[Hunter x Hunter] Scamming My Way to the Top

[Deidalous]

The MC is a conman, swindler and serial liar and the kind of guy that has stole the lifetime savings of grannies. He totally deserves getting fucked over by his own system.

Also it wouldn't be as fun if his system was the kind that gave ultimate power easily. This guy should struggle at every step of the way.

Click to shrink...

I'm not implying that he should not struggle, I'm criticizing the way the Gacha was handled.

Rather than giving him nothing, it should just give straight up worthless items like a half-eaten apple or an torn plastic bag.

-It'd be ten time funnier that way.

 

[Boumargood]

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Chapter 29: A Belated Reward

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[The Host has obtained a Skill.]

Most of Tonpa's anger vanished immediately.

He straightened on the bed and fixed his eyes on the new window. After seven unwanted messages thanking him, he was prepared to accept almost anything—a weapon, a technique, an artifact, or even a mysterious pill, as long as it did not come with the words "Thank You for Trying."

A silver card slowly formed before him, and the name of his reward appeared upon it.

[Oh, Is That You?]

Tonpa's eyes widened.

'...What?'

He read the name once.

Then he read it again, hoping exhaustion had somehow distorted his vision.

Nothing changed.

"Of course."

His first Skill was called [Is That Your Mother?], and now he had received [Oh, Is That You?]. Apparently, the System did not collect its abilities from the treasures of countless worlds. It gathered them from conversations between strangers who happened to meet in crowded markets.

'My next Skill will be: Where have you been all this time?'

The remaining details appeared beneath the name.

[Type: Consumable Skill.]

[Remaining Uses: 3.]

Tonpa's small smile froze.

"Consumable?"

He leaned closer to the window, as though reducing the distance between them might force the words to improve.

[Description: Allows the user to make anything appear to be something else for one minute.]

He waited for another line to appear.

None did.

Tonpa reread the description slowly.

Anything.

The word was broad enough to sound powerful and vague enough to get him killed if he relied upon it incorrectly. Could he make a stone look like a piece of gold? Could he disguise one card as another? Did the Skill work on people? And did it alter only the target's appearance, or its apparent size and texture as well?

He directed each question toward the System.

It gave him no answer.

'Naturally. Why would the System answer a question that might save my life?'

Tonpa looked toward the cup on the table. He could use the Skill now and make it resemble a knife, a Hunter License, or anything else, but he pulled his hand back before touching it.

Only three uses.

After spending eight hundred points to obtain the Skill, he was not prepared to waste a third of his reward merely to confirm that it worked. It was enough that he had tested his previous Skill on a weak applicant, only to later use it against Netero without understanding its actual limits.

'Learning from your mistakes is a virtue. Especially when every mistake costs at least a hundred points.'

He read the description again.

The Skill was not entirely useless. A professional con artist could accomplish a great deal with one minute of false appearances. He could make a worthless object look valuable, conceal a dangerous tool beneath an innocent appearance, or create a temporary visual copy of something whose appearance he needed to imitate.

In the right situation, one minute might be enough to deceive someone and open a path of escape.

In the wrong situation, that minute would expire while he was still explaining the lie.

As for the three available uses, they turned the ability from a reliable tool into three emergency cards he would be afraid to expend.

Tonpa sighed and dismissed the Skill's description.

"I spent eight hundred points on a trial version."

The System showed no concern for his objection.

He summoned his balance despite already knowing the number.

[Nen Points: 96]

Tonpa stared at it until the number began to resemble a personal insult.

If he had spent one thousand points from the beginning, he could have upgraded Strength, Speed, or Flexibility from Rank D to Rank C and would have been left with exactly the same balance. Instead, he had upgraded Endurance and Intelligence to Rank D, then burned the rest of his points inside a wheel that had thanked him seven times and awarded him a Skill that could not last longer than a minute.

He had not lost everything. His body was now more balanced, and the new Skill might prove invaluable at a decisive moment.

Seeing the number did not help him appreciate the positive side.

'My Speed could have been Rank C.'

He imagined himself moving faster, perhaps drawing slightly closer to Gon and Killua's level instead of always arriving after the important part of an attack had already ended.

Then he imagined the wheel stopping on an empty segment seven times.

His fingers tightened around the edge of the bed.

"I'm never using the Lottery again."

He knew he was lying before the sentence had even ended, but at least the System did not reward him for it.

Tonpa dismissed his Nen Points, and the main status panel returned. His eyes moved across his newly balanced Stats—Strength, Speed, Flexibility, Endurance, and Intelligence. All five were now at Rank D.

Above them, one option had continued blinking since the end of the ball game.

[Level Advancement Available.]

Tonpa paused.

He had nearly forgotten about it while discovering just how many ways he could ruin a simple decision. He had deliberately saved it for last, but he had not expected the end to find him a full one thousand points poorer.

Still, advancing his Level did not require Nen Points. He had already surpassed the necessary amount of Experience Points. All he needed to do was confirm it.

His previous Level Advancement had not directly made him stronger, but it had made his body capable of learning Nen and unlocked a new part of the System.

Perhaps the next advancement would provide something similar.

Or perhaps it would change the number from two to three and then thank him for trying.

He focused on the option.

[Level Advancement Requirements Met.]

[Would the Host like to advance to Level 3?]

"Yes."

The window disappeared for a moment.

Tonpa waited for the warmth he had experienced while upgrading his Stats, or the strange sensation that had accompanied his advancement to Level 2.

Nothing happened.

He remained seated on the bed with both hands resting on his knees while the airship's engines vibrated steadily behind the walls.

Several seconds passed.

He moved his fingers.

Then he rolled his shoulders, took a deep breath, and carefully tested his legs.

He did not feel stronger or faster. His awareness had not become sharper, and no Nen aura had appeared around his body. Even the faint pain in his back remained exactly where it had been.

A single message appeared before him.

[The Host has advanced to Level 3.]

Tonpa waited for whatever came next.

Nothing did.

"That's it?"

The status panel appeared again. The number beside his Level had changed from two to three, and the Experience Points required for the next advancement had increased.

[Level: 3]

[Experience Points: 1,536/1,800]

His Experience Points had not been consumed. They were now being measured toward the new requirement. His body, however, showed no difference whatsoever.

Tonpa stared at the new number.

"I spent more than a thousand points today, risked attracting Netero's attention, and now own a Skill that will function for three minutes over its entire lifespan... and my Level reward is a larger number?"

The System remained silent.

Tonpa slowly rose from the bed.

"I should have known. Anything you give away for free has to be useless."

He clenched his teeth and pointed at the window as though addressing someone standing behind it.

"You damned System, if you consider changing a number a reward, I'll show you exactly where you can put—"

Ding!

The System's chime pierced his skull before he could finish the insult. His shoulders stiffened, and his finger remained pointed toward empty air.

Golden light gathered before him, forming a window unlike the System's ordinary messages.

[Reward for reaching Level 3 has been calculated.]

Tonpa's eyes widened slightly.

'Wait... it's going to give me something?'

The rest of the message appeared.

[The Host has received one free Stat Upgrade.]

[One Stat may be upgraded to the next Rank without consuming Nen Points.]

Tonpa froze.

His eyes moved across his five Stats, all of which were at Rank D. Upgrading any one of them to Rank C would cost one thousand Nen Points.

A full thousand points.

The same amount he had been regretting not spending only moments earlier.

The corners of his mouth began to rise, and his earlier anger nearly transformed into satisfaction.

Ding!

Another chime pierced his skull before he could enjoy the moment. His smile stopped halfway, and he regarded the empty air before him with renewed caution.

A second window appeared beneath the reward.

[Requirements for unlocking an Additional Feature have been met.]

Tonpa blinked slowly.

'This generosity is starting to frighten me.'

The final line appeared.

[Skill Upgrade System Unlocked.]

The remainder of the curse he had been preparing vanished from his mind.

Tonpa stared at the two golden windows, then slowly sat back down on the bed.

'All right... perhaps we can negotiate.'



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[Deidalous]

Got his ass apologizing.