Chapter 195
Inside the envelope was a folded piece of paper. Phoebe took it out and opened it. To her surprise, a lock of hair was tucked in the middle. There was a note: “This is Sienna’s hair. Keep it safe—you’ll definitely need it in the future. With your abilities, you should be able to figure out the connection between me and Sienna. As for why I’m doing this… aside from admiring your fearless and rebellious nature, it’s also because I have someone I want to protect.”
Phoebe read the note carefully. There was no signature, but it was obvious—this had to be from Andrea. Andrea had actually sent her Sienna’s hair? That was unexpected. She sounded so sure that Phoebe would need it someday—meaning she probably knew something. Phoebe didn’t believe Andrea was handing her hair for some sort of dark magic ritual against Sienna. There had to be a deeper meaning. And this only reinforced the suspicion Phoebe had already been forming. Once she returned home, the investigation results should be in, and she would finally have her answer.
Phoebe drew a talisman, placed Sienna’s hair inside, then folded it into a small triangle and tucked it into her wallet. She had a feeling she really would need this in the future. Back when she left the Jenkins family, she had actually thought about taking a few strands of Sienna’s hair with her. But Sienna must have been warned by someone—she was always extremely careful, making sure not to leave any hair behind, and she was especially cautious about not bleeding.
At the racetrack, Phoebe had heard that Sienna had hit her head. She had used an excuse to go to the stands, hoping to collect some of Sienna’s blood. But by the time she arrived, the blood on the steps had already been cleaned up—completely erased with chemicals. If it wasn’t Reynard who did it, then it was someone from their group who had been closely monitoring the livestream. Those people were clearly wary—almost paranoid—about the possibility of Phoebe getting her hands on Sienna’s blood. It was hard not to overthink that.
The next day, Phoebe and the others continued having fun, but in the afternoon, they went to a gaming café for practice. Andrea’s group, on the other hand, continued their job as tour guides and translators. Another day passed. After lunch, both of Phoebe’s teams headed to the internet café for their scheduled competition. They had signed up two days ago. The game was set in multiple maps, and the teams would compete based on randomly assigned environments.
Yach team had five players, each with a specific role: Maddox: Sniper; Phoebe: Medic; Quintus: Assault; Jimmy: Support; Lexie: Demolition. The tournament had three stages: Preliminary Round: One map; the winning team advances. Semifinals: Three maps; the team that wins two advances to the finals. Finals: Five maps; best of five determines the champion. By the time Phoebe’s team arrived at the café, a large crowd had already gathered.
Chapter 193
This game was globally popular, with annual professional tournaments. There were many players in the country, and word had spread that Maddox and his team were competing, drawing even more attention to the livestream. The gaming community had massive viewership numbers. Maddox used to be a professional eSports player, though his specialty was a tower defense game, not this one. But since he was a world champion, he had a massive fanbase worldwide. Even though he was competing in a different game, many still tuned in to watch. People were curious—would Maddox carry his team, or would they drag him down?
Very quickly, the number of viewers in the livestream doubled, setting a new record. Sebastian, along with the production crew, also came to the café to watch. He coordinated with the café’s management, who agreed to allow the event to be broadcast as part of the reality show. Seeing the skyrocketing viewership numbers, Sebastian was grinning from ear to ear. Meanwhile, the other group, who had spent the morning as tour guides, also arrived in the afternoon. The competition area was restricted to players only, so spectators had to watch from the main floor. The café had a giant screen displaying the entire tournament. Reece and the others found seats and started chatting as they waited for the match to begin.
Joshua asked, “Do you guys think Phoebe’s team can take first place?” Jamar, who had played this game extensively, replied, “I doubt it. Maddox’s skills are solid, but the rest of the team is questionable. If they get assigned a difficult map, they might not even make it past the first round.” Reece didn’t play computer games much—just mobile games occasionally, and even that was mostly to accompany Phoebe and Brenda back in school. He frowned. “Is it really that hard?” If they lost that quickly, he wasn’t sure how the internet would react—would people mock Phoebe?
Jamar nodded. “It all depends on their luck.” Joshua, who also played this game, added, “Yeah, that’s what I think too. I’ve looked into it—there are three teams in this competition that, while technically amateur, are nearly at a professional level. So honestly, Maddox’s team might just be here to get wrecked.” Andrea, overhearing this, disagreed. “Why do I feel like they actually have a chance to win? I watched them practice at the café before—Maddox’s skills are insane, and Phoebe’s healing is solid. The other three aren’t as skilled, but I think they can pull through.”
Jamar raised an eyebrow. “You’re not just saying that because you’re a Phoebe fan, are you?” Andrea rolled her eyes. “Of course not. I genuinely think they have potential.” Then, she smirked and teased, “You guys seem awfully eager for them to lose. If Phoebe finds out, I wonder what she’ll think.” Jamar, Joshua, and Reece immediately froze. Jamar thought, ‘Andrea is such a menace. How can she say something like that? Phoebe can’t misunderstand this!’
The three of them instantly shook their heads. “We’re not…” Reece, with the strongest survival instinct, quickly said, “I don’t even play this game, but I know Phoebe’s team is going to win first place.” Jarnar and Joshua turned to look at him, speechless. ‘Wasn’t that just blatant lying?’ This guy really had no shame when it came to making Phoebe happy. Jarnar then added, “I wasn’t looking down on them, nor was I hoping they’d lose. I just meant that if they actually take first place under such tough conditions, that’d be incredible.
He quickly corrected himself. “With Phoebe as their medic, I think they have a great shot at winning!” As for Maddox, he deliberately left that guy’s name out… Joshua blinked at Jamar in disbelief. Then he grinned. “With Phoebe on the team, they have to aim for first place. I totally believe in them—especially in Phoebe’s healing the bendagri wounds better than I do, and I’ve been playing this game for years! No way they lose in the first round. They’ll win, win, win, all the way to the finals!”
Reece and Jamar stared at him. Joshua had the thickest skin of them all. Not to be outdone, they immediately joined in, throwing out exaggerated praise for Phoebe. Joshua secretly cursed them for being hypocrites, but he still played along. Andrea, watching their shameless display, was utterly speechless. Wow. They’re really going all out. At this rate, Phoebe might actually end up outshined by her own fan club. Dignity? These guys had completely thrown it away… Meanwhile, the fans watching the livestream burst out laughing. [Their desperation is practically leaking through the screen! The second they realized Phoebe might hear this, they switched gears and started worshipping her. Hilarious! These three top stars are down bad. Pheebs is truly a queen!]
Chapter 196