A Gift
*Ringgggggg*
The sound of the school bell announcing the end of school echoed throughout the school, a tidal wave of students surging out of their classrooms mere moments after. Soon, the hallways were swamped with chattering students, all eager to get home. Riley bid his friends goodbye and, without wasting another moment, rushed out of school.
'According to Mr. X, there's going to be a big meeting happening soon in the People's Brotherhood. It's been four days since we last met and I've only been clearing out small fries, but it seems that something big's going down.'
Riley had spent every weekday night on missions, mainly interrupting gun deals and busting drug trades. So far, he'd accrued four Class points which he had used to level his Vigilante's Gun twice to Level 3, and the remaining Class point on his Vigilante's Pants to Level 2.
Through these upgrades, <Shadow Move>'s cooldown was reduced and the range increased, while <Bullet Party> had gained new effects.
The first new change applied to Vigilante's Gun was <Bullet Party - Shotgun>. Rather than the typical bullets summoned with <Bullet Party - Normal>, just like it's namesake, this skill stored a bullet that fired ten pellets in a spread. Although each individual pellet dealt less damage than a bullet from <Bullet Party - Normal>, the total damage dealt by all the pellets added together far exceeded it. This made <Bullet Party - Shotgun> excellent for close combat situations.
The second skill gained from his newly leveled Vigilante's Gun was <Bullet Party - Flashbang>. Unlike an ordinary stun grenade, this bullet was able to travel a certain distance, determined by Riley, and would explode only when Riley wanted it to. Furthermore, just like <Shadow World>, it didn't emit a literal "flash" — there was no sound or light. Instead, it seemed to use illusionary "magic". Riley was able to determine who would hear the sound and see the flash; which meant no friendly fire. Another reason why it seemed magical to Riley was that the skill also worked on people wearing goggles and earplugs.
Other than his new skills, Riley had also gained two levels, and was now Level 19. Furthermore, when Mr. X found out that Riley's bat had broken while fighting the bodyguard Lorenzo, he had gifted Riley a sleek new bat. It was a direct upgrade to his old one, with higher damage output and durability.
As he was walking, Riley recalled the ride home Mr. X had given him after that pivotal battle at the pizzeria.
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"Hmm… what? You want book recommendations? I'd say Homer's The Iliad is pretty great. Oh actually, I love the prose in Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov. His use of the english language is matchless. Lolita, the light of my life, the fire of my loins, my sin, my soul. Lo Lee Ta. The tip of the tongue-"
"No, not those types of books. Tutorial books. Like, how you fight. I want to learn your style of elegant and agile fighting. Stuff like that."
"Pfffft, hahahaha! What the hell are you thinking, you nerd! Don't forget that I was dragged into this world since I was young, and I've been fighting for my life since. It's all experience!"
"Yeah, but you must have learned something from a book at least once, no?"
"Hmm learning from a guide book? I don't think so. But, there was this book I read as a kid that inspired my fighting style. It's about an assassin that fights to the beat of music. That's why I listen to my iPod while I fight.
"Huh. That's an interesting concept."
"Yeah, it really inspired me a lot. As an example, I listen to rap when I need a fight to end quickly, or jazz when I know I'll have to dodge a lot of attacks.
Grabbing Mr. X's shoulder, Riley asked, "Can I have that book? It'll mean a lot to me."
"Well, it's an old novel, and it isn't very popular, but I guess I can try and find it for you. Gimme a few days, kiddo."
"Thanks!"
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Sure enough, when Riley arrived home, there was a package waiting for him. Pulling out the burner phone from his Inventory, Riley texted, "Thanks!" to Mr. X.
Grabbing the parcel, he saw that it was lacking any postal form, which meant that it was delivered by hand, instead of the postal service. Checking out the dirty and worn-out cardboard box, the only reason Riley had not to suspect that it was from the second coming of the Unabomber were three letters written on the side: Mr. R.
Smiling to himself, Riley brought the parcel in as he headed up to his room. After placing his school bag on his desk, Riley pulled out a knife from his Inventory and cut off the tape wrapped around the cardboard box. After having done so, Riley opened the flaps of the box to reveal the contents.
Inside the box was an iPod with wired earphones, a note, and a book with its cover torn off. Picking up the note, Riley read its contents.
"Hey Riley, sorry for the wait, but here's the book that you asked for. This book means a lot to me. It was the only thing that kept me sane while I was in this wretched hive of scum and villainy. I would usually read it whenever I felt sick or was staring down a bottomless pit. The hero has a similar background as me; we were both in a dark place, where music was the only thing that kept us going. And with that, music became an integral part of both our lives: the protagonist used music and dancing to take down the traitors who murdered his parents, and I fought my way up to better the wrongs that I committed in the hopes that no other kid would have to go through this torment. I've also left some of my favorite songs on this iPod. Make sure you enjoy; I paid real money for those songs. Yes, I still have principles. Cheers, Mr. X"
Riley couldn't help but smile as he read the letter. Sure, he had only known Mr. X for a short time but, Mr. X was the only person that Riley could really confide in. After all, he was a normal 16 year old who had been dragged into a dangerous world of crime and death. Mr. X might have been sketchy at first, being a mafioso, but all in all, he had been someone Riley could wholeheartedly rely on.
Placing the note on the desk, Riley looked at the tattered book. It had lost its cover, and the spine was tearing. The pages in the book had wet spots and some mold, which was understandable knowing the conditions that Mr. X had lived through. Picking up the book, a window popped up.
"You have obtained a skill book {Tales of the Knight Virtuoso}. Would you like to learn this skill?"
Riley excitedly clicked "Accept".
A new window appeared, saying, "Skill successfully learnt!"
Pulling up his skill window, Riley clicked on the new, foreign icon, which depicted a simple semiquaver.
"<Virtuoso>"
"Toggle Skill. "
"Mana cost: 10 per second."
"Cooldown: Once a day."
"Pre-requisites: Must be listening to music."
"Description: Upon activating this spell, the user's battle instincts and experience increase by 50%, providing the user insights to how he can better execute his movements. While in this state, the user's stats are also increased by 10%, and their fighting style mimics that of the song being played. Bonus stats increase with songs the user is more familiar with."
While still excited about his shiny new skill, another window popped up.
"Item 'Burner Phone' is ringing. <Accept/Decline>"
Clicking "Accept", the phone, still ringing, appeared in his hands. Before he could even click the answer button, the ringing stopped and a muffled voice could be heard. Putting the phone up to his ear, he heard Mr. X's voice.
"Hey, I saw your message! How do you like my present?"
"I just got around to opening it, and man, thanks a lot! You really didn't have to get me an iPod though."
"Don't sweat it kid. With your help yesterday taking out those drug kingpins, that's a hundred grand that I've made with them out of the picture. It's the least I could do for your help. I mean, I haven't been able to compensate or thank you in any real way.
"No, I need to thank you instead for the gifts. You've helped me out a lot."
Riley could hear a soft chuckling from the other end of the line.
"Well, after all, I did say it would be a win-win partnership, right? Once this is all over, I'll be sure to sit down and think hard about how I can properly thank you, but until then, I've got a new task, and this one's gonna be hard."
"Since when have I let you down? Give me the deets."
"Check your text."
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Patch 31.0
- Regular biweekly update
Name: Riley Petesgeralt
Age: 16
Job: The Roleplayer
Class: Vigilante
Level: 19 (+2)
HP: 250
MP: 220
EXP: 35/538
Strength: 43
Dexterity: 46
Vitality: 25
Intelligence: 32
Wisdom: 22
Charisma: 26
Luck: 31
Skills:
Roleplayer's Mind
Virtual Body
Analyze (Level 5)
Blunt Weapon Proficiency (Level 4)
Physical Endurance (Level 3)
The Cinderella Effect (Level 1)
Dodge Step (Level 2)
Counter Flip (Level 1)
Leg Sweep (Level 2)
Power Punch (Level 2)
Extreme Agility (Level 2)
Sense Danger (Level 2)
Trash Talk (Level 1)
Power Swing (Level 4)
Quick Draw (Level 1)
Minimap (Level 2)
Incognito (Level 4)
Bullet Party (Level 1)
Bullet Time (Level 1)
Bind (Level 1)
Virtuoso (Level 1)
Equipment:
Vigilante's Mask (Level 3/5)
Vigilante's Cloak (Level 1/5)
Vigilante's Pants (Level 2/5) (+1)
Vigilante's Gloves (Level 1/5)
Vigilante's Shoes (Level 1/5)
Vigilante's Gun (Level 3/5) (+2)
Full set bonus unlocked: Shadow World