Chapter 15: Chapter 15 : Keep Up Will Ya

Landing and taking in the massive structure before him, Ralf’s eyes lit up. ‘Was wondering when we’d get to this.’

“More NPCs,” he questioned.

“Nope, we’ll be facing each other,” Rei said as he passed through the white filter.

Ralf followed with a smile on his face. In truth, as soon as the term ‘hyperbolic time chamber’ left Rei’s lips, he foresaw and anticipated this scenario.

“The Mental Space is perfect for training, and we’ll be doing a lot of it. Against each other, against NPCs, and against Trials, like those in the dungeon and towers. For now, the last two aren’t complex enough to be any challenge, but that will change with time. Competing against each other in one on one duels is better. What do you think?”

“I’m all for it. Rather, I’ve been impatient this whole time.”

“Good good.”

Saying this, Rei brought up his character menu.

-

[Rei]

Stats:

Health Points: 100/100 Stamina: 150/150

Psionic power: N/A

….………………………………………………….......

Strength: 30

Agility: 36

Senses: 10

-

“For this place to function as an effective training ground, both the physics and our bodies stats in here should be identical to those in the outside world. The former has been done, but the latter is a work in progress.” Rei stared at his clenched palm. “We need to put your body to the test to get a more accurate picture. For now, I went with an estimate of double my own body’s stats. So this will be half training, half for fun.”

Ralf brought up his character menu. He noted that their values were identical.

‘I see, that’s why he wanted me to use this vessel. How will we fare against each on equal grounds, huh? I’m interested in knowing the answer myself’

As both of them entered the sandy arena, a notification sounded, followed by a window prompt.

[Colosseum Duel]

Will you compete?

Yes?

No?

‘Yes, of course,’ Ralf thought as he clicked the option. The window vanished and he was forcefully teleported to one end of the circular ring. Once there, another window appeared before him. It was a catalogue of various weapons.

“Let's start simple,” Rei said from the other side. “There’s no need to rush. Take your time with the selection.” Saying so, Rei snapped his fingers.

Ralf felt Psi drain in mass.

‘This is going to be a lengthy affair…good. Okay, let's see what we have here.’

He perused his options.

In grid format, dozens of weapons were available. All kinds of axes, hammers, knives, swords and spears were present.

‘Oh, this is neat,’ Ralf thought.

Upon touching an image, a one-to-one scale version of the weapon would appear nearby. Noticing a testing option, Ralf tried it. The spear materialized. Ralf grabbed at it but upon making contact…

“-ah!”

Ralf toppled to the side, barely managing to keep himself standing. ‘So heavy!’ Now holding the spear with two hands, he worked to steady his crumpled posture.

‘What a sneaky bastard. That’s why he said to choose carefully. If I just rushed into choosing and ended up with a weapon like this, I’d be slaughtered. I see, I’m being tested. Very well, I'll show him what his other self is capable of.’

Dropping the weapon, Ralf stood up.

“Not going with the spear, they say it's the king of weapons.”

Ralf ignored the comment and instead asked, “What weapon are you going with?”

“Is there even a need to ask?" Saying this, Rei materialized the weapon of his desire.

He held the katana horizontally before his chest. With his left hand on the black sheath and his right on the black and white handle, Rei drew both sides apart to reveal the blade. Fully released, Rei swung the sword to his right. The blade gleamed in soft silvery light. After tossing the sheath to the floor, he gripped the handle with two hands and said, “This…this will do.”

“Oh, not bad.”

Ralf wasn’t surprised by the choice. Iaijutsu and other sword arts was something that greatly interested Rei. His anime fascination had compelled him down this path. He had spent a great deal of time mastering it and on many days, he’d brandish his swords and slash away at bamboo targets to relieve stress.

‘Should I pick the same weapon?’

Ralf moved to the sword section. ‘Hmm, why so many variants?' There were twelve versions of Rei’s sword and sheath combo, all in different colours.

Ralf picked the white-coloured one to test out. ‘Hmm, nothing out of th- oh? Oh, I see.’

Drawing out the blade fully, Ralf’s mind clicked in understanding. His eyes glided over to Rei’s discarded sheath. ‘I can’t relax around you. Not bad.’

“Ready to go?”

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Ralf shook his head. “Almost.” He dismissed the sword and moved to the option his sights had been set on from the start.

A second later, two short kodachi-like swords appeared in Ralf’s hands.

“Okay, let's go.”

With both parties confirming their options, a see-through barrier appeared at the centre. A ten-second digital countdown clock began counting down.

‘Hmm, did he figure it out? I left him a crumb, and he managed to connect it, not bad,’ Rei thought from the opposite side.

Since meeting Ralf, Rei had a question.

How did his other self compare to him?

So far, Ralf had impressed him. Through conversations, he understood Ralf was quite knowledgeable and sharp, but still, Rei was uncertain where to place him.

‘How much have you absorbed? Enough to compete against me?’

3

2

1

At zero, the barrier shattered into countless fragments.

((Battle Start!))

At the mechanical voice’s announcement, the two gripped their weapons and set off.

Two minutes later, Rei would get his answer.

Flat on his back with Ralf standing above him, left foot stepping on his black coat, and right foot on his chest. The tip of Ralf's sword hovered only an inch away from Rei's throat; Ralf had stopped its advance at the last second.

Ralf smiled. “Surprised? You aren’t the only genius in this place.”

Rei squinted at the comment. “Seems like it. Then again, you’re my other self, there’s no way you could be anything less than exceptional.”

Ralf nodded. “Yep yep. Your days of being lonely at the top have come to an end Rei - or rather," he suddenly smirked, “keep up will ya.”

Swoosh!

To Rei, the words were no different from blasphemy. Set off by them, his hands and body moved to escape the sword's sharpness but Ralf was quicker. His sword punctured through Rei's flesh and dealt fatal damage.

Ding!

((Match Complete: Ralf’s victory))

At the victory, Ralf’s joy was unbridled. To score a victory against Rei was a fantastic feeling. On the other end, Rei’s face collapsed into a pout.

“Ahahaha…” Ralf broke out into laughter at the sight.

To Rei, victory, the act of coming out victorious was one of the most pleasurable experiences, even more than a milkshake while sitting in front of a heater.

Since experiencing it on the chessboard that day, he had been seeking it ever since. One could say he was addicted. At the same time, losing was something he loathed greatly. Losing wasn’t too common for him but when it happened, his personality seemed to regress to that of an angry toddler.

"Ha ha ha..."

Having had his fill of laughs, Ralf moved to the black sheath. As soon as he picked it up, he knew his earlier suspicion was correct. It was too heavy. Flipping it over, he grabbed the sheath's tail end and then…

*Scrap*

A short sword was drawn out.

‘How nifty. If I hadn’t suspected foul play, this would’ve probably got me.’

Ralf knew he had to exercise extreme caution when dealing with Rei. For victory's sake, Rei had no qualms about using any means.

Rei’s showy drawing action had caused alarm bells to ring in his head. While he didn’t put it past Rei to do something just because it looked cool, more likely, the sheath was somehow important.

When he examined it, he noticed that the length and thickness was a bit odd given the katana’s size. And when he held one in his own hands, the idea that the sheath held something more sprang to mind. During the match, he made sure to keep clear of it. Thankfully, that had worked out in his favour.

“So that’s why you made so many versions. Hiding a tree in the forest, I assume this version is the only one which has two blades.”

“Yeah.”

“Mmm, any more surprises?”

“Perhaps,” Rei shook off his pout and got up. “Why don’t you find out?" he said and clicked the confirmation message.

Ralf smiled, his fighting spirit reignited. “Sure.” Both clicking 'confirm', the two were then teleported to opposite sides of the arena.

Ralf chose the same weapons again. Rei, on the other hand, changed his to match Ralf’s.

‘Oh, he’s gotten serious.’

On the other end, the laxness on Rei’s face disappeared. His expression turned blank as he entered the zone. All possibilities began swirling through his void-like eyes as his mind sharpened to its limits. An aura of focus radiated off him.

What would come next, was his hundred percent.

Ralf smiled. This was exactly what he wanted. Gripping his two swords tighter, he matched the energy his other self was giving off.

‘Come, give it your all. I’ll crush you regardless.’

As the screen fell, the two darted forth. A clash of prideful geniuses ensued.

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