7 Preparation
"Ugh! Fuckome on...three!"
Pant pant pant!
Panting heavily, I pushed through the pain, struggling to maintain proper form.
[Master, remember to keep your back straight. Good posture is essential for effective push-ups.]
Why was I subjecting myself to this torture?
"Grrr!" I grunted, muscles straining with each repetition.
In this world, strength was essential for survival.
You never know when a mindless monster would decide to attack you.
With that in mind, I gritted my teeth and pushed onward, ignoring the burning in my muscles.
"Five?"
I counted aloud before collapsing onto the floor, my face getting plastered to the unforgiving concrete.
If someone were to see my push-ups, they would certainly question if my intentions were to penetrate the floor.
Who knows?
Perhaps, months from now, a statute would sprout from this very spot.
Why the fuck was I this weak?
"I can't even feel my arms," I groaned, the pain evident in my voice.
My current weakness...yes, I would definitely die. Even a low level monster is enough.
I needed to become stronger.
That's why I enlisted Nano's help in creating a workout regimen.
I rose to my feet, determined to try again.
But as I lowered myself for another push-up, my muscles felt like rubber.
Despite my efforts, I couldn't complete a single rep.
It was as if my strength was replaced by void.
Defeated, I laid back, staring at the ceiling in frustration.
My brows furrowed as I pondered, 'But there is something else that's troubling me.'
Focusing on the air in front of me, I muttered, "Status."
And with just that word, a ghostly hologram materialized in my field of vision.
──────────────────────
┌─────────────────┐
│ 𝐒 𝐭 𝐚 𝐭 𝐮 𝐬 𝐖 𝐢 𝐧 𝐝 𝐨 𝐰 ➙
└─────────────────┘
𝐍𝐚𝐦𝐞: Noah Grey ⇔ 𝐑𝐚𝐧𝐤: (G-)
𝐀𝐠𝐞: 16 +(23?)= 39?
𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐬: Homosapien
𝐂𝐥𝐚𝐬𝐬: None
■𝐏𝐑𝐈𝐌𝐀𝐑𝐘 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐒 →
⌜ ⌝
Health: (G-) 100/ 100
Mana: (G-) 100/ 100
Strength: (G-) 100/ 100
Dexterity: (F+)
Intelligence: ???
Mana Capacity: 0
⌞ ⌟
■𝐒𝐄𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐘 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐓𝐒→
⌜ ⌝
Armor: (G-) 1
Resistance: (G-) 1
Stamina: (G-)
Charm: (E-)
Durability: (G-) 1
Flexibility: B
⌞ ⌟
𝐒𝐊𝐈𝐋𝐋𝐒:
None
𝐑𝐄𝐋𝐈𝐂𝐒: None
𝐀𝐑𝐓:
None
𝐏𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐲: None
𝐌𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬:
[Mystery of Teleportation]
𝐀𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬:
[Acquired the mystery...]
──────────────────────
First thing I noticed, propensity—none. Another slap from fate. It seemed like I lacked the talent gene.
The term 'propensity', as said in the English lexicon, denotes an inherent inclination or natural tendency to behave in a particular way.
But, in terms of magic, propensity means an innate inclination towards particular manifestations of power, each unique to the person having it.
Basically, a superpower gift someone is born with. Powerful abilities with a certain price.
There are different types of propensities: propensity to control gravity, invisibility, flight, etc.
For instance, Aeravat, whose propensity is known as Harmony. Its price? Welp....death.
Lamentably, scrutinizing my status, I figured a glaring absence of any such gifts. Perhaps it was folly to expect otherwise, given the rarity of such gifts—a one-in-a-million chance, as they say, to be born with a propensity.
Also, my mana capacity was zero, which was strange to think about.
Even a newborn baby would have a certain mana capacity.
Zero was unusual.
It was unheard of.
Mana...it was a strange feeling at first.
I didn't realize it properly back then but, once I got accustomed to this world, I felt it. Or should I say I realized it?
Occasionally, there were subtle static in the air followed by a fluid-like sensation beneath my skin. That was mana.
With a mere thought, I could regulate the speed of mana's flow within me, much like controlling my breathing.
I could breathe faster or slower at will but, directing the flow of mana remained beyond my power.
Other races were known to have greater mana capacities than your average human.
On the other hand, Orcs relied on Aura.
But I, a human. Hundred mana and my mana capacity was zero. The idea itself went against the laws of this world.
I mean sure, your body could replenish mana on it's own without absorbing it from the atmosphere, but that would take a lot of time. Inefficient. A malady, would make your body weak. Strain you from the inside and potentially could cause mana contamination.
But here I was, without any negative drawbacks...due to nano or otherwise, I couldn't tell.
My situation served no other purpose than to remind me that I, was a paradox.
Leaving that aside, I decided to focus on the current task—workout.
But, I didn't even had the strength to pick up a water bottle, let alone doing pushups.
"Hey, Nano?"
[Yes, Master?]
"I don't think I can continue," I gasped, taking a deep breath before continuing.
"And your training program expects me to do another set of pushups, sit-ups, and go jogging later today. How am I supposed to manage that? Maybe you miscalculated my abilities."
[Certainly, it is not possible for a normal human who has never undergone any physical training in their life to complete two sets of training on their very first day, as their muscle fibers are not developed.]
"Then?"
[But with my help, it is possible for a human to continue training beyond their limits. As an advanced nanite tech of the 23rd century, I have the ability to rebuild tissue and protein structures of a human much faster than what is normally allowed.]
'What the?'
"What are you?" I exhaled in bewilderment.
"I mean, why do you have such abilities? I thought your only purpose was to keep me alive. That's what grandfather Hope-" my voice trailed off into sadness at the remembrance of my grand father and my voice died down.
After a short pause, I finished," said."
[Dr. Hope Reynar was working on a project for developing "Super Soldiers," and nano-technology was a crucial step in achieving this goal. As a result, I possess intricate abilities to train humans and develop their capabilities to reach superhuman levels.]
Just like that another bomb shell was dropped on my head.
"How exactly do you create a 'super soldier'?"
Nano explained that by changing my genetic material and deploying specific genes, such as those found in spiders, ants, bees, bats, and others, they could slowly create a human with tougher bones, stronger muscles, faster reflexes, faster healing, and a longer lifespan.
But first, I had to reach the epitome of human biology. Once I reached my "limiter," as Nano called it, they would slowly transform my genetic material.
A slow smirk formed on the corner of my lips as I blurted, "Nice... That does sounds pleasant."
***
It had been a day since I got the mystery of teleportation but, I wasn't able to find the time to test it. Now seemed like a right time...
Luckily, mysteries didn't run on energy.
They could be used with simple intent of one's will. Nevertheless, they came with their own costs.
Using a mystery heavily relied on understanding of concepts regarding its power. And fully utilizing a mystery's power needed a lot of practice.
They were like unsolved pieces of a puzzle without any manual to guide their assembly.
Why yes, cause I never wrote any manual.
Mysteries were, after all, unfinished ideas for the manuscript which were never published into the novel.
In other words I didn't knew what their limits were, or if they even had any limits. I only had a rough idea about what they could do, rest depended on exploration.
Soon checking the info resulted in...
Crackle!
─── 𝐌𝐲𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 ───
✦ Allows user to instantaneously change the 'point' of existence.
⚠ Restrictions: Can only be used 3 times due to weak physical constitution.
──────────────────────
***
"I need to learn more about this," I let out as I made my way back from the supermarket, passing a vast green field.
With a deep breath in, I slowly approached the field and called out, "Hey Nano, be prepared in case something happens."
[Affirmative, Nano on standby]
My attention then focused on the front gate of the field, the same one that I had walked through moments before.
"This might be a playground," I muttrered to thin air as I stared intently at the gate.
I concentrated, silently commanding, 'Teleport.'
In the blink of an eye, the scenery before me became hazy, blending the view of the gate with what I
would witness from up close.
As I landed in front of the gate, I collapsed on the ground, dropping my groceries.
Waves of nausea and pain washed over me, twisting my stomach into knots.
The pressure in my head threatened to make it explode, and tears welled up in my eyes.
It was clear that teleporting had taken a heavy toll on my body.
"Blurghhh!!" whatever I had eaten in the morning was puked with a repulsive stench, and I could feel the bile rising in the back of my throat.
This continued for a full minute before I managed to stop. "Huh- fuck, why?"
The answer soon came to me in the form of a notification.
Crackle!
─── 𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐢𝐟𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠! ───
⚠ Your current physical constitution is not sturdy enough to withstand spatial warping.
Teleporting will result in severe harm.
──────────────────────
***
"Guess I have no choice, but to become strong?" I chuckled.
I slowly laid on my back, gazing up at the crystal blue sky. I couldn't help but marvel at the breathtaking scene.
The sky was a stark contrast to the usual orange one I was accustomed to seeing.
I wasn't sure if it was the excruciating pain I experienced or the soothing presence of nothingness, but my heart felt at
ease.
Despite the small pool of vomit beside me—which by the way was disgusting—I was peaceful in this moment.
