18 Baby Steps #18

'Well, that was.... something...' I mused as I watched Catwoman leave, and as a self-respecting DC character, she naturally decided to take the window because why not? Doors are overrated anyway.

I messaged the back of my head, letting out a drawn breath as I plopped into my chair, turning to my system.

[Quest complete: Enter The Dragon II]

[Primary Objective: success]

[+5 levels to the Brawling skill]

[Brawling (level 14)]

[+3 levels to the Fighter class]

[Fighter (level 8)]

[+9 stat points]

[Bonus Objective 1: success]

[Reward: Pigeon Drone]

[Pigeon Drone: a pigeon shaped drone capable of reading brain waves in a kilometer-wide range to receive and emit signals and transmit visual input (those nutcases on the net might have been on to something)]

[Bonus Objective 2: fail]

'Foiled again by my greatest enemy; guns!' I mused, lightly chuckling. I wasn't bothered by not completing the second bonus objective. The reward would have definitely been nice considering what I got for finishing the first, but I couldn't bring myself to care.

I finished the fight on my own without Richard getting involved this time, and that was enough for me. Anything other than that is a bonus. Maybe if there's another quest, I'd finish it perfectly, but that's for the future.

One step at a time.

[New Quest initiated: Get Rich Or Die Trying (literally) II]

Get Rich Or Die Trying (literally) II:

You finally got a taste of money, but is that really enough to fill the black hole in your heart? You want, you need; it makes the world go round. Go for it.

[Objective: Gather $50,000 through any means]

[Rewards: [Random equipment] [+5 levels to the crime skill]

[Progress: $1,476/$50,000]

[Accept Quest: Yes/No?]

'Why the hell not? I'll keep making money away, so I might as well finish a quest along the way.'

I won't obsess over it and let nature take its course this time. I hope so, at least.

'But wait, why is the progress only at one thousand?! What about the 15k?!' I questioned as I finally turned to the progress bar. I swear to god if this is some system BS about that money not counting because I got it before the Quest.

I can't really do anything about it now that I think about it, but I'd still be furious and demand to see the manager.

[The host hadn't opened the duffle bag and confirmed its contents]

'The hell kind of bullshit is this? You almost gave me a heart attack!' I mentally grumbled, but I still took out the duffle bag and opened it to confirm its contents.

[+ $16,000]

I turned to the bar and nodded in satisfaction as I saw it rise. It Looks like Richard was wrong about the exact number, not that I was complaining, mind you.

'Hmm, what's this?' I titled my head at the black object at the bottom of the bag, previously covered by the cash. 'A USB stick?' I noticed as I picked it up and got a better look.

'Yeah, I'm not plugging anything Intergang-related into any computer.'

Intergang deals in technology, alien technology to be more specific, and this stick could have been a doomsday virus that could destroy the world's economy or flood the internet with pictures of Scarecrow in a thing.

'I'll pass it along to someone if I get the chance...'

I shrugged, letting go of the subject as I stored the USB stick in my inventory and turned to my character screen.

Name: Grayson Whitlock

Race: Human

Gender: Male

Age: 17

Class: [Thief (level 10 MAX)] [Fighter (level 8)]

...

Stats:

Body: 25

Mind: 25

Spirit: Locked

Stat Points: 36

.....

Skills:

[Brawling (level 14)]

[Crime (level 25)]

....

Perks:

[Dormant Metahuman]

[Silent Step]

[Eidetic Kinesthesia]

[Superhuman Stamina]

...

Inventory: [Neuron Adaptive Steel Wire] [Bulletproof Trench Coat MK2][Reward: Pigeon Drone]

...

Quests:

[Get Rich Or Die Trying (literally) II]

...

I sighed as I turned to the surplus in my stat points. I still felt complicated about this whole thing, and honestly, it wasn't merely my fear of turning into a fictional character that stopped me from using them.

I needed the strength to survive, and at this point, after getting shot multiple times, I'd take being a fictional character over being a dead character any time of the day at this point.

But the idea that the system could give me strength by merely raising a number meant that it could take away what it gave me just as simply, and I probably won't be able to do anything about it, which is why I'm hesitant to rely on the system and its power-ups.

'But I guess I have to ensure my survival before worrying about the system or whatever being that created it...'

I let out a breath as I allocated 6 points into my Body attribute, raising it to 31, and 5 into my Mind, increasing it to 30 and leaving me with 25 stat points.

I couldn't increase my strength too much because it would be too obvious, and Richard had already made it clear he'd noticed my sudden improvement, and beyond that, it'd take time to get used to the new strength.

I didn't feel like crushing everything I touched because I couldn't control my own strength. Thank you very much.

I closed the system interface, and my eyes unconsciously drifted to the note Catwoman left behind, reminding me that I still haven't bought a damned phone yet.

'I'll buy one tomorrow,' I shrugged, storing the note into my inventory as I plopped into my air mattress, tucking my hands behind my head.

'Huh... the day didn't turn to shit for once... neat...'

...

The Tin Roof Club

She was freaking out.

Selina Kyle was freaking out as she anxiously paced around her nightclub, having dismissed all patrons early. She had made a mistake by underestimating a seemingly harmless meta-human thief.

She saw the young thief stealing the Electricutionr's suit by accident, demonstrating his ability to make things disappear, which she concluded was a storage power of sorts after observing the thief for a while longer.

She saw the trench coat and the mask he wore suddenly disappear after the thief left the scene, which only made her more convinced that the thief had access to an ability to store things he touches into a pocket dimension or something along those lines.

She was by no means an expert on meta powers and such complicated technologies. But she knew enough to recognize these things, which she did, both the power and endless possibilities behind it.

She couldn't let it go and pretend nothing happened, not when such an ability could be making her rich. The thought itself went against her very nature and personality.

She gave in to her impulse and acted after observing the young thief for some time. He wasn't an average person as expected, but nothing suggested he'd be a threat to her. And It's not like she intended to take advantage of the thief either. Not too much anyway.

Selina was many things, but heartless was not one of them. She'd definitely take the lion's share of the prize, but she'd still give the young thief his fair share.

She expected many things from the counter, but never in her wildest dreams did she expect the young thief to know about her existence, not to mention her real name and identity.

The way the young thief suddenly stopped playing dumb and went on the attack instead of passively reacting to her words sent alarm bells ringing in her head as she realized he was merely acting the entire time, trying to get rid of her.

Selina forced the issue and suffered for it. The young thief obviously didn't look like he wanted to do anything with her real identity, but now that she's put herself in his crosshair, she didn't know what he'd do.

What else would the thief know if he already knew her real identity without directly interacting with her? What was he capable of exactly? And more importantly, what the hell did she get herself into this time?

Her brain went wild with speculations and guesses as she continued to pace around the nightclub.

Her secret identity must not be revealed, no matter what, because she didn't have to worry about Batman's enemies alone. She had made her fair share of enemies along the way, and none of them were pushovers either.

So in a last-ditch effort, she left her number at the young thief's house, hoping to make friends with him as it was the safest way to make sure he wouldn't spill her secret.

"What's got you all hot and bothered kitty?" Came a bubbly feminine voice, snapping Selina out of her concern-induced daze.

She turned to the speaker and bitterly smiled at the twin-pigtailed blonde woman strutting towards her.

'Great, that's all I need right now..' Selina mused to herself, shaking her head.

"Is Batsy being mean to you again? Want me to get my bazooka?" The woman spoke, her hands on her hips as she regarded Selina with a smirk while blowing a gum bubble.

"I see Arkham Asylum is as unreliable as ever," Selina said with a sigh, massaging the bridge of her nose. "I was hoping I wouldn't see you for another two months at least, Harley..." she remarked, rolling her eyes in exasperation at the blonde.

"Awe! Don't be like that, kitty. It'll be like the good old times..." the woman, Harley, said, approaching Selina and putting an arm around her. "You, me and red..." she added, grandly gesturing with her free hand.

"And everyone else screaming for their mamas!"

...

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