Chapter 25 - King
Chapter 25 - King
translator: xiin
editors: apricot & juurensha
Zoe soon tossed Wu Jin’s reaction to the back of his mind.
According to Caesar’s girlfriend, Red had a long history of being active at a certain well-known building located in the downtown urban area.
The three of them made their way there by following the map, entertaining themselves by eating and playing along the way.
Azure Cosmos was lit up as bright as day even during the night, with the lights, shadows, and smells all infused with wanton revelry. This planetoid that had been forged by cutting-edge technology seemed to never go to sleep; all facilities were open 24/7, overlooking no opportunity to drain visitors’ wallets.
The fine steed that was pulling a carriage to one side of the road snorted. Caesar took a look at the price, then immediately turned around to leave.
“800 credits.” Caesar cried out exaggeratedly. “Why don’t they just rob us directly?”
“That’s what prices at Azure Cosmos are like.” Zoe shrugged his shoulders, “Otherwise, why would they only accept aristocrats?”
As they passed through an outdoor amusement park, Caesar’s eyes swept over an air gun shooting game––players could exchange points for any giant stuffed toy if they accumulated 600 points.
Zoe had a bad feeling. “This fool can’t be thinking of...”
Five minutes later, Caesar had already finished paying and picked up an air gun. He snickered foolishly, “My wifey gave me three tickets. I should give her a return gift...”
There was a bang. Seven rings.
Six rings.
“There’s something wrong with this gun!” Caesar cried angrily.
Zoe couldn’t bear it anymore and pulled him away, simultaneously expressing his disdain for this useless assault position contestant.
After the sniper stepped up, the air gun was extremely stable as it accumulated points from the tenth ring.
The monitoring device to one side suddenly rang out. “Warning, warning, abnormal data––”
Zoe froze for a moment. It was only now that he noticed the ‘Amateurs only, professional players/servicemen should refrain from participating’ sign stuck up on the wall.
Watchmen were already headed their way from behind the scenes of the amusement park.
Zoe made a swift decision. “Little Witch, quickly!”
Two minutes later, when the two on-duty personnel arrived beside the stand, Wu Jin was poking at the target, his shots constantly landing between the third ring and missing the target completely.
The lovely teenager was pouting, looking like a stubborn and soft little animal as he struggled endlessly with the air gun.
One of the watchmen, an older woman, was immediately affected by the cuteness, her voice soft and comforting, “Our amusement park adjusted all the guns last month in order to make more money. It’s not easy to play, and saying that you can exchange 600 points for a stuffed toy is very deceptive. Nobody has gotten one yet. Little brother, how about I give you one in secret...”
Wu Jin refused, his face red.
Caesar couldn’t keep the bitterness from his gaze as the three of them left.
Zoe sighed. “Little Witch, although there was a problem with the gun, your misses––you really need to practice.”
Wu Jin was a little depressed, but he cheered up again after a short while.
Night was like daytime in Azure Cosmos.
Shopping malls, gambling venues, cresting waterfalls, gentle string music, lethal weapons displayed right on the street, young men chasing each other, laughing and chatting young girls, and neighborhood blocks divided by several factions all coexisted in the main city in ways both treacherous and peaceful.
In a flash, the group of three soon reached their destination.
The downtown area was filled with surging crowds.
In the middle of the intersection was a huge building that occupied four blocks––
This was a magnificent, shrine-like venue.
The dark brick walls made it appear like a fierce beast crouching in the middle of the street, while its broad dome shone brilliantly in the night sky. The complex reliefs were highlighted by drifting light and shadow, giving the false perception that it was illusory and unreal.
A scarlet carpet extended from the fountain in the grass, and silver inscriptions could be seen everywhere:
“Block 16, owned by the Floating City.”
Wu Jin let out a ‘wow’, his mouth dropping open.
Caesar was in a daze. “The underground matches are held here? They’re really motherf*cking rich... That Floating City or something...”
They entered the atrium of the building. There was a little sister seated on a high stool in the reception area, wearing a puffy, light blue skirt and eating melon seeds. She chuckled, then pointed to Caesar and Zoe, “Big brothers, turn left for the security check.”
Caesar was dissatisfied. “Why is it only us two...”
The little sister winked, her expression seeming to say that this was only normal, “Tall and strong. You don’t look like a decent citizen. Go to the back for a gun check.”
Caesar: ...Are there any decent citizens in Azure Cosmos?
The little sister was delighted as she went to look at Wu Jin. She was obsessed with beauty and couldn’t tear herself away, her eyes full of amazement.
Even her voice unconsciously turned gentle, “Come in with me first, little brother. There are a lot of people today. Here, this is my work number. Little brother, what’s your name? Is it your first time here? Do you live inside or outside the cosmos... Little brother, would you like red wine or champagne...”
Wu Jin recalled that the doctor had told him not to drink after being discharged from the hospital, but the degree of alcohol in red wine wasn’t high.
He nodded to express his thanks and accepted a crystal glass from the little sister.
The two of them walked through a long and luxurious corridor, and then Wu Jin’s eyes grew wide.
There was a stage several times wider than the one for the Crosson Show set under the dome––this was a behemoth of a stage that spanned four blocks, and the audience stands surrounding it were packed full with excited spectators.
Holographic screens were set up in mid-air. Amidst the dense light particles, it seemed that everything on the stage was within reach.
The audience was in the dark, but there were cameras strewn all over the building.
When Wu Jin entered, quite a few people some distance away looked in his direction.
One of them was stunned, only managing to react a moment later, “This, this, this seems to be that person Silly Red talked about, how did he end up here? And he’s not sitting in a private box? Hurry, quickly go and notify His Lordship!”
“This... His Lordship already went up. He left just now...”
At the scene, all the screens flickered slightly, and the familiar silver mask emblem emerged in the empty space. Earth-shaking cheers instantly burst out beneath the dome.
Wu Jin was given a start as madness erupted from all directions around him. The aristocratic ladies dressed in long gowns in the front row threw handkerchiefs and flowers towards the stage, and countless spectators stood up like the tide to pay homage to the individual who was stepping out.
At a time like this, even the little sister who had led the way here was no longer eating melon seeds. She held out a terminal and excitedly recorded what was happening on the stage. Wu Jin’s vision was sharp as he noted that there was a miniature hand-crafted accessory that looked like a mask hanging to one side of her puffy skirt.
On the stage, the large, intricate door finally opened.
The man in the silver mask stood up from his throne, raising his long-stemmed goblet towards the audience beneath the stage in a silent gesture.
Shrill screams immediately rang out.
The little sister’s face was flushed. She picked up her glass of fruit wine and clinked her glass with the man on the virtual screen, while chattering rapidly, “Little brother, it’s good that you weren’t late––Ahhhhhhhh––my King is so handsome ahhhh––”
Wu Jin stared dumbly at the man on the stage. After a long time, he finally stuttered, “He’s...”
“You don’t know?!” The little sister was stunned, “The four time champion of the underground league, who used to be Floating City’s trump card. Now, he’s––Floating City’s new King.”
The king’s toast symbolized the start of the underground match.
Very soon, the map unfolded below the stage, and the contestants began their battle preparations. However, countless eyes still followed the man on stage, up until he disappeared into the compressed light.
The little sister resumed eating her melon seeds, chattering endlessly in the dark and pointing to the aristocratic ladies, “The resell price for tickets to today’s match were pushed up to over ten times the original price. Tsk, everyone wants to be taken away by the new King tonight.”
“Dream on! The King won’t take off his mask for them!” the little sister lifted her chin, “Little brother, have some melon seeds? I’m telling you, until now, there’s still been no gossip around the King. I suspect that that Crazy Lion Red is the one who normally warms his bed...”
Wu Jin was in a trance. He couldn’t quite process everything, dazedly accepting the melon seeds.
The lights suddenly dimmed in the area where the two of them were located.
The audience stands were spacious and luxurious, with seats set very far apart. At this time, the match was already underway, and nobody else around them noticed their area.
The little sister let out a small cry.
Unexpectedly, the only source of light––the holographic screen, had also turned dark.
She was about to use her terminal to call for assistance, lifting her head in the faint light and then immediately freezing on the spot.
That tall, broad, and indifferent man had appeared at some unknown point in time. He was standing in front of Wu Jin.
The faint shimmer of light reflected off a jawline that was knife-sharp and failed to land on the familiar silver-grey mask. He stood high up above, his cold, detached gaze sweeping over the glass of red wine in Wu Jin’s hand.
“!!!” Wu Jin’s conditioned reflexes kicked in––
Just like in the training room two weeks ago, he obediently stood up in a rush in front of the man.
Juurensha: Ooo, looks like WS isn’t super happy about his bunny drinking with someone else...
xiin: i’m totally NOT squealing and cringing at the same time...
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