Chapter 3:

Ruins, as the name suggests, are Ruins of the Previous era. Most of the world currently is inhospitable, but that doesent mean they're unprofitable.

The ruins are filled with lost technology, brimming even. War might break anytime soon between the two standing Empires, who are currently at neck and neck in terms of firepower, so resources and lost tech are always in high demand

The need of such technology to be researched caused a rise in a profession only heard of in fairy tales, The Adventurers.

Their are many stories about how a few penniless orphans that made it big by discovering lost technology and selling it to the government. Being inspired by said stories, hopeful individuals venture forth into the ruins in hopes of riches hidden within.

I too am included in that list. I'm now 10 years old. It's been 5 years since that breach of the outer wall and since then I've been trained by my grandfather. Since then he renovated an private open-air gym and filled it with handmade training equipment.

I was first discouraged when he said I had to talent in the hammer like he did.

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"Your body is not fit for the hammer, not now or ever." He said.

I stared at the floor in sadness when I heard those words.

"No trouble, we just have to find a weapon for you."

"Okay gramps!"

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To Charlie's amusement and Khan's surprise, I had talent in the use of firearms and speed-oriented weaponry; I was the complete opposite of Khan, who was a strength-based fighter.

The Nano Tech I received from Ronin ten years ago was too much in proportion to my infantile body, so much so that it nearly replaced all of my blood and turned my heart into a Nano tech factory of sorts.

This in turn gave me superhuman properties, on par with an adult in their prime. I could cut myself and the nanites would repair it at speed proportional to the damage sustained.

"Weird, the street is empty. Am I lost? No, these are the same buildings...which means- !!!"

"Die!!!"

Shin ducks, dropping his backpack. He dashes forward into the nearest alleyway and turns around to see his Assailants.

"Crap dead end!"

His atteckers from the street blocked off his escape

He was surrounded by six adult men armed with metal bats, crowbars and one at the back armed with a small handgun. Im not sure what gun that was but is small and compact enough to be hidden in a sleeve. Then he's First!

Shin sprints at the man armed with a gun and knocked him down with a kick to the face.

"Hmm that was easy"

He rolled to the gun and picks it up just to notice it was jammed, rusty and broken.

"Hahaha, Told you he'd go for me! Sadly for him, that gun is useless." The man said getting up with his companion's assist.

Ace looks back at the group only for him to kicked in the stomach. The man pulls out the real a small gun and pulled back on its slide, loading it.

Clink.

"Guh!"

Shin doubled in on the ground struggling to breathe. That hurt.

"Listen here boy, my mates and me are having money problems. Your old man is rich ain't he? Go get some of his money and give it to us every week. Watch'cha think? If you do, we'll let ya live."

"..f..r..self..le"

"huh? Speak louder you brat!"

Shin grips broken gun's handle tightly as he lifted his head and stiffened his knees.

"I said.. Go F*ck yourself!"

Shin jumps up and shoves the guns barrel at the man's jewels causing him to cry and fall in his back clutching his groin with both hands

"Agrh!"

Shin shoves the gun in the man's mouth and stares him dead In the eyes.

"That's for kicking me In the gut."

With the Bartel still in his mouth, he supports himself on the wall and with his free foot, kicking away the man's hands and stomped repeatedly

"Arghhhhh!!"

One of his henchmen ran at him with a metal bat ready to swing downward.

"Bastard!!!"

Shin sees a small pipe, grabs it and thrusts it at the henchman's swinging elbow.

Crunch!

"My arm!!"

"Six fully grown men jumping a kid, you have no space to complain about a broken arm"

Shin picks up his metal bat and swings as hard as he could into the guy's forehead, knocking him out.

"Jump him!!"

I was expecting them to charge at me one at a time, but I was wrong.

"Crap!"

the remaining four just ran at me with their weapons with heir weapons swinging at random areas. I couldn't block them all. I tried to block them with my arms but when their weapons landed, I could hear the crunch of my bones cracking.

Crunch!!

Adrenaline surged through his body, numbing the pain. They threw Shin into a wall, nearly incapacitating him. He doubles back in pain as he is kicked over and over by the towering adults. He is now on his belly gasping for air.

"My vision is fading...Am I dying?"

Shin notices the small handgun on the floor by his Assailants feet and slowly reached out to it

"Just.. A little more.. Got it!"

Shin points the fire arm blindly behind him, firing once.

Bang!!

Before the casing even landed on the ground, Shin rolled away, turning around with his gun pointed at his Assailants.

Five horrified-looking adults stared at their companion with half his head blown off. His body laid limply on the ground with a pool of his blood and brains painting the floor.

They turn to Shin with a grim look on his face.

"H-H-Hey, take it e-easy... We surrender.." they murmured.

"I'm sure I'm not the first you attacked...when your other victims begged for forgiveness, did you give them any?" Shin replied.

"T-Thats.."

"Thought so."

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Shin looks at the bodies he left in his wake...strangely content with his performance.

"It was killed or be killed, they were murderers..."

Throb

"Ack...my adrenaline wore off, everything hurts." Shin grumbled in pain.

"It'll heal...im glad I'm alive."

He ransacked his Assailants for equipment they might have Carried on them. Surely enough he found some interesting items.

He picked out a remote from the ringleaders pockets and clicked it.

The street immediately started to bustle with sound again. It seems his Assailants cut him off from the rest of the world

[ Holo-Deployed, Anti-Optic and Sound Barrier ]

He stared at the small box positioned by the alley way's entrance and picked it up.

He looks examines the white box with its circuits semi-exposed.

He just shrugs and stuffed it into his backpack.

He picks up the ringleaders weapons and examined them.

[ A-2 Automatic Handgun ]

[ 15-Round A-2 magazine ]

"Cool. a few trinkets to boot, I should do this more often."

Shin takes the iron pipe and uses it as support. He slings his his back pack noticing the added weight and the aching of his back.

"getting hit by a crowbar hurts."

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"What are you doing here Ronin?"

Kahn and Ronin sat at the same table they did ten years ago.

"Sorry for arriving unannounced Old friend"

Ronin takes a sip of his cup and leans on the desk with a grim look.

"I know that look, Ronin.. Don't tell me.."

"It's is as you think, War is coming...Eastasia has been confirmed to be preparing for war."

"Sh*t" Khan scoffs under his breath.

"The law..Ha~..the law states that you either pay the bail out fee of Five Million-"

"Five Million Units?! That's 500% the original.

"War funds" Ronin sighs again.

"Unbelieva-"

Clink clink!

"Yo!! Gramps I'm ho- Grampa Ronin? What are you doing here?" Shin asks puzzled.

"He called me grampa." Ronin nudged Khan.

Khan did a once over of his grandson.

"Why are you bloodied up and dirtied." He said sunken eyebrows.

"I.. Uhm..Ughh... "

"What. Happened."

Shin stares at his boots fiddling with his fingers in Nervousness.

"I..uhm..kinda..got jumped by this guy on my way back from the Junkie."

Shin replied getting softer and softer. Khan jumped from his seat causing it to fall backwards.

"What happened to the guys who jumped you?!"

"I..shot them..they won't be bothering me again I promise grampa."

Robin blinked at this statement in awe, confusion, and surprise. Khan rubbed the bridge of his nose and sighed.

"Alright, go back to your room. Reheat lunch."

Shin smiles In relief as he runs up the stairs, Charlie following after him with eating utensils

"Alright Gramps."

Khan picks up his chair and sits in front of Robin. He just looks at him tiredly.

"He killed them huh?" Khan asks.

"That he did." Ronin shrugs.

"No matter how hard I tried to hide danger away from him, it always find a way." Khan slumps back.

"back to what I was saying, When he reaches the draftable age of 12, he will be dragged into the war."

"Ronin, I know that."

"That's why, I'll try to end the war in 2 years time..But..i suggest you start teaching him how to use a Mech Knight."

Khan grit his teeth in frustration.

Mech Knights, piloted suits if armor used by both Empires. They average at about 10x the size of a adult man and are mainly used in legions of 16.

Each legion comprised of the same types of Mech knights as a team in Chess: 1 king, 1 queen, 2 knights, 2 bishops, 2 rooks and 8 pawns.

Khan contemplates for a moment.

"I assume your going to provide a suit or armor for me?"

Ronin takes a sip of his drink and looks at Khan with a smirk.

"Two actually, The boy can't practice effectively all alone."

Khan stares at Ronin blankly, understanding what he just said.

"You...You kept my Mech Knight? The one I donated to the government at a museum decoration?"

"We never used it like you intended, it's actually collecting dust in my warehouse."

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Shin laid the handguns on his personal desk.

He opened the drawer and picked out a circular Led with one large fan on top of it. He takes a charger and pkugs one end into the socket, placed strategically for easy access, and the other end unto its port. He clicks a small light switch on and let the blade spin fast and faster, until it hovered overhead at a desirable height.

Shin smiles at the small device.

"The first project Khan assigned me when he started teaching me mechanics."

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"Your first project will be to somehow make this Flashlight more interesting."

"Okway!"

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Shin pushes the soldering iron, circuit boards and wires away giving him enough space to put his spoils of War onto the table, neatly organized.

The bullets were removed from the magazines and placed in a box, the three magazines stacked neatly beside it and an empty handgun in the center.

Shin picks it up and carefully examines it.

[ Understanding of A-2 Automatic handgun:]

[ 5% ]

"Oh? Never seen that one before" Shin remarks blinking

[ 17% ]

Shin closely examined every groove of its exteriors, each dent, and every scratch, but it won't rise above 30%

[ 30% ]

"It's been stuck on 30% for a while now..do I have to take it apart?"

Shin scrabbled around for a towel.

He lays it out and carefully unscrewed the handgun systematically and carefully.

[ 43% ]

"I knew it, so I have to take it apart.."

[ 95% ]

"I'm almost finished, I completely understand how it works.. When the slide is kicked back, edjects its the shell and on the way back it catches anoth bullet from the magazine...

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"I've reviewed it over and over now... It's still on 95%..."

Shin facepalm as he realized what he needed to do.

"If I took it apart.. I need to put it back together!"

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[ 100% ]

"Finally!... But now what?"

He starts digging through his backpack just to be pricked by a curved semi-circle thing.

Among the things he found in the junkyard is this was the most peculiar. It had a ring to slip your index finger along with a grip that fits perfectly with the other fingers...the blade is curved forward.

Shin hypothesizes that it was a blade specialized in lacerating and piercing unlike a traditional straight-shaped blade.

[ Understanding of Karambit: ]

[ 100% ]

"Karambit it huh? That's cool"

[ Do you wish to Re-

CRASH!!

Shin jumps at the sound of his window being smashed. His assailant was wearing thick clothing and covered his face. He drew his one-edged sword and thrusts at a still confused Shin

Shin stands up bumping into his desk and blocks the incoming attack by putting his guard up.

The fast sword cuts into his arm, getting caught by his right forearm.

"W-Who might you be?"

"...."

"Worth a try."

The attacked swings his sword downward. Shin shifts slightly causing the blade to imbed itself into the ground, a few inches from his neck.

Crap! I need a weapon... A weapon... Anything!" he thought.

A swift scan throughout the room proved that the only possible weapon he could use was still on his desk, along with its ammunition.

"I which I had that Karambitl! But I dropped it in panic earlier." He cursed.

His eyes widen as the screen he was trying to read appeared in front of him.

[ Do you wish to replicate "Karambit" with Nanitre Replication? ]

"Yes."

His attacked was confused at his remark. Shincurls his knees and kicked as hard as he could knocking back his attacker into the wall.

He sprints after him noticing the chance he was given.

Shink!

The man looked at his chest, to see a reddish blade stabbing into his heart.

"W-whe-re di-d you ge-t the knife!?"

Shin just looked at the man and gave a sigh or relief.

"He's finally dead..."

CRASH!

the sudden jump made Shin jump out of his skin. The metal door was kicked down and was laying down on the ground.

"What is going on?!" Khan yelled worriedly.

This going to take a while to explain.

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"So.. You made that knife, put of your own blood-infused nanites and killed that guy." He said motioning to the body being carried by Charlie.

"Yes..."

To be continued.

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