9 Chapter 9 - The Test Finale
Zefer's mismatched eyes looked at the header of the cybernetic screen, which read, 'Inventory.' On the cybernetic screen, there were two large outlined boxes. One of them was on the left, which held a 3D model of himself. Above that, there were two small tabs, and one of them was highlighted, Gear, while the other was grayed out. This one was labeled Outfit.
On the left side of the 3D model were eighteen smaller boxes running down in three rows of six. Inbetween the 3D model and the eighteen boxes were the words, Accessories. A bracelet filled one of these boxes. Zefer looked at it, and a smaller screen popped up.
------------
Item: Light-weight Carbon Fiber Bracelet.
Grade: Common
Description: The Light-weight Carbon Fiber Bracelet, or LCB for short, is used by everyday humans worldwide. It was an item created by Super Genius Rina Valentine to prevent Identity Theft and Fraud. This device can be used for everything, like a computer, a bank, a wallet, a phone, and an ID. It can also be easily washed.
*Unequipable*
*Indestrucitbile*
----------------
Zefer's read over the screen, then his brow twitched. "It can't be unequipped?" Zefer muttered in annoyance. "Hmmm... did you ever take it off before?" Ina asked, and Zefer shook his head. "I never saw a reason to since I can wash it. Still, if I need to go undercover or pass by checkpoints in the future, it will prove difficult since it scans this thing..." Zefer said, waving his dominant hand around since the bracelet was on it. The screen closed out once he pushed the X button in the corner.
"I see." Ina agreed, then just shrugged, "We will cross that bridge when it comes." She added. Yet, Zefer was a bit more concerned since he had to pass through the checkpoint on his way to school and home each day. Wouldn't they find out about all of this extra stuff? Just thinking about it was giving him a headache.
"Anyways, looking at the rest of this thing. This system thing is pretty unique and well designed, huh?" Ina could see the cybernetic screen. Aside from the eighteen boxes, there were five more boxes to the right side of the 3D model. Inbetween the boxes and the 3D model, there was the label Armor.
Underneath the 3D model were two more boxes, but these were also empty. In between the two boxes and the 3D model was the text Weapons.
Zefer nodded in agreement. It did seem well designed, so much so that it even offered a checkbox to disable helmet visibility. Not to mention the extra tab called Outfit. When Zefer pushed on it, the left box holding the 3D model flipped, but the number of smaller boxes changed. There were only five instead of eighteen, and they had no label.
However, items filled three of the five boxes. The objects looked like Zefer's uniform, and when he touched upon them, more screens appeared just like how they did with the bracelet.
---------------
Item: Unified School Blazer
Grade: Common
Description: Dull school blazer that is part of the Unified school's uniform provides no stat bonuses.
---------------
---------------
Item: Unified School Trousers
Grade: Common
Description: Dull school trousers that are part of the Unified school's uniform provide no stat bonuses.
---------------
Item: Everyday Sneakers
Grade: Common
Description: Plain shoes that provide no stat bonuses.
---------------
"Wow... so what happens when you take off your clothes?" Ina asked, reading over the description. "Do you just become nude?" She asked once again, and Zefer just sighed, shaking his head.
"Does it matter? If anything, I am curious about the difference between Outfit and Gear. Maybe the Outfit hides my Gear..." Zefer said to himself while he thought about it. "Oh? Then that means you could wear powerful Gear and dress for the occasion all at the same time." Ina said with delight in her voice. She was now curious to see if what she said was the truth.
"Guess we'll find out when the time comes," Zefer replied, and Ina nodded in agreement while closing out the screens so he could look at his Inventory again. Although, there wasn't much to look at since the hundreds of boxes were empty. "I can safely assume that I can store many items in my Inventory since there are hundreds of boxes." Zefer closed out his entire status screen with a single thought.
When he did, something else became more apparent to him. On the lower right-hand corner of his vision was a mugshot of himself. Just underneath that happened to be two-color bars, one was green, and the other was dark purple. The dark purple bar was somewhat empty but seemed to be filling every so often. It wouldn't be hard to calculate how much it was going up if he did the calculations. He could hazard a guess by his status screen from earlier that even though it said he regenerated specific points every hour, it also meant that he still restored points by the seconds. That wasn't what caught his attention, though. It was the entire thing as a whole.
"Huh?" Zefer was confused by this. Something like this had never been here before. "Something wrong?" Ina asked, looking at Zefer with a puzzled expression. "It's not a cybernetic screen, so I guess you can't see it. But, this weird health bar-looking screen is on the lower right corner of my vision. It reminds me of a first-person heads-up display." Zefer explained.
"Probably has something to do with that system thingy," Ina suggested with a shrug, and Zefer agreed. "Most likely. It should be handy." Zefer said. "Good, but what are we going to do now? You have to get stronger, which is obvious. I think you should invest time in that Daily Quest and workout." Ina suggested.
"Yeah, but school isn't over yet. I still need to finish the day to keep getting my allowance." Zefer said. "Allowance?" Ina inquired curiously, and Zefer nodded. "The school provides all of its student's funds. The funds are to prepare them for the future and encourage them to work harder." Zefer explained although it was clear that he found this type of system disgusting for specific reasons.
"I see... are you poor or something?" Ina asked. It seemed like she didn't know anything about Zefer or his situation; this was something that Zefer made a mental note of. For the time being, he decided to answer her, "Yeah." He didn't go into further detail since he saw no point in doing so. She would find out soon anyway.
"Wow. Maybe we should kill someone or something then. Take the belongings and money." Ina suggested. Interestingly, Zefer didn't seem repulsed by this suggestion; however, he didn't accept it. "No. That would draw too much attention. The police force and bounty hunters would be after me. Besides, I'll be destroying this city in the end anyway, so something like that can wait." Zefer expressed.
Ina had mostly thrown the suggestion out there to test her new Master. If he showed signs of being scared of killing, it meant he wouldn't achieve his goal. This answer wasn't what she expected, though. Most of those who held the Rune of Destruction instantly went on a rampage when they awoke. Zefer seemed a bit too cool-headed right now, yet that was a good thing. Still, there was something else about him, something she couldn't put her finger on that made her shiver with delight and expectation.
Zefer was the weakest Rune Warrior that Ina had ever met. Perhaps this was why Zefer hadn't lashed out. Of course, she was the one that stopped him earlier as well, but she had done that before with others that had awakened, and they refused to listen to her. She didn't care since she got what she wanted in the end anyway.
"For now, I will go to my classes. I'll use my free time to work out and study. As for the Daily Quest, I'll need to find a way to cultivate my Rune Energy. I am sure you know something about that." Zefer said, which made Ina's lips curve into a smirk. She was taking an interest in her new Master. Something about him just seemed different from the previous Rune Warriors. Was it his cool-headed demeanor? No, there had been a few she had met with similar natures; then what was it?
"I do. It's best to do it alone and in an empty space." Ina said; this was perfect because Zefer had just the place. It was his home. "Very well." Zefer agreed, then he left the stall and went to wash his hands. He got a good look at his new appearance as he was doing this.
"I've changed a bit, haven't I?" Zefer inquired, and Ina nodded. "All Rune Warriors get the Runic Eye. It is something that defines you as a Rune Warrior. A badge, so to speak." Ina explained.
"Wouldn't that be problematic? People will know that I am not normal." Zefer expressed, and Ina shrugged. "Probably, probably not. It just depends on how much of the Rune Warriors had been taught throughout history. If you didn't know about them, then maybe they haven't come up for a while." Ina answered.
"Perhaps," Zefer said before leaving the bathroom. Judging from the earlier conversation of those boys, it seemed like the Rank Up Test had come to an end. The results wouldn't be in until tomorrow, so everyone was asked to return to their homeroom for further instruction, which Zefer was doing now. If he had to explain what happened with his eyes, he could make something up later. Maybe even say it was an artifact, but that would be problematic.
