Dusk gave way to night.
Ji Yan and Bai Yu were still at the dining table. The food and drinks on the table had mostly been swept clean. One drunkenly rambled on and on, while the other, also tipsy, kept watching the time.
"It's almost six o'clock..."
Ji Yan stared at the clock.
More and more customers filled the surrounding tables, and the noise grew louder.
"Why do you always look so distracted?" Bai Yu had grown tired of talking too. He yawned as he spoke.
Ji Yan looked out at the street, neon lights flickering before his eyes. He muttered, "Because I heard there's supposed to be some kind of event here after six... I wonder what it is?"
Clang—
The instant he finished speaking, the Grandfather Clock rang inside the restaurant.
Yet no one paid attention. Those bragging kept bragging, those eating and drinking kept eating and drinking. Only the last traces of drunkenness vanished from Ji Yan, and he tensely watched his surroundings.
"The time's up. The instance has officially begun... but why is nothing happening?"
Ji Yan was puzzled.
If there was anything lively, it was the drunkards at the table ahead. Their shouting grew louder and louder. One had a foot planted on a stool, slamming the table and loudly calling out while shaking dice.
Bai Yu, who was sitting with his back to them, even had his chair bumped.
Bai Yu picked up some food and said to Ji Yan, "Fuck, if this were me two years ago, I'd have grabbed a stool and gone at them!"
"You still can," Ji Yan said flatly.
Bai Yu shrugged. "I'm not an idiot. If I win, I end up at the station. If I lose, I end up in the hospital."
"Everything costs money these days.