Chapter 33

Lemira stood in the hallway, locking eyes with Alaric. Alaric, his pride wounded, struck first. "Came for a good laugh, did you? Find it amusing to see our team being mocked?"

Chapter 32

In their past lives, Alaric had harshly criticized Lemira. He'd sent someone to investigate a situation, only to have them walk directly into a trap. Lemira then led the remaining team members in a daring rescue, turning the tables with a surprise attack on the enemy's lair.

In this life, she was curious to see how Alaric would react without her warning. Predictably, he repeated his old mistake, leading the team into an enemy ambush. Seeing this familiar scenario unfold, Lemira couldn't help but smile. Typical.

Soon, Alaric realized they were trapped, but it was too late. The team's rhythm shattered. Evelina panicked, making several mistakes that nearly cost her teammates their lives.

Alaric led the retreat into a building. Frustrated, he exploded. "Evelina, what were you thinking? Didn't I say we should retreat? What is this, a show-off?"

Evelina, equally on edge, replied, "Alaric, I couldn't let it go. Seeing that opponent so close to defeat, I wanted the kill."

"More like serving them kills on a platter," Alaric retorted. "If you were so confident, you wouldn't have gotten us trapped and put us all at risk."

Publicly berated, Evelina's pride stung. "If you hadn't led us into a trap, none of this would have happened."

Alaric's face reddened. "You have the nerve to blame me when you're clearly the weak link! All that training and no improvement—what a waste of time!"

Evelina, her face flushed with anger, stormed off. The room erupted. A team member leaving mid-match was a significant event.

The big screen zoomed in on SkyBlaze, Alaric's displeasure plain to see. He had no choice but to call a timeout. Each match allowed only one.

The opposing fans murmured, already celebrating prematurely. Alaric, grim-faced, slammed his keyboard, livid. He hadn't expected Evelina to leave in a huff. If it had been Lemira, she wouldn't have thrown such a tantrum, no matter how much he yelled.

The atmosphere grew awkward. A member of the opposing team stood, taunting, "Hey Alaric, why not forfeit? Save yourself from a beating; at least keep some dignity."

Alaric stood swiftly. "I won't give up. Sounds like you're scared of losing, making such comments, huh?"

"Anyone with eyes can see you're going to lose, especially with a team member walking out. Weren't you the one boasting about your family team never losing?"

"What family team? Just a bunch of orphans, nothing to boast about. Video games aren't about who has more kids!" Alaric's temper flared. "Watch your mouth!"

"Oh? Touched a nerve? Orphaned trash! If your parents were alive, they'd die of shame!"

Lemira, overhearing this, felt her blood run cold. How dare they insult her parents? She headed straight for backstage.

Alaric was pulled back by his teammates, preventing a brawl that would have negatively impacted the event.

Lemira's expression was icy. "It's because you were outplayed."

The IronVow team arrived backstage. Lemira turned to their captain, the one who'd made the provocative remarks. "Got a question for you. Are you an orphan, with no parents to speak of?"

The captain scowled. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Exactly what it sounds like. With that foul mouth, I thought maybe you lost your parents early, with no one to teach you manners."

"Why you little brat! Dare to say that again?"

Lemira, unfazed, retorted, "In the upcoming match, if you lose, I want a public apology for what you said about my parents!"

"You think we'll lose? You're dreaming!"

"Scared to take the bet? Feeling shaky?"

Provoked, the captain accepted. "Fine, but if you lose, your captain has to apologize publicly for what you said."

The IronVow team stormed off, leaving a tense atmosphere. The SkyBlaze members felt awkward. Lemira remained composed, confident in her strategy.

Alaric, annoyed, said, "If we lose, you're apologizing. You're not even a team member. Who gave you the right to make decisions?"

"I just wanted that guy to apologize publicly."

Lucian arrived. "Lemmy, seeing you here makes me happy. Finally, our family is back together."

Lemira remained silent. Lucian glanced around. "Where's Eve?"

Alaric's face stiffened. "Don't know. She ran off after some scolding."

Another team member added, "Captain, Eve did that because she really wants to win. She got carried away."

"Yeah, Captain. Eve's a hard worker, staying up late training. She's really putting in the effort."

"Captain, you were a bit harsh earlier."

Alaric felt cornered. Harsh? When Evelina joined with little talent, immense effort was required. But clearly, Evelina was lacking. Wasn't he allowed to criticize her mistake as captain?

Lemira sided with the others. "Exactly, Evelina has put so much effort in, even sacrificing her studies. How could you scold her, Alaric? You're worried about losing, but Evelina is losing her self-esteem."

Alaric was livid. Everything had turned against him! Clearly, Evelina was at fault!

Lucian glanced at Alaric. "You really should work on that temper. Remember how you treated Lemira and pushed her away? Wanna drive Eve away too?"

"Lucian, that's not the same thing at all. It's Evelina."

"Enough. I saw the livestream. You led them into a trap. As captain, you're responsible. Eve panicked and made a mistake."

Alaric felt helpless. No matter what he said, Lucian didn't believe him!

Lemira watched, finally seeing Alaric experience what she had felt: the bitterness of being slandered, misunderstood, and unable to defend himself. How did it feel?

Lucian tried calling Evelina, but there was no answer.