Chapter 7

This time, it's a real-life story.

It's a bit shorter than usual, and as a commemoration of being the top daily pick, a bulletin board post will go up at 4 PM.

"………………………Pon?"

I froze in front of the monitor that shows the front door from the living room. The beautiful girl who introduced herself as Konno looked exactly like Pon, the avatar I had just been playing with in Grepon Maru. It was as if she was a 2P color recreation.

"……………………Huh?"

Konno also froze, still smiling. Since I hadn't shown my face at the door yet, from her perspective, I must have seemed like a weirdo who suddenly started talking about games when she came to greet the new neighbors.

I hurried to the front door and slowly opened it.

"Ah, sorry. I took a while to come out..."

"No, I'm the one who should apologize for coming suddenly."

The more I looked at her, the more she resembled Pon. Amazing, I never thought such a beautiful girl could exist in real life, not just in manga.

"Ah, um... being stared at like that... a, ah..."

Oops, I must have been staring too much. I felt awkward when I saw Konno blushing and hiding her face.

"Sorry, um, Konno-san? If you have any trouble, please let me know."

"Thank you... Ah, this is a small gift..."

"Thank you for bringing it. I'll gladly accept it."

Konno handed me a small gift, and after I bowed, she finally looked at me directly and froze.

"Huh? No, no! ...Um, I know this might sound strange, but do you play VR games?"

"Yes, I'm quite into them."

Konno's cheek twitched.

"...Have you heard of the game Aims?"

"Of course, I'm the Japanese champion."

Twitch, twitch.

"The SBO tutorial area?"

"Three hours."

Twitch, twitch, twitch, twitch. It's like some kind of secret code.

"What's my name?"

"Grepon Maru."

She froze completely, still with a strained smile. Her reaction is so interesting.

"What's your name?"

"Always watching your back, perverted mercenary A, at your service!☆"

"Whoa, sure enough, it's the mercenary!?"

I used a catchphrase from a popular anime from a while back, and Konno let out a loud, surprised scream. Hey, hey, that's a bit too loud. We might bother the neighbors.

"Um, Konno-san sounds a bit formal? Can I call you Pon?"

"Why are you so adaptable!? Um, what should we do..."

In an emergency, staying calm is the key in FPS. A disturbed mind leads to a disturbed aim. Always stay calm.

"Hmm, if it's not too much trouble, would you like to come in? Standing here in the doorway is a bit tiring, right?"

I gestured to the inside of the house, and Pon's face turned bright red.

"Ah, um, um! I, I've never been in a guy's room before..."

"Ah, if it's too much trouble, it's fine. Sorry, see you later."

"It's not a bother at all! Since I'm here, I'll come in..."

I led the nervous Pon, who was blushing, into the living room and chuckled.

"I won't eat you, so you don't have to be so tense, Konno-san."

"Y-Yes..."

No good, she's still tense. I sighed and went to the kitchen to get some barley tea from the fridge and poured it into a glass.

"Here's some tea. Is this okay?"

"Y-Yes!"

She grabbed the glass and drank it in one gulp. She's definitely going to choke... there.

After she coughed cutely, I waited for her to calm down before starting the conversation.

"Let me introduce myself again. I'm Hoshizora Minato, also known as Mercenary A. Nice to meet you, Konno-san."

"Minato-kun... I'm Konno Yui. Nice to meet you, Minato-kun."

Calling me by my first name right away, that's pretty advanced! This girl seems to unintentionally attract guys...

"I see, I heard you started living alone, but I didn't expect it to be in the same building... What a coincidence."

"Right. I didn't expect Minato-kun... cough, Minato-kun to be living in this building."

"If you're not comfortable, you can call me Mercenary or Villager. If you do, I'll call you Pon."

"Ah, y-yes. Then I'll call you Mercenary-kun...!"

Pon said this with a happy expression. She seems a bit more relaxed now, so let's chat a bit.

"Why did you move? What about your family?"

"Due to my parents' work, I started living alone... Ah, by the way, you said your mom is a pro gamer, right? Do you know the pro gaming team called 'Ladies'?"

Ladies. A rare all-female pro gaming team that excels in various genres, including FPS, and even placed fourth in the Japanese Aims tournament.

"I know, my mom is the leader of that pro team. They seem to be doing pretty well. ...By the way, we faced them in the semifinals of Aims."

Pon covered her mouth in surprise. ...Wait, what?

"Y-Yes, my mom is also on that team! She's been busy with work, so they suggested I move here to live alone!"

My online gaming friend turned out to be connected through our mothers. I never would have guessed.

...Wait, what? Mother?

"Sorry, Pon, wait a moment."

"Eh? Ah... okay."

Something doesn't feel right. My overly worried mother wouldn't have meddled, would she?

I quickly opened the AR SNS app and sent a message to my mom.

Minato: Hello, Mother, can I talk to you for a moment?

Mom: That's rare. What's up?

Minato: Wow, quick reply! A girl who just moved in next door is here, and it turns out she's the daughter of one of the members of your gaming team. Do you know anything about it?

Mom: Oh, Yui-chan is here! I was worried about you being all alone and into games like your parents, so I thought I'd give you a chance to meet someone...

Minato: Okay, Mother, I'll shoot you in the head in Aims.

Mom: Huh?

I sighed deeply and closed the SNS app. Why do bad feelings always turn out to be true?

"What's wrong?"

"It's something you don't need to know, Pon. Sorry, I'm causing you trouble."

"???"

I apologized on behalf of my mother, who had unknowingly caused trouble. I hope she didn't order her team member to move just because she's the leader. That would be harassment.

"Is Pon's dad also a pro gamer?"

"No, he's a regular salaryman. He likes games, though."

Phew, if he was also a pro gamer and on the same team as my dad, I might have gone crazy.

Pon, who had been looking at me, relaxed and her eyes sparkled.

"Still, what a coincidence... I did want to have an offline meet-up, but I never expected it to happen like this."

"Yeah, I know. Honestly, with VR, I didn't think we needed to have an offline meet-up..."

Because we never do anything but play games when we go out. We could even dive into the game with a helmet in a private room at a cafe these days.

Pon looked a bit upset at my words.

"That's not the same thing!"

"True, but both of us are hardcore gamers, so the virtual world is more real to us."

"Ugh, that's true, but..."

"Unless you really wanted to meet the real me, Pon."

"Wh-What!?"

I chuckled at Pon's face, which turned bright red like a boiling pot. Her expressions change so quickly, it's fun to tease her. Just make sure she doesn't follow some weird guy (extremely ironic).

"Just kidding."

"Ugh! ...Um, changing the subject, have you always lived alone? How do you manage your living expenses?"

"Really sudden... I live off the prize money from Aims and the revenue from my videos."

The prize for winning Aims isn't just the SBO bonus. The winning team gets 10 million yen per player plus the bonus. So, I should have a decent amount in my account. ...Not that I spend much, since I mostly just play games. The only real expense is the electricity bill.

As for the videos, I mostly post unedited clips of my bullet-dodging techniques and reskilling, which are quite popular and get a lot of views. The ad revenue alone is enough to live on. Being the Japanese champion helps in that regard.

"Wow, you really are amazing. I mostly rely on my parents for support."

"You have prize money, right?"

"My parents say it's for my future savings. But I don't spend much anyway."

I should probably tell her that her savings are probably being used, but ignorance is bliss.

"Anyway, my parents are pretty hands-off... They get so absorbed in their hobbies that they neglect family time. So, they leave the financial management to me."

"Hehe, that sounds like your parents. I can imagine them."

"Because of that, I'm determined to be more family-oriented."

"Fa-Family!?"

Why is Pon blushing? Ah, maybe this topic is a bit too suggestive. These days, you have to be careful with your words and actions to avoid harassment warnings and getting banned from reality. Police, it's me.

"It's getting late, and you have to go greet the neighbors, right? Feel free to come over anytime if you want to."

"Ah! Really? It's already this late! Sorry, Mercenary-kun! I might be a bit late for the night session!"

"Don't rush, take your time. See you."

It was 5:50 PM. Pon hurriedly took the glass to the kitchen, tidied up, and said, "Thanks for having me!!" before leaving.

After seeing her off, I opened the AR SNS app. ...Well, then.

Minato: Hey, a beautiful girl just moved in next door, and it turns out she's the daughter of one of my parents' friends, and the situation is already set up. Do you know the escape plan for this?

Raijin: That sounds like an eroge plot.

Yeah, I know.

Mom: "Our son is always playing games and has no interest in girls, I'm worried about his future."

Yui's Mom: "Our daughter is always playing games and has no interest in boys, I'm worried about her future."

Both Moms: "......"

Both Moms: "Let's make them meet! (with a full smile)"

They were in on it together.

In this world, with the development of VR technology, pro gamers earn quite well and are respected as a sport, making them highly regarded. (The rise of esports) So, Minato is a born winner.