"Dorian, don't. You don't have to listen to that jerk. He is just trying to intimidate you," Tiana warned as she shot another glare towards John.
Viktor gave a soft smile, "Thanks, Tia. But it's fine. I got this. If I become afraid of him now, then I will be forever afraid of him. Mother told me to always face my problems head-on."??
Tiana again felt tongue-tied and wondered if he really loved his mother that much to still remember her teachings.
However, she felt as if his words had some point to it and that it indeed made sense. She was yet again surprised by his attitude as she never expected this village boy to be so bold and courageous about these things.
She knew that most boys would get intimidated by someone like John, who not only looked like a bully but also had a good backing.
Tiana cleared her throat and nodded as Viktor got up and responded, "Alright. I am in. What do you want to wager?"
John smirked, seeing that this noob easily fell into his trap, and said, "It's quite simple. If I win, you should give your word that you will never touch this game ever and also change your name to 'The Beast Men's Slave'. Of course, since this is just a verbal agreement, you can always choose not to follow through with this bet. But remember, a lot of people are watching, and people will know if you are credible or not based on whether you follow through the bet or not."
John knew that credibility was one of the most important things for a player who wants to make a professional mark in this game or for any other competitive game. If someone loses their credibility, it could heavily affect their fan base and especially if they were a streamer.
He could see that Dorian was a country fellow and felt that he wouldn't have anything of real value he could demand from him. So he decided to humiliate him instead.
He also took a cue from the wager Snow Queen asked him to wager on to put out such a condition to Dorian.
Tiana gritted her teeth, seeing how John was copying her and making such an absurd condition to Dorian.
However, she saw Dorian having a hesitant expression for a few moments before he spoke, "Okay. As for my conditions…" Viktor noticed before how John was using a stylish gaming laptop with neon lights and other functions and overall looked quite costly. He also saw the words 'Limited Edition' printed on the back of the laptop.
He felt that John or his family must have paid a small fortune for that laptop. After playing CS:UW for all this while, Viktor felt like he wanted a gaming laptop of his own as well and to play online at home whenever he felt bored.
So considering he had to stick to Taya's challenge, how could he miss out on getting a free premium laptop?
So he continued in a calm tone, "Since you put out two conditions, I would be doing the same as well. If I win, then you have to give me your laptop with the golden lights and all."
John frowned, seeing how this guy had the guts to ask him to wager his precious laptop that he had to fight with the skin of his teeth to import from some other country halfway around the world.
He knew that his laptop was a limited edition, and only a hundred such laptops were even made into production before the company stopped making them due to some legal reasons.
A flood of frustration and anger was flooding his veins as he felt as if these people were trying their best to piss him off by making conditions to stripping him of all the valuables he had with him now.
First, it was Tiana who asked him to wager his precious bike, and now her cousin wants him to wager his favorite gaming laptop. As an avid gamer, it was no different than giving up his girlfriend to some other man.
That was how much he valued it. Still, he calmed himself down, thinking that he was getting angry over nothing since he was sure he would win the bet easily.
So he nodded with a huff, "Fine. What's your second condition?"
Viktor said with a smile as he glanced at Tiana, "I want you to make a public apology to the Snow Queen and her team for saying that her team is inferior to yours. And in that apology, you should, of course, acknowledge the fact that she is the best pro you had ever seen. Of course, this shouldn't be that hard, considering I am only asking you to acknowledge the truth. After all, this world has only one Godkiller."
Hearing his words, Tiana couldn't maintain her calmness as a light shade of pink spread across her cheeks, which was mostly hidden by her mask.
Even though she was thick-skinned, she had never before seen someone praise her in such a genuine way that not only made her feel proud but made her look cool as well.
Most of all, she never had someone try to fight for her and her team's dignity. She knew Dorian could have asked for something from John to benefit him but instead, he used it for her and her team.
Even Tiana's teammates felt moved by his words and whispered to Tiana that she had an awesome cousin, to which Tiana could only smile abashedly since it was kind of embarrassing that Dorian was saying such things before such a large audience.
However, she could help but feel her face being stretched from so much smiling, which was hidden by her mask.
John harrumphed and didn't take it seriously as if he knew Dorian was going to lose anyway, "Fine! We are on! But just to be safe, whoever loses will have to fulfill their conditions right after this round. Of course, you can fulfill the second condition after this game since I don't want you to stop playing right away. That would be too unfair, eh?"
Viktor smiled, "Sure. I am okay with it."
'This guy just can't stop digging his own grave, can he?' Viktor inwardly shook his head in amusement.
John looked at his teammates and said, "Resume the game! We are going to make them pay!"
