Stratus lost their third game.

No, they didn't just lose. The enemy utterly and thoroughly crushed them like a bug. It was an embarrassing defeat, even more embarrassing than the defeat they delivered to Taurus during the second game.

The enemy's Teleport shenanigans caught them off guard and messed up the entire flow of the game. How will they counter that gimmick? Actually, it was quite simple.

"We just have to play safer," Yuel explained to everybody. "If we don't let them gain any early advantage after they buy Teleport, they'll fall behind on gold." 

It was something everybody here probably already knew. Nevertheless, Yuel said it out loud to make sure everybody heard how simple it was. They were all wearing such difficult expressions that Yuel felt the urge to inject some positivity into this gloomy atmosphere.

But, how would an emotionless golem like him cheer anybody up? The only way he knew how: by analyzing the game and offering solutions. That's all he could do.

Normally, he'd leave the pep talk to Lars. But, there was no sign of the usual goofiness on the goof's face. He had a grim expression. The frustration of losing to the Viking was probably still eating away at him. It was hard to watch.

"It wasn't your fault," Yuel said. "It was a bad matchup for a mage. And, we both know mages aren't your forte in the first place." 

"Yeah, yeah, I know," Lars clicked his tongue. He knew all that, yet the whole thing frustrated him to no end. Expecting himself to win that 1v1 was probably asking for too much from himself, he understood that in his head. But then, why was he even playing mage in the first place!? That's what irritated him most.

I should've been a marksman! Lars stomped on the floor as if it were the culprit responsible for forcing him to play Mid. But, it wasn't the floor's fault. It was Kai who insisted to play Carry.

But, it wasn't exactly Kai’s fault either. It was all Lars. He was the one who accepted this crappy deal and bowed his head like some submissive loser. What the flying fuck was he doing playing Mid in this official competitive match!?

"Calm down," Yuel patted Lars's shoulder.

"Geh," Lars just realized he has been punching the wall this entire time. His fist turned a little reddish. He couldn't bear this. It was all his fault. He shouldn't have agreed with Yuel on this. Lars should’ve stood his ground and forced Kai to let them play Bot. In fact, he gonna demand exactly that, right here and now!

"Kai, listen," Lars tried to keep his tone as calm as possible. "We gotta switch lanes. These dudes are somethin' else. Let me and Yuel handle Bot." 

"Huh?" Kai gave him a nasty look. "Are you saying I can't handle these guys?" 

"Well, you saw how that game went."

“That was just a small mess up," Kai claimed. "I'll wreck these bastards next time. No problem."

"I dunno about that. These dudes are strong," Lars insisted. His heavy tone made it clear he had no intention of backing down. "Me and Yuel gotta handle Bot. Otherwise, we'll lose again."

"Tch," Kai clicked her tongue. Her clenched fists trembled. "We only lost in Bot because my Support wasn't good enough." She shot a glare at Vincent. "I didn't want to bring this up but alright, let’s discuss this, shall we? Vincent just stood there like a scarecrow while I was fighting. That’s why we lost. Am I right?"

"Um, I..." Vincent swallowed his words. He couldn’t find the words, a rare occurrence for the ever loud clown who usually spouted nonsense like a machinegun. Everybody’s eyes were on him as if judging every little twitch he made.

"You know I'm right," Kai pressured. "Their Cryo got in and froze me, but what were you doing the whole time? Pretty much nothing. You didn't even warn me the guy was approaching."

"I-I simply didn't notice," Vincent slowly regained his voice. "That Laplace player is not your average Support. He has the uncanny ability to approach his targets unnoticed and catch them off guard with CC. It is quite similar to the Vanishing Phantom, yet different at the same time. I dub it the Phantom Approacher!"

"Cut the crap already," Kai lashed. "Just admit it. You didn't want to commit to the attack, so left me there alone to die."

"N-No, I’d never!" Vincent stumbled over his words. "I admit that I wasn't entirely confident about pursuing that offense. So, I was consulting the all-knowing Chessmaster, and..."

"And then I got wrecked, while you were standing there not doing jack shit.”

"T-That's not..." Vincent shifted his eyes away. He was very much aware of his faults in that play. He was stuck in analysis paralysis, racking his brain to determine what was their best line of play against the enemy’s cocky poking. While he was mulling over it and discussing it with Yuel, Kai suddenly took action and initiated an attack.

Frankly, that sudden development threw Vincent off balance. One moment, he was calmly examining the situation from afar and analyzing his options. There was nothing urging or pressuring him. It’s like he was floating high in the clouds, looking at his surroundings from bird’s-eye view.

Then, out of the blue, somebody grabbed his leg and pulled him down to the ground. It was such a sudden transition that it left him confused. By the time he returned to his senses, it was almost too late.

Yes, almost too late. After all, Vincent did make it on the scene before Kai died. He didn’t completely fail at supporting.

"May I remind you that I did rescue you with my Aegis?” Vincent wasn't even sure why he said that. It wasn’t like he was trying to justify himself or anything, but... 

"Oh yeah,” Kai said. “THANK YOU for not letting me die after abandoning me there." She shook her head in disappointment and turned to the others. "So, there you have it. The only reason I lost there was Vincent's awful support. If we’re going to replace anybody in Bot, it gotta be the Support." She threw Yuel a meaningful look. 

"You want me to switch with Vincent?" Yuel asked.

"Yeah, that should do it.” Kai nodded. “If you're the one supporting me, I'll make quick work of these guys."

"Hmm," Yuel considered it for a moment. Is she seriously claiming she didn't do anything wrong at all? That it was all Vincent's fault? Sorry, but I don’t buy it.

Going by Kai's words alone, it sounded like Vincent should take all the blame. And, indeed, his response to the unfolding situation was too slow. He bore some of the blame, no doubt. But, that wasn't the entire picture.

It was always easy to point fingers at the Support when he didn't follow up on the Carry's attack. But, there was always one important thing to ask about these scenarios. 

"Kai, did you inform Vincent ahead of time about your attack?" Yuel interrogated.

"I'm... pretty sure I said something." Kai shot a glare at Vincent as if to silence him.

"How about it?" Yuel turned to Vincent. "Did she inform you at all?" 

"Oh, yeah, about that..." Vincent nervously shifted his eyes between Kai and Yuel. 

"C'mon, don't be shy," Lars urged Vincent to speak up. "We're all friends here. No need to hide anything."

"Kai didn't inform me," Vincent admitted. "I didn't receive any heads up at all."

"Tch," Kai turned away and clicked her tongue. She was practically admitting to her crime with that body language.

"So, most of the blame lies with Kai," Yuel gave Kai a serious look. "I agree that Vincent could've reacted faster. But, it would have been a hundred times better if you just informed him about your plans. You’re partners on the lane. You’re supposed to discuss everything."

"So, there ya have it," Lars wrapped it up. "Me and Yuel won't make that kind of mistake, so leave Bot to us."

"No," Kai insisted even after hearing all of this.

"But, why!?" Lars exclaimed. "We gotta win today! Let us play Bot and we gonna wreck ‘em dudes ezpz!" 

"I can do it myself," Kai argued. She didn't want to back down from this challenge.

There was something about that player, Renegade, that irked her to no end. That bastard was looking down on her in the purest sense of the word. He wasn't doing it for the laughs or to stroke his own ego. No, he just genuinely saw Kai as a piece of trash.

Renegade was challenging her, Kai could tell it clearly. The guy was sneering at her the entire game, always daring her to come and fight him. And, after the game, their eyes met again on the stage.

That bastard didn't smile. He didn't grin. He didn't even sneer or scoff at her. Renegade simply gave Kai a pitying look, as if she was just some bug he squashed.

Yeah, in that bastard’s eyes, Kai was nothing more than a bug, someone who didn't belong on this competitive stage. That's all Renegade saw in Kai. It was an insult on a whole different level. Kai didn't even know how to respond to it.

She was angry. No, furious! She wanted to snap that damn guy's neck! Yet, at the same time, Renegade’s attitude sent a chill down her spine. Somehow, that bastard's cocky attitude overwhelmed her.

No, I'm not scared of that bastard. I'll prove him wrong! Kai promised. And, in order to achieve her goal, she had to remain in Bot. She'll face Renegade once more on lane. And, this time, she'll mop the floor with him so hard, that he’ll see his own miserable reflection in it!

"What if we lose again?" Lars argued back.

"We won't," Kai responded without hesitation.

"But, we might! Them dudes ain't no pushovers. I'm sure they'll even give me and Yuel some trouble." 

"I'll beat them next game, with or without Yuel's help." 

The back-and-forth went on. The others simply watched from the sideline, unable to slip in a single word. It was like a roaring contest between two lions. Nobody dared to get closer.

It's rare to see Lars like this. Yuel thought. The goof usually maintained a positive attitude about everything, but right now he was aggressively lashing back at Kai. Fortunately, his arguments didn't turn into personal attacks, and neither did Kai’s.

Despite the heated argument, it was clear both players respected each other’s skill. They just refused to yield on this one point, so they fought it out the only way they knew how. By yelling nonsense at each other like two brats...

"Me and Yuel got the powah! We can wrap it up no problem!" 

"I can beat all three of them myself. With my eyes closed, even!"

A silly back and forth without an end in sight.

Can’t somebody do anything about this? Yuel wondered. We don’t have time for this.

Unfortunately, nobody made a move. None of them wanted to be caught up in that heated battlefield.

Vincent remained on the sideline, seemingly contemplating whether he should say something. Luke was also far away, with an awkward smile plastered on his face. It was pretty clear they didn't want to get involved with any of this. Then, what about Nia?

Hm? Where is she? Yuel looked around. It took him a few moments to find the familiar black messy hair. In fact, that’s the only part of Nia he actually could see. The rest of her body was covered by a blanket.

Did she go to sleep!? In this situation!? Yuel lost all grip on reality. What the bloody hell was going on with the team!?

"Hey, Nia," Yuel called out. "Wake up." 

"No. I sleep," Nia replied with a muffled voice from under the blanket.

"We got two more games to play." 

"Good luck."

"You're also playing in them."

"No. I sleep." 

This girl... Yuel checked the clock. It wasn't 3 pm yet, so it was too early for the princess’s daily beauty sleep. "C'mon, get up. At least one more game."

"No." Nia tightly held onto the blanket with her little hands, stopping Yuel from pulling it away.

"It’s still early," Yuel insisted. “I’m sure you can keep going.”

"Too tired. Zero MP. Gotta recall."

"You only played three games," Yuel argued.

"Three games too many," Nia mumbled. "Playing on stage is scary. Drains all your life force. It shortened my life span by at least 10 years."

"Really now," Yuel made a face. Though, he could somewhat relate to what Nia was saying.

During Yuel's first scrimmage, he was so exhausted he nearly collapsed afterward. If Lars wasn't there to catch him, Yuel probably would’ve crashed into the floor and taken a nap right there on stage. An unpleasant thought for sure.

Since Yuel became that tired during his debut, it only made sense that Nia was handling herself even worse. She wasn't exactly the paragon of energy in the first place. 

So, this is as far as she goes today. Yuel nodded to himself. It was regrettable, but he knew this was bound to happen sooner or later. In fact, it was a miracle this timid girl even mustered the courage to play on stage today. That alone made her worthy of praise.

Not to mention, Nia put on a strong performance during the first two games. The enemy’s skill level wasn’t that high back then, but even so, everything went much smoother thanks to Nia’s sneaky kills.

“Okay, sleep well,” Yuel said. “If possible, try to recover enough energy so you can play in the last game.”

“Hm, ok...” Nia gave a vague reply. It was pretty clear she didn’t believe that’ll happen, and neither did she seem interested in making it happen.

It’s too stressful. Nia thought. She didn’t want to be on that stage again today. Especially, she didn’t want to experience anything similar to what happened last game.

That game was awful. Not only because the enemy screwed her entire team across the board, but also because Nia didn’t get to do anything. Everything happened so quickly. She couldn’t even find an opportunity to insert herself into the unfolding action. What’s worse, their new opponents didn’t show any openings.

Everybody probably thought Nia was nowhere near the action scenes during the early parts of the game. But, she was actually there, hiding in the shadows. For example, back when Kai was fighting the Gunslinger to the death, Nia was not that far away.

“I’ll sneak in and kill that Gunslinger.” That’s what Nia thought at the time. She believed that Kai will eventually disengage from the fight and that’ll give Nia an opportunity to sneak in and deliver the finishing blow.

As a Drow, the best way to do things was to quickly get in while stealthed, deal tons of damage with the dagger, then get out. So, Nia was waiting for a good opportunity to do exactly that.

But, the situation didn’t develop as she expected. Instead of retreating, Kai continued fighting and almost got herself killed. Nia realized she shouldn’t ganked earlier, but it was too late at that point.

But, not all was lost. The Gunslinger was still running low on HP. As long as Nia could sneak in on him, she’ll be able to get the kill.

But, that was easier said than done. The Gunslinger always surrounded himself with other players, like a prime minister with his bodyguards.

At first, only the Cryoamncer was in the way. Cryomancer’s CC meant trouble, but it was just one bodyguard. So, Nia patiently waited for a good opportunity strike.

Just as she found it, the Viking appeared out of nowhere. Together, the three of them formed a tight formation that didn’t have any openings.

In the end, Nia gave up on the gank. She couldn’t slip past them unnoticed, she felt that in her bones. Their formation was impeccable.

The Bermuda Triangle of Certain Doom. That’s how Vincent called it and it rang true. If Nia dared to get any closer, she’d be sucked in and torn apart. Scary.

Unfortunately, that triangle-thingy wasn’t a one-time stunt. Those three maintained their unbreakable position for the rest of the game, as if to bully Nia. They covered each other's backs. There were no openings. She couldn't slip past their defense no matter what. 

In end, Nia had no choice but to give up on ganking as a whole. So, she joined the defense efforts. She didn't get to do anything impressive there but, hopefully, her presence made a little bit of difference. Either way, it was an unpleasant experience.

I don't want to go through that again. Nia pouted underneath the blanket. She was hiding her sulking face from the others. The atmosphere in the room was already as bad as it could possibly get, so she didn't want to add her own frustrations to the mix.

And, more than anything, she didn't want to become the target of anybody's hostility. The air in the room was charged with electricity. It felt like the smallest spark could make the entire place blow up. Scary.

All of this stress was exhausting. She didn't want to deal with any of this. It was easier to slip away into slumber and forget all her problems.

And so, Nia left the stage for today. The team fell into disarray after their crushing defeat, and now they also lost their Jungler on top of that. Could they recover from this heavy blow before the next game...?