The Doctor said I Have to be A Kept Man - Chapter 7

The second game of the scrim began.

Both sides spent the early game developing peacefully, each focusing on clearing their respective minion waves. Having learned their lesson from the previous game, Lin Huo and Lu Lu played much more cautiously with their positioning. The King’s mid-laner and jungler attempted two consecutive ambushes, but they couldn’t find an opening.

Jiang Xia said to his mid-laner hiding in the brush, “They aren’t coming out. Come back in the next wave.”

“Alright,” the King’s mid-laner replied, maneuvering his Wind Mage back along the river.

At the intersection of the mid-lane minion waves, Chaoge’s Melee Mage had already shoved the wave into the tower, and his positioning was extremely aggressive.

An opportunity!

The King’s mid-laner chuckled, activating his ultimate’s speed boost to charge forward, following up with a whirlwind and wind blades. The Melee Mage retreated abruptly, dodging the whirlwind and blades, taking only the area-of-effect damage from the ultimate, which left him at half health.

“Huh? How did this Melee Mage’s reaction speed suddenly get so fast?” The King’s mid-laner was slightly puzzled but didn’t pay it much mind, controlling his Wind Mage to walk back toward his own tower.

To his surprise, the low-health Melee Mage didn’t retreat but instead charged straight at him.

King’s Mid-laner: “?”

Why wasn’t this Melee Mage playing by the rules? Shouldn’t he retreat after being hit? Why was he chasing for a fight?

Chi Ruanfan, controlling the Melee Mage, was equally confused. He hadn’t played the Melee Mage many times on the professional stage, but once he got his hands on one, opponents usually gave him a wide berth. Now, someone actually dared to come up and touch him?

Chi Ruanfan had initially thought the opponent brought teammates and was prepared to withdraw. But then he thought, Wait, three King’s players are visible in the side lanes, and the other is in the jungle. Mid really only has this Wind Mage.

Damn! You’re alone and you dare touch me? Who gave you the courage?

The Melee Mage flashed forward, unleashing a full combo. The Wind Mage was completely unable to move and was stunned to death.

[Chaoge-Meng Dong (Melee Mage) killed King’s-Lan Gong (Wind Mage) – First Blood!]

Since Chi Ruanfan was using Meng Dong’s account, the kill displayed Meng Dong’s ID.

“What happened?” Jiang Xia asked in the King’s team voice chat.

Lan Gong, who had just been killed, was still in a daze. “I’m not sure. This Melee Mage is a bit… eerie.”

Jiang Xia was curious. “How eerie?”

Lan Gong thought for a moment and said, “It feels like a different person. He’s too strong. If that combo wasn’t just luck, this Melee Mage could rank among the top in the league at least top three.”

“Are you kidding me? Half of our kills last game were handed to us by him,” Jiang Xia countered, unconvinced. The other King’s teammates didn’t believe him either. “Lan Gong, if you made a mechanical error, just say so. We won’t blame you.”

Lan Gong: “???”

I’m innocent!

In the Chaoge training room, Meng Dong, who was watching from the side, was also full of question marks. What happened in that instant? He blinked, and the enemy Wind Mage was gone?

“Nice,” Jin Zhu praised. “Xiao Ruan, gank bottom with me in a bit.”

That “Xiao Ruan” startled Chi Ruanfan so much he nearly whiffed a skill. “Why are you calling me that too?” Chi Ruanfan felt weary.

Jin Zhu asked, “How do you want me to call you?”

“Call me Brother Chi, of course.” Chi Ruanfan was actually looking forward to the teenage version of Jin Zhu calling him “Brother” in a soft, obedient way.

Guzi silently sent a [Great Job!] in-game, followed by Lin Huo and Lu Lu. Daring to ask Captain Jin to call him “Brother”—this “Great God” was truly one of a kind.

Jin Zhu didn’t continue the topic. He finished off a buff and said, “Xiao Ruan, follow me.”

“You won’t even call me ‘Brother.’ You have no sincerity, yet you want me to follow you?” Chi Ruanfan feigned a recall to base, hiding his vision while maneuvering the Melee Mage through the enemy’s blue zone to flank.

He didn’t “follow” him, but their objective was the same.

Jin Zhu gave a silent smile, maneuvering his Night Hermit to the bottom lane. Coordinating with Lin Huo and Lu Lu, they reduced the King’s duo to critical health and forced them back. The King’s duo retreated under their tower, preparing to use the Elf Ranger’s long range to clear the wave from a distance.

Suddenly, the King’s duo glimpsed a figure charging from behind: the Melee Mage. Jiang Xia was shocked. “Didn’t he recall? When did he get behind us?”

No one answered him. The Melee Mage unleashed a chain of skills, and the Night Hermit dashed under the tower to follow up with damage. Their coordination instantly deleted the low-health King’s duo.

Chi Ruanfan secured a double kill. Jin Zhu tanked the tower for a moment, leading Chi Ruanfan’s Melee Mage out safely.

“Thanks,” Chi Ruanfan said.

For the remainder of the game, Chi Ruanfan solo-killed the enemy mid-laner three times with pure mechanics. Coordinating with Jin Zhu, they crushed King’s bottom lane and jungle. The game ended at seventeen minutes. Chi Ruanfan’s Melee Mage had eleven kills, zero deaths, and dealt over 40% of the team’s total damage.

“How about it? Don’t you think signing me was a bargain?” Chi Ruanfan reached out and draped an arm over Jin Zhu’s shoulder.

Jin Zhu took off his headset. “I always trust my own vision.”

Coach Flying Cloud looked at the results panel and couldn’t help but smile. It had been a long time since he’d seen a match with such perfect coordination in Chaoge and that coordination came from a rookie who just joined.

“Did you two really just meet?” Flying Cloud couldn’t help but ask the question bothering him. “Looking at your coordination, it feels like you’ve played together for a long time.”

“We really just met,” Jin Zhu said, looking at Chi Ruanfan, only to see him flash an innocent, harmless smile.

Jin Zhu was actually quite puzzled himself. Chi Ruanfan seemed to understand him perfectly; often, Jin Zhu didn’t even have to speak before Chi Ruanfan would set up the play for him.

The other teammates didn’t care whether they had just met or not; they were busy showering him with praise.

Lu Lu: “Great God, you were incredible this game.” Guzi: “I was carried the whole way.” Lin Huo: “We get bullied every day; it’s finally time to let off some steam.”

Flying Cloud felt refreshed as well, but he lightly patted Lin Huo’s head. “It was just a scrim. If you want to let off steam, go beat them on the actual stage.”

As he spoke, Flying Cloud’s phone buzzed. He looked at it and laughed. “Team King’s has reached out to ask for two more scrims.”

“Are we doing it?” Lu Lu asked.

“Yes. Why turn down a top-tier team offering to practice? But we’ll have to schedule a different time,” Flying Cloud replied to the King’s coach before turning to his players. “Xiao Ruan, show us all the mid-laners you can play. Practice your coordination with everyone. We’ll do a collective replay tonight.”

“Okay.” Chi Ruanfan stood up to return to his previous seat. Since that computer was logged into Meng Dong’s account, he preferred to use his own.

Coach Flying Cloud then remembered Meng Dong was still there. He looked at the boy standing aside. “Meng Dong, you…”

Flying Cloud wanted both of them to stay; he wasn’t sure yet how many mid-lane classes Chi Ruanfan could handle. If he only knew the Melee Mage, that would be a problem. He wanted both in the first team, choosing who to play based on tactics.

Before Flying Cloud could finish, Meng Dong spoke up first: “Coach, let me go back to the second team to practice some more.”

Flying Cloud paused. Seeing Meng Dong’s serious expression, he thought for a moment and said, “Alright. Go back and adjust your mindset. Your mechanics aren’t bad; you’re just too impulsive and get heated too easily.”

“Mn.” Meng Dong nodded, his tensed shoulders finally slumping. Leaving the first team meant all that pressure no longer had anything to do with him.

The professional stage is cruel; if your strength or mindset isn’t up to par, you have to exit. Chi Ruanfan, perhaps feeling his actual age, heard the sound of Meng Dong packing his gear and felt like he was bullying a child. He walked over, took Meng Dong’s peripherals bag, and helped him pack. “I happened to want to check out the second team. I’ll walk with you.”

Meng Dong: “…Mn.” Could he say no? His bag was already in the other’s hands.

Outside the training room, Chi Ruanfan slowed his pace and asked, “What is your goal for playing professionally?”

Away from the eyes of the team and coach, Meng Dong didn’t seem as miserable. Hearing the question, he pursed his lips and said, “Money.”

Chi Ruanfan chuckled. “Very real. But since you like spending time with fans so much, why don’t you become a streamer?”

Spending five days a week meeting fans suggested he really enjoyed their company. As for money, between an average pro and a streamer of equal skill, it was hard to say who earned more.

“What’s a streamer? Like the ones who sing and dance?” Meng Dong asked.

Chi Ruanfan: “?”

Wait, it’s Season 6. Game streaming hasn’t really taken off yet? The only game streaming was official tournament broadcasts on video sites.

“It can also be streaming yourself playing games,” Chi Ruanfan said. Although it would be another two years before dedicated game streaming platforms appeared.

Meng Dong felt a flicker of interest but thought it sounded unreliable. “Will anyone watch that?”

“Who knows.” They arrived at the second-team training room. Chi Ruanfan handed the bag back to Meng Dong. “We’re here. Go on in.”

Meng Dong was puzzled. “Didn’t you want to take a look?”

Chi Ruanfan shrugged and turned back. “I’m not stupid. It’s full of your old teammates in there, and I’m just one person. What if I get jumped?”

Meng Dong: “…” Are true experts always this cautious in real life?

Chi Ruanfan sauntered back toward the first-team training room and saw the cool-faced Jin Zhu standing by the door. The temperature seemed a bit low today; the open corridor felt exceptionally cold.

“Waiting for me?” Chi Ruanfan naturally leaned in, huddling close to Jin Zhu like two small animals leaning on each other for warmth.

Jin Zhu stiffened. After a long silence, he asked, “Do you always keep this kind of distance when talking to people?”

Chi Ruanfan: “Of course not. I only lean on you like this.”

Who would get this close if the relationship wasn’t good? In psychology, the intimate distance is within 15 centimeters, where you can feel each other’s body heat and breath. This distance is reserved for lovers or best friends.

Belatedly remembering that Jin Zhu didn’t consider him a best friend yet, Chi Ruanfan stepped back a few paces and said apologetically, “Sorry, I’m used to it.”

He just said he only leaned on me, and now he says he’s ‘used to it’?

Jin Zhu pursed his lips, his already cool expression turning even colder. “You!”

“Me?” Chi Ruanfan waited for him to finish.

Jin Zhu looked away and said, “The team’s official Weibo has posted the announcement of you joining. Go and retweet it.”

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