Classmancers - A MOBA Esport Story - Part 2

Vol.13 Ch.18: Those Who Never Rest

『DEFEAT』

The disheartening message appeared on his screen. It was a message that every player was familiar with, yet Cato found himself staring at it in disbelief as if it was some sort of alien creature.

That wasn't supposed to happen. Cato closed his eyes and opened them again, hoping it was all a dream. But no, this was reality. He lost to none other than Fiona Landberht, a fledging rookie.

"Hahaha!" Karen's laughter only further mocked him. "Get dunked, boi!"

"Karen, that is inappropriate," Fiona scolded.

"Yeah, yeah, sorry, sis." Karen barely held in her muffled laughter. "But real talk, you just wrecked the so-called 'captain' of the Leopards! That's so awesome!"

"Yes, that is quite the achievement indeed. It shows I am improving, slowly but surely."

I'm sure they're laughing at me deep down. Cato grumped. And, I deserve all that mockery. To think that the captain of the Leopards would lose to some newbie like this. I know duels aren't my expertise, but that still shouldn't happen. Coach would've lectured me to death if this was an official game, haha...

"That's some nice plays you had there," Cato said. "Did you prepare them just for me?"

"Not quite," Fiona answered. "I researched situations such as these while learning Lionfolk's matchups."

"Is that so."

Even though Fiona denied it, much of her research probably focused on countering Cato's favorite classes. Sure, that still counted as "learning matchups", but she most likely prioritized certain matchups over others.

Of course, learning how to defeat Vampire was always important due to the class's popularity. So, Fiona really had a good excuse here. She was like "I did not prepare for this matchup to beat YOU in particular. Vampire is a common pick that I must know how to deal with."

In short, Fiona exposed how big of an impression Cato's Vampire left on her. She lost to it the last time they played, so she thoroughly researched the class since then.

But, in the end, she's still a greenhorn. Cato cracked his neck. Time to expose her for what she really is. I think I got a good understanding of the "solution" she came up with for this matchup, so I just have to adjust accordingly.

Fiona's strategy boiled down to preparing for the mid-game. She built power and cooldown reduction, but she didn't take much advantage of them in the early-game. She carefully hoarded an arsenal of guns, waiting for the right moment to go in with her guns blazing.

That approach was far more effective than trying to assault Cato at any good opportunity that presented itself, which was Fiona's game plan before that. It made sense to assault him frequently due to his passive playstyle, but that's exactly what he wanted his opponents to do~

Cato's poking playstyle, the so-called "Esmeralda Strat", was specifically designed to counter aggressive opponents like that. Fiona always came swinging at him but he retreated and countered with a couple of jabs, slowly withering her down.

It took multiple crushing defeats, but it seemed Fiona learned her lesson that day.

Or, maybe somebody gave her a few pointers. Cato thought. I can see Coach, or even Esmeralda herself, advising Fiona to play like that against me. That's the kind of fast progress you can make when you have a good tutor. I know that much from experience.

As the chit-chat died out, it was time for Game 2.

"I believe giving you a one-game advantage will suffice." Cato smiled impishly. "From here on out, I'll come at you with everything I got."