Season’s Nexus exploded in the 32nd minute of the game.

“WOOT WOOT! SEE!” Liu Yue exclaimed. “I told you guys! Season is really good! See how hard SSK had to try? I’m telling you, Season really stands a chance!”

“YEAH!” Ouyang shouted. “Season almost won that! That teamfight at the end was so close! They could’ve beaten SSK! BROS! SEASON COULD’VE BEATEN SSK! You know what that means!”

“That Season actually stands a chance of winning the Finals,” Yang Fan replied, adjusting his glasses. “I think so too.”

“Shhh!” Ren Rou shushed. “The second game is going to start in a moment!”

Game 2 of the League of Legends Season 5 World Championship Finals was far more exciting for the neutral fans than Game 1. This wasn’t because of the champions who were banned and selected in Champion Select. Nor had it anything to do with the actual gameplay. It was because this game was a 29 minute methodical masterclass. Autumn showcased to the world just why he was the best Support in all of League of Legends. He led Season to a victory over SSK. The two teams were even again.

“TANG TANG GANG! WOOOOOOO!”
“WE WOOOOOOOOON!”
“Didn’t I tell you guys? Didn’t I? Didn’t I? Tang Tang is the best!”
“AWESOMESAUCE! EASY WIN!”
“AAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! WIN! WIN! WIN!”
“TANG TANG IS THE BEST! GOOOOOOO TANG TANG!”

The audience couldn’t get enough of Tang Bingyao after her quadra kill! They screamed her name at the top of their lungs! They begged and vowed to name their first born after her! And they pleaded for her to host a League seminar! Even some of the Shanghai High School students in the audience stood up and clapped for her. Tang Bingyao had won their respect by persevering and coming through for her team despite how badly the other games in the Finals went for her. They quietly complimented her for being tilt-proof.

Tang Bingyao’s teammates were just as hyped. Liu Yue unleashed a stream of verbal diarrhea complimenting and congratulating here. Chen Ze gushed about how awesome she was for getting a quadra kill in a major tournament. And as Tang Bingyao looked over at Lin Feng, she noticed that his serious expression had evaporated. He was grinning again and gave her a double thumbs up! She started beaming. W-we won the teamfight… I didn’t let them down. I got a Quadra! She nodded at Lin Feng and said, “Mhm!” Then she pumped her fist up in the air and screamed, “I’m a really good ad-carry!”

An Xin looked at Tang Bingyao and smiled. Then she winked and said, “You are! That was so good!” I knew you had it in you! You’re so talented at this game! You just needed a little confidence booster! I’m so happy that you got this quadra kill! Now we can focus on ending this game.

The happiness on High School 13’s side of the stage was completely different from the heavy silence shrouding Shanghai High School’s team. After Zeng Rui’s Leona died, all five team members had slumped back into their seats and were now just staring at their grey screens. The Jungler was the first to open his mouth. He said, almost in disbelief, “We lost… to them.”

Zeng Rui closed his eyes and took a deep, long breath. We’ve lost. They had an answer for every strategy I came up with. Almost as if they knew what I was going to do before even I knew… They outplayed me, and now they just have to finish it. There’s no way they’re going to give this away. We lost… I lost. But— He opened his eyes and sat up straight in his gaming chair. We’re not going to give up. We’re never going to give up! He took another deep, long breath and then said over the team’s voice chat, “That was it, guys. We lost. They’d have to make a bunch of poor plays and mistakes in a row for us to have any chance of turning this around. And I highly doubt that’ll happen. We’ve played three games against them, I know you’ve got their measure now too. They’re going to win. But! Let me be very clear here! That doesn’t mean that we’re going to give up. I don’t care how you feel right now. We came here to fight and that’s exactly what we’re going to do! If they want to win, they’re going to have to earn it! We’re going to make it as hard as we possibly can for them! And even if we lose, we’ll lose with our heads held high! We’ll take pride in knowing that we played our hardest out there and kept fighting until the absolute end!”

✹

High School 13’s esports club members didn’t stop screaming and cheering after Tang Bingyao’s quadra kill, even when everyone else did. Their fellow students gave them odd looks and a few tried to shush them. But the club members had no intention of sitting around quietly, not when their school and their club was about to win its first real trophy! They tried to explain that the game had already ended. That High School 13 had won! They tried telling the other students that the Esports Team just had to play the game out for the official victory. But no one was listening. So they started shouting again, their voices so full of confidence that the other students started believing them.

“CHAMPIONS! WE’VE WON! WOOOOOO!”
“HIGH SCHOOL 13, CHAMPIONS! HAHAHA!”
“THEY DID IT! THEY DID IT! OH MY GOD, THEY DID IT!”
“ARE WE REALLY DOING IT? YES WE ARE! YES WE ARE!”
“AHHHHHHH I CAN’T BELIEVE THIS! WE’RE GETTING OUR FIRST EVER TROPHY!”
“BRING THAT TROPHY HOME, TANG TANG!”

Mr. Zhou, the club director at High School 13, sat at the front of the venue next to Ren Rou. He looked over his shoulder at the students screaming that they’d won the Finals already. Then he turned back and looked at the large screen above the stage. We won? Why are they still playing then? I should’ve really looked into what this game is… He looked over at Ren Rou. She’s going to fall off her seat if she leans any further forward. And… is she crying? “Uhh, Miss Ren Rou, excuse me? Can you tell me what’s going on? Did we win already? Why are they still playing then?”

“HELL YEAH WE’RE WINNING!” Ouyang shouted out before Ren Rou could say anything. He was lost in euphoria and had completely forgotten that he was talking to a teacher. “Bro, bro, don’t you see? Tang Tang has 10 kills! 10! And they also got the third Dragon! Shanghai High School has lost! Hahaha! They lost! We really won! We’re getting the trophy!”

Mr. Zhou’s eyes went wide in surprise. Then he smiled and asked, “So they’ve won? But they still have to play? How does that work?”

Yang Fan threw one arm around Ouyang and pushed his glasses back with the other. “Basically. Yes, sir. In short, Tang Bingyao’s Vayne deals an intensely large amount of damage. Then you got Chen Ze, Liu Yue, and Lin Feng. They’ve gotten enough gold to buy all the defensive items they need for their champions. They’re unkillable. So all they have to do now is stand in front of Tang Bingyao’s Vayne to protect her while she quickly kills every enemy champion. There’s nothing Shanghai High School can do to stop them. We just have to push forward as a team and destroy the Nexus. Then the game will be officially over and we’ll have won! Officially!”

“AND THE FINALS! WE ALSO WIN THE FINALS!” Ouyang shouted, mad with joy.

“That’s great!” Mr. Zhou exclaimed. Then he started grinning uncontrollably and said, “I can’t believe this. We’re actually going to win something! I knew our school had to have some talented students! Ha! Maybe you guys can teach me how to play this game one of these days. I’d like to learn it.”

Ouyang laughed and shouted, “OF COURSE! US BROS WILL GET YOU TO DIAMOND! NO PROBLEM!”

Mr. Zhou shook his head, smiling. This is what we’ve been missing. A big win. Just look at these students. They’re so happy! I didn’t realize how much they needed this until now. I can’t even be mad at him for not calling me sir. He nodded at Ouyang and said, “That sounds good. Thank you, Ouyang. Let’s watch them win first.” Then he looked back up at the screen, where High School 13 was pushing down the mid lane.

✹

An Xin knew exactly what the team needed to do to bring this game home. I just have to make sure we don’t put ourselves in positions where we can blunder. We have to group up and keep Tang Tang alive! She looked at her four teammates sitting next to her and said over the team’s voice chat, “Alright, guys. We haven’t won just yet. Our biggest mistake right now would be to lose focus.” She waited a minute to let that information settle in, then continued, “But we’re not going to make that mistake. I won’t let you! We’re going to team up and push down for objectives as a team. Protect Tang Tang and let her carry us!”

At 26 minutes: High School 13’s team composition became unstoppable. Shanghai High School tried to put up a defense, but was pushed back even when hiding beneath their own towers. High School 13 destroyed the outer and inner tower in the mid lane, the bot lane, and finally also in the top lane.

At 28 minutes: High School 13 escorted a large minion wave down each lane and unleashed them en masse on Shanghai High School’s base. This forced Shanghai High School to choose between defending their base by killing the minions or giving up the base to try and stop High School 13 from taking Baron Nashor. Neither option was desirable. Zeng Rui attempted to do both. He sent his Jungler to try and steal the Baron, since whoever dealt the killing blow got the buff. Then he had the rest of the team defend their base from the minion onslaught. It was a hail mary that failed. High School 13 secured Baron Nashor and then killed Lee Sin.

At 29 minutes: Shanghai High School had a difficult choice to make. Their Jungler was dead, High School 13 had the Baron Buff. Zeng Rui eventually decided that there was no scenario in which they could win a 4vs5 against High School 13 without Lee Sin. So he told his teammates to give up on defending the inhibitors. They were going to buy at the shop and prepare for a final stand at the Nexus.

High School 13 remained careful. They stuck together as a group and took down the inhibitor towers and then the inhibitors methodically. An Xin led them from the top lane to the mid lane and finally the bot lane. The towers fell and the inhibitors exploded, which allowed the Blue Base to start spawning Super minions.

At 30 minutes: Lee Sin respawned and Shanghai High School’s team was back to full strength. All five champions gathered around the two nexus towers and were busy killing the first Blue minion waves that had barreled into their base.

High School 13 stopped out of range from Shanghai High School’s Nexus towers. They were waiting for more minions to arrive. All five of them still had Baron Nashor’s Buff. This didn’t just grant stat bonuses to champions, but also to nearby minions. Melee minions, Caster minions, and Super minions all received a massive boost in strength as they arrived in Shanghai High School’s base.

Zeng Rui realized his team wasn’t strong enough to repel the minions while also defending against High School 13. So he made the final decision to force an engage. He knew that this was exactly what An Xin wanted him to do. But he had no other choice. Shanghai High School engaged High School 13. And was slaughtered.

High School 13 killed all five Champions from Shanghai High School, an Ace. Tang Bingyao added a triple kill to her already phenomenal performance this game. Then they destroyed the Nexus towers and finally the Nexus itself. The red energy contained within exploded outwards and morphed into the victory emblem.

VICTORY!

“WE WOOOOOON!”
“CHAMPIONS! YAAAAAAH YEAH AHHHHHHHHH!”
“WE’RE THE CHAMPIONS!”
“HAHAHA! FUCK YEAH! WE’RE THE BEST!”
“WE DID IT! WE DID IT! HOLY SHIT, WE DID IT!”
“OUR FIRST TROPHY EVER! WOOOOOOOOOOO!”
“VIIICCCTOOOORRRRYYYYYYYYYYYYYY!”

The host of the Shanghai 16 School Tournament stepped onto the stage. He looked out over the cheering crowd and shouted, “High School 13 are the Champions of the Shanghai 16 School Tournament! They have defeated Shanghai High School 3-1 in the Finals!” He paused as a new wave of cheers rocked the venue. Then he continued, “It’s been an incredible journey for High School 13! They started this tournament at the bottom, with last year’s disappointing performance weighing them down. We counted them out, but they came in looking for redemption! And THEY FOUND IT! They beat everyone in their path, all the big names along the way! They toppled Tonji Affiliated High in the qualifiers! They shredded Shanghai International in the seat-of-your-pants semifinals! But this underdog of a team wasn’t satisfied with that! Nope! They didn’t stop until they’d beaten Shanghai High School in what I can only describe as the highest quality Finals matchup we’ve ever seen here in the history of the tournament! Hate it or love it, the underdog’s on top! They’re going to shine until their hearts stop!  Let’s hear it for them! TO THE CHAMPIONS OF THE SHANGHAI 16 SCHOOL TOURNAMENT—HIGH SCHOOL 13!”

✹

Lin Feng shot up from his chair, threw his fist up in the air, and screamed, “WE’VE WON!”

Liu Yue followed Lin Feng’s example. He jumped to his feet and threw his hand in the air, shouting, “WOOT WOOT!” Then he tried to give Lin Feng a high five, which ended in an awkward fist bump that sent An Xin into a fit of giggling. He dropped his hand back down and mumbled, “Thanks for carrying me.”

An Xin walked up to him and raised her hand. “HIT ME, I want a high five too! Slap it as hard as you can!”

Liu Yue hesitated briefly, but then grinned again. He raised his hand and high-fived An Xin’s hand as hard as he could.

“We won. We actually won…” Chen Ze muttered, staring at the victory crest on his screen. He then looked over at Lin Feng, An Xin, and Liu Yue and repeated, “We actually won. It’s mad!” He got up, laughing incredulously, and gave Liu Yue a high five.

Lin Feng suddenly pointed at the stairs up the stage. Ouyang was running up, followed by Yang Fan, Ren Rou, and finally Wei Dong. “Hey! We won!” he shouted at them, throwing his balled fist up in the air again. Yang Fan jumped on Lin Feng and hugged him, a move he’d seen footballers do on television, while Ren Rou and Wei Dong ran straight past Lin Feng to congratulate Tang Bingyao.

Ouyang didn’t see his teammates anymore. Nor could he hear them. The moment that the victory emblem appeared on the large screen, all he could see was the trophy. WE’VE WON! THE TROPHY IS OURS! He stopped in front of the large cup and wrapped his hands around the base. He then looked out over the audience and raised it up over his head, screaming, “WE WOOOOOOOOOON!” He dropped to his knees, still holding the trophy above his head, and started weeping in joy.

The other eight team members chased after Ouyang. Ren Rou was the first to arrive. She flicked his forehead and took the trophy from him. She then clutched it in her embrace before handing it over to Tang Bingyao. “Here. You carried us. We got this trophy thanks to you!”

Tang Bingyao stared at the trophy that was pushed into her hands. How did I get here? I was just sitting behind the computer and playing… She saw her reflection in the large cup, and her friends celebrating around her. The game is over. We won. It was taking a while to process. She hadn’t really noticed anything that’d happened in the last few minutes. Ren Rou was suddenly hugging me. And then Wei Dong started saying all those things… She looked up from the trophy at the friends around her and the audience further away.

“TANG TANG! TANG TANG!”
“TANG TANG! TANG TANG!”
“TANG TANG! TANG TANG!”
“TANG TANG! TANG TANG!”
“TANG TANG! TANG TANG!”
“TANG TANG! TANG TANG!”

Tang Bingyao didn’t really know what to do. Then she heard Liu Yue and Lin Feng telling her to raise the trophy above her head. Above my head? She looked at the large cup in her hands. It’s so heavy. I didn’t think it would weigh this much… The chanting cheer of her name from the audience slammed into her, and snapped her out of her head. Mhm! We won! She smiled and lifted up the trophy as high as she could. We won!

Shanghai High School’s team watched everything happen in absolute silence. No one was in the mood to say anything. They’d lost the Finals and the last 10 minutes were excruciating because High School 13 hadn’t made a single mistake. They looked in the direction of the exit, but didn’t get up. They were waiting for Zeng Rui to tell them when they could leave.

Zeng Rui was staring at his screen. I should’ve done more. Maybe we could’ve won if I hadn’t underestimated them… Then he shook his head and turned to look at his teammates. “Sorry. I failed. Let’s go and congratulate the winners.” Then he stood up and walked to the center of the stage where High School 13 was celebrating their victory.

Zeng Rui stopped a few meters away from High School 13’s team and waited. I’d also want to celebrate. They won. I can’t be a good winner if I’m a sore loser. He took a couple of deep breaths and waited, until he caught Lin Feng’s attention. He nodded and Lin Feng walked over. He then extended his hand to Lin Feng and said, “Congratulations! You were the better team today.”

Lin Feng grinned and replied, “Thanks! Yeah, we were pretty good today! But you guys were great too!”

Zeng Rui nodded and said, “I didn’t expect this outcome. Fair win to you guys. But next time, I’ll be ready. And I won’t lose again!”

“Is that a challenge? Are you challenging us? I love challenges!” Lin Feng exclaimed happily. Then he added, “But you’re going to need to be ready, it won’t be easy to win against us! We’re going to keep getting better!”

Zeng Rui shook his head. Thundering dumbass. Then he looked over at An Xin who’d walked over with the rest of High School 13’s team. He nodded at her and said, “You have my respect.” This time, you really do. You’re so much better than I could’ve ever expected. If I knew that yesterday…

An Xin smiled and replied, “You flatter me. But I didn’t win this game. Our ad-carry here did. She carried us.”

Zeng Rui nodded and then turned to look at Tang Bingyao. I was even wrong about her. What happened last game? She was suddenly so much better. He finally said, “My apologies. I underestimated you. You played an amazing ad-carry that game.”

Tang Bingyao scratched her ear as her face turned red. She mumbled, “T-thank you.”

Lin Feng patted Tang Bingyao on the shoulder and grinned. “I know, right? My Tang Tang is the best ad-carry ever! I keep telling her!”

An Xin glared at Lin Feng and asked, “Your Tang Tang?”

Ouyang forgot about winning the trophy, Yang Fan discarded the idea of adjusting his glasses, Liu Yue held back a “Woot woot!”, and Chen Ze instinctively took several steps back. Even Shanghai High School’s players found themselves backing away from An Xin, Tang Bingyao, and Lin Feng. There was a shared trepidation. No one wanted to be in Lin Feng’s shoes right now. Or anywhere near him. So they slowly backed away.

Tang Bingyao shook Lin Feng’s hand off her shoulder, the tips of her ears turning red. Then she abruptly turned around and said to him, “I’m not yours!”

Lin Feng grinned and replied, “It’s fine, it’s fine! We’re master and disciple, remember?”

Shanghai High School’s players stared at Lin Feng with wide open eyes. Then they took another step back, one of them mumbling, “Is he crazy?”

Liu Yue heard the question and nodded, glancing over at An Xin to make sure she didn’t see him. Then he mouthed to the Shanghai High School players, “He is an idiot!”

A thundering dumbass. Zeng Rui shook his head. Crazy. And crazy good.

✹

Chu Fang, vice president of the Shanghai Esports Association, had watched the Finals of the Shanghai 16 School Tournament backstage. And now he watched the two teams giving each other hands and talking with each other. He smiled. They’re getting along. This is what I love to see. They’re the ones who’re going to represent the LPL in the years to come. Let them get to know each other now. Become friends. And Lin Feng is with them. BunBun. Zeng Rui. Even Tang Bingyao looks like she might make it! Here I was, a few weeks ago, worried that we only had Zeng Rui and that arrogant kid from Shanghai Internation—

RING-RING-RING! RING-RING-RING!

Chu Fang got spooked by the sudden ringing of his phone. He took it out from his pocket and looked at the caller ID: Fang Hao. The boss? I wonder why he’s calling? He accepted the call and placed the phone to his ear. “Hello, sir. I thought you were off on the weekend?”

“Evening, Chu Fang, Well, you know how it is. I always bring my work home with me!” Fang Hao chuckled. He was Chu Fang’s superior, the President of the Shanghai Esports Association. “I noticed that it was close to the end of the scheduled time for the tournament, thought I’d check in with you. How’s the tournament? Everything fine?”

“Yeah, we’re all good here. It just finished, actually,” Chu Fang replied. “High School 13 beat Shanghai High School 3-1. It was a good series. Strong performance by both teams.”

“Oh? That’s a surprise.” Fang Hao remarked. He was silent for a moment and then said, “I’d like to know a bit more about High School 13. Can you send me everything you have on them? And also add in what you have on Shanghai High School while you’re at it.”“Huh? Uh…” Chu Fang hesitated. Sending everything I have on High School 13 also means sending the information on Lin Feng. I made a promise to the kid… He smiled wryly. Can’t really go and hide this. “Alright, sir. I’ll send you an email first thing when I’m back at the office.”

… Flash! Tang Bingyao pressed the button. Vayne disappeared from the Rift just as Gragas’ Explosive Cask fell down on the ground. An explosion of pink liquid and foam splashed out in every direction, blasting away the enemy champions caught within its radius! Then Vayne reappeared on the Rift with a mottled flash of light. Dodged it!

“She dodged it! SHE DODGED IT!”
“The Graggy ult missed! Hahaha!”
“Tang Tang flashed it! Oh my god! How!”
“Woooooo! Now win this fight!”
“PENTA! PENTA! PENTA!”
“Tang The Carry Bingyao!”

Tang Bingyao was laser focused on her screen. Evading the Explosive Cask with Flash was only the start. She activated her Vayne’s ultimate–Final Hour! A shroud of darkness wrapped around the Vayne, boosting her stats. She Tumbled towards the Gragas, who was suddenly completely out of position, and fired an empowered silver bolt at him! A second one followed soon after. And then came the third. Three silver rings appeared around the Gragas. They lit up and exploded, dealing significant damage to his health!

Zeng Rui gritted his teeth. He wanted to curse. The fight wasn’t going as planned. Gragas was below half health after only a few attacks and they’d failed to knock up the Vayne! But there was no time to get angry or distracted right now. We can’t get split up or Vayne will eat us alive! We need to get that knock up on her! He swallowed hard and then shouted over Shanghai High School’s voice chat, “Lee, jump and ult the Vayne!”

Shanghai High School’s Lee Sin was already moving towards the tri-brush connecting Blue team’s Jungle with the river and bot lane. He dropped down a ward at the Jungle entrance and hopped towards it with Safeguard! Just as he landed, he used his Sonic Wave! A blast of vibrating air from his fist raced towards Vayne, ready to mark her. 

Tang Bingyao knew the Sonic Wave was coming. And she also knew that she absolutely had to dodge it. This fight revolved entirely around her not getting knocked up into the air. I’m doing it! Gragas’ ultie is down. Now I have to stay away from Lee Sin. I can’t let him get to me. I can’t let the team down like that! He’s going to try and dash at me. Be ready. Be ready! She spotted Lee Sin’s skill animation and tapped down on her Q key. Her Vayne Tumbled to the side, dodging the Sonic Wave, and turned invisible.

Shanghai High School’s Jungler cursed. His Sonic Wave had missed and the Vayne was now invisible! I need to see her for my ultie! He placed a vision ward down in the tri-brush. The wooden base lodged itself into the ground. Two wings spread out from the sides. Then the gem at the top started radiating a pink light, revealing Vayne. Lee Sin’s eyes went wide as he screamed out, “Fuck!”

There were large boulders and walls of stones and trees everywhere in the Jungle. After Tumbling away from the Lee Sin, Tang Bingyao walked around him and lined up for the Condemn. She pulled out her heavy crossbow and fired! A large, thick bolt collided into Lee Sin and pinned him to the jungle wall! Then she ignored him and turned back to the Gragas. I can’t let him get his skills back off cooldown! I have to kill him now. Mhm!

Lee Sin’s interference had given Gragas just enough time to run away from the Vayne. But he was still in the middle of High School 13’s team. Skillshots were being flung at him and he was trying to dodge them as best he could. He zigzagged past a flag-toss combo from Jarvan IV. And ran straight into Nami’s Aqua Prison. The bubble wrapped around him and lifted him up into the air. He was helpless, because skills and auto attacks could hit him while he was trapped inside the bubble. But he couldn’t walk. Or walk out of it. Then the silver bolts came again. Three of them to be exact. Then he watched his health disappear.

《You have been slain!》

Ren Rou jumped up and balled her fists, screaming, “YES!” Then the tsunami of cheers from the audience slammed into her from behind. She shook her head and looked back over her shoulder. The audience was louder than ever before! And they were all screaming Tang Bingyao’s name! “Good job, Tang Tang,” Ren Rou mumbled, smiling.

Ouyang had also jumped to his feet. He threw one arm around Ren Rou’s shoulder and the other around Yang Fan’s, forcing both of them to jump with him. Tears were streaming down his face as he yelled as loudly as he could, “WE’RE WINNING! WINNING! We’re going to win the whole damn thing!”

Yang Fan laughed and also put his arm around Ouyang. “Yeah, we are! Tang Tang is playing fantastically! She’s going to bring the trophy home for us!”

Wei Dong didn’t jump up, but he was just as happy as the rest. If not happier. I knew I wasn’t good enough for you, Tang Tang. Just look at you! You get a good Support and you’re carrying so hard! You’re so good at this game. It’s a damn pleasure every game I get to play with you! He took a deep breath. Then he stood up, cupped his hands around his mouth and shouted, “YOU GO GIRL!”

Back on stage, Tang Bingyao was more focused than she’d ever been. One down, four to go. She flicked her mouse, repositioning her Vayne, and started attacking the Lee Sin. He was still stunned, so he couldn’t get to her. Why aren’t his teammates helping him? Am I missing something? She glanced over at the river to see what was happening over there and then smiled. He always has my back. I need to have his back too! Mhm! I have to kill Lee Sin fast!

✹

Lulu and Irelia hadn’t dodged Gragas’ Explosive Cask. They were knocked back in the direction of Shanghai High School’s team. Yasuo ran at them and then dashed through them, sweeping his katana out around him. This was a combination of the skills Sweeping Blade and Steel Tempest. Then he struck out with his katana in a straight line–Steel Tempest! The third consecutive use of this skill was different. Winds howled around the Yasuo, screaming to be unleashed. Steel Tempest! He slashed out with his katana and kicked up a whirlwind! It swept through Lulu and Irelia, knocking them up into the air! Then he activated his ultimate–Last Breath! He blinked toward the two airborne champions and kept them suspended in midair with a flurry of slashes. Then he slammed them back down to the ground with one final blow!

Lulu fell back to the ground. “This is for you, Tang Tang,” Lin Feng mumbled. Then he flashed into Shanghai High School’s backline and cast Wild Growth on himself. Lulu’s body exploded in size! She gained an additional pool of health while also knocking the Yasuo and Kalista Airborne! “Kalista! Focus the Kalista!” Lin Feng shouted over the team’s voice chat.

Chen Ze had started attacking Yasuo but quickly stopped. The Kalista was right in front of him. He dashed at her with Bladesurge while simultaneously activating his ultimate–Transcendent Blades! Four spirit blades appeared from beyond the veil and hovered above Irelia’s shoulders. Then, at her command, they all flew towards Kalista.

Kalista started the game with an exclusive item. The Black Spear. She could use this on an allied champion to soul-bind them to her for the rest of the game. There were several perks that came with this connection. The most important one being Fate’s Call. Kalista could pull her soulbound ally to her side, after which the soulbound ally could choose any direction to throw themselves in. Leona was the soulbound champion in this game.

Leona morphed into spirit form as she was pulled in by Kalista. She waited half a second for Lulu and Irelia to be just where she wanted them to be, and then threw herself at them! Leona regained her body as she barreled into Lulu and Irelia, knocking them both up in the air! Then she Exhausted Irelia and slammed her large shield against Lulu. The Shield of Daybreak left its target stunned!

✹

There was so much going on in the game that it was hard for the people watching to follow everything that was happening. They were practically watching two team fights happen at the same time! Lee Sin was fighting against Vayne, Nami, and Jarvan IV in the Blue team’s Jungle. Then there was another fight happening in the river. Yasuo, Leona, and Kalista were trying to kill Lulu and Irelia, so that they could help their Lee Sin. Multiple health pools were dropping fast. And it looked like either team could get aced at any second now. The audience fell silent in response to this, students from both schools afraid that the slightest distraction could see their team losing.

Westwind and Silent Reed were doing their best to play-by-play cast the fight, but their commentary became a jumbled mess. They were finding it difficult to focus on both fights at the same time and even caught themselves mentioning a Champion or skill that wasn’t even in the game. This only added to the confusion for the people in the venue and those at home. But there were some more experienced players who knew exactly what was going on. Nightsong was one of them.

Nightsong was still watching the Finals of the Shanghai 16 School Tournament. More specifically, he was paying close attention to Lulu. I’m losing it! Look at that fucking bush midget go! I should call Hermes… Nah. Don’t do that, Nightsong. You’re better than that. “SHANGHAI HIGH SCHOOL IS ABSOLUTE TRASH! THEY JUST GOT TENTACLE-COCK-WHIPPED BY THAT LULU! High School 13’s won this. I can’t believe they let trash like Shanghai High School get all the way to the Finals.” He slammed his fist on his desk and said, “I could’ve done that too! Easy! Flash in to block three champions and make sure Vayne only ever has to fight against one enemy… Nah, I couldn’t have. Fuck me hard.”

✹

Back in the game, Zeng Rui had to make quick decisions. Lulu and Irelia were blocking them from getting to Vayne. We need to get that knock up. I don’t know how else we’re going to win this… He shook his head. Every fiber in his body was telling him that they had to take the Vayne out as soon as possible. But he didn’t see how they were going to get to the Vayne with Lulu and Irelia interfering. So he made the call. “Kill the Lulu first!”

Leona attacked Lulu with her sword, and Yasuo did the same with his katana. But most of the damage came from Kalista. She hurled her spirit spears at Lulu, impaling her. Lulu’s health dropped fast as the number of spears lodged into her body increased from one to two to five! Lulu only had a small bar of health remaining. Kalista suddenly pulled back with her entire body, ripping out the spears! They dealt an escalating amount of damage!

《You have slain an enemy!》

“Irelia next! Irelia! Irelia!” Zeng Rui shouted over Shanghai High School’s voice chat.

“Get Kalista! Get Kalista!” Lin Feng shouted over High School 13’s voice chat.

Chen Ze ignored his red-flashing screen. He knew he wasn’t going to make it out alive, but he was determined to take Kalista down with him! Leona tried to slow him, Yasuo’s katana was cutting away at his health, and Kalista’s spirit spears impaled him! But he kept hacking away at Kalista with his Blades. All the while, Vayne, Nami and Jarvan IV were killing Lee Sin in the tri-brush.

《Double Kill!》

《Red team’s Kalista has been slain!》

《Blue team’s Irelia has been slain!》

Yasuo ran straight for the tri-brush after killing Irelia. There, he flashed past the Nami and Jarvan IV and dashed into Vayne with the Sweeping Blade-Steel Tempest combo! His katana cut through the Vayne, decimating her health!

Westwind finally found his bearings again. “WOOOO! For all the kills! WOOOO! Haha!” He quickly wiped away the sweat from his forehead and then shouted, “Yasuo’s damage is too damn high! He just killed Irelia and is still at almost full health! Can he get a very late knock up on Vayne? He can still turn this fight around!”

Tang Bingyao didn’t let the high damage values from Yasuo get to her. Her hand-speed ramped up to over 300 actions per minute! There were far too many variables for her to calculate, so she let instinct take over. She dodged Yasuo’s katana and fired back a silver bolt. Then she ran away before repeating this process again.

One of Vayne’s main items was Blade of the Ruined King. This item had an active skill linked to it that could drain health from a target and slow them. It’d been on cooldown when the fight started, but there were now only a couple seconds left before she could use it again. Tang Bingyao glanced at the item. 3, 2, 1… She used the Blade of the Ruined King on Yasuo, draining his health and more importantly slowing him. Mhm! She started smiling, clicking even faster! I’m winning! He can’t catch up to me anymore! He can’t catch me! I’m going to win!

Shanghai High School’s Midlaner knew he was in trouble. He’d been closing in on the Vayne, but just getting near her wasn’t enough. He had to get on top of her and kill her, or she was going to kill him. Then he was hit by the slow. No! This can’t be happening! I have to do something! ANYTHING! My next Steel Tempest is a knock up. Maybe if I kill vision and catch her off guard? No time to think. I have to try. He dove into the nearest brush, killing High School 13’s vision of him, and then unleashed the whirlwind at Vayne. “Eat this!”

The audience cried out in surprise and Westwind shouted that Shanghai High School was finally going to get the knock up! But Tang Bingyao was far too good to be fooled by this kind of trick. She knew that the only reason that Yasuo had broken vision was to catch her off guard with a whirlwind. Before she could even see the attack, she Tumbled away from it.

The whirlwind blew past Tang Bingyao, completely missing her. She then focused back on Yasuo. He tried to get away, but there was no one like Vayne when it came to chasing down a target. She had multiple skills that granted her movement speed for running towards an enemy champion. One silver bolt hit the Yasuo. Then came a second. And finally a third. The three silver rings that appeared around the Yasuo detonated!

《Triple kill!》

Zeng Rui had tried to save his Midlaner until the very last moment. But Jarvan IV and Nami were too good at keeping him at bay. He finally started retreating after Yasuo died, but it was already far too late for that. He was deep in High School 13’s Jungle and surrounded by three enemy champions. His teammates were shouting over the voice chat, telling him to please make it out alive. He just shook his head. We fucking lost it. That was our fight. How did she flash that Gragas ultie? Everything went wrong from there. We should’ve never taken so long to kill Irelia and Lulu. But we couldn’t just ignore them either… 

An Xin locked Leona up in an Aqua Prison. Then came Jarvan IV with his flag-toss combo, knocking Leona up in the air. All the while, Vayne was shooting silver bolts. One, two, three… Boom! The attacks kept connecting and despite Leona’s large healthpool, she died in a matter of seconds.

《Quadra kill!》

《Aced!》

Tang Bingyao stared at her screen in disbelief. The audience was so loud that no noise-canceling headphones could block it. Her teammates were cheering her on over the voice chat. But it was all a distant background noise to her. She just stared at her screen. At her 10/1/2 Vayne KDA. Then realization set in. “I-I did it. Mhm!” She smiled and balled her fist. I did it! I carried! Mhm! We won because of me!

Only a minute to go until the third Dragon spawned, but the wheels in An Xin’s head were already spinning as she considered what would happen two minutes into the future. One minute after the Dragon spawned. She knew this was going to be an important teamfight. This could be the fight that decides this game! That was the single overriding thought in her mind, and the motivation for all the decisions she’d be making right now. 

An Xin told everyone on High School 13’s team exactly where they needed to be on the Rift. And then told them to wait until she gave them the greenlight to drop their wards. Timing is everything here! She wanted to make sure that the timing of the warding was as precise as possible, so the entire team could know where Shanghai High School was at all times before this fight and what they were planning. This is it! I think we’ve got it. But I still need to keep an eye out, can’t let them flank us again. Not this time. She glanced at Tang Bingyao sitting next to her and took a deep breath to calm down and still her nerves. Then she spoke to the entire team over voice chat, “You guys ready? We cannot lose here! We can’t afford to lose this Dragon or this teamfight! But we’re not going to, right? They can’t beat us here as long as we stay frosty and play smart! We’re at the peak of our team comp right now! We’re going to win!” 

An Xin stopped talking right after that, easing into a long, lingering pause. She wanted to make it clear to everyone that this was their best shot at winning this game. And the Shanghai 16 School Tournament. Their team composition gave them the advantage and Tang Bingyao’s Vayne already had 6 kills. “But,” she finally continued. “If we lose this one, that’s all Shanghai High School needs to catch up. Their Yasuo and Gragas will only become harder to deal with. It won’t be long before we can’t beat them anymore. This is a race against the clock. So let’s win this fight and then the game!”

Chen Ze nodded and said, “You’re right. They’ve already been getting stronger. It’s getting harder and harder for me to go against the Gragas…”

An Xin smiled and reassured her teammates, “Don’t get me wrong. I’m not saying we can’t do this. I know we can! I’m just reminding you that it doesn’t matter how well we did in the previous team fights. We have to win this one!”

Liu Yue gripped his mouse hard and said, “Gotcha! Focus, focus! Focus! Let’s win!”

Lin Feng had been laughing and carefree for most of the night. He’d even brushed off the kills he gave away with lighthearted jokes. But his trademark grin was nowhere to be found right now. He had his Lulu stick close to Tang Bingyao’s Vayne, panning his camera across the Rift to look for Shanghai High School’s movements. The next play was going to be it. Months of hard work were coming to a head. But there was so much more hanging on this game than winning the tournament. He glanced over at Tang Bingyao, worried. She’d played two bad games and truly tilted in the third one. But she got off to a good start in this game. And she really is good at League! She can do this! Lin Feng nodded at himself but then frowned. Her being good and him being his cheerful self hadn’t done her any good in the previous three games. That was when he realized something. He looked forlorn as memories of his own struggles surfaced. Just being nice didn’t help me back then either. What would’ve helped?

Lin Feng chewed on his lips, thinking about what his teammates could’ve done to help him back when he was struggling in the Season 1 World Finals. What could they’ve done to help me? He shook his head. He didn’t know the answer to that question. But he did know that his friend needed help right now. His help. He looked up at Tang Bingyao and said, “Hey, Tang Tang?” He waited for her to look at him. Then he looked her in the eyes and continued, “Pay attention to your positioning. Don’t jump in right away. Stand back, wait for the right moment. Then you jump in and kill all of ‘em. Everyone on Shanghai High School’s team! Ace ‘em! That’s how we win this.”

Tang Bingyao met Lin Feng’s gaze, surprised. She found herself nodding at his words and saying, “Got it,” before she even realized it. There was something different in the way he talked. He isn’t grinning or joking. He looks so… so serious. Right then she knew it. Their entire team composition was built up around her. She had to do the carrying. And he trusted that she could and would carry the team. He’s even playing a Support champion in the mid lane for me! She bit on her tongue and then repeated, “I got this. Mhm!” Then she focused back on her screen. The Dragon was spawning in a couple of seconds. She had her Vayne stand behind Lin Feng’s Lulu and waited for the teamfight to start.

✹

The Headquarters for the Hand of God organization was in Shanghai. In the heart of the esports capital of the world. Their League of Legends team had returned home two weeks earlier after getting knocked out of Worlds. That was also their last competition of the year. The players were given some time off to enjoy a holiday before they started their pre-season preparations. But not everyone could just take a break from League of Legends and go to Hawaii for a month.

The Hand of God headquarters had several gaming rooms for their players to practice in. Nightsong sat behind a computer in one of them. He relaxed in his gaming chair after having just won a solo queue game, though his head wasn’t in it at all. The Finals… No. The finals for the World Championship are going to happen tonight… Season vs SSK. North America and Korea. And you’re sitting here in Shanghai playing Solo Queue. Great work there, Nightsong! He rubbed his eyes, and then he looked at his own reflection in the monitor. “TRASH!” Could I have played better? Maybe, yeah. I’m Nightsong! I fuck harder than anyone else out there! But… would that have been enough? Nightsong leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes. I’m good. Hermes is good. Those two Koreans we brought in were pretty good. But are we really good enough? Are we as good as SSK? Am I as good as Rake? He sat up, opened his eyes and looked at his reflection in the monitor again. “TRASH! YOU’RE NOT GOOD ENOUGH TO BEAT RAKE! AND HE’LL FUCK YOUR MOTHER AND MAKE YOU CALL HIM DADDY!” We shouldn’t have been knocked out so early. Dammit! Why weren’t we better?

Nightsong shook his head and tried to focus on something else. He hovered his mouse over the play button on the League of Legends client and mumbled to himself, “Should I play another game?” But he quickly discarded that idea. There’s only one game I wanna be playing in. And I’m not! He shook his head again and opened his web browser. Let’s see if there’s anything interesting happening on Huya. That’s better than sitting here and sulking like a little bitch! Nightsong, get your head outta your ass! Stop being sad like a little girl who couldn’t convince her big daddy to get her a lollipop! Do something else! DON’T BE TRASH! DON’T BECOME TRASH!

The webpage loaded and showed two prominently featured broadcasts. The top one was for the League of Legends Season 5 World Championships. It was showing highlight reels and analysis for SSK and Season, and hyping up the crowd for the upcoming game. Nightsong clicked away from that and onto the other stream. The official broadcast of the Shanghai 16 School Tournament. He shrugged and waited for the stream to load. Alright Nightsong, you want to be a baby? Fine. Let’s watch children play League. Maybe you’ll feel better about yourself because you’re better than them. Won’t that be nice? “When did I turn into the trash that I hate? I swear, look at me. I lost one game at Worlds and I’m on the verge of sticking my dick into a wood chipper!” 

Nightsong stretched his back and glanced at the game playing on his screen. Shanghai High School versus High School 13. Shanghai High School, I remember them. They had that Support who got offered a pro contract. He’s probably better than I am now! “Shit. That’s pathetic, Nightsong!” He scratched his nose and thought about where he was last year. There was no Worlds for him then. He was invited by the Shanghai Esports Association to make an appearance at the Shanghai 16 School Tournament. I’m way too good for those little kids. Of course I turned it down! Some of his friends had gone and told him how impressive Shanghai High School was. Promising and good one year and trash the next. Where have I heard that before? “TRASH!”

The spectator view turned away from Shanghai High School’s team and focused on High School 13. More specifically, it zoomed in on the Vayne with Nami and Lulu hugging her. “Huh,” Nightsong blurted out. Vayne was his favourite Champion. He knew more about her than anyone else, and he knew almost everyone who was good at her. There was really only one Vayne player that came to mind that he didn’t know. Could this be him? He thought back to a solo queue game he’d played more than a month ago. That Vayne from that random game… he wasn’t bad at all. He knew how to play. I never did find out who that was. Maybe it was a high schooler? That’d explain why I don’t know him. And if he is, he’d definitely make it to the Finals of this tournament…

Nightsong shook his head a few seconds later. He didn’t need more than that to know that this Vayne wasn’t that Vayne. “She’s good, but not that good…” He was about to click away when something else caught his attention. Are these supports on steroids? Their vision is actually good! Nightsong, stop. Have you really sunk this deep? Are you really impressed with how a bunch of kids are warding now? What’s next? You’re going to think that this Lulu is the best fucking player in the world or something? Jesus! Stop being this little bitch! No one likes little bitches! You fuck them fast and you fuck them hard! That’s the Nightsong wa—

Nightsong’s eyes went wide and he sat up straight in his gaming chair. “WHAT!” The stream was following Lulu. The way she moves… That is… He rubbed his eyes and leaned a little closer to his monitor. Am I losing it? Is that it? How does this Lulu remind me of Hermes? She hasn’t been hit by anything and she’s just where she needs to be every time. There’s always that little extra space. Is this really someone in high school? He fell back in his chair, amazed. “I could’ve played that… maybe. Nah, I’d get outplayed. I hate my life.”

✹

The third Dragon spawned. But neither Shanghai High School nor High School 13 had found the opening they were looking for. Some Champions ended up getting poked down more than others. Among them, Gragas was the first to recall back to base and recover his health. High School 13 used this window to exert more pressure on Shanghai High School’s team, and attempted to force a teamfight before the Gragas could return.

Zeng Rui smiled. He asked over the team’s voice chat, “Ready?” To which the Gragas gave a quick, “Yes.” Then Zeng Rui focused on the opposing team. High School 13 were going in for the engage. They fell for it. Good. He waited a couple seconds, letting High School 13 push them a little further back then, said over his team’s voice chat, “Now.”

Shanghai High School’s Gragas had bought the Homeguard upgrade for his boots. This granted him 200% bonus movement speed that decayed over the next 8 seconds after leaving the base fountain. Most players used this to run back to lane faster, but there was another way to use this speed boost. Champions could combine it with the Summoner Spell Teleport. The Gragas did just that. He teleported to a ward in High School 13’s bottom side Jungle, right behind the Dragon pit.

An Xin spotted the Gragas Teleport the moment that the red pillar of light descended on the ward. She pinged the yellow retreat signal and yelled over High School 13’s voice chat, “Back! Back! The Gragas! BACK!” But she was already too late. She saw a mottled flash of light followed by a pure beam of sunlight slamming down on her team. Leona had engaged with a Flash-ultimate combo skill!

Westwind was up on his feet, leaning on the caster desk with one hand and clutching the microphone with the other. “ENGAGE! ENGAGE! IT’S THE ENGAGE!” he shouted out, failing to find any other words.

Silent Reed leaned closer to her microphone and helped Westwind out. “Shanghai High School found the engage! Leona got a triple stun! They—”

“THEY STUNNED THE VAYNE!” Westwind cried out. “THEY GOT THE VAYNE! SHE’S LOCKED DOWN! THE GRAGAS IS RIGHT THERE AND THE YASUO IS IN RANGE FOR HIS ULTIMATE SKILL!”

Tang Bingyao bit on the inside of her lips, trying not to curse at herself. She knew very well that she shouldn’t have been caught by that Solar Flare. Focus! She activated Quicksilver Sash. This was an item with an active skill that removed all crowd control effects on her. A cleansing light washed over her, freeing her from the stun. Then she ran away into Blue team’s bottom side jungle.

An Xin activated her Nami’s ultimate–Tidal Wave! The Nami called forth a wave that crashed through the river and washed over Shanghai High School’s team. All four champions were knocked up and unable to do anything for a good second. But there were five champions on a team and she had no way to block the Gragas that was coming at them from behind.

The Gragas arrived in High School 13’s Jungle. He charged after the Vayne at 200% movement speed, trying to catch her before she could reach the bot lane. The rest of High School 13 reacted and moved to intercept him. He Body Slammed forward and Flashed. His momentum was carried over, and he collided right into Jarvan IV. He missed the Vayne by a hair’s breadth. But he hadn’t given up yet. He hurled his Explosive Cask over the Jarvan IV’s head toward the Vayne.

Tang Bingyao watched the Explosive Cask coming at her in slow motion. This was it. She had one shot, one opportunity. To seize what she wanted in one moment. She would capture it. I won’t let it slip! Everything ground to a halt, except for the large cask. It was flying at her, her fingers refusing to press the buttons she needed to press. I have to get away! I can do this! I have to! The Yasuo will ult me if I get knocked up! I have to…

“Oh, you’re fighting!” Lin Feng shouted over High School 13’s voice chat. “Awesome! I’m coming in hot!” His Lulu was in the mid lane, which wasn’t all that far from the Dragon pit where Vayne and Kalista were fighting. He sped down the river towards the fight, cheering Tang Bingyao on for the engage she found on the Kalista.

Shanghai High School and High School 13’s Toplaners both retreated back to their outer towers. They had Teleport precisely for these kinds of situations. The Gragas teleported to a ward at the Red team’s Blue Buff Camp. He started channeling half a second earlier than Irelia, who teleported to a ward at the river entrance in the bot lane.

Lin Feng’s Lulu caught up to Vayne. The Leona had just missed two of her skillshots, while Kalista was still pinned against the wall. He sent Pix  over to aid the Vayne in her attacks–Help, Pix! Then he threw a Glitterlance at Kalista!

Tang Bingyao had her Vayne continue auto attacking the Kalista. Two silver rings appeared around Kalista. She was one auto attack away from dying when the Gragas appeared from the Red team’s Jungle. He Body Slammed towards Vayne in a desperate attempt to save Kalista. But Tang Bingyao had kept Tumble just for this. Her Vayne dodged the Body Slam and fired an empowered silver bolt at Kalista.

《You have slain an enemy!》

Tang Bingyao smiled. I got the kill! Then she focused back on the fight. Shanghai High School had four champions left alive, two of whom were trying to attack her. Well, one. She’d seen Lin Feng cast Whimsy on the Gragas, polymorphing him into a useless critter. Why is Leona sticking to the Gragas? Hmm, probably waiting for Yasuo and Lee Sin to arrive. Where are they?

Chen Ze’s Irelia had arrived at the Dragon pit right around the same time the Gragas had. He’d first ran towards Kalista, but she died too quickly. So he turned towards the little critter Gragas and dashed at him with Bladesurge. Then she struck out hard with her blades and stunned him–Equilibrium Strike!

Zeng Rui’s Leona had little in terms of damage and he’d already used most of his crowd control skills. He looked at his minimap and cursed. The Lee Sin and Yasuo were both running over from the base, where they’d gone to buy some wards in preparation for the Dragon. His two teammates were too far away from the fight, he needed to buy them more time. His Leona only had one more crowd control skill available, which was her ultimate skill. I need to at least hit the Vayne.

Zeng Rui shouted over his team’s voice chat, “Get ready to pull back when I stun that Vayne!” Then he pushed down on the R key–Solar Flare! He pointed his sword up into the sky and called down a beam of solar energy. The incredibly powerful force came quickly, smashing down onto the Vayne and Lulu. Stunned!

An Xin’s Nami was also late to the fight because she’d returned to the base to buy wards. But unlike the Lee Sin and Yasuo, she was already on her way back towards the bot lane when the fight broke out. She arrived right as Leona’s Solar Flare came down. Then she watched Leona and Gragas running away. Trying to escape? Watch this. She activated her Nami’s ultimate, calling forth a Tidal Wave that came surging after the Leona and Gragas!

The two champions from Shanghai High School were caught in the Jungle entrance. There was nowhere to escape to. The water towered over them and then came crashing down, knocking them down and then up into the air!

Vayne and Lulu broke free from the stun. They joined Chen Ze’s Irelia in chasing after the Gragas and focusing their firepower on him. Leona was a Support who’d used all her skills. They could ignore her for now. Blades cut the Gragas, silver bolts struck him, and magical glitter stuck to him. His health disappeared.

《Double kill!》

Tang Bingyao was so focused that she didn’t even hear the voice announcer. Her last attack on the Gragas was a silver bolt empowered by Tumble. She had done this not only for the extra damage, but also to get an angle on the Leona. She took the large crossbow from her back and fired. A large, heavy bolt struck the Leona and pinned her to the Jungle wall behind her.

Shanghai High School’s Lee Sin and Yasuo finally arrived at the fight. They were about to jump in and help Zeng Rui’s Leona escape, when their team captain’s voice sounded out over the team’s voice chat, “Back, you idiots! They’re with five! Don’t give them any more kills!”

Zeng Rui stared at his screen, frustrated. All my skills are on cooldown. If they go in, it’s no different from a 2vs5. We’d just be feeding Vayne even more kills! Dammit! He gritted his teeth as he watched one last silver bolt fly at his Leona.

《Triple kill!》

High School 13’s students in the audience were stamping their feet on the ground and waving their arms over their heads. They were screaming about how Tang Bingyao had picked up a triple kill, and they were shouting about how they were only half a step away from winning the tournament! The students who’d been given the large posters at the start of the series proudly held them up again.

HIGH SCHOOL 13, CHAMPIONS!

Westwind had been play-by-play shoutcasting the entire fight. He wiped the sweat off his forehead and screamed into his microphone, “HIGH SCHOOL 13! WOOOOO! Look at their students! They’re certain of it! They’re going to be the Champions of Shanghai! And man, I can’t blame them. Just look at that Vayne! She’s 6/1/2! I don’t know how Shanghai High School plans on killing her. Impossible if you ask me!”

“Not impossible,” Silent Reed disagreed. She looked at the large screen, which showed High School 13 taking the second Dragon of the game. Then a graph appeared at the bottom of the screen showing the stats of the two teams. High School 13 was 4,000 gold ahead. “You see that gold difference, West? That’s all on the Vayne. High School 13 is pumping all their resources into her. Shanghai High School can win this. They just have to shut her down.”

“You say that like it’s an easy thing to do!” Westwind argued. “Did we just watch the same fight? Or the one before that? Shanghai High School has been trying to shut the Vayne down all game! But look at her score! 6/1/2! She’s unstoppable!”

Silent Reed smiled. Awesome work, girls! Then she said, “The Vayne is doing really well. And I really want to see the two girls from High School 13 winning. But let’s be real here, West. If. And this is a very big if, Shanghai High School can instagib the Vayne, they’ll win this game. It’s doable. High School 13 can’t get complacent.”

“Fair enough, fair enough,” Westwind agreed. “This game is still wide open! Shanghai High School has some incredible potential to pick off a target and burst them down. They just need to have their Gragas or Lee Sin working together with Yasuo. Maybe have Leona help with her crowd control for full effect. And then they also can’t take too much damage from the rest of High School 13’s team. And, and… There’s a lot of things that have to fall perfectly in place for them.”

Zeng Rui looked over the edge of his screen at the audience. He could feel the vibrations from their jumping, which was incredibly distracting. Then he glanced sideways at his teammates. They looked lost. Can’t blame them. We’re falling pretty far behind. But it’s not over yet. We still have a chance. Just have to kill that Vayne. He nodded and said over the team’s voice chat, “Keep your focus. We’re one good fight from winning this.”

✹

Lin Feng grinned and said over the team’s voice chat, “That was awesome! But we gotta play safe now! Tang Tang doesn’t have her Flash!” He looked over at Tang Bingyao sitting next to him and nodded at her. Then he continued, “Me and BunBun will protect you. Chen Ze and Liu Yue, you two dive Shanghai High School’s backline. Time to win this!”

Tang Bingyao nodded and said, “Ok.”

An Xin smiled and suggested over the team’s voice chat, “Tang Tang still has a few minutes before her Flash is up again. We’ll wait for it to come off cooldown before we start another teamfight. Sounds good, guys?”

An Xin had made it sound like a suggestion, but the others all took it as an order. They held back on the aggression and slowed down the pace of the game. Shanghai High School was more than happy with this arrangement. They would use every extra second to help their Gragas and Yasuo scale.

There wasn’t a whole lot that happened over the next several minutes. Both teams focused on farming minions and jungle camps, and staying far away from each other. But that didn’t mean they were blind to good gank opportunities. Shanghai High School found two of them. The first happened in the top lane, where Chen Ze’s Irelia got a little too comfortable farming under her tower. Lee Sin suddenly appeared behind her and roundhouse kicked her towards the Gragas, who followed up with his own ultimate. The Explosive Cask knocked Irelia halfway across the lane toward the Red team’s outer tower.

《You have slain an enemy!》

The second kill happened in the bot lane. Shanghai High School’s Yasuo roamed down from mid, evading the wards High School 13 had dropped down, and burst into the lane. Tang Bingyao and An Xin were warned by Lin Feng only seconds before. But the Leona was already engaging. She tried to hit Tang Bingyao with a solar projection of her sword–Zenith Blade! But An Xin had her Nami body block for the Vayne. Tang Bingyao managed to escape on the back of that, but An Xin wasn’t so lucky.

《You have slain an enemy!》

Two kills went to Shanghai High School, but that didn’t change much for the overall game. Tang Bingyao was still strong and continuing to get stronger. But that didn’t mean High School 13 could keep giving away kills. They started playing more carefully, waiting for the third Dragon to spawn. “We’re going to force the next teamfight,” An Xin said over the team’s voice chat.

✹

At 23 minutes, the third Dragon was about to spawn. Shanghai High School arrived at the Dragon pit far in advance to set up a wall of vision. They couldn’t back down from this teamfight. High School 13 absolutely couldn’t be allowed to get a third dragon. Plus, they finally felt strong enough to challenge High School 13 in a teamfight. Yasuo and Gragas had both picked up kills in the last couple of minutes and upgraded their items with the extra gold. If they got the pick on Vayne, they could burst her down.

“It’s about to go down!” Westwind shouted into his microphone. “Shanghai High School has been clawing their way back into this game! Gragas and Yasuo have the damage to one-shot Vayne!”

Silent Reed giggled and said, “What you’re saying is that Shanghai High School is looking for the engage, right West? They need to get the pick on Vayne and win the teamfight on the back of that.”

Westwind nodded and replied, “Exactly! And this is going to be it as well! Whoever wins this teamfight will probably go on to win the game! It’s do or die! Can High School 13 protect their Vayne for long enough? Or will Shanghai High School get the pick they need to finally turn this game around? They could force a potential Game 5! How exciting would that be!”

The High School 13 students in the audience were shifting around on their seats, unable to contain their worries, nerves, and excitement. They talked amongst each other about everything the casters were saying, including remarks about their school winning the tournament.

“Just imagine,” one High School 13 student said to his friends sitting next to him. “If they win this, we’re the Champions! We might actually win!”

“Might? We’re going to win!” one of his friends responded.
“But what if they catch Tang Tang? Didn’t the casters just say how—”
“No! Don’t say it! Positive thoughts only! We’re going to win this! Our team can do this! Mark my words, we’re going to become the best esports school in Shanghai!”
“I hope so, I really do…”
“Oh, shut up with your stupid pessimism! GO HIGH SCHOOL 13! YOU CAN DO IT, TANG TANG!”
“Right! GO TANG TANG! WOOOOO!”
“HIGH SCHOOL 13, CHAMPIONS OF SHANGHAI!”