Chapter 46: Let’s try stopping him

The familiar sound of machinery echoed as the monitor, which had been locked in darkness for days, came back to life.

“Ha…”

Had it been a long time since I sat in front of the computer?

My heart was pounding.

In truth, I hadn’t been very ill since the first day.

But time was what I needed.

The time to organize myself and return to being fully me.

During my time lying in bed, most of what I did was watch Legend of League videos.

I didn’t really feel like sleeping, and there wasn’t anything in particular to do, so it was a natural outcome.

Lying down wasn’t difficult.

On the contrary, it was comfortable.

For someone like me, who had lived lying down as a daily routine, watching something while lying down was incredibly familiar.

“Ah, I shouldn’t have done that there.”

Among the videos I watched, the ones I watched the most were my own gameplay videos.

Of course, I didn’t record them myself; I watched replays that others had uploaded to YouTube.

Usually, these types of videos are made by famous pro players or fans, but I accidentally benefited from a bit of fame.

I watched my own plays through these videos and did self-feedback.

“Ah, I did well here. How did this happen? There were some mistakes from the opponent, but still…”

If I ever die someday, I’ll make sure they play this replay at my funeral, saying, ‘This was the best play our dear departed ever did.’

…Such trivial thoughts would occasionally pop into my mind.

Anyway, as I kept watching my replays, related videos of streamers who played against me started showing up.

At first, I thought there was no need to watch the same game, but as more and more related videos were suggested, I couldn’t help but click on one.

“Wait, they came in like this?”

I didn’t usually watch a lot of internet streams.

I only searched for them occasionally when there were patches or when I needed new information.

But watching videos from streamers who played against me was a first for me, so I quickly got hooked on them.

It wasn’t so much the fun of the stream itself but the enjoyment of seeing how my opponents played against me.

“Ah, I thought I knew that, but I couldn’t read it. That’s why I wasted my movement. I need to keep that in mind.”

As I watched video after video, I naturally started alternating between watching videos of my perspective and my opponents’ perspectives from the same game.

“Ahhh!”

The streamer’s scream echoed, and immediately, the chat and donations flooded in.

• “Mid lane difference!”

“Wait, this isn’t a mid lane difference, it’s a jungle difference!”

“Mid lane difference, mid lane difference, ya ya ya, mid lane difference, mid lane difference, ya ya ya!”

That type of mockery in the chat was pretty funny from a viewer’s perspective, but realizing that I was the one who caused the streamer to be roasted made it feel a bit strange.

“Seriously, they’re playing so dirty! Can’t you fight?!”

• “Praise, hahaha”

“What is our jungler doing?!”

Hahahahahahaha

• “So funny, hahaha”
• “Season 45741 shotgun”

“Is this the place where the famous Praise Master, Prisoner, is? Oh, I’ve come to the wrong place.”

As I watched these various streamers, I realized something.

“My opponents don’t always make the best decisions.”

Normally, when I play, I assume my opponents will make the best decisions from my position.

I think this way because, statistically, responding as though they will make the best move reduces the chance of me losing.

However, watching them play, I saw so many puzzling decisions even when the reasoning was clear not to make those choices.

If I had to compare it… it felt like watching Yun Gi from solo rank, who lacks physical ability.

“Is this a characteristic of streamers?”

Well, pro streamers have to put on flashy plays to get the crowd cheering, and the cheers from the viewers are what they need.

Their purpose in the game is different from pro gamers, whose sole aim is to win.

I became absorbed in watching the videos.

As I watched, my mind started running simulations on countless possibilities.

“If it were me, I wouldn’t do it that way.”

“Ah, if they came in there, I’d be dead. I need to be careful in the future.”

“Here, I made a mistake… Well, the opponent made more mistakes, so I still came out ahead.”

Watching my gameplay from different perspectives made me feel an urge.

I wanted to play.

I wanted to get up as soon as possible and jump into solo rank.

“Ah…”

The more my desire to play grew, the more the brief depression that had once tried to consume me disappeared like snow melting.

My brief hormone-induced depression was nothing compared to the severe gaming addiction that had controlled my life.

On the 27th day…

Finally, on the fourth day, I got up from bed.

“Ha.”

• 2:13 AM

When I opened my eyes, it was already far past noon.

But there was nothing to be concerned about.

This time was actually the perfect time for solo rank in the Korean top-tier time zone.

Lying in bed, I thought about a lot of things.

The thought I had most often was simply the pure desire to play a game.

[Game found!]

[Accept/Decline]

I quickly launched the Legend of League client, almost burning the obsession for games that had been building up.

[Victory]

[Victory]

[Victory]

Three consecutive wins.

Normally, at this point, I would stop and either watch the replays for self-feedback or take a break.

However, I didn’t stop.

I was still thirsty.

[Victory]

Before I knew it, I had reached six consecutive wins.

My score was also 1890.

One more win, and I’d hit 1900 LP, a legendary milestone, different from the ordinary 1800 mark.

Of course, that didn’t matter to me right now.

All I wanted was to keep winning.

So, without even a short rest, I immediately started another game.

[Game found!]

[Accept/Decline]

I didn’t hesitate.

There was no need to.

[Victory]

After seven consecutive wins, I finally felt my thirst starting to subside.

“Ha…”

When I regained my focus, I had already reached 1900 LP.

[Prisoner]

Rank 1

Solo Rank

• Challenger
• 1904 LP / 260 Wins 17 Losses
• Win Rate 60%

Even though I had reached 1900 LP with my own hands, I couldn’t help but feel a bit dumbfounded.

Was this really a score I could hit so easily?

‘…No, it wasn’t easy.’

In the end, while there were games I won easily, the opponents were not easy by any means.

I quietly stared at the calendar on my computer screen.

…It’s almost time.

The time my mother spoke of is approaching.

It was almost time to end my life as Prisoner.

‘I’ll make sure to finish it properly.’

Solo rank 2000 points.

A score that no one has even stepped close to, let alone achieved.

I would leave an indelible mark on it.

As Prisoner’s final mark.

“Ha.”

As I was taking a short breath, a whisper came through.

[1]

[SY Rainbow: Prisoner,]

It was Rainbow.

Recently, I had the impression that Rainbow was avoiding me, so our relationship had become a bit distant.

But today, after a long time, Rainbow spoke to me first.

[Me: Yes]

[SY Rainbow: Congratulations on being #1.]

[Me: Thank you ᄒᄒᄒ]

[SY Rainbow: And I saw you hit 1900 after barely missing 1800 before. So impressive!]

[Me: Eh, compared to you, Rainbow, it’s nothing ᄒᄒᄒ]

Even though we had become a bit distant recently, it wasn’t awkward since we hadn’t played together for just a day or two.

After a few light pleasantries, there was a brief silence before Rainbow spoke again.

[SY Rainbow: And… I truly apologize for what I said about you in that interview earlier. I know I made things difficult for you, and I’m sorry for ignoring it until now.]

Although it was a short sentence, I could feel how much Rainbow had agonized over saying this.

I guess this was the reason why Rainbow had been avoiding me.

[Me: It’s okay.]

Of course, because of that, I had dreams that didn’t fit me and tasted despair.

But that was all in the past.

It didn’t matter at all to me in the present or the future.

Anyway, it was clear that Rainbow’s words back then had inspired me to dream of becoming a pro again.

[SY Rainbow: Well… I have a schedule now. I’ll see you later. Again, I’m really sorry.]

[Me: No problem. I’m really fine ᄒᄒᄒ]

[SY Rainbow: I’m glad to hear that ᅮᅮ Sorry again…]

[SY Rainbow: Oh, and…]

There was a brief silence.

It seemed like Rainbow was thinking about what to say next.

[SY Rainbow: From now on, it won’t be easy.]

I immediately understood what that meant.

Rainbow, the two-time Red Cup champion, was declaring that they would stop me, an amateur, from progressing.

[Me: Are you going to target me?]

[SY Rainbow: ; ;ᄌ]

Look at that?

Was that the same person who just apologized?

If that’s the case, then I also have my own way to respond.

[Me: I’m going to delete you.]

[SY Rainbow: ;;ᄌ]

[Me: Just kidding.]

Although I said that, honestly, it wouldn’t be a lie to say I was interested.

If they declared war, it would be only natural for me to respond.

[Me: You think you can do it alone?]

[SY Rainbow: So I’m going to duo with Yun Gi.]

This guy is so bold.

[Me: ;;; That’s too petty.]

[SY Rainbow: If I don’t, I won’t be confident. You’ve been doing really well lately.]

I couldn’t help but laugh at the pure recognition, even though it was ridiculous.

‘But that’s probably not the only reason.’

Rainbow wasn’t really duoing just to fight me; it was more likely that they wanted to avoid running into me on the same team.

‘But even so, the way they say it, they’re still the same.’

Although Rainbow had become more serious after winning the Red Cup twice, the old Rainbow used to be much more playful.

It was a case of how the position had changed them.

What I felt now… how should I describe it?

It felt like I had gone back to the days when I played with Rainbow before their pro debut.

[Me: ;; ᄋᄏ I’ll let you off this time.]

[SY Rainbow: 7]

[Me: But I still won’t let you off.]

I declared.

If you want to stop me, I’ll break through you with everything I’ve got.

[SY Rainbow: Same here.]

Even if they were part of the world’s best mid-jungle duo.