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While most of the World Gaming Organization departments were busy with the 'countermeasures', those assigned to organize the United Cup were busy taking care of the tournament and ensuring everything was going smoothly.
The first few rounds of the early stages were already in full swing, eliminating those weaker teams.
The top teams and those with decent potential were already making their presence known, attracting some attention in the process.
Currently, two of the well-known teams would be competing against each other for the first time in the double-elimination round.
Arthur and Leonard were gathered inside Shin's room as they wanted to watch the competition together.
"Hey, Shin. Did Cloe scold you that much? And why did she look so angry when she left?" asked Arthur as he sat on the nearby sofa.
Leonard sighed as he answered for Shin. "Isn't it because of you, who insisted on coming here despite knowing what is happening?"
Arthur shrugged his shoulder. "I am just worried about this guy. Cloe has become so violent these last few days. What if she beats Shin to the point that he falls into a coma once again? I don't want to deal with that freak once again."
"You mean Uno?" asked Shin, knowing who Arthur was talking about. He then smirked. "For your information – that guy can hear you right now. We shared the same body, after all, and we can switch places at will, so you better be careful with what you say."
"Tsk!" Arthur clicked his tongue but did not say anything more.
On the other hand, Leonard looked at Shin with an amazed look before saying. "An alter ego. I don't know that something like that still exists in this era. And to think that it is someone that I am close with."
"Have you met some Mentalist Doctors to check on you, Shin Bro?" asked Leonard.
Shin chuckled as he heard those words. "Hah! It is not a problem or illness to deal with. Moreover, I like it better this way."
"Uno and I have been together since I was young. We are no different from being brothers, so I will appreciate it if you guys get along well," he added.
The three chatted as Leonard and Shin set the virtual screen.
"What's so good about the teams that will be competing today, anyway? For the two of you want to watch their battle," asked Shin.
Despite being considered one of the top gods of the game, and possessing an official Godlike Title, Shin was still relatively new to the circle compared to these two veteran gods of the virtual world as they had played quite a lot of games already.
Arthur thought for a moment before replying. "There is not much to look at if you ask me. After all, this is just the early stages of the tournament and it is a double-elimination format, so there is no need for either team to reveal their trump cards."
"But I just want to confirm something from this battle," he added as he leaned on the sofa.
Hearing this, Leonard paused before nodding his head. "I also feel that way. And it is now felt much harder than «True Era Online» now that we are in the Awakened Continent."
Arthur paused before nodding his head. "Yeah. It seems like it."
Then both Arthur and Leonard fell silent before the latter added. "I just hope that it will not end up with the same fate as that game."
Hearing those bitter words and sensing the strange shift in the atmosphere, Shin turned at the two before asking curiously. "Why? What happened in that game? I have been curious about this for quite a while, especially when most of the top experts in the virtual world seem to be from that game."
The two exchanged looks with one another before awkwardly laughing.
"Ha, Ha, let's forget about it. It is not much of a big deal."
"I think we are getting way off our topic. What are we talking about earlier again? Ah! We are talking about the teams that will be competing in today!"
The two tried to change the topic to the best of their abilities, making Shin more suspicious and curious about it at the same time. 'What are these two trying to hide?'
But he did not press further as he knew that they would tell him about it when the time was right.
Not long after, they finished setting up everything for the watch party. But the broadcast that they were waiting for had yet to start, so they could only wait while watching some random battles that were currently being broadcasted.
During that time, Cloe came back along with Lorraine, who was quite excited about this gathering.
"It has been a while since we hang out like this. What are we watching this time?" Lorraine sat shamelessly beside Leonard right after putting the snacks that she had brought on the table in front of them.
Cloe silently sat beside Shin, seemingly occupied with different thoughts filling her head.
At the same time, Lorraine recalled something and asked the three. "Are you guys not going to training inside the virtual space that you have prepared? I think your team is already training there."
"There is still a lot of time before that. Let me watch these old buddies first," replied Arthur nonchalantly while opening a bag of chips.
"Old buddies?" asked Shin with a frown.
Leonard pointed his chin at the virtual screen before answering. "One of the teams competing later is from the group he played with from the previous games."
"Are they good?" asked Shin again.
Hearing that, Arthur smirked before flashing a smug look on his face. "Heh! Since when have I played with trash players? Of course, they are good."
Shin's interest was somewhat piqued this time after learning that Arthur had some history with these players.
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