When an Alpha is Marked by One of His Own Kind

Chapter 3

Midnight. A cold breeze slipped in through a cracked open window, only to be sucked in and overwhelmed by the quietly humming heating unit inside the building.

While he trained as a jungler, Shen Qiao loaded up the replay of Team DG's match from earlier that night. At the fifteen minute mark of the first game, he couldn't help but furrow his brow.

He understood why Lele had asked him to watch this game.

DG's top laner...

Something was obviously wrong with him.

Lele was the teammate with whom Shen Qiao was on the best terms. When upper management recruited a new top laner, it was obvious they were dissatisfied with Shen Qiao's ability to harmonize with the rest of the team and fit his play into their tactics. Lele had urged Shen Qiao to think about bailing out.

Shen Qiao still had half a year left on his contract. It wouldn't be a problem for him to pay the penalty for early termination, but—

He had to find his next home first.

Shen Qiao thought back to the practice match they'd played against Team DG before the Spring Tournament. Fish had been a formidable opponent. He showed no signs of having any sort of mobility problem that could affect his ability to function in his field; his handling had been on point.

Shen Qiao cut away from the replay and loaded up Weibo. He wanted to see if Team DG's official account had made a statement, but the trending topics list told him what he wanted to know before he could even look up Team DG's name.

#TeamDGResponse#

#TeamDGTopLanerSpontaneousPneumothorax#

Shen Qiao did a quick search on 'spontaneous pneumothorax' and skimmed the details. It was apparently a condition that could be treated if the patient received medical attention in a timely manner. Shen Qiao's gaze lingered on those words for a moment before he let out a slow breath of relief.

They all played in the same league, and the domestic teams often scheduled practice matches with one another. Shen Qiao didn't pay much attention to Team DG when they weren't scheduled to face Team BLX, but Fish was a rival top laner. Team DG had also won last year's world championship title; all other teams were fixated on DG this year. When he closed his eyes, Shen Qiao could perfectly recall Fish's strengths and playstyle.

As professionals in the same line of work, Shen Qiao had no desire to see Fish defeated by a condition like this.

A few seconds later, he closed the search page and tossed his cell phone aside. He stretched his back in the empty training room before starting up another game, once again choosing jungler as his preferred position.

Now that he'd gotten started, he would go all night.

Shortly after dawn, Shen Qiao more or less fulfilled his streaming requirements for the month. He got up and stretched again before turning off his computer. He left the training room and made his way to his dorm room upstairs.

After picking up a jacket and a messenger bag, Shen Qiao headed out again. As soon as he opened the door, he ran into Lele, who was shambling down the hall like a sleepwalking ghost.

The others must have gotten back to the dormitory at some ungodly hour last night. Lele was staggering along with one shoulder pressed to the wall, moving sheerly through instinct. His eyes weren't even open. When Shen Qiao suddenly opened his dorm room door, Lele nearly lost his balance and tipped straight into Shen Qiao's room. His drowsiness vanished in the blink of an eye, just in time for him to reflexively stop himself from stepping past Shen Qiao's threshold.