Chapter 216: Never Let Others Take Advantage

In the staff lounge, an assistant scurried excitedly with news about Olivia winning gold. As the door swung open, a group of robust and energetic young men stood inside, their collective gaze locking onto the assistant. The air thickened with an almost tangible hostility. The assistant’s legs weakened.

“Mr. Tobie wanted me to let you know that Olivia… she…”

At the mention of Olivia’s name, the assistant swore the tension in the room spiked, their gazes growing sharper and more menacing.

“She got the gold.”

The group jolted in unison, grabbing props and dragging makeup artists.

“Get us ready!”

Wolves were about to hunt.

Whitney stayed close to Olivia, noticing that the ghosts seemed to have thinned out significantly. Not far along, they ran into Franklin and the pale-faced Jocelyn. Jocelyn was in poor shape, her forehead beaded with sweat, her breathing labored.

“Ms. Jocelyn!” Whitney greeted, recalling their previous collaboration.

“Whitney?” Jocelyn froze upon seeing Whitney with Olivia. Something was off. She distinctly remembered Olivia being paired with Louis.

“Did you switch teams?” Jocelyn asked, her eyes sparkling with curiosity.

Whitney shook her head. “I got chased by ghosts earlier. Thankfully, Olivia was nearby. How are you doing, Ms. Jocelyn?”

Jocelyn sighed. “We just picked up two batches of gold.” Her gaze instinctively flickered toward Franklin after speaking. Whitney’s expression lit up with astonishment.

“Two batches? That’s amazing!”

As soon as the words left her mouth, Franklin interjected, “If she had been faster, we’d have the third batch by now.” Initially unnerved by the ghosts, Franklin had quickly regained his composure, determined to put on a strong performance for the livestream.

If not for Jocelyn slowing him down, he was confident they’d already be on track to win within two days. Franklin’s veiled criticism caused Jocelyn’s face to darken, though he seemed oblivious, instead appraising Whitney and Olivia. Whitney, though young, was quite well-known, whereas Olivia was a nearly forgotten celebrity on the fringes of fame.

“You look like you got separated from your team,” Franklin observed. “The staff here are physically strong. If it’s just the two of you, you’ll be caught in no time. I can protect you temporarily,” he offered, clearly angling for audience praise.

Yet his condescending, almost patronizing tone grated.

“Oh, no need,” Whitney replied. “Olivia sold me two talismans earlier. I’m heading off to find Shawn.”

“Sold!” Franklin raised an eyebrow, casting a skeptical glance at Olivia. Jocelyn’s eyes widened. That couldn’t be right! Olivia isn’t the type to offer discounts.

“Yeah, Olivia gave me a 40 percent discount,” Whitney explained.

Joycelyn’s disbelief deepened. A discount? That’s impossible! Olivia never let others take advantage of her. Franklin’s expression shifted to one of mockery as he looked at Olivia.

“This game is about team gold totals. You’re using your team’s gold to play nice? Does Louis know what you’re doing?”

Franklin doubted Olivia’s ability to wrest gold from the military cadets. He was convinced that the magical items were bought with her team’s gold, a sacrifice made to curry favor with the more famous Whitney. Though Franklin’s words were subtle, the meaning was clear to anyone with a shred of sense. Olivia was sabotaging her team’s interests to please someone more influential.