Chapter 4: CH4: The Rat Race

We moved quickly out of the banquet hall to a small store inside the building. I held my tamer card connected to the Jackson city bank tamer fund. My limit stopped at 20 ounces of gold or 2000 credits, as the Geass region currency was called. It wasn’t a fortune, but it was enough to buy some supplies for the road. Everything else will have to be scavenged from other tamers, earned from odd jobs, or by selling captured waifus. Some of the rarer waifus go for a high price.

 

The shop had a small rotating ball pit with plastic balls with seals inside them containing random waifus for 2000 credits each. Dozens of tamers went for them without a second thought to spend their only start-up money on a random chance. There were even signs showing a few of the potential waifus, including fairifu, one of the waifus that rank up to a day or night attribute. Arrows went for 100 credits each, with some bows going up to 5000 credits. Even I was tempted by the knives in all their sharp, deadly glory.

 

Someone patted my shoulder, and I turned around to see a guy with orange hair and green eyes. Beside him was a rather plump Lapifu; her blond bunny ears stood taller than her tamer. They were some of the fastest waifus with powerful skills in higher ranks like God Speed. As a starter, she was the weakest starter of all. Though the first sect gave her the advantage.

 

“What do you want?” I said while checking my pocket for my card. It was still there; I clutched it in my hand for good measure.

 

If carrot top noticed, he didn’t show it. “Hey friend, you did alright against Cacao the younger. What’s your secret?” After that, some of the other boys started giving me a little too much attention.

 

I narrowed my eyes and didn’t know if I should get in a fighting stance or not. The praise was a little loud and gave me too much attention. Showing off so early wasn’t a good thing. Already I felt some eyes try to dismantle me.

 

“Really, I didn’t think I did that well. I’m sure you would have done a better job than me.” I said.

 

“No, you’re something special. I wonder do you have a secret cultivation method to help you get a head start in your backpack?” The eyes of those around me were more dangerous than ever. If I didn’t play my part correctly, an ambush would be waiting for me at the exit.” 

 

“That’s illegal, and to even mention that is dishonest. But to put your fears to rest, let’s swap backpacks.” I said.

 

The guy clutched his backpack to his chest and took a step back. “What are you trying to do, steal my family’s wealth?” Carrot top said and his Lapifu’s ears sparked with electricity between them.

 

Carrot top’s eyes widened as the crowd turned their attention on him. “No, I don’t think I will be the one who steals it,” I said and made my way out of the limelight.

 

Alice shook my shoulders when no one was looking. “That was so much fun it almost turned into a brawl for that guy’s stuff. You should have led it, partner. Imagine taking the lion’s share and distributing what you didn’t want. That’s the way to live.” Alice said.

 

“Maybe if we had a few others watching our backs. Carrot top was trying to throw attention away from himself by getting people to rob me. Even if the inside space of a bag being bigger on the inside, his looked full.”

 

“What do you have in your bag?”

 

“A can of ointment.”

 

Alice sighed. “Is it too late to trade bags?”

 

Carrot top left the store, and more than a few boys followed him. One of the others broke off from the crowd and approached me. He was easily a head taller than me, and the Lapifu with him looked fitter than the one with a carrot top. He raised his hand, and I shook it.

 

“Well met, I’m Richard, and I’m going on this journey to become a Waifu emperor like the rest. That was a good move offering to switch bags. That turned the table on him; I doubt he’ll last till nightfall before his stuff is stolen and his waifu is sold off. Tom really should have learned to keep his mouth shut and save the scheming for people richer than himself. But a fool and their money, am I right?”

 

This guy felt strong. It was the first time sensing the strength of someone else. Professor Cacao hid his power from my senses, but Richard felt powerful. I hadn’t felt someone like him before. My blood felt like it was boiling at the thought of fighting him.

 

Unfortunately, this wasn’t the time or place. Instead, I turned my attention to the knife and compound bow section. I went for a hardy-looking 8inch knife with a nice black finish.

 

“I wouldn’t bother with something like that if I were you. Every monster outside these walls has skin too tough for something like that to pierce. Most of these knives might as well be cooking utensils. I learned how to blacksmith when I was younger and know what to look for. What you want is one of these beauties.” He said and held up a thin knife with obvious cracks in the blade. “Trust me, this is what you need to defend yourself.”

 

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I might have let him fool me if I didn't know better. The knife was certainly expensive enough to be useful like the guys who bought pristine-looking tents instead of the rugged-looking ones off the discount rack in convenience stores. This place was how Cacao sucked up the tamer pension every year. It all looked nice and shiny from a distance, and the knife I picked up before looked sturdy enough. Only none of the tamers who had white waifus were here. A few smarter tamers had already snuck out, careful to ensure no one saw them.

 

This was another place to destroy competition and give a few of us new to this kind of world a wake-up call. Tamers were freer than anyone else on the planet at the price of protection. No one protected tamers except tamer families like Professor Cacao was doing for Alex.

 

I turned my attention to the cashier, who rung up a young man with his waifu beside him. The digital counter on the register quickly surpassed the 2000 credit limit. “I’m sorry young man, you don’t seem to have enough, but our store does give out credit with a competitive interest rate of 15%. But don’t worry, you’re a new tamer, so that won’t be a problem. After you purchase your supplies, get out into the city and capture some waifus to sell and pay us back. I can tell you need the supplies now, so let me help you.” This was my chance.

 

Slowly I grabbed Alice’s hand, and we eased out of the room. Tamers no older than 16 and 17 rushed to get everything they could carry and barely paid us any attention. Some waifus pitched in to help their tamers hall supplies to the growing line.

 

“Damn, I thought you would be one of the early dropouts like the rest of those losers. Criminals don’t come out of a vacuum.” Richard said.

“Debtors can’t leave the city unless given permission by Professor Cacao,” I said.

 

Richard laughed. “Right, he can’t have his precious grandson get picked off ten steps out of range of the city’s cannons. You’ve done your homework, and I respect that, but you are competition. I challenge you to a match for your card.”

 

Our cards could be stolen and used up by anyone on the street. They were made like that to make it easier for us to steal from each other.

 

There were many ways of looking at this situation. My favorite was that Professor Cacao really wanted to teach us how to be tamers. If I lost, there was a chance Richard would take Alice and sell her.

 

Going into conspiracy theory territory, what would benefit Professor Cacao the most. He could buy her and then use this debt to force me into the manager position. That would give his grandson an extra year of real-world experience on me. The real question was, did I believe that?

 

No, Professor Cacao probably barely knew I existed. Yea had handed my father his starter and hundreds of others every year. Professor Cacao was old, and his father was also a powerful tamer. He had sons who were powerful tamers, and Alex was one of his grandchildren. Compared to the bastard son of someone Professor Cacao gave a starter a century ago, I was barely a blip. I doubted Alex even saw me as a threat.

 

With that in mind, there were no cameras around the store. 

 

I punched Richard in the throat and drove my knee into his waifu’s stomach. She was so shocked by my sudden attack she froze as I brought my hand down on both sides of her head. The electric bunny waifu fell like a sack of potatoes. I could smell burnt fur from where I hit her. Alice positioned her talons against Richard’s throat.

 

Richard coughed, and his eyes looked to be almost popping out of his skull. That was the difference between having a skill constantly active and having to turn it on. I was faster since he didn’t have time to prepare himself.

 

“Sorry, man, this is the way of the world. An official battle sounds fun, but that doesn’t match up with the Professor’s lesson.” He looked confused. “Trust comes at a premium in our world. We aren’t all joining a sect together; our next stop is no man’s land. Not all of us will make it, and some people are better off staying here and living. Really the Professor is such a softy.” I said.

 

Was any of what I said accurate to reality? From a certain point of view, it was completely accurate to reality. Unfortunately, humans were messy things filled with emotions for family, regrets, and dreams. Who was I to judge the decisions of a centuries-old man who could delete me with a thought?

 

I found his card quickly, and we got out of there before his waifu recovered. We didn’t stay on the street long. I returned Alice to the seal on my arm and found the nearest tamer supply store. With 4000 credits to spend and much better prices, I made some purchases.

 

I bought some camping gear with a net to protect against mosquitoes and other virus-spreading bugs. The knife I bought was sturdy enough, and 8 inches of waifu hardened steel. It was guaranteed to cut into monster hide. Then I bought some body armor, changes of clothes, and food rations. Finally, I purchased a book on how to prepare monster flesh in the wild. Once my food rations ran out, monsters would be the only source of food left.

 

Once I was done with my purchases, I went to a waifu supply store, purchased a first aid kit, and spotted some waifu-only skill scrolls. God Speed, Seventh Seal, Frozen Moon, and Omega Breath were only a few of the higher-ranked skills I saw. Unfortunately, they were hundreds of thousands of credits a piece. There was no way I could get one with my current funds. I couldn’t take any tamer jobs until I entered my first sect and became an official tamer.

 

Right, I had the card and my first waifu. Owning a waifu and having a card didn’t make me a tamer. To do that, I needed to pass through the forest. Easier said than done, there were bands of savage waifu thirsty monsters between Jackson and Carthage.

 

I slapped my cheeks to psyche myself up and entered the back alleys. All I needed were some guns, and I could leave prepared for the forest. They could help me charge through enemies I normally wouldn’t be able to take on. Guns truly were the great equalizer, and I knew where some people were holding them for me.

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