Xiao Ye was beyond frustrated.
His blue buff had been stolen at the start, and without it, Lunaâs jungle speed slowed to a crawl. By the time he finally cleared the blue-side creeps, he wasted far too much time.
In high-ranked matches like this, invading the enemy jungle was standard fare. The fact that he arrived at the red buff this late and found it missing? That wasnât surprising at all. If anything, seeing it gone confirmed the enemy wasnât a complete noob.
No jungle creeps left, and if he tried to contest lane minions, heâd only earn his teammatesâ ire. Worse, Luna still wasnât level four.
He stood in place for a moment, feeling the momentum slip through his fingers.
Then, with a new plan forming, he jogged over to the bushes near midlane, hoping to hitch a ride on whatever rhythm the midlaner could create.
âAll eyes on you, Missy,â he typed to the Shangguan Wanâerâwho had stolen his blue at the start. With her skill level, and blue buff in hand, she shouldâve had no trouble suppressing the enemy mid.
Now that sheâd hit level four, it was time for her to take offâliterally. Her ult could make her fly across the screen. Xiao Ye just wanted a piece of the actionâmaybe an assist for some extra experience⊠ideally, even a kill.
Just as he had that thought, Shangguan Wanâer made her move.
He quickly maneuvered Luna out of the bush, preparing to follow up.
But the next moment made him want to smash his mouse.
Wanâer dropped her skills mid-combo. Her ult misfired. She crashed into the enemy tower.
First blood⊠handed over. And the blue buff, too.
The enemy midlaner, Angela, had been under pressure until nowâpushed to the brink, she hadnât even bothered throwing out her skills, half-resigned to being killed under her own tower. But the moment she saw Shangguan Wanâer crash her ultimate and Luna blindly charge in to follow up, her eyes lit up with vicious delight.
Three spells erupted in rapid-fire succession, all landing squarely on Lunaâs face. In an instant, Xiao Ye was deleted. The kill feed lit upâAngela had pulled off a clean double kill.
Double kill: Angela.
âMisplay,â Xu Muyan typed. Just two words, a quiet apology to the team.
What could Xiao Ye say? Accuse her? Flame her for being bad?
Of course not.
He and Wanâer respawned at the same time, both running back toward the blue buff camp.
âPlease, Missy, let me have blue this time,â Xiao Ye pleaded. He still hadnât given up hope. Maybe sheâd show mercy now.
But Wanâer said nothing. She just started hitting the blue againâwith him. Her magic damage was high, and Luna still wasnât level four, so naturally she stole it again.
Xiao Ye was left stewing.
But then he noticed Wanâer heading toward the enemy bot laneâtoward their marksman and support. Their HP was low. Their mana nearly empty.
It was the perfect opportunity. Sheâd surely get a double kill and reset the tempo.
But reality had other plans.
Instead of a clean double, Wanâer missed everythingâboth her ult and her abilities. She practically flew into the middle of the enemy team and whiffed it all.
She was instantly melted.
Respawn screen, once again.
âMissy⊠are you throwing on purpose?â Xiao Ye finally asked. Her repeated misplays were starting to look more than accidental.
âThrowing? Youâve got it backward,â Xu Muyan typed back. âYou picked Luna when you clearly canât play her. If anyoneâs inting, itâs you.â
The chat exploded. The three other teammates had been holding it in for a while. Now, they let loose:
Galo: âYouâve got a lot of nerve, âLittle Chick.â With trash like you buying accounts, even God-tier Wanâer couldnât carry this.â
Yao: âGive me your address, Iâm coming to strangle you. I was one win from 100 stars, and you ruined it!â
Zhang Fei: âYou wanna play Luna but donât know how to jungle? Go play support next time, you clown!â
ăDing. Host interference has disrupted protagonist Xiao Yeâs mental state. Gained 700 Villain Points.ă
The wave of verbal abuse hit hard. Xiao Ye clenched his teeth, but he couldnât argue with any of it. Heâd brought this on himself.
In hindsight, pretending to be bad at the start had been a colossal mistake.
Because of that, Wanâer did not trust him and took the blue. With both the jungler and midlaner collapsed, the whole team fell apart. Tempers frayed, teamwork vanished. Everyone tilted.
Eventually, they just surrendered. The match ended in a humiliating loss.
And to rub salt in the wound, Xiao Ye earned four reports from his teammates.
ăDing. Host interference has caused protagonist Xiao Ye to lose the match. Gained 1200 Villain Points. Xiao Yeâs Protagonist Halo -60. Hostâs Villain Halo +60!ă
âNot bad at all. That was some quality acting,â Wang Haoran chuckled, watching the livestream while still on the phone with Xu Muyan. Naturally, heâd seen everything.
âLetâs team up,â Xu Muyan said, her voice light with amusement.
Wang Haoran nodded.
While she was playing, he had already purchased a high-rank Mythic-tier account and installed the game.
He logged in and added her as a friend. Seconds later, they queued together.
And in just under fifteen seconds⊠they matched into a game.
ââŠYouâve gotta be kidding me,â Xu Muyan muttered when she spotted a familiar ID among their teammates. âNot this âLittle Chickâ again.â
Wang Haoran wasnât surprised.
âHey, Missy! What a coincidence! Weâre in the same match again!â Xiao Ye, now fully recovered from the sting of his earlier loss, opened mic chat, sounding excited.
Xu Muyan ignored him.
Undeterred, Xiao Ye continued, âMissy, I swear Iâm actually good. That last match was just a fluke. Trust meâthis time, weâve got this!â
Still no response. But as champion select began, Xu Muyan locked in Luna immediatelyâclearly to stop him from picking her again.
âOh, you play Luna too? No worriesâIâll go marksman,â Xiao Ye said cheerily, and picked Luban No. 7.
Wang Haoran smirked to himself and selected Zhang Fei as support.
âZhang Fei, guard me this round. Weâve got this in the bag!â Xiao Ye typed in team chat.
Wang Haoran gave a crooked smile⊠and didnât reply.
The game began.
Luban and Zhang Fei went bot lane.
The first few minutes went smoothly. Luban last-hit minions with ease, and Zhang Feiâs shields came in right on time, putting pressure on the enemy duo.
âNice job, Zhang Fei. That shield timingâs on point,â Xiao Ye praised over voice chat.
âThe enemyâs low. Letâs look for a kill,â Wang Haoran finally responded.
Last match, Xu Muyan played the actor. This round, it was his turn to take the stage.
âGot it. Iâll bait themâdraw them in. Be ready with the shield,â Xiao Ye said confidently, then had Luban push forward aggressively, taunting the enemy with every step.
Lubanâs smug face was well-known for being punchable. The enemy, provoked, stepped up to trade.
Xiao Ye stood his ground, fearless.
And paid the price.
He handed over first blood without resistance.
âZhang Fei! Why didnât you shield me?!â Xiao Ye growled over the mic as his character respawned.
He trusted his supportâthatâs why he took the fight. One shield wouldâve turned the tide.
âLag spike. Froze for a second,â Wang Haoran typed back nonchalantly.
Xiao Ye swallowed his frustration. What could he say? Instead, he respawned and jogged back to lane, forcing himself to reset his focus.
âMy lagâs gone. You go in againâIâll definitely get you with the shield,â Wang Haoran added in team chat.
âOkay!â Xiao Ye replied, eager to redeem himself. He was determined to claw back the first blood deficit and turn the tide.
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