Chapter One Hundred and One

"We just left the theater," Leila's voice told him from the other end of the line. She sounded excited, compelling Edward to smile as he listened to her, "Let me send you our location. We'll wait for you here."

Soon after, Edward received a text from Leila displaying her location. Edward smiled as he noticed it wasn't too far. If he ran, he could arrive in less than a minute— if he was foolish enough to display his powers like that. Instead, he walked out onto the street and hailed a taxi.

After a few minutes, he finally arrived at the movie theater where Leila and her roommates were waiting. As the taxi stopped just before the main entrance, Edward slowly stepped out and gently closed the door. He paid the driver, then approached the group of ladies.

Besides Leila, he only recognized Sam— the tomboyish roommate he had met outside Leila's dorm building. Edward turned his attention to the other two friends alongside Leila. One of them appeared to be the perfect representation of a noble lady. She wore a simple black dress that complemented her long black hair. While she wasn't as pretty as Leila, she wasn't ugly, either. Leila's other friend was a blond woman who wore a red skirt and a beige jacket. Her necklace shined brilliantly in the bright sun.

"Edward!" Leila cheered as she saw Edward approaching them. As soon as Edward joined the group, Leila introduced the other two roommates, whom Edward hadn't met yet. She first pointed to the woman in the black dress before moving to the woman with the blond hair. "This is Candice and Heather, my roommates. You've already met Sam, haven't you?"

Edward turned to the tomboy. As soon as he did so, Sam began to glare at him, tempting an amused chuckle from Edward.

"It's nice to meet you two," Edward said as he turned to Candice and Heather. He smiled, then looked at Sam, "And it's nice to see you again, as well, Sam."

Candice and Heather smiled at Edward while Sam simply glared at him. Considering how their first interaction went, it was easy to understand why she still disliked him.

"My name is Edward," Edward told the ladies. He gave a slight nod as he spoke and smiled, hoping his behavior would appear friendly and trustworthy. He didn't want to seem like a douche in front of Leila's friends. Then, he turned to Leila with a completely genuine smile and asked, "What's the plan?"

"We were hoping to go for lunch," Leila told him, "Have you ever been to Diya's Diner?"

Edward recognized the name, but he had never been. As he shook his head, Leila's smile deepened, and she became excited.

"It's your first time? That's great. I'll show you all of the good items," Leila told him. She approached Edward, then wrapped herself around his arm. Edward felt like his heart would explode, but he did his best to prevent his emotions from showing on his face. Leila turned her blushing face away from him as she looked at her roommates, "Let's go, everybody."

While the five of them began to walk, they talked about various things. Specifically, Edward was answering everybody's questions. He hoped to learn more about Leila during her college days, as any subject about her would brighten his day, but he wasn't disappointed that he was the center of the conversation. Only Sam continued to glare at Edward in silence and didn't participate in the conversation.

A few minutes later, they arrived at their destination. Diya's Diner had a reputation similar to other restaurants in the area, so it wasn't particularly unique. The diner's interior was styled to resemble the 1940s, so everything was much darker and browner than other restaurants. Only a few minutes after they sat down, their food was delivered, and they ate while making conversation.

Edward was enjoying the experience, not only because of the food but because their conversation was amusing and enjoyable. Edward found himself talking about Avalon Online much more than he was expecting— almost to the point where he had told Leila's roommates everything he had experienced since playing the game. 

Sam, the only one who didn't play Avalon Online, said nothing. Candice, who had been in Pathe for a few days now, was surprised to learn that Edward was the player with the pet dragon. Numerous rumors about him had spread around the city. Even Heather, who wasn't in Pathe, had heard rumors on the internet about him. To say Edward was a minor celebrity within the game's community wasn't false, yet Edward was still surprised to learn that both of the girls recognized him.

However, before Edward would thank them, he heard a commotion from the other side of the diner. A loud bang attracted the attention of everybody nearby, including the workers. Edward leaned out of their booth and looked for the noise source.

After a moment, he found it. A table had been knocked aside— thrown was more accurate— and had broken in two when it hit the ground. Two men stood facing each other, each expressing anger and fury. 

One man, a bald, middle-aged white man with a bloated gut, stared at the other while holding a small revolver. He hadn't fired it, but the simple presence of a gun caused everybody around to become nervous at the sight of it.

The other man had a head full of hair but appeared to be a similar age to Baldy. He didn't have a gun, so he stared at the bald man with a hint of worry in his eyes. Unlike the bald man, however, the man with the hair had a well-built body and strong muscles. 

"Say that again, you dick!" The bald man roared. He pulled up his revolver and aimed it at the chest of the other man, his finger shaking with a mixture of excitement and rage. A few people near the scene shouted in surprise and fear before moving away from the commotion. 

"You heard me," The other man spoke. He tried to smile to appear confident, but the sweat dripping from his brow betrayed his image.

"No. I want you to say it," The bald man commanded. Just then, an employee stepped forward and tried to take the gun from the bald man. Edward's eyes narrowed in surprise as he watched the employee move, but the bald man wasn't caught unawares. He had heard the employee rushing at him, so he quickly turned around and tried to push away the employee. 

Then, a loud gunshot echoed through the building as the man fired the revolver.