Chapter Four: Ming Kai, I'm Your Fan

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Ming Kai, sitting beside him, was clearly still brooding over yesterday’s incident, his expression far from pleasant. Yet, after a whole day, he still couldn’t find any reason to refute what had happened.

“We’re short an AD now, so let’s make do. This guy’s skill isn’t bad,” Ming Kai said, trying hard to remain objective. Then came words that made his ears ring.

“Coach, I’m a fan of yours.”

Lin Ruo ascended to the second floor and upon seeing Ming Kai, his eyes lit up. He immediately reached out with both hands to shake his firmly. “It’s an honor to meet you, idol. You’re way better looking than on screen.”

Ming Kai was bewildered by this, feeling somewhat offended, unsure whether this was just a sarcastic troll or a genuine fan.

“Mouse, the pride of domestic top laners, I’ve heard great things about you. I heard you’re really good with Maokai,” Lin Ruo greeted each person in turn.

Aguang was straightforward and didn’t catch any hidden meaning, so he smiled and shook hands.

“Lin Ruo, right? Let’s work hard together from now on.”

Lost in his joy, Lin Ruo suddenly felt a menacing gaze fixed on him from the side. He turned his head to look at Tian Ye, and with a hint of grievance said, “What’s wrong? I was just saying hi to Ming Kai.”

Tian Ye was mentally exhausted. Seeing that Ming Kai’s mood was stable, he chose not to say anything. Yet inwardly, he couldn’t help but complain, “Didn’t you watch the Worlds this year? What’s with that reckless ultimate right in their faces?”

The four of them headed to EDG’s training room, where the junior teammate Scout was diligently grinding rank.

Ming Kai patted the chair. “Ruican, finish this game and stop for now. We’ve got a scrim coming up.”

Scout, having joined EDG halfway through the season, was still struggling with Chinese but managed a reluctant “okay.” His words already had the faintest hints of the Wuhan dialect.

After a while, Abu entered the training room, greeted Lin Ruo, then said, “I’ve arranged a scrim with Snake, but Ai Loli is still on the way, so we’ll have to wait a bit.”

Lin Ruo couldn’t help but ask, “Isn’t the coach playing?”

Who allowed you to call him coach like that…

Abu was momentarily stunned but explained, “Ming Kai is resting this season, so he’s not playing for now.”

“That’s a pity. I actually wanted to play with him. After all, being recognized by coach is what drives my career forward,” Lin Ruo sighed, clearly disappointed.

Those words left Ming Kai silent. You didn’t say that on stream yesterday.

“Then let’s play a game. No point wasting time,” Ming Kai said with a frown, taking his seat. This kid was way too arrogant; he decided to keep an eye on him for the club’s sake.

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If he played badly, Ming Kai would kick him out and settle yesterday’s score.

Seeing the consent, Abu raised no objections.

The four took their seats, waiting for Scout to finish before starting a custom room.

“Isn’t it a bit tough to scrim Snake to test the rookie?” Tian Ye asked while Snake hadn’t joined the room yet.

Since Season 6, Snake had greatly improved their strength by recruiting the Korean mid laner Tank and the Vietnamese player SofM.

If not for the best-of-ten controversy, who would have even known if they’d make it to the Season 6 World Championship?

Moreover, this new season they brought in IG veteran Zz1tai, further boosting their strength.

“No problem. It’s the same whoever we play,” Lin Ruo confidently decided.

No way are we losing to Gangzi.

Lin Ruo was determined to give young Crystal Brother a real challenge.

“They’re the only team available for scrims during the off-season,” Abu briefly explained, despite Lin Ruo’s lack of objections.

As long as Lin Ruo performed adequately against Snake, he could stay with the club.

Meanwhile, at the neighboring Snake base along Spirit Stone Road, the starting five sat down at their computers one after another.

Pretending to be a coach, Zhu Kai was busy sketching something on his notebook.

“Why scrim already? The vacation’s not even over,” Crystal Brother grumbled, lounging in his chair.

Zhu Kai admitted, “EDG got a new AD. They want us to evaluate his skills.”

“Yarema, what do you take me for? The LPL’s gatekeeper?” Crystal Brother said with a grin. “Today, I have to show this rookie AD what professionalism is. Pick Draven, and I’ll take him down with one shot each.”

“Alright, this round’s a protect-the-carry setup. Let Gangzi taste what Uzi’s treatment feels like,” the ever-enthusiastic Saint Gunner chimed in.

“Sounds good,” Zz1tai, just transferred from IG and now living the life of a Beijing noble, said softly and politely.

Crystal Brother laughed, then noticed the silent Vietnamese rebel nearby and pounded the table. “You hear that, SofM? No more farming this round. Let’s gank. I’m carrying!”

The future richest man in Vietnam, SofM, with a youthful face, didn’t care much about scrim results and nodded theatrically.

After all, he treated the World Championship qualifiers like the Demacia Cup.

Once the five Snake players entered the room, the draft phase began.

In scrims between teams, bans are usually skipped; both sides proceed straight to champion selection.

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“What are we playing, guys?” Zhu Kai habitually asked. Though adept at ordering takeout, he wasn’t great at drafts.

“Anything goes,” Crystal Palace said firmly and immediately locked in Draven from the first floor.

Crystal Brother’s Draven was renowned, being the only player with a pentakill in professional matches. Many teams would ban him out of caution.

“He’s pretty strong with Draven,” Tian Ye reminded from the EDG training room.

Lin Ruo nodded without concern and locked in Ashe, while Tian Ye followed with Zyra, who had shone brightly at Worlds. “Actually, you could pick Caitlyn. The bottom lane would be easier.”

“No need. Just don’t bring the Windtalker. Besides, winning too fast isn’t fun.”

Tian Ye was shocked. That kid was going to start a fight again…

Ming Kai glanced sideways, focusing on the last sentence, thinking: how can he be this reckless?

Lin Ruo looked back with a knowing smile, thinking that no matter how arrogant this kid was, he still wasn’t as wild as Coach who studied MSI and claimed he’d become the world’s best jungler.

As the last Titan pick dropped, both teams’ lineups were set.

Blue side EDG: Poppy top, Fiddlesticks jungle, Ryze mid, Ashe and Zyra bot.

Red side Snake: Titan top, Lee Sin jungle, Cassiopeia mid, Draven and Thresh bot.

They entered Summoner’s Rift, lining up in a straight snake formation.

Ming Kai’s Fiddlesticks lurked in the mid-river bush on the top side, clearly planning to start blue buff and then gank downwards.

Lin Ruo planted a ward in the mid-river.

Tian Ye pinged and turned to say, “Why ward here? It’s unnecessary. Better to ward the bot river or the tribush.”

Lin Ruo smiled softly, “Helping coach watch over F6, preventing invasions. After all, the Vietnamese bandits aren’t called that for nothing.”

Tian Ye clicked his tongue, speechless.

Ming Kai, hearing this, felt mentally refreshed, his dissatisfaction greatly eased.

He sensed this young man had great potential.

At level one, both bot lanes pushed hard to secure level two.

Draven and Thresh were very strong at level one, but Ashe and Zyra showed no fear at all.