Zeph stood in the white VR hub space, his elderly DirtyGrandpa avatar sohow managing to look impatient despite the perfectly neutral environnt.
[Placent Match 7/10 - Searching for opponent...]
[Current Record: 6-0]
[Tier Estimation: PLATINUM II]
[Note: Performance has exceeded initial predictions. Opponent difficulty scaling adjusted accordingly.]
’Six wins. Six matches. Every single one a victory.’
The first match against Astrid had been the hardest—a Level 58 B-rank who’d been having the worst day of her life and taken it out on him. He’d won through tactics, timing, and abusing her emotional state.
Matches two through six had been progressively more challenging as the System adjusted his tier estimation upward.
Match two: Level 42 dual-sword user. Won in 8 minutes.
Match three: Level 47 spear specialist with A-rank thrust speed. Won in 19 minutes by 47 HP.
Match four: Level 39 barrier mage. Won in 12 minutes using Wind Blade to crack defenses.
Match five: Level 44 katana master. Won in 11 minutes through superior technique.
Match six (yesterday): Level 49 elental caster. Won in 15 minutes using Adaptive Resilience to beco immune to his fire magic.
Each match had taught him sothing. Each victory had refined his understanding of his own capabilities.
But match seven was going to be different.
The placent system worked on a curved difficulty scale. Matches one through three tested baseline ability against Bronze-Silver opponents. Matches four through six evaluated interdiate skill against Silver-Gold opponents. Matches seven through ten determined peak performance against Gold-Platinum opponents.
And since Zeph had won all six previous matches with "EXCELLENT" performance ratings, the System was about to throw sothing genuinely dangerous at him.
’Match seven. This is where they separate the talented from the exceptional.’
’This is where I find out if I’m actually Platinum-tier or just got lucky six tis in a row.’
[MATCH FOUND!]
[Opponent: ZEUS]
[Rank: GOLD I]
[Level: 53]
[Win Rate: 67%]
[Specialty: Lightning Affinity Physical Enhancent]
[WARNING: Opponent significantly outlevels you]
’Level 53. That’s eighteen levels higher than .’
’Gold I rank ans he’s been grinding ranked matches for a while. 67% win rate ans he’s legitimately skilled.’
’And the System thinks this is an appropriate challenge for match seven.’
’Fantastic.’
[Loading Arena...]
The white space dissolved, replaced by a standard dueling ground—flat terrain, minimal obstacles, perfectly fair fighting conditions that favored neither competitor.
Zeph materialized on one side, his wild silver-white hair and beard making his elderly avatar look like a retired warrior who’d killed too many people to bother counting anymore.
On the opposite side, his opponent appeared.
Zeph blinked.
Then blinked again.
’You have got to be fucking kidding .’
The man standing across the arena was massive. Easily 6’5" of pure muscle, built like soone had taken a professional bodybuilder and then added another 50 pounds of mass just for good asure. His physique was so exaggerated it looked anatomically impossible—shoulders wider than his hips by a ridiculous margin, arms thicker than most people’s legs, chest so developed it probably had its own gravitational field.
And he was wearing a superhero costu.
Bright blue spandex with a white lightning bolt across the chest. A red cape that billowed dramatically despite the arena’s complete lack of wind. Gold bracers on his wrists. White boots that ca up to mid-calf.
And he was standing in the classic superhero pose—fists on hips, chest out, chin tilted up slightly, cape sohow managing to billow on its own.
The naplate above his head read: ZEUS
Zeph felt his face twist into an expression caught sowhere between disgust and amusent.
’He actually... he actually made his character look like a comic book superhero. Complete with the stupid pose. That cape isn’t even functional—it’s just costic flair.’
’This is the most ridiculous thing I’ve seen since logging into VR.’
But then Zeus moved—just a slight shift of weight from one foot to the other—and Zeph’s amusent died instantly.
The movent was perfect. Economical. Professional. The kind of casual motion that only ca from soone with Master-level body control.
And beneath the ridiculous costu, Zeph could see the telltale shimr of high-grade runic inscriptions. Not visible to the naked eye, but there if you knew what to look for—faint lines of magical circuitry running across the man’s skin, glowing so subtly they were almost subliminal.
’Body enhancent runes. Multiple sets. High quality.’
’That physique isn’t just costic. It’s functional. Reinforced. Optimized.’
’The costu is bait. Makes people underestimate him. Think he’s a joke.’
’And then he crushes them with a physique that’s been runed to B-rank or higher.’
Zeus finally spoke, his voice carrying across the arena with absolute confidence.
"Another placent match. Another easy win." He cracked his knuckles, each pop sounding like a small explosion. "No offense, old man, but you’re out of your league."
Zeph slid into his combat stance—weight forward, axe held low in a reverse grip, knees slightly bent. The Iron Woodsman’s Foundation making his positioning automatic.
"We’ll see."
Zeus laughed. "I like the confidence. Makes it more satisfying when I—"
The countdown tir appeared.
[Match begins in: 5... 4... 3... 2... 1...]
[FIGHT!]
Zeus moved first.
No, moved wasn’t the right word. He exploded forward, his enhanced physique launching him across twenty ters of arena floor in less than a second.
Lightning crackled around his fists—not decorative, but genuine elental magic integrated with his physical strikes.
His right hand ca up in a devastating uppercut aid at Zeph’s chin.
Zeph activated Predator’s Advance.
[AGI: 156 → 312]
The world shifted into hyper-perception mode as his speed doubled.
He sidestepped the uppercut by centiters, feeling the displaced air rush past his face with enough force to sting.
Zeus’s fist kept traveling upward, and Zeph saw the lightning discharge harmlessly into empty air above where his head had been.
’Fast. But not faster than with Predator’s Advance active.’
’Glass cannon advantage: I can’t take hits, but I don’t have to if I’m faster than—’
Zeus’s left hand was already moving.
A backfist that shouldn’t have been physically possible from his current position—his body twisted mid-uppercut, using the montum to spin into a horizontal strike that caught Zeph completely off-guard.
The lightning-wreathed fist connected with his ribs.
[CRITICAL HIT]
[Damage: 340]
[HP: 2200 → 1860]
[Iron Skin reduced damage by 50%]
Zeph flew backward, his body ragdolling through the air before crashing to the arena floor eight ters away.
Pain exploded through his side despite the damage reduction. His Iron Skin had cut the hit in half and it STILL nearly took 20% of his HP.
’What the fuck. WHAT THE FUCK.’
’That wasn’t just enhanced strength. That was lightning-elent damage PLUS enhanced physique PLUS technique mastery.’
’If I hadn’t had Iron Skin active, that one hit would have taken 40% of my HP.’
’He can four-shot . FOUR SHOTS.’
Zeph rolled to his feet just in ti to see Zeus closing the distance again.
No banter now. No posing. Just pure predatory focus.
Zeus’s next attack was a straight punch—simple, direct, devastating.
Zeph activated Phantom Step.
[MP: 3100 → 3000]
He blinked three ters left, appearing outside Zeus’s striking range.
Imdiately counterattacked with Wind Blade.
[MP: 3000 → 2900]
The A-rank skill manifested as a crescent of compressed air, traveling at impossible speed toward Zeus’s exposed side.
100% weapon damage. 50-ter range. Should force him to dodge or take significant damage.
Zeus didn’t dodge.
He turned INTO the attack, his right arm coming up to block.
The Wind Blade struck his forearm and—
Dispersed.
The compressed air scattered like it had hit solid steel instead of flesh.
Zeus grinned through the fading wind currents. "Body Enhancent Runes, Rank A. Your wind tickles."
Then he was moving again
This ti he didn’t charge straight. He angled left, then right, using footwork that suggested formal training in multiple martial arts.
Zeph retreated, maintaining distance, his axe ready for any opening.
’He’s not just strong. He’s TRAINED. Master-level technique combined with runed physique and lightning magic.’
’I can’t trade hits. I can’t block his strikes. I can only dodge and counterattack.’
’Glass cannon versus tank. And the tank is faster than he should be.’
Zeus feinted left, then exploded right with a sidekick that created a literal sonic boom.
Zeph dodged—barely—and swung his axe at Zeus’s extended leg.
[Cleaving Montum - Stack 1: 20% damage bonus]
The axe blade connected with Zeus’s shin.
And bounced.
Not deflected by a block or parry. Just bounced off his enhanced leg like Zeph had struck armor plate.
Zeus capitalized imdiately, his other leg sweeping low while Zeph was still processing the failed attack.
The sweep connected with Zeph’s ankle.
[Damage: 180]
[HP: 1860 → 1680]
Zeph hit the ground hard, his Predator’s Advance-enhanced reflexes the only thing that let him roll away from Zeus’s follow-up stomp.
The stomp cratered the arena floor where his head had been.
’He’s not just durable. His OFFENSE scales with his enhanced physique. Every attack is a potential match-ender.’
’And I can’t hurt him. My axe literally bounced off his leg.’
Zeph created distance with another Phantom Step, his mind racing through options.
[MP: 2900 → 2800]
[Predator’s Advance - 2:14 remaining]
[HP: 1680/2200]
Two minutes of enhanced speed left. Already down to 76% HP from two hits.
Zeus had taken zero damage.
’Standard tactics aren’t working. He’s too durable for normal hits. Too strong to trade with. Too fast to kite indefinitely.’
’I need to change approach. Find weaknesses. Exploit gaps.’
’Think. THINK.’
Zeus charged again, this ti with both fists wreathed in crackling lightning.
A double hamr-fist aid at Zeph’s head.
Zeph didn’t dodge backward. Dodged FORWARD instead, sliding past Zeus’s inside guard while the massive fists descended toward where he’d been.
His axe swung upward toward Zeus’s exposed armpit—one of the few places without visible runic enhancent.
[Cleaving Montum - Stack 2: 40% damage bonus]
The axe connected.
Actually connected, cutting through unprotected flesh.
[Damage: 95]
[Zeus HP: 3400 → 3305]
’Got him. Armpits, neck, maybe groin—the runes don’t cover EVERYTHING.’
’Vulnerable points. Target those.’
But Zeus’s counter was already coming.
An elbow strike that Zeph only partially dodged, catching his shoulder instead of his head.
[Damage: 220]
[HP: 1680 → 1460]
’Even glancing hits hurt that much. Fuck.’
They separated again, circling each other.
Zeus was grinning. "You actually hurt . Impressive. Most people can’t get past the runes."
"Most people probably try to fight you straight," Zeph replied, breathing controlled despite the pain. "I’m not most people."
"No, you’re not." Zeus’s expression shifted to genuine respect. "You’re DirtyGrandpa. The guy who’s been tearing through placents. Six straight wins including one against a Level 58."
’He researched . Knows my record.’
’Which ans he knows my tactics. Knows I rely on speed and precision.’
’He’s READY for .’
Zeus cracked his neck. "Let show you why body enhancent builds dominate high-tier play."
He activated a skill.
[LIGHTNING FORM]
His entire body lit up with electrical current, so bright it was painful to look at directly. The lightning wasn’t just surrounding him—it was *coursing through* him, integrated with his enhanced physique.
Zeph’s Enhanced Hearing picked up the crackling discharge even from twenty ters away.
Then Zeus moved.
Faster than before. WAY faster.
The gap between them vanished in a fraction of a second.
A straight punch aid at Zeph’s chest.
Zeph activated Phantom Step—
Too slow.
Zeus adjusted mid-punch, tracking Zeph’s teleport destination and striking where he’d appear.
The lightning-wreathed fist caught Zeph square in the sternum.
[CRITICAL HIT]
[LIGHTNING DAMAGE]
[Damage: 520]
[HP: 1460 → 940]
[Warning: HP below 50%]
Zeph flew backward like he’d been hit by a car, his body skipping across the arena floor before sliding to a stop fifteen ters away.
His chest felt like it was on fire. His nervous system was screaming. The lightning damage had shocked him so hard his muscles were still twitching.
’Below half HP. From ONE hit.’
’He wasn’t even using this skill before. He was holding back. Testing .’
’And now he’s done testing.’
Zeus walked forward slowly, lightning still crackling across his enhanced form.
"You’re good, old man. Really good. But you’re still Level 35 with a glass cannon build. And I’m Level 53 with Rank-A body enhancent and Master-level training."
He wasn’t wrong.
Zeph pushed himself to his feet, using his axe as support. His Predator’s Advance was still active—90 seconds remaining.
His HP was at 42%.
Zeus’s HP was at 97%.
’I’ve landed one aningful hit. He’s landed four, and each one nearly killed .’
’I can’t win by trading. Can’t win by attrition. Can’t win by outlasting.’
’I need a trump card. Need to turn this around NOW.’
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