The VIP area was rendered speechless as they watched the game unfold before their eyes. It was the first game between the Champions and the Dogs, so a lot of teams had come—wanting to see who would win.
Among them, Max leaned forward, his brows knitting together. His eyes were glued to Jian, who prowled the court like a lion among gazelles.
"This is insane," Max muttered under his breath, unable to hide the concern in his voice.
Those beside him, Calvin, Fang, and Zheng, were eerily silent. For some reason, they were nervous.
For all they knew, they didn't have anything to do with the game! It wasn't like their team's status was on the line. However, they were really invested.
"Why do all of you look like that?" Chunlei asked, some food spilling from his mouth and onto Fang's bare thigh.
Fang frowned and turned to glare at him. "Who are you again?"
Chunlei beamed. "Chunlei," he introduced himself. "Feng Fox."
"And why are you here?" Fang asked, dusting the wet crumb away from his thigh.
He nodded toward Max. "He invited me up."
Max clicked his tongue and crossed his arms in front of his chest. "He invited himself up," he grumbled.
Chunlei shrugged and continued eating. "Same thing."
"Anyway," he continued. "All of you look like hell has taken over the world."
Their expressions relaxed.
Chunlei raised an eyebrow as he looked at the four of them.
"Why?" he asked. "Is Jina Niu usually this cruel?"
Max shook his head slowly. "No. That's the reason. He's doing his best."
Calvin, despite having a happy-go-lucky personality, was awfully serious, too. "Yeah," he muttered. "I've never seen him play this aggressively in the first quarter before."
"I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing," he added.
Zheng, the quiet observer, had moved forward so much that he was nearly off his chair. His usually composed demeanor was shattered, eyes fixed on the scoreboard.
His hands shook as his gaze wandered to Kai, who was having a hard time keeping up with Jian. Experience new tales on Freewebnovel
"Come on, boy," he muttered. "You can do much better than that."
A whistle blew, and Coach Muchen called for a time-out, the sound cracking like a gunshot across the court. The Shizi Dogs trudged toward their bench, shoulders sagging, breaths coming in sharp, short bursts.
At that moment, Lina finally arrived at the court tunnel. "Goodness," she muttered. "I should work on my endurance."
Updat𝓮d from freewēbnoveℓ.com.
She leaned against the wall and glanced at the court. She smiled when she saw that there was a time-out.
Perfect! She didn't want to interrupt the game.
A small smile made its way to her lips, feeling excited to watch the game. However, as she made her way to their bench, her excitement faded as soon as she caught sight of the scoreboard.
Her heart sank. "What's this?" she muttered, not believing her eyes.
27-13.
The numbers taunted her, glowing neon-bright under the lights. Whispers followed her as she made her way to the bench, eyes wide with confusion.
The crowd's once excited murmurs took on a harsher tone, edged with disappointment.
"Are they even trying?" someone sneered from the stands.
"This isn't what I came to see," another voice scoffed.
"I knew Jian would still dominate."
"The Shizi Dogs are brave to believe that they have a chance against them. It's their first time!"
"That Kai Guo kid is underrated."
Finally, she arrived at the bench, seeking some kind of comfort from the situation. However, the atmosphere within the team wasn't any better.
"What's going on?" she asked, trying to keep her voice steady as she looked around. The team's faces were pale, eyes downcast. The atmosphere was suffocating amidst the silence.
Kai's gaze lifted for a brief moment, a flicker of relief crossing his face as he spotted her.
But just as quickly, it was gone, replaced by worry. The change in his expression made Lina's stomach knot.
Now, she was sure.
Something was terribly wrong.
"We need Yuze," Kun blurted, his voice cutting through the tension. His hands clenched into fists, his knuckles white. "I can't do this."
Andy clicked his tongue in frustration, leaning forward with a scowl. "You had so many misses. If you just—"
"And what about you?" Renren snapped, the tension in his voice making it crack. "Where are your three-pointers? We're drowning out there, and I'm not the only one missing shots."
"Enough!" Jinping, who had been silent until now, suddenly stood, eyes blazing. "Even if Yuze were here, it wouldn't matter. He wouldn't be able to do anything to help us. We're up against Jian Niu. We're not playing against a team—we're playing against a monster!"
Jet shook his head. "So, what are you saying? That Yuze wouldn't even be able to save us?"
Jinping pursed his lips and looked to the side. Meanwhile, Yuze clasped his hands together, letting out a deep breath.
The bench fell silent, with Jinping's words echoing in their minds.
It was true, somehow.
"Don't pin this on me," Andy muttered, shifting uncomfortably. The guilt in his eyes told another story. He knew he'd missed shots that counted.
Kun's shoulders sagged, the fight draining out of him. "Then what do we do? What's the plan? Someone tell me because I don't see a way out."
Every gaze shifted toward Kai. He had always been the one who knew how to rally them, even when the odds were stacked against them.
But today, his jaw was set tight, eyes trained on the floor. Seconds ticked by, each one amplifying the silence until it was deafening.
Lina's eyes darted to Kai, searching his face for any sign of the fierce determination he always wore in the heat of a game.
But instead, she saw something that made her chest tighten: doubt.
"Well?" Renren's voice was sharp, teetering on the edge of anger. "Kai, what do we do?"
Kai finally looked up, his eyes meeting each of theirs in turn. He opened his mouth, then closed it, struggling for words that wouldn't come.
"I don't know," he said, barely a whisper but loud enough to shatter the fragile silence around them.
For a moment, the only sound was the crowd; their chatter and laughter were a harsh reminder of their situation. The Shizi Dogs once considered a dark horse capable of anything, now looked as lost as their star player's empty stare.
Lina's breath caught in her throat. If Kai didn't even have an answer, what hope did they have?