"What's the meaning of this, Arthur?!" A woman in her late forties screamed at a blond-haired man.
She was foreign to Jake and his team. The man, however, was their friend and teammate, SWalker. He'd returned home after finishing the tournament.
He didn't look like someone who had spent half the day fighting against others.
Arthur locked his eyes on his mother's phone. It had a picture of his game character on it. During his final move, his mask was destroyed, revealing his face.
His hair was white in the game, but Arthur didn't have enough will to put cosmetics on his face. For the same reason, he also couldn't change his facial expression.
His mother had been waiting for him on the door's threshold like a game's boss. She wouldn't let him in without any proper explanation!
He replied. "It's me. My team won North America's Seventh Division. We'll participate in The International Tournament in Poland and win it."
Arthur's mother went pale. She couldn't believe that her son didn't even try to extricate himself from this situation with lies. He straightforwardly confirmed that it was him.
"Withdraw from this tournament and game at once, and we'll forgive you!" Arthur's mother said. She spoke on behalf of her husband, knowing he'd agree with her.
Her son's future wasn't in the game. He was only twenty-one years old, so he couldn't waste any time in the game! He should study to become either a doctor or a lawyer.
It would be a much better career for him and their household. No, it was the only career possible for him!
"That's your filial duty. That's how you will repay us for raising you!" she said.
SWalker stared at her before heaving a sigh.
He barely managed to curve his lips up.
He said, "I will never abandon my friends. It'd hurt our surname the most, wouldn't it?"
"You're getting too far ahead of yourself, Arthur! You dare to compare your little friendship in the game world with commoners to our established surname?!" she asked.
Arthur calmly replied, "How is it that I value this short friendship more than anything our surname offers?"
His mother widened her eyes and lips wide. She looked so horrified that it seemed she had aged by a few years or maybe even a decade. Tears uncontrollably welled in her eyes before crumbling on her face.
All the makeup she wore was washed off by drops of tears.
She hysterically shouted, "Get out! Never ever return home! You're no longer our son, my son! You're a disgrace to us! Our surname can never ever leave your cheap mouth! Where did I commit a mistake?!"
He walked to the printer, turned it on, and sat at the desk. He clicked on social media and researched The Seventh Division North America, finding various photos taken by others.
There was even his Apocalypse photo!
Last Coin started at himself with reddened cheeks.
He shook his head and started printing a few photos.
"Mom! Do you have any frames?!" Last Coin shouted.
His mom ran upstairs and barged into his room. "You won! We were watching!"
"Eh, really?!" Last Coin kicked the ground, sliding away on his chair from his mother.
She nodded a few times. "You were so cool in your last moments! Even better than SWalker! Your friend, Archer, is also really strong! Everyone from Casual Clowns is so strong! I'm so happy for you!
So, so, so, so happy!" She clapped her hands, joined them, and rested her little head on them.
Last Coin's mom was always as cheerful as she could be.
Her happy meter broke through the scale now!
"Oh, you want to hang a few photos! Yes! Finally! This room will no longer look like a coffin!" She turned around and left the room.
If the real life was a comic, she would have left a cloud of dust in her son's room.
A minute later, she returned and put many frames on Last Coin's desk.
"You also need flowers in here!"
"No! No flowers! They will die!"
"Come on! None will die! I will help you take care of them!"
"Mom!"
Such was the fate of an eighteen-year-old man who could only rely on his parents.
A/N: How was the tournament? I'd like to hear your thoughts before The International Tournament!