Cipher felt an overwhelming sensation wash over him.
So this was the feeling of increasing stats. It was strange - he couldn't quite put it into words. He'd heard people talk about it, but he'd never experienced it for himself. After the sensation stopped, he felt like a whole new person. Definitely stronger than before.
As for how much stronger, he couldn't tell.
At that moment, a system notification appeared before him.
[Congratulations! You have awakened a skill]
[Skill: Assassinate (E-Rank)]
[Type: Active]
[Cost: 25 Mana]
[Cooldown: 20 seconds]
[Description: Burst forward up to 5 meters and strike with lethal precision. Deals 300% damage. If attacking from behind or while the target is unaware, this attack becomes a guaranteed critical hit.]
He looked at the skill. An assassin-type ability. Made sense given how he'd distributed his stats.
This could be useful. With his 70 mana, he could only use it twice though.
He needed the perfect opportunity.
His expression became focused. He needed to figure out a way to save the people here or at least delay the ritual until the Association arrived.
Then he remembered something. The Cheat Shop. It was mentioned in the Cheater Class trait description. He decided to check it out first, see if he could get anything useful.
He opened the shop just by thinking about it.
The interface looked like a game store.
Four items were listed.
At the top were two cards: Class Card and Malware Card. Both cost 100 Cheat Points each.
Below those were two packs: Mod Pack and Code Pack. Each cost 200 points and allowed him to choose one card from three options inside.
He examined the card descriptions.
The Class Card allowed him to modify a skill, adding the "Elemental" edition which would let the skill deal elemental damage - fire, ice, lightning, whatever element he chose. Definitely a great card.
The Malware Card added the "Glitched" edition, randomizing all numerical values in a skill. Lower values had higher chances, but it could give high values if you're lucky. A skill that dealt 10 damage could be modified to deal 100. Or 1.
It looked attractive on paper, but it was just gambling.
Besides, he'd only just gotten rid of his Glitch Class. He didn't want to deal with that randomness again.
After reading the descriptions, he understood now. These were Mod Cards - the Mod Pack would have more of these. He wondered what Code Cards were though. Were they even stronger?
Well, it didn't matter either way. He didn't have any Cheat Points.
He closed the shop interface with a thought.
His gaze shifted to where the cultists had gathered. They were preparing for the ritual, chanting incomprehensible gibberish. He needed to make his move soon, before they actually started.
He looked around the cages.
He'd thought about releasing some awakened prisoners to help him fight, but after consideration, it wasn't a good idea. First, he didn't have an appraisal skill - he couldn't tell who was awakened and who wasn't.
Second, even if he could find them, if they'd been captured, they probably weren't that good at fighting anyway.
He could release everyone to create chaos, but that was also a bad idea. Most of these people were normal civilians. They'd panic. Scream. It would be a complete mess.
It seemed he'd be doing this alone.
…
He reached through the bars of his cage and gripped them, trying to push them apart with his newfound strength.
The bars were strong - even with 10 Strength, he struggled.
After a moment, he gave up on that approach.
Instead, he reached outside through the gap and twisted his hand to grab the lock. Then he pulled with all his strength.
The lock broke with a metallic snap.
The sound was loud, but it was drowned out by prisoners screaming to be freed all around him. He let out a quiet sigh of relief.
Slowly, he opened the cage door and stepped out.
As he began walking through the cages toward the exit gate, someone grabbed his clothes.
He turned.
A woman. Malnourished. Hollow eyes. She'd been here a while.
"Save me... please," she whispered, looking into his eyes.
Cipher met her gaze for a few seconds. Then he sighed.
"I'm sorry," he whispered back, gently detaching her hand from his clothes.
He felt bad, but there was nothing he could do. Letting her out would just put her in more danger. Better if she stayed inside for now.
"Hey! Let me out!"
Suddenly, someone from the other side of the room shouted.
Cipher's head snapped around. A man was rattling his cage bars, gesturing desperately at Cipher.
Cipher panicked. He turned toward the man, trying to motion for him to be quiet…
But the man kept shouting. Desperately. Others noticed. More voices joined in, all screaming to be freed.
The cultists stopped their chanting.
Their heads turned in his direction.
"Dammit!" Cipher cursed and broke into a run.
"Capture him! Now!" one of the cultists shouted.
The others rushed toward him.
…
Cipher ran at full speed through the cages.
Thanks to his increased agility, he was able to navigate easily through the densely packed rows.
By the time he reached the huge gate at the end, the cultists chasing him were still several meters behind.
He ran through and found himself in a corridor.
Multiple doors lined both sides.
He picked one at random and pushed through.
Another corridor. More cages. More doors.
He frowned. Was this place a maze?
It made sense, actually. They'd probably designed it this way to prevent escapes.
Back when the Association rescued everyone, they'd been led out directly - he'd never seen the interior layout himself.
He picked another door and kept moving. As long as he kept them occupied searching for him, they wouldn't start the ritual. At least, that's what he hoped.
After navigating several more maze-like corridors, he pushed through another door.
As it closed behind him, he paused.
This wasn't another corridor.
It was a restroom.
He was surprised it was an actual room this time, but then he heard something.
Footsteps.
Getting closer.
He needed to hide. Now.
But where? He couldn't open the door - he'd be in full view of whoever was coming. The stalls? No, someone might hear the door creak open. There was nowhere…
He pressed himself against the wall behind the door and steadied his breath.
He just had to wait until the person passed by.
The footsteps stopped.
Right outside the door.
"No way, right?" he thought, panic rising.
The door opened.
A man walked in.
…
Author's Corner
Quick clarification. The glitched edition doesn't always randomize the numerical values. It does this once and it becomes permanent. Like the glitched edition from balatro's cryptid mod. The cheat shop is heavily inspired by balatro.