The question made Perseus bite his lips to stop himself from laughing, while Tobias looked like he had been shot.“You both don't like my pasta?” Tobias inquired, a hurt look appearing on his face. “Why eat it if you don't like it?”“It tasted awful,” Orion admitted. “We ate it because you made it; also remember that Perseus mostly gave his to me with the excuse that he doesn't."Perseus reacted in time and shut Orion's lips with a bundle of ten thousand dollars.“If you tell him a thing.” Perseus began as he stared at Orion. “I will take back my money.”Seeing the free money, Orion had no reason to continue what he was saying. He took the money with a wide grin on his face before digging it into his pocket.Tobias frowned at Perseus. “How come he gets that and I don't?"“Fine.”With a smile on Perseus' face, he gave Tobias the same amount of money.“I hope you both can get some new clothes to wear or if you want to invest the money somewhere, you can. If the money isn't enough, you c
Gamer No. 2. A thin line appeared on Perseus' face. The dude in front of him was the second-best after Eris. From the look of things, he looked like he was.Perseus glanced at Eris, and he noticed that she had changed back into pants and a hoodie. His brows furrowed. She wore a gown earlier; why did she wear it if she wasn't comfortable in it?“This is where my face is, man.” Ethan drew his attention back to himself. “Are you staring at her to save you?”Perseus grinned at Ethan. “I like your idea, but I wouldn't want Eris to interrupt my game with you.”Ethan folded his arms, his confidence aura emitting from him as his lips curled into a perfect smirk.“Is that so?” Ethan asked. “Are you really that confident? Judging from the look of things, you don't look like a gamer to me.”Perseus shrugged, rolling his eyes in the process. “Yeah, it's not like I would walk around with the sign on my forehead.”“I know a gamer when I see one.” Ethan scoffed.“I guess your observations don't work
His words shook the gamers. Perseus, on the other hand, had no idea why the gamers looked stunned.“What's so special about being challenged to a duel with him?” Perseus inquired, his gaze trailing from Eris to the others.Eris stared at him; she was staring at Ethan in disbelief, but her reaction said otherwise. Ethan was willing to lose his position again. She thought that he had changed when she took his place, but now she knows that he hasn't.“Here is how the duel goes.” One of the gamers began. “There has to be a loser and a winner; the winner has the right to tell the loser what to do for him.”“No matter what the winner instructs the loser to do, the loser must do it. Also, the duel is going to be held in two days. Both gamers have to practice before then.”Perseus liked the sound of it because he knew that he wouldn't lose. This way, he could get the position and complete the mission.It was so easy.“You could ask him to give us his position for you, and he could ask you nev
Perseus grinned at her. "Yes, I am."He led the way until they got to the cafe that he chose. It took a lot of time before he chose that one; the others followed him until they were standing in front of the computers.“I will be right back.” He told Eris. “Could you order pizza and drinks?” He requested it as he handed his golden card to her.Eris was stunned when she saw the card, as well as the others in the cafe.“Is that a golden card?” One of them asked, “Is he wealthy?”Ethan didn't seem to like the fact that the others were paying attention to Perseus. He pulled out his card, took Perseus's card, and threw it at Perseus.“We don't need your charity; I can pay for the pizza and drinks and any other thing that you all need,” Ethan said.Perseus's lips pressed against each other as he caught the card in between his fingers.“Okay,” Perseus muttered, his gaze shifting to the gamers. “I wanted to pay; however, Ethan suggested he did. So, you all order whatever you want to, and bill
Nick shook his head again.“Iris, what is the percentage of me convincing him?”[12%]“So low?”Perseus wanted to give up, but then an idea came into his head.“I already said that I wasn't going to stay here for more than an hour.” Nick folded his arms. “Money can't make me..." he paused when Perseus shoved something in his face.With a smile on his face, Perseus asked. “What about pasta from my restaurant?”Nick's eyes widened at the sight of the pasta.“Iris, what's the percentage of him agreeing to it now?”[89%]Perseus grinned; the man wanted the pasta.“Why are you giving it to me?” Nick demanded. "Besides, I didn't see you come here holding pasta.”Perseus smiled. “I have it with me, but you didn't notice. Can we have the cafe for five hours?”Perseus placed the bowl in front of Nick. The aroma of the pasta filled the atmosphere, making Nick's mouth water for the pasta.Nick cleared his throat, his face turning red in embarrassment. “How could a bowl of pasta equal five hours
Ethan slowly rose from the seat, bumping his elbow against Perseus' shoulder at the same time.“Let's see what you are capable of.” Ethan grinned at Perseus.Eris shoved Ethan out of the way. “Who is going to challenge him first?"One of the gamers raised his hand, and Eris nodded at him. He took his seat on the one next to Perseus.“The game is going to begin soon.” Eris muttered. “Are you ready, Perseus?”Perseus raised his head to look at Eris. “I still don't know the name of the game or what it is about. Can you tell me?”Eris was stunned; the game was so popular, she had no idea why Perseus couldn't recognize it.“Hah!” Ethan let out a loud chuckle. “I knew he was trash as soon as I laid my eyes on him. He doesn't even know the name of the game. I'm also sure that he has no idea how to play either.”Perseus' lips curled into a smirk. “Is there anything wrong with it? Tell me what you know about those games, and we will get started.”“Sure.” Eris ignored Ethan.“Are you seriously
Perseus' gaze was focused on the screen, and then he noticed that the livestream had begun. Comments were already flooding in about him being a chef and a gamer at the same time.“You need to focus on the game, not the comments. Press the start button when I count to 3. Got it?"Perseus and Jeremy nodded their heads in agreement.[Since you chose the weakest model, we will have no choice but to play the game differently.]“No need,” Perseus murmured confidently. “I already know where everything is.”“Starting in three, two, one, now."Both pressed start, and Perseus moved his character immediately. He aimed to find the map first.”[The model Hiro could teleport.]Perseus grinned. “Did you forget that Alia can mask her scent and hide herself from attack?”“As long as I can stay away from Hiro and don't go into combat with him, I am safe.”It was not like that matter; he would see the attack beforehand anyway.Alia, the Perseus model, made her way towards where the map that led to her b
Ethan was surprised by how quickly the game had ended. "What happened? Why did the game end so fast?" he asked.Perseus tilted his head to the side. "I won?" he said, raising his eyebrows. "Who's next?"Eris cleared her throat, getting everyone's attention. "The next person can go next; the second game will be starting soon."Perseus put his headphones back on and waited for the next contestants to get ready. Ethan, on the other hand, tried to convince himself that Perseus had just gotten lucky.Perseus had a smile on his face as he defeated the second contestant. He did the same for all the others until only Ethan was left.He raised his head to look at Ethan. "Are you going to play with me now?"Ethan's jaw tightened, and his legs felt like jelly with fear. "No, I didn't say I was going to play today. Remember, we have a duel."Perseus realized what was happening, and Ethan was terrified that he was going to lose. A grin spread across Perseus's face."I understand that you might be
Two years later, Perseus was at the airport, having just landed back in his home country after traveling full-time for two years. He hadn’t heard from anyone during that time, as he’d been constantly changing his number while traveling. He had successfully visited 100 countries and would have continued if not for being called home by his aunt.“Perseus!” Sherry’s voice made him flinch as she called out to him.It had been two years since they last spoke. After the game, he had vanished, claiming he wanted to travel.[She waited for you, Iris noted. I doubt the others did.][He glanced at her. <
Perseus smiled at the cheering crowd, then turned his gaze to the other side of the audience. His eyes widened in embarrassment when he spotted his aunt and Eriane, waving an old, embarrassing photo of him.His aunt was cheering louder than the teenage girls around her, almost as if she were a teenager herself.He wondered how she even knew about the game and its location since he hadn’t invited her. He was sure he’d be scolded later, but he didn’t mind. Shifting his attention away from her, Perseus walked to his gaming seat.As soon as they all sat down, Perseus glanced at the opposing team, just centimeters away. Sam, one of the opposing players, grinned at him, then gave Perseus the middle finger and mouthed, "Loser. We all know how terrible you are at gaming. Stop using your handsome face
‘What is my chance of winning now?’ Perseus questioned.Iris glanced at a panel, her eyes widening in shock. [79%][What am I seeing? You have upgraded to level 20 for discovering Forest's secret and finding a way to defeat him.] She squealed.[Is this really true?]A glint of relief slowly washed over Iris. There was hope that Perseus could finally defeat the man who had long wanted his life.[You can beat him now;] Iris claimed. [Just breathe properly.][His skills have been sealed with all of the points you have left. He won’t be able to use them against you anymore.] Iris announced.Perseus glanced at her, and a t
Forest leaned in, his eyes cold and calculating. "This isn't just a fight. It's a battle of life and death. I often wonder why your parents gave the power I wanted most to you. I’ve waited for years to see if you’re worthy of the power you possess. But if this is all you have, then you’re not worthy and are just a piece of useless dirt occupying space."Before Perseus could react, Forest flung him across the room like a ragdoll. Perseus crashed to the ground, pain radiating through his body despite Iris’ efforts to heal him.[Perseus, we can’t keep this up much longer!] Iris warned. [You need to find a way to defeat him, or he’ll—]"I know," Perseus muttered, forcing himself to his feet. His vision blurred, but he refused to back down. "I know, Iris. But I’m not giving up. Not yet."Forest approached him slowly, almost leisurely. "So, what will it be, Perseus? Will you continue to fight and prove yourself? Or will you admit defeat and accept that you’re not ready for this?"“If you ad
[You can! You idiot!] Iris yelled.Perseus snapped out of his thoughts and dodged the attack by moving to the side as quickly as he could. This time, he didn’t hold back his power and unleashed it to the maximum.[Good job.]The man’s eyes glinted with admiration. “Aren’t you a little thing?” he asked. “I get to see someone I can actually fight with without killing them first. This is wonderful. You’re amazing!”Perseus gritted his teeth. The way the man spoke, it was clear he was looking down on him. “What is your name?”The man was taken aback by the sudden question. “Why are you asking your killer their name?”“I just wanted to know the name of the person I’m going to kill before I kill them,” Perseus replied. “Is it that hard?”The man’s lips curled. “Fine. My name is Forest. Not a common name, I guess.”Forest? Perseus’ eyes darted to Iris. ‘Analyze him with the name.’[I am unable to analyze him.] Iris said. [I tried when he arrived, but it was impossible.]“Let’s continue with
[Your death is near, host.] Iris said, appearing next to Perseus, her gaze fixed on Aera.[Why are you following her? Shouldn’t you be in the game?]Perseus glanced at Iris. ‘I should be in the game, but she insisted on treating my injuries first.’[You have to leave her and level up!] Iris cried. [I have no idea what’s happening, but the panel is blinking more furiously than before.][Your death is really imminent! You need to listen to me and run!]‘I’m not running,’ Perseus replied. ‘That man killed one of my family members and went on with his life. Now, he’s come after me, leaving Zeppelin out of the fight. If I run and he can’t find me, he’ll go after Zeppelin and kill him.’Iris’ eyes widened. [If you don’t run, there’s a high chance you’ll die.]‘I know that.’[Why are you with her then?]‘I can’t let Zeppelin face the same fate as our parents.’[It won’t take long for you to reach level 20.] Iris retorted.‘I have something he doesn't have.’[And what’s that?]‘I have you and
Tossing in bed, Perseus looked away from Iris. “You don’t have to apologize, Iris. Even if I were to die, it wouldn’t be today anyway.”Iris scowled at him. [What did you just say?]“I said if I were to die, I wouldn’t—”His words were cut off as an electric current surged through him. The shock was so intense that he trembled all over, and when it stopped, steam was rising from his body.[That’s what you get for thinking about death, host!] Iris bellowed. [Do you know that both Lint and I will be gone if you die? Do you know how many people will be sad when you die?]Perseus flinched and slowly turned to lie on his back. Seeing the annoyed look on Iris’s face made him want to laugh.“I was only joking,” Perseus muttered. “I won’t die. I promise.”[You idiot!] Iris yelled, watching Perseus laugh. [If you die, I will kill you!]“How are you going to kill someone who’s already dead?”Two days later.“Are you ready?” Eris demanded, poking her head through the door to look at her teammat
Ethan handed his phone to Perseus, who glanced at the picture. It was indeed him. They must have gotten it from security footage somewhere.Perseus nodded. “Alright.”“See you later,” Ethan said with a grin. “Don’t go anywhere alone.”“Okay.”Perseus stared at Iris. “I thought I told you to deactivate all of the cameras.”[I did,] she claimed. [I might have forgotten to turn the others off.]Perseus headed for the door since the game of the day would begin soon.[You were wearing a mask though. They wouldn’t be able to recognize you,] Iris said. [There’s nothing to worry about.]Upon reaching the general living room, Perseus met with the others, who were peering at him as if he had something on his face.“You were late, Perseus,” Liliana said.Liliana was standing in front of them with a woman with long lashes next to her. She grinned at Perseus, a smile crossing her face.“I had something to do,” Perseus replied. “I apologize for arriving late.”“No worries,” Liliana said. “Now that
Perseus turned around to look at the man who had just spoken, ready to throw a punch if necessary.“Are you questioning me?” Cynthia demanded.From the look on her face, she seemed nothing like the woman she was with the leader. Perhaps seeing the man who had made her life a living hell taken by the police had given her some sort of confidence.“Nope,” he replied. “I was just worried if he would be able to lead the girls to his car. They are quite fierce.”“We know that,” Cynthia retorted. “Back to your job.”The men closed the door without any more questions, and Perseus glanced at her. He wanted to ask why she hadn’t let him use his fists but decided against it. In no time, the room was filled with women.Perseus gritted his teeth at the sight of them looking at him with terrified expressions. He wondered what all these women must have gone through to be that scared.“I will be letting them out now,” Perseus told Cynthia.“I will keep watch of the others,” Cynthia said before headin