Rise

!” Lin Feng said.

Tang Bingyao scrunched up her nose.
She looked at Lin Feng and shook her head.
“I don’t like it.
It sounds wrong.”

“Eh, who cares?” Lin Feng waved his hand.
Then he scratched his chin and said, “Okay.
I got it! How about we go with Master and Disciple?”

Tang Bingyao nodded.
“Mhm.
I’m fine with that.”

The others around the two had gone quiet.
They looked at Tang Bingyao and Lin Feng having an honest argument.
A stupid argument.
It was simultaneously silly and cute.
No one knew what to say.
So they just stood there watching.
Waiting.
Hoping for it to end soon.
Then Zuo You broke the silence.
“Damn! I take back all my doubts.
You two are made for each other! I’ve never seen a more perfect couple!”

✹

Lin Feng and the others didn’t stay at the venue where the Shanghai 16 School Tournament was held for much longer.
It was already late and they had school the next morning.
They could celebrate after winning the entire tournament.
For tonight, they decided to cut it short and go back home.
While saying their goodbyes, Su Xue and Zuo You promised the team that they’d come and cheer them on all the way to the Finals.
They’d be there when High School 13 would lift the trophy! If they got that far.
And if they did, Su Xue even promised them a dinner celebration.

The others from the esports team went back with the subway, while Lin Feng joined Su Xue and Zuo You.
They took a cab back to their place.
In the car, Zuo You asked, “You’re pretty close with those classmates of yours, huh? That Ren Rou girl is really nice.
I really like her!” She paused for a moment, a wicked grin spreading on her face.
She winked at him, a little over the top.
“Hey, hey.
Are you really not dating Tang Tang? I think you two would make such a cute couple!”

Su Xue nodded.
“You two really did look great together.
And she’s really cute and adorable and pretty.
Are you sure you aren’t interested in her?”

Lin Feng shook his head and smiled.
“Nah, nah! It’s like I said, I’m her master! The best of bros!”

“The best of bros my ass!” Zuo You said, rolling her eyes. Speaking of bros… She looked at Lin Feng.
Scrutinized him.
Then asked, “Right.
That friend of yours.
Ouyang or whatever.
He said something about a pretty childhood friend? Was what he said true?”

“Haha, yeah! He was talking about Bunbun!” Lin Feng laughed.

Zuo You opened her eyes wide and nodded.
“Ha.
You’re insatiable.
I should’ve known when I saw you eat.
But wow! How many women do you want before you’re happy? Is Tang Tang not enough? Do you really need this Bunbun too? Oh! And don’t forget about Su Xue!”

“Hey! What the fuck!” Su Xue exclaimed.
“Why would you include me there? I’m his big sister! Big.
Sister! Nothing more!” She then turned to Lin Feng, ignoring her friend, and asked, “So you really have a cute childhood friend? Tell me about her!”

“Yeah! Bunbun is a really good friend! She was the one who introduced me to League of Legends and taught me how to play!” Lin Feng nodded.
Then he grinned.
“But now I’m way better than her! Hehe.
I can easily kick her ass!”

Zuo You rolled her eyes and said, “No one cares about that.” She knew Lin Feng was good.
They all knew Lin Feng was really good at the game.
One of the best in all of China, most likely.
If he wasn’t at the level of a professional player, he wouldn’t be far off.
That was how highly they thought of his skills.
So there wasn’t a doubt in their minds that he could beat some random player who happened to have introduced him to the game.
But pressing him on the matter wouldn’t get her anything.
She knew him better than that by now.
So she turned to Su Xue and switched the topic.
“Hey, remember the video thing I suggested the other day? Did you have a chance to think about it yet?”

Su Xue smiled and said, “I did! I did! I’m planning on giving it a shot! It’s just been a little difficult to figure out how to record the gameplay and find a good way of doing commentary.
My own style.
I’ve been studying other commentators for a few days now, but it looks really difficult.
Anyways, I think it’s possible.
As long as Lin Feng is down to make the gameplay for me to recor–”

“I don’t mind!” Lin Feng interrupted.

Zuo You nodded.
“Sounds good.
I think it’s a great idea.
Just hurry up and get things rolling.
I’ve got some spare time right now, but who knows how long that’ll last.
Get that first video recorded and send it my way.
I’ll do all the editing and post-processing!”

“No worries.
We’ll have the video done in no time.
Right, Lin Feng?” Su Xue said, turning to Lin Feng.
Then she thought about it for a moment before asking, “That’s fine, right? Like, we can make a video in the next day or two? If you aren’t busy with anything…”

Lin Feng smiled and said, “Nope! I’m good! We can do it!”

However, not everything was good.
Something terrible was happening! It was so bad that it didn’t just affect Su Xue and Lin Feng, but the entire Chinese League of Legends community! They were all caught off guard by the news.
No one saw it coming.
But when it did, it hit like a truck.
It smashed into them and left them numb.
Then the pain set in.
They started screaming in righteous indignation.
This wasn’t fair! This was the absolute worst!