MMORPG: REBORN MARK ADVENTURE IN ONLINE GAME

An hour after leaving the admin office, Mark's phone buzzed again. Seeing the college's number, he sighed and picked up.

"Hello?"

"Mark, this is the administration office. We wanted to update you on your tuition records."

Mark tensed. "Yeah? What did you find?"

A slight pause, then the staff member coughed awkwardly. "It turns out there was an error on our part. A system glitch misassigned another student's issue to your name. Your tuition is fully paid, and your enrollment was never at risk."

Mark blinked. "So… you're saying this was just a mistake?"

"Yes, and we sincerely apologize for the inconvenience," the staff member said, their tone professional but clearly uncomfortable. "Your records have been corrected."

Mark exhaled, rubbing his temple. All that stress for nothing.

"Right," he said. "Maybe double-check before calling people in next time?"

"Of course. Again, we deeply regret the mistake."

Mark ended the call and immediately saw another incoming call—Mist Low.

He picked up with a sigh.

"Well, well," Mist's voice came through, filled with amusement. "Let me guess. They called to apologize?"

"Yeah. System error," Mark muttered.

Mist laughed. "I told you it was probably some lazy admin screwing up. But hey, at least I was ready to expose a conspiracy."

Mark shook his head. "Yeah, yeah. Thanks for being on standby."

"Anytime, Marky~," Mist teased. "Now, since you're no longer on the verge of academic doom, how about treating me to dinner as thanks?"

Mark hung up.

Mist's laughter still echoed in his head.

Mark pushed open the door to the mansion, his bag slung over one shoulder. The smell of food drifted from the kitchen, making his stomach growl.

As he stepped inside, he spotted Daniel sprawled across the couch, half-asleep, a controller dangling from his fingers. Ana and Liz sat nearby, chatting over snacks.

Ana glanced up. "You look like you survived a war."

Mark dropped onto the couch with a groan. "Might as well have. College admin nearly gave me a heart attack for nothing."

Liz raised an eyebrow. "Oh? What happened?"

Mark sighed. "They thought my tuition wasn't paid. Turns out, it was just a system error."

Ana whistled. "Damn. So you almost got kicked out over a glitch?"

"Basically," Mark muttered.

Daniel cracked an eye open. "Did you punch someone?"

"No, but I should have," Mark said, rubbing his temple.

Liz smirked. "And let me guess—Mist Low enjoyed every second of your suffering?"

Mark groaned. "He acted like he was about to uncover some secret conspiracy. Then the moment they apologized, he asked me to buy him dinner as a thank-you."

Ana burst out laughing. "That sounds exactly like him."

Daniel sat up, stretching. "Well, at least it's over. Now you can focus on important things."

Mark raised an eyebrow. "Like what?"

Daniel grinned. "Like eating. Celeste made dinner."

Mark perked up. "Wait, Celeste cooked?"

Liz chuckled. "Yeah, but don't get too excited. She just made pasta."

Mark stood up immediately. "That's good enough for me."

As they headed to the kitchen, the tension from earlier finally faded. Whatever happened, at least he could count on good food and even better company.

The kitchen was filled with the aroma of freshly cooked pasta, garlic, and butter. Celeste stood by the stove, stirring a pot with a practiced ease, her expression neutral as always. The dining table was already set, plates of steaming food placed neatly in the center.

Mark, Daniel, Ana, and Liz took their seats, the day's stress melting away as they prepared to dig in.

Then the front door swung open.

"Well, well, what do we have here?"

Mist Low strode in, hands in his pockets, wearing his usual self-satisfied smirk. His white shirt was slightly unbuttoned at the top, sleeves casually rolled up, giving him that effortlessly stylish look.

Mark sighed. "What are you doing here?"

Mist grinned. "You owe me dinner, remember? So I thought I'd drop by and make sure you didn't conveniently 'forget.'" He strolled over to the table, eyes glancing over the plates of food. "Ah, homemade cooking? How thoughtful of you, Mark."

"I didn't cook this," Mark muttered.

Celeste turned, finally acknowledging Mist's presence. "Sit down or get out," she said flatly.

Mist clutched his chest dramatically. "Ah, Celeste, your words wound me. But since you insist—" He pulled out a chair and sat down without hesitation.

Liz leaned on her elbow, smirking. "You do realize we weren't actually expecting you, right?"

Mist waved her off. "Details, details. The universe clearly aligned things in my favor." He grabbed a fork, twirling it between his fingers before looking at Celeste. "So, what's on the menu?"

"Pasta. Eat or don't." Celeste didn't even look at him as she sat down.

Daniel, who had been silent until now, narrowed his eyes slightly at Mist. "Just don't be annoying."

Mist blinked at him before flashing an amused grin. "Oh? Daniel, my dear friend, when have I ever been annoying?"

Daniel didn't answer. Instead, he just stabbed his fork into his pasta and started eating.

Ana, ever the agent of chaos, leaned forward with a smirk. "Mist, you should know, we were just talking about you before you showed up."

Mist raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Do tell."

Liz chuckled. "We were discussing how adorable you are."

Mist's grin widened. "Ah, finally! Recognition where it's due." He turned to Mark with a smug look. "See? These lovely ladies appreciate me."

Mark rolled his eyes. "They were making fun of you."

Mist feigned offense. "Impossible. I refuse to believe such slander." He then turned to Ana and Liz with an exaggerated, playful expression. "You do find me charming, don't you?"

Ana laughed. "Oh, absolutely. You're like a puppy that thinks it's a wolf."

Liz smirked. "Or a cat that trips over its own tail."

Mist gasped dramatically. "Betrayal!"

Mark sighed. "Can we eat now?"

Celeste, who had been silent through most of this, finally spoke. "If you all don't start eating in the next five seconds, I'm throwing the food out."

Instant silence.

Then, in perfect synchronization, everyone picked up their forks and started eating.

Mist chuckled, leaning back in his chair. "Ah, nothing like good food and good company." He winked at Mark. "Aren't you glad I came?"

Mark just stuffed a forkful of pasta into his mouth, refusing to dignify that with an answer.