FOG [e-sports]

Yu Sui looked up and made sure that Puppy had really turned off the live broadcast before saying, “I didn’t know that he brought me the hot water today. If I had known, I definitely wouldn’t have let him bring it.”

“After arriving at the venue, I went out to do our check-in. When I came back, he sat was sitting by the window and he called me over and told me he was going to show me something good.”

At noon, Shi Luo had been sitting by the window. He was wearing a thick coat. With a mysterious smile in his eyes and the corners of his lips ticked up, he called Yu Sui over and asked Yu Sui to open his coat to take a look.

At the time, Yu Sui smiled. He glanced left and right, “Baobei, don’t you think...this isn’t the time or place?”

Shi Luo choked. Left with no choice, he had to open his jacket himself. He lifted the hem of his sweater and took out a water bottle filled with hot water and pushed it to Yu Sui.

Despite the fact that he’d been dating Shi Luo for quite some time now, when Yu Sui looked at Shi Luo’s sparkling eyes, he still couldn’t speak for a full minute.

The way his little boyfriend didn’t care about anything else and only had him in his eyes... It was too deadly.

Yu Sui had pointed to a spot on his own chest and abdomen area, “This large swath... was all red. When we were at the stadium, I asked him if it hurts and said he didn’t feel anything... I went to his room when we returned to the hotel. I didn’t have any other intentions, I just wanted to see if it was serious or not; whether I needed to buy medicine for him. But he wouldn’t show it to me. He told me to be less of a hooligan. So I pushed him against the door and open his...”

Puppy bared his teeth, “Stop! Don’t talk about your ‘I-don’t-want-to-but-I-secretly-do’ dirty deeds! I don’t want to know. Just tell me the ending. Was there a burn?”

Yu Sui sneered and then frowned slightly. “There wasn’t any burn. It looks fine if you don’t look too closely. It just looks a little red.”

“That’s fine then.” Puppy said sourly, “Cherish it. This kind of thing is something one does when they’re young. If I were to date now, I probably wouldn’t do that. No matter what kind of goddess you give me now, I wouldn’t be that extreme...It’s not like you’ll die of thirst from not drinking for one afternoon.”

“I won’t die of thirst.” Yu Sui lowered his head and continued to play with his phone, “But you might just die from jealousy...By the way, I really did buy that down jacket for Shi Luo. Before we came here, I told him that this place was colder than Shanghai. It would be best to buy a long down jacket. But Shi Luo thought that this one was too big and thick and that it didn’t look very good. He didn’t want it...So, I just bought it for myself, knowing he would need it when he comes here...”

“Don’t say it, don’t say it.” Chen Huo couldn’t listen anymore. His body was filling up with acid. “Can’t you give the two singles in the team a way to survive? I have never ever wanted to know how you two get lovey-dovey, alright!”

“Puppy seems curious.” Yu Sui put away his magical powers for the greater good. “He talks about us in his live broadcasts all the time. I thought he wanted to hear it.”

Puppy gritted his teeth and wanted to find cushions to smash against Yu Sui. Unfortunately, Shi Luo, out of the shower and with a change of clothes on, entered the training room. Puppy immediately gave up and quickly returned to his seat, pretending that nothing had happened.

Shi Luo never knew how much operating space he has given Puppy and how much traffic he has contributed to the Puppy’s live broadcasts just because he likes to dally before coming to the training room each day.

Just before resting for the evening, Shi Luo looked through Weibo and got a lot of inexplicable fan comments: [Shi Zai, I also don’t like drinking cold water. Can you hide a bottle of hot water in your arms for me? ]

Shi Luo turned his head and asked the other person in his room, “How did the fans know that I brought hot water for you?”

“I’m not sure.” Standing in front of the lamp, Yu Sui frowned and carefully read the prescription sheet of the burn cream he asked the hotel staff to buy for him. The prescription sheet was written in both English and German. Yu Sui read both versions before feeling reassured. He turned his head and walked to Shi Luo with the ointment. He handed the ointment to Shi Luo, “Apply it.”

Shi Luo didn’t accept it. He said helplessly, “It’s all healed already... there wasn’t any burn in the first place. I don’t need to use it.”

Yu Sui lowered his eyes to look at Shi Luo. After a moment, he nodded and unscrewed the cap himself. “I’ll do it...you won’t need to unbutton your clothes yourself, you won’t need to touch the ointment and after applying the medicine, you won’t need to put your clothes back on your own. You won’t even need to stop fiddling with your phone. Should I apply it for you?”

Shi Luo: “......”

Three seconds later, Shi Luo turned his face to one side. His voice sounded a bit unnatural, “Apply it.”

Yu Sui smiled. He rolled up his sweater cuffs and sat next to Shi Luo. While unbuttoning Shi Luo’s pajamas, he said in a low voice, “...You like me touching you?”

Shi Luo didn’t speak.

Of course he liked it.

After coming to Germany, every day, their schedule was very tight. They were either training or making use of every spare moment and doing game reviews. At their busiest, the two might not even exchange a single word for an entire day.

Such a good and handsome Slag man Yu flashing to and fro by his side all day long but he’s forced to treat him just as a teammate. It was truly an exercise in restraint.

It was a lot of fun playing in the World Championships but getting to spend time alone with Yu Sui was also nice.

Shi Luo leaned against a couple of pillows propped up against the head of the bed. He looked down as Yu Sui unbuttoned his pajamas bit by bit.

He watched as Yu Sui squeezed some ointment onto his palm, rubbing his hands to let the ointment spread.

Yu Sui’s hands were beautiful, with long fingers and distinct joints.

Yu Sui gently pressed his hand on Shi Luo’s chest and abdomen. Shi Luo moved without meaning to.

He then heard Yu Sui chuckle.

Shi Luo closed his eyes, “You just... just do whatever you want.”

Yu Sui ignored Shi Luo. He meticulously applied the ointment according to the instructions on the prescription sheet. He then slowly put on Shi Luo’s pajamas for him. “Okay. It has to be applied once in the morning and evening. I’ll apply it for you when you wake up tomorrow.”

“No.” Shi Luo took the ointment. He blushed and said honestly, “I’ll do it myself tomorrow. So early in the morning...I wouldn’t be able to stand you doing this.”

......

The two of them were sleeping in the same room that night. The next day, it was the qualifying match of Group B. No one cared about the games themselves, only which teams would qualify. They also had no time to watch the matches.

Free set aside the entire day to play practice matches with NSN.

Tomorrow was the qualifying matches for Group C. NSN urgently needed a high-level team to play against so they could improve the feel in their hands. Yu Sui didn’t say much and agreed a few days ago to be NSN’s training partner for the whole day.

During the training matches, both sides shared one group voice chat. After listening to Yu Sui talk to him about his problem for a while, Wawa couldn’t help thanking him again and again. Shi Luo watched the video of the practice matches and also said a few words to Wawa.

Wawa was under a lot of pressure and he was embarrassed to talk to Yu Sui. After talking with Shi Luo for a bit, he let out a secret. “Shi Shen...Wah, I’m so stressed! It’s both our first time to enter the World Championship but why are you so stable?! I watched your interview video. My God...Everyone’s so extreme. I don’t deserve to live.”

Wawa was really a little nervous, “If we drop out of the group stage, I would really... Even if I retire as an apology, I think the fans still wouldn’t spare me.”

“I don’t think it would come to that.” Shi Luo frowned, “Your group has a lot of strong teams. It can’t be helped. But... I think you’ll have no problem qualifying.”

“Don’t blame the grouping. It’s because I’m a waste.” Wawa was going mad. “The previous match we lost was my fault. I was like sh*t compared to the medic on the other team... I really wanted to find a place to hide and never come out after that. How can your mentality be so stable! Ah ah ah ah ah, you’re not human...”

Shi Luo was silent for a moment. He then turned to look at Chen Huo, “Would you like to comfort him? You’ve also made comparatively more mistakes...”

Chen Huo glared at Shi Luo and left to get some water. Shi Luo was left with no choice. He stroked his earphones and said lightly, “Relax. Believe me, you will have no problem making it through.”

“I don’t know if you’ve spotted the problem but,” Wawa laughed bitterly, “In two days, the same-region protection mechanism will be over as soon as the Group stage ends. Do you...you know what I’m trying to say, right?”

Shi Luo was stunned. He understood what Wawa meant.

If a team were to encounter a team from the same region in the group stage draw, the other team will be moved to the next group. According to the rules of the game, there can be no civil war in the Group stage.

But only during the Group stage.

Once the Group stage was over, the rules were changed. The rule of the draw was changed to top teams in the Group stage cannot meet in the quarterfinals.

The strong North American team in Group C hasn’t lost a point so far. Even if NSN can qualify, there was a high probability that it will be as the second-ranked team in their group.

In other words, there was a big probability that Free and NSN could meet in the quarterfinals.

Shi Luo breathed in lightly.

If one could choose, no one wants to have a civil war.

Regardless of whether they win or lose, there will be one Chinese team that will be going home in the quarterfinals.

Wawa couldn’t help howling, “What should I do if I meet you in the quarterfinals? Ahhhhhhhhhhhhh...Shi Shen, comfort me. My state of mind is really starting to crumble here...”

Shi Luo was the least skilled in comforting others. He turned his head to look at the others in the training room. Chen Huo shrugged and after a long moment, he said, “For now, don’t dwell on the draw for the quarterfinals. You...you’re not even sure you’ll be able to qualify yet. You might not even need to do the draw.”

Shi Luo: “......”

Wawa suffocated.

Yu Sui used the mouse pad in his hand and took a swipe at Chen Huo’s head. He thought about it and said, “Don’t worry, you will definitely be able to qualify. If you qualify as the second seed... you might not necessarily get matched up with us so don’t dwell on it. You’re more likely to run into Sacred Sword.”

Wawa howled. “I’d rather lose to you than lose to Sacred Sword!!! If we lose to you, we can at least send you to the semifinals! Losing to the Sacred Sword... Ah ah ah ah, the sprayers will tear me apart... ”

Gu Gan’s voice came from the mic on Wawa’s side. “Looking for these heartless bastards in Free to comfort you? Are you crazy?”

Puppy thumped the table, laughing.

Shi Luo was helpless. He gave up looking for help from his teammates and comforted Wawa himself, “Either way, you’re dead so what are you afraid of?”

Wawa collapsed, “I don’t want to die!!!”

“Then don’t lose.” Shi Luo’s tone was serious. “Tomorrow lift your spirits and win. Always win, always win and you won’t die. I already talked big yesterday and the pressure isn’t small but what can I do? I can win.”

“We’re both newcomers. If we lose, we won’t have lost anything and if we win, we would have profited in blood. Don’t think about losing later on.”

“I really don’t think you’re any weaker than any medic in Group C. If you win, it will be over. Tomorrow, you will protect your second place and fight for first. If you get first place, then we’ll see you in the finals or semi-finals. If you go second...”

Shi Luo paused and smiled, “Then you have the advantage. You can meet the Sacred Sword in advance. What a great opportunity.”

“How cool would it be if you send them packing in the quarterfinals before they even get to run into us?”