Chapter 98: Receptionist/Salesperson
GOR Chapter 98: Receptionist/Salesperson
In the morning, a commercial vehicle that they arranged for stopped before the hotel.
The seven of them, led by Chen Xiaolian, walked out of the hotel. Lun Tai took the initiative to open the door to the driver’s seat and entered.
Before the vehicle moved out, Chen Xiaolian turned to look at the big hotel building for a long time.
“Stop looking,” Roddy frowned. “If that woman really is an Awakened, we could potentially meet up with her within ‘Zero’. But if she is a Player…”
“At the very least, she did not show any malicious intent in the last instance dungeon,” Chen Xiaolian forced out a smile. “We will discuss about it when we reach Zero.”
The car moved out from the central area of Tokyo.
Their destination was the Tama municipality.
Lun Tai’s driving techniques was extremely outstanding and the car moved in a fast and steady manner.
As the car was entering the central area of Tama, Roddy who sat in the last row of seats suddenly exclaimed out in a loud voice. “Where is the Twin Towers?”
Chen Xiaolian laughed and slapped Roddy’s head. “You have been reading too much Conan [1]. That tower is fictional. It does not exist. You are not young anymore, don’t be so chuunibyou [2].”
“Still, even if I do not talk about Conan, I still want to see Misaka Mikoto [3].”
“Should I bring you to meet the Railgun sister?” Chen Xiaolian breathlessly replied.
“Brother Xiaolian, what is Brother Roddy talking about?” Xia Xiaolei blinked.
“Don’t pay any attention to him. He is a late stage chuunibyou patient,” Chen Xiaolian pursed his lips to the side.
The car stopped at the destination. Observing the big square shaped building before them, they were all momentarily stunned.
Lun Tai and Bei Tai’s expressions though, were one of earnestness. After the car halted, Chen Xiaolian looked at the sign on the big building and asked. “Are you certain… it is here? The grand meeting point for Awakened ones, the mysterious Entrance Gate to Zero City… is here?”
“No mistake about it. The location specified in the newspaper for the business summit is here.”
Although Chen Xiaolian did not expect the arrangement of a high-levelled summit for the big gathering of Awakened ones, this…
Surprisingly, the sign placed beside the big building revealed that this was the headquarters of a large company.
JUKI.
Err… it was involved in the sewing machine business.
Sewing machine?!
The exterior of the entrance to this big building was devoid of bodyguards and anyone could freely access this place. The lobby of the big building was also seemingly empty.
A checkpoint was the only thing set up within the big building.
Two Japanese men in uniforms stood there.
“Please show your invitation card.”
One of them displayed a cold countenance while the other had a smile etched on his face.
Lun Tai thought for a moment before producing and handing over the newspaper. The newspaper had been snipped, leaving only the news section with the hidden message regarding the opening of Zero City.
The uniformed man glanced at it. Without showing any change in his expression, he pulled open the metal fence. “Enter the left elevator, welcome back.”
…
Seven people entered the elevator, feeling a little cramped. Chen Xiaolian could not help but feel somewhat anxious.
This was especially true for Roddy who looked around and was constantly extending his hand to feel the surface of the elevator. “There does not seem to be anything special. This is just an ordinary Mitsubishi elevator.”
“Did you think it would be a teleportation array that directly transports us to a certain place?” Chen Xiaolian laughed.
“It is not impossible. Perhaps it is some legendary quantum teleportation portal?”
At that moment, the numbers that indicated the building level on the elevator suddenly disappeared!
Everyone was shocked and could only feel the elevator slowly moving upwards before gradually slowing down.
Ding!
After the elevator had stopped, the doors of the elevator slowly opened up. Looking outside, they were surprised to see…
The rooftop!
The elevator could actually access the rooftop directly!
The very moment that the seven of them walked out of the elevator, they received a strong visual impact!
There was a table on the rooftop before them and a gaunt man with a cold expression sat there. His face revealed an odd smile – it was as though there was someone who owed him millions.
That was one thing. However, what caused them to become truly shocked was what stood to their left!
With a height of roughly 5 meters, it was a… metal monster!
It exhibited thick metallic legs and was assuming a humanoid standing posture. As for its metal arms, its small left arm was equipped with a circular metal barrel. It was clear that the barrel was a form of powerful firearm! Its right mechanical arm was wielding a serrated giant sword! There was also a device installed on its shoulder that could discharge blasts!
Upon the chest area of this metal monster was a transparent cockpit. Inside the cockpit was a fellow wearing protective suit and a helmet. Both the person’s hands were resting upon the surface of a metal orb…
A sleek body painted in gold, filled with an explosive sense of power. It exuded a shocking military might and killing intent!
“This is… mech?”
Chen Xiaolian was dumbfounded.
The mech stood on the left side of the big building’s rooftop. Its pair of mechanical eyes flashed with a green light and they continuously swept across the bodies of the seven of them.
Chen Xiaolian noted that the mech was slightly bending its mechanical legs. The same was true for the right arm and the small left arm – this stance would allow it to attack at any given moment!
…
“Welcome, everyone.”
The gaunt man behind the table spoke out with a voice that was as ugly as a broken gong. “I am receptionist No. 00198 for this time’s city opening. You are all currently at Zero City’s temporary Entrance Gate number X31.”
After saying that, his eyes swept over the seven of them before focusing correctly onto Chen Xiaolian. It was as though he could use their standing positions to deduce who their representative was.
“Everyone, there is no need to feel nervous about that fellow’s existence. That is just an I-Model Sentinel Mech, responsible for the security of the entrance and exit gates. I believe there is no need for me to elaborate on it. Considering our identities, we cannot expose our existence to the world. Thus, every time the city opens, there needs to be security. I hope everyone here will not feel any discomfort due to this.”
The fellow claiming to be the receptionist stood up and gestured to the mech. The mech took a step back and lowered its hand. However, the green light within its eyes continued sweeping back and forth.
“Very well, now please proceed with the visitor’s registration,” The receptionist said in a languid manner. “If you have entered Zero City before, all you need to do is carry out an identification scan for verification and you will obtain the Entry Permit. If this is your first time coming to Zero City, then you will be required to perform an identity authentication through the teleportation array. After authentication, we will register the information for each of your identities. The next time you come, you will be able to enter smoothly – please trust me, this method is simply for the sake of preventing normal people from accidentally entering our world.”
After saying that, the receptionist lightly clapped his hands.
With a “pa” sound, an equipment similar to the security gate seen in airports suddenly appeared beside him!
Lun Tai smiled and took a step forward. “I am Lun Tai, my Entry Registration Number is UQ965.”
“Bei Tai, Entry Registration Number is QU965.”
The receptionist smiled. “Oh, what rare matching numbers. Please wait a moment…” He raised his wrist.
Chen Xiaolian noted that the receptionist was wearing an unusually shaped watch on his wrist. The surface of the watch instantly released a beam of green light that rapidly swept through Lun Tai and Bei Tai’s bodies.
The receptionist gave a satisfactory smile. “Very good, both your codes are correct. Welcome back to the two of you.”
Lun Tai nodded his head and pointed to the rest. “These are all my companions. This is their first time in Zero City. Please help them with the registration.”
Chen Xiaolian noted that Roddy had been staring at the I-Model Sentinel Mech and was completely in a daze. Chen Xiaolian lightly nudged him and asked. “Are you back with us yet?”
Both of Roddy’s eyes suddenly sparkled!
“Holy shit! Xiaolian! That is a MECH! A genuine mech! This thing actually exists! Oh, my Heavens! Kira! Athrun! Shinn Asuka!” This late stage chuunibyou patient was rubbing his palms frantically as he stared fervently at the I-Model Sentinel [4]. “You said that this Zero City has a market place that sells a lot of equipment… I wonder if this mech could be bought? Is it expensive? Can we buy one up? With this thing, when we enter the instance dungeon, we will definitely kill it big time!”
The receptionist heard his words and the gaunt man’s eyes revealed a trace of disapproval. However, he quickly displayed that ugly smile of his.
“Ah, does this fellow guest have an interest in this I-Model Sentinel Mech? Your desire is not that hard to satisfy within Zero City!
“This I-Model Sentinel Mech is a newly militarized war mech that was developed last year by Zero City’s Defence Council. It possesses powerful firepower and outstanding defence. Its mobility and various other aspects are also superior. If you install flying equipment on its exterior, then it will have a certain battle capacity within a 3,000 meters altitude. It can reach a maximum flying speed of 280 km per hour. Additionally, it only requires a single pilot to fully control it!”
As he spoke, the receptionist seemed to have instantly transformed into a salesperson. To Chen Xiaolian, the expression on the receptionist’s face at that moment was no different from those who sell insurance.
“… the defence personnel of Zero City have just been recently outfitted with this model of mechs and there is no plan to sell it to outsiders in the near future. However, for the sake of satisfying the needs of the many Awakened ones, we have introduced a Civilian version of the I-Model Sentinel Mech. It has almost the same functions as this model and only some minor modifications to its parts. Some of its classified features had to be either emasculated or removed – truth be told, it will not interfere too much with its standard operations.
“If you are interested, after entering Zero City, head to the Double Dragon Avenue. There, find the External Services Centre for the Military Arms Department for more information.
“Right, if you bring up my name, you can get one installation equipment for its exterior as an additional present! My name is Jack.”
… … …
This fellow does not simply resemble a salesperson! This fellow simply IS a salesperson!
However, Roddy, whose chuunibyou disease has flared up was hooked.
Let us face it: Are there any teenagers who do not dream of having their own mech after watching Gundam?
“This thing… how much is it?”
“Not expensive at all!” The receptionist Jack smiled ear to ear and the face that gave off the impression that everyone in the world owed him money had finally disappeared. Looking at Roddy, his eyes glittered. It was as though he was looking at a humanoid pile of gold. “The civilian edition is divided into 4 editions: Standard Edition, Sports Edition, Deluxe Edition and Tuhao Edition [5]. The price for the Standard Edition is 4,500 points! It is absolutely worth it!”
4,500 points…
Chen Xiaolian instantly rolled his eyes!
The Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang’s instance dungeon that he barely escaped with his life was so hard it could kill even the powerful High Class Player like Da Vinci…
He successfully completed the quest only to acquire 1,500 points!
This mech’s price would require him to go through 3 Mausoleums of Qin Shi Huang!
1. Conan. He is the protagonist of the detective manga and anime series Conan.
2. Chuunibyou. The word used in the raws is ‘middle second’ while chuunibyou is a Japanese slang that can be loosely translated as ‘middle school 2nd year syndrome’. Chuunibyous manifests traits of delusional behaviour, particularly the belief that they possess powers that others do not. It has since evolved to describe delusional behaviour in general.
3. Misaka Mikoto. She is the protagonist of the manga and anime series Toaru Kagaku no Railgun/ A Certain Scientific Railgun. Her nickname is Railgun.
4. Kira Yamato and Athrun Zala are the two protagonist of the anime series Gundam SEED. In its sequel Gundam SEED Destiny, the protagonist role is taken by Shinn Asuka. The theme of the show is giant robots piloted by humans. The robot piloted by Kira, the Gundam, Strike Freedom has a height of 18.88 meters.
5. Tuhao is a derogatory term used by Chinese to label filthy rich people with considerable influence who likes to flaunt their wealth. As mentioned in some earlier chapters, Qiao Qiao is considered a tuhao.