007 Black Myth: Akira

The air in Fukuoka is a thick soup of diesel exhaust, cigarette smoke, and despair. It's the underbelly of the city, what do you expect? The pictures don't show this part of town. 

I found a cheap apartment in one of the city's older districts, a place where the rent is low, and the landlords don't ask too many questions. The walls are paper thin and I'm stuck in the section of the house where there's a balcony but you have to share a toilet. The place is deteriorating, but my stay here is temporary. I've had enough shitty apartelles in my past life. Live in one long enough and you end up not missing cable.

I spend my days in front of a computer screen, scanning the digital world for opportunities. The city outside may be a labyrinth of decay, but the internet is a different kind of jungle—a place where information is currency, and anonymity is power. I sift through forums, social media, banking operations, general history, see where the similarities of my past world and this world ends.

The only thing in this room is a futon, a cabinet, a leaky faucet, a burner and my luggage. Extremely minimalistic. I sit in the sunlight, basking in it as I work through my sources. Open-source intelligence, they call it. A fancy term for what amounts to digital dumpster diving. But it's a skill, a talent, and in the right hands, it can be a weapon. 

I truly am quite lucky. I'm thinking of getting a job as a chef after I reach 50% on the Hannibal Lecter card, but I don't have a place to practice just yet.

The internet is full of low-hanging fruit, relics of a time when people were careless with their digital lives. I find them, strip them clean, and move on. It's not glamorous, but it gets the job done. Every dollar I siphon off these unlucky people is another brick in the wall I'm building around myself.

But money is only part of the equation. I need more than that. I need protection, legitimacy, a way to stay ahead of the game. And for that, I need to understand the world I'm operating in. I need to know who the players are, what the stakes are, and where the real power lies.

That's when I stumble upon the International Branch.

It's not easy to find information on the Inho organization. They're careful, meticulous, leaving only the faintest traces of their existence online. But I'm good at what I do, and I manage to piece together a picture, bit by bit, like assembling a jigsaw puzzle in the dark.

The International Branch is a crime syndicate, but they're not your typical gang They're smarter, more organized, with connections that go deep into the fabric of Korean society. They control the local underworld with an iron fist, and their influence extends far beyond the streets. They're involved in everything from illegal gambling to underground fighting rings, and they've got their hooks into corrupt officials, businessmen, even the police.

It's a dangerous game they're playing, but they're good at it. Too good. They've been running the show for years, and no one's been able to touch them. their leader, Cheon Il-seop is a genuine psychopath. I don't even know if that was his real name.

But that doesn't mean they're invincible. Every empire has its cracks, and the International Branch is no different. I just need to find those cracks and exploit them. but that's for a later date.

These aren't the kind of people you cross lightly. But staying aware of their movements, understanding their operations, could be the key to my survival.

I also know that I need to think long-term. The money I've siphoned off will keep me afloat for now, but I need something more stable, something that will grow without attracting attention. That's when I start thinking about investments.

In another life, I might have gone for the big names—Amazon, Google, the usual suspects. But I know better now. Too much visibility, too much risk. The last thing I need is some algorithm flagging my account because I'm buying shares in a Fortune 500 company.

No, I need to stay under the radar, and that means index funds. It's the perfect cover—low-risk, low-reward, but stable. I can spread my money across a wide range of assets, blend into the background, and let the markets do the work for me.

I set up a portfolio, using offshore accounts and anonymous methods to funnel my money into a carefully selected mix of index funds. It's not glamorous, but it's safe. And right now, that's all that matters.

The financial world may be a minefield, but it's not the only game I'm playing. As I settle into my new routine, something unexpected happens—something that makes my pulse quicken with excitement.

One night, as I'm pouring over financial charts and monitoring the markets, I feel a strange sensation—like a soft hum at the back of my mind. Things can't go on like this.

I decide to take a break from the digital world. It's time to focus on the physical, to develop the skills I'll need to protect myself. Fukuoka may be a city of decay, but it's also a city of opportunities—if you know where to look.

The first thing I do is find a gym, one of those old-school places where the walls are lined with rusted weights and the air smells like sweat and iron. It's not fancy, but it's perfect. The owner doesn't ask questions, and the other patrons keep to themselves. It's exactly the kind of place where I can push myself without drawing attention.

I start training with a single-minded focus—lifting weights, running drills, practicing basic combat techniques. It's not glamorous, but it's effective. Every day, I can feel myself getting stronger, faster, more capable. The workouts are brutal, leaving me drenched in sweat and gasping for air, but they're necessary. Pain is weakness leaving the body, or so they say. For my body, the most basic Arcturan Kung Fu training methods are too difficult, so I start small.

But physical strength is only half the battle. I need to be sharp mentally as well, so I start incorporating mental exercises into my routine. I practice meditation, honing my focus and clarity. I study strategy, reading books on warfare, psychology, language, and tactics. For now, I'm just skimming it to see how far this world has gone and what events stay the same and which are different. 

I'm not a history buff, but I was a bookworm. I don't quite get it but somehow, this raises my Hannibal Lecter template so that's a plus.

The training isn't just about survival—it's about control. Control over my body, my mind, my environment. I need eliminate any weaknesses that could be exploited.

The streets of Fukuoka become my testing ground. I start moving through the city with a new awareness, noticing things I might have missed before. The twitch of a hand near a concealed weapon, the subtle shift in a crowd's mood, the way certain people seem to disappear when they sense trouble. It's all there, hidden in plain sight, waiting to be noticed.

I test my skills in small ways, nothing too obvious, just enough to see if I'm improving. Sometimes I'll follow someone through the streets, trying to stay unnoticed. Other times, I'll deliberately draw attention to myself, just to see how quickly I can slip away. It's a game, but it's also training.

I never get caught.

Every encounter teaches me something new, sharpens my instincts a little more.

I become more adept at handling dangerous situations, more comfortable with the idea of violence. Not that I'm looking for a fight—far from it. But if one comes, I'll be ready.

Late one midnight, after another grueling day of training, I return to my apartment. The city outside is quiet, the streets empty, the only sound the distant hum of traffic. I sit down at my desk, the soft blue light of the monitor casting eerie shadows on the walls.

I take a moment to reflect on everything that's happened, everything I've learned. The Gacha, the training, the digital world I've built—it's all part of the same puzzle, pieces that are slowly falling into place.

I know this is only the beginning. The real challenges are yet to come. But for the first time in a long time, I feel ready. I've taken the first steps, laid the foundation. The game is in motion, and the stakes are higher than ever.

I glance at the monitor one last time, a faint smile tugging at the corners of my lips.

This is just the start.

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He's been at this for 3 weeks, which means another Gacha draw is coming!

Give me some inspiration for them and some more powerstones?