Game
Thoughts
"Talking"
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"Alright, lay it on me," Gray hummed, staring at Tamir from across the small table in between them.
After dealing with the three demons, Tamir brought Gray to the house that his friend lived at. Said friend wasn't there at the moment, but Tamir said he'd show up soon enough.
The room was small, with just a table and a couple of chairs, along with a rather poorly made bed sitting in the corner.
It's like one of those 'budget' apartments in a big city.
"Ah… should… are they…" Tamir started, unsure of how to word his question as he wordlessly gestured at the three demon women slumped in the corner of the room. They were leaning against the wall, all three of them still unconscious.
"They're fine," Gray waved him off.
"W-What if they wake up?" Tamir asked worriedly, glancing nervously at the three women.
"They won't do anything," Gray merely answered, "There's this thing called 'being scared of getting your ass kicked again' that'll make sure they don't try anything."
Tamir looked at him doubtfully, glancing between Gray and the three women again, but then nodded reluctantly, "...Alright, if you say so. How much do you know about this planet?"
"Explain everything assuming I know nothing," Gray answered, and Tamir nodded in response.
"This planet is called Yardrat, and the native race is called Yardratians," Tamir started to explain, "There are two main types of Yardratians - pink-skinned and green-skinned. You likely noticed them when you first arrived in this city. Anyone else who you meet on this planet is probably not native, and is likely a demon."
"Just as Saiyans are a warrior race, our people are also trained fighters," Tamir continued, "However, while your strength centers around your physical power and body, ours relies on energy-based techniques. Instead of overpowering our opponents, we outsmart them."
"Our people have always been very welcoming to guests from other planets. We take pride in sharing our techniques, and in learning from others," Tamir continued, his face starting to drop as shadows covered his eyes, "However, that sharing nature has ended up becoming our downfall. Around 100 rotations ago, or about one 'year' as I believe you Saiyans would refer to it, a gate opened."
"A gate?" Gray asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
What the hell does that mean?
"Yes, a connection between worlds. Or, more specifically, between realms," Tamir continued, his expression growing even darker, "A connection between Yardrat and the demon realm."
Ah, that's how the demon got here.
"At first, we were welcoming to the demons who came out," Tamir continued to explain, "We showcased our energy techniques, and in return, they showcased their 'magical' ones. While they lacked the energy to utilize ours, and we lacked the magical power to utilize theirs, our relationship was friendly."
"Then… after 10 rotations, they showed their true intentions," Tamir grunted, his face becoming steely, "While we were acting with friendly intentions, they were acting with devious ones. While under the guise of attempting to learn our techniques and improve their lackluster energy pools, they instead used that knowledge to devise a technique of their own. A technique to reverse the flow of our energy."
The trick barrier that's causing recoil damage when I try to use my Ki.
"With our main form of combat stripped away, we stood no chance against their onslaught," Tamir gritted out, his pink knuckles turning white as he gripped his hand tight, "In an instant, the hundreds of demons who were once our friends turned against us. Thousands more came through the gate, and our planet was conquered without any resistance."
"Weaklings, such as myself, were lucky," Tamir spit out, his fist clenching even harder, "We were forced into the outskirts of the city as demons took over our homes, with many Yardratians forced to live on the streets as demons claimed entire buildings for themselves. However, that is a preferable outcome compared to the fate that our powerful leaders and elders are enduring."
"The 'fate worse than death' that you mentioned?" Gray asked questioningly, and Tamir nodded.
He opened his mouth to speak again, but then stopped as there was rustling outside the door behind him, "...that must be my friend. He will be able to explain this better than I can."
The door opened, and a pink Yardratian stepped through. He looked a bit different than the other pink Yardratians Gray had seen - mainly because he looked crippled.
As he walked through the door, he stepped through unevenly, looking as if he was stumbling forward. He was much taller than Tamir, standing more than a foot taller and overall looking wider than most Yardratians. He also had one eye shut, his eyelid closed over it as his other eye stayed open, along with long whiskers that denoted his 'elder' status.
He also looked very uneven - one leg was noticeably large and muscular, while the other looked similar to the normal skinny and small Yardratian leg. His arms were the same, and his chest seemed to jut out unnaturally while his stomach was sucked in.
"...who is this?" The new Yardratian asked Tamir, looking wearily at Gray as he stepped through the door. He glanced over at the three unconscious women slumped in the corner, his body stiffening slightly as he readied himself to fight.
"A visitor. He is not a demon - he's a Sayian," Tamir explained, and the other man's eye widened as he looked over at Gray, "His name is Gray. Gray, this is Tyrab."
"A pleasure to meet you, Saiyan," Tyrab grinned, nodding at him in greeting, "It's been a while since I have seen one of your kind. Why is he here?"
"He intends to go against the demon," Tamir answered, then cut off Tyrab as the man's smile dropped and he opened his mouth, "Trust me, I have tried my best to convince him otherwise. At this point, all I can do is give him as much information as possible to assist him."
Tyrab closed his mouth, glancing over at Gray, who merely nodded to confirm Tamir's words. He sighed, then limped over to a chair sitting next to Tamir and sat down.
I think Tamir was exaggerating a bit.
"I don't know if I'd call this a 'fate worse than death,'" Gray mused, gesturing to Tyrab's condition, "I'd much rather be in that state than dead."
He's a little bit fucked up, but so what? I'd rather walk with a limp than be fuckin' dead.
"...I am one of the lucky ones," Tyrab grunted, gesturing down at his body, "I was merely crippled and then released. My body was… intensely incompatible."
"Incompatible?" Gray asked, looking curiously at him.
"How much do you know about magic?" Tyrab asked instead of answering his question, leaning forward to stare at Gray with his sole functioning eye.
"Nothin'," Gray replied bluntly. He knew a bit more than 'nothing,' but now was as good a time as ever to get as much information as possible.
"...while it can be used in a similar way to energy, it is not the same," Tyrab grunted again, "Many energy techniques can be replicated with magic power if the wielder is skilled enough, and many similar techniques can be created. However, while inner energy is within every living being, magical power is not."
Yeah, I know that. I have a fuckin' useless skill right now because of that.
"Most powerful magic wielders are born with it, but not all. Through many hundreds of rotations of work, anyone can develop what is called 'magic power' within their body," Tyrab continued to explain, "But, while anyone can develop it, those who aren't born with it will have difficulty increasing their magic power. Unlike energy, which the average body is very susceptible to gaining more of, magic power is intrusive."
Well, that's not a good sign for me. Hopefully, the system can help me out with increasing mine once I unlock it.
"Unfortunately, the demon didn't take over our planet just to make us do manual labor or to add to his empire," Tamir spit out, his face hard, "He did it to run tests on us. To experiment with our bodies."
Oh. That doesn't sound good - this might be a bit more serious than I was thinking.
"The demon in charge is attempting to find a way to artificially increase magical power," Tyrab explained, "His method could be considered 'process of elimination' - that is to say, he's trying every method he can think of, consequences be damned. That's why he's testing on us - he doesn't want to kill thousands of demons through his trials, but he has no qualms about killing thousands of our kind."
…Yeah, this sounds pretty fucked up.
"What do you know about the demon himself?" Gray asked, clarifying further at Tyrabs questioning look, "The one in charge. I'll be blunt - I appreciate all this backstory shit, but I don't need it. I need to know about the one I'll be fighting. His techniques, how powerful he is, his fighting style. Shit like that."
"Not much. He was not one of the original demons to arrive, as he came once the planet was already in their control. I've never seen him, nor has he ever been involved in a fight since he arrived," Tyrab answered, apparently not taking offense to Gray's blunt logic.
"I did not tell you all of that for no reason," Tamir spoke, bringing Gray's attention back to him, "There is a reason for you to know all of this. Tyrab, I witnessed Gray take down three powerful demons easily on our way here, even without his Ki."
Tamir gestured to the unconscious trio of women in the corner, then continued, "He may be the best chance we will get at taking down these demons. Please, give him the serum."
Gray blinked at his words.
The serum? That doesn't sound ominous at all… nope, not a single bit.
It sounded very ominous.
"...No way," Tyrab grunted negatively, looking at Tamir with a serious gaze, "I don't want to ever use it, much less on a visitor."
"He's our best shot. A chance like this might not come again!" Tamir countered, his gaze equally as serious.
"Then giving it to him might end our best shot," Tyrab shot back, "If you truly think he stands a chance even without using his energy, then that's all the more reason not to give it to him. It's too risky!"
"Um… I'm still right here," Gray interrupted blandly as the two men talked about him as if he wasn't sitting right in front of them, "Wanna tell me what this 'serum' is?"
"..." Tyrab didn't respond, but finally opened his mouth as Tamir looked at him pleadingly, "...The demons used serums to forcefully inject magical power into our bodies. That's why my body looks like this - it couldn't handle the amount."
Tyrab grunted as he finished his sentence, standing up and stumbling over to the corner of the room. He placed his palm on the wall and then winced as he seemingly forcefully used Ki. A small compartment in the wall swung open, revealing a hole within it.
"Demons are cruel and lack morality. It's in their nature. This is both unfortunate for our people, but also fortunate," Tyrab spit out, reaching his hand into the hole in the wall. He pulled out an object - a small vial of purple liquid with a needle on the end for injection.
"They are careless and reckless. Even while committing such atrocities, they have no problem holding massive parties and celebrations in the streets of our cities," Tyrab continued.
So, that crowd I saw earlier really was a party. These three were coming from it.
Gray glanced idly at the three women slumped against the wall.
"...While I was held captive to be experimented on, they took no precautions. They are overly arrogant - confident that without our energy we can never go against them," Tyrab's face hardened, and he sat back down in his chair, showcasing the serum to Gray, "I took note of everything I heard, and everything I saw, with the hope that I could use it against them if I managed to escape. Then, those bastards just released me. So…"
Tyrab grinned widely, the smile looking slightly psychotic on the Yardratian's face, "While there was a city-wide party happening, and the already poor security was even more lax, I broke in and stole this. It's a serum of pure magical power."
Gray's lips twitched upward as he saw where this was going.
Looks like I'll be getting MP earlier than I thought.
"This is what they use during their experiments. My body could only handle four injections before they considered it a failure - one was marked '10,' the next '20,' then '40,' and finally '50,'" Tyrab continued, his grin growing even wider and more maniacal, "Each one increased my risk of death, and crippled me even further. But, it also made me stronger - increasing my magical power with every injection. I don't know what the numbers mean, but if my body had been able to handle them… even the '50' injection would've been enough for me to take down my captor."
Tyrab stared at the serum in his hand, his sole eye twitching slightly as he did, "So, when I broke in, I took the strongest one I could find. If your body can't handle it, you'll die in an instant. But, in the one-in-a-million chance that you succeed…"
Tyrab trailed off, his grin growing even wider as he turned around the vial, showcasing the number written on the back: 1,000,000
"You'll be the strongest magic wielder in the universe!"
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Gray Tanaki:
[Saiyan Squad Captain]
Age: 18
Wallet: 4,595,770 Coins
Lvl: 23 (3,922,770/10,000,000 XP)
PL: 3,637,430,200
Available Points: 450
HP: 1,850,250/1,889,950
TKI: 2,372,475/2,582,475
STR: 1525
AGI: 1780
END: 1340
INT: 1415
CHA: 1245
LUK: 795
KI: 1655
HREG: 1176
EREG: 1176
Skills: [Observe LVL 10], [Running LVL 17], [Determination LVL 20], [Ki Control LVL 17], [Ki Gun LVL 14]. [Ki Enhancement LVL 10], [KI Suppression LVL 12], [Ki Sense LVL 9], [Pushup LVL 17], [Punch LVL 17], [Kick LVL 17], [Jump LVL 17], [Flight LVL 9], [Prediction LVL 7], [Zenkai Boost LVL 6], [Cognitive Acceleration LVL 9], [Ah! Lord Freiza! LVL 7], [Mouth-Beam LVL 6], [Ki-Blade LVL 8], [Cooking LVL 10], [Ki Barrage LVL 9], [Ki Explosion LVL 7], [Ki Vision LVL 7], [Attack Boost LVL 1], [Swimming LVL 9]
Perks: [Gamer's Mind], [Gamer's Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Saiyan], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master],[Ladies Man]
Fighting Styles: [Boxing Style: Kolra LVL 2], [Fighting Style: Broly LVL 1]
Party: [Empty]
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AN: Thank you for reading! The next chapter should be out tomorrow!
Or, you can read chapters early on Patreon! Patreon.com/Koyon