Here Comes the Showdown!

A staff member pointed at the screen in the corner and said in surprise:

"Director Zhang, Su Yue came out. He's heading over to Shi Zhou and the others."

Elysia Star was in its rainy season, and night fell early.

With no one moving around inside, the little two-story building seemed deserted.

Su Yue emerged from the training simulator without turning on the lights. In the dim natural light, he grabbed a bottle of water and stood by the window, watching the drizzle outside.

His elegant, handsome face looked so quiet and composed in the fading daylight. His lips were thin and sharply defined, his Cupid's bow cool and angular. There wasn't a single superfluous line on his face.

After standing there for a while, he set the remaining half-bottle of water back on the table. The water rolled and splashed inside before finally settling.

Only after a long while did he exhale, change out of his training clothes, and turn to go downstairs.

A staff member asked, "Su Yue, are you going out?"

It was raining now.

Su Yue answered in the affirmative, then told the shuttle driver, "No need. I'll head over myself."

It took him two presses to activate the shuttle. His long fingers settled on the steering wheel, and the vehicle immediately shot off like an arrow!

The driver chased after him, shouting, "Slow down, sir! You'll have an accident!"

Good grief, who drove a shuttle like that?

It wasn't a Mecha.

So by the time the production crew noticed, Su Yue was already nearing the center of the Hot Spring Resort.

One staff member wondered aloud, "What's he going out for now?"

Everyone else was about to come back, yet he was heading out.

"Could it be..." Director Zhang and Editor Liu exchanged a glance, the same thought occurring to both of them.

Director Zhang laughed and cursed. "That brat. How did we never notice how sneaky he was?"

Elsewhere, because of the rain, Bai Shen and Yu Manman had also ducked into the Café for coffee.

Both were used to waiting for others to speak first, so naturally, they didn't have much to say. But with the Café's background music playing, sitting opposite each other over coffee wasn't particularly awkward.

Because of his work, Bai Shen was allowed to use a Mindnet connected to the Interstellar Network.

Bored, he casually opened it and swiped through, spotting a link Xie Jiali had sent him.

When he opened it, he found the livestream of their show. The thumbnail was a photo from earlier, when Asta had held Shi Zhou's wrist as they laughed and joked.

For some reason, Bai Shen tapped it and entered the livestream. The first split-screen feed showed those two.

Hearing Shi Zhou and Asta's voices, Yu Manman froze with her coffee cup halfway raised. Then she set it back on its saucer and hurriedly stood.

"Why do I feel like I just heard my baby's voice?"

Bai Shen looked up, puzzled.

Yu Manman glanced at the Mindnet and smiled at Bai Shen. "They're not far from us. Let's go have dinner together. There are more options over there, too."

Bai Shen glanced at the screen. After two seconds of silence, he stood and nodded.

"Let's go."

Meanwhile, Shi Zhou and Asta were still practicing pool.

"You seem to learn pretty slowly when I just demonstrate."

Shi Zhou said, "Hmm?"

Asta smiled.

"I'll guide you through a couple of shots."

He walked over, lightly touched Shi Zhou's wrist with his fingertips, and drew him closer to the table. In a low voice, he said, "Make a bridge with your left hand. Keep it flat against the felt."

Once he drew closer, that scent became even more noticeable.

Shi Zhou asked, "Like this?"

Asta's Adam's apple bobbed. He cleared his throat. "Yeah, that's right."

Then he pressed down on Shi Zhou's elbow. "A little lower. Don't stick it up."

-That sounds so wrong. Don't stick what up?

-Not his butt, not his butt. His butt already looks pretty perky to me.

-His little buns are perky, too.

-Oh, then it's not his little buns either.

Seeing that Shi Zhou didn't understand, Asta helplessly bent down and leaned closer, pressing one side of his body against Shi Zhou's. His long left fingers covered the back of Shi Zhou's hand, adjusting his slender, pink-tinged fingers into the proper position.

"Like this."

Unlike his pampered appearance, Asta's hands had a light layer of calluses.

It tickled a little.

Shi Zhou turned his head and found that Asta seemed like a different person: composed, yet faintly awkward.

When their eyes met, he even stared back at Shi Zhou rather foolishly.

"What's wrong?"

They were very close. Seeing him like this, Shi Zhou couldn't help laughing.

-Who gave you permission to get starstruck staring at my wife?! Even if my wife is pretty, cute, and lovable!

-Do you even know how to teach? My wife is so smart, yet you still haven't taught him after all this time. I think you're doing it on purpose!

As though burned, Asta hurriedly let go of his arm and stumbled half a step back.

"Nothing! What do you mean, what's wrong?"

Shi Zhou looked puzzled.

What is it now, princess?

He acted strange all day long. Shi Zhou said, "Forget it. I don't need you to teach me. I'll play by myself for a while."

Shi Zhou was practicing when he heard a commotion from the outer hall, with lots of children shouting.

When he looked over, wasn't the person standing in their midst someone familiar?

This area was part of the arcade, with plenty of entertainment facilities besides the pool tables. Shi Zhou walked ahead, while Asta trailed leisurely behind him.

"Su Yue, what brings you here?"

Had he already finished training?

Standing among a crowd of children with their hands raised, Su Yue turned to glance at Shi Zhou and Asta, his gaze cold and sharp.

He tossed the basketball in his hands to a child and stepped out of the crowd.

"You're still here?" he asked.

The production crew gave him sidelong looks in the control room. Keep pretending. Go on!

A little embarrassed, Shi Zhou said:

"I've never played before, so I spent a bit longer practicing."

Su Yue glanced at Asta, then asked Shi Zhou:

"Has he managed to teach you?"

Even Director Zhang couldn't resist clapping his hands. Damn, that was such a fucking brilliant question!

Not "Have you learned?" but "Has he managed to teach you?"

The staff member monitoring the feeds exclaimed delightedly, "Director, our viewer count is skyrocketing!"

Director Zhang couldn't spare him any attention. He stood up excitedly and said, "Quiet, quiet."

At Su Yue's words, the smile on Asta's face faded.

Shi Zhou sensed that something was off about the atmosphere. He looked from one to the other without speaking.

Ugh, the two male leads were about to compete again. As long as he didn't get caught in the crossfire.

Just as he was thinking that, Su Yue gently drew the pool cue from Shi Zhou's hand, pressing his other hand against Shi Zhou's back.

He said evenly:

"Come on. I'll teach you."