Basketball System: Rebound of the Underdog-Chapter 633: He Knows

"Lina, tell me what that means," Kai pleaded as they walked through the hotel lobby, but Lina kept her mouth shut.

"Lina, please! You can't leave me hanging after choosing that guy! How good is he that you chose him over me?"

A small smile made its way to Lina's lips.

"Baby," he tried.

Lina stopped for a moment, her cheeks warming up. But then, she shook her head. "You're not going to get me with that one."

Kai sighed. "He's better than me?" he asked. "You're saying he's a better player than me, right?"

"Well," Lina said, placing her fingers under her chin. "I've already told you the answer. I don't want to repeat myself."

Kai pursed his lips, appearing frustrated. He was sure that Lina would have picked him without any doubts. However, what was this? Just who was this Caishen Guy?

They finally arrived at the buffet for dinner, and Lina went straight to the dessert section. Her eyes widened when she saw it was filled with banana muffins.

She jogged to where it was and held one up. "I thought you said these were hard to find. There's so many on here," she smiled.

Kai looked at the spread and pursed his lips. At this time, it would have been gone! Did they start making bigger batches?

Just then, the woman who tried to save him some muffins before his game with Team Germany came out to greet them.

"Oh, there you are!" she exclaimed. "You came for the banana muffins again?"

Kai nodded before gesturing to Lina. "I have my girlfriend with me, too."

"I see," she smiled. "What a cute couple you make."

"You have a lot of muffins today," Kai commented.

She chuckled, throwing her head slightly back. "Well, we actually decided to bake a lot more banana muffins starting today because I told the baking team that you liked them very much. They all loved your performance during the past game and have become big fans."

Kai's eyebrows raised in surprise. "Is that so?"

He thought that they would have thought differently about him because of the rumors going around.

"Anyway," she continued. "We're all rooting for you. The entire country wants to see you win! So please, eat the banana muffins to your heart's content."

Kai smiled gratefully while Lina bowed her head. She was happy that a lot of people believed in Kai despite what Julian Barker had told the press.

***

After their dinner, Kai continued to pester Lina about what she meant about Caishen being a better player. However, she remained silent.

"Come on. Just show me your room," she chuckled, finding the situation amusing.

Kai clicked his tongue and shook his head, realizing he wouldn't get an answer out of Lina no matter how hard he tried.

With that, they exited the food hall. He was still a bit sulky when suddenly, he collided with someone standing directly in his path.

He stopped abruptly, his gaze lifting to meet a face he knew all too well.

Julian Barker.

Julian was talking with someone on his phone, not paying attention to his surroundings. He was about to tell Kai off, but he smirked when he realized it was Kai standing in front of him.

Kai stiffened, his eyes narrowing briefly before he stepped to the side, intending to walk past him without a word.

But Julian had other plans.

"Ah, the infamous Kai Guo," Julian said with mockery.

Kai paused mid-step. Lina held onto his arm and gave it a gentle squeeze.

Then, slowly, Kai turned back to face Julian, his frown deepening. "What do you want?"

Julian feigned surprise, a hand pressing against his chest. "Is that how you talk to someone older than you?"

Kai's expression didn't change. "I respect people based on how they treat me, not based on age."

For a split second, Julian's smug smirk fell, but he quickly recovered, his grin widening. "Fair enough," he said with a shrug. "I just wanted to check-in. Big game tomorrow, right?"

Kai crossed his arms. "What about it?"

Julian chuckled. "You must be excited."

"I am," Kai said flatly.

"Excited to lose?" Julian shot back with a taunting grin.

Kai's eyes narrowed further. "Excited to beat you."

Julian's smirk didn't waver, but his eyes darkened slightly, revealing his annoyance.

"We'll see about that," Julian muttered before his gaze shifted to Lina, who had been silently observing the exchange.

His smirk turned sly as he looked at her.

"And who's this?" Julian asked.

Lina's posture stiffened, her eyes narrowing in suspicion.

Julian tilted his head slightly, his grin widening. "Is she your girlfriend?"

Kai didn't respond. Instead, he took a small step forward, subtly shielding Lina from Julian's scrutinizing gaze.

"Cute," he remarked. " She must have come here to support you. But does she know about all your other girls?"

Kai's fists clenched at his sides, but before he could respond, Lina stepped forward.

"I know him better than you do," she firmly said. "Now, if you excuse us."

Julian raised his hands in mock surrender, a laugh escaping him. Then, he turned to cover their path when they attempted to leave.

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"The younger generation is scary," he said with exaggerated amusement.

Kai's patience was wearing thin. His voice dropped. "Are we done here?"

Julian ignored him, his smirk fading as his expression turned contemplative.

"You know, I've been thinking about you," Julian said, crossing his arms in front of his chest. "And I don't get it."

"Don't get what?" Kai asked.

"How does someone like you get so much attention," Julian said. "It's unfair, really."

"Nobody this young should be able to reach heights as great as you," he continued, confusing Kai.

Did he do something to this guy before? As far as he knew, this was the first time they were meeting. They've never even played a game before!

Julian stepped closer, and Kai's eyes darkened. He leaned closer to Kai until his mouth was in front of his ear.

Then, he whispered.

"Especially when you have a system helping you, huh?"