Extra filling in

"Ach-choo!..."

Tsunade sniffled after letting out a huge sneeze.

She was crouching at the edge of the parking lot, just in sight from where you sat.

Since the Burger Queens were not AD-certified, which meant any Characters that were too revealing were not allowed to enter.

Of course, that meant Chun-Li had to stay out of the building as well.

She was currently standing next to where you had Tsunade tied up.

Lucius said that she would work as a fine bodyguard while you two had some conversation, but you had a fleeting suspicion that Lucius also just wanted to see his character squirm in embarrassment out in the open.

"Here's your order, master."

Makima placed a burger set in front of you, then took the seat right next to you.

You took a bite out of the burger.

"This tastes normal."

"What did you expect, caviar?"

Lucius chewed on his food as well, handed to him by an employee who was a Character you didn't recognize.

"I thought rich people didn't eat junk food."

"Hey, rich or not, we still have the same taste buds. Sometimes, your body craves junk food, and you can't really replicate that particular taste in your kitchen."

You were positive that, with how big Lucius's mansion was, there was certainly room to put a store or two inside his vicinity... but you decided to save your breath on that matter.

"What did you want to talk about?"

You asked.

"Going straight to the point, are we?"

Lucius grinned and stroked his chin.

"I thought you'd be the one dying to ask me some questions."

"Like what?"

"Like why I re-bought my own Character?"

Lucius pointed outside to where Chun-Li was still standing.

She and Tsunade were drawing some attention from passersby, and Chun-Li was taking it far better than Tsunade was.

Personally, you couldn't care less.

Rich people doing weird things was never shocking news to you, and this seemed like one of those "I have too much money, so I'll waste it in the dumbest way possible" stunts those rich people pulled off every now and then.

But the expression on Lucius's face made it clear that he wanted to give an answer to the question.

So, with a small sigh, you asked.

"Why did you buy your own Character?"

"Well, you see, this Primary Allocation isn't simply an allocation. It's a skirmish to determine who to invite to the actual auction that'll happen in a month and a half or so.

Since you and I both purchased a Character in the Allocation, we should be on the invitation list."

"Uh-huh."

You nodded.

Up until now, there was nothing that surprised you. You had it figured out.

However, the following explanations hooked your interest.

"And it's important who bought which Character from the list."

"Hmm?"

Makima looked up from her plate with mild interest.

"What do you mean by that?"

You asked.

You had assumed putting more money on the table would be the sole determining factor, but the way Lucius was saying it suggested that the Character themselves also had some meaning to them.

"You see, RealDreams's auction is not like any other private auction held by other companies or personal resellers.

RealDreams doesn't really need to draw in money with something like an auction. What they're really doing is selling away Characters that they have trouble getting rid of."

"Like the workers."

You guessed.

Lucius nodded with a surprised look.

"Yeah, that's one of the main appeals. Characters with experience working in RealDreams are hard to come by, so many people try to get their hands on one.

Attending the RealDreams auction is the only legal way to get your hands on one of them.

At the auction, they use a secret grading method influenced by how much you spent... and how dangerous the Character you bought is.

"Interesting."

Makima muttered.

Her expression stayed mostly the same, but you could make out a hint of satisfaction in her eyes.

Makima was certainly grades above in threat levels compared to any other Character that had come up on the allocations.

Going by what Lucius said, you had a surprisingly good chance at the main auction as well.

Now all you needed to prepare was the $1,000 that Mirko originally wanted you to have.

You returned home after the talk was done.

"Welcome home, master."

Shizuku greeted you as per usual, but her eyes quickly darted over to Makima.

"Is she a new one?"

"Yeah, she is."

Makima gave Shizuku a small wave with a smile.

Shizuku grimaced as she stepped aside to make room for you to come inside.

"She seems...untrustworthy."

Shizuku murmured in a low voice.

"Yeah, I know. I'm going to work on it."

You handed the red leash still attached to Tsunade.

"Give her a warm bath. I had her naked out for the whole night.

And, where is Juri?"

Shizuku took the leash and nudged her head toward the closet.

You could hear small sounds of Street Fighter 2 coming from inside, which was enough of an explanation.

As Shizuku took Tsunade to the bathroom, you led Makima to the bedroom.

"Close the door behind you."

"Yes, master."

Makima closed the bedroom door and stood still.

You sat on the bed and beckoned at her to come closer.

"Is there anything you want me to do?"

She asked calmly.