Gambling and... Bareth? (11.1)

Game

Thoughts

"Talking"

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gray glanced at his luck stat, which sat at a solid 155.

Is it worth it?

He glanced back at the odds of the [Gacha] system.

[Perk Gacha]

Cost - 1 Perk Token

Rates:

Common - 65%

Rare - 20%

Epic - 10%

Legendary - 4%

Godly - 1%

World-Breaking - 0.1%

Your LUK will also increase your odds of rarer pulls by an amount.

Thanks for telling me what the amount is, stupid game.

Just like the perk and skill shops, the perk and skill gachas had the same categories and odds. 

"Honestly," Gray mused as he studied the rates, "these odds aren't terrible. Statistically, the value of each token is pretty good. Using 10 tokens would give me about a 60% chance of getting a legendary. Sure, I wouldn't get to choose which one, but I'd also get nine other lower-rarity perks in the process, plus a boosted chance for even higher tiers."

Gray glanced over at the pity system, which was swaying him in favor of using the [Gacha].

Pity System:

For every rarity of perk rolled, the rarities above them will increase in odds by 0.5%, excluding World-Breaking, which will increase by 0.05%.

Rolling a category will reset the pity for that category to 0.

Even here, there's a system designed to get you addicted to gambling.

"It's probably gonna work on me too," Gray sighed, glancing back at his luck stat. "I wanted to save my points to adapt to dangerous situations like I've been doing so far, but this might be worth it."

It's not like the boosted luck stat will only help in the gacha - It'll give me an edge in pretty much every aspect of life. I just hope it doesn't end up costing me my life when I go to Earth and don't have enough AGI to keep up with some speed demon.

"The overall values are pretty good… and it would be fun…" Gray murmured. "Imagine I get a [World-Breaking] perk on my first try. That'd be fucking awesome. It won't happen, but if it did, it'd be fucking awesome."

"Fuck it, we ball." Gray decided, slamming half of his available points into luck, raising it to 455. He decided to try the [Skill Gacha] first since he had two of those tokens.

Come on, game. Don't fuck me over for once.

[Rolling…]

[LEGENDARY Skill!]

Oh, fuck yeah. 

[Congnitive Accelration] Skill unlocked!

+10000 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

[Cognitive Acceleration] LVL 1 - Increase your cognitive function, allowing you to think quicker.

+10 INT for unlocking an INT-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

Gray blinked in surprise as he saw the skill. He looked around his room, looking up at the ceiling, "Beerus? Zeno? You guys here?"

How the fuck did I not only get a legendary but also the one I wanted earlier? Is this rigged? Is a god watching over me? Is the luck stat OP? What the hell is going on?

"Well, I gotta roll again now, don't I?" Gray grinned. "I'm not one to be greed—well, I am one to be greedy—but I was going to stop if the first roll was just decent. After this? I have to roll again."

Maybe it's my increased luck stat? Am I just gonna roll all legendaries now?

Gray used his second [Skill Token] and rolled the gacha again.

[Rolling…]

[Rare Skill!]

It's not legendary, but hey, I'll take it. One legendary and one rare is still great.

[Ah! Lord Frieza!] Skill unlocked!

+1000 XP (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

[Ah! Lord Frieza!] LVL 1 - Shout "Ah! Lord Frieza!" in a panicked tone while pointing behind your enemy, giving the illusion that Frieza is standing behind them. 

+10 INT for unlocking an INT-related skill! (10x multiplier from [Nightmare Mode])

"...really?"

Gray tapped the skill, hoping that he was missing something.

[Ah! Lord Frieza!] LVL 1 - Shout "Ah! Lord Frieza!" in a panicked tone while pointing behind your enemy, giving the illusion that Frieza is standing behind them. 

This is a skill created by Cui, one of Frieza's henchmen. How convincing you are depends on the LVL of this skill.

LVL 1 - This skill has a 5% chance of tricking your enemy, regardless of any prior knowledge of Frieza.

"This might be the shittest skill I've ever seen." Gray said, rubbing his face with his hands in despair, "300 points into luck… all for this shit…" 

It's fine, it's fine. One awesome legendary skill, one shitty rare one. It evens out. Overall, I'm happy.

"It can't get any worse… right?" Gray glanced at the [Perk Gacha], "No, I should quit now while I'm still… ahead? Even? Not depressed, at least."

Gray glanced back at the odds, then pulled up the [Perk Shop] to review some of his options again.

No, let's be safe. For now at least. I don't know how often I'll get these perk tokens, it would suck if I got a common one right here.

Gray stood up and changed out of his under armor into something more comfortable, "Who knows, maybe that dumbass rare skill will actually come in clutch."

Ever heard of foreshadowing? 

…

Does foreshadowing work if I'm the one thinking about it?

Gray laid down in his bed, sleep consuming him immediately after his long day.

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Fuck, already?" Gray groaned as he sat up, looking at his door. A thumping noise resounded through his room as someone knocked on it from the outside. Gray glanced at the clock, showcasing that he had actually gotten an entire night's sleep, despite how tired his body and mind still felt.

Gray stood up and dragged himself over to the door, opening it to see Celia standing there, a stack of papers in her hands. She was wearing the traditional black Saiyan under armor, which pretty much everyone at the base wore.

"Morning," Gray said.

"These are the recruits who will be in the same class as you, Tamari, and Asia," Celia said as she handed him a paper, ignoring his greeting, "And these are the candidates being considered for the Earth mission."

"Candidates?" Gray raised an eyebrow as he took the paper, "The squad isn't finalized yet? The mission's in a few days, right?"

"It's mostly finalized. The last few spots will depend on which of Father's enemies, or people he dislikes, he chooses to send with us." Celia said, turning to walk away without a goodbye, as was usual with the emotionless girl.

"Wait," Gray said, grabbing her arm before she could leave, "I'll need help looking through these. Just knowing their names won't help much, I need information about them too. Stay and help me for a bit."

Celia turned and looked at him, the same usual emotionless look on her face, but Gray swore he saw her lips twitch slightly, "I'm flattered, but this is too sudden. I might be a bastard, but my purity is still important. I could still be a part of an arranged marriage. You'll have to wait until after you kill my Father."

Gray gave her a deadpanned look, "I didn't know you had a sense of humor. Just get in here and help me out."

Celia's lip twitched again as she stepped passed him, walking into his room and sitting on the edge of his bed. Gray closed the door and sat next to her, holding the first paper to the side so that they both could look at it.

"So, who should I be looking out for on here?" Gray asked as he gestured to the list of recruits that would be in his class.

"There are a few concerns," Celia said, "Obviously, there's no one stronger than you on here. Your strength is around the level of the weakest A-Class and strongest B-Class recruits. There are only two or three D-Class members that could cause you some trouble, and none of them are under the same instructor as you."

Gray blinked in surprise, "Two or three? I'm surprised there are any that are even close to me. The D-Class we fought on Vargon weren't even close to where I am now."

"The ones we fought were on the weaker side compared to the average D-Class Saiyan," Celia said as she turned her body slightly to look directly at him, "But you're correct. Most of the top Saiyans under each instructor wouldn't be able to put a scratch on you, but there are a few outliers. Some F-Class's who ascended during the exam, or who have abilities or fighting styles that would be annoying for you to deal with. Regardless, your strength is irrelevant for now."

"Tamari and Asia don't share that same strength, and you'll be on Earth for the next two months, not here to protect them." Celia continued, "The best option would be for Saeko to watch over them. She's strong enough to hold her own against most, and her sword skill is good enough to protect them from anyone except for the few outliers in D-Class, none of which they should ever come into contact with for the most part."

"Can't happen," Gray said with a sigh, "She's deadset on going to Earth with me. You can get her into the squad, right? Or at least find a pod for her to follow us with."

"Yes, it won't be a problem," Celia said, moving her finger toward a name on the paper, "If she's not here, then he would likely be the next best option." 

Gray looked at the name she was pointing at, which read 'Ren.'

"Who's he?" Gray asked.

"Ken's 'brother.'" Celia said, making air quotes with her fingers, "Ken had a group of 5 fellow muscle heads that he trained with. Ren's the strongest of the bunch."

Oh, right. Ken joined our team for the exam because each team could only have up to five members, and his group had six.

"Why him in particular?" Gray asked. "He didn't stand out when I saw him in training. Ken was stronger, and even if he were still alive, I wouldn't trust him alone to protect Tamari and Asia."

"Four out of the five members of his exam team came back alive," Celia said. "Their team was strong, but not smart. They shouldn't have passed at all. The only reason they did was because Ren got a huge power boost when one of their members was killed."

"Really? What's his power level?" Gray asked, raising an eyebrow. 

"I haven't checked with a scouter, so I can only estimate based on what I sensed. I'd say roughly a third of yours," Celia explained.

Gray whistled, "Damn, so he's around 10 million? He's probably the strongest in our group after me, right?"

Let's hope he doesn't hold a grudge for what happened to Ken. I'd be in a tough spot if he was angry that Ken died during the exam and took it out on Asia or Tamari, but Ken's group seemed like good guys when I trained with them.

"Close. That's where our biggest concern comes in," Celia said, pointing to another name on the paper: 'Bareth.'

"Bareth?" Gray asked.

What a stupid name. 

"Yes. He's the second strongest recruit in your instructor's group, after you. Does his name sound familiar?" Celia asked, her eyes staring into his seriously.

Gray racked his brain, trying to remember if he'd seen the name before. "I don't think so… wait. Dareth?"

Bareth? Sounds awfully close to Dareth. I can't believe I didn't pick up on that right away. I can feel myself becoming more of a stupid muscle head every day I'm on this planet. Also, are their parents fucking morons? Dareth and Bareth? I think they were destined to be dumbasses with names like that.

"Correct. That's his brother," Celia said. "In case you're curious, Dareth survived the exam. I don't know if he's mentioned you to his brother, but Bareth is similar to Dareth: stupid, arrogant, but with a lot of potential."

Gray clenched his fist at Celia's words, unsure how to feel.

I would've been satisfied if Dareth died during the exam, but now that he's alive, I don't know what to do. I'd have no trouble killing him at this point, both from being stronger and from having no mental barrier holding me back. However, it'd be hard to now that we're not under the same instructor. I can't just hunt him down. I can't get too arrogant. I'm strong, but not strong enough to do whatever I want without consequences.

"If I threaten him, do you think he'll behave?" Gray asked, looking at Celia seriously.

"Maybe. He can't hold a candle to your strength right now, but he's still stronger than Tamari and Asia. Most of the recruits who survived the exam are on the stronger side. Asia and Tamari are, unfortunately, the exception. They would've died if you and I hadn't been with them." Celia's tone matched his seriousness. 

I think I did all the hard work, but sure, lump yourself in with me.

"Fuck, fine." Gray sighed, standing up and stretching, "I'll find him and talk to him. Just to see what he's like. If he acts like his brother, I'll beat the shit out of him a bit. If he seems alright, I'll play nice so he won't mess with Asia or Tamari."

"I'd recommend the latter," Celia said, "Just for future reasons. Once you're in Class-C, having strong friends will be necessary."

"What do you mean?" Gray asked curiously as he looked down at Celia. 

"Class-D will have an exam, just as Class-F did, but Class-C doesn't. It was only due to Frieza pressuring my Father to decrease Saiyan numbers that all of the classes participated in the previous exam. Frieza's fear of us is starting to override our usefulness in the war." Celia said, looking up into his eyes.

"So, what happens in Class-C instead of an exam?" Gray asked.

"An internal war," Celia began. "All recruits under each instructor will compete to move up to B-Class. Everyone is ranked by their power level, and only a set number will advance. If you don't rank high enough, you'll be expelled. Recruits can do anything to improve their rank, including killing. The class will essentially become a faction war, with groups fighting to climb the ranks."

"Buuuut!" Gray said with a grin. "You can make sure we're all under the same instructor again, right? You, me, Asia, and Tamari. I'll make sure we all rank high enough to pass."

"I can," Celia said, raising a hand to calm Gray's enthusiasm. "But it won't be as easy as you think. Even if you become stronger on Earth and remain the strongest in C-Class, you'll face entire groups of top-ranked C-Classers, some of whom will have backing from recruits in higher classes. If it were just you, I'm confident you'd be fine," Celia added. "But it's not just you. Asia and Tamari are weak, even for D-Class. If they don't improve significantly in the next few months, they'll be burdens."

Who cares? After I get back from Earth, I'm sure I'll be even as strong as the S-Class fuckers. No one will mess with us.

"So? I'll get strong enough to handle that burden. I'm not abandoning them, and I'm not letting anyone take what's mine," Gray countered, a predatory grin spreading across his face.

Celia sighed, "I know. I'm not saying you should, I'm saying you should make it easier for yourself. Make some strong friends so they can help you out. No matter how strong you are, you can't be everywhere at once. It'll be hard to protect them both constantly, especially in the higher classes."

She's… not wrong. If someone went and killed Asia, they'd die for it. But, me getting revenge wouldn't change the fact that she died. They could do what Dareth did and go after one of the girls while I'm busy somewhere else. You would think no one would be dumb enough to sacrifice their life to piss me off, but these are Saiyans we're talking about

Gray rubbed his temples, clearly frustrated, "Fine, fine. I'll play nice, but if Bareth is an asshole, I'm going to beat the shit out of him. Same thing if Ren holds a grudge for Ken's death." Gray gave in, "How many people will be with the same instructor anyway?"

Celia nodded, acknowledging his resolve. "It's good to be prepared. As for how many will be with the same instructor, it's a bit uncertain right now. Normally, there are around 500-1000 recruits when considering both newly promoted D-Class and those returning from the previous semester. Given that the exam was intended to cut down the numbers significantly, we might see 200 at most, depending on how many instructor groups are kept."

"That's not ideal. Having 2000 other trainees in F-Class made it hard to stand out. It'll be easier for annoying people to take notice of Tamari and Asia," Gray mused, then pushed the thoughts away, "Anyways, tell me about our squad members for the Earth mission!"

"First, you know Raditz. He'll be the squad leader. Along with him, the vice-squad leader is named Asuna. Have you heard of her?"

Ah, Asu- who now?

—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Gray Tanaki:

[Saiyan D-Class Recruit]

Age: 15

Wallet: 46,150 Coins

Lvl: 10 (33,000/75,000 XP)

PL: 31,972,700

Available Points: 300

HP: 42,500/91,450

TKI: 171,925/171,925

STR: 315

AGI: 350

END: 290

INT: 435

CHA: 145

LUK: 455

KI: 395

HREG: 196

EREG: 196

Skills: [Observe LVL 4], [Running LVL 6], [Determination LVL 4], [Ki Control LVL 9], [Ki Gun LVL 5]. [Ki Enhancement LVL 4], [KI Suppression LVL 5], [Ki Sense LVL 2], [Pushup LVL 4], [Punch LVL 4], [Kick LVL 4], [Jump LVL 4], [Flight LVL 4], [Prediction LVL 2], [Zenkai Boost LVL 1], [Cognitive Acceleration LVL 1], [Ah! Lord Freiza! LVL 1]

Perks: [Gamer's Mind], [Gamer's Body], [Double-edged Sword], [Legendary Super Sayian], [Perfect Ozaru], [A Cute Pawn], [A Humble Master], [Ladies Man]

Fighting Styles: [Boxing Style: Kolra LVL 1]

Party: [Empty]

AN: You can read the next half of this chapter, and all of chapter 12 RIGHT NOW at Patreon.com/Koyon! (Up to 5 chapters ahead coming soon)!

There's the first half of chapter 11! This and the last two chapters have been more set-up ones, but the second half of 11 will be finishing that off, and we'll be getting back to the action. This also means this story is officially caught up, so after the second half of this chapter is posted later today, the story will be updated on Wednesday and Saturday for all of September - then once a week after that.