The next day, after school while in the club room, even though classes were over, the gamer space was still expanded. Thanks to the number of gamers who have the basic framework built in, Kevin can place and leave the space as long as there are at least 20 other gamers who have their connected fragments fully built into the system.
After school returned, club activities naturally went into full swing but Robin was currently busy with his own growth at this moment because he was exploring the Trait shop.
This was probably the most shocking ability of the gamer space for anyone because it allowed them to actively add and modify powers that could otherwise remain weak.
After Robin firmly accepted training to be a true hero like Chasm Might and Server Admin, he decided that the first step was to explore every option for growth. That is why he did what he did with his mental energy.
Now he was tapping into an incredible resource that has never been seen before.
Trait shop
Human Biology trait
Rubber Body Trait
Hardening Trait
Hardened Rubber Body Trait
Each person had different things but everyone had a human biology trait. This one involved common biological factors all humans shared such as healing factors, modifying the base human body structure such as special body types for natural super strength and more.
The other traits were unique to the powers that people possessed.
Those who possess what are referred to as fused powers of usually two different natures, will find that they can modify them separately as well as the full combination. An example of this is Marcus who has Gorilla Transformation, Giantification and Kong Transformation.
Robin doesn’t know what traits he has for either but he can take some guesses. For example, Giantification is sure to connect to human biology as well and give special options such as restructured Bones to produce more powerful bone structures to allow for a more powerful support for such a massive and heavy body. This would allow him to achieve a bigger height.
At the moment Robin was copying everything down.
It should be said that every trait has an effect and a side effect. Nothing was perfect and this is shown by the fact that empowering single powers would actually weaken the other one while empowering the balanced one will have weaker effect but not weaken either.
Trait shop
Rubber Body Trait
Trait
Description
Price
Lubricated Circulation system
As a result of Hardening’s merge with the Rubber body, all body rubber is stiff and ‘dry’, this will moisten the circulation system and heart.
Effect: able to handle larger internal pressure
Side effect: Hardening of the circulation system becomes harder to achieve
9 Levels
Lubricated Musculature
As a result of Hardening’s merge with the Rubber body, all body rubber is stiff and ‘dry’, this will moisten the musculature.
Effect: Greater flexibility and able to morph without feeling pain
Side effect: Hardening of the Muscles becomes harder to achieve. Flaccid muscle trait appears again
12 Levels
Lubricated Skeletal system
As a result of Hardening’s merge with the Rubber body, all body rubber is stiff and ‘dry’, this will moisten the skeletal system.
Effect: Allow skeleton greater flexibility and achieve specific morphing without pain.
Side effect: Hardening of the Bones becomes harder to achieve
20 Levels
Strengthened Tensile strength
Improves the tensile strength of the musculature.
Effect: base Str multiplier goes to 1 point to 15 kilo.
Side Effect: Elasticity decrease and mass increase
15 Levels
↓
It was basically like that, enhancing the thing Robin wanted for more malleable rubber meant slowly erasing Hardening. In retrospect, there is also hardening and the blended versions of both of these.
Trait shop
Hardening Trait
Trait
Description
Price
Hardened Circulation system
As a result of Hardening’s merge with the Rubber body, all body rubber has stiffened, the hardened heart muscles might reduce heart beat rate so this fixes the lacking genetic codes to compensate.
Effect: Allows the heart to harden without reducing heart beat rate.
Side effect: Elasticity is greatly reduced and reduces range
25 Levels
Hardened Musculature
As a result of Hardening’s merge with the Rubber body, all body rubber has stiffened, this allows the muscles to exert more force and grants a endurance against impacts
Effect: Improves Constitution and Strength
Side effect: Elasticity is greatly weakened reducing range and flexibility
20 Levels
Hardened Skeletal system
As a result of Hardening’s merge with the Rubber body, all body rubber has stiffened, this enhances the hardening done to the skeletal system.
Effect: improves bone endurance without making it frailer
Side effect: Elasticity is greatly weakened and reduces range and flexibility.
30 Levels
Hardening suffers because the system is basically building off the existing genetic codes, there are naturally things like enhanced musculature which is basically the fragment that Ruth obtained and it openly states that this was a missing piece. It would seem the system constantly scans any person walking through to obtain genetic information for the trait system.
Finally there are the Hardened Rubber traits.
Trait shop
Hardened Rubber Body Trait
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
Trait
Description
Price
Lubricated Hardened Circulation system
A perfected combination of the separate traits. It is weaker than both but contains each of their effects while their side effects cancel each other out. This trait helps expand the genetic code of the original trait.
Effect: Able to handle larger internal pressure
Side effect: 35% weaker than both separate traits
45 Levels
Lubricated Hardened Musculature
A perfected combination of the separate traits. It is weaker than both but contains each of their effects with their side effects cancelling each other out. This trait helps expand the genetic code of the original trait.
Effect: Enhances Hardened form blunt force immunity and strength and permits a wider range of control without pain when unhardened
Side effect: 50% weaker than both separate traits
60 Levels
Hardened Skeletal system
A perfected combination of the separate traits. It is weaker than both but contains each of their effects with their side effects cancelling each other out. This trait helps expand the genetic code of the original trait.
Effect: improves bone endurance without making it frailer and permits control without pain
Side effect: 50% weaker than both separate traits.
75 Levels
The difficulties could be seen easily just by the price. It is unknown how the future improvements will be but it is possible to judge the main problem, the hardening rubber body to the basic merging process, and to some extent, still existing incompatibility. It was stable but it was clear that this could still be better and the traits show it.
It was also unknown what the effect of buying the separate traits would cause but Robin naturally didn’t want to lose either ability, not anymore. If this had appeared before he found the LP oil then he would have been all for it because it was ‘a cure’ but he resolved his problem.
When he finished writing down the last trait, Mr Might finally talked while looking from behind.
“Are you planning out your means of future growth.” He asked.
“Just exploring this system. The chance to enhance the biology of my ability is huge but each choice is big so i want to be sure about it but maybe the system just hasn’t scanned enough people, the options are straightforward and contain a lot of side effects.” he said.
“You should get the ones that build your power’s DNA first. It would cut the costs of everything in the future. The big cost is purely because it is the biggest lacking feature at this point so you should continue to properly build the missing pieces. Once there are no more traits which say ‘builds the genetic code’ than it means you’ve achieved a higher quality balancing. As for the effects…” He said looking at them on the notes. “Improved morphing capacity, indeed you lack the shaping ability that others have.” He said.
“I’m hoping to improve the forms that I can work with besides spring style.” Robin said.
“You’re thinking about things you see in anime and tv again.” He said.
“Maybe, imagination and creativity is vital after all.” Robin said and went to the computer in the room and searched the web for many animated or movie based skills.
“You focus a lot on that one anime with the pirate.” Mr Might said.
“It’s honestly the closest comparison I’ve ever had to my own powers. Honestly the improved circulation system would actually work with the particular skill he does when he explodes in strength the first time.” he said showing the particular scene including the speed.
“I see, your current style with the titan force and your bullet punches heavily mimics this but your wind up time restricts the free usage.” he said.
“It’s an activation skill that primarily strengthens his body to be able to support the technique for moving fast.” Robin said, showing the later scene where the character explains what he had seen when discovering the trick for super speed.
“A trick for super speed, honestly you are eventually going to reach super speeds as you grow.” He said.
“I know but it won’t be the same, my acceleration will match this naturally but my punch speed and force won’t be anything near the speed of my spring punch as I use it now. That is why I put so much into understanding my elastic control and improving the capacity to control my body better, so that I can do more with it.” He said.
“I get it, but you don’t have to restrict yourself to this.” He said.
“If I could, I would but I don’t know if I will maintain my energy when Mr Atlas is reborn once I finish developing the atlas stone. I want to guarantee that I can do what I do with Titan force but with my natural power. Otherwise I will become a hero until he comes out and loses the main source of power I had focused years to develop.” he said.
When he said that Mr Might finally understood Robin’s worry. It was true that Robin didn’t actively regenerate Titan force without being near the stone and rapid regeneration needed direct contact. It was a big pressure on him to know if he would have this power or not. It was a massive amplification, all his strength grew 5 times and with just the body strength of a braveman he would likely be able to dish out punches of a hero’s strength with this but if it suddenly went away then it would be all for nothing. Even his growth could stagnate without the Titan force at that point.
Now he understood why Robin did what he did with his wisdom and storing mental energy, something he had explained this morning. It did put him in a bind because he was used to just being the body trainer and learning to use internal force. All his powers were body enhancement so he didn’t have to worry about something as strange as a rubber body’s limit capacity or incomplete genetic sequence, balancing pros and cons of your abilities and which to enhance.
He fell into thought as he looked at the paused computer image before nodding slowly, “I’m not sure how any of these more strange rubber skills work. You can’t really try any of it until you get the traits and blend it for now but don’t do anything problematic. I’ll talk with some people and research this subject about… increased blood pressure and all that.” He said.
Robin nodded before turning off the net and taking his phone and opening to a Digital spawn.
He had Tristan prepare one for him to help his life essence develop beyond passive growth.
***
After the others went home, Chasm Might headed to Captain stretch. There weren’t many who were more knowledgeable than him into the science of rubber abilities and basically told him about the changes in the gamer space and what it brought with it with the trait system and showed Robin’s notes.
“I assume you want help with rubber body physics?” He asked.
“Yes, the main problem is that he is bound to an inheritance ability with the Atlas stone which is currently producing processed world power. It is very strong but no one has any way of knowing if he will keep this power when the original owner fully develops or if it will be gone after a bit.” He said.
Captain Stretch read about Robin’s growth and was shocked that he developed not one but two internal energies followed by the elastic control connection.
In his company, Beat Springs is one of the rare individuals with actual control of internal force and he was limited to life force, not life essence. Naturally he knew Ruth had developed Life essence as well because it was hard not to notice her usage of the energy to increase the force of her blows.
“Okay, so what I assume you want is an explanation on these animated powers which he bases his power thought process off.” the Captain said as he saw the images from the anime.
“Yes, I want to confirm if it would actually work like this?” He asked.
“Right… well he is definitely not the first person. The problem with this particular power is that it requires someone with rubber abilities much like the boy’s but his particular rubber body make up is rare among rubber bodies.” He said.
“Wait… what is particular about it?” He asked.
“We call it the Rubber band body. It is a particular type of rubber body which is incapable of being stretched at will and requires force to expand before it can be otherwise controlled. Very much like the pirate in this anime.” he said.
“Okay so has there been no one like that before? I mean even you could have done this at one point because of your particular power.” he explained.
“I rarely use this because the pressure on my heart is too great but there have been a few who tried but just like me, it is a huge pressure on the body. Furthermore this blood pumping technique consumes a lot of stamina and mimicking the speed is difficult. The control of the expansion is almost straight forward so you can do straight punches, kicks and such and their speed is buffed by the same factor of strength they get but achieving these near superhuman speeds that you see young speed powers achieving is very difficult. It is technique based and there simply doesn’t exist a technique for this.” he said.
“Right, that can be left to creativity. So it is possible?” he asked.
“The lowest benchmark is definitely going to be this enhanced circulation system as well as a body at least equal to a strongman. I don’t know the effect it will have on his biological energies however and I can’t tell you if it would cause lasting damage such as heart attacks and such through muscle flaccidity through excessive usage. Also the dangers of this are clearly shown in the show itself, it basically is active adrenaline, the human body cannot support long periods of this.” he said.
“Okay, what about the bone or muscle forms?” He asked.
“The bones are a staple anime trope from the 20th century as a gag. It is possible though for very fluid elastic heroes. They can open the internal cavity of their bones and transfer a lot of air through their blood to those cavities producing heavy balloons, this makes them clench their regularly flaccid bodies and produce powerful physical attacks. Air transfer through the bones is impossible naturally but using the blood as air tubes is possible but there are obvious dangers to this as well.” he said.
“Naturally.” Mr Might said.
“For the muscles, the bounciness is likely something to do with the system of internal force they had in the show itself more than the inflated muscles themselves. The inflated muscles would basically swell the muscles like flexing but after punching and stretching, it would quickly deflate since the muscles are stretching. It could be a good method for rapid expansion especially combined with the high pressure blood flow.” He said. “In the end, these are all dangerous methods for temporary body enhancement and require a very powerful body and very strong elastic control to not screw up and injure themselves.” He said.
“I figured as much.” Mr Might said.
“Right, I’ll supply you with any record and usage of historically recorded rubber band bodies users and their usage methods. Even with the hundreds in my academy there are actually none like that. Even his sister who is less fluid can stretch at will.” He said.
“Right, that would help a lot because it could help him understand the process of these.” He said.
“Right, now I heard Server admin helped a young gamer develop a gamer system that affects everyone and your apprentice is among the responsible for finding it. His sister came back like a storm and is basically the top of her grade after accessing her hidden potential.” He said.
“For that we can negotiate as are the terms of the club contract. It is no different for any private academy. Public schools also obtain this but payment is done through the government funds.” He said.
“Right, can we hopefully make a deal, my students have trained since middle school and some even before that, tapping into this power with a proper explanation on the relationships of gamer stats would definitely make the next generation even stronger.” he said.
“We can negotiate…” he said and pulled the general contract for a private school using the system but he was pretty shocked at the price but it was basically a chance for the entire school, hundreds or thousands even at once so it made sense.
They spent roughly an hour negotiating suitable prices before Mr Might called Robin and asked for the detailed data on relationship of stats and passed it onto the Captain and told him to properly school the students so that they knew the relationships of stats before they go crazy and pump everything in one.
After this was dealt with he transferred all the information the captain provided to Robin so that he could look into it himself but it wasn’t going to be an easy to deal with problem because fighting crime was the current method they knew for getting exp crystals.
As he walked out of the buildings his body paused, “Wait… bounties give rewards for getting criminals… but there is a quest system.” He said and his eyes narrowed and he grinned as he shot off into the air to get detailed information on this and how flexible it can be.