Maru sat and debated for a minute. Would he even accept her challenge? There was no gain for him. Maru sighed a bit. Well, she already lost her manager. There was no reason not to send the invite. This was it.
"There I sent the..." Maru began to say as a notification popped up in front of her face, saying Takeshi was joining the chat.
"Ohhhh shit!!" Tulla said with a laugh. "Girl, you better prepare yourself!!"
"Maru?" A deep voice sounded on the chat. It was Takeshi. Damn. One word, and you can tell the man is oozing with sex appeal. Why did he have to be such a pri...
"Maru??? Earth to Maru??? Our guest would like to know why you drew the pentagram and summoned him??" Tulla said, bringing Maru back to earth. Right!
Takeshi! I challenge you to a duel!" Maru yelled. There was nothing but an awkward silence. "Hello?"
"No." Takeshi answered. Maru was caught off guard. She knew he could say no... but damn.
"What?? Why not??" Maru pouted a bit. She just wanted a chance to prove that she could beat him.
"There's no reason for me to fight you. My character gains nothing. And I beat you on a constant basis, I see no reason to.." Takeshi began to explain.
"I have my own setup now. It's full body. I wanted to see if it would make a difference..." Maru interrupted. She hoped it would make him pause long enough for her to think of something.
"Fine." said Takeshi. Maru was shocked. He changed his mind? "I will duel you on two conditions. First, if you lose, you have to officially quit gaming..." Maru did not quite get this request because she knew he knew that she lost Alice, so why.. "Forever, completely, wholeheartedly. That means not just competitive gaming. It means entirely." Takeshi added. Ouch. Give it up completely? "And second is that also if you lose... you give me your full body setup." added Takeshi. Maru gripped the handheld remotes. Her setup?
"Don't you already have a full body set up?" Maru asked. She thought the wealthy jerk had to have one already. Why would he want hers? It was just an old gen.
"Yes, but think of it as added insurance." Takeshi began, "This way, you won't have easy access to tempt you to play again." Maru sat for a moment to think. She really did not want to give it up. Was the fight worth it? A sigh escaped Maru's lips.
"Fine." she finally answered. There was no response from Takeshi right away. There was arguing from Tulla saying that it was not worth it. Then Takeshi's character appeared in front of Maru's.
"Come at me, Maru, with all you got or else you will lose!" Takeshi stated as his character waved her on. Maru gripped the remotes. She breathed in deep as she took her stance. Takeshi's character, of course, was a dark elf. He would believe in sacrificing for the greater good, thought Maru. She studied his character for a bit. They had fought multiple times in this world, but it was different seeing his character through the full body set up. It was as if he was really standing before her. His character really looked a lot like him. However, the character seemed more gentle for some reason. Which seemed odd for a dark elf and him of all people. "What are you waiting for? Are you scared to come at me?" asked Takeshi. For a man of few words, he sure was chatty today. At most, he would only say a few words to Maru. She took one last breath in and then launched an attack. This battle felt different for some reason. It did not even feel like a battle at all, but rather a dance.
The two of them went back and forth for a long time. Out of all their fights, this one was turning out to be her favorite. Maru caught herself smiling through it all. The timer for the fight was running low now, along with Maru's stamina and health. However, Takeshi's was about even with hers, so either one of them had a chance to end it with one hit. Takeshi seemed to pick up speed when she noticed this. So fast!! Before she even realized it, he had dealt the final blow. Maru's smile faded. That was it. The end of it all. Maru stood breathing heavily in silence. Takeshi was the first to speak.
"What a waste... You can bring me the setup tomorrow at noon at the VR cafe." he said. Then he was gone.
"I'm sorry, Maru..." Tulla said. Maru shook her head. It made no sense. How did he pick up speed in the last moments? A spell or potion? Maybe a scroll? Maru could not think of one that would pull it off, though. "I'll leave you be..." Tulla said, and then she left the chat as well. Maru used a scroll to teleport to the Valley of Kyomi. She always loved to come here. It was beautiful and peaceful. Maru felt a bit dizzy. Maybe the physical aspect was really taking a toll on her. She sat down. So peaceful. Maru swore she could actually feel the warm breeze.
"Kyomi..." a voice whispered. Maru looked all around her, but there was no one. Maybe she just imagined it. This place...gaming... she did not want to give either up. Why did she make a bet with that jerk? She could have just let him say no and let it go. Maybe honed in her skills with even more practice and then made her way back into professional gaming. Hell, she might have been able to finally beat Takeshi! But out of pride, stubbornness, and impatience... she bet it all away. A tear fell down her cheek. Stupid, Maru thought. "Kyomi..." a voice whispered again. Maru went to stand up this time but she suddenly felt heavy and everything went dark.
Maru groaned as she rolled onto her back. She opened her eyes, and all she could see was bright blue skies. Quickly, she sat up. Her head began to throb. Looking around her, she could clearly see that she was still in The Valley of Kyomi. Did she pass out with the VR headset on?? Maru went to take it off. There was nothing there??? What??? She tried to bring the menu up. Nothing!!! Why was it not working?! What the hell was going on here?! There was no health bar visible either! Maru bent down and touched the ground. She could feel the grass! Then she picked a wildflower. How??? How was any of this possible?? Maru looked down at herself. This was not her character's gear that she was wearing. She spun in a circle. Oh no..no...no, no, no, no, noooo! Where were her weapons?! Kymoi Valley may be peaceful. However, monsters surrounded it, always waiting for the princess to come so they could ambush her. So, if Maru was really in the game... in simple terms, she was screwed. Maru laughed and thought how she wished she was the princess. That way, the woodland elf army would come to her aid. They were always stationed nearby.
"Kyomi.." a voice whispered. This time, when Maru spun around. She saw a farmer npc. "Kyomi...it is you!!"
"Um, yeah, it's the Valley of Kyomi." Maru said as she spotted the dagger he had on his hip. "Hey, would you be willing to lend me that dagger..." Maru began but stopped at the man's actions. He had dropped to one knee and held out his dagger with his head bowed. "Wooaaahhh..." Maru said as she helped him up. "No need for that. I don't have much to trade right now..."
"No, no need for trade!" the farmer said, bowing his head again and still holding the dagger to her. Maru took the dagger and examined it as the farmer moved back from her, still bowing his head. The dagger was nothing special. Maybe a level two dagger at best. It was better than nothing, though. Maru attached the scabbard to her hip. She still had the wildflower in her hand.
"Here! Take this wildflower and my promise that I will repay your kindness in the future tenfold!" Maru said with a smile, holding out the wildflower to the farmer. The farmer was taken aback from her beauty. He took the flower from her. Maru bowed out of respect to the farmer, then began to walk away.
"Wait!! Don't you want to wait for the woodland elves to get here!? The Valley is surrounded by evil monsters!!" he called out after her.
"That's OK! Thanks to you, I should be able to handle myself! And a friend of mine has a camp nearby!" Maru said as she continued to walk away and waved goodbye to the man. That farmer had a lot of dialogue for an npc, Maru thought to herself.
Tulla had a camp right past where the monsters would spawn around the valley. If she could just make it there, then maybe the two of them could figure out what was going on. Maru decided to use stealth to get past the monsters rather than trying to take them head on. She had no clue of her stats and whether she would be able to take on one, let alone a hoard. It took some time for her to reach the camp. The sun was starting to set when she finally reached it. Maru looked throughout the camp, but Tulla's character was nowhere to be found. Maru sighed. She must be offline. Well, thankfully, she had shelter for the night. Tulla's campsite also had herbs nearby that she could forage. This way, she could make healing potions and sell some more in town to get some decent armor and weapons. Wait, would potions even work for her? She had no visible health bar. That brought on a scarier thought. If she died in the game...was that it?? Was she just dead? Maru shook her head at the thought. She laid down on the cot in Tulla's tent. It did not take long at all for her to fall asleep.