After taking out the enemy's Top Turret, Jin immediately recalled to base. The injuries he sustained during the enemy's attack were grave, almost too close to comfort. So despite the great momentum he gained in Top, he was unable to push further at this time.

But, once I return, I'll push all the way to the Golem. Jin promised. This game is already as good as done, so let's just wrap it up quickly.

It would have been nicer if the opponent just surrendered and spared Jin all this hassle. However, Stratus was a team that had a fighting spirit, if nothing else. Therefore, even under these helpless circumstances, it was unlikely for them to submit without putting on a fight.

Oh well. Let’s just do it. Jin finished gearing up at the base and headed back to his lane.

"Oh, you're already going back?" Cato asked. "Say, do you mind rotating to Mid after you finish with the next wave?"

"Why?"

"There isn't much for you to do in Top right now, right? I mean, you can try pushing if you want, but there's no way you're taking out the Golem anytime soon."

"True. Too early for Golem," Jin agreed. "But, I still prefer to push Top. Rotating to other lanes is waste of time."

"The laners over there will really appreciate your help, though~"

"I don't need appreciation. I just want to wrap up this game. It's over."

"Yes, it's most certainly over." Cato nodded. "But, Stratus won’t go down without a fight. I know their shot-caller, he's the type to come up with unexpected plays in a pinch. We can't underestimate him."

"You fear a team like that? Nonsense."

"Or, is it?" Cato smiled impishly. "I vaguely remember that somebody here was almost ganked to death a short while ago~"

"If you talk about the Drow’s gank, then I had the situation under control. I wouldn't die to something like this."

"But, you have to admit it was dangerously close. If Will wasn’t nearby, you might've died, don't you think?"

"Hmph." Jin scoffed. "It was a little close, that's all."

"That was just a taste of what their shot-caller is capable of,” Cato said. “The greater the pinch, the more ridiculous his shot-calls will become. That's the kind of pesky guy he is."

Still, none of that convinced Jin. "That Drow gank shot-call was no good. It was easy to counter."

"Yes, it was easy enough to counter IF you anticipated that kind of play in advance. But, anticipating any of that nonsense was the hard part. I did anticipate it though, muhaha!"

Indeed, everything was thanks to Cato's sharp foresight. He knew his chess opponent better than anybody on the team, therefore he was ready for some kind of nonsense.

I bet you’re feeling quite frustrated right now, right Yuel~? Cato grinned. This is exactly the kind of nonsense you used to beat Fiona, right? You resorted to some absolute madness that swallowed her whole. But, I'm not like that. You can't break me so easily.

Unlike Fiona, Cato wasn't a slave of the meta, at least not entirely. He understood that a player's self-expression sometimes made them deviate from the established meta and that it was fine.

The meta is just guidelines, not hard rules. There's a big benefit to following it, but sometimes straying from it can be just as effective. I mean, I stray from it on a regular basis~

Cato was very much aware that the Leopards' hyper-defensive playstyle was outside the meta’s recommendations. Nonetheless, it worked just fine as long as he properly integrated this less-usual playstyle with the meta.

Likewise, Stratus’ moments of hyper-aggression were likely a form of Yuel’s self-expression within the confines of the meta. That’s why the guy’s tactics were so unpredictable. No matter the situation, there was always a chance he’d launch some crazy attack that would completely deviate from the meta.

After Cato finished collecting his thoughts on the matter, it was time to educate the Emperor. "Chessmaster’s attacks may seem easy to counter in retrospect, but when you're actually in the game it's not that easy, is it? That's how Chessmaster rolls."

"It was just one play,” Jin insisted. “I don’t think that shot-call was sensible enough for competitive level. I’m not worried."

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Real stubborn, huh. Cato wanted to sigh but he maintained his smile. "Well, perhaps you’ll be able to counter Chessmaster's future tricks, but there's no guarantee the rest of the team will able to do the same. And, I know Chessmaster. He'll target the weakest link for sure."

“The weakest link?”

“It means the most vulnerable part of the team.”

“Hmm. I see.” Jin nodded. “Sounds like good strategy.”

“I had a feeling you’ll like it.” Cato smiled wryly. In many ways, Jin thinks similarly to Yuel. They’re both such big bullies, honestly.

The main difference between the two of them lies in the execution itself. The Emperor bullied opponents with his own two hands, whereas Yuel had his teammates do his bidding.

“Anyway,” Cato continued. “I’m sure Chessmaster has understood how strong you are by now, so he’ll try to play around you by exploiting weaknesses on other lanes.”

“Then, make sure you don’t give him any opportunity.”

“Why yes, that’s such a brilliant idea! How I didn’t think of that!”

“Sarcasm?”

“Yes, sarcasm.”

“Hmm.” Jin took a moment to process this conversation. “Alright, I think I understand your point. You say that, while I push Top, the enemy will target other lanes and it might be difficult for you to deal with his ploys, right?”

“Yes, exactly.” Cato nodded. “So, I’d be thankful if you rotated to Mid, and maybe later to Bot, too.”

“Fine. Whatever.” Jin sighed. He wasn’t keen on babysitting his teammates like that, but this is something that had to be done to secure flawless victory.

I have no choice, do I? Jin sighed. No matter how well I perform, it’ll reflect poorly on me if the team messes up.

It was still one thing when the team acted like a bunch of clowns in the previous games. But, this game was different. This time, Jin was an active part of the team. As such, he had a responsibility to make the team look strong and dominating.

Well, let's get this over with then. Jin sighed as he blasted the enemy minions with his sledgehammer. The entire enemy army folded to his powerful basic attacks within seconds. And so, once again, Top was entirely under his control.

However, instead of pushing on, Jin headed into the jungle instead. This was such a waste of time...

Naturally, the enemy caught wind of his irregular movement.

"The Orc went into the jungle," Ben informed. "I’m not sure if he's rotating or just going to farm."

"Hmm." Yuel couldn't answer that one either.

Based on Apprentece's profile so far, it made more sense to assume the guy went to farm jungle camps for his own benefit. After all, he supposedly wasn't the type to cooperate with his teammates much.

But, blindingly following that line of reasoning has already cost us dearly. Yuel thought. I need to rely less on conjecture. Maybe he respects Cato’s position as the captain and follows at least some of the orders.

If so, then a rotation to Mid was very much on the table. This sounded like a play that Cato would want really badly, and even Yuel would’ve made that kind of shot-call.

Simply put, it was a great strategic rotation. An Orc with momentum could handle any lane, even Mid where he'd have to compete with a mage. As such, it was a great idea to move this strong piece across the board in order to further stabilize the team’s dominance.

"Kai, watch out for a rotation," Yuel warned. "I suspect he's coming to your lane."

"Got it." Kai retreated further to the back. She wasn't scared of that Korean player in the slightest, but she didn't want to give the guy any gank opportunities.

Shortly, Theorist started recalling near the tower. This was all the proof they needed.

"Their Mid is recalling," Kai informed. "Pretty sure we know what that means."

"Yes, he's coming. Probably not to gank you, but to fill in for your opponent in the lane."

"Fine by me." Kai lifted her chin. "It’s time to put this cocky bastard in his place. He has been feeling himself too much this game."

Even though Kai wasn't present during any of the battles in Top, she followed them with great interest. After all, her lane situation was the very definition of boredom, so she had all the time in the world to scout other lanes.

What she saw over there was pretty damn triggering. This Apprentece guy just paraded all over Top as if he owned the place. He cared about nothing and nobody.

And, he keeps getting away with it. Kai thought. In the last play, I was sure Nia would finally shut him down, but the lucky son of a gun escaped with a pixel of HP. Dammit.

Nobody should be allowed to play cocky like that and get away with it. Not on the competitive stage and especially not against Kai's team.

So come over here. I'll teach you a lesson. Kai welcomed this rotation. This should be a good change of pace from the boring stalemate she had against Theorist. Finally, she’ll get some action!

What's more, this was her chance to do her part as the captain. In such dark hours, when all hope of victory was lost, it was up to the captain to inject the team with a morale boost!

I hope he plans to stay a while and farm. If so, I'll have many chances to gun him down. She had already come up with multiple lines of play by now. Her ult was online and she had enough MP to last two more minions waves. Basically, she had the freedom to unleash anything she wanted on the enemy!

If he's enough of a daredevil to farm with his hammer against me, then I'll reap him apart! She had already crafted multiple plans before the enemy even stepped onto the lane. It felt like gears in her brain kicked into action after a long slumber. That's how mind-numbing it was to play against Theorist in the lane.

But now, this development woke her up entirely. She was ready to kick some serious butt!

While she was thinking all that, the much-anticipated enemy emerged on the lane.