"Ugh, when will the first-round start? I feel like we have been sitting here for an hour now. Is this not enough time to begin things? The starting time has already passed."
Mirai complained as she looked at her watch. The competition timing was written down as 09:00 AM. But it was about to be 10:00 now and there was no sign of anything starting.
"Calm down Mirai. The competition will start once they have everything prepared. Besides, we cannot rush the management from our side. It will only reflect badly on our team."
Terry was the voice of reason here. He quickly calmed Mirai down and maintained a cheerful spirit. But it was a matter of concern for a competition to run this late.
Olivier would have considered this competition canceled if this was an official event. But Winded Gliding had put a lot of effort into this competition. It would be a huge financial as well as reputation loss if they canceled it now.
"It will start soon. I can see the media cars outside the building. Winded gliding will have to hurry up the back-stage preparations now."
Isaac had caught the same detail Olivier had been thinking about. His words caused a wave of comfort to blow through their team.
And as Isaac had guessed already, the representative of the guild Winded Gliding quickly rushed out. The representative looked white as a sheet and he seemed to be shaking as well.
But somehow, the speaker gathered himself and walked toward the stage.
"We are deeply sorry for the delay in the opening ceremony. But I am happy to inform you all that we can start this competition now. Teams who have their first round, kindly step up to assigned lots."
The man did not make a big speech but he did signal for people to start the competition.
Olivier looked at the competition sheet and felt lucky. Their first match was bi. Their opponent had not shown up on time.
"Well, we have some time now. Do you think the authorities will allow us to tour this place?"
Natasha asked as she took out her camera. She was the only one not nervous or under stress. Olivier also understood why she had dressed up so much for today.
She was taking it as an outing and the fancy outfit was for her inevitable photoshoot. The elder was already forcing Mirai to stand up and take a lot of photos for her.
"Knock it off, Natasha. We are here to compete, not to have fun. You can have your photo session later."
Even Mirai sounded annoyed with her friend. But Natasha waved her words off easily.
"Oh, come on. The competition will not run away from you. You can relax a little and have some fun in the meantime. Now come with me. Let us go to the vending machine to get something to drink."
Mirai sighed but she did follow Natasha. That left the four guys behind each other.
"So, Olivier, is this your first time coming to a gaming event? Are you nervous? If you need to ask anything, you can ask me."
Terry turned his attention toward Olivier but he sounded rather nervous himself. It was understandable since the atmosphere of the stadium was a little loud.
"Not my first time being here, but it is my first time competing here. I cannot wait to play on a real PC."
Olivier's words caused both Isaac and Terry to laugh. But these kids did not understand how much a PC could change one's gaming style.
No matter what one said about 'skills' overcoming any flaws. Olivier would have you know that lag due to your signal as well as latency in follow-up actions in a combo could get you killed rather easily.
"Team D-1, please follow me to the venue. Your opponent has been decided."
Olivier looked down at their team sheet and noticed that team D-1 was their team. He looked at Terry but the older looked a little lost as well.
"Excuse me sir, but can we wait for a minute? One of our team members had gone to use the rest room and they will be back soon."
Terry asked the management and the assistant who had come to fetch them rolled his eyes. He seemed used to such excuses and Olivier could find no trace of mercy in his eyes.
"Your teammate has 5 minutes to show up. Otherwise, we will have to disqualify you from this bracket."
The rude assistant was just doing his work so Olivier tried not to hold his behavior against him. On his other side, Isaac quickly called Mirai. But she was not picking up her phone.
If she failed to show up on time, then their team would have to be disqualified. It would be an utter disaster for everyone.
"Ugh, this is bad. She is not picking up. Should I go and look for her?"
Isaac asked Terry. But Terry shook his head.
"No. if you left now, then there is a chance you can get lost as well. We need to wait here and hope Mirai makes it back in time."
Terry's words caused everyone to worry. But the assistant was as calm as ever. He seemed not to care that his words had caused the team to become nervous.
"Well, looks like your fifth member is not going to show up. I will cancel your entry and give the other team a bi-"
"Wait. wait a minute. I am here."
Mirai yelled as she finally came back. She was breathing hard but she had also left Natasha behind for the time being.
The worker who was here to assist them looked relieved and signaled for their team to follow him. Mirai had managed to make it back in time.
"Where were you? Why did it take you so long to come back?"
Mirai flinched when she heard those words. Then she looked back, only to realize that it was Clement who spoke to her in this rude manner.
"Oh, so you want to complain to me, kid? Why don't you stand in line for snacks next time, huh? Maybe then you will know how long it takes to bring anything back in such a crowd."
Mirai's snapping back caused Clement to quiet down. His momentary bravery bleeds out of his system and Clement became meek again.
Olivier tried not to let this small mishap get to him. He needed to perform his best in the match.
Thankfully, their opponents were not anything too fancy this time around. Their team was easily able to win this match. And the next one.
Surprisingly enough, their team made it to the top 32 for the day without any loss. And the one who was the most surprised by this was their captain, Terry.
"Wow, we survived the first day. We can come back here tomorrow to compete."
Terry sounded surprised when he looked at his team ticket. He could still not believe that the day had gone so smoothly.
"And in the end, Ezra never showed up or contacted us as well. Do you think she is alright?"
Mirai asked as she took out her phone. She tried calling Ezra, but the other female was not picking up the phone.
"Let her be. If Ezra wanted to come, then she could have. I messaged her the results of today's match so I am sure she knows we won. Should we go out to celebrate our win today?"
Isaac asked with a cheerful voice. Olivier was seeing the moody man be happy for the first time.
But it was not surprising when you took into consideration today's unexpected twists and turns. Isaac had given his best performance to date.
"No way. We need to go back home since my parents are waiting for us. Maybe we can take an outing tomorrow after your match?"
Natasha denied the outing and took hold of Olivier's arm to drag him away. She seemed determined to go back home.
Terry shot Olivier a look that asked if he wanted help. But Olivier was alright with going home today as well. He needed to think over how he played and how he could improve.
He also needed to grind more levels since his overall performance had lacked a bit due to being under-leveled. It was not something that would be caught by casual players. But any trained eye could tell what was happening.
"Fine, you can go back now. But you will not be able to get out of tomorrow's dinner plans."
Everyone waved Olivier and Natasha farewell for the day. And then the sibling duo was out of the competitive zone.
Olivier was about to head out of the building when he was stopped by someone. The person looked like a scout and he even had a visiting card in his hand.
"Hey kid, I saw you playing today. You were playing on an under-leveled account, right? I am a scout from the guild called 'Champions.' Yes, you guessed it right. I am a scout from the three-time world champion team. And I am here to scout you out…"
The man had not even finished speaking when Natasha decided she did not have time for this.
"Hey uncle, give the card here. I will have someone verify your claim and then see if you are worth our time. But for now, we do not have time to talk."
Natasha dragged Olivier even harder and away from this possible scammer. She was not going to take any risks as far as Olivier and her family's reputation was concerned.
The scout watched the older female drag his target out.
The child had a lot of potential and he could be trained for the future as well.
But the thing that attracted the scout the most was that face. It had looked exactly like the legendary trainer 'Olivier Williams' and the kid had been genuinely a good player.
What this kid did need was a little more training and a more competitive atmosphere that could bring out the demon in him.
So, the scout would make sure he would be able to bring this kid under his guidance and train him as a future asset. Their current line-up was strong, but it would not hold on forever. New blood was needed in the industry.
"Oh well, I did not get a chance to recruit the kid today but that is not a problem. I will approach him tomorrow when there is no one around."
Besides, this kid was not the only one the scout had his eyes on. The sea was big and there were too many interesting fishes one could try.
So, the scout did not loiter around for long and went looking for his next target.
Meanwhile, Natasha had a sour look on her face as she dragged Olivier behind her. She did not like the way that Scout had looked at her younger cousin.
"Listen, Olivier, you need to stay away from such shady people, alright? Nothing good would come if you keep giving them your time."
Natasha's advice made her sound older than she was. Her gaze was sharp and she shut the door of the car a little too hard.
"I know. I will be careful in the future."
Olivier promised but he was sure he would let the scout approach him again. Scouting was the only way for Olivier to enter the summer talent program. And it was the only way he would be able to play professionally in the future.
So, if Olivier got a chance, he was going to take it no matter what.