Stratus built immense momentum after scoring the Double Kill in Mid, but the Leopards refused to yield to this one strong play. They kept deflecting all incoming attacks and even launched a few counterattacks of their own.
In particular, Winner went on a few savage hunts, as if in revenge for the humiliation in Mid.
『An ally has been killed!』
『An enemy has been killed!』
『An allied Turret has been destroyed!』
『An enemy Turret has been destroyed!』
The game went back and forth. Both sides were roughly equal in their performance. For each kill one team scored, the other team soon returned the favor. For every demolished allied tower, an enemy tower soon fell as well.
Despite starting the mid-game from a very disadvantageous position, the Leopards renounced nicely and held their ground. Their superb teamwork and oppressive defense made it difficult for Stratus to press home their advantage.
But, no matter how amazing the Leopards' performance was, it wasn't enough. Though they prevented Stratus from extending the lead, they couldn’t close the gap Nia opened when mid-game started. Even now, Stratus was still leading by two kills and one tower.
W-We might actually win this! Nia gulped as she analyzed the stats screen for the hundredth time. The advantage I created is still here! It's carrying us! Hehe.
Not to brag or anything, but Stratus was pretty much winning thanks to Nia here. It was her awesome Double Kill that established this advantageous position.
Maybe I'm actually at the Leopards' level. Heck, maybe I’m even better! Nia snickered as she stealthily traversed through the jungle. She was a phantom who terrorized the entire enemy team!
The Leopards knew Nia was sneaky, but it was simply impossible for them to keep an eye on her 24/7. Stratus launched many bold attacks, so every now and then, the Leopards’ minds wandered. And, that's when Nia struck!
Ok, let's see. Where should this pro Jungler rotate to next? Hehe. Nia giggled to herself. She felt untouchable within the depths of the jungle. Nobody would be able to find her inside this fog.
From here, Nia could safely launch an attack on anybody. She was capable of striking from anywhere and at any time, that's how pro she was. Or, so she thought.
But, as if to cut right through that conviction, a blade leapt at her from around the corner!
"E-Eh!?"
"Fouuuuund you!" Ronald cut off the sneaky Ninja’s rotation before the girl could try anything funny. This sure took a damn while, but I’ve finally registered you!
Ronald slashed again as if to reaffirm the existence of the phantom in front of him. As expected, his blade struck home yet again.
VanishingFlower was definitely in front of him right now. Ronald could touch her with his blade, to rip her HP asunder.
Listen, girl. I dunno what's your deal, but I'm about to put an end to whatever that you’re doing! Ronald promised. You've been giving bro and the team way too much trouble. It’s time to end this!
Ronald activated Draconic Flame, unleashing a swing of fire. This was going to be his third hit in a row! WHISH!
Alas, the Ninja rolled on the ground. She dove underneath the flame attack just in the nick of time.
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Meh, figured. Ronald shook his head. Of course you can dodge that much. After all, you're an opponent I bothered to register. So, you gotta be at least this good, right?
Ronald immediately closed the distance with Draconic Rush. He charged straight in the direction of Vanishing's roll and rammed into her before she recovered!
You know, when you subbed in again, I thought they replaced a hella cool memer with some weako. Ronald admitted as she attacked again. To be honest, I still don't really get what’s your deal. You just kinda sneak up on people because they let you do it. Heck, even I let you do it. Somehow, nobody ever notices you before it's too late.
Despite accumulating 5 kills on her record by now, Vanishing remained a somewhat forgettable existence. Sonya and Cato periodically warned about her position, which probably helped the team avert a few disasters, but even that wasn't enough. In the end, Vanishing always found a way to sneak up on people.
Truth be told, despite all these kills, Ronald also hadn’t registered Vanishing as a “strong opponent” this entire time. However, that changed when he noticed the obvious irritation on his older brother's face.
William only has 3 kills on his record at the moment. Yes, that’s right. Despite how amazing bro was at scoring kills, he was lagging behind that weak phantom by 2 kills. It was unacceptable!
Not to mention, this game is hella stingy when it comes to kills, so a 2-kill difference is a lot. Ronald made a face as he looked at his own 1/2/1 score. Yes, he had only scored a single kill in this game thus far, and also one assist when he helped his bro to seal the deal.
Man, I died more than I killed. And, both times were to this girl! Ronald swung his blade once more, but his opponent had no intention of making this easy. Vanishing turned toward him and jumped backward using Shuriken Backflip.
But, Ronald was faster. SLASH! He sliced Vanishing’s torso while she was in mid-air!
I’ve been waiting for this! He immediately rolled after his prey. This was a predictable development for this duel, so he was more than prepared for it!
I'm gonna end this phantom once and for all! Ronald pressed on with his fierce offense. His prey couldn't retaliate at all, the girl was shook. I'mma kill her real good!
From every possible point of view, Ronald was on a roll here. And yet, some of his teammates expressed dissatisfaction with his actions.
"You’ve had your fun, but I think that's quite enough," Cato said sternly. "You're overextending too much."
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing!" Ronald reassured as he slashed his opponent once again. At this point, his prey was already down to 30% HP. It'll be an ezpz kill from here!
With that said, Cato's worries weren't entirely unfounded. Ronald invaded deep into the enemy’s jungle in order to assault Vanishing, and it turned out this “surprise attack” fell within the enemy’s calculations.
As Ronald went for another slash, the area around him turned black. He was certain that his blade successfully struck Vanishing, but he couldn't even see her right now. The entire area was colored in pitch black.
"Heh, you think that’ll faze me?" Ronald placed a Stealth Ward to disperse the darkness. He came here 100% prepared!
The Stealth Ward successfully revealed the two elusive enemies in Ronald’s vicinity. It was a 1v2 situation, but there was no real reason to pay any heed to the Warlock. All Ronald cared about was killing Vanishing. Let’s gooooooo!
The enemy probably thought they had Ronald cornered with that Eldritch Nightmare, but nope! This meager ult wasn’t going to stop a pro like him!
A Stealth Ward? Yuel frowned as he spotted an enemy ward appear for a moment before turning invisible. That was an unexpectedly smart play from Challenger.
This is bad. Yuel bit his lip. I was sure my ult will be enough to help Nia escape, but I underestimated Challenger. His skill level is really hard to measure.
It felt like Challenger’s skill level greatly varied depending on who he was facing. His performance was mediocre against average-level opponents, but his skill suddenly skyrocketed when he faced a serious threat.
So, this is the “Threat Overthrower” trait Vincent was talking about. Yuel had no choice but to recognize Vincent's on-point analysis yet again, despite the silly nickname.
It seemed like, right now, Challenger recognized Nia as a "strong opponent". This was supposed to be an unlikely scenario, given Nia's elusiveness. But, she really outdid herself in this game, so it wasn’t too strange for Challenger to take notice of her.
And so, Nia found herself marked by the most savage beast among the Leopards. At his strongest, Challenger was perhaps able to surpass even Winner. So, in the current fight, his strength might be second only to Lars's.
Even Warlock's powerful ult failed to put a stop to the beast's savage assault. Challenger was on a roll there!