Kapitel 97: Kent's acting (1)
Ultimately I decide to bite the bullet and get up close and personal. The melee does not go in my favor as the bear spews fire into every direction and his entire body radiates heat.
The only thing allowing me to even begin to fight this colossus is my heat resistance skill that has recently reached level three. The protection from the heat is limited but enough to allow me to at least get close enough to land hits.
Still, with the fire countering my blood edge and the bear being able to see me I stand little chance for victory. I die and wake up in the VR capsule. I might not have won but I do feel like my sanguine boost is improving. If I keep using this training myself I can quickly level my sanguine boost up to level four.
<You did quite well, Kent looks very impressed.>
Kent? Was he watching?!
<Of course he was! When I said that the creator of the program was currently attempting to recreate the scene that had caused the inspiration for the program he was willing to pay ten times the usual program fee. After watching you fight he said it had been an eye-opener on the skill's creation.>
Next time please make sure you inform me of any such happenings.
<Will do.>
I leave my capsule and return to the monitoring room. Kent is about to start the program so I'll have to be present to monitor his progress and find any flaws in the program that we might need to fix.
I enter the room and find Navi standing there operating one of the terminals. She's editing a video of my fight with the bear from just now.
"Don't mind me, I'm just preparing a promotional video for the program. It would be nice if we can get another video where you win so we can show the program from as many angles as possible."
"You said you could seal certain behaviors of the crimson bear. Can you seal that fire outburst thing we newly added?"
"I can do that but what would be the point?"
"I want to make multiple stages for the program so I thought of having a stage with and without that fire outburst. To first let them get familiar with the workings of the bloody basin before being assaulted by that bear at full force."
"A multistage fighting program? We can make that work. If we add the rule that you have to pass all the easier stages before being able to access the harder ones we can earn even more! You have to train your skill quickly so we can see what the next test looks like."
"You really think about nothing but how to make more money, do you?"
"I'll take that as a compliment but no, I think of many other things too. However, it is part of my job to make sure we earn enough money to keep the company running. Our services are widely known as the best and I don't think we are overcharging... at least not by an unreasonable amount."
"What is an unreasonable amount to you?"
"Well, that is hard to determine. We offer things here that can't be bought with just money in any other place so there is no set price for them. Since people are buying what we offer I'd judge that we aren't terribly overpriced."
"Sure you aren't. Saying that people are buying something that you have a monopoly over doesn't mean anything."
"Sigh, forget about it. Kent just entered, you might want to pay attention to how he does this time."
I move my attention from Navi who is still editing the video to the monitors that display the VR program. Everything looks like the first time around and the starting message is played the moment Kent spawns in.
"Navi, can you please edit the video later. I can't lip-read so could you help me if the need arises out?"
"If you ask so nicely how could I refuse you?"
We both look at the monitors as Kent begins to sprint into the mass of fighting monsters. His approach this time feels different. As he activates the sanguine boost he directly charges at the monster before him and savagely slashes down.
The monster does die but he quickly starts to get into trouble. The savage attacks work well with the sanguine boost and he doesn't seem to have as much of a difficult time keeping it active as last time but... without his specific fighting style, his build is useless.
The skills he has aren't suited for this kind of fight and he looks like an amateur. Unsurprisingly he doesn't last long before injuries start to appear on his body. He tries to keep at it while gritting his teeth but something feels off.
"He's acting."
"What?"
Navi's casual remark hits me like a train. That's it! He's acting. That's why all his movements seem so bad, he is trying to imitate the savage fighting style I used before.
"It should be his fine arts skill. Acting can be considered as a core part of the fine arts. However, an act can never come close to the original especially when we are talking about fighting styles that require certain skills to be complete."
Kent doesn't last and gets killed by a hawk that dodges his clumsy swing. His form despawns, the monitors turn black, and silence pervades the room.
"That was kind of pathetic."
"Navi! Isn't he a customer? How can you say that?!"
"Cool down, will you. He didn't hear a thing so he won't hold it against me. Actually, he's asking to meet you."
"Refuse him."
"Come on now..."
"And how will you explain my current look? Do normal humans have scales?"
"We'll just have him meet you in VR while you are in snake form. Say it's for research purposes."
"Can we really not refuse him?"
"He's a paying customer."
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein