“Um, still, let’s go take a look.”
Even though being watched by so many people would be a bit embarrassing, Liuli felt this was a rare opportunity.
After all, if what Serveyia said was true, and the E-sports Club was like a resting place, then no matter when she went, it would probably always be crowded.
“Alright, then let’s head out.”
The journey was a bit long, but Serveyia remained silent the whole way.
The silence became a little unbearable for Liuli, and she was eager to start a conversation.
“Serveyia, do you play games too?”
“No. Handling official duties is already exhausting enough. Not to mention now I also have to serve as your maid, Little Fox. I really don’t have time to play games.”
“If you don’t play, can you still join the E-sports Club?”
“Of course you can. After all, the E-sports Club now is completely different from when it first started. If you see many people not playing games there, Little Fox, don’t be surprised. That’s perfectly normal for Saint Laia’s E-sports Club.”
“Somehow, it feels like… wouldn’t Dora be sad about that?”
Liuli thought about how to put it.
“To become the president of the E-sports Club, one must really love games. If the club is filled with people who don’t even play, wouldn’t that be…”
“There’s nothing you can do about it. Although it’s a resting place, there are plenty of people who join the E-sports Club not for games. But since it’s still an E-sports Club, even if you don’t play, you respect those who do. So maybe it’s not as sad as you think.”
“But if it’s just about playing games, is it really necessary to sneak around?”
If this were a decade ago, when people saw video games as something terrible, hiding to play would make sense.
But now, in this new era, most people don’t look down on gamers.
So why go out of your way to find a special place just to play?
Could it be that there are still old-fashioned parents who forbid their kids from gaming?
“If it’s just about playing games, then there’s no need to sneak around. The issue is that many of them are actually slacking off to play, which is why they hide.”
“S-Slacking off?”
“That’s right. Little Fox, did you think Young Ladies were all saints who could perfectly arrange their schedules and handle everything? Most Young Ladies are just ordinary people who face the same problems as everyone else.”
“When they want to slack off, they come to the E-sports Club, clear their minds for a bit, recharge, and get ready to face life again. I think you must have felt the same way before, right?”
Alright, back in high school, she’d also secretly played on her phone behind her parents’ backs.
Even though she was punished every time she got caught, she still couldn’t resist the temptation.
Thinking about it now, maybe Young Ladies really weren’t any different from herself.
When they finally reached their destination, Liuli realized she’d underestimated Saint Laia.
The Academy had provided a massive space for the club, and according to Serveyia, this was just one of several club rooms.
“Let’s go in. I just contacted Dora—she’s inside the E-sports Club now. We can find her directly.”
Entering the room, Liuli found it was nothing like the internet cafes she remembered.
The décor was especially elegant, and there wasn’t a trace of mess anywhere.
She wondered if everyone just took extra care of the place, or if Dora was simply that dedicated to the E-sports Club.
Speaking of Dora, she was currently sitting in front of a machine that looked expensive at a glance, locked in fierce battle.
As she fought, she muttered to herself,
“Cheater! This guy is definitely cheating! No sudden stop, blind shot, smoked wallbang headshot—if this isn’t a cheat, I’ll eat my keyboard!”
Well, how to put it… Liuli hadn’t expected the cute Red Dragon loli Dora to be so fiery while gaming, but honestly, if she’d been killed like that, she probably wouldn’t be calm either.
“Ah, it’s the Princess.”
“Sorry, you had to see that disgraceful scene, Princess, but if it weren’t for that cheater, I definitely wouldn’t have lost my composure!”
After saying this, Dora turned back to keep fighting the enemy on the screen.
But, looking at the 9 to 9 score at the top, it was hard to tell if the other side was actually cheating.
Pure dumb luck was possible, too.
Of course, there was always the chance the other team’s big shot just wanted to mess around and keep the match sticky and tense.
Liuli watched behind Dora for a while, seeing the score go from 9 to 9, to 10 to 10, then 11 to 11, 12 to 12…
And since the map was Train, she could only say it all felt right.
Everything felt perfectly in place.
Sensing this feast wasn’t ending any time soon, she began examining the room’s layout.
There were a few more high-spec machines, but aside from Dora, there wasn’t anyone else in the room.
Completely different from what Serveyia had said at first.