"So, you girls are really going over to the Violet Hemlock?" Bryan asked, disappointment laced in his voice.
"Well, it provides the best opportunities for novice girls, especially since it's a girl-only guild, but you get it?" Flora asked, holding his cheek as she did so.
These two had especially grown closer, perhaps with feelings involved too.
"Yeah, after going over the opportunities for Novice players granted by each guild, we came up with a reasonable conclusion" Ruby said, a sad smile on her face. "You should be more worried about Paxton. Are you really not joining any?"
Paxton had a wry smile written on his face. "You guys shouldn't worry about me. Remember, I tend to be fine when I say I will".
His three friends glanced at each other, a hint of hesitation laced in their expressions.
"Let's just promise to meet again in the tournaments?" He asked with a small chuckle.
The tournaments were usually the only way to increase status. Of course, there was a level restriction for each status, but this was just one of the conditions needed.
"Well…if you say so. I'll bet you'll be stronger than all of us by then" Ruby said excitedly, her gaze flickering with intensity as she grabbed his hands.
"Huh? Have you forgotten you're the one with the Legendary Card?"
"That doesn't matter!"
"Huh…yes it does"
"No, it doesn't"
A sudden, pointless argument began between Ruby and Flora, the boys chuckling at them.
"I guess this is goodbye". Paxton said, cutting their argument short.
They glanced at him and nodded.
"This is goodbye". They said in unison as they prepared to go their separate ways.
Bryan remained behind since he had become a new member of the Worlds Player Association, but the others had to leave the premises and get back to their homes.
Paxton walked with Ruby and Flora out of the parking lot, walking up a corner until they reached the main junction where a Bus Park stood.
Here, commercialized buses were parked, waiting for passengers to fill in their ranks.
It was an organized system of state-of-the-art hover buses that roamed through the streets of Gametopia.
It was connected to the different districts and streets, with affordable entry pay.
Of course, trains and other forms of locomotive transport existed, but this was by far the most commonly used.
Here, Paxton separated from Ruby and Flora, who were going to a different district than his.
He was currently seated at the back of the bus, waiting patiently for the bus to fill up.
He glanced at his wallet, a sigh exuding from his lips.
'All those savings finally accounted for something'.
His wallet was one of his properties, together with his ear pad and phone that he had with him at the beginning of the Test Of Humanity.
'Now….it's time I contact those people'. He picked up his phone, opened it up and swiped through his contact list.
There, he searched for a name, Shadybunch and tapped it.
It rang for a while, tension brewing within him as he waited until someone at the other line picked it up.
"Yeah? This is Mio from Crayon Cleaning Service here, how may I help you?". A thrilled voice asked from the other line.
"Hello? Yeah, this is Paxton. Paxton Zen".
A moment of silence suffused between them, until a loud laughter pierced his ear from the other line.
"Hey! If it isn't Roben's son! How are you kidding?" The man said with a loud thrill in his voice.
"Did you say Roben's kid? That piece of shit had a son?"
Another voice screamed out in the background.
"Hey! Shush!" The man, Mio said, startled laughter held back.
Paxton sighed, rubbing his temples when he heard the sound of the bus starting.
"Look, I need your help" Paxton said, his voice startling Mio.
"Oh? Whatcha need, little man?"
Paxton remained silent for a moment, his gaze lingering at the window.
"I need to level up, get me a Web Gate or two that I can handle on my current level"
"Oh? You recently took the exam? I see you passed. Did you get a good card like your father? I assumed you did". Mio asked, his tone laced with curiosity.
"Alright, you know the drill, right?"
Paxton sighed, receding to his thoughts.
'They get you into Web Gates that haven't been registered by the Association yet, but in return, they get half of whatever materials you obtain in the Web Gate'.
This was the manner the Crayon Cleaning Service had handled their business for years. They were known as a Web Gate Clean-up crew on the outside, but their ranks and business went by far deeper than that on the inside.
"Well, then, do we have a deal?" Mio repeated, his tone quickly losing interest.
Paxton sighed. 'For now, just until I get into the Tournament, I will go with it'.
Web Gate clearing was good. He would get to have some good experiences while obtaining valuable recourse on his own.
"Yeah, I know the drill. Half and half, right?"
"That's my boy. Alright, contact me tomorrow, Yeah? There's a Storm Gate just right for Novices like you".
Mio said before the call ended with a beep.
By then, the bus had already joined the highway roads and was on its way to his district.
He was left in thoughts, contemplating his future goals and plans.
'The Crayon Cleaning Service definitely knows something about my father's death….I have to get close to them somehow'.
He thought when the loud sensations of automobiles and people's voices began to swirl in his head.
A fit of a headache assaulted him and he slowly put on his ear pads, a small shriek of pain escaping his lips.
'Let's get this done with'. He thought, turning his gaze to the windows as he watched the vehicles and long roads, blur past him.
****
Parked at the Sunshine District, a far cry from the name of the district, was a Bus, a Clean-up bus, to be precise.
It was far from being as sophisticated as the commercialized ones, but this one also possessed hover wheels.
Within it were two men, one burly and built like a boxer. Hair cascaded down his limbs and face in an unproportioned manner to the baldness on his head.
He sat in the driver's seat, his hand on the steering wheel as he waited for his partner next to him to end the call.
His partner was the complete opposite, with a slim build and rough, unkempt hair tied in a messy bun.
He had a moustache and goatee and shades that were a contrast to the worker's clothes they both put on.
"He's passed the Test as well" the man said, his tone laced with annoyance.
"Hah shit…What a pain. Was his father's death not enough warning to steer clear from us?" the burly man asked, a sigh escaping his lips.
"It can't be helped. His father died without a probable reason, and he was meant to live with an aunt who was jealous of her brother's success. He must be hungry for answers".
"Entering the lion's den is never a smart way of obtaining answers".
"My friend…" Mio, the slim-built man, said with a cackle. "...depends on the person, don't you think?"
The burly man sighed as he started the call.
"You're gonna tell the boss?"
"....No, not yet. Let the boy level up and deceive himself with his abilities, I want to see where he ends up…who knows? Maybe he'll be a much better player than his father".
"Oh please, his father had a Legendary card…that sort of thing doesn't happen easily".
The man started the bus and drove down the dirty streets of the Sunshine district, where the plagues of Gametopia's past were evident the most.
"You should be smarter than that by now, Carpy, let's not underestimate the enemy, okay?"
And so, the cogs of time that had once been put on hold had been spun yet again, unbeknownst to Paxton.
Time will tell what road leads to the end.