Chapter Four: The Sixth Teammate

Team Echo's new base was an old photography studio the system had leased overnight. The contract, permits, and six months of rent were flawless. Only the landlord corporation did not exist. Five desks waited inside beneath a glowing team crest, as though Gu Chen had entered a memory written in advance. Reporters packed the entrance. “Does your mysterious exoneration prove money changed hands three years ago?” “Why is a nineteen-year-old delivery rider now a professional player?” Lin Yao lowered her cap. “In seven seconds, someone puts a microphone up your nose.” “No powers,” Gu Chen said as he opened the door. “From today, using them outside a match requires approval. We record every side effect.” The wall display activated by itself.