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Today marked the grand event at "The Mask That Only Smiles," where Estresey Academy students were poised for fierce competition. Jess glanced at the participant list and couldn't help but shake his head. "What a bunch of randos," he thought to himself.
Kai was the only contender with real combat skills. His strong performance against Xinx in the last event proved it. We had all seen his rigorous training—he streamed it before each event. On the flip-phone side, the other participants seemed better suited to accidentally hitting "send" than throwing a punch in real life. Their closest encounter with conflict had been when the eBunnee servers went down. It triggered chaos as people argued and rioted in the streets. Eliza, being on the list, clearly wasn't an antique fighter, but she was the partner Kai trusted the most, and they were inseparable, for the most part.
The remaining competitors seemed to be included merely to meet some arbitrary quota. While I acknowledged that a guaranteed spot in the event could be secured with a high follower count. The true objective wasn't necessarily victory but rather to deliver a spectacular performance. However, we all knew that the person who could defeat Xinx would be granted opulent rewards or a wish of their choice, depending on how they felt on that particular day and who was watching.
Even though I hadn't undergone any training, I was ready. I didn't have the luxury of attending one of the fancy training places like Phoenix or Raven Arena, and I was certainly not coming to this Academy during my off-time to train; they could forget that!
"Fortunately, there was no assistant here," I began to think aloud. Just as the words hung in the air, an unexpected voice cut through the silence, making its presence known.
"Would it be alright if we had someone keep an eye on you, sir, to ensure that you didn't lose yourself while playing? People often get easily absorbed in the virtual world and lose track of reality, especially since you're going to be here in VR for many, many hours."
The assistant presented a plastic bag to me. As I glanced at it, I recognised it as the exact same type of bag Jyn used when demonstrating that dreadful disappearing water trick—the same trick that nearly caused his water to spill over my music gear.
Seriously, dude, can you just bail? I'm in the zone for my game, and you're totally killing my vibes and juju.
The guy persistently droned on, behaving as if he were on autopilot and only willing to acknowledge a single response. He elaborated, saying, "You know, like that person at the cinema who incessantly gets up 20 times during the movie to pee... Well, sir, this addresses that problem," as he held up the plastic bag once again.
I ignored him, hoping he would just go away, as I picked up my VR headset to see if the headset number corresponded with my name on the participant list, listed as number 5, and confirmed that it did. Maybe I was the fifth to be chosen.
"Sir, it is my job!"
He was still hanging around me? Seriously? Getting irritated, I spun around and shot back, "What's your job, anyway? Are people hiring you to be a punching bag for warm-ups?"
"My job... it will go beyond your head."
"Don't you mean under?"
"I might do... let me just read my manual again." He took out a small, black book from his pocket, licked his fingers, and quickly skimmed through the book, glancing at all the headings with a weird grimace on his face. Then he said, "Ah-ha! No... glasses go over on top of your head, and my work... also... goes over your head."
"Bro, for real? Your weak gig is flying way over my head? Pfft! You're out there mopping up pee and handing out VR glasses. Get real, dumbass! Go annoy some of the girls!" He stood there stumped, as if it was just part of his job to be shouted at, not really knowing what to do without looking at his little book again.
I just wanted to get back to my VR game, and there was no way I was letting this bozo put a plastic bag inside my pants. So, I retorted, "Go bother someone else, maybe some of the girls."
"I can't see the girls... that, sir, will be classified as harassment."
I sighed. But it's perfectly fine for him to harass me? Can I just say I am a girl to make him buzz off? Technically, I am; well, my character in 'The Mask' game is female, anyway.
Spontaneously, he got a burst of excitement, for heaven knows where, and blurted out, "One day, I will get promoted to become a window-cleaner, just like my hero!" He then went on, singing some odd song he clearly made up himself: "Bimbo, the super window cleaning machine!! Boom boom splash!!" Then he went off hopping, saying, "I will tell the Head if you do not cooperate."
I felt a sense of relief now that he was gone. He got excited about something, and honestly, "I couldn't care less about what it was. Tell the Head whatever; just let me dive into the game," I thought to myself. I put on the headset, booted up, and at last, I WAS IN THE GAME!
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