Ten days later, on April 7, Thursday.1Yes, I am keeping track of the in-story date.
In the white Virtual Space.
Two male figures in karate suits wielding 5-inch tactical knives were fighting each other.
Fwhoosh* thump* thump* Whoosh* Clang* Whoosh*
The sound of the air breaking as knife slashes were exchanged filled the space as two similarly built individuals exchanged blows, trying to hit and stab the other in their vitals.
The two individuals didn't use only their knives to stab and slash but instead used the rest of their bodies to attack and defend in an attempt to open a gap in the opponent.
However, even a random bystander without prior training could tell that the fight is one-sided. Although both opponents possessed the same bodily build and attributes, the mastery behind their moves was on a whole other level, with one side fluidly attacking while the other was clumsily defending.
As expected, the fight didn't last more than 10 seconds.
STAB*
The attacker's knife plunged into the stomach of the defender, and at that moment...
"Mff*" - The defender groaned as he held his bleeding stomach while spasming.
The attacker pulled out the bloody knife and stopped his relentless attacks.
"You lose, recruit." - The attacker said stoically while backing off.
"Yeah, yeah." - The defender waved his hand and said dismissively, despite having a mortal wound in his stomach.
The next moment, the blood and wounds disappeared as if they were never there.
The defender straightened himself up without any lingering sequela.
"But, man. Even if there is no pain, getting shocked is super uncomfortable." - You muttered while rubbing your previously stabbed stomach.
"There's no helping it, Iver. Your mind would otherwise start tricking itself into thinking that getting stabbed is fine if you're not shocked. Your mind needs this form of punishment to develop correctly." - Rosa explained from the side.
"I get it, I know. I was only complaining to myself." - You say dismissively, hearing this same explanation a dozen times.
These past ten days, you dedicated 80 hours to shooting training, 40 hours to close combat practice and 20 hours to more intense body training.
First, in shooting, you graduated from the Very Easy Mode and entered Easy Mode. Unlike the Very Easy Mode, the Easy Mode included both walking and running targets, making them harder to hit. Even after shooting tens of thousands of rounds, you were still unable to get a score higher than 48 in Easy Mode with the Glock 19.
You also got to practice using the VR80 shotgun, the CA version. The AR-15-like shotgun is excellent and easy to use, but you admit that the maglock is a bitch to handle. Every time the magazine ran out of ammo, you had to open the takedown pin to release the magazine. Not only was it annoying and frustrating, but it was potentially dangerous in the heat of action. Still, beggars can't be choosers. You live in California, so you had to abide by the rules established over the years.
Luckily, you are not the only one who thinks that the maglock is annoying, so some gun nuts made CA-compliant solutions on sale. After reviewing your options with the help of Rosa and the simulation, you ordered a patriot pin, a new stock lock, and a buffer tube, making the reloading time much faster.2Its real
As for your martial arts, you finished learning around 30 moves and holds in several martial arts, including Taekwondo, Judo, and Krav Maga. You also practiced how to defend yourself against a knife-wielding and gun-wielding opponent.
Of course, given that you are facing a highly advanced AI, despite only using the moves learned and having identical physical aspects, it was whooping your ass one-sidedly.
As for your fitness, since your body is already fit, the higher-intensity training you started in the gym ten days ago has yet to bear fruit. Still, you expect you will get stronger as long as you persevere, but it will likely take a few months to show noticeable effects.
Overall, however, you are satisfied with your improvement. The last time you experienced such a sense of accomplishment was when you received an A in chemistry class in high school. (Although your GPA was only 3.03B grade average)
"Hm? Oh, Iver, your gun arrived." - Rosa suddenly said.
"Finally! I frigin hate the 10-day wait." - You grumble.
Unlike Texas or Alabama, California has strict gun laws, with one of them being a 10-day wait to receive a purchased gun.
"Look at the bright side, Iver. Even if you got the gun sooner, you would probably get yourself killed without the training." - Rosa said positively.
"Well, I won't deny that one." - For once, you agreed with her harsh words.
Even if you got the gun earlier, you would continue training at home for a few more days. It was just that the wait to get your shotgun ticked you off.
"So, want me to send you out?" - Rosa asked.
"Yeah, go." - You nod.
The next moment, your vision tunneled as you exited the virtual reality.
Sometime later, in a certain gunshop.
"Alright, all documents are in order. Here are the customized VR80CA 12GA and magazines you ordered, Sir. The installation of the parts is on the house." - The middle-aged shopkeeper handed you your new gun in a case and magazines inside a plastic bag.
"Thanks!" - You smile as you take the case and bag.
"No problem. And make sure to give it a deep cleaning once a month. Would you also like to buy a maintenance kit for only $6.49? It's half price." - The shopkeeper asked kindly.4What high-quality service and sales pitch.
"Hmm... You know what? Sure, I'll buy it." - You say after a short deliberation and buy it. You did lack a cleaning kit for your new shotgun.5I added this to show you that our protag doesn't have too much plot armor. His guns won't magically work without maintenance, like in the walking dead.
After you left the gunshop, you took a couple of turns before entering a particular desolate alley.
After making sure no one was there, you suddenly ask, "Rosa, is it safe here?"
[Yes, it's safe. I already hacked the security camera nearby.] - Rosa replied through a Bluetooth earbud you purchased a few days ago.
"Good." - You reply.
The next moment, the suitcase and plastic bag flashed slightly before disappearing into thin air.
"Man, this is convenient. I can probably earn a pretty penny if I use it correctly." - You remark.
[That's an understatement. If the wrong people got a convenient dimensional pocket, even if it is a cubic meter one, they could potentially smuggle 600kg of pure cocaine from Columbia to New York on each trip, earning over $10 million a trip.] - Rosa said in a matter-of-factly way.6Yes, it is completely possible. 1kg of pure coke fetches around $34,000 in NY, and in Columbia, it is $1,800. Coke is called white gold for a reason.
"Yeah, and luckily, I'm not one of them. As tempting as that is, I'm not selling crack to kids, thank you." - You say while rolling your eyes.
[Hey, just saying. Ignoring the reality-traveling thing, just a tiny pocket dimension is enough to drive any drug lord with greed. Imagine how the government would react if they find out you can smuggle tons of uranium undetected.] - Rosa noted.
"Yeah, dunno how they will react, and I don't plan on finding out. There are enough poor schmucks with inconvenient abilities getting drafted into government service, and I don't plan to join them." - You say with a shiver.
[All the more reason to keep your ability under wraps.] - Rosa added.
"Agreed. So, what's the situation with the gangsters? Are they on to us yet?" - You ask, changing the subject.
For the last ten days, Rosa continued to monitor the gangsters while adding misleading clues to make the gangsters suspect others more and suspect him less. It wasn't foolproof, but it was better than nothing.
[As far as I know, no, they are not. From the looks of it, however, you still have plenty of time. They are only down from 57 suspects to 43 in the past week, you being one of them.] - Rosa replied.
"Damn that diviner bullshit! I can't believe he got the first letter of my first name, my gender, my approximate age, and the name of my neighborhood." - You shook your head in disbelief.
Ten days ago, Rosa hacked the gangsters and found the keynotes of their search. The first letter of your first name and your neighborhood. In only three days, the gangsters got a working list of all the possible suspects, those with connections with the victims, familial or not. They also prioritized searching for young and middle-aged men between 18 and 50, handsome and successful ones who are good with women.
[Well, Iver, luckily for you, they seemed to put you on the back of their priority list, your second last.] - Rosa said.
"What? Seriously? Why?" - You ask with a raised eyebrow.
[You want me to say it? Really?] - Rosa asked strangely.
"... It's because I'm an average and unremarkable loser, isn't it?" - You ask with a sour face.
[I... Er... No exactly?] - Rosa said awkwardly.
"Then what?" - You ask with your face scrunching up.
[You will get angry at me...] - Rosa said in a meek voice.
"I won't get angry at you." - You reply impatiently.
[Promise?] - Rosa asked in an even weaker voice.
"... I promise, just spit it out." - You sigh and say bitterly, preparing for the worst.
[Ok, they also wrote that you're poor, didn't go to college, are a jobless deadbeat without good prospects, that you have a timid and psychologically weak personality, and that you are a cuckold with an ex-cheating girlfriend who dumped you for a playboy and probably will never score a high-quality girlfriend in your lifetime. At least that's what their summary of you says.] - Rosa replied awkwardly.7Christ, she's killing him.
"..."
[...]
"......"
[......]
"...FUCKKKK!!!!!!!"
Bang* Bang* Bang*
You scream and start kicking a nearby garbage recycling dumpster three times. However, you quickly regret your action.
"Ssss* Fuck... Argh! Shit! Dammit!" - You curse while jumping on one foot before leaning on a nearby wall, holding your other foot.
[...]
Rosa didn't say anything, but that in itself was hurtful.
After a few minutes of breathing deeply in and out, you finally calmed down, the pain in your foot subsiding. However, the pain helped you soothe your anger.
[Calmed down?] - Rosa asked.
"Yeah, fuck this bullshit. I'm getting a smoothie." - You grumble while straightening your slightly messy clothes.
[Sounds like a plan to me.] - Rosa replied.
Without saying anything else, you started limping out of the alley.
Perhaps God took pity on you for once, and nobody saw or heard your little violent episode, or at least the ones who saw it didn't bother to point it out to you since they thought you were mental.
In the meantime.
In LA, California. In a large luxury house in Santa Monica.
Inside a moderately sized work office.
A bespectacled geeky-looking Hispanic man in his early 30s was sitting in front of his computer, reading a list of names with attached summaries.
"George Wright: 23 years old, handsome, talented, bright and cheerful personality, academic studying for a doctorate in Mathematics, and popular with the ladies. His drug-addicted brother has $10,000 in debt. Superpowers: none."
...
"Graeme West: 31 years old, above-average-looking, comedian, ladies' man with over 20 ex-girlfriends. He has a gambling addiction and took a loan of $25,000. Superpowers: none."
...
"Greyson Jr. Barnes: 40 years old, average looks, a professional programmer, and one of the early bitcoin miners. He has a net worth of $7.6 million and is married, and has two children but has a secret affair with (at least) three different young women, all beautiful, acting as a sugar daddy. The brother of one of his lovers incurred a debt of $50,000. Superpowers: Enhanced Stamina(small)."
...
"Gabriel Butler: 19 years old, below-average-looks, grades, and smarts, comes from a lower-middle-class family, works as a black belt instructor in a Taekwondo dojo, and had a few girlfriends thanks to his charismatic personality and hardworking nature. His dojo had an $80,000 debt with us. Superpowers: None"
...
"Gary Troy: 32 years old. Your average salesman, with nothing remarkable about him except how average he is. He recently started blind dating because of how boring he is. His second cousin got into an accident and got into a debt of $25,000. Superpowers: Wind Control(Trash-tier)."
...
"Gulliver Goodman: 22 years old. A deadbeat ex-supermarket worker of average intelligence and looks who got fired due to downsizing and didn't start searching for a new job since. Because of his moderate grades and poor background, he didn't get a scholarship and didn't manage to get into college. He has a timid personality despite his relatively strong build and suffers from untreated mental trauma. He once had a decent-looking girlfriend, but because of how poor and skittish he is, she cuckolded him and left him for a wealthy playboy. He didn't try to date ever since. In summary, he is a poor loser who gives up easily, has few prospects, no self-esteem, and little hope in his love life, and is likely to develop mania depression and commit suicide by the age of 40. He has a friend whose family restaurant went into a $50,000 debt. Too bad the debt is gone, I had my eyes on that friend's hot sister. It would be so much easier to get her if the debt was still there. Superpowers: None."
"Gavin Miller: 36 years old. He has autism and lived with his two parents until they both died. He now lives in an apartment with a government-appointed caretaker who slowly leeches off his inherited savings and is expected to end up homeless in a few years. As you might expect, he didn't get rid of his V-card and is in an even worse situation than the previous loser, but hey, at least he didn't wear a green hat. His caretaker has a debt of $40,000 because of stupid investments. Superpowers: None."
The bespectacled geeky man stared with narrowed eyes at the summaries before wincing.
"Who is the moron who wrote these? These summaries are horrible!" - Felipe Espiga said in disbelief.
Felipe did tell his men to make it simple, but not THIS simple. It was like some bored kid made it for shits and giggles. Especially the last two, they were downright horrendous.
Felipe looked at the name of the creator and narrowed his eyes. José Zorita.
"Ugh... Goddammit, José, not again..." - Felipe shook his head helplessly.
José is Zoe's punk-ass younger brother, his brother-in-law. Among all the other people in the gang, other than his now-retired father-in-law, mother-in-law, and wife, José is the only one who can enjoy the status of immunity to punishment for the sole reason that he is his brother-in-law!
Felipe sighed, "Forget it. Although that punk is mischievous, his summaries are also spot-on. And if that's true..."
Felipe's eyes landed on the second last person on the list, the abnormally detailed one. From the looks of it, José either had quite some fun writing about him, or he was bored out of his mind, but it was likely because he got the hots for the girl mentioned in the summary.
"Then this Gulliver guy is one hell of a loser!8OUCH! Still, I can't remove him from the list without confirming things first. God knows if he got some divine lucky stroke or something." - Felipe muttered.9Cool! A villain with a brain who doesn't underestimate the MC.
At that moment, the door to his workroom was opened.
"Honey! I brought you the coffee and cake you wanted!" - A pleasant female voice sounded.
Felipe turned his chair around with a smile and looked at his beautiful wife wearing a floral dress, bringing a floating platter with two apple cakes and two cups of coffee with her. Even after all these years, the flare of his love for her aged like the fine wine they drank on their honeymoon in France. He could never ask for a better wife than her.
"Thanks, dear." - Felipe thanked with a loving smile as Zoe placed the platter on a nearby table.
"Oh, what's this? Are you reading about the updated list of potential suspects?" - Zoe asked while telekinetically moving a chair next to Felipe before sitting on it.
"Yes, I was finishing reading it. It's your brother's masterpiece." - Felipe shook his head helplessly.
"Ah, my stupid brother did it again, hah? I'll scold him later. But before that, let me see... Oh my, seriously? The poor guy sure rolled the wrong dice in life." - Zoe cringed as she looked at Gulliver's life summary.
"Forget it, don't add insult to injury. I'm sure the guy has it rough already. Anyways, our next investigation target will be George Wright. His interests are indirectly related to computer science, and he should be able to attract a high-quality woman like the one that hacked us." - Felipe raised his glasses and looked at the top of the list.
"Sure, do what you think is right, honey. I believe in you." - Zoe said and gestured at the food plate, bringing two cups of coffee, one for her and one for her husband.
Felipe took the cup and took a sip, already used to it.
The couple sat quietly, enjoying their alone time together while sipping coffee. It was one of those few simple luxuries they had since they became parents.
Just then—
"Mama! Mama!" - A 6-year-old boy barged into the room and shouted before hugging his mother's leg.
"Isaac! I told you not to barge into your father's workroom!" - Zoe turned to her eldest son and scolded lightly.
"But, Mama! You promised to go together with me to buy a birthday gift for Luis!" - Isaac shook Zoe's leg and protested.
"Sigh*... Alright, let me finish my coffee first. Go and get changed." - Zoe replied after a brief sigh.
"Ok!" - The boy ran outside happily.
"Mama was right. Raising kids is a full-time job." - Zoe shook her head and said.
"You're a wonderful mother, Dear." - Felipe said softly and hugged Zoe's shoulder.
"Aw... Honey..." - Zoe smiled sweetly and leaned softly against Felipe's shoulder.
After half a minute, Felipe whispered into Zoe's ears, "Dear, after the kids go to sleep tonight, we can have a little romantic candlelit dinner..."
"Mmm... And what then~?" - Zoe purred playfully, with a hint of expectation.
"And I bought a new toy I wanted to try out with you..." - Felipe whispered while sliding his hand to Zoe's lower back, lightly touching her butt.
"Oh... Kinky~ I also bought a new lingerie~" - Zoe replied with a lustful voice, her hand stroking her man's cheek.
"Anything looks good on you." - Felipe took her hand and kissed it deeply while staring into her eyes.
"Ah, come here, you~ Mmmm*" - Zoe grabbed Felipe by his tie and kissed him boldly.
"Ewww! Stop smooching already! My eyes are burning!"
A grossed-out voice sounded outside the room.
Felipe and Zoe quickly stopped their flirting and stared awkwardly at their son.
"Go, Dear. I need to get back to work now." - Felipe said helplessly.
"Okay, Honey, good luck." - Zoe stood up and left the room, closing the door behind her.
"Sigh... Alright, it's time to get back to work." - Felipe muttered to himself and started doing his administrative work.
Just another wholesome day in the Espiga family.
