Chapter 78 SMURF!!!

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Seated upon a rugged boulder, Dante fervently exchanged words with this alternative, asking a myriad of questions, ranging from really basic questions to more complex ones, like how to fight effectively or why you are in your original body?

Dante yelled in incredulity, "WAIT! so your transformation are time limited and you don't even gotta fully transform to get the benefits??? Your main body carries every single upgrade you have unlocked!"

The alternative continued to answer the last question, "FIRST, Yes, SECOND now to answer your ealier inquiry: I never transformed; When I was fighting to death in the tutorial, I just didn't transform and survived by myself with this body, I barely managed to kill the monster boss... Can't even remember his name from there, it was a brutal struggle, constantly fighting against overwhelming odds for my survival. but that's it! there is no secret upgrade, you just don't gotta transform in the direst situation that fate placed us, after not transforming for a while the system will adapt to help you in what you need."

He paused, collecting his thoughts before continuing. "And as for why Rainbow Dash was my third main upgrade... She is a really good starting point that covers all the basics, but I left her until the end because she is unstable... she is too unstable; even if I am in control, their personalities still affect me. I liked Rarity's personality because she had the trait of being a perfectionist: this allowed me to think before acting, instead of the irrational and chaotic behavior of, let's say, Pinkie Pie or Rainbow Dash. Also, I don't like to have a suicide option in my set. It closes my view, in every pinch I'll try to use full speed, instead of giving everything I have; the ability of going superspeed but not having any control isn't that good; she is cheap for that simple reason, a double-edged sword. She might hit hard, but at the same time, you probably will get injured, too."

Dante recalled all the experiences he had lived since getting here, the memories of how he shot himself at full speed to the sky even with the lack of control... Right now, he is suffering because of Pinkie Pie's personality; Dante thinks inside, 'he read me as an open book, that happened to me and almost died....'

The alternative eyes scanned the subtle shifts in Dante's expression, noting the way she pondered more than one normally would. With a voice as cold as steel, he said, "By the look on your face, you chose her."

Dante's cheeks flushed with a tinge of embarrassment as he acknowledged the truth, knowing that he was read open like a book, "Yeah, she was... but I saved up some money and unlocked Pinkamena because a little accident I caused... *Cough* Spending-a-ton-of-points-in-physical-stats *Cough*"

With his tone casual yet probing, the alternative asked the first of many questions about unlocking a new body, which he usually asks to the other versions, "Is she your fourth or fifth transformation?"

Dante, taken aback, replied with a quizzical tone, "What? No, it's my third!" His surprise was evident in his wide-eyed expression and the slight tremor in his voice.

hearing the unexpectedly low number, the alternative mumbled, slightly perplexed, "Huh?" He shot a glance at Dante, his usual irritated tone creeping into his voice, "How the fuck did you survive till getting her?"

Dante replied, "With Daniel, Thalassa, Su yuan, of course! They saved me when I committed certain stupidity of going full speed towards the sky... Now that I think about it, I commit a lot of stupidities-"

The alternative, brows furrowed, he asked while trying to remember a player he had met with that name, "Who?"

Dante's mind went blank, trying to absorb the words that came out of his mouth. "Y-Your best friend... The one who saved you in the tutorial. Thalassa the female robot, and Su Yuan the moth we met in the clouds, and became friends really soon!"

The alternative slightly closed his eyes, trying to remember, "Daniel... Daniel..." He snapped his fingers as a spark of recognition lit up his mind, "Ah, right, the guy from the tutorial; sorry to tell you this, but I was the only survivor from the tutorial, probably a variation." He lit another cigarette and waited for the next question.

Dante contemplated inside at this revelation, 'Oh... Right, this isn't a tale where everything goes like I wanted... So he is dead... I guess the others are too.' Dante's gaze drifted towards the sky, and a mix of apprehension and curiosity swirled in his mind; he had just half of the permitted time left in this place, "Huh, I wonder what the next version of me will prepare."

Leaning against a dilapidated wall, the alternative exuded an air of nonchalance as he asked, "How many versions have you met?"

Dante's response came with a touch of uncertainty, his brows furrowing in thought, "1, if we count you, then 2! The first one was a crazy version of me; that version abused love and drugs to become really strong."

The alternative gaze was steady and unblinking as he stated, "I already investigated that path… The quantity of power you get for the amount of effort is incredibly efficient. If not because I value my mental stability and have some dignity, probably I would have taken a similar route out of desperation… well, I took a similar one but mine is under control."

Dante, with his voice rising like a tempest, exclaimed, "WHAT? she drugged and mind-controlled his target to get more love out of it!!! How could you say that!" the loud voice of Dante echoed in the surrounding areas, making the crumbling structures slimly quiver.

The alternative, even if he disliked that version because she was such a hypocrite and even more cynical than he is, he knew when something was effective, "You know, that the love version is a ranker, right?

Dante nodded hesitantly, his mind grappling with the implications of the alternative's words, he replied, his voice trailing off uncertainly. "Yes...?"

With a casual shrug and a tone devoid of any emotion, the alternative delivered his next statement, "That version of you could kill both of us by just existing... and I want to remind you, that version is in a similar age to us! at most, there is a 1-year difference." Such a casual way of saying that statement added more weight to it.

Dante recalled the eerie display of power she showed; his body shivered as he contemplated, 'If I'm supposed to have similar strength, then the world has a screw lose.'

The alternative continued, "Look... unless she fights against the "Limit Breakers" of her level then she is probably the top dog... and probably the future representer of this city in the events from her level."

"Limit breakers? Representer?" Dante's voice echoed with confusion and curiosity. Sensing how these terms were unfamiliar to her, the alternative took it upon himself to give a small class, "The first one, It's quite simple, they are simply an assassin group for important targets, you pay them enough money that equals the power level of that target and puff! The target will be killed in an event or with a special item."

Dante got slightly confused; anyone can kill anyone, even if he can do that! Why are they special? Or what made them gain a name and enough power to challenge the overpowered version of himself to the point of killing her? Dante voiced his thoughts aloud, "Okay... Care to explain why? 

The alternative explained, "They don't level up from a certain important milestone, LVL 50, 100, 150, 200... They keep themself under-leveled to enter low-level tournaments and kill important targets; they have a 95% effectivity rate as they have the best armor, weapons, and abilities possible for their LVLs. About what they target; Anything that can be killed, A.K.A. Aspects, priestesses, Guild masters, important assets, material providers, etc etc... you know them, we target them

Dante hyper-fixated on a word he used. The alternative had never done this before, so it wasn't in his linguistic choices, he said with a hint of suspicion. "why the WE...? I don't see you covered in red." 

Nonchalantly, the alternative responded, "I'm a leader of the best LVL 100 group; my group consists of a total of 10 persons if we count me." His voice held a hint of pride; this was the first time the alternative showed its pride, and Dante noted that.

Dante's disbelief crackled in the air like static electricity as he responded, his voice tinged with slight incredulity. "You are a fucking smurf... You are just a big fish on a small pond bullying little kids!"

With some pride in it, the alternative casually acknowledged Dante's observation, "Yes... how could you tell?" He quipped, tossing his cigarette towards Dante with a flick of his wrist, "My talent isn't the best I took one of worst routes possibles... I'm using only my own strength which sorry to break your bubble but we suck and it won't get you too far away."

Trying to overlook the fact that his alternative is the equivalent of a pro player getting into a ranked with at most gold players, he continued, "Wow... How did you even become one? Like! You just one day woke up and said, "I want to bully weaker people or a random person just came to your door and asked, 'Hello, good sir. Aren't you interested in bullying little kids who we are gonna constantly jump with 9 more players?' "

"Actually... it was more like the second one"