The Rust Bucket finally rolled to a stop, not in some quiet suburban area, but right in the heart of the city. More specifically, it parked directly in front of a gorgeous luxury hotel, surrounded by expensive sports cars and gleaming sedans. The battered old RV looked completely out of place in the upscale parking lot.
"Grandpa, did you actually use all your pension money for this trip?" Asher asked in surprise, peering through the window at the resplendent golden facade of the hotel.
"Haha, you're exaggerating, Asher," Max said while unbuckling his seatbelt. "Our previous travel plans were always out in the suburbs. This time we're just staying somewhere a bit more upscale, that's all."
Ben practically had tears in his eyes. "A high-end hotel like this must have a buffet breakfast, buffet lunch, and everything, right?"
"Of course," Asher chimed in with an exaggeratedly filial tone, exchanging a knowing glance with Ben. "This way, we won't have to trouble Grandpa to cook for us. He's getting older, and the physical work of cooking isn't really suitable for him anymore."
Such devoted grandsons.
"Don't try to sweet-talk me. Get out of the car, both of you," Max said, walking over to pat Asher's shoulder meaningfully. "You're both exaggerating. My cooking is obviously delicious, Asher eats the most every time."
Don't tell me he's planning to cook meals for me even at a fancy hotel, Asher thought uneasily as he climbed out of the Rust Bucket with the others, rolling his suitcase filled with clothes behind him as they headed into the hotel lobby.
The lobby decoration was luxurious, done in a typical European style. Behind the front desk stood a blonde woman with a gentle expression, watching them approach with a professional smile.
"Hello, this is the room number we reserved," Max said, providing the pre-booked room number along with his mobile phone number.
They'd booked for several days, which meant they could stay here for the remaining duration of their trip or check out anytime to continue traveling. Very convenient!
Ben and Gwen looked around with obvious excitement, this was the first time either of them had visited such an upscale establishment.
After taking a few glances around, Asher felt considerably calmer about the whole thing. He was a reincarnated person, after all, and he'd learned to look past these mundane luxuries. If he really wanted money, Grey Matter could hammer out inventions at will and make a bunch of money from them!
After confirming the room number, Max took the lead and headed toward the elevator.
Along the way, Asher suddenly noticed that Ben, who'd been walking in front of him, had stopped moving.
Max continued walking toward the elevator door, but Ben didn't follow. He just stood there, staring at something in the corner of the hotel with complete astonishment.
"Ben, what's wrong?" Asher lightly poked Ben's back and teased, "The hall has air conditioning, you're not overheating, are you?"
"Don't you see that?" Ben gestured toward part of the hotel lobby, as if he couldn't tear his eyes away.
"See what?" Asher followed Ben's gaze.
"Sumo Slammer New Game Conference"
Those exact words were written on a sign beside the entrance to a large conference room!
It was for Ben's favorite game, Sumo Slammers!
Standing guard in front of the entrance was a massive bald man wearing a suit, with an unusually powerful physique like a bull. He stood there like a door guardian, radiating an aura of "you shall not pass."
"Grandpa, I think Ben wants to check that out," Asher said, looking at Max with a hint of pleading in his eyes. "Can you go up and put the luggage away first? We'll just take a quick look at this new Sumo Slammer game."
Max turned around, sighed lightly while holding his forehead, but slowly nodded in agreement. "Come back soon."
"Great! Thank you, Grandpa, and thank you too, Asher!" Ben cheered, stretching out his fist insistently for a fist bump with Asher.
Asher was about to comply when Gwen made up an excuse to tag along. In the end, Max took all the bags, big and small, to the elevator by himself.
The three cousins approached the conference room entrance together.
The big bald security guard stretched out his arms and stood in front of the entrance, looking somewhat intimidating but speaking in a very polite tone. "Please show your VIP pass."
"Well, our VIP pass is back in our luggage," Asher said with a serious face, putting on his best "innocent child" expression. "Can we go in first and show it to you later?"
"I'm afraid you can only enter after you retrieve your VIP pass," the security guard said coldly, though his tone also conveyed his own difficulties. "Children, I hope you don't make things hard for me. This is the only job I have."
Asher, who'd been an adult once before in his previous life, understood how difficult jobs could be. He shook his head regretfully. "No problem. We understand. Let's go, Ben."
"Okay," Ben agreed glumly.
The three took the elevator to the fourth floor where their room was located. When they arrived in the corridor, they found the door to one of the rooms standing open, with Max carrying luggage back and forth between the hallway and the rooms.
Other than that, the hallway was completely empty.
"Asher, what if..." Ben looked at the green Omnitrix on Asher's wrist, his expression growing excited. "You could transform into XLR8 and just speed me inside while that bald guy isn't paying attention! I just want to take a quick look!"
"I..." Asher started to respond.
"Ben, don't even think about it," Max interrupted, stopping his luggage-carrying to speak in a reprimanding tone. "The Omnitrix isn't meant to be used for something as trivial as that."
"I just wanted to go in and check out the game, it's not hurting anyone," Ben protested.
"The problem is that it's not right to abuse alien technology for personal entertainment," Max said firmly.
"Okay, fine, you always have some reason to tell me what I'm doing wrong," Ben shot back, his frustration bubbling over. "I can't argue with you, alright?"
Just like the age-old tension between elder and younger generations, Ben and Max exchanged increasingly heated words with each other. The atmosphere grew tense, practically crackling with conflict.
Seeing this scene unfold, Gwen's expression became nervous. One of her hands grabbed the corner of her own shirt while the other hand grabbed the corner of Asher's shirt.
At this moment, only Asher, as the neutral mediator, could step in to calm both sides down.
"Grandpa, please calm down," Asher said diplomatically. "Ben didn't do it on purpose. We've encountered so many dangerous incidents over the past few days, and Ben's been fighting right alongside us through all of it. Maybe he's just been under too much stress for too long, that's probably why he talked to you like that. I'll ask him to apologize to you."
"He's my grandson and still a child, I won't hold it against him," Max said naturally, though he still maintained a stern expression on his face.
Grandpa Max firmly believed in the philosophy that "boys shouldn't be coddled too much."
"Ben, listen to me," Asher said, turning to his cousin. His voice lowered as his eyes kept gesturing meaningfully at Ben.
Although Ben's face still showed obvious unhappiness, under the persuasion of his best friend Asher, his heart began to soften slightly. He'd been angry before and didn't want to back down in front of Max.
"I'm... sorry," Ben finally managed to say, though the words came out hesitantly.
"It's okay, Ben," Max said, looking at his grandson with his stern expression melting into warmth. He thought about it for a moment longer before continuing, "I've been thinking about it, and Asher's right, I was being too harsh just now. I should apologize too. I know asking you to apologize was probably difficult, but you know what? You and Asher can go out and explore the city together!"
Go out and have fun?!
Asher, Ben, and Gwen were all stunned!
"Really? Thank you, Grandpa!" Ben immediately jumped up in excitement, throwing all his previous unhappiness straight into the clouds.
"It seems I still won't get to rest properly," Asher said, holding his forehead with a helpless smile. It was clear that Grandpa wanted to give them some freedom while also trusting Asher to keep an eye on things.
"Asher, let's go shopping together!" Gwen said enthusiastically.
"No way, we're going to play video games!" Ben insisted. "There must be some amazing arcade games in the city center!"