GLITCH

Battle Outside, Training Inside

I dashed forward.

A lot of lasers are coming straight at me. Yet I don't care. I used my Tech Boots' maneuverability and Tech Gloves to forcefully change my trajectory to avoid sustaining fatal injuries as if sustaining those would change anything.

The lasers pierced my legs and my right arm.

But I didn't falter.

My wounds instantly healed after all.

My real persona won't do a reckless move like this since I'm pretty cautious.

I held my true persona inside an isolated space. I'm not that bad or anything, but I always bring it back after battling. I did it many times too.

This is for the better.

"Can't you stop your laser beams, you prick?"

I continued closing our distance between me and that shy Glitch inside that alternate space or whatever it is.

"Mmm? About to use a skill eh?"

I dashed towards its attack. It's just a simple punch coming from that slit space but it was imbued with those stupid [False Strike] and [Life Siphon] skills.

Smooching those two into one attack is a great way of dominating assurance.

If the attack hits the opponent, this scumbag would be healed.

If the attack misses, this twerp could damage the opponent.

Geez, talk about laziness. This Glitch could just slap the air while I'm receiving tons of damage.

But hey...

"That False Strike did say it damages the opponent if it misses, but it didn't say anything about parrying it with my blasts, RIGHT?"

I blasted it away.

"Hah! Suits you right, you filth!"

I used the hundred percent Burst Shot to intercept the attack.

I mean, there's no merit for me to pull my punches here.

I may be smirking as if I'm doing this for fun, but I'm sweating bullets here. If I do a simple mistake, it'll spell doom to me.

"You may be a high-tier Glitch but have you ever know about strategy? No? Well, I don't care either way. Die for me already, so I can face your second and third form, will you?"

The Glitch seems to understand what I said since it's growling and all. And vanished from my sight.

Just then a giant foot came towards me.

I immediately repelled it with Burst Shot, but that made me jolt for a moment.

"What the he—heck. Dang, I'm about to say something worse there."

The foot was visibly burnt. Just that.

"Pretty tough, that I honestly say. But, I didn't use my Mantle, aren't I?"

I focused my power on my left hand.

"I'll apologize to myself later if this trinket gets obliterated but, hey... It's for the sake of survival."

"Malefic Burst. Forty percent!"

I imbued my Mantle's power to my left glove and shoot a cute little purple orb of mass destruction.

"Get destroyed, weakling."

•••

"Why am I being entrapped by my own Mantle?"

"It is for the better. If it's you, you'll hesitate in doing some actions, hindering the winning percentage you have in this bloody battle."

"Urk..."

""

She's... She's right. I can't argue with that.

"But don't worry original, a day will come that this swapping persona will be normal to you."

"Er... I'm not becoming bipolar, right?"

"This and that are different things. Stop spouting nonsense."

"Eek..."

I am frightened by her way of staring at me. She could even kill me if glaring like that could literally kill a person!

"Eh. Uh... So what would I do now?"

"You're asking yourself?"

"I have no one to talk with here except you though."

"That's true."

And silence.

This is awkward as hell.

"Hey, Mantle."

"Yes."

"Are you... Uh... Are you perhaps living inside me?"

The other me just widened her eyes...

"Pfft. WAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

—and laughed out loud.

"H-Hey! You don't need to laugh! There's nothing funny about my question!"

"That's the thing, original. There is something...pfft...funny about it that I couldn't hold my laughter."

Now that leaves a huge question mark on my head.

"You tilting your head and crossing your brows means that you don't know what am I talking about, right?"

I simply nodded. I lack the energy to speak after what just happened. I feel embarrassed.

"I am your Mantle. To make things short, I'm your alter ego, just lurking around inside you and swapped whenever needed. Stop taking things that happened in fantasy movies seriously. I'm not a separate being living inside you, so I frankly tell you to stop with that train of thought."

"Are all Mantles like this?"

"No, it's not."

"And why is that?"

"That's simple, silly. It's because you're a unique existence."

"Oh come on, not with this stuff again. I thought you said that I shouldn't take things coming from the movies seriously."

"Let me finish first, idiot."

"Ah. Okay."

She sighed heavily and continued.

"Well, anyway... I did tell you you are a unique existence, but various Mantles bear consciousness and were 'living' inside their host's body."

"Then what's with us—er, me?"

"This is the first time that the Core, the real you, and the Mantle, this one talking to you, merged into one. Nobody made this feat yet, and I think you are well aware that you often experience confusion and get dumbfounded after a battle since you forget some stuff. You tried to recollect your memories, you can't remember them until the next battle. You also tend to remember it naturally over time."

"I don't understand if that makes a difference."

"Oh, but it does. Someone like you could use your Mantle's power by a thousand percent."

"A THOUSAND WHAT NOW!?"

"You heard me right, but not for now. You could only tap a fraction of it."

"Oh, that's unfortunate."

"Indeed it is. However, there is a way to solve that problem."

"Yay! So, what is it?"

"I'll train you here. Right now."

"Eh? How is that possible?"

"Don't ask me. It's just possible to do here."

Eh, you're making me more and more confused.

"Anyway, this place is separated from the space and time of the outside world. So will you do it?"

"Er...I don't have a choice, do I? I also need to know how to excel at least seven to ten percent of that power that you are saying."

"If it's the current you, you can't do a fraction. But if you undergo a simple training regimen, you could use a percent for a short time. I'll have you note that this won't affect any of your stats. The only thing that'll be affected is your proficiency in using your Mantle. So, I trust you that you won't ignore that, right?"

"I have nothing to lose anyway. Let's do it."