Arrival of the best

Su Mucheng walked to the door that had her name on it and found that it was beside Sun Xiang's room. She swiped the key card and unlocked the door and he also did the same.

"Hey." She greeted and received a nod in return.

It seemed like an insignificant interaction but it was an improvement on their relationship in Excellent Era when she ignored him and he scoffed whenever he saw her.

The jet lag was getting to them so they retired to get some rest before the evening meal. Su Mucheng had other plans though. She wanted to head to the infirmary as soon as possible. After freshening up and preparing to leave the room, she heard a knock on her door. Opening the door revealed Ye Xiu outside of the room.

"Going out?" He asked when he took in her appearance.

"Yeah. To the infirmary."

"How will you find it?"

"I've called Pili. He is waiting downstairs."

"Okay. Let's go, then."

"Ohh? You're coming with?" She was surprised he wanted to accompany her. He looked like he needed some sleep.

"Uhmm…yeah." Ye Xiu knew what she was thinking. "I'll sleep later."

"Okay. Let's go."

Once they got downstairs, they spotted Pili and headed over towards him.

"I'm very sorry to hear that you are injured." Pili started the conversation with an apology.

Su Mucheng shook her head. "It's fine, really. It doesn't hurt too much. I just want to make sure everything is okay."

Pili nodded to show he understood and began to lead them out of the main building and towards the infirmary. They passed two of the peripheral buildings on their way which he informed them were the gym and restaurant. They got to the infirmary and Su Mucheng and Ye Xiu took a seat, while Pili explained to the staff what the problem was.

Pili returned to where they were seated and explained that she'll be able to see the doctor once the nurses took her vital signs. He also explained that since the doctor could only speak Swiss-German, he would also do the translation. Su Mucheng didn't have any problems with that; she just wanted to put the entire thing behind her.

After the doctor had run X-rays, he told her that she was fine and that the pain should be totally gone by tomorrow. Su Mucheng was so relieved to hear the news, she could have cried. Saying thanks to the doctor, she left the room, returning to where Ye Xiu was at the waiting area.

"How did it go?"

"Hehe..." She laughed and flashed a victory sign. "I'm fine. He said the pain should disappear by tomorrow."

Ye Xiu breathed a sigh of relief. He had also been very worried but trying his best not to show it. "So we can leave?"

"Yup. Let's go." Su Mucheng said cheerfully. They turned and headed to the entrance. They were about to leave when two men entered the infirmary, carrying one man between them. Su Mucheng, Ye Xiu and Pili quickly gave way to the men, allowing the nurses to get to them.

"I wonder what happened."

"No idea." Ye Xiu said with a shrug. "But it looks serious."

"Mhmm." Su Mucheng agreed. "I hope he's fine."

They were walking back to the hotel when they heard someone call out from behind them. They turned to see that it was one of the men who just entered the infirmary. Once he reached them, he introduced himself.

"I'm Francis Lu." A simple introduction and that was all that was needed. Su Mucheng and Ye Xiu recognized the name at once. Francis Lu, the captain and core of the France National team. His character was Peaceful Night, an Assassin. And one of the best players in the tournament.

Who knows how many hours they had dedicated to analyzing his playstyle, trying to find something that would help them defeat him when their blades crossed. But for now they just returned his greeting politely, introducing themselves, even though they knew he knew who they were.

Francis was a little star-struck. In front of him was Ye Xiu, a living legend, who had used an APM of 764 to defeat 3 opponents in less than 15 seconds. Beside him was Su Mucheng, his partner whose Launcher skills had reduced the opponents' health to the level that made the feat possible. And it didn't help his nerves that she was so beautiful.

"It's really an honour to meet you in person." Francis said, reaching out to shake both Mucheng's and Ye Xiu's hands.

"Likewise." They responded.

His fluent Chinese did not surprise them. They found out when they researched him that he had Chinese blood. His parents had separated and he left China to live in France with his mom. If he had stayed in China, he would have been one of the best players in the country and ultimately, would have been here representing China not France. If only.

But the fact was that he was here for France. They would be polite now but when the time came, they would spare no mercy. Neither would he.

"What happened with your teammate?" Su Mucheng asked. "He's your teammate, right?"

"Yes, he is." Francis answered. ��He ate something that didn't agree with him yesterday. We thought it'll be fine but this morning he was still sick. We had to take him to the hospital and that delayed our flight."

That explained why France arrived later than them.

"We thought he was better," Francis continued. "But he started throwing up again once we arrived."

"Sorry to hear that." Su Mucheng said and she meant it. This was a world class competition. Not being able to play for whatever reason will be completely devastating. She had just felt the same a while back.

"It's really a pity." Ye Xiu added. "I hope he gets better before the competition."

"Thank you." Francis said. He felt the sincerity in their well wishes. "I have to get back and see how things are going. It was really nice to meet you."

"Same." They answered and shook hands with him again.

Su Mucheng and Ye Xiu turned and headed back to the hotel. Pili stood to the side throughout the entire interaction. He realized there was no translation needed and gave them their privacy. Even as the two players walked back to the hotel, he kept a distance behind them. It wasn't until they reached the elevator that they turned to him and said their thanks.

"You're welcome. The dinner service usually starts by 7:30 pm but you can order food from the comfort of your room at any time of the day. I will come by to lead you there when it is time, if you wish to go."

"Okay, thanks. We have about 2 hours till then. We'll tell the others when it's time." Su Mucheng said.

"There is no need for that. An announcement will be made to every floor then." Pili said as he reached forward to press the button for the elevator. "It'll be a good time to mingle with the rest of the other countries."

Ye Xiu didn't care about those things but he knew Mucheng would drag him so he didn't say anything.

When they got to their floor, they separated and headed to their rooms.

"Rest. We'll head down when you want to. Just knock." Mucheng called out when she got to her door. Ye Xiu waved and entered his room.

He fell asleep quickly and was sleeping soundly when loud knocking woke him up from his sleep. He blinked and looked at the clock. 7:55pm.

"Hey. Old Ye!!! Wake up. We're going to eat." Fang Rui's voice sounded through the thick door. Ye Xiu stood up and went to answer him. "Go, go. I'll come down later."

"What later? We have to intimidate them with our numbers. Let's all go together." Only Fang Rui could say something like that.

"You alone are enough to intimidate them. Why do you need me? Go, I'll come down after I shower."

Fang Rui frowned but didn't say anything. "All right. Let's go." Fang Rui shouted to the rest of the players in the hallway. They all shuffled past. They were really heading down together?

Chu Yunxiu and Su Mucheng stopped by the door. "Can you find the place?" Su Mucheng asked.

Ye Xiu nodded. He remembered from this afternoon.

"Don't get lost." Chu Yunxiu warned as they walked past.

Ye Xiu quickly showered and headed downstairs. And he almost got lost. The place looked different at night than it did in the afternoon. He located the restaurant and entered.

Like the rest of the hotel, it was beautiful and well-decorated. There were 16 long tables arranged in the large space and each table had a banner with each country's name and flag hanging over it. Ye Xiu quickly identified his table and walked towards it. It was at the far back so he had to walk past the other tables to get there.

As he walked, he noted every table was filled. Every country had arrived. Once he settled down, he could see the entire hall from his seat. He looked round again and confirmed it. Every country had arrived. Even Australia, with the longest flight time had arrived.

The best in the world of Glory had all arrived.