Pampered By My Three Brothers: The Return Of The Neglected Heiress - Chapter 893

Chapter 893: Betting pool
Charles watched his team march back to their bench as the first quarter of the game ended. They had a few minutes to talk, and probably time for a fight, but Charles didn’t care about the latter. Just watching the first quarter drained all his energy, like a fruit being squeezed dry.

“I’m sorry,” Zoren said as soon as he stopped in front of Charles. “I thought it’d count for our score as long as I made a basket, no matter which one.”

He knew their basket was on the other side, but Zoren had thought to work smart, not hard. So, he just shot the ball toward the nearest basket. Who would have thought that doing so would end up helping the other team?

Dean secretly smirked, shaking his head. ‘How funny. Who would’ve thought Mister Know-It-All doesn’t know basketball?’

Jonathan, on the other hand, stayed quiet. Whether they won or not didn’t matter to him. It was why he hadn’t bothered trying to improve. Though he’d still run when needed.

Charles looked at the dejected Zoren and sighed. “Don’t mind that,” he said, rising to his feet and then gazing at everyone. “Ugh… my head is aching.”

Looking at all these men surrounding him, Charles was at a loss for words. Atlas and Hugo already knew basketball, and even though Atlas looked like he was just counting his steps and closing his ring, he understood the game. Charles believed that even if Atlas hadn’t played in years, he was smart enough to know the mechanics.

Atlas wasn’t just a quick learner and a hard worker; he was also amazing because of his muscle memory. In other words, Charles could see that his eldest son was doing his best and making critical decisions, even though he was always guarded by the enemy.

The problem, however, lay with the other three guys.

Charles let his gaze sweep over Zoren, Dean, and Jonathan. The more he stared at them, the more hopeless he felt.

‘Zoren might be enthusiastic, and he does have good form when he made that shot, but…’ His thoughts trailed off. ‘… he doesn’t understand the game.’

Charles blamed himself for being lazy and just summarizing the game mechanics without explaining them properly.

“You three are hopeless,” Atlas said bluntly, earning the attention of Zoren, Dean, and Jonathan. “How come you don’t understand the game mechanics? Dribble the ball, don’t let it get stolen, pass it if necessary, guard the enemy, and score a point. Easy.”

“If it’s that easy, how come you haven’t scored a point?” Dean shot back, just as coldly.

Atlas shrugged indifferently. “I’m being guarded by two. You, on the other hand, are always free. But instead of being on guard, you just stand there like figurines.”

“Figurines?” Jonathan muttered under his breath. “I’ve never been called that.”

“There’s a first for everything.”

Jonathan’s expression darkened, clearly no longer in the mood to play along. He didn’t even want to be here in the first place. He was only here because Slater had nudged him into it.

“Enough with that.” Charles was surprisingly calm as he intervened in the growing tension between Atlas and Jonathan. “You two are on the same team. Don’t fight.”

“I’m sorry, but with all due respect, I don’t think I can play any longer,” Jonathan said, maintaining a polite tone despite his growing irritation with Atlas. Actually, he was just irritated by everyone. “Since Mr. Atlas Bennet here thinks I’m no longer needed, we still have one player.”

As soon as everyone heard that, they realized they had a sixth member. Turning toward the bench, Mark raised his brows curiously.

“Can I play now?” he asked, having been asking Charles to replace Zoren for a while. But Charles kept shushing him, insisting Zoren was having fun, and that Mark was ruining it.

After the first quarter, Charles didn’t want to replace anyone—it was still too early. However, now that they’d seen the result of the first quarter, he couldn’t help but reconsider. The others nodded.

“I don’t have a problem with that,” said Atlas. “Let this guy go.”

Jonathan smiled and glanced at Atlas, but this time his eyes were sharp. “Sounds good to me.”

“I don’t mind.” Hugo shrugged.

“I don’t agree,” Dean said firmly, earning everyone’s attention. “We all started this together, and I also want a sub. If I’m still playing, everyone else should be. It’s unfair if I’m the only one exhausted.”

“Aren’t you being selfish now?” Jonathan scoffed. “This is for the… team.”

“One for all, all for one,” Dean smirked, taking advantage of the situation to test Jonathan’s limits. “That’s what a team is.”

Zoren nodded and finally cast Jonathan a look. He hadn’t looked at him before and had given him no attention, even though Jonathan was technically with him. He just acted that Jonathan was non-existent earlier, but not anymore.

“Dean’s right,” Zoren agreed. “You should play more, Plus One.”

Jonathan’s smile twisted as he looked back at Zoren. “Is that so… Blacky?”

“Blacky?” Zoren tilted his head, pointing a finger at Mark. “You’re looking in the wrong direction, Plus One. That’s Blacky.”

Charles shook his head and raised a hand. “You boys, calm down first,” he sighed. “I think it’s about time to sub someone in. From what I heard, this guy knows how to play.”

“I only want to sub my boss…” Mark trailed off as Charles ignored him, while Zoren glared at him. ‘Miss Penny, I don’t think your plan to get him out of this game will succeed. It’s clear he still wants to play!’

“So, I’m going to decide who will…” Just as Charles began to decide who would be taken out so Mark could replace him, they suddenly heard the other team taunting.

“Oh, the pathetic losers are subbing out?” Max remarked, taunting Hugo arrogantly. “Hugo, did you finally realize that those losers you got in your team are useless in this game?”

“Lo…” Jonathan trailed off, only for Dean to finish, “… ser?”

Jonathan and Dean’s faces hardened as they locked eyes with Max, who was taunting them. When they did, all they saw was his mocking smirk and his team laughing at them. If there was one thing the Piersons couldn’t stand, it was losing. But even worse, they couldn’t stand being called losers. And what Max had just said definitely hit a nerve.

Atlas and Hugo, on the other hand, felt veins pop on their foreheads from irritation. Even though Atlas and Jonathan had been arguing just moments ago, Atlas still wouldn’t let others mock his team. Slowly, the Bennet Brothers’ eyes narrowed, their gaze locked on their arrogant opponents.

As for Zoren, he didn’t care much. That wasn’t enough to spark anything in him; he’d heard worse. So, he was numb to it.

“Ahem, ahem!” Suddenly, Lily’s lively voice came through the speakers again. “Everyone! Since the first quarter is over, I’d like to make some announcements to spice things up!”

Half of the crowd cheered, though most of them were supporters of Max’s team. Those who had bet on Hugo’s team weren’t as enthusiastic about what Lily had to say.

“To spice things up, I’ll announce the betting prize pool and the betting odds…” Lily giggled mischievously. The Hugo team didn’t pay much attention as they were busy glaring at Max’s team.

But then they heard something in Lily’s announcement.

“Best of all, Penny Bennet just bet her company, Prime Group, on Senior Hugo’s team!” Lily cheered sweetly. “Her special message was that if her brother’s team loses, her company will be sold, and everyone on the other team, and those who bet on them, will get a portion of all of that money! All legalities were already processed as of this moment! Therefore, our betting pool has reached a whopping two hundred billion!”