Her foot was kicked away by Seiun Sky, and Tokai Teio cried out in pain and annoyance.
"Sky!"
"The trainer had something dirty on him just now; I was helping him clean it off," Seiun Sky said, her expression unfazed.
A vein popped on Tokai Teio's forehead. She looked at Luo Cheng, then turned back with a forced smile. "That was so thoughtful of you. I specifically chose a place far from Tracen, so why did I have to run into you in a city this big? There are so many restaurants around here you can't even count them with all your fingers and toes."
"Maybe it's because the trainer and I have a special connection," Seiun Sky said, eating a fry and offering one to Luo Cheng. "Try it carefully, Trainer. It has my sauce on it."
"Got it. I'll be sure to savor it."
"Hehe. You could also just eat my sauce directly. Do you want to know what it tastes like?"
"Dandelion."
"?"
As she watched the two of them interact, Tokai Teio's anger subsided. She pulled out the couple's milk tea the manager had given them. "Trainer, we should drink the 'couple's' milk tea the employee gave us." Tokai Teio emphasized the word "couple."
"Teio, actually you and Sky..."
"You're willing to eat Sky's food, but you won't drink a drink with me?" Tokai Teio's small face showed a terrifying smile. She was just a little pony, but she exuded a dreadful, undeniable aura. It was as if a wrong answer would get him devoured in the next second.
Luo Cheng was about to say they were both his wings, but Tokai Teio's stare made both wings retract. Now, he only had half a wing left. He opened his mouth and bit down on the straw.
I have a question. If I die here, is it a real death, or do I just start over?
On his sixtieth day in the game world, Luo Cheng had considered dying. The unchanging routine, the loneliness of being separate from the world—it felt like he was the only one left. Everyone else was just a puppet with a physical body, all working together to operate this fake world.
Like Truman, he was searching for the truth of the world, but unlike the movie's protagonist, he couldn't find it. When Luo Cheng was lost and thinking of giving up, Tokai Teio suddenly appeared and pulled him back from behind. With her immense strength, she pulled his dejected body down from the window. Then, she took him to the nurse's office and put him to bed. After he got better, she left on her own.
It seemed Luo Cheng's mental breakdown had triggered some kind of protection mechanism for the trainer, which stopped him from jumping. Tokai Teio's actions also helped him clear his head. When a person is alone for too long, they start overthinking. Not talking to anyone would eventually cause him to go crazy. He needed to talk. Humans have to communicate. It's true what they say: a person is the sum of their social relationships. If a person is separated from the world and can't interact with others, then they can't be called a "person."
So Luo Cheng found Teio and made her his listener, telling her all his frustrations. He had to find a chance for change in this bustling yet stagnant world.
As he drank his tea, Seiun Sky called out, "Miss, please bring me a couple's drink, too. We want one as well."
"Okay... huh?" The waitress looked at Tokai Teio, then Seiun Sky, and finally at Luo Cheng. "Please wait a moment..."
"Sky, you're doing this on purpose!"
"This is a restaurant; it's perfectly normal for me to order a milk tea. Of course, I could also just drink the trainer's milk tea."
Tokai Teio was so angry she gnashed her teeth, but there was nothing she could do. The trainer wouldn't let her kick Sky out either. Her date was completely ruined by Seiun Sky!
After that, Seiun Sky followed them everywhere, and Luo Cheng didn't seem to want to get rid of her at all. If she asked him for a pat, he would do it.
Don't you have any sense of self-awareness that you belong to me? My trainer can't have someone else's scent on him!
Tokai Teio bit her nails. When they were about to part ways, Luo Cheng remembered something. "By the way, Teio, your debut race is next week, right?"
"Yeah."
"Good luck. I'll be watching you be invincible."
Luo Cheng didn't want Teio to get soft during his time without the system. His goal was to beat the game, which meant winning all the URA races. Of course, it might not be the URA. Luo Cheng wasn't sure what his scenario was yet. The final race could even be a hellish one like the Arc de Triomphe. If so, it would be a tough nurture. If he lost a race and the game froze, he might be trapped in the game world forever.
Luo Cheng patted Teio's head and told her to rest early before heading back. Tokai Teio watched him go. That last sentence only made her angrier.
You clearly care about me so much, so why are you being all lovey-dovey with Seiun Sky?! It's my race, so what's the deal with you caring about others?
Tokai Teio was going to get an explanation tonight.
Back in his dorm, Luo Cheng took off his clothes. Since he had arrived in this world, he had either been fooling around or feeling down; he had never truly lived. Only now did he realize that the temperature of the water in the bathtub could be adjusted.
After a nice, comfortable bath, Luo Cheng put on a towel and sat in the living room to watch TV. A few minutes later, there was a knock on the door, and a middle-aged man with stubble asked him if he wanted to play cards.
During his time as a trainer, he had met a few colleagues on the same floor. The man in front of him was named Yagyu Yanghui, but everyone called him Brother Yagyu. He was a good-natured guy who liked to take care of his juniors. He was married and had two kids. The man showed him photos and videos of his two children, but at that moment, only one thought came to Luo Cheng's mind:
Oh, so that's your character setting.
Now when he saw people, he didn't think of them as people but as game characters.
Luo Cheng was no longer normal.
After playing cards with them for a few hours, Luo Cheng returned to his room. He hadn't felt this close to his college dorm life in a long time. He wondered if his silly roommates, who were now starting their careers, would be envious of his situation.
If you had the chance, would you want to come to a world like this?
With that question in mind, Luo Cheng took off his towel, turned off the lights, and got into bed. At that moment, he felt a weight on him, followed by a pair of soft feet on his face. He opened his eyes and saw Tokai Teio sitting on him with a sly smile.