Chapter 4:
Changing Jobs in Another World, But Everything's Too Specific
Haruto steadied his stick in his hand, feeling the familiar thrill of battle—or at least what he imagined real heroes felt. Across from him, a half-dozen goblins snarled, their twisted faces scrunching up as they raised their crude weapons. Haruto saw them as meager, level-one mobs ready to be turned into experience.
These purple-skinned creatures had strange-colored markings that seemed to sparkle lightly in the sunlight. Their large, multi-colored eyes resembled oil slicks, the colors shifting and flickering as they barked angrily. Their ears are long, noses are flat, and mouths are wide, frozen in large, crooked-toothed grins.
They wore patchwork outfits made from clothes made by them and equipment stolen from adventurers and travelers. A few had decorated themselves with trinkets taken from their victims. The leader had decorated himself with rings and amulets hanging from his oversized ears.
The goblins screeched and laughed at him, some closing in with blades of carved bone, others nocking arrows in their bows. Haruto smiled defiantly. The fear that he should have felt was cut off due to his Imaginary Bravery skill, bolstering his confidence. The stick in his hand swung through the air like the legendary blade of a true hero.
As the first goblin lunged at him, Haruto sidestepped, weaving smoothly out of the way, deflecting each arrow that came at him. Each dodge, each parry made him feel untouchable. With every slick maneuver, he understood his Stick Barrage skill better as the "Barrage Stacks" built up within him.
Haruto could only hold three stacks at a time at his current job level. The stacks filled quickly, and his first thought was to use them immediately. He would expend them all on the leader, taking him out first, and then dispatching the weaker ones with basic strikes.
"Feel the power of a hero!" Haruto screamed as he swung his blade at the goblin leader, calling out the attack name he had chosen. "Flurry of Styx!"
As Haruto's hit landed, he could feel a change in his body, the stacks leaving him. The leader of the goblins felt the impact of the first hit, immediately followed by three more in an instant. The goblin flew back from the impact, while Haruto continued his momentum, landing strikes against each of his foes.
Haruto ripped through the goblins in an instant, skidding to a stop and standing triumphantly. The goblins screamed in agony behind him as their leader finally hit the ground. Their screams cut short, leaving nothing but silence. For a moment...
The goblins began to look at their bodies, examining the actual damage done. They had thought by their enemies’ movements that they were done for, yet they stood just the same. They had only taken minor damage. The only casualty was the leader of their troop... until he as well got up from the ground, scratching his head.
Haruto began to shuffle in place, trying to keep his heroic demeanor intact as he made a show of sheathing his stick at his side. Sweat dropped from his cheek as he opened his menu, keeping his expression stony and calm. The Goblins watched with raised brows as he changed to his Stress Management Consultant job. His Imaginary Bravery skill had gone, erasing his fearlessness, but his current mood overwrote fear just the same.
He watched as the experience ticked up slowly for his Stress Management Consultant job. Haruto took a deep breath, his Stress Management Practices skill kicking in. As he exhaled, his frustration faded, yet his experience kept going up.
Then, curious about Haruto's new tactic, the goblins looked at each other as he began to run. Sprinting away from the goblins, Haruto cried out, his skill unable to keep up with his stress.
“Don’t look at me!” Haruto sobbed, sprinting away with snot and tears trailing.
The goblins howled with laughter as he fled, footsteps fading into the forest. The bold hero who had boasted just minutes before defeated himself in just a few strokes of his blade. They couldn't help but wipe tears away from their eyes as they began to chase Haruto through the forest.
Haruto glanced back, the goblins inching closer, firing the odd arrow. As he looked forward, the menu popped up, indicating that his Unintentional Comedian job had gone up from level one to two. Haruto gained a small boost to his experience in Stress Management Consultant, choking back his tears again.
The System pulled up beside him, flying at eye level. It laughed heartily, guffawing at Haruto's embarrassment.
"Stick Hero! A stick's attack power is so low!" The System spit, holding in its laughter. "Do you want to know how much damage you dealt?"
"Don't tell me! I don't want to know!" Haruto exclaimed desperately.
"You did 3 HP per hit! What a loser! What a rube!" The System poked and prodded, increasing Haruto's experience even further. "Thanks, Haruto. You're a real 'Hero'..." The System began to laugh again.
The goblins were gaining ground. A number of arrows flew forward, flying wide from the target. Haruto grabbed the System, holding its body out to the side, catching each arrow with its eye. As the arrows bounced off, the System broke from Haruto's grasp.
"Hey! Those were going to miss you!" The System yelled, its eye glowing red.
"They were coming right at me!" Haruto smiled slyly. "Without you I'd be dead."
The goblins grew closer, slashing through branches and vines with their swords. Haruto and the System ducked and rolled to avoid the goblins attacks. The goblins were right on top of him, their eyes wild and gleaming. Each swipe was closer than the last, and Haruto was losing breath.
Haruto fell forward, his chest burning, narrowly avoiding a goblin strike, only to have an arrow pierce his ear as he scrambled back to his feet. As blood dripped from Haruto's ear, the System was still chuckling, effortlessly evading each attack.
"You are so out of shape. Your stamina ran out so fast." The System said, flying around Haruto's face.
"I'm... doing my best!" Haruto panted and wheezed. "I've been at a computer for 15 years. Give... me... a break!"
Haruto needed a break. He couldn't change to Stick Hero. He would just fight them, which wouldn't get him anywhere. As a sword came down at him, he grabbed the System again, blocking the goblin’s strike with it. The weapon clashed uselessly against the System’s shiny exterior, causing its anger to swell once again.
“Do you know how disrespectful you are?” The System screamed. “I'm too important to be your shield.”
Haruto ignored it as another message popped into view: "New Job Unlocked: Sprinter (Flee)!" His face soured once again. He had noticed something about his jobs when he first arrived. A nagging feeling that would plague him until he died again.
"Why are all of the jobs so specific!?" Haruto screamed. "Why not just give me 'Sprinter'!? Why does it only work when I'm running away!?"
“Because you’re very specific about needing to run away right now.” The System shrugged, clearly entertained.
"Not just that one! They're all too specific! Stick Hero, Coffee Fetcher, Wizard (30-Year-Old Virgin)!? Everything is too specific!" Haruto couldn't help but feel a bit cheated. "This is ridiculous! What next? Sprinter (Chased-by-Goblins)?”
"Don't be stupid. If you collect all of the Sprinter jobs, they’ll eventually merge into a general Sprinter job. It's simple progression." The System flew to the front of Haruto's face, flying backwards as they fled. "Just do the same thing you did to gain this one, but toward the enemy, to the sides, up, and down, and you should have all of them."
"Ugh! That's so stupid!" Haruto opened the menu and pulled up the information for his new job.
Sprinter (Flee) Lvl. 1
Sprinting Speed (Passive)
Increase your maximum speed by 2% per job level while fleeing hostile creatures.
Haruto activated his new job, immediately feeling some of the burden from running ease on his chest. His feet moved faster beneath him, almost uncontrollably. It was only a 2% increase, but the difference was hard to get a handle on in a split second.
“Why are you so picky?” the System chimed, zipping in front of him. “You've been complaining and complaining since you've gotten here. You should be more grateful. Get me some booze later.”
"Sorry I'm not having the time of my life right now." Haruto waved his hand to shoo the System out of his vision. The Goblins were being left behind. He glanced back for a moment to watch them shrink slowly in the distance.
"Hey!" the System shouted. "You might wanna—"
Wham. Haruto slammed into a tree. Blood spurted from his nose as he crumpled. For just a moment, he laughed. He couldn't help it. His brain rattled; he could only laugh as everything went dark.
"Hey! Haruto! Are you okay!?" The last thing he heard before blacking out was the System shouting. "Harruuuutoooooo!"
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