Chapter 1382: Chapter 1382: Center of Attention
Ji You watched as Lou distanced himself, looking as if he couldn’t avoid her fast enough. Her mouth curled up slightly, and her voice remained sweet: "Brother, I don’t want your life; I just want you to buy me a Tiramisu."
Lou’s mouth twitched, and directly in front of Ji You, he fiercely shook his elbow, saying, "Stop calling me that; I’ll buy it for you! Buy! Buy it, okay?"
Ji You’s eyes sparkled at his words, "Brother, you’re so nice."
Lou: "..."
Lou took a step and, in a flash, walked way ahead.
"Brother..."
"Brother, don’t walk so fast."
"Brother, wait for me."
Behind, Ji You’s soft, sweet voice clung on like a haunting spirit.
So, Lou walked even faster.
Ji You sat in a wheelchair, her feet happily kicking beneath her long robe: "Brother, if you run further, I’ll want you to buy two Tiramisu!"
Lou halted, looked back helplessly, and said, "Can’t you stop calling me that? If you stop, I’ll buy you three."
Ji You squinted with a knowing smirk, "Okay, brother."
Lou: "..."
The two had already left the hovering elevator, descending to the ground floor, which was a circular building. After circling around, they finally came out.
Upon exiting the building, a vast plaza unfolded before their eyes. On this expansive ground, there weren’t any structures, nor were there convenient transport vehicles like self-service floating cars or small airships, but many students lingered here.
The students gathered on this open plaza, not for square dancing, but because it connected to the competition’s exit.
Once a student was eliminated, they would emerge from here.
Additionally, at the exit connecting the square to the competition arena, stood a giant light screen, displaying in real-time the points from the offline competition.
All competitors were ranked by points, from 1-10000, all presented on the leaderboard, descending from top to bottom, with the top ten displayed at the very top with large, bold, and flashing fluorescent fonts. Even with her hat covering half her face, Ji You immediately spotted her name!
Second place: [Ji You, cumulative points: 250 points. Sophomore at Lanyue Star Military Academy.]
Ji You’s heart leaped with joy when she saw her name at the top, but this joy froze before it could bloom.
"Second?" Ji You furrowed her brow and said, "I’m pretty confident about getting first; how come I’m only second?"
The reputation of being ’Second’ isn’t very pleasant.
"For the moment," Lou snickered, reminding her, "Your second place is only temporary; the results of the other group battles aren’t out yet. Don’t celebrate too early; you might not even keep your second place."
Ji You glanced sideways at Lou, clicked her tongue, and said, "Look at your sour and envious face. Have you found your ranking?"
Lou’s eyes never left the light screen, scanning continuously, and he casually replied, "I’m still looking."
He was indeed earnestly looking.
Just, he didn’t find himself in the front row, which he thought was normal. In the middle rows, he didn’t find his name either, only the last row...
Ah-hem...
Lou was reluctant to face reality. Then, he heard Ji You raise her hand and point, saying, "No need to look further; I found it for you. Your name is easy to find, at the very last rank."
Lou: "..."
Lou’s shoulders trembled, and he said, "I... I realized I might not rank highly, but..."
But!
Last place?
Ji You chuckled, "The only one with negative points in the entire arena, that’s you."
Lou quickly glanced at the light screen and indeed found his name at the last place. His heart quivered, and he took a deep breath.
A pat on the shoulder made Lou look up, and he met Ji You’s smiling eyes: "Brother, don’t be sad; it’s still a ranking, you know."
Lou: "..."
Ji You said, "Brother, don’t look at me with those eyes. Really, you’ve already done very well, getting this far puts you ahead of thousands of students in the Alliance. Really, in my heart, you’re already an exceptional master."
Lou retorted angrily, "Why does it feel so unpleasant to hear? Every time you open your mouth, it feels like a smell of sour stench wafts out."
Ji You’s eyes dimmed, and her voice dropped a few degrees: "Brother... if you keep mocking me like this, three Tiramisu won’t be enough for peace."
Lou trembled all over and shut his mouth immediately.
Ji You curled her lips up into a smile, "You’re truly my good brother."
Lou: "..."
Lou quickened his pace, deciding not to bother with that scoundrel Ji You anymore.
The two of them, one in front and one behind, soon moved from the edge to the center of the plaza. Here, Lou discovered a group of people gathered ahead, seemingly discussing something, and every so often, bursts of exclamations rang out.
"Huh?"
"What’s going on up ahead?" Lou was curious. The competition exit was temporarily closed, with Yue Qiguang probably coming out in a few minutes. Lou couldn’t resist checking it out and moved towards the crowd’s center. However, the students surrounded the area so tightly that he couldn’t squeeze in, so he stopped at the perimeter to inquire from a nearby student.
"Hey, what are you guys talking about?" Lou grabbed a tall guy and asked.
The guy didn’t even look back, "It’s a very special new type of mecha."
"Huh?"
"Mecha?" With the mention of a new mecha, Lou grew even more curious. He tugged at people ahead of him, trying to get inside and see, but unfortunately, he still couldn’t squeeze through.
At this moment, an idea struck Lou, and he suddenly pointed to the sky, shouting loudly, "Look! An airplane!"
A sudden shout made everyone turn their heads to see Lou pointing upwards, and they all instinctively looked up.
And then.
There was nothing there.
Meanwhile, Lou had already seized the opportunity from the distraction to squeeze into the crowd.
And then.
Lou’s eyes widened: "Little Golden Dragon!!!"
What?
Still marveling at how clever Lou had become, Ji You was scrambling to push the wheelchair, taking advantage of the brief distraction in the crowd. Following Lou, she also squeezed into the throng. She had just entered, not even looking up yet, when she heard Lou’s surprise mixed with a hint of horror and disbelief. Ji You quickly lifted her head to see, and sure enough, it was Little Golden Dragon!
Ji You’s pupils contracted.
In the center stood a girl, clutching Little Golden Dragon in her hands. The dragon’s tail lazily draped as it nestled sleepily in the girl’s arms, basking in the attention of onlookers.
