Game Over

STAGE THREE >> R U Ready?

This is a work of fiction. All of the names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents in this story are all products of the author's imagination used in fictitious manner. Any resemblance to an actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

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- tatami (畳) rectangular mat used as a floor covering in Japanese houses. It consists of a thick straw base and a soft, finely woven rush cover with cloth borders.

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After the arrival of all the pre-orders of "Incarnate" in the market, people flocked to the malls and other various game stores just to get a hold of the VR goggles (referred to as the "reverie") that it was sold out in just less than three days. People in the online community began sharing stories, and theories, with various online polls and debates regarding what the game world would look like and what kind of game it would be.

Yuki had no special feelings on the subject, he was actually somewhere in between—neither excited nor unperturbed. The thing was, he did not have too much to be worried about because he still thinks the game was just too ambitious to be real. But because his sister already bought the equipment, he figured that he might as well play it to get on the hype. In fact, the only thing that was bothering him right now was whether someone like Mori Akihiro will be joining in.

Mori Akihiro or Aki to those allowed have been famous since Tokyo University. Because of his undeniable skill and prowess, he became well-known in the gaming community competing even internationally. Some people might say that gaming was for nerds—this was true, in a sense. But who could've thought that a good-looking person like Akihiro would even belong to that category?

Boasting a GPA of 4.5 and an IQ of around 190, Akihiro was certainly more than meets the eye. His good looks? That was just a bonus. Aki was born to lead and be known yet he doesn't enjoy the attention and would rather keep to himself.

Yuki always finds his visage striking even now that he despises the man with all his heart. Tall, masculine, and athletic. These were just mere words to describe Akihiro. He has a pair of heavily lidded intense eyes and lips molded like a bow set in a heart-shaped face, and over his forehead was a lovely widow's peak allowing the strands of his hair to fall softly just above his naturally angled brows.

In other words, Mori Akihiro was a god.

So, how did he end up hating the man in spite of the brazen admiration in the past?

Well, there could be a lot of reasons and one of which was the initial rejection.

Yuki first saw Akihiro during the opening welcome ceremony in UTokyo. He was a freshman and Akihiro was a junior, but he already achieved so much that he was even the student council president back then. There was uncertainty on whether it was love at first sight but Yuki felt his world turned upside down when their gazes met across the hall that day. It was inexplicable. Cliché as it may sound, Yuki looked into his eyes and instantly he see everything he needs...

Returning home with a dinner from the nearby fast-food chain, Yuki reached out to his pocket and fished out the keycard. Today was supposed to be a happy day because Akihiro wasn't in the office. For some reason, he didn't go to work but he did see Ryoto together with Hiroyuki which he finds odd because Akihiro never missed a day at work.

His curiosity was piqued when Kenta mentioned that someone asked him to join the newest virtual reality game. He didn't want to pry for details because he doesn't wish for anyone in the office to find out that he knows about "Incarnate", but he was one hundred percent sure that Kenta was referring to the said game. Come to think of it, he wondered if Kenta was the fourth member of Akihiro's team. But Yuki doubted that any of the bosses of the DCA Inc would participate in the first-ever realistic virtual world.