Eroge? Bad Ends? Betrayal? I'm Just Here to Suplex Monsters through Buildings.

Armbars are awesome (5.3).

…

The first eighty opponents were basically just thugs with a few enhancements.

The ten after them had a few tricks.

Then, the last nine lasted for a bit.

Overall, though, the last one was the only threat.

It was an older man wearing a blood-red gi without any sleeves. His arms were some sort of liquid metal, which he moved like normal arms one moment, whips the next, and even turned them into sheets of hardened alloy like shields.

If I couldn’t punch through them, I would’ve probably been shit out of luck.

Then, there was his actual footwork and skill. His liquid-metal arms were powerful, sure, but he had a solid stance and could dance around most of my basic attacks. If there was no feint, or something as similarly sneaky, then it was almost guaranteed that he’d avoid it and launch a counter.

All in all, he was a well-rounded, experienced fighter with good offensive power.

His key weakness, however, was that he was a baseline human.

Not the superhuman bloodline ‘ninja’ that defends humanity, or those from that stock that have monster blood or are cybernetically augmented to be even deadlier.

So, after ten minutes of continuous fighting, he was covered in sweat, desperately controlling his breathing, and burning out.

Meanwhile, I stood across from him with steady breathing.

I was honestly tempted to tell him to stop, to give up, or to otherwise engage with him in dialogue, but I decided against it.

He probably had some reason to fight, some people he needed to protect, to put everything on the line. Beating him here would probably put those people in danger or send them into one form of slavery or another. People with his skills and ability would be above ground raking in money if that path wasn’t closed off.

Every person I defeated or killed in the last eight hours had their own stories, people, and lives.

I bulldozed through all of them.

Showing this guy mercy and talking to him just because he was a bit more skilled and stronger than the rest… there really wasn’t a point in it.

For all I knew, defeating him would get his child taken away from him, or get him killed, or worse.

So, in the end, the only real mercy I could show was just to treat him like everyone else I’ve defeated.

He and all the others I faced in the last eight hours just got caught up in a natural disaster that they’ll either recover from or won’t.

That’s it.

With that in mind, as sweat dripped from his brow, I charged him.

And, when he raised up his arms and turned them into a thick shield, I turned my charge into a slide, swept his legs, and forced him to land on his back.

Then, with a kick to his side, I sent him flying out of the ring, and the announcer declared my victory.

Number 100 goes out like a light, and that’s that for him.

Yeah.

I like fighting and killing monsters or people working for them more.

…

Interlude: Helena Horner, Supporter

…

“100 wins, zero losses! Match 101 is happening right now!” I called out to the crowd while Kay walked out. Around the thirtieth match, he started getting people following him to the arenas, but those following him couldn’t get the word out. While I had just been staying back and watching, I was told to attract some attention. Now, I was out near the entrance in a stupid outfit. “Come and watch the undercity’s next rising star!”

I had a latex band of white across my chest and latex booty shorts that were held together by straps at the sides. My chest moved with every sound and motion that I made while I jumped around and waved a sign barely bigger than a single sheet of paper, since I was the real advertisement. Latex boots went all the way up to my thighs and squeezed them hard, and my eyes scoured every inch of my body as I advertised for Kay’s fights.

So many people were looking at my armpits.

I didn’t even know people could fetishize them!

Anyway, at the very least, Kay was making my job easier.

There was a thud, the sound of scrap metal breaking, and then a body fell onto the street while a ring rang from within the fighting pit.

“And, that’s fight 101 won and done! Kay is on a 101-win streak, and the next fight is right now!” I went back to cheer class and did some leg raises and raised my arms up while pretending to have pom-poms, as did a couple more from the routines. One leg kick all the way to the shoulder per letter, big smile, and ignore all the hungry gazes on every inch of my body. Keep smiling no matter what. Anything less than a smile and you stop being an attraction. You become a target. “K-A-Y! Let’s go Kay! Say it with me! Kay!”

Most girls who were ‘decent’ went to cheerleading class in our school instead of PE. PE was with the boys, and the girls shared showers and everything with them, and they were sent to ‘training camp.’ Some of them never came back. I suppose that I was lucky enough to qualify, though my bullies made my life hell, and I had to work hard to stay in the middle of the pack. Too low and you get put into PE, and too high and you’re the football team’s toy.

I got out when I realized sticking to the rules stopped mattering.

Still, at the very least, there was something else I was doing while advertising.

Keeping a lookout for any problems.

The lowest threats were normal people in maintenance jumpsuits. It was a seat of blue colors with some safety strips and orange mixed in. Many had belts with hard hats and tools strapped to them. Still, individuality shone through. Some had the top half of the jumpsuits unzipped and around their waist. Others wore a tower over their shoulders. They congregated as packs with metal tools easily within their reach and any women in their crews at the center of the group. They were the workers that worked in the underbelly of the underground city, fixing everything for company scrip, eating company meals, and working within the walls, and paying off debt as they did.

Many of them had a decent chance of getting out, but only if they lived out here in the outer ring and not in employee housing inside the walls that’ll have them be forever kept… or have them sell themselves in the resorts for more than just labor. The people out here risked life and limb, but in a year or two they’ll be paid off and aboveground, probably to never come back here again.

They made up maybe one in ten of the population.

The average threat was the common dwellers of the favela. Their clothes were slight and patchwork. Some just had some cords of rope and rags hanging off them.  They ate the food and water provided for free by the corporate overlords in the golden city from nodes all over the city. Sleek and spacious dining areas that hit them with ultrasonic showers and gave them injections before they got food. Despite wearing mostly ropes and rags, the average person on the street was healthy and robust, just like my school.

And, just like my school, the average person here was being shaped and molded.

But there were clear differences.

The gangs wanted toys and warriors.

The corporate elites wanted assets, whether for entertainment or for conflict.

The men were tall, brawny, and aggressive. They roamed around in groups like squads and had clubs or slings. They wore gang colors and practiced patrols around their territory. Smaller ones carried around goods and supplies or kept watch on rooftops. Less aggressive than the football teams, but they were able to act and coordinate better. The biggest ones were often leaders, but they listened to their fellows, and the smaller boys weren’t immediately emasculated and made toys.

The women were different, too. Worse and better than back at school at the same time. They kept their brains and had sharp eyes along with perfect smiles and bodies. While some were kept by men, others had guards and were tended to. A couple grouped up into their own gangs, playing the streets for resources and money for spears and sharp weapons rather than just clubs, and they sold their bodies at a premium so that they even had guns. They even had chained up, cybernetically shackled monsters protecting them sometimes.

They functioned as a society, working with one another, but held each other at arm’s length and with suspicion. But they were fractured, had too little to become true threats, and often they were just literate enough to be able to read and obey orders. Everything else was tribal and broken. Replace the concrete dome and steel, put more trees and vines, and most of the people here wouldn’t look out of place as fetishized hunter-gatherers.

Perfect for the corporate elite to prey upon as the predators.

They were there. They didn’t walk the streets and instead rode in hovercraft. The whine of the engines gave them away as they traversed. Those working off their debts bowed their heads, while the common people got on their knees. Some begged for mercy and received a gun, medicine, or some other paltry thing. On the surface, they were just office workers in corporate housing with good sales figures or some dorm drone that did whatever they were told to do.

Down here, after earning their company ten times more than they earn in a year, they’re practically gods. They have their pick of the women, the men fight for their attention to be dragged into cage matches, and they can do anything they want to anyone not wearing a corporate tag with no consequence. Even in a resort town where they can gamble, do whatever drugs they want, and feel anything that they wish, there were still bands of corporate workers and drones roving in safari hovercraft with bodyguards having their fill of the people.

I smiled, went through rehearsed movements, and went through my lines as I took it all in.

There was more to this place than that, I was sure.

Shops were operating, there were businesses outside the corporate network, and there were small gardens and farms. There were animals being fed slop and prized as food. Maybe it was just one in four of the people present, but some had sharper eyes and minds. They used their altered bodies and hid amongst the masses, working in other groups, but they were there. People who had minds and not just hormone-addled bodies who were keeping their heads down.

People like me.

Or, at the very least, I hoped that there were.

There were a few of them. As few as the odd monster kept by humans or slinking in the dark alleys, but they existed. Thinking of them made me wonder… if Kay would destroy this place knowing those people existed amongst the rest. If he took out the resort center, then this place would be lost. There’d be no food or running water for the masses. They could escape to other under-cities, but they’d just integrate into similar social structures or lose their lives in the chaos.

If I were in his place, I wondered what I would do.

Jeez, it feels ludicrous to think about all this while bouncing around like an airheaded cheerleader with a bigger cup size than IQ.

Then, things suddenly shifted.

It was like a current went through the streets and stifled the entire crowd.

The workers diverted to alleys they normally avoided.

The common tribals clustered together.

The safari hovercraft shifted positions.

Because the apex predator finally arrived.

Innocuous and wearing a black suit with a briefcase, the man was in his forties, pale, and bespectacled while he trudged towards us with bags beneath his eyes. A corporate drone that was actively working in the outer rim without any protection… may as well have been an angel sent by a higher power to exact their will.

I kept a smile on my face and kept cheering while he approached.

“E-excuse me, are you part of the Competitor Kay’s staff?” He asked, and I noticed a shimmer behind him. Three distinct shimmering outlines. Standard security detail capable of killing anything out here with ease, except for my hidden friends. “We would like to offer him a place in tomorrow’s matches.”

“Oh, goody! Yep!” I did my best to act ignorant, to not show fear, and years of practice allowed me to do just that. Getting off the elevated block of concrete where I’d been sweating for almost half an hour, I raised a hand his way and gave a wide and vapid smile. Please, don’t think I’m anything more than a pretty face. My life expectancy goes down drastically the moment I’m more than that. “I’ll lead you right to him, boss!”

“You have my thanks.” The corporate man gave a deep bow from his waist. Everyone else stared at me for a second and glanced at my body, but this man didn’t. That set off alarm bells. He looked through me like I was made of mist. A portion of his job that was just completed. This was someone who had control over themselves and was acting on someone’s behalf who liked such employees under their control. Someone not deluded by lust or extravagance set off alarm bells in my head. “Please lead the way.”

I just gave a big smile and led him towards Kay, and upon entry to the pit, we looked down to see Kay do a spinning backhand that tore the jaw off his opponent.

The corporate drone’s hand went to his glasses, and they came up in a blue light.

And, I realized that my disguise and act worked better than I expected while I waved at Kay to come over, but the corporate drone spoke while I could hear.

“Incredible physical strength, but unskilled. Most likely a monster’s child and discarded to fight. Unlikely to be an enemy asset.” He muttered the words, and faint whirring sounds came from his briefcase. “Scanning shows no known records and history. Likely to be the child of a clan loss. Perfect for the arena, but a possible corporate asset. Report end.”

No more than a paragraph along with a scan, and they had a person’s measure.

A measure with which they would decide a person’s fate.

The corporate drone’s glasses briefly lit up green as Kay approached, and the corporate drone put on a smiling mask as if to recruit him to their ends.

I would’ve been afraid if they weren’t falling for our own trap.