Chapter 6 – The C-Rank Conspiracy
The city had learned something that day: the "jobless boy" was no longer just a rumor.
Whispers ran through marketplaces, schools, and alleys.
"Did you hear? He's not just exposing villains—he's… controlling them."
"Jobless? Impossible. How does one boy…?"
I walked through the plaza, hands in pockets, pretending to trip over my backpack. F-Rank, useless… perfect.
Orion, scan vicinity for threats.
"Threat level elevated. Multiple C-Rank villains detected. Coordination suggests premeditated revenge. Collateral probability: moderate. Moral paradox index: increasing."
I smiled. Moral paradox? Excellent. Chaos with ethics was my favorite puzzle.
Mr. Tarlow had learned. D-Rank failure was humiliating, but informative. He had contacted more skilled allies, and today, they came for me:
C-Rank mercenary with brute strength and gadgets
C-Rank hacker who specialized in tracking invisible targets
B-Rank strategist coordinating multiple minor villains from the shadows
They moved in unison, a web of traps designed to corner the "jobless genius".
Orion, probability of capture?
"0.04%. Probability of human awareness of intervention: high. Amusement index: 99%."
I chuckled. High probability of exposure meant maximum chaos and lesson potential.
I pressed a hidden panel on my wristband. Today's tech wasn't just drones—it was the first experiment using monster-derived bio-gadgets. A small black orb unfolded in my palm, tendrils wriggling and connecting to my suit interface. The gadget could adapt, camouflage, and respond with pre-programmed bio-reactions.
Orion, integrate monster-tech into tactical plan.
"Integration complete. Predictive response optimized. Probability of C-Rank defeat: 98.6%. Probability of collateral spectacle: 100%."
Perfect.
The first strike came from the brute. Giant fists swinging. But the orb reacted—spreading a near-invisible barrier around me, redirecting the momentum harmlessly into a nearby statue, shattering it spectacularly. Citizens gasped. Murmurs escalated into cheers.
The hacker tried to disable my suit with a virus. The orb retaliated, sending back a harmless but dazzling electromagnetic pulse, scrambling his equipment and exposing his own illicit hacks on a public monitor.
The strategist tried to corner me, moving through the crowd, using humans as shields. I smiled faintly, activating micro-drones that created holographic decoys. The strategist struck them repeatedly, failing spectacularly.
Orion, analyze.
"Humans are unpredictable but predictable. Chaos factor: optimized. Moral and ethical questions rising… suggest philosophical discussion."
I laughed quietly. "Always with the ethics, Orion. You'll get bored of morality eventually."
"Boredom is irrelevant when calculations yield infinite variables," it replied, almost seriously.
By the end of the confrontation, the villains lay humiliated, exposed, and routed. The plaza was littered with shattered illusions, small tech debris, and astonished citizens.
Orion, tally results.
"All targets neutralized. Public recognition: increased. Legendary prank status: upgraded. Monster-tech efficacy: 100%. Probability of citizen obsession: high."
I smirked. Yes. This was exactly the point. Every prank, every intervention, was not just chaos—it was a lesson, a test, and an experiment in human behavior, technology, and ethics.
As I walked away, blending into the crowd, I heard whispers:
"Jobless genius… he's unstoppable."
"The boy is… terrifyingly clever."
"Do you think he's… human?"
I grinned faintly under my hood. F-Rank, useless… jobless… but slowly, the world was beginning to understand that F-Rank was just a label, and intelligence was infinite.
Cliffhanger / Foreshadowing for Chapter 7
Tarlow escalates further—plans B-Rank villains and long-term schemes.
Rocky's legend spreads beyond the city, people whisper about him in distant towns.
Monster-derived gadgets hint at future planetary and cosmic-scale inventions.
Orion's philosophical tendencies begin to surface, hinting at a potential autonomy conflict.