Ch04. The drive to grow stronger
After we had breakfast, and Quintus bragged to father about my recent awakening, even though father kept silent about it, I readied myself to go to the Wielders Association.
It wouldn't take long to finish the test and get my results, so it seemed I would have most of the day to test the system's features.
When I was ready to leave, Quintus asked if I wanted a ride, since he was going to work anyway, but I politely refused, for two reasons.
First, I didn't want to be alone in the same car as my brother.
Second, I wanted to test out one of the daily quests.
If the system was planning on murdering me with that amount of exercise, it was best to see if the reward was worth it.
Way better than just waiting to see what kind of penalty I could receive.
It was ten kilometers from home to the association, so,if I could just finish running with, let's say, 2kg weights on my legs, it should do.
It was a shot in the dark, but the quest clearly said running ten kilometers with weights. It didn't specify how heavy the weights should be.
So I wore a pair of jogging pants, my shirt, a black hoodie, and went to the training room to get some weights.
After I was ready, I started walking my way out of there.
It was uncomfortable in the beginning, but after a few hundred meters, I was able to start running.
I didn't want to get anxious about the results, so I didn't open the quest window, and just focused on running, with as much of a steady pace as I could.
But when I was halfway from the association, I heard the beep in my head, followed by a notification in front of my eyes.
[Agility +1]
So it was already giving results?
I didn't think it would make any difference, but the more I ran, the steadier my pace and balance would become.
So I tried to push it a little harder, to test the extra point I just acquired.
And I was right.
I could run a bit faster than when I gave my first steps with the weights on my legs.
I went past a park, and slowed my pace as an idea came to mind.
I opened my status window and the quests window.
NAME: KURT BLAKE LVL: 01
AGE: 16 HP: 100/100
CLASS: ??? MP: 50/50
BASIC STATS
Strength: 15 Perception: 15
Dexterity: 20 Intelligence: 10
Agility: 21 Vigor: 25
[QUESTS]
[CHANGING THE TIDE]
[DAILY QUEST]
[UNIQUE QUEST]
I chose the daily quests and checked it.
[DAILY QUEST: THE STRONGER SELF]
[REQUIREMENTS: RUNNING WITH WEIGHTS 8/10KM
SIT-UPS 0/50
PUSH-UPS 0/50
SPARRING 0/10MIN]
[REWARD: ???]
[PENALTY: ???]
As I thought, I was almost done with the running, but I still had the other exercises to do.
I sopped in my tracks, catching my breath and looking at the park.
It was a beautifully wooded place, and it even had an area with some equipment I could use someday.
But for now, I was content with the plain ground by itself.
I approached the area, stretched a bit, and laid down on my chest.
"Okay, let's fucking go!" And I began doing the push-ups.
It was hard in the beginning, and it only got harder the more I pushed.
But slowly, I was able to finish the fifty push-ups.
Then I laid on my back and started the sit-ups, which were a bit easier than the push-ups, but also a bit painful.
When I checked the quest window, this time, it showed both push-ups and sit-ups completed, which gave a strange feeling of accomplishment, and as I smiled towards the window, I began running again.
There were just two kilometers left, and I still had to think about how I would have a spar with my older brother.
Arriving at the association, I went to the reception desk and scanned my holowatch.
"Okay, sir. Just go to the second floor and wait with the others." The receptionist said.
I took the elevator, and when I got to the second floor, fifteen people were already in the waiting room.
And I knew one of them...
"Nikolai?"
The young Russian looked at me, perplexed.
"Do I know you?"
Ah, of course, he didn't know me when he was young.
But we did study in the same school.
Before he received the results of the test, knowing he was just a regular, dropping off school right after that, and going to live in the streets.
Becoming the king of the black market, not long after.
"Kind of." I answered. "I know you from school, you're remarkable."
Nikolai stared at me, with those dark blue, curious eyes.
"I didn't realize we were the same age, you look older than me, somehow." He said, still looking at me. "Came for the test?"
We chatted a little, and then it was his time to enter the room.
"Semenov, Nikolai!" The voice echoed through the speakers in the waiting room.
"It was good meeting you, Kurt. See you at school?"
"Sure."
And he left.
Ten minutes later, I saw Nikolai leaving the testing room.
His eyes were glued to the floor, distant.
I knew what happened, because I already seen it happen before.
"Nikolai!" I called, getting up from where I was sitting.
He looked at me, still feeling distant.
I didn't know what drove me to do what I did, but I went towards him, held his hand in a reassuring way, as firmly as it could get, and said.
"It's not over, Nikolai. I know you might think it is, but if you need anything, call me. I got your back."
Nikolai looked at me like I was crazy or something, but I raised his hand, and touched his holowatch with mine.
The device beeped as I sent added him to my contact list.
"Blake, Kurt!" The examiner called.
"It's my turn now, wish me luck." I said, still gripping Nikolai's hand. "Don't forget it. If you need, call me!"
"You sure are an odd one..." Nikolai said, but this time, he had a smile on his face. "I will not forget."
'Neither will I... Friend. As long as I breathe, you won't die again.'
And I started walking towards the test room.
Ch05. Ranking
The test room was exactly how I remembered it.
The mana stone in the middle of the room, secured by a glass tank protected with magic, that measured the mana level of the person.
The computer equipment that registered the awakened data all around, and in one of the corners, the physical ability measuring machine.
"Proceed to the physical testing, Mr. Blake." The examiner said.
I walked towards the machine, a long treadmill with holographic projectors around it.
It measured the awakened running seed in the first half of the test.
And in the second half of the physical test, the holographic projectors projected countless beasts so that the awakened could show if he had any combat/support abilities.
But when I was ready to step onto the treadmill, I remembered I was wearing the weights from my early run.
"Just a second, please. I have to remove this." I said, pointing to the weights, as I lifted the legs of my jogging pants.
The examiner raised a brow with a judging look.
But as I took the weights off, I heard the beep in my head, followed by system's robotic voice.
[Strength +1]
[Agility +1]
[Dexterity +2]
[Stamina +2]
Holy shit!
Six stat points for running with weights and taking them off?
The test would be way easier than the first time I did it.
I stretched out a bit, and stepped into the treadmill.
"Three, two, one, begin!" The examiner said, as I started to run.
I gave a few sloppy steps at first, getting used with my legs without the weights.
But as I got steadier, I felt my body grow lighter as I ran faster.
And I wasn't even getting tired, so I proceeded to run as fast as my limits allowed me.
I wanted to see the full potential of my new capabilities in level one.
But as I seemed to reach my full speed, I felt something off.
The next second, I saw the image of a beast right in front of me.
A huge Lizard man, swinging its tail towards my feet.
I rolled above the beast's tail and got up again, only to see two more Lizard men charging against me.
'If only I had a skill or something...' But I didn't have time to complain, as the beasts approached really fast.
The projectors were designed to react to the touch, and Lizard men were just F ranked beasts, so even if I didn't have a weapon, or even combat skills for that matter...
It was time to test a stat combination.
As the Lizard men were almost at melee range, I jumped towards them and grabbed their heads, smashing them against the treadmill at the same time.
I rolled over, got up again, and kept running as fast as I could, while more enemies appeared.
My physical test ended twenty minutes later, after I got hit by a Minotaur, a C ranked beast.
I was sweating a little as I got off the treadmill, and the examiner looked at me, silently.
"... Right... Now, place your hand in the device in front of the mana stone container..." He said, sounding a bit reluctant.
And after I placed my palm over the device, it beeped and glowed in purple.
A few seconds later, a screen on the device lit up with a single letter showing up.
E
Wait...
I got an E rank?
"Is the mana measuring device functioning properly?" The examiner asked one of the operators.
"Seems so." The operator responded.
"Hum... Strange..."
"It's not that I'm not satisfied with the results." I said. "I mean, I could be a regular, but... What's strange?"
"I could ask if you have already been into a Nest before, but that's impossible due to the age of acceptance in guild raids, but your combat abilities are that of an at least D rank. However, your mana level is... Quite low."
Shit! I probably got caught up in testing the potential of my stats, and forgot that I'm just a teenager.
I ended up using the regular skills I acquired in my previous life as a thief...
Well... That at least explains why I couldn't do anything against Quintus as a regular back then.
"We'll give you a provisory awakened license, so you can apply to one of the guilds after you graduate from school. You can come back in three weeks, I'll check if it was some sort of interface error or anything of the sorts. Good luck out there, young man." The examiner said.
But I could still feel his curious stare, as I walked out of the examination room.
'So my innate previous life's acquired skills do make a difference in this current life...' I thought as I left the building.
The provisory license would be ready in three days, which gave me some time to figure some things out, and since if I recall it correctly, we were in the middle of spring break, soon I'd be moved from mixed class to awakened.
To start learning more about Nests, the guilds, and wielder's classes.
I would also have to prepare myself for the combat classes.
It would be a busy semester.
As I walked out the exit door, I saw Quintus' car waiting for me, and Nikolai sitting in a bench.
He waved as I looked at him, and Quintus got out of the car, coming in my direction.
I signaled Quintus to wait for a second, as I walked towards Nikolai, to find out why he was waiting for me.
"Hey," I greeted him again "did you wait for me the whole time?"
"It wasn't that much time. However, I did think you would take less time to leave the building.
"It seems I don't have much time, but is there anything you wanna talk about?"
"I have plans, and I don't plan on going back to school, I already told you that."
Nikolai's hands were tucked in his pockets, but he looked at me with a determination that I had only seen in his adult version.
'So, the king of the Black Market will rise anyways, huh...'
"And if you need anything, don't hesitate to call me." He went on. "No one ever spoke to me like like that, and I recognize a friend when I see one, so, til anytime, friend."
But as he turned around to leave, Quintus' voice sounded right behind me.
"Get in the car, little brother. Now."
His voice carried a tone that I had heard before.
Right after he killed Nikolai.
Presentes
-- Presente
recebido Status de energia semanal
200+ Ranking de
Poder 
0 Pedra de
Poder Você também pode gostar
Comentário de parágrafo