NOVEL NEXT Chapter 6: Capitolo sei
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Kill thugs: 50/50
Save a person 0/1
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"That should be easy!" Sukuna muttered as he strolled down the cracked streets. He disappeared into a dimly lit alleyway, searching for a bunch of thugs, but not for the reason you'd expect.
It didn't take long before he spotted them; this place was riddled with them for some reason. The three thugs rested near a dumpster, with their voices echoing with laughter. Just by a look, you could see how their clothes screamed "newbie" thug.
After seeing a group of three that were definitely thugs, he swaggered towards them, cutting the chatter. "Hey, you brats, I need all of you for some action. Don't worry; I'll pay you well."
The trio exchanged confused glances. A random kid not looking from this place nor even barely out of his 18 had just called them brats, "Uh... yeah?" one of them said hesitantly, looking at the sides as if this was a test, unsure how to respond.
Sukuna grinned, showing his teeth, "I'll give you three thousand bucks if you scare some random person for me. Steal it's bag, maybe fire a shot into the ground. Just make it look real."
One of them sneered, stepping forward, "Why don't we just take the--"
*SLAM!*
Sukuna's fist met the thug's face with a sickening crack, sending him sprawling into a pile of garbage bags. Blood poured from the guy's broken nose as Sukuna gave them a cold side eye, "Two thousand five hundred. If you say another word, I'll drop it to two thousand."
The last two thugs didn't even bother to exchange a small glance. They clumsily nodded, slumping more as the weight of their situation settled in.
"Good." Sukuna walked past them to hide in the shadows, "It's per person, by the way."
The moment he disappeared, the two thugs turned to each other, feeling the excitement breaking through their fear, "Almost eight grand for just scarin' someone? This was the easiest payday of their lives!"
...
...
...
The three thugs from earlier cornered a young woman in a quiet stretch of the alley, "I-I don't have nothing worthy of value with me." She stammered, clutching her purse tightly as they approached from both sides.
One of them growled, "Drop the bag on the ground and walk away. Slowly."
The woman froze, her eyes darting around for help. But she knew no one was coming to help her. The things she wore were fake; what if they killed her because they weren't authentic? What if-
BANG!
One of the thugs fired a warning shot into the pavement. He tried his best to act as the most stereotypical version of themselves because the guy who contracted them was probably some wannabe who wanted to look cool for a video, "We are thugs bitch, and the next one goes to your legs."
Before she could scream for help, from the dark sky, a shadow fell over them. "Hope I'm not late!"
Sukuna plummeted from the ceiling, landing with a thunderous impact over the thugs, rattling the nearby trash cans. He straightened up, shaking the stiffness out of his legs. "Damn it," he muttered, rubbing his knees. "Overestimated that jump... anyway."
The woman standing nearby froze, grabbing her purple hat as if it were some kind of protective totem, "I... I..."
Sukuna cleaned the dust off his jacket, speaking with a surprisingly gentle tone, "Are you okay, ma'am?" He extended a hand toward her, with a smile playing on his lips.
"I..." Her voice wavered, and she hesitated before whispering, "Y-Y-Yes."
"Great." His fingers suddenly curled, "Cleave."
The woman's confused relief changed into horror as her throat and face suddenly split, with thin crimson lines tracing across her skin. The cuts weren't deep enough to kill her instantly; she stumbled backward, clutching at her wounds. It hurt, it hurt like hell, and now blood trickled down her neck.
Sukuna walked forward casually, "The system didn't say I had to keep you alive." Without a second glance, he planted his feet on her head and began pressing down until the sickening *CRUNCH* silenced the alley.
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...
"Sir, Sir?" The woman in the purple hat stammered, shaking as she stared at Sukuna. Her trembling eyes darted between the unconscious thugs and the man who had defeated them because he was just standing there... Menacingly
Sukuna took a deep breath and stopped imagining things. "Just forget what you saw." His hand raised to waive her off. "It was a small... dispute between old friends-enemies."
"T-Thank you... I'll never forget this." She walked out of the place, not asking anything more, now carefully looking at the sides as if she was about to get attacked once more.
Sukuna looked at her, now lost in the masses, "Why did I spare her...?" he proceeded to walk away from the scene while looking at the System to say he had completed the mission.
Ever since he left the gym, Sukuna had been cautious, avoiding cameras and slashing any nearby one in the hallways, trying to keep out of sight wherever possible. Perhaps this girl could come to bite her in the ass weeks later, "I'm no Marvel fan, but I know S.H.I.E.L.D. hunts weirdos like me, and I don't want S.H.I.E.L.D. to be up my ass."
Turning his attention back to the thugs he'd knocked out earlier, he barked, "Hey! I didn't hit the three of you that hard. Get up, or I'll stomp your heads."
The men scrambled to their feet like marionettes controlled by fear, stammering weakly, "W-What ya want, boss?!"
"Boss?" Sukuna let out a short mocking laugh, "Don't flatter yourselves. I'm not your babysitter." Soon enough, an idea sparkled in his mind. "But now that you called me boss... You are gonna spread a story. Tell everyone there's someone new out here hunting thugs in this area. Don't describe me, though. Just say... a guy called is cleaning up the streets. Got it?" All the thugs he had massacred were a bit away from this place, but it should be close enough for them to realize it was him.
One of the thugs mumbled, "Someone?"
"Right, that asked for a name... Just tell them a guy called the... Uh..." What kind of name should I use? It's just a temporal name because I need to get the fuck out of here before I cause too much trouble, I KNOW! "Thug Shaker is hunting thugs in this place; you can invent the rest."
They stood there, waiting for more instructions. Sukuna just took a lump of money he had been taking from the past thugs he had killed: "Here, I have 10 grand. If you complete the mission, I'll give you another 10 grand."
The three of them yelled, with more excitement than fear, "Aye, boss!"
Sukuna smirked to himself as he walked away. 'Suckers! Like I'm giving them another dime. Also, System open the gacha; I want to gamble NOW!!!'
DING DING DING!
A blue light flowed through the system screen, shimmering with an almost ethereal glow. The spinning gacha machine slowed, clicking rhythmically before landing on three gleaming blue diamonds.
The smoke cleared dramatically, and Sukuna's eyes narrowed at the glowing text that appeared: "RARE DROP!!!"
Cursed tool: Umbra Fan
A forgotten relic of the Heian era, crafted as a traditional hand fan. Its uses are unknown, but it boasts remarkable durability.
Sukuna tried to keep the smile he had for reading this was rare, "System... One of your functions is to tell me stuff, right?"
"Yup."
"So what the fuck does this thing do?"
"¯\_(ツ)_/¯"
He summoned the sleek fan to his hand, which materialized with a dark energy flicker. The black carbon surface gleamed under the dim light, giving the impression that it might drip liquid at any moment.
As he unfurled it, intricate red and monochromatic patterns were carved into the folds, adding an air of mystique. The fan felt slightly heavy in his grip, and when he fully unfurled it, its size was enough to shield his head entirely.
"Pretty," Sukuna muttered, giving it a half-hearted wave, "But pretty useless." With a shrug, he stored it back into the System, realizing that bronze tickets were simple things related to his stats and silver ones had a chance for "better" things.
...
He opened another two and got quite the things.
DING DING! Basic Stamina capacity!
DING DING! Bigger cursed energy capacity.
"Well... I was expecting more cleave and dismantle, so at least this is something."
The System chimed in, "New repetitive quest! (This quest will only exist as long as you don't have a main quest.)"
Beat 25 thugs and help one person in need (this mission will reset every 24 hours)
90% Chance of 1 bronze gacha spin
9% chance of 1 silver gacha spin
1% chance of 1 golden gacha spin
Sukuna sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "I can't believe what I'm about to say, but I might need a mask..." He continued walking down the alley, gazing at the surrounding buildings. "No... No... No..." He was searching for something cheap, like an old apartment that could serve as a temporary house and also a possible place for the Malevolent Barbershop.
The stolen money he gets from thugs should be enough to cover it. If not, he'd just 'get' more funds, "Actually... This feels like a great time to complete the repetitive quest!"
But, from a crumbling rooftop nearby, a figure crouched, being hidden by a rusted ventilation shaft. Unaware-- or perhaps unconcerned-- Sukuna kept walking, hearing only the faint hum of the system screen fading into the night.
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authors note:
If this shit hits I dunno... 30 powerstones? I'll upload an extra chapter