A.N: Something I had in mind, a rewrite. I would like some constructive criticism over my writtings, thank you.
Before you start, you should know a few things:
The Issei (and some other characters) in this fic will be out of character.
This will be an AU-ish kind of story.
Stupid and inconsistent logic will be applied.
This fic will touch 'some' mature themes.
If you do not appreciate those kind of contents, please, leave. You have been warned, do not force yourself to read something that you don't like. You will only get frustrated as a result. And then you'll start getting aggressive. Really, just drop it if you hate it.
TGNTW: Chapter 1
* You have slept in your bed. HP and MP fully restored! *
Issei Hyoudou stared up blankly at the words floating in front of him. Feeling strange. He should have been surprised to see them, and to tell the truth, he was. But it felt like he had to describe the word surprise to get his point across. Surprise, it is the feeling you get when something unexpected happens. It meant that your expectations were blown away and you were left wondering what happened, your heart fluttering, your mind blown, and your mouth hanging agape as your breath was caught up on your throat as you wonder what the fuck is going on. That is surprise.
And that was not how he felt.
There was no fluttering of his heart. His mouth was not agape. And his mind definitely worked well -even though he should at least feel fuzzy from having just woken up- It was weird. It was hard to describe, but somehow, it was as if his feelings were..numbed. Because he knew there was no way for him to be calm after just reading those words. Those specific words that meant so much more than they looked. He had dreamed of seeing them for a long time. Ever since he read Han JeeHan's adventures.
In his shoes, anyone else who knew what kind of powers being the Gamer offered would have cried their joy at the top of their lungs, at the very least. But he wasn't them. At the moment, he didn't feel like doing that. He wasn't up to celebrate. Oh, he was happy. But not 'that' happy.
The feeling, it was.. Annoying. Yet, it didn't feel as bad as that. It was as if the fact that he wasn't feeling happy or surprised barelly registered into his mind. Once again, he felt as if there was something wrong with him.
He spent a few moment wondering what was wrong until, he finally recalled a certain piece of information.
" Toggle Gamer's Mind to Low Mode."
* Gamer's Minds have been set to Low Mode!*
It all happened too fast. He was subjected to an immediate mood swing. Something that made him unable to keep hold of his emotions. A grin broke his once frowning face as a squeal of both joy and excitement left his mouth. It didn't matter that it was still 5 in the morning. It didn't matter if he just woke every single person in the neighborhood.
He was the Gamer. THE GAMER. What else was there to say?
" ISSe-
... What the hell are you doing?"
Indeed.
What was he doing? He had no recollection of how he got naked and practically danced a poor reproduction Ricardo's legendary indecent dancing. But he did dance Ricardo naked.
Still, he had to say something to his incredulous looking father. And..probably stop his stupid dance now.
He could get back to it later.
" Hey dad!" He was met with a stern glare in response. Though, it was not enough to get him to stop grinning. He doubted he would stop anytime soon. Yup, not the even the incoming rant/lecture would get him down.
" Son, your screams probably woke up half the neighborhood and I find you giggling like a maniac at 5 in the morning. Unless you are high, I seriously cannot think of any reason for you to act like that."
Well, his father wasn't that far off. He was indeed feeling high. Very high on happiness. If weed gave you the possibility of feeling like him at the moment, then he could understand why people would easily get addicted to it. But he hadn't smoked weed. If he did, then he wouldn't be having hallucinations of being the gamer right now. Instead, he would be having an orgy with an army of giant boobed amazon maidens. And since there were no girls in sight, it meant he wasn't dreaming. Which surprisingly felt good, he couldn't stop himself from giggling every time his thoughts drifted towards his current predicament.
" -ou're really starting to scare me right now..."
Oh right, he forgot his father was there. " I'm alright Dad. Everything is alright. It's just..I'm feeling really good. But I assure you, there's nothing to worry about. So go back to your room and enjoy a good morning sleep with mom. It's Sunday. I'll be taking care of breakfast. Hell! I'll take care of everything!!"
His father looked like he really wanted to punch him and argue, or anything else along those lines. But what was there to talk about? Issei just told him he was feeling high. Those were not his exact words but that was how he heard them. And it was not a good idea to brawl with his son, especially when the later was not exactly in his right mind.
In the end, the Hyoudou patriarch left out a heavy sight and just walked away without another word. He was better off getting some quality time with his wife anyway.
Issei for his part, still couldn't wipe his grin from his face. He watched as his father walked away and waited a moment before locking his door. He didn't want anyone to intrude in what he was going to do next. First, he needed to calm down. Deep breaths weren't helping, so he had to rely on Gamer's Mind managed to bring him peace. So he toggled it to medium.
It was only then that he gained some clarty.
" Okay, that was freaky." He muttered to himself, finally getting his senses together. Issei passed his hand over his face, feeling his sore cheeks and rubbing them down. " I'm never bringing this Gamer's mind to low ever again. That just wasn't right."
He wasted a few seconds reorganizing his thoughts. Getting his head in the game. Haha... Then finally he decided to check out his new powers. Beginning from his status.
Name: Hyoudou Issei
Title: The Gamer
Race: Human
Status: Alive
Affiliation: Self/Hyoudou Family
Level: 11
Experience: 0/2200 to next level
HP: 900/900 [1%1%]
MP: 260/260 [1%1%]
STR: 8
DEX: 7
VIT: 9
INT: 13
WIS: 10
CHA: 3
Perk Points: 0
And he had to admit, it wasn't bad. He definitely expected somethig worse. Something like starting the game from level 1, or even 0. But that wouldn't make much sense. After all, he was already a perfectly walking, working individual. It wouldn't be right if he had to start over from 0. Still, he didn't expect his highest stat to be intelligence.
But thinking about it, it all made sense. As a human, he was trained to use his mind from birth. And proof of that was the fact that he managed to score in the top 100 on the Kuoh academy entrance exam. His Charisma on the other hand... It was mediocre. He knew he never was good with people. But 3 points? That was just pushing it.
But, for all he knew, Charisma may have different parameters from his other stats. After all, it was just a concept. Something people couldn't grasp but was just..there.
Still, doing that would just make the system unnecessarily complicated. He hated when things got messy. It was like those hours long eroge games where you have to do thousands of quests just to score one girl. Really, it would have been better if they were to get to the point immediately. Everyone knew the players were there for the sex scenes. Nothing else.
He was getting sidetracked but the point was, it would be better if there was some tutorial to help him.
* Do you wish to read the guide?*
* Yes/No *
Couldn't you have showed up sooner?
* Stats *
* Quests *
* Skills *
* Perks *
* Reputation Relationship *
* Dungeons *
He began with stats. One thing he noticed was the fact that he didn't have to manually select everything to proceed. He just had to think about it, which was quite handy. Get it? Handy! Haha... Anyway, stats.
Name: Your name.
Title: Your title. Depending on it, the gamer can gain many bonuses and/or disadvantages.
Race: Your origin.
Status: It is a representation of your current state.
Affiliation: Where your loyalty lies.
Level: A representation of your overall strength.
Experience bar: A bar meant to show how much experience you need to level up.
Experience: A numerical representation of knowledge.
HP bar: In red. A representation of your Health.
HP: Health Points.
MP bar: In blue. A representation of the status of your Mana pool.
MP: Mana Points.
STR: Strength. A representation of your general physical strength.
DEX: Dexterity. Your ability to perform quickly and skillfully.
VIT: Vitality. Your capacity to live and develop.
INT: Intelligence. The capacity of your mind to understand, aquire and apply knowledge to practice.
WIS: Wisdom. Your ability to apply relevant knowledge in an insightful way, and to distinguish the wise from the unwise.
CHA: Charisma. Your ability to influence without the use of logic.
Permanent stat points can only be attained through level ups or quest rewards.
* Quests *
There are two kind of quests: Main Quests and Side Quests.
- Main Quests: Mainly related to the goal set by The One from above, these quests can trigger lots of events for the Gamer to develop. They obviously come with big rewards.
- Side Quests: Mainly related to the Gamer's needs, objectives, and actions.
The Gamer is under no obligations to go through Quests if he does not wish to do so.
Quests are the Gamer's main source of Experience outside of dungeons and are essential to his growth.
* Skills *
The Gamer's numerous knowledge and abilities to perform various special actions like running, swimming, flying, and more. Almost anything can be turned into a skill as long as the Gamer puts enough effort into it.
* Perks *
They are different abilities that permanently affect the Gamer.
* Reputation and Relationship *
A representation of social standing with a person, a group, a city, a faction, or a realm.
Alright, he got the gist of it, there were some things that seemed oddly vague to him. But, at least, he got a explanation before he was thrown out to fend off on his own. Speaking of, he wasn't exactly supposed to be on his own was he? There was apparently a millennium old Dragon inside of him. The problem was, he didn't know how to talk to that entity. It was related to some awakening he had to do, but sadly, he couldn't remember the exact details of what he had to do. He was willing to bet that it was related to his level of intelligence or wisdom that he couldn't recall most of the first tutorial. Which spoke level about his stats considering those two were his highest ones.
Anyway, he obviously needed to level up. And he had to do so fast if he wanted to be ready for any of the future battles that awaited him. Because yes, he was going to fight. He didn't know against who yet, but he knew it was something big.
.. And he also had to cook breakfast.
* New Quest: Breakfast! *
Description:
Cook an acceptable meal for the Hyoudou family!
Duration:
2 Hours and 30 minutes.
Rewards:
Success: 10 XP. 50 Rep with Hyoudou Hana. 20 Rep with Hyoudou Handa. *
Failure: None
* Accept/Decline *
He clicked on accept. Forgetting for a second that his powers were independent of manual manipulation. It was of no consequence. He was just going to make some toast and be done with it. Afterwards, he was going to do the dishes, clean up his room... What else was there to do? Hmm, he wasn't really a good child was he? He's never done mundane housework before. No wonder he could gain 50 Rep just from cooking breakfast.
Yeah...
It wasn't funny.
He really needed to get better. And it wasn't only with his parents. It was at everything. He was weak, stupid, and frankly detestable. So much that most of his classmates hated him, his teachers barely supported him, and the only reason he hasn't been kicked out of Kuoh academy yet was because he had yet to get caught explicitly breaking the rules. He wouldn't even start about his parents. They were trying hard not to give up on him. He was probably a huge disappointment to them, after all, he never did anything to make them proud. Except, maybe for that time he managed to score the Kuoh academy entrance exam. And even then it wasn't for them, it wasn't because he wanted to prepare his future. No. It was for the girls.
The girls that now despised his name.
It was sad.
He wondered why he never thought about his situation this way. Was it because he was too caught up goofing around with Motohama and Matsuda? Or because he was too dumb to realize it? What brought the change in perspective? Why was he even thinking about these stuff? Was it another hidden effect of Gamer's Mind? Thinking about it, he never checked out that skill did he?
* Skill Stats *
- Gamer's Body [Level Max: This skill allows you to live your everyday life like a game. Because there is no Stamina Bar, you will not tire even after running or exercising around for days. You will not feel winded even after countless battles. But, you will receive various negative status effects for your troubles.
- Gamer's Mind [Level Max: This skill is like a shield that prevents negative psychological effects from affecting the user. Though, beware that Gamer's Mind is not absolute and can be bypassed by some powerful beings.
Gamer's Mind have four degree of uses: Low, Medium, High and Extreme. Each one having their own uses for different kind of situations.
*Low (unadvised): For when you really feel like relaxing or stupid enough to take your guards down. It can serve when you want to loose stress through natural means. Though, it also means that your mind will have no filters and your emotions are likely to run rampant.
*Medium: For everyday use. It does not impact greatly on your mind as it just helps you focus on your goals or whatever you set your mind to do.
*High: For high pressure situations. It is some sort of filters that dampers your emotions to allow for higher focus.
*Extreme (unadvised): For, and strictly for when the Gamer is fighting. All emotions are dulled until the Gamer feels like they are not affecting his decisions. Highly effective when fighting inside dungeons but strongly unadvised when fighting alongside allies.
Interesting. So it was indeed because of Gamer's Mind that he felt so serious at the moment. Though, he didn't know what brought him to focus on reflection to begin with. Likely, it had something to do with his desire to level up, a wish to be better. Probably, but he wasn't entirely sure.
Not when his powers just admitted that his Gamer's Mind was not an almighty skill.
Still, it was better if he thought about it later. He had more pressing issues at hand. Things like his skills. Or the lack of skills listed on his tab despite the fact that he knew he had dozens of mundane one. Such as running for example. But, he was going to work on them later too. For now, it was time to cook and start earning himself some points with his parent.
~~ TGNTW ~~
Cooking was not easy. No, it was hard. Some people even made an art out of it. And Hyoudou Issei was not one of those artists. He hardly ever focused on any arts other than pornography (and yes, pornography is an art). Well, until now that is. Now, he could really tell how hard it was to cook. He could have chosen simplicity and went along with his original plan, simple burred toasts and some eggs. But he had second thoughts, his parents deserved better than that. They deserved the best he could offer them just for putting up with his idiotic behavior until now. Not that they were going to start to see him like someone new just because he cooked breakfast, but it would still help in the long run. So yeah, he had to make something special that day.
Sadly, his list of recipes only contained basic ones such as boiled rice, fried eggs, fries, just the basics really. He was not one that appreciated complicated stuff. So it was no wonder that he ended up messing up his first tries at making non poisonous cookies. Nor the next ones. Nonetheless, he was determined to succeeded this time. His Gamer powers helping him staying fresh and focused on the task. So much that he missed the fact that he had already wasted two hours trying. Or the fact that his mother has been watching him for the last few minutes with a smile on her face. By the ninth try, he finally succeed. It was a plain looking plate of cookies. It didn't have nothing particular in it. But he made it with care, he made it with love (not really), and that was what mattered.
" And..done!" He cheered, smirking proudly at his accomplishment. He eagerly turned around and paused once he finally caught sight of his mother. Hyoudou Hana, dressed in her usual pajamas which consisted of a light colored, loose-fitting shirt and a pair of skimpy shorts. Her dark hair still disheveled. She was smiling brightly at him.
His confidence vanished in an instant.
" I didn't know you could bake." She began, walking up to him. " To what do I owe the pleasure?"
" I..uh.. I just wanted to do..something special." His smile faltered. What was once filled with pride was now one of nervousness. He didn't know why, but he wasn't feeling like telling the truth at the moment. " Cookies..?"
His mother chuckled and took away the plater from him. " Thank you Ise. This has been beautifully done." Now, Issei was not a shy guy. He was as straightforward as a bullet goes but for some reasons, he could not support his mother's loving gaze. For some reasons..
Stupid. He was her son wasn't he? He shouldn't shy away from her.
The sound of her voice brought him back out of his musings. She was talking about the mess he had made. And the provisions he wasted with his failed attempts. He cringed once he saw them. Naturally, he made a mess. He always made a mess. But it wasn't like he meant to. It just happens.
" Sorry about that." He was scratching the back of his head, something he always did when feeling nervous. " I'll clean it up right now."
He got a quest, but he spared it no mind.
" Oh sweety~ What's wrong? Did you really smoke weed? Was life too harsh on you? I'm here you know? You can talk to me whenever you want, mom's here for that."
Even thought it was a playful joke thrown at him. It still was possibly one of the worst kind of jab he's ever taken. And considering he was hated by most of his schoolmates, it was saying something. Still, he didn't find it in him to resent her. These were the results of years of behaving like a fool around. So yeah, she could have this moment. He wasn't going to bitch about it like a depressed teenager. Nah, that was the style of the old Issei. The one who took refuge in porn whenever things went bad.
He was just going to ignore it and get started on his other quest.
" Thanks Mom, I'm gonna start cleaning up now if you don't mind."
" Of course I don't! Thanks honey~" she walked away with a higher beat in her step. And so, Issei began the complicated task of cleaning. It took him time. But, in a way, it was worth it. He got some skills, XP, and Rep points so the gesture wasn't a complete waste of time like he used to tell himself.
Anyway, he finished up, told his parents his accomplishments and walked back to his room. He didn't eat, he wanted to find out if he still needed to feed himself or not. Testing the extent and limits of his powers when he still got the time to prepare.
And finding some other quests to do. For now, he got one about cleaning up his room. It didn't have a time limit and he wasn't feeling up to do it yet so he left it hang around for a while.
He was too busy enjoying his quest rewards anyway, no matter how meager they were.
* Quest Cleared! Breakfast! *
* You got: 10 XP. 50 Rep with Hyoudou Hana, 20 Rep with Hyoudou Handa!*
* Quest Cleared! Cleaning up!*
* You got: 10 XP, 20 Rep with Hyoudou Hana, 5 Rep with Hyoudou Handa!*
Alright. That was some progress. 2180 more XP until he could level up. Now, where was he going to get that much Experience? If his rewards were a meager 10 XP from each quest, then he felt like he was just wasting his time.. but, that wasn't the right kind of mentality he should be having. It was a rotten one that would only lead him towards failure. He's been following it and it did him no good.
Admittedly, he only just became the Gamer. It was arrogant to think of his mentality from yesterday as rotten, he didn't have that much time to change yet. But he was making an effort to, he was trying to leave behind his old goofing self seeing as a lot was at stake here.
And whatever progress he was making with his powers were not to be neglected. Even though it was small, it was still progress.
Psyching himself up, Issei manged to bring himself to clean up his room in the afternoon. Getting rid of all the trash and dirt that he managed to gather in months. It was slightly refreshing.
However, the feeling didn't last, he still had his porn stash to take care of.
And it was going to be hard.
But he couldn't say he made any progress if he still kept all those boxes of 'treasures' as he used to call them. Today, he was taking a big step into the future, his future. And that of the whole world. Plus, he wasn't going to have the time to laze around anymore. So he wasn't going to need porn anymore. With how he was planning on living from now on, it wasn't going to be useful to him anymore.
That's what he told himself as he closed the boxes with duck tape. That's what he kept muttering to himself as he lifted them and brought them outside. But he knew he was only fooling himself.
Sooner rather than later, he was going to regret his decision. He walked away quickly before he could change his mind. Leaving a big part of his teenage life behind.
He had to call Matsuda and Motohama quickly to tell the to take care of 'it' in his stead before he could turn around and take back what belonged to him. The later two came as fast as they could in fear that he was truly going to have second thoughts. And just left as fast as they came...
He didn't mind that, considering the fact the he felt the urge to murder them for even laying their hands on his possessions, it was better that way.
Now, if only he could get rid of the feeling of regret eating up at him, then it wouldn't have been too bad as an ending.
Sadly, next up would be cleaning up his PC.
And God!
Just thinking about it actually hurt him.
Man, what was going on in his head? Another effect of Gamer's Mind? He hoped not.
" Issei! We're out of sugar!"
Thanks God for diversions. He rushed downstairs in record time.
" What is it?" He was upon his mother's face in an instant. " Do you need me to do something?"
".. Go buy some sugar would you?" She voiced after a moment of hesitation. " Take your time, you seem like you need some air."
He nodded vigorously, took the money, and walked out.
He didn't know how he ended up at Matsuda's door. Banging it with all his might while screaming for the sucker to get his ass out of there. He blamed his focused mind for his behavior. Maybe his dad wasn't that far off in saying he was high.
Details.
" MATSUDA! IF YOU DON'T GET OUT IN 5 SECONDS, I'M BRINGING DOWN THIS DOOR! CONSEQUENCES BE DAMNED!"
He yelled out for the third time, ready to make good of his threat. Thankfully, he didn't have to go that far.
Opening the door was a very very pissed off Matsuda. His bald head reflecting some of the late sunlight, giving it a shining appearance. A dark glint shining in his brown eyes as his face was contorted in a expression of anger. Even though Issei towered over his friend, he actually had the presence of mind to take a few steps back and look sheepish. It was well known that Matsuda was the most physically apt of the two. His bald friend had the build of an amateur athlete, an amateur, but an athlete still. And it wasn't that good of an idea to get him all riled up.
" What's wrong with you retard?!" Matsuda wasn't one to get angry over petty things. He was the kind of guy that would laugh off most of the offenses he received and hold no grudge. Well, that's what he liked to think about himself. Reality had other words to describe him. " Would it have fucking hurt you to simply knock on the door like any civilized human would have?"
At least, Issei had the decency of looking apologetic at him.
" Sorry man, it's just that I'm a little..strange right now."
" Yeah right, a little strange. Lets go with that. What do you want? " The other teen replied in a sarcastic tone, an angry scowl on his face.
Issei for his part, didn't know how to convey the gravity of the situation to him. His mind was still messy. Conflicting thoughts keeping him from actually making a decision. But, in the end, his instincts ruled over them, choosing for him. He got on his knees in a formal dogeza pose, and begged. " My babies, let me say goodbye to them. One last time please."
Matsuda had a 'no' ready at the back of his mind, ready to be released with the highest roar a human could muster. But again, he was supposed to be a calm guy wasn't he? Someone who held no grudge, especially with his friends. It helped that he could relate with how Issei was feeling at the moment. Chances were, Issei didn't get a choice in getting rid of his porn stash. His parents may have had a hand in doing that, and what sort of friend was he to refuse his friend in grave times like this? He was many things, but he was no cruel man.
After some consideration, he led the begging form of his friend inside. Intent on comforting him in his times of grievance. He knew how bad it felt to be forced apart from what he cherished. He's been through it once, he didn't wish the same on anyone else.
So he watched as hours passed, he watched as Issei Hyoudou wept in front of a box, whispering apologies, parting words and incoherent mumblings. Some may have found it ridiculous, but he could understand Issei. He wasn't just sorry for the material. No, it was a sign, an expression of his friend's resolve.
He could only stand there and watch. A comforting hand squeezing the other teen's shoulder in a gesture of support.
He didn't know how long it took, but by the time Matsuda walked Issei to the main door, it was already dark outside. The teen spared him a smile he hoped looked refreshing before sending him off. Watching the retreating back of his friend from afar.