Not any average pebble would do.

I picked up jagged ones, flat ones, chipped ones, small ones, large ones, scuffed ones, ones fetched from the river and covered in bottom-feeding slime and algae...

The System declared all of them... subpar. They didn’t count to my title. No, it seemed only the most regal and perfect of pebbles would be counted. Looking for pebbles might become a work in madness. Well, I supposed it gave me something to do besides beat myself up over this Physical Exercise skill.

Which was only at level 3 despite my huffing and puffing for the last 45 minutes. Sit-ups and push-ups didn’t seem to gain me enough points in the skill. I frowned as I sipped more of the water from the stolen bottle. I rested my hot back against the cool stone of the underbridge. Grateful no one saw me ‘exercising’

“Want to give me some tips?” I asked aloud in vain hope. I was actually surprised to see an answer appear. The blue box hazy and shimmering as if to reflect how hot it was.

Repetition of the same activity might return declining results for the same level or higher. System suggests jogging or lifting weights. Variety is the spice of life. Yours is current flour flavour. Plain.

I would take the sarcasm and barbs for a decent answer. I was actually beginning to think the sarcasm was growing on me. It was just words and couldn’t hurt me much. Yet. I paced under the bridge and knew the day would be getting its hottest and then the sun would fade. The gurgling river like a natural clock. Ticking with the progress as it moved downstream.

Day to night. Warm to cold. Safe to unsafe.

If a Hollow didn’t accidentally step on me, a mugger might see an easy target. I doubt he'd find my fleeting pebble collection impressive.

I needed to make short term goals. I was pretty sure... almost certain that my small actions wouldn’t cause Aizen’s plan on pushing a Hollow to Ichigo and Rukia to help him too off course by talking to Uryu Ishida for a minute but...

I should expect things to utterly change because I did so. If I heard about the Kurosaki Clinic being wrecked overnight... I knew Canon had taken off. If not, I just had to sort walk past Ichigo near his home or wait for Uryu to...

Release a storm of Hollows on the city.

I closed my eyes in a little pain, rubbing my forehead at the knowledge.

That kid was... a total asshole in the most basic sense right now. Trying to force a pissing fight with Ichigo by inviting tons of monsters that ate people. I would dab smack in the middle of it. If I stayed that was.

Thing was, Aizen wasn’t a god planner with 1000 steps planned out. The man was adaptive and used things others didn’t expect. Well, if one didn’t add Urahara to the mix. Both of them were just a little too mad for me. If I made a huge scene and started spouting warnings of a dire future or even dared to drop the name ‘Soul King’ near a Reaper or Quincy?

I would be taken to a dark place and never seen again. I wasn’t sure if it was any better than Captain Mayuri got me over the polite but scary Aizen.

So, hanging back to see if I wanted to be near this mess was wise. I should have some time to think to myself before I get roped into the super scary shit by force. For all I knew?

I was an Aizen plot.

Then staying was anticipated and I had some grand destiny ahead. Yipee.

I was in a fictional universe. I too could be fictional.

A loop and arrogance of a person thinking everything was fictional but themselves. I could feel my fingers shaking and I knew this was the sort of thing Gamer’s Mind would step in and handle. Prevent me from having to deal with it.

But I knew I could be strong enough to handle it. I stopped counted to ten. I was working myself into a frenzy of what-ifs and maybes. It was going to drive me mad.

I had only the power to do what I could. I couldn’t go to the afterlife and tangle with Aizen. I couldn’t see if the Soul King was watching me. I couldn’t do anything but what my own two hands were capable of and that...

That was all that mattered.

So what could I do?

Get what every mad scientist, escaped criminals, and dastardly villain had in this world.

A base. Every cool person had a base.

---

My handy little map function was neat. It gave me areas I had been to a name and even tracked my current location. I had choices if I remembered my shows right. One was the Vizard’s hideout but that was temp at best if they didn’t already hangout there until they Urahara goes to wake them up.

There were several warehouses like areas. An old abandoned train station.

Karakura High was out because I was sure Uryu would actually shoot me with an arrow if I went back. I wasn’t touching Urahara with a ten-foot pole until I had some semblance of a safe haven outside his control. The man was a good person in terms of wanting to save the world and stop Aizen.

His methods?

Well, there was a reason he and Mayuri clicked. Their inability to do an experiment that didn’t threaten or endanger lives being one of them. I’m sure he mellowed out over the years but Hollowfying Ichigo to hurry the process, while needed, didn’t seem to bother the guy in the slightest.

So, I’d give the man a wide berth. I hate to think what he might do if he saw my crazy levelling potential. Or what he might make me do to ‘help’ Ichigo when the time came.

I tried to think of another potential hideout and my mind came up blank. Karakura always had a billion places shown once in the early episodes that weren’t really shown in relation to anything. The Bount mansion (that was another no go zone). Random parks and location of the cemetery, the dozens of parks, that weird abandoned hospital that Don Kan-

Oh.

That had potential!

I felt the thought and idea become solid as I parsed it out. The place was some time before Canon so the Demi-Hollow would be inactive... Don Kanoji would be some time and Reapers couldn’t sense Earth-Bound spirits so they wouldn’t come snooping!

There was also no super person living there or planning too.

It was off-grid and kind of perfect!

Kind of. If one ignored the raging spirit that would turn into a man-eating monster soon. But what place didn’t have a few defects? I just needed supplies, an idea to handle the coming monster, vanish when the Don appeared... and move back in once the area went quiet.

If was the perfect plan and it was going to go wrong in so many ways. I rubbed at my itchy growing stubble and knew I would need clothes, some idea about running water, and camping set for food and warmth. It couldn’t hurt to look into maybe figuring out a way to appease angry spirits and see if I could divert a Hollowing.

But first... before anything else. I opened my status. I was happy that I didn’t need to hand wave in public to navigate this thing.

True name: Russel Rivers

Given name:

Nickname:

Title: The Gamer

Level 1: 0/100

Physical: 5

Spiritual: 5

Energy: 5

Mental: 5

Points: 1

Skills:

Danger sense 1: You can sense the danger of a truck travelling into your face within inches!

Gamer Body Max: Allows the body to be adaptable and attain growth.

Gamer Mind Max: Allows visualization of menus and pop-ups! Allows user to see unique Gamer elements in the world!

Climbing Lv 3: Allows you to scale the environment and foes with ease.

Observe lv 2: See information about targets. Right now, only information the user knows already can be summed up

Acting lv 1: Acting allows you to be seen as doing something believable. Do not cover lies you try to convey unless you act in character. Mental Skill.

Stealing lv 1. Allows you to take items with increasing ease if the item does not belong to you. The effects are subtle at first. Physical skill.

Physical Exercise lv 3: A series of movements and training to enhance the body. Every 5 levels increases the Physical stat by 1! Has various effects on health and recovery.

Quest: Horror Movie Extra: Going into the clearly haunted hospital like a white teen girl in a horror movie and hope you don’t die! Reward: 100 EXP. 1 Stat point. A place of refuge! Click to expand...

I gave the quest a long dry look before I put my point into Spiritual, bring it up to a solid 6!

I had no idea what it might give me but I’m hoping an edge if I need to dodge chairs and things poltergeist style. It be easier to do so if I could see the angry spirit. I doubt a single point would do much but hoarding points in Karakura town?

Yeah, screw that.

I moved on and walked into the refreshingly warm sun. I was humming to myself when I felt my foot nudge something. I looked down just in time to see the perfect shaped pebble plop into the river next to me.

I stared for a long time at the water.

---

I grumbled as I walked out of an outdoors style of shop that sold everything from knives to tents. I sadly couldn’t get the knives or axes as they were logically behind the counter to prevent maniacs coming in and getting access to them.

Like me.

But I did muse about taking my time to pick up thermal clothes, a basic torch and lamp, and even a hotplate.

I say picked up. I should really admit I stole them.

Stealing is now level 3!

Acting is level 2!

I shook my still damp arm as I left the store. I was still annoyed I had given into the urge to pluck the damn stone from the bottom of the cold water but in the end...

I really wanted that title.

I closed my notifications with a simple will of the mind. My acting no doubt going up slower because I was doing a repeat performance of a bored customer. I would have to maybe mix it up and ask questions or maybe try for the agitated or lost act next.

Acting seemed useless but the ability to maybe appear as unimportant might let me be ignored by the plot? One could hope.

Now, I had some need for other things but the stealing thing would actually start to seriously bum me out if I went on a streak. I could get fresh clothes and hygiene material tomorrow. I wanted to get a headstart on finding that hospital before dark. The street was busy and people hurried past, eager to get back or away from work

I tried using my map but without myself being there or having directions, it was unhelpful for a System tool. I spend my time using Observe as I tried to find the best person or place to get directions to a spooky haunted place.

The info Observe game was nothing more than ‘Man’, ‘Tree’, ‘Bench’, and so on. I felt it was getting close to level 3 but that might have been more hope than not. With daylight burning, I had little else to go on but to ask a bored cab driver taking a smoke break near a park. He watched me approach with an unworried expression.

I guessed I didn’t make a scary sight yet.

“I know whatcha mean. That old place shut down about 15 years ago,” he said as if saying something distasteful. He eyed me up and down.

“You gonna vandalise it? Going to prove you got guts?” he asked with a slight sneer. I shook my head.

“Nothing like that. I just wanted to know what happened to it and where it is. It feels kinda forgotten,” I said, being honest to the best of my ability. The man shook his head.

“Town’s better for it, trust me. You come here and you hear about how sad it is and waste but let me tell you, from a local to a stranger. No bad feelings towards you but don’t go thinking that place needs a pity. It should be torn down and removed. I had people go in there and not come out. Owner’s son took it over and ran it into the ground. Took the money for doing nothing. Staff got underpaid, supplies missing... people died. The son died in there as he got ill. His own greed meant his own healthcare couldn’t save him. Karakura General was and always is a better choice,” the man flicked his cigarette away.

“Go for yourself. Even now, the place reeks of bad vibes,” he said and reached into his cab, getting a map of the town. He stretched it over his trunk and pointed to a thickly forested area with a road leading to it.

“Not even marked anymore. But you’ll find it there,” the man tipped his cap down and gave me another long look.

“Go home and enjoy a nice meal. A better way to spend your time,” he insisted and I could only nod in silence before he drove off to pick up his next fare. I wish I could go home.

But that road is closed and the only ones open to me with no money was...

I blinked.

“I could make money in an ID or some Dungeon I could crea-” I began and the System cut me off before I even finished.

Gaia is not a supported power base in this dimension. IDs cannot exist due to the immense strain and power drain with her support, let alone create one with functional loot. System would suggest making realistic fake money would be easier and faster in the time frame.

I wanted to shake the screen.

“So I don’t have any dungeons or easy grind spots?” I demanded. I oddly got no answer-back but decided I could no more make the System answer me than make Aizen not carry out his plan in one form or another.

I sighed and a map opened up showing a blue line for me to take. It showed the shortest path to my goal of the abandoned hospital. I took off jogging, hoping to distract myself from the harsh limits my Gamer powerset seemed to come with.

I mean, sure, there was literally a world of hollow monsters to kill but... that didn’t seem as cool as vanishing for a day and coming back stronger than even Ichigo’s speed might struggle with. Ah well, it was better than ‘you get no powers, now have fun’ that I could have had.

I felt a noise like skittering stone and saw another perfect pebble vanish down a storm drain.

“You’re doing this somehow, aren’t you?” I said through gritted teeth.

System has no hand in User’s bad luck. Does the User see a luck stat? Manipulating probability so everything in the world around you benefits you as such a stat rises to truly unreasonable levels would be more power-draining than creating mobile dungeons created at the drop of a hat. User must think about these things.

“I don’t like you.”

System cherishes these moments.

---

“Uh... wanna explain that?” I pointed, wide-eyed at the sealed entrance of the hospital before me. The rundown building felt cold and I did feel like something might... just might... be on the edge of my senses. The window howled a little too much like an animal for my comfort. I wondered if my slightly improved Spiritual Stat was at work?

I ignored all after a moment as I stared at the wide shimmering black and red portal that sat just inside the entrance of the building.

User has discovered a Malice Zone! User can now celebrate! A Malice Zone is a one-time instance where all built up negative energy is given form and warp the inside of the building to create a Dungeon like area. The entrance is only visible to the User and party. The portal will use Spiritual and Nature energy to create a bubble space. Fight to your heart's content and win! Remove the Malice and absorb it to gain EXP! Malice hastens Hollowfication and allows other dark forces to nest. Please try not to die User!

Malice Zone: Medical Madness (Rank G)

I looked at my frying pan and a can of beans with longing as they rested in my hand.

“I think I need a weapon...”