( Real world, Sector S, Cervantez's home )
As he did often, Cervantez booked Luke for a massage session in sector S for the work day, however, instead of actually getting a massage, he discussed Luke's upcoming finals match with 'TheBoss' instead.
"I'm extremely ashamed man…. As the guildmaster I couldn't even make it to the finals, while you did as the vice guildmaster.
I'm sort of supposed to be the strongest around here" Cervantez candidly admitted, as Luke immediately shook his head in denial.
"It's not about you being stronger or weaker than me. If I met 'TheBoss' in the round of 64, I'd be eliminated then…. That guy's simply too strong" Luke said, as he tried to cheer Cervantez back up with sound logic.
"I know… that guy's just unplayable…. I still don't know how he managed to copy my best move" Cervantez said, placing his head in his palms as he looked visibly tired from trying to figure out how The Boss pulled it off.
For a while Luke said nothing as he stood in silence waiting for Cervantez to recover, however, internally he felt very happy to see Cervantez behaving in such a positive way despite having suffered a big loss.
Instead of making excuses, he apologized for not delivering as per the expectations of the guild members, which was a big plus point in Luke's perspective as not many men had such personality.
Cervantez seemed to have already accepted the fact that he lost and was already looking past it by trying to help Luke come up with a strategy for tomorrow's fight, which was another big plus point in Luke's eyes as he appreciated everything Cervantez did for him and the guild.
After a while, as Cervantez gave up on trying to figure out how The Boss copied his move, he looked into Luke's eyes once more and said what Luke already knew deep down.
"The way I see it…. The only way you win against The Boss is if you somehow get him into a suplex hold.
I know it will be very hard to get someone as slippery as him into a suplex hold, but that's your only shot of winning.
99/100 times you will lose a fight against The Boss, however, if you can somehow manage to hit a suplex, I think you can steal a win" Cervantez eventually said, as Luke immediately nodded his head in agreement .
"Yeah, that's pretty much how I feel too…so my game plan is to play defensive until I get the opportunity to execute a suplex…" Luke admitted, as he shrugged his shoulders, sounding unsure of his own plan.
It was by no means a thorough plan or a fool proof plan, however, it was the best he could think of given his strengths.
"Alright, since we are on the same wavelength, let's run some mock shadow battles in our head to try and see if we can think of some move sequence that can maybe help you put him in a suplex hold…" Cervantez said, trying to help Luke as best as he could.
Soon, the duo began discussing possible future scenarios with Luke and trying to figure out ways to put his opponent into a suplex hold, as he mentally prepared every combination that he could think of for tomorrow's fight.
********
( Meanwhile Leo )
Left alone at the apartment once more, Leo did not think about the upcoming battle at all, as he instead wondered about how his life would be, after the grand tournament was over.
If he managed to win, that would cement the identity of 'TheBoss' as the top player, completing a long time quest. However, it would also be a new beginning for him as he would have to pick up the role of being 'Leo Skyshard'.
"What should I wish for? Can I ask to be made a Duke? Or for lots of money?
I bet it will be easier for me to play the role of a big merchant if I'm the Duke of a duchy" Leo said to himself as he wondered if asking for a Duchy as a reward was a good choice or not?
"Well, it's probably a dumb choice…. I don't even know how to properly run a Barony yet…. I should focus on learning the ropes first before trying to play the role of a bigshot" Leo murmured as he shot down his own stupid thoughts of becoming a Duke.
"A royal pardon doesn't sound too bad either…. I bet the old man will be happy to be able to roam freely again" Leo muttered, as he wondered how Ben would react to being free once again.
"A virtual gift for a virtual master…. Ha- I've really lost my mind" Leo said, as he laughed at how silly all this sounded.
Terra Nova Online was just a game in the end and Ben was just a virtual character, perhaps a line of code that someone wrote. However, Leo was now attached to that line of code to the point where he was willing to use his biggest wish to see him become a free man.
"If the old man smiles…. It'll be worth it-" Leo muttered to himself as he let out a deep breath.
"What did Cervantez mean when he said I have ties to the uprising? Is he stupid?" Leo wondered, as he tried to figure out why Cervantez said that he might have had ties to the uprising before the fight began, however, no matter how hard he thought about it, he found no connection between himself and the uprising whatsoever.
"I don't understand half the shit that man says at times" Leo said, scrambling his hair as he decided to give up on thinking about Terra Nova Online and tried to pass his time by aimlessly sketching instead.
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/// A/N - Bonus chapter 2 of 3 for the day. Thank you everyone for all your support for this book last month. Hope you enjoy this month's content too- ///