Chapter 592 - 588: Psycho

"Riley."

Ethan Sterling finally couldn’t help but ask, "Do the guys on the university team not usually come to the club to play together?"

To his surprise, Riley Kent nodded. "That’s right," she said. "The teams that qualify for the league all have sponsors. They get their own separate training facilities provided by those sponsors, with better computer setups and a better environment than our Esports Club. Once your application is approved, you can go join them."

Brandon Marshall patted Ethan’s shoulder happily. "Our school’s esports results have never been that great. With you on board, we might actually get a good result this time. After all, you’ve competed in the national pro league."

Ethan’s lips twitched into a pained smile.

He knew that no matter how skilled one person was, it was relatively easy to carry teammates in casual games like this.

But in professional matches, teamwork and macro strategy were the most important things. Individual skill mattered, of course, but it was incredibly difficult for one person to create a miracle on their own.

In any case, he first needed to figure out the skill level of the university team. That way, he’d know what he was working with.

After they left the Esports Club, Jameson Stone was still buzzing from the casual in-house match. "Ethan," he asked excitedly, "wasn’t I pretty good just now? Three of them dived my tower and not only did they not kill me, but I even got a kill back. I’m pretty talented, right?"

Ethan nodded, not stingy with his praise. "That was a really slick play."

"Just my usual level of play. That’s my true skill," Jameson said smugly.

Ethan thought for a moment, then looked at Jameson with a serious expression. "We need to hurry up and build a team. Right now, it’s just the two of us. A full team needs at least five main players and two substitutes. We still need to find five more people, and that’s not going to be easy."

"The Winter Season starts not long after the Autumn Season ends. If I can’t put a team together, I’ll have to be a sub again."

It wasn’t that he didn’t want to be a sub. It was just that since he had joined the Esports Club and made a promise to Riley, he wanted to do this right. He wanted to build a competent university team to represent the Lorcain U Esports Club.

Jameson’s eyes lit up at his words. "Alright! What’s so hard about finding people? Our Esports Club has tons of members."

"They won’t do." Ethan immediately shook his head. "If they were good enough, our Esports Club wouldn’t only have one pro team. We need to scout for new talent."

Jameson nodded. "Anyway, I’ll listen to you. You’ve built a pro team before, so you have experience. Just tell me what you need me to do."

"Okay. We should both start asking around to see if there are any amazing gamers at school. Preferably someone with a national server ranking."

The two of them chatted as they walked out of the main school gate, planning to grab a quick bite at a nearby burger joint.

But just as they reached the roadside, the deafening roar of an engine grew closer.

They instinctively turned their heads to see a sea-blue sports car speeding toward them. It screeched to an emergency stop less than twenty meters from the school gate, its tires letting out a sharp, ear-piercing squeal against the pavement.

Jameson scoffed at the sight. "Parading around the school in that stupid car every day. What a show-off."

Evidently, people with that kind of attitude were a rare sight at Lorcain U, and anyone who had seen that car around school recognized it and knew who it belonged to.

The door opened slowly, and Seraphina stepped out from the passenger seat.

"I’m going to park. You can head back to your dorm," Owen Griffin said to Seraphina.

Seraphina nodded and gently closed the car door.

The two of them had been an official couple for a while now, so Seraphina no longer shied away from riding in Owen Griffin’s car.

She turned and saw Ethan and Jameson.

Seraphina smiled faintly, giving Ethan a pretty smile and a nod.

Ethan returned the gesture.

They didn’t exchange any words, but the atmosphere wasn’t awkward either.

Seeing Seraphina walk through the school gate, Jameson couldn’t help but ask, "Why do you even bother acknowledging her?"

Ethan glanced at Jameson and said softly, "All she did was not choose me. It’s not like we’re enemies. She didn’t do anything wrong."

"But her choice made you miserable for a long time."

"Me being miserable is my own business. I’m not going to blame my feelings on someone else."

The light turned green. Ethan said no more, grabbing Jameson’s arm and pulling him across the street.

However, they hadn’t gotten far on the other side of the road when they happened to run into Owen Griffin, who was walking toward them after parking his car.

Spotting Ethan from a distance, a provocative smirk had already appeared on Owen’s face. He swaggered over and stopped in front of Ethan, sizing him up with a malicious gaze before speaking. "Haven’t seen you in a while. I thought you’d dropped out."

Jameson’s expression darkened, and his hands unconsciously balled into fists.

Owen Griffin’s face just screamed "punch me." He really wanted to land a couple of punches on the guy for Ethan’s sake.

Ethan, however, was far more composed. Or perhaps, after so many conflicts with Owen, he simply understood him better.

To put it simply, he could be summed up in one word: ’psycho’!

’Why waste words on a psycho?’

Now, when facing Owen, he felt no personal animosity toward him at all. The only thing that still bothered Ethan was possibly Victor Tucker’s death.

Unwilling to engage, Ethan simply pulled Jameson along and tried to walk around him.

Owen sneered and called out after him, "Ethan! Seraphina and I are sleeping together!"

"What the fuck is wrong with you!" Jameson whirled around in a rage, looking like he was about to charge forward and beat him up.

Ethan yanked him back, staring at Owen’s taunting face with a blank expression. "That’s between the two of you. There’s no need to report it to me."

Owen raised an eyebrow, assuming Ethan was just putting on a brave face. "Is that so? I thought you’d want to know."

"He wants to know when you’re going to die!" Jameson cursed.

Ethan tightened his grip and forcefully dragged Jameson away.

Seeing this, Owen smiled with satisfaction. Regardless of Ethan’s reaction, he was sure this would make Ethan feel miserable for a good while.

’If he’s not happy, then I am!’

"If you hadn’t stopped me, I would’ve gone over there and clocked him a couple of times!" Jameson said furiously.

Ethan remained calm and, instead, tried to comfort Jameson. "That guy has a screw loose. He’s petty and vindictive. If you really get on his bad side, it won’t end well for you."

"This is off-campus. If I hit him, I hit him."

Ethan couldn’t help but laugh. "There are security cameras everywhere. If he called the police, do you really think you’d get away scot-free? If the school found out, you’d get a demerit all the same."

"I know you’re trying to stick up for me, but seriously, don’t mess with him. Besides, I’m not actually angry. I’m over the whole thing with Seraphina. Owen’s a psycho. I genuinely think he has an antisocial personality disorder."