Chương 6: A Badass Sword
Game
Thoughts
"Talking"
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Gray groaned as he blinked his eyes open, staring at the large glowing gem above him. He hissed as he tried to sit up, feeling like his entire body was on fire. He fell back onto the uncomfortable surface below him.
I'm… alive?
His eyes flicked to a floating notification in the corner of his vision.
Perk [Perfect Ozaru] will now increase your power by 12x.
[Zenkai Boost] Skill unlocked!
+1000 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])
[Zenaki Boost] LVL 1 - What doesn't kill you will make you stronger.
+10 STR, END, AGI, INT, KI for unlocking a stat-boosting skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])
Previous [Zenkai Boost] usage - +100 to all stats for surviving against an enemy twice as powerful as you. NOTE: The benefits you receive from this skill will vary depending on the situation that resulted in your near death.
I guess that means I won't be able to abuse Zenkai Boosts, huh? I'll try it out sometime anyway, but I'm guessing I won't get many stats if I just shoot a hole in my chest.
He glanced at his new stat page.
Gray Tanaki:
[Saiyan F-Class Recruit 1]
Age: 15
Wallet: 26,150 Coins
Lvl: 8 (14,256/30,000 XP)
PL: 29,036,200
Available Points: 0
HP: 25,980/85,500
TKI: 29,565/152,175
STR: 305
AGI: 340
END: 280
INT: 395
CHA: 145
LUK: 155
KI: 395
HREG: 156
EREG: 156
Skills: [Observe LVL 4], [Running LVL 6], [Determination LVL 4], [Ki Control LVL 9], [Ki Gun LVL 5]. [Ki Enhancement LVL 4], [KI Suppression LVL 5], [Ki Sense LVL 2], [Pushup LVL 4], [Punch LVL 4], [Kick LVL 4], [Jump LVL 4], [Flight LVL 4], [Prediction LVL 1], [Zenkai Boost LVL 1]
Perks: [Gamer's Mind], [Gamer's Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Sayian], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], [Ladies Man]
Party: Asia, Tamari, Celia
I'm so glad I picked Saiyan. Fucking thank you Zenkai Boost. You are so dead, Kolra, and it won't be quick. I'll make you pay for humiliating me, and for killing Ken.
He started to focus on the [Shop] button, as he'd been too busy fighting to look into it yet but was interrupted by a voice.
"Finally awake?" A female voice resounded around him, and he forced himself to sit up and observe his surroundings, ignoring the pain that coursed through him as he did. The remains of his broken armor was leaning against a wall, and the top of his undersuit had been ripped off. His chest was wrapped in bandages. He was in a room made entirely of rock and was lying on a long rock in the shape of a bed. A purple-haired woman was sitting on a small chair, which was of course carved from a rock, and staring at him emotionlessly. She was fairly tall, had long legs and huge breasts, and wore a tight-fitting black body suit, looking similar to the one Saiyans wore underneath their armor.
[Observe] level up! (10,000/10,000)
+10 INT for leveling up an INT-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])
+100 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])
Observing all those dwarves before I killed them paid off.
[Masked] Saeko:
[Galatic Sword-Collector]
Age: 17
PL: 5,258,622
HP: 8,750/8,750
TKI: 2,500/2,500
Reputation: 25/100 (Positively Viewed)
[Masked] Modifier - Individuals with this modifier will be adept at masking their true personality and emotions.
Saeko is an Takuthian swordswoman, who came to planet Vargon in search of swords for her collection.
"Who are you? Where am I?" Gray asked quickly, tensing as he was unsure if the woman was a potential enemy.
"Relax, I have no intentions of fighting you. I wouldn't have saved you if I did." Saeko said assuringly, smiling gently at him. Too gently.
"As for where you are," Saeko continued, "You're in my house, which is in a small-kind village."
"You don't look like a dwarf," Gray countered, already knowing through his observe skill that the woman wasn't one.
"You're right. I came to this planet to find a master swordsmith, but I'm originally from planet Takuth." The woman said in return, still keeping a friendly and gentle smile on her face.
"Why did you help me?" Gray asked bluntly, wanting to get to the bottom of her motives.
I'm heavily injured, but with my new power, I could still take her. I don't like that modifier of hers.
"I heard you crash into the ground nearby. I couldn't just leave someone to die when I could save them." She replied easily.
She's lying. I was too injured to survive the fall. I would be dead right now if I hit the ground.
"I'm grateful that you saved me, but if you don't tell me the real reason then I'll be forced to kill you," Gray said threateningly, channeling Ki to surround his fist.
"You're more perceptive than you look. I guess all you Saiyans aren't just meatheads," Saeko said, her kind smile faltering slightly, "Fine. I heard your battle from down here and saw the other Saiyan come down before you. I caught you when you came plummeting down."
"That doesn't explain why you helped me," Gray said with narrowed eyes.
"You lot have been destroying everything in sight since you arrived here, including my spaceship. I need a way off this planet, and my first choice was the Saiyan who came down the hole before you. He wasn't very receptive to the idea," Saeko said with a sigh, the smile on her face dropping completely as she leaned back in her chair, "He assumed I was weak enough to die in one blast and left me. He was complaining about his scouter not working, which I assume was from his fight with you, so he couldn't read my power level. You came barreling down out of nowhere a minute later. I saved you so I'd still have a chance to get off this planet."
That almost makes complete sense, but…
"Why didn't you just leave in one of the Saiyan pods? There's a whole bunch of them sitting on the surface. They'd be unguarded since most of the Saiyans who came in them are dead." Gray asked, shifting slightly in place. He wasn't going to trust her so easily, not with a modifier like that and a power level of five million.
"Trust me, I tried," The woman sighed, "They were programmed to come here and then go back to planet Vegeta. I doubt your kind would be kind enough to let me live when I showed up unannounced in one of their ships."
"So, you want to take a pod back to planet Vegeta, and I'll vouch for you?" Gray asked.
"Yup. You said there were extra pods, and I did save your life, right?" She said with a grin.
Her story does add up. The mission said only 5 lifeforms could leave the planet, but with Ken gone, my team consists of four, so we could bring her. She did save my life, plus…
Gray's eyes not-so-subtly gazed over her body, causing Saeko's grin to grow wider.
With a body like that, I'd take her with me even if she hadn't saved me.
"Fine, but we're here on a mission. I need to take out the rest of the dwarves and Kolra before we can leave. That's fine with you, right?" He asked.
"Of course. I'd be more than happy to help," Saeko said, her true personality leaking out as a small bloodthirsty smile appeared on her face.
"You said you came to find a swordsmith, right? Did you find one?" Gray asked the girl.
I really want a badass sword.
"I did. Are you looking for one as well?" Saeko questioned with a tilted head.
"Nah, I just want a cool sword. Take me to this swordsmith guy, then we need to go find Kolra before he finds the rest of my team. How long was I out?" Gray responded, wincing as he stood up from the rock bed, his chest burning.
Kolra's going to have a hard time finding them down here if his scouter is broken. They should be fine until I get this swordsmith to make me a sword. I need more time to heal anyway, I might be a lot stronger now, but I'll still get my ass beat if I try to fight him in this condition.
"Only a few hours. I can't take you to the swordsmith, mainly because he's dead. Even if he was alive, there's no way you could get him to make you a sword. His name was Yukoth, and he was a crazy old man. He rambled on about making the 'perfect sword' for the 'one he was waiting for' all the time, then kicked the bucket the day after he finished his 'masterpiece.' I couldn't even get him to hold a conversation with me." Saeko finished, making air quotes with her fingers.
"Damn. There should be more swordsmiths here, right? With the whole planet being full of dwarves and everything. I doubt that old man could make a good sword anyway if he was as crazy as you're making him out to be." Gray responded, stretching his arms as he fought to ensure the pain he was feeling didn't show on his face.
"There are, but no one could compare to that man's work. He was crazy, but he made amazing swords. I started living in this village a few months ago to monitor him, so I know where his stash of swords is. We can go take a look at them." Saeko said, standing from her chair and picking up the sheathed sword leaning against her chair. Gray nodded in agreement and Saeko led him out through the door. They left the small room and walked through a rather basic home. Once they were outside, Saeko started leading him toward a towering building made completely of rock.
"Is this village deserted?" Gray asked as he glanced around them, not sensing any power levels.
"Not exactly. After the old man died, the people living here blamed me. They didn't believe me when I told them he passed away after finishing his 'perfect sword' so I had to kill them. I don't blame them for doubting me, and you'll see why when we get there." Saeko said, being far too casual about slaughtering the village. They entered the large building and went up a flight of stairs. At the top of the stairs, there was a blank wall, and Saeko unceremoniously slammed the hilt of her sword into it.
The wall caved in, crumbling to expose the room behind it. The room was large, likely at least 50 feet long in every direction, and was filled with swords. They looked as if they'd been tossed into the room haphazardly, as they lay on top of each other in piles. They all looked nearly identical, looking as if someone had carved them out of a boulder.
"These are his 'failures.'" Saeko said, her fingers making air quotes, "Calling them failures is ridiculous, as most of these swords are worth billions, if not trillions, of Zeni. Even the worst of them are still A-Rank. He told me he used to throw them in the trash, but then the Dwarven King started taking them for his army, so he started hiding them here instead. I can tell he was pissed about someone using them considering that was one of the only coherent things he ever said to me. I would like to take a bunch with me, but I doubt more than a couple will fit in one of those tiny space pods."
Yeah, I'll definitely be taking some with me. I could sell just one and live lavishly for the rest of my life. I'm not sure if there even is an Inventory skill, but I'm going to try my damn best to unlock it before I leave this planet.
"So, which one of these is his masterpiece? And why do they all look the same?" Gray asked, looking around at the massive piles of near-identical swords.
"Every ore on this planet looks the same. You have to be a master swordsmith to even tell them apart." Saeko hummed, walking over to a sword that was leaning against the wall alone, "This is his final work. You can see now why the villagers here didn't believe me. He rambled on about making the perfect sword all the time, and then finished with this."
Gray understood immediately, as the sword looked rather pathetic. The other swords might've looked as if they were carved from a rock, but they were all lean and sharp. They looked like they could cut through anything in the right hands. This, on the other hand, looked rather useless in a fight. It was sword-shaped, but the tip of it was blunt, and it was the only sword in the room that didn't look identical to the others. It was made completely out of wood, looking like a kendo sword. It didn't have an elaborate hilt, just a small wooden platform separating the actual sword from the hilt.
"Yeah, I see what you mean. Maybe he was satisfied with this one because it's made of wood? I haven't seen any trees on this planet." Gray hummed as his eyes glossed over the sword.
"There is one small forest, though it is ruled by the Giant Tribe. They're the reasons all the dwarves, who are actually called small-kind, live underground. The giants, the tall-kind, took the castle where the King used to live." Saeko responded, then held out the sword for Gray to hold. Gray grabbed it and swung it lightly. It was light and felt more like a toy than a sword.
"Giant's? Are they strong?" Gray asked as he swung the wooden sword.
"To the small-kind? Yes. To you? Not really. Most of them probably have a power level of around 10,000 or so. I didn't bring a scouter, so I'm not sure." Saeko said.
Ah, so just another chore I have to do after I defeat Kolra, but I won't complain about getting more XP.
Gray stared at the wooden sword in his hand.
Does this sword have some kind of secret, or is it really just a toy? Oh well, if it breaks from this then it was useless anyway.
Gray clenched his hand around the hilt, funneling his Ki into the sword. His bright blue Ki flooded around the sword and then started flowing into it. Gray pushed more Ki into the sword, and his eyes widened as he realized the sword was continuously absorbing his Ki, showing no sign of fracturing.
A Ki-absorbing blade? No, wait, there's something more than that…
The very start of the hilt started changing, turning from wood into a deathly black stone, looking as if it was made of obsidian. Gray grunted as he funneled more Ki into the blade, realizing that he was almost out of Ki. Saeko watched with wide eyes as the black stone took over more of the blade, crawling up the hilt.
Gray huffed as his Ki reserves ran dry, unable to pump any more Ki into the sword. Nearly half of the hilt was now a smooth and hard black stone. The stone started becoming wood again, creeping backward towards the start of the hilt until the entire sword was wood again, looking as if nothing had changed.
I know my Ki reserves are still pretty low from my fight with Kolra, but I pumped over 30,000 into that sword and only managed to change half the hilt? What the hell is this sword?
"What was that?! I've never seen anything like that!" Saeko breathed out as Gray leaned against the wall, exhausted from funneling his Ki into the blade.
"I'm not sure. I doubt we'll find out until I'm strong enough to make the whole blade change." Gray huffed, then narrowed his eyes at the blade as he sensed the Ki he pumped into it still being held within it. He swung the blade lightly toward the wall opposite of them and resisted the urge to jump in surprise.
A solid beam of Ki sliced out from the sword, launching towards the wall and going through it completely. A large boom rang out around them as the roof collapsed partially from the explosion. He and Saeko both stared wide-eyed at the carnage from the lazy swing.
[Incomplete] King's Obelisk charge - [29,500/1,000,000]
That was badass.
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"Go!" Gray shouted. Seako's hand shot up and fired a Ki blast, which flew directly toward Gray. He swiped up his sword, slashing the blast in half. The blast swirled inward toward his blade, flowing into it. Gray stabilized his sword, then pointed it toward the rock building a few feet from him. The blast of energy shot out, completely obliterating the building. A pile of rocks and dust was all that remained.
"That was so cool! I fucking love this sword." Gray grinned, staring down at the blade in his hand.
"Enjoying your new toy?" Saeko asked with a smirk.
"Duh. This sword is awesome. The only way it would be cooler is if it didn't look so lame. Too bad… Oh, wait, it looks sick when I pump Ki into it." Gray said as he matched Saeko's smirk. Saeko hummed, turning and walking away from him.
"As fun as it's been watching you play with your new sword for the past few hours, we really should go find Kolra, right? Either that or you go get some rest if you're still not feeling 100% yet." Saeko called over her shoulder.
"Yeah, you're right," Gray sighed, leaning the sword lazily on his shoulder as he walked behind Saeko, "I'm not fully healed yet, but I'm close enough. He'll have trouble finding Asia, Tamari, and Celia without his scouter, but I still don't want to give him too much time to search."
They'd been experimenting with his new sword for the last couple of hours as Gray slowly recovered HP and Ki, but he couldn't take too much time to rest.
Gray closed his eyes as he focused on expanding his senses, looking for any sign of Tamari, Asia, Celia, or Korla.
A lot of weak power levels… more weak power levels… even more weak power levels… there you are!
Gray's eyes shot open as he sensed a mass of disappearing power levels. There was a large collection of weak energy signals in one place, a much bigger collection than the little villages he and Saeko had been walking through, but they were disappearing rapidly. There was a battle, or more likely a massacre, taking place.
If someone's massacring a city of dwarves, odds are it's Korla or someone on my team.
"I found someone. Follow me. There's no need to rush since whoever we're heading towards is killing off a city of dwarves at the moment. If it's Korla, he'll wear himself down a bit and I'll have time to recover more. If it's someone on my team, then there's no point in rushing. They'll be fine against a few dwarves." Gray said, walking swiftly through a tunnel in the direction of the power levels. Saeko nodded silently and fell into step beside him.
They walked in comfortable silence for a moment, before Saeko's voice rang through the tunnel, "Why do you keep doing that?"
"Don't worry about it," Gray responded as he robotically pushed the sword out in front of him, then to his side, then into the air above him, then behind him, continuously pushing the sword into the air.
I'm hoping if I try this enough times then the sword will eventually go into my inventory. I'd really like an inventory skill.
Luckily for him, Saeko didn't seem keen to dig any further, and they continued walking in silence. Gray continued trying to unlock the inventory skill until his head jerked up as they got closer to their destination.
The large power is clearly Kolra, but there are two other large ones as well. Not even close to Kolra's, but much stronger than any dwarves I've seen. Maybe they're guards? The king? Or…
"Change of plan. Pick up the pace." Gray said as he shot forward, breaking into a sprint as he sped through the tunnel toward the collection of power levels. Saeko didn't respond, but he sensed her running closely behind him.
Those power levels better not be yours, Asia, Tamari.
They sprinted at near-full speed, and a few minutes later they reached their destination. Gray glanced up at the large over-bearing door, which was less of a door and more of a giant hole in a rock wall, that led into a giant cavern. The ceiling was hundreds of feet in the air, and there were hundreds of buildings, all made of rock, towering into the sky. Some were damaged, with smoke coming out of the side. At the far back of the city stood a looming castle.
However, the most noticeable aspect of the large cavern was the bodies strewn across the ground. Everywhere Gray looked there were corpses. He flew over the city toward the large power level deep within it, eyes glancing over the dwarven corpses that littered the street. Saeko followed closely behind him. He rapidly approached the castle and didn't bother looking for the door, instead opting to launch a Ki blast into the front wall and fly through it.
Inside was a sight he didn't expect. Kolra was standing confidently in the middle of the large throne room, a swarm of dwarves in full-plated armor, along with a pile of corpses, were scattered around him. A bloodied corpse was sitting on the elaborate golden throne, the crown sitting on his caved-in head being the only feature that allowed Gray to recognize the corpse as the king.
Most importantly, an out-of-breath Asia was holding a spinning green blade on the top of her hand from behind a line of dwarven guards, Tamari's slumped over body leaning against the wall next to her. Celia was nowhere to be seen. Gray inwardly sighed in relief as he quickly scanned Tamari's body, seeing that she still had some HP remaining.
"I didn't think I'd ever see you again," Kolra mused, turning his attention completely away from the dwarves surrounding him and looking at Gray, "You survived. Impressive."
"Of course I did. I told you I'd kill you, didn't I? I won't die before Ken is avenged." Gray said confidently, floating down and landing on the ground. The circle of dwarven guards parted slightly to give an open path between him and Kolra.
"Gray!" Asia shouted excitedly, waving a hand at him. He smiled gently at her, then locked his gaze back on Kolra as Saeko landed next to him.
"You… you look familiar. You're one of those dwarves I killed, right? Or, almost killed, I guess. I remember thinking you were a strange-looking dwarf." Kolra said as he regarded Saeko.
"I'm not a dwarf, but I appreciate you remembering me," Saeko said with a cold smile, unsheathing her sword. Kolra sighed as he saw her prepare for battle.
"I let you live because I respected your warrior spirit, but I won't do so again. It would've been better if you'd died back there. I ignored how disgracefully you asked those other warriors for help last time, but requesting help from a dwarf is where I draw the line. You have no pride as a Saiyan, and you will die without honor." Kolra said, directing a disgusted look at Gray and Saeko.
"You seem to have the wrong idea, so I'll clear it up for you. I don't need her help, or anyone's help dealing with you," Gray said as his eyes narrowed at Kolra.
"Saeko, make sure Asia and Tamari are safe. As for the rest of you, if you value your life, then I suggest you stay out of this," Gray growled as he gave a cold look to the surrounding dwarven guards. His look worked, as they stepped back hesitantly and gave him and Kolra space to fight. Saeko nodded at his words and appeared by Asia's side a moment later.
"Hm, I'm glad to see that you have some pride. Still, using a sword, especially one that looks so pathetic? I respected our previous clash, but I misjudged you." Kolra said, smirking slightly as he stared down Gray.
"Don't get the wrong idea. I don't care what you think," Gray stepped forward, his right hand grabbing the bandages wrapped around his chest and ripping them off in one pull. He dropped them on the ground next to him, his still-bruised chest exposed. He dropped the sword on the floor next to him, kicking it across the ground toward Saeko.
"I don't want anyone's help, and I don't need a sword, but not because of something stupid like my pride," He raised his arm, pointing directly at Kolra as he stood across from him with his arms crossed. A large blood-thirsty grin appeared on Gray's face as he felt his heart beat faster, adrenaline rushing through his veins.
"You killed Ken, and I'm going to make sure you pay for it. You shouldn't have let me live before, because I won't do the same for you. I'll tear you apart, limb by limb, until you apologize on your knees. Be prepared for the fight of your life, Kolra. It will be your last!" Gray shouted, his Ki starting to flow around his body as he readied himself for battle. His grin grew even wider as Kolra's face changed.
Unknown to Gray, Kolra felt a feeling deep inside of him, one he'd never felt before. The fear of death loomed over Kolra's head as he stared at Gray's bloodthirsty grin.
However, while Gray never knew what Kolra felt, neither did Kolra. The pure excitement flowing through his body drowned out all other feelings, and Kolra responded with a large bloodthirsty grin of his own. The two battle-hungry Saiyan's stared down each other, a singular thought shared between the two of them.
I'm gonna kill you.
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IMPORTANT QUESTION FOR THE WEBNOVEL ENJOYERS!: On every site from this point onward the chapters were split into two shorter parts, mainly just because that's what a lot of writers do (gives a chance for people to talk about both parts individually and is better for engagement, as well as allowing me to post one half early if the entire chapter isn't finished yet).
Would you guys rather have the parts separately, or just one whole chapter as usual? If y'all want the entire chapter at once, then once the story is caught up, the latest chapters will be posted here a bit later than on other sites. I'd prefer to upload the parts separately, but if that's a deal breaker for some of you then I'm fine with posting the whole chapter. Comment and let me know what you prefer, please!
Here's chapter 6! Hope y'all enjoyed!
As always, you can read 1 chapter ahead at Patreon.com/Koyon (up to chapter 11 now for the Webnovel peoples!)
This story is updated every day until it's caught up!
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