A/N (20231105): Good to hear you guys like the last chapter part!
Great Advisor: Pathalen
/-A Requiem for a Gamer-/
Weiss watched him stand against the flickering ceiling light. From her laid down position, his natural height made him look like a giant. His face, not too handsome, but not at all ugly, was shadowed such that it gave him a certain mystique, even in her eyes.
He turned away, moving back to the battle and joining Blaine's side.
Her arms wrapped around herself. The censor bars around her did little to quell the smell or the feel of the disgusting, horrifying organic material splattered on her, and part of her wanted to cry again. But it wasn't just because of the gore.
Immense regret swelled up within her.
He definitely hates me now, even if he didn't before.
She didn't get why she said those horrible, terrible things. He just… said some things, and then she was… suddenly mysteriously angry. And then spewed out a whole bunch of other things that she really just didn't mean.
I'm definitely the stupid one. I'm in the wrong. What happened to everything those tutors taught you?
She sniffled.
I'm the worst.
Jaune, I told you, didn't I? The real me is far worse than you can imagine.
She cursed herself. She cursed her choices. To her, it felt like her entire life had just been stupid decisions after stupid decisions. Because she was really just a stupid little girl, who grew arrogant in ways she had never even imagined due to her upbringing. She gave no thought to the sound of a window shattering, not caring at all about the progress of the fight.
Her self-hatred spiraled, her thoughts turning into a whirlpool of madness driving her further down. There were no negative words she could not apply to herself, and as she thought about it more she was able to scrounge up flaws that she never even realized she had. Down, she went deeper into a suffocating darkness that she did not want to escape from, because truthfully…
She knew she deserved it.
Weiss heard approaching footsteps, but it did little to snap her out of her daze. Jaune's face coming into view, however, did. Still, all she could do was quickly look away as her cheeks flared with shame. Her arms that wrapped around herself did not help the coldness she felt inside, a chilly fear filled with certainties of rejection. For who wouldn't take her words as she had said them and left?
A hand suddenly reached beneath her, sneaking underneath her back.
It was warm, almost comforting.
Then it slipped away, like a passing dream.
"Weiss?"
She turned away from him, not wanting to see his expression. In the state that her heart was in, she felt like she wouldn't be able to take seeing -
"Weiss?"
- she wouldn't be able to see how her words had affected him. She just couldn't. She couldn't take another bond breaking even if it was shallow -
"Weiss?" Jaune called once more. "Can you hear me?"
She took a long, calming breath.
"Sorry, Weiss, uh, we need to move, so is it fine if I touch you?"
Does it look like I care at the moment?! She wanted to yell, but stayed her words. This is exactly why you are intolerable, heavens above! Can't you see I'm having a moment here?! She hid her angrily twitching facial muscles with her hands. If you had even an ounce of decency -
His arms suddenly slipped beneath her back and knees and yanked her up into his grasp. She yelped, her arms instinctively wrapping themselves around him to steady herself. Her head rested against his chest, and to her surprise, there was a distinct firmness to it.
"We need to run. There's too many enemies." Jaune explained, before sprinting towards the window, its glass panes having been shattered previously.
…Ah, like my webcomics. There was comfort in the embrace, as if she was wrapped in a soothing blanket. The steady rocking of his movement felt almost like a baby in a cradle. She didn't question it, tired as she was, and absentmindedly buried her face into his chest.
"...Weiss?"
"Hmmmm…" Spells whizzed past them, some even exploding harmlessly against Jaune's back, but she didn't care. It all felt distant to her, as a smell engulfed her senses. The smell of sweat, a tasteful hint of cologne, and slight acidic undertone.
At first, she resisted it, but slowly, she let the strange sense of security wash over her, letting her aching muscles loosen after the day's horror. "...You smell."
"I-I do?!" Jaune stammered. "Shouldn't Aura - Nevermind, hold on tight!"
Arriving at the window, Jaune leapt out into the open sky, back first, making sure to shield Weiss from the remaining shards.
Weiss felt his arms tighten securely around her and closed her eyes to feel the gentle breeze of the pitch black night, before gravity took hold and they fell. He landed with a bang loud enough for her eyes to involuntarily jolt open, right at the right time for the entire floor they had leapt off to explode in a fiery blast.
The explosion sent rubble flying overhead, not to mention a blurry figure that was caught within the blast. Jaune, who was gazing upwards at the scene, widened his eyes, as the aforementioned figure was sent soaring far past them.
"Blaine!" He called, placing Weiss down gently onto the grass. Then, he yelled 'Sprint' and blasted off in the person's direction, leaving a cloud of dust.
Weiss just sat there for a moment, mourning the loss of the arms around her. She closed her eyes, enjoying the last of the slivers of warmth.
How have I arrived here in my life?
/-/
Jaune fussed over Blaine's wounds.
Blaine had crashed into the pavement of the garden, in between the two maze-like areas formed by the tall well-trimmed hedges. It was the same pretty area Weiss and Jaune had started the game at, but now, it was marred by stray rubble and streaks of blood.
The capture target was laying face down with one arm beneath himself, making Jaune very worried over his exposed skin and what the rough surface would have done to it. Of course, that was also the least of his worries, knowing that the man had been in an explosion and had fallen a few floors. Blaine's scorched and tattered uniform hid most of his form, however, making it difficult to evaluate the trauma he had sustained.
Wait, is he even breathing? Jaune laid down close to the ground near Blaine's face. I - I think so? Good, so no CPR. What's this whistling sound, though?
"How is he?" Weiss asked, coming up behind them.
"He's alive and breathing, and soon to be perfectly well when you do your thing." Jaune watched as Weiss rushed to Blaine's side. Putting a hand onto the middle of his back, she whispered the right words and healing light shone over him. But he should be fine now. Jaune took a sigh of relief. "Come on, wake up, Blaine. We need to go, they're still probably after us if they survived that."
Blaine didn't move, his breathing still labored.
Jaune called again, but there was no response. "Huh, maybe he needs a catnap or something." He turned back to Weiss. "Weiss?"
"Y- Yes?"
His eyes dropped to her shaking hands. "Weiss, you…?"
She shook her head and held her hands together tightly. "Snap out of it, Weiss." She mumbled to herself, before her head suddenly shot up. "You hear that?" Weiss suddenly said. Jaune looked up at Weiss, momentarily catching her gaze, but she quickly looked away to break it. Remembering her earlier words, a pang of hurt made him flinch, before he shook his head and refocused on the situation.
"Hear what?"
"Some kind of… Hissing?" Weiss motioned for him to move and sat where he was once he did so. She laid her face against the ground, listening near Blaine's face. "Oh, for goodness' sake."
"What is it?"
"I think his lung is punctured."
"You think so? For sure?!"
"I'm not a doctor," She spat. "Not yet. That's just what it sounds like from my textbooks. I can't do everything, you know - but I at least - "
"The spell, it didn't heal that?" Jaune interrupted. He glanced towards the school, keeping watch.
"Looks like it didn't - and before you ask, I have no inkling on why." Only now did the two realize that blood was pooling underneath Blaine as it seeped out into view and Weiss' hands shook. "No, no, no." She repeated, before she put her quivering hands on him again. "Large Heal!"
Jaune made a quick glance as a game window appeared before her, notifying of the cooldown. Of course it's on cooldown.
"The Large Heal was probably overpowered by how many injuries he had." Weiss said, theorizing. "Makes sense if most of them don't have physical enhancements or anything, just normal humans with tacked on powers - an explosion of that scale could cause many, many internal injuries that will be difficult to diagnose. No, wait, is that more important than checking for puncture wounds from shrapnel?" Weiss' hands started shaking. "Or is it - "
"What then, is its healing power spread out throughout his body?" Jaune asked.
"I don't know! I don't know - maybe…" She bit her lip. "No, I think it might heal as much as it can near the point of contact. I felt his spine - I believe it was… not in one piece… before. It is now."
Was it? I didn't notice. Jaune looked at Blaine's shoulder area, but he wasn't able to tell the difference as he hadn't been paying that close attention. Wait, so it's only strong enough, when faced with heavy injuries, to heal one spot at a time. If we need many Large Heals to heal everything -
"So Blaine might die before you can heal him up?" Jaune summarized.
Weiss stared at Blaine, an inward, pained look on her face.
"What about your other spell?"
She sat there for a moment, unresponsive.
"Small Heals?" Jaune insisted.
"R - Right!" Weiss leaned down further, reaching past the hand under his chest that elevated him slightly, in the small space between his chest and the ground. "Small Heal!" Jaune thought she was most likely trying to deal with the lung issue.
Jaune narrowed his eyes in thought. Perhaps by alternating between the heals, and then prioritizing the most life-threatening -
His thoughts were interrupted by Weiss' gasp of shock. "What is it?" He hurriedly asked.
"T - The skin, it's healing together - But not as it should. His chest skin and his arm skin, they're sticking together, healing together - It must be boosting regeneration, rather than - you know…"
"Fuck." Is it healing wrong?! Light, why the hell did you make it so realistic?!
Movement at the edge of Jaune's eyes diverted his attention. Near what was left of the school's second floor, earthen blocks rose out of the ground in familiar, sharp intervals, beginning to create a set of stairs.
Don't raise the damn stakes too, you jerk!
"We need to move him. They're coming." Jaune moved forward to grab Blaine, but Weiss' hand stopped him.
"N - No, what if he has a spinal injury? Your jostling will give him permanent nerve damage! I need to apply a Large Heal on his neck, too."
But what if that heals it wrong again? Jaune wanted to ask, but Weiss had already put her hand onto Blaine's neck.
"Large Heal."
By her reaction, Jaune knew the cooldown notice appeared for Weiss again.
"How long is that cooldown?" Jaune asked.
"I don't know. We didn't check - We should have." Weiss said, stumbling over her words. "If I wasn't so over-confident then we wouldn't be discovering all these problems last minute - " She sniffed. "I keep making these kinds of dumb miscalculations…"
He watched as she continued rambling, long enough for him to wonder if the Large Heal was back again. As soon as he reminded her though, she suddenly started tripping over herself on where to apply it.
"Weiss, you were doing fine before, just use your best judgment…"
"But what if I kill him? There are so many problems, if I don't get this right, he might die from blood loss, but if there is a spinal fluid leakage…"
She's paralyzed… He realized. "Weiss, look… everyone makes mistakes." He said a little more casually than he meant it.
Weiss glared at Blaine's neck, not looking up to him. "Your mistake is why we're here in the first place!" She bit back at him.
He took a sharp breath, standing up.
She immediately twisted her head away to face anywhere else but him, a clear grimace on her face.
"I know." He finally said.
His instincts twinged.
Snapping into action, he leapt to his feet and jumped in front of Blaine and Weiss in order to slap away a fireball. Another masked man tried to hit them with lightning from range, but he intercepted it and took it on his Aura. He grit his teeth through the pain. The elemental powers lit the dark night in a spectacle of multicolored sparks.
"Large Heal, Large Heal, come on, come on." Weiss repeated, ignoring the multitude of notifications she was getting.
The masked men charged at them in a straight line, with Eve spearheading the attack.
I need to buy Weiss more time. Jaune looked around. There was nothing to throw, except… His eyes caught sight of the fountain, the one Blaine had been laying on in the starting cutscene. He kicked a few times, and on his third kick, part of the fountain broke. He grabbed the largest piece and tossed it back at the masked men. Many of them dodged, but one of them, the lightning mage, was clipped by it and tumbled to the ground.
"Large Heal!" He heard Weiss yell behind him.
The aura of healing light from his peripheral vision told him this time, it was successful. He spun around, picking Blaine up under one arm and grabbed Weiss' hand, dragging her into a sprint. Seeing her trip a few times, unable to catch up to his speed, he lifted her up to ride on his shoulder. Weiss made a shocked sound, but held on to his head for dear life.
Then, he sprinted as fast as he could into the maze of hedges that he had been through before. In the darkness of night, the foliage looked imposing, ghostly, with forms in the shadows that morphed with the slightest bit of wind. It wasn't easy to move through, under the cover of the night. He immediately called for guidance but he couldn't make out the change in the grass color at all, and could only rely on his memory. However, to his surprise, it had actually subtly changed since last time. If he hadn't gone through it so recently, he would have been tricked.
Ten minutes later, he finally burst out from the maze. Behind them, he could hear spells being cast and swearing. He hoped it would hold.
He dropped Blaine onto the ground, himself also collapsing as he gulped in breaths of air. He told himself he really needed that Aura technique that made huntsmen further resistant to physical exertion.
Weiss had landed on her feet, stumbling, but caught herself before she could fall. Immediately, she turned her attention to Blaine, checking on his vitals.
"He's still alive." She whispered, thankful tears in her eyes. "Large Heal." she said, this time applying it on a wound on his chest. As she did, the whistling sound whenever Blaine breathed stopped. She checked his pulse again, counting out loud. "But his heartbeat, it's so much fainter than before."
She waited, before she applied a Large Heal and felt his heart rate again. Jaune merely stared at the scene, fidgeting.
"Well?"
Weiss raised her head, still not meeting his gaze. "It's still weak, and I think he's still losing blood."
"From all those small wounds?" Jaune hurried to kneel beside Blaine and check him. He raised one of the unconscious man's legs, then rolled him over a little.
"Don't touch him!" Weiss barked. "You're too rough, you'll hurt him more!"
"Oh, sorry." He gave her a few anxious moments to inspect Blaine. "Have you found any?" He asked.
"No." She tore open the already ruined uniform that Blaine was wearing. Seeing that, Jaune had a comment in mind, but kept his tongue still due to the situation.
"Erm, anything I can do?"
"No, not right now."
He fiddled with his hands, glancing back anxiously at the maze exit. Finally, he saw her stop her investigation and sit back onto the ground with a pensive look on her face.
"Found the problem?"
"No, not yet."
"Could it be maybe something on the inside?"
Her eye twitched. "Yes, that is exactly what I'm considering."
"You think it's - "
"Jaune," She said calmly. "Shut the fuck up, please."
He winced, and stepped back to give her room.
[Admin]: Hmmm, now you see what she was worried about.
Jaune turned his attention away from Weiss' concentrating form. Hmmm?
[Admin]: About herself.
I was distracting her, I don't think that was wrong of her.
[Admin]: And her words previously on what she thought of you?
Ah, that. Jaune grimaced. "Well, until recently I didn't think she was like that."
There was a strange hollowness in his heart. It was one thing to hear the gods condescend you, and something completely different when someone you thought was a friend did so.
[Admin]: Like…?
"I never knew she thought so little of me."
[Admin]: Hmm…
"To be honest, I thought we had a fun dynamic going on. And then she revealed that the whole time, she was looking down on my major, and what I am as a person." Jaune didn't mind Weiss listening in - it was what she had said after all.
Weiss was silent, and he took that as affirmation. In fact, she had not even looked him in the eye ever since her outburst, basically saying that he was not even worth to be talked to as an equal. As a human being.
It hurt in ways that he never felt hurt before.
He wiped his right eye, only realizing then that he was crying.
"I never realized she hated me." He said.
[Admin]: Does she?
"Jaune." He perked up at Weiss' words. "...I believe I've determined a way to make Blaine stable. It's not easy, but if I diagnose the most critical issues and solve them in descending order ranked by severity, I might be able to keep him alive."
Jaune's hands tightened into fists.
[Admin]: It's good Blaine isn't going to die. And still, I wouldn't say she feels hatred towards you.
"Right…" Jaune chuckled, though mirthlessly. Blaine's safe, that's good. "Right. You're right. Not hatred, just condescendence." He stepped back up to her and knelt in front of Blaine. Her gaze was pointed squarely downwards at her work. Her hands shook, probably from the bloody work she was doing, and her brows were furrowed in concentration. Ignoring him.
"You call me an idiot," He said. " - and not in the fun, anime tsundere way - a real idiot, then degrade what I study and my qualities as a person - and that's - that's… What the hell, Weiss?" He wasn't sure what his expression looked like but he was certain it was not pretty.
She didn't reply. Part of him knew he should let her concentrate, but another far stronger part urged him on.
"Who the hell says that, who the hell thinks that! You - You - " At this point, the burning fury that powered his words started burning out, leaving a sudden emptiness that surprised him. "Why are you all like this? What happened to being just… good, kind people?" He was so tired of it. "I was just trying to help you, why would you say that to me?!"
[Admin]: You were hurt.
"Of damn course I was hurt - Light, seriously?! This is not even the first time within the week! I - I don't even understand why this hurts so much, this sting - this hollowness -"
[Admin]: You're feeling betrayed? Ha! You've only known Cardin for a day, and her for a week.
"Yes, but it definitely doesn't feel like a damn week!"
[Admin]: Perhaps it is the density of events. To be honest, if this was a story, there would have been too many words wasted on you.
"And don't get me started about you, Light!" Jaune yelled. "I've been thinking about it ever since I talked to Cardin. No, even before that. I know what you implied with her. What you can do to anyone, especially these characters that you have created as this mimicry of life." He remembered the moments the god of light strayed from his foolish persona and sat down to talk to him seriously. "I know you've got some kind of crazy plan in the background, some kind of experiment - I don't even know what's happening! And it scares me - Of fucking course it scares me!" He chuckled almost maniacally. "Yet I play along, biding my time - but it's not easy you know? It's not easy!" He screamed.
"It's not easy playing the fool," He said. "Once you know what you never should have known, you can never go back."
"And you - " He snarled at Weiss. "And you come over with your whatever - I dunno, bullshit! I don't need this!"
Jaune touched the corner of his eyes and the mere existence of tears made him even more angry. "Why am I even saying this?! And why is Light encouraging me and backhanding me at the same time?" He screamed skyward. "Fuck this. I said I'm not the kind of person to just sit around, I don't mope!"
He abruptly stood up. "I'm a really hot, handsome guy who - " He brushed away his tears. "Who's gonna do as he says, and make his completely empty words reality!" He began walking off. "You just - " He turned to Weiss. "Stay here and fuck around with the people around you!"
He stomped forward, into the maze. With the regenerating hedges and the spell cast onto the ceiling, he wasn't too worried about the White Fang going around it - not that he was in the right state of mind to think too clearly. Slowly still, despite the handicap, his mind formulated a plan.
It wasn't much, but it would be all he got.
And he'd make it work, like he always had.
/-/
Weiss kneeled back down, having only then realized she was standing up halfway. She took a shuddering breath to let her tense muscles relax. It did very little, as her heart beat loudly in her ear. What happened to all my politeness? Why did I snap at him? You would never have stooped to such a level of impropriety back then! She didn't know herself, but his words just seemed to egg her anger on. You're just digging yourself a deeper hole!
Just apologize, you imbecile!
However, she wasn't able to do it. The mere thought drove fear deep within her, of what his reaction would look like. This was not to mention that no results would likely come from it - who would forgive her? I wouldn't, she told herself.
Yet she still wanted this whole situation to go away. She wanted to go back a few minutes, back before she said what could not be taken back.
Blaine coughed, interrupting her thoughts.
She called his name. There was no response. He was still unconscious.
Blaine… Her hand touched his torn uniform and slid down the fine cloth where it wasn't damaged. The texture gave her comfort in a way. I did say I didn't really care about you.
To be honest, this game hasn't done well to endear you to me. I don't really feel the connection between us, though I feel a little bad for you.
But that's not the entire story.
For I am not so heartless as to not understand the true tragedy of the situation. Her eyes closed. I see his efforts for what they are, despite the fragility of this supposed reality. Though his smiles do not touch my heart and his failures do not make me cry… There is something more personal that ties us together.
The words slipped out of her mouth, coming out in a whisper. "To chase for love from a person who would never love you back. I understand that very well." She took a deep, calming breath. "Very, very well." Her heart tightened.
Her eyes snapped open as she looked back up, confirming that Jaune was out of hearing range and deeper in the maze.
She shook her head. How many seconds were there till my next Large Heal? I need to focus. Put what happened with Jaune and Blaine aside, you can't do anything about that. Focus.
But that just made her remember the situation she was in. The blood made her nauseous. It elicited so much disgust and revulsion that she thought she was going to vomit. She bent over and heaved.
But I can't. I can't break down now. They are counting on me.
Both Blaine and Jaune.
She stilled. Her breath caught. There was a strange moment as everything seemed to shift. …How long has it been ever since anybody needed me?
Her eyes slowly raised to pass the horizon and towards the dark night sky. Here, far from the light pollution of the city, she could clearly see the sky box brimming with stars. She imagined the vastness between the star systems, the wide expanse of calm, overwhelming darkness. It humbled her, reminding her of her insignificance.
Yet despite the enormity of the universe, she felt her senses zoom back down into her situation here and now, cutting straight through all her pain, all her anger, and her repugnance.
I'm needed here.
Snapping into action, she looked over Blaine's current state, taking note of what her previous Large Heal had done. His compound fracture on his humorous was fixed, stopping the internal hemorrhaging there. Good, I think I can get started on these organs.
One more Large Heal was applied as soon as it was off cooldown, and suddenly she had downtime again. She glanced upwards towards Jaune, who was standing still, most likely considering his approach towards the oncoming battle.
She patted her red cheeks, raw from crying, before sighing.
What am I doing with my life? She said again. How did it come to this? Her hand lowered all the way down to Blaine's hair, letting her fingers pass through his black locks. Perhaps you would understand me just as well, Blaine, if you were real. But since you aren't - it would be best if such feelings never even have a chance to bud.
"Unless they make a sequel." Weiss muttered. "One without gore."
Despite that… There is more that I can still do right now. Her eyes focused onto the maze they weren't far from.
Rather than wasting my time contemplating, I must determine if I can change the outcome of this matter. Despite what I have become… A twinge of pain in her heart made her flinch. I must do what I can.
Weiss enumerated everything she had at her current disposal. She recalled every single one of her stats, all of her menus, and every game system she came across. Out of all of it, only her unlocked abilities and her items stood out.
In terms of items, she only had some cosmetics and the strange weapon she had received for pursuing Blaine's quest, A moment of consideration there yielded nothing, unless they had a secret feature she was unaware of. She decided that she could fiddle around with them, as soon as she rethought over her Light-related spells.
In terms of her spells, the fact that the Large Heal could double as an unintentional flashbang made her wonder if there was some other way to use the Small Heal. What she's seen since earlier was that the Large Heal was stronger, was targeted towards a specific area, and restored tissue to its correct state. This is why it was able to heal bones and shift them to their original positions, like what happened with Blaine's back.
On the other hand, Small Heal was more powerful in terms of range, having effect over the entire body, but only boosted the body's natural regeneration. This could cause issues with body parts healing incorrectly.
Weiss wondered if the situations before where her physical strength had varied significantly had anything to do with these two spells and how they interacted.
Perhaps a little bit of experimentation was in order.
/-/
With how badly the battle went even with Blaine, Jaune knew he needed a lot of help. Standing in the first bend in the maze, he knew he needed to swap strategies and change the amount of resources each side had - a 1v5 wasn't fair, after all.
Therefore… What better way than praying to god?
He stopped for a moment, taking a deep breath. On the exhale, he tried to let as much of the anger and tension drain out of himself. He knelt down, and put his hands together. With as much honesty, and religious fervor he could muster, he broadcasted his holy mantra towards the heavens: Fuck you, Light. Fuck you, Light. Fuck you, Light.
And when he opened his eyes, he was in front of the rock-paper-scissors altar in front of the god of light.
[System]: Special Event!
"You are getting more audacious with every day that passes." Light told him. "Perhaps you need to be humbled."
"I am merely following the rules you have laid out, God of Light. I mean no offense this time."
Light raised an eyebrow at the composed way Jaune worded his response. "...I don't like sycophants either, Mortal"
Jaune twitched. His feelings were raw after what happened with Weiss, but didn't let it get a rise out of him. After all, there is a reason I'm here today. I'm going to prove myself right. His jaw was set. "I do not know what you are talking about."
The god gave him another long look, before taking out the familiar clipboard. Taking a look at it, the god waved his hand over himself and his appearance changed. To Jaune's surprise, this time, it was a woman.
I suppose there is nothing stopping him from doing that.
She had black hair and a bow on her head. Much younger than both of the previous two forms the god had taken, and shorter in height. If Jaune had to guess, she looked like she would be around her late teens or early twenties. She wore a sort of buttoned vest with coattails, and the rest of the outfit was themed around black and white.
"Did you ever tell me why you always do that?" Jaune asked.
"I did not." Light crossed his - her? - arms. "As you know, I will be choosing my bet this time, and you will match it."
While Jaune had never heard this exact voice before, there was a quality to it that stood out. It sounded demurred, calm, but not in the same way as Weiss' voice was. Weiss' was more firm and commanding, while this one still was powerful but in a more covert way.
It sounded like Blaine.
"Excuse me." Jaune said before the god could propose something.
"What is it, Mortal?"
"I have a proposal." At the god's curious nod of approval, Jaune continued. "Could both our bets be the same thing?"
Light's amber eyes narrowed. For a moment, Jaune thought she had vertically slitted pupils, but realized it was just her eyes themselves that were slanted in a cat-like manner. With a careful, graceful step, she moved clockwise around the two pedestals, making Jaune start pacing the same way.
"...Go on." She said as they circled each other.
"Should I win or lose, I request a Luck Booster."
The god stopped at the ridiculous demand. However, Light didn't seem angry. She thoughtfully looked at him. "And the reason for why I would accept?"
"I will pay you $30."
Light laughed. Interpreted through her current appearance, it was far more subdued than his usual full body movement.
Jaune and her restarted pacing around the two altars.
"I would not be convinced to break my rules through bribery, Mortal."
"I am not asking you to break any rules." Jaune answered. "You said this rock-paper-scissors event was made to resolve disagreements. It is, in fact, part of the system."
"The bribery itself would count."
"Right, right." Jaune agreed. "Unless… It was part of the bets themselves."
The god grinned, but this time it looked out of place on her face. "Should you win, you pay me $30 and I give you a Luck Booster. Should I win, you still pay me $30 and I give you a Luck Booster?"
"A deal worth considering, is it not?"
Jaune watched the expressions on her face carefully, trying to determine what was going through the god's head. This was complicated by the god trying to 'play' different characters. Still, Jaune did not miss it when the god's expression eased as she came to a conclusion.
"I will not be bought so cheaply." Light finally said.
Jaune smiled, before quickly smothering it. He had expected that. "The key to a common lootbox is worth three dollars. The lootboxes themselves drop commonly, at a rate of a few per day through Common Objectives, so I can take that out of the equation. The Legendary Lootbox Pack - " Jaune did not remember the exact name, " - had three items included. Since the only difference is the rarity, my assumption is that the Common Lootbox also has three rewards. This means that I'm asking for ten times the price for a third of the items. Only seems fair."
"I follow your logic." Light put her hands behind her back. "However, I value the ability to pick out a specific item highly, not to mention the fact that a Legendary reward is rarer than you think."
Damn, was the Legendary rarity rarer than I thought? "Then, what price would work with you?"
"A hundred and twenty."
"Deal." Jaune immediately said. A price in the hundreds was in fact what he expected.
Light wasn't finished. "...As long as you promise to me that this will be the only time you use this loophole."
"Is there - "
"And I will not bend from that."
…That might be the best I can ask for right now. I should take it, it's honestly everything I've hoped for out of this encounter. I shouldn't push him anymore. "Then, I acc - " Jaune stopped himself. He took a moment to rethink the god's words, realizing he was a bit brash if he was accepting without double checking.
He quickly found the issue. The wording Light used was very vague. What is 'this loophole' referring to? The fact that I used this as a way to make transactions outside of the game, or the specific purchasing of game content? He verbalized his question.
"Good catch, Mortal. You are getting more careful." Light told him with a vicious grin. "I will specify. This system was meant to be used to arbitrate conflicts on rules, rather than answering questions or trading for virtual goods. Therefore, my request is for you to stay away from using this as a shop of sorts by using the same bet for all outcomes from now on."
Oh thank goats I caught that, or that would have restricted me a lot. Reviewing what they discussed, Jaune saw nothing else to specify.
"Then it's time to play?" Jaune asked.
"Time to play."
/-/
A short game later, Jaune found himself back on the field beside the river and the hedge maze, rather than at the first bend in the maze.
Oh shit, I just realize, I left Weiss on her own!
He quickly spun around to see that Weiss and Blaine were still there. He sighed in relief.
"Yes?" Weiss asked. "What is it?" She was in the progress of applying a Small Heal to herself, oddly.
He didn't react to her flat, business-like tone. From her reaction though, Jaune decided that most likely time was stopped during the whole event encounter. Light is definitely playing time really weirdly… We somehow still haven't woken up from this dream world, despite a whole bunch of time passing. Still, that does make sense, as it also happened in RWBY: Online.
Jaune didn't reply to her.
Alright, let's start with the skills.
[System]: Pause is disabled in combat.
Of fucking course. But inventory doesn't count.
He pulled open the inventory screen and bought four extra slots. There were three items last time, and adding on two extra guaranteed that he wouldn't lose any of the items he had gotten.
Then, he summoned his lootbox onto the floor. "Open," he said, and when the $2.99 popup jumped in front of his face, he purchased it.
A similar window to the one he saw at the very beginning of the game opened up, for his weapon choice. This time though, there were three different reels, each on top of each other. There were many types of items shown, like potions, weapons, and some knick knacks. Curious, he selected a blue potion that was in the list of items that was currently showing.
[Turquoise Blue Potion]
[Epic]
A drinkable consumable that boosts staying power in non-physical conflicts by a medium amount.
Jaune would have planted a hand onto his face if he could move it.
How much is a 'medium amount'?! What the hell is 'non-physical conflicts' - does a test at uni count?!
Jaune closed this window, and another potion caught his eye. The reason was that it was also blue, but of a different shade. Curious, he clicked on it.
[Admiral Blue Potion]
[Rare]
A drinkable consumable that increases certain stats by a small amount.
[Potion]
…Goddamn it.
There was also a Cyan Blue Potion, Midnight Blue Potion, and a Cornflower Blue Potion.
He didn't even want to know what the heck cornflower blue was.
Before he was about to roll though, one more thing caught his eye right above the button. There was the icon of a character. He squinted, figuring after a few seconds of inspection that it looked like Nora.
Except she was wearing a dino costume.
Jaune blinked.
Wait… you don't think…
He selected it.
[Dino-Thor Nora]
[Epic]
Skin for the Nora Valkyrie character. Despite the special effects, there are no gameplay advantages.
[Skin]
Jaune closed his eyes. There were so many things going through his mind. …Like how the hell do skins work when there is clearly a degree of sentience to these game characters?! Is she just going to be obsessed with dinosaurs, and wear a dino-onesie for the rest of her life?! Does her wardrobe become just dino costumes?! Not to mention, aren't there ethics to consider?!
Or the fact that it'll be completely useless in combat, and would in fact count as a 'miss' in this lootbox system!
He wanted to put a hand over his forehead, in order to stave off the headache. Then, he gave up on checking for his possible choices and clicked on the roll button. He inspected his results. One alternate ultimate move decor, a victory pose, and a potion that boosted stamina.
Useless!
One default roll and three rerolls later ($30), he received:
Congrats!
You get:
[Cadmium Yellow Potion]
[Stick of Truth]
[Dove Grey Potion]
[Accept] [Reroll for 10$, 0/3 remaining] [Drop Chances]
[Buy premium for 3 more rerolls!]
He opened each of their item descriptions.
[Cadmium Yellow Potion]
[Legendary]
Raises the Gamer's unique passive by three tiers.
[Potion]
–
[Stick of Truth]
[Legendary]
Description: All powerful stick used by Detective Hanks. Extremely rare collector's item.
0.5 damage
[Tableware]
Other stats hidden.
—
[Dove Grey Potion]
[Rare]
Raises endurance-related stats by the circumference of a circle with a radius equal to your Constitution.
[Potion]
He looked towards the sky. I am astounded every time at your creativity in making more ways of obfuscating the system.
[Admin]: My gift to you, my dear creation.
Jaune took a breath, then refocused on the roll he got. The last one was really trash, but this isn't much better! There was no new weapon except for a literal stick, and two potions that could either be really helpful or completely useless.
Fuck, fuck, fuck!
Jaune wanted to pace. His words to Weiss came back to him.
"And if an 'idiot' like me can succeed… Then you can definitely do better."
He cringed as hard as he could, his head snapping back as he screamed at the sky.
Why the hell did I say that! Past me, you are a veritable idiot!
The mere possibility of him failing to live up to those words made him want to die right there.
Calm down, calm down! This isn't helping me right now. He reminded himself. Worse comes to worse, I'll use my 'Sprints' to shatter their spines. He blinked at how murderous it made him sound. And at how easy he thought it.
He glanced down at his hands. With gore having been wiped off in all the ruckus, all that was left was grime and blood which was not covered by the black censor boxes. He wondered if he should feel revolted.
Well, I don't like it. His head wasn't fun to look at as it went… boom.
He remembered the scene well. The power that went through his fist as he tried to catch the masked man from stabbing Weiss. The impact of his fist against the man's skull, and the feeling of it caving in not unlike how the flesh of a watermelon would. Perhaps he should care about the fact that he had just killed; That someone's priceless life had just been extinguished at his own hands. But oddly, these feelings were only peripheral to Jaune. Peripheral, to the one, singular image that was carved deep into his memories.
Weiss' usually stoic, calm, and composed face, ever the stability and reason, twisted in a visage of pure fear and horror.
It marked him far deeper than any philosophical wonderings of the value of human life ever could.
Steeling himself, he confirmed his rolls.
The three items appeared in his inventory. He drank the two potions and equipped the stick in his right hand. The yellow potion tasted like curry with the consistency of water. The grey one, like chocolate molasses with bratwurst sausages.
He checked over in his mind everything he had, making sure he hadn't missed anything.
"Ah, right! I should check my health!"
Since the inventory was available despite being in combat, he thought to check if the status menu was also available. As he expected, it was.
Seems like while in combat, most menus are unavailable, and the ones that are only stop me from moving rather than the entire world.
Why even stop me from moving then?!
He turned his attention back to the menu screen.
[Back]
[Stats]:
Offense: 100
Defense: 785398163397
Dexterity: 27
Stamina: 31/100
AP: 9531/1000
?: 1%
HP: 26781
PP: 37
Jaune closed it.
I think I just saw some really large numbers beside 'Defense'.
He smiled with nervous energy.
I already have crazy amounts of HP, I don't need more, Light!
[Admin]: What is it Dark says… ah yes, 'Shrug'.
Don't say 'shrug' you dagnabbit god!
[Admin]: …
If 'dagnabbit' counts as 'insulting you', I am sending a complaint to customer service!
[Admin]: You certain, Mortal? There is a fee.
Of fucking course!
He turned around. About halfway through, he stopped. He looked back at Weiss.
Oh, and I have an idea about slowing them down. I should talk to her.
He opened his mouth. No words came out, however, and he only looked at her for a bit. He watched as she took Blaine's pulse once more, listening to his breath at the same time by lowering her head and bringing her ear over his mouth. He thought that the care she showed was admirable, despite her… other traits.
Her eyes came up and met his, making him turn away instinctively.
"What is it?" She said once more. "You seem to have something to say. Please, feel free."
Her voice was surprisingly even, calm, and collected, despite their previous talk. Even cordial. He wasn't surprised - that was how much he meant to her. I shouldn't even care.
Finally, he spoke up. "We should move him. I'll hold them here, keep them busy, and if Blaine's hidden then there's time." It was as composed and professional as he could make it.
She lifted up her head, having completed whatever check she was doing. "For example, the forest on our left?"
"Yes, but stray away from the main path and the most obvious hiding spots. It is known that Blaine often hangs out there and it will be where they first look."
"The most obvious hiding spots? Using what metrics?"
"I'll come with you, since someone needs to carry Blaine." Not to mention it'll be obvious with the many holes that some idiot made trying to find worms.
"And afterwards?" Weiss sat back, moving into a side sitting pose. "You already fought them once together, and lost."
…That's a good point. "Not this time." He grinned. "I've got a plan. I'm actually using my consumable potions this time."
She looked at him, examining his face. He wondered if she could tell that he wasn't feeling as confident as he usually was.
" - But if it goes awry," He added. "Then I think you should run instead of fight."
"I will be the judge of that. I am not a combatant, be it my skills nor my temperament. I will do whatever is necessary."
He gave her a teasing smile, but he wasn't really feeling it. He didn't like her cold way of putting it. "Well, then, there should be nothing else. Time to roll." He cracked his knuckles.
It did nothing, Aura protected his joints.
/-A Requiem for a Gamer-/
A/N (20231105): You know, in some way, you can consider this whole dating sim arc filled with Checkmate, White Rose, White Knight, and Bumblebee, all in one chapter.
What?
Not what you asked for?
What do you mean?
Alright, full speed to part 7, and by the month after that, hopefully I'd be done with Chapter 12!
Next chapter: November 19, 2023
