The icon of crossed swords pulsed on Leo's smartphone screen, a digital omen of his bleak future. He read the "Acquisition Duel" notification three times, each word sinking him deeper into a pit of anxiety. This was no longer about avoiding a rival; it was a formalized competition, a direct challenge with severe penalties. Kael hadn't just followed him; he had used the system itself to corner him, turning their personal rivalry into a matter of public record.
His first reaction was panic. His second was to get help.
He ran to Yuki's restaurant, bursting through the door without even knocking. Yuki was behind the counter, meticulously cleaning her black knife, but she paused when she saw the look on Leo's face.
"Let me guess," she said, her voice as dry as ever. "Silver hair, expensive suit, and an attitude like he owns the multiverse."
"He declared a duel against me!" Leo said, his voice a mixture of panic and indignation. "An 'Acquisition Duel'! What does that even mean?"
Yuki sighed, a long, weary sound. She set the knife down and poured a glass of water for Leo, pushing it across the counter. "It means you really pissed him off. The woods fighting for you was an insult his arrogance couldn't ignore."
She leaned against the counter. "Acquisition Duels are one of the oldest, most brutal parts of this business. They're a 'civilized' way to settle territorial disputes or eliminate competition. When a courier from a licensed agency like 'Cosmic Grub' challenges an independent like you, it's basically a hostile takeover. He's trying to force you out of the market."
"But I'm not a market! I'm just a guy!"
"To him, you're a symptom of a problem," Yuki continued. "He wins, he takes your payment, a cut of your Karma Points, and most importantly, he wrecks your rating. With a severe penalty, you won't be able to accept higher-tier jobs. You'll be stuck delivering chips to teenage goddesses forever. It's how they crush the independents."
Leo's blood ran cold. Being stuck forever in this cycle, with no way to progress? It was a sentence worse than being recycled.
"What do I do?" he asked, his voice barely a whisper.
"You don't refuse," Yuki said firmly. "Refusing is admitting defeat and taking the penalty. You fight. You win." She looked at him, her dark eyes assessing him. "You've been lucky so far, newbie. Luck won't last. You need to be faster, smarter, and more ruthless than he is. Kael is all technique and efficiency. You... you're chaotic. Use that."
As Leo tried to absorb the less-than-comforting advice, his smartphone buzzed with a chat message from Sephie-chan.
Sephie-chan: LEO-KUNNNN! The book is PERFECT! The boss got so immersed in the story he forgot to schedule next week's apocalypse! You're the best! (´｡• ᵕ •｡`) ♡ Btw, what's an 'Acquisition Duel'? A weird notification popped up on my delivery feed about you... It sounds fun! Is it like a PvP event?
Leo ignored the message. He didn't have the energy to explain his impending doom to an otaku goddess. His focus was on the future, on waiting for the axe to fall.
He didn't have to wait long.
An alarm sounded from his smartphone, a deep, resonant chime he had never heard before. It was a sound that signified importance and danger. The notification that appeared took up the whole screen, its border glowing with an intense golden light.
DELIVERY ALERT - ALPHA TIER
ACQUISITION DUEL TARGET ACTIVE
Client: The Celestial Archivist, Library of Alexandria (Restored)
Item: 1x [Heart of a Dying Star] (Fragile, Time-Sensitive, Emits Ethereal Radiation)
Address: Null Point, between Reality 12 and Reality 13
Delivery Instructions: "Contents are unstable. Exposure time is limited. Do not deviate from the path. Failure to deliver within the time frame will result in the item's collapse into a micro black hole. This is not advised."
Payment: 5,000 Karma Points + [Fragment of Forbidden Knowledge]
Leo stared at the details, his stomach twisting into a knot. A star's heart? A micro black hole? This was on a completely different scale from anything he had ever done.
At the bottom of the screen, two buttons appeared: [ACCEPT DUEL] and [DECLINE DUEL].
At the same time, a second notification overlaid the first.
Courier Kael (Cosmic Grub) has ACCEPTED THE DUEL.
The [DECLINE DUEL] button greyed out and vanished. Leo only had one option.
With his heart in his throat, he tapped [ACCEPT DUEL].
Immediately, a holographic map projected from his smartphone, showing a complex path through a landscape of impossible geometry. Two dots appeared at the start of the path: one blue (Leo) and one red (Kael). At the top of the map, a timer began to count down.
TIME TO CORE INSTABILITY: 01:00:00
The race had begun.