None of them caught onto Tetsu’s slip-up except for Xania. “You defeated a beast of level seven?” she exclaimed, causing the Leader to stumble once again.
“Is there a difference?” Tetsu questioned, unable to comprehend the distinction. Whether because of his memory gap or his constant evasion and reliance on other creatures to deal with pursuers, he couldn’t grasp the significance.
“They’re naturally stronger,” Xania explained, frowning at Tetsu as if he were being dense on purpose.
“Ah!” The implication struck Tetsu. ‘Animals are stronger than humans, pre or post-system,’ he realized. “Add intellect to the mix, and we might never claim our place on the food chain.” Tetsu chuckled, acknowledging the obvious.
“They were intelligent beasts?” Xania’s voice rose in disbelief, causing the Leader to sputter and spit out the healing potion he had been offered.
Tetsu shrugged as if such a notion were commonplace. Perplexed, Xania shook her head in disbelief and walked away, fearing Tetsu might give her a heart attack with his nonchalant attitude.
“Boy, you elites are something else,” Tina remarked, patting Tetsu on the back before linking arms with him. “Come on, let me show you around.” She hopped away, dragging Tetsu along. “For you, maybe. But around here, we’ve lost many to even a level two simpleton beast, so it’s a big no for us,” she smiled, though Tetsu sensed the pain she was suppressing.
They moved from tent to tent as Tina introduced Tetsu to a multitude of people whose names and faces he knew he would never remember. The base was expansive, boasting impressive natural defenses courtesy of the system. Despite Tetsu’s attempts to steer the conversation towards information about bonds, any signs of a Dandralith, or nearby dungeons, Tina only provided him with useless details such as names, faces, and designations that slipped from his memory as soon as they exited each tent.
Unable to excavate any useful knowledge from Tina, Tetsu shifted his attention to Hanna, the base’s most formidable healer.
{Cultivator, Level: 05. Human: Hanna. Attributes: Heal, Recover, Boost, Convert. Weakness: Almost any or everything.}
Tetsu pondered the meaning behind the “Cultivator” tag, especially since he had encountered many individuals with similar designations, yet Tina had introduced them according to their roles—blacksmith, builder, and so forth.
With the Saint’s restrictions rendering information-gathering futile, Tetsu was left to speculate. “Is it based on her attributes? It makes sense, I guess,” he mused, attempting to discern the connection between the mysterious “Cultivator” tag and the healer’s unique attributes.
Despite his confusion, everyone he encountered seemed to perceive his level and questioned him about the numerous question marks displayed on their screens. Tetsu stuck to the truth, unsure why none of them tried to delve deeper into his status. He refrained from disclosing his class, skill, or any details that might hint at his true power. While he possessed some kind of shroud, he reasoned that if it concealed his status, it shouldn’t be revealing his level either.
In a bid to test a theory, Tetsu attempted to peer into the healer classes, only to be met with a fierce backlash that brought him down to his knees.
“What happened?” Hana and Tina rushed to offer assistance but halted in their tracks when they saw Tetsu smiling like a maniac.
“His fatigue is high and mana reserves are low,” Hana diagnosed.
“I just need to sleep.” Tetsu flipped onto his back and plunged into a deep slumber. They attempted to assist him, but found themselves at a loss, scratching their heads in confusion. For some reason, his well-maintained figure felt unusually heavy. This shouldn’t be possible unless his muscle mass was somehow different from the rest.
“Why is he so heavy?” Tina grunted as she attempted to lift Tetsu, while Hana struggled alongside her.
“How should I know?” replied Hana, equally puzzled. “I should be asking you that! You brought him to me, remember?”
“Who is the doctor amongst us?”
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.
“First of all, I prefer the term ‘healer,’ thank you very much. Also, I arrived in this world after you did, so you should possess more knowledge than me.”
Hana and Tina became sisters by a mutual agreement they concocted, akin to Kile and Tetsu, who became brothers through a similar pact. They met at a comic con, each adorned in costumes representing siblings from a show. Embracing their roles, they transitioned into real-life sisters, despite Hana being five years older, thus making her the younger of the two.
“Earthly norms hold no sway here,” Tina pouts. “How can we even determine who entered our new reality first?”
“Abandoned by her very own sister.” Hana covers her face, playing the victim. “What has this world come to?” She pretends to cry.
Hana’s system notifies her of the completion of the charge-up for her skill. She touches Tetsu, the skill siphoning ambient energy and concentrating her mana into a shimmering orb.
“Heed—” Her chant breaks before it begins, her instincts propelling her away from her patient.
“Sue your acting teacher,” Tina frowns.
Hana doesn’t even listen to Tina well enough to form a proper comeback. She freezes in place, her trembling finger fixed on Tetsu, her expression shifting from confusion to terror. “He’s recovering on his own,” she finally blurts out.
“Geez, you make it sound like it’s a bad thing,” Tina snorts.
“You—” Hana scans the area with a mad glare, then turns to Tina. “Privacy...” She places her palm over her chest and then extends it toward Tina’s chest. “...Circle.” She chants, and a translucent barrier covers them both, visible only to their eyes.
This isn’t the first time Tina has witnessed the barrier, so she remains still to avoid interrupting the skill. “We all recover,” Hana states, glaring at Tina. “It takes time, and thanks to this weird place—”
ZZHZ!
A snore startles the sisters as they turn toward the sound. A tension-free Tetsu snores away amidst them.
“How the heck is he in our privacy circle?” Tina gapes at Hana for answers.
Hana shrugs in confusion and continues with her previous statement. “Here, we heal way faster, and he,” Hana points at Tetsu, her finger still trembling, “is somehow healing faster—way faster than the rest.”
“How is he in here?” Tina demands an answer.
“He is burning life force to get life force, and you are worried about a stupid low-tier spell?”
“That makes no sense.”
“Exactly,” Hana agrees.
“I’ve never seen someone lose their fatigue levels or increase their pool so fast before. He’s like a black hole, sucking everything in his vicinity to recover his lost resources.” Hana retreats and stares at her trembling hand, the orb of light at the tip of her finger gone—consumed by the black hole.
“This situation is far from ideal. He seems to bring an ominous aura into our midst,” she remarks, her gaze fixed on Tina, who seemed reluctant to accept the truth.
Hana recognized her sister’s attraction to the stranger, but it was her solemn duty to ensure Tina’s safety. Being a healer is not just a profession for Hana; it’s a commitment born out of the desire to protect her. It was the driving force behind her aspiration to become a healer. While sharing her secrets had brought her impressive rewards from both their leader and the system, she did so hoping if she ever failed, others might reach Tina in her place.
She cared little for the labels others bestowed upon her, even if they deemed her akin to a devil. Her sole desire was to safeguard her sister, her one genuine connection, from the perils of this cursed world.
— — —<>|*|<>— — —
Tetsu’s current predicament revolved around his struggle to secure sustenance and shelter. His hunger and exhaustion intensified each day, compelling him to abandon previous plans and devise desperate schemes. Thanks to the madness of leveling, the chaos of the hunt provided ample carcasses with fewer competitors vying for the spoils, albeit at the cost of heightened danger.
The sole remaining challenge for Tetsu lay in achieving a restful night’s sleep. He harbored a fervent desire to eliminate the need for sleep altogether. Still, the persistent trifecta of mana exhaustion, fatigue, and a dwindling health pool invariably drew him into a deep slumber. In search of a solution, he aimed to discover a workaround, allowing him to evade the vulnerability of sleep and exist in a perpetual state of wakefulness. Not that he discounted the possibility that he might already be living in such a state; nevertheless, he sought to uncover a more efficient means of recuperation.
After several trials and thanks to a goth goddess, he turned to meditation to hasten the restoration of vital energy. While he long ago found solace in the rune inscribed on his tongue, “devour,” which replenished his mana pool.
Fatigue proved the most elusive adversary among the three, so he focused on mastering those aspects within his control. This focus yielded results, diminishing fatigue at a sped-up rate compared to his previous attempts.
Tetsu aspired to integrate this technique into his sleep routine, but the execution proved more challenging than expected. He experimented with blending dreams with his recovery sessions, akin to how vivid dreams could elicit physical responses.
For instance, being chased in a dream might lead one to wake up drenched in sweat and exhaustion, while imagining using the restroom could cause waking to a wet bed.
He aimed to remain productive, even while asleep, thereby maximizing the twelve hours available to him, rather than relying solely on the hope of waking intact or avoiding nasty surprises.
Drawing on the common experience of individuals dreaming about their work or stressful situations, Tetsu sought to harness this phenomenon deliberately.
Tetsu also adds the insights gained from the Scar god and embarks on another series of ambitious experiments. The goal was simple on paper. He had to fixate on one of the pools and the process to refill them, before succumbing to the allure of slumber.
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