Chapter 24: Feel it for yourself.

If I back down here, I will undoubtedly lose control of the 3-buff to Kha’Zix.

The top is Renekton vs. Sion.

The mid is Galion vs. Akali.

That’s it.

Even though the mid lane is being pushed, considering the top and mid matchups objectively, there was no reason to avoid the fight.

Moreover, Kha’Zix is holding the blue buff, and I am holding the red buff.

There is no need to think about which buff would be more directly helpful in combat.

This is YunGi’s Kha’Zix making a forceful play, and under normal circumstances, this would be a fight I shouldn’t engage in.

But even so, YunGi made the move.

Even though he clearly knew it was a losing fight.

“He must be that confident.”

As always, it seemed like he was trying to crush me with overwhelming force.

“Same as always.”

If it were the old me, I would have backed down, knowing that his malicious nature was at play.

Rather than responding to the opponent’s gambit, it would have been better to stick to my pace, even if it meant a slight disadvantage.

But…

“How long do you think I’ll keep running?”

I know that YunGi exerts overwhelming power in combat.

In fact, I had been crushed by that overwhelming strength many times before.

“Wait, you’re going in like this?”

Even when outnumbered,

Even when behind in growth,

Even when the situation isn’t favorable,

Even with the worst conditions, YunGi would boldly use his flash if he thought he could win.

“Is this where I die?”

The reason I got ahead in the head-to-head matchups with YunGi was because I started calculating his overwhelming power.

The moment I saw his nickname, YunGi, on the loading screen, I treated it as if I was playing against an unbeatable opponent.

“…I’m already 1 core behind, but with YunGi, you never know. Let’s avoid the fight and take the lane advantage.”

“Still, a 3-level gap is hard to overcome, right? …No, I’ve been crushed by this before. Let’s be more careful.”

“You’re coming in like this? Fine, take everything. It’s dirty and underhanded, but…”

YunGi was that kind of opponent to me.

An incarnation of overwhelming strength, someone who completely destroys conventional combat knowledge under the name of super plays. No matter how perfect my design was, he would find the smallest crack and deal the most devastating blow.

That’s why, if I could avoid him, I would, but in this situation, there was no turning back.

“Let’s see what you’ve got.”

After I finished eating the red buff, I arrived at the river at 1:59.

Kha’Zix, after eating my blue buff, crossed the mid lane and arrived at the upper jungle river at 2:05.

The time difference wasn’t enough for Kha’Zix to get away after taking the enemy blue buff.

In other words, I couldn’t avoid the fight.

I pinged for assistance.

It was a declaration of my intention not to back down.

As if understanding what was happening, Renekton, who had been pushing the lane, began to join in.

“The enemy top and our mid lanes are both being pushed. That means a 2v2 setup is forming.”

After calculating, I began hitting the blue buff first.

It was a sign that I wasn’t afraid to go for a Smite fight if needed.

At the moment when the blue buff’s health was about 700.

Thwop!

Kha’Zix started appearing from the lower side of the blue jungle.

“I haven’t seen Akali for a while. She must be joining nearby.”

Objectively speaking, neither Kha’Zix nor Elise  are particularly strong champions at level 2.

Elise  can’t use his core E skill for initiating or dodging, and Kha’Zix also lacks his W skill, which is key in a skirmish, making it difficult to land skill shots in small fights.

Kha’Zix at level 2 and Elise  at level 2.

In simple terms, this is a skill shot fight.

That is, a hand-to-hand battle.

“If it were before, I would have definitely avoided this.”

YunGi and hand-to-hand fighting?

That’s a terrible joke.

I’d be afraid it would come to me in my dreams.

“Not anymore.”

Obviously, in this situation, where the blue buff is in between, Kha’Zix has the upper hand over Elise .

The basic range alone makes it difficult to match.

But…

“That’s only the case when you’re hitting the skill shots.”

Clearly, YunGi’s skill shots in a fight are something more than just being sharp.

There seems to be some transcendent sense to them, as if there’s some kind of supernatural intuition.

However, Kha’Zix’s Q skill, from the start, is very hard to land without support from slow effects or CC abilities.

If it were the old me and YunGi, we would’ve landed skill shots every time, but now, that’s not the case. I can now predict Kha’Zix’s Q and dodge it instead of just reacting to it.

Thwop—

Thud!

Even though Kha’Zix’s skills were constantly being thrown at me, I easily dodged them.

It wasn’t even that difficult, but since it’s YunGi, it somehow feels like a bigger deal.

While dodging and hitting the blue buff, its health reached 600.

It was now time for the Smite fight.

A common combo used in Smite fights is using skills and then Smite.

Champions with fixed damage or percentage-based damage like Olaf or Elise  are especially strong in these fights.

But what aboutElise  and Kha’Zix?

Elise  has a spider form Q with percentage health damage, and Kha’Zix has a Q that just does an absurd amount of damage.

In the end, it’s still a hand-to-hand battle.

The blue buff’s health slowly dwindled.

I carefully conserved my skills while observing Kha’Zix’s movements.

“Alright, show me.”

The moment Kha’Zix’s Q hit the blue.

Thwop!

The Smite landed on the blue buff’s head.

[Kill]

Elise ’s surrounding buffs.

The result was my victory.

As I mentioned earlier, the usual method for a Smite fight is to use skills + Smite.

But just following the textbook method wouldn’t allow me to surpass YunGi.

So, instead of using my skills, I waited and struck at the moment Kha’Zix’s skill landed, using my Smite to secure the blue buff.

I slipped in between the brief moment when Kha’Zix’s skill and Smite collided.

“He must have been really flustered.”

Up until now, whenever I directly faced YunGi, I would always get crushed.

Naturally, YunGi would never have imagined this scenario.

“Good, it’s going well.”

Though I didn’t show it outwardly, I was secretly rejoicing.

I had won the Smite fight against YunGi.

Of course, just because I got the blue buff didn’t mean I was suddenly level 3 or anything dynamic like that.

Both Kha’Zix and I had just finished clearing our first camps.

“So, now what…?”

As soon as the Smite fight ended, Renekton and the enemy Akali joined the fray.

[Renekton – Level 2]

[Akali – Level 2]

“SiAn and Galion will probably arrive after taking their lanes. SiAn will likely get here first.”

The enemy’s reinforcements were arriving a bit quicker.

Normally, after winning the blue Smite fight, I could have backed off.

Including Kha’Zix’s wasted movement, I had already gained enough of an advantage.

But why should I?

Elise  with the double buffs charged toward Kha’Zix.

My allies’ back ping kept coming, but I had no intention of backing off.

[©][©][©]

[Prisoner (Elise ) has targeted SY YunGi (Kha’Zix)]

[SY YunGi (Kha’Zix) targeted] Prisoner (Elise ) has

A 2-level Kha’Zix and a 2-level Akali.

Depending on the perspective, this combination could be strong or weak, but most would consider it weak.

On the other hand, what about our combination?

A 2-level Elise  and a 2-level Renekton.

A standard top lane destruction combo.

Its destructive power is enough even without reaching level 3 yet.

“I’ve been taking it passively until now, but not anymore.”

YunGi needs to understand.

What it feels like to experience the absurdity and unfairness I’ve endured.

What it’s like to lose a fight that should be won based on common sense, and to lose even when I must win.

“Now you feel it.”

Kha’Zix frantically tossed out his Q skills, but not a single one hit me.

Renekton and I, cutting through the skill shots, both used our Flash at the same time, almost like a picture.

Kha’Zix, realizing there was no more time to hold back, used his own Flash, but it was already after Renekton’s empowered W had landed.

-First Blood!

I sent a light emoji toward the ghost-like Kha’Zix.