League of Legends: League of Unknowns

It was already late in the night, but the Dragon Rising was still lit up brightly.

What with all the people there who would be playing LOL overnight, there was a great lot of shouting and hollering going on even well past midnight.

“Hey, screw you! Always hooking me over!”

“Damn it, why didn’t you attack!”

“Ulti, ulti, ulti!”

Standing before the shopfront, Yu Luocheng’s shadow stretched long across the street in the dim lamplight, falling across the poster for the Coca Cola Cup.

Yu Luocheng lifted his head to read the details of the tournament.

He could no longer remember how old he was when he first started loitering around cyber cafés. He’d begun by watching others play from behind their shoulders, until he’d eventually started playing himself. His string of achievements had earned him prestige, until he’d finally gone professional.

And then, suddenly, he’d returned to being a student again, leaving behind the glitz and glamor of the pro-gaming world that few even knew about.

***

Over in Section C, the members of Team Scarlet were training hard until daybreak, as always.

Earlier that evening, Commander Qin had managed to recruit a decent Support player. With the tournament just around the corner, he’d ordered all the members to assemble and work on their teamwork, especially with the new Support player on the team.

“How is it? Have I ever brought you anything but the best?” Huang Mi asked with a smile. “Wu Kai is a regular Ranked player, and his actual skill is above his current placing. You know how hard it is for Support players to ascend through the ranks. His problem is that he doesn’t have a good team to play with.”

This was the ‘Brother Mi’ that Seth was always sucking up to. He had a strange name, and a strange character . ¹

Yin Qin nodded. “Not bad. Let’s put him in for now.”

Typically, one’s Ranked score was an indication of individual ability. However, there were players who were highly skilled, but had difficulty advancing further. There were many possible reasons, so Ranked score alone was not always enough to measure the worth of a player.

Wu Kai turned around in his seat to join the conversation. “Commander, I don’t work for free. Recently, I’ve found a girl, and she’s burning a hole in my pocket. How much will you pay me to be a part of Team Scarlet?” Straight to the point.

“Pay will be on a monthly basis. Prize money is split evenly between the whole team,” Yin Qin answered.

“No way, I need cash right now. Relax, with Wu Kai on your side, victory is guaranteed. Dawn, Aviator, EZ… I’ll beat them all into a pulp for you. We’ll win Bottom lane every time.”

“How much do you want?” Qin asked.

“Two thousand, to start with. For now, let’s say two thousand as spending money.” That was the starting price.

It was obvious that not only did Kai think very highly of his own skills, he also felt certain that Commander Qin couldn’t refuse him.

If he wasn’t willing to pay, no matter. Wu Kai had received invitations from various capable teams—he still had other options.

“Alright, two thousand it is. But if you cut and run, you should know what I’ll do.” Gritting his teeth, Yin Qin pulled out his wallet.

“Rest assured. Wu Kai’s abilities are far beyond any mere Support player. Assign me to whichever lane you wish, and victory will always be the result.” His eyes were fixed eagerly on the sheaf of red notes in Qin’s hand.

Yin Qin counted out the money, gave Kai a look, and was just about to hand over the cash when someone else walked up to him.

For a moment, he stared at the unfathomable young man who stood before him.

“Yu Luocheng, my boy… why haven’t you left yet?”

“I need money.” Yu Luocheng fixed Commander Qin with a level gaze, his voice solemn.

“For what? How much?”

“My dad’s ill. Thirty thousand.”

Standing at the side, Huang Mi stared at Yu Luocheng, amazed at what a lunatic this schoolboy must be, demanding money from Commander Qin—and thirty thousand, at that!

Before Huang Mi had even finished that thought, Yin Qin put the two thousand down on the table, and pulled out a blue card from his wallet.

“The password is five 5s. There’s only twenty thousand in there, but I’ll get someone to pass you the remaining ten thousand tomorrow.” And then Yin Qin handed the card to Yu Luocheng.

Huang Mi and Wu Kai were both dumbstruck, seeing this.

Commander Qin had just given this kid a card with twenty thousand bucks in it, just like that?

When Wu Kai had asked him for two thousand, Qin had hesitated for an eternity, uttering threats and warnings.

This pip-squeak wandered over and said thirty thousand, and suddenly Yin Qin was pulling a card out of his wallet, and would even find someone to pass over the remaining ten thousand…

… Commander Qin must be out of his mind!

“Thanks.” Yu Luocheng put the card away carefully, and then glanced at the money Yin Qin had placed on Wu Kai’s table.

He stepped forward, picked up the money, and placed it back into Commander Qin’s hand, right in front of Wu Kai. Then he turned and strode off, leaving Huang Mi and Kai in a state of shock.

***

“Commander, that money was for me. Why did you take it back?” In view of this abrupt turn of events, Wu Kai frantically sought an explanation from Commander Qin.

“Team Scarlet has no vacancies at the moment,” Yin Qin replied.

“No vacancies? I thought you guys were looking someone to play Support!” Kai couldn’t make sense of what was happening.

“We’ve got someone.”

“Who?”

“That one who just made off with my card,” Qin said.

“That schoolboy? He’s going to be playing Support for Team Scarlet?” Huang Mi felt he must have heard wrong.

“Yeah, he’s still a student at the moment. Wu Kai, if there’s nothing else, you can go now.”

“Are you asking me to leave?” Kai jabbed a fingertip against his own nose.

“That’s right.” Commander Qin nodded.

“Commander, are you feeling alright? You can’t seriously believe that kid is my equal at this game!” Wu Kai was losing his temper, pointing angrily at Qin. “I offered my services to Team Scarlet because I’d heard of your reputation.

“The truth is that I’ve received other offers from elsewhere that were just as good, but I came all this way for you. I’ve played in trial matches, answered your questions, jumped through all your hoops… and then some kid shows up, no introduction, not a single test match, and you choose him over me!”

The commander had appearances to consider. To have someone waving a finger in his face and accusing him of not being in the right mind, his expression turned dark, and he boomed, “I’m going to show you some mercy for Huang Mi’s sake. You’d better start running, right now!”

If he hadn’t kicked out their last Support in a fit of foul temper, Yin Qin wouldn’t have been so desperate to find a replacement. Something about Wu Kai had rubbed him the wrong way the moment he’d laid eyes on him, but with the tournament almost upon them, he’d been forced to go along with it.

Yin Qin’s voice was thunderous. When he ordered Wu Kai to get lost, the whole cyber café heard it. Now, everyone was craning their heads to see who had pissed off Commander Qin.

Wu Kai could feel his face burning, but he didn’t dare to make any moves against Commander Qin. In a rage, he blustered, “Alright… alright, Mr Qin. Just you wait. I’m going over to Team Dawn, and if we don’t mash your Team Scarlet into the mud, I’ll lick your feet!”

“Keep your filthy tongue to yourself.” Yin Qin turned away. It was clear that Wu Kai was no threat to him.