Only then did Lana lazily stretch her sore body, her joints giving soft cracks as the tension finally left her muscles. "Good."
She turned toward Shelley, who was still standing there completely frozen in shock, her beautiful eyes blank as if her soul had temporarily left her body.
Lana extended her hand toward her. "Shall we go, Shelley?"
Shelley blinked repeatedly, finally snapping out of her daze. Her heart warmed unexpectedly.
'She... she's waiting for me?'
Almost instinctively, she hurried forward and placed her hand into Lana's warm palm.
"Y-Yes."
Lana simply smiled before leading her away.
Watching the two girls leave side by side, the audience slowly realized something.
Lana had done this entirely to protect Shelley's dignity.
If Lana had simply walked away after winning so overwhelmingly, Shelley would have inevitably become nothing more than a background character, a stepping stone used to highlight Lana's brilliance.
