Chapter Five: Seven Walls

In midair, Han tapped the ball backward. Zhou caught beyond the long line and released. Eleven-nine. As the net snapped, Zhou's old poster tore loose and covered the insult beneath it. Chen refused to surrender the berth. Su froze the livestream on Black Tide's bench. A tablet displayed a Midnight scheduling sheet—and the address of Heaven's internal server. “You said the past could be investigated,” she told the camera. “Now the whole internet can help.” That night, Midnight Court contained no opponent, only a golden eye above the backboard. Zeus spoke from every direction. “Winning a berth doesn't qualify you to leave the country.” Three black tokens fell.