Rematch

Maybe it was because he was bored, but Lucus simply sat at the front desk with his brother watching the front door of the Arcade open every once in a while to a new guest.

Each time he would hear the sound of a girl's voice he would pick his head up high thinking it was that girl from two weeks ago.

"Are you still waiting to see if she'll come back?" Asked his brother without looking up from his screen.

"No... I'm just waiting to see if I can spot anyone to play with, that's all." Responded Lucus rather quickly as though he had prepared this statement in case of emergency.

"Give it up dude, she would have come back if it was her thing."

"But what about the book she bought from you? Don't you think she would want to try it out or something?"

"What? That garbage of a guide? As if people would actually be able to follow."

"What do you mean?"

"Here take a look." Said his brother before handing him a copy of the book.

Opening it, Lucus saw that a majority was written in a language he had never seen before.

"What the heck is this?!" Exclaimed Lucus.

"I think it's called Late English or something. I'm not too sure. It was supposed to be the dominant language back in 2020 or something."

"More than 50 years ago?! That's crazy. Are they still even people who haven't switched to Republic's Language or something?"

"I have no damn clue, either way, I got 50 credits because of it. What a steal."

"50?! Isn't that thing only worth 1 credit or something?"

"Yep! But she got on my nerve when she asked me if I even make a profit in this business."

"Have you ever gotten back what you invested?" Asked Lucus with his eyebrows high.

"What in the world do you think you're trying to do heh?" Yelled his brother with his arms held high. "Do you really think I'm that bad of a businessman or something? And for your information, I have been in the positives since last month. So yeah, I've been making bank."

"Tch." Said Lucus before turning away to look at the door.

"You still haven't told me what happened that day." Said Lucus in a rather sad moment without looking away from the door.

His brother simply stared at him with pity in his eyes before finally giving in.

"As a businessman, we're not supposed to share information about our customers with others. But since it's you I'll make an exception this time around." Said his brother causing Lucus to turn around in his seat with big puppy eyes.

"I'm listening." He said with his arms on his lap.

"Well for starters, I should probably mention that she's just 8 years old. The same age you are."

"What really?! I thought she was at least 10 or something!"

"10? Yeah, I can see that. She's rather tall for her age." Said his brother while rubbing his chin.

"Anyways, by the time I managed to pry the information out of her, some old wrinkly guy came up to her and said, 'Ms, we should start heading back now before it gets even later.'"

"And what happened? Did she just follow him? Did you see whether she drove away in a limo or something? Maybe an armored truck? She practically said she was rich so I'm really curious."

Hearing that final line, his brother started to have a suspicion about why he actually missed her.

"Is money all you think about?"

"Money? Why would I think about that? Can't you make bank just playing one of those games professional players play?" Asked Lucus with his head tilted.

"Nevermind forget I asked." Responded his brother, regretting to even question his brother's low IQ.

'And here I thought I would finally have a chance at a good life even if it was in my later years. Sigh.' Thought the brother.

"Anyway, she didn't speak much to the man. I don't have a habit of listening to other people's conversations. But from what I could make out, her family is probably supper-loaded. Maybe one of those Elites we heard so much about. Anyway, she seemed rather reluctant about going. Something about killing her father if he ever pulled a stunt like that again."

"What?! Is she even allowed to speak like that? I know that if I ever said something like that, I would probably..."

"It's not a matter of if. If I or our parents ever hear you talk about us like that you can expect to live in the streets from now on."

"Tch. Why would I backtalk people who literally spend their entire life caring for me? I'm not that stupid."

"Apparently. And here I thought I would have to explain this to you as well."

"WTF bro! That's low even for you."

"Heh. Anyways want me to continue or Nah?"

"Yes, please!" Said Lucus as he calmed down in his seat like a good little dog.

Smiling at his tail wagging, his brother continued. "Anyways before leaving she told me that within two weeks she would do everything in her power to come back here. Something about this being the only place where she actually got the chance to be a kid or something. Not really sure what kind of life she has been living to say that. Almost makes me pity the child."

"Almost?"

"Well, it was the motion of her asking the old guy beside her for the car keys that really made me question whether she was a child at all."

Lucus just looked at him dumbfoundedly. "Explain." He asked.

"Well, she just stood there with her hands held out not batting an eye until the old man finally gave in and handed her the keys."

"What he actually gave them to her?!"

"Yep. But it was the car I saw pass by the window that really shocked me. I think it was one of those MXR or something. It was really hard to recognize considering that I don't know much about them. But I know for a fact that it was one of those sports models at the very least. It was bright red with a low but sleek profile. No windows from what I could see."

"So how do you she was actually the one driving it?"

"Don't you know? I bet you a year of my salary that it had nerve Gear installed so that she could drive."

"Ohh... can you do that?"

"Yep, only the rich though. But can you imagine the time it must have taken to customize the car so that a child could drive it? Most Nerve Gear, at least when it comes to cars, are designed for adults. And even then most people usually only have an AI drive their cars for them. It's rather hard to find people who still enjoy driving themselves. Especially an 8-year-old."

"Hmm... that probably explains why she was so confident about beating in playing games."

"Yep, since most modern games use that expensive as ass shit to play. She probably that because she had the real-world experience that there was nothing she couldn't do without it."

"Dang... I wish we were rich so that we could do something like that. How about letting me use the ones upstairs?" Lucus asked with his eyes wide open.

"Heck no! Those things are my moneymakers. It took me forever to find a sponsor willing enough to cough up the money to buy one of them, let alone 10 of them. I was really lucky that day."

"Ahh... come on! You never even let me go upstairs! The least you could do is let me look."

"I did let you look, don't you remember?"

"Pictures and real life are completely different." Said Lucus with determination on his face.

"Maybe for now..." Said his brother with a sad look on his face, causing Lucus to remember why he started focusing on his work so much lately.

At this moment the door swung open followed by a little girl wearing a red dress and her hair curled to perfection. Her beautiful purple eyes shone brightly in the sun, slowly disappearing to a cool black the moment she stepped into the darkness that was the arcade.

Behind her was a tall middle-aged man wearing sunglasses in a black and white suit. He looked to be nothing more than a means to deter people from approaching the young girl. Seeing Lucus in the front seat along with the man she had met the other day, her eyes shone full of determination.

With the utmost confidence, she raised her right hand and pointed at Lucus.

"I want a rematch!" She said with every fiber of Lucus shivering. It was as though she had completely changed these past two weeks to the point where such a statement carried great power. Still, Lucus had some confidence after remembering the guidebook she had bought. Unless she was smart enough to learn an ancient language at just 8 years old, there was no way she could beat him. And even if she had memorized everything about it, there was no way she was skilled enough to beat him when it came to APM.

"Sure." He said rather mockingly.

With a grin, Iris followed him as they made their way to the back. Meanwhile, the man in black walked up to the front desk taking out a black card.

"I'm here to pay for the miss." He said in a rather neutral manner.

"It's free for kids under 10. 30 Credits per half hour for anyone over or you can pay 50 Credits per hour. I'm only mentioning this because the last time she was here she spent 2 hours playing the same game."

The man looked at him rather stern despite his eyes not showing before he swapped out the card for a silver-looking one.

"I guess it's a prepaid establishment. How much time do I have to renew my spot before my time runs out?"

"If you create an account with us you can carry over any unused time. That is as long as you remember to check-in and out. Oh, and that's only the pricing for the first floor. The second floor starts at 200 and the third at 500. But that depends on the game you wish to play."

"Where do I sign?" The man asked as he prepaid 200 credits.

"Also, are the games any fun up there?"

"Hmm... if you consider playing nerve gear or VR games in AR mode fun, then yeah it's fun."

With that statement, the man's eye seemed to have gained a new shine to them. That is before he turned around to see Iris talking to the boy he had met earlier. With that, his face seemed to be full of disappointment.

"Sigh... I'm just asking because she mentioned this. But do you guys really allow kids to gamble on games?"

"Yes we do, we have all the information forwarded to their guardians and allow them to keep a local balance off-site so that it doesn't affect their actual allowance. She already created her account the last time it was here so she's more than ready to go. Why? Is she thinking of betting?"

"Can we pre-bet?"

"Sure, that is as long as you're willing not to take it back afterward. It's all here in our official guidebook to Nick's Arcade." Said Nick as he handed the book to the man.

"5000 Credits on everyone she challenges, up to the first 10 people." Said the man before he started walking over after depositing the Credits.

"Dang. And I thought I was cold. That man holds zero confidence in his master. Oh well, not my problem. I'll just wait till after their match." Said Nick as he kept his eye on the two.

"So I was thinking," said Lucus as he began talking to Iris the moment they reach their spots. "How about we play challenge mode in the arena?"

"Sure thing." Said Iris, causing Lucus to smile.

"But on one condition. We both use Blank Cards and activate Easter Mode." Added Iris as she smiled wickedly at Lucus.

Hearing this Lucus froze. It seems as though the noob he thought he was facing had grown up more than he expected. So what if she knew how the game works. So what if she had actually managed to read the guide and learned about the game's options. He still had a chance.

"Alrighty." He said.

"But before that, how about we set up the betting pool and make it a best out of three? That way we can make a few Credits while we play?" Asked Iris.

"You want to bet on this?" Asked Lucus.

"Yep, here I transfer you 100 Credits. Let's make it 10 Credits per match. In case you want to continue challenging me after you lose. That way even if you do lose and give up on the first match you still walk away with 90 Credits in your pocket." Said Iris with an innocent face.

Hearing his own Promo Pal Beeb with the news of the transaction, a sour face appeared.

"You're really pushing your luck with me kid." He said.

"Kid? We're both the same age." Smiled Iris.

Seeing the shocked expression on Lucus's face, Iris explained. "I had my butler look into you and your brother before coming here. Gotta know the people you spend your time with, don't you think?"

Hearing this, Lucus felt his blood boil. 'How dare she look into our private information!' He thought.

"You're on!" He screamed.

No one knows how it started. But all the clicking noise on the first floor seemed to be coming from two individuals.

On one side was a boy who was frantically pressing on keys trying to get the upper hand. While on the other side, stood a girl with a calm demeanor slowly typing away to victory.

She was only using her right hand to play as she ended the game with a headshot against her opponent.

The boy could be seen on the ground, groveling and talking to himself as he wondered out loud.

"How! How can she improve so quickly!" He yelled.

"Are you okay Lucus?" Said the girl as she reached down to his eye level.

"You lost 30 rounds already, are you sure you want to continue?"

"Come on Lucus you can do it! I bet 20 Credits on you!" Screamed a male boy in the midst of the crowd that had formed. There were at least 30 people watching the game and clamoring among one another.

"Holy Hannah did you guys see that! That girl only used one hand to beat Lucus till he was crying on the floor!"

"Shut up Roger! I ain't crying!" Screamed back Lucus to the boy that had said that comment.

"What do you mean? I ended up having to switch who I was betting on because you were losing so much." Retorted back the red hair boy.

Seeing the angry look on his face. Iris couldn't help but laugh. She had thought she had broken the poor kid into next Tuesday. But seeing as how he was getting back into the rude and brave little boy she had met. She felt quite happy.

"What are you laughing about!" Screamed Lucus.

"How about we switch into our gaming account instead of those stupid blanks, huh?!"

"Oh, for sure. In fact, I'm willing to go against anyone who wants to challenge me, not just you. Besides, do you even got the money to keep playing against me? Or do you want me to spot you another 100 Credits?" Said Iris in a sassy manner while having her hand on her hip.

"Grrrr... I don't need your money to continue betting I have..." Lucus took out Promo Pal to look at his Aracade Balance to see it reach 0.

"Dang it! I forgot I went on an eating spree the other day!"

"Hehe, serves you right." Said one of the spectators.

"How about letting one of us have a turn?"

"Shh... Quite! Can't you see they're about to use their personal accounts? I for one want to see what we'll be up against."

"You're right! I haven't seen her in the Arcade at all! Does she even have a gaming profile for this game?"

...

As the people continue with the noise, Iris just walked closer to Lucus and patted his back before he heard another beeb.

"Here, I'm having fun so let's continue until you decide to give up." Said Iris with a loving smile.

With a sigh, Lucus got up from his spot half defeated.

"Okay then let's play. I'll have you know that despite Easter Mode allowing you to gain different weapons and skills before the match, it won't help you against my private account." Said Lucus with a determined face.

"Sure, then let's take it off. I wanna see your fighting style." Said Iris nonchalantly.

Lucus then walked to the wall of the Arcade which was filled with small containers resembling lockers. There he picked a random box and used his Promo Pal to activate it. After a few moments, the box opened to reveal a translucent black card with the words Rox's Game on it.

As he made his way back to the desk he looked at Iris somewhat puzzled.

"I forgot you just started this game two weeks ago. Why don't we..."

Before Lucus could finish speaking, Iris reached into a pocket that was in front of her red dress. It was quite surprising as people didn't expect a pocket to exist near her waist area.

As people shockingly watch her retrieve a translucent white card with the words Rox's Game. They couldn't help but stutter.

"Is that an original Holo Disk?"

"I think so?"

"Weren't those things instinct almost instantly after the great change a few years back?"

...

As people kept talking, Lucus frowned.

"Where did you get something like that?" He asked.

"I got my dad to get me one after our equivalent exchange."

"Ahh... so it's someone else's..."

Before Lucus could finish, Iris inserted the card into a slot beside the computer. There the computer rang with the words...

"Welcome Back To Rox's Game Lady Iris."

As the game loaded into her profile, people could clearly see the date the account was created.

It was labeled to be exactly one week ago! What's more, it showed her avatar level to be maxed at level 100!

That blatantly shocked everyone! It was one thing to have a fully maxed out character but it was a whole other thing to max it out in a week. Even among them, the least amount of time they could do it in was in a month. Even Lucus himself required almost three weeks to speed run a max character.

What kind of beast was she? Didn't Lucus say she started playing two weeks ago? Then why haven't they seen her last week as she maxed out her account? Did she go to some other Arcade? Did another Arcade even have this game?

Lucus was nervous, but he wasn't showing it. He still hoped that the character he had grind to perfection was more than enough to fully utilize his skills.

Loading into the arena, Lucus was playing as a maxed-out Magic Sword's man.

On the other hand, seeing Iri's maxed-out female Assasin. There wasn't much pressure considering the difference in class. He was quite surprised as he expected her to stick with the gunner class they had played as before due to its ease of use and quick level up.

"Let's us begin shall we?" Said Iris as she looked at Lucus with a grin.