32 Bad day

By the time Alexander disconnected, it was midnight.

He grabbed something to eat, took a shower, and went to bed.

His alarm clock rang at 8 AM, waking him up from sleep. Though he was eager to spend time with his family, first Alexander consulted his finances.

Having recently sold 120,000 GC for 560,000 credits—that is, the equivalent of twenty-seven years of his father's salary—his bank account was pretty fat at the moment!

Very satisfied with this, Alexander went downstairs to have breakfast with his family and to tell them the good news.

His parents were surprised and happy to see him. It had been almost a week since he'd appeared for any length of time.

Alexander sat down. "Mom, Dad, I've managed to earn a comfortable salary, and now I'm going to get an apartment!"

His parents grew even more surprised! He'd only been playing for a week, but he already had the means to buy an apartment?! "How's that possible?" his father asked excitedly. "Did a rich player throw you some Galactic Coins for helping him with a quest?"

Alexander explained part of his adventures, though, of course, he left out most of the important details. He primarily focused on how he'd found Skill Books which he couldn't use and then had "traded" these for 100,000 GC each to his party members so they could complete an extremely difficult Dungeon.

His parents already knew about how GC could be traded for credits, since so much of the general media was focused on the economic impact of Horus and its currency.

They'd even heard about the current high rate of 4.6 credits per 1 GC, and were excited that their son had been able to take this opportunity when the rate was so high.

His father, Nador, who worked twelve hours a day for a mere 1,700 credits per month, grew more and more agitated as he thought about his own past as a World of Warcraft II player, which had never paid off like this. But he tried to push away his jealousy and be happy for Alexander. 

Then an idea came to him. "Hey, Son, since you've been cooped up in your room for almost a week, you should probably take a break and enjoy your earnings."

Alexander was surprised. "Actually, I was planning on doing some shopping…"

"Great!" Nador replied happily. "Since it's the weekend, will you lend me your VRI helmet?"

Then Alexander understood. Of course, his father wanted a chance to play Horus! Well, Alexander had intended to go buy a gaming booth anyway, so he gave his father the VRI helmet. "I borrowed this from my friend Laurent," he said, "so make sure to be careful with it!"

"Don't worry," Nador said with a smirk. "I know a thing or two about gaming hardware. Thank you, Son. Once I get used to this game, I'll make sure to give you a list of the tips and tricks I discover!"

Alexander left his parents at home and took a cab to Champs-Élysées Avenue in Sector 17, the richest sector in Paris. Alexander had never been here before, of course. Everything in this sector was much fancier than he was used to. He got out, feeling like an outsider in his threadbare clothes, and entered the avenue's top-of-the-line gaming boutique.

The store was crowded. Everyone was trying to get VRI helmets, but there was still a tremendous shortage. Rich men and women were shouting over one another as though they were at an auction, declaring that they'd be willing to pay more than the retail price if the store had a model hidden in the back somewhere.

Of course, Alexander didn't care about a mere helmet. He pushed past these well-dressed idiots and asked to speak to a sales manager.

Of course, despite his haphazard clothing, Alexander was likely richer than some of the people in the store. A bank account of half a million credits might not be much compared to the assets of the "celestials" who lived in space colonies on Mars and the Moon, but it was quite a lot as far as the Earthbound "worms" were concerned.

But this was all new money, and none of it had gone towards improving Alexander's appearance. 

So when the sales manager arrived, the thin-nosed man said, "Listen, I have a lot of customers to deal with. If you want to get on the waiting list for VRI helmets, go to the terminal over there."

Alexander replied, "I'm not here for a VRI headset. I'm here for your integrated gaming booth."

The sales manager gave a loud snort and said, in an arrogant tone, "Dear sir, the first model suitable for VR games costs 500,000 credits!"

Alexander offered his arm, showing the amount on his holo watch. "That sounds reasonable. I think I'll take it. First, though, go get me a can of Coke. I'm thirsty."

The sales manager wanted to tell this arrogant bastard to get it himself and then shove it up his ass… but since his salary depended on the sale, he decided that it was better to shut his mouth and do what he was told. After all, this was a sale of half a million credits.

A bit later, after finishing his purchase, Alexander gave the sales manager a smirk. "Have it delivered to my house in two hours. If it's not, I'll file a refund claim. And thank you for the Coke. It was delicious!"

The sales manager longed to make Alexander eat the wall, but instead said, "Thank you for your purchase at GameStop. Please come again!"

While he was in the sector, Alexander visited a massage parlor. After all, he was practically rich now…

Then he ordered two luxury escorts at 10,000 credits per hour to satisfy his libido. After all, he still had no girlfriend.

After having burned over half a million credits in one day, he found a real estate agency and put down a deposit, so the agency would start researching an apartment in Sector 16, a very bourgeois district.

Then he returned home to find the gaming booth already deposited in his room.

Alexander ate dinner that evening with his mother, Fedérica, since his father was completely engrossed in playing Horus.

After finishing his meal, it was time for Alexander to try out his new gaming booth and reconnect.