The system notification appeared just as Daniel returned to the lobby.
[System] Congratulations!Player "Nightwalker" has achieved a Silver Tier win streak.
It wasn't flashy.
Just a single line of text.
But Silver players noticed things like that.
World Chat flickered back to life almost immediately.
"Nightwalker again?""That Crusader guy?""Silver win streak with Holy Crusader… that's weird.""Is he smurfing or what?"
Daniel glanced at the scrolling messages, then closed the panel.
He didn't care who was watching.
Silver wasn't high enough for that to matter.
A notification popped up.
Starguard has invited you to a party.
Daniel paused for a moment.
Then accepted.
Voice chat connected.
There was a brief, awkward silence.
"Um… hi again," Starguard said.Her voice was softer this time, less excited. "I hope it's okay I invited you."
"It's fine," Daniel replied.
"Oh. Okay!" She sounded relieved. "I'm still learning, though. If I mess up—"
"You will," Daniel said calmly.
There was a short pause.
"…Oh," she replied. "That's honest."
Daniel queued them up without another word.
The match loaded quickly.
Silver queues were fast when you won often.
The team composition formed.
Someone immediately spoke up in voice chat.
"Wait, Nightwalker?""Are you that Crusader from World Chat?"
Daniel didn't answer.
Starguard hesitated, then said quietly, "We'll play safe."
Daniel noticed.
She was already thinking about others, not just herself.
The early game was rough.
Not for Daniel.
For everyone else.
Silver players tried to test limits they didn't fully understand. They chased kills. Overcommitted. Forgot cooldowns.
Starguard struggled mechanically—missed a heal timing, panicked once when the enemy jungler appeared.
Daniel adjusted.
He stepped half a step closer. Positioned slightly wider. Made himself easier to read.
Starguard adapted immediately.
The next engage came.
This time, her heal landed early.
Not perfectly.
But early enough.
Daniel held the line.
The fight stabilized.
"Nice adjustment," he said.
There was a brief pause.
"…Thanks," Starguard replied, clearly surprised.
Mid-game.
A skirmish broke out near the river.
Bad positioning. Poor vision.
A Silver classic.
Daniel entered first.
Enemy damage poured in.
Starguard didn't panic.
She didn't spam.
She waited.
Then committed everything in one clean sequence.
Heal. Shield. Heal.
Daniel stayed standing.
The enemy collapsed.
Triple kill for their ADC.
Voice chat exploded.
"That support carried so hard.""Priest diff."
Starguard laughed nervously. "I just followed him…"
Daniel said nothing.
But he adjusted again—this time unconsciously—staying within her optimal range.
The win came easily after that.
VICTORY
Another streak added.
Back in the lobby, World Chat was louder than before.
"Nightwalker's still winning.""Who's he duoing with?""That Priest's name keeps popping up."
Starguard saw it too.
"…They're talking about us," she said.
"They'll stop," Daniel replied.
"When?"
"When you lose," he said honestly.
There was a short silence.
"…Then let's not," Starguard said.
Daniel queued again.
As the loading screen appeared, Starguard spoke up.
"Um… can I ask something?"
"Go ahead."
"You… don't play like Silver players," she said carefully."Not even close."
Daniel didn't answer immediately.
The screen finished loading.
"This isn't where the game is played," he said at last.
Starguard didn't fully understand.
But she nodded anyway.
Somewhere between Bronze and Silver, she had stumbled onto something rare.
A player who wasn't climbing—
But passing through.
And she had decided to follow.