Chapter 174: Chapter 174 – Floor Is Lava [2]

As Evelyn was dragged to the bet, she lined up together with Max and Flexy to prepare for the run. In the meantime, when she was still busy, an AI presenter would take care of her job to start the game.

A female 2.5D character floated in the air cutely. Her twin-tailed pink hair followed each of her movements. Her name was apparently Eve, as she was one of the earliest AI presenters born in the VR world.

When Max saw her, there was a kind of familiarity he felt. He realized whom he associated her with only after he heard her slightly distorted voice.

'She looks similar to a certain digital diva from my past life.'

[Everyone! Let's count together for them to start!]

A box with three circles appeared in her hand. It was large and similar to a traffic light.

"Good luck and have fun, Miss Evelyn. You too, Flexy." Max hoped for their luck just like how he usually did when starting the game. It was a habit he brought from his past life.

Flexy grinned in response.

"You too, buddy. Don't blame me if you lose. Hahahaha."

"Why am I here...?" Evelyn asked and slumped her shoulders, dejected. But then, her expression brightened as she squeezed her cheeks hard. "No, I will do my best. I won't lose even if my opponents are hardcore gamers!" She exclaimed.

That exclamation got the viewers' sympathy.

— Do your best, Evelyn!

— Evelyn! Evelyn! Evelyn!

— I want you to do your best!

— You can do it! Lose with grace!

— Just do your best and lose! I want to see cat Evelyn!

— Everyone is really true to their desire. Not that I don't. CAT Evelyn is just too tempting! Please lose!

However, those sympathies were short-lived as their true inner desire leaked out. The beautiful host became dejected again after she read those chats.

"Don't mind them, Miss Evelyn. Viewers often hope for you to fail when they want to see you fail. What you can do is to prove them wrong." Max said to her, smiling softly.

Evelyn didn't think that he would encourage her. She thought that he was the devil who roped her into this mess. Her opinion about him increased a little bit. But then...

"Well, that's the case if you are against other people. Right now... Just do your best to struggle." He continued with a grin.

"Passing through!"

"Aah! You son of a– Wah!"

A block pushed Flexy down the platform when he was caught off guard by Max. His figure was like a rag doll as he plunged into the hot lava and disappeared in many orange triangles.

Those triangles then rose to the air before coming together at the start of the second obstacle, turning into Flexy.

'So that's what happens if you fall.' Max thought as he watched his friend rage at the start of the second obstacle.

Evelyn also reached the second one, and now both of them competed with each other, trying to squeeze through the block while hindering their opponent's movement.

Meanwhile, Max's journey was smooth sailing. He jumped down the block and passed what seemed like a checkpoint before arriving at a thin ledge.

In the middle of a thin ledge, a green ball hovered around. Due to its size and the fact it had a reflecting surface and strange lights around it, calling it orb might be better.

"Is that the buff thing? Green is speed, right?" Max asked no one in particular, but he knew that more than 500K people heard his voice.

He moved through the thin ledge, walking casually because he didn't really want to hurry in this place. Slipping down to the flaming ground under him would be a disaster.

— So that's the buff?

— Breeze is walking casually lol.

— Interesting. Buff Ball? That sounds strange...

— For my sanity sake, I will call it orb lol

— How will the buff affect Breeze, I wonder?

— The others are still struggling with the second obstacle, and here he is walking casually as if he's in the park lololol

— Take the buff and run at full speed, Breeze!

The chat urged him to take the buff and try his new speed. But Max wasn't in a hurry.

Whether he wanted it or not, he would take the buff as it hovered in the middle of the way. When he got close to the floating orb, he stood still and balanced his body before touching it.

The orb disappeared and turned into a light that covered his body, layering him with a green light when his finger made contact.

There was no change in his body, not one that he could feel immediately, at least. However, when he took a step forward, he instinctively felt that taking the buff in this third obstacle was a mistake.