Classmancers - A MOBA Esport Story

Vol.3 Ch.16: Failures, Regrets and Hope

Everybody silently watched Alex leave the stage, without turning his head even once. From start to end, nobody uttered a single word. There's nothing to say here.

"This is good." Rodriguez nodded to himself.

"Good?" Jennifer raised an eyebrow. Sure, that lazy bum deserved some scolding, but wasn't this too much? She never saw Alex react so strongly about anything before. It kinda freaked her out, honestly. He even tried shouldering all the blame, despite being a master of excuses. She had no idea how to digest this.

"Now," Rodriguez turned to Jennifer as if what just happened was already history. "One player already came to terms with his faults. What about you?"

"I..." Jennifer's lips trembled. She couldn't bring herself to lay her feelings bare, but she had to. Because even Alex, of all people, managed to admit he was a trash quitter. Jennifer won't run away either.

"I probably shouldn't have rushed Spellbook," Jennifer said with downcast eyes. "After falling behind, I should've built something more stable against an aggressive scrub like Gunz."

"And why you didn't do that?"

"Because..." Jennifer gritted her teeth, chewed her lips and finally opened her mouth. "I wanted to play combo. I'm a combo player."

"Even at the expense of losing the game?"

"No, that's... I mean..." She hung her head. No, that's wrong! She didn't... But, she actually kinda did... GAH, her brain hurt!

"Good girl." Rodriguez patted her head.

"Eh? What?"

"Admitting that combo held you back is a huge step forward." Rodriguez nodded with a kind smile. Normally, Jennifer would dismiss this kind of topic in five seconds, without even sparing a fraction of thought on it. No matter how many obstacles she had to swim through while playing combo, she never admitted that sticking with combo was a big mistake at times. Today was a first.

"I know you're fed up with this lecture by now," Rodriguez said. "But, you need to stop chasing that false ideal you created in your head. That famous video of DimensionShift beating Maker with a combo is sure amazing, but it made you miss the whole point. Before being a renowned combo player, Shift is firstmost a strong pro player. That one amazing combo play in the video was build upon solid foundation, it didn't happen in the spur of the moment like you seem to think."

"I know it wasn't a fluke," Jennifer said with sparkling eyes. "Shift can pull off that kinda play any day! He's awesome like that!"

"That's not the point," Rodriguez sighed. "The point is, Shift decided it was appropriate for him to play combo that match only after he analyzed the development of the match to that point. That's why I told you to also watch matches in which he doesn't play combo. Did you watch them?"

"A little..." Jennifer shifted her eyes away. Honestly, she couldn't bear watching them for more than a few minutes. For her, Shift was the best combo player in the world. Watching him play something other than combo was like watching how the best pitcher in the world played as an outfielder. Sure, it could be fun to watch too, but it ruined Shift's cool image.

"If you tried to analyze them, you'd realize he's not using combo every game. In fact, I'd be surprised if he uses combo more than half his games."

"Geh..."

"I know you don't like hearing it, but it's the truth. As I said, he's a pro player before he's a combo player. His job is to win. He knows when to give up on combo to secure victory."

"Grrr..."

"If Shift were in your shoes last game, he wouldn't hesitate to give up on combo. He'd go for a slower and more stable build instead of rushing Spellbook."