Chapter 6
The next day, Pei Sen went to work as usual, only to find two maids standing trembling outside the door. Upon seeing him, they looked as if they had just encountered their savior.
He walked over. “Has the young master thrown another tantrum?”
One of the maids nodded frantically, while the other pressed her lips together, still seemingly unable to recover.
In situations like this, others could find ways to avoid it, but Pei Sen could not. In fact, every personal butler before him had performed this very role—serving as the direct outlet for Young Master Eagle’s frustrations—and none of them ever lasted long.
“I hope Pei Sen can stay a bit longer,” a maid said regretfully; it would be such a pity if someone so handsome were to leave.
Another maid spoke optimistically, “Compared to those before, the young master seems to treat Pei Sen rather well.”
“Are you sure?”
Has Eagle ever treated anyone kindly? Forget it.
When Pei Sen entered, Eagle stood expressionless by the window, radiating an oppressive aura.
Come to think of it, this young master was only fourteen. What should a normal fourteen-year-old be like? Pei Sen pondered; in the modern world, plenty of teenagers that age were caught up in their own dramatic fantasies. It wasn’t hard to understand if Eagle had a bit of a temper.
Just as he thought this, Eagle lifted his head. “Get out.”
Pei Sen forced a gentle smile. “In a bad mood? Shall I fetch breakfast from the kitchen? Eating something might cheer you up. Would Young Master like some fruit today? Or perhaps I could ask Lady Mary to arrange a stroll in the garden?”
Eagle’s emerald eyes seemed frozen over. “I’m not eating.” He let out a cold sneer. “Go out? I doubt I’ll be able to leave anytime soon. Otherwise, dying would play right into someone’s hands!”
As he spoke, he grabbed a bone china teacup and hurled it at Pei Sen!
The cup struck Pei Sen’s shoulder. He frowned, itching to rub the throbbing spot, but ultimately swallowed his resentment, maintaining a smile as he said softly, “It’s fine if you don’t go out, Young Master. You could play with Pex, or perhaps read a book—”
Another teacup came flying; this time, Pei Sen couldn’t help but dodge. Otherwise, it would have smashed right into his forehead!
Eagle, however, flew into a rage. “You dare dodge!”
Pei Sen: “…”
This job was truly becoming impossible to endure; it had long surpassed being merely described as having a “bad temper.”
Shouting “You dare dodge!”, Eagle would normally expect no evasion, yet Pei Sen remained perfectly composed and dodged anyway. Apart from the first teacup, none of the subsequent ones thrown at him managed to hit their mark.
After dodging, Pei Sen felt a touch of smugness, thinking his reflexes were quite good.
Looking up, he saw Eagle already seething with rage, the corners of his eyes tinged red, making his already strikingly handsome face glow even more brilliantly.
Indeed, even when angry, a beauty remains beautiful.
“Young Master, this teacup is heavy; it would hurt greatly if it hit someone,” Pei Sen said calmly, picking up each teacup one by one. Then he walked over to Eagle, half-kneeling before him to tidy the loosened ribbons on his elaborate and ornate shirt.
Eagle glared furiously at the audacious fellow kneeling before him, watching as his long, nimble fingers methodically fastened each lace on his shirt.
In truth, Pei Sen wasn’t particularly afraid of Eagle. The boy might be a bit bearish, but he was still young, unarmed with any truly dangerous weapon, and thus capable of inflicting only limited harm.
Besides, when it came to things like him throwing teacups, couldn’t Pei Sen simply dodge?
Eagle lowered his head, his emerald-green eyes, bright as gemstones, staring straight at Pei Sen. His cool fingers lifted Pei Sen’s chin. “Does getting hit by a teacup hurt? But I’ll be unhappy if the teacup doesn’t hit you!”
Pei Sen looked up with a smile and said, “Young Master, throwing teacups isn’t something worth celebrating. Can’t I accompany you in doing many more joyful things from now on?”
“Since that’s the case, starting tomorrow, you must arrive here before I wake up and leave only after I’ve fallen asleep,” Eagle said with a cold sneer; he wasn’t that foolish. “From now on, I’ll make sure you have plenty of time to accompany me in doing things that please me.”
Pei Sen: “…”
He had miscalculated; provoking an unruly child was indeed a terrible idea. A river of sorrow surged through Pei Sen’s heart. His working hours would likely become double the infamous 996 schedule from now on—how terrifying!
Pei Sen decided to wait a while before revealing that he had mastered those spells. Learning all those basic spells in just one night sounded too astonishing to be believable if spoken aloud.
Recently, he had no desire to provoke the ill-tempered Eagle again, lest he be the one to suffer. Thus, in Eagle’s presence, he became exceptionally well-behaved, gentle, tolerant, and diligent. He even attended to Pecks with such meticulous care that the fat cat, who initially ignored him completely, finally deigned to show him a little respect.
Gazing at the now-sleeping Eagle, this fellow might be utterly detestable when awake, yet in slumber, he appeared remarkably beautiful, almost like a lovely angel.
Pei Sen slipped away quietly, finally able to return and rest for a while.
He greeted the night maid stationed outside before returning to his own room.
At that moment, Lady Mary suddenly appeared in the dim corridor, and the night maid respectfully opened the door for her.
Eagle, who had seemed to be asleep on the bed just moments ago, opened his eyes. Dressed in pure white silk pajamas, he leaned against the headboard and looked toward Lady Mary.
“Did you find anything?”
“No,” Lady Mary sighed. “I suspected he was from Balster, but when I mentioned it in front of Keso that day, his reaction made me think perhaps he isn’t.”
“Never mind,” Eagle said disinterestedly. “No need to investigate further. In any case, he poses no threat or ulterior motive toward me right now.”
Lady Mary nodded. “That is what Atwell said as well; even someone of unknown origin is safer than those brought in by others. However, placing such unidentified commoners at your side is still quite troublesome. I suspect people from the Royal Capital will come to cause trouble.”
“As long as I insist, they can do nothing.” Eagle yawned. “This Pei Sen is actually not bad.”
Lady Mary was truly surprised this time. Eagle had dismissed countless personal butlers, yet this was the first one he had ever evaluated as “not bad.”
Still, his origins remained a problem. Lady Mary was already considering whether she should go and question him personally.
“Don’t ask him,” Eagle Langno said with a pout. “I’m the one who declared that we hire at Golden Rose Manor without questioning origins or backgrounds, and I intend to stand by my word! Once he’s been here long enough, his habits will inevitably reveal themselves, making it easier to determine where he truly comes from. Besides, perhaps in time he’ll tell me himself?”
Lady Mary sighed. “Very well, but remember, Eagle, never let that medal leave your side.”
Eagle said nonchalantly, “I know.”
After Lady Mary departed, Eagle lay alone in bed, taking quite some time before finally falling asleep.
Pei Sen always thought he slept well, but in reality, he didn’t.
Moreover, Eagle had never been able to fall asleep in front of others; even the slightest sound would wake him.
As long as Pei Sen remains, Eagle cannot truly fall asleep.
Pei Sen was completely unaware of all this. Had he known, he would probably have grumbled about why this brat had to torment himself just to mess with him. Wouldn’t it have been better to simply go to sleep early? Yet the kid insisted on putting on such a show.
At this moment, Pei Sen had no mood to concern himself with Eagle’s affairs. He hadn’t checked the built-in forum for several days, as the announcement there had remained utterly silent, like something dead. Only when he casually opened it today did he suddenly realize everything had changed!
The previously perfunctory few lines were gone; the forum itself had transformed into the familiar format of a proper, official forum. Surprisingly, the once desolate page was now bustling with activity.
Pei Sen looked at the new pinned announcement and finally understood the reason behind this sudden surge in popularity.
“The list of the first batch of closed beta players for ‘Bix Cube’ has been announced. Beta access codes have been sent to your email addresses. Please confirm and fill in your shipping details as soon as possible; our company will mail the game pods to you free of charge.”
“The second batch of closed beta access will be distributed on August 9th.”
Pei Sen narrowed his eyes. The players selected for the closed beta were truly lucky; the game pods were being given out for free. He remembered that back in his time, he had to purchase his own game pod, and they were certainly not cheap! The base model cost at least 9,999, the mid-range version was 15,999, and the high-end model exceeded 20,000, still costing over 21,000 even after discounts.
However, compared to the selling prices abroad, the domestic pricing was already incredibly reasonable. Overseas, a single game pod was priced at several times the domestic rate.
While he was marveling at the cost of the game pods, the forums were flooded with posts, nearly half of which began with “Holy crap.”
“I thought it was just a joke, but it’s actually real?”
“Who would believe that information from what looks like a scam page turns out to be true…”
“Is it still possible to apply for the closed beta access now?”
“I only found this place through a link shared by a friend. Which awesome game company created a holographic game without any promotion whatsoever?”
“Looking for a closed beta key; money is no object.”
“Buying closed beta keys; price negotiable.”
“…”
Pei Sen quickly scanned the forum’s front page. Several threads were already marked “Hot,” each boasting around one or two thousand replies. He knew that at this point, news about the game was spreading by word of mouth, generating considerable buzz entirely through organic traction.
But compared to what lay ahead, this level of heat was still insignificant.
Some people are right; Bix Cube has never truly engaged in any publicity, with no advertisements, no promotions, and not even a single news article.
It quietly launched an announcement page, followed by opening its forum.
Currently, the hottest thread on the entire forum has already reached over ten thousand replies, spanning more than a hundred pages.
The content of the post is very simple: a selected closed-beta player directly shared an image showing a sleek, slender gaming pod with a silvery-white finish.
“The true full-dive game pod just arrived tonight; I suspect the game company is based in the same city as me.”
No language can match the impact of an image.
This simple picture tells everyone that everything is real, leaving no room for doubt.
“July 9th—what day is that?” only Pei Sen muttered to himself, fully aware of the tremendous changes that would sweep through this world once a flood of players arrived.
It looks like it’s almost time.