-Simon Van Booy

"This is the Springfield Riverside Mall," John explained as they pulled in to a distant parking spot. "There are three full malls in Springfield, plus I can't even imagine how many strip malls spread throughout the city. This one's basically known for being where people find their clothes, so if they don't have something that you like here, they may not have it anywhere."

"Um, what about cash? I don't… I mean, I haven't really go' any, I had my wallet on me when we came ovah, but nothin' in it…"

"Don't worry about that," John replied with a shrug. "I get money every time we beat one of those dungeons… if you pick out more stuff than I can pay for, we seriously need to talk about your fashion choices."

Seras actually laughed a little at that one. The sound rang in John's ears, somewhere between a puppy's first attempts at a bark and a wind chime jostled by a perfect breeze. John couldn't help but smile in return as they entered through the automatic doors and began their search for the perfect apparel store.

"There's a lot of selections. I know you're probably not familiar with most of them since you grew up in Europe, so I'll try to point every store out that might have clothes."

John spent the next twenty minutes or so walking Seras through the sizeable crowds, gesturing to every department store, athletics shop, and secondhand store they passed by. Seras seemed **** to try any of them at first, more caught up in experiencing the world at large, but John eventually shepherded her into a few of the stores, and from there she took matters into her own hands. Seras didn't seem overly interested in most of the clothing, the few things she picked out being a variety of button-up shirts and either shorts or mini pencil skirts that didn't cover much of her legs and left her movement unimpeded.

She seemed to be shooting for the more practical aspects of her outfits, including her bras. John gave one glance to the lingerie stores they passed by, wondering briefly if he could convince the relatively naïve vampiress to try on something a bit more risqué, before immediately dismissing the possibility. They went like that for over an hour, although Seras tried to stop after finding only a few outfits.

"But why? I don' need that many, can't you-"

"Look, Seras, I don't know how often I'll be able to wash these, and I don't want you living in squalor," John pointed out, shaking his head at her objections. "More importantly, if you help me fight, they're going to get ruined sooner or later. You may as well buy two or three of each, and even then once we finish shopping for your stuff we need clothes for the Nekos and Lunaya. Not sure if they'll actually wear them, but… what the hell, right?"

John had just condensed the few outfits he'd coaxed Seras into over a few stores into two stuffed bags to carry them easier when a group of men approached them. Boys, really - some of them looked almost younger than John, although their pale skin and sickly looks gave them a rather aged appearance despite their youthful features. If John had to guess, they might well have seen less sun than he had during his most exuberant of gaming summers, but clearly they got out more often than that. He'd never gone to the mall except with his family during those years.

"Dude," one of them said, smiling and holding out his hand, "mad props. Seriously, that's like… fucking outstanding."

"I'm sorry… what?" John asked, both eyebrows shooting up as he tried to figure out what he had done that was so praiseworthy. He awkwardly reached out and shook the man's hand, more out of reflex than anything as he tried to process what had brought this sudden approach on.

"Don't be so coy," one of the other men said, grinning and crossing his arms. John took in the rest of the group more seriously, noting that there were five of them, all gazing between him and Seras with a creepy amount of interest. "Seriously, magic like that? Fuckin' impressive, and don't let anyone shame you for it. It took me half a year to get a pile of bones crawlin' around, but you got something like that walking around in a mall?"

John's mind twisted in two different directions, relieved at having some clarity on what was being discussed and then immediately being horrified at the topic itself. He glanced between all of them, looking for some sign of what he had just stumbled into. John cast Observe as rapidly as he could, his only ability that might give him some hint as to who these men were.

Victor Ocham
Level 6 Necromancer
<Undead Asylum>
75 / 75 HP
Relationship: 10
Alignment: -35
Status Effects: N/A

That was the one who had extended his arm to shake John's hand, and who was still clenching it quite tightly. So they were mages, and Necromancers at that. It would explain the adoration of Seras, considering that she was undeniably undead of some variety. How that translated into magic in this world, he did not know, but even Moira had sensed it, though she'd taken a bit to determine the nature of her aura.

The others were similar, all members of this "Undead Asylum" group and all ranging between levels five and seven. They were barely at John's level, but they had a serious numbers advantage, and John was still not sure of exactly what their tone was implying. There was something under their vocal applause for his "work" that set the hair on the back of his neck tingling.

John reached for his phone as he shrugged and tried to pass off a smile. Even as he talked, he idly began scrolling through his Contacts menu. "Well… you know, I do what I can. Really it's all about persistence and seeing what works. Had to try a lot to get this far, lots of practice."

Deception Successful!

"Fuck you, that part was true," John thought bitterly, if vainly, at the message that popped up before him.

"Yeah? Damn, man, that's some dedication… where do you get that many corpses? It’d take me half a mausoleum to get this kind of realism. Guess I’ve been working on the wrong things, huh? Shoulda focused a little less on the skellies.”

One of the others, Levin by his Observe tag, stepped forward and leaned just a little too close to Seras. The vampiress took an awkward step back, raising an eyebrow as she looked between John and the strange man approaching her.

"M-Master?"

"Holy shit," Levin said, grinning in a manner beyond creepy, his grin only widening as he reached out and grabbed Seras by the arm, "she's that realistic? And she calls you master? That's fuckin' hot, dude. Gotta applaud your dedication to sex dolls. I thought it'd be kind of a waste of potential, but damn, I'd give anything to have a-"

The man cut himself off as John stepped forward, grabbing the man's wrist with all the **** he could muster. Levin actually winced, and John felt the other man's wrist popping loudly as he forcibly removed the offending appendage from Seras' arm. John barely had the presence of mind to glance down and tap the "Call" button on his phone before he spoke in a low tone laced with venom.

"Take your hand off her. Now."

Levin pulled away, and John's rage subsided enough to let him go for the moment. The Necromancer seemed happy enough to have his hand back, grimacing at John as he cradled his wrist in his good hand and stepped back, eyes wide.

"Dude, seriously, chill out! I just wanted to check out the goods, I wasn't gonna hurt her. I've never seen someone reanimated like that, you think I'm gonna fuck up that perfect skin?"

"Just get out of here, I'm not interested in talking anymore, and there's no sense causing trouble for any of us."

"Really? Not interested in talking?" Victor said, stepping back to the front of his little pack, almost protectively. If he wasn't the leader, he was certainly the figurehead of the group by the way he acted.

"See, we've been trying real hard to get the hang of this stuff. Making living corpses that can pass so we don’t have to hide ‘em ain’t easy. We don't wanna do anything bad with the stuff we make, just - you know - get a little ****? Maybe have some fun with a cute girl or two, you know? No difference between yours and one of the bitches walking around here except internal temperature, if you know what I mean. Shit, you might have that down, judging by the blush on her cheeks."

"Stop," John muttered, grimacing. His menu was open, his inventory at the ready. He hadn't equipped his Cloak or his weapon, since those were obvious and would be extremely suspicious (not to mention illegal, in the case of his sword) at the Mall, but he had the distinct impression he was about to need them.

"I'll stop as soon as you tell us how you did it. Seriously, that's all we want, a few tips on reanimation and keeping that skin so deliciously pink. What's your problem, man, are you really gonna be a fucking asshole about this? We just want some action, that's all, and you're hoarding the ability to crank out skanks like this? We're not leaving 'til you tell us how you brought a bitch back to life with tits like that."

John's fingers trembled with anger, his rage bubbling below the surface. Only their presence in a public place and the fact that he was severely outnumbered kept him from lashing out. All the ****, all the pain, and all the emotions of the past few days had set fire to his soul, burning away the awkward nerd that would've made an excuse and tried to run away from confrontation just a week ago. Now his mind was alight with a desire to reciprocate the pain and rage he felt. John had killed his first man only yesterday.

He was thrilled - and horrified - to find how strong his desire to do so again was now.

"-and call my father. Let him know we're leaving immediately - John may be in serious danger."

John's reaction was identical to the five men across from him. Confusion was followed quickly by realization, then a feeling of tension creeping over every fiber of muscle in his body. His finger slipped off the speaker button on his phone, and he cursed his lack of control.

"…So that's how it is then? You'd rather fight us than even give us a little hint?" Victor asked, his voice as low as John's had been. The air shimmered around them, and even without the aid of his Gamer abilities, John knew magic was about to be worked. He adjusted his stance, stepped back with his right foot, and threw himself forward.

"Then we'll fuckin' dissect the bitch and figure out what we can off her-"

John felt the satisfying crunch of his fist connecting with Victor's jaw as a slew of messages popped up in his peripheral. The necromantic youth stumbled backwards as John grabbed Seras and broke into a run through the abruptly empty mall, scrambling to work his inventory while shouts and spells began to fly behind him.

12 DMG!
Combat Barrier entered! You cannot leave unless all enemy occupants are defeated or you are at least 1.5x your opponent's level and utilize an escape technique!

John equipped his cloak and sword as a display just behind them exploded, sending Seras and him half-stumbling deeper into the mall. He hoped that there was enough space in the Barrier they had created to gain some distance - and that Moira drove even more recklessly than she had with John on the back of her cycle.