"TES's form is still blazing hot! Unstoppable! Another clean, satisfying stomp—massive lead over RNG. By the end, the gold gap was even stretched to fifteen thousand," Wawa said, finally calming down a bit after the game ended.
"Yeah. Brother Infinite Borders' Viktor was way too good. Post-game stats: 14–0–6. It's honestly hard to believe he hasn't been properly training for over two months…" Principal Guan shook his head as he spoke. This performance clearly exceeded his understanding.
Chat was scrolling like crazy.
Especially that mid-lane moment—Viktor standing like a gatekeeper, casually last-hitting in front of RNG's inhibitor turret.
It was too shocking.
A Viktor with no Flash, facing four enemies, not scared at all—openly last-hitting.
RNG's four players didn't even dare move.
And among them was the Hecarim + Yuumi combo.
Those two ult in, followed by Orianna ult, and Viktor would definitely die!
But they still missed that perfect opportunity.
Just then, the big screen showed the player tunnel.
You could see Lin Fan jogging at full speed toward the lounge, while JackeyLove and the others looked at each other in confusion, completely baffled.
"Brother Infinite Borders hit that hard—did he need to pee? Trying to end fast so he can use the bathroom?"
"Damn, if you put it that way, it really is possible. Back then SKT got hit with IG's 1557 because TheShy ate something weird and his stomach went bad."
"That kind of sprint… it really does look like he's rushing to the toilet."
Normally after a game ends, the director won't point the camera toward the lounge.
At most you'd see the victory celebration.
But this time it really did spark curiosity.
People wanted to know why Lin Fan was running that fast.
The director watched closely and realized Lin Fan wasn't heading toward the restroom.
So he didn't cut the feed—he followed him the whole way.
On the big screen, everyone clearly saw Lin Fan dash back into the lounge, push open the door, briefly greet White Moon, then sit down at his station and pull out his phone.
Rapid tapping.
"Don't tell me… don't tell me… he's rushing back to play Infinite Borders?"
"Do we even need to 'don't tell me'? The moment he pulled out the phone, I already knew."
"No wonder RNG got crushed. Brother Infinite Borders said earlier he wanted to hurry back to grind Infinite Borders."
"Hahaha. TES usually isn't in a rush. Today's game clearly felt like they were accelerating the whole time."
"LMAO. If finals end in under 20 minutes, I won't even be surprised. RNG is unlucky—finals day just happens to be Brother Infinite Borders' early progression day."
The director shifted the side camera so it was even clearer.
The phone screen was blatantly Infinite Borders.
And his finger was tapping like crazy, nonstop operations.
White Moon not only didn't say anything—he even called Knight to pour a glass of water, then handed it to Lin Fan.
"Damn. Brother Infinite Borders' status in TES is maxed out. Team tyrant confirmed. Even the coach has to watch his face."
"Obviously. Other teams are already jealous to death. If you had a player like Brother Infinite Borders, wouldn't you worship him like an ancestor?"
"As long as you can win, he's an ancestor, no question! If you can't win, you get humiliated—just like Knight, who can only pour water by the water dispenser."
"Honestly, I'm fine watching Brother Infinite Borders play Infinite Borders. But seeing Knight stand up to pour water— I can't hold it."
"Forty-million 'star player' brought in to pour water. This cup of water is worth a fortune."
Since the director had already shown TES's lounge, he decided to spread the love and cut to RNG too.
After getting blown out in game one, RNG's players all had their heads down. Only Tabe was pointing at something, notebook in hand.
The whole room's pressure was obvious.
If they were here to throw, it would be fine—but RNG came here to win the title.
They really didn't want to give up.
But TES mid was just too ridiculous. They had no idea how to limit him.
Seeing RNG's lounge, their fans' hearts pounded.
Anxious!
If they could, they'd love to go up there and solo-kill Brother Infinite Borders!
With him gone, RNG could win today…
But there was no chance. Step up and security would pin you immediately.
Sigh. Why can't a mid like that belong to their team?
Then it would be TES hanging their heads.
But nobody knew what Tabe said next.
All the players stood up and high-fived each other.
Their aura came back. Confidence returned.
As expected, an experienced veteran coach was trustworthy—great at stabilizing mental.
Brother Infinite Borders was blazing hot last game, but after playing Infinite Borders in the lounge, he "cooled his hands."
Maybe RNG really had a chance.
Now they just needed to hear the fans cheering and know the fans still believed in them!
After long-term club "operations," RNG fans really had been CPU'd.
TL: Operations refers to PR/marketing. CPU'd is Chinese slang for trained
The break ended. Both teams returned to the stage.
"From those lounge shots, we can see RNG has regrouped. Game two should be their counterattack against TES."
"If TES wins this one, they'll have three match points—an absolutely terrifying advantage. If RNG wins, both sides go back to the same starting line."
"So game two is crucial for both teams!"
"Let's see what happens."
During the casters' talk, ban-pick had already finished.
Blue-side RNG banned Ahri, Syndra, and Gnar.
Red-side TES banned Jayce, Viego, and Ryze.
Then both sides started drafting around their plans.
The final comps were locked in quickly.
RNG: Camille top, Lee Sin jungle, Galio mid, Aphelios + Leona bot.
TES: Gragas top, Hecarim jungle, Akali mid, Xayah + Nautilus bot.
This game wasn't a one-sided stomp like the last one. It was much more tense.
Clearly RNG stabilized their mentality. They weren't crushed by losing game one and still couldn't recover in game two.
After all, in TES vs V5, Akali got tons of kills and took over early. This time RNG played it well.
The moment Xiaohu's HP dropped to one-third, he disappeared from mid and gave Lin Fan zero openings.
And Akali really is weak early. She needs levels.
Xiaohu even gave up a wave and let Akali take a turret plate, then roamed bot at level six and helped GALA get a kill on Xayah.
Bot lane immediately flipped. RNG temporarily took the lead.
Tian wanted to answer back by ganking Camille top.
But Bin's mechanics were maxed. Even when he died, he forced two kills under turret. Then he TP'd back and lost no minions.
So instead of losing, he profited.
This was RNG's best early game all series.
They led 3–1 in kills and 800 gold.
Fans got excited, waving flags.
And now the stream started getting attacks aimed at Lin Fan.
"Seriously, what's he acting for? Won game one and then jogged off to play Infinite Borders? Did you forget you're still in finals?"
"Mid gap. Galio is making plays nonstop. Akali just farms plates and CS—useless."
"Bin's Camille is fed. In teamfights with Galio, they'll shatter TES's formation. You like acting? Go play Infinite Borders after the match."
"G. RNG just rolls the lead slowly. TES is done."
With that scrolling chat, you couldn't even tell what the composition was anymore.
Were there more TES fans, or more RNG fans?
But one thing was clear: whichever side had the lead, the attacks got quieter.
Then both sides traded tempo back and forth.
Still tense, but Akali had no presence yet.
Until 14 minutes.
Galio roamed upward, and Akali followed from behind.
Camille dropped ult on Gragas.
Galio was about to fly in from river.
Lin Fan tagged Camille with E, and at the moment Galio lifted off, he reactivated E to follow him.
Zoom ulted and blasted Camille away—
but Galio landed and knocked up immediately.
Xiaohu saw Akali following behind and hurriedly charged W to taunt.
But Lin Fan adjusted midair—his ult slashed toward Camille instead. Q followed, then an auto to proc Electrocute!
Camille's HP plummeted.
Bin jumped.
This play was supposed to be Galio + Camille killing Gragas.
He didn't expect Akali to hitch a ride over.
Bin had no skills left. He could only run toward Galio.
But Lin Fan was faster.
Xayah feather storm hit, then Akali Q again—second ult execution!
Camille died.
Galio couldn't escape either.
Double kill.
From that moment, RNG fans felt something was wrong.
Brother Infinite Borders got two kills—this felt like a carry game.
On stage, Xiaohu's face changed slightly.
Two kills in one go—Akali is going to start murdering.
Bin's earlier relaxed vibe vanished too.
He knew how terrifying TES's mid-laner's dominance was.
Last game he hammered Viktor and not only failed to get the kill, he got one-combo deleted. That memory was fresh.
This game, if I kick in, am I just going to get one-shot by Akali?
Just imagining it made Bin feel sick.
At 17 minutes, both sides fought around Infernal Drake.
Neither side wanted to give it up, and both had reasons.
RNG had Camille and Aphelios—two big carries. Their DPS was guaranteed.
TES had Akali—she could slip into the backline. As long as Aphelios died, the fight was winnable.
Tian's Hecarim opened the path, breaking their formation.
Lin Fan Rocketbelted in and R-E tagged Aphelios!
The moment the tag landed, Aphelios was already sentenced.
Shroud popped.
Ming panicked. He threw ult, trying to lock her down.
But Lin Fan was watching him. The instant the ult came, she second-R dashed out, then Q cleared Aphelios's HP.
Camille had already been knocked away.
With one carry down, the damage difference became massive.
Galio flashed away the moment he landed.
But now it depended on whether TES wanted to let them go.
Hecarim and Akali at the front, the rest chasing.
In the end, TES traded 1 for 4 and won the fight hard. They took dragon and completely flipped the gold.
"AHHHHH!"
TES fans screamed.
They were depressed earlier.
After game one, they thought game two would be easy.
They never expected TES would start behind.
Luckily, Brother Infinite Borders found an opening, kept the score close, got two kills, then made the teamfight swing.
So clutch.
Lin Fan knew he had to delete Aphelios in fights.
That's why he built Rocketbelt instead of Night Harvester.
Rocketbelt entry is huge for Akali.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have found such a clean angle to kill Aphelios.
At 27 minutes, both sides contested third dragon.
Everyone was cautious. This wasn't just third dragon—it also affected Baron.
After last time, Bin didn't go in first.
But TES was decisive.
Nautilus point-and-click. Hecarim ult charge.
Lin Fan E'd onto Leona at the side, reactivated, then ulted straight at Aphelios.
Another point-blank dive.
GALA screamed: "Akali's here! Akali's here!"
Ming instantly pressed exhaust, but once shroud came down, you couldn't see Akali.
And Aphelios got knocked up—he became Akali's target midair.
With upgraded items, Lin Fan deleted him even easier.
One hit, one kill. Same script as before.
And this time it was different—JackeyLove's items were online, and his damage was maxed out.
He chopped through RNG for a clean team wipe.
They didn't even finish dragon. They sprinted straight to Baron.
Once Baron dropped, everything was settled.
At 31 minutes, RNG's Nexus exploded.
TES went up 2–0 and hit match point.
Game three, Lin Fan pulled out Syndra and solo-killed at three minutes.
With finals pressure and bad mid news, RNG instantly started misplaying and basically threw.
Game three was even shorter than game one.
They didn't even last 20 minutes—at 18, TES ran it down mid and ended.
Syndra posted a godlike performance.
People joked: Brother Infinite Borders really is in a hurry to clock out.
——
TL: If you want to read ahead by at least ten chapters, patreon.com/EdibleMapleSyrup