Isaac frowned after seeing the golden-colored wheel.
'Doesn't gold give out a Legacy quest?' Isaac wondered. 'That's useless. I already have one.'
He turned to the awestruck Gladiator. She was staring at him with a fawning smile on her face.
'Why is she so happy?' Isaac looked over her expression and noticed how thrilled she was. For some reason, he felt that she was happier than himself was.
''Ahem,'' Isaac coughed, trying to get her attention without seeming rude.
''Ah,'' She flinched and then blushed from embarrassment. She'd been standing there awkwardly, not saying a word.
''Y-Yes,'' The woman coughed, turning to the audience. She gathered herself and spoke loudly. "The Victor is the Player, Wraith. His reward is..."
*Doom Dun Dun Doom*
The beating of drums suddenly sounded in the arena, shaking the ground and the seats below the audience. Isaac raised an eyebrow at the display but didn't say anything.
''One visit to the Realm of Gods!'' She cried out, her face flushed with the excitement of being able to give such a prestigious award.
The members of the audience widened their eyes in shock! Their hearts beat faster as a shining, golden ticket appeared in the sky above the white-haired man!
The golden ticket fell slowly, a shower of golden particles raining down with it!
Isaac reached up and caught the ticket in his delicate hands.
Thousands of eye pairs were locked on the ticket. Greed marred the faces of not only the spectating players but also the many NPCs.
The ticket was the only way that they would ever meet their beloved Gods or Goddesses, as they lived out of reach.
The Gladiator cut her eyes at those drooling with greed, and their nasty thoughts were instantly cut short. NPCs and Players both felt their bodies turn cold as the woman's glare was cast over them.
Somewhere in the crowd, a man garbed in full-white attire stood, "That boy is so troublesome... He always manages to get dragged into something, doesn't he?"
Simo eyed the audience below him, seeing multiple eyes yearning for the golden ticket. Some were already rubbing their hands as if it were theirs.
"Well... this could prove to be a good chance for him," The man muttered. "It won't be good to let anyone bother him. A meeting with the Gods may do him some good, but it could also traumatize him."
Under the mask, the man's keen eyes were curved upward, and anyone observing him would know that he was smiling in delight. The man gave a light chuckle before returning to his thoughts.
…
Back in the real world, Divinity slumped down on his chair with his shirt drenched in sweat. He ran his hand through his black hair after wiping the sweat from his brow.
He pressed his hand to his chest, feeling the erratic beating of his heart within. He'd been standing with his eyes glued to the screen for the entire fight.
''Hahaha…'' He clutched his stomach as he laughed.
The comments of the hundreds of people who had been talking trash had stopped entirely. Divinity grinned and pointed at the screen.
''That's right… Be quiet!'' He cried.
''Hahahaha…'' He clutched his stomach and laughed till tears streamed down.
…
In an empty grey room, pixels appeared in the air. Soon, the pixels began to take shape, first forming the legs, then the torso, and finally the head.
Isaac's eyes were heavy, and the weight of his exhaustion suddenly poured down on him. He glanced around the empty room and sighed.
'Huh?'
Isaac looked down, seeing that the golden ticket was still held tightly in his hands.
He hadn't had the chance to look at the text before, but now, it was like he was drawn to it. He slowly read the words aloud.
"Path to the Realm of Gods has opened," Isaac felt his lips going dry as he called out to the system. "Interface!"
The familiar holographic screen floated before him. He reached out and tapped on one of the many options.
[Inventory]
After making his selection, the Inventory replaced the usual Interface. It was quite barren, and it only took him a moment to find a good spot to place his golden ticket.
Once he'd properly kept the ticket, he closed the Interface.
Isaac noticed a single golden word floating against the wall on the other side of the room.
[VICTORY!]
Below the text, the ranking screen was floating, only a few meters away from touching the floor.
[21. Wraith — 1 W - 0 L]
With only one victory, he had jumped to the 21st rank.
At the top of the rankings, a name that he'd seen earlier was nowhere to be found.
''Darkside has dropped down…'' Isaac scrolled through the rankings until he finally found the name at the 98th spot.
A single loss caused him to lose 97 ranks...
Isaac lowered his head and took one last look outside of the one-way window. The arena was being repaired.
Even though the fight between Isaac and KnightOfHoliness had been primarily physical, the ground was still severely damaged.
''Hmm…'' Isaac raised his jacket and took a look at his bare chest. He was surprised to find that his skin hadn't been marred.
The massive wound that should have been there from having his guts spilled was nowhere to be found! Only his smooth, flawless skin could be seen.
He covered his body once more and walked to the door's single exit. It was a relatively simple door and looked odd standing in the plain, gray room.
It was a wooden door made of oak, and the handle was a material that was unknown to him.
*Creak*
Once the door was opened, he found a long corridor with Players walking back and forth. Some of them walked into the Player lounge, while many others had enough of the lingering around and decided to leave.
Isaac stepped out of the door. Feeling something strange behind him, he turned quickly and found that the door had disappeared!
''Haahh…'' He brushed the strands of his hair out of his eyes, and suddenly, he felt even more exhausted.
[White Death Deactivated!]
''Oh.''
His limbs turned to jelly, and his vision swam as the skill deactivated. He leaned against the nearby wall.
[HP: 1/526]
'My HP hasn't recovered yet…' Isaac heard the Players around him beginning to whisper. They just noticed him and could tell that he wasn't feeling very well.
''Hey, you alright?'' A Player with greed-filled eyes approached him. He reached his hand to touch Isaac and acted like he was trying to touch his forehead. However, Isaac wouldn't fall for something so simple.
*Smack*
Isaac slapped the hand away and stood up with the last of his willpower, ''I-I am fine.''
''I'm just trying to help,'' The Player said with annoyance and looked around him before whispering with a grin. ''Give me the ticket, and I will let you leave alive, deal?''
''Trying to help… Huh?'' Isaac said with noticeable disgust.
The Player clenched his fist, ''Don't… Fucking act tough… It will get you killed.''
Isaac gritted his teeth; luckily, his time was up.
[You have been unharmed for 10 minutes!]
[Your wounds have been healed!]
[HP: 526/526]
