Chapter 157

Chapter 157: Demons

After leaving the dungeon, Team Homies pretended that they had been tired, exhausted, and frustrated.

Tomo Homie played the main actor role, “Those damn orcs! Those damn wolves! What the fuck?! We nearly died! And you… my girl! I hope no orc had laid his hands on you!”

Dancing Shadow blushed genuinely as Tomo Homie called her ‘his girl’, “N-No…”

Tomo Homie put his hand on his forehead, sighing and complaining louder, “We won’t return to this dungeon ever again!”

Alex and Zhen patted his shoulder, “Don’t be so sad… We just lost a few items…”

“Damn it!”

They were playing such a little theatre because there were always players who hunted for people leaving the dungeon.

No one sane would attack a big guild, so small parties such as Team Homies were usually the target.

They were complaining and acting as if the Orc Dungeon’s Conquest was an utter failure!

Alex even wore one of the broken metal armors to blend with others. After crying out loud for quite a long time, Team Homies could sigh with relief.

They picked up the carriage, then drove to the nearby city.

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“Alex pays!” Tomo Homie shouted in the restaurant as he lifted the cup of beer.

Other homies hailed their cups as well, smiling and winking at Alex. Other than Dancing Shadow, everyone was ready to force him to pay for their time in the restaurant!

Alex muttered as he jested, “I thought we would log out and go to sleep.”

Zhen wrapped his arm around his shoulder, grinning to his ear, “We won! We won! Haha! We can’t just go back to real life, you know?! Haha!”

Pedro stared at the cup of beer, “Why didn’t you order me orange juice too?” He glared at Tomo Homie intensely.

The glasses homie chuckled, “We can get drunk in the game, then wake up sober in the real world. My pops also say that there’s nothing better than a cold beer after hard work! So drink, Pedro!”

“I don’t fucking like it,” Pedro said before gobbling some beer, “She should try beer too, then.”

Tomo Homie narrowed his eyes for the first time, glaring at Pedro with unconcealable emotions, “She is our underclassman, so she is seventeen years old.”

Pedro clicked his tongue, “The law says that underage can drink alcohol if there’s an adult nearby. Not too much, but they can.”

“How do you know that?” Tomo Homie asked, surprised. But as his friend shook his head while clicking his tongue three times, Tomo sneered, “Someone has been forced to drink a few times, I see! Haha!”

Pedro arched his head back, forcing more beer to go down his throat. He then slammed the cup on the table, “It helps with appetite, apparently.”

“Haha!” Tomo Homie burst out laughing.

He didn’t hear his good friend’s muttering, “But I’m eighteen already…” Poor Dancing Shadow could only listen to these two while holding the cup of orange juice with two hands.

But she wasn’t feeling that poor since it was actually kind of nice. She was a part of the group, even if she didn’t participate in most talks. Her presence alone was enough, and everyone looked after her, mostly Tom, though.

Others gave him more room for obvious reasons.

The party talked about everything, ranging from their dungeon run to the school and impending exams. They had a lot of time and fun together.

And then, it was time to go as the moon was already high in the sky.

Alex paid for everyone since it was his first time having a drinking party with homies. He then turned around and faced everyone.

“See you tomorrow… Dancing Shadow, we won’t hold back Tomo Homie tomorrow,” he grinned as he talked about their school time in which Dancing Shadow would see Tomo Homie in person.

She blushed and nodded.

“It will be fun!” Tomo Homie shouted before logging out.

Everyone followed him, logging out just a few meters away from the restaurant. The players disappeared in a good mood.

And as the world was vast, a new group of players filled their seats in the restaurant.

The world continued to move!

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“I’m full of energy,” Alex said as the VR capsule opened its lid.

He stared at his ceiling, no longer feeling drunk or too hot. His head was cool, clear, and sober. He could study or work, and he wouldn’t even feel the fatigue from the game world, which was really an odd feeling.

He left the capsule, “I stink…” But the usual sweat would always be here…

Alex took a quick bath, then dried up his hair. His parents were already sleeping, reserving their energies for tomorrow’s work. But for some reason, Alex didn’t even feel like sleeping.

In the game world, he was so tired mentally that he thought this exhaustion would return to real life with him.

Alex decided to go for a walk in his neighborhood. He casually thought about his future path in the game, battle with Nobum, and other casual matters.

But on his way, Alex spotted a person he had once bumped into.

It was the old man from the park. He was not alone, however. He sat on the bench with the man who seemed quite younger than him but still in his early twenties. The second man was quite tall and muscular, contrary to the old man.

Both of them shifted their eyes to Alex.

For a moment, Alex thought that he saw their eyes shining blue, similar to Sara’s soul hues, “I’m tired, after all.”

“What a fateful meeting, young man,” the old man chuckled. He then glanced at his friend, sitting with him on the bench, “If it isn’t fate, then what is it?”

The man didn’t reply; his eyes were on Alex.

Alex felt like he knew that kind of stare. In the past, when Olivia had introduced him as her boyfriend to her mother, she had the same expression.

Alex found it weird, “Do you need something, old man?”

“No,” the old man laughed, “You look quite lost, though.”

“I’m just on a walk to take a fresh breath,” Alex shrugged.

“Hmm… I heard that you shouldn’t stare at the phone before sleeping… Blue light or something…” the old man whispered, quite unsure of his words, then continued in a casual tone, “If you feel like wasting some time, then feel free to join us. We are talking about… pretty interesting stuff.”

“I don’t mind joining you… but I will keep standing here,” Alex brightly smiled.

He was curious about these two and what they could talk about at such an hour on the bench. He didn’t think of them as homeless or drunkards, as their clothes and appearances remained clean and composed.

He had nothing to do, and he was in a good spot should they think of something weird… He wasn’t scared at all.

The old man took a cigarette, “Do you believe in magic?”

“Huh?” Alex tilted his head, “You have been talking about some fantasy books?”

The old man sighed while another man shook his head, disappointed.

The second question rang out in Alex’s ears, “Do you believe in demons?”

“What kind of demons?” Alex asked.

The old man pointed at his temple, “Those that reside here.”