Massacre Soldier' Killer, Kid Pirates, Lv. 52
The future 'Supernova' continues to dance his way across the battlefield, dodging bullets effortlessly through a combination of speed, acrobatics, and skill.
Halfway through his journey, an individual bursts from a storefront to intercept him wielding nothing but a medieval-style arming sword and a leather apron for protection.
Ludwig, Weapons Stall Owner, Lv. 21
Words catch in my throat to scream at the man not to fight but it's already too late. The two have already engaged and as expected it immediately starts going poorly for the second man.
'Idiot! You're not going to last a minute.' Killer blocks his opponents overhead swing with his unique scythe weaponry and utilizes the force behind the strike to flip himself into the air and over the stall owners head. The curved blades spin to life through what I can only guess is some sort of motor in their grips, and moments later Ludwig goes down in a gut-wrenchingscream as his back is absolutely shredded.
'Correction. He didn't last 15 seconds!'
The masked pirate continues on his journey towards the barricade without missing a beat. I'd give it less than half a minute before all these people are cut down just like the rest.
My hands tighten hard around the grips of the sword in my right and the gun in my left.
'Fuck it.'
I grit my teeth, throw myself into a running start, and [Geppo] over the rampart to meet his charge with one of my own. 'Time to do something really stupid.'
Steel meets steel and both sides of onlookers cease fire to watch the clash. My left swings up, aiming for a headshot that will hopefully end this before it even begins, but Killer sees the move coming from a mile away.
His neck cranes away as the gun discharges at the same time that his knee comes up to knock my wrist off course. The combined result is that what could've been a shot to the center of the forehead, is reduced to a bullet so far wide it doesn't even clip the side of his mask.
The two of us push off with our blades and reset a few meters apart. Myself by a short hop backwards and him through a series of fancy backflips that I seem to recall him using against 'Mad Monk' Urouge. 'Tch, showoff.'
Ding! New Quest Alert!
Quest: Protect the citizens of Baterilla! Defeat 'Massacre Soldier' Killer or force him to retreat.
Reward: +2 levels in [Bladed Weapon Mastery] and 10,500 Exp.
[ACCEPT/DECLINE]
'You're late [Game]. I'm already doing that.'
Whatever. Just hit [ACCEPT] and roll with it. More importantly it's time to find out just how screwed I am right now. '[Observe].' 'Massacre Soldier' Killer, Kid Pirates, Lv. 52 Killer is the first mate and second-in-command of the 'Kid Pirates', one of the most dreaded pirate gangs currently plaguing the South Blue. Like every other member of his crew, Killer has no concern for civilian casualties and feels no remorse at cutting down anyone he deems in his way. His unnatural affinity with all manner of sharp weaponry, in conjunction with the body count he's left behind him, has earned him a substantial bounty of 38,000,000 Beri.
Health: 1,810/1,810 STR: 128 VIT: 181 DEX: 175 INT: 103 WIS: 98 LUK: 34 One eyebrow curls up as my dread morphs into confusion. 'That's...that's it? That's...honestly not that bad.' The twofold epiphany clubs me over the head like a sledgehammer...and a grin that's downright predatoryspreads over my face.
Firstly, I was focusing in way too much on what this man becomes in the future as opposed to what he is right now. This pirate in front of me, this 'Massacre Soldier', is not the fearsome super rookie I know from canon. He isn't 'Supernova' Killer. Hell he's not even 'Grand Line' Killer.
This is just a jumped-up cutthroat with a high price on his head for butchering the defenseless.
And while this first realization would have been enough to ease my panic, it's the second one that's got me smiling like the cheshire cat.
'This man is balanced!'
He's not like Blackjack, a brawling min-maxing meathead with a fucking '4' in WIS. He's not like Lieutenant Jorgen. No Zoan Fruit to bulk up his stats and become a greater threat than he would be otherwise.
And it goes without saying, nor is he like me. No fancy [Skills] or busted [Perks] to, among other things, double ones health on top of reducing incoming damage by over a quarter.
He's balanced!
Which makes him my best kind of match-up. 'Because when it comes to being well rounded...'
Killer rushes in again, attempting a similar acrobatic trick to the one he took his last opponent down with. He flips himself over me, planning a strike at my unprotected back... only for me to turn it around on him and he ends up flat on the pavement with my foot in his stomach.
54 Damage! (1,756/1,810) '...You're not going to beat [The Gamer]!'
The rookie recovers quickly, bringing both scythes in to sever my foot above the ankle. Unfortunately for him, I'm already gone. Three kicks of [Geppo] have me safe in the air and in a terrain I'm feeling more and more comfortable in.
My revolver flashes twice, sending two shots straight down, but Killer simply pushes himself away and rolls to his feet. In the corner of my peripherals I spot two lower ranked Kid Pirates, Levels 11 and 13, tracking me with their rifles and I click my tongue in annoyance.
'Stay out of this you damn pests. The adults are talking.'
With a slight assistance from [Bullet Time] I watch the two fire and activate [Kami-e] in preparation. My body bends out of the way as expected, but I'm caught off guard -and pleasantly surprised- when my frame slightly shrinks in on itself as well.
Not to a great deal mind you. It's a marginal increase in dodging ability at best. Basically nothing compared to Fukurou who actually turns thin as a sheet whenever employing the technique. Still, I'm thrilled that the [Skill] is actually improving now that we've passed the percentage failure hurdle.
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