Chapter 66: Riku and Schwi's Wager

At eight o'clock the next morning, the internet café opened as usual.

"4D Internet Café is open~ Guests, come and play~"

All the regulars rushed in as soon as they received the message. The earliest to arrive today was Natsuki Subaru.

"Yay!"

Confirming he was the first, Natsuki Subaru jumped and cheered with excitement.

"Haaaa..  What's wrong? So excited about eating poisonous mushrooms? Ughh." teased Kaede, who strutted in and slumped against the wall in disappointment when she saw that she wasn't the first.

"Shit, why? I clicked yes first."

Liu Yuan spread his hands helplessly. "There's a delay. Some places receive it faster, some slower."

Subaru bragged to Fujimaru, "I won! You have to cover my internet bill today."

"I'll cover it. Hey, boss! Can you make our world delays the same? Otherwise, I'll never win."

"Gotta add money," Liu Yuan responded. He knew they had made a bet yesterday that whoever arrived last would treat the other to a day of internet. Liu Yuan wasn't interested in participating in these wagers. The latency issue was like connecting to a distant server—playable but with higher latency. Equalizing the latency was possible, but it required additional payment.

"Can! Deduct it from my funds!"

Fujimaruka revealed a determined smile. "Natsuki Subaru, you wait. I will win tomorrow."

As they swore their intentions, Liu Yuan asked, "Are you two going online? If not, please turn around and leave the entrance."

"We're going online! I'm covering his today."

The early arrivals happily went online. Within half a minute, people from Naruto and Teyvat also arrived.

Today, Tina brought Kayu Senju with her.

"Boss, turn on two machines. Give Kayu a set of games."

"Come on, girl, put your hand up for an age check."

Kayu Senju placed her hand on the scanner, and with a beep indicating 'adult', Liu Yuan's heart relaxed. He worried about customers like Tina and Kayu who looked very young.

Since she was confirmed an adult, he followed the normal process and activated the machine.

"Boss, Tina is looking at you differently. Did you help her out yesterday?" asked Kayu.

"You can tell?"

"Of course. She usually looks at you like a friend, but today she seems very grateful, with some other emotions."

"That's normal. It's what happens when you're young."

As they chatted, Riku arrived, looking somewhat tired. He didn't come alone; he brought a child with him.

Liu Yuan turned to Kisara. "Is our store a regular store?"

Kisara hastily shook her head.

"?"

"Does a regular store collect life expectancy?"

"Who says they don't? Eighth pawnshops do."

Putting aside the banter, Liu Yuan asked, "Riku, who is this?"

"She..."

"Schwi."

Ex Machina species named Schwi introduced herself.

Schwi, a machine, looked human but was actually an artificial intelligence.

"Did you bring her to go online?"

Riku absently nodded.

Liu Yuan glanced at Schwi. Judging her height and appearance, she seemed underage. Before Liu Yuan asked her to reach out for age verification, the system provided detailed information.

"Physical age: 210 years old. Mental age cannot be judged. For artificial intelligence close to the human mind, please judge yourself if you can allow access to the internet."

The system couldn't judge her mental age. Based on her physical age and the average lifespan of the Ex Machina, Liu Yuan concluded she was an adult.

"No problem, the price is there."

Schwi looked up at the LCD screen displaying the prices, incredulous. A single part of an Ex Machina could access the internet for a day, and a whole Ex Machina could make one access it for almost a year, including buying all games and software.

"I'm sorry, Schwi. There's no money..."

"No money? That's okay, take Riku's life expectancy as collateral."

"Hey, hey, hey, why me?"

Riku was agitated. Shouldn't she pay for her internet access?

Why should he pay for Schwi's too?

Liu Yuan squinted at Riku. "If you don't pay, and she has no money, then I can only take her out."

Schwi looked at Riku with starry eyes. "Riku, please pay. The contract can't be honored if Schwi can't get online."

"..."

Though she wasn't human, Riku felt a pang in his heart.

"You!!!"

Riku sighed. "Help her turn on a machine, and Red Alert by the way."

"Yay~"

Schwi spun around excitedly, smiling.

Her cute action and pleasant smile felt somewhat off to Kisara.

They officially turned on the computer and entered the game. Kisara came over to Liu Yuan's side and whispered, "Boss, that girl is strange... The smile, the movements, it all feels so fake. Is he so deep in the city now?"

Liu Yuan replied, "She's not human; she's imitating one. But I guess we'll see her real smile in about a year, right?"

"Hey? You know?"

"Guessing. Riku is happy, and Schwi, who follows Riku, is analyzing why. I guess Riku made some wager with Schwi, betting everything on winning the game Red Alert."

Riku looked over at Schwi, whom he had found in the ruins of the elven species just after the store closed yesterday. After a series of 'friendly' exchanges, they made a wager.

Within a day, Riku only had to win once for Schwi to listen to him in the future. Conversely, Riku would become Schwi's 'trophy'. Though Riku couldn't defeat the Ex Machina, he soon thought of a solution.

A game.

First, he played chess with Schwi and was quickly defeated by her superior calculation power. At this time, he received the internet café's opening notice and invited Schwi to a special game.

The game chosen was Red Alert. Riku selected a classic confrontation map 'Ice and Snow'.

"That's the game. You're an Ex Machina; you already understand how games work, right?"

"No problem..."

Although it was her first time with Red Alert, Schwi quickly comprehended its mechanics—constructing buildings and maneuvering soldiers. She recorded all the characteristics of each country and soldier types.

However, she overlooked one thing. With the Realism Mode applied, soldiers were no longer mere data. The system simulated the most realistic human choices.

At the same time, the decisions of both commanders would affect the morale of the soldiers.

This was no longer just a game duel, but the truest battle between man and machine under equal conditions.