Chapter 101: Game Master 2

Chapter 101: Game Master 2Chapter 101

The odds had taken a dramatic turn. Jon, the clear favorite, now had an unimpressive 1.1 payout. In contrast, Rin’s odds had skyrocketed to a jaw-dropping 12. Most people still backed Jon, chasing safe money. After all, he’d dominated earlier matches. But in the corner of the betting booth, Zumba hesitated, fingers hovering above the screen. After a few tense moments, he made a bold move—200,000 yen on Rin.

Chip followed suit, placing his own bet on his friend with a confident grin. They were taking a gamble, but something about Rin felt... different.

Inside the game booth, Rin stared at the controls with a mischievous smirk. Unlike earlier, this time he’d taken the time to study everything—every command, movement pattern, and special input. And with his natural affinity for gaming, he was ready to dominate.

As the game began, Rin selected Light Runner once more, while Jon picked Undying Flame, a powerful, flame-based brawler.

Chip and Zumba leaned forward, eyes glued to the screen. The match began.

Round One: Start!

The Undying Flame launched a barrage of fireballs straight at Light Runner’s spawn point. Explosions lit up the screen—and then, a blur, a loud bang, and gasps rippled through the room.

Jon’s eyes widened. His HP bar had dropped by half in mere seconds.

What looked like a single punch on screen was, in truth, a flurry of rapid blows delivered in under a second. Rin’s Light Runner had struck with impossible precision, weaving through fire and landing a devastating combo.

Jon wasn’t giving up. His fingers danced across the controls, summoning advanced flame techniques, filling the screen with swirling infernos.



But Rin? He phased through them with impossible movements—dodging, twisting, teleporting—and landed several clean strikes. The booth echoed with rapid bangs before the screen lit up:

"You Lose" on Jon’s side.

"You Win" on Rin’s.

The crowd fell silent, stunned. Jon looked utterly confused, unable to process how he’d lost so quickly.

Round Two started with more determination from Jon. This time, he landed a few hits, even knocking Rin back with a well-placed flame burst. But just as victory felt close, Rin’s Light Runner raised a glowing white palm—bang!

"You Win"

"You Lose"

Again.

Jon gritted his teeth and instantly launched Round Three, his pride burning now. He needed to reclaim his dignity.

But it was a massacre.

Rin dodged everything, hit with surgical precision, and before long, the game announcer’s voice echoed once more:

"You Lose"

The room was deathly quiet. Jon—Jon, the one who wiped the floor with Rin earlier—was now being utterly humiliated.

Rin stepped out of the booth to the cheers of Chip and Zumba, who were grinning from ear to ear. They had just made a fortune, thanks to Rin’s shocking win and the insane odds against him.

"I want a rematch!" Jon snapped, still in disbelief. His face was tight with frustration, convinced this was just a fluke—absurd luck from a random kid.

Rin shrugged with a calm smile. "Sure."

The crowd gathered again. This time, the odds were closer—3 for Rin, 4 for Jon. More people placed bets, this time hedging between the two, unsure whether Rin’s dominance was skill or sheer luck.

Zumba smirked and doubled down, placing an even bigger bet on Rin.

Without wasting any time, the rematch began. This time, both Jon and Rin chose the same character—Light Runner, the high-speed, glass-cannon assassin-type. A battle of speedsters was about to unfold.

Round One: Start!

Blurs zipped across the screen as both characters vanished from sight, reappearing and clashing at breakneck speeds. Unlike before, Rin wasn’t dominating from the start. In fact, Jon was landing hits—clean, calculated strikes that chipped away at Rin’s HP. The crowd murmured as Rin’s Light Runner dropped to 40% health, while Jon held strong at 70%.

Zumba, who had been smug just a moment ago, now watched silently, his expression tense.

"What’s Rin thinking?" Chip muttered, eyes narrowing. "He’s just... taking hits?"

Inside the booth, Rin wore an amused expression as he casually leaned back, observing the screen. To everyone else, it looked like he was struggling.

In truth?

He was toying with Jon.

He had intentionally taken damage, letting Jon believe he had the upper hand.

Now... it was time to crush that illusion.

Rin’s smile twisted into something wicked. His fingers moved like lightning over the controls, a blur of motion that made the button clicks sound like machine gun fire.

On-screen, Jon’s Light Runner dashed forward at max speed, blade aimed straight at Rin’s character, who stood completely still. It looked like a guaranteed hit.

Then—something strange happened.

Jon’s blade passed through Rin’s character. Not a dodge. Not a block.

It phased through him.

There was resistance, but no damage. No blood. No HP loss.

Then suddenly—

"K.O. — You Lose" appeared on Jon’s screen.

Silence.

Jon blinked.

Again.

And again.

"What... just happened?"

Rin stepped out of his booth, chuckling softly. "Phased at the last second. Then countered with a head strike."


He explained it calmly, pointing out the micro-timing he used—accelerating his character’s body frame at the exact moment of contact to enter a phase state, then delivering a fatal precision strike the moment Jon’s attack ended.

Jon stared at him, speechless. He was the original Light Runner —and he’d never thought of that.

"...You’re a monster," Jon muttered, then laughed in disbelief. "One more round."

They played again. And again. And again.

Each time, Jon gave it his all. Each time, he lost.

By the sixth match, Rin had enough. This time, he went all out.

The match started—and ended—in ten seconds.

Jon never even touched him.

He used an S-rank character, Drunken Samurai, a powerful brawler with erratic patterns. But it didn’t matter. Rin read every movement like a book and dismantled him with surgical precision.

The crowd was beyond stunned.

Jon was no longer frustrated—he was fascinated. Each loss taught him something new, and despite the humiliation, he kept coming back.

He wanted to see how far Rin could go.

Eventually, Jon slumped on a couch, exhausted and defeated, watching as Rin casually browsed through games, looking for something—anything—that might challenge him.

Zumba stared at him like he was staring at an alien. "No game can handle this guy..."

Rin collected the massive reward Zumba had promised and began to leave, but Jon walked up to him, this time with a friendly smile.



"You’re insane. But in the best way. I want to learn from you."

Rin paused.

He studied Jon for a moment. The guy had talent, passion, and... a weirdly likable personality. Rin gave a small nod.

"Alright."

From that point, the two sat together, talking and laughing about games, techniques, and strategies—a bond formed over digital warfare. Everyone around them knew—these two weren’t just skilled players.

They were gaming addicts, perhaps the best the world had seen.

Rin was mid-sentence when he suddenly paused.

He exhaled—and saw his breath.

Cold mist curled from his lips.

"...Huh?"

The cold came subtly at first—just a light chill in the air. Rin barely noticed it.

Then it grew stronger.

His breath fogged before him.

Frost curled on the edges of the screen he was staring at. That’s when alarm bells rang in his head.

He froze.

No...

She couldn’t be here.

Not now.

Not when he was finally enjoying himself.

A shadow loomed behind him, casting a long silhouette across the floor.

He gulped.

"B-Big Sis...?" Rin stammered, slowly turning.

There she was—Laura, arms crossed, eyes glowing with restrained fury, an expression that could scare a ghost back into the grave.

They had ditched her.

All of them.

The plan was to explore Marinua solo, away from her watchful gaze. And now it seemed Rin was the first one she caught.

All because of his gaming addiction.

"I wasn’t the one who suggested it!" Rin blurted with a nervous, shaky grin, pointing fingers like a man in court. "It was Aiden’s idea! Or maybe Han’s—I just went along!"

He knew he was already screwed, so he took the coward’s path.

And in true betrayal fashion—he sold out everyone else.

With zero hesitation.

"They’re nearby," he said quickly. "I’ll take you to them. Please don’t freeze me alive."

Laura exhaled, the frost in her breath slowly fading as she calmed—just a little.

"...Where?"

"This way!" Rin darted off like a tour guide on a mission, with Laura stalking behind him like a warden escorting a prisoner.

They didn’t have to go far. Rin dragged her behind a stall, and out popped Chip, who had been hiding behind some crates.

The moment he saw Laura, his eyes lit up.

"Sister Laura! Thank goodness! We were just about to follow your plan, I swear!"

His acting was so convincing, even Rin blinked.

This guy should win an award... Rin thought grumpily as they continued the manhunt.

The rest of the day became a comedic manhunt disguised as a "family reunion." Laura hunted them down one by one—Han, Aiden, Clara, Xin, Kira, and more. Each person tried to hide, deny, or act innocent.

None succeeded.

Even Ronan, the cold, expressionless powerhouse with a glare sharp enough to cut steel, wasn’t spared. Laura dragged him out from behind a vending machine like a misbehaving kid.

Once all of them were gathered, Laura stood tall with a notepad in hand.

"We’re doing everything on my itinerary. No complaints. No excuses. Anyone tries to run..." she raised a gloved hand, already crackling with frost, "and they get deep-frozen."

No one dared object.

They marched in line like soldiers off to war.

---

Meanwhile, high above the city, two figures stood on the edge of a tall building, watching the chaotic group like silent guardians—or predators.

The first wore a black robe, golden hair gleaming faintly under his hood.

The second was cloaked in shadows. His face was pure darkness, a void that absorbed the light.

He was The Null.

Beside him stood the Fortune Teller—the same man Xin had met hours ago.

"Do you think he’s ready?" the Fortune Teller asked softly.

The Null didn’t answer right away. His unseen eyes observed each member of the group below.

Finally, he spoke. "He doesn’t look powerful. But strength isn’t always visible. The only way to know..."

He paused.



"...is to test him."

The Fortune Teller nodded thoughtfully, following his gaze. His eyes lingered on Han, then drifted to Laura, Rin, and Xin.

A faint smile tugged at his lips.

But when he looked at Ronan, his expression twisted into something darker.

He chuckled under his breath.

"A Trystan and a Steele... Now that’s a dangerous mix."

He turned away from the edge, hands clasped behind his back.

"Things are about to get interesting."

The Null didn’t reply.

He didn’t need to.

All of it will begin soon.

To be continued...