TuxedoTranslations

Chapter 110

The last time Xia Tong had been frightened by his fans’ wild remarks was when he heard someone say they wanted to have monkey babies with him. It scared him so badly that he didn’t dare log into the game for quite a while.

Now he was standing onstage with nowhere to hide. His entire face was burning with embarrassment, and all he could do was awkwardly rub his little hands together and bite down hard on the corner of his lip. His skin was fair, so even with his face flushed bright red, it only took on an alluring rosy hue. The director, apparently taking great pleasure in his predicament, promptly gave him a close-up, and the little Omega’s face appeared on the giant split-screen above the stage.

The fans below were absolutely merciless. Having gotten a taste for teasing Xia Tong, they became even louder and more enthusiastic, practically going wild.

“Hahahahaha.” The female host laughed as well and tried to smooth things over. “We can already tell from the audience’s reaction that Blink is incredibly popular! It’s actually quite rare for an Omega to enter the world of holographic esports. I think everyone naturally has this preconceived impression that Omegas are rather delicate and vulnerable. And since you look so innocent and adorable, even I couldn’t completely believe at first that you could display such a decisive, ruthless style in competition. I even wondered whether you might be a weak link on the team, or perhaps just a pretty face.”

“Mhm, mhm, mhm.” Xia Tong nodded vigorously. At this point, he seemed to have no idea what else he could do besides nodding. His brain had completely turned to mush.

The female host smiled slightly and raised her voice. “So now, let’s take a look at what the members of Polaris were talking about during that half-minute before the match officially began. A little behind-the-scenes reveal!”

She suddenly turned around and raised a hand toward the giant LED screen.

Xia Tong was completely bewildered. He turned his head along with her, only to see the screen clearly displaying live footage of them inside the game at the time. There were no obstructions, and the high-resolution cameras had captured everything. Every move made by the members of Polaris was now laid bare for everyone to see.

And there they were, entering the game and not discussing anything important at all—instead, shamelessly starting off by chatting about coffee.

The female host laughed and teased them. “Hahahahaha, you can really tell how relaxed the entire Polaris team is! Though you certainly scared your fans half to death. They thought you might actually fall asleep inside the Cocoon and miss the match!”

Xia Tong: “……”

If he’d known that everything they said and did inside the game would be recorded…… he never would have messed around with them like that. Looking at it now was seriously embarrassing!! He raised both hands to cover his burning cheeks. Then he saw himself slowly toddling over to Lin Mingfei, reaching out and tugging at the Hunter’s sleeve.

“Zero, you have to, have to pay attention to the HP thresholds I set, okay? You need to coordinate with me to burst them down. We can kill as many as we can. I really don’t want to drag this out anymore! I’m so sleepy. I miss my bed. Please, please don’t let me down!”

……

Xia Tong: “!!!”

Oh my god! What had he said during the match?! How could he have actually voiced all those negative thoughts in his head?!

And he’d even been acting spoiled with Zero…… Zero was the captain, for goodness’ sake!! How could he have gotten so carried away as to make the captain follow his orders?!

Oh no, oh no. He was definitely going to get scolded to death……

Just when Xia Tong was panicking beyond words, the female host gave a heartfelt exclamation beside him: “Just look at that angelically adorable face and those devilishly cocky words! How could anyone not be scared of an Omega player like this?!”

A roar of screams erupted from the audience.

“Scared!!!”

“Then do you still love him?!!”

“Love!!!”

Xia Tong: “?”

This was not how this was supposed to go.

The interaction between the stage and the audience had clearly reached fever pitch. Xia Tong scratched his head, looking completely dumbfounded.

It seemed like everyone really was sincerely supporting him…… So winning a single match could really make everyone this happy.

Zero had been right after all. For a professional player, no amount of flashy hype or status could compare with an outstanding performance in the arena.

Xia Tong broke into a radiant smile. Until now, he had always been uneasy and insecure, but at this moment, he had finally won everyone’s recognition. The heavy stone that had been hanging over his heart slowly settled, and at last, he truly felt like a professional player who deserved to be there.

“Look how happy Blink is smiling.” The female host gave him a mischievous wink. “So, on behalf of all your fans, let me ask you one question. Is that okay?”

“Okay!” Xia Tong nodded.

“Rumors had been circulating online that the whole Polaris team had become constipated because of an improper diet, to the point that they had to send God Z as their representative to the hospital to buy laxatives in bulk. This has attracted quite a bit of attention. As everyone knows, Polaris has many die-hard longtime fans, and they’re all very concerned about the health of every member of your team. Have you considered taking a page from the Sabertooth team next door and hiring a nutritionist to help plan your meals? A lot of fans say they’d be happy to recommend one!”

Xia Tong: “……”

Meanwhile, the four members of Polaris, sitting in the lounge and watching the live interview broadcast: “……”

“Who the hell came up with these questions?!” Zhou Yanjun immediately spat out the hot tea he had been drinking. “Wasn’t it just Shorty and Zero who were constipated? When did it turn into the whole team being constipated?!”

“This is the power of language…” Shi Ya said with a blank expression.

“Just so we’re clear, I wasn’t constipated either. Thank you.” Lin Mingfei enunciated every word.

“Will you two stop? Have you still not realized that you’re all in the same boat?” He Youjin said through gritted teeth. “What’s the difference between two people being constipated and the whole team being constipated? There’s no necessary distinction. It only proves that I’ve done a terrible job with your logistical support. No, that’s it. When we get back, I’m going to make you a strict set of daily rules and regulations to make sure this never happens again.”

“Seriously? You’re already super strict!” Shi Ya felt a little frightened.

“No. It’s still not enough!” He Youjin declared righteously. Then he paused before adding, “I’ve also discovered another problem. You guys have absolutely no idol image whatsoever. Is that even possible?”

“Are we idols?” Lin Mingfei immediately shot back.

He Youjin: “.”

There probably wasn’t anyone in the world who could survive being verbally knocked out by Zero and still manage to say anything afterward.

So He Youjin sighed and headed out. “Xia Tong’s interview should be over by now, right? I’m going to bring him back before those fans eat him alive…”

“Eat him alive” was hardly an exaggeration. When He Youjin brought Xia Tong back to the lounge, there was a huge lipstick mark on his forehead. The little Omega had a stiff, dazed expression, and it was impossible to tell whether he was sleepy or simply terrified.

The four Polaris members sitting on the sofa took one look at him, and every single one was stunned.

“Holy shit… Damn, that’s one fierce woman!” Zhou Yanjun exclaimed dramatically.

“Could’ve been a cross-dressing guy…” Shi Ya said. “How did that happen?”

“He got tackled by a fan when he came off the stage.” He Youjin clutched his chest, still shaken. “The fan kept yelling, ‘So cute! So cute! Tongtong, baby, I’m going to eat you up!’ And then this happened… Oh, right. Judging by the voice, it was definitely a guy.”

Xia Tong’s pupils contracted. He Youjin’s words had instantly dredged up his psychological trauma. As if he had suffered some enormous shock, he let out a little cry and threw himself into Lin Mingfei’s arms.

“I don’t want to do interviews anymore!! The fans are so scary! Waaaaah!!”

“It’s mainly because you looked way too much like a helpless little snack up there.” Zhou Yanjun offered his shameless assessment from the side. “The host hadn’t even said anything yet and you were already blushing like that. You looked like some shy newlywed bride. How could people not get ideas?”

“Is that my fault?!” Xia Tong protested indignantly. “I was nervous! I-I-I…”

“What are you nervous about?! Just say whatever comes to mind!” Shi Ya said, half laughing and half exasperated. “Look at Zhou Yanjun’s shameless stage presence. Would anyone want to tackle him? Of course not.”

Zhou Yanjun: “Exactly—wait, what the hell?! Timer, explain yourself! What do you mean my stage presence is shameless?!”

“You still have the nerve to say that?” He Youjin rolled his eyes. “Give you another minute and you could’ve exposed every detail of what happened at the hotel last night. Good thing the host was gentle. If it were me, I’d have ripped your throat out right there onstage.”

Lin Mingfei smiled without saying anything. He stroked the little Omega’s fluffy head, looking rather pleased.

“You can’t be this shy. You’ll have plenty more opportunities to do interviews in the future.” He chuckled softly.

“Huh? I don’t want to…” Xia Tong raised his head unwillingly. He was clearly getting sleepy again, to the point that he could barely keep his eyes open. With that giant lip-print on his forehead, his expression looked both silly and adorable.

“I’m not trying to scare you. If you keep getting good results, you’ll have more and more interviews like this. And the fans who like you will become increasingly enthusiastic. You have to learn to face it calmly,” Lin Mingfei said.

“Then… can Zero come with me to all my interviews in the future? Zero, you’ll protect me, right?” Xia Tong tightly wrapped his arms around Lin Mingfei’s waist, looking just like a little koala clinging to its Alpha’s chest.

“Then we might as well assign you a whole line of bodyguards,” Lin Mingfei teased.

Xia Tong mumbled softly, “No. I don’t want bodyguards. I just want you.”

Lin Mingfei: “.”

Another sudden, brutally straightforward declaration of affection. He instinctively glanced around. Fortunately, the others were all gathered around He Youjin, picking out a hotel for the night, and no one had noticed them.

“Hey.” Lin Mingfei reached out and pinched Xia Tong’s little nose. “How come you’re not shy at times like this? If you keep saying things like that, people are going to think there’s something going on between us—”

Xia Tong gave a tiny yawn and interrupted him, completely unconcerned.

“So what if they do?! There already is something between us! And there are lots and lots of ‘somethings’!”

Feel free to buy me a coffee/show your support on ko-fi! Thank you ❤