Pandora of Fantasy And Reality Chapter 62

Reality

An old man stepped into [Fantasy].

The old man with well trained body was standing straight. He was  wearing a brown coat and a hat. His atmosphere was different from  others.

He looked more youthful than his actual age.

This old man gave off the impression of a gentleman.

Was he perhaps entering the wrong restaurant?

The restaurant staff held such doubt.

「Excuse me, I have friends here waiting for me. I am――」

He introduced himself with his avatar’s name. The staff immediately checked and handed him the name tag and number tag.

The old gentleman accepted them and bowed with a smile, then he headed toward his table elegantly.

The restaurant staff glanced outside, where she saw an expensive black car was “still parking” there.

There were also men in black who seemed to be bodyguards.

The staff lady thought.

(The atmosphere today feels somehow strange since the morning.)

It was normal for many players to use this restaurant as a place for  offline gathering, but there was just one table with a strange  atmosphere.

Then she took a second look at the nearby table where there were  seven people――no, eight people with the old gentleman added. She averted  her gaze again and went away with quick steps.

The nearby table was also definitely in trouble. She looked at that  table where a quite plain boy was becoming flustered in front of two  pretty girls.

They must be unable to pay attention to the surrounding.

(That table’s atmosphere is also bad.)

This staff lady who had witnessed numerous offline gatherings was watching the awkward table where Akito’s group was sitting.

(Do your best boy. Now then, the problem is――)

She turned her gaze at table number 10.

(hih!?)

Her gaze met the gaze of a man who had taken off his sunglasses to expose eyes that looked like the eyes of a killer.

She hurriedly averted her gaze, but her instinct told her that the man had definitely noticed her.

The people at the problematic table number 10 stood up when the old gentleman arrived.

The old gentleman took off his hat, held it over his chest, and gave a greeting.

「This is the first time we can meet each other for real like this.」

The group who looked like they all had one or two quirks each consisted of five men and three women.

The surrounding was holding their breath from the atmosphere of table  number ten, meanwhile the neighboring table number nine had a boy  getting into panic in front of two girls.

(……Why am I already feeling this tired when it’s still morning?)

――The staff lady who had seen numerous offline gatherings observed the people at table number 10.

An old gentleman.

A man who looked like a hitman.

A man with an atmosphere like a soldier.

A harsh looking woman who seemed to be capable at work.

A glasses man with nice style.

A strong looking woman.

A man who looked like a wrestler.

And last, a woman with the smell of medicine coming off from her.

――These eight people.

The staff lady checked the reservation and saw that there would be nobody else coming to that group.

Just what kind of gathering was that?

(Are they playing Pandora? But, there are also other gatherings than  from Pandora……I wonder what are these people going to do after this?)

She felt like she had seen the faces of some of them…….

The next customer entered while the staff lady was thinking such thing.

「Umm, I’m [Ichijo Naoto] who made a reservation for four people.」

The entrance of the handsome man was like an oasis for the heart of the staff lady. She smiled toward him with that thought.

All the men following behind him were also good looking.

「Welcome to Fantasy!」

That was her best smile today.

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Akito continued trying to bring up various topics.

「Today feels hot isn’t it? It made me a bit sweaty.」

Maya instantly replied to that.

「Today is really chilly. Even the weather forecast said that it’s cold you know?」

Akito was desperate.

「P-perhaps it’s the restaurant’s temperature? Aha, ahahaha」

(Just what do you want me to do! All the conversations ended with two  or three sentences no matter what kind of topic I brought up. What’s  more this time it ends with just one sentence! This is the worst, the  difficulty level is just too high.)

He had checked but, there was no doubt that these two were Mariela and Alfie.

Akito checked the two’s appearance and came to an acceptance once more.

(I thought that they looked similar to someone inside the game but,  they really are senpai and president themselves. I can’t believe that  they just scanned their own data and used it without changing anything.)

They must be really confident with their own look.

Akito was thinking that while giving it his all to make this offline  gathering a success somehow. At the very least he wanted to keep their  in-game relationship just like before.

After all they were his important friends who he had played together for many months.

「S-so the two of you are actually using your own appearance for your avatar. Ahaha~, that’s really surprising.」

Yakumo drank her coffee while ending that line of conversation with a single sentence.

「I’m amazed you can say that when you had never noticed at all until now.」

Those words became a blade that shredded Akito’s heart.

「M-my apologies. C-come to think of it I’m also surprised seeing president here. Your personality inside the game is――」

Maya was looking at the window.

「So what?」

Akito couldn’t continue his sentence. He said 「It’s nothing」 and looked down while drinking the coffee he ordered.

He was young so he put milk and syrup into it. He drank the  bittersweet coffee while thinking if only reality could also be as sweet  as this coffee.

(This is painful.)

Akito was at a complete loss with this gap at reality even though they were very close inside the game.

(No, stop. I mustn’t give up here――t-that’s right!)

「Come to think of it, it was really astonishing that the two of you  are girls. I thought that perhaps Mariela and Alfie might actually be  male……ah, sorry. It’s nothing.」

Akito’s heart broke when the gazes of the two pierced him and he shut his mouth.

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Maya who was looking at the window was blushing beet red.

(I SCREWED UPPPPPP! What now? What should I say!? I can’t say  something like hoo my personality in the game is my real personality.  Even though I just wanted to end that line of questioning!)

Maya wanted to speak up when she saw Akito looking depressed, but she noticed that Yakumo was about to do the same.

It would be unpleasant to speak up together, so she used her gaze to  tell her 「I’m first」, but Yakumo only scoffed. It was irritating.

(This bitch. Getting carried away just because you’re his senpai at  work. You must be feeling superior because you can meet and talk with  him every day. Even though I can’t talk with him that much despite being  in the same class!)

This offline gathering would end in the worst way at this rate.

She had the awareness that she had crushed the conversations several  times because her mouth spoke up first before her disordered mind could  work.

She had that self-awareness, but Yakumo’s presence made this felt like a competition and she kept making the same blunder.

(If only the two of us are alone……)

Maya and Yakumo were getting into a glaring match in front of the depressed Akito.

Akito wasn’t witnessing that women’s quarrel because his gaze was glued to below.

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(This girl keep getting in my way)

Yakumo was also feeling irritated toward Maya.

She was strangely conscious of her and she was also the older one so  she tried to show a composed attitude, but her nervousness made her came  off as a cold woman instead.

Actually Akito’s comment about him thinking of them as man also made her wanted to reply with,

「That’s horrible~. Despite my look I’m a girl you know~」

But then she thought speaking like that didn’t suit her and she fell  into self-hatred and became unable to choose the right words for her  reply. Seeing Akito’s reaction after her reply made her felt depressed  too.

(More importantly this girl. You’re in his class and the president?  You’re always with him every day, so you should give way for me at this  kind of time. I’m older than you, you know!?)

She insisted like that with her gaze, but Maya snorted.

She wanted to throw the coffee in her hand at her, but this place wasn’t the virtual reality.

As expected she had to restrain herself here. She thought of a way to break this deadlock.

(Calm down. Calm down, Yakumo. Think of how to link this meeting for  the next time. It’s fine. There’s a chance for us to become together in  the part-time work. So if I can just get through this safely……)

Anyway, let’s make this offline gathering a success.

The three were thinking like that but, all their efforts magnificently became in vain.

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The clock was ticking.

They made the reservation for two hours course in order to enjoy a meal and conversation.

They couldn’t stay in this restaurant forever.

Akito glanced at the clock inside the restaurant.

(Twenty minutes remaining……)

They had only given a simple greeting and conversations that had  never lasted long. They had wasted their time just ordering food and  eating silently.

The two only replied instantly even when he sometimes brought up something.

(Crap. The two of them keep glancing at their smartphone. Surely this is boring for them.)

Akito wanted to cry at his own poor communication skill, even so he  wanted to somehow make a comeback in this offline gathering that seemed  to be bound to fail.

(Think, think hard. Don’t think that there are only 20 minutes left.  There are “still” 20 minutes left. Do it. Make this a success no matter  what.)

If not, then the atmosphere would be awkward inside the game too.

He could hear cheerful conversation from the neighboring table.

The eight people there didn’t look like they had anything in common  at all, but they were conversing as though they had been friends since  forever.

(I’m jealous. I want us to be like that.)

「Still, I never thought that there are only famous people here.」

「I’m famous in a bad meaning though.」

「So that tsundere-ness is your actual personality huh?」

「I’m not that famous though……」

「I had read special feature articles about you many times before. But, this is surprising.」

「All of us are surprised here.」

「Well, I never even imagined this. If I was asked before this I would think that you are someone from the opposite side.」

「Yeah. But the biggest surprise is that our leader is a politician――」

They sounded like they were having fun.

The people in that group all looked strong and in no way ordinary, but their smiles were genuine.

(Just what kind of gathering are they? No, focus. Focus to what is in front of you!)

A group of four was walking out of the restaurant.

Those four dreamed of encountering the opposite sex and created a  party that was limited to female only, and yet the result was that all  of the members were actually male.

Surely with them looking like that, their party would end up getting broken up in the virtual world too.

Akito didn’t want to meet such an end himself. So he spoke up.

「Umm……can we」

The two raised their head from their smartphone and looked at Akito’s face. No more word came out from his mouth.

「Ah, no. It’s nothing.」

Continue playing together even after this?

He couldn’t say that sentence.

Yakumo stood up. Perhaps she was angry by Akito’s attitude.

「Hey, enough already!」

「I-I’m sorr――eh?」

She splashed the water in her cup not toward Akito but toward Maya.

Maya also stood up and splashed water on Yakumo.

The atmosphere inside the restaurant cooled down drastically.  Everyone’s gaze turned toward Akito’s group. There were partitions but,  the voices of two girls quarreling could still be heard.

「I’m the one……who have enough of you!」

The two of them started grappling with each other. Akito hurriedly tried to stop them.

「Wait. Please wait!」

Just where were those slender arms keeping such strength? Akito was  thinking of that while trying to separate the two, but the two heated up  and wouldn’t stop.

「Wait! You two will get injured!」

When Akito got between the two to stop their quarrel, the eight  people at the neighboring table also came to help. The fist that Yakumo  raised……hit the old gentleman’s cheek, but it only made him looked a bit  happy.

Yakumo and Maya were yelling inside the restaurant.

「You!」

「You!」

The two’s fists that were swung with all their strength hit Akito cleanly.

「……kahah」

Akito fainted while thinking in his heart.

(If this, is inside the game……this must be a critical hit)

Akito lost consciousness and got brought to hospital.

◇

The next day.

At the Capital of Discernment, Alfie had become a high human and obtained gun for the first time.

「Look at this, Lighter. Don’t you think this gun is nice?」

The grip was black, but other than that the gun was colored gold.

The characteristic of high human wasn’t just their status, but their forte in handling anything related to firearm.

Elf couldn’t equip firearm, and other race also couldn’t handle  firearm as skillfully as human. Dwarf and……orc were only good at  handling cannon.

The location was inside a warehouse that was rented at the Capital of Discretion.

The craftsmen were working there.

Lighter was also working together with his fellow craftsmen there, but Alfie kept pestering him since some time ago.

「Alfie, you still haven’t managed to make up with them?」

Lighter sighed while looking at the daughter of his acquaintance who  was obtaining a gun using real money and showing it off proudly.

Alfie put away her gun and made a fed up look because she couldn’t  show the gun to the actual friends who she wanted to boast at.

「Because……that Mariela」

She was a calm and graceful lady in the real world, but here she was puffing up her cheeks and pouting like a kid.

(Maya-chan must be holding back a lot in the real world.)

Lighter who was acquainted with Alfie even in the real world made her sat down and then sat beside her.

「Ponsuke-kun already forgave you right?」

Alfie nodded.

「But, I don’t want to see Mariela’s face anymore.」

Lighter was exasperated.

The reason why Alfie got into a fight with Mariela.

That was because they were arguing through smartphone during their  offline gathering. They couldn’t argue openly in front of Ponsuke, so  they were conversing through smartphone.

And the content of that argument was horrible.

『You go home』

『You disappear』

The negotiation broke down and at the end――.

『I can see your real self even if you dress cutely like that! You  must be planning to go off somewhere alone with him, confess it!』

『Don’t act big just because you’re older. You’re also going all out  with dressing up! The panty you’re wearing must be your victory  underwear too anyway, aa?』

『Panty lolol  You bitch in heat!』

『Bring it on, let’s take this outside! You aren’t any different at  all. I’ll see just what kind of flashy underwear you’re wearing down  there!』

In front of a man……the two couldn’t quarrel with their true feeling, so they quarreled using messages.

(That’s no good. Before talking about the quarrel, you two glaring at  smartphone while messaging each other during that kind of situation  is……no wonder Ponsuke-kun was depressed.)

Lighter was troubled whether he should tell Ponsuke the truth or not,  but as expected he treasured his acquaintance’s daughter more.

Besides, he wished that a boy Ponsuke’s age could still have dream about girl.

He pitied Ponsuke who had to be in a gathering with two girls who  only looked at their own smartphone while ignoring him but, Lighter  decided that this was a situation where he should keep his mouth shut.

(I can’t tell him the truth like this.)

Ponsuke had to be hospitalized and stayed there for a night after he was punched unconscious.

An offline gathering at Saturday.

And then he immediately got sent to hospital before getting released at Sunday.

That was why Ponsuke couldn’t login today.

Because of that Alfie couldn’t show off herself to him even though she finally had managed to become high human and obtain gun.

「You still want to play together with them right?」

Alfie looked down in respond to Lighter’s words.

「……To be honest, I’m conflicted.」

Lighter looked a bit dubious at Alfie’s words. But, Alfie then hugged  her knees and buried her face on her legs on top of the box, so Lighter  couldn’t ask her about anything further.

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