My Substitute CEO Bride (Nash Calicraft) novel Chapter 2481

"Tsk, I didn't let you win," Kalo grumbled.

"Alright, alright, you didn't. Still, I have to thank you, Kalo," Anox replied with a smile.

Kalo was feeling slightly impatient and said, "Ugh, why are you being so polite? Anox, you're talking like we're strangers or something."

"Okay, okay, I get it," Anox responded, his tone warm and indulgent. He was trying to soothe Kalo's feigned annoyance.

The group burst into laughter at the playful exchange.

Teresa was laughing so hard that her face lit up. She then turned her attention to Enid, who still seemed a bit uncomfortable. She moved her chair closer to her.

"What's wrong, Enid? Is it the crowd?" Teresa asked softly.

Enid was startled by then. She noticed that Teresa's face was now very close and instinctively leaned back. "Oh, um… It's nothing. I was just thinking about something," she stammered.

"What's on your mind?" Marino inquired.

Enid hesitated for a moment before speaking in a quiet voice, "Actually, my opponent in the match was Thresmund."

The others looked shocked. They had all been focused on Anox and Kalo's match, so none of them knew that Enid had faced Thresmund.

"What? Really?" Chevy asked, standing up. "But... the matchups didn't list him as your opponent."

"I don't know why either... but I sensed something was really off with him from the start," Enid explained.

"What then?" The group grew anxious, especially since Thresmund had not contacted anyone for four days. His sudden appearance in the arena was puzzling.

Enid recounted her experience from the match and added, "Because of Granny's influence inside me, Thresmund should've regained his consciousness by now. But after he passed out, the event staff took him away."

"Wait a second," Anox interjected, giving Kalo a curious look. "What's this 'Lil Hermit' nickname you've come up with?"

"Oh, it's the nickname I gave Enid. Isn't it cute?" Kalo grinned proudly.

Anox playfully smacked Kalo on the head. "Who taught you to give people random nicknames? And 'Lil Hermit' sounds more like an insult than anything!"

"Huh? Really? I thought it was fine," Kalo replied, rubbing his head.

"You thought, huh? Stop calling her that!" Anox said, pulling on Kalo's ear sternly.

Kalo immediately begged for mercy. "Okay, okay, I get it! Let go! It hurts!"

Once again, the lively banter between the brothers brought the mood back to a lighter tone.