Zen came to a very familiar bar and did not know if he should be thankful or sad that he had eight fewer drinks to buy.
"Hey, kiddo! You're back. How did it go? I heard that you were quite the star, among other things."
Vera, the barkeeper, was still as short as ever. Zen forced a smile and nodded. Maybe this was why people drank. The act of pouring their worries down with a cup and forgetting about reality for a moment was the same as how the original third young master indulged in virtual games. Only, it was now drinking in a virtual world.
"I'm back for the game clip highlights for the event," Zen told her.
Vera chuckled. "Ninety-two shots now. You might not have that bad of a hangover tomorrow. Are you sure you want to down all of them in one go? There has been no announcement for the next event yet. You don't have to hurry."
Zen shook his head. This was precisely why he was here tonight, right after excusing himself early from the event celebration. After the heated debate, it was decided that he would room with Liu Feng. He did not have much to bring along apart from his clothes and some toiletries that Liu Feng told him to ditch because he had more than enough for both of them.
The Seer mentioned that he contacted the Lau Triad, who would sponsor all his living essentials for a comfortable academy life as long as the omerta held true. Zen did not know what Liu Feng meant by it, but he hoped the Seer would not spend too much on someone like him. After all, he was accustomed to the impoverished life as a civilian and a neglected young master.
When Vera heard how Zen was shocked by Liu Feng's very impressive collection of clothes, tea and personal items, the invigilator merely laughed.
"He is the second young master of the very powerful Lau Triad. Did you expect him to put up with only what the academy gave?"
Zen sighed. "I thought I would be better rooming with someone else. At least having a roommate would feel less like a first-class suite and more of a sleepover, but I was wrong. Also, he told me to be careful in my sleep. There is a safe word if he ever attacks me in his sleep, and I don't know if I'm safer with him or at a higher risk of dying accidentally."
The bartender prepared the drinks as she listened to Zen spill his frustrations. The more he talked, the less he was able to hold his emotions back. He talked about everything from the stress of getting thrown to a new game without information about the flag capturing to his fears of all the near-death encounters. Vera never interrupted the boy as Zen poured his heart out. The old lady chuckled at his concern for his guildmates when he kept hearing calls for distress even though he was in precarious danger.
"It just means that you're not born to be strong alone. Some people, like Amazonian, are born to be soloists. They live for nobody but themselves, and they want to die in the same manner. However, there are others like Hunter whose success is based on the people around him. I believe you belong to the former. Weak alone but strong together."
Zen looked at Vera. The old lady was definitely someone who knew more than she let on. Old was gold, and Zen thanked Vera, looking at the first drink.
"Sometimes I wonder if anything I do is worth it."
At that, Vera simply shrugged. "Who knows? If you do it, you're going to die. If you don't do it, you're still going to die. What kind of death are you seeking at the end of the day?"
When Zen died, he asked himself why he saved a dangerous stranger he did not know. Would it be better for him to ignore the stranger? He might have lived longer as a civilian. However, could he change anything by turning a blind eye to everything? Obviously not. Could he make any difference by struggling like a worm? He didn't know.
"Death, huh? Eight people died today. Did they get the death they wanted?"
The bartender was calm and pushed a stool closer so she could hop on it. "Why would that be any of your concern? Everyone who accepted the invitation to attend came with a motive. You either become the next Godfather or die trying. They simply weren't good enough, but you're still here."
That… made a lot of sense. Even if they were in the same guild, it was not Zen's duty to ensure everyone's survival.
"You're a genius! I keep forgetting that this is the mafia."
For a moment, Vera froze. What was this kid talking about? He thought and acted like a civilian, but he was born into a mafia family. How sheltered was this child?
She did not have a chance to probe further because Zen swallowed the first cup of alcohol and the invigilator cringed at the loud sound of his head smacking against the wooden table. That had to hurt. Thankfully, this was a virtual world. It would have left a very large bruise if it wasn't
Now, Zen only had ninety-one times more to repeat this process. The bartender peered at the game clip highlight that Zen chose and grinned. It was ranked one, and she could not wait to see his reaction.