Okay, first off, that was a lie...it's actually just over three hundred messages, still a huge amount for me, but I just wanted to use that classic line, because why not? 

Alright, let's get through all this crap...a ton of messages from my sister, a bunch of congratulatory messages from some of my classmates and instructors...is there a way to send 'thank you' to everyone in one go? 

Ugh...I don't text very often, so I'm not very good at it. Eh, fuck it, I can reply to all of them in person whenever I see them next...huh, this is kinda strange. A ton of messages had come from my sister, but they were all sent yesterday, she hadn't sent even a single message today. 

Huh, maybe getting no reply upset her? Nah, can't be, I ignore her messages all the time, and it doesn't really bother her since she knows exactly what I'm like. Guess I'll just reply to her at the very least...there, done. 

And now...I sleep... 

... 

... 

The next morning, I woke up around 6 AM, which is about as early as it gets for me...guess going to sleep a good three to four hours before my usual sleeping time made a difference, huh?

Also, I feel absolutely great right now, nothing like a good night's sleep. I've got about four hours before I have to be at the stadium, so that's plenty of time. I got out of bed and stretched my arms up with a relaxed sigh. This is definitely the most well-rested I've ever been this early in the day...cuz, you know, I'm usually asleep at this time. 

I then headed for the bathroom and grabbed a quick shower, before getting dressed and going to the kitchen for some breakfast. I usually don't have much of an appetite after waking up, I tend to eat more heavily for lunch, while breakfast and dinner are typically on the lighter side, except on days like yesterday, the whole 'can't fight on an empty stomach thing'. 

Aw, man, I'm out of Nutella, that's too bad...well, guess I'll have to make do with something else. I made myself a strawberry jam sandwich with a sprinkling of cinnamon sugar, poured myself a glass of chocolate milk and took an apple out of the fridge. 

I know what you're thinking, and no, not every meal I eat consists of purely sweet food...or maybe it is, but you know what, I have no problem with that, and my dietary habits are no one else's business as far as I'm concerned. 

After I finished eating, I strapped on my equipment and got ready to leave. Alright, that was a good breakfast, and I'm just about fully prepared, so...time to head out... 

... 

About an hour later, I was at Ruby's place, picking up my replacement X-Blade handle. 

"I've been working on the flexibility of armor mode of your jetpack backpack, but it's still a ways away before I can get it to the level you want it at...but I'll get it done, I relish the challenge! On a more immediate note, I have to say, Zax, watching you in the tournament was really stressful, you're so reckless with my creations...why would you throw your X-Blades at your opponent when you could just shoot them instead?" Sighed Ruby, as she handed it to me. 

"Cool, just let me know when you're done tweaking the jetpack. And as for throwing the X-Blades, well, uh...element of surprise?" I replied with a sheepish grin. 

"Hmph...you're lucky you're so cute, otherwise I'd be complaining a lot more," She remarked as she ruffled my hair, bending forward deliberately and giving me an eyeful of her cleavage. 

"Right...s-so, uh, about the payment...," I prompted, as I felt my body temperature rising, along with something else... 

"Ooh, someone's enthusiastic, aren't they?" She responded in a flirty, seductive tone, "Well, what are you waiting for...pay me."

I definitely don't need a second invitation. I wrapped my arm around her waist and swiftly pulled her in close to me, giving her sides a squeeze before kissing her, wildly caressing her lips with mine, shivers running down spine as she ran her hands all over me. 

I pulled off her hoodie and let my hands explore her bare skin, before cupping her boobs in my palms and massaging them hard, as a stifled moan escaped her lips and she pushed her leg between mine, her supple thigh pressing onto me as she ran a hand through my hair. 

I nibbled on her earlobe softly, causing her to shudder and wrap herself around me even tighter. I then kissed her again, before pushing her down onto the bed and pinning her down, as she batted her eyelashes at me invitingly...why do I still have my clothes on? In this situation, they're totally unnecessary... 

... 

"Whew...that was incredible," Gasped Ruby, as she caught her breathe, "You...sure you're not...too worn out for...the tournament wrap up...and exhibition match?" 

"Yeah, I...I've got pretty high...stamina reserves," I responded, pretty out of breath myself, as I got dressed again. 

Alright, it's a little past 8 AM now...I've still got two hours, but since I've got nothing else to do, I suppose I might as well head to the stadium a bit early. I can take a longer route with the shuttle busses to the Teleportation Point to kill some time. 

I thanked Ruby for the replacement weapon, as well as everything else, and reluctantly left her place. I headed for the elevator and pushed the button, waiting for it to open...as the lift arrived at the floor I was on, the doors opened and I began to enter...when I was surprised by a familiar face. 

"Kilzachs? What are you doing here?"

Oh, right...I almost forgot that she lives in this building too... 

"Oh, hey, Suri. I was just paying my weapons' technician a visit, one of my X-Blades got busted during the tournament," I replied, as I stepped into the elevator and closed the doors, "So, where are you headed?" 

"Just going out to get some shopping done is all," She responded, a slight frown on her face. 

Huh, she seems kind of in a bad mood. Well, it's none of my business, so-. 

"Congrats on winning the X-Warrior Championship, by the way," She spoke up, a little icily. 

Wait, is she mad that I didn't reply to her text? If that's the case, I should handle this carefully... 

"Thanks. I saw that you messaged me yesterday, sorry I didn't respond...I got literally hundreds of messages yesterday, it was kinda overwhelming, so I decided to just ignore it," I remarked in an even, nonchalant tone. 

"Oh...I see, that makes sense," She said, her tone warming up a bit, "So you didn't reply to anyone's messages?" 

"Well, no, I did reply to my sister, but only because nearly a full hundred of the messages in my inbox were from her," I replied honestly, as the elevator reached the ground floor and the doors opened up. 

"Huh...so, by the way, like...what's going on with, uh, you and Katie? Your 'date' went kind of viral, huh?" She inquired, averting her gaze as she tried to keep her tone casual and nonchalant. 

Wow...talk about subtle, I say sarcastically. Is that what she's actually mad about? Okay, if I don't handle this carefully, it could get real messy...

"Yeah, that was really annoying," I responded, letting out an irritated sigh, "Sakura, Katie and I were going to celebrate all three of us making it to the top four and me winning, so I suggested Delectables. But Sakura had to leave for some family emergency or something, and I sure as hell wasn't going home when Delectables was literally within my sights. You can imagine the rest."

"Oh, so that's all it was?" She asked, sounding kinda relieved. 

Yeesh, this really could get messy further down the line...I definitely like Suri and enjoy hanging out with her, but right now, I have no interest whatsoever in getting into a romantic relationship with anyone...and if I'm reading this right, she definitely was very much interested...maybe...I think. 

Yeah, so just in case I'm wrong, I'm not going to say anything, because holy crap, would that be humiliating. Yeah, I know I could just go back in time, but I feel like even that wouldn't be enough to wipe out the embarrassment. 

It's like when you play a visual novel or games where you have choices in the dialogue of the main character, sometimes you get choices that are mean and hurtful to the NPC, and picking those choices makes you feel like a horrible person. 

I haven't played many of those types of games, precisely for that reason, I found in very conflicting. Like, I have no problem being a dick to people who deserve it in real life, but when it comes to those games, I become a lot more emotionally sensitive for some reason. 

"Hey, you said all our classmates messaged you...including Tairo, Bytra and Makoto?" Inquired Suri curiously, as we walked out the building. 

"No...no way they did. I mean, I didn't look at all the names, since I had messages from more than fifteen people...hold on, let me check," I replied with a frown, tapping on my I-Watch to bring up my holoscreen and opening up my inbox. 

"Mind if I see?" Asked Suri, before peering over my shoulder as I made it visible to her. 

"I don't have any of their contact info saved, so in the unlikely event that one of those three did message me, it'll be from an unknown sender for me...oh, what do you know, there's one, let's see here...'dear Kilzachs, I apologize for everything I've done. Oh, this is-'...," I began to read, before trailing off in horror as I got a look at the profile picture of the sender.

"Wh-wha-...oh my God, what the fuck!?" Exclaimed Suri in shock. 

"I...I think I'm gonna be sick...," I gasped, my body breaking out into a cold sweat... 

_____________________________________________

Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Don't forget to vote, and feel free to leave a comment, I appreciate any and all feedback and criticism!

Also, check out my Instagram account @aimdaqs for posts relating to this book.

Join the Discord server, I plan to tease upcoming chapters and future story arcs here, and you can also discuss or ask me any questions about the story and characters. Use the invite link to join:

https://discord.gg/sRbx9VbTVP