Chapter 167. I Am Steadfastly Faithful to Duck and Everyone (9/22)
"Wuhu, Old Thief, I love you!!!!"
The audience's cheers almost blew the roof off the expo hall, and seeing this version of her brother, Seele's eyes sparkled with little stars.
So cool!!
"Xander likes this kind of game that much?"
Elysia's eyes were also shining as she cheered along with the crowd.
"No, you're overthinking it.
He's probably improvising on the spot."
At some point, Bronya had come to Elysia's side, pouting as she threw out a jab.
"Improvising?!"
"I played games with him every day when we were kids—how could I not know what he likes?
He likes fun games equally.
As long as it's fun, he can play anything with gusto.
It's nowhere near as biased as he just claimed—he made it sound real, though."
"Seele, don't you hang out with us every day too?
What are you getting all excited for?"
"Doesn't he look really cool right now?!!"
"Oh, so you're just lovestruck.
That's fine then."
Bronya wrapped an arm around Seele to shield her from the crowd, and noticing more and more people gathering because of the hype, she frowned a little.
"Let's go.
Watch him all you want when we're back—strip him down and play with him if you must.
There are too many people now; we'll head somewhere else."
"R-r-really, we can play?"
Elysia's ears perked straight up, and she shot her hand into the air, thrilled.
"Seele only.
No one else."
"Ehh~ don't be so stingy.
Take me with you, pleeease?
Bronya, can you really bear to see such a cute pretty girl sad?"
"I can."
"Uu~ my heart hurts.
Mei, give me a hug~"
"Ah?" Mei froze.
Even while they kept up the racket, the group still took the hint and moved toward an area with fewer people.
"Xander's popularity is really something~"
They walked almost all the way to the other end and finally found an open spot.
Even from this far away, waves of cheers from the Gensokyo booth crashed over them without stopping.
"Everyone here today is a game lover.
That's normal.
If Eden were here, it'd be even crazier than for Xander."
"Eden's a different kind of case."
"Speaking of which, is Eden still not done with work?
Feels like we haven't seen her for over a month."
Kiana grabbed a little stool and sat cross-legged with no hint of ladylike posture.
Good thing she wore long jeans today—no risk of exposure.
"Eeden?
Probably another half month."
"I really miss Eden's tea and desserts~"
While the girls chirped away together, the stage on the other side stayed just as lively.
Or rather, ever since Xander said "Make FPS great again," the mood on site hadn't dipped once.
"I don't think I need to say more about the game—everything's clear in the trailer.
I also fully understand how excited everyone is.
See the nearly one hundred PCs behind me?
Want to play?"
"Want!!!"
"I want to play Apex right now!!!!"
"Then play.
Security, please help keep this party in order."
"Hooray!!!!!!"
The cheers punctured the heavens again.
"Wait, wait, wait—didn't we say it wasn't time yet?
This breaks the rules, doesn't it?"
The host exclaimed in mock surprise.
"This is the Gensokyo booth.
Here, my word is the rule, got it?"
Xander pulled a "gangster-boss" face.
"All right, all right, you're the boss—your word is the rule, satisfied~"
As they spoke, players naturally surged forward to queue.
The wide aisles filled up completely, and the long line ran almost across the entire venue.
Of the nearly one hundred computers, sixty would host the battle royale.
The rest would run 6v6 Team Deathmatch and 3v3 Arenas.
Seeing the first batch of players brimming with impatience and excitement, Xander smiled, then turned his gaze to the journalists who had been waiting so long.
Ever since he publicly roasted that one reporter last time, most journalists became much "tamer" when facing him, having learned what he's like.
This guy really doesn't care about anything.
If he's in a bad mood, he'll roast you to your face.
The key is, even if you get scolded, you can't rely on the pen that's always worked before.
The last outlet that dared to fabricate rumors about Xander is probably about ready for a memorial seven days after death by now.
Because of that, the interview segment was unusually harmonious.
No trick questions—basically all about the game.
The only one that stretched the line was asking about the direction of his next game.
That wasn't much either; Xander simply shook his head and said he hadn't decided.
With a "you're good, I'm good, everyone's good" vibe, the interviews wrapped up.
To their surprise, when they kept things polite, Xander turned out unexpectedly talkative.
If it was something he could talk about, he didn't hold back even on borderline private details.
Armed with heaps of first-hand info, the reporters bolted back at top speed.
Tonight's trending list would come down to their typing speed!
This time, instead of going back to rest, Xander picked up a marker and stepped off the stage.
The crowd had been chanting for so long; of course he'd grant a small wish or two.
After signing for several overjoyed fans in a row, a familiar figure appeared before him.
Asian face.
And that build…
"I came to see you again~"
As if afraid Xander would forget, the guy even tossed him a deliberately sleazy wink.
At once, an unpleasant memory flashed through Xander's mind, and his face darkened on the spot.
"Get lost!!"
"Hey!!! Wait, wait, Old Thief—I'm kidding!
I have a girlfriend!
I'm straight, seriously straight!!!"
It was the same prankster fan from the Saint Freya Mini-Game Festival.
Who would've thought he'd show up at the Schicksal Game Expo too.
"Aren't you in the Far East?
How'd you end up here?"
Seeing the sincere expression, Xander decided to believe him for now.
He signed the notebook and asked casually.
"Heh, it's vacation right now.
I'm traveling with my girlfriend, and we happened to catch this."
"That is pretty coincidental.
Take my blessings and scram."
"Got it—thanks, Old Thief!
I'm off to queue for the game.
This one won't disappoint, right~?"
"Why don't you listen to the cheers behind you?"
Not far behind him, players at the stations were whooping nonstop as they played.
From time to time, a player would slump back in his chair with a face full of regret, then point at the screen, dissecting the moment with his friend.
"Then I'm reassured."
Waving, the fan made room of his own accord, then hurried off to show the autograph to his girlfriend still holding their place in line.
After another half hour of interacting with players—until his signing hand started to ache—Xander finally found an excuse to slip away.
Back in the lounge, he was about to sit and rest when he noticed the host already sitting on the sofa.
She looked at Xander with curiosity and interest, like a hunter who'd found a prey worth studying.
Her hand brushed naturally through her golden curls as she propped herself up, highlighting the figure below the elegant, slender neck that she took pride in.
"In the East, am I supposed to say… welcome back?"
She even threw a wink for good measure.
Unfortunately, offstage, Xander had little interest in humoring her.
"No.
That's at home.
This is outside."
With a casual reply, Xander politely kept his distance and said no more.
Seeing this, the socially adept host instantly understood.
She smiled helplessly and put away the act.
Since he wasn't interested, she wasn't about to push her face in, no matter how promising this young man might be.
Forcing small talk would only put him off.
Click.
Xander took a cup of water to soothe his dry throat.
Just as he reached for the door, the lock turned.
A tall figure with delicate features, hair tied up to give off a handsome-cute air, walked in with a calm expression—face-to-face with Xander.
Seeing Bronya, Xander's cool expression melted at once.
He grinned.
"What a coincidence.
I was just about to go find you."
"Mm."
She gave a small nod, lifted her gaze to the host in the room, then back to Xander.
The corner of her mouth curled slightly as she said offhandedly, "Nice crosstalk routine you did back there."
"Hey now, when did I do crosstalk?"
With an arm around Bronya's shoulders, Xander walked out of the lounge and closed the door behind him.
"Shouldn't you be praising my iron self-control?
Unmoved by beauty and all that."
"She hit on you?"
Xander nodded.
"Is she prettier than me?"
Xander shook his head.
"Heh~"
A scornful chuckle.
"I already let you play with me however you want.
Isn't resisting that kind of temptation just the bare minimum?"
"..."
Seeing Xander's speechless look, Bronya couldn't help but laugh.
She lowered the arm he'd draped over her shoulder, pulled him into a tight hug, and said with a smile, "Okay, I'll stop teasing.
Since you behaved, you get a reward tonight—Seele and I will give you a two-person massage.
How's that?
We even learned the technique from Aponia on purpose."
"For real?"
"Why would I lie?"
"Oh, Duck, you know me.
I've always been steadfastly faithful to you and everyone.
Bring on as many trials as you want—I'll pass them all!"
"All right, enough chatter.
Let's go meet up with the others.
We still have plans tonight."
She pulled out a cap and dropped it over half of Xander's face.
Soon, the two slipped out of the rest area.
Bronya had already tried the fun games earlier and picked a few to buy at release and study with Xander.
With no interest in roaming more, they left the convention center, and Bronya led Xander to a dessert shop.
In the lively booth, Elysia was scarfing down a parfait while clutching her forehead in pain, face scrunched up.
Mei watched her with concern.
Seele and Kaguya sat in a corner whispering, both with rosy cheeks.
Kiana and Sirin, meanwhile, were circling someone who surprised Xander, asking curious questions.
"Sakura?"
Seeing the cherry-haired girl, Xander blurted it out.
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