[Special Arena Test: Wave Battle has ended.]

  [Time taken: 3 hours, 45 minutes and 39 seconds.]

  [CONGRATULATIONS]

  [You have set the newest records for the fastest time and most monsters cleared in the Wave Battle. Your name will now be registered in the Security Commission’s Hall of Fame!]

  All the holographic projections flickered and dissolved, leaving only the sterile white lights illuminating the training arena. Jin lay sprawled on the floor, his chest heaving like a bellows. Every inch of his muscle screamed.

  “F-Finally… it… ends… “

  Three hours. Forty-five minutes. Thirty-nine seconds.

  The numbers burned into his mind, a testament to what he’d just endured. He shook his head once before letting out a weak but satisfied laugh. His partner for the conquest sat nearby, his knee supporting him from keeling over.

  Jin turned his face. “I’m not going to do you any more favours for now, Ironshield.”

  His laughter boomed through the empty arena. “Favours? If anyone’s doing any favour, it’s me doing you a big fat juicy one.”

  “Whatever.”

  Jin groaned, rolling onto his side. The movement sent a fresh wave of exhaustion through his limbs, but he forced himself to prop up on one elbow. His vision blurred for a second before tunnelling on Ironshield’s grinning face.

  “So, what now? I passed?”

  “Pass? I could give you the license right this instant.” Ironshield shot a glance upward to the windowed observation room. “But I’m sure some folks up there won’t be too happy if I do that.”

  “All that for nothing? Figures.” Jin was finally able to stand after some rest. With his energy returning, and nothing else to do – hopefully there would be no more of this so-called special or hidden test – he made his way off the platform. “Anyway, I’m passing them regardless. With or without your so-called favour.”

  Once again, Ironshield's laughter filled the place. “Such confidence. But at least you’re not all talk. You sure you’re a Supporter Class?”

  “Could swing to the Artisan route. But Combat type is where I find some fun, right? Then again, an Herbalist doesn’t scream frontliner. So, support it is.”

  Ironshield glanced around the training arena. ‘Support, eh?”

  He then inspected the monolith. Something was amiss with their virtual simulated battle earlier. No one ever cleared the special test before. Not even their latest Star Rookie Valkyrie, who was considered the most powerful Player of her generation. And she was no less partnered by President Hunter, the leader of White Raven and one of Neo-Tokyo's top Player himself.

  “Threads? No. A cocoon?” Ironshield traced his hands over the monolith. “Since when did it get here? Is this your work, Frank?”

  “A little trick I have up my sleeve.”

  And then it dawned on Ironshield. Through their ordeal, the monolith never registered a single damage.

  “H-How could this be? Frank?!”

  The man laughed. “You’re not the only one who needs to protect someone else. Or has the ability to.”

  “B-But how?”

  “Thought you’ll never ask.” Jin lifted his arm with the training bracelet. “Remember this?”

  Ironshield nodded. “And?”

  “You know how the bracelet works, right?” Jin tapped the device on his wrist. “Every time the hologram’s attack hits it, the system registers damage. The monolith’s the same too, it being a part of the simulation’s core. So, I wrapped it in a cocoon. No hits, no signal, means no damage.”

  Ironshield’s eyes widened. “You shielded the monolith? Hoping that the system couldn’t even register the hits?”

  Jin shrugged but soon cracked a sly grin. “But no harm in trying, yeah? Didn’t know it’d work that well. Wished the RIFT work in the same way.”

  Ironshield muffled laughter soon burst into hysterics. “You are a proper nutcase, Frank.”

  The man didn’t say anything else, only giving a thumbs-up as he exited the training arena. Even out in the hallway, Ironshield’s laughter could still be heard clearly.

  “Guess someone enjoyed it a little too much,” Jin mumbled under his breath. “Can’t blame him, though. After all, it might have been hard for him to stay out of RIFT all these years.”

  A smile cracked on Jin’s face. But that soon vanished as his stomach started grumbling like an ogre’s war cry. By the time he reached the SeComm’s main lobby cafeteria, it was noon rush. Every table was filled to the brim, the air thick with the scent of fried rice, ramen, grilled meat and the occasional whiff of burnt coffee from the overworked machines. Even the bakery where he often bought cinnamon croissants for Bahamut was left empty. No offering today.

  Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  Jin scanned the crowded room, and ten minutes later, the lunch hour rush was still an unyielding tide. His stomach growled louder.

  No way in hell I’m going to spend my whole noon here.

  Tired of waiting – plus a dose of frustration – he turned on his heel, already pulling out his phone. A quick message to Old Man Sid would do the trick – assuming that his friend wasn’t drowning in paperwork or yelling at some poor office boy.

  [Lunch? My treat. Cafeteria’s full.]

  The reply came in an instant.

  [Sid: You treating? That’s rare. Did something good happen?]

  [The usual. So, you on?]

  [Sid: Righto! Come to my office. B7. I’ll give you the clearance.]

  Jin smirked. Typical Sid. When it comes to free lunch, he’d be first in line.

  He shoved his phone back into his pocket, weaving through the crowd, making way for SeComm’s basement levels, where the Cleaner Department was. If there was one upside to Old Man Sid’s perpetual crankiness, it was that he always knew where to find the best food. And the best spots to avoid the lunchtime chaos.

  ***

  Before Jin could knock on Old Man Sid’s office, a clatter of overturned metal and shattered glass echoed from within. The door then flung open. Out came a guy wearing a Cleaner’s uniform, ran down the hallway, half crying, half mumbling incoherent words. Curses flew from inside the office.

  “Don’t let me catch you sleeping on the fucking job again, fucking inbred!”

  “You’re going to get a heart attack at this rate, old friend.”

  Old Man Sid didn’t even look up from the mess of papers and broken office supplies on his desk. “Oh. Aren’t you a sight for sore eyes?” He leaned back in his chair, the old leather creaking under his weight. “Kids these days don’t even know how to work anymore.”

  Jin pulled out a chair and sat. “What happened?”

  “What happened?” Old Man Sid sighed, rubbing his temple. “Those black-market bastards nicked the whole damned B-Rank RIFT Boss Monster’s carcass. Right under our fucking nose. That’s what happened.”

  “The hell? That’s terrible.”

  Old Man Sid scoffed. “Terrible? Hah. It’s a fucking disaster! What’s worse is that fucking inbred didn’t realise until the auditor check!” Old Man Sid shook his head, sighed a few more times before taking a drink from his tumbler. “Enough of me. How’s your day?”

  “Unnecessarily tiring. But it was good, I think.” Jin answered with a smile. “Anyway, let’s get some grub. I’m starving.”

  “Your treat, right?”

  “Seeing as how shit you look right now, might as well treat you to some. Cafeteria’s a no-go, so got a place in mind?”

  Old Man Sid’s eyes lit up. “Now you’re speaking my language. I know just the place. Inside Shibuya 111 mall. Spicy enough to burn your tongue off.”

  “So, what’re you waiting for? Let’s get on with it already.”

  “Let me get changed first, will you?” He reached into a drawer and tossed a package to Jin. “Try and see if it's fit. It belonged to my son once.”

  Inside the package was a jacket with a hoodie. Together with his black face mask he often wore in public, it would be the perfect disguise. Almost.

  There were occasional unsolicited encounters. Women, young or old, approached Jin either to start a small talk or to flirt outright. Even the waitress’ stare was unusually long. Eating peacefully was not on their menu that noon.

  “It’s good being young again, huh?” Old Man Sid said as he took a sip of iced tea to calm the numbness on his tongue. “If your wife is still alive, wonder what she’d say to you? Or even your lass?”

  “Spare me the drama, Sid. Just because I look a little better than my old self, you would think I like it being hounded like that?”

  Right on cue, a group of girls passed by their window seat and, upon catching a glimpse of Jin’s face, they froze. Some even took out their phones, snapping pictures away while others stared at him, shyly. Jin nodded in acknowledgement at them, but when he smiled, the girls swooned over.

  “See that?” Old Man Sid poked fun at Jin’s antic. “From the way you’re entertaining them, I think you rather like it.”

  “What else can I do?”

  “Well, you can learn how to get used to it.”

  “Get used to it? But some of these girls are…”

  Jin cut short his words and instead shot a glance at the staring waitress. The moment their eyes met, she yelped. Jin, not wanting to embarrass her, waved and called her over. “One more bowl, please. Extra spicy. My friend here has been dying to get his tongue burnt.”

  Once the waitress skipped merrily away with the order, only then did Jin continue where he left off. “See that? I’m old enough to be her father.”

  “Bah. Nonsense. As long as they’re adults, they’re a fair game.”

  Jin glared. “Should have ordered the jumbo spicy instead. Paralysed that evil tongue. You realised that right now, you sound like a proper creepy old man? To think I trusted you with my daughter.”

  Old Man Sid let out a laugh. “If you really hate it so much, tell God to give me your looks instead. Maybe then, I might not be that lonely anymore.” He leaned in and whispered. “Besides, who’s the creepy one? Me, who speaks the truth or you, a man in his 40s but looks like a bloody model in his 20s.”

  Jin sighed. “Alright. Alright. I get it. You win. I’ll try to get used to-“

  Before he could finish his sentence, a deafening roar erupted from the mall’s ground floor. Loudspeakers crackled to life, followed by a wave of thunderous cheers and applause.

  “Ladies and gentlemen!” boomed an announcer’s voice, echoing through the shopping mall like a sonic wave attack. “Live from Neo-Tokyo Shibuya 111, the one and only, Eastern Eurolasia Alliance’s most famous idol group – NTB48!”

  The crowd exploded. The air vibrated with the pulse of synth-heavy pop music, the bassline thumping in Jin’s chest. Around them, shoppers with their phones raised, morphed into a screaming, singing sea of fans, their voices straining to outdo the speakers.

  A group of young girls nearby broke into choreographed dance moves, their arms swinging in perfect sync as they made their way towards the source of their inspiration.

  Jin was flummoxed as he stared out from the window seat. “Sid? What the hell-“

  But Old Man Sid was already gone, bolting toward the main atrium like a man possessed.

  “Oh my god! How could I forget?! It’s today! It’s today!”

  Jin cursed under his breath. After paying for their meals, he lunged after his friend, shouldering through the surging crowd.

  “Sid! SID!”

  The old man was a homing streak of determination, weaving through shoppers and others with a speed Jin didn’t know he had in him. By the time he caught up, Old Man Sid was already at the front of the mob, craning his neck toward the stage like a starving man eyeing a feast, wiping drool from his lips.

  But he wasn’t the only one acting like a pervert. A thousand or so had gathered, and most of them behaved in the same way. Or worse. Some even wore fan-made T-shirts a few sizes too small; their body odour assaulted Jin’s nose. Some even brought life-sized dolls of their favourite idols; the yellowed stains on them were obvious to see. And some even cosplayed as one.

  “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

  Jin groaned, but the words were swallowed by another deafening cheer as the emcee took the stage. The rest of the mob shoved him out of the way, forcing him to bounce between bodies like a pinball until he slammed into a pillar. He leaned against it, wiping sweat and someone else’s spilt drink and food off his shirt and pants.

  Great. Just fucking great. Now I smell like I haven’t taken a bath in years.

  And he thought he’d had enough of this already.

  Fortunately, Old Man Sid was still within his view, oblivious to everything but the stage. Jin exhaled while keeping his eyes everywhere – in time to catch the faintest shudder of the metal beam that supported the stage.

  Or maybe not.