League of Legends: League of Unknowns

The seagull is meant to soar over wind and waves, high above the ocean!

***

As he returned Da Luo’s hug, Yu Luocheng felt a sudden rush of emotion surging into him, setting his usually calm heart racing.

He felt like he’d instantly died and come back to life again.

Maybe one day it would happen to him too: After having been held down for so long, to be taken by the uncontrollable urge to spread his wings and fly.

***

Da Luo did things decisively. Now that he’d made up his mind, he immediately severed all other commitments, leaving himself no room for retreat.

In a few days, he’d quit his job at the construction materials company, move out of this shabby little house he was renting, and begin the search for a suitable base of operations for his team.

Back when they were first starting out, they’d stayed in a cramped little house in a residential district. The living room contained nothing but computers, and the rest of the house was clogged with beds.

Zhou Yan had tidied up the place regularly, so that everything was still clean and hospitable enough.

Speaking of Zhou Yan, Luocheng anxiously asked Lin Dong about him.

“Surely you don’t have to ask, with that guy?” Lin Dong replied.

“Erm, I’m just worried about…”

“There’s nothing to worry about. He’s still the same old Zhou Yan. Since today is Da Luo’s birthday—let’s go, we’re gonna call on him to join us for the festivities.”

Da Luo nodded. “It’s been a while for me too. I’ve been wanting to see him again.”

***

Zhou Yan was a carry for Team Wings, bearing the ID ‘Gale Crane’.

Nimble yet graceful, the crane was untouchable in flight.

Inscrutable in its ways, unpredictable in its thinking.

In real life, Zhou Yan was completely different from what he was like in-game.

A man of few words, he was always quiet, composed, sure, disciplined, and reserved with his expressions.

He was the eldest among them, and the most reliable. He was obsessively neat. When they first began training in that wretched little house in Shanghai, it had fallen completely to Zhou Yan to keep things organized and hygienic. The others had often made fun of him, calling him a good housewife given male form.

Indeed, he was a dark-faced, masculine fellow.

According to Lin Dong, Zhou Yan was currently in the sales business. It sounded like grunt work.

Following the address Zhou Yan provided them, they made a beeline towards his present location.

His workplace looked ordinary enough, if perhaps a little out of the way.

Lin Dong gave him a call. “Hey Zhou, we’re waiting for you downstairs. It’s this late already, and you’re still working overtime? Guess who’s here with me?”

“Yeah, there’s been a lot going on. Who’s with you?” Zhou Yan’s voice was a flat monotone.

“Have you forgotten what day it is?” Lin Dong asked with a laugh, eyeing Da Luo.

That woke him up. “Oh, right. Da Luo’s birthday. I totally forgot, sorry. Just wait there, I’ll be right down.”

***

In the office, a deeply tanned man rose from his chair.

He turned to the manager behind him, who was wearing a tie. “Manager, I’m heading downstairs for a bit. I’ve got some friends calling on me.”

“Alright, sure. Hurry back, we’ve still got work to do.” The bespectacled manager nodded.

With great strides, Zhou Yan stepped out through the door. The manager watched him go, muttering to himself, “Slacking off as usual. As lazy as he’s stupid. Not a single deal closed after so many days—he’s got some guts to still expect a salary!”

Overhearing this, the colleagues nearby sniffed with contempt at the manager. Zhou Yan had been doing great so far, generating substantial value for the company. It was hard to imagine why this manager had taken exception to him.

***

The moment he came out, Zhou Yan immediately caught sight of Lin Dong and Da Luo. He’d seen them on and off over the years, and was still readily able to recognize them.

But when he saw Yu Luocheng with them, that threw him off balance a little. His eyes widened as he gaped at Luocheng.

Yang Qianqian found it difficult to comprehend why whenever they encountered one of Luocheng’s old acquaintances, they would always spend a moment staring at him as if they couldn’t believe their own eyes.

What had happened between them all in the past?

“You’re back?” Zhou Yan’s reaction was much more restrained than Da Luo’s had been. His tone was warm and friendly.

“Yeah.” Luocheng nodded.

“It seems like I’m being summoned for more than just a meal?” Zhou Yan could sense that something was afoot.

“It’s like this: We’re putting a team together, to play League of Legends in the LPL,” Lin Dong explained. “Right now, we’ve got me, Xiao Bei, and Da Luo.”

Zhou Yan turned to Luocheng again. “You’re not joining?”

“Er, only in a nominal capacity.” Luocheng didn’t go into detail.

The truth was that Luocheng didn’t really have to explain anything to him. Before he left pro-gaming behind, he’d said something to Zhou Yan.

Out of everyone, he should be the most able to understand and forgive what he’d done.

Sure enough, Zhou Yan didn’t pursue the matter further. Turning to regard both Da Luo and Lin Dong, he asked, “Are you serious about this?”

Lin Dong nodded. “For real. Are you with us?”

Zhou Yan frowned slightly.

Luocheng and Da Luo didn’t add anything to this. They were familiar with Zhou Yan’s character: If he’d been willing, he would have said so right away, without beating around the bush.

However, seeing Zhou Yan with his brow furrowed in hesitation…

“Hold on, I’ve still got some stuff to take care of.” With that sudden declaration, he disappeared back into the office building.

***

In the wake of his sudden departure, the other three guys were lost for words.

Zhou Yan was a tough nut to crack. If he said no, and declined to rejoin their team, there would be no changing his mind.

Lin Dong and Da Luo had been expecting Zhou Yan to agree immediately. They certainly hadn’t been counting on him turning his back on them and going straight back to work.

“Do you think he’ll be joining the team?” Qianqian whispered, tugging on Luocheng’s sleeve.

Luocheng shook his head with a wry smile. “That could be tricky. Once he’s made a decision, it’s very hard to persuade him otherwise.”

“Alright, but I’ve been talking with Zhou Yan, and he’s been playing LOL all this while, and mainly as a Jungler,” Lin Dong said. “If I’m not mistaken, he’s really good, one of the top players in the Bilgewater server. It’s just that he rarely mixes with others. If Zhou Yan came back to us, our team would basically be complete—it’s just that I have no idea how he feels about it.”

As he spoke, someone emerged from the building. Face burnt to a dark tan by the scorching sun, tall and powerfully built… it was Zhou Yan!

At present, Zhou Yan was carrying his usual bag. It seemed to be stuffed with quite a few things.

He walked up to the four of them, his expression somber as always.

No sooner had he stepped out the door when another man came chasing after him, spectacles on his nose and a tie around his neck. Pointing after Zhou Yan, he bellowed, “Son of a bitch, you’re gonna quit, just like that, with so much work left unfinished? Listen here: You walk away now, don’t expect to collect a single cent of last month’s pay!”

It was loud enough to be heard up and down the whole street. Luocheng, Lin Dong, Da Luo, and Qianqian all stood frozen in shock!

Paying no heed to the manager, Zhou Yan calmly addressed the four of them: “Let’s go.”

“Er, but…” Da Luo didn’t even know what to say about this.

Lin Dong gave Zhou Yan the thumbs-up.

None of them had expected that Zhou Yan was going back inside just to resign straight away, even throwing away a whole month’s hard work!

How many people had hesitated at quitting their jobs because their pay was still being withheld? It hadn’t been five minutes since Zhou Yan came downstairs and clapped eyes on Luocheng and the others for the first time this evening. They’d hardly exchanged a couple of words, so far.

Lin Dong hadn’t even gotten to describing his vision for the team’s future, but Zhou Yan had promptly dumped his job to come join them.

At this point, they had to do something to return this demonstration of faith!

“Idiot!” In unison, Lin Dong, Luocheng, and Da Luo flipped the bird at the manager who’d come chasing after Zhou Yan.

For a moment, the manager looked like he was going to march up to them. Then Zhou Yan paused in mid-stride, his face darkening, his eyes growing cold. And then the manager thought better of it.

Ignoring that fool, the five of them departed down the street.

No one among them was more worked up than Lin Dong. It had been his idea to get everyone back together. After various trials, the four of them had all been gathered in one place again.

Perhaps none of them had forgotten the camaraderie from those days.

Luocheng could feel it too, that sense of contentment.

It felt nice to be with everyone again.

“What about Zhao Tinghua?” Da Luo inquired.

F-Hawk, Sky Swan, Lone Gull, Gale Crane. Everyone had assembled, save for Blood Eagle.

Once glorious beyond compare, Team Wings was really about to be restored, so that they could make their mark in League of Legends!

The question was: Would Zhao Tinghua, the Blood Eagle, be returning to the team as well?

“I’ve told him the plan already. He’s not interested.” Lin Dong looked at Luocheng as he announced this.

Da Luo and Zhou Yan turned to him as well. Qianqian wondered if something had happened in the past, to have everyone watching Luocheng inquisitively after this revelation.

Da Luo, Zhou Yan, and Lin Dong were all certain that the matter of whether or not Zhao Tinghua came back to the team was entirely up to Luocheng.

The two of them were the true pillars of Team Wings, and they were each the closest to the other. Even from the moment they’d first met, they’d come together like long-lost brothers, and the bond between them had only grown stronger with each battle.

They were very similar to one another in terms of their talent and passion for gaming, and Tinghua was considered the equal of Luocheng, whose prestige as F-Hawk was otherwise unrivaled.

In the game of DOTA, the nation’s most illustrious champions were none other than the two of them. When they had both been on the same team, their exploits were the stuff of legend, and they’d risen to the top of the world!

If Luocheng couldn’t fully commit to their tournament games, then they still needed another ace they could rely upon, and Zhao Tinghua was the best candidate.

But could they actually get him to join them?

Neither Da Luo, Zhou Yan, nor Lin Dong had forgotten that when Luocheng abruptly quit pro-gaming without a word of farewell to anyone, Zhao Tinghua had smashed every one of Luocheng’s remaining possessions in their base—including the trophy for the international solo event.

Roaring and cursing furiously, he’d named Luocheng a deserter, and had sworn never to forgive him.

Even this recently, Lin Dong had still heard that enmity and rage in Tinghua’s tone of voice.

The Blood Eagle would not return.

If anything, he would sooner be an enemy!