65 The 1v1 Grandmaster (1/2)

Minions arrived from both sides of the lane and clashed in the middle. Now, the battle began for real.

Normally, both players will join the war effort by attacking enemy minions. However, that only applied when both sides were of roughly equal strength and it wasn't dangerous to directly confront the enemy.

This situation was different. Yuel was Lv.9 whereas Ignis was Lv.5. He had a huge lead in term of strength. To make the best of it, he aggressed on her to kick her out of the lane as soon as possible.

”Coming at me, eh?” Ignis sneered. She sure sounded confident, despite the fact she was four levels below him and he had Marasume. Amazing confidence.

Contrary to her arrogance, Ignis actually retreated toward her Golem. However, she didn't get too far away and allowed Yuel to pursue a fight if he so wished. In other words, she was accepting the invitation to a duel but she didn't want to hold it near the minions.

[Makes sense.] Both his Knight and her Warrior gained benefits from being near minions, but the Knight's benefits were superior in this situation. His passive, Chivalry, buffed the defense of nearby allies, players and minions alike. On the other hand, Warrior's passive, Battle Thirst, buffed only the Warrior's own attack power for each nearby enemy, counting both enemy players and minions.

Knight's Chivalry had a clear advantage as long as they were near a healthy wave because the buff applied to a group of allies. As long as Knight was working alongside his minions, they were more durable and will eventually out-grind the enemy forces.

Thus, Ignis got away from the minions to rob Yuel of this advantage. In exchange, she lost most of the power she could have gained from Battle Thirst. It was a good trade for her.

[Is she really drunk?] Yuel frowned. Ignis read the situation in a split second and immediately made her tactical retreat. This wasn't such an easy judgment to make, especially not with a hazy mind.

Then again, she was a pro and a 1v1 Grandmaster to boot. Perhaps this sophisticated move was as natural as breathing for her. It's not even a question of ”reading the situation” or ”making the right judgment”. Ignis probably just [felt] what's the best response in this situation. It's like an instinct.

Yet, Yuel was going to take on this magical beast. A pro, a Grandmaster. He was now going to test how his skill compared against the real deal!

Yuel followed Ignis toward her side of the lane, away from the minions. Now, the two waves had equal strength and will wipe each other out at around the same time. Gaining lane advantage through buffing minions was the Knight's forte, but no big deal. Yuel just had to defeat Ignis and then he'll get his chance to push the lane.

”Come, kid,” Ignis used a taunt emote, but she hasn't even cast War Cry yet. Was she going to fight without a shield? Or, was she waiting for the fight to start first? Well, either way...

”If you're sure.” Yuel advanced. No problem, he had plenty of advantage. No matter how good a Grandmaster was, they couldn't magically alter their stats. Math was on his die! He'll win!

Yuel got within range and slashed! But, it whiffed. Ignis stepped backward in the last moment and the blade missed her by a hair's breadth. In the very next moment, she attacked back!

[Huh? It reached?] Yuel blinked in confusion as his HP dropped. Even though his blade failed to deliver a hit due to distance, Ignis's counter-attack had no trouble hitting him. How could that be? Shenanigans.

[Whoa!] A second slash at his Knight! No time to be distracted here! The enemy was a Grandmaster and she thirsted for blood. [Focus. Focus!]

Yuel attacked again and missed again. Ignis just barely got out of the range of his swing. This time, he confirmed for sure: it's the distance that made his attack whiff. Therefore, from this range, Ignis couldn't possibly- hit!? His Knight lost 7% HP!

[How!?] This didn't make any sense! Both Knight and Warrior were melee classes with swords, so their attack range should have been the same!

No, wait. That's not quite right. Getting struck by that huge blade reminded Yuel a piece of trivia: the range of the Warrior's attacks was slightly amplified by the fact he was wielding a big sword and was swinging it with both arms. Yuel never bothered comparing the lengths, but apparently, the Warrior's reach with basic attacks was slightly longer than Knight's.

The difference between them was minute, something like half a step. Yet, Ignis utilized it to the fullest. She dodged Yuel's attacks by a hair's breadth and instantly countered.

”Daydreaming? Haha!” Ignis dished out another attack before Yuel could react.

[Ugh! I need to focus or I'm dead!] Yuel shook his head. Ignis struck in the brief window of time it took him to measure distances. This was tough. Thinking for too long will be the end of him. The fight just started, yet he was already down to 72% HP. And Ignis? Unharmed.

[Okay,] Yuel created some distance first. [How am I going to deal with her range advantage?]

From the last two exchanges, he got a rough idea of how the Warrior's reach compared to the Knight's. He improved his understanding by carefully stepping forward to intimidate. The moment Ignis finally stepped back, that's where the limit of his range laid and where Ignis's range advantage began.

Okay, so he grasped the distances. What next? As long as Ignis maintained that distance, Yuel couldn't charge at her. She was effectively zoning him by having a reach that's barely half a step longer than his. It's absurd. He never felt so pressured by a Warrior's reach before.

He fought Roi before, so he should have been used to confronting strong bruiser players. But, this fight was something else. Roi was strong, but he mostly relied on his mechanical skill to dodge incoming attacks while attacking.

Ignis was a different beast altogether. She's a pro who knew every aspect of Classmancers, a Grandmaster who fought countless duels. She knew every situation like the back of her hand, even while drunk.

Gulp. Was Yuel's controller packed with rocks or something? It felt so heavy...

”What's wrong, kiddo?” Ignis asked. ”Cooooome at me already!”

”W-Why don't you come at me instead?” Yuel forced a shaky smile. His forehead felt sweaty. This Grandmaster read every move, every twitch, he made. It felt like no matter what Yuel will try, Ignis will tear his plans apart.

”Heh,” Ignis smirked. ”You're pretty sharp, kid. You figured how *hic* I am from being hit just twice?”

”Yeah, I admit you're pretty good,” Yuel forced that through gritted teeth.

”Hehe, damn right! I'm awesome! The best! No wonder you're *hic* of my *hic* and *hic* damn *hic*” Ignis turned into a hiccupping machine gun while acting she's the number one player in the world.

[Chance!] Yuel rolled forward, closing the distance to Ignis. After he recovers from the roll, Ignis will be deep within his attack range and won't be able to easily step backward and counter.

”Ah! Cheap!”

[Not my fault you were busy boasting instead of focusing on the game.] No mercy. As soon as Yuel stood up - he swung his blade!

”Whoa! Dangerous! Pffhew!” Ignis made some weird noises as exaggeratedly steered her controller to the right as if it's going to make her Warrior move faster. Futile! Yuel already saw where she was moving, so he aimed his blade a little to the right to- wha!? He missed!?

In the very last moment, Ignis changed directions and took a step to the left! Yuel swung based on his prediction, but it sliced through empty air. How did this...!?

[Superhuman reaction speed? Or, was it a feint all along?] Yuel bit his lip. Even though he attacked Ignis in a moment of vulnerability, she wiggled her way out.

But, it's not over yet. They were next to each other, so even though the first attack missed - he went for another one! At this range, simply taking a step back won't cut it!

”Guuah, you got me!” Ignis activated War Cry, erecting a shield.

Yuel's second attack connected, but it didn't touch Ignis's HP. The slash destroyed over half her shield and stole some protections via Murasama's effect, but that's all. Ignis was unharmed and dished out a counter right away, shaving off another 7% from Yuel's HP. The amount of protection he stole from Ignis was meager from landing just one hit, so they didn't reduce the damage much. He had to press harder!

A third attack! Ugh, this one missed. Yet again, Yuel predicted Ignis' movements to guide his blade, but she altered her course in the last very last moment. And of course, he instantly ate a counter-attack straight in the face.

But, that's no reason to panic. Yuel had a huge level advantage, so he could soak more hits than Ignis. He never expected this to be an even battle in the first place, not against a Grandmaster.

To compensate for the huge gap in their combat skills, his best bet was to keep abusing his stat advantage and push forward. His four levels of extra stats were his greatest, and possibly his only, advantage in this fight.