The Doctor said I Have to be A Kept Man - Chapter 9

The game began.

Chi Ruanfan maneuvered his Melee Mage into the lane. His opponent was an Array Master. As soon as they met, the Array Master flashed his team logo at Chi Ruanfan.

I will graciously accept this as a welcome, Chi Ruanfan thought, quirked an eyebrow.

If the Array Master were holding a massive advantage or standing safely out of range, flashing the logo would be one thing. But doing it right in front of his face? He was practically asking for a beating.

“This kid is a bit dim,” Chi Ruanfan muttered. He clicked his mouse to hurl his first skill—the Melee Mage’s only ranged ability, at the stationary Array Master, chipping away a segment of his health.

The Panda Team mid-laner, Honey, hastily retreated while calling out to his teammates in the voice chat: “This rookie doesn’t know how to respect his seniors. Brothers, let’s show him how cruel the professional stage can be today.”

“No problem,” the rest of Panda Team replied. Educating rookies was considered a responsibility for every veteran.

Up in the commentary booth, the atmosphere was lively.

“Panda’s Honey tried to tease the Chaoge newcomer, but ended up taking a skill to the face instead.”

“That said, Chaoge’s form looks much better today. The bottom duo is exceptionally stable, and the rookie, Chi Fou, isn’t being suppressed in lane at all.”

“Suppressed? Look at their levels and gold! Chi Fou is actually out-farming Honey. Is Honey being too careless?”

Chi Ruanfan deftly sidestepped a magic circle from the Array Master and countered with another ranged poke.

“Holy crap, he predicted my movement? Must be a fluke,” Honey muttered. He glanced at his busy teammates on the map and felt too embarrassed to call for help. He shouldn’t be losing to a rookie.

“Get ready, let’s dive their bottom tower,” the Panda jungler commanded. He suddenly noticed his mid-laner was still stuck in lane and asked, “Hey, Honey, why haven’t you cleared your wave yet?”

Honey felt awkward. “This rookie is freezing the lane. He won’t let me farm.”

Being lane-frozen by a rookie was humilitating. The Panda jungler was surprised but didn’t dwell on it. “Wait until I kill their bot lane, then I’ll come help you teach this arrogant kid a lesson.”

While the commentators couldn’t hear the players, they saw the Panda jungler rotating toward Chaoge’s bottom lane.

“Panda’s jungler is heading south. After so much peaceful farming, are we finally going to see First Blood?”

“Chaoge’s duo seems to have sniffed out the danger; they’re retreating. But Panda’s duo is playing aggressive to keep them there!”

“The Panda jungler is here with double buffs! It’s a 3v2; Chaoge is at a major disadvantage!”

[Chaoge-Chi Fou (Melee Mage) killed Panda-Honey (Array Master) – First Blood!]

“First Blood! It came from the mid lane?!” the commentator stammered. “That was a solo kill!”

Having secured the kill, Chi Ruanfan immediately rushed toward the bottom lane.

The small skirmish at bot was still raging. Lu Lu’s Priest was frantically healing Lin Huo, who was barely clinging to life. Thanks to the Priest’s sustain and the positioning drills Chi Ruanfan had forced him through, Lin Huo was miraculously kiting the three Panda players.

“I dodge, I dodge again! You can’t hit me, hahaha!” Suddenly, a stun landed on Lin Huo’s Bounty Hunter, and his smile froze. With the Marksman stunned, the three Panda players naturally focused all their fire on him.

But as they committed to the kill, a figure burst out from behind them: Chi Fou’s Melee Mage.

Chi Ruanfan Flashed and used a displacement skill to enter the fray, knocking up all three opponents at once. He unleashed his full combo, deleting them instantly.

Lin Huo’s Bounty Hunter was sacrificed to the heavens, but Chi Ruanfan secured a Triple Kill. Simultaneously, Jin Zhu coordinated with Guzi in the top lane to take down the Panda top-laner.

“A team wipe! All five members of Panda Team are down!”

The sudden turn of events made the commentator nearly scream himself hoarse. The crowd erupted into a deafening roar that Chi Ruanfan could hear even through his headset.

He loved this feeling.

Chi Ruanfan smiled and told his ecstatic teammates, “Push the towers. Strip them of all their outer defenses.”

Lin Huo sighed. “Do you realize? You just lost your best tower-pusher.”

Lu Lu replied gloomily, “That was your only purpose, and you didn’t even fulfill it.”

“Ahem, three people were jumping me! No matter how good my positioning is, I can’t dodge that many skills,” Lin Huo laughed sheepishly.

As Chaoge pushed, the broadcast displayed replays of the mid and top kills on the big screen. Seeing the half-health Array Master step forward only to be deleted by the Melee Mage’s sudden burst, the commentator Emerald sighed:

“Rookie Chi Fou’s performance is truly unexpected. He looks so soft and sweet, but his playstyle is incredibly fierce. Panda was wiped out, and he was responsible for four of those kills.”

Commentator Cabbage summarized: “The cuter he looks, the harder he hits.”

The official stream chat was boiling over again.

“I’m floored. You’re telling me this mechanical god is a rookie?”

“How does he dare to play so aggressively?”

“Truly a newborn calf who doesn’t fear the tiger.”

“Who said Chi Fou only had a face and no skill? Step out and take your beating!”

Meanwhile, inside the Team King’s base:

The King’s coach and players were gathered around their analysis screen, watching the live broadcast. Panda’s outer towers were gone. Even after respawning, their core carry was repeatedly picked off by the coordinated efforts of Jin Yi and Chi Fou.

Chaoge’s lead grew insurmountable. Panda Team couldn’t even leave their base. The camera cut to the Melee Mage again.

The King’s coach asked solemnly, “Is it confirmed? Is he the Melee Mage from the scrim the other day?”

Lan Gong, who had faced Chi Ruanfan, nodded. “It’s him. That feeling is unmistakable. His positioning and predictions are terrifying; he always dodges and never misses. Facing him in lane feels like staring at an unscalable mountain. It’s exhausting.”

The King’s jungler, who had been camped by Chi Ruanfan, added, “Forget the mechanics; I think his awareness is scarier. He’s like a ghost. He plays a Mage like an Assassin. You never know where he’ll pop out from.”

The King’s coach observed, “For a rookie to make opponents worry this much about targeting him—that already proves his strength.”

The first game ended in a victory for Team Chaoge. Chi Ruanfan took off his headset and locked eyes with Jin Zhu. Both smiled at the same time.

Jin Zhu praised, “A perfect debut.”

If Jin Zhu hadn’t mentioned it, Chi Ruanfan wouldn’t have even realized this was his debut. He smiled. “The debut doesn’t matter. What matters is being able to compete on this stage.”

“What matters is that we won!” Lin Huo cheered, jumping up. “I’ve never won a match so easily!”

“It’s because Brother Chi carried us and you were just lying down,” Lu Lu teased.

“Don’t say that,” Guzi added. “He soaked up a lot of enemy skills, which took the pressure off Captain Jin and Brother Chi. Let’s call it a 5% contribution.”

“Don’t get too high yet; it’s not over,” Coach Flying Cloud said, walking onto the stage.

“With Brother Chi here, I’m not worried about any number of games,” Lin Huo said, sitting back down. He suddenly panicked. “Wait, what if they ban Brother Chi’s Melee Mage in the next game?”

Chi Ruanfan smiled. “I’m not a one-trick pony.”

Across the stage, Panda Team was the polar opposite.

“Focus up,” the Panda coach told his silent players. “It was just one game. We still have a chance.”

Honey slapped his own cheeks. “It’s been a while since I’ve been beaten this badly. I’m a bit stunned.”

“It’s okay. We’ll crush them next game.” The team cheered each other up, and the atmosphere improved slightly.

The coach looked at his notes. “Should we ban the Melee Mage next game?”

Banning the Melee Mage meant letting one of Jin Zhu’s power-junglers through. The room went silent. The Melee Mage was scary, but Jin Zhu’s signature picks were nightmares.

Finally, everyone looked at Honey. He thought for a moment and said, “I don’t think a ban is necessary. He’s just a rookie; his mindset is probably unstable. If we target him specifically, he’ll likely tilt and collapse on his own.”

“Agreed. A rookie’s biggest weakness is their mental game. Let’s target his head!”

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