Chapter 9: Finally Some Action (Part 1)
When time flies, you've got to teleport to catch up to it.
"Zero, Play Pureojuice gear five drill," he smirked, rolling up the sleeve of his trench coat with deliberate confidence. The fabric bunched against his forearm as anticipation coursed through his veins. "Let's take this immortality for a test ride." He moved towards the beast with nothing but his fists, his trusty AI, and the unwavering confidence that he'd come back from death after being pummeled by the monster.
---
It's been three months since the conversion of the three musketeers.
In these three months, they've been thoroughly baptized by the fire of anime—now they bleed anime, 1080 pixels flowing through their veins like digital lifeblood. The glow of countless screens had etched permanent shadows under their eyes, a badge of honor among the newly converted.
They made Zeke's house their base of operations, even sleeping over when they lost track of time from binge-watching anime. Empty energy drink cans formed small towers on every surface, and the familiar scent of instant ramen lingered in the air like incense in a temple of entertainment.
It was fun and nostalgic watching the vivid emotions cascade across the faces of these newts, the newly enlightened swine. Their expressions shifted like weather patterns—wide-eyed wonder, jaw-dropping shock, the subtle tremor of lips fighting back tears.
When they watched Naruto, watched Jiraiya die, watched Demon Slayer, watched Rengoku die, they understood the pain with bone-deep clarity. The silence that followed each devastating scene was thick enough to cut, broken only by the occasional sniffle or sharp intake of breath.
They felt melancholy at its peak, a crushing weight that seemed to settle in their chests like stones.
It took a lot at those times to push them out of that mood—continuing the anime, watching peak moments that would lift their spirits like sunrise after the darkest night.
The NPC's favorite character is officially Madara Sama. Every chance he gets he spams, "do you want to dance as well?" eyes gleaming with the fervor of a true believer.
When he finds himself in a 1v2 situation on COD, he's always in a foolish mood, spamming—Dying together is a special type of teamwork—or—Power is not will, it is the phenomenon of physically making things happen—with a touch of his own flair. The mechanical clicking of his controller punctuates each philosophical declaration.
A simp for the greatest Ninja to ever grace the screen, his devotion burning bright as digital flames.
Heh.
Kai's favorite character is Sung Drip Woo, which made me think I got his nationality wrong. The way his eyes light up whenever the Shadow Monarch appears on screen speaks volumes about his taste in power fantasy.
As for Aaron, he was more a fan of manhuas and manhwa—yes, Zeke introduced them to manga, manhua and manhwa—his favorite character being Yang Kai from Martial Peak. His collection of bookmarks grows daily, each one a testament to his growing obsession.
He's yet to dive deep into manhuas.
He's missing out on a world of cultivation and face-slapping that would make his current favorites seem tame.
All in all for the squad, it's been an anime-filled three months, and with the adamant scolding from Zero, occasional football endeavors that left them remembering they had physical bodies.
---
For Zeke, the system had been quiet—not totally, only giving out rewards four times in the space of three months.
A broken ability: observation.
Allows him to view other people's systems, their stats floating in his vision like transparent overlays on reality.
As Zero said, it's for narrative flair.
Zeke's trying to break the fourth wall, his attempts growing more desperate with each failed effort.
Fails every time.
You can't break the fourth wall off screen.
His other rewards included a signed shirt from Robin Van Persie, the signature still smelling faintly of marker ink and dreams.
A gold watch that caught the light with every movement of his wrist.
And last but not least, a mixed bag—it's a meh draw, because Zeke would not get into fights, but also an amazing draw because it removes the need to learn battle tactics and combat techniques, fit for a lazy bastard who'd rather watch anime than train.
The reward being the S rank trait Martial Instinct.
The mind moves before the body can think. Perfect reaction to every form of combat, muscle memory downloaded directly into his neural pathways.
Perfect reaction entailing his movement, his actions towards the attack flowing like water around stone.
In simple terms, he dodges attacks with precision and finesse, and attacks with flair befitting of a war god whose every motion tells a story of controlled violence.
Yes, traits are ranked. Opening his status for the first time since he last opened it the day he reincarnated, he saw the ranking of his skills and traits glowing softly in his mental interface.
---
[STATUS]
NAME: Zeke Vaughn
AGE: 22 (Irrelevant)
RACE: Human (Classified Undying Variant)
RANK: E RANK
STATS
Strength: F (29)
Agility: E (58)
Endurance: D (102)
Perception: E (78)
Magic Power: E (61)
INNATE ABILITY
Immortality (SS Rank)
SKILLS
Messi's Legendary Football Skills (S RANK)
One Hit to Change the Face (SSS RANK)
Observation (SSS Rank)
TRAITS
Quantum Disentanglement (SSS RANK)
Martial Instinct (S Rank)
{Remark: Still an immortal waste of space}
---
His agility stats increased as a result of the skill—Messi's football skills—and the trait—Martial instinct.
According to Zero, the use of Messi's skill would refine the body's motor skills as we know Messi is an agile football player, his playstyle mostly dependent on his agile movement and exquisite ball control that seems to defy the laws of physics.
And as for martial instinct, being able to move with finesse and skill would refine the body's agility, each potential movement calculated and optimized before conscious thought could interfere.
Abilities—everything in this world—are ranked from F RANK to SSS RANK, the only exception being the danger zones, ranked Z because of the cohabitation of SSS Ranked monsters there. If they weren't able to leave the danger zones, the whole world may have been wiped out in a cascade of destruction that would make apocalypse movies look like children's cartoons.
It seems out of spite, high ranked monsters drive-by just to find greedy hunters lacking, their presence a constant reminder that power without wisdom leads to swift death.
The weakest monsters found in danger zones were of B Rank. There hasn't been any sightings of any weaker ranked beast—well except cubs whose cute appearance belied their lethal potential.
Awakened humans ranked from F RANK to SSS RANK. To increase one's rank, three of one's stats has to have reached the next rank—An F Rank awakened has to have three stats at E Rank to move up to the next rank.
An awakened's rank is often determined by the rank and nature of their innate ability they awaken, as well as their physical capabilities before awakening.
There's hardly any lack of fit persons in this world, muscle definition and athletic prowess as common as morning coffee.
One would then ask why Zeke's social media is getting traction.
Shh, no spoilers.
But a little teaser: there's a scarcity in the presence of aesthetically pleasing muscle-toned men whose appeal transcends mere physical fitness.
---
{Move}
"Okay, okay, no need to get your nipples in a twist," Zeke said as he scratched his head, fingers working through disheveled strands while Zero had set up a playdate with the musketeers.
They had binge-watched anime together for a week, the musketeers having slept just enough to survive on caffeine and sheer willpower.
Now, on Zero's insistence, they were going to touch grass—an activity that seemed almost foreign after days of screen-lit darkness.
Zeke, abusing his trait—quantum disentanglement—appeared outside his house, this time outside the gate. The familiar disorientation of teleportation washed over him like a wave of static electricity.
He had gained control of the trait after using it three times—genius—the learning curve steep but manageable for someone with his particular brand of lazy efficiency.
But at the balance of only appearing at most one meter from the established sealed location, the limitation both frustrating and oddly comforting in its predictability.
So, he appeared within a meter of his front gate, where the three musketeers had stood apparently waiting for him to come, probably the reason why Zero nagged him to come out quickly. Their silhouettes were backlit by the afternoon sun, creating halos around their anime-obsessed forms.
"Yo," Zeke said as he finished sliding his arms into his trench coat, the fabric settling across his shoulders like a familiar embrace.
He wore a dark oversized hoodie layered under a long black trench coat with modern techwear-style joggers with... flip flops. The soft slap of rubber against concrete punctuated each step, a sound that somehow managed to be both lazy and confident.
Too lazy to tie up the laces on boots, comfort trumping style in the eternal battle of convenience.
He waved his right hand that had already worn the trench coat at them, the gesture casual.
"Your ability is the dream—why aren't you a Hunter yet? You would rake in money," Aaron said as he dapped him up, their hands meeting in the practiced rhythm of friendship.
"Probably because his ability is not combat related, and he's already rich," Jude said as he and Zeke hit their secret handshake—not so secret—their movements synchronized like a well-rehearsed dance.
Only Jude had a handshake sequence with Zeke, his love for Madara causing a case of geeks geeking out over a fictional homosapien, their shared obsession creating bonds stronger than blood.
No homo.