kiyohira and rie are walking together ahead of takeshi and his friends. the beautiful woman in black is having trouble keeping a poker face because of their banter. this player must be in a relationship with this man. it means that merciless breaker is gay. her charms won't work on this player. in any case, she will do everything to find this player's identity.
"don't you think that there is something between them?" haru whispers.
"they argue a lot?" iori raises her brow.
"so, you have noticed it too." takeshi eyes him. his voice is low enough that only they can hear it. "my idiot brother is interested in my sister, but he doesn't know it yet. my sister doesn't have any idea either. it's better if you two keep your mouth shut from now on. if you speak one word about it to anyone especially them, that will be your -" he moves his index finger across his throat. haru gulps down his saliva.
"what about me?" iori looks at him with round eyes. "i like your brother."
"give up." it's no secret that iori has a crush on his brother since she was thirteen. but, they have barely spoken any word. takeshi knows that his brother will never have any of those intentions toward her. he didn't say anything to her because it is amusing to watch her nervous around his brother.
"i can't just give up." she pouts at him. "he is my first love."
"my brother only sees her." he points at his sister.
"takeshi, don't be cruel." haru pats iori's head. "our iori will start crying at this rate."
"i won't cry." iori also knows that she has no chance with takeshi's brother. she has a crush on him because of his looks, but kamiyama kiyohira is like a star that's too holy to touch.
when he was young, he was a child genius. he graduated from college at the age of fifteen. after that, he went to pursue a master degree abroad. he has been indirectly involved in his father's business since he graduated from college, but his father was adamant that he should gain worldly knowledge before he would give over the reins. he made kiyohira work his way up to the top from the bottom. when kamiyama shintaro was satisfied with his performance, he gave his company away to his son.
"i am not upset." iori shrugs. "but, who are you to tell me to give up? i will give up when i want."
"your choice." he rolls his eyes. "my brother hates clingy women."
"i am not clinging." she slaps his arm. "i am just watching him from afar. he is so pleasing to see."
"this is so gross to hear," takeshi says to haru. "there are nearly 8 billion people in this world. she has a crush on my elder brother. i have to hear her nonsense every day."
"what about you?" she crosses her arms. "you have rejected all the girls of our school. because of you, i have to hear their complains. some of them even bully me because they think that you have a one-sided crush on me. tell me, when will you get a girlfriend? i want to spend the rest of my last year in high school in peace."
"if you are so bothered, be my girlfriend then." takeshi clicks his tongue. "i doubt that anyone will bully you when you are my girlfriend."
"i would rather die." iori spats the word out. "you are my biggest bully."
"you two!" haru rubs his forehead. "stop arguing. it's only a year. then, we will go to college. nobody will bother you in college, iori."
"but, high school is high school." iori sighs.
"you can't go further." the lady in black stops them when they try to climb downstairs. beside her, his brother is standing with a deep frown. takeshi looks down at the participants' area. his sister has taken a seat.
"only participants can go." she gives them a smile. "i have made the arrangements for your stay. if you are tired, find me. my id is r1k9."
she walks away from them after telling them where to find her. there is only tapping sounds in the air. iori is already bored. haru grips on the railings and watches them all with enthusiasm.
"it would be awesome if we could also play."
"we won't survive a minute in the game."
in the next ten minutes, she has already wiped out half of the players. kiyohira notices that she has fire in her eyes. her fingers are fast and meticulous. a lot of players gave up the moment they saw merciless_breaker's appearance. her id jumps up in ranks. some players picked up the laptop and threw it on the ground. they looked around for merciless_player with hate in their eyes. but, there is more than one person with the same get up.
"that's why she keeps it a secret," kiyohira mumbles to himself. "there are people who have a grudge on her."
rie isn't paying attention. she chuckles lowly and narrows her eyes when she sees the letters h47e on the screen. so, he is here again. she smiles cruelly under her mask.
"she is happy." he smiles unknowingly when he sees her like that. "if she likes it that much, i will start a game company."
***
i accept the message request.
h47e: i didn't expect to see you this time.
merciless_b: you are here again to get your ass beaten by me.
h47e: geez, go easy on me. you told me that you weren't planning to come this year. i had high hopes. i wanted that prize.
merciless_b: money.
h47u: don't provoke the wrong people.
merciless_b: i only like to provoke those who provoke me.
h47e: fine. you can at least pretend that you are having trouble with the game.
merciless_b: then, i have to stay here longer.
h47e: it's not a bad place. i have some good games.
merciless_b: not interested.
h47e: fine, is it true that you are gay? you have brought your boyfriend with you here?
merciless_b: who?
h47e: that's the rumour on the server. the guy up there is watching you with such passion. love is strong.
i look up and see kamiyama watching me like a hawk. thanks to him, i am a gay man now. i don't have any problem, but why he is my boyfriend of all the people in the world?
h47e: his build is good. i like his eyes. can you lend him to me for a night?
merciless_b: bye, loser.
on the screen, h47e turns red and disappears. it took me nearly 5 minutes to wipe her from the game. she has been leading in the game since phase 1. i have gained huge points after defeating her. the middle phase is over.
only ten players are left for the final phase.