The Power of Nine: A Mecha LitRPG Adventure (Overdrive Book 2)
Page 2
However, his self-imposed bit meant his Mech had obvious holes.
Julian scrolled through his available Grunt units and then selected his favorite—Emma's SPG Caster. The inflexibility of Ace units meant that far weaker Grunts could overcome them with strategy. Ace units had a far higher Credit cap and access to the Overdrive mechanic, but you weren't allowed to change your Ace unit after the battle started.
On the other hand, a Grunt unit could change its weapons to take advantage of your opponent's weaknesses and adapt to the map. Before the game began, all DISTINCTIONMAN would see if he looked at Julian's Grunt frame was its name: SPG-1 Caster—Julian Custom and its custom colors. The thin and gangly machine was painted in Julian's beloved orange and gold. Everything else was shrouded in black fog. Ace weapons were revealed to both sides, but Grunt weapons were kept secret until the battle started.
Julian's fingers deftly danced across the hangar's keyboard as he inputted all the desired parts.
There was little chance of him winning a close combat brawl. Even though Julian suspected that he was the better swordsman, the unfortunate truth was that his Spell Titan would crumble after a single mistake. The Starlight R was the better close combat option, but Julian had another motivation for using his Grunt unit beyond practicing counter-strategies. DISTINCTIONMAN was broadcasting the match to his enormous fan base. Julian's new Ace machine had several built-in gimmicks created just for the Selection, and he didn't want to give up the surprise factor.
He'd just finished selecting his weapons when the gate opened, revealing a beautiful mountain range. Julian had carefully studied all the maps, and Mountain 3 was one he knew relatively well. The veteran pilot instinctively directed his launchpad towards a low canyon.
The SPG Caster launched, and the wind swirled around him. Julian smiled as he tightened his fingers around the controls. He'd spent so many years playing the game, but only recently had he begun to appreciate its depth. He would never have considered using these weapons before.
Now he respected their strength.
Of course, his opponent didn't feel the same way.
An outraged cry but unsurprising cry echoed across the map.
"Coward! Coward! How dare you use a counter-strategy!"
2
DISTINCTIONMAN50000 let out another outraged cry.
"A counter-strategy! How dare you? This was supposed to be a duel for the ages! That's the problem with professional players. They have no honor! They are little more than cheaters!"
He drew both his katana at once and charged. Julian spared the slightest moment to admire his opponent's crafting skill.
Unlike a duel between humans, the speed at which your Mech drew its weapons only had a tiny bit to do with your reaction speed as a pilot. The decisive factor was how quickly your machine responded.
Despite the imperfect Cohesion score, the Hot Pink Hotness's S-tier in Melee was as good as advertised. Not long ago, Julian had simply considered the game's scores as the end all be all of a unit's ratings. It was only recently—after being exposed to top-tier Mechs like the Heaven's Boxer or Brandon's Patchwork—that Julian realized achieving an S-tier was only the bare minimum for masters of their craft. Even the S-tier contained multitudes. A low-ranking S-tier unit trying to battle a peak S-tier unit was folly.
The Hot Pink Hotness was indeed a peak S-tier unit. Although most competitive players stereotyped DISTINCTIONMAN as an idiot, he was clearly a great crafter. Fortunately, Julian had no intention of directly fighting the Hot Pink Hotness.
His SPG Caster had a C in Mobility and a B in Melee, but despite the enemy Mech's significant advantages, it still had to streak across the map and into the trench where Julian was hiding. All he had to do was plant his traps inside the mountain walls.
His machine's essential statistics hovered at the far corner of his screen.
- General Data -
Pilot: Julian
Machine: SPG-01 Caster—Julian Custom
Class: Spell Titan
Sub-class: Support
Designation: Grunt Unit
- Statistics -
Melee: B-tier
Shooting: B-tier
Speed: C-tier
Maneuverability: C-tier
Defense: A-tier
Cohesion: A-tier
- Weapons -
Mana Gatherer Spike [x2]
Mana Dispersal Finger [x10]
Mine-Laying Shield [x2]
Wrist-Mounted Pistol [x2]
Longsword [x1]
- Abilities -
Thunderbolt
Static Freeze
Storm Surge
The mana-powered Spell Titan had everything it needed to counter DISTINCTIONMAN50000's Kingbreaker Class. Julian's fingers deftly swiped through the options on his right-hand trigger. He'd added several hotkeys to his main control board that instantly accessed his various weapon depots.
Julian smiled. It was still such a pleasant surprise, realizing how much he'd grown. He used to hate weapon switching, but after dedicated drills and practice, it felt like he'd been doing it for years. Although Julian was barely ranked in the top 350—meaning that nobody considered him a serious contender for the Selection, he knew better. If he kept honing his craft, there was no limit to how far he could go.
There was a loud electrical hiss as the mine-laying shield units activated. Julian angled the first shield toward the upper wall and fired. There was a loud click, and then the pulsating mines buried themselves just beneath the surface.
With his second shield, Julian set traps on the terrain directly in front of him, just in case DISTINCTIONMAN50000 went for a ground-based assault. The mine shields were the kind of combined weapon that made the most sense on a Grunt unit. Julian had picked up the trick from Sweetshot303. In real life, Brandon was Tyler's childhood friend and high school basketball rival. On the Overdrive server, Brandon was the infamous Master of Minions, the star Grunt crafter, and pilot who'd carried his team to a second-place finish at last year's World Championship.
Brandon's Grunts frequently wielded integrated weapons to sneak under the strict 10,000 Credit cap. After laying mines, your Mech was best served hunkering beneath a sturdy shield to avoid the explosion. However, independently purchasing a mine-laying unit and a shield would push you to the very edge of the Credit limit, preventing you from equipping any other weapons. The mine shields allowed Julian to carry more weapons, but it came with its own weaknesses. Specifically, if someone knew you were using mine shields, they could simply break them with a high-powered long-range attack before you started laying mines. The enormous backlash of the exploding mines would probably kill you.
It was the kind of risk you took integrating weapons or trying to cheat the Credit system. However, Julian knew that Hot Pink Hotness had no high-powered long-ranged attacks. On top of that, landmines combed nicely with his Spell Titan's abilities.
Julian retreated to the very edge of the stage and anchored both shields in front of him to form a nearly solid barrier. His wrist-mounted pistols smoothly slid into his hands as he aimed through the holes carved at the top of the shields. The narrow slits let him shoot without exposing his weapons to the upcoming electric discharge.
Now, all he had to do was wait for the perfect chance.
Unlike an Ace-type Spell Titan, which had nearly unlimited magical abilities, the SPG Caster only had enough mana to cast two spells at a time.
"Don't hide behind a shield! You call yourself a professional pilot? You're nothing more than a professional coward!"
The Hot Pink Hotness swooped into the canyon.
Julian pressed the button at the very top of his trigger, bringing up his unit's Special Attacks screen. Spell Titans had terrible base defenses, and their Mana Gathering Spikes were an obvious target, but the power of their special attacks easily made up for it. A Special Attack from a Spell Titan empowered with Overdrive was enough to obliterate an entire army. Julian's Grunt lacked that same power, but it
was still sufficient to comfortably destroy a machine ranked in the D-tier for defense.
Julian already knew which of the three options he wanted.
Thunderbolt was a basic single-target offensive spell. Static Freeze did little damage, but it immobilized opponents. Unlike Thunderbolt, it could affect multiple targets. Meanwhile, Storm Surge was the optimal choice for dispersed area of effect damage.
With Storm Surge, Julian could amplify the explosions into an enormous electric discharge.
Red lights flickered on Julian's cockpit as the mine sensors indicated that Distinctionman50000 was in range for nearly every explosion.
"Storm Surge."
Orange and gold lightning crackled.
DISTINCTIONMAN50000 let out a cry of surprise.
"What?"
"No!"
His opponent's machine was instantly critically damaged. It slammed onto the floor, completely unable to fly forward.
"How dare you?! Traps? Weren't shields bad enough?"
Julian aimed his pistols, but before he could do anything else, the Sword of the Skies activated its beam katana and stabbed itself in the chest. The sword skewered the pilot in the cockpit and instantly ended the fight.
REWARDS
1,000 Credits
Ranking Increase—322--> 321
Because of the enormous difference in their ranks, it'd only been a tiny improvement. However, the victory was surprisingly satisfying. In a way, Julian felt like he'd beaten the pilot he'd been two months ago. He'd always struggled against counter-strategies.
Julian smiled and prepared to message Tyler. He'd won the match with plenty of time to spare.
Unfortunately, a flood of notifications drowned out his screen as DISTINCTIONMAN50000 spammed Julian with countless inquiries for a rematch.
"No! No! No! That was illegitimate! You cheated! I demand a rematch! That did not count! You did not beat me! I beat myself!"
Julian groaned and pulled up his options screen to block DISTINCTIONMAN, but it wasn't possible.
The muscular streamer was spamming match inquiries at such speed that it rendered all of Julian's functions unusable.
He had to be using a script of some sort.
They returned to the lobby, and Julian gasped.
The muscular man's thumbs had become complete blurs. Every so often, he would even kick his status screen to jam in another invite. There was no script. DISTINCTIONMAN was just smashing the invite button over and over again.
"Accept again! Accept again! Accept again! All I want is a fair and honorable fight! You have no distinction! Accept! Accept! Accept!"
3
Julian sighed. No wonder this guy was considered a handful to play with. Julian didn't want to think about how the muscular pilot would act if the random queue matched him with another Ace specialist. He'd probably just throw a giant fit.
He laughed.
The funniest situation possible would be four DISTINCTIONMAN fans all matching up together.
Julian suspected he'd regret opening his mouth, but maybe some of DISTINCTIONMAN's fans would listen. After all, Julian himself had been in a rut for a long time. You never knew what could motivate someone to improve.
"Look. It's your own fault. Just build some armor so you can take a hit. You need a balanced machine. You can't just rely on your teammates to play supports and carry you."
DISTINCTIONMAN50000 angrily pressed his sword forward. Although the peacekeeping effects of the lobby dulled the blade, it still felt like a brick wall.
The pink-haired man scoffed.
"I don't need to hear this nonsense about teamwork from a boring pro sheep. I'm not a sheep!"
Julian shrugged, eager to be away from the angry man. He should have known better than to try. Most of the players watching DISTINCTIONMAN probably agreed with the pink-haired man's views. Back when he, Felix, and Edwin had played together back in high school, they'd always scoured pro player guides to back up their in-game arguments.
"Alright. Sorry. Look, I need to get going, sorry, was supposed to meet some friends."
Julian abruptly turned and started walking the other way. DISTINCTIONMAN had been pushing forward with all his strength. The muscular man briefly stumbled before he found his footing. Then he chased after Julian, shouting at the top of his lungs.
"Julian! Julian! Get back here! We have unfinished business! Don't run away from me!"
As soon as DISTINCTIONMAN shouted, a few pilots in the lobby started murmuring too.
"Oh wait, that's Julian!"
"Who?"
"Julian! He's in the Selection!"
"Oh, what? The Selection!"
"Wait, he's famous!"
"That guy? The guy in the orange?"
"Yeah, he's famous!"
"Should I go talk to him?"
"Yeah! You should! He's not famous yet!"
Julian turned. Without warning, what seemed like the entire lobby charged toward him.
"Julian! Julian! Add me to your friend's list!"
"Teach me how to make the Selection!"
"Join my team!"
"No, mine! Mine!"
"Let me get your autograph!"
"Add me as a friend!"
Julian was utterly flabbergasted.
Although he personally thought he had a good chance to succeed in the Selection, his ranking clearly stated otherwise. The Overdrive Corporation recruited two Fortresses at a time—2 Aces and 6 Grunts. The cut-off mark was the top five hundred, but realistically, only about fifty players had a real chance. Most players who qualified for the Selection were only there to meet their favorite players.
Julian was still a nobody, but the crowd swarmed him as if he were vermillionangel, the handsome World Champion.
"I'll pay you $50 if you go on my stream!"
"I'll pay you $100!"
It was hard to get popular as a streamer. The people shouting out offers were probably hoping that Julian could give them a lasting boost in income. He knew that some of the biggest streamers charged money for in exchange for appearances. It was very similar to endorsing a product.
The shouting players offered Julian much less, but an extra $150 wouldn't hurt when he was in Los Angeles. It'd be great to take Emma and Felix out to a nice dinner.
Unfortunately, Julian couldn't pick out who was shouting at him. He popped up his status screen to see if he'd received an offer in his inbox, but it was impossible to sort out the endless deluge of friend invites.
Jingo has sent you an invite!
789drive has sent you an invite!
Tannhauser has sent you an invite!
Dr.Love has sent you an invite!
M3chaNiKal has sent you an invite!
He tried to mute them, but new notifications arrived faster than he could pick out any of the ones from before. The ticker at the bottom counted higher and higher.
60 unread notifications.
82 unread notifications.
99 unread notifications.
132 unread notifications.
It felt like thousands of people.
"A thousand dollars if you give me your spot in the Selection!"
That was the most impressive proposal of all, but unfortunately, Julian couldn't accept it. The Selection invite was linked directly to your account. Whoever shouted the offer let out a sudden cry of surprise as he got kicked from the Overdrive server.
Trying to purchase a spot in the Selection was a bannable offense.
Julian's eyes widened. He was a little surprised at how quickly the game administration acted. The players in the Selection must be constantly monitored. No wonder pros preferred talking to each other on other channels.
Just a few days ago, TiggerLuvr888 had used LinkedIn to deliver a clandestine message to Julian. The veteran pilot had rediscovered the Heaven's Boxer, a legendary Mech Julian had discovered but lost during a mission called The Raid on Colony Seven. During that mission, Tigger had worn a thick suit of Privacy Armor, which hidden his
true identity. Sadly, Julian had almost no chance of affording it. It cost an absurd three million Credits.
The Mechanical King—the CEO of Overdrive—hated people disguising their identity in online games. There were rumors it was because he'd been repeatedly catfished. As a result, privacy was a privilege given only to VIP players or game administrative staff.
The crowd was still desperately trying to grab Julian's attention.
"Wait! Come on!"
"Invite me to your team!"
"I'm a great support! You need me on your team!"
"No! Make the team with me! I play Attacker! If you add me, then you'll be free to do something else!"
That was a ridiculous proposition. Why would Julian change roles for an unproven player? That guy might have been a DISTINCTIONMAN fan.
The crowd pushed and shoved each other as they moved forward. However, the peacekeeping effects of the lobby prevented physical damage. Instead, they were almost frozen in place.
DISTINCTIONMAN was louder than them all.
"Get back here! Get back here, you coward! I demand a rematch!"
Julian fumbled at his status screen. He should have met up with Tyler by now. Julian took another look at his status screen and groaned. His notifications had amplified into the thousands. DISTINCTIONMAN's fan brigade was here. Like their hero, all of them used names with all capital letters and enormous numbers.
CHIVALRY200000 would like to be your friend!
BUSH100000DO would like to be your friend!
HONORINFINITY would like to be your friend!