The red team could not believe what just happened. Their level-headed DPS had done out and gotten himself trapped. It could only be explained as carelessness at this point.
"No! Do not say a single word. I know I messed up but I do not want to hear it."
Jack quickie spoke so that no one could get a word in. His acidic looked was leveled at Olivier and the organizing committee was suddenly alert in case they would have to interfere.
Meanwhile, Olivier's team managed to kill off the opposite team's healer. It was a long battle but they were never in danger.
It was a 2-vs 4 match after all. And the opposite team's healer had to run out of MP at some point.
With only one person left on the map, the red team had no choice but it surrenders.
Not because they did not think Jack was capable of winning, but because of the difference in avatar levels between Jack and the opposite team.
Skills could only make up for so much. By now, there was no way of overcoming the difference.
Jack was not about to press the 'surrender' option so his team did it for him. It snapped Jack out of his headspace and he looked toward his team for answers.
"What the fuck? I could have won that fight but you went ahead and did that to me."
His team looked back at Jack with pity-filled eyes. They all wanted to tell Jack to give up for now, but they did not want to face his fury.
"Jack, you need to accept your loss. There was nothing else you could have done in that fight."
The summoner that sat adjacent to Jack spoke up. He looked at Jack with pity-filled eyes but Jack was not having it. Had knew he deserved this win more than anyone else.
But the organizers were already heading over to their table to record the winnings. There was no 'second chance' for Jack.
"We will record this win and ask the top 8 to move on for lunch. It is too late now and I am sure you all are hungry."
Jack wanted to grab the organizer and demand a rematch. He knew he could perform better than he had before.
But a hand on his shoulder pulled Jack back. He looked up and saw his team giving him looks full of disapproval.
"Whatever you are thinking of doing Jack, do not do it. You need to learn that you cannot always win."
Jack gritted his teeth but he allowed his team to pull him away.
He might have lost this match but his luck had not abandoned him completely. He had managed to remember the UID of his opponent.
The game generally did not show UID but you could check your opponent out if you click on their profile. And that was why Jack knew his opponent's true name - Controller.
He was going to find this player in the game, even if he had to use an alt for this. He was going to find him and then kill him over and over until Controller hit zero again.
This was the only way Jack would be able to feel better about himself.
....
"W-We won. I cannot believe our strategy worked."
Terry was beyond happy right now. He was still in disbelief that he had managed to win this round.
Their opponent had been a tough one and the chance of victory had been a slim one.
"Hey Olivier, how did you manage to lure the opponent into your second trap? I was playing the game so I was not able to pay attention."
Clement was curious to know how Olivier had done it. His opponents never fell for his taunts when he tried.
So, he was curious to know what kind of secret Olivier had used.
"Huh? I simply insulted Jack where I knew it would hurt. Most trainees live in a stressed environment and it can cause them to become short-tempered. I just pressed the nerves I was confident in."
Olivier's explanation did not make sense to Clement but he still pretended that he understood what was being said.
"Hey, I do not know about you guys, but I am hungry. Why don't we go and have lunch before our next match? I do not want to lose just because someone on this team was hungry."
Mirai's joke did not land quite right. But everyone else was too elated to tell her that her jokes sucked.
Olivier was about to join his team when he noticed that a lot of scouts were heading his way. He did not want to complicate things so he decided to take a detour.
"You all can wait in the cafeteria for me. I will join you soon. I need to pee."
His team nodded and headed down. Once they were gone. Olivier waited for the scouts to approach him.
And it did not take long before one of them decided to head over.
"Hello. You might now know me but I am a scout from the team, Merry Maker. I saw your performance and I wanted to invite you to join us. You have what it takes to be a sharpshooter and our team specializes in that aspect."
Olivier knew about Merry Maker and their team's landmark player - Dan Furro.
Dan Furro was a shooter everyone aspired to play against. He was fast and did not miss his shots.
It was a shame that Merry Maker never made it past the top 10 in the league. Even now, it was struggling to remain in the top 16.
"You see, if you join us then we will give you all the support and-"
Does your team need someone like me thought? Isn't Dan Furro only 20 right now? He will likely be in the gaming circuit for a few more years and he will only improve."
The scout's face was red once the kid handed her the facts.
"T-That may be so, but most players tend to retire before they are 26. And you are only 13-14 right now? You will be ready to take the stage when our main player retired."
The scout tried to sweeten her deal, but Olivier was not having it. He was not going to rot in some trainee camp for the next 3-4 years while preparing for his 'eventual' selection.
He would like to join a team that needed his skills and would not conflict with his position.
"Sorry, but I am not interested in your offer. Maybe another player would be a better fit for your team."
Olivier called out but the scout was not done.
"You can play another class. I saw your skills and they looked polished. You are someone who knows this game quite well despite your young age. So, I am sure you will be able to play another class if you want to."
The scout was right. Shooter was not even Olivier's main class. But the shooter was a class the league lacked now. And playing a shooter was the best way to ensure he had the scouts' and other teams' attention.
"Hmm, you know what? Leave me your calling card and I will think over your offer later. I need to head back to my team."
Once Olivier opened that gate, other scouts ran up to him as well. He was given so many cards that he could not even carry them all in his pocket comfortably.
After that was taken care of, Olivier decided to head to the washroom and take care of himself.
But his luck was truly bad when he managed to run into the last person he wanted to see there - Jack.
"I am sorry. I will go and find another washroom."
Olivier backed down slowly as soon as he noticed Jack's blackening mood. The elder looked pissed off and rage-drunk now.
"Y-You twirp. How dare you insult me like that? I will not let you go out in peace."
Jack threatened with raging fists. But Olivier could see that Jack would not hurt him physically.
The trainee had too much riding on his behavior to risk it all for petty revenge.
"Hmm, you are welcome to try and defeat me in the game if you find me. It would be good training for both of us."
Jack finally let his rage go and left the bathroom. He wanted to see how far the kid would be able to go in this tournament.
However, when he came back to check the teams after lunch, he was shocked to see that both teams had fortified the current match.
One of the team had fortified due to an injury and the other one for mysterious reasons.
"Hey, what happened? I heard that someone got hurt and had to forfeit. Is that true?"
Jack asked his teammate and the assassin looked at him with cold eyes before they turned to confusion.
"Huh, you mean to say you did not do it? You did not hurt that opposite team's shooter?"
Now Jack was confused as well. Just what was going on here?