Chapter 103

Lemira stared at her computer screen, her tone even. "But my aim is the national team."

Seeing the comments—suggestions that she join the Reapers or that SkyBlaze was unreliable—Lemira spoke up, "As for which team to join, I haven't decided yet. The game's about to start."

She logged in, preparing for player-versus-player combat. Alaric, hearing her response, smashed his keyboard in frustration. Evelina, feigning sympathy, said, "Alaric, don't be so angry. She's just riding her current wave of fame, trying to increase her price. We could always offer more money."

Alaric frowned. "It's no use."

"Alaric, let me handle this. I have an idea," Evelina said, a cunning glint in her eye as she watched the livestream.

Mid-game, Lemira sneezed, feeling a chill. This momentary distraction allowed her opponent to land a powerful blow, leaving her critically damaged. Lemira focused, using her agility to take cover. After waiting, she found an opening to attack. Realizing she was poised to execute her twelve-hit combo, she deliberately stopped herself.

Even without the combo, Lemira won. A sigh of relief escaped her lips. The live chat erupted: Was that a setup for the twelve-hit combo? Many recognized the telltale jump.

Lemira, anticipating this, responded, "I'm a huge fan of King and have practiced the twelve-hit combo once, so it came naturally. But as you know, landing it successfully is incredibly difficult."

It was a close call, and Lemira felt a pang of guilt. After the ten-minute break, a fan alerted her to a VibeCast callout from Evelina.

The link led to Evelina's livestream. She sat before her computer, dressed in white, the beauty filter maxed out, projecting an image of innocent beauty. Her eyes were red. "Ms. Lemon," she said, "I don't understand why you broke our agreement to join PixelStage. Alaric saw your potential, mentored you, and then you refused to cooperate. That hurts."

Evelina's fans flooded Lemira's stream with insults. Lemira's lips curled into a cold smirk. "First, I never agreed to sign with SkyBlaze. Second, I achieved this success on my own."

Evelina continued her tearful performance. "Everyone knows someone without professional team training couldn't be this skilled. Miss Lemon, even if you wanted to break the contract, you could have parted on good terms. Instead, you chose PixelStage. That's unfair!"

Visibly annoyed, Lemira opened the game's chat box: "Here are all my conversations with SkyBlaze's captain. The truth is here!" She made the conversation with Alaric public.