Lunch had been an uncommonly common affair. No Amelia on a Sunday for a change; only mom, dad, Minerva and him sharing the table. They sat around a pair of big pizzas–a forbidden meal since his sister started her diet months ago–eating and talking in between. Ricardo felt Minerva's eyes on him a couple times, but she didn't say anything.
Anyway, Ricardo went back to his room as soon as lunch was over and prepared to change into Ilaria. She had a date.
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Ilaria and Kyle were already experts in the under-20 Dungeon Date, going through the first six rounds without losing HPs or spending mana. The goblin fanatics put a little resistance, but they got done just the same. In the goblin shaman round, Ilaria was forced to use mana for the first time, which irked her a little–she wished for a full bar against the trolls.
“Don't mind it,” said Kyle. “We are doing great.”
“Yeah.”
Ninth wave: Two troll guardians.
With Ilaria's mana pool three quarters full, they were in a much better position than the last time. Just as the trolls appeared, Kyle went towards the left one, while Ilaria shot a Mana bolt to the right one, to immediately run behind Kyle.
Since Kyle would be forced to only dodge and use Taunt–the skill making the monster focus on him–Ilaria had to be the sole damage dealer for this battle. She began to make use of all the mana she had been hoarding, shooting both trolls alternately.
She finally killed them one after the other, with a few seconds to spare.
Final wave: The Troll King.
“Here it comes!” exclaimed Ilaria, overly excited.
“Lets do it!” exclaimed Kyle, with a confident smile.
The Troll King was three meters tall gray humanoid monster, with big hands and hard skin. It was dressed in a simple copper armor, holding a tower shield of the same material, and a club with metal spikes. Contrary to appearances, the King was actually pretty agile, since it could spin its shield at will.
The Troll King entered through the middle door, going directly to the center, where they were waiting. Ilaria followed as Kyle approached the King sideways from the shield side, so that the troll would need to spin around for hitting him.
And it did try, Kyle constantly on the move, anticipating at each turn. Ilaria, who already knew Kyle's usual pattern, kept shooting the King while remaining always covered by the tank. She knew one hit from the club could be fatal.
After being depleted of a quarter of its HPs, the Troll King changed its pattern and went for a shield bash. Kyle couldn't evade that–he intercepted with his shield–jumping backwards and to the left. Even if it wasn't the full amount for the attack, Ilaria could see his health bar lowering dangerously. Her mana was at the quarter mark, but she didn't hesitate on healing him.
The troll took the chance to spin around and try to club Kyle, but, surprisingly, he slided on his shield, hitting his foe in the knee. Ilaria didn't waste the chance to shoot at the King's uncovered head, while it tried to kick the warrior.
And then Kyle got hit.
Ilaria saw how the warrior flew from the impact, hitting the wall. His HPs were almost gone; he would have been out for sure if Ilaria hadn't healed him before. Looking at the Troll King, it wasn't doing great either. Kyle had left his spear lodged into its knee, which was bleeding profusely.
Ilaria didn't have much mana left. Kyle needed healing, but he had lost his weapon and shield. Even if she healed him, he wouldn't resist much more. She decided to use all the mana she had left and try to kill the troll herself.
Sorry Kyle, this is just a game.
The troll had been aggravated towards Kyle, so it went for the finishing blow, leaving Ilaria alone. She had expected that, shooting the troll on its uncovered neck while it hit Kyle with the club.
Kyle died.
Ilaria shot her last Mana bolt.
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Wow.
Ilaria and Kyle were looking at each other and smiling. They couldn't do anything but that. The shot of adrenaline was just too much to handle.
They were still in the ballroom of the experience date.
At the time of the challenge, the room had a dark and heavy atmosphere. Now a warm sunlight came from the windows and you could hear soft string music.
In the center of the room, a bright yellow crystal was floating.
A Private Date ticket.
Finally, Ilaria took a step forward, and pointed the crystal to Kyle.
“Take it,” said Kyle. “You killed him in the end.”
“No, I can't possibly do that,” said Ilaria. “You are really awesome. I know someone like me normally wouldn't be able to get that far.”
“But then...” said Kyle. “This should be your first chance to do a Private Date.”
“Yours too, silly,” said Ilaria, laughing. “Say what, we should go together.”
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What have I done.
Ricardo logged out–Kyle was going to be out for a few hours– and went out for a stroll. He felt cramped in his room. In the game he had been walking through the countryside, exploring and fighting, but he felt like he still needed some real-life fresh air. And to ponder about his life choices. Specially that last one.
The local mall was a few blocks away, so that was his aim for the afternoon. He hadn't put on his earphones today; he wanted hear the streets of Lima. Real streets. It was the Sunday after New Year's Day; it was supposed to be a quiet day, unlike the last time he had been out.
Was Lima always like this?
The streets looked messy, and sounded even messier. And that wasn't even taking the smells in consideration. People crossing by, cars honking, colorful billboards vying for attention. Torinelo City was so ordered in comparison, so symmetrical, so aesthetically pleasing to his designer heart.
Ricardo was almost at the entrance of the mall, when he heard something familiar.
“Hey!” exclaimed an overly excited, high-pitched voice.
Damn, it's Amelia.
“Hello,” said Ricardo. He turned towards the familiar voice, and immediately made a double-take. He was already used to the elvish Amy–the one he had spent a lot of time with lately–so he was surprised with the sudden change.
Besides, Amelia was dressed in a yellow blouse and white pants; her brown hair tied in a ponytail. A lot more casual than what Ricardo was used to see on her.
Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.
“I thought you would be in Virtual Connection, leveling,” said Amelia, going towards him.
Ricardo stared at her for a second too long.
“Do you miss Amy's blond hair?” asked Amelia, grinning.
“It would look weird,” answered Ricardo, lowering his gaze.
“Are you shopping?” asked Amelia, walking next to him.
“Not really. I just wanted to leave my room for a while.”
“Then come with me!”
Ricardo–not having anything better to do–followed Amelia as she entered the mall. It didn't take him too long to realize they were heading towards the main concert area.
“Didn't know there was a performance today,” said Ricardo.
“Lately, every Sunday there's something in there,” said Amelia. “I guess it'll be just for the summer.”
“What are we watching today?” asked Ricardo, now intrigued.
“I don't know!”
The guest artists were a Peruvian folkloric group, both musicians and dancers. The musicians were in the scenario, but the dancers stayed in a corded square at the audience's level. They were performing Afro-Peruvian music, coupled with very energetic dancing.
There were just a few seats for the elderly, most people watching the show standing around the dance zone. Luckily, there weren't that many people, so Ricardo and Amelia could stand in a corner without anyone in front of them.
It seemed like they caught the tail end of the performance, since it didn't take too long for the group to start wrapping things up.
“And now, as the last part of our show, we invite people from the public to dance with us!”
Ricardo laughed–watching people try to dance was always fun–when he felt someone pulling his hand, and suddenly he was inside the corded square. He was caught unawares, to say the least.
Ricardo gauged his position–one of the five couples now inside the dance floor–with dozens of people surrounding them. I can't possibly flee now. He sent a look of despair towards the smiling imp who was holding his hand.
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“That was really fun,”said Amelia, while sipping on her strawberry smoothie. “And don't dare to even try to deny it!”
“Okay, okay,” said Ricardo, smiling against himself.
Ricardo and Amelia were sat at a table in a coffee shop–which sadly couldn't compare in ambiance with the Barista Café–drinking cold refreshments. They needed them, with all the energy they spent dancing in the show.
Actually, it hadn't been too bad, only two songs, and there were way worse couples out there. They even got a coupon for the mall, which they were currently using.
“I didn't know you could dance Afro,” said Amelia.
“Mom always makes me dance in family parties, so I can fudge it.”
“Such a pity we didn't get to dance at the New Year's party.”
“Don't remind me of that,” said Ricardo, sipping his iced coffee.
“Are you logging into VC later?”
“Yeah, I have to meet with Kyle.”
“A Dungeon Date?” asked Amelia, moving her drink with the straw.
“I think I made a mistake,” said Ricardo, looking downwards. “We are doing a Private Date.”
“What!?”
After saying that, Ricardo proceeded to explain all the sequence of events that lead to that point. Which included beating the lizard boss, getting a rare weapon drop, and then finally beating the under-20 Dungeon Date. If one looked at all at a whole, it had been a very exciting day.
“So you asked a guy out,” said Amelia, openly laughing.
“It was in the spur of the moment!” exclaimed Ricardo. “We had just defeated the boss after giving it all. And he wanted to leave the ticket for me, even though he looked like he really wanted to use it.”
“What are you doing?” asked Amelia.
“We haven't decided yet; I hope for arcade,” answered Ricardo, with a dreadful feeling.
“At least wear your dress!”
After their impromptu outing at the mall, Ricardo and Amelia walked together most of the way back, before separating to go to their respective homes.
Ricardo had needed to get back somewhat early to eat dinner, since he had an appointment. His first Private Date in Virtual Connection.
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A Private Date ticket, the reward for winning a Dungeon Date, gave two players–with the same restrictions as in a DD, so mostly male-female pairs–access to a private instance of the Game Lobby. In there you could choose between three types of 'date' and have an hour-long private session.
It didn't give any experience at all, it was purely meant for 'dating'. And you didn't need to go with the player you won the DD with–though it was designed with that in mind–since they awarded only one, indivisible ticket.
Logging in after a light dinner, Ilaria materialized in front of the coffee shop–Torinelo City's Barista Café–realizing instantly from where they had gone to their Dungeon Date earlier that day.
“Hello,” said Kyle, who was standing a few steps from her. He was dressed in a black T-shirt and jeans–which was unusual enough–Ilaria had mostly seen him in his full plate armor, even when walking through the city.
“Hi Kyle,” said Ilaria, who hadn't changed from her Magical Girl costume. “Did you wait long?”
“No, I just arrived,” said Kyle.
Yeah, as if you would tell me if that wasn't the case.
“Turn around for a bit,” said Ilaria, and Kyle did as he was told without questioning.
Ilaria materialized her backpack, taking out her dress and changing out of her costume. She didn't want to date dressed as a Magical Girl, no matter how 'not-a-real-date' the date would be. And since she was changing anyway, she would heed Amelia's advice and wear a dress, her aquamarine one.
Having changed clothes, Ilaria took out the Private Date ticket and called Kyle. She extended her hand with the crystal towards him. He put his hand over it, brushing her fingers, as they were enveloped in a yellow light.
The couple moved to a small circular room with a glass roof. They had an exit door behind them and three smaller ones in front, labeled as: Dance Hall, Karaoke Bar and Retro Arcade.
“Which one do you like?” asked Kyle, looking sideways at Ilaria.
“Let's try this one,” said Ilaria, walking towards the Arcade door. “Let's see how good you are with those.”
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“Shoot!” exclaimed Kyle, while moving his character down the screen.
“I'm trying to aim, but it's hard,” said Ilaria, while pressing the joystick repeatedly. It was the first time she had encountered one of those, and they were crude. No wonder they fell in disuse.
“Doesn't matter, I just need you to cover me,” said Kyle, while throwing a grenade inside a building.
The Retro Arcade was a rectangular shaped room, with walls covered in black tiles from floor to ceiling. It had two rows of different machine games; their weird computer-generated sounds, and twinkling, colorful lights were part of the ambiance. Besides the video games, you could even play some mechanical classics, like whack-a-mole.
“Seems like we won,” said Kyle, watching the ending animation on the screen.
Ilaria wasn't amused. The game had been way too easy for Kyle, and she didn't get to do much. She scanned the room, searching for something she could enjoy, her eyes stopping at the far left corner.
“Lets play that one,” said Ilaria, pointing to a white rectangular table.
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“Yeah, now this is my type of game!” exclaimed Ilaria, after scoring another goal.
They were at their second match of air hockey, the first one ending 7-0 in Ilaria's favor. Kyle had started with a really awkward grip on the mallet. After the first three goals, Ilaria insisted on guiding Kyle's grip and motions, so he could at least hit the puck in a straight line.
“Finally!” exclaimed Kyle, after scoring his first goal. Ilaria was afraid Kyle wouldn't enjoy the game after being beaten so soundly, but she had to commend his tenacity. Second game ended 6-1, but Kyle was beaming regardless.
“I wonder if you are a pro in this,” said Kyle, after being scored by a double bank shot.
“That was a lucky shot; I intended to do a regular bank shot but my grip slipped a bit,” said Ilaria, laughing. “Dad's the one who's really good; I have yet to beat him.”
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“Knew it,” said Kyle, after hearing the buzz.
Kyle and Ilaria were sitting in a big fluffy couch sipping from their complimentary refreshments. After the very spirited match of air hockey, they chose the trivia challenge for the date's finale.
“If it's a consolation, I would have also chosen cheetah,” said Ilaria, smiling. “Who could have thought bats were so fast.”
“It seemed too easy of a question,” said Kyle. “I guess that was our last game.”
“Yeah, we got like a couple of minutes left for the date instance,” said Ilaria, finishing her drink.
“I wonder if we get anything from this,” said Kyle, looking at the wall clock.
“I wonder too. My friends haven't told me anything about items or such.”
*ding*
Just after the clock signaled the end of the date instance, a yellow envelope appeared in front of them, while the rest of the room turned gray.
“I guess we should open it,” said Ilaria, while touching the floating envelope with her fingernail.
The envelope opened in a flash of light, three rectangular pieces of paper floating in the air until they fell in Ilaria's lap. She picked them up, noticing at once the waxy texture. They were photographs, like the old ones, taken by an analog camera and printed in photo paper. She passed them one by one, showing them to Kyle.
The first one showed Kyle focused on the arcade machine screen, while Ilaria was mashing the joystick button furiously. Second one was when the both of them were looking at each other incredulously, just after the double bank shot. Third one had Ilaria smiling at Kyle's guilty face, after botching the last question of the trivia challenge.
do you wish to keep the pictures?
These are actually good, really good; I wonder how do they do it.
Ilaria pressed the 'Yes' button without much pondering. A photo album appeared on her lap, the pictures floating and inserting themselves inside.