Pride Online

36  Caused by Fame Part IV

“Oh, hey, I have to give you something.”

“Yes?”

Wisana waited until the other looked up from the green transparent screen before he handed out something to the younger guy. Manoch paused at that, eyes widened with shock.

“Bro?! Are you sure?”

“Yes. Take it.”

“But I already gave it to you, also I’m not here to ask for it back.”

The item in Wisana’s hand was the butterfly effect scarf. Manoch felt kind of amused to think that it was just an incomplete item, but this man could turn it into a high-rank item by fighting with a boss once.

“May said that if you patented it, you’d be rich from the copyright cost. Are you really okay to give up that huge amount of money?”

“Yes, that’s true,” Manoch replied mumblingly. “But I just wanted the feedback from you, how you activate it, including its strong and weak points. I didn’t mean to claim it back or anything.”

“Come on, take it. It was yours anyway.”

“Are you sure?” Manoch stuttered. “I mean, if I patent it, I have to give the scarf to the association of item developer right away. I think you should keep it. I can make a new one.”

Hearing that made Wisana raise eyebrows. This was just like selling, wasn't it? The association was really tricky though. They agreed to pay a huge amount of money for the creation formula to make more of it and sell them at a high price.

“Does it require a lot of material to make one?” Wisana probed.

“Well... yes, it does.”

“Then don’t waste your time. Take it. I don’t need it anymore.” He finished as he forced the scarf into Manoch’s hand, making the other know that the debate had ended.

“…Is this really okay?” He still looked worried.

“I don’t know, ...But if you don’t have it, I'll be upset. Come on, you’re friends with May, anyway. Don’t overthink it,” the older one still insisted, so the glasses merchant nodded, keeping the item in his inventory compliantly.

“Then you should change your outfit and go to May. I'll have to excuse myself to go to the association first.” Manoch said as the other one smiled in acknowledgment, getting himself up.

“Will we meet again soon?”

“Of course, I'll meet up with you guys again before we go on the quest together.”

“The quest?” Wisana asked, having no idea what a quest was.

“Your class quest. May said that you’d not improved your class, right?”

The older man nodded, realizing that the main goal today was to do the class quest. Then he chuckled at how messed up his jinx had made things for them.

“Then, I'll see you later, Wisana. Hope that you’d still be in one piece, and not dragged by crazy fans,” Manoch teased, putting money for the coffee on the table.

“You can call me Na.”

“Ok, Na Brother.” He said, grinning. “I’ll get going now.”

----------------

After the other one left, Wisana changed his clothes from the white shirt into a black sweater. He had to admit that he got more comfortable now. It was also easier to move with the new clothes than with the old one.

The man started walking to the Placeton Hotel. When he got there and judged it from the outside, the place looked like a luxury hotel because from the front door to the ceiling were all decorated with expensive-looking materials that made Wisana whistle, feeling impressed. But something that was off here was the players dressed up in full armor or in some long-tail cloaks, looking really contrasted to the modern place like this.

He did not take long to get to a carved wooden door with a luxurious sign above the frame saying 308.

“This room is May’s appointment, right, Jinnie?” Wisana asked.

“That is correct, master.”

After her confirmation, Wisana knocked on the door twice, softly.

“Password?”

Suddenly a deep, gruff voice of a man came, making Wisana jump!

Damn it! The talking door almost made him jump out of his skin. And why on earth did the auto password detector in a hotel as luxurious as this has to be set with the dragging voice of an old ghost? What kind of taste was this?!

“Vincent.” The correct password made the door unlock itself with a soft click sound. Wisana sighed, putting a hand on his chest in relief. He looked around again to see no one there, so he got himself inside.

“Why is it so dark in here?” He complained as usual when he could not see anything but the dark. The tall one waited for his eyes to get used to the dark for a while before he could see four windows were covered by thick curtains to block all the sunlight.

“May...” Wisana tried calling out his buddy, but there was no response. He looked around the room and saw a bed and a set of couches, but no trace of the one he was looking for.

“Guess she’s not here, yet.” He said, sitting down on the bed. “And she comes late despite setting the appointment herself?

“I’m here.”

“It’s haunted!”

A high-pitched voice said, making the one who just got to relax jump again.

“May, is that you? Where are you?”

“I’m under the bed.”

Wisana blew out a sigh, feeling relieved that it was Maysa’s voice. But why did it sound a bit strange to his ears? It was completely different from yesterday, a bit smaller, a bit higher, or something.

“What on earth are you doing there, huh, Maysa?” Wisana asked, bending down to check on her.

“I needed to hide, just in case you were someone else. You've never been through like I did. You have no idea, Wisana.”

Hearing the complaint coming out from her in a combo, he smiled knowingly. She had surely been through a lot that got the brave Maysa hiding under the bed.

“It’s okay now. Come on out.” He said as he tried so hard to hold a laugh in. He heard a pattering sound as the other one tried to struggle out after being so fed up with the heat under there for so long.

When she was out for Wisana to see her clearly, the amusement he was having was all gone. He could understand how she managed to fit in that tiny gap under the bed now.

Just her standing right here answered enough…

Wisana was stunned, pointing at Maysa while she was brushing the dust off herself with a frowning face. When the pair of grey eyes caught Wisana’s shocked face, she raised her eyebrows.

“What’s up with you?” the small voice asked, sounding pissed.

Wisana was still lost for words, so he kept gasping.

“Is this really you, May?”

“Yes, it’s me. Why? You already forgot my face after one day?”

“It’s not that I forgot, but...”

He could manage to speak only a few words before he gulped. Maysa was completely different from yesterday. Her slender figure got smaller and... no, it was a lot smaller! She could be as tall as a five-year-old now! Her limbs got shorter, and her voice became higher in tone.

Not only that but she was also dressed in a cute pink one-piece dress. Her dark brown hair, which had been gathered in a ponytail, had now become twin tails. And most importantly, she had cat ears and a tail, exactly like the waitress at the coffee shop!

With all these reasons, Wisana could not do anything more than just gasp like that.

“What’s wrong with you Wisana? Why do you look so surprised? Oh, because of my baby figure? Well, I got caught up...”

“Why are you so adorable?!” The taller one finished then he picked the kid in front of him up, spinning her around.

“KYAAA!! Put me down! I'm not a child!!”

“Yes, you are. Obviously,” the young man argued as he pulled the round figure in to hug tightly, making the other one’s face heat up, her tiny hand trying to push him off.

“Let me go, moron!”

“No. I'm gonna hug you. What an adorable baby.”

“Damn it, you lolicon weirdo! Ugh! Today sucks!! What's wrong with these people?!” She complained as she was wriggling, turning her face away when this crazed buddy was leaning in to smoosh her face, too.

Good heavens! Could someone make him stop being insane?!!