Double-Blind: A Modern LITRPG

Chapter 129

Before I explained anything, I wanted to make sure I could back it up. I called Doctor Ansari first and asked if it was alright to use minor abilities. Ordinators Guile significantly reduced the amount of mana required to use anything on the Probability tree, so I figured it wouldnt hurt.

She muttered something disparaging, but eventually relented after I promised to do nothing physically taxing, stop if I got short of breath, and agreed with her requirement to stay in the damn wheelchair. When I asked if there were any early indicators beyond shortness of breath to look for, the response was, Sudden unspeakable pain followed by loss of consciousness. After that, she hung up.

Dr. Ansari really didnt like me.

We sat around the coffee table. Sae listened as I described Rangers Fortune, outlining as clearly as I could without calling it by name. She clearly didnt believe me at first. I understood why. As paradoxical as it seemed, magic required little faith. Most of it was obvious, the cause and effect easily apparent. What I was describing was far more abstract.

Weve all been under a lot of stress, Helpline. Sae said, cutting my explanation off. And with the system throwing all these fantasy elements and powers into the mix

You think Im losing it, I said dryly.

I didnt say that, Sae answered quickly, glancing away. But werent vivid dreams one of the side effects of the recovery potions youre taking?

Id warned Sae earlier because I didnt want her to panic if she heard me screaming. Still, I could understand why that was working against me now.

Pick a number between one and twenty.

Sae raised an eyebrow. Between? So, I cant pick one or twenty?

I shrugged. Whatever you want. Just figured youd want to go for something less common.

Fine. Thirteen. Sae said.

I held up the twenty-sided dice and prepared to roll, picturing the number in my mind.

Wait. Sae took the drawstring bag and pulled out a black twenty-sided die. It matched the unnaturally dark chitin that covered most of her body. Use this instead.

Why? I was curious to hear her reasoning.

I instinctively picked a number without really thinking about it. Its possible you forced that choice somehow. Subtly suggested it.

That was surprisingly paranoid coming from her. You think Id do that? I asked.

No dumbass. Sae rolled her eyes. If the point is to prove something, it helps if to eliminate any doubts I might have before we start.

Fair enough. I took the dice from her hand and paused, glancing over conspiratorially. What if thats the loaded dice, and I arranged it this way because I knew youd request a substitution.

Sae gave me an even stare. Dont be a dick.

Fine.

I pictured the result I wanted. Unlike before, I actually rolled the dice, giving my power plenty of time to work. It came to a stop, spinning on a corner, before it came up on thirteen.

Sae blinked. Okay. Kinda creepy, but still possible.

With a smirk, I rolled the dice again. And again. On the third result, Sae stopped me and rolled the dice herself. When she came up with a seven and one, she glared at me as if Id sabotaged her somehow. Im still swapping your dice.

Thats fine.

Sae pulled three twenty sided dice with different coloring from the bag and handed them to me. Go again.

She meant for me to roll them one at a time. I had something a little different in mind. So far, I hadnt strained myself at all. I could afford to push a little more. Focusing in, I imagined the result. While red and blue dice would land normally on the table, the gray dice would settle on one and skitter towards her. Whether she caught it or it fell to the carpet, it would still land on the desired number. This was the first time Id tried for a split result, contingent on what might happen.

The blue and red dice landed together, jettisoning the gray dice towards Sae.

Sae caught it in a chitin fist. Redo?

I shook my head. No need.

Sae opened her hand and drew in a breath. She looked up and muttered, as if calculating something.

Not sure what the exact chances of that are, but

One in sixty-four million. Sae grinned. If life ever goes back to normal, Helpline? We are so going to the Horse Races.

/////

Testing took most of the day. Sae seemed genuinely excited about the possibilities of my power, and helped think up ways to test its limits. Id described the many ways Id used couched as hypotheticals, and Sae shook her head.

You know what your problem is? Sae asked.

Which one?

Lack of creativity. She fell back on the recliner, snapping her notebook shut. Obviously, youve got a lot going for you with this. The potential is borderline bullshit. But youre too practical. Tripping, fucking with car engines, interrupting attacks. Its so one-note. She made a winding motion with her hand, Like youre so obsessed with getting from point A to point B, you automatically pick the most efficient route.

Isnt that ideal? I cocked my head.

If you want people to figure your shit out, sure.

I stayed very still.

Sae gave me a frustrated look. Its not hard to put together. One of the first things Nick told us about you was that youre very private and tend to hold your cards close to the chest. So far, thats accurate. I dont care why youre lying to the others about being an NPC before the transposition, thats none of my businessthough Ill admit, I am curious. But it goes without saying that you wouldnt want other people to know about this power. She studied her hands, and her expression further soured. Since that first scuffle, Ive wanted a rematch. Ive thought about how to fight you. And knowing you have this ability thoroughly changes any strategy I had. Of course youd want to hide it.

Feeling like we were drifting into uncomfortable territory, I asked a leading question. What did you mean, people figuring my shit out?

Sae held up a finger. One. You can only screw with someone the same way so many times before they wise up. If I trip once, Im a clumsy idiot. If I trip twice, consecutively? Somethings up. She extended a second finger. If I tend to fall all over myself when the same User is around, you bet your ass Im going to be looking hard in their direction. The same goes for vehicle malfunctions, or missing when I know Id usually hit.

I realized Sae was touching on a serious blindspot. I had a tendency to fall back on what worked under pressure. Thus far, Id been relatively anonymous, so employing the same strategies over and over hadnt done much harm. The conflict with the adventurers guild and my upcoming infiltration into the Suits had made that thoroughly unviable.

With enough attention to detail, even if they didnt understand how, it wouldnt be hard for someone to figure out what I was doing, and how to mitigate the damage.

Im not confident how to counter that. I admitted.

Yeah. Sae chewed her lip. Ive been racking my brain while weve been testing.

Oh?

I think its a question of extremes. Using your power subtly most of the time, so low-key its almost impossible to detect. Then, when push comes to shove, and you have to go big, and you have to do something visible, making it look like something else entirely.

I leaned forward, resting my chin on my hands. Like another ability.

Sae grinned. From an entirely different class. Think about it. Were talking about a skill that makes something with one-in-six-million odds an everyday occurrence. You could confuse the hell out of anyone trying to get a handle on you.

Or terrify them.

A simple example was telekinesis. Regardless of whether telekinetic magic existed, it would be trivially easy to make people think I had it. Id been avoiding using gestures ever since I realized they were unnecessary in an attempt to hide my ability. Playing it up instead was an interesting idea, and only the tip of the iceberg. Id have to dig deep and come up with a portfolio, but there was plenty I could do in theory to imitate elemental magic, or advanced melee combat skills.

Saes phone beeped. She glanced at it, then at the light fixture above the table. Thats time. Want to try the If-Thens?

Above us, a half-dozen dice were balanced on their edges on the light fixture. The first if-then was my idea. I wanted to see if I could get to activate under specific conditions. First, I made the trigger holding a hand beneath the dice for two seconds or longer. When that worked for both of us, I specified Sae. The dice remained fixed for me, only toppling when Sae held out her hand.

Next, Sae suggested we test how long the command lasted. I cast the ability, trying to keep my mana use even. Shed placed a die on the fixture roughly every half-hour for the last four hours.

I held up a glass, walking from left to right. One by one, they clinked into the glass, until I reached the last dice, the first wed put up.

I shook the glass beneath it, in case my depth perception was off. I guess thats it.

You cannot tell me youre disappointed right now. Sae stared at me, slack jawed.

Not exactly. But Id be happier if there was some way to confirm that the time limit was tied to the abilitys level. Its earlier iteration had nothing like this, so there was no way to know for sure.

Three and a half hours is fantastic. Theres so much you can do with that. Sae stood and stretched up to grab the errant dice. The movement lengthened her chitinous body in a manner that looked off, somehow. She clenched her fists in excitement. Not to mention, youre not even breaking a sweat. Holy shit. I want to see how this would work in combat. Weve gotta get back out there.

I held my breath, expecting at any moment for her to realize what she said and take it back. Getting the recovery potions down had been brutal, but I was on schedule to finish the second potion tonight. Meaning, if she was willing, I could take her to the adaptive dungeon with me. Not to fight the lithid, of courseconsidering what Talia said the creature was capable of thatd be a terrible ideabut maybe to revisit the earlier floors to test Saes abilities, and ensure I got a level out of it. I had a feeling that the dungeon would recalibrate for a party of two.

But that would mean throwing Sae into a combat situation that she might not be ready for.

Is that what you want? I asked.

The excitement petered out of her expression, and her hands slowly lowered to her sides. I cant slow down, Helpline. Every time Im alone, and the lights are off, Im back in the trial. With the whispering walls and that fetid water soaking into me. Reliving every mistake over and over. I have to do something. I have to move.

That I could relate to, even though the rest of her situation was so far off, I ran through it in my mind, considering the possibility. You realize thats not sustainable.

Sae glanced down. I know. But its what I need right now. Iris said shed have something that would work temporarily by late tonight.

Ill be back on my feet tomorrow. If Iris pulls throughkeep in mind, shes new to thiswell find a place to spar and see if youre up to it I stopped mid-sentence as a message rolled in.

Whats up? Sae asked.

I glanced at her, my expression hardening. Well talk more later. Its time to see how the assholes behind the scenes are going to spin this.