Chapter 3: Chapter 3: Training
It had been 30 minutes since his mother left the house. Kaiser wanted to complete the 10km run first, everything else could be done in his room.
Luckily for him, he lived close to the highway which had a stretch of road that went on for several kilometers.
'I can easily run along the highway and complete the challenge and get back home to do the rest' is what should have happened.
Unfortunately for him fate had different plans. Just when Kaiser had begun running and covered roughly 200 meters, the soles of his trainers ripped open.
He had stepped on a black piece of leather with water sachets inside it which was common in Nigeria, slipping and spraining his ankle in the process.
"Crap! That really hurts." He said to himself as he held his ankle tightly.
This was supposed to be a simple task that he would complete then go back home to complete the rest, but there he was on the side of the road with a sprained ankle.
"System! Hey system, are you still there?" Kaiser called outwardly. Some passersby looked at him with disdain in their eyes.
They probably thought he was a drug addict or something since they couldn't see the system like he could. All it looked like to them was a teenager on the ground mumbling weird things into thin air.
Eventually, the system answered and became visible to Kaiser.
[Yes host? I am available now] the system said after appearing to Kaiser.
"I know I have a timer to complete the quests, but I've hurt my ankle. Isn't there some kind of grace or exemption since I'm hurt?" Kaiser asked hopefully.
[Each quest has a duration period to complete quests. If the quest is not completed within that period the host will face a penalty.] the system said in its familiar cold voice.
Kaiser simply sighed. That meant if he didn't finish the quest today he would get penalized.
He contemplated giving up on the quest and waiting for another chance. But he remembered his last self. He remembered how in his past life he had taken the easy way out.
Instead of pushing on and trying, he would get scared and give up. He had a second chance now and he wasn't going to give up any longer. Even if he failed this quest, he would fail while trying.
Gritting his teeth and squeezing his fists he got up to his feet. His clothes were covered in dust from sitting on the floor and he limped whenever he took a step but he didn't care.
He decided to discard the trainers since the sole of one of the shoes was condemned, fortunately for him he saw a shoemaker under the bridge as they were commonly found.
Within 5 minutes his trainers were fixed and he could use them to keep running now. But first he needed to strategize. To run 10km it would usually take 50 - 70 minutes but that was for more grown and advanced runners. So that wouldn't be possible for him.
His body wasn't that physically fit and he was shorter than the average adult. He was just fourteen after all.
Taking everything into consideration he expected to finish the 10k in two and a half hours, but with his ankle injury, he would need at least three and a half now.
Just the thought of it made his original determination falter, but the feeling went away as soon as it came.
The journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step they say. So he took slow but steady strides, and after a while, he had covered around 5 Km. He could tell by the status window that floated in front of him as he ran.
He then decided to turn back, the distance back home would complete the remaining 5 Km he needed to complete the quest.
At this point, his ankle had gotten swollen and his body was screaming. He wasn't that active in sports around this age. He only started getting into football when he was sixteen, so his body wasn't used to this kind of extreme exercise.
Four hours and a lot of sweat later Kaiser had finally made it back to his home. His legs were covered in dust from the red sand that was so common in Abuja, but he didn't care.
He was just happy to be back home knowing he had completed the quest. The swelling in his ankle was now very visible but he trudged up the stairs to his mothers apartment, leaving a trail of red footsteps behind him.
After he got into his house he checked how much time he had left to complete the quest. He had about 18 hours left.
Even with his ankle that should be more than enough time. He got into position and prepared to attempt his first squat. He successfully did five then he sat back down on his bed, massaging his swollen ankle.
He looked up at his system display and saw that the squats had gone up by 5/100. He then performed another squat and sat back down, expecting the total number to increase.
He looked up again and saw it at 5/100. It hadn't increased. Before he could ask the system what was going on, the tab popped up again with an additional quest.
[Bonus quest: Complete the original quest continuously without breaks]
[Quest reward: Special Skill- Mentality Monster]
"Why did this pop up all of a sudden?" Kaiser asked, somewhat weakened by this new hurdle he had to get over.
[The system has decided to reward you for your valiant efforts. Completion of this quest will give you a special skill]
"What happens if I don't accept it?"
[There is no penalty, however the host will lose the skill - Mentality Monster forever]
Kaiser thought about it deeply, his ankle was screaming out at him, and it almost felt like it was about to explode.
He took a deep sigh and got up slowly "I'll accept the quest." He said weakly.
[Ding! Bonus quest, now active]
"Deep breaths." Kaiser whispered to himself as he grit his teeth and began his squats. He continued in the quiet room for what felt like hours when he finally saw the 100/100 on his systems screen.
He laid down on his bed, covered in sweat and on the verge of tears. His ankle hurt, for a normal kid his age it wouldn't be odd for him to start crying. He might have been thirty-five on the inside but he was still in the body of a child.
He easily completed the rest of the quests he had, finishing everything with about 11 hours left. Just then he heard his mom's car drive into their compound.
He looked at his swollen ankle and red dust all over the floor. He had been too focused on the quest to clean up after himself.
Christopher's house doesn't have any red sand since he lives in an upper-class estate, she would know he didn't go there as he said and he would be in trouble.
He saw her as she got out of her car and began climbing up the stairs, he knew he was in trouble.
Suddenly the system screen popped up once again.
[Congratulations! You have completed the quest, the host will now receive the rewards]
Suddenly, Kaiser's ankle began to tickle him, he looked down at where his injury was and it was slowly turning back to normal.
In seconds, his ankle looked and felt as good as new, his fatigue was also completely gone. And he could see his strength stat go up to Lv 2!
He also looked up to the systems display where under the [Special skills] tab he could see [Mentality Monster Lv1]
"What does the new skill do?" Asked Kaiser, who was still marvelling at his ankle, that was all better.
[The Mentality Monster skill makes the host not easily get swayed and is domineering in the face of adversity]
'Basically, I don't get scared and never give up' he thought to himself.
As if on cue, again he felt a similar ticklish feeling, but this time it was all over his body. When it stopped, he took off his shirt and saw his body was more taut.
Not particularly ripped, but more solid than before. This was probably the strength stat increase he was promised before.
Kaiser stood there in a daze, the system was actually real. It Worked! With this he could actually become the best footballer player in the world, it wasn't just a pipe dream.
Soon though he snapped out of his daze and remembered his mother as he could hear the gates opening downstairs.
Quickly he ran to the kitchen and grabbed a rag, he quickly began wiping the floor but it was too late.
Right when he was in the middle of cleaning his mother stepped into the room. Her usual smile was nowhere to be seen, instinctively Kaiser knew what was coming next.
Simply by looking around at her surroundings and Kaiser's attempts at trying to cover his literal tracks, she could roughly piece together what was happening.
"Go get my belt from my room." She said angrily.
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Leviathan442
Leviathan442 Hello, Please enjoy the new chapter and add to your library!
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