Chapter 44: Did I Do Something Wrong?

"Are you feeling unwell?" the healer asked when he suddenly stopped arguing with his egg.

"No. I’m fine..."

The healer stared at him for a few seconds before returning to his bandages. "Then stop moving. If you tear this open again, I’ll call someone else over and have them hold you down."

Zishan almost protested.

He opened his mouth, glanced at the fresh bandages in her hands, then closed it again.

’I’ll argue after she finishes.’

<><><><><>

It was already late morning when the healer finally allowed Zishan to sit up without complaining about his injuries.

He’d managed to get the egg off his chest after considerable effort, although the damned thing had attached itself to his lap instead. The healer eventually gave up trying to understand it and told him that as long as it didn’t interfere with his treatment, he could keep holding it.

Zishan decided that this was an excellent opportunity to inspect his current condition.

’SYSTEM! STATUS PANEL!’

A familiar greenish screen appeared before him.

✦ ═〔 PRECEDENCE 〕═ ✦

[STATUS]

Name: Zishan Walker

Race: Human

Level: 50

Ascent: Unascended

Experience: 4,000 / 5,000

Mana: 590 / 590

[BASIC STATS]

STR: 101

VIT: 81

AGI: 87

PER: 55

INT: 62

WIL: 65

Distributable Stat Points: 0

[MAGIC]

Mana Affinities: Life, Wind, Shadow, Fire

Beast Taming Affinity: Awakened

Magic Professions: None

[BLOODLINES]

Main Bloodline: Unidentified

Grade: Unreadable

State: Dormant (Partially Active)

Other Bloodlines: (1) Ashen Banner Bloodline; (2)Eternal Wellspring Bloodline (Fragment)

[PHYSIQUE]

Main Physique: Unknown

Grade: Unreadable

Measurement: Failed

Other Physique(s):

(1) Insatiable Warbody

Grade: Mythical

Type: Combat / Adaptive Growth

Status: Permanent

Zishan examined the numbers.

"..."

He looked at his Strength again.

"..."

"ONE HUNDRED AND ONE?!"

He’d already seen most of these numbers after the battle, but he’d been so busy worrying about the Eastern Reserve Station, his injuries, and the Dragon Egg that he hadn’t given himself a proper opportunity to appreciate what he’d accomplished.

Now that he was sitting comfortably on a treatment bed with nobody trying to kill him, he realized how broken he had become.

’HAHAHAHA! LOOK AT THAT FUCKING STRENGTH! I’M A MONSTER!’

He examined his other attributes with increasing satisfaction. His Vitality had reached 81, his Agility was already at 87, and even his lowest stat, Perception, had climbed to 55.

Then, he remembered something he’d learned about ordinary humans in this world.

For a rough comparison, an ordinary human starting with around ten points in each of the six Stats would receive another three distributable Stat Points with every Level gained. Additional rewards, Bloodlines, and Physiques could increase that total even further.

Zishan opened his fingers and started counting.

An ordinary Level 1 human with roughly ten points in each of the six basic attributes would have a total of around 60 points. From Level 1 to Level 50, that person would receive another <anno data-annotation-id="f88429a5-52a9-ed97-9ab3-090301c4e88c" data-title="147 points">147 points¹</anno> through normal Level progression.

That was approximately 207 points in total.

Zishan glanced at his own numbers.

’ONE HUNDRED AND ONE... EIGHTY-ONE... EIGHTY-SEVEN...’

He added them together several times because he couldn’t quite believe the result.

’A total of 451 Stat Points! Fucking 451!’

"HAHAHAHAHAHA!"

The healer nearly dropped the bottle she was carrying. "What now?! You nearly gave me a heart attack!"

Zishan pointed at himself with an enormous grin. "Do you know how strong I am now?!"

She stared at him longer than she should.

"..."

"You couldn’t even get out of bed without complaining about your back," she said.

"..."

"Tch! Killjoy!" he replied as he returned his attention to the Status Panel.

Four hundred and fifty-one points!

That was more than twice what an ordinary Level 50 human might possess through normal progression. Of course, he understood that some people were born with extraordinary Bloodlines, inherited powerful Physiques, or obtained additional rewards through Folds and other dangerous activities.

He’d personally fought one of those monsters yesterday.

That Level 99 bastard had nearly turned him into a human kebab!

Nevertheless, the fact remained that he’d become much stronger than the average Soldier at his current Level. His Strength alone was approaching a number that ordinary people would probably spend years trying to achieve.

And he still hadn’t undergone his First Ascent!

’HOLY FUCK! WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I FINALLY ASCEND?! WILL I BE ABLE TO PUNCH A MOUNTAIN AWAY?!’

[The Dumb Host is advised not to punch mountains.]

’WHY?! YOU DON’T THINK I CAN DO IT?!’

[The System is concerned about the mountain.]

"HAHAHAHA! YOU FUCKING BASTARD!"

The healer turned around again and squinted her eyes. "What? What do you mean I’m a fucking bastard? Who are you talking to?"

"Myself!"

"..."

She shook her head and returned to her paperwork, probably regretting every decision that had led her to become a healer in the first place.

Zishan continued examining his Status Panel. His Mythical Physique had already become permanent, and there were two Sovereign-tier Skills listed among his abilities. Wildfire Requiem had been responsible for eliminating a considerable portion of the horde, while Beast King’s Authority had helped him steal some of Larper’s precious Magic Beasts.

He was particularly satisfied with the latter.

After all, the bastard had spent who knew how much time taming those creatures, only for Zishan to acquire four of them during their first meeting.

If his mind had a throat, he’d already have a stroke because of it. ’I wonder what that asshole’s face will look like when he realizes his beasts are already with me!’

He opened his Tamed Beasts menu.

Three Level 40 Ridgefang Hounds remained safely inside his Tamed Beast Space, along with the Level 53 Ironback Razorboar that had been severely injured during the fighting. He made a mental note to ask the healers whether they could treat Magic Beasts because he certainly wasn’t planning to let one of his new pets die after going through so much trouble to acquire it.

Then, there was the Dragon Egg.

Zishan looked down.

It was still resting on his lap. "You! Stop being so clingy!"

The egg gave another faint pulse.

"..."

He sighed and placed one hand on top of its shell.

He hadn’t forgotten the woman. Even now, he could still recall her laughter and how she’d promised to find him again. It made absolutely no sense that somebody he couldn’t even remember could affect him so much, and he had no idea what the Dragon Egg had done to show him those memories.

’Well... at least I got to see her.’

Zishan remained quiet for a while before opening his Tamed Beast Space. The Dragon Egg resisted when he tried lifting it from his lap, prompting another round of extremely inappropriate complaints about how an unhatched creature could be so troublesome.

Eventually, greenish light surrounded the egg, and it disappeared into his storage space alongside his other four beasts.

[Dragon Egg of Unknown Origin: Stored]

Zishan examined his empty hands. "FINALLY!"

He stretched his arms above his head, then regretted doing so when his injured shoulder began hurting again. "Fuck!"

The healer was preparing to change his bandages again when two soldiers entered the recovery tent.

"Zishan Walker?" one of them called his name.

He turned toward them. "What? Did I do something wrong?"

"..."

The soldiers exchanged glances.

Zishan narrowed his eyes. ’Why are they looking at me like that?! I only asked a question! Fuck... that sounded guilty, didn’t it?’

"We’ve been ordered to escort you to the command tent. A <anno data-annotation-id="116263ab-c065-67ca-330a-55092f5778eb" data-title="Lieutenant ">Lieutenant ¹</anno>from the eastern command post arrived earlier this morning and wishes to speak with you," one soldier said.

Zishan stared at them for a moment.

’A Lieutenant?!’