บท 48: Business trip and unexpected visit
Tom woke up from the game without any unexpected problems. While he didn't know whether his worry that the online hub would use his moment of powerlessness was right. Or maybe it was the presence of two burly brothers of his that forced those ideas out of Peter's head? All in all, it didn't matter now.
He woke up. That was the most important point for now.
'Still, the stakes are too big,' Tom thought, taking his time to open his eyes. 'I know it was just a feeling...' he hesitated for a moment before opening his eyes up and raising to a sitting position. 'No, a feeling is more than enough. I can't take any chances here,' Tom made his decision as he accepted a towel from one of his brothers.
"Congratulations," Peter spoke up after giving Tom a bit of time to cater to his needs. "I'm not going to lie, I doubted your method before... But it seems you really held back a fair bit," he admitted his own mistakes before lowering his head. "I apologize for pushing you to level up so quickly. I hope you can understand that as the manager of this place, I need to assume some degree of control over the players, especially those destined to soar to the great heights!" he exclaimed, swiftly changing his tone.
"It's okay, I understand," Tom muttered, still pretending to have sensory overload, a common problem for a random half of the players. After all, he just exited the game, which replaced all of his senses. So it was no surprise for his brain to need some time to reestablish its proper connections.
"Right, before anything else," Tom started as he continued to wipe his body from the liquid before using the same, massive towel to cover himself up. "I proved that I'm capable in the game, but now I will need you to excuse me for a bit," Tom finally started to act on the plan he concocted just a moment ago. "There are some... No, let's call it a business trip. I will need to leave right away, but there is one thing that might make it troublesome for you guys," Tom explained before raising his eyes at Peter.
"Huh? What is it?" Peter instantly asked, putting his guard up.
"The thing is..." Tom started with a troubled face, "I have no idea how long it would take," he explained as he shrugged his shoulders. "It might take a day or two, it might take a week... God forbid, but I might even be out for a year!"
"Wait, a year?!" Peter exclaimed as he jumped out of his seat. "Do you really think...-" he started, only for Tom to stand up in the middle of his sentence.
"I'm really sorry, but it's not up to me how long it will take. But this is a matter I don't really have a choice but to attend to," Tom explained with a sour expression on his face before casting a glance at his 'brothers'.
While they didn't appear to be surprised or shocked by his words at all, Tom could see that they already tensed their muscles. They were ready to spring up and fight if anything were to go wrong right now.
"Well, I will try to keep in touch so that you won't be stuck with a bad investment," Tom added as he turned around.
"At least try not to make another avatar while you are out. I don't want others to scout you while you are away." Peter lowered his head in an expression of his exasperated powerlessness.
"Sure thing," Tom nodded to the man before moving out of the room. The two of his 'brothers' instantly followed suit without asking a single question or voicing a single word of protest.
As he continued past the Online Hub's corridors, Tom's mental state wavered once again. Now that this strange event continued, Tom could finally realize what it felt like.
Rather than losing his awareness, it seemed as if the world around him had become completely meaningless and flat. It wasn't as if he was going unconscious. It was as if he was controlling himself from the third-person perspective, fully free from the influences of the world around him.
'Is it sickness? Or some kind of Sensory overdose?' Tom asked himself as he continued to walk at a rapid pace. 'Well, I hope it won't last long this time,' he thought, only for his thoughts to turn into a self-fulfilling prophecy.
As if a breath of fresh air was all Tom needed, as soon as he got out to the open space, his mind returned to its normal state. His vision lowered back to where it should be rather than hanging above his shoulder. He could feel the crispy sun of the day on his skin, the gentle caress of the wind on his face...
'No, I don't have time for melancholy like this,' Tom lectured himself before rushing to pull out his phone. His 'business trip' plan was nothing more but an improvisation aimed at escaping the Online Hub before it would be too late. As such, he still had to make some calls to make his story and everyone else's action stick.
But before he could even dial a single number or bring his phone to his eyes, it started to ring.
"Yes?" Tom answered the call out of habit, not even paying any mind to who the caller was.
"Hello," Claudia spoke through the phone. But that wasn't the problem.
The problem was that Tom could hear her voice not only through his phone but also from behind.
'Don't tell me...' he thought as he turned around, only to see Claudia standing a few meters away with a wide smile on her face.
'Fuck, what should I do?!' Tom froze in place, overwhelmed by the panic. He liked the girl well enough to make sure she wouldn't be implicated in his plans. That was the main reason why he decided to cut the contact once he left the city.
But for her to come to visit?
Right at this timing?
'Just how spoiled my luck can be?!' Tom lamented in his heart before forcing himself to calm down. And in this state of emotionless calmness, he raised his eyes at the girl, made a step forward before sending a crispy slap right to her face.
'This is the only choice,' Tom thought, steeling himself for what he was about to do. For the only choice of action that wouldn't spell the girl's demise in a few days' time.
"What the hell do you think you are doing coming here, you cheating whore?!"
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