บท 6: Dignity at a price of twenty million baht Part II
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King | WRK-1 | W-18 L-0 D-0
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“This was yet another battle that showcased how competent King is like the world’s number one player! With 18 consecutive victories in this year’s pro league, he is still crowned as the pro league’s unbeatable player for three years straight. Up until this point, I still can’t imagine who would be able to overthrow our King. That’s why I’m not at all surprised that The Patriots upped King’s remuneration to 300,000 USD per week, and, of course, King has proven enough that his skills are worth every penny. There is currently rumored that he is about to become a brand ambassador for various products which would make him the highest-paid esports athlete with an annual income of one hundred million USD.”
That narration rendered Joke speechless, leaving his mouth hanging open. Frankly speaking, he never paid any attention to such information about an esports athlete like this before, but for an athlete to make one hundred million USD per year was entirely otherworldly. It was clear how immensely popular esports was!
“If all of this is true then the value of your ten-million-baht card is basically just a speck of dust.”
Joke muttered to the Snowbelle card in his hands. Alas, he could only let out a sigh and glanced back up at the TV in front of him that went back to capture the sight of King once more. It seemed that he was probably an American whom Joke must admit that he was quite a handsome bloke radiating off a cold and intimidating personality.
“Your battle today was satisfactory. And with just one more game, this year’s pro league will come to an end. Unmistakably, you will be the winner of this pro league as well, do you have anything to share with us, King?”
The reporter on the television passed the microphone to King. He paused at the question for just a moment. The intimidating man then let out a smile that made him look unexpectedly gentle.
“Every contestant of this year’s league is a formidable opponent. There were indeed many games that made me quite stressed and anxious, really tough overall. But now that I’ve come to this point, I’m very relieved to be able to achieve the goal I set in the beginning; the fact that my overall scores according to the scoreboard have already guaranteed my win. That’s why for next year, I’m also looking forward to facing opponents who will show me the excitement in the card game just like this year; not only with the familiar face veterans but also many more new contestants who may someday take my spot in the future. The reason why I’m still standing here is not only due to luck, but it is my perseverance that took me here. And to whoever puts even much more effort in than me: I believe that you also have the chance to stand at this very spot. I await the opportunity to face both veterans and newcomers who will come to challenge my position as the king. Because if I can do it, so can you.”
King’s professional response caused Joke to nod his head a little. The more he experienced, the more he realized that it was indeed a professional competition among the players who really put their all into AOS games. Whether it was the organization of pro league events or the event’s sponsors, both contributed to the sport’s high level of acceptance from fan bases around the world. And this man was currently standing at the top of the world, which was not surprising considering he was able to make this tremendous amount.
“Truly a world beyond my understanding.”
Knock! Knock! Knock!
Not long after that, a knock was heard from the door. Joke glanced at the door as it slid wide open, with the manager walking in with a wide smile along with a couple of female staff who were holding cameras in their hands.
“Sorry for the waiting, sir. The auction has been settled.”
That wonderful news made him smile. He stood up as the manager walked towards him.
“So how did it go?”
“We have reached the conclusion that your card will be sold for twenty million baht, sir.”
“Twenty?!”
Joke shuddered at the final price, which became twice the original amount. At first, ten million was already shocking enough, how the heck did they all manage to upswing it up to this massive amount?
“Is this for real?"
“Absolutely.” The manager gave a beaming smile.
“And most importantly, the person who will be buying your Snowbelle card is Mr. Viper, the famous pro player.”
“Viper?” Joke raised his eyebrows, shaking his head languidly. “Ah, I’m sorry but I don’t really know much about AOS, so I don’t recognize the names of pro players. By the way, he is not Thai, right?”
“Oh, he is Thai. Viper is just his stage name—every summoner needs one in AOS.” The manager looked a bit defeated. “But that’s alright. All in all, he was among Thailand’s top players with a large fund for trading. He is also under Red Magic, one of Thailand’s top-ranking teams. That’s why you can rest assured that the trading will be handled justly.”
The more he listened, the more confused he became; thus, Jakkarin brushed him off with a nod.
“So, when will he be arriving? So I can just get over with it.”
Just thinking about it made him want to just go home, leaving this chaotic world behind.
“Oh, worry not. Mr. Viper will be arriving here shortly, given that Red Magic’s office is fortunately around this area.”
Knock Knock Knock
As soon as the manager finished his words, a knock was heard once more as a male staff peeked his head inside, giving the manager a sign with a small nod. Now, this old man was beaming ear to ear.
“He’s here now. You can start preparing for the negotiation.”
Joke nodded at those words and stared at the door impatiently. The door then slid open, revealing a male figure walking valiantly towards him with his back straight and chest out. His features displayed a great amount of confidence. He was a male in his mid-twenties with black hair, neatly dressed in a white shirt and black slack pants, together with a metal case held in his hands.
“Hello, Mr. Viper. We’ve been waiting for you.”
“Yeah.”
The man responded curtly to the manager. His overconfident demeanor made him seem somewhat disrespectful as no matter how he looked at it, the manager was probably many times older than him. With a glance, Joke instantly knew that this bloke might be the kind of a snob who enjoyed looking down on people.
“And where is this person who wants to sell the card?”
This “Viper” bloke demanded bluntly, causing the manager to quickly gesture toward Joke.
“Here he is.”
That bloke then turned to him with a could-not-care-less gaze —the kind of gaze that made a person feel belittled under it.
“That’s you?” Viper asked. “Seems like you’re not the kind who plays AOS. I mean, of course, you don’t look like those who can even one bit. That's probably why you waltzed into Card Factory trying to sell this card without realizing its value at all. Do you even know how much commotion your actions caused?… Freaking frustrating.”
Since his arrival, he had been chattering away nonstop to the point where Joke became dumbfounded as if he had done something wrong. Part of him wanted to talk back by saying: ‘What about you? You’re still using that stupid name “Viper”.’
“And where is the Snowbelle card?”
This bloke Viper stated in a tyrannical tone. Joke had to extremely control his emotions to not talk back. He simply held that said card out, and that arrogant man was ready to walk over to take it.
“Not yet, Mr. Viper.” The manager interrupted him. “The deal has not yet been sealed, so you have no rights to touch the seller’s card. You need to complete the negotiation before you can touch it. This is our trading rule.”
“Humph! This is exactly why I am annoyed and despise being involved in a trading fuss Card Factory,” he said displeasingly as he threw his metal case onto the coffee table. “Here. This is the twenty million in cash as discussed. I have to warn you though, there won’t be any more negotiations. Just hurry and count it.”
Viper then turned to stare at a female staff who was standing behind that manager to hurriedly begin counting the cash in that case so that everything could be over soon. The said staff was the one who introduced Joke to the automatic trading machine before this. She seemed to be irritated when she was bossed around like this, but the manager nudged her with his elbow to make her quickly get it over with that task.
“According to the rules for card trading between summoners in CF, or Card Factory, we only use cold cash for trading to prevent fraud from occurring. I hope you don’t mind that, sir?”
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