Leaderboard

The next day, Young Lady Leisiphia came to the Magic Gear Alchemy Workshop after school.

This had recently become a habit of hers.

Leisiphia had never cared to visit a place like this before.

Young Lady Leisiphia came from the Roy Family, one of Cecilia City's three great noble houses. She was currently in her third year at Cecilia Public School and was engaged to the Crown Prince of the country. She was a genuine noble young lady.

A lofty flower like her naturally did not suit a run-down Alchemy Workshop like Magic Gear.

It was only because this Workshop had a long history, their ancestors had some dealings with one another, and the Magic Item most treasured by her family had been crafted here that Leisiphia did not mind lowering herself to pay it a visit.

It definitely was not because the new Magic Item called the Game Table was so much fun!

╭(╯^╰)╮

Still, it would not hurt to support the Alchemy Workshop's business while she was at it.

Leisiphia took one look at the Game Tables and decided to place an order.

It would have been one thing if the Workshop Master had avoided her, claiming he was improving the new product, but the Workshop's maid had actually said something like, "This product is still in its testing period. Mr. Angell has not set a price yet, so it cannot be sold... This really isn't about money." They would not even take business delivered right to their door! No wonder this Workshop had fallen so low!

However, broad-minded Young Lady Leisiphia was not an unreasonable person.

Since the Workshop was unwilling to sell them for now, and her classmates liked them so much, she had no choice but to have her family's Servants "reserve" her two favorite Game Tables.

They were not for sale now, but they would definitely be sold eventually!

The Young Lady could only work a little harder and come inspect her future property every day.

Leisiphia had come as usual today, but the moment she stepped inside, she noticed that the Workshop was different from before.

First, different Ancient Rune Numbers floated above the projections of every Game Table.

For example, the two tables Leisiphia had "reserved" had numbers like Ⅺ and Ⅻ floating above them. Since Runes could not be expressed in words, Roman numerals were used instead.

What did that mean?

Were they the manufacturing order of each Game Table?

But her two Game Tables had not been delivered last, had they?

Leisiphia thought in confusion. She did not like those two numbers. As the number one Young Lady in the world, she naturally preferred the numbers at the very front.

However, Leisiphia did not dwell on that for the moment. Her attention was soon drawn to the wall along the inner side of the hall.

A row of tables and chairs had been added there. It seemed that after a month, the Workshop Master had finally remembered to provide a place for tired customers to rest.

Of course, that was not what Leisiphia cared about either.

—Young Ladies brought their own tables, chairs, tablecloths, tea sets, black tea, pastries, and maids to prepare the tea. They would never use those filthy chairs that other people had sat in!

What caught Leisiphia's attention was the Crystal Screen mounted on the wall directly opposite those tables and chairs.

The screen was huge, like something in a cinema, and it was playing a game of Reindeer Picking Stars.

This looked pretty interesting too.

Especially when the gameplay was so smooth.

Unlike ordinary Players, whose clumsy controls constantly missed stars, the little reindeer on the screen smoothly stepped on every star, missed no Items or bonus points, and nimbly avoided every trap. It gave people with obsessive-compulsive tendencies a heartfelt sense of happiness, like they could watch it forever.

Was this a demonstration?

Leisiphia watched for a while and noticed a smaller image beneath the game screen. It showed a youth rhythmically and rapidly tapping the game buttons as though playing an instrument.

Was this game not a magical effect, but controlled by that youth?

Could this person be in the Workshop too?

Leisiphia instinctively wanted to turn and look at the Reindeer Picking Stars Game Tables, but at that moment, the crisp chain of star-collecting sounds on the screen suddenly stopped, replaced by an explosion.

The little reindeer had stepped on a newly added Flame Snowflake Star and been blasted into the air.

With that failure, the people surrounding a certain Game Table and the Crystal Screen all sighed at once. "What a pity!" "The score was so high!" "It could have avoided that!" The image froze on the youth's furious face.

Then the score for that round appeared:

Name: Kata

Mana: 197,0886,8678

Rank: Second on Game Table No. 1, second on the overall Leaderboard

Leisiphia stared at that score, and her brain failed to process it for a moment. Then, she suddenly had an extremely bad feeling.

Sure enough, after that score disappeared, another Leaderboard appeared.

Magic Gear Shop Top Fifty Overall Score Leaderboard

First: Leibniz 1210,6869,6892 Game Table No. 1

Second: Kata 997,0886,8678 Game Table No. 1

Third: Liti 775,9162,1654 Game Table No. 2

Fourth: Jesk 667,6646,9145 Game Table No. 3

Fifth: Enlise 649,8991,1296 Game Table No. 1

...

...

...

The moment Leisiphia saw the Leaderboard, her body stiffened.

"What is this?" she muttered.

The maid beside her thoughtfully answered, "Perhaps it is the Workshop's game score Leaderboard?"

"I know it's a score Leaderboard..." But why were the scores so high?!

Leisiphia almost screamed.

Before this, a Leaderboard had appeared after every person finished a game, but it had only been that particular Game Table's Leaderboard. People could see what rank they held on that table.

Young Lady Leisiphia naturally could not possibly lose.

At least, on the two Game Tables she had "reserved," she had never lost. Her scores filled the rankings from first through ninth, and only at tenth place would someone else's name appear.

But Leisiphia's highest score was only 8,8687,8678!

She could not even beat the last place on this list, and the gap was visible to the naked eye.

Or rather, could a human really achieve scores as outrageous as the ones at the top?

Just as Leisiphia began to doubt the entire world, the Leaderboard changed.

On this list, Leisiphia finally found her own name:

No. I, Leibniz 1210,6869,6892

No. II, Liti 775,9162,1654

No. III, Jesk 667,6646,9145

...

...

...

No. XI, Leisiphia 8,8687,8678

No. XII, Leisiphia 8,7436,6109

So the Rune Numbers floating above each Game Table were actually that Game Table's score ranking within the entire Workshop?

Leisiphia's mind went blank. Her body went limp, and she fell straight backward.

"Young Lady!"

"Miss Leisiphia!"

The maids and students around her hurriedly caught her.

But at that moment, Leisiphia only wished she could truly faint.

She had never been humiliated like this in her life!

Yet just before Young Lady Leisiphia truly fainted, she caught sight of a handsome noble youth entering the Workshop from outside.

Ah, it was Leibniz Nov Friedrich, the mathematics fool from the Friedrich family. He came out to play too...

A corner of Leisiphia's mind thought, trying to escape reality.

Then she suddenly realized something:

Wait, what was this guy's name again?!

Leisiphia abruptly pulled herself together. She shook off the classmates and maids surrounding her and threw herself at the youth.

"Brother Leibniz—"

The youth called Leibniz was hit head-on, but when he saw who had pounced on him, he looked utterly horrified. "Leisiphia?"

Though both were among Cecilia City's noble houses, their families had frequent dealings and often intermarried. By blood, they could barely be considered cousins, but Leibniz had never once been called "Brother" by this Young Lady.

After all, she was the one meant to marry the Crown Prince—though Leibniz privately thought Leisiphia looked exactly like a vicious supporting villainess, the type who would be dumped after the Crown Prince found his kind true love, then have her family confiscated and be exiled.

Yet now this haughty Young Lady looked up at him through tears and asked pitifully, "Brother Leibniz, the Leibniz ranked first on the Leaderboard is you, right?"

"Huh?" Leibniz finally glanced at the Leaderboard. "The overall Leaderboard? When did they make this... I really am first."

"Then please, save me!" Leisiphia grabbed Leibniz's sleeve. "Teach me how to play games!"

???

For a moment, Leibniz's confused brain could not connect "playing games" with "save me."

He answered cautiously, "That requires talent."

"It's fine! With the strength of the Roy Family, could we possibly fail to find a few people talented at games?" Leisiphia said through tears. "In any case, I absolutely cannot let my name remain in such a low position. This is an insult to the entire Roy Family! If I cannot win, I would rather die!"

It was only a game. Was it really that serious?

Leibniz thought helplessly.

Naturally, he could not let the Crown Prince's fiancée die, so he nodded for the time being.

"I'm out of money again!" Kata muttered dejectedly.

Though the price of fifty cents was not high, it would still run out if he kept playing. Kata turned, intending to find an acquaintance to borrow some from, only to see Leibniz being led to another Game Table by a Golden Curly-Haired Girl.

"That noble brat is going to run after winning?" Kata immediately flew into a rage.

Kata and Leibniz were archenemies. One-sidedly.

Ever since Kata had come to Magic Gear on his first day and lost to Leibniz because his idiotic little brother had interfered, he had never won again.

Kata believed this was due to a series of objective factors: bad luck, a despicable enemy, pig-headed teammates on his side, defective Game Tables, insufficient pocket money, and not having played as many rounds as that Dead Noble. As long as he tried a few more rounds, reclaiming first place would only be a matter of time.

Besides, what he wanted was first place earned by defeating Leibniz fair and square.

Therefore, seeing Leibniz actually "run after winning" made Kata furious. He was about to go question him when, just after stepping out of the crowd, he was grabbed by two fierce-looking Youths.

"You were the one demonstrating on the big screen just now, right?"

"Kata, second on the Leaderboard?"

"Huh?" Kata was a little alarmed, but after hearing their questions, his fur immediately bristled. "Who's second place?! I'm a man destined to become number one!"

"Good. You've got ambition!"

At that moment, a man's voice spoke.

The speaker was a tall, muscular man. He wore a thick gold chain and a leather jacket; one look at his clothes told anyone he was no decent citizen. Worse still, he had a pair of crimson eyes like those of the Demon Race. Meeting his gaze sent chills down one's spine.

At the sight of him, the two burly men holding Kata bent at the waist and respectfully called him, "Boss."

Kata stiffened, feeling his body turn cold.

He knew this person.

This man had "reserved" two Game Tables in the most conspicuous spot in the middle of the Workshop. He did not come often himself, but Kata had heard from friends who hung around the streets that this person seemed to be some major figure in the city's underworld. If someone accidentally offended him, they might be locked in a cage and sunk into the Abyss outside the city, leaving not even a corpse behind.

Yet the man walked up to Kata, patted his shoulder, and smiled. "Good kid, I like you. Join our side."

No, I don't want to join the underworld...

Kata thought as he trembled.

But the man gave Kata no chance to refuse. He continued, "As long as you can raise our position on the Leaderboard by one rank at a time, I can give you a reward of this amount."

The man made a gesture. Kata did not understand what it meant, but he knew the amount could not be small.

But... "The Leaderboard?!"

"That's right!" The man looked at the Leaderboard on the Crystal Screen with crimson eyes. "Just as you want first place, I will never allow anyone to appear ahead of me!"