81 Hide and Seek

Zhou Lei, in his hoodie, sweated profusely. The air conditioner in the arcade wasn't working properly, which would have made him regret wearing a jacket instead of just a facemask and shades.

However, as he was too entranced looking at the transfer student, this minor issue was pushed off of his brain, never to be seen again.

Eventually, the girl finished a song again, with less than satisfactory results. Of course, satisfactory meant perfect for this girl. She was a veteran at this game, after all.

"Haah, I really can't do it..." Breathing deeply, the girl was exhausted to the point of her feet aching. She stepped off of the platform, her gaze staying on the screen as her feet walked the opposite way.

With her attention not directed towards where she was going, it was only a matter of time until...

"Ah!" She bumped into someone's chest.

Her glasses almost fell off as she readjusted herself. She turned her head to look at the man who she bumped into.

The man was only a little taller than her, so the other party's face was close to hers.

'Peculiar man... In a hot place such as this, he was wearing a jacket with the hoodie on? Not to mention that he had a facemask on... It was almost as if he was deliberately hiding his face! A sexual predator, perhaps!'

"Mister, I'm sorry," she said, before running away. She didn't want to risk staying close to this man!

Zhou Lei snapped out of his daze when the girl bumped into him. He brushed her out of his mind as he walked on the platform.

'Hmm, what to do?' He knew next to nothing about this game. He also did not research before he came here. After all, the quest only appeared once he paid a visit to the arcade.

He walked up to the now unoccupied platform, making him feel surreal. Looking at the screen, he inserted his card, and the game started.

.....

The girl was running away, her face exhausted.

This was not from the possible sexual predator she met at the arcade anymore, but rather, from someone else.

"Lin Guiying, you come back here!" A female adult was chasing her, along with two men in suits.

She turned her head and stuck her tongue out before resuming running away.

"Grr... she's so annoying!" The woman creased her eyebrows as she hastened her sprint. The men in suits were left behind panting.

"Miss Lin can run so fast..." One of the men said as he placed his hands on his knees, trying to regain his energy.

"Yeah, she can even outrun Miss Shao..." The other man responded as he had his hands on his hips, inhaling and exhaling.

Both of them were specially trained, but they could not catch up with the two they were supposed to accompany... How embarrassing was that?

The figures of the two women got gradually farther and farther as the two men stared hopelessly.

"Haah, let's go!" One of them said as he started running again.

.....

Lin Guiying ran full circle around the mall.

However, she was not exhausted at all. Maybe this could be attributed to her career, or maybe it was because of her hobby. Either way, she had astounding stamina.

On the other hand, the one chasing her was not bad either. Shao Lingxin was a track and field champion when she was a student, so it went without saying how long her endurance was.

At last, Lin Guiying made it back to the arcade, going inside without hesitation.

She knew every nook and cranny of the arcade, as this was her destination every time she snuck out of her workplace.

Her career was really exhausting, and adding the fact that she needed to go to school made her feel more tired than when she was homeschooled.

The arcade was her paradise, her comfort zone.

She hid behind one of the machines, in the most obscure place possible.

Shao Lingxin walked into the arcade not long after Lin Guiying did.

The arcade was full of people. From right to left, all of the machines were crowded, making Shao Lingxin feel disoriented.

"...How am I supposed to find her here?"

She walked in, feeling diffident in this unfamiliar place.

As soon as she strolled in, a kid brushed past her, making her take a step back.

"Watch it, kid!" Shao Lingxin shouted to the kid.

The kid heard her, and turned his head to stick his tongue out. The sight of this reminded her of Lin Guiying.

She sighed, then resumed exploring the arcade.

"This place is bigger than I thought!" Everywhere she turned her head, it looked like there were more areas she had yet to see.

There were people holding the joystick on a crane machine, throwing balls, shooting guns, and even driving cars!

Of course, most of these only happen on the screen.

Shao Lingxin felt a sense of being lost in this place, even though she could clearly see the exit. It made her feel uncomfortable, like she did not belong here.

Eventually, she ended up in the place where it was the least crowded.

There were a couple of basketball machines being used, but most of them were out of order, making the corner where she was at the most deserted place in the arcade.

"Haah, where could that girl have gone?"

Behind one of the machines, Lin Guiying felt her heart pounding. She was right there!

She sneakily raised her head above the machine to peek. As soon as she did, she saw a woman in a suit, wearing a skirt.

Lin Guiying immediately recognized this woman. It was Shao Lingxin! This confirmed her suspicions. She put her head down as fast as possible.

"What to do, what to do!" She was thinking of ways to avoid getting spotted by her manager.

Shao Lingxin crouched as she looked through every little spot she could see. "Might as well start searching here..."

Lin Guiying looked again, only to see Shao Lingxin crouching. 'Chance!'

She ran to a different place inside the arcade.

Shao Lingxin, who was oblivious to the fact that she narrowly missed her target, continued searching meticulously.