12 TASK TASK TASK (chapter 12)

Chapter 12

As soon as Oliver equipped the wig, his appearance subtly transformed. While not entirely unrecognizable, he appeared different enough to disassociate from the familiar redhead Oliver. Concealing the crossbody bag, he planned to sell the recently acquired items swiftly, hoping to do so before any news of the cup being stolen spread. "Before they hear any news of the cup being stolen," he mused, contemplating the potential repercussions of his actions.

Recalling his encounter with the mysterious duo, he mulled over their peculiar behavior. "They were definitely not the owners of the house, given their reactions." Their response to the theft didn't align with what one might expect from the legitimate owners. "Plus, the woman herself said to steal the necklace for her. So yeah, definitely other thieves. But why would they do it without custom? Are they stupid?" Oliver pondered, perplexed by the unusual circumstances.

However, his train of thought abruptly halted when the ouroboros necklace around his neck glowed for a brief second. In that moment, flashes of people in red ninja suits chasing him filled his vision. He watched in bewilderment as his hand turned black and monstrous, only for the visions to abruptly end.

Catching his breath after the unexpected ordeal, he sighed and thought, "Well, guess I am not selling shit." Gripping the necklace tighter, he grumbled, "Why are there ninjas after me now? What did I do?" The answer dawned on him as he sighed again, "Well, I am a thief after all. But the penthouse belonged to a rich old lady, not some sec-" His words trailed off as he remembered the nature of the world he inhabited. "Fuck me sideways," he muttered, realizing the complex web of consequences.

-Scene Change-

Back in his hideout, Oliver lit the lamp, arranging the stolen items in the military box. He ascended the platform, taking a seat at his workbench. Sighing for the umpteenth time, he opened the to-do list book. "Well, I still don't have enough money to buy the smelter, the generator, and the cast, since I didn't sell shit," he muttered, frustration evident in his voice. Turning the page, he focused on the seventh item on the list: [learn self-defense].

Following the encounter with Knull, the god of symbiotes, and being saved by Goldie, Oliver resolved to learn self-defense. Not with the intention of confronting Knull, but rather to efficiently utilize the optioned-out symbiote in case his life was in peril. "And I still need to learn boxing, kickboxing, Wing Chun, and karate." These martial arts became his chosen specialties, alongside acquiring skills in shooting guns, bows, and crossbows.

"Task, task, task " he chanted, looking down at a clear box without a lid. The box contained various items that needed to be optioned out. His eyes focused on a 1000 ml lab flask, picking it up with the thought, "Alright, I got this so that when I eventually grow a magical plant, I could try and make a potion." He stood to observe his planter's pot, disappointed to find dead seeds. He sighed, replacing them with new ones and settling back at his workbench.

After replacing the seeds, he sat down, focusing on giving the flask an option. Much to his dismay, the attempt failed, adding to the frustrations of his already ruined day. He placed it back into the box before stepping off the platform.

[2 weeks later]

In a dim underground locker room, Oliver sat on a bench, surprisingly present. His once bright red hair was now cut very short, even shorter than two weeks ago. He sported burst lips and slightly bruised eyes, unwrapping a bandage around his knuckles with occasional winces of pain, mainly from his ribs and jaw. Rowdy men entered the room, shouting and bantering. Their attention turned to Oliver, the elder gentleman, short blonde hair, tan skin, and green eyes, approaching him. Putting Oliver in a headlock, he said, "Didn't I tell you, red head? This ring ain't no joke. You should have listened and looked for my firend Terry. He could have hooked you up with a modeling agency." The genuine concern in the gentleman's smile contradicted the tough exterior. Oliver grinned uncomfortably, weaving out of the headlock as the men headed to their lockers, leaving him to his own devices. Before leaving, he glanced at his status panel, sighing, "I am still nowhere close to leveling up this damn skill, am I?"

A/N ok i get it, its still too hard, but a time skip is coming and its going to get easier to level up i promise.

[Name: Oliver]

[MP: 3.01/3.01 (1 MP lasts for 1 minute, 1 MP can be recovered every minute)]

[Skills:

Option: You can grant one item a single option, and depending on either the item's history, production method, use, or significance, it would receive a different option. But it can only receive 1 option, with a 70% chance of failure. Current grade: F, level: 1 (130/1,000) cooldown: 24 hours.]

Gathering his belongings in a small duffle bag, which, as expected, were also options, doubling the available space, he exited the underground ring where he was learning boxing and kickboxing. A week after stealing the golden cub and the expensive broken watch, he pulled off another job—stealing two small diamonds. The haul provided enough cash to check off items 1, 2, and 3 on his to-do list: getting the generator, the smelter, and the sand cast for making casts of various items before refining them.

Using the remaining funds, he purchased additional tools: sanders, 100 grit belts, a portable wifi, a small laptop, a bookshelf, several books on subjects he wanted to learn, and lighting utensils that illuminated his entire home. This brought him back to square one, with no money, prompting him to plan another heist, this time in a faraway location. Apparently, the police were catching up due to the increasing number of successful heists.

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A/N well, another chapter, hope you guys enjoyed it, anyways, i am still reading shadow slave which gave an idea for a fanfic, which i am currently writing chapter 13, it works the same as the nightmare seed from shadow slave, in a sense where the mc would be transported to a different universe (movie or tv universe) and he will have to complete a certain missions to gain certain rewards, would that be something that interest you guys?

PS: any marvel fans out there who know what the savage is?

PS: guess who the guys with the red ninja suit where???

PS: his future suit (well there is multiple of course) is the one on the cover.