Chapter 32 - You’re a Rapier, Huh?

<p> I stir from sleep, opening my eyes slowly. Although I didn't remember any dreaming from last night, the blankets that had clearly been thrashed all night long suggested otherwise. Still, this was the softest bed I had ever slept on, in this life or the past, and I felt decently refreshed. "Christy would be jealous," I laugh softly.<br/><br/>(A/N: Is this the part of a standard story where the MC realizes he has a girl in bed, whether inappropriate or not? Yes! Is there one? No, motherf*cker, what made you think this was a standard story??)<br/><br/> Hopping out of bed, I stretch widely, yawning loudly as I spread my jaws open. Right now, I had nothing but my underwear on. Thankfully, technology was far enough along that they weren't loincloths, but they were still essentially just glorified tighty whities. Still, I couldn't complain too much, as something is better than nothing. After I use the bathroom — ah, sweet, lovable toilets — I walk over to the full body mirror, taking a good look at myself for the first time.<br/><br/> Looking at… Klum. <br/><br/> My face is small and pointed, instead of long and square. I have amber eyes, and straight, short white hair rather than a curly brown. My body is built slim, but tightly woven muscles sit under my olive skin. I wasn't sure if it was always like that, or if my muscle density increased due to my stats. I noted how my new hips felt slightly wider, with barely slimmer shoulders. Added with the fact that the muscle seemed more packed in my legs than my arms, my body was almost at feminine levels, if not for two glaring facts. The first was that my chest was pulled taut, leaving no room for small bits of flabby muscle like a man named Luke had. For the second fact, I pull at my waistband to check it, and wince slightly. "Oof, you came with a little bit extra, didn't you?" I say sympathetically. "Don't worry, I'll take care of that hood sometime soon."<br/><br/> Snapping the band closed, I grab my armor, tossing my new normal shirt, pants, and shoes into the cube. Although I made sure the pants and shoes were black, I had run short on Gold, and for some reason white was the cheapest, so I ended up with that color for my shirt.<br/><br/> At least it matched my hair, I guess.<br/><br/> As I'm readjusting the armor to fit properly, a firm knock at the door alerts me. I finish messing with the plates, then hurry over to the door. Before I leave, I take one last look at the room. This inn was much like one-story motels, but the rooms were nearly as nice as a fancy hotel was. The price had unfortunately reflected that, though, costing over half of the money I had made. But, Eniyala had chosen it and it had satisfied most of her anger, so in the end I decided it was a worthy tradeoff.<br/><br/> Now, I just had to make sure I didn't lose.<br/><br/> I open the door to meet her usual even look, greeting her with a smirk. "Wow, look how forward you've become."<br/><br/> "You wish," she replies instantly, stepping aside to allow me to step out. I do, and we begin walking towards the stadium. We engage in small talk as we walk, chatting about the city and me occasionally asking things about Puria. It was a lot different from our first trip together with Raeki, as she kept her distance unless it was unavoidable.<br/><br/> As I thought of the boy, I smile fondly. It hadn't been long, but I already missed him. I made a note to ask Eniyala if she wanted to go visit once the tournament had concluded.<br/><br/> It didn't take too long to arrive, and we were led down under the fighting arena, to one of the two waiting rooms. Through the several layers of floor, I hear distant cheering every so often, which confuses me. "Did he turn it into some kind of event somehow?"<br/><br/> "You gotta stop mumbling," Eniyala states, sitting quietly on a bench near me. Her hands sit placed in her lap, and if not for her occasional blinking she might even look like a doll. Unlike me, she still had her normal clothes on, as she obviously wasn't fighting.<br/><br/> We sit in a comfortable, yet slightly tense silence before the same man knocks and enters. He wears dark shades that cover his eyes, and his silver hair is slicked back. He gives a warm smile before saying, "It's time. Are you ready?"<br/><br/> With a nod, I stand, as does Eniyala, and walk out. She is led somewhere else by another man with similar hairstyle and shades, and I am led up to two large doors just like the outside gates of the towns and cities. I hear an announcer yelling into some kind of voice amplifier, and the crowd cheers loudly. It's not long before…<br/><br/> "…His competitor, Klum!!"<br/><br/> The crowd is still cheering from before, nearly drowning out the announcer. It's immediately clear they don't care about the fighters: they're just bloodthirsty for a fight.<br/><br/> As the doors in front of me finish swinging open, the cheers hit my ears in new velocity as I walk out. I wince slightly, but my gaze locks onto the man from yesterday, who stands elegantly with his right hand resting on the hilt of a sheathed rapier. His sneer is clear even at this distance, and I stick my tongue out at him in response. Without missing a beat, my vision grows slightly purple as I activate Analyze+.<br/><br/>[Name: Lillock Prospect]<br/>[Age: 21]<br/>[Lv: 23]<br/>[EXP: 1045/19,660]<br/>[Class: Duelist]<br/>[Health: 45/45]<br/>[Mana: 106/106]<br/>[Stamina: 50/50]<br/><br/>STR: 10 MAG: 16<br/>AGI: 20 DEX: 32<br/>VIT: 8 INT: 14<br/><br/>ACC: 26<br/>DEF: 9<br/>POW: 15<br/><br/>[Skills: Rapid Strike (Ultra Rare), Heavy Thrust+ (Super Rare), Parry (Rare), Step (Rare), Sprint+ (Uncommon)]<br/><br/>[Spells: Orderly Exchange, Gale Thrust]<br/><br/> 'Ah… interesting.' As I look at his stats, I frown. He's heavily invested in Dexterity, which is what I thought about doing before my Instinct stopped me. If he was all about flexibility, I might be able to abuse that.<br/><br/> As the cheering begins to die down, the announcer jumps up from his announcer's box, leaning so far forward he seems to only be holding on by his feet, ready to fall down the long flight of stairs leading all the way down to the arena. The stadium is huge; and it's nearly full with people watching eagerly in anticipation as they sit on their hard benches. The air grows thicker than blood itself from the tension as the announcer calls out:<br/><br/> "Three!"<br/><br/> Instantly, I distribute the eight remaining points into three different stats, then ready myself with my blade raised above my shoulder, which I had summoned from the Inventory, and hold it ready to thrust.<br/><br/>[New Stats take effect in 3…]<br/><br/> "Two!"<br/><br/>[…2…]<br/><br/> "One!!"<br/><br/>[…1…]<br/><br/> "Beginnnnn!"<br/><br/>[New Stats have come into effect.]<br/>[Underdog+ Skill was activated.]<br/><br/> BAM!<br/><br/> WHAP!<br/><br/> I burst forward with new speed… straight down onto my face. Shocked, Lillock blinks. "Well, that was easy."<br/><br/> I groan. For such a hard fall, I nearly thought Klum's Reincarnation had activated. But, no luck.<br/><br/> The man begins walking towards me, drawing the rapier. "Feel honored. You're about to be defeated by the master rapier duelist."<br/><br/> "Yeah, I bet you're a rapier fan, huh?" I spit out, making my way to my feet. He growls, but maintains his pace. He swipes the sword from side to side slowly, like a cat stalking its prey would sweep its tail. It was so cringey, it almost made me laugh.<br/><br/> A shuddering thought quickly made me open my Statscreen suddenly to check a Skill. Horror filled my face as I saw the cooldown of said Skill.<br/><br/>[Klum's Reincarnation<br/> Cooldown remaining: 2 minutes, 47 seconds…]<br/><br/> "…Shit."<br/><br/> "What could you possibly be muttering about?"<br/><br/> I only had a little over two and a half minutes left to finish this fight.</p>