chapter42

Lydia's voice was bright and clear, every word crisp and sincere. There was nothing fake or forced about her at all.

Connor's eyes lit up. That was her. He remembered that voice from last night, even though he'd barely been conscious and everything else was a blur. He could never forget it.

Before anyone else in the chat could react, Connor sent a virtual 'Dream Castle' gift, one of the platform's most extravagant options. It cost 888,888 coins, which was about 88,888 dollars in real money. The screen exploded in sparkling, dreamy effects that made everyone in the livestream lose it.

[What did I just see?]

[Oh my god, that animation is incredible. No wonder it's one of the top gifts!]

[CNR! It's him! I knew he was something special the first time I saw him!]

[Wow, that's insanely generous!]

But no one realized just how rich Connor was. He sent another Dream Castle, then another. Dream Castle x2, Dream Castle x3. The flood of fancy effects only grew, and word spread fast. More and more people joined the stream just to see what would happen next.

Lydia was stunned for a moment. She figured if someone wanted to flex his wealth, she might as well let him. It was more attention for her, after all. But Connor didn't stop. Soon he was already up to Dream Castle number twenty and still wasn't slowing down.

Lydia couldn't take it anymore. With a quick click, she kicked him out of the stream and turned off the gift feature altogether.

Finally, the wild effects disappeared. The chat stayed in a frenzy, everyone still talking about Connor.

[CNR is seriously loaded!]

[I've never seen anyone spend like that online before!]

[CNR, you're a legend!]

[CNR, can we be friends?]

[Hey, where'd he go? Did he just throw all that money and leave?]

[Seriously, that's so cool. That's almost two million dollars in gifts?]

At that moment, Connor was staring at his screen in total confusion. One second he was sending gifts to Chief Lydia, the next he was kicked out of the stream.

Once he realized what happened, he couldn't help but laugh. "Interesting," he said softly.

Did she really think he was overdoing it with the gifts? He didn't think so at all. She had saved his life. Two million was nothing compared to that. Plus, half the money went to the platform anyway. What she actually got was far less than what she deserved. He'd have to come back and send even more.

He rejoined the stream just as Chief Lydia was explaining what happened last night.

"I did have a bit of a fall last night, she told everyone. "It was raining and my phone was about to die. That's why there was some confusion and people thought something bad happened. I'm really sorry for worrying you all."

Connor felt a strange rush of pride. The real reason Chief Lydia ended her stream early and made everyone worry was all because of him. He was the only one who knew the truth. It felt kind of nice.

"To thank everyone for your concern, I'm going to do a little giveaway tonight," she announced, smiling. "I've made some special pain relief patches. They work on your shoulders, neck, back, legs... anywhere you need. I'll pick fifty winners. If your username is the first complete one in a screenshot, you'll get one."

The chat went wild again. Everyone knew anything from Chief Lydia was basically a miracle.

Connor wanted to send her another gift, but the system still said the gifting feature was off. Now, hearing about her giveaway, he perked up again. If he won, maybe he could finally get her address.