Roman groaned and opened his eyes. The sunrise still lit up the sky in gentle hues--he must not have been out of it for too long. It took a few moments for him to remember what had happened. He coughed out a feeble laugh.
Holy hell, that actually worked.
His entire right arm felt as if it had exploded, and when he turned his head to look at it, it seemed that wasn’t too far off from the truth. The skin up to his elbow had been degloved, red flesh and yellow fat glistening, and tumorous growths deformed the limb until it was barely recognizable as a human limb. At least it had shrunk from its prior monstrous proportions when he’d launched his [ Chaos Touch ]-infused punch.
He craned his head back as far as he could. The unmoving remains of the gashadokuro had fallen behind him, intact save for its missing head.
“You’re fucking nuts, dude,” said a young woman’s voice. Bella--that was her name. She stood off to his side, hands on her hips. The orange blade of her sword was stuck into the ground at a slight angle. “Thanks for not hitting me with that, at least. I thought you just flinging me into the ground was a dick move.”
You tried to cut me to pieces and burn me alive, Roman thought, but he didn’t want to waste his energy bickering with a teenager.
He closed his eyes and shifted through the flood of new notifications.
[ Through chaos, transformation. +1 to Strength, +2 to Endurance. ]
[ Side quest completed: Defeat the Gashadokuro. Rewarded: +500 additional fragments, +4 Node Points, Eye of Resentment. Claim? ]
[ Side quest partially completed: Best Served Cold. Fellow Players throughout the world are being systematically culled. Destroy three hostile locations and permanently end their operations. Reward: +1 starting Quirk, variable rewards based upon the difficulty and extent of the locations. 1/3. ]
[ Title granted: Giantsbane. +4 to base physical attributes. +2 to Node Points. ]
[ Title granted: Reckless Survivor. +3 to Endurance. +2 to Willpower. +2 to Perception. ]
[ Flash Step (I) has evolved into Flash Step (II). ]
[ Watcher Shiva of the Slaughter Trident… ]
[ Watcher… ]
[ Watcher.. ]
A grand total of seven new Watchers sent him their offers, all of which he ignored.
The stat boosts were a welcome gain, but both Titles spoke volumes about his actions. He pulled up their subtexts.
[ Giantsbane: Defeat an opponent twenty levels higher than yourself. ]
[ Reckless Survivor: Survive three life-or-death encounters in the first day of the Chaos Playground. ]
High risk, high reward, and at this rate, probability was not in his favor if he kept up his current pace. What other option do I have, though? Hide away in some dark little corner until a monster or an even crazier Player finds me?
John materialized on the ground beside him, sitting in the lotus position. The guide appeared more solid before, though traces of sunlight limned his silhouette, providing an almost angelic glow.
“She’s right, that was insane,” said John. “But the right call in the end. Fair warning, by the way: Mixie is probably going to try to sell you some grossly overpriced herbs to patch you up, but don’t take the offer. Good chance that the daily rewards give you something to help repair your, uh, various injuries. Even if you don’t, the plants in this field seem to have a bit of spirituality to them that might help you. Can’t make a tea, really, but it might help to eat them.”
Roman nodded slowly and refocused on the wispy clouds. He was laying on the side of the road, flattening the vibrant grass beneath him. Just touching it seemed to impart some mild balming affect to his tortured skin, like applying aloe to a sunburn. Relaxing there, glancing up at the beautiful sky, he could almost imagine he was enjoying a normal, idyllic day, if not for the insistent agony of the slab of exposed flesh at his side.
“You look better,” said Roman. “More…real, I reckon.”
John stared down at his hands. “Yeah. I can’t really fight, but I can level up and even gain Titles by assisting you. I doubt I’ll ever be able to punch anything like you, or hold my baby girl, but I’m starting to feel…I don’t know. More myself.”
Roman grunted, remembering his promise to investigate John’s family. The guide’s explanation made sense, some confirmation about his true nature would be nice. “Where is Mixie, anyways?”
John pointed down the road. With his enhanced Perception, Roman could make out the distant speck of his pick-up truck on the horizon, back from where they had come. Returning to them at top speed, judging by how quickly its shape grew.
Roman sighed and returned to his cloudgazing. “Why, exactly, is that ghoul driving my truck?” . Bella cleared her throat. “Uh, I’m guessing you’re talking to your guide? But, yeah, I didn’t have the heart to say no to that weirdo. Even if he looks like a horrible monster, he’s kind of funny, isn’t he?”
“Not the word I’d use,” said Roman.
“Well, either way, you should be excited, man!” Bella clapped her hands together. “We’re getting some serious gifts in a few minutes here, supposedly. We took that big bastard out, after all. The more you do over the course of the day, the better your rewards.”
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Roman almost took issue with her wording, since he was the one who had defeated the gashadokuro, but he supposed she had contributed as best she could. Acting like an asshole all the time seemed like a great way to get a blade in his heart next time he passed out. And he had to admit, something about her sudden enthusiasm reminded him of his little sister.
Instead he laid there in silence, reminiscing as he watched his truck approach. It screeched to a halt and Mixie climbed out delicately, the hem of his robes slipping up to reveal his plethora of spindly legs.
“Ah, the compost heap is awake,” he said with a pointed glance at Roman, a hint of disappointment coloring his tone.
“Yeah? Enjoy your little joyride, did you?”
Mixie tilted his chin into the air, every bit the haughty princess. “I’ll have you know I’ve piloted cosmic vessels between the stars, weaving through asteroid belts and fields of monstrous tentacles that could slap your planet out of orbit. Though, admittedly, there is something primitively thrilling about this hunk of rust. By the way, you look rather atrocious. May I offer you a loan of some rather wondrous herbs--”
Roman propped himself up on his good elbow. “Keep your overpriced garbage to yourself, Mixie. I’m going to assume there was a reason behind you driving around?”
Mixie sniffed and planted the pointy tip of one of his legs on top of the gashadokuro’s ribcage. “I almost pitied you for a while there, but your rudeness does you no favors, mortal. Yes, there was an excellent reason. While you were taking a nap, I searched for the Chaos Gate. I considered revealing its location to you free of charge, but now--”
“I’ll find it myself.” Roman sighed, wondering how soft he had grown to actually let these two tag along with him. Hell, he’d even invited Mixie.
An uncomfortable silence settled over the area. Fortunately, a system notification popped up as a welcome distraction.
[ Congratulations to those of you who have survived the first night. Rewards will now be distributed based on merit. As always, remember to have fun. ]
Roman groaned as he heaved himself into a sitting position. With his good hand, he adjusted his deformed limb so it dangled between his legs, resting against the soothing grass. The air before him distorted like a mirage; a satchel much like the one slung across Mixie’s shoulder plopped down at his feet. Another one thumped to the ground in front of Bella.
Roman had to admit, he was excited at the prospect of free loot. From the sound of it, the system wasn’t so cruel as to dispense something mockingly useless like a pile of slime. He unzipped the bag and peered inside. A gray void greeted him.
“It’s a spatial storage bag,” said John. “Not everyone gets one. Sometimes the system just dumps some trash-tier items on top of people who were particularly unimpressive. Future rewards will automatically be placed inside. To access it, just think the word ‘inventory’ to yourself. Remove them by focusing on the item you want and reaching in.”
Roman hauled the satchel to his side. Inventory.
[ Spatial bag contents: Sacred Raiment of the Reavers x 1, Heart of Dissonance x 1, Core Fragments x 250, Heartroot Elixir x2, Attention-Boosting Pills x 60, Zippo Lighter x 1, Soap Bar x 1. ]
One at a time, he removed each item.
The [ Sacred Raiment ] was a black silk robe, laced with intricate bronze threads that congregated at the breast into the shape of a clenched fist. Finally some clothes besides his gore-stained fighting shorts, even if they looked a bit ridiculous.
He slipped them over his head, biting back a scream as he forced his deformed arm through the sleeve. As soon as he settled into the robes, he felt stronger and more durable in a way that was hard to describe but resonated with him on a fundamental level. It seemed to have enhanced his Strength and Endurance without the usual painful alterations to his body.
The [ Heart of Dissonance ] came next. Unsurprisingly, it was an actual organ of rancid muscle the black-green color of bile, shot through with angry purple blood vessels. It still pulsated slightly in his hand. He suppressed his revulsion and shot John a questioning glance.
John coughed into his hand. “You’re, uh, supposed to eat it. It’ll grant you a boost to your Willpower and, more importantly, it’ll grant you some Node Points. I’m not sure how many, but it’ll be worth it.”
Roman stared down at the disgusting lump of meat, nausea roiling in his stomach. “They couldn’t just give me the Points like normal?”
John winced and raised his shoulders in a helpless shrug.
Roman returned the [ Heart ] into his spatial bag and scrubbed his slimy hand against the ground until it was clean.
The fragments were far less disgusting. He removed one, a sliver of black crystal, before returning it to the bag.
The [ Heartroot Elixir ] was as he expected, a glass vial containing partially-congealed blood; he’d encountered its like while visiting Mixie’s Store. The [ Attention-Boosting Pills ], on the other hand, made him shake his head. Instead of some mysterious alchemical concoction, it was an orange plastic prescription bottle filled with circular pills. The printed description revealed them to be Adderall IR 30mg, to be taken twice daily, prescribed to someone named Kyle Krintz. Had the system swiped them from someone’s countertop?
Fuck it, he thought, popping one into his mouth and mustering enough saliva to swallow it. After a moment of consideration, he took another.
To him, the real prize was the Zippo lighter. It was bronze, with a faded outline of a smiling sun next to a crescent moon. He lifted his robes enough to snag the pack of cigarettes from the waistband of his shorts. It’d been utterly crushed, dashing his hopes somewhat. Opening it revealed most of them had indeed broken and spilled their precious tobacco everywhere, but he fished out five that were mostly intact, if a bit bent and wrinkly.
“Maybe there is a God,” he muttered to himself, slipping one of the cylindrical treasures between his lips.
His heart sank as the first few flicks of the wheel elicited only a spark, but on the fifth try, a flame sprang to life. The first drag made him shudder in ecstasy, delicious smoke swirling through his lungs and back out through his nose. Sometimes, it was the simple pleasures that mattered most.
He fished out the bar of soap, compelled to finish up his scrutiny of the inventory, but it was a simple white block as expected. Given the filth caking his body, he considered it tied with the Adderall as his second-most valuable get. Truthfully, the robes were better than everything else, but he couldn’t help but feel absurd in them.
Remembering the prompt from killing the gashadokuro, he mentally claimed his rewards for completing the quest. A review of his inventory confirmed the addition of 500 new fragments, but instead of the [ Eye of Resentment ] it displayed [ ??? ].
Curiously annoyed, he reached into the bag. His hand came out clutching several nuts and bolts. He vaguely recalled the gashadokuro’s head had exploded into various components, including these. He let them slip between his fingers back into the bag.
Despite himself, Roman chuckled heartily from deep within his belly--the first real laugh since this entire debacle had begun. He took another drag from his cigarette.
Yeah, the system did like fucking with him after all.