Pampered by my three brothers: the return of the neglected heiress

Chapter 1485: Kidnapped in the middle of the night

At the after-party of the competition, eliminated players, finalists, organizers, and a few guests gathered to celebrate everyone's efforts. Although only one team had taken home the grand prize, many attended just for the fun of it.

"Hey man, congrats on your win. It was well-deserved," someone from Team D said, offering a hive five to a member of Team A on the back. "That was one hell of a round."

"Haha!" The leader of Team A bumped fists with him. "You guys gave us a tough game. I almost broke my fingers in that last round."

Truth be told, the first game was probably the only match that really mattered. After all, breaking through the Fortress's first layer of defense was nearly impossible. Perhaps, given weeks or even months of analysis, they might've left a dent in the system.

Still, luck played a huge role too. No one could tell if the other team could succeed in breaking through the Fortress's first line of defense. And so, they gave it their all.

"Gotta admit, though — that damn X is really good for pulling off that stunt and managed to infiltrate Fortress," one of them chimed in. "We gave everything we had and still didn't even scratch the surface."

"Same here. X is really on a whole different level."

"Just goes to show T. Mouse's skills. Damn, that match was insane! It's better than watching an e-sport game."

"Haha! That's true."

Now that the competition had ended and a victor had been crowned, everyone was more relaxed. Any previous tension or rivalry had evaporated. After a grueling week of games, tonight was their chance to finally unwind. Hence, the players casually mingled and exchanged kind words.

"Honestly, even though we won, it kind of feels like that final battle between T. Mouse and X stole the whole show," another admitted. "Not complaining, though. It was exciting as hell."

"Hey, by the way, have any of Prime Group's reps approached you yet?"

"I don't think this is the right place to talk about that."

trying my luck-might start updating my

freëwebnovel.com

came. But after witnessing the legendary clash between

acknowledge his efforts, but with his social awkwardness and lack of interest, they didn't linger

thought, relieved. 'But still... Penny hasn't contacted me. When

were things they needed

he muttered, setting aside the untouched glass of wine he'd only been holding to blend in.

he shoved his hands into the pockets of his hoodie and quietly slipped away from

he collapsed face-down onto the bed. His stomach pressed into the mattress, his head turned to

of her... and she's just made a billion-dollar deal made from scrap. Not exactly the kind

closed his eyes, allowing his body to finally relax. Ever since joining the contest, he'd been tense, on edge. He'd know what would happen tonight - but warning Penny had been impossible. Every

thought in mind, sleep gradually took

just as the world had gone still, a few pairs of hands jolted Nathaniel awake,

twisting from left to right. The room was dark,

"What the ?!"

his nose and mouth. His scream was muffled instantly.

go!' his mind

began to fade. And in mere seconds, darkness embraced him like

Shit.

consciousness. The first thing he felt was a sharp ache in his shoulders and back.

up to rub his shoulder, the memory of

back into

– only