bChapter /bb819 /b

    Aria brewed the herbs and gave them to Emily and the other two.

    Cathy rested her chin on her hand and sighed deeply. “Now I feel like winning the team championship doesn’t mean much.”

    Even if they win the championship and get the prize money, it doesn’t really seem to change anything. It’s better to go with the flow. As long as theyplete their tasks, there’s no need to pay any price for these fleeting honors.

    Allison clutched her stomach. “I’m hungry. I want something delicious to eat.”

    One of William’s team members raised his hand. “We circled around earlier, and there’s a small stream about 2500 feet away. How about we go hunting?”

    Emily agreed, “Sure, let’s do that. Fortunately, someone was thoughtful enough to put seasonings in the resource packs.”

    Another person added, “They deliberately gave us the seasonings–there’s even a pot–but we didn’t take it, just threw it away. They hope we cook something to attract wild animals for a fierce battle.”

    “Are you afraid?”

    “Nope.”

    Aria asked, “Where’s the pot? Can we still find it?”

    William stood up. “Yes, I’ll take people to get it back.”

    Aria nodded. “Alright, others, go find firewood and build a frame.”

    William shouted, “Let’s go!”

    Everyone got to work, finding tasks they could do. The audience watching outside couldn’t help but react.

    “Cathy’s team haspletely given up. They’re just cruising now.”

    “They might not be trying hard, but they still have a good chance of winning the championship. Clifford’s team is doing the decrypting; they just wait bfor /bsess and then head out. It’s just too easy for them.”

    The leaders went off to handle other matters, leaving only a few people watching and chatting.

    Two hourster, the big screen showed smoke and steam billowing. There was crispy roast piglet, rabbits, and somehow they even made chicken with found ingredients.

    “This surveince quality is so good; it’s making me hungry.”

    Someone stood up. “I’m going to get some roast piglet and chicken.” Gradually, more and more people left the viewing room.

    Clifford’s team had been collecting intel consistently for two days without any news from Aria. Finally, he decided to reach out.

    He asked, “How much intel have you guys gathered these past couple of days? Do we need to meet up so I can decrypt it, or have you guys already handled it?”

    Aria nced at Jocelyn and Liz ying rock–paper–scissors and cleared her throat. “We haven’t collected any.”

    From the other side, Clifford eximed, “A, are you putting all the work on us?”

    Aria replied, “Not really. Once you decrypt the intel and get the coordinates, you can move ahead without waiting for bus/bb. /b

    13:53 Tueb, /bb19 /bbAug /b

    Clifford paused “Are you guys nning something big?”

    She answered, “No, we’re just rxing.”

    Clifford didn’t believe her at all, assuming Aria’s team was up to something secretive. He said, “Our team values cooperation. We promised bto /bbhelp /bbyou /bwin the championship; we can’t break our word.”

    He then probed further. “We’re thinking of moving our camp. Is there a suitable ce near you?”

    A?ía replied, “Let me ask the others… We’re at XXX coordinates. You cane here and set up camp nearby.”

    Ending the call, Clifford immediately went to brief Gerald on the situation. “I suspect they’re up to something they’re not telling us about.

    “Since we’re working together, they should keep us in the loop. Besides, we need to move anyway, so let’s head to their spot.”

    Gerald nodded. “You’re the team leader. It’s your call.”

    Clifford agreed, “Alright then, let’s go.”

    When they arrived, Clifford’s group was stunned to find Aria’s team cooking. They thought, ‘They’re actually making a meal? The cooking pots and utensils in the resource packs were just burdensome; no one wanted to carry them around.

    ‘But they kept the pots? It smells so good.‘ The group had been surviving on ration bar for days, making their mouths water uncontrobly.

    “Clifford, you need to negotiate with them. What will it take for us to get some food?”

    “Yeah, I’m about to turn into a hungry wolf here.”

    Clifford strolled over casually, heading straight for Cathy. “Cathy, you guys gave up working hard just to spend time cooking?”

    Cathy raised an eyebrow and smirked. “Uh–huh. Smells good, doesn’t it? Makes you want to eat, doesn’t it? Maybe even makes you want to kneel and beg me for a bite, right?”

    Clifford chuckled. “Absolutely. Since we’re all partners now, sharing food is no problem, right? How about this–next meal, we’ll do the cooking, and you guys can just rx and eat.”

    AD