Sorry about the delay, after posting the previous chapter I wrote a 6.6k chapter on an Overlord story, its on Wattpad, check it out, and then I got sick. But I'm still here, so-
LET'S GO GAMBLING!
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Kenshin stared at the two people sitting across from him with a dead expression. Or, perhaps, it would be better described as a "not surprised, nor disappointed, I just don't know what face to make right now" kind of look.
He was sitting down on the floor in Saitama's apartment, by a small and low wooden table. The bald man sitting across from him looked equally unimpressed, maybe even irritated, while the cyborg—Genos—looked stoic, serious, and entirely serious.
"...So, hello new neighbour?" Kenshin asked with uncertainty, he didn't expect Genos to come live with Saitama, he thought he would rent his own apartment, but apparently, the cyborg had different plans.
"Yes, good to meet you again, Kenshiro."
"It's Kenshin!"
"Kenshin, my apologies."
The joke, if it could even be called that, of people misremembering Kenshin's name was starting to get old. But pushing past that, Kenshin was actually quite happy to have Genos as a neighbour, unlike Saitama who looked to be against it. The gambling addict came to Saitama's apartment because he heard a commotion coming from the bald man's apartment, and now he understood why.
"...So can I be your disciple too-"
"NO!"
"Aww," Kenshin faked his disappointment, well, partially, he wouldn't be opposed to actually 'training' under Saitama, but from what he knew of the guy, he wouldn't be a good teacher.
Saitama wasn't having any of this shit, "Man, what's your guys' problem?"
Genos saw that as an opportunity, "You wish to know about me? Very well-"
"No-!"
But before Saitama could stop him. Genos launched into a monologue, and Kenshin could do nothing but watch and listen as the cyborg launched into a long speech about his past. He didn't really listen, not fully, he got lost in his own thoughts after the first sentence.
"Four years ago, when I was fifteen, I was still a real human being. Though we were poor, and had to pinch pennies, we were still able to get by. We lived a peaceful and happy life together, until that fateful day, when a crazy cyborg went out of control, and attacked our town. We never knew why it happened, most likely a failed body modification generated an irregularity in his brain. He destroyed everything in sight. Parks, schools, buildings, my house, he even took the lives of everyone in my family. Miraculously, I survived, but being only a weak 15-year old, I was alone and at the end of my strength in a ruined town. That's when Doctor Kuseno happened to pass through. The doctor, a scientist for justice, was on a mission to stop the rampaging cyborg and end his oppression. I asked the doctor to give me body modification surgery to make me better, stronger, faster. That's how I was reborn as a cyborg who fights for justice. I promised Doctor Kuseno I would terminate the evil cyborg and return peace to this world. It's been four years since that day. At nineteen years old, I'm focused and driven. I wander from town to town eliminating evil. The monsters and criminal organizations I have destroyed are numerous. But I have been unable to locate any clues about the insane cyborg, and have become increasingly frustrated and restless. I find myself chasing a virtual image of that cyborg whenever I face my enemies, and last week, when that mosquito monster appeared, I let my concentration slip and paid the price. I thought I could lose to no one but the rampaging cyborg, so I neglected to analyze the data on my opponent and rushed in headlong to confront her. The result, as you know, was that an enemy with immense strength bested me. If you had not been in the area, Master Saitama, I would've undoubtedly been destroyed. Master, you saved my life that day. The life that was once saved by Doctor Kuseno many years ago has now yet again been saved by you, Master Saitama, and I feel the weight of that responsibility. I must not allow myself to die before finding and destroying that cyborg once and for all, and to achieve that, I have to continue fighting evil as a righteous soldier until that fateful day comes when he appears before me.I need to get stronger. Last week, when I saw what your punch was capable of, I knew immediately that I had to study under you as your disciple. If only I could be as strong as you and become such awesome power. I have an old enemy who must be defeated at all costs. The battle is not for me alone. It is for my entire town, and Doctor Kuseno as well. I fully realize that I am still inexperienced, but now more than ever before, I need incredible strength so that I can eradicate the greatest of evils. Doctor Kuseno-"
"Alright enough already! 20 words or less dammit!" Saitama, once again, was not having any of this shit, he was especially not going to bother listening to a novel's worth of backstory.
Kenshin, meanwhile, was in a different, better place, "...big booty bitches..."
"Oi!" Saitama's apartment devolved into chaos after that.
Saitama was trying to throw Genos out, while Genos misinterpreted literally everything that was said in the room, and Kenshin was tuning it all out while thinking of better things. Like what to do later, Tatsumaki's fat ass, if he should get a pet, Tatsumaki's fat ass, that he should cancel his gym membership... Tatsumaki's fat ass...
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Taste the blood~ Taste your fate~ Swallow your pride with your hate~
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Our main protagonist was back in his own apartment, having a department somewhere in the middle of Genos writing down notes while Saitama got to cooking an instant ramen for his dinner. The guy needed a chain of diet, Kenshin thought to himself that maybe he should either tell Genos or go buy the bald man groceries himself. What? They were friends!
But enough about that, today had been drearily boring as Kenshin did nothing but gamble. He even cancelled his gym membership online, completely giving up on doing any of that shit for now. What he needed desperately was experience and style, not the flashy, over-the-top kind, but style meant for fighting. Like martial arts or something.
It would be a huge help to actually know how to fight like a proper hero outside of just winging it, but he neither had the knowledge nor the connections to make such a thing happen. So as of now, all he could count on was overwhelming strength and speed.
That's where his EX+ Luck attribute came in clutch today. Again. Either fate was telling him that he was a weak piece of shit that needed to get a lot stronger if he ever hoped to survive, or maybe, again, just random bullshit.
The 8 golden tickets sitting in a pile in front of him were a testament to that...
"...I wish this damn thing could summon waifus or something."
Ah, yes, the crippling loneliness of a once-average man on a mission.
Moving on past his desire to get a hoe, Kenshin, in a dead-looking state induced by surprise in his EX+ Luck actually pulling through two days back to back used the eight golden tickets on the stats that mattered the most to him right now.
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>[Name]
Kenshin
>[Age]
Irrelevant, legal.
>[Ability List]
Compulsive Gambler [N/A]
-In combat: roll a d20, the higher the number, the greater the critical strike, however, low numbers run the risk of the attack outright missing.
-Out of combat: play a variety of minigames at the cost of currency or items, each giving special rewards. The greater the risk, the greater the possible reward~
Perfect Self [EX+]
-View and edit personal attributes portraying to one's physique and even luck.
Photosynthesis] [C-]
The user can survive off of sunlight.
Autonomous Ultra Instinct [EX+]
Activated automatically at the loss of consciousness during combat. An auto-combat ability that pushes one's body beyond its limits, maximising speed, power and durability at the cost of stamina. For continued use, go into monkey mode. Do not think. Just do.
Cardcaster [A+]
Generate a deck of cards and imbue them with energy depending on the drawn card's value. The greater the value the greater the explosive or penetrative force.
>[ATTRIBUTES]
Strength: A+ -> EX+
Stamina: S+ -> EX+
Speed: S- -> EX+
Charm: EX+
Ability: S-
Luck: EX+
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If he previously felt some apprehension about not being good enough for the Hero Entrance Exam, it was all gone now. He felt nothing. Well, the bubbling sense of power was there, stronger than ever, but right now, he didn't want to bother with anything else. He didn't need to eat, there was a bottle of water next to his bed that was ice cold, and his stats were looking mighty fine right now.
Better than fine. Seeing the EX+ on almost every attribute made him feel invincible. But he held back trying to celebrate too early. He saw just how outclassed he was when fighting Mosquito Girl despite his newfound Cardcaster ability and previously decently high attributes.
He had no measure of how strong EX+ strength made him. But he would test it out later.
"I should start thinking of a hero alias for myself..."
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