章 21: Star-Filled Slumber

The return to my apartment wasn't a pleasant one. To hide the blood covering me I'd 'borrowed' some of the clothes of the former corpses. While they were also damp with crimson, their black and red ABB colourings made it much less obvious, not to mention the fact no one would fuck with an ABB gangster on their own turf, especially not after the bombing.

I was numb as I finally got back to my apartment, and feeling only really returned after standing in the shower for an hour... Triggering hadn't been what I'd expected, first, I thought that I'd already triggered when coming to this world. My power to ignore bodily necessities had been everything I had... That was my impression.

Some people reported seeing odd things during their trigger, while others reported remembering nothing at all. I was in some sort of gray area, where the only thing I could recall about it was the taste and smell of iron, and a seething desire to rage out at the world.

It'd felt almost euphoric to let myself go. Certainly not the mind-numbing despair, or other overwhelming negative emotions most people experience during their triggers.

The strange Case 53 tattoo on my left wrist began to make sense when I tried to scrub blood from my hair, my hands pausing as they reached new, unfamiliar sensations. Odd, twitching things that were sensitive to touch.

I'd been feeling through them ever since I triggered, but they felt so natural, like an in-born part of me that I'd not even noticed. I hurriedly finish up and step in front of the large bathroom mirror. I wiped off the condensation from the steam and clenched my jaws hard.

"What... What the fuck is this...? This isn't funny..." I mutter in a growl, buried under exasperation and futility.

Standing in my mirror was an androgynous boy, around thirteen with a lithe body that had visible muscles, though that was perhaps only due to a lack of body fat. A good comparison would be a young male gymnast on a hard diet.

The hair was white, not like a silver blonde's was, a dull white devoid of any other colours, aside from some grey tones. The hair, despite just getting out of the shower was already falling into a shape of its own desire. Short to average and somewhat spiked and unruly.

It wouldn't be wrong of me to say he was handsome, though more in the 'cute' fashion due to the face's age. The tanned skin provided an interesting contrast between the white hair and remarkably blue eyes, which resembled sapphires in their intensity and clarity.

Unfortunately, that's where my appreciation for the changes ended. Atop my head and at my coccyx were appendages that didn't belong to regular humans. Perky white cat ears that unconsciously twitched when I paid attention to them, as if nervous under my focus. They were fluffy and still somewhat damp from the shower, they even had balls of fluff around the interior, preventing moisture from entering the ear canal.

Behind me was an equally white tail that swayed from side to side like a boat a sea. It was slightly longer than my leg and annoyed me but it's mere presence.

The claws, the canines, the cat-like body parts... My trigger had turned me into a fucking cat-boy!

I scowl hard and my expression just gets worse as I see my pupils contract into cat-like slits, responding to my heightened emotions.

Nishihara, Oni Lee, and that bodyguard had seen me like this. They were probably trying their best not to laugh at this ridiculous body... That or contemplating the cost-to-risk factor of selling me as an exotic slave or prostitute.

Case 53s were usually monstrous, there was the occasional one that looked vaguely human, but... Me? I was some fantasy race that weebs and incels jerked off too! Even after being destroyed Japan finds a way to fuck with me!

So... Where was I now? Some schmuck Case 53 with crappy powers, an adoptive mother that was even further out of reach... Friends who might be dead in hospital...

Gritting my teeth, I step out of the bathroom and throw open a window in the front room to get some air... Still feeling suffocated, I sigh and make my way to bed, falling into it and staring at the ceiling.

Every one of my senses, aside from maybe taste had been improved after triggering. So much so that I could count the minuscule cracks in the paint above me... I fall into a lull, feeling myself approach sleep, when I spot something odd.

Perhaps I was finally going crazy, but I swear I could see a constellation form above me... Just as I was going to question it aloud, I felt my mind shoot towards it.

Okay... Looking at the three constellations of dim stars before me, I was beginning to get some serious Skyrim vibes.

Looking at the bottom of them, I could see one star ignited for each path. When focusing on them, I was struck by knowledge pertaining to the star in question.

...

So, as it turns out, my power isn't just lack of bodily necessities and whatever being a cat boy gave. I had a... System, I supposed you could call it? But not really. Maybe a 'class system' would be more applicable.

I had three skill trees, one Major and two Minor. In each tree, I could only see the next immediate upgrade available, along with some side-grades. But this was enough to tell me what these classes were and 'who' they were based on.

My dismay at my power vanished when I realized what it meant.

The first and only Major Class was 'Demon'. The already ignited star was 'Half-Demon Physiology', and it granted large boosts to my physical and regenerative abilities, along with the ability to access 'magic'. However, there were a few negatives, the biggest being 'changes to my emotions', which was kinda vague.

The only unique ability it gave was 'The ability to grow through blood'.

The class itself could refer to any demon in any universe, but the next upgrade had me almost jumping in excitement. Its name?

A Son of Sparda

This class would make me like Dante and Vergil, guys who could fuck up demon gods and were only really challenged when fighting one another... I'd say their power was more than enough to deal with some misbegotten Kaiju, or a gang of wannabe-Yakuza.

The side upgrades next to Half-Demon Physiology were 'Different Perspective' which would massively reduce the effect the former would have on my mind and emotions. Not something I could see myself buying until I was strong enough to pull myself from this hole.

Next was 'Demonic Attunement' which would apparently grant an affinity to an element of my choice. Thinking back to Devil May Cry, while Dante and Vergil didn't display any particular proclivity to any element, Trish, another Half-Demon, was heavily into lightning magic and punching things.

There were also many examples of pure demons which had a 'main elemental affinity'... My mind immediately drifts to those annoying teleporting cunts. Was 'Space' affinity a thing?

Regardless, I turn my attention to the first Minor Class, 'Sword'. Which was also immediately recognizable from the already ignited star, which was called 'Reforged'. What is did was add the Origin and Element 'Sword' to my preexisting ones.

The only person I could think that had something like this was Shirou Emiya, the protagonist of Fate/Stay Night... And, if that's the case, it was almost as busted as what the 'Demon' class provided. The next main upgrade would grant me Shirou's magic circuits, which weren't too amazing given his magical aptitude... But the thing was, I had no idea how magic circuits would react to the magic Half-Demon Physiology granted.

Something to keep a close eye on...

Side upgrades for this included 'Conceptual Rigidness' which would dampen the effect the new Origin and Element would have on my psyche. Along with 'Avalon', which sounded like it'd just give me King Arthur's sheathe outright...

The second and last Minor Class is 'Yokai'... Yeah, this is where I got cursed by weeb cat-boyism. The ignited star was called 'Nekomata', and it granted me a body to suit the name. Better senses, reflexes, flexibility, enhanced strength, better sight in the dark, and an affinity with nature.

I also got the sense there was more it wasn't saying... The skills didn't give a comprehensive list of their effects, merely a broad outline. The term 'Nekomata traits' struck me oddly, I was pretty sure it wasn't only speaking of the cat ears and tail.

As for who this one was based on? Well, the next Main Skill would make me a 'Nekoshou', which I only recalled from Highschool DXD, so either Koneko or Kuroka. The distinction was actually important, as those two were specialized in their own things.

One was a 'Rook' for her peerage, lots of physical enhancements, while the other was a 'Double Bishop', which would grant massive improvements to magical abilities. Personally I was hoping for the latter, as any boost to my magical reserves would only make my 'Sword' Class more broken.

There was also the fact that both of these girls were reincarnated devils, granting them imagination-based magic, flight, universal speech, and a lifespan which wasn't really specified, merely that it was essentially biological immortality.

Side upgrades included 'Curiouser', which would allow me to transform into a regular, mundane cat. And 'Slinker' which makes me better at all things stealth-based.

Thinking on the trees, my new body kind of made sense given who the picks were... My hair looked exactly how Vergil and Emiya's did, along with the former's bright blue eyes and the latter's tanned skin. From Koneko/Kuroka I obviously inherited her racial traits...

Now, how to actually get all these upgrades? Well, apparently I had a point system called 'BP', and after wringing my mind for an hour, I figured it meant 'Blood Points', given the fact I was pretty sure the 'Red Orbs' of DMC were literally just blood.

Half-Demon Physiology allowed me to 'grow stronger through blood', so maybe that's what it meant? Either way I wasn't sure how to feel on the matter, being some kind of weird vampire-cat-thing.

I was also curious about who or what chose these things for me? My power was based on known fictional characters, so there had to be some sort of intelligence around it. The constellation itself was evidence of it.

I knew some powers capes had were fucked up and weird, but I doubted any were like this?... Though, I do recall some hero in Chicago calling himself 'Myrddin', after Merlin. So maybe I wasn't the only odd one out?

There wasn't any 'number' on how much each skill cost, only that I had a vague sense of how much energy I had and if I could pick them. Unsurprisingly, the Demon Class required a monumental amount of points more than the minor classes.

I sigh as my vision retreats from the constellation and back into my skull. I sit up and realize it was morning, meaning I can presumably only access the Classes via sleep. Kinda counterintuitive given my ability to forgo it completely

My good mood quickly fades once I remember my situation however. While I had the potential for great power, I might never ever get there. I was now a freak, I wouldn't be able to leave the house without attracting attention to myself...

Hm...

There was that jacket Takeshita bought me, the one with cat ears. A regular hood would leave them sticking up, and my attempt to tie them down made me extremely nauseous, not to mention the growing sense of vertigo as time went on.

There was one thing I could with that wouldn't fuck with my head however... My tail freezes and its fur sticks up as I turn to look at it. "Sorry, but if I have to be this freak, I'll do it on my terms." I mutter to myself as I collect a cleaver from the kitchen and step into the bathroom.

This was gonna hurt.