Rise

Fuzhou Tech was in a terrible mood after the disappointing loss in Game 1. But they could change their fortunes right away! The Winter Collegiate Cup’s Round of 16 was a best of three series. They were down one. Now it was time to go up two! The five players sat behind their computers in the soundproof booth, eager. And Silent Reed had the perfect vantage point to see this from the caster desk! She held her microphone close to her mouth and said, “Just look at the players from Fuzhou Tech! So serious! So ready for this game! Oh, and look! We’re loading in!”

《Welcome to Summoner’s Rift!》

“TEAM SHANGHAI IS GOING TO QUARTERS! WOOT WOOT!” “They really are if Fuzhou Tech doesn’t bounce back from that abysmal performance. I’m honestly stunned that they’re still willing to show their face—”“WOOOOOO! FUZHOU TECH GONNA GET BACK INTO THIS!”“Please let this be a more entertaining match to watch!”“Us neutrals want some spectacle! OR DRAMA! DRAMA IS GOOD TOO!”

The players from Team Shanghai and Fuzhou Tech spawned on their respective fountains and spent the 500 starting gold in the shop. This was the moment Silent Reed chose to move the focus away from the Fiddlesticks discussion and towards the matchup in the mid lane. She said into the microphone, “Last game was a fierce battle in mid with two strong players going head to head! Team Shanghai won that round, so Fuzhou Tech is certainly looking for redemption! That Fizz pick is plenty proof of that! And don’t forget that their Midlaner is a Master on the Ionia server!” She waited for the crowd to respond and then continued, “But we’ve all seen what Team Shanghai’s Midlaner can do on an assassin! The real question now is if his Zed is as good as his Yasuo!” She turned to look at Rollfire and asked, “What do you think? Does this Zed have the skill to outplay Fizz like he did in Game 1? Or will something else happen?”

Rollfire knitted his brows and looked at the large LCD screen above the two soundproof booths. His Yasuo last game actually looked pretty decent. Better than that Lux anyway. I’m not going to make myself look like a fool again! This game I’m going to be the hero and show the Shanghai Esports Association why I’m too good for this stupid series! I’ll make them regret not putting me on a better game! He smiled and said, “That’s hard to say. Technically, Zed versus Fizz is a pretty even matchup. It’s all going to come down to skill.” Those damn kids got lucky in the first game. But this time they’re going to make a mistake. Fiddle is proof enough! And when those stupid representatives of the stupid organizers screw up, I’ll be ready to jump on it! Make the best commentary by flaming those jackasses who put me on this stupid noob game! It’d be even better if the Zed is the one screwing up. Talking about Zeds… He grinned and added, “I don’t know how many of you guys remember, but there used to be a Zed main on Zhejiang University’s roster. He was a Kage! I wonder how this Zed will measure up to him.”

Kage was the highest rank title for masters of the shadows in the popular manga series Naruto. And Zed just happened to be a master of the shadows himself. So Chinese League of Legends fans used Naruto’s ranking system to rank Zed players. The lowest rank was Genin, followed by Chunin, Jonin and finally Kage. Right now, Rake was recognized as the strongest Zed player in the world. His outstanding achievements during the 2014 OGN Summer Playoffs on Zed had cemented that position. He was the real Kage. But there were plenty of other strong Zed players who’d been given the Kage title by their fans. One of them was the former captain of Zhejiang University’s esports club.

The players from Zhejiang University’s team looked at each other when Rollfire mentioned the Kage from their university. The Jungler asked, “He’s talking about Shi Hang, right?”

Zuo Cheng who was the current Midlaner for Zhejiang University nodded and said, “He is! He’s talking about the Captain! Captain Shi Hang is my idol! I’m still watching back videos of his Zed and trying to play just like him!”

Sun Ruinian smiled and chimed in, “Yes. That’s Shi Hang for you. His Zed is unbelievably good.” Shi Hang, you made us who we are today. You were the first all the way back in Season 1 to start about League. You made the esports club at our university. And then you went on to become a professional player! One of the best in all of China! He shook his head and grimaced. But why did you have to retire so early…? You still have so much more to give! Graduating from university can wait! You can be a professional player again! Sun Ruinian breathed in and smiled. But whatever you choose to do, we’ll always remember you for all the good you’ve done for our university!