As early as the middle of the 21st century, mankind has experienced an energy revolution, and clean energy based on safe nuclear energy has gradually replaced those energy supply methods that will cause damage to the environment; Even rigid demand commodities such as oil, coal and timber have been extracted much less since the energy revolution.

In the 22nd century, in the first few decades of the Federation, mankind experienced a period of relatively stable development.

It was a golden age that was rare in the entire history of the Fifth Kingdom, when artists did not have to endure outrageous censorship, scientists were not constrained by positions and prejudices, good people were no longer subject to mediocrity, and ordinary people did not need to be subject to money or faith...... It is only necessary to get enough security from the social system.

In those years, human military science and technology almost stagnated, but the level of civilian science and technology has made many leaps; One of the biggest breakthroughs in this is the miniaturization of energy/electronic devices.

In the 23rd century, everything from airplane engines to personal computers can be incredibly small......

If you open the hood of a car from 200 years ago, you will see a lot of pipes and machinery, and today's cars, when you open the hood, you will see something like opening the main chassis of a personal computer; While the dimensions of those drives have not changed much, the core power conversion and fuel tanks have been made very small.

In the 200-year-old period, the high-end computers that required a full-tower chassis to accommodate can now achieve more than 90% of the functions with a mobile phone or even a pen; In addition, there are monitoring probes, streaming media, wireless power transmission technology, etc., all of which can achieve "extreme miniaturization".

There is no doubt about it...... The power system of a cruise ship is also available.

A super luxury cruise ship like the Clover can not only accurately control the speed and draft, but also turn in place and "reverse the ship", which is more agile than a car from a certain point of view...... The most critical point is that the space occupied by the engine room in the ship is minimized; On a cruise ship where every inch of land is at a premium, every minute of room occupancy is reduced, which is equivalent to giving up a part of the extra space for other facilities.

As a result, there is a huge grand banquet hall as big as an opera house, with five floors up and down.

…………

"Hey! Let's see who's coming. ”

As soon as Ryunosuke and the others entered the banquet hall, a white man with a thick accent from the southern part of Hoshigun snorted loudly.

The door they came in was the main door on the third floor, and although the game hadn't started yet, there were already many people who had already entered earlier than them with the mentality of "stepping on the spot first".

So, after this voice, everyone nearby turned their eyes to the door, and fell on Ryunosuke and his three attendants.

"Heh......" Ryunosuke is also a person who often attends various big occasions, and being the center of attention did not make him feel any uncomfortable, he just chuckled, looked at the white man and said, "Eric, long time no see." Before he finished speaking, he put on a very enthusiastic look, stepped forward, and said hello to the other party.

"Hahaha......" Eric greeted him with a smile, and continued in a tone that seemed to be familiar with Ryunosuke, "The last time we met was at a class reunion, I remember you drank like a dead pig, hahahaha......"

"Huh...... Why don't you drink like a dead dog? Ryunosuke also replied with a smile on his face.

The words of this sentence landed, and the laughter of the two paused for two seconds at the same time, their eyes met, and then a burst of even wilder laughter erupted at the same time.

In the eyes of others, this seems to be an old classmate meeting and joking, but the two of them know in their hearts that this is a narrow road......

Eric is a descendant of the Douglas family of the North American chaebol, and his father Alan Douglas started as an ordinary congressman, and with the family's strong financial resources and the strength of the North American government, he became the first speaker of the federal parliament in only ten years, and can be said to be one of the most powerful candidates for the "Cabinet Ten Auxiliaries".

Although in terms of official position, Alan Douglas is still a head lower than Shinichiro Arai, but in terms of foundation and capital, the gap between the two places of Hoshigun and Sakurafu is self-evident; Over the years, the Douglas family has been using the brains of Shinichiro Arai to drive this guy from the land of bullets out of the cabinet and replace him with his own people.

In such a situation, the relationship between the descendants of the two sides will inevitably turn bad.

Of course, if one of Eric and Ryunosuke were a woman, maybe the story between them would follow the path of Romeo and Juliet, but unfortunately, they were both men (yes, both men would do, I know).

In short, the feud between Eric and Ryunosuke has been going on for a long time, and it can't be said in a day or a night......

The two of them are indeed college classmates, but from the first day they entered the school, they have been fighting openly and secretly,-for-tat.

Ryunosuke when he was a student was fatter than he is now, and he was short, almost like a ball; Eric, on the other hand, was born with a disability (their family had an internal tradition of consanguineous marriage for generations) and had a nervous system problem with one leg.

One of these two called each other "stupid pig" and the other called each other "lame dog", and they didn't change their words until they graduated.

Even after graduation, the two have a variety of difficulties with each other in the political and business worlds......

If there is any unsolvable hatred in this world, the relationship between these two people probably belongs to this kind of thing; Their youth is a history of struggle with each other, if it weren't for the fact that no one could help anyone, they would have eaten each other alive long ago.

"I knew you'd come and join in the fun." After laughing for a while, Eric took the lead in provocatively, "Hmph, let me see...... The partner you brought was ......"

As he spoke, his gaze swept over Hanazuka, Sakaki, and Axiu.

Obviously, Hanazuka's appearance is a bodyguard rather than a game partner, and among the remaining two, the calm Axiu is more like a person in charge of security than the slightly frivolous Sakaki.

So, after a brief hesitation, Eric continued, "Hmm...... That's it, kid. He fixed his gaze on Sakaki's body and said with a disdainful expression, "Doesn't it look amazing, could it be the little old man you found casually on the side of the road?" ”

Hearing this, Sakaki didn't even look at Eric, but just picked at the dirt between his fingernails and said nonchalantly, "Compared to the lame, I'm really not very conspicuous......

"You!" Eric was in a hurry, and stepped forward, reaching for Sakaki's collar.

But due to problems with his legs and feet, Sakaki took a slight step back sideways, allowing him to catch the air.

Move...... It made Eric even more angry.

"Old schoolmate." Seeing this, Ryunosuke smiled proudly, "A lot of people are watching it, pay attention to your demeanor." ”

After his reminder, Eric's movements froze, he raised his eyes and found that the people around him were looking here, and many of them also showed a look of "watching a good show".

"Hmph......" Eric quickly figured it out, this was his own provocation first, and Sakaki's identity was far from his own, if he continued to entangle, he would only make himself more embarrassed, so he snorted coldly, gave up the plan to do it, but straightened his tuxedo, and continued, "I don't know who brought the uneducated things." ”

He seemed to be referring to Sang scolding Huai, but before Ryunosuke could fight back, Sakaki preemptively said, "Alas...... Not only is he lame, but he is also mentally retarded, and he doesn't know who he is with when he walks in front of him. ”

This kind of trash talk is sprayed with each other, and Sakaki is familiar with it; Besides...... A pampered son of a wealthy family, going to scold the street with a gambler who mixes in a smoky gambling place all day long, can only win hell.

This sentence slammed back, and Eric was so angry that his whole face changed color.

That's when ......

"Alright, alright, Master Eric." A middle-aged man with long blond hair, sunglasses, and a wrinkled face came to Eric's side and put a hand on the latter's shoulder, "Everyone is here to have fun, why bother here with someone you don't know?" ”

This man's words seemed to have magical power, which immediately calmed Eric and squeezed out a sneer: "Huh...... Yes, I can't do it. With that, he looked at Ryunosuke again, "By the way, Ryunosuke, this is a rare opportunity, let me introduce you......" He suddenly changed to a show-off tone, pointing to the man next to him, "This ...... It's the 'Star County Gambling King', Mr. Hopkins. ”

As soon as these words came out, Ryunosuke's eyes really flashed with a hint of surprise, because...... This Hopkins is very famous.

In that "gambling world under the sun", Hopkins is a legend who has won numerous awards, and in the dark underground gambling world, he is also a man who has left many legends......

When Eric introduced him, he did not add the word "person" before the title of "Star County Gambling King", and the reason was ...... The title of this gambling king was obtained in an officially sanctioned tournament and was not a folk nickname or anything like that.

"Uh...... Hello. If it was in private, Ryunosuke might shake the other party's hand excitedly at this time and say "long admiration of the daimyo", but on this occasion in front of him, in front of Eric, he was in the way of face after all, and only greeted Hopkins in a lukewarm tone.

"My pleasure, Mr. Arai." However, Hopkins seemed very amiable, and took the initiative to step forward and shake Ryunosuke's right hand, "Today's game, I hope you can also have a good time." ”

"Hah...... Ha ha...... Thank...... Sheyha...... Hahahaha......" When Ryunosuke answered, he laughed for some reason, and the more he laughed, the louder he became, and he even slowly laughed out of tears, and he staggered and was about to fall.

At this moment, Hanazuka suddenly took half a step forward and supported Ryunosuke.

Then, Hanazuka stared at Hopkins with a cold gaze and said two words: "Stop." ”

Hopkins was having a good time, but Hanazuka's eyes and words made him instinctively sense some kind of danger.

He immediately withdrew his hand, and Ryunosuke stopped laughing after he let go, and leaned against Hanazuka's body as if he were out of strength.

"Hey...... Just kidding, don't mind. When he came back to his senses, Hopkins was already in a cold sweat, but he still had a calm smile on his face, so he said.

"I don't mind." Hanazuka spoke, like a robot, "This is work. He paused, then added, "But warned, just this once." ”

With that, Hanazuka helped Ryunosuke and walked to the rest area against the wall.

A man in his thirties who is on the fat side, with the support of Hanazuka, is as light as a woman who is less than ninety pounds.

Two minutes later, Ryunosuke, who was slumped on the curved sofa, was relieved.

"Goo...... After ...... breathing steadily, he took two sips of ice water before he spoke, "Just now...... What's going on? ”

"That Hopkins should be a capable person." Sakaki replied without thinking.

He knew that a person of Ryunosuke's level must be clear about the affairs of the capable, so he said his judgment straight to the point.

"Well, I think so too." Ah Xiu also chimed in, "I guess...... The ability to control other people's emotions through physical contact. ”

"This old ghost...... How dare you attack Ryunosuke Arai? Ryunosuke gritted his teeth and said, "Damn...... It's embarrassing for me in public, no! I'm going to settle accounts with him! ”

"Please calm down, Mr. Arai." Ah Xiu is an understanding person, he immediately stopped Ryunosuke, "You don't have evidence, just rush over to Xingshi to ask for the guilt, the other party can completely deny it, and the result will only make you more embarrassed." ”

"Is that all?" Ryunosuke was still angry, and then looked at Hanazuka, "What's more...... Hanazuka-kun, if that guy's ability just now was to electrocute or release poison, wouldn't I be dead? ”

"If he had murderous intent, I would have done it in advance, but not just now." Hanazuka replied indifferently, "However, his ability still caused some damage to your body after all, so I stopped him." ”

"Then can you help me hurt him too?" Ryunosuke said again.

"My job is to keep you safe, not to act as a thug." Hanazuka Road.

"Cut...... Keep me safe......" Ryunosuke repeated in a complaining tone, "I haven't been cheated yet." ”

"It's really my remiss to hurt you." Hanazuka continued, "There won't be a next time, I've already warned him." ”

"And what if he ignores you?" Ryunosuke asked again.

Hanazuka didn't answer, but both Ashu and Sakaki knew the answer.

The "warning" of the noisy division, only once, the next time he will speak with his fists; And the people who have spoken to his fist will basically not be able to get up again in a short period of time.

…………

Late, 7:50.

More and more people came to the banquet hall, and it was basically a group of four, that is, a combination of one guest and three retinues.

Of course, there are also guys who choose not to bring a bodyguard, only a gambling assistant, and then bring two female companions on board; This kind of person...... Not only can't you win the game in front of you, but even in the outside world, you are destined not to be someone else's opponent.

By 8 o'clock, more than 500 people had gathered in the banquet hall on the upper and lower floors.

The guests chatted in groups with champagne in hand as if they were attending a normal party, while the entourage stood quietly at a distance from their respective hosts, either sticking to their posts or deserting.

Just as the atmosphere of the venue gradually warmed up, a figure stepped onto the circular stage on the bottom of the banquet hall.

Without words, without lights, in a few moments, the crowd gradually moved to the railing, and their eyes were on him.

It was a medium-sized man in his forties; From the way he walked and stood, it was clear that he often wore a suit, and the light-colored suit seemed to fit on him.

He had permed his hair, had his face powdered, his whole body was neatly clean, and he held an electronic cue card and a wireless microphone in his hands.

When 90 percent of the guests were focused on the center of the stage, the man, who had been silent for a minute, raised his microphone and said, "Good evening, guests." ”

In just seven words, it is enough to let people know that he is a professional host.

Although there was a hint of nervousness, the extremely professional pronunciation, pronunciation, and tone were ...... At least it is also the tone of the first-line news host of the county-level TV station.

"I'm the host tonight." Oddly enough, he didn't say his name, "Welcome to the venue of the 'Supreme Game'." He paused, as if waiting for the subtitles of the cue card in his hand to roll, "Before I start tonight's game, I want to clear up one of your doubts...... That is, what exactly is the prize of the game. ”

This was indeed one of the things that the guests were most interested in, because the secrecy of the party was so well done that the prize of the final winner was always full of mystery, and the organizers did not provide any other information except to emphasize that the prize was "unparalleled in the world".

At this moment, along with the host's lines, several men in suits pushed a maglev transport board on stage; On the board, there is a cube covered with black cloth and about three meters in length, width and height.

When the cube came to the center of the stage, the host went over and lifted the black cloth.

Under the black cloth, there is a transparent cage, and in the middle of the cage, a kneeling person sits.

She was wearing a one-piece restraint suit for a mentally ill person, with two chains wrapped around her body, and an iron mask on her face, which completely covered her face.

"The winner will get this woman...... "The host continued to read as he looked at the subtitles of the cue card, "she is a special ability, and as long as she is 'used properly', she can fulfill your various 'wishes'." ”