Ready Player Zero

Chapter 13: Preparations

Shivering, Zhou rubbed his eyes as the bright morning light filtered through the trees. It'd already been a few weeks, but he still wasn't used to staying so long in the cold yet, not in this snowy weather.

At least he could be grateful for the thick coat and canvas blanket that provided some degree of warmth, as well as the waterproof tarp that prevented him from entirely freezing to death. The coat wasn't the most fashionable now, nor was the heavy-duty bland brown blanket, but they did their job and he wasn't in much of a position to complain.

It was time to get on with his day, though, and he nimbly sprang up and began weaving his way through the little grove of trees. Today he had to make a trip to the Oasis gaming cafe, as he had a challenge planned with Daito.

Even though he placed little importance on these types of challenges, never accepting invites to any of them, since he'd accidentally found his way into agreeing to this one he wanted to keep his word. And with no sense of time other than a vague notion from the passings and goings of the sun and moon, he needed to get there early to avoid being late.

It was a Tuesday morning, so the cafe was at a lull in its business. There were still patrons there, tourists eager for a brief game while on vacation or residents who'd found themselves with a day off on their hands. Some were gaming, while others lolled about, as relaxed as the quiet business hours, and chatted amongst one another or enjoyed pastries and coffee. Zhou had heard that in the past, that had been the sole purpose of cafes, but now it was strange to imagine one without some kind of gaming device.

Anyhow, checking the clock, Zhou found that there was a little less than half an hour before he was scheduled to meet Daito. He supposed he could stay in the cafe; even if he couldn't afford to actually play for the whole time, they did offer some other entertainment options, like a holographic television that was displaying a recent viral Oasis game or the touchscreen tables that allowed the user to order food and browse through online content.

He slid into a booth, trying to ignore the funny looks customers and servers were giving him, judging him for being in the cafe at this strange hour where children should be at school. He was used to it though, anyway.

He absentmindedly tapped on the table, a habit out of boredom. He watched the holographic TV screen for a while, analyzing the moves of the players and storing the information away for future reference. Every few moments, he glanced at the time in the bottom right corner, watching the minutes tick by.

A few minutes before it was time, he got up and found one of the many vacant headsets, breathing in before he put it on and logged on.