Noelle stormed out. Cedric emerged from the elevator, watching her slam the door. He rubbed his temples, the alcohol still swirling. Back at Alfred's apartment, Alfred looked up from his phone. "You're back. How'd it go?"

"What do you mean?"

"Don't play coy. You mentioned a girlfriend, and Noelle… well, her reaction was pretty explosive." Cedric poured water, leaning against the table, swirling the glass. His eyes were dark. "Once she's in college, she'll forget all about this." He sighed. "All I can do is watch her go."

Alfred watched him. "Let's hope so." But something felt off. Cedric cared too much about Noelle—maybe too much. It might have grown into something more without him even realizing it.

The following days were awkward for Noelle around Cedric. She liked him, but now… She was almost certain her online boyfriend from her past life wasn't Cedric. Same in-game name, but it couldn't be. Her real online crush was due to appear in the game in less than two weeks. She logged in every afternoon and evening, grinding dungeons, just like she had in her past life. Days turned into nights, but his name never appeared.

One evening, while streaming, her fans bombarded her with questions about the upcoming finals.

"Queen Nelly, will you play?" "Team Luminark's toast without you!" "The Liddells are so biased! Why can't she play? Queen Nelly isn't some puppet!"

Noelle glanced at the time. The finals were tomorrow! She hadn't even noticed. She saw Frank and Lucas' names on the viewer list – they were watching. The questions felt… orchestrated.

She kept her voice calm. "I'm not participating in this one, but I'll be in the next." Better to clear the air now. As she finished, she saw Frank leave the stream. Hopefully, he'd get the message.

Lucas, meanwhile, slammed his laptop shut, a maelstrom of emotions hitting him. Noelle wasn't playing. He’d always assumed she wouldn't abandon the Liddell family's honor. Wasn't that so important to her? She'd even returned for the revival match! He'd thought it was just a tantrum. He’d been wrong.

He looked at Frank, desperate. "Frank, what do I do?"

"Lucas, I've said it before, your apology was insincere. You've bullied and insulted her. I wouldn't forgive you either."

"But I've always talked to her like that! She never minded! Why now?" He didn't understand. "When someone hit her, I helped! I just… didn't say anything. Why can't she see that?"

"What about the competition?" Frank asked.

"I'll talk to Donovan. He'll have a way to get Noelle to play."