The main reason why I'm confident he will call back is that I didn't just give him my card, I gave him a cash card with my number on it, well, more like Marie's number, since she managed to get hold of a phone. They called it a scroll here, as it's really thin and light, you can bend and stiffen it in any position you want, pretty convenient.

Anyway, the cash card I gave him was fully loaded with money, again thanks to Marie, she apparently managed to “borrow” it.

He will probably call in the morning, ‘cause I had a vision of meeting him in the afternoon, and as I was completely exhausted by the handful of vision I had to produce, even after meeting with Monty -yes, I’m calling him with his nickname-, I just jumped on the king sized bed and let myself slumber.

I trust the girl for taking care of the call.

In order to let Samsy get some sleep, Marie asked the key for the adjacent room.

“How did you get all that money?”

“After reserving the room, I thought that it wouldn’t be safe to hack my way in for everything. So I figured that I might as well do one big operation to get as much fund as possible, it would be safer and more efficient.”

“Meh, It was the obvious thing to do, but it baffled me you could enter the bank system so easily.”

“Are you underestimating my hacking skills?”

“Yeah.”

“Sigh… as much as I want to make you regret that, I don’t think there is a system in this city that could pose a real challenge to either of us. Lucky you, I can’t humiliate you in front of your beloved.”

Even while arguing with each other, both of them were focused on their own task, Marie was on her computer and Alice was meditating. Even though she can do a lot of things, her only relevant talent right now would be the same as Marie, and it wouldn’t be optimized to put two people on the same task, given how few they are.

That’s why she’s currently trying to teach herself a new technique. Saying it like that sounds crazy, but when she told it to Marie and Samsy, they actually thought it was a good idea.

“I’ll take you anytime. By the way, how many do we have?”

“I don’t know, it’s virtually infinite, as I basically created money directly in their system.”

“The system is that shitty?”

“Yep.”

“What a joke. And how much did Samsy gave him?”

“I believed I put something like 200.000 credit.”

“That’s not much… will it suffice?”

"That's already not bad, and if we hand him more he could get scared and think that we just want to buy him.”

“It’s more or less what we're trying to do.”

“Yes, but we don’t want him to be sure of that.”

It was approximately 9 in the morning, and Marie felt her scroll vibrating. She unfolded it to see who was the caller, even though she perfectly knew who it was.

“It’s him, take the call.”

She handed the scroll to Alice.

“Fuck you, I’m not gonna play the secretary.”

“I don’t have time for this shit, you’re the only one left for this.”

“I said fuck you!”

“Well, I can do it, and say to Sam that you let him down.”

Alice actually stopped her meditation, and stared toward Marie.

“That’s a low blow.”

She took the scroll, and in a fraction of second, her angry face transformed into a warm and friendly one, as if she had become another person.

“Mr. Sacre’s Secretary speaking, what can I do for you?”

“…”

“Mister Kind? Yes, I was expecting your call. Mr. Sacre is not available right now, but he made room in his agenda for a meeting this afternoon.”

(M) “Told you, it’s like you’ve done that your whole life.”

Alice articulated a ‘Screw you’ toward her colleague, before immediately resuming her conversation.

"You're also available? It is settled then, 2 pm at the entrance of Central Park."

“…”

“Great, Mr. Sacre will see you later. Have a lovely day, Sir.”

She then hanged up the scroll and threw it toward Marie, who in return caught it naturally, as she was expecting it, with a small smile on her face.

“Hehe, ‘room in his agenda’. When you think about it, it’s pretty funny.”

“Yeah… I probably should wake him up.”

“No rush, it’s not even half past nine, and he will need all the rest he can get.”

"Sigh… I wonder if Sam has the shoulder for it."

“Hahaha, of course he does. He is the kind of person who revealed himself in hard and stressful situation.”

“Of course I know that, I was there too remember? What I’m worried about is what comes after.”

“You mean, the impeachment?”

“Yeah… what if the candidate is a good guy, who just got unlucky with the polls and shits. Sam would never betray someone who doesn't deserve it, even if it goes against his own benefit, or the greater good.”

“…we’ll probably see how the campaign unfold. If necessary, we might need to act in his back.”

“… I kinda expected it.”

The room became silent, as both of them spaced out, thinking about what the young man sleeping in the other room represent for them.

The truth is that everybody loves Sam, he's considered as a hero for many, and the only one not aware of the magnitude of his own popularity is probably Samsy himself. He's way too kind, way to humble for that, in that sense, his virtue is a perfect fit.

After Alice's remark, Marie realized something odd. Opposite to Sam, she had a somewhat competent guide, who explained to her many things about the Quest, and the world(s) they were in. However, one thing about the session process and shenanigans had always seemed off to her. According to them, each session was composed of 7 people, and, weirdly enough, no one in all the session since Jules, the first to finish his Quest, had a desire to go back to their original Earth. As if everyone was chosen according to certain criteria before being transported here, with one of them being a lack of attachment toward their past.

The presence of an 8th person was surprising, but even before that, she was raising question about their session. It was a given that no one in the group would want to go back on Earth, as they had too many hard memories, and no real ties to the rest of the community, but it wasn’t true for one person, Samsy. Opposite to them, he was friend with people outside the group. Opposite to them, he was respected and not feared by the other kid. Opposite to them, he has a reason to come back. Opposite to them, he has people waiting for him.

So, when the news about Alice presence sank in, she thought about something: ‘Even if Stupid was not that welcome in the group, she has as much reason for running away from Earth, if not more, than any of us. So what if… what if the 8th isn’t her, but Sam?’

Damn… those girls are really barbaric, can’t a man have his 15 hours of sleep without being thrown on the floor? Why should I care that there is a lot at stakes? I’m tired!

Sigh… so here I am, at the entrance of a huge park. There is a lot a people, only young and overly happy, as usual. In fact, it’s getting a bit creepy…

I watch the huge holographic clock in the middle of the park. 14H01, he’s late, I already knew he would be, but that doesn’t excuse it…

“You are late, Mr. Kind.”

Finally, behind me, the old man had arrived. I turned around to face him, he looked exhausted, did he run to be on time?

“Sorry about that. I’m here for…”

“I won’t accept the card back, if it’s what you want to say. I just gave you my contact information, nothing more.”

“Come on… there is 200.000 credits on this cash card. You can’t possibly give me that much without wanting something back from me.”

He agitated the card I gave him. The black plastic card I gave, with a digital counter displaying 200.00 in green number, and another number written by hand on the other side. I absolutely have no idea how much 200.000 credit represent, but it’s not really relevant to my point.

“You’re right, I’m not in the charity business. But I already said it, you and I have a common interest, and I have a lot to gain if you become The President.”

Monty looked at me with a straight face. Even if he's not convinced by what I'm saying, at least he seems to take me seriously.

“Furthermore, I don’t think it is an offer you can refuse, according to, well, everyone.”

“It doesn’t matter, I’ll stand until the end.”

“That’s what I want to hear. Listen, I have a busy schedule, so I’ll be brief. Here’s my proposal: tomorrow, my team will make its first move for your campaign. The day after, we will meet again, and you will officially hire me as your right-hand man."

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean? What are you trying to achieve?”

“Don’t make me repeat myself, you and I have a common goal. And let me remind you, you have nothing to lose.”

“Even though, you think I'll follow anyone who shows up to me in a suit and give credits? I am not for sale!" "And that is why I want you to wait until the day after tomorrow."

Truth to be told, I am totally bluffing here. I have no idea what the girls have planned to do tomorrow, but what I do know, is that he’s desperate. Silence says more than words.

I approached him, and put my hand on his shoulder.

“You know better than me, you’re going to lose. I just want to lend you a hand.”

And I left our meeting.

I have to say, playing the mysterious guy is kind of satisfying.

I really hope Marie have something in mind for tomorrow though...