Yagao never imagined that Viktor was lurking behind Zeri. Even though he reacted quickly and immediately pressed W, the opponent's hand speed still exceeded his expectations.
In the instant they made contact, all the skills were dumped straight onto him.
A real-life demonstration of what it means for a health bar to vanish!
The only chance for a comeback had actually been handed over by the opponent—and at this point, he basically knew the game was already slipping away…
TES had swapped their mid laner. In lane, there wasn't overwhelming pressure, but the overall tempo had undergone a complete transformation.
Staring at his black-and-white screen, Yagao's thoughts had already drifted far away.
—
Caster desk.
"Nautilus and LeBlanc are charging forward…"
"Damn! Viktor's damage is insane—LeBlanc's health bar gets erased the moment they meet!" Guan Zeyuan exclaimed exaggeratedly, clearly shocked by Viktor's damage.
At the twenty-four-minute mark, Viktor—who was the best-farmed player on the map—had an absurd three-item spike: Luden's, Shadowflame, and Rabadon's Deathcap. His stats had already broken 500 Ability Power.
On top of that, he was a full two levels up on LeBlanc. Even with Summon Aery as his keystone, dumping three skills was more than enough to delete her.
Not to mention Zeri standing nearby as supplemental damage.
The moment Yagao chose to jump in and gamble on a fight, his fate was already sealed.
"The main issue is that mid tier one fell too early. LeBlanc simply had no room to farm. TES really maxed out the game's tempo this match—grouping from start to finish to push lanes and secure resources."
"They never gave JDG any chances. Seeing only Zeri mid, and with such a large deficit already, JDG could only gamble their lives on one fight—trying to burst Zeri down. But TES's main force was all hiding behind her."
"That's textbook bait. They read JDG's mindset perfectly. I can only say this loss isn't undeserved." As Guan Zeyuan spoke, TES seamlessly transitioned from killing LeBlanc and Nautilus straight into the Baron pit to start Baron.
The moment these words came out, the chat exploded.
"Holy shit, don't curse it, don't curse it! Guan Zeyuan's mouth is famously toxic."
"Before the match, he favored JDG—and now JDG is getting completely crushed."
"Guan Shen has activated! JDG comeback incoming!"
"If JDG actually comes back here, Guan Zeyuan is truly god-tier. Baron done, still down twelve thousand gold—what are they even coming back with?"
"Shh! Don't say that, or some state-owned team will think you're throwing shade at them."
"It's already S12—are there really still people bringing up EDG's ten-thousand-gold deficit comeback? At least they won Worlds in S11; in my book, that earns them a year of immunity."
"All that aside, have you noticed? Viktor quietly already has six kills and four assists this game. After three days, it clearly isn't just 'luck' like people said."
"Uh… that actually seems true. TES swapped mid and the tempo instantly took off. This is the TES I remember."
—
While Baron was being taken, the three casters kept talking about Lin Fan.
"The style TES is showing this game is completely different from their usual reliance on raw individual laning power. It feels much more team-oriented."
"You can tell from the stats—everyone has a ton of assists. Even Zoom in top lane already has eight assists. He spent less time split-pushing and more time grouping."
"Is it possible that TES's shotcaller this game is Rise of Kingdoms Bro?"
"It really does look like it," 957 adjusted his glasses. As a former pro, he could see clearly—this game truly revolved around mid-lane Viktor. Of course, that wasn't something you could say too openly right now.
You had to consider JackeyLove, the other major carry, and also Knight, who had been subbed out.
Both had massive fanbases.
For casters, 'disaster comes from the mouth' isn't a joke. Plenty of commentators had been cyberbullied by fan groups before.
"For Rise of Kingdoms Bro to hold mid against Xin Zhao and LeBlanc, and still bring the tempo of the entire game with Viktor—that alone is already insane to me."
"If TES wins this, my vote is going to him," Gugu said, openly agreeing with 957.
"Let's take a look—Baron's HP is dropping fast. JDG doesn't want to give it up completely and sends Xin Zhao over to check…"
"Kanavi activates W! Baron's HP is down to two thousand!"
At that moment, everyone stopped attacking.
With Leona and Gnar taking turns tanking, there was zero pressure.
As Xin Zhao's mark was about to expire, Kanavi found himself in an impossible spot.
Jumping down meant instant death.
Not jumping meant no chance at all.
He knew TES only needed two or three more seconds to finish Baron, but without Flash, he couldn't even gamble his life.
A moment of hesitation—and the mark disappeared.
Kanavi completely lost his chance to contest Baron.
With Baron's roar, TES calmly secured the objective. Everyone pressed Recall, preparing to reset and end the game.
—
"Kanavi looks so helpless. At two thousand HP, TES just stopped hitting. If he goes in, he melts instantly—but if he doesn't, he has no Flash."
"All I can say is TES's shotcalling is incredibly clear."
"With this Baron, they should be preparing to end in one push."
With Baron buff, TES marched forward. When mid inhibitor turret was still at half HP, Hecarim unexpectedly engaged with his ultimate.
Gnar followed up with a Buddha Palm, instantly locking Jinx and Sion under the turret to death.
In the follow-up chase, Xin Zhao was also killed.
TES didn't lose a single member.
Only LeBlanc and Nautilus remained, trembling in front of the Nexus turrets.
They didn't even need to wait for the next minion wave—TES charged straight into the Nexus towers.
With the game already decided, Yagao and Missing chose a lovers' suicide at the end.
TES deliberately funneled all the kills to Lin Fan, letting him complete a godlike spree.
In pro play, it's not just about killing—it's also about social etiquette.
Ace!
With no protection left, the two Nexus turrets collapsed instantly.
Moments later, JDG's Nexus followed.
The clock stopped at 27:25.
After swapping mid laners, TES cleanly took game three, winning the series 2–1 and securing another point.
Their overall record improved to 2–6, climbing one more spot to 14th place.
"Congratulations to TES!"
"Nice!"
Backstage, hearing the casters' congratulations, Luo Sheng leapt up from his seat, pumping his fists excitedly.
Knight's expression, however, turned subtle.
This match wasn't how he'd imagined it.
Why did Tian protect Lin Fan the entire game? Why were wards everywhere, willingly playing bodyguard for him?
Are you fucking acting against me?
TL: If you want to read ahead by at least ten chapters, patreon.com/EdibleMapleSyrup