Chapter Fifteen: Fallen into the Archer's Trap

Yes, Yuan Chong still didn’t dare, even though he agreed verbally, he was already preparing to run in his heart. Now, with Lin Hui saying this, it seemed escape was no longer an option.

But how did she know? Yuan Chong glanced sidelong at Lin Hui, muttering inwardly. Never mind, focus on the present—only one star left.

Second round, “Not a Stingy Guy” didn’t get Yao again, so he chose Liu Chan, the little prince of tower-breaking.

Lin Hui refused to play marksman this time, saying, “I’ll play warrior.”

Yuan Chong understood—she wanted to keep her distance from “Not a Stingy Guy,” out of sight, out of mind, and he could sympathize.

Lin Hui told Yuan Chong, “You take marksman.”

Yuan Chong shook his head, “Let’s save the marksman slot, I’ll see if anyone goes jungle—if not, I’ll do it.”

Qi Leyi overheard, thinking back to when she played marksman and the way her master protected her, and even further back to their first encounter, when she also played marksman. As her rank rose, she didn’t play marksman well, so her master let her switch to support.

With all this in mind, Qi Leyi had a thought: her master reserved the marksman slot for her. The idea warmed her heart, moved her—her master was so reliable and attentive.

“Not a Stingy Guy”: Master, pre-select jungle. Usually there aren’t enough junglers.

Yuan Chong murmured his assent, picked Mi Yue, and equipped the Smite summoner skill.

Lin Hui was a little surprised, “Mi Yue isn’t strong right now.”

Yuan Chong nodded, “What can I do? The strong hero Lan is banned, can’t pick him every game.”

“But Lan isn’t easy to play—one misstep and you’re just useless.” Lin Hui commented.

“Not a Stingy Guy”: Master’s Lan is strong, and Mi Yue is strong too.

Lin Hui mouthed: Flatterer.

Yuan Chong chuckled, telling “Not a Stingy Guy,” “Play seriously—follow me in the first round in the jungle, then stick with the marksman. Don’t wander off, just follow.”

“Not a Stingy Guy”: Okay, Master.

After turning off the mic, Lin Hui said to Yuan Chong, “Didn’t think you’d enjoy this.”

Yuan Chong turned off his mic too, asking, “Enjoy what?”

“Being flattered, floating up in the clouds.”

“You’re exaggerating. She’s just complimenting my skills. It’s not like you say. Besides, I do play well.” Yuan Chong kept his tone neutral.

Lin Hui nodded knowingly, “If I were a guy, I’d know how to court you.”

“Oh, come on! Game’s starting, game’s starting!” Yuan Chong deflected, focusing on the game.

“I’ll start red, watch blue for me.” Yuan Chong told Lin Hui.

“Got it, be careful. Enemy has Donghuang Taiyi, definitely up to something at the start.” Lin Hui said while clearing the lane.

Donghuang Taiyi is nearly invincible early on; skilled players always invade the jungle. Yuan Chong was halfway through red when he saw Donghuang, accompanied by jungle Liu Bei, coming over.

Both sides with jungler and support, two versus two, Yuan Chong wasn’t intimidated, but Qi Leyi was nervous.

Yuan Chong controlled Mi Yue, hurried to finish red, saying, “Liu Chan, chase them off a bit—I’ll be done soon.”

Normally, Liu Chan is tanky enough; with good positioning, he could force the opponents back, give Mi Yue a chance to secure red, then retreat, letting the enemy take a small monster. Against Donghuang and Liu Bei, you can’t avoid all losses, but securing red is a good outcome.

But for some reason, Liu Chan stepped right up to Donghuang and Liu Bei.

“Back! Fall back!” Yuan Chong urged.

Then Liu Chan didn’t use any skills, just turned around awkwardly.

Damn! Yuan Chong quickly used Smite to secure the red buff, then used his second skill to tether Liu Bei, and with his first skill’s second dash, moved to the side.

Against Donghuang early, Mi Yue’s attacks aren’t strong enough—direct attacks are useless. He could only target Liu Bei to distract, hoping to save Liu Chan.

Liu Chan then made another mysterious move—he didn’t retreat when Mi Yue was distracting, but came forward again.

“What are you doing? Fall back!” Yuan Chong shouted.

Liu Chan turned again, but after those two blunders, he was nearly dead.

Donghuang Taiyi wouldn’t let the kill slip away, chased Liu Chan down, and Yuan Chong watched helplessly as Liu Chan “shattered,” giving the enemy first blood.

At that moment, their marksman Yu Ji arrived. Yuan Chong wanted to salvage the situation by taking Liu Bei’s kill, so he didn’t retreat, signaled “Attack,” tanked in front, and continued to attack Liu Bei.

If the marksman hit Liu Bei twice, they’d likely secure the kill. But Yu Ji performed another mysterious operation, attacking Donghuang Taiyi instead.

“Why are you hitting Donghuang!” Yuan Chong was desperate.

Early Mi Yue can’t withstand Liu Bei’s attacks, quickly became low on health. Donghuang arrived too, and Yuan Chong’s heart sank—he knew he was done, so he signaled “Retreat.”

But the marksman refused to leave; after Mi Yue fell, she kept fighting stubbornly. So, right at the start, they gave away three kills—the marksman and jungler both dead.

Lin Hui asked, “What happened? That’s Donghuang Taiyi—if you can’t win, retreat!”

Yuan Chong sighed, “Disastrous start.” He thought: Stuck with a pair of fools, nothing to do!

Mid-lane mage Xiao Qiao couldn’t support in time, watched three allies fall, enemies took the jungle and left, then sarcastically signaled “Well played.”

Yuan Chong was furious, “What’s your problem, Xiao Qiao!”

Xiao Qiao: Simple, you guys are terrible.

Yuan Chong didn’t even know how to retort—his team’s performance really was embarrassing.

“Not a Stingy Guy”: My mistake, sorry.

Xiao Qiao: If your skills are bad, just admit it. What mistake? Only experts get to use that word.

“Not a Stingy Guy”: My master is an expert—you’ll see.

Xiao Qiao: I’ll keep my eyes peeled.

Lin Hui reminded Yuan Chong, “Hurry over, they’re invading blue again.”

Mi Yue respawned, rushed to blue. This time Donghuang Taiyi brought mid-lane Fire Dance. Yuan Chong glanced, quickly called Lin Hui’s Kai for help.

Lin Hui abandoned clearing the lane, came to defend blue.

Yuan Chong hit “Request group,” tried to summon the mid-lane mage, but Xiao Qiao didn’t move, kept clearing minions.

The enemy’s Gold Ax finished his lane, joined in—Donghuang Taiyi, Gold Ax, Fire Dance versus Liu Chan, Kai, Mi Yue. Yuan Chong saw no chance of winning.

Lin Hui realized it too, “Maybe let it go?”

Yuan Chong saw Xiao Qiao unmoved, but couldn’t give up yet, “Let me try to steal blue.”

Lin Hui: “Alright, Liu Chan and I will try to block.”

This time, Liu Chan didn’t move too far forward, just wasn’t agile enough, failed to block—enemy Fire Dance snagged blue buff with a fan.

“So tragic!” Yuan Chong was really anxious—the enemy started with four buffs and three kills, instant advantage!

Mi Yue needs gold; without economy, she can’t perform. Xiao Qiao kept mocking, morale plummeted, the marksman was weak, the whole team fell apart, and before fifteen minutes, their crystal was destroyed.

Yuan Chong tossed his phone aside, slumped in his chair, ready to give up.

Lin Hui looked at the stats, “Ending early is good—down by six thousand in economy, nothing we could do. Want to keep playing?”

Another two stars lost! Yuan Chong thought: What kind of curse is this—why are these two stars so hard?

Lin Hui encouraged him, “Let’s play again—maybe we’ll get a good marksman next round.”

Then, they got Sun Shangxiang. Her skin was the newest and most expensive.

Yuan Chong said, “With such an investment, she must want to match her skills. At least she’s an old player, shouldn’t be too bad.”

Lin Hui: “Let’s hope.”

On the waiting screen, Sun Shangxiang’s proficiency was maxed out. Yuan Chong relaxed, feeling hopeful.

As they left the crystal, Yuan Chong observed and couldn’t help praising, “The skin effects are fantastic.”

“Not a Stingy Guy”: I’ll gift you one, Master.

Yuan Chong hurriedly said, “No need, I don’t play marksman. Buy it for yourself if you like.”

Lin Hui laughed, “Such a filial disciple.”

“Not a Stingy Guy”: I can gift you one too.

Lin Hui replied, “No need, I’m not interested in skins. Now, focus on the game.”

Game started, everyone farmed peacefully, Yuan Chong felt things were under control. She played mage Zhang Liang this round; after clearing mid lane, she went to support the marksman. The enemy support was Zhang Fei, marksman Hou Yi. Logically, if Sun Shangxiang farmed well early, she’d be strong mid-game and wouldn’t be outmatched.

Sun Shangxiang’s skill includes a roll, needing precise directional control. For some reason, while clearing minions, Sun Shangxiang rolled straight into the enemy.

Yuan Chong said, “Don’t get too close, you left the support behind.” With that, she rushed forward, used Zhang Liang’s skills to drive off the enemy marksman, saving Sun Shangxiang.

“Go back first. When you return, I’ll cooperate and see if we can kill Hou Yi,” Yuan Chong told Sun Shangxiang.

Sun Shangxiang signaled “Received,” then recalled to base.

Yuan Chong told “Not a Stingy Guy,” “Use Ming Shiyin and be careful with positioning—protect Sun Shangxiang.”

“Not a Stingy Guy”: Understood, Master.

Yuan Chong deliberately let the enemy see her returning mid, then doubled back stealthily, hiding in the brush.

Sun Shangxiang returned to the lane, started clearing the next wave. Yuan Chong waited quietly for the chance—once Hou Yi stepped forward, she’d strike.

Enemy Zhang Fei was tanky, holding the front. Hou Yi got bold, finally crossed mid-line—now was the moment! Yuan Chong moved up, unleashed her ultimate, pinning Hou Yi in place.

In this situation, if Sun Shangxiang landed two normal attacks, Hou Yi would be finished. But for some reason, Sun Shangxiang rolled back under their own tower, wasting Zhang Liang’s big move.

Ming Shiyin followed her, leaving a squishy mage face-to-face with the enemy marksman and support. Yuan Chong gave up first blood.

If the support had helped, she wouldn’t have died. Yuan Chong swallowed her curses—no use, she had told them to stick with the marksman, so it wasn’t their fault!

Yuan Chong frowned, “Sun Shangxiang, what’s going on? Why roll back—do you not want Hou Yi’s kill?”

Sun Shangxiang replied: Misplay.

Yuan Chong remembered Xiao Qiao’s words from last round, “Are you an expert?”

Sun Shangxiang responded with a question mark.

Yuan Chong explained, “Only experts get to say ‘misplay.’”

Sun Shangxiang didn’t answer.

Yuan Chong comforted herself: It’s not a big deal, just a mage kill. The marksman economy isn’t too bad, they can catch up.

Ten more minutes passed, and Yuan Chong couldn’t take it anymore, “Sun Shangxiang, are you a ball? Rolling without watching your direction!”

Lin Hui supported twice, both times fruitless, nearly dying herself, now ready to give up. She guessed, “Maybe it’s not the real player at the controls.”

Yuan Chong looked up and sighed: Fallen into the pit of useless marksmen!