Mr. Harris said, "No. Aren't we recruiting a new mid laner recently... He's on the list the team provided."

"No way!" Little Brian was startled, "Absolutely not! If he's on this team, I'm not! If I'm here, he's not! I can't stand to be on the same team as him!"

Mr. Harris said, "You still have two years left on your contract with the team, it's not up to you."

Little Brian: "......"

David Parker shook his head. "Then forget it, he probably won't come."

Brian Carter asked, "Why?"

"Before, a team asked me to pass on a message to him, and he directly refused, didn't even add any contact info." David Parker paused, "He said the rookie signing fee is too low, and there's no money to be made compared to streaming."

Little Brian: "............ So vulgar!"

Brian Carter lowered his eyes and nodded, not asking further.

He was just acting on a whim when he checked him out, he wasn't that eager to get this person anyway.

-

Road came and went in a hurry. Half an hour after he left the stream, most of the viewers who came after hearing the news still hadn't left.

[Why hasn't TTC's official account released a statement about the account being hacked yet!!]

[Maybe Road came here to do charity, caring for the lives of orphans, starting with you and me.]

[Got off work late, what's going on, brothers, why is this guy sitting so upright today?]

Ryan Cooper finished his dinner in a few quick bites, then wiped his hands clean with a wet wipe. Just as the viewers thought he was about to open the game, he moved his mouse to today's gift contribution leaderboard.

After glancing several times at the ID in first place, Ryan Cooper finally opened the game client as if nothing had happened.

[? How many times are you going to look at it??]

[What, if you don't look at the leaderboard for one second, will the letters TTC·Road run away?]

[Why are your ears red! Acting all girly!]

Ryan Cooper saw this comment, put on his headphones to cover his ears, and retorted expressionlessly, "You're the one acting girly."

At eleven o'clock at night, Ryan Cooper ended his stream right on time.

After showering, he came out, towel in hand, absentmindedly drying his hair while checking the messages he received during the stream.

[石榴: Bro, awesome. The popularity of your stream tonight even surpassed those retired pros.]

[艹耳: It's not me who's awesome.]

[石榴: Same difference, this wave of popularity feels so good.]

Evan Clark is famous for his wide network. Ryan Cooper thought for a moment and started typing.

[艹耳: Was it really Road himself on that account?]

[石榴: Want me to call and ask for you?]

[艹耳: Sure.]

[石榴: ...Sure my ass, I'm joking, you think Road's phone number is that easy to get!]

[石榴: But I think it should be him, who else would dare use Road's account?]

[艹耳: ...Oh.]

[石榴: Speaking of which, I got some explosive gossip today!]

[艹耳: What?]

[石榴: The night after the semifinals, people from the league went to TTC's base, and it seems like they took Kan away!]

[石榴: This is the first time I've heard of something like this! What do you think they took him for? Could it really be like you guessed??]

There was no reply for a long time. Evan Clark typed out a long analysis in the chat box, and just as he finished the conclusion "Match-fixing would do more harm than good for Kan," his phone vibrated.

[艹耳: No idea.]

[艹耳: If it really was him, why would he send me gifts?]

Evan Clark: "?"

[石榴: I'm telling you the most exciting, explosive gossip in the LPL this year, don't make me slap you.]

[艹耳: Oh.]

[艹耳: Did he accidentally click into my stream when he was on the homepage?]

Evan Clark deflated, the excitement of sharing gossip instantly vanishing without a trace. He numbly typed a reply.

[石榴: No idea, maybe he wanted to bribe you with gifts so you'd badmouth TTC less in the future.]

[石榴: I get it now, you're a true Road fan.]

Ryan Cooper was about to explain, but deleted the words after typing just two characters.

[艹耳: Mm.]

On the fourth day after the semifinals, the viewers' ridicule and criticism of the TTC team finally died down a bit—after a few more days, it would be the S10 World Championship, and LPL's PUD team would face Korea's HT team. The viewers' attention had shifted to the PUD team.

At 1 a.m. that day, the TTC base was brightly lit.

Most LOL tournaments are held in the afternoon or evening, so pro players adjust their schedules to be in peak condition during those hours.

Having gotten used to this biological clock, even on days without training or matches, everyone still stays up late.

Brian Carter sat draped in a coat next to Little Brian and David Parker's stations, watching them play ranked games.

Having just finished a match, everyone was gradually relaxing. Tonight both of them were playing on the Chinese server, Little Brian was using his diamond account to play jungle, and his plays were a mess. So the whole time, Brian Carter was watching David Parker's screen.