The Preeminence of a Gamer: Speedrun 3.3

This is part four to chapter 3. Please leave Power Stones if you enjoyed.

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Understanding Ddraig meant business, Issei told him everything he could. About the leveling systems, the rewards and gacha, quests, and even the tutorial he went through that explained the basics. In total, it didn't seem like a lot. The brown haired boy felt bad he couldn't explain much more to his reptilian ally.

That wasn't what Ddraig thought. What Issei explained sounded asinine and illogical. The way the power was described made the dragon immediately think a child had dreamed it up. Yet, he had seen proof of its existence. If everything his partner had told him was factual, then just how far did the possibilities go? How many rewards could the boy receive? How far would his level grow?

Desiring to see it once more, Ddraig ordered, "Test it again. Use another one of those tokens if you can."

"I think I can." Issei pulled up his menu screen, looking at his inventory. "I got one Rare Token and two Random ones. Should I use them all?"

The dragon contemplated which one should be used. Issei had informed him that his Flight ability had come from a Rare Token. Apparently, he'd also pulled a fountain pen from the Random Token. Ridiculous as it may be, that one was more curious. "Use a Random Token."

"Gotcha," Issei replied with a pun as he pulled a rainbow colored coin the size of his hand out from nowhere. As its name stated, the coin should function like the roll of a dice and was colored in a way to match that. Squeezing on the colorful disc, it broke into several fragments and lit up an array of colors. They spiraled around in front of him, attaching to each other and forming an object. The majority of the colors had changed into a light brown.

Reward:

[Common] Teddy Bear

An intricately designed plush toy. It's made of high quality textiles and stitching.

...

"Are you freakin' serious? Again with this shit?" Issei gripped the plush animal in a stranglehold. It was like Random Tokens only gave household items. "See what I mean? That shit's lame."

"A disappointing reward, but a fascinating ability. It was able to create something out of nothing." The winged-beast appeared to give genuine praise.

"What do you mean out of nothing? I had to break the token to get it in the first place."

"That token held no magic within it." Ddraig pointed out. "I hadn't paid attention when you broke the Rare Token last time. But even now, I couldn't sense any form of power coming from it."

That fact had left Issei floored. This was the second time he was told his ability could do something without using magic. "Is that special in some way? Can people or dragons do magical shit without using magic?"

The living Sacred Gear snorted. "Of course not. Magic is the basis of where all powers originate. While there are variants, such as holy and demonic power, they all require a form of supernatural energy. The token you summoned didn't appear to have any at all."

"Then... I'm doing something that shouldn't be possible by anyone?"

"To my knowledge, yes."

Realizing how abnormal that was, Issei began to feel creeped out. He knew The Game was special, but not to that extent. Ddraig was interested in it, which had made the power feel less dorky and something he could feel prideful about. Now, he couldn't help but wonder just what exactly it was, where it came from, and why he of all people had it.

Despite feeling annoyed by the teddy bear, what it was able to accomplish was no small feat. The random tokens may be a bust and the common ones didn't look very promising, but everything above that could give him something important. He could have a stockpile of items and powers of various rankings that could aid him in his oncoming battles.

It was then he realized that awhile back, The Game had put a ranking on his Sacred Gear. It had referred to the Boosted Gear as Legendary. Ddraig was an all-powerful dragon whose Boosted Gear immediately attracted the attention of the fallen and devils the moment Issei had obtained any power.

All that strength other supernatural forces desired, yet it was rated into the fourth highest slot. Was that because the Boosted Gear had still yet to awaken its full power, or had that already been taken into account and still ranked it into Legendary?

If it were the ladder and the Boosted Gear, along with Ddraig at his absolute peak could only get that high... just how powerful could it go?

"Don't just stand there. Open another one," Ddraig spoke through the light on his hand, knocking him out of his stupor.

"Uh, right." Issei pulled open his menu again to retreive another token, contemplating whether or not he should tell Ddraig the truth. If he did, it would surely piss him off. His pride was easily the most defining trait Issei knew about him and getting ranked fairly low in the grand scheme of things would be a direct attack against him. But if he chose not to tell him, then it would seem like he couldn't trust the dragon.

They weren't really close and maybe that was fine, but if he was gonna be living in his arm, then Issei wanted to be upfront. It was hard to keep secrets from a guy who could see into your dreams. "Sorry, it's just... I kinda learned something."

"A new notification?" His dragon companion asked, having learned how The Game functioned.

"No... I guess I kinda already knew, but I didn't pay much attention to it before. It's... about your own rank," Issei hesitated, dreading the incoming response.

"Hmm... if all items and powers have ranks, then that would indeed put one onto the Boosted Gear," The beast hummed, as if now coming to this realization himself. "I fail to see why that has you bothered. You're already aware of my reputation and might. Of course I'd rank in the highest category."

'Oh no...' Issei mentally groaned. He hadn't said anything about it and the dragon automatically believed he would be ranked in the strongest. If his hubris hadn't blinded him, he would have been able to deduce that Issei wasn't hesitating out of awe, but fretting over the result.

Mustering up his courage, the boy decided to just come out with it. "You didn't rank in the highest."

"..."

The lack of response was palpable. Issei looked at the back of his hand like he were looking at Ddraig directly. "Uh, Ddra-"

'-What?" The Welsh Dragon's voice was monotone, immediately cutting him off.

"Err... you didn't rank in the highest category. Actually, you-"

"WHAT?!" And there it was.

"Ddraig! Shhh!" Issei firmly gripped the back of his hand, cupping around the green light and somehow muffling the dragon's rampaging voice. The teen didn't wanna know what kind of insults or slurs were coming out of the Legendary dragon's mouth, but he figured he'd let him cool off and get it out, so long as he could continue muting him like this.

Weirdly enough, he could feel the vibrations of his voice on the back of his hand. Odd, but neat.

After a good minute, the green flickering behind his hand began blinking less as Ddraig's rant died down. Grumbling, the dragon begrudgingly accepted a second place ranking, before instantly popping off again after hearing he was ranked even lower in rarity.

"Isn't this a good thing? If something as strong as the Boosted Gear is ranked fourth from the highest, then that means I could pull something totally busted. I'll be stronger than ever." Issei tried to console the Red Dragon Emperor, detailing why such a thing was actually a positive.

"No, it isn't. You're power's shit and you shouldn't rely on it." Ddraig's original assessment had done a complete one-eighty. Gone were the short-lived minutes of the beast praising the unknown ability. Now, only hatred and disgust spewed out of his makeshift mouth.

Though, it sounded more pouty than anything.

It was Issei's turn to make him feel better. Cooking up some decent food for thought, he said, "If the possibilities are limitless like it presents, then couldn't you yourself also get stronger, just like me? I mean, you are apart of me in a way."

A weird sensation waved through his hand as the dragon went to reject his words, before sharply cutting himself off. Ddraig was silent for a few moments and Issei could almost feel him thinking it over. Eventually, he began, "You may be right. The Boosted Gear acts best as a modifier. Any other ability is greatly enhanced. Few too many are, as my host are or at one point were human, never using any other power but my own. If the Boosted Gear obtains another power, that same power would extend to others as well, just like the power modifier."

"You really think so? That sounds sick!"

"I don't think so, I know so. I created it, after all," Ddraig answered confidently. It seemed he was coming back around to appreciating The Game and its overwhelming advantages. His pride was still there, despite the blow it had taken.

"Now I really hope I pull something good," Issei said, gripping the blue Rare Token in his hand. He didn't feel like bothering with the useless Random Token. He didn't feel like owning a stuffed animal collection.

"Do you need to materialize them into your hand before breaking them? If another gets their hands on one, it could be troublesome." Bringing up an interesting point, Ddraig felt curious just what could happen if another person used a token and not Issei.

Issei recoiled upon hearing the possibility. "I never even thought of that. You're right, that's real bad. Things could bounce back harder than a girl's boobs."

"Never a time where you fail to bring up a woman's chest, is there?"

"Of course not!"

"In any case, it's possible that nothing would happen and they can only be activated by you. Best to prepare for the worst and try finding a different method. Hiding inside bathrooms and leaving with more power is bound to catch the attention of friend and foe alike. They may be weak, but not all of them are stupid."

"Damn. I'm already trying to be careful and it's still not enough." His go to move up to now was heading towards a bathroom to mess with his Gamer power anytime he needed to. That wouldn't work forever, as someone like Koneko could already deduce the fact he was growing in power. The more power he gained, the tougher it would be to hide it. Eventually, the supernatural would figure out he is far beyond just the Boosted Gear. That is, if he ever lived up to the full potential of The Game. "What am I suppose to do if I get a dozen different powers from yours? How am I supposed to explain it?"

"Dunno."

His hand nearly snapped the token unconsciously. "That's not very helpful, Ddraig! Give me an actual suggestion!"

"Pull an ability that lets you hide your power... or something," The dragon hesitantly threw out.

"...That's actually a decent idea, but I'd have to rely on luck and mine is ass."

"If you join the devils, then they would act as insurance for you. Regardless of how powerful you become, they would only rejoice."

"But wouldn't they get suspicious of me?"

"Who cares? It'll happen eventually. Hide it for as long as possible and in that time, gain as much power you can. The strongest are able to do anything they want." A dragon's logic was simple at times, but remarkably shrewd. Just because they'd get suspicious didn't mean they would do anything bad to him. Outsiders might, but they would back him up.

Still, that was another reason that pointed him in the direction of joining the devils; something he hadn't been sold on yet. So many benefits at the cost of his life permanently changing. Deep down, he knew it already had, but it was the principle of it.

"...I'll hold off on that for now. Not in a rush to sell my soul just yet, you know?"

"Of course. They're the ones waiting on you, not the other way around. Remember that." Once again, Ddraig reminded him of his draconic heritage. It was a big deal and not something those thought of lightly, which made it crazy to consider the Heavenly Dragon was only ranked Legendary.

The pervert thought it was arrogant, but it did instill a bit of confidence inside him. Though, if the devils had just offered him some tits to suck and fuck, or maybe a lap dance, then he would've already joined them. Maybe that could be arranged?

Thinking degenerate thoughts, Issei crushed the Rare Token in his hand.