I am back, baby!
Anyway, here is the update, as promised. But first, thanks to all those who reviewed. It's thanks to you all that my Review count climbed above 75 while I was gone.
Ddragon21: I looked through the stats again and I'm sure every point is accounted for. The automatic dodge idea seems a bit… overpowered? In MMORPGs, you can get away with attack animations clipping through the character model, but the rules in this fanfiction are a little different from that. A Skill to make it easier to evade would be possible, but not a flat chance to avoid any dodgable attack.
Guest: Hilarious. Mind if I take that idea?
Unfortunately, in the process of writing this chapter, I realized I left out [Stealth] from his skills list. Very embarrassing. I fixed it in my document, bt do you all want me to fix it in previous chapters, too? It wouldn't add much and would also delay my next chapter by a day or two.
Anyway, on to the chapter!
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Muh. I grinded waaay too much last night. I actually forgot about the extra homework Teacher Do gave us, so I stayed up past midnight finishing it. Three pages of essay, a science packet, and two chapters in the history textbook.
Fuckin' sadist. Why is he giving all this extra work lately, anyway?
At least I muddled through today's lesson. Too little sleep makes Jee-Han a dull, unfocused boy.
Hmm. Upon reflection, I haven't hung out with Sun-Il recently. With the whole "discovering darks secrets about one another" incident, an afternoon spent revitalizing our friendship would be appreciated. Is he still here?
Yes, yes he is. Commander Jee-Han closing in on target. Maintaining radio silence as ordered.
The LVL of [Stealth] has gone up by one.
Nice. I should really LVL [Stealth] some more. Obtaining [Lockpicking] wouldn't be amiss, either. Wait, what was I do- GAH!
"Sorry, still not good enough to sneak up on me."
Crushed against Greenhead's side as I was, I could only imagine the expression he made. I prefer to think it was a twisted grimace/smile that showed how tortured and batshit crazy he was on the inside.
"So, what'd you want me for this time?"
"Ass. I just wanted to see if you wanted to hang out. We haven't spent any time alone together recently, and I'm starting to feel lonely."
Playing the distressed gay lover card always gets Sun-Il away from me. It might fuel the yaoi rumors, but that's a small price to pay to avoid being crushed against another male's body.
The irony implicit in that statement suffocates me. Really.
As expected, Sun-Il sprang away from me and took a moment to calm his expression before sighing.
"Must you do this every time? Well, whatever; I heard about a new sweets shop opening in the mall. Wanna come?"
OH GOD YES!
"Hn. Sweets? If that's what floats your boat, sure."
Play it cool, Jee-Han.
I guess I wasn't cool enough, since Greenhead smirked knowingly at me before leading the way.
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"Quit drooling. It's embarrassing enough you're dragging me along; don't compound it by making me slip on your saliva."
Am I drooling? I can't tell. Regardless, I slowed my pace and released Sun-Il's forearm.
… What? I'm not going to hold hands with another dude unless it's a matter of life and death.
It's not like it matters, since I just found the new sweets shop! The sign was a bright, cheery neon pink and a variety of frozen, chocalately, and otherwise delectable treats were displayed in the windows. The shop's interior was dominated by a large seating area filled with high tables and equally high stools, with an ice cream bar in the corner.
All-in-all, amazing!
Wait, this place looks expensive. I only have, what, 10k won? That's about 10 USD. That's United States dollars for the financially illiterate. Either way, not nearly enough to fund my binge.
You know…
"Hey, Sun-Il?"
I paused several meters away from the shop's door, just now noticing my fatigue. My panting was only barely kept under control.
"… Yes?"
He was already suspicious of my tone. I have trained him well.
"Didn't I spot you last time we ate, I think it was that barbecue place?"
His face paled and a cold sweat broke out on his forehead.
"A-Ah. Haha. Yeah, um, no. That's not what happened at all."
… I'm pretty sure I could've spotted that lie even without [Deception].
"No, no, I did. And you said you'd spot me next time. I'm going to enjoy draining your liquid assets."
His stance grew even stiffer as he visibly restrained the instinct to bolt from a frightening predator: me.
"Ahaha… Um, pass?"
"As a very wise man once said to me: no chance in hell, boya."
Sun-Il edged away from me, holding up his hands in a surrender position.
"Ehe. Well, funny story, actually. I don't have any cash on me right now. Sorry, but you'll have to collect ano- GAH!"
While he was speaking, I jumped forward and slipped a hand in his pocket, fishing for his wallet. I found it pretty quickly and yanked it out before he could respond.
"Wha- what the hell, man! Gimme back my wallet!"
He lunged towards me, desperately reaching for the piece of old leather. Laughing, I held it just out of his reach, awkwardly probing the inside for bills. There were several, enough for a good-sized meal.
"LIAR! You do have some won! I call in a bro debt!"
He froze for a second before sighing deeply and sliding off me. A bro debt is almost literally unbreakable and one of the few things we hold sacred. Dirty move on my part, but he held out on me! If he had a good reason to be saving up, he would've offered it immediately.
"Fuck you, Jee-Han."
I just grinned cheekily before noticing a popup.
A skill has been created through a special action.
Huh. What'd I get?
A skill to steal from others' persons, [Pickpocketing], has been created.
Wow. Really? I mean, I just grabbed Sun-Il's wallet from his pocket. That really counts?
Pickpocketing (PASSIVE)
LVL: 1
Allows the user to remove or plant items in another's personal inventory. Greater skill allows the theft or placement of larger objects in more conspicuous locations.
Cool, I guess. Not much occasion to use this, since I don't think I can practice this without using Sun-Il as a dummy. No real use in the field as far as I can imagine, either.
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Ahn~ Oh. My. GOD! This place is amazing! So many different treats and only 50000 won to spend on them!
I ignored the muffled sobs emerging from behind the mountain of pastries and confections, concentrating on enjoying my sundae. It was a tantalizing monstrosity, a towering pile of chocolate, caramel, various nut products, and at least 5 flavors of ice cream. And it was already half gone.
"My money. All my money. Gone in a singular, sugar-filled moment. Jee-Han, you demon."
Studiously avoiding an indignant response, I filled my mouth instead with the sugary goodness in front of me. I mean, Sun-Il, despite his protests, was enjoying the pile as much as I was. Well, not quite that much; that would almost be physically impossible. He was still getting a pretty good amount of enjoyment, though.
You know, now that I think about it, I had a couple unanswered questions for Sun-Il, mostly regarding the Abyss. Eh, it can wait 'till after this.
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Hmmm! Very nice! I'm definitely coming back here someday.
I patted my slightly distended belly contentedly, a small pile of crumbs on the plate in front of me. Sun-Il was staring at the plate sightlessly, clutching his knees and rocking back and forth, muttering something continuously under his breath.
I'm at least fairly certain it isn't a pseudo-Latin magic spell.
"Oi, thanks for not using your magic to get out of your responsibility as a bro."
I think he nodded slightly; the crossed arms and tucked head kind of obscured subtle gesticulation.
"Anyway, I have a couple more questions about your secret society shindig."
The Sun-Il Ball tm uncurled slightly and ceased muttering. The rocking continued, unfortunately. But before I could say anything else, Sun-Il Ball tm spoke to me.
"Create an Illusion Barrier, first."
That's… actually a reasonable precaution. Wouldn't want to break their Masquerade, would we? Especially if the penalty's death. Even more so if it's an "ask questions later" deal.
"[ID Create]."
I selected the Empty option and brushed off the temporary blindness induced by the flash.
"So whaddya wanna know?"
What? Sun-Il Ball tm is evolving! Sun-Il Ball tm evolved into Greenhead!
… I'm such a nerd.
"Well, what exactly is the Abyss, for one?"
Sun-Il stared at me for a moment before slamming his forehead into the table. I get the vague feeling that he's frustratedly confused. Or confusedly frustrated. It's a pretty common malady if you spend so much time around someone as awesome as me.
"How the fuck don't you know about the Abyss yet?"
"Natural Ability User, remember? I only know it exists because I read it in Agent K's info."
His head raised enough to stare pleadingly into my eyes. I pondered about whether to make the poor verdette beg for context, but decided to be nice. Sun-Il gets scary if he's pushed too far.
"I have a skill called [Observe]. It tells me the LVL and stats of every person I use it on. In certain cases, I also got a short bio. I'm guessing I only got a bio for Redhead and Agent K because I knew that they were magic, but I only suspected you were."
Did I forget anything?
"Oh, I call Hwang Sung-Gon Agent K. 'Cuz, you know, he looks like a Man in Black, yet he's badass enough to deserve a real name. Plus, he resembles the character a little. And Redhead's Kwon Shi-Yun for obvious reasons."
He stared into my eyes for a few moments before letting his head hit the table again. Gently this time, thankfully. I would hate to have a mentally challenged person as my new best friend.
And Sun-Il becoming mentally challenged would be a tragedy, too.
"Right."
He seemingly forced his noggin upright with a titanic effort. It took his eyes a moment to uncross and focus on me.
"The Abyss is basically the name for our society of people with supernatural powers. Almost anything you can imagine exists or can exist in the world of the Abyss. It's a pretty ruthless place, to be honest; there are people perfectly willing to sell others into slavery for a quick bit of won. There's a pretty big market for slaves with unusual Abilities, so I hear. So, uh, don't go around advertising your ability unless you want to defend yourself from hunters."
Ah? That's quite a bit more… hellish than I'd imagined. It does make a brutal amount of sense, though. So there's actually an impetus to LVL UP. I have to become stronger than the hunters, after all. Nice. Most games just arbitrarily have the main characters become more powerful even when the plot lags.
"Oh, uh, the Abyss also covers some other realities, a couple permanent pocket dimensions, and quite a few other universes in the multiverse. No one really rules the place, but there's a pretty powerful group of sorcerers and nonhumans that sort of regulate the place. Kind of like organized vigilante justice. Not to mention the Abyss Auction."
Abyss Auction? My confusion must've showed, since Sun-Il continued after a moment's pause.
"It's basically a huge marketplace, full of almost everything you could want. Even people. Of course, they don't carry every good or service, but those they don't have are usually highly-specialized and almost never required for anything but the most powerful and obscure rituals, spells, or whatever. My family deals with them pretty regularly to acquire the materials needed to maintain our more supernatural functions."
Huh. I wonder how I access it?
"I know that look on your face. No way in hell I'm letting you get tangled in that place. Knowing you, you'd get trapped in debt and be sold off into slavery within a week. Or at least attract the attention of some rather unsavory people."
Ugh. Party pooper. Well, whatever. I'm flush with information, even if I don't know how to make it work for me yet. I wonder if Sun-Il knows something about that fucking Legion Zombie?
"You know anything about Legion Zombies?"
"Huh? What's that?"
So I guess they're not exactly common knowledge. Or maybe Sun-Il just doesn't know much about zombie culture and biology.
"Nothin' Just a monster I'm planning to take down."
And you know what, I think I can, now. Just pepper it with ranged attacks to slowly chip away at the thing's HP. From what I remember, it takes excessive zombie hunting to create a Legion Zombie, so I might even LVL UP before the boss. Nice. Free MP refill and more points in INT are great in my book.
Sun-Il just nodded.
"Well, don't go too far out of your league. I'm always here to help, you know."
Yeah, yeah. I appreciate the sentiment, but I got this. All I have to do is avoid being hit and whittle the boss' HP away with [Spiraling Energy Bolt].
"Got it. Don't worry about me, though."
He nodded again.
"Hm. Just be sure not to get so into grinding you forget about the finals coming up."
…
Eh? Finals?
Finals!
Holy shit, I forgot about those! Ah man, what am I gonna do!?
Calm.
Whoa. Right, just think this through. Kill the Legion Zombie tonight, put any earned points into INT, and then cram your ass off before the finals. That should ensure a passing score, at least.
No time to waste, then. Off to zombieland!
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After bidding goodbye to a still-disheartened (but secretively amused) Sun-Il, I exited the Illusion Barrier, noting that he left with me. It appears that Illusion Barriers collapse wholly when closed. Or, at least, my Barriers do.
Right, the plan's simple. Go out and kill zombies, preferably without MP use, so I can go into the boss battle with almost ideal stats. Then run away like a scared little girl while flinging balls of magical energy behind me. Then spend any stat points I earned and check out the loot.
"[ID Create]."
Nothing could go wrong.
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Surprisingly, nothing did. At least, not yet. I just managed to slip a Runner with my spear before beating it into the ground with my fists. For a finale, I jabbed it in the cranium, permanently ending the undead's unlife.
You've gained one LVL.
Ooh, nice. Just dump all those points into INT like I planned for an INT of 35. Pretty good, from what I've seen.
Name: Han Jee-Han
Title: Apprentice Undead Hunter
Class: The Gamer
LVL: 12
XP: 10/12000
HP: 190/190
MP: 335/335
STR: 8
DEX: 12
VIT: 8
INT: 35
WIS: 20
LUK: 7
Points: 0
Money: 450W
Holy shit. Almost didn't make it. Nice! I'm kind of bummed about my new financial status, though. Next to broke ain't a good place to be.
Ah, Roid at five o'clock. A simple kill, I suppose.
"[Mighty Thrust]."
The spear slipped smoothly into the deadhead's skull, poking slightly out the other side.
It was elegant. It was even beautiful, in a horrifyingly grotesque way. It also broke my spear, shattering the handle about halfway down in an appropriately dramatic fashion. I would be upset, but…
I have a spare just for this, right? Just use that, I suppose.
Eh? What's going on? Red light was pouring out of an unidentified source as a string of disgustingly-fleshy sounds emanated from the same location.
Oh, Legion Zombie's forming. Sweet. Better get a decent view.
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The creation sequence was just as impressive as before, if a bit less suspenseful. Unavoidable, I suppose, since I already knew the end result. As the beastie was taking its first shaky steps, I decided to gather a bit of info on it.
"[Observe]."
Legion Zombie LVL: 34
HP: 15200 (15200) MP: 1750 (1750)
An assembly of zombies filled with resentment. When a large amount of zombies feel threatened from mass hunting, they merge into a Legion Zombie. It has no magic and is very slow, but possesses immense strength and toughness.
Alright, not too tough. Just run away and plug it full of holes.
"[Spiraling Energy Bolt]."
What's the damage?
"[Observe]."
Legion Zombie LVL: 34
HP: 15200 (15110) MP: 1750 (1750)
An assembly of zombies filled with resentment. When a large amount of zombies feel threatened from mass hunting, they merge into a Legion Zombie. It has no magic and is very slow, but possesses immense strength and toughness.
Alright, so about 90 damage per. Assuming an average of 100 damage, that comes out to… 152 uses, exactly. Can I do that? Ah, better walk and calculate so the asshole doesn't sneak in a cheap shot.
"Status."
Name: Han Jee-Han
Title: Apprentice Undead Hunter
Class: The Gamer
LVL: 12
XP: 10/12000
HP: 190/190
MP: 326/335
STR: 8
DEX: 12
VIT: 8
INT: 35
WIS: 20
LUK: 7
Points: 0
Money: 450 W
So that's 6 MP for every cast, minus the 3 I presume was [Mighty Thrust]'s cost, so…
I dodged around a turned-over dumpster.
That would be about 50-ish casts? 300 divided by 6 equals 50, so one less to account for the missing MP. Not enough. Not kill it, not even enough to bring it down to a third of its health.
I neatly stepped oven an opened manhole cover.
I suppose my MP Regen'll give me enough to take it down. Last time, it went away in about… 3 hours? Yeah, seems about right. And with my Regen of 4 per minute, I'll gain 240 MP every hour. So that's almost another barrage of [Spiraling Energy Bolt]s. My Regen is just enough to squeeze out the damage required before the boss goes poof.
Good thing, too. I don't want to waste tonight waiting for it to dissipate.
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"[Spiraling Energy Bolt]."
My palm emitted a whiff of smoke rather than the expected blue and white ball of supernatural force. I guess that's the end of this bombardment. Good thing, too. It seems the more I damage it, the more vigor it pursues me with. It'd be nice to give it time to cool off.
I cut through the various alleyways and gaps between buildings to stall the Legion Zombie. So far, it's destroyed about 4 buildings in its attempts to maul me to death. Still, this is remarkably simple; the tarmac throw is even easier to dodge now that I watch it for movement and every other attack it has is melee, apparently. Though, to be honest, the only reason I'm winning is because I'm a cheap bastard who isn't reluctant to cheese his way to victory.
So, essentially, I'm pretty much every semi-serious gamer that's ever lived.
This is actually excellent training for my [Spiraling Energy Bolt]. So far, in a few minutes, I got the Skill to LVL 8 through constant use. I expect to get to LVL 12 before the night's out. I wonder if I should start training [Heavy Spiraling Energy Bolt], too?
Nah, the tradeoff for more Damage and Force would probably be less efficiency. Like how the most powerful weapons in FPS games generally have extremely limited ammo, so it's a tradeoff between performance and general usability. Not exactly something I want in this situation.
Regardless, I can do this! The only way I could fail is if it pulls out more dangerous moves when its HP gets too low. And, if it does, the only thing I can see it doing is more powerful melee, since it was stated it can't use magic and the tarmac throw is deadlier than a car throw. Flying debris adds a sorely-needed area of effect.
What's the MP level right now? 59? Pretty long time just thinking. Well, thinking and dodging.
Oop, almost lost my head there. Heh.
Hah. And the 45 minute wait begins.
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Surprisingly, the boss battle went by with no real surprises. When the Legion Zombie hit what I estimated to by 1000 HP, it went into a raging berserker mode than almost tripled its walk speed. So I actually had to run for my life, instead of just walk for my life.
It took three more barrages of [Spiraling Energy Bolt] before the beast fell. Well, more like two and several more shots outside of the barrage pattern. Still, it was a close call; I killed it about 15 minutes before the 3 hour mark. Any longer than that, and I'm sure it would've disappeared.
Anyweay, when I drained the last of the Legion Zombie's HP, it reared back, almost like another attack. I prepared to roll out of the way of anything it tried to pull, but cut short when it collapsed on its front. The whole corpse was briefly enveloped by a pale mist before it was blown away, taking the fallen body with it.
Fortunately, said mist also left behind THREE items! Count 'em, three!
I dashed eagerly out onto the pavement, keeping half an eye out for additional zombies coming to ambush me. Nothing popped up, so I devoted my full attention to the collection of items, only to be stunned into silence.
A pile of won bills. It was a pretty large stack, composed of about a dozen bricks of cash, arranged in a pyramid. Fuckin' A.
A few glass bottles filled with dully-colored liquid. Probably healing, though that blue potion might restore MP instead.
And… a black garment. It was neatly folded and lying in-between the other two items. It seemed kind of raggedy, but I suppose appearances aren't everything. I wonder what it is, though. After a bit of contemplation, I decided to man the fuck up and unfold it.
It was beyond my wildest hopes.
A solid black, slightly torn, black-dyed leather duster! This is absolutely amazing! I'm going to look amazingly badass in this!
"[Observe]."
Ragged Leather Duster (ARMOR)
A solid black duster made entirely of leather. Once worn by a powerful wizard turned into an equally powerful zombie, some of its protective enchantments are lost. However, close contact with necromantic magicks have given it an eerie resilience to certain energies.
+20 Armor
+20 Armor vs Undead
+20 Armor vs Dark
I am so equipping this.
"Inventory."
The screen popped up and, after picking up the coat, I transferred it to the coat slot. Immediately, the duster appeared onto my and, after a few quick checks, I determined it fit perfectly. A bit baggy for free movement, but not so much as to slip off easily.
I glanced at myself in a nearby shop's window and was rather pleased. The simple white button up fit well, as did the dark pants and shoes. Something's missing, though. A weapon?
I pulled out my spare spear and rested it on my right shoulder, but there was still something lacking in the image I struck.
Hmmm…
Oh, an ethereal flame to give me an aura of mystery! I can do that!
Lessee, concentrate on making a loose ball of mana in my left hand.
The required blue orb appeared and remained rather pale.
Now to make it a bit translucent around the edges.
A bit harder, bit getting the requisite thickness in the requisite places wasn't too difficult.
Now to create floaty tendrils reaching up into the air and wave randomly.
Much more difficult. I cheated and let them run in a staggered pattern, since this was purely for my benefit.
Would you like to name your skill?
… This is a skill? I suppose it is kind o impressive. And it does emit light. What the hell.
"Ghost Flame."
Is [Ghost Flame] acceptable?
Um, yeah? That's why I said it.
Now to actually do the pose so I can be satisfied.
"[Ghost Flame]."
I glanced at myself in the shop window and was absolutely astounded at how awesome I looked. Spear hefted over my mantle-covered shoulder, ghostly blue fire held in my other hand, casting an eerie light on my features. The duster might've been ripped, but it added character and didn't impede the waterproofing at all.
Simply amazing. I'm glad I spent those couple minutes creating the skill.
Oh yeah, the other items. I added the three potions and stack of 500000 won to the Inventory. What XP did I get from that, anyway?
"Status."
Name: Han Jee-Han
Title: Apprentice Undead Hunter
Class: The Gamer
LVL: 12
XP: 10010/12000
HP: 190/190
MP: 13/335
STR: 8
DEX: 12
VIT: 8
INT: 35
WIS: 20
LUK: 7
Points: 0
Money: 500450 W
Holy motherfucking, cocksucking shit. 10k XP.
I don't even really need to say more, really. Well, I guess I'll get that LVL UP tomorrow night, then focus on studying.
Sounds like a plan.
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Look at that review button. So lonely. So shy. Yet so beautiful. Why don't you cheer him/her up by introducing him/her to you mouse pointer?