So… I'll be the first to admit that this chapter has been a long time coming. For those who were guessing as to who the person was whomst Jolyne landed in front of, it's time to see if you were overwhelmingly right or horrendously wrong.
Also… just finished watching the 2022 Game Awards, and I'll be honest, if anyone didn't think that Elden Ring was going to win, I'd love to know what was going through your mind. My bets were on God Of War Ragnorok, but that was because I liked that game more than Elden Ring. Logically, I knew it was going to be Elden Ring.
That being said, you wanna know what I'm the most annoyed about? No Silksong news! I'm coping, malding, and seething, all in that order. Oh well, how about we just get into responses to reviews/comments?
Oh, but first….
I have a P-Atr-Eon. Please check it out! The links are all in my bios on Wattpad, FF Dot Net, Ao3, and Qoutev. Just in case, here is the link: gobblegum2?fan_landing=true&view_as=public
And now, it's time that we jump into my responses reviews/comments!
[Response to Reviews/Comments]
(Qoutev) TACO SENSEI: Yes, yes I did. Besides, it makes you want to come back, does it not? Besides, I think it's pretty realistic—getting your eye yanked out and passing out from blood loss seems pretty normal, right? Well… as normal as it can be. I will say this, though, your prediction as to who that character was…. You know what, how about you just find out the normal way? I think spoiling it here would be dumb. Also, my killing off the main character in such a way would be lame. Besides, if I planned to kill her off like that, she would've gone down in a much more… flashier way. That, and it's still too early to start even thinking about Killing Jolyne.
(Qoutev) Dead phone: Thank you for the kind words! I was kinda worried that the action scene was going to be memed on because of how, at least in my opinion, sloppy it is compared to some of the books I'm reading lately. Then again, this is fanfiction, so I guess I shouldn't pressure myself that much. As for Jolyne losing her eye and it being a massive nerf to her character… yeah, that's the point. It's also to show that these guys are not messing around and that Jolyne is not as invincible as she likes to think herself as. Also, no need to worry about Jolyne dying anytime soon. It's too early into the fanfic for me to start doing stuff like that….
(Qoutev) JammyJam: That's pretty much what Jolyne did. You bet your ass she's adopting all of them, without hesitation, mainly because she feels bad for them, seeing as they have no home, it's probably for the best. No one likes homeless kids, namely cause it's depressing.
Kolt999: I haven't really played the Yakuza Games with Kiryu in them, so I wouldn't know how he scales against Jolyne. From what I've heard though, he'd probably kick her ass from here to kingdom come. Jolyne might have better hax and powers, but Kiryu has insane plot armour that goes against reason from what I heard, so yeah, no, that fight is one-sided. At least, for now, that is. And, yeah, I did kind of fumble the bag by not making Jolyne give a verbal lashing to Daikage, but then again, it would've been pretty stupid to stop the fight for a verbal roasting of a lifetime. I probably could've done it beforehand, but I don't think Jolyne was thinking about that when they came face to face. Also, Red Sun is the best track in the MGR OST, hands down.
Now, with that being said, I believe it's time we start the chapter, no?
xxXXxxXXxx
[Jolyne Brooks]
She hadn't known how long it had been since she had last opened her eyes. Hours? Days? Weeks? Whatever the case might have been, she didn't really care all too much. All she cared about was knowing where she was now. When her… eye opened, she found herself in a hospital room. A familiar sight, but not one she was too happy to see.
"Oh! You're awake! Thank goodness, I was worried about you, Senpai!"
"That voice… Where have I heard that voice before…?" Jolyne thought, blinking several times as she sat up, clasping her forehead in confusion as the dual-haired teen looked over to see… another girl? Well, duh, she knew that much. But the blue hair and equally blue eyes were something she wasn't accustomed to seeing. Well, unless you counted anime characters, but even still….
The girl in question was slim, almost unhealthy so in Jolyne's opinion. Due to the fact that she was sitting, it was hard to tell just how tall she was, so Jolyne assumed she was around her height, but that was only a guess. She had long flowing hair that went just past her waist, with some of it framing her face and stopping just past the elbow, with bangs swept off to the right. She wore two thin pink hairclips on her right bangs, and another pink hairclip pinning the rest of her ocean blue hair off to the left. Her eyes were round and were dark blue. In Jolyne's opinion, she assumed that it was due to make-up that her eyes were as round as they were.
She was wearing a white seifuku-styled school uniform with a blue sailor's collar and sleeve cuffs, both striped with two white lines. Smack dab in the middle of her chest was a giant pink ribbon, tied in a large bow. This went along with a short, pleated blue plaid skirt. Her legwear consisted of navy thigh-high socks, the edges striped with a white line, and dark brown Mary Janes—a type of shoe that costs a right arm and a left leg.
Jolyne had to admit, the girl was cute. Scratch that, she was attractive, stupidly so. Almost doll-like. And Jolyne wouldn't be afraid to admit that she blushed a little at seeing the girl. What made matters a little bit worse was that she called her Senpai. Why did that make things worse? Well, unfortunately for Jolyne, back in her old life, she found out that being called that was a turn-on for her at the time, especially by cute girls.
It made her sound like a weeb, and to say she was ashamed of it was an understatement. Hell, she wasn't even a big anime fan back in her old life, her brain just liked the way that word sounded, and being called it made her heart pound against her chest. Didn't help that the first time she heard that word was on "The Hub" and in a rather risque situation.
That being said, to avoid being embarrassed, she purged that thought out of her mind, she blinked, and finally realized just who the person was sitting next to her within… a hospital? Yes, an official hospital, not the one at Hope's Peak Academy. Honestly, that was beneficial. That hospital sucked as far as she was concerned. Anywho, the person that was seated next to her was….
"You're Sayaka Maizono… From Class 78, right?" Jolyne asked, raising an eyebrow as the blue-haired girl nodded, a small smile on her face.
"Yes, that's correct! And you're Brooks Jolyne from Class 77 – B, right, Senpai?" Sayaka asked as Jolyne nodded, the blush on her cheeks flaring again. Inwardly, Jolyne cursed that word, covering the lower half of her face.
Sayaka giggled at that, before looking away, her expression a bit on the worried side. "I… I don't know how to put this, uh… well, I was walking home from practice with my group, when you… stumbled out of that Kuzuryu Clan base all bloodied and battered. I've seen you walking the halls of the school, and I recognized you… so…."
"You called an ambulance," Jolyne finished the sentence for the girl, who looked at her with a small smile yet again. She didn't say anything this time, but the concern spoke volumes. The girl didn't even know a damn thing about her, and still called an ambulance. Well, then again, watching someone stumble out of a Yakuza compound with a missing eye and drenched in blood was a cause for concern.
"Y-Yes… I… I was worried that you might've died, Brooks-senpai… it's been… about a week since you were admitted, and—"
"Did you just say a week?" Jolyne interrupted. She went to twitch her right eye when her face exploded into pain. Clutching at the right side of her face, she had to bite down on her lower lip to stop herself from screaming, as Sayaka flinched. A lone tear streaked down her face, and only then did she realize that she was wearing a medical eye patch.
Glancing at the mirror that was smack dab in front of her bed, she saw how the front of it was lightly soaked in blood, albeit dried. She was wearing a hospital gown, as was to be expected, and her left arm was scarred to hell and back. She didn't know how that happened. It probably had something to do with what Daikage did during the fight. She probably got her arm cut up pretty badly during the multiple clashes she had, but that was yet to be determined.
One thing that she immediately noticed and hated was the lack of peripheral vision. Although, it wasn't as bad as she thought it was going to be. Instead of only seeing darkness on her right-hand side like she assumed it would've been like, it was simply… just nothing. It didn't even look like she had lost an eye, save for the fact that she had to look over to her right a little bit more to see everything.
Sure, it was distracting, and sure, it was extremely annoying, but it wasn't debilitating. And while that was a pressing matter, it wasn't as much of a pressing matter as realizing she had been out for a damn week. A full week. A lot could've happened in a week, such as The Kuzuryu Clan estate being evacuated, and Natsumi having been moved to another, safer location.
And if that was the case…. "Son of a bitch…." Jolyne cursed under her breath, still clutching the right side of her face. Turning to look at Sayaka, she gave her a half-hearted smile. "Thank you, Maizono-san, for calling that ambulance. I'm pretty sure I would've died had it not been for you… I am in your debt," Jolyne said as Sayaka shook her head, putting her hands up in a mock defensive gesture.
"O-oh! No, there's no need for that! I just did what any other person would do, that's all!" Sayaka replied. Jolyne scoffed, waving her concern away.
"Please, I'm pretty sure most people would've left a gaijin like me to die, assuming I picked the wrong fight. You, on the other hand, saved my life. I owe you, big time. Besides, aren't I your senpai, or something like that? Shouldn't you be happy that I'm putting myself in your debt?" Jolyne questioned, raising an eyebrow as Sayaka made an "oh" shape with her mouth, before putting a hand to it with an almost shocked expression.
"I-I... I suppose you're right. Truth be told, I had no idea you were a foreigner. You don't necessarily look like one, maybe besides that pale skin of yours," Sayaka admitted, placing her hands on her legs as Jolyne shrugged.
"What can I say, I get my overall appearance from my mother. She was born in the Tokyo Prefecture, before immediately moving to Canada with her family. Technically speaking, she has dual citizenship, but only on a technicality. I get the pasty skin from my dad. Not that it matters," Jolyne lied as Sayaka hummed.
"I must ask then… what was your mother's maiden name?" Sayaka questioned as Jolyne raised an eyebrow. Now she had to come up with a lie that intricate! Or… perhaps….
"I…" Jolyne paused, looking away from Sayaka with a gleam of mourning in her eyes. "I never met my mother… she died giving birth to me. My father blames me for it, it's why I live in Japan, and not with my dad, in Canada. He's never even told me her name, let alone her maiden name. The only reason I have his last name is that it was printed on a piece of paper," Jolyne said, lying through her teeth, though not that she had much of a choice.
Sayaka pursed her lips, before looking at the floor. "I see… I'm… sorry. I didn't mean to bring up bad memories like that," Sayaka apologized, bowing her head as Jolyne sighed. She glanced at Sayaka, smiling internally. All she cared about was that the blue-haired teen bought the lie, and it seemed as if she did—hook, line, and sinker.
A buzzing sound filled the room, as Sayaka straightened her posture. There was a phone on the bedside table, next to Jolyne's hospital bed. The blue-haired teen snatched it, looked at the screen, then frowned. "Ah… my talent agency," Sayaka said, letting a long, tired sigh escape her lips. "Just when I thought I didn't have to practice today…. Oh well. It was nice meeting you, Brooks-senpai! I hope we can meet again!" Sayaka said, a bright smile on her face as she stood up from the chair. However, just before she walked out of the room, Jolyne remembered something.
"Hey, wait a minute!" Jolyne called out, causing Sayaka to turn around, an eyebrow raised as Jolyne cleared her throat. "There was another girl… someone with short brown hair… I know I saw her. Did she… did she help me too?" Jolyne asked as Sayaka pursed her lips, then a gleam of recognition entered her eyes.
"Ah! Yes, now I remember. Naegi-kun's little sister. Coincidentally she was walking down the same sidewalk as me, a bit further ahead. She was the one who put pressure on the wound on your arm so you didn't bleed out. She checked on you throughout the week, worried about your safety as well. From what I'm aware, she's sick from being in the hospital so much. I can write down her home's phone number if you wanted to give her a call. I'm sure she'd appreciate it knowing that you're fine," Sayaka said as Jolyne felt a chill wash over her.
"Naegi… as in Makoto Naegi… the person that for some reason makes my stomach churn… although that probably has something to do with faction allegiance. If she's anything like him… no, there might actually be a chance that she doesn't have a side in any of this. I might be able to pull her over to Remnants of Despair like I'm trying to do with Class 77 – B. Speaking of, I'll have to check on them when I get back…." Jolyne thought, before clearing her throat.
"That would be nice, please," Jolyne stated as Sayaka nodded, fishing out a piece of paper from her shirt's breast pocket underneath the bow. She walked over to the bedside table and placed the note down.
"She asked me to hold onto it in case you woke up. I forgot that I had it in there, so thank you for reminding me. Have a good day, Brooks-senpai," Sayaka said, as she left the room, this time for real. And just as she left the room, a bombardment of pop-ups and new Quests appeared in front of Jolyne faster than she could blink.
Friendship with Sayaka Maizono unlocked! Sayaka Maizono considers you a friend! [050/100]
.
Trait Unlocked: Unrivalled charm and Beauty: Unrivalled charm and Beauty is a passive trait that makes you the center of attention, no matter what! Your appearance, as far as everyone else is considered, is peak femininity. Others with this trait include Junko Enoshima, Rantaro Amami, Sayaka Maizono, and ? (in this universe). When in a room with this trait, attention will be divided between you and the other person in a 50/50, or 25/25/25/25 split. People will be more open to listening to you, as well as falling for you romantically. Of course, if you have a negative reputation with them, then it will be easier for them to reach a positive reputation with you. Earning a negative reputation is a lot more difficult with his trait now being unlocked. The only people this does not work on, for the most part, are those of a rival faction that sees your faction as the scum of the earth. For example, if someone is a part of the Future Foundation, then they will not be affected by Unrivalled charm and Beauty! This trait also scales off of your Charisma. If your Charisma is low, then this trait will not be all that useful.
.
You have now unlocked Love Interest Quests! To unlock these, you must have 50 or more reputations with another character! These Quests are optional, but completing them will up your Charisma, Int, Faith, and Luck! Completing this is strongly advised! Once you complete 1 Love Interest quest, you will be given the option to chase that specific love interest, or, you will be given another option. It is recommended you pursue the first one you get to completion, that way you gain the most rewards. (In retrospect, you probably should've unlocked this earlier, but Daimen thought that it would complicate the whole "saving kids" thing, so he asked for me to hold it back until you saved the kids. Something about Optics or whatever).
.
[Overarching Multi-universal Quest – Build a Harem!]
Quest: Build a Harem of various sizes to take with you on your journey across the universe!
1 – Have a Harem of 3 or more people (Gender does not matter) [0/3]
-Rewards for completing: 5,000 Exp, 50,000 Yen, 3 Gacha Tokens, 3 Stand Discs, Plus 25 in Charisma-
2 – Have a Harem of 10 or more people (Gender does not matter) [0/10]
-Rewards for completing: 7,500 Exp, 150,000 Yen, 5 Gacha Tokens, 5 Stand Discs, Plus 25 in INT-
3 – Have a Harem of 25 or more people (Gender does not matter) [0/25]
-Rewards for completing: 100,000 Exp, 1,000,000 Yen, 20 Gacha Tokens, 25 Stand Discs, Plus 25 in Faith-
4 – Have a Harem of 50 or more people (Half MUST be male, the other half MUST be female) [0/50]
Rewards for completing: 1,000,000 Exp, 1,500,000 Yen, 30 Gacha Tokens, 30 Stand Discs, Plus 25 in Luck
.
[Overarching Side Quest – Cease being a Virgin!]
Description: Nobody, and I mean nobody, likes being a Virgin in high school. It's an unspoken rule that someone has to cease to be a virgin after high school, otherwise, you're a loser. And no one wants to be a loser! Right? Luckily, you have time on your side!
Quest: Cease to be a virgin by the time you turn 18, or face some pretty hefty consequences!
Rewards: Not being a virgin (Everyone likes this) x2 in Charisma stat, x2 in Stamina stat.
Failure: New title of "Loser", which prevents you from gaining above Epic items in Gacha, all EXP is halved, and all stats are decreased by 75%.
Time Limit: 2 years, 259 days, and 12 hours
.
[Love Interest Quest – Sayaka Maizono – The Melodic Beauty – Part 1]
Description: Sayaka Maizono wants to see you again, seeing as she's worried about you, and finds you to be good company. While you've only just met, she sees you as a friend, and she wants to get to know you better as a friend. Although, there's a chance for you two to be much… more than friends…
Quest: Meet Sayaka Maizono outside of the Front Gates of Hope's Peak Academy, from there, she will ask you to hang out at a coffee shop. If you succeed in this social interaction, you will gain a plus 5 reputation with Sayaka Maizono. Alternatively, if it goes extremely well, you'll gain another plus 50 with Sayaka Maizono. To do this, you have to save her life, which will be triggered by ? fifteen minutes into the social interaction. This will only happen if you keep things interesting, and the coffee date goes well to gain the initial plus 5. Whatever you do, do NOT kill ?, this will decrease your reputation with Sayaka Maizono. Be civil, and only use magic if absolutely necessary!
Rewards: plus 5 Reputation with Sayaka Maizono, plus 50 reputations with Sayaka Maizono (Only gained by saving her life)
Time Limit: 3 days
To say that Jolyne was overloaded with information was an understatement. A new trait, three new quests, two of which have time limits, while the other radiated being horny. Actually, two of the three quests revolved around being horny, and it was kind of annoying. Just what exactly was Daimen thinking?! Why the hell did he want her to have a Harem?
It was Jolyne's personal opinion that love was something two people should have between one another, and that it should be private, intimate, and personal. She didn't care what gender or sexual preference anyone had, just so long as it was between two people who loved each other, then it was normal. Three being the absolute maximum! Beyond that, it started to get gross. Granted, Daimen was the apprentice of a Norse God, and Gods of any pantheon, regardless of how nice they were, had their bad eggs.
Granted, Loki wasn't one of them. He was a bit on the obnoxious side and loved to cause mischief, but that was about it. Then again, Loki did fuck a horse, to completion, and had a kid with said horse, so perhaps it wasn't too farfetched to believe that any disciple of Loki's was down bad horrendous.
Pursing her lips, Jolyne felt her eye patch, before sighing. She lost an eye doing that dungeon. She thought she was prepared… but she guessed she had jumped in a little too early. Daikage beat the breaks off of her and stole her eye as a result. Granted, she killed him, but only because she was able to think rationally. Had she hesitated for even a second, Daikage would've killed her.
And if Daikage was considered an easier fight than Natsumi… then what the hell was Natsumi capable of doing? She needed to be prepared, far more than normal. And for that—
Rewards were gained for killing 150 out of 500 enemies within Kuzuryu Clan Estate Raid Dungeon!
Plus 250,000 Exp, 25,000 Yen, and 150 souls stolen by Grim Reaper Scythe.
.
LEVEL UP! LEVEL INCREASED FROM 34 to 49! YOU CAN NOW USE 75 OF 150 SOULS TO BOOST YOUR STATS PLUS REGULAR LEVEL-UPS!
.
[Name: Jolyne Brooks: Ultimate Mage – Age: 16 – Class: Renegade – Level: 49 – Faction: World Ender/Remnants of Despair – Race: Magma-Human]
Stats:
HP: 4,775
Stamina: 4,775
Mana: 2,464
Atk: 547
Mg Atk: 980
Def: 547
Mg Def: 1,005
Endurance: 547
Int: 20
Crit: 63.5
Crit Def: 63.5
Mg Crit: 120.5
Charisma: 6
Faith: 0
Luck: 3
Karma: 150 (Evil), 1 (Neutral), 2 (Good)
HP Regen: 54.3 per second
Stamina Regen: 54.3 per second
Mana Regen: 120.5 per second
Currency: 577,780
Class Bonus: Deal Extra Damage to those who sided with the Future Foundation and other Ultimate Students.
Title Bonus: As the Ultimate Mage, all of your magic stats (Mana, Mg Atk, Mg Def, Mg Crit) have doubled. However, your attack and Defense stats have lost 30% of their normal upgrade. (+3 instead of +5)
Race Bonus: Magma Human: You are immune to all fire-based, water-based, and ice-based attacks, regardless of power, user, or what-have-you.
Exp till next level: 3,149
"Are we done with splash screens, System?" Jolyne thought, her mental tone impatient.
[There are still four more. Please be patient. I am trying to catch you up to speed with your own powers. You have been unconscious for a week. The doctors have done a good job in terms of surgical prowess and repairing any broken bones, along with your own passive regeneration.]
Jolyne sighed, waving her hand away as four more pop-ups appeared in front of her.
[You're Magu Magu No Mi has gone from LV. 1 to LV. 7. A Damage increase of 15% has been added to the amount of DPS you do with your Magu Magu No Mi.]
.
[Blood Control has gone from LV. 5 to LV. 10 due to increased use of Bear Claw and Blood Spears!]
[New construct unlocked – Blood Staff: Blood Staff is a construct that allows for more advanced control over any blood within a 50-meter area. The construct costs 500 Mana to make and summons instantly when you activate the spell from here on out. Using the Blood Staff, you can generate blood from thin air to make weapons. This blood is pulled from anything around you, be it animals, civilians, or even insects. The Blood is removed from these creatures, slowly killing them as a result. The Blood is removed through any orifice available and is extremely painful for the creature or person in question. Each person or creature that is drained of their blood will cost you 50 Mana. You can use this blood for any means, including healing!]
-New Spell-related trait unlocked at Lv. 20-
.
[Despair Aura has gone from LV. 1 to LV. 3]
[New ability unlocked – Despairful Ambition boost: This ability gives those who are induced into Despair a times 2 physical, speed, and stamina buff, and can be switched on and off at the user's command. Instead of knocking everyone on their asses and making them useless, you can alternatively buff those who are in Despair. Those who are NOT will receive a similar effect, though in the form of a debuff. This costs 150 Mana to use and to maintain, 5 mana per second]
.
[Abomination Creation has gone from LV. 1 to LV. 5. Mana required to create a single Abomination has been reduced by 10%]
"Fucking finally…. Though I gotta admit, this has been enlightening, to say the very least," Jolyne quipped to herself, clenching her hand as she activated Blood Control. Just as the new construct explained, a bright red staff appeared in her hand.
The staff in question was, well, the colour of blood. The head of the staff had a pair of wings protruding from either side, with a hexagonal ball in the center spinning in random directions. Within the hexagonal ball was an orb, and said orb had a small black pinprick in the center, almost appearing to be an eye of some kind. Running down the staff were several runes, all of which were written in Japanese. The runes were archaic in meaning but effective.
The runes read as follows: Blood art the essence of life, and thou's blood art mine. It was definitely a foreboding sentence and effectively explained its abilities in a more poetic sense. That being said, however, it was also incredibly on the nose.
Dispursing the staff, and the spell, she looked over to the note on the table and picked it up. The number on it was labelled as The Naegi Household, meaning it was probably their home's landline. It was also at that point that she realized she had an IV stuck into her arm, as the bendy cord with the drip was being tugged on, causing a strain on the cord due to her arm's movements. Placing the note back down, she relaxed her arm and sat herself up. Just in time too, as a doctor walked into the room with a clipboard.
The doctor in question looked to be your standard doctor. White coat, blue shirt and blue pants, a medical mask over his mouth, a pair of glasses, tan skin, and a stethoscope around his neck. He had plain brown hair and plain brown eyes. Basically, an NPC if she were to make a video game comparison.
"Good, you're awake. We were starting to get worried. But, as it would seem, you're conscious," the doctor said, checking off something from his clipboard. His expression became somewhat sombre, before looking at Jolyne. "It's sad, seeing someone so young lose something like that. As I'm sure you're aware, you'll never see out of that eye again, seeing as you don't have it anymore," the doctor stated as Jolyne placed a hand over the bandage, before sighing.
"To be honest, doc, I keep forgetting I lost it. Everything just seems… normal, almost. I think my brain has already made the necessary adjustments, seeing as everything seems normal enough to me," Jolyne said as the doctor nodded.
"That's surprising. Most people lament a loss like this. But then again, you are an Ultimate. I'd expect no less," the doctor said as Jolyne waved her arm dismissively.
"That has nothing to do with it," Jolyne replied, a scoff following the statement. "I just want this bandage off and an eyepatch of some kind. This cannot be sanitary," the Mage stated, gesturing to the bandage as the doctor nodded.
"Yes, that would be correct. And, just to clear up any worries, we have your cloak and clothes stored in a closet used for patients. We even washed them, though your hoodie went from black to white due to the use of bleach to wash out the blood. We're sorry about that," The doctor stated. Jolyne groaned, shaking her head. At least her cloak was there, meaning she didn't lose it.
"Thank you, doctor. Now, can I get this thing off now, or what?"
Without any hesitation, the doctor put down his clipboard and walked over to her left-hand side. Slowly, the man began to unwrap the bandage around her head. The dried-on blood made it a bitch to come off, and when the air hit the open wound, it stung like hell. The wound in question was a giant circular gap, revealing a giant black hole that couldn't be peered into, surrounded by flesh. It looked sunken and gross.
"We had to remove the dangling eyelids. Whoever slashed at your eye damaged them beyond repair. As a result, you can't close that eye anymore. So I recommend always wearing a padded eye patch from now on, just so you don't get anything in the open wound."
As the doctor explained, he brought out an eye-socket-sized eyepatch from a drawer, wrapped up in plastic wrap. Thanks to a mirror just over the doctor's shoulder, she could see that the eyepatch was white, and it had the Hospital's logo on it. The logo in question was that of a red thunderbolt, which symbolized speedy recovery, as she knew about due to a poster just behind the doctor. Underneath the logo read "Tokyo Prefecture Hospital" in Kanji.
The eyepatch fit perfectly around her head and sat comfortably around her eye socket. There was a sealing around it, and a pad within, making it rather comfortable to have to rest against where her eye used to be. "The padding on the inside is made of a wet bandage of sorts, meant to catch and dissolve any bacteria or blood leakage from the wound if it ever bleeds again. It was invented by The Ultimate Nurse a while back, and ever since then everyone and their mother's been using one. They're fairly cheap too, so if you need to replace it you can pick one up for fairly cheap at a pharmacy," The doctor explained as Jolyne traced the eyepatch with her index and middle finger.
Now she felt like a chunibyo, what with the whole eyepatch-wearing, magic-slinging conspiracy nuts that they seemed to be almost 99% of the time. Though her magic was real, which separated her from other Chunibyo. At least, in her opinion, anyway. Looking over to the doctor, she frowned. "When do you think I can be released, Doctor…" her voice trailed off, looking over his name tag. "Dr. Tsubasa… because I have things I need to do," Jolyne said, crossing her arms as the doctor nodded, clearing his throat.
"Normally, we'd keep you for another day, just to make sure there are no complications with the surgery. But, seeing as you're an Ultimate, and are probably rather busy… I could let you go early. However, if something arises regarding the surgery, do not hesitate to call. We'll book an appointment for you immediately," the doctor said, walking up to her IV drip and carefully unhooking it. "Your clothes are just down the hall, and over to the right."
Jolyne hummed, rubbing her wrist as she glanced at the doctor, before getting out of bed. When her feet touched the cold hospital floor, she cringed. The doctor kicked over some slippers, which she gratefully put on. "Thank you, again, Dr. Tsubasa. I'll be sure to call if something happens," Jolyne said, before leaving the room without so much as a second thought. Just as she left the room and turned the corner, her listening skill picked up something.
"Stupid Gaijin… if it wasn't for that idol walking in, I would've spat in their faces and told them to fuck off and have someone else deal with it… Maizono-chan is my favourite, but how come she has to be friends with a useless Gaijin!"
Jolyne narrowed her eyes. "So that's how it is, huh?" Jolyne thought, a blackish-whitish aura appearing around her. There were scuffling sounds in the hospital room, a shout of shock and surprise, and then the sound of someone hitting the floor. A moment later, Whitesnake appeared by Jolyne's side, right arm drenched in blood as the dual-haired mage smirked.
She killed the doctor. Why? Because he was a xenophobic bastard who deserved it. Pretty simple really. That, and he seemed like the creepy stalker type, what with how he spoke of Maizono-san. It personally made Jolyne shiver at the thought of someone like that being a fan of anyone. But now, he was completely out of the picture, which was something that she was sure Maizono-san would appreciate. Not that she'd ever know of that happening, of course.
Turning the corner and heading to the patient closet, she found her cloak, hoodie, and pants. They had been cleaned, just as the now-dead doctor said they had been. There were a few tears in her pants, meaning she'd have to get new ones. Snagging her clothes, she stepped into one of the nearby changing rooms, changed out of her hospital robe, then walked out.
She had to be honest…. The white hoodie looked good. Don't get her wrong, black was one of her favourite colours, but white on white and black looked better in her opinion, not to mention the grey sweatpants contrasted with the white hoodie more than they did with the black one. Her inner colour theorist was going bonkers, and she was all for it.
Once she was finished with that, she marched her way out of the hospital, the phone number of the Naegi-household in her pockets and a clear conscious to boot. She also had to rethink her strategy revolving around how she was going to tackle Natsumi's upcoming Boss Fight and the rest of the raid. No doubt that Natsumi would've upped the defences, as well as the might of her forces, and probably got someone to replace Daikage's role, now that he was dead, and also changed locations… which made things even more difficult….
And then, something popped into the back of her mind. "Wait a minute…." Jolyne thought as she walked down the street, passing by several people. She looked over her shoulder and saw Whitesnake, who she dispersed before the invisibility wore off and before it could cause a scene in public. "Why didn't I summon Whitesnake at all during the raid? I would've been able to kill more thugs, and he probably would've melted Daikage's health! What the hell was I thinking?!"
Now Jolyne was angry at herself. She probably could've avoided losing an eye, but instead, she had to forget about one of her more overpowered abilities, and use everything except Whitesnake. She actually had a chance now, not that she didn't before. Grumbling to herself, Jolyne stuffed her arms into her pockets. With a new mindset and 15 new levels under her belt, she was going to finish what she started.
But first, Jolyne ducked into an alleyway and opened her menu. She had 75 souls she could use, and when using them she gained an extra 25 stat points in a single stat. Viewing all of her important stats, she noticed that there were 2 that needed to have something put in them. And so, she did just that.
[125 stat points have been put into Charisma! 5 Souls have been used!]
[Charisma: 6 - 131]
.
[125 stat points have been put into Faith! 5 Souls have been used!]
[Faith: 0 - 125]
Jolyne tapped her chin. Now that two of her lowest stats had been upped by a metric crap ton, and seeing as she had 65 other souls, a part of her wanted to dump the rest of them into Mana and call it a day—The more mana, the better. However, another part of her wanted to horde the rest of it until she needed to actually use them, or for last-minute preparations. Think smarter, not harder.
Or….
"Hey, system, I gotta question."
[Yes, Jolyne Brooks? What is your question?]
"Is it possible for me to turn the souls that I collect with my scythe into EXP? And if so, how much EXP would I get for doing so?"
[You, in fact, can turn those souls into EXP. However, I must warn you that if you do, you will lose those souls forever. Not to mention, the amount of EXP you gain from converting one soul into EXP is not as much as you are probably thinking.]
"And what exactly is that amount?"
[For the rest of the souls that you have, that being 140 souls, you will only receive 140,000 EXP. That is 1,000 EXP per soul. Which would get you to Lv. 54.]
Jolyne hummed, before shaking her head. She would save them for when she needed them. Wasting them for such a small reward would've been stupid. "Nevermind. I think I'll pass on converting the souls into EXP. Thanks for answering my question, System."
[Reputation with System, plus 2 (002/100)]
Jolyne blinked at that. She didn't know she could increase her reputation with The System. A part of her was now curious about what that would do. Although, she assumed asking would only make them annoyed. Now that she thought about it….
"Hey, System?"
[Yes, Jolyne Brooks?]
"Do you have a name? You know, other than The System?"
[Yes, I do. If you are so inclined, call me Mono.]
"Alright then, Mono. Thank you."
[Reputation with Mono, plus 3 (005/100)]
Jolyne snickered at the interface change. Mono was a strange name, but if it was theirs, she wasn't going to question it. It probably had some meaning to them or another. The point is, however, that she was now increasing her reputation with Mono, and that was all that mattered to her. However, now was not the time to build a relationship with the system. She had a plan she had to finish. Now that she remembered that she had Whitesnake, she was going to run through the rest of the dungeon.
Besides, without Daikage being there, things would be a bit easier. Then, when she was done with that, she was going to check on Class 77 – B, and after that, she would check in on Junko and Mukuro to see how their end of the plan was going. And THEN, she'd call the Naegi household to alleviate Makoto Naegi's sister's worries.
Although, now she was curious. What was going on with Class 77 – B…?
[Chiaki Nanami]
Necessity was something that drove the human body. When one required food and water, one would have to improvise. This was something that Chiaki had to learn when she realized that Jolyne wasn't going to drop food. A lesson! That was what this was. She was teaching them how to survive. It was a shame because everyone else was incredibly bad at it. She had to thank all those survival games that she played for her skills, which seemed to be translating well into this scenario.
A lot of things happened throughout the week…. Most bad, and very little good… which was good! The worse things got, the stronger she felt herself become… the despair of it all…. It was… how would she describe it? She had felt nothing like this before, ever, not even once in her teenage life. Euphoric, might be the word that she was looking for, or maybe something else… something that started with an O.
The word was escaping her. Damnit. Oh well, all she knew was that the scenario made her mind gush with ideas about what to do when she got out, and what Despair she could inflict on those around her. She couldn't wait!
But what exactly was causing her to feel these things? Well….
Nekomaru had died from his injuries. A sad realization, and one that cost a few people's sanities, but hers was already long gone. The despair that filled the room when the others realized Jolyne was not coming with food was palpable, and she was all for it.
So, the question was… how did Chiaki survive for as long as she had. Well, it was all thanks to Nekomaru! Blood was 70% water, and water was needed to survive so that right there was her water source. And, as for meat… well, the walls were hot, so placing meat against it to cook it was an option. And seeing as Nekomaru was dead… well, that was free food right there.
Gundham followed in her footsteps, while everyone else remained disgusted with their actions. To be fair to them, she could understand why they thought it revolting. But then again, they didn't have a choice. Survival was more important than morals. Gundham seemed to think so, although he ate his meat raw. There were no real diseases in the human flesh that were a cause of concern. So long as no one ate the organs, they were fine, because that was where most bacteria were located.
The third to follow suit in their cannibalistic endeavours was Mikan, who was starving. In fact, most of if not everyone was starving. Akane had died two days ago. She refused to eat Nekomaru. Then again, she was also a pretzel and couldn't move, so she couldn't even if she tried. Kazuichi died hours after Akane, as did Sonia.
On day four, Hiyoko took the plunge and realized she liked the taste of human flesh. Mahiru became tempted on day five. And by day six, they were picking Nekomaru's bones clean, his organs piled up in the corner. Everyone else was dead, Pekoyama had only passed an hour or two ago, and Teruteru was on Death's door. It was amusing, how quickly such a fat and rotund man could become a skinny stick without food or water.
Something that Chiaki had noticed about herself, was that as time went on, and the more human flesh she began to eat, the more she felt her body tremble with some sort of delight. Like it was natural for her to do this. Maybe along the way she died, and her new sudden obsession with Despair had brought her back to life. Or maybe, just maybe, it was something else.
"Chiaki…" Gundham's voice came out in a growl. "What do you suppose we do now?" The ice mage asked, tapping his hand against a wall in a skittish manner. His eyes had lost all of their liveliness and had become wrought with Despair. Chiaki suppressed a manic smile, looking at the ice mage with a blank stare.
"We wait…. Or sleep… honestly, I don't care. Just do something, I for one am waiting for HER to grace us with her presence," Chiaki said, looking up at the doorway. Gundham stared up at the door and frowned.
"She, who imprisoned us here? Why do you wish for her to come? Is it so that we may exact our revenge against the witch?" Gundham asked as Chiaki snapped her head to look at his face. Her eyes became dangerous, and narrowed, as what appeared to be sparks of embers plinked off of her fingertips. Ah, yes, she remembered now. When she ate part of the molten flesh of Nekomaru, she felt her body heat up, and, completely on accident, she spewed fire out of her mouth and at Kazuichi's dead body, charring it to nothing but bones.
Apparently, through ingesting the magical energies of Jolyne Brook's Magma magic, she was able to gain her own magic. She had no idea how that was possible, but she was fond of the idea. Now, she wanted more. She wanted more of that power, and she hoped that Jolyne would give her it. She would become a real-life video game character—one of her true desires in life!
"You will do no such thing! She graced us with the chance to grow and become stronger from our shared experiences! I refuse to harm her, she is what brought me to a realization!" Chiaki growled. Her eyes brimming with Despair, as a crude sneer joined the twisted gaze. "Despair… it is the root of all power. Power that we can use to change the world! To make it a sandbox for our talents to grow! Think of it, had it not been for her, you would not have access to your Ice Magic, would you not?"
"And what of our friends?!" The sudden voice of Mahiru caught Chiaki off guard. She narrowed her eyes and glared at the redhead.
"What of them? They were fools to think we could beat her, that we could trap her! Their fates were not handed to them by Jolyne, but by themselves for thinking themselves more powerful!" Chiaki snapped. She was mimicking the bravado of one of her favourite game characters—Ganondorf, the Great Calamity, the one whom she wished to become. And right beside her would be Jolyne, her Zelda to her Ganondorf. Her wisdom to her power.
"Chiaki… what happened to you…?" Mahiru questioned, a confused look on her face. Chiaki only shook her head.
"Do not think yourself higher than I. You too partook in his flesh. You are no different from me," Chiaki said, narrowing her eyes at Mahiru, who scowled.
"I, and everyone else, only did so to survive. We had no choice." Mahiru replied. Mikan, who was in the corner muttering gibberish to herself, looked up from her fetal position, before shaking her head, and continuing her rocking back and forth. Mikan had gone insane after eating from Nekomaru's corpse. She had succumbed to Despair, much like Chiaki had.
From what Chiaki could tell, the effects that had been forced onto Mikan were different compared to what Despair did to herself. While the glorious feeling of Despair changed her into a braver, albeit crueller person, Despair made Mikan a rambling shell of herself, a lunatic with no mental comprehension outside of obeying orders.
"Look what it did to Mikan! It broke her, Chiaki! It crushed her spirit! Jolyne is evil, vile, and a disgusting human—no, a disgusting monster! And you want to be like her!? What the hell is wrong with you!" Mahiru shouted at Chiaki, who frowned an unamused frown. Instead of replying verbally, Chiaki merely channelled a small flame atop her fingertips, pointed it at Mahiru, and spat out the word that Jolyne used to say when casting a flame spell.
"Feugo."
The fireball launched from her fingers and sped toward Mahiru, who just barely ducked out of the way. The fire hit the wall behind them, melting it and leaving a hole big enough for someone small to squeeze through. Chiaki's eyes widened, and then as fast as she could, Hiyoko, who had been hiding behind Mahiru, made a sprinting run for the hole.
Before Chiaki could do anything to stop them, a wave of ice slammed into Chiaki, knocking her down as Gundham loomed over her, planting a foot down on her chest and glaring down at her, his eyes noticeably not having that same Despairful gleam in them that they once held… almost like it had been a trick that he had employed to lull her into a false sense of security. She watched as Hiyoko ran through the hole, and before long, the heat that had been slowly wafting off the walls ceased.
"You've changed, Chiaki, and not for the better," Gundham stated, dropping the Chunibyo act, as Chiaki had noted. He coated her in a thin blanket of ice strong enough to resist heat, as it seemed. "You made us eat the flesh of our friend, and while I will admit that it quenched my hunger, I did not enjoy it, nor did anyone else. You were the only one that did, and the Chiaki I knew would've never done that…. I hope that, for your sake, and everyone else's, you return to being who you used to be…. I do not wish to lose yet another friend," Gundham said, looking up at the platform and gate that separated where they were with the outside world.
"How long… How long have you planned this… this cannot be something that you just came up with…." Chiaki rasped, glaring at Gundham. He didn't look at her, but he did respond.
"When you started eating Nekomaru. We saw the writing on the wall, and as such, we devised a plan. We didn't know you'd gain magic from eating from his body, but I had a feeling that anything embued with magical energy could give it to those who consumed it. Once you gained your powers, we waited for you to believe we had become like you. Then, we sprung the plan, signalled by my statement "what are we to do next." In your blindness to your newfound loyalty, you would become angered at the mention of anything that defamed your newfound God, and it would seem to have backfired on you."
Gundham shook his head again, glancing down at Chiaki. "Please… do not hate us for doing this. We're doing this for your own good."
A moment later, Hiyoko squeezed through the hole again, as Gundham closed his eyes, then with a simple stomp, created a staircase up to the platform. Gundham turned to look at Mahiru and spoke. "Grab the medic, and carry her up the stairs, I'll grab the chef. Once this is over, we shall warn the rest of the school what has happened. We cannot allow this to go on any longer. We must put a stop to The Dark Warlock."
And with that, the group of four marched up the stairs, Mikan on Mahiru's back, Hiyoko following behind Mahiru, while Gundham stayed a the back carrying Teruteru. He looked down at Chiaki, shook his head, then left her there to freeze. Chiaki shouted and screamed at Gundham, but her shouts and screams fell on deaf ears.
The door was busted down by Gundham using an ice-covered punch, and then, they departed, leaving Chiaki all by herself in a pool of blood, guts, and waste. However, Chiaki was not going to go down easily. Activating her fire spell, she tried to melt the ice, but it proved to be stronger than she assumed. And with the room rapidly turning colder, her fire was having a hard time actually lighting anything.
And, as a wave of Despair washed over her, she gave up. Giving up gave her a stronger sense of Despair, and because of that, she would grow stronger to melt the ice and follow them. If that didn't work, then she would probably die. Then again, it wouldn't be long for Jolyne to get to her. And once she did, she and her would hunt down those who ran away and force them to be their thralls. Despair gleamed in her eyes, as she laughed with a manic sense of excitement.
When she got out… she would kill them… kill them for Jolyne… and earn Jolyne's respect. Yes… her respect… that was what she wanted. Then, they could be friends again. And deep down, that's all she wanted…. Was to be friends with Jolyne again. Even if it meant killing her other, old friends.
A laugh filled the deep, dark basement, as tears streamed down Chiaki's face, her eyes changing and appearing to now have black and white swirls within them, as the final reflections of the old Chiaki Nanami disappeared, being replaced by the monster that was born from the despair that she now loved oh so much.
-To Be Continued-