The Patron’s Ball - 9:15 AM

  Sara and I entered the long hallway that would take us to the Patron’s Ball when all of the powers granted to me by the system disappeared. No player should be able to use class abilities, skills, or passives during the Patron’s Ball except in specific areas and situations.

  I just happened to have a loophole. There was a momentary flicker before I received system access again.

  <<<>>>

  [[Skill]]

  Entwined With The System

  Your connection with the system is so hardwired into your very being that you can even make it work in situations where you no longer have access. You have become a part of the system, just as the system is a part of you.

  <<<>>>

  Regardless, I powered down everything I could to zero anyway. It made me feel slightly naked, which I would quickly get over, but there was no reason for me to need system access. No violence was allowed at the Patron’s Ball except in very specific places, and they would automatically become operational there.

  Unless, of course, the administrators had something planned. This was the absolute worst place to try something by a wide margin. The Patrons had a lot more power here than usual. Not in an immediately harmful way, but this was an event specifically put on for them to show off. What happened to Baltastasia back during the Emperor’s Ascent would be a slap on the wrist compared to what could happen now.

  “You’re tense,” Sara observed, squeezing my hand.

  “Yeah. Just don’t like it,” I replied, squeezing back.

  “Getting cold feet?”

  “Just a little unnerved,” I admitted with a small smile. “Whenever I came to these events before, they were just kind of… whatever, you know? Kronos would force me to come and I’d do it, but there weren’t stakes like this before.”

  “Because you weren’t romantically involved with him?” she teased.

  “That, and because I’ve made a bigger mess of the administrator’s plans than I ever had before at this point,” I answered. What I said made me tilt my head in recognition, and I frowned. “Huh, you’re right. I have become more cautious than usual. It’s not like me to be this jittery.”

  “Don’t worry, Ant,” Sara said, smiling. She leaned up and kissed my cheek before hugging my arm. “I’ll protect you from any big, bad administrator who wants to destroy you and everything you stand for. You can trust in me.”

  “My hero,” I chuckled, pretending to swoon before turning my attention back to the hallway. “Aren’t we supposed to teleport in from your staging room to the main ballroom? This is a much longer walk than I remember.”

  “Yes, but I turned that off,” she replied easily, waving her hand. “I’m not in any great hurry, and I’m content taking things at my own pace. The only thing I’m interested in is the gambling.”

  “Oh?” I asked, arching an eyebrow at my wife. “You’re into that kind of thing? I didn’t take you for the type.”

  “You learn something new every day, Anthony,” Sara replied with a raised chin. “But, technically, it’s the winning that I’m interested in. I aim to turn my fortune into a much, much larger one. If I could take your points, I’d do the same there, too.”

  I laughed. “Just married me for the wealth, huh?”

  My wife pouted. “I don’t like that question. Never ask me that again,” she said, sniffing loudly as if I had hurt her.

  “Never again,” I agreed. Lifting her hand, I kissed the back of it. “After all, it’s clear what this is. This is a b—”

  “Partially, yes,” Sara quickly interrupted, removing her hand from mine so she could put two fingers on my chin and close my mouth. The dangerous look she gave me was severely undercut by her blush. “And since we both know what this is, there’s no need to bring it up. Let’s just go enjoy ourselves on our honeymoon where such things are perfectly normal, shall we?”

  “Consider the subject dropped, and consider me ready to enjoy ourselves,” I answered teasingly.

  My Angel’s gaze lingered on me for a few moments before she smiled and took my arm again, resting her head on my shoulder. I patted her elbow with my free hand as the noise started filtering in. We stepped out of the long, rather plain hallway that we could have used a portal to get through and into a scene that wouldn’t have looked out of place in Las Vegas.

  The main room of the Patron’s Ball was much larger than the staging area Abbatrastoria had been using to spawn monsters in the administrative layer. This much space was needed for the number of bodies that were going to fill it. It already seemed as though we were among the last to arrive.

  Flashing lights from games and events competed for our attention while conversations happened all over the place. Standalone doorways with portals stood underneath jumbotron-sized televisions that showed what was on the other side. Some were arena fighters that pit Avatars against mobs while others were PvP focused, and the one closest to us had some kind of hide and seek against adorable, bunny-like creatures.

  I turned around and checked to make sure that our door was clearly marked. There were countless paths lining the wall of the structure, and each one of them led to a Patron’s staging room. The only one we were allowed to go through without permission was our own, but they could be opened up to anyone so long as an invitation was sent.

  A shout caught my attention, and I turned to see what was going on.

  “Poseidon!” two voices cried out, cutting through the rest. We turned to see a man clad in a cloak of waves accompanied by a half-man, half-fish. They raised their arms in unison. “Witness me!”

  “Damn brats! Leave me alone! Stop evoking my name!” the marble-esque Poseidon called back, his voice much higher pitch than his stature would indicate. A bewildered and amused woman followed after him, drinking something red from a wine glass, as the other Patron and Avatar laughed with each other.

  “If this is going to go full Greek, let’s get out of here before more show up,” I whispered to Sara, and she nodded. I took a step, but she did not, and I found myself unable to move further away than arm’s length. “Are you okay?”

  At first, it looked like she was not. The lights flashed in her eyes, which were wide and darted around at everything that moved. Before I could reassure her, I saw her face firm up.

  “I’m the gosh darn Angel of the End,” Sara muttered, barely loud enough for me to hear. “I’m the scariest thing here, and there’s no reason to be nervous.”

  “Hear, hear,” I replied, and she gave me a slightly flustered look before smiling. She started walking, and I joined her.

  It wasn’t just the lights and games that grabbed attention, but the Avatars, too. Several people didn’t have anything fancy to dress in and had come in their combat gear. The range was massive, from one woman wearing an armored breastplate as thick as tank plating to a man with a wizard hat wrapped in an excessive amount of belts. It looked very uncomfortable.

  This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

  The Patrons were something else entirely. Each one had their own unique appearance that had to follow certain conventions from mythology, but there was a lot of leeway given that they couldn’t just be… whatever they were behind the names.

  A huge eight-legged horse was currently eating out of a bucket near one of several buffets in the area, his green hair making him easy to spot even if he hadn't been ten feet tall. There was a koi fish swimming in a floating bowl, a walking volcano in feminine form that left a trail of disappearing lava behind with every step, and a sentient hive covered in bees.

  Pluto floated by, having chosen the form of the dwarf planet rather than anything even remotely close to Roman mythology. A beer stein hovered next to him, and it tilted towards the Patron. Instead of spilling, the liquid disappeared before it reoriented itself.

  He was followed by a teenage boy wearing an edgy, shadowy shroud covering his whole body. “You’re so weird,” the kid stated.

  “I just think it’s messed up what scientists did to my celestial body,” came Pluto’s deep, gravely voice. “Knocked down in status to a mere dwarf planet? The outrage! Don’t they know better than to anger the god of death!?”

  “No, but we’ll show them,” the teenager replied before lowering his voice. “We’ll show them all.”

  The teen's utterance would have been concerning if it weren’t for the way his voice cracked at the end. I knew he was mostly harmless either way. Pluto didn’t choose anyone evil as his Avatar, and there were more than enough bad gods out there to fill the gap.

  One of them even drew the ire of my wife. Sara squeezed my hand tightly as we passed an Angel with a tarnished, dripping halo and two ragged wings. He appeared to be sickly, though we both knew better, and he spoke with a spike-covered, red-skinned frog man over a plate of cheese fries. Their Avatars were nowhere to be seen, but it still made for an absurd image.

  “Yeah, screw that guy,” I muttered as Sara led me away from them. “Do you have any plans for where we’re going? Or would you like me to lead?”

  “Do you mind if we wander?” she asked, looking around. “I’m sure you can treat me to a wonderful guided tour of the Patron’s Ball, but I’d like to make the choice of where we go. At first, at least.”

  “I’ve got no problem with that,” I replied warmly. “Go to the ends of the Earth if you want to, I’ll be right there beside you.”

  The smile on Sara’s lips was brilliant, and she finally seemed to figure out where she wanted to go first. At first I thought she was leading me to a series of slot machines, but she went past it. We headed towards one of the buffet tables to grab something to eat. A simple first step, but one my stomach appreciated when the smell hit me and it started growling.

  This particular buffet was set up with breakfast foods, and we grabbed plates. Eggs, pancakes, hash browns, and a bevy of meats. Any time we took something, it was immediately replaced on the table as fresh as could be. There were plenty of seats available nearby, and we went there after getting juice.

  We sat down across from each other, and she gently placed her feet on top of mine with a smile. I raised my glass to her, and she clinked hers against mine before we drank and began eating.

  The timing was almost perfect. It only took about a minute before the lights started to dim and all of the screens throughout the ballroom to change. They would show the administrator on the stage that was far from us, who would do the introduction.

  As much as I hated giving his kind credit, Salta was a great host. The puffball man was personable and made sure the Patrons and Avatars were as comfortable as could be. If I had to describe him in one word, it would be disarming. Charismatically dangerous, really.

  Idly, I glanced up towards one of the screens behind Sara as I stuffed my mouth full of eggs, only to stop at what I saw.

  “Patrons and Avatars, welcome to the biggest event of the century!” the kimono-clad woman on the television greeted rambunctiously. The fuzzy ears sticking out of the top of her head twitched, and several tails waved behind her. Around us, the crowd started cheering and hollering. “The Patron’s Ball is a glorious event that I always look forward to. How could I not? The games, the food, the company! All top tier, even if I’m sure some of you aren’t so happy to see some of your mythological neighbors. But, hey, it’s all in good fun, and good fun’s all there is to be had here at the Patron’s Ball!”

  “Huh?” I asked despite my full mouth.

  Sara laughed at my expression, and my eyes darted between the newcomer and her. It took me a few seconds before I had the self awareness to cover my mouth with my hand so I could chew and swallow.

  “She’s not supposed to be here,” I said, pointing at the screen with my fork. “That is not Salta.”

  “No, no it is not,” Sara agreed with a smile.

  I blinked and squinted at my wife, taking in her features. She knew something. My eyes snapped back to the screen, where the woman was talking about how honored she was to be hosting, before returning to Sara. “Did you have something to do with this?”

  “No, but you did,” she answered cryptically.

  “I didn’t do anything?” I asked more than said.

  “Wow, he’s a real humble one, isn’t he?” a newcomer asked with a hyena’s laugh. A chair was pulled up to our table, and the same woman who was still on the television sat down on it backwards.

  “Not even a little bit, but he is adorable when he’s confused,” Sara teased.

  “He kinda is, isn’t he?” the woman giggled, and I narrowed my eyes at her.

  Nine thick tails waggled across the aisle next to us, and dog-like ears stuck straight up from her head. An overly amused grin showed off all of her teeth. On the screen she was wearing a kimono, but here she wore a black hoodie with the words “Bite me” in bold white letters and a pair of pink sweatpants. Her slender form draped over the back of the chair as she reached forward and rhythmically drummed her fingers on the table..

  “And you are?” I asked stiffly.

  She snorted and waved her hand dismissively. “Don’t give me that. You know exactly who I am, so you might as well say my name.”

  I glanced at my wife, who nodded, and I took a breath. “Nina Ninetails,” I greeted amicably, not sure what to make of this development. Sara seemed on board with it, so I remained calm. “I wasn’t expecting you.”

  “No, I imagine you wouldn’t expect the likes of me,” she agreed, her grin unchanging. “I don’t generally frequent these lands. Prefer the more eastern ones, myself. That, you should already know.”

  “Asia and Oceania are your playgrounds, yeah,” I said as I looked around. Despite the dining area being full, no one was paying any attention to us. “I have to guess that this is the Dealer’s doing somehow.”

  “Oh, you have no idea,” the hyena woman giggled in a halting cadence, covering her mouth with a hand. “He wanted me to come and greet you personally, given that you and your lady love here are the MVP and MVA of them all. Veritable VIPs. Congrats on the marriage, by the way.”

  “Thank you,” Sara replied, content. “It’s been a great source of joy for us.”

  “It sure has,” I agreed, though I was still on edge. “But, what exactly is happening?”

  “Isn’t it obvious?” Nina asked, reaching out and putting a hand each on our shoulders.

  “Careful,” Sara warned. The Angel immediately glared at where she was touching me, and the treasure hunter backed off from me. The hyena woman left her hand on my wife, however, and that seemed fine.

  “I must have lost myself for a moment, my apologies,” the treasure hunter said before looking at me. “But you can probably figure it out.”

  “The Dealer hijacked the Patron’s Ball, didn’t he?” I asked, not giving it much thought. “Killed the administrators somehow and put you in charge.”

  “Damn, he is smart,” Nina laughed. She pulled her hand away from my wife to rap her knuckles on the table. Her grin returned.

  “I’ve had a lot of clues,” I replied with a shrug. “I’m still not sure how he’s doing it.”

  “Gotcha. That’ll be up to him to answer. I am still hosting, after all,” she said, putting a finger to her lips as if to reinforce that she won’t be giving up his secrets. “The Dealer wanted to make sure his golden goose didn’t get cooked, so now you don’t have to worry. No matter what happens here at the Patron’s Ball, you’re safe. So, go, be merry, have fun, and show your lovely bride a good time once you tire of other people. If you need me, just call.”

  I wasn’t sure what to say, and the treasure hunter cackled as both she and the chair disappeared from reality. The lights returned to normal and the sound of the crowd came back in full force.

  Sara reached out to me and brushed off the shoulder Nina touched before smiling and taking my hand. “Hear that, Ant?” she asked warmly. “No matter what you’re jumping into after this is over, for now you’re safe. Isn’t that great?”

  “It is, Sara,” I replied. A part of me wondered how this had happened and threatened to become a problem I had to solve, but that feeling swiftly departed as I stared into my wife’s beautiful, glowing orange eyes. I smiled back at her. “I suppose there’s no use worrying, huh?”

  “No use at all.”

  “Let’s get to it, then,” I said. “There’s so much to see, and not nearly enough time to see it in. Food first, and then we’ll explore. I’m not naive enough to think there won’t be drama, but we’ll take it as it comes.”