Parallel Memory

"It is lonely to be invincible!"

Zero said.

It was the habit of many gamers to show off against newbies. They like to show they are strong when they are beating someone in a game.

The people who heard this sentence gnashed their teeth and became angry. They could not even hit him once after all this time so obviously, they could not refute his words even if they wanted to say something.

"We still have time. We will make sure to beat him before the tournament ends!"

"Yes, he must have played this game somewhere else. That's why he is so good at it."

Just like that these two days of rest had turned into a competition to beat Zero for many students. However, they could not even take one of his HP.

"Well, this is my last game!"

Zero was able to play continuously for many hours but he soon felt bored because they would simply be defeated in an instant.

Though he still played for hours to show off his game skill.

Others didn't leave when Zero decided to leave. They stayed behind and continued playing the games and improving their skill as they vowed to take down Zero.

During dinner, Sylvia and Lisa sat with Zero like the previous day.

"Zero, you should go easy on me!"

Sylvia said while pouting.

She considered herself somewhat of a gamer, but she was also destroyed along with other students by Zero.

"Would you be happy if you won against me with a handicap?"

"Of course!"

"Then NO!"

"You are Evil!"

Sylvia was entirely out of the conversation. She didn't understand what they were talking about. She was training throughout the day and didn't see any of them.

( They seemed even closer! )

Lisa thought as she looked at them silently.

Zero and Sylvia naturally grew closer as they talked about the things that both of them liked. Similarly to how people with the same taste get along well with each other.

After dinner, they left to play games. Zero played Edolas Super Brawl before playing another game. Though Sylvia still continued to play it with other people.

The next day, they spent their time fighting against Zero.

'Perfect! Player 2 wins!'

'Perfect! Player 2 wins!'

'Perfect! Player 2 wins!'

'Perfect! Player 2 wins!'

"We can't win. He is too strong!"

"Just believe in yourself! We can take him down. This is what our whole life was about."

-TAK! -TAK!

Zero as usual was doing his flawless combos when,

-THAK!

The player blocked the attack and then the unspeakable happened.

-PAK!

"Yes, yes, you did it!"

"How did he black and hit him?"

'Player 2 wins!'

"You have hit the invincible Zero!"

"I guess all the night practice paid off!"

"Let's lift him in the air!"

"Hip Hip Hooray!"

The students grew crazy when finally someone took one 1 hp from Zero's character. They celebrated as if that boy had won the match, though what the boy did was just take one attack.

"Paul, you are the next champion!"

They declared as Paul had managed to hit Zero. Paul also felt like he had won the tournament as the Zero no longer received 'Perfect' as his victory sounded.

The students surround Paul and congratulate Paul as they begin to remember his name. They also ask him to teach them how to do that move.

"A Shame that you are no longer The Invincible Zero!"

Sylvia said while giggling.

"I still won the match and don't you remember all those times when you were getting floored by me?"

Zero replied.

"Humph! That was because I was not serious. Now that your luck is out, I should be able to defeat you."

We got back to playing. I had to teach this arrogant girl the reality of how much she sucked at Edolas Super Brawl.

'Perfect! Player 2 wins!'

"Guess I am still invincible!"

Sylvia looked gloomy as I said those words.

The gaming session was as intense as it could be but considering tomorrow the next round was starting, we left early. The only people left were those who qualified for the next round.

Although they didn't seem to be disappointed as they concentrated on playing Edolas Super Brawl.

*****

"Hello, Zero!"

"Good Morning, how about we play after the tournament? I have gotten pretty good at Edolas Super Brawl."

Unlike before, Zero has made many friends through playing the game. While he would mercilessly beat them down but due to having played together, they kind of formed a bond.

Even though Zero was so dangerous in a tournament, well, he was even more dangerous in games, but he seemed approachable when playing, which gave them an easier time talking to him.

Therefore, naturally, after some time their wariness toward Zero dwindled and Zero was able to make some friends.

"Zero, you might have beaten me many times in the game but I will win if we face each other in the tournament. Real fighting is my specialty!"

One of the most persistent players who would fight again and again was Jeremy. He was one of the players who managed to hurt Zero in the game which is considered an extremely good player in the eyes of other students.

"Yeah, let's see! Just make sure you don't get knocked out in one move again."

"That… was because I was giving you a chance because you were a junior. I will show my real power when the second round begins!"

( We don't even know what type of competition it is going to be. )

In the novel, the second round was a type of capture of the flag. If that were the same as in the novel, we might find it easier since we have the advantage of numbers.

This time around, less than a hundred students were present here. Over 50% of the students present here came from Top-5 academies, while the remaining 50% came from other schools.

We entered the stadium tunnel as we made our way toward the arena. The students were not as nervous as they were during the first round.

This was especially true for Ace Academy students, who were exuding the auras of the champion, unlike in the first round where they were scared of losing.

-THUD! -THUD!

"Go Zero, Go!"

"Ace Academy Win!"

"Omar Noel, we still believe you."

"Hiro Ernest, you are the best!"

"Skyline Academy don't give up!"

Lots of people started to cheer the moment we came out of the stadium tunnel. I was also feeling confident knowing what the objective of the second round was going to be.

( Let's win this one as well! )