Chapter 10: Dolly and Gifts
Large, disproportionate, and grotesque, that was the only way Ryuichi could describe what all were seeing, something akin to a parody of what a human being should be.
Overall this thing certainly looked like a doll, but it was like some seriously mentally ill deep web artist was trying to make something "cute and childish"
"W-what is that thing?" He heard the "princess" ask, but none of the others gave her an answer.
"Didn't I say it before?" Until Namekata spoke. "Those are the dolls, the enemies of humanity, since my sensei was gone, I decided to leave the mountains to see how well I could do it when I fought with them, after all". He started to say before jumping out the window.
"I will be the one who defeats the boss of all these dolls!" He screamed as he fell, and threw a piece of debris, but before it touched the aberration, the piece of concrete seemed to collide with a barrier that prevented the doll from taking damage.
"Your barrier works, but-" He broke off, retracting his arm as the same energy seemed to course through his limb and concentrate on his fist before punching the doll that looked up as the debris collided with the barrier.
"Aeu!" The monster made a kind of scream or screech when Kyujin's fist hit its barrier, managing to stop the attack from advancing, although only briefly, because the cracks spread and finally the barrier gave way, Kyujin's fist moved forward, hitting it in the face and throwing it to the ground.
With his momentum slowed by hitting the monster's face, Kyujin spun in the air and landed on his two feet, kicking up dust from the force of the landing.
With his feet on the ground and cracks in the floor from the impact of his fall, Kyujin placed his hand on one of his shoulders, before moving his entire arm earning a satisfying crack.
"So, this proves that I can break through their shields". Kyujin spoke with a hand on his chin until a sound caught his attention.
"Eeeee". The creature, still lying on the ground, shed tears and made some kind of moans or cries.
"Mmm". Kyujin for his part, looked at it with a slightly curious expression. "Seeing it like this makes me a little sad". He said just before the doll's whimper suddenly turned into a desperate scream.
"EEEEEEE!"
Ryuichi gave a small start and felt his skin crawl when he heard the doll's scream, but before any of the chat members said anything, something could be seen flying at high speed.
The unknown thing crashed a little more than a couple of meters from Kyujin and the doll, giving way to an explosion that startled everyone again.
Due to this, the entire place was filled with dust that made it difficult to see through the screen.
"What happened?"
"What the hell was that?"
Among all the alarm words of the chat members, those were the only 2 sentences that could be distinguished.
Luckily, and to everyone's general relief, Kyujin's camera moved away from the dust and showed how the boy had moved, taking advantage of the poor visibility to hide behind a column at the entrance of a building several meters from where the explosion occurred.
Kyujin stuck his head out and squinted his eyes trying to see something through the dust, until after a couple of seconds, something inside that gray cloud emitted a gust of wind that dispersed all the dust, revealing 2 other dolls, but these were very different from the first.
While the first was around 5 meters tall, with exaggeratedly long limbs and a bulging belly, these 2 new ones, although tall, measured a maximum of just over 3 meters.
The biggest part of their body was their enormous and disproportionate head, which was at least the same size as the rest of their body, with wings, a strange backpack on their back, and a strange cannon in each hand.
Both dolls looked at their fallen companion for a few seconds before turning in various directions, apparently searching for whoever was responsible for injuring his companion.
But when they couldn't find Kyujin after a few seconds of searching, they pointed their cannons in random directions before firing what appeared to be crescents of energy that destroyed the walls or cars they collided with.
This continued for about 15 seconds, during which time no member of the chat said a single word, as if they thought that if they made any noise those things would hear them.
When they finally stopped they looked around once more, as if they were waiting to see if something or someone would come running out of hiding.
But when this didn't happen, they turned their attention to the defeated doll, and one of the new dolls threw something out of their pockets.
And before this object touched the ground, both dolls spread their wings, flying several meters into the air.
A second passed and nothing happened, then another, and another, until an enormous suction force began to draw everything towards the object that the new dolls had just thrown at their fallen companion.
Scattered papers, empty cans, broken glass, debris, trees, a small truck that was nearby, and even the doll that Kyujin defeated, everything in the radius of several meters was sucked in, and in the end, a kind of dome formed swallowing part of the ground.
The spectacle was dantesque, and when it was all over, a crater of about 10 or 12 meters in diameter with a perfect semi-circular shape was left in place.
The two flying dolls watched the result of their actions for a moment longer before flying away from the scene.
"Oh". Kyujin said coming out of his hiding place as he took out the notebook from his belt and opened it to write something.
"What the fuck was that all about?"
"Those things destroyed their partner, was it because the monster was defeated?"
The only ones to express their thoughts about all that were Leone and Greedy Heir, on the other hand, the maid seemed shocked and a little intimidated, but the worst was the princess, she had a clearly nervous and scared look.
And although he managed to cover it a little better, the slight tremor that ran through his body, the cold sweat, the slight sensation of weightlessness, the lack of balance, and the accelerated heart rate were Ryuichi's body's answers to the possibility that something as horrible as what Kyujin had described could happen in his world.
"It looks like the dolls ar-" Kyujin was saying when all the screens showing the faces of the chat members blacked out, showing only black for a few seconds before disappearing.
This was so sudden that Ryuichi couldn't help but panic a little not knowing what was happening until a new red screen appeared in front of him.
Call Ended
Time of presentation and adaptation expired, and the user manual will be started while the members' performance is evaluated.
What?
WELCOME ALL OF YOU TO THE ALTERNATE MULTIVERSE CHAT ROOM
You have been chosen at random from all sentient life forms in the multiverse to participate in this chat room.
This system connects all of you to all the worlds that exist, ever existed, or will exist, using this chat you will be granted missions of different degrees of difficulty, and if you complete them efficiently you will be awarded different rewards.
Counting points for the first reward!
Due to the administrator's actions, an unnecessary conflict was avoided.
The administrator did not accept the initial scan until it was shown that he had no choice.
Four of the six members attempted to reveal the existence of the chat including the administrator.
Sufficient evidence was issued to convince everyone of the veracity of this chat before the end of the presentation and adaptation time.
Despite suffering the penalty, one of the members continued trying to reveal the existence of the chat.
…
…
…
And the list continued to mention various events that took place from the first time the screen appeared in front of Ryuichi until the call was forcibly ended, and when the list finally finished listing all the "important" actions that the 6 members had done, a blue box issued a message.
Favorable points, congratulations, you have passed the first test, so you can continue with the next step, the rewards!
Giving gifts.
Chat will be disabled for 60 hours.
Remember, the better you perform on the assigned missions, the better rewards you will receive, things like redeemable points for the store, weapons of absolute power, skills you could only dream of, abilities and items that could heal any wound, illness, or that even regenerate a lost limb, anything is within your reach.
Sincerely
Robert Orleans Blunet
Finishing reading everything, Ryuichi's mind went blank when he noticed that the name was clearly fake, because of the acronym "ROB"
He did not like this situation in the least, in his mind, he still had the image of the dolls and what they had done with the object that they threw at one of their partners.
He was scared, incredibly scared, it was good luck that he had a mask and a cap that together covered more than half of his face because otherwise, anyone could see that he had the face of someone who had just been told that a family member that I had seen only a few hours ago, one that was in perfect condition, had died.
Unknown to him, 4 of the other 5 were in a similar emotional state, each of the members had seen the dangers that existed in other worlds, and now, alone with their thoughts, they took their time to try to organize the information, and assimilate what that they had just seen.
#####
Personalized gift received, do you want to open the gift?
[Yes]/No/Remind me later
Ryuichi didn't know how long it was, it could only be a couple of seconds or several minutes, but only when the new blue box appeared before him could he react, turning his head to observe his surroundings and then carefully read what was written in the box in front of him.
And when he finished doing it he decided that this was neither the time nor the place to accept anything this "chat" could give him.
So he intended to select the third option, but before his hand was raised the selection moved from "yes" to "no", and ended in "Remind Me Later"
'So this also works with the intention?' He asked himself before thinking about accepting that option and watching it light up for a moment before the box disappeared, which made him sigh with a bit of relief since he wouldn't have to look like a madman who moved his hands trying to touch something invisible in the air.
Breathing a few times as he clenched and unclenched his fists with each breath to try to get rid of the slight tremor he still had, he stood up and walked in the direction of his house.
But without him realizing it, several meters away, a good-looking blonde boy looked up from his cell phone to watch him as he walked away.
#####
"Here's the strawberry shortcake and orange juice for table 4". An ash-haired boy said as he placed the orders on a display case in front of Ryuichi.
But before the boy turned around, he noticed that Ryuichi's gaze was unfocused, and his expression seemed somewhere between distracted and worried, so he snapped his fingers a couple of times in front of Ryuichi's face to get him out of his thoughts.
"What? What happen?" Ryuichi asked looking at whoever was in front of him.
"That's what I should say, you've been quite distracted today, did something happen?"
"I, well, I was just thinking about my career choice". He lied, hoping that would be enough.
"Is that so?"
"Yes, I heard some classmates talking about the university they wanted to go to or what they wanted to study, and when they asked me what I put on my career choice form, I didn't know what to say, I'm pretty average in all subjects, and I'm still not very sure about the answer I wrote on the sheet at that moment"
"Oh, then you must-uff!". The ash-haired boy was saying until a rolled-up newspaper hit him on the head.
"Hey, you two can chat in 20 minutes when you finish your work, the customers are waiting". An adult woman's voice sounded behind the boy before Karasuma showed himself.
"Aunt, that was unnecessary"
"Yes yes, don't be a crybaby, Kaito, and you". She said before pointing at Ryuichi. "My recommendation for your problem is that you take it calmly, dedicate a whole day or if you need it, the whole weekend to analyze each of your options in a calm, reasonable, and logical way, nothing good will come from tormenting yourself with insecurities and taking hasty decisions". She said calmly.
Ryuichi took a moment and then nodded smiling. "Thank you Karasuma-san, I will take your advice and do my best"
"Well said, now go, hand in this order, then you can go home, Koichi told me about what you had planned with your brother, you can leave a little early today"
"Oh really? I appreciate it!" Ryuichi was a little surprised before nodding gratefully, taking the tray to take it to the customers, then heading to the staff room to change his uniform into his regular clothes.
"See you Kaito-san, Karasuma-san, thanks for the advice". He waved goodbye as he walked away after walking out the staff door.
"Hey Auntie, can I leave early today too? I have a date with a pretty girl later". He asked while he smiled like a fool, imagining the girl he would go to the movies with waiting for him in a cute dress.
"Keep dreaming, you are still my little slave for 15 more minutes, now, let's keep working"
"Life never smiles on Kaito!" The boy complained as he cried fake tears and walked back into the store.
Karasuma looked back in the direction where Ryuichi left before pulling out his phone and making a call.
'Well, she may be a bit harsh, but maybe she could be of help in these cases, after all, this is also part of her job'. She thought as the call connected and a female voice answered on the other end.
"Hey, Mafuyu-chan, how about we meet up today?" Karasuma said in an animated tone as she turned around and walked back into the store.
#####
"Did you bring the soft drinks?"
"Orange and lemon, did you make the popcorn?"
"There are sweets, normal ones, and with butter, are the hot dogs already there?"
"Ready, so that's all? By the way, what movies did you choose?"
"John Wick!"
"Oh, good choice"
"He's the coolest man". Touji said before starting the movie.
"Hahaha, right, there aren't many action protagonists as amazing as him". Ryuichi commented as he watched the images begin to project.
But even though John Wick was one of his favorite franchises, he didn't pay much attention to the 3 movies because the image of the dolls and the idea of what he might have to face them in the future because of the chat was still in his mind.
The hours passed rather quickly from his perspective, and when the third movie ended, he stood up and stretched both arms until his back made a satisfying crack.
"Alright Touji, it was fun, but it won't be long before midnight, go brush your teeth and then go to sleep, I'll clean here". He said picking up the bowls of popcorn, the plates where he put the hot dogs, and the empty soda bottles.
"Okay". Touji accepted, going to the bathroom while he yawned.
Once everything was clean Ryuichi went to the now unoccupied bathroom to wash his face and teeth, passing through the door of his brother's room and saying goodbye to him before heading to his room.
"Very good". He said sitting on his bed. "I've been putting it off all day, but now it's just you and me, whatever this thing throws at me, I'll have all day tomorrow to assimilate the situation and try to overcome any mental crisis that might hit me, so bring it". He declared looking ahead of him.
Instantly a semi-transparent blue box appeared showing a notice.
Personalized gift received, do you want to open the gift?
Yes/No/ [Remind me later]
With a mental command, the selection left the option "remind me later" and was set to "Yes" before said option blinked and a new box appeared.
Based on the group and individual performance of the group members, favorable rewards have been issued for each member's current situation.
As an administrator, you have the benefit that the second reward will be directly related to the first, but of a lower grade, between F and B.
[Grade A+] reward received!
You have received: Son Goku Experience (DB-verse)
[Grade B] reward received!
You have received: Ki Manipulation (DB-verse)
Downloading and installing, due to the amount and complexity of the information, the process will be painful, so the chat recommended you have a soft or comfortable place to fall unconscious!
"Wh-!" Ryuichi was unable to express his confusion when he felt an electric current hit him directly in the brain, his consciousness faltered, and as he fell unconscious on his bed, his last thought was that it was definitely not good for his health that he fell unconscious so often.
#####
After the video call ended so unexpectedly, Henrietta looked at the screen with alarm as she read the new text, the fact that they were being evaluated put her on guard almost as much as those monsters she saw in the world of Namekata.
Just thinking about the possibility of such monstrosities appearing in Halkeginia made her nervous, could her country or any other protect itself from such things? She didn't know, and she prayed to the holy founder that she would never have to receive an answer to the morbid question.
She had to strengthen herself, she had to make sure that her country was prepared to defend itself against any threat that appeared in the future, and with that thought, she looked back at the screen in front of her.
Personalized gift received, do you want to open the gift?
Yes/No/ [Remind me later]
I knew this could be dangerous, but what choice did she have? She assumed that the quicker she adapted to this situation, the better it would be, so her hand moved in the direction of the affirmative option, but before it rose more than a couple of centimeters, the selection box moved towards the affirmative option.
Henrietta blinked and narrowed her eyes before willing it to move once more, this time to "No", and just as it did before, the selection moved to where she wanted it.
"Then I can also control it this way". She said to herself, moving the selection back to "Yes" and accepting.
Based on the group and individual performance of the group members, favorable rewards have been issued for each member's current situation.
[Grade C] reward received!
You have received: Increased magical energy
[Grade C] reward received!
You have received: Increased proficiency with water magic
[Grade C] reward received!
You have received: Future Prophecy
And with that, the blue boxes disappeared, leaving behind a letter that fell into Henrietta's lap.
God's left hand is Gandafl, the brave shield of God, in his left hand he wields a great sword, and in his right a long spear, protecting me with endless vigilance.
The right hand of God is Windalf, the pleasant flute of God, he rules over all the beasts of life, carrying me through land, sky, and water.
The mind of God is Mjöðvitnir, the book that carries the crystallization of thought, is the bearer of all knowledge, and provides me with advice whenever I need it.
And lastly, there's one more, but remembering that name gives me trouble.
When the bearers of these titles and their mages meet, the fate of this world will be decided, whether it be the end, the beginning, or something else.
######
Kyujin looked with a strange face when the call screens disappeared, for a moment he remained expectant, but after a few seconds no one appeared again, so he returned to the abandoned building where he had been after making sure that the dolls were not nearby.
On the way he read all the notices, and without wasting time, he accepted the gift they offered him.
Based on the group and individual performance of the group members, favorable rewards have been issued for each member's current situation.
[Grade B] reward received!
You have received: Increased proficiency in the use of the "Phantasm"
[Grade B] reward received!
You have received: Increase in the natural production of the "Phantasm"
From one moment to the next Kyujin felt like something entered his body, and similar to the first time he woke up his ghost, his body was strengthened.
"Wow, I feel great". He said with an expression somewhere between surprised and excited as he jumped and spun his arms.
And on top of that, an image came to his mind as the memory of his sensei's teachings repeated itself.
"Listen to me well Namecaca! Just manifesting your energy as a beginner will get you killed, what you need to do is visualize the way you want it to be concentrated and manifest". She said as she gave him a few light hits on the head with her bat.
Once she stopped hitting him, she raised a finger which was covered in an energy similar to the one Kyujin used.
"For example, when you throw a hit with your palm covered with your power you can cut things because your energy is powerful enough, but nothing more, it's like if you have a horribly sharp sword, you can cut because everything you attack would be like soft tofu in comparison, but if you meet someone capable of doing something similar it would be like trying to cut a powerful armor with your pathetic sword, even if it doesn't break, you will be unable to harm the opponent, but if you manage to learn to focus everything on a specific point and channel your energy into the enemy's body then common enemies will die instantly, and the toughest ones will take more damage than they should, so practice until there is no enemy in this world that you cannot defeat!" She finished saying as she moved her finger and effortlessly cut a huge rock.
"So this is what sensei was referring to?" Kyujin clenched his fist a few times, feeling like he now better understood how he should use his power.
######
Leone couldn't help but growl showing her frustration, what she saw shook her a little, those "dolls" seemed somehow like a biological teigu, and the mere idea that there was a number so high as to cause a catastrophe like the one that Kyujin told made her think about how dangerous that world was.
She already lived on the edge, and although she knew that she could die on any mission, the idea that those things existed made her uncomfortable.
But putting all that aside, at least for the moment, she looked back at the screen in front of her.
"Rewards in exchange for missions". In some ways that was similar to what she already did, but it also bothered her, she was no one's toy, and she only accepted missions that she considered "fair", even if the meaning of that word was not adequate to describe her of all people.
Personalized gift received, do you want to open the gift?
Yes/No/ [Remind me later]
Staring at this blue box, she was not completely sure what she should do.
If she accepted it, would she be surrendering to this "chat" to fulfill the missions assigned to her?
She didn't know for sure, but now that she saw that there were more monsters out there than the empire had, she knew that she should take the risk.
After all, although there was a possibility that she would die doing her duty, she wanted to continue fighting until the last moment to preserve her life.
So having made up her mind, she accepted this "gift".
[Grade B] reward received!
You have received: Teigu Assimilation Resistance
[Grade B] reward received!
You have received: Trump Card "Queen of the Beasts"
Leone's eyes widened as she read what was being handed to her, and while "Lionel" was still active, she felt something click deep within her, something in the bond that bound her to her teigu fit much better than before, making her stronger than she already was, and showing her how to go even further.
In her mind was projected the image of a huge lion with a golden mane roaring at the world, as if he challenged every creature on the face of the planet to try to take his crown.
######
A bead of sweat fell from Ling Yao's forehead, and only when he was sure that the screens would not appear again he let out a breath that didn't know he was holding.
If there was any lingering doubt about the existence of other worlds, the "dolls" were pretty clear final proof that this whole situation wasn't some kind of elaborate ruse or deception.
Personalized gift received, do you want to open the gift?
Yes/No/ [Remind me later]
He always knew that his path would be dangerous, he was facing what would be a war for the throne, and to win it he was in search of a legendary object that he knew practically nothing about.
And now he had also encountered some kind of "magic" that connected him with people from other worlds, it was natural for anyone to feel intimidated, but Ling Yao was not just anyone, his pride, his title, and even his life, he was more than willing to risk all that, after all the fate of the hundreds of thousands of members of his clan depended on his victory.
So he would never reject an opportunity to become stronger, because that strength would be the impetus to achieve his goals.
What if his life was in danger during the trip to obtain more strength?
Ling Yao smiled at the prospect, from the moment he decided to fight for his people he accepted the dangers with open arms because that was the duty that every king had towards his people.
[Grade A] reward received!
You have received the Passive ability: Iron Will
Without fully understanding what this skill meant, Ling Yao concentrated on it until a new box emerged.
Your will is not something to laugh at, the sense of duty and responsibility towards those under your command is what drives you, with this ability, your mind will be protected against any attempt at attack, torture, pressure, control, and any negative mental effects.
However, you must not forget that this is an impulse towards the will that you possess, if in some way your will is broken this ability will not be able to help you in any way until you regain your will.
A second after finishing reading the box, Ling Yao felt a sense of calm wash over him, the nervousness accumulated by this entire sudden and confusing situation diminished like flames would do when bathed by rain.
From one moment to the next, Ling Yao felt refreshed and ready to handle whatever this and any other world could throw at him, so he stood up with a smile, walking over to a wall, and giving it a couple of light punches.
Instantly the wall dissolved, and the prince of Xing left the room with a smile on his face.
######
Sitting up and with her heart rate racing, Rem stared at the spot where the screens had been a few seconds ago.
There was no way to deny it, she wished there was, but those deformed monsters she saw left no room for any way to refute the fact that she was dealing with an incredibly extraordinary situation that she wanted no part of.
Or at least that was the case until these paintings mentioned something that strongly caught her attention.
Was the possibility of returning her horn to her sister really in front of her? Would she be able to rectify one of her biggest sins?
Rem was afraid, she knew what the limit of her strength was, and she also knew that if she died, her sister would feel sad even though she shouldn't.
The mere idea that someone as wonderful as her sister would feel sad for a person as useless and replaceable as her filled her with anguish.
But in the end, she had not decided since no matter if she risked her life she would walk the path that she denied to her sister?
Would Ram chicken out like her if the roles were reversed?
No, she knew well that her sister would never back down, so it was her duty to do the same.
Personalized gift received, do you want to open the gift?
Yes/No/ [Remind me later]
Taking one last breath to strengthen her resolve, she intended to accept, but before her hands moved, the option moved on its own towards "Yes".
Rem was a little surprised by this and tried one more time in the same way when she used her magic, and to her surprise, this screen responded to her wishes just as it did when she used magic.
[Grade C] reward received!
You have received: Card for Magic Morning Star.
[Grade C] reward received!
You have received: Increased proficiency in healing magic.
X-X-X-X
Chapter 10 ready, since some asked me to increase the length of the chapters, I tried a little, and I think this is the right place to end the chapter and the entire introductory part of the chat and its members.
Obviously, there are still important parts about this chat, since it is not a conventional one, but those points will be touched on later, the "main" focus will be, for the moment, on the life of our MC for some chapters.
One thing that has always bothered me about these types of stories is that all the members accept the situation too quickly and then become "friends", so I will try not to do that in this story, as you saw, at the beginning no one believed the whole multiversal thing, and even after doing it almost no one trusts the others, the most open is Kyujin, but that's because that's his personality, and even then the guy is ready to punch anyone in the face who wants to "play smart" with him.
It will be some time before these six are ready to trust their "partners" with their backs.
Oh, and if anyone is afraid that Ryuichi will become too OP with the gift he received, trust me, he won't be, just wait for his first fight and you'll see what I mean.
By the way, yesterday I finished rereading the Dolly Kill Kill manga, and now I'm re-watching the FMA Brotherhood anime, reading the Akame ga Kill manga, and the ZNT novels, Re: Zero and DXD.
At the moment I have already decided what the first mission will be and more or less the direction of the next 20 or 30 chapters, let's cross our fingers and hope that my forecasting skills are good enough.
The next chapter will be posted on Friday.
Remember that if you like this story, you can leave a comment, review, or a power stone, that will inspire me to write more, see you in the next chapter.