Chapter 2: The System Has Arrived! Cheats, Come to Me!

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Chapter 2: The System Has Arrived! Let the Cheats Begin!

Not buying starting equipment before heading onto the Rift was one of Cheng Xian’s hard-earned gaming insights, accumulated over several thousand matches.

In Iron, starting items had never mattered.

It did not matter how strong you were, how good your mechanics were, or what equipment you bought.

After all these years, what was the most important thing in the game?

Destroying towers!

And how did you destroy towers?

You had to win team fights!

And how did you win team fights?

Obviously, by charging in and fighting at level one!

Even professional teams often fought level-one team battles. What was wrong with Iron players doing the same?

That brought them to the real question.

If you killed someone in a level-one team fight, what could three or four hundred gold actually buy?

But if you added the five hundred starting gold, an AD champion could afford a Pickaxe, while an AP champion could buy an Amplifying Tome.

Did they understand the value of wearing equipment that granted dozens of points of ability power?

A support buying a gold-generating item?

Was that a joke?

Clearly, they understood nothing about League!

Casting aside his unrealistic thoughts, Elk sighed softly. “I’ll do my best to play safely.”

“What the hell? How did IG’s substitute support get onto the Rift without buying any equipment?”

How could he possibly understand all those complicated tricks and minute details? Iron players had only one creed.

Looking back at that famous saying now—“TheShy came and killed everyone; Rookie already did his best; Wink, what are you doing?”—even readers who did not understand the game should have grasped at least some of the context.

After speaking, he controlled Xin Zhao as he finished taking the Krugs, then carried his spear straight toward the bottom-lane tri-brush, waiting patiently for his chance.

When Cheng Xian caught sight of Xin Zhao emerging from the fog of war with his spear in hand, his face turned ashen.

[…The system best suited to the host has been matched. Attempting connection. Please wait…]

But everyone present was a professional player. How could there really be an Iron-ranked player among them?

“Maybe he hasn’t played in too long, and his hands are a little stiff,” Jide said, shaking his head. “But he’s in real danger this time. Lux has no Flash, and Xin Zhao clearly knows it. Once the bottom duo reaches level two, they’ll probably make their move…”

—

He had seen this sort of thing countless times in online novels, but this was the first time he had experienced it personally.

“What?” Elk stared blankly for a long while before coming back to himself. He looked at his Flash, now grayed out, then at the opposing Lux, who had already retreated.

TheShy had begun to reveal his brilliance in Season Seven and reached the pinnacle of his strength in Season Eight. At that year’s World Championship, he truly had been the undisputed best top laner in the world.

—

For fuck’s sake.

In Iron, no position was useless. Even supports built for damage and stole kills.

It was just like the beautiful women in the classic Japanese and Korean films he had watched. He had seen plenty of them, but this was the first one lying directly on his bed.

That covered the current four members of IG. The reason for writing about IG was, first, that they were the first LPL team to win a world championship. Their victory had not come easily and was worth remembering.

The game had already begun.

“Uh… this… this isn’t… he…” Elk stumbled over his words as he tried to describe what Lux had just done, but he could not put that strange feeling into words.

A buzzing tremor shook Cheng Xian’s mind.

With a thought, a string of notifications popped up in his consciousness.

…

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If we meet, we fight!

Only those who stay alive have the right to last-hit!

The bottom lane had been calm only a moment earlier. In the next instant, murderous intent suddenly erupted from every direction!

In reality, for Cheng Xian…

…What the hell?

End of chapter

At the very moment Cheng Xian was preparing to take his hands away from the keyboard, the screen remained unchanged.

[Ding! Your operational limit has been raised to—League’s Heavenly Ceiling! (Time remaining: 59 seconds)]

He followed it up with a lightning-fast press of the D key, and Exhaust was already applied to Ezreal!

At the same time, on the battlefield—

This match was of immense importance. Everyone wanted to qualify for the Season Eleven World Championship. No one had expected IG’s substitute support to present them with such a generous gift.

Other than the protagonist’s replacement as support—

Top lane: TheShy, nicknamed Shy Bro, Shy Dad, Shy Boy, Timely Rain—Giving Ginger, and the one-handed top laner. His most famous memes included “A god descends and smashes four,” “Vladimir’s Blood Pump,” “Kennen’s Lightning Judgment,” “Riven’s Dragon Ascension,” “TheShy came and killed everyone,” and “the one-handed top laner.”

“Don’t panic. Lux has no Flash. I’ll come down and deal with him after I finish the Krugs. Missing, hold onto your Flash and get ready to hook.” After letting out a muffled grunt, Sorrow continued, “That reckless style is obviously from someone who’s been sitting on the bench too long and hasn’t adjusted yet. He didn’t even buy starting items. We’ll kill him for sure!”

IG was on the red side, with Jayce top, Lee Sin jungle, LeBlanc mid, and Lux with Aphelios in the bottom lane. Aphelios would be referred to as Moon Man from here onward.

[Ding! Your attention to detail has been raised to—League’s Heavenly Ceiling! (Time remaining: 59 seconds)]

Before Jide had even finished speaking, WE’s bottom duo leveled up together. Nautilus charged forward with his rusty anchor, while Xin Zhao waited for the right moment, bursting from the brush with his spear and beginning to close in on bottom lane.

Both sides took their positions in the early game. Those assigned to guard stood watch; those helping their jungler start the buff went to do so. Everyone waited peacefully for the minions to arrive.

So much for fair competition and the spirit of esports!

What kind of skill was it to fight three against two?

“Oh no. It’s over.” Though his heart was filled with lofty ambitions, Xin Zhao’s enormous club was simply too thick and fierce. Lux was only a frail woman—how could she withstand being struck several times?

[After activation, one random “status” will be added each game. Winning matches will raise the system’s level and unlock more functions!]

This was funnier than an old woman getting into bed.

Mid lane: Rookie, nicknamed Yi Zhong, Meat Chicken, Chicken Bro, and the Orphanage Director. His famous memes included a series involving TheShy: “TheShy came and killed everyone; Rookie already did his best; Wink, what are you doing?”

For readers unfamiliar with League of Legends or professional matches, here was a brief introduction to the current IG roster—the other players who would accompany the protagonist throughout the story.

The meme originally began with fans. TheShy had been incredibly strong, so expectations for him were extremely high. Later, when TheShy returned to Korea for a period and his substitute top laner performed poorly, fans began saying, “TheShy came and killed everyone.” Haters then used the phrase mockingly, and eventually it became a joke known even to ordinary viewers.

After joining IG in Season Five, Rookie had always worked tirelessly to play every match well, repeatedly turning impossible situations around. Netizens jokingly called him the director of an orphanage, since he could carry a game almost by himself. His form declined over the past two years, and fans began posting, “Rookie already did his best this game.” Over time, this became a running joke, and he was dubbed the number-one mid laner in “doing his best” games—the origin of the nickname Yi Zhong.

His form had declined in Season Nine. In Season Ten, he developed a strange fondness for Lucian mid, and in Season Eleven his performance fell off badly. His famous moments included an eight-level Kennen recklessly engaging an eleven-level Volibear.

Jungle: Xun, formerly the substitute for the first LPL champion jungler and now a starter. Did they understand the value of a one-character jungler trained by esports’ military academy? That was a joke.

As an aside, Shoe Bro’s Lee Sin speedrun had been genuinely impressive. It had even become popular right before his retirement. Ah, sorry—Shoe Bro had not retired. He simply had no one who wanted him anymore.

A clear, mechanical notification rang out.

Nautilus had already Flashed into melee range, and Xin Zhao was advancing with his spear.

[Ding! Congratulations! You have obtained the “Strongest Support” System!]

With one glance, Cheng Xian was completely dumbfounded.

So he immediately used the D-and-F combination on contact. Better to use them early and start the cooldowns sooner.

Suddenly, Lux, who had been wandering nearby, charged forward. She Flashed in and rapidly pressed Q, Light Binding.

At the same time, the commentators had clearly noticed Sorrow’s intention to move toward bottom lane.

[Because this is the host’s first use of the system, you have been granted one max-level trial card, lasting one minute!]

A sacred beam of light flew straight toward Elk’s Ezreal, about to hit!

You could call him bad, but his fingers were certainly fast.

How could he not—

Ah, no. How could he not use it?

“Confirm!”

[Use it?]

“This is my seventeen-year-old professional reaction speed, all right?” Before Elk could smugly boast about his reflexes, WE’s jungler Sorrow spoke up.

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“Shaqima was too rash there. How could he immediately use the D-and-F combination at level one? Even if he hit Ezreal with Q, at most he would only trade away half his health,” Jide analyzed.

“What the hell are you talking about?” AD carry Elk snorted. He glanced at the item bar, and the corner of his eye twitched. “Damn… it’s true. He didn’t even buy a gold-generating support item…”

“Are you kidding me? Their Lee Sin started on red. How could he possibly reach your bottom lane at level two?”

Still, it was probably a good thing. If he let the coach realize how terrible he was sooner, perhaps they would send him back to the bench sooner as well, instead of letting him interfere with the match of actual professionals.

WE was on the blue side, with Gwen top, Xin Zhao jungle, Sylas mid, and Ezreal with Nautilus in the bottom lane.

But in the eyes of professional players, this creed was utterly laughable.

[Ding! Your proficiency with all champions has been raised to—League’s Heavenly Ceiling! (Time remaining: 59 seconds)]

The support had traded his Flash for the AD carry’s Flash. He had suffered a huge loss.

WE support Missing habitually pressed Tab and glanced at the substitute support’s items.

Where was the promised fairness?

The feeling was simply like—

He knew he was in serious trouble.

“Why did you use Flash?” Missing frowned.

The system?

Cheng Xian scrambled backward.

The level-one AD carry had used Flash directly?

For readers who did not play League of Legends much, or who played but did not watch professional matches, here was a brief introduction to IG’s current players—the people who would accompany the protagonist throughout the rest of the book.

[Ding! Your reaction ability has been raised to—League’s Heavenly Ceiling! (Time remaining: 59 seconds)]

Xun did not have many memes associated with him, so no explanation would be provided for now.

…

It was as if IG had found some Iron-ranked player from god knew where—someone reckless and hardheaded who immediately spent both summoner spells upon meeting the enemy as a sign of respect.

Using a combo that required no explanation, Cheng Xian made Elk’s body shudder. His fingers trembled repeatedly, and the professional player’s reflexes made him instinctively press Flash, dodging Lux’s Q.

“Brothers! This game is going to be great! That substitute support’s professional career is probably over. We’re definitely going to give IG a zero-to-two defeat and secure our playoff qualification. I’m going to enjoy a beautiful, worry-free victory!” Mid laner Shanks revealed a brilliant smile.

From that perspective, Iron and the top professional leagues were somewhat alike. Every position was crucial.

More than a dozen status buffs appeared almost simultaneously, arriving within a fraction of a second. At that moment, Cheng Xian slowly opened his eyes and looked toward the screen. His gaze suddenly became razor-sharp.

“And why is he playing so aggressively? He didn’t even buy any items, so his damage should be lower,” Rita said, equally puzzled.

[Ding! A transmigrator has been detected! Sending the optimal system for the current environment!]

None of these things had changed.

Were they cooking something over there?

“Shh. Someone’s coming.” Elk frowned deeply and analyzed the situation quickly. “There’s a trap. What kind of idiot is this Lux? She Flashed forward and threw Q the moment she reached lane at level one. Does anyone actually play like that? Their jungler is definitely coming straight to bottom at level two! He’s probably hiding in the river brush!”

Finally, there was their designated scapegoat—the AD carry, Wink.

As a young newcomer, Wink’s performance had been fairly average. He rarely produced anything spectacular and occasionally made mistakes. On top of that, IG had two superstar players, TheShy and Rookie, whom many longtime fans naturally favored. As a result, Wink became the team’s scapegoat. Every mistake was simply thrown onto him, and over time that too became a running joke.

Just as Missing and Elk were beginning to celebrate, the three melee minions on both sides were reduced to low health.

Yet something seemed different.

The second reason was that, so far this year, FPX and LNG had both already been eliminated. Of the remaining teams, RNG and EDG, even if one of them truly won the championship, writing about them afterward would feel like gilding the lily. So among the remaining teams, if one had to be chosen to reach the World Championship, IG was naturally the first choice.

Moreover, the plan going forward was to replace FPX in the World Championship. As for FPX this year… let’s not talk about it.

If readers found this kind of background information useful, then later, when the protagonist faced other teams, the story would also include brief introductions to their current members, nicknames, and running jokes.

Of course, any future explanations would appear in separate chapters rather than being mixed into the main story. After publication, they would be free supplementary chapters, so there was no need to worry.

All right, see you next chapter~

End of chapter

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