Building The Strongest Family

Liz flicked open a hidden compartment, revealing a sleek, glowing SSD that looked straight out of a sci-fi movie.

"Check this out,10 terabytes of storage! With read speeds so blisteringly fast (28,000 MB/s), loading screens are practically a thing of the past. Games install in mere seconds, and thanks to this graphene heat sink, it never throttles!"

Arthur raised an eyebrow. "You're telling me you have a military-grade SSD… for gaming?"

With a cheeky grin, Liz replied, "And memes!"

Next up was her cooling system: *Cryo-V Active Cooling System*. She gestured toward the nearly silent fans whirring away. "Most rigs sound like jet engines taking off. Mine?

Just 18 decibels! It uses phase-change cooling,like what the Colonial Expansion Authority employs,to keep temperatures below zero even under full load. And guess what? It's self-cleaning! No dust buildup, no maintenance,just pure perfection."

Arthur smirked. "You're way too into this."

Liz stuck her tongue out playfully. "Says the guy still rocking a laptop from 2024!"

Arthur chuckled and shook his head in disbelief.

"And let's not forget about the peripherals: Aegis-V Pro Series," she said as she picked up her keyboard and flexed it dramatically.

"These opto-mechanical hybrid switches have a response time of just 0.2 milliseconds! And if they wear down? The keys literally heal themselves!"

Then she lifted her mouse with flair. "It boasts a 32,000 DPI laser sensor, adjustable weight for ultimate comfort, and an insane 2000Hz polling rate,meaning it updates its position two thousand times per second!"

Arthur blinked in astonishment. "That's… excessive."

"Exactly!" Liz beamed.

She powered up the system, and suddenly the entire room came alive,lights dimmed to create an immersive atmosphere while screens flared to life; even a holographic AI assistant materialized right before them!

"Eclipse OS," Lillian announced with excitement as she waved her hand through the hologram shimmering in mid-air. "This isn't just any operating system—it's like having your own gaming AI! It optimizes everything in real-time, coaches me during matches, and can instantly suspend games so I can jump right back in where I left off."

Arthur exhaled slowly, clearly impressed despite himself. "Okay... I admit it. This is insane."

Lillian's smile widened triumphantly. "I know!"

She flopped back into her chair with glee and spun around once before facing him again. "So? Worth months of pestering Uncle Julian?"

Arthur chuckled heartily. "Definitely!"

---

Arthur rolled up his sleeves, the fabric bunching around his forearms as he shot a smirk at Liz.

"Alright, hotshot. You think you're *so* good with your fancy Aurora-V and your 'pixel-perfect precision'? Let's see how you handle *real* competition."

Liz narrowed her eyes, fingers already twitching toward her mouse like a predator ready to pounce.

"Oh, you're on. What are we playing? Frostpoint? Apex Reckoning*? Don't tell me you're finally brave enough to try Bloodborne: Reforged..."

"League of Legends."

Lillian froze for a moment, then burst into laughter so sharp it could've cut glass. "League? You want to play League?"

She shook her head in disbelief,"big bro, you haven't played since Season one. You're gonna get rolled, my dude!"

Arthur leaned back in his chair, stretching with an air of confidence. "Doubt it."

"Uh-huh." She cracked her knuckles with a satisfying pop. "What's your rank again? Oh right! unranked."

"Rank doesn't matter when you've got *fundamentals.*"

Lillian gasped dramatically, clutching her chest in mock horror. "Fundamentals? Oh my god, you really are ancient!"

With that, she spun around to her keyboard, fingers flying as she pulled up the client. "Prepare to get deleted, old man."

---

As Arthur's monitor flickered to life, the iconic League logo flashed across the screen like a beacon of challenge.

He flexed his fingers and adjusted to the weight of Liz's custom mechanical keyboard; surprisingly light and delightfully responsive beneath his fingertips.

Meanwhile, Liz was already trash-talking like a seasoned pro. "I'm gonna play Zed," she declared with a wicked grin. "And I'll style on you so hard that you'll quit gaming forever!"

Arthur snorted dismissively. "Zed's predictable."

"Predictable?" Liz gasped in feigned shock. "Excuse you! Zed is the epitome of mechanical skill..."

"...and you're going to feed because you always get too aggressive at level three," he countered smoothly.

Liz's jaw dropped in disbelief. "I what?"

Arthur smirked confidently. "You heard me."

She pointed an accusing finger at him. "You! Me! Mid lane! 1v1! Right now!"

Arthur leaned forward eagerly and clicked through his champion pool with purpose. "Fine! But I'm picking Malzahar."

Liz's face twisted in horror as if he'd just suggested they play Monopoly without rules. "Malzahar?! That's,that's illegal! That's war crimes!"

Arthur's grin widened, a spark of mischief in his eyes. "Fundamentals, Liz."

As the game loaded, the Howling Abyss map unfurled before them like a battleground waiting for chaos.

Liz's Zed materialized with a dramatic flash of shadow, spinning his blades with practiced arrogance.

In stark contrast, Arthur's Malzahar stood still,a silent, ominous figure cloaked in dark intent.

Liz leaned in closer, her voice dropping into a faux-evil whisper. "You're gonna regret this."

Arthur took a slow sip of his drink, unfazed. "Doubt it."

With a crash, the minions collided in the center of the lane, and Liz sprang into action.

Zed darted forward effortlessly, landing a clean Q through the minion wave that clipped Malzahar's shoulder.

"First blood!" she crowed triumphantly.

Arthur remained unruffled. He last-hit a minion with methodical precision before targeting another.

Liz feinted forward then back again, testing his reactions like a cat playing with its prey. But Arthur didn't take the bait.

"Boring," she muttered under her breath.

"Strategic," he corrected coolly.

Then... level three arrived like an electric jolt.

Liz lunged!

Zed's shadow flickered behind Malzahar as her combo erupted in a flurry of slashes, but Arthur was ready for her move.

His cursor flashed across the screen: Flash...

Zed's killing blow whiffed spectacularly.

And then... click!

Malzahar's ultimate locked Zed in place,her health bar plummeting as the suppression tore through it mercilessly.

FIRST BLOOD!

The screen flared red like an alarm bell ringing out victory.

Liz screamed in disbelief. "No! No! That's Bullshit!"

Arthur leaned back casually, folding his arms with an air of triumph. "Fundamentals."

Liz spun around in her chair to point accusingly at him. "You are the worst kind of person! Who plays Malzahar in a 1v1?"

Arthur shrugged nonchalantly. "Winners."

Liz groaned dramatically and flopped back against her chair. "I hate you."

Arthur smirked playfully. "No, you don't."

Peeking at him from behind her hands, she admitted softly... "...No, I don't."

Three games later and Liz was practically seething with frustration.

"How," she growled through clenched teeth, "are you this good when you haven't played in years?"

Arthur stretched leisurely and rolled his shoulders as if warming up for another round. "Some of us don't need *two weeks* to land a pixel-perfect jump."

Liz gasped theatrically; scandalized by his jab at her skills. "Low blow!"