Interstellar: Return of the Villain
Chapter 73: Lyra Lost?

Chapter 73: Lyra Lost?

A blinding explosion tore through the battlefield.

As the smoke cleared, the humanoid mecha dropped its shattered shield with a metallic clang.

Without missing a beat, it launched into the air, sending a hail of bullets straight at the lizard mecha’s cockpit. But the attack wasn’t strong enough to finish the fight in one go.

The pilot, known as "Maddog," let out a sigh of relief. As soon as his mecha touched down, he unleashed a charged laser beam, confident this would be the finishing blow.

But to his shock, the humanoid mecha twisted in mid-air in a way that seemed impossible, narrowly dodging the laser, which skimmed just past the cockpit.

Twenty seconds left...

"No way!"

It wasn’t just Maddog who was stunned. The live chat erupted in disbelief.

"Lyra’s balance is on another level!"

"She always pulls off the unexpected. I’m starting to respect her skills as much as her looks."

"Stop hyping her up! If she’s so good, why do her matches always last more than two minutes? Zinnia’s way better!"

"What’s wrong with two minutes? If you can do better, why don’t you try?"

In regular matches, battles could drag on for ten minutes or even half an hour. Saying two minutes was long was only because it didn’t match the lightning-fast pace of other top players.

This was the downside of a huge fanbase—arguments were bound to happen.

Feeling the tension, the streamer quickly shifted back to commentary. "Maddog’s fired off two of his strongest attacks. Now, for the next few seconds, he’s only got his claws and tail left."

"And since Lyra’s lost her shield, she’s down to just her sword and gun, which actually puts her in a slightly better position." After a brief pause, the streamer added, "If she can end the match while Maddog’s attacks are on cooldown, that would be her best shot."

It was almost as if Lyra heard him.

Her humanoid mecha charged forward, sword drawn, moving with a speed and precision that matched the lizard mecha’s agility.

Many viewers were baffled.

"How can a humanoid mecha keep up with a lizard mecha’s speed?"

The streamer, eyes wide with disbelief, quickly analyzed, "It’s possible if Lyra predicted the lizard mecha’s moves and closed the gap before it could react."

He was spot on.

With a powerful swing, the sword sliced off one of the lizard mecha’s claws. When the lizard mecha tried to retaliate with its tail, the humanoid mecha caught it mid-swing and slammed the lizard mecha hard into the ground.

Inside his cockpit, Maddog felt his brain rattle as his mecha hit the ground.

Once the agile lizard mecha was pinned, the match was all but decided. Maddog’s eyes locked onto the charge timer for his railgun and laser.

Only three seconds left!

CRASH!

The humanoid mecha severed the lizard mecha’s remaining arm.

Two seconds!

The humanoid mecha’s fist crashed into the cockpit’s transparent exterior, causing it to crack.

One second!

Maddog desperately slammed the fire button for his railgun, but just as he did, his mecha was hurled into the air.

The cannon fired, but the shot went wide, exploding harmlessly in the sky like a firework.

The lizard mecha plummeted back to the ground, its systems failing, and the match was over.

BANG! Back at the event headquarters, the planning manager slammed his desk in frustration. He spun his chair away from the screen, unable to face the result.

"We underestimated her again!"

He had counted on Maddog to wipe the floor with Lyra, but she had turned the tables.

Stubbornly, he stared at Lyra’s match data, replaying the fight in his mind. It finally dawned on him: she had been holding back from the start!

But why?

Unable to shake the question, he quickly ordered the operations team to take action, knowing they had to come up with a coping strategy before it was too late.

On the other side, Lyra had barely finished her match when a message from Morrison popped up. "Boss, Maddog’s fans are losing it in the chat. The mecha battle forums are blowing up with posts bashing you."

"It’s not just Maddog’s fans," Lyra replied, unfazed. In this game, win or lose, there’s always a cost. "Here’s what you should do: get ahead of it. Post something first, then..."

...

During the live interview, the streamer, clearly treading carefully, asked, "Lyra, how do you feel about defeating Maddog?"

Lyra gave a slight smile and replied, "In a match, strength speaks for itself. I was stronger, so it’s a natural thing that I won."

The implication was clear: Maddog was weaker, so of course, he lost.

This comment immediately set off a firestorm among Maddog’s die-hard fans, without any need for additional provocation.

"Big talk for someone who was in middle school when Maddog was already famous!"

"Wow, she really made skipping classes sound classy!"

"One win, and she’s already this arrogant?"

"Besides her looks, what else has she got? With those stats, she got lucky and now thinks she’s all that?"

"Serious question, though. Lyra’s stats are way worse than Maddog’s. How did she even win?"

"Yeah, someone needs to ask the officials."

With nearly 100 billion residents in the Alliance, steering public opinion was easy, but once it turned, it could easily overwhelm you.

As the buzz grew louder, the heat soon shifted toward the organizers.

"Hey, officials, don’t just sit there! Lyra’s stats are lower than Maddog’s. How did she win?"

"Be real—did you mess with Maddog’s abilities? Two ultimate attacks, and both missed? Everyone knows Maddog’s got an 80% hit rate!"

Fans from all sides started clashing, while the general public watched the drama unfold, enjoying the spectacle.

Finally, the officials were forced to respond, releasing the match’s real-time data. They even threw in a bit of shade, saying, "As for how Lyra achieved victory, only she knows."

But Lyra didn’t back down. She promptly posted on her live stream, "The stronger one wins."

The flames reignited, drawing even more attention, including from neutral viewers curious about the ongoing chaos.

Watching the chat explode, Morrison wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Boss, aren’t we pushing it a bit too far?"

Lyra, eyes fixed on the glowing screen, asked, "What do you see?"

After a moment, he quietly replied, "Traffic flow."

In other words, all this chaos was bringing in viewers—and that meant money.

This had been part of the plan from the start, though they hadn’t expected the organizers to jump in, causing everything to blow up so quickly.

Despite the buzz, Morrison couldn’t shake his unease. They had definitely ticked off the organizers—what would happen in the next match? If they lost, the fallout could be disastrous.

"We’re playing a high-stakes game, chasing high rewards," Lyra said calmly.

They were grabbing money from the jaws of hungry wolves, but it was a risky game.

After a quick strategy session, Lyra stood up and headed for the door.

There’s a saying: fortune favors the bold. When opportunity knocks, you have to answer.

Just then, a loud crash came from Zinnia’s room. The tall girl stormed out, frustration written all over her face. "That damn Grains! I was THIS close!"

Lyra could guess what had happened. For once, she poured Zinnia a glass of water. "You lost?"

"Yeah," Zinnia replied, chugging down the water. "If he hadn’t gone with a flying mecha, I wouldn’t have been on the defensive the whole time! I thought it was a draw, but then the data showed my mecha took more damage, so I lost."

"How long did the match last?" Lyra asked.

Zinnia looked a bit sheepish. "About ten minutes."

Lyra watched the replay, quickly realizing that what Zinnia called a "draw" was more of a desperate last stand. Zinnia had latched onto her opponent and detonated their power source just before losing, which made the match look closer than it was.

"The attack data seems off," Lyra noted, her eyes narrowing. Even though Zinnia had been on the back foot, the match shouldn’t have been that lopsided.

She forwarded the video to Morrison. "Get Sean to analyze this."

If things were unfolding as Lyra suspected, Thierry’s match would likely be a tough one as well. However, as long as he avoided going up against Team Rose’s leader, it shouldn’t be too overwhelming.

As the third-to-last round approached, Zinnia was pacing like a caged animal, practically vibrating with frustration. "Ugh, the organizers are so annoying! Fine, I lost my solo match, but now you two are only going to face top-tier opponents, right? And what about our team?"

"Don’t stress. Our team is actually in the safest spot right now," Thierry reassured her.

"Not necessarily," Lyra countered, her gaze fixed on the list of upcoming opponents.

The next team they were up against: a wild card from NMA.