Fight Club
"Guess I'll just cross the bridge when I reach it." He leaned into the comfy chair that had just arrived today.
His mind moved to the projects he had started yesterday. The first chapter for Fight Club was done. After another read to pick out any grammar mistakes, it had become publish-ready.
His initial plan was to release it as one whole novel, but it wasn't easy to decide how he wanted to illustrate key scenes. As interesting as an anime-style illustration looked in his head, he needed a rawer, more chaotic feel that he hadn't practiced yet.
In the end, he decided to release it chapter by chapter while training on the side.
But that wasn't all; the second project, Princess Mononoke, had also hit a road bump before it even started.
Unlike Look Back, which was originally a One-shot, Princess Mononoke was a movie. Adapting a movie to a manga, it wasn't easy to say the least.
He was clear on Story Analysis.
But the Script Adaptation, Storyboarding, Cinematic Composition, Panel Flow, Character Acting, Background Art, Emotional Pacing, Visual Symbolism, Dialogue Editing, Action Choreography, Page Turn Design, Time Compression, and at last Lettering and Sound Effects.
It was dizzying to learn that so much thought went into what he used to consume so mindlessly. And it wasn't like one could get the basics of all this down in just one night.
The system didn't sell any skills regarding manga making, so John basically had to figure things out while stumbling through this project.
But he wasn't peeved; it was the opposite.
It felt like he had rediscovered writing again. That impending wall of doom a starting writer crosses with sheer passion and a pocket full of fun ideas they want to share. It got his heart racing like a young girl in love.
'Let's not talk about that last part.' John coughed; he was a bit too buff and tall to act like that. It was as gross and off-putting as a bodybuilder in a maid outfit with full makeup.
'Some people are into that too, god I gotta stop my brain.' With a deep sigh, John uploaded the first chapter of Fight Club, pricing it at exactly $1.
Then he started constructing the storyboard for the first chapter of Princess Mononoke, taking his time with each page and panel.
He didn't sleep that night, but his brain didn't stop thinking throughout the next day either. He was careful not to show it on his face throughout the lectures this time.
As for the missed lectures, Gwen would teach him. However, John ran into Peter at lunch as his supposed teacher was running late.
"You are working at Stark Industries?" John blinked, almost letting go of the fork.
"It's more of a short-term internship." Peter rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "There was this project that I was working on, and it caught their attention."
"Still super impressive." John was genuinely happy.
At least Peter won't get tangled with Professor Connors. But, where did this change come from?
John had seen notifications from Peter reading the novels and manga, but there was never anything explosive.
"I was only able to do it because of you." Peter suddenly said.
"Me?" John pointed at himself with a fork covered in tomato sauce.
"Yes. You are more impressive than you think, John." Peter didn't go into details, and he just handed him two passes. "These are for the special expo tomorrow; have fun."
"What am I supposed to do with two of them?" John asked as Peter lifted his empty tray and stood up.
"I am sure you'll figure it out." Peter smiled and rushed away, almost like running away.
And just as John tried to figure out the reason behind this, a bell-like voice came from behind him.
"Why'd Peter run?" Gwen tilted her head, taking a seat beside John.
"Your guess is as good as mine." John shrugged, glancing between the tickets and Gwen. "You free tomorrow evening?"
"Depends on who's asking." She took the first bite of her lunch.
"Just a guy from your class, pretty funny, and decent-looking." He placed the fork down.
"Well, it might be tough, but I can squeeze out an hour or two for someone like him." She crossed her arms, a teasing glint in her eyes.
"You should at least stay until midnight." He smiled.
"Midnight? Might as well ask me to stay with you till sunrise." Her smile matched his.
"Doesn't sound like a bad idea." He shrugged as she kicked his leg slightly.
"So, where are we going?" She placed her elbows on the table, resting her pretty face in her palms.
"Nowhere fancy." He placed the Stark Expo passes in front of Gwen, watching her eyes light up.
'Spiderman or not, my goat delivers regardless.' John gave Peter a mental thumbs up as they talked about the event that would start at 6 P.M. the next day.
Returning home early today, John pulled the second scuttle from his inventory after changing into a white tank top and old sweatpants.
Specialized Training Room: - If the owner has a clear image of what he wants, the room will create that atmosphere for their training.
Price—1000 EP, Maintenance Cost—1EP/hour of use
He had just bought this one on his way here and had been eager to give it a go. The moment the scuttle connected to the wall, John grabbed the handle and closed his eyes. Imagining the training room he wanted.
Although he had gotten Observation Haki during a fight, that didn't mean he shouldn't refine it further. And thinking of how Rayleigh taught Luffy, the room he wanted became clear to him.
After thirty seconds or so, he turned the handle. Inside was a white room wider than a basketball court. The floor and the walls were white, but the high ceiling was a cloud of black, with a bionic arm hanging out.
The metal arm shone under the bright light emitted from the walls, holding an obsidian rod shaped like sugarcane.
John stood at the centre of the room and stabilized his breathing. He wasn't going to use Observation Haki from the get-go and see how far he could go with pure awareness and instinct.
There was no difficulty dial here, so the arm started to move through the black cloud, swinging at him in swift patterns from different directions.
John felt the wind from the swings on his body. It was a relentless pursuit that lasted for a minute. Because even without a set difficulty, the moment he started to dodge too much, the speed would kick up a notch.
And it wasn't just the speed. The patterns changed as well. And the rod went splat against his back. John understood the power had increased too.
"Jesus…" He stumbled forward. Sliding under the rod that went for his chest without mercy.
It wasn't just the initial hit. But the stinging aftereffect that felt like a line of ants biting, ripping into him. And every time he moved, the red line etched into his back burned like hell.
But the reason he had chosen this was precisely that it made focusing hard. In a real fight, what mattered wasn't who had practiced their skills the longest; it was the ability to continue at the highest output despite injuries and pain.
"I need better hobbies." John bit his lip, facing off against the playful hand waving the cane around like it was mocking him.
By the first hour, he could go about 3 minutes without getting hit. Hour two bumped that number up to 8 minutes per hit. And by hour three, John was on the floor covered in steaming sweat and red welts, reaching a record 12 minutes without being hit.
The tank top and cheap sweatpants were in tatters, so was John. But he pushed himself off the ground and exited the training room with calm footsteps. And after a gruelling cold shower, he sat down in front of his computer, now in new clothes.
And on the popular news, Tony's face was plastered in full, with Justin Hammer taking a small corner. It seemed like that Tony had returned and cancelled Hammer's Expo presentation one-sidedly. Saying that he would clear all the doubts people had about Iron Man.
It was causing a lot of buzz, with Justin Hammer giving an exclusive interview about how unfair this was, but it was just him throwing shade at Tony 90% of the interview while saying that the latter feared what he had to show.
But it didn't really matter to him; the cancelled Hammer slot in the expo was for next week anyway. And the drama didn't really matter to him.
By now, the sting in his wounds had eased a lot. And thankfully, he could watch the readers comment about the first chapter of Fight Club, distracting himself even further.
...
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