Omake: Hiromipunk - Points are Money
On an intellectual level Hiromi knew she was being skinnerboxed by the dings of her XP arriving in tiny parcels while she worked, fed with the happy noise and flash of alerts that dropped off until she shifted activities to prevent the clearly diminishing returns, her tracking on a simple spreadsheet showing a steady decline in skill XP as she worked at the same thing for an extended period. She didn't know when the diminishing returns reset, or if it ever would, so she varied between completing macroeconomics & statistics worksheets -thereby securing both XP and Arasaka academic credits in a pleasingly efficient way- and contract investigation homework. She got fewer XP returns or even none for work that was not sufficiently challenging, so Hiromi found herself pushing at of advanced worksheets that were technically for the year above her own. Her focus seemed to be tied to the 'Cool' stat, as she would get gains there while controlling herself to focus.
The change in Hiromi from skeptic to grinder came after she made a realization about this 'Gamer' thing that shook her to the core, the revelation coming from spending one of her very limited Perks on a test choice from her 'Wardrobe and Styling' skill -which resided at a comfortable 3-, an innocuous perk named Box of Scraps, which claimed to let Hiromi assemble passably attractive outfits from any selection of clothes and even scraps of material -if there was access to simple tools for modification/assembly-.
The perk once selected worked, not with any supernatural glamour but with some strange intuition and unlearned information that let Hiromi's eye find complimentary arrangements or strange twists on clothing that somehow at least did no harm to her image. It wasn't perfect, the outfit had to be 'complete' in a way that held up modesty and included essentials like a top a bottom and some form of foot covering, but it even let Hiromi make something workable out of the gag gifts her frenemies in class got her for every birthday. Hiromi couldn't wait to show off the way this lime green jacket somehow breathed aesthetic life into the grotesque tartan shorts that Yumi Koneko gave her.
The important revelation of this perk and its effects were however that these points were money.
They were currency in a strange form that nonetheless could be spent on real world power, in the same way that eddies could buy cyberware or reputation could buy contacts, these points were clearly earned with this 'XP', and what was earned could be spent to push Hiromi up past her competitors.
The gonk 'Gamer' who snuck this system to Hiromi was still someone to be wary of, yet she could no longer consider it a curse under any circumstances.
It was a gift, an opening into a way to improve.
Hiromi still had her Stat and Skill points to spend, for they seemed far more limited than the Perks -only 2 of each at level 3, and the XP requirements for level 4 seemed monstrous when considering the tiny 100xp gains gotten for minutes upon hours of focus- but she had already selected her perks for each of the skills which had them, level 2 seeming to be the first milestone needed for a perk.
She had selected the aforementioned Box of Scraps for her Wardrobe and Styling skill, Got a Hunch for Persuasion -Allowing her to easily guess the right approach for anyone she spoke to-, Filing System Savant for Library Search -meaning she would have an intuitive understanding of filing systems and a perfect memory for any documents she sees- , Quick Draw for Handguns -Allowing her to draw and fire with peak reflexes-, Honeytrap for Personal Grooming -Allowing her to style her makeup, hair and accessories for maximum attention or subtlety-, Loophole Radar for Bureaucracy -letting her spot trick clauses, logical errors and loopholes with only a single glance through a contract-, Never Without for Blades -meaning she can stash knives basically anywhere they can fit on her person and that they are much harder to detect- plus Marathon for Athletics -allowing Hiromi to run with peak efficiency even over difficult terrain or around obstacles-.
Now Hiromi was grinding away like a good number addict to research the rate of XP gain and check what activities gave each skill, her worksheets and homework giving little tidbits of Int with more generous helpings of Bureaucracy and Stock Market, a skill which set Hiromi's cheeks burning pink when she spotted it floundering down at 1 while most of her Int skills were at a more healthy 2 or 3, Library Search even sitting up at a delightful 4. Surely she wasn't that bad at theoretical stock trading and statistics, right? She just struggled a bit with the math, and with almost everything else...
...Grind Grind Grind, Ding Ding Ding.
Eventually the diminishing returns pushed Hiromi to detach herself from her workstation with a yawn and a wince, her eyes feeling sore after so long mashing her face into the wall that was this system's miserly XP grind. She was only 100xp away from level 2 in Stock Market, she could feel it, but her little predictive spreadsheet -assuming the diminishment climbed at the same pace observed- said that she would need to work for almost two hours more to secure it. Hiromi could not stand the thought of it, her Arasaka credits already hit their cap twenty minutes before. Giving a luxuriant stretch Hiromi put her Personal Grooming and Styling to work on a suitable outfit for a little break-trip to her favourite noodle stand. Her old TC fangirl stuff was given new life by a choker and some glossy shades, some neon lined sneakers matching the EMP-lines on her skin. Hiromi grinned at the reward -small as it was- of 100xp before setting off for the elevator.
Across the city, a certain purple haired protagonist blinked at a unique addition to her own feed from The System, a twitch in her eyes signifying confusion, concern and perhaps some excitement.
Next time: Hiromi figures out how to conquer her enemies and enhance her XP intake.
I'm intending to include an alternate way for Hiromi to gain Level XP, given that she is not a combat focused Solo like Motoko.