Desire to Lure [Esports] - Chapter 1

Chapter 1

At noon, inside the TEA Esports Club, a loud thud exploded within the training room.

“Why the hell did Rui-ge buy Sheng Xu? F*ck!”

Ever, the AD Carry, kicked his gaming chair over. The twitching muscles in his face betrayed his fury and resentment.

Anyone with eyes knew that the club had bought Sheng Xu to replace him.

For the first time in years, the club had purchased a backup AD, and a rookie who had recently reached the top of the Korean server at that.

Zechuan, the Mid-laner, walked over and patted him on the shoulder. “Calm down, brother. It doesn’t look good for people to see this.”

Ware, the Jungler, had joined the “Tea Team” at the same time as Ever. Since they were best friends privately, he naturally felt the injustice as well.

“I just don’t get it. The Mid-Season Invitational (MSI) is right around the corner. Does Rui-ge have to stir shit with Ever right now?”

Maoyi, the Top-laner, shrugged with a smile, trying a different way to console Ever. “With Sheng Xu’s personality, who could possibly play a team fight with him? He’ll be gone in half a year.”

While these words were meant to be comforting, they were rooted in truth. Sheng Xu had a nickname: “The Explosive Pack.” He was notoriously hot-tempered and unruly, showing respect to no one. If his skills weren’t so undeniably top-tier, he would have been blacklisted from the scene long ago.

Ever pointed at his own nose, feeling stifled. “You tell me, in what way am I inferior to Sheng Xu?”

Zechuan: “Keep it down. The Captain will be here soon.”

At a time like this, people hated hearing threats the most. With his emotions running high, Ever spoke recklessly: “I’d say the same even if the Captain were here. You think he wants to team up with this thug? Our Captain is a fox; he just hates whoever…”

Zechuan raised his voice: “Ever!”

It was a taboo in the Tea Team to call the Captain by his nickname.

Ever fumed for a long while before finally suppressing his insolence toward Yu Wenzhi.

In the TEA Team Manager’s office.

A latte, a small saucer of sugar cubes—the silver spoon stirred the liquid into ripples, but the fair, slender fingers were merely playing with it.

Yu Wenzhi lowered his eyes, a stack of files spread out before him.

A nineteen-year-old rising powerhouse, the Best Rookie—and behind him, a sordid history of scandals.

At fifteen, he streamed from internet cafes, getting his account banned for flaming viewers. He was outspoken about running away from home multiple times and live-streamed a “hundred ways to piss off your parents,” leading to another ban.

Digging further back: at thirteen, he was the ringleader of a street brawl that made local news; at twelve, he broke the leg of a human trafficker who tried to kidnap him, resulting in a two-thousand-yuan medical compensation… His “jianghu” exploits were too numerous to count; he was the spitting image of a warlord born in the wrong era.

“You’re saying you want him to live with me?”

A faint, indiscernible chuckle was laced within the question.

Manager Xu Rui snapped the files shut and began a desperate brainwashing session: “Who isn’t rebellious in their youth? To be young is to be wild. I have a hunch that you and he will become the new Twin Stars of the bot lane and win the World Championship…” His voice cut off as he checked his phone. “No time! The Explosive Pack is already here!”

With that, he grabbed his phone and rushed out.

At the main entrance of the TEA Team, a young man with a tall stature and sharp features walked in.

It was already early summer, but he wore a long-sleeved hoodie. He had a buzzed head, and a heavy, bulging backpack hung over his right shoulder as if it weighed nothing. His left hand was shoved into his pocket, his sleeve slightly wrinkled.

From the moment he entered, he showed zero curiosity toward TEA’s decor, environment, or personnel. His eyes—monolids so sharp they felt cold—looked down arrogantly. His thin lips were pursed, and he radiated an aura that screamed: I don’t talk much, so don’t mess with me.

The receptionist said politely, “Our manager will be here shortly. Let me show you the training room first. The other first-team members are there.”

Sheng Xu followed him in silence.

The training room was on the first floor, just past the trophy room. It had glass doors and a massive window with excellent lighting.

The receptionist pushed the door open and couldn’t help but say excitedly, “Chuan-ge, Xiao Wa, Mao-mao, Ever—Sheng Xu is here!”

He was met with nothing but suffocating indifference.

Ware simply put on his headphones, propped his legs up, and aimlessly browsed web pages.

Ever curled his lip, pulled his fallen gaming chair back up, and sat down hard, making the chair creak.

Maoyi intentionally walked over to Zechuan, putting an arm around his back and asking warmly, “Chuan-ge, how should I set the runes for Neeko?”

Though Zechuan felt awkward, he couldn’t go against the group’s consensus. He merely glanced at Sheng Xu before starting to explain the runes to Maoyi.

This was a silent, unanimous “show of strength”—or rather, collective bullying.

But for boys this age, they weren’t yet capable of empathizing with the person being excluded; they only felt they were being “loyal” to their friend.

Sheng Xu’s eyes lowered, his gaze turning colder before shifting into contempt.

The receptionist also felt the awkwardness and asked, “Where is Sheng Xu’s seat?”

Zechuan paused. Just as he was about to point, he heard Ever say, “I didn’t hear anything about him having a seat. Isn’t he just a sub?”

Ware took off his headphones and craned his neck to ask Ever, “Don’t we have a scrim scheduled for this afternoon? Man, preparing for MSI is exhausting.”

Ever’s expression changed instantly, and he laughed. “Idiot, don’t take your blessings for granted. Some people want to play but can’t.”

DTG, the team Sheng Xu played for in the Spring Split, didn’t qualify for MSI. Thus, the outside world said Sheng Xu was only willing to be a sub for TEA for the sake of a championship.

Maoyi let out a muffled laugh. “Who says they can’t play? You can play just by switching teams.”

Sheng Xu heard everything. His eyes darkened, and the hand hidden in his pocket pressed hard against his knuckles. A violent aura suddenly erupted from him.

He saw the root of the conflict immediately. His wolf-like gaze landed on Ever. He tossed his backpack casually into the receptionist’s arms and strode toward Ever.

His strides weren’t large and his footsteps weren’t heavy; he wasn’t holding a weapon, but his “none-shall-oppose-me” momentum compressed the air into a taut string, making the hair on Ever’s body stand on end.

Ever’s throat tightened. “You… you want to…”

Sheng Xu raised his long leg and stepped onto Ever’s gaming chair. He put strength into his left hand, about to pull it out of his pocket—

“Today, TEA will make a public announcement. We have signed two starting ADs, not a sub.”

A slow, gentle, and warm voice drifted from behind. It was like water hitting stone, like wind chiming against rings. It made one feel comfortable all over, as if all hostility had vanished, leaving only a violent heartbeat thumping in the chest, exceptionally loud.

Sheng Xu frowned and retracted his leg. His gaze bypassed the insignificant crowd and fixed upon Yu Wenzhi.

Yu Wenzhi was dressed in a pure white tracksuit, his collar slightly open and his sleeves pushed up to his forearms.

White clothes are picky; if the skin isn’t pale and smooth, they look tacky. But Yu Wenzhi clearly complemented the clothes. His exposed forearms had smooth lines, pale and clean, with a faint red ring pressed into his skin by the cuffs.

He raised his arm, pushed up the gold-rimmed glasses resting on the bridge of his nose, and looked at Sheng Xu through the lenses.

His soft, black hair was tied loosely behind his head, with only a few stray strands falling near his ears, resting against the snowy white collar.

He wasn’t feminine or coquettish; he was like a wind blowing from winter into early spring—something to be viewed from afar, not trifled with.

Everyone knew that the Tea Team Captain had a “demonic” charm. Years ago, based solely on his face, he was handpicked from the youth academy to the first team by the “Great Demon King” Choi Kyung-sung to be groomed as a successor.

After leading the team for two and a half years, Captain Yu’s followers only increased. Sheng Xu had seen it himself—support players his age would get a look of shy admiration whenever Yu Wenzhi was mentioned, as if they were ready to go through fire and water for him at any moment.

Yu the Fox.

Sheng Xu didn’t respond. His eyes remained filled with unfriendly indifference.

No matter how others felt, he wouldn’t fall so easily.

He was here to take Ever’s spot; his predatory intentions were blatant. It was only natural for them to hate him. He didn’t like them anyway.

“Sheng Xu, let me apologize to you on their behalf.”

Yu Wenzhi’s eyes crinkled slightly. Ignoring Sheng Xu’s hostile gaze, he smiled.

The heart of the fierce little wolf thudded heavily in his chest once more.

Sheng Xu: “…” F*ck.

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