Chapter 4

While waiting for the package to arrive, I decided to cook lunch for everyone. The team kept themselves busy by playing random games on my Xbox and looking stupid at the same time.

There were only twenty minutes left before 1 p.m. when I finished cooking our lunch. I spent a few minutes more setting the food on the dining table. I thought the guys would devour the food immediately, but I was surprised when they stayed in the living room instead.

"Guys, lunch is served already," I announced.

They all stopped playing for a second before they all resumed like they weren't interested.

"Not hungry yet," Flint said.

"Me neither," Louis seconded the motion with his eyes fixed on the screen.

Yohann just shrugged his shoulders. "I just ate your cereal, so..."

My eyes drifted to the wall clock above the front door. I had a feeling that they were just waiting for the game to arrive. The game was much more appealing to them than eating lunch.

With a sigh, I swiped up the AR to check some updates about the situation in Time Square when I just received a new notification in my email from MW Interactive Entertainment.

Greetings, Mr. Ryker Henderson!

Today is the launching day of Beyond the Realm!

In ten minutes, you will receive the package we promised you for being one of the chosen outstanding players.

Just a heads up, the complete Beyond the Realm game set is not transferrable. Your gamer identity is already encoded in the database of the gaming console we sent you. May you enjoy playing and exploring the new fantasy realm.

Let us make gaming more interesting!

With regards,

MW Interactive Entertainment

After I was done reading, I sighed again and closed the email. I didn't know if it was just a complete coincidence, but I was surprised that the email addressed my intention to give Trey the game.

I guess I wouldn't be able to give it to him. It was unfortunate, but there was nothing I could do.

"Hey, guys!" Yohann suddenly shouted while reading, probably, an article about the game on his phone. "There's a new update about Beyond the Realm!"

Flint and Louis immediately stopped playing and went to Yohann for the news. They all went quiet to read the article, and I was just waiting for them to spill it out to me while shaking my head.

Talk about priorities...

"It says here that there are an additional 100 copies that will be given out randomly in private, so there will be a total of 650 players," Flint said after reading the article.

My forehead creased upon hearing the news, but I silently hoped that Trey was one of them, even if the possibilities were low.

The team continued searching for more updates regarding Beyond the Realm when the doorbell suddenly rang. Everyone became alert. No one dared to move and speak until they all turned their heads to me.

"Damn! It's one already! Open the door, Ry! Come on!" Yohann couldn't hide his excitement.

Flint and Louis grabbed my arms and dragged me to the door. I couldn't do anything when two guys teamed up on me. And once we were right in front, they spun me around to face them. The three stood in front of me, looking so proud that I almost cringed.

"Ryker Henderson," Flint recited my name.

"Best known in the gaming world as Stryker, the captain of Kings of Kings," Yohann added.

"And the best gamer in New York is now going to receive the most awaited game to be played this year," Louis continued, who even acted like he was on the verge of crying.

I just shook my head and turned my back on them to open the door. Exerting positive energy, the delivery man beamed at me. In front of him was a huge box where the complete game set of Beyond the Realm was placed. It was even bigger than what I expected.

"Mr. Ryker Henderson?" he read my name, written on the paper.

I nodded in confirmation, and he extended the paper and his pen for me to sign. He then pointed at the space beside my name where I needed to place my signature. "Just sign here."

I did what I was told, and he thanked me for it before giving me the package.

The guys didn't even let me touch the package first. Louis and Yohann had already carried it inside the house before I could even lift it. Flint just laughed at them and tapped me on my shoulders. "Just let them," he said, like I could still stop the two.

"Open it, Ry!" Yohann excitedly shouted.

I exhaled a deep sigh and followed them back to the living room. I was about to look for scissors or a knife when Flint offered me his card knife to open the box with ease.

Louis turned on his cam to film me as soon as I started unboxing. He would upload it on his channel for sure. He has a hobby of uploading vlogs, and I was certain he wouldn't let the unboxing of the most-awaited game slip right in front of him.

Ignoring their enthusiasm, I continued opening the package. Inside the box was another box. Beyond the Realm was printed in metallic capital letters on the official packaging.

Being extra careful, I opened the box and was welcomed by the jet-black headgear with slight touches of metallic silver. It was like a helmet, but it wasn't designed to cover my face entirely.

Below the headgear was the console where I would need to connect the headgear and place the CD to start playing the game. And lastly, at the bottom, Beyond the Realm's installer disc was stored safely in styrofoam.

"Well damn..." Flint couldn't help but curse in amusement.

"I know, right. Looking at it makes me want to have one and play as well," Yohann commented. He was also in awe.

Staring at the new gaming equipment, I still couldn't believe that it was something that I got for free. I somehow felt indebted to the company, even though I didn't ask for it.

"Try playing it, Ry!" Louis encouraged me to play the damn game right away.

And because I wanted to tease and frustrate them, I put everything back in the box.

"What the..." Yohann almost cursed.

"Why are you putting it back?" Flint asked me in confusion.

Wearing a playful grin, I stood up and turned to them. "Let's eat lunch first," I told them. "I still don't know where to place it inside my gaming room, so I won't be playing it yet."

They exhaled a deep sigh in unison. Disappointment was written all over their faces. Still, they all dragged their feet to the kitchen to eat lunch.

So much for pretending that they were not hungry a few moments ago. Once they sat down at the dining table, they immediately devoured the food. They were utterly famished, and I just laughed at these dorks before joining them for lunch.

It was a peaceful lunch, I must say. Everyone focused on eating since we were all hungry. However, the guys cornered me to start playing the game as soon as we were done.

"Just play the damn game already, Ry!" Louis demanded. He had already lost his patience as I kept on delaying it.

"I told you, guys," I reminded them. "I still don't know where to place the game in my gaming room."

"Maybe you should just play it inside your room first. You have a lot of space there, you know," Flint suggested while eating an apple and staring at me.

I was about to counter his suggestion when Yohann suddenly laughed, catching our attention. I quickly turned to him, and he was busy typing on the AR screen.

"What's the catch, Yo?" Flint asked, slightly curious because of his hysterical laughter.

Yohann laughed once again, and we just stared at him with our foreheads creased. Sometimes―no—most of the time, we really couldn't understand Yohann. He was the weirdest among us.

Louis raised his brows at Yohann. "Care to share before laughing?"

Yohann tried to control his laughter, then flipped the screen towards us. It was our group chat, and Trey just flooded messages there. He failed to buy a copy of Beyond the Realm, so he lashed out all his frustrations at our group chat.

Flint and Louis immediately took out their phones from their pockets to tease Trey. Yohann also joined them while the smile on my face slowly faded, and I was left behind, feeling bad and guilty.