Chapter 390 ZOFGK
“Let’s congratulate DRX for winning the 2022 League of Legends World Championship trophy!”
Jiang Shu watched this scene, raised his hand, and applauded along with the crowd.
Although the Little Chaewon fans beside him didn't see their favored T1 win the final match, they weren't true T1 fans after all. While a bit disappointed, they still applauded the victors, DRX.
However, the T1 fans around them didn't have such strong acceptance. After a grueling five-game series, they still lost. Many T1 fans shed tears in the arena, some even leaving directly.
Hong Eun-chae watched the support player, Keria, crying on stage, and for the first time, she felt the scene of a dream shattering.
Is this what it feels like to miss a dream?
Thinking of this, Hong Eun-chae turned to look at Sakura and Kim Chae-won beside her. These two Ouni had gone from the peak of IZONE to starting over again.
“As expected, it still couldn’t be done.” Jiang Shu sighed. Even though he had a premonition, seeing this scene with his own eyes was still very regrettable.
Gumayusi had played well enough; it was just a pity that the top lane gap was too large.
Looking at Choi Woo-je's numb expression on stage, Jiang Shu stood up from his seat.
Seeing Jiang Shu stand up, the members of LE SSERAFIM also quickly followed suit.
“You guys go do interviews, I’m going to the lounge.”
“Understood.”
T1 backstage lounge.
When Jiang Shu entered, Faker was sitting in front of the computer, reviewing the game, and Zeus was standing beside him, listening to Faker's review.
Oner was nowhere to be seen, possibly in the restroom. Keria was hiding in a corner, sobbing softly. As for the big egg…
Jiang Shu looked strangely at Gumayusi, who was holding a slice of bread and spreading various sauces, spoonful by spoonful.
Then, under Jiang Shu’s gaze, he put his homemade toast into his mouth.
Feasting!
Even Faker, who had been debuting for nearly ten years, hadn't fully recovered, yet Gumayusi, a rookie player, was so calm.
A born big-game player, with a big heart.
Zeus noticed Gumayusi feasting.
Seeing Zeus look over, Gumayusi offered the toast in his hand to Zeus.
This scene even made the disheartened Zeus smile. He steadied Gumayusi’s hand holding the toast and took a bite of it himself.
“Ahem.” Jiang Shu cleared his throat, drawing the attention of the others.
Upon seeing Jiang Shu, all three—Faker, Gumayusi, and Oner—stood up, except for the still-unaware Keria.
“Chairman Jiang!”
“President nim.”
“Pres… President…”
Jiang Shu reached out and patted Zeus’s shoulder.
“Did you see the gap in this Bo5?”
Zeus nodded silently.
It was clear to anyone that this was a top lane gap. Even if losing a game was never one person's fault, if there were a blame-sharing session, the biggest share would definitely be his.
“So, do you choose to sink into despair, or do you choose to continue working hard and win everything next year?”
Faker glanced at Zeus, appearing to want to say something but holding back. He believed that asking a rookie player to adjust his mindset so quickly at this moment could easily backfire.
However, the relationship between Jiang Shu and Zeus was very special, so it was inconvenient for him to interject.
“I…” Zeus lowered his head, a bit lost. He was truly stunned by this Bo5.
The opponent had been underwhelming for an entire S-Championship, widely considered a weak point. Yet, this very weak point seemed to be possessed by Aatrox's true form on the finals stage, cutting him down so thoroughly that he still hadn't recovered.
His proud laning ability and teamfight intuition were completely outclassed by that person.
If it had been TheShy or Nuguri, two legendary top laners, it would have been understandable. But his opponent was merely a top laner who couldn't even rank in the top three within the league.
This disparity made him feel the shock and confusion of being crushed by a protagonist's sudden power-up.
“The path forward is always full of hardships. Faker is a legendary player. He reached the peak when he debuted, and he also fell into a trough. Now, he is still on the way back to the peak. As a teammate to Faker, you should learn from him. Even if he hasn’t reached the finals for four consecutive years, he is still working hard.”
“You got second place in your debut year, but now you’re feeling down.”
“I failed the trust of many people,” Choi Woo-je said sullenly.
“Just as I sent you to T1 back then, my expectations for you remain unchanged. You will definitely become a true Top Lane God King, and ZOFGK is the best partnership.”
“I think Chairman Jiang is right.” Gumayusi chewed on his toast and chimed in, “It’s just a loss. Getting second place in your debut year is much better than me.”
“Uzi, the player next door, was a runner-up in his debut, but didn’t he still become the world’s best ADC for a long time afterward?”
“That can’t be emulated,” Jiang Shu laughed. “You can strive to be the world’s best top laner, but you can’t be without an S-Championship title.”
“We will win everything next year!” Oner appeared from nowhere, arms crossed over his chest, looking earnestly at Zeus.
Jiang Shu looked at this chuunibyou teenager, a slight smile playing on his lips.
Grand Admiral O-sensei, he really does look sturdy in person.
“Cherish your current teammates. This might be the best roster of your professional career,” Jiang Shu said, seemingly with a deeper meaning.
Not every team will wholeheartedly play a top-lane carry composition.
Both carries are proud, and they are traditionally the main cores of the team. Teams like T1, where the entire team focuses on nurturing the top laner, are extremely rare.
Moreover, there’s the strongest brain sitting in the mid lane.
Zeus took a deep breath, suppressing the disappointment in his heart, and looked up at his teammates. Even Keria had quietly returned to the team.
“President, I will definitely win the championship next year!” His tone was resolute, and his previously lost expression was swept away, replaced by an indescribable sharpness.
A sharp sword comes from grinding; without the tempering of blood and fire, how can the strongest spear be called the strongest?
Hearing this, Jiang Shu smiled and pulled Zeus’s hand over, then pulled Faker, Gumayusi, Oner, and Keria’s hands one by one, stacking them together.
“ZOFGK!”
“Fighting!!!”
Five palms simultaneously shot upwards, like scattered flowers from heaven, their dazzling brilliance seemingly eclipsing the room's lights at that moment.
In the corner of the room, the photographer's lens fully captured this scene.
Li Lishi stood outside the door, watching the re-energized members, a smile curving his lips.
“Li Lishi, do we need to adjust our personnel next year?” The club manager, who had also witnessed the entire scene and noticed Li Lishi's expression, immediately understood. He quietly approached and asked in a low voice.
“No, didn’t Chairman Jiang say it?” Li Lishi smiled, his gaze deep as he looked at the five players who had shed their decadent.
“ZOFGK is our best T1 roster.”
ZOFGK, huh.
Now, let me wait and see.
