Chapter 3 The Bet

Celine smiled triumphantly as her eyes skimmed through the flood of insults filling the screen.

She turned her phone toward me and declared smugly, "See that, Evander? It's all of us against you! Get down on your knees and apologize to Lucian. Then, you'd better swear to turn yourself in. If you do, maybe everyone online will go easy on you."

Lucian put on an act too, tugging at Celine's sleeve. "Celine, don't. Evander is your childhood friend. We should give him a second chance as long as he's willing to change."

"A second chance?" Celine scoffed. "People like him won't give up until they're forced to face the consequences. He's getting on his knees today."

I watched their ridiculous little act and found it almost funny.

In the original story, the pressure from the public had driven me to a mental breakdown. It had gotten so bad that it wasn't an understatement to say that I was left with nowhere to turn.

But this time, I was different.

I looked straight into Celine's camera. I didn't flinch. Instead, I flashed them a bright smile.

"To those watching, by all means, keep the insults coming." I cleared my throat, my voice carrying clearly through the livestream. "Since everyone's here, why don't we make a bet in front of the internet?"

Celine frowned. "What are you trying to pull now?"

"Let's bet on one thing—whether Lucian really got that 324 himself."

I stared straight into Lucian's eyes as he avoided my gaze.

"If the investigation proves that I switched the scores, then I'll not only give his score back, but I'll also donate half of the Holloway family's assets to Lucian. I'll even livestream myself getting on my knees and crawling out of this neighborhood!"

The livestream went silent for a second. Then, the comments exploded.

"Now, that's a serious bet."

"Half the Holloway family's assets? That's billions!"

"Is this rich heir crazy, or does he actually know something we don't?"

Even Celine was startled by my wager.

Yet, when she glanced at Lucian, who was putting on an Oscar-worthy performance of a pitiful victim trying to stay strong, her sense of justice flared again.

"Fine! You've got a bet!"

Then, she growled through gritted teeth, "If you lose, you'll get out of this city and never show your face in front of us again!"

"And what happens if you lose?" I shot back, my gaze sharp as a blade.

Celine sneered. "How could we possibly lose? Everyone knows how good Lucian is."

"If you lose…" I pointed at the muddy puddle on the ground. "You two will kneel right here and lick all the water out of this puddle. Then, you'll admit to the entire internet that you're lying scum. How about that?"

Lucian flinched and instinctively tightened his grip on Celine's hand. "Celine, don't…"

He was uneasy.

After all, he knew better than anyone how he'd gotten that 324.

Alas, Celine was too consumed by anger to notice. She thought Lucian was simply kind and timid, which only made her feel more protective of him.

She assured him, "Don't be afraid, Lucian. You've done nothing wrong, so you have nothing to fear. We'll take his bet and make him admit defeat!"

She turned toward the camera and shouted, "I'll take the bet for Lucian! Evander, just wait until you're publicly disgraced!"

The comments erupted in cheers.

"The female lead is badass!"

"I can't wait to see this rich heir get humbled!"

"This bet is insane. I've already screen-recorded it. Whoever backs out is a coward!"