LUO JIN watched as that panther beastkin turned into light particles. That's the signal that the match was over. He was actually impressed of Winged Tassel's last move. Probably because Black Cat had more of an impression on him. So, he thought that the other would surely win. Because of that preconceive notion, the fact that Winged Tassel was the one who won left a much bigger impact.
Even more so for him. Because whoever won that fight would be his opponent tomorrow. Of course, he had to win this fight first.
He walked out of the 'bench area' once the duke announced Winged Tassel as the winner. Finally, it's his turn. He felt like mushrooms would start to grow on his back because of all the waiting he had to do.
He looked forward as he walked. Seeing the rink and the surrounding audience area, he just realized that the coliseum was much bigger than how it looked on the screen. It's very daunting in a way. Especially if one had stage fright or something. Good thing that had never been a problem for him.
As he walked to the rink, he could hear the cheers of the audience. Although it's not as loud as the cheer when his brother or that golden dragon came out, it was still something.
He was about to step on the rink when he heard a very loud voice shouting;
"Amazing young master Jin, good luck!!! You can win this!!!"
Luo Jin almost missed a step and tripped because of that shout. Not because they called him with embarrassing game account name but because the voice sounded a little bit too much like his father.
He was already wearing his [Sniper Specs] with its function turned on. So, when he looked at the direction of his team's royal box, he could clearly see a white-haired elf waving his hand at him enthusiastically.
A helpless sigh escaped his mouth seeing his father like that. But unknown to him, the corner of his lips had already turned up, showing just how happy he was with his father's cheer.
—–
On the royal box of team Yunyue, Luo Wei Tian was excitedly waving his hand at his youngest and shouting the name the other used in this game. Although saying it was a bit embarrassing, he still did so to cheer on his son.
But unlike Luo Yan who waved happily at their direction after hearing his cheer, Luo Jin only glanced at them and then quickly moved his gaze forward. As if he hadn't heard him at all.
He shook his head. "That brother of yours, he's definitely happy hearing my cheer just now. But look at him, acting like he doesn't."
Luo Ren chuckled when he heard that. "Well, you know how Xiao Jin is. The shyer he was, the more he would act the opposite of how he really felt."
Luo Wei Tian suddenly had a nostalgic expression on his face as if remembering something wonderful. "He probably got it from your mother. She's also the same when I first met her."
That was a bit of a surprise to Luo Ren. Because in his memories, his mother had always been gentle, kind, and elegant. He could not imagine her acting like Luo Jin.
Luo Wei Tian gave out a hearty laugh when he saw his eldest' unbelieving expression. "It's true. She only mellowed down when our relationship started. I guess because she was no longer feeling shy around me by that time. I wonder if it would be the same for our Xiao Jin."
Luo Ren felt happy, as he always did, whenever he heard any story about her mother. The other reason was because it gave him peace of mind, knowing that his father could talk about his mother in a fond manner without showing any trace of pain. Because it showed that the other was no longer hurting.
He was there to witness how much pain his father had gone through because of that accident that took his mother away from them. He saw how his father forced himself to pull it together because of his kids, one of which was lying comatose in a hospital.
Watching him trying so hard to put away his pain just so he could take care of them was heartbreaking. That's why whenever Luo Ren saw the other talk about his mother without any pain in his voice and only love in his eyes, he felt thankful and very glad.
"Maybe it will," he answered as a response to the last part of what his father said. He then glanced sideways at the pink-haired girl sitting a bit far from them. "Yeah, I really think it will."
—–
[Mashter, it's finally your gnome brother's turn!] – Eclipse excitedly said, almost jumping from Luo Yan's lap. He raised his small head to look at his master. [Mashter, if your gnome brother wins this fight, then he would face the bird guy tomorrow, right?]
[Yes.] – Luo Yan answered, stroking the other's fluffy head.
[Then, your gnome brother will definitely kick that bird guy's ass tomorrow, right?]
[Language, Eclipse.] – Luo Yan said as he tapped the little fox' button nose.
The little fox quickly put his front paws on his mouth. [Sorry, Mashter.]
[No need to say sorry.] – Luo Yan said, amused. [But as to your question, yes, I believe my brother would be able to kick the bird guy's ass, as you put it.]
Eclipse giggled, clearly happy with that answer.
Luo Yan also smiled and returned his gaze on the screen. His brother was now standing on the rink. Opposite him stood a small girl who looked like she was seven or eight-years old. She had flaxen hair tied in high twin tails and a pair of amber eyes. One could quickly see that she was a gnome.
Two small beings standing opposite one another. A chaos gnome and a normal gnome.
This would be an interesting fight – Luo Yan thought.
The Duke of Hearts finally floated down and announced the match;
"AmazingYoungMasterJin versus Butterpuff!"