MMORPG: Rebirth of the Mortal Online - Chapter 177

Chapter 177: Arena Online
The glass lid of the virtual reality pod opened like a sliding door.

From there, a sleepy-looking young man climbed out, ruffling his messy hair and stretching his arms above his head.

It had been quite some time since Adam had left the game and came back to the real world.

It had been too long for his own taste.

“Hera, has anything happened?” Adam asked as he left the virtual reality pod.

[No, it’s been quiet]

“Good.” Adam stepped inside the elevator, then, with one press of a button, returned to his room.

After also opening the bronze virtual reality pod inside his room, he put on some clothes for outside this time.

Instead of going to sleep, like he should, he decided to visit the town for a moment.

He left his room, and then stepped down the stairs to the first floor.

After arriving at the front door, he slid his feet inside his shoes, and when he put his hand on the door handle, he heard a sound of the door opening and the sound of rushed footsteps.

“Adam?”

A sweet voice belonging to Alice came from the stairs, and after seeing him, she smiled and asked. “Where’re you going?”

“Shouldn’t you be at school?” Adam asked and checked the time on his phone.

“It’s weekend, dummy.” Alice said with a giggle but also looked concerned. “Are you alright?”

“Yeah…” Adam scratched the back of his head.

“Well, where’re you going?” Alice asked with a smile. “Can I come with you?”

“I plan on visiting a barber.” Adam said and showed his long and messy hair. “It’s about time.”

“Mm, I’ll come with you.” Alice didn’t accept no as an answer and put on some outdoor clothes and shoes.

“Fine by me.” Adam chuckled and watched as Alice gathered her things.

A short while later, she was ready, and then they left the house behind, heading towards the town together.

The town was not far, so they walked there with the summer sun shining over them like a silent guardian.

Since it was the weekend, the local farmer’s market and fair were in full swing, bustling with activity and people from all over the region.

While walking to the barber, they checked out the fair and sampled some of the delicious food offerings.

Those foods had the freshest ingredients, straight from the nearby farmer’s market.

“Look.” While eating the food, Alice pointed at one of the carnival games that was surrounded by a crowd of people.

“Hmm?” Adam looked over and couldn’t see what kind of game it was from where they were standing.

Curious though, they went to check it out and saw two machines—looking like virtual reality pods, but in a sitting position—and there were two people sitting on them.

At the screen behind them, the crowd watched as the two fought in some kind of virtual colosseum, cheering and shouting as if they were actually there.

“Is this Mortal Online?” Alice asked curiously.

“No…” Adam shook his head. “It must be Arena Online. It’s another virtual reality game.”

“Oh, is it good?” Alice asked. “As good as Mortal Online?”

“They’re different.” Adam asked. “However, no, it is not as good as Mortal Online for multiple reasons.”

“Why?” Alice curiously asked with a cute tilt of her head.

“Arena Online is unsmooth in terms of gameplay mechanics. The owners of that game tried to make the game open-world, but their NPCs were just lifeless dolls, so they kept it as one-versus-one.

“While in Mortal Online you can move as smoothly as you can in the real world, Arena Online is different in that aspect as you feel like you’re controlling a puppet version of your body.”

“Oh, I see.” Alice smiled and said. “Give it a try, please!”

“I am not sure; I need to have my haircut.” Adam said as he was not that interested in playing it.

He had some experience with Arena Online, as there was a moment of his life when he properly tried to get good with it, but in the end, he returned back to Mortal Online like a moth to a flame.

“I can stay in the line for you while you get your haircut.” Alice said with a smile. “I’ve never seen you play, so I want to at least once, please~”

“Sigh…” Adam looked at her cute face and couldn’t say no, so he nodded with a sigh. “Alright.”

“Yay~” Alice then pushed Adam in the direction of the barbershop.

There was a barbershop nearby, its doors wide open, and it was currently empty as the last customer just left with a freshly cut haircut.

As Adam stepped inside the establishment, he didn’t see anyone there, so he just took a seat at one of the chairs.

A couple of seconds later, a middle-aged woman came out from the back room, holding a pair of scissors and a comb.

“Oh, hello, are you here for a haircut?” She asked with an amiable voice.

“Yes.” Adam stood up and showed his long threads of hair. “I let my hair grow too long.”

“Alright, just take a seat, and we’ll get you sorted.” She said with a smile.

Adam sat on one of the chairs that were facing a mirror. He stared at his reflection and wondered what kind of haircut he should get.

He hadn’t thought about it much.

“Do you have a haircut in mind?” She asked as she adjusted the cape around his neck.

“Not really…” Adam replied. “Just shorten it up a bit, I guess.”

“Mm, I’ll see what I can do.” She said with a wink and then proceeded to pick up her scissors.

…

Outside, under the scorching sun, another round of matches finished up.

The crowd was still as big as ever, and the line had grown bigger.

Finally, Alice arrived by the machine.

She looked at it with amazement but could tell that it wasn’t as high-tech as the VR pods of the Mortal Online.

At that moment, she started to hear some whispers coming from the people in line behind her.

“Wait, isn’t he…?”

They were staring towards the other machine, where an older man with short gray hair was standing. He was surrounded by friends of his, chatting and laughing.

“Uh, who is he?” Alice asked the person behind her.

“You don’t know?” The person shook his head and said, “Highland Champion of Arena Online, Oath.”

“Oath?” Alice frowned. “Highland Champion, so he is good?”

“He is one of the best!” The person said with a look of admiration. “I heard that he is visiting these carnivals all around Highlands and challenging others to Arena Online, but I never expected to see him here!”

“He sounds amazing…”

“Of course he is!” The person said. “He ended up as fourth in the World Cup, after all!”

‘Since these people know him, Arena Online must be a popular game as well.’ Alice thought. ‘Well, of course it is; it’s a revolutionary game just like Mortal Online.’

“I pity you,” the person said while looking at the beautiful young woman. “It’s still a rare chance to play against a world-class player such as himself, so have fun!”

“Oh, I am not the one playing.” Alice said. “I am here with someone, and he is coming back soon.”

“Oh…” the person thought it would be obvious that she wasn’t alone. “Your boyfriend might get embarrassed by him.”

“Mm…” Alice’s cheeks were slightly flushed, but she shook her head. “I don’t think so; I think he’ll win.”