With the meeting over, the two brothers jumped on their feet.

"Alrighty!" Ronald pumped a fist. "Time to go get some games in!"

“Yeah, it’ll be a good breather,” William agreed.

“My, are you sure it’s alright?” Cato asked. “I believe you should first take some time to reflect on what you learned in the meeting, or else you might forget everything.”

“Nah, don’t worry!” Ronald gave a thumbs up. “My memory is perfect! I gonna remember everything!”

“Maybe everything about Gunz, at best.”

“That’s the most important part anyway.”

“Is that so.” Cato made a face.

"Don't worry," William reassured. "I'll make sure we review the meeting later tonight."

"I'll hold you on that.”

On that note, the brothers bid farewell and left to play in Ranked.

"Hah." Sonya stretched her arms. "It's finally over." She rotated her shoulders, producing creaking sounds. They sounded as stiff as the shoulders of a statue that just came to life.

"You okay?" Cato gently placed his hands on her shoulders and applied pressure. 

"A-Ah!" Sonya jumped.

What a cute sound~

"You can't just place your hands on a girl like that." Sonya shot him a look. "I can report you for it."

"I see. Then, I better stop."

"N-No, do go on..." Sonya's words contradicted themselves. Her brain said one thing but her body responded in the opposite manner. She wasn't a fan of how casually Cato crept up to her, but she had to admit he was a pro at the job. 

"Aah~" Sonya produced the sound against her will. Massages were such an illogical experience. They hurt, yet they felt so good.

One moment, she felt like pulling away from the pain. Yet, the next moment, she found herself yearning for that pressure. “Aaaaah~”

Nice sounds~ Cato smiled impishly behind the girl's back. There was something so satisfying about the process, he didn't even fully understand it himself.

He was definitely inflicting pain on Sonya's shoulders, no question about that. Yet, it was seemingly a harmless pain. In fact, it even helped to relax her muscles.

Nonetheless, the girl produced these sweet moans in the process. It meant she felt the pain to some degree, yet she embraced it instead of running away. It was truly wondrous.

It’s like I’m free to apply as much pain as I want without being judged for it. The epitome of a good time~

And so, he rubbed the girl’s stiff shoulders some more.

“A-Aaaah~”

Her soft moans were like a sweet melody.

Even I think I'm a little strange for enjoying this. Cato thought. But, I just can't stop. This is genuinely fun. Moan some more for me, my dear~

But, all good things had to come to an end. Eventually, Sonya stopped responding as pleasantly because her muscles reached relaxation. And, Cato also grew a little tired of the process.

"Thank you," Sonya said.

"Always my pleasure." Cato bowed like a gentleman, taking off a nonexistent hat. 

"Heh." Sonya smiled softly. "The massage was nice too, but I meant to thank you for handling the topic of William’s rank on my list."

"Oh, that thing." Cato shrugged. "No big deal. With how proud he was of his No. 2 spot, I can understand why you didn't feel comfortable telling him what you really think. Nobody wants to be hated by their crush."

"C-Crush?" Sonya stuttered. "That's not how it is."

"Really? To me, you look like a maiden in love." 

"I'm telling you, that's not how it is!" Sonya pouted. "I just admire his skill, that's all."

"Heh." Cato snickered. "Sounds like what you used to say about Jenny. And, we all know you were lesbo for her."

"DID NOT." Sonya glared daggers at Cato. But, it didn’t take her long to give up and sigh in defeat. She knew better than to entertain this joker. "Anyway, it’s not like that. I just admire players who have impressive mechanical skill because they’re the best at turning theory into practice, that's all there is to it."

"Admiration can always develop into love~”

"Put a sock in it, will you? Or what, are you supposed to be a cupid or something?"

"Nah, not at all." Cato shook his head. "I'm just worried about my secretary." 

"Who's your secretary?" Sonya made a face.

"It's really such a shame," Cato went on uninterrupted. "My secretary is such a good girl but she is too serious for her own good. Will she ever find love!?" 

"You know, just because I'm a girl, it doesn't mean I have any interest in romance."

"Right, of course." Cato nodded. "Some roses are late bloomers."

"I'll get mad for real."

"Haha, alright, alright." Cato dropped the nonsense. "Good job on the presentation. As expected from my secretary." 

"Right, right." Sonya sighed in defeat. She didn't have any energy left to combat Cato's teasing at the moment.

"Are you done messing with her?" Matthew asked.

"'Messing'? Please, you make it sound so vulgar." Cato placed a hand on his chest as if he was shocked by the offense. But, Matthew completely ignored that.

"Are you going home, or...?"

"Sorry, not today. I got a date with the Princess." 

"Oh, it's today." Matthew nodded in understanding. "Good luck. Try not to feel too bad." 

"Hey, hold it there!" Cato objected. "Why would I need to feel bad about anything? I'm going to win today." 

"Well, if you really believe so..."

"Oh, I see how it is. You're teasing me because you’re jealous I won't be spending that time with you."

"Can't say I care either way." Matthew shrugged. "Well, since we're not practicing together today, I guess I'll run some simulations on Gunz."

"Ah, such dedication~ It brings a tear to my eye." Cato wiped a nonexistent tear. "You should get Sonya to help you with that."

"That'd be great but I don't want to trouble her too much." Matthew glanced at Sonya. "You must be tired from the meeting." 

"Just a little," Sonya said. "But, no need to worry. My curiosity can overpower my fatigue. I’m actually very interested in seeing what's your impression of Gunz's playstyle and how you plan to combat it."

"I don't think you'll see any results in one day."

"Of course not, I wasn't expecting to," Sonya said. "I’d have to peg you as a genius if you could adjust to an opponent like Gunz after one day of practice." 

"Fair enough." Matthew nodded. "Alright, then if it's not too much trouble, let's run some simulations." 

The two of them headed out to practice. Cato didn't even need to lift a finger to make these delight minions work.

Good, good. Cato nodded in approval. That's how I like my minions: obedient and hardworking.

There were two camps on this team. There were the two brothers, who constantly challenged Cato's authority and did whatever they wanted because they were strong. And, then there were Matthew and Sonya, the two loyal minions who followed everything Cato said and studied hard for the sake of victory.

I wish I could just clone them. Cato thought. A team with 2 Matthews and 2 Sonyas would be paradise.

But, life is never that easy. Cato sighed in resignation. Then again, dealing with problem kids is part of what keeps the job engaging. I’d have nothing to do if everybody always followed my instructions to a T, as contradictory as that sounds.

On that note, Cato headed toward the door.

"Work hard," he said on his way out of the clubroom. "I'm expecting to hear good news by tomorrow."

"We'll see." Matthew didn't promise anything. "Enjoy getting rekt."

"Nobody is going to get 'rekt'!" Cato fired on the way out.

He said that, but he knew the truth. Matthew's prediction was very reasonable. Losing was the usual routine at this point, as much as Cato wished to deny it.

Though he said he had a “date” with a girl, it wasn't anything romantic. Quite the opposite, it was a harsh and frustrating meeting. He was heading straight into a battle zone.

And so, Cato was on his way to meet the Landberht Princess.