My Wife is a Hidden Big Shot-Chapter 124 - 118: Guide, Special Reward

The afternoon competition was about to begin, so the group left their hotel and headed directly for the EM Group tower.

For this competition, Arthur Lockwood had specifically asked Gideon Lockwood to get a few extra internal viewing tickets so he could take them to watch the match live.

Only 500 of these internal viewing tickets were available, and they were typically distributed internally among Veridia’s major competitive teams.

So when people saw Arthur Lockwood arrive with a group of young kids in matching outfits, they assumed they were all DAF trainees.

An acquaintance gestured toward Titus Miles and teased Arthur Lockwood, "Mr. Lockwood, DAF is really something else! Recruiting kids this young now?"

Arthur Lockwood shot him a look. "Isn’t that obvious? Even if I agreed, do you think the league would allow it?"

"Then who are these kids?"

"Stop trying to fish for information. They’re all my relatives..."

Arthur Lockwood cursed with a laugh, then found the kids seats right in the center.

Jared Miles, who was sitting in a corner, frowned slightly when he saw Leigh and Titus Miles. He felt that the two children looked vaguely familiar.

It wasn’t until Jean Quincy came over with two cups of milk tea and asked the girl, "Leigh, which kind of milk tea do you and Tiger want?" that he finally remembered who they were.

The corners of his mouth turned up slightly. He stood, walked toward the front rows, and sat down directly behind the two of them.

’I can’t believe they’re already this big! They look completely different from when I first met them.’

’I have to admit, their unreliable master is incredibly talented when it comes to raising kids.’

"Buddy, what team are you with?"

Jared Miles froze for a moment. He looked to the side and saw Arthur Lockwood watching him with a smirk.

He adjusted the sunglasses on the bridge of his nose and calmly pulled out his EM Group internal employee ID.

"Tech department?"

Jared Miles nodded.

Arthur Lockwood smiled and said nothing, but he sat down next to Titus Miles. With one hand resting on the back of the boy’s chair, he angled his body into a defensive posture.

Gideon Lockwood glanced at Arthur Lockwood, swallowed the words he was about to say, and chose to sit on the other end of the row.

With an adult on each side, the children were sandwiched right in the middle.

***

Meanwhile, a long line had formed at the entrance to the competition area.

Alvin Morgan carefully shielded Aurora Sinclair as they moved forward with the line.

Although they were both wearing hats and masks, they still attracted a lot of attention. The girls in line ahead of them, in particular, kept looking back and whispering to each other.

"That guy behind us is so handsome! Is the girl next to him his girlfriend?"

"Probably! Didn’t you see how he’s practically holding her? Talk about a public display of affection..."

"A couple that games together! I’m so jealous!"

"Why can’t I ever meet a handsome guy?"

...

Alvin Morgan glanced down at the girl who only came up to his chest, a smile playing on his lips.

When it was their turn to enter the competition area, a staff member suddenly asked Aurora Sinclair, "Are you two together?"

Aurora Sinclair nodded.

"Please come this way with us..."

The staff member led them to a secluded corner, pointed to two separate, side-by-side computer desks, and said, "These are your seats."

Due to the room’s layout, this area could only fit six computer desks. A load-bearing wall also partially concealed them. Compared to the other stations, this spot was both private and quiet.

Right up until the countdown for the match began, there were no other contestants around them.

Perfectly peaceful!

***

As the countdown ended, the competition officially began!

Aurora Sinclair had just logged into the game when she saw a figure standing before her. It wasn’t Alvin Morgan’s Poison Master, Echo, so she immediately had Master Rory dash forward and unleash a Flame Fist at the figure.

In the EM Group’s tech control room, all the technicians watching were utterly speechless.

The guide, controlled by a game tester, had already been knocked airborne by a few of Master Rory’s punches.

"This..."

After a spinning back kick sent the guide crashing to the ground, Master Rory actually turned and ran away.

The tester watched Master Rory disappear into the distance, so frustrated he could cry.

’Luckily, this account’s stats are all maxed out.’

Meanwhile, Alvin Morgan had just finished saying, "Aurora, don’t get tied up in a fight. Report your coordinates!"

"Floria Valley, [235, 783]."

Alvin Morgan immediately checked her coordinates. They weren’t too far apart. He instructed, "Aurora, head southeast. Let’s meet up in The Grand Canyon."

But on her way, Aurora Sinclair ran into that same guide again. This time, a text bubble quickly appeared above his head.

[guide]: Lucky player, as you are our 10,000th contestant, you will receive a special reward...

But the tester was on the verge of tears again, because Master Rory acted as if she hadn’t seen him at all and just kept sprinting in one direction.

"Manager, this girl isn’t taking the bait at all!"

The tech department manager felt his temples throb. Finally, he said in a low voice, "Follow her. See where she’s going."

The guide activated the assassin’s Invisibility Skill and ran after her. But he had to admit, the player controlling Master Rory was incredibly skilled. All her movements were so fluid it was as if the character had come to life.

"Aurora, where are you?"

"An assassin has been following me..."

"Ignore him!"

Alvin Morgan’s fingers flew across the infrared keyboard. On the screen, Echo took down a contestant with poison.

’Another clueless fool, here to deliver some free points.’

***

Lorraine Morrison, who was watching the live stream from her hotel room, had an extremely foul expression on her face.

’When did Echo get so good? He actually took out three people all by himself.’

Just then, her phone rang. She looked at the number but didn’t dare to answer.

A moment later, a text message arrived.

[Prince Snow: You idiot! You gave us bad intel on purpose. Just you wait, we’ll hunt you down in the game!]

"Noelle Chaucer—" Lorraine Morrison ground her teeth.

She immediately called Mr. Newman to fish for information, but although Mr. Newman tried contacting Zeke Quincy for a long time, no one answered.

Zeke Quincy, who was watching the event live, was stunned by the Poison Master controlled by Alvin Morgan. It was as if he were seeing Madam Whitlock from that dungeon run all over again.

’His moves were clean and decisive. He wasn’t at a disadvantage even in a one-on-two fight.’

"Who’s that? Why does he keep bothering Aurora?" Leigh Miles suddenly asked, pointing to the figure constantly trailing Master Rory.

"A guide? Is he a contestant too?"

"I don’t know!"

Arthur Lockwood suddenly turned back to ask Jared Miles, "Buddy, that’s one of your people, right?"

"I don’t know!"

Arthur Lockwood glanced at him and then turned back around, his expression unreadable.

’There’s something wrong with this guy!’

Behind them, Jared Miles frowned, took out his phone, and sent a message to the person in charge in Syland City.

He received a reply a moment later.

[This was arranged on purpose. It will be a surprise for you!]

***

In the game, Master Rory finally found Echo.

"I see you."

"Send a party invite."

The words had barely left his mouth when the guide appeared again.

[guide] Congratulations, you two contestants, on winning this competition’s lucky prize!

"That’s him. He’s been following me."

"Let’s see what he wants."

[Echo] What’s the reward?

The tester was so moved that his eyes welled up with tears. ’Finally, a normal person!’

[guide] I will take you to a quest location in this instance where you can earn a large number of points.

[Echo] There’s a catch, right?

[guide] Yes. With great reward comes great risk. If you want to earn high points, you’ll have to endure a baptism by fire!

The guide then led them to a place deep within The Grand Canyon.

[guide] If you go any further, you’ll trigger a random quest. Good luck!

After sending this message, the tester shouted excitedly, "All teams, listen up! The target has appeared—"