The tour of Ma Xiaoru's Mansion had been an eye opener for Wang Tong. With the advancement of science and technology, standards of living had improved by leaps and bounds, but the gap between the rich and poor had not been narrowed; Wang Tong had experienced it at first-hand while living in the cramped and squalid quarters of the Hope district. Perhaps that was the way of the world; although being confined by morality, survival of the fittest had always been the main theme throughout all stages of societal developments.
The drastic difference had drawn out Wang Tong's memories of his life on Norton. Although it had been a hellish nightmare, Wang Tong had regretted nothing; instead, he cherished the events that had made a life-changing impact on him.
He even came to appreciate Mr. Wannabe's harsh methods; it had been the only source from which Wang Tong could draw aspirations to keep on fighting. In hindsight, It was a necessary evil. Under such excruciating circumstance, one moment of slacking off might have cost Wang Tong's life.
Sensing Wang Tong's attention had drifted away; Ma Xiaoru ended the tour. She sat down beside Samantha and signaled the servants to bring out the drinks.
"You guys again? Haven't you get enough of my scolding?" Samantha asked half jokingly.
"Sis, this is the weekend, we are supposed to relax," Ma Xiaoru changed into a meek and conciliatory voice, in an attempt to coax the principal.
Hu Yangxuan felt drunk after hearing Ma Xiaoru's innocent voice. Wang Tong, on the other hand, fixated his eyes on Samantha.
Samantha snorted, "I am still pissed off at SOMEONE who had turned down my invitation to join our tournament team. I just can't stop thinking about it, and it had ruined my weekend. How am I supposed to relax?"
Samantha rolled her eyes at Wang Tong. This feminine expression sent the Wang Tong's heart quivering. Wang Tong felt it difficult to draw any connection between the charming if not seductive girl with that cold and distanced principal.
Hu Yangxuan stirred in surprise upon hearing that Wang Tong had been invited to join the team. Wang Tong looked helpless and said, "I just don't want to let you down."
"Do your best, and you won't let anyone down." Samantha sat up and looked straight into Wang Tong's eyes.
Wang Tong locked his eyes with that pool of darkness, he found Samantha particularly attractive when she wasn't wearing her glasses. "Fine, I will sign up, and I will try my best."
"Atta boy!" Samantha stood up in excitement, eyes still fixated on Wang Tong as if she was afraid that he would change his mind on a whim. Wang Tong felt helpless, he did not know why he had agreed to it, but it was too late then.
"Welcome aboard Wang Tong! We should celebrate, champagne everybody?" Ma Xiaoru applauded in joy.
Samantha's eyes lit up with glee; she was pleasantly surprised. This had quickly turned into the most relaxing weekend ever since she became the principal. "Alright, I will celebrate with you as a token of my gratitude, pretend I am not your principal." In a fit of uncontrollable excitement, Samantha crossed the line that had defined her role. However, Samantha was not the only one that had crossed the line, Wang Tong had also done it by agreeing to something that he knew he shouldn't have.
Soon, the room was filled with the fragrance of champagne and glee. It was a weight off Samantha's mind. She finally started to see a glimpse of hope in this tournament.
After a few cups of champagne, the chemistry among the four changed quickly; they began to talk about their life and shared stories of their past.
Ma Xiaoru told everyone that when she had first arrived in the Li's family as an apprentice, she felt homesick. For the first few nights, she had cried alone in her bed, wanting to go home.
Hu Yangxuan had confessed that he never liked playing classical scores on piano. Instead, he loved playing rock music. It was his parents who had forced him to learn classical music because they thought that it was a symbol of nobility.
Samantha also joined in and revealed how nerve-racked she was on the first day as the principal. She had just graduated university then and hadn't adopted her new role yet. A sense of insecurity kept on distracting her while talking to a roomful of senior instructors, so she had to dig her nails into her legs to stay focused.
Upon hearing that, Wang Tong quietly leered at Samantha's long and elegant legs. Immediately he felt ashamed of doing so and wondered how Hu Yangxuan could have resisted the temptation.
When it was Wang Tong's turn, he struggled a while to find a good story. Although he had many embarrassing stories while living with Old Fart, none was interesting enough.
"Well, I guess I can talk about my life on Norton."
"The planet Norton? I have heard that it was beautiful. I was going to visit there with my parents, but the war had spoiled the trip." To a princess like Ma Xiaoru, the planet Norton had to be a place of wild imaginations.
They listened intently as Wang Tong filled them in with events on Norton. By the end, they all felt that Norton was a heaven for adventures.
Hu Yangxuan was the first to notice that some details of Wang Tong's story seemed extraordinary, "So, you had survived the 5g gravity for an entire year? That's unthinkable."
"I was lucky. I had encountered a Zerg and accidentally opened my EMF. At first, I couldn't believe it myself either; it must be a freak of nature. Oh, and the gravity might not be as bad as you think."
"Didn't you feel lonely living there all by yourself?" Samantha asked.
"Nah, never. There were Zergs everywhere who kept me company. They even came out of hidings and saw me off on the day I left."
The others couldn't help laughing upon hearing this. "No wonder you are such an expert at dissecting Zergs!" Hu Yangxuan exclaimed.
"Jokes aside. I am truly in debt with Charcoal, if not for him, I would have already lost my sanity. On the day I lost him to the Zergs, I cried for the first time in my life... Hey, keep your mouth sealed, I don't want other people to know that I cried over a robot!"
Ma Xiaoru nodded her head. Samantha on the other hand, would not pass up this opportunity, "Hehe, I can't promise anything. But if you do as I say, your secret might just be safe with me." She rubbed the top of Wang Tong's head, like patting a meek lamb. Wang Tong's refute suddenly evaporated in his mouth.
"Gosh... what is happening to me!" Wang Tong screamed inside of his mind.
"I was just kidding. Why so serious!" Samantha let out a burst of laughter after seeing Wang Tong's frozen expression. She had become weary by the stoic mask she had to wore in the principal's office. Today, she just wanted to be herself, and her face bloomed like a flower.
Only with great effort had Wang Tong refrained himself from touching Samantha's beautiful face.
"Wang Tong, would you care to tell us more about the Zergs? Are they as smart as people say they are?"
"Definitely. They communicate with each other in their own ways, just like we do. They also have a habit of leaving a souvenir for me after every encounter," Wang Tong spoke with certainty; he had always regarded Zergs as formidable opponents and never dared to underestimate them.
"What do you mean souvenir?" The topic had piqued everyone's interest, even Hu Yangxuan who was eager to be back into the limelight had patiently waited his turn.
"Ah... nothing spectacular, just scars." Wang Tong rolled up his sleeves. "This one, here, is the work of a Sickle Zerg, he almost severed my arm right off. And… this one. This one was from a Bomb Zerg, nasty bugs! The rest were more or less the same." Wang Tong rolled up the bottom of his T-shirt, revealing a huge and ugly scar across his belly.