"Why are you not sleeping?"
"I was!
Suddenly I heard a boom-boom sound, which scared me awake."
"Here, see for yourself." She showed him the phone with a news article about the portal breakdown.
"You don't know how scary it was."
Zac looked behind her; multiple chip packets and soft drinks are clumsily lying on the bed.
Carrie saw where her brother was looking and became flustered. "That's… yeah, I got so scared I just started eating."
"What type of logic is that?"
She instantly changed the topic by asking, "Brother, did you see the big snake? It wouldn't come here, right?"
"I don't think so. The portal is a long way from our home; before it could get here, the awakeners will defeat it."
She suddenly remembered something. "Then what about Mother?"
"The hospital is in the opposite direction, so she should be safe." He said while patting her head.
After confirming her doubts, she distanced herself from Zac, her eyes scanning him from head to toe.
With a suspicious look and hesitant voice, "Brother…can I ask you something?"
"Go ahead."
She tilted her head, brows knitting together. "Why do you look like a beggar? Aiyoo… you even smell like one."
[Pth…Ahaa…Ahaa…]
"Did you perhaps fall into a drainage?"
[Ahaa…Ahaa… So much for rising above all talk. Ahaa…haa…]
"Go to sleep, Carrie."
"But brother, yo—"
"Stop. I'll go wash up. You go and sleep."
Carrie hesitated for a second, then quietly retreated to her room.
The moment the door closed, Zac stripped off his clothes and headed straight for the bathroom.
"God… what the hell is this smell? Why won't it go away?"
He finally stepped out with dripping hair and red skin. "I've been washing for an hour till my skin turned red… and it's still not coming off."
He dropped onto the bed with the Edge-Bloom seed in his palm.
"It looks just like a cashew nut."
"So, system, tell me how I should use this?"
[Stop asking me everything. Just eat it.]
"That's it? Is there no warning or method?"
[None, though it might sting a little.]
Zac's expression darkened. "Why am I getting a bad feeling about this?"
He stared at the seed for a moment. "Well, whatever, here goes nothing."
He swallowed the entire seed and waited for the result.
For the first few minutes, noting happened. Just as he was about to question the system, a strange heat stirred within him.
The heat slowly increased until his skin turned deep red and steam started coming off him like he was boiling alive.
He sweated like crazy until the bedsheets were completely drenched.
Black blood mixed with body waste started leaking from his nine orifices. His throat is dried up stopping him from screaming from the pain.
Even with all his effort and willpower, he couldn't withstand the pain and passed out.
The last thing he wanted to say is, "System, you motherf**ker, is this what you call a little sting?"
But the process still continued even with him unconscious. One by one his organs started getting destroyed.
His muscles tore apart, nerves and blood vessels ruptured, and bones crushed.
When he was on the verge of dying, the system panel opened in front of his body with an emoji blinking its eyes.
("…")
[He withstood it longer than I expected.]
[How lucky you are to get a mutated edge-bloom this early in awakening.]
[Might this be the first and last time I'm helping you.]
A soft golden light flowed out from the panel and settled over Zac's broken body.
His torn muscles began knitting themselves back together. Ruptured nerves and blood vessels reconnected, pulsing with renewed vitality. His shattered bones reformed harder and stronger as if they had been reforged in a furnace.
His failing organs stirred back to life with his heart pumping fresh blood to them.
Like a phoenix, Zac's body reconstructed itself for better than before.
Yet through it all—
Zac remained unconscious, completely unaware of the transformation he was going through.
...
The next morning, Zac woke up feeling completely drained.
He slowly sat up, scratching his head, while trying to remember what happened last night.
"That's right, I ate the Edge-Bloom seed." His expression instantly darkened.
"System, you bastard. Didn't you say it would just sting a little? I felt like I was dying."
[You would have.]
Zac's body froze hearing it.
[Once again… you should be thanking me.]
"For what? For trying to kill me?"
[No. For saving your life.]
[If I hadn't intervened, you'd already be a corpse.]
Zac's anger wavered a little, replaced by confusion. "Why are you doing this? Maybe I was gullible before, but now I know there is no free meal in this world."
[I have my own agenda and you are not strong enough to know it.]
He became even more confused and alerted towards the system.
[Relax. I have no intentions of harming you… at least for now.]
That last part lingered like a thorn in his mind.
"For now…"
He didn't press further. Instead, start thinking about it.
He understood one thing clearly: he needed the system if he wanted to grow stronger.
So he decided to wait till the time comes.
"System, now can you tell me what exactly happened to me last night?"
[Why don't you see for yourself.]
A flicker of anticipation lit up in Zac's eyes. "Status."
⟦ STATUS ⟧
Name: Zac Godson
Level: 0 (E)
Age: 19
Race: Human
Title: -
Bloodline: -
Traits: Divine Aura, Unmatched Charisma.
Talents: System(Unknown), Swordsmanship(SS), Lightning(S)
Skills: -
Available Info: None
Attributes
Strength: 22
Agility: 18
Physique: 20
Wisdom: 21
Un-allotted points: 0
Zac let out a low whistle, leaning back slightly. "Whoo... so much changes."
His eyes lingered on the talent section, narrowing with interest. "S and SS level talents—that's dope. But system, what's with these traits? How did I awaken them?"
Divine Aura: A natural pressure surrounds the user, causing others to instinctively feel inferior, including non-sentient beings.
Unmatched Charisma: The user possesses an exceptional presence that naturally attracts attention and admiration. The opposite sex finds it difficult to resist the user's charm. (Applicable only for beings weaker or having a soft spot for the user.)
[Didn't I tell you Edge-Blooms are rare even in the upper realms? They are considered to be on the same level as some divine treasures.]
[Being a mortal and eating a divine item naturally upgraded your body. The increase in attributes is just a side effect.]
A small grin tugged at his lips.
"Side effect, huh..." He clenched his fist and felt the increased strength behind it.
"Then I can't wait to see the main effect."
Suddenly he remembered something. "Wait, where is my reward?"
[Are you delusional? You didn't clear or close the portal. As for surviving... yes, there was a reward.]
Zac's face lit up instantly, a grin stretching from ear to ear, thinking, What could the reward be?
Then his smile froze. "Wait, what do you mean there was?"
[I took it as compensation for saving your life.]
A vein throbbed on Zac's forehead.
"You bastard system! I risked my life in there."
[So what? Didn't you just say there is no free meal in this world?]
"…You're seriously robbing me using my own philosophy?"
After going back and forth with the system, Zac finally gave up and stood up from the bed—only to notice the sheets still soaked in dried, blackened blood.
"…Yeah, I'm not explaining this to Carrie."
He grabbed them without hesitation and tossed them into the dustbin before heading straight for another bath.
"Last night took me an hour… I don't even want to know how long this is going to take."
Time stretched…
After two long hours of relentless scrubbing, Zac finally stepped out and stood in front of the mirror.
"Damn…the system really didn't lie. I look like a complete stud now."
His height increased to a solid 6'3".
Muscles sat perfectly on his frame—not bulky, but sharp and defined.
His jawline was straight, his black hair is shinier, and his eyes are deep and abyss-like.
Not a single scar or flaw could be seen in it. His light brown skin became softer than a baby's butt.
A grin spread across his face.
"Maybe I should forget getting stronger and just become a model."
He struck a couple of exaggerated poses, clearly enjoying his own transformation.
[Are you a narcissist?]
"No."
[Then move your ass. I'm getting sick of this.]
Zac scoffed, brushing his hair back. "You're just jealous you don't have a body like this."
[Yeah, sure. Now move, or I'll vomit on you.]
Zac paused mid-step, one brow raising slightly.
He clicked his tongue and moved away from the mirror, grabbed his clothes, and got dressed. While thinking, "Can systems even vomit?"
He came out of his room with sharpened eyes and a serious face.
"It's time to go to visit the Awakened Association."