As a new day dawned, Dante found himself restless and unable to sleep due to a potent mixture of excitement and anxiety. Despite his efforts to modify the system window, he had no experience points to show for his efforts (he didn't do anything), leaving him feeling empty and unfulfilled as he lay awake through the night.
After preparing himself for the day, he headed off to school. Despite completing all of his assigned homework, he intentionally neglected to complete any additional work, hoping to provoke Ryle. This was all part of his plan. He didn't need any pla to face Ryle in the first place.
Ryle approached Dante as he always did, requesting his homework. But this time, Dante felt a newfound sense of confidence and firmly declared, "I'm sorry, but I won't be doing any of your work for you anymore." This bold statement only added fuel to the fire, resulting in an additional 100 punches being tacked onto the already mandatory ones.
In a fit of rage, Ryle yanked harder on Dante's gray hair, causing him intense discomfort. It was at this moment that a notification from the system appeared in front of Dante's eyes.
[TIME LEFT : 00:09:53]
Dante noticed the timer is on, if only he keeps that up he'll be able to get the 'Achievement of Valor' soon. Ryle appeared to be unaware of the floating bar hovering near Dante, he probably can't see the notification aside from Dante.
Seething with anger, Ryle spat out a menacing declaration, "I'll see you after school, and you can kiss your lunch goodbye."
Dante continued to provoke Ryle with his words, firmly asserting, "My lunch will never be yours."
With his fist tightly clenched, Ryle prepared to strike Dante in the face, but at the last moment, the teacher entered the classroom and intervened just in time.
As the class began, the teacher made an announcement, "Good morning, everyone. Before we begin, I kindly request that you submit the work assigned to you yesterday."
As the teacher requested, each student dutifully submitted their assigned work. However, to everyone's surprise, Dante walked up to the teacher's desk and placed a set of completed papers on the desk. The unexpected sight of Dante actually completing his work left the other students taken aback, with one of them even muttering, "I swear he's lost his mind."
Life's changing for Dante. He had lunch during the lunch hours and did just fine the rest of the day.
Since Dante had not interacted with Ryle since the beginning of the class, the timer had been paused.
[TIME LEFT : 00:08:23]
Dante glanced at the timer and realized what he needed to do next: he had to meet with Ryle behind the school. It involved high risk, but the reward tempted Dante more.
After the school day ended, Dante made his way to meet Ryle as planned. As soon as Dante approached him, the timer started ticking.
[TIME LEFT : 00:08:07]
Ryle unleashed his pent-up frustration on Dante, barking out his words with anger. "You've been getting on my nerves all day, you old geezer!" he spat out.
Dante retorted confidently, "What are you gonna do about it? Cry?" His final word landed like a bomb, leaving a heavy impact on Ryle.
Ryle swiftly grabbed Dante by his shirt and started a flurry of punches to his face and body. His fury was evident, leaving even his cronies in awe.
[TIME LEFT : 0:05:33]
Despite taking a beating, Dante remained determined and believed that he could gain the upper hand over Ryle once he unlocks the first skill.
Ten. Eleven. Twelve. Thirteen. Fourteen...Twenty-two....Twenty-seven....
Despite the unrelenting assault, Dante endured the punches for the sake of the system.
[TIME LEFT : 00:00:59]
Dante thought, "I'm almost there."
Thirty-three... Thirty-five..... Forty...
In the midst of being pummeled by Ryle.
[TIME LEFT : 00:00:00]
[CONGRATULATIONS]
[ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED]
[ACHIEVEMENT OF VALOR]
[SKILL : GROW LEVEL 1]
[PASSIVE ABILITY ENHANCES THE BODY]
Dante's body was undergoing a slight transformation, which he could feel. He was getting stronger, albeit gradually. Dante felt as though he could conquer the world with this newfound power, and he was no longer afraid of Ryle.
Dante clenched his fist and did the impossible: he landed his first punch, and it connected squarely with Ryle's face, hitting him hard.
Upon receiving the blow, Ryle released his grip on Dante's shirt, his mind struggling to process what had just occurred. Even his cronies were stunned to see Dante strike Ryle.
Dante felt a rush of blood coursing through his veins, a sense of vigor that he had never experienced before. He made the decision to take Ryle down, once and for all.
Dante and Ryle traded blows, but the outcome was inevitable.
As usual, Ryle beat Dante down. Dante's little stamina couldn't keep with his bully. Ryle left after the fight. Despite being beaten down by Ryle, Dante felt a sense of relief and a change towards a better life. If it weren't for his stamina, the result would've been the other way around. But Dante was happy.
After washing his face in the nearby sink, Dante headed to his part-time job. He was running late once again, but he didn't let it bother him.
After using the system, Dante checked to see if he had gained any other abilities besides his newly acquired skill, Grow. However, he found that there were no other changes.
[USER : DANTE BLACKWOOD]
[LEVEL : 1]
[EXP : 0/1000]
[CLASS : ???]
[DAILY QUESTS COMPLETED : 0/3 ]
[THEME SONG : NOT AVAILABLE]
"Daily quests?" he pondered.
[1. HELP SOMEONE, REWARD 1000 EXP]
[2. LEVEL UP YOUR SKILL GROW, REWARD 2000 EXP]
[3. UNLOCK A NEW SKILL, REWARD 5000 EXP, UNLOCKS THE ENIGMAN SHOP]
"Pretty neat," Dante thought. "Now, where will I find someone who needs my help?"
Opportunities are waiting for those who discover them, not for those who blame their fate for their misfortunes in life. They come to those who struggle and seek them out.
And in Dante's case, he wasn't actively seeking opportunities. He was simply cycling towards the store where he worked when he heard an old lady's cry for help. She yelled, 'Help me! That man snatched my purse.'"
Dante didn't hesitate and immediately started running after the man who had snatched the purse, abandoning his bicycle. Thanks to the Grow skill, he felt his muscles working better than ever before as he pursued the man into a narrow alley.
The alley led to a dead end, leaving the thief with no escape. With a chuckle, the thief surrendered and said, "Alright, boy hero," before throwing the purse at Dante.
Dante caught the purse flying towards him and with that,
[DAILY QUEST 1 COMPLETED]
[REWARD GRANTED]
[YOU LEVELED UP]
The purse snatcher walked up to Dante, patted his shoulder and said, "This little soul shall see you again."
Dante recognized the rhythmic style of speaking and turned his head towards the thief, but the purse snatcher had already vanished.
The task at hand was simple now: return the purse to the old lady and face a scolding from the boss for being late once again.
Dante decided to unlock a new skill before heading back. However, as he was about to do so, a notification appeared in front of him.
[YOU HAVE +1 STAT POINT AND +1 SKILL POINT]
[STAT POINTS HELP IMPROVE PHYSICAL AND CLASS ATTRIBUTES]
[WOULD YOU LIKE TO USE IT?]
[YES] [NO]
"Now we're talking!" exclaimed Dante, feeling fired up.
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