This is a Beta Test?! - A Literally Broken System

Story cutscenes were something that I really didn't like paying attention to. While I can appreciate stories when I'm reading, my ridiculous reading speed made playing story-driven games kind of a chore to do. Listening to the dialogue when I could just read it faster than they could speak made me unable to appreciate voice-overs. And what few voice-overs that I would actually listen to, I'd just find myself skipping over so I could read the next batch of subtitles faster.

So in retrospect, it was kind of both a blessing and a curse that the subtitling in this world somehow didn't apply to dialogue; the one thing that actually needed it. Heh, now that was a ridiculous bug.

"So you have come," the Emperor nodded at me, a golden staff in his hand as he stood at his full height. "And you have brought the other [Somatic] with you."

"Oh, I'm actually fighting you alone. Err... Your Majesty," I smirked, almost forgetting to address the man with his proper title. "I have to prove myself, right? How can I do that if I have help."

At my confidence, the Emperor flashed the first smile that I've ever seen from him. Granted, it was small, but it was something. "Congratulations. You've passed my first assessment, Moriya."

"Huh?"

"You have the right mindset for a proper soldier," he explained, still throwing me for a loop as I stared at him. "I wanted you to prove yourself, and if you required help in doing so, you've only proved that you're weak."

"Oookay?" I couldn't help but draw out. "Thanks, I guess?"

"Don't thank me yet," the Emperor scoffed. "Now, come at me."

[COMBAT COMMENCED]

Oh boy....

"Khh... I felt... something..." Guidance hissed through her teeth behind me. "What did you-"

[THUNK]

The sound of something soft hitting glass echoed from behind me. Turning around, I was surprised to see that Guidance was currently being blocked by an invisible wall. It was the same as back when Shizu and I fought the Wolf King, and I guess it only appeared whenever that [COMBAT COMMENCED] prompt came out.

"You did say that this was a solo instance," I chuckled. "I guess you made it so that the player can't just run away?"

"Y-Yeah..." the dev groaned, rubbing her forehead as she nodded. "I guess that's what I felt earlier. You've initiated combat."

"I guess," I sighed as I turned my attention back to my supposed enemy. "Still, even if Shizu says he's weak, I don't think..." Wait.... Wait!

"Moriya?"

[Varis Xeno Kattleyna Level: 90]

[Emperor]

My eyes were practically bugging out of their sockets as I finally noticed his nameplate floating above his head. Along with his obvious title, the name 'Varis Xeno' actually sounded badass whenever I think about it. But also, that ridiculous level!

"He's level 90..." I trailed off, anxiety building up within me as I trembled. "How am I supposed to beat a level 90?!"

All of a sudden, all pretenses of taking one hit were thrown out the window. If this was the same as Shizu against that one wolf she punched, there was a high possibility that I might get turned into a red paste just by this guy swatting me with his hand!

"H-he's 90? I don't remember giving NPCs that high of a level...." Guidance trailed off, her own nervousness now seeping behind me from the safety of the barrier. "But if this is.... He shouldn't be that high!"

"What?!" I almost cried out, my hands quickly drawing out my pistols in case I actually caught the man's aggro. "Then what level is he supposed to be then?"

"He should only be at around seventy," Guidance blinked at the Emperor, her fingers flying as she whipped out her keyboard. "The Kattleynan Royal family should only be around that level."

"Okay? But-" Wait... "Shizu's level 80 though, remember?"

"That's because her code's screwed and I couldn't fix it," the dev admitted. "Where is she when we need her anyway? I have to nerf this guy before the automatic aggro kicks in."

Eh... What?! Did that mean what I thought it meant?! "Why would you put that kind of thing-"

"You're wasting time, Moriya!"

I actually flinched as I kept my attention glued to my enemy. The level 90 monster was still just standing there at least, albeit a bit menacingly as I kept my distance. In the meantime, Guidance's keyboard clacks kept on sounding off from behind the invisible wall. She was focused, but I could tell that she didn't know what she was doing.

"This... I can't do it like this. I need to see the code," she grumbled as she stashed her [Manifest] away. "Moriya?"

"Y-Yeah?"

"Keep yourself alive while I go fetch our friend," she instructed, her tone thinly veiling her panic as she left. "Stretch it out! Cheese it! I don't care if you don't do the fight properly!"

"I know!" I threw out, shaking my head with abject horror as I circled back around to the Emperor in front of me. "And I do apologize for the delay, Your Majesty. The difference in power between us is just too great for me to just attack."

"I see... A calculative effort then," the man nodded his head. "An admirable trait for a general, but not for a soldier."

My eyes widened as I noticed his stance changing. Was he about to attack?

"I appreciate your intelligence, Moriya. However, our time is not infinite," the Emperor spoke, his staff coiling into his waist as he seemed to wind up his attack. "The enemy is at our doorstep, and seeing if you're worthy will only take a moment!"

I gritted my teeth as I fell into my own stance, my pistols trained solely on my target as I kept myself light on my feet. I had range and I had speed. I just had to kite him like my life depended on it until Guidance comes back and nerfs the Emperor down to manageable levels.

I just hope my new quirks and [Moves] will help me get through this.

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AN: Kindly vote so that I can get back to 2 chaps per day ^^

Also, I have a Discord server now: https://discord.gg/NZA6Jun

TWT: @ChellyArks