Inside the sleek elevator, the soft chime of ascending floors hummed in the background. Mr. Kim stood at the center of his entourage, arms crossed, an amused smirk tugging at his lips.
“Well,” he said, breaking the silence, “Zeno Han is more handsome than I thought. No wonder people like him. It’s inevitable with that face.”
He let out a low chuckle and adjusted his coat collar. “He was shining. That’s bad news for Phoenix. It’s natural that he feels threatened about his place as the hottest actor of the year being taken.”
He looked ahead, the elevator’s reflective panel catching a glimpse of his expression. Despite the compliments spilling out of his mouth, he had a displeased expression.
“But that won’t happen,” he added with certainty.
Beside him, Assistant Byun pushed his glasses up and tapped a small tablet he carried. “It seems Zeno Han teamed up with Hyunbin, Sangwon, an actor from the same company, and a streamer named MimiKawaii.”
Mr. Kim burst into laughter. “Oh, that’s rich.”
He shook his head, the sound of his own amusement echoing in the enclosed space.
“You know, the only reason I approved Zeno’s participation was to boost Phoenix’s morale. Oh, and because I was curious about his aura.”
“I can’t say I’m not surprised. I knew it was him right away. I don’t usually notice people, but he grabbed my attention.”
Assistant Byun remained quiet, typing notes. Mr. Kim continued, sounding satisfied.
“Zeno Han doesn’t even play these games, does he? I heard he’s a bit of a loner.”
He smirked again.
“This setup is perfect for Phoenix. He’ll shine. And when he wins, the narrative is clear—our artist still reigns on top.”
The elevator dinged, and Mr. Kim’s smile fell as he went into his office.
***
Back at Dreamy, Jace sat cross-legged in front of Zeno, who was sitting on the couch with Jace’s very expensive gaming laptop.
“So,” Jace began, scooting closer to him to turn on the gadget, “you’ve never played this game before, right?”
Zeno tilted his head slightly. “No.”
“Okay. Cool. No problem. You seem to be a fast learner. We’ll start with the basics.” Jace leaned forward, speaking slowly and clearly. “Have you played League of Legends? LoL?”
“No.”
“Dota?”
Zeno frowned. “No.”
Jace chuckled awkwardly. “Any competitive team game?”
Zeno must have! He was in the demographic of such games!
Zeno thought for a moment. “Does chess count?”
Jace pursed his lips. “Uhh, no. Not even close.”
Zeno shrugged, leaning back into the couch. “Well then, no.”
Jace stayed positive as the game fully loaded on the screen. “I’ll start from the beginning.”
“Alright. Let’s talk Gear of Guardians. It’s a 5v5 battle game. You and your team enter an arena, there are different maps, and you have objectives like destroying towers and pushing lanes.”
Zeno appeared to understand. “Pushing lanes? Are we traffic officers?”
“No! Goodness—just let me finish.” Jace inhaled. “There’s Classic Mode, which is casual. Ranked Mode, which is for those who want to increase their rank.”
“What rank are you?” Zeno asked, curious.
Jace grinned, puffing out his chest. “Platinum Master.”
Zeno raised a brow. “That sounds like a credit card.”
“It’s the second topmost rank!” Jace exclaimed. “I’m actually good, you know? I’m like one step away from being a pro!”
“Then why don’t you become a gamer instead of an actor?” Zeno asked, crossing his arms.
Jace looked personally offended. “No way. I like acting more. And I get to be handsome and mysterious. Gamers are sweaty.”
“You sweat a lot, though,” Zeno deadpanned.
“ANYWAY,” Jace continued, ignoring Zeno’s last statement, “there are five main roles in GoG. We’ve got the Jungler, the Marksman, the Close-Ranged Fighter, the Supporter, and the Mage.”
Zeno squinted. “I don’t understand what you just said. Are those ingredients?”
Jace clutched his chest. “Oh goodness. This is going to be painful. How are we going to win this game when you’re like this?”
“Just continue,” Zeno said, now completely still like he was meditating. “Teach me.”
Jace muttered under his breath as he pulled up a tutorial on the game interface. “We’ll start with the tutorial. You’ll be playing Marksman for now—it’s the easiest role to get into because you’ll always be paired with a support character.”
“Why?”
“Don’t ask questions!”
Zeno sighed but accepted it, leaning closer to the gaming laptop. A bright animation exploded on the screen, and suddenly a high-pitched voice yelled, “Let’s meow them down!”
A cat-eared anime woman appeared on-screen, bouncing slightly as her ears twitched and her long ribboned tail flicked behind her. She held what looked like two milk blasters.
Zeno frowned. “This feels inappropriate.”
“That’s Lacta Lynx! She’s the default marksman hero for new players!” Jace said, grinning. “She shoots milk. Deal with it.”
Zeno stared at the screen as the tutorial began. “So I’m supposed to fight with dairy.”
“Exactly.”
Zeno’s lips pressed into a line.
“Okay,” Jace said. “Here’s the breakdown. The first skill is a regular damage shot. The second skill slows down the opponent by spilling milk behind you while doing a speed flash forward.”
“Why?” Zeno asked again.
“Don’t ask such questions, I said!” Jace cried.
Zeno sighed again.
“And then for her special skill, she summons a giant pool of milk that sucks enemies into it like a vortex. It’s OP if timed right.”
Zeno tapped the first button. “Gross.”
“Just play!”
Zeno shrugged.
He was great with computers. He was great with games.
Computer games, on the other hand, were a different territory, it seemed.
He tried.
He really did.
But within seconds of walking into the tutorial map, Zeno had his little anime cat-girl marching boldly through the bottom lane—and straight into the enemy turret.
“Why is the tower killing me?” Zeno asked after his screen turned grey.
Jace dropped his face into his hands. “Because you walked right into it. You don’t go in unless you have flunkeys, Zeno. Those little guys in front of you are your shield. You wait for them.”
“Why didn’t you say that earlier?”
“I thought it was obvious!”