Chapter 33: Interesting Lesson
Interesting Lesson
While Mike slept, he was totally unaware of the chaos that was caused by the ’fight’ between him and Agnes.
He was so focused on doing commissions that he completely neglected the other parts of the watch. Well, not neglect per se. He just never thought to explore its full features, making him forget about other things besides the commissions board, his credit balance, and this contact list.
So yeah, he neglected it.
Anyway, another feature the watch possessed was the Eventide Forums, which was essentially a local system the school had where students could post all sorts of things within the school.
From talking about training progress, tips about certain things, stories, heated arguments between two or more groups, or something as simple as posting a selfie with a friend during breakfast. It was almost its own world within the school, and a lot of things were being said on it daily.
Now, on it, certain videos and talks started to emerge.
Among the seniors, it was something few people paid attention to. It was rare for freshers to say or do something that truly required their attention. However, to the freshers, it caused quite a ripple.
As for what was surfacing that was causing this small uproar? Well...
Videos of a certain boy somehow dancing around the attacks of Agnes Agni, someone deemed as one of the rising stars of their generation with her excellent whip techniques.
The fact that someone none of them had heard of before put on such a performance drew quite a bit of attention, especially if you consider who his opponent was.
Moreover, the end where someone from the Discipline Committee stepped in to stop Agnes from going totally rabid was also very eye-catching, and people couldn’t help but wonder who the mystery boy was...
***
Mike woke up feeling quite groggy, which was strange, as that rarely happened with his new body.
He felt rested physically, but his mind felt oddly slow, and without thinking, he closed his eyes again and fell black asleep.
About an hour later, he woke up feeling somewhat better, but still not as good as he’d prefer.
He would have slept more, but his protesting stomach stopped him, and he grimaced from the biting hunger pangs.
He moved almost on autopilot, not bothering to wash up as he got out of bed and stepped out of his bedroom, causing his hair to look quite wild and unkempt. Moreover, he hadn’t bothered putting on a new shirt last night when he slept, so his toned upper body was on display.
He moved through the living area like a zombie, heading straight for the kitchen.
As soon as he got there, he swung the fridge open and started digging through it.
Normally, he’d at least half-consider what to make, but now, he couldn’t be bothered as he just dug through it until, finally, he found what he was looking for.
Meat.
Several kilos of raw meat sat in the deeper reaches of the fridge to ensure that they were well and adequately preserved.
Preserved, not frozen. Fridges at this stage in the future no longer relied on cooling to preserve food and could instead directly eliminate any bacteria that formed on the food harmlessly, stopping it from spoiling. Instead, the food was simply kept cool, but not exactly frozen.
Without thinking about the implications, he grabbed the closest packet, ripped it open, and started scarfing it down raw.
’Huh... it doesn’t taste that bad.’ Mike thought, a bit surprised. He was still quite aware of what he was doing, he just decided to roll with it as his instincts almost urged him to go along with this.
The meat didn’t taste disgusting or off as it was raw. Instead, there was a slight tang that he found pretty appealing as he ate, the metallic taste of the blood somehow having an odd undertone that left him wanting more...
’Wolves are carnivores.’ He noted vaguely, easily chalking up the strange but nice taste of meat to his Lupine nature, and he’d be correct.
However, that didn’t truly explain why he felt so tired...
In a few large bites, he’d devoured the entire thing, and without hesitation, he grabbed some more from the fridge and ate.
The more he ate, the better he felt, and soon enough, his mind had cleared up considerably, at the cost of several kilograms worth of meat.
’I really should check if the food in the fridges gets restocked or if we need to buy it ourselves.’ He sighed before addressing the system.
’Why was I feeling so groggy?’ At this, the system answered promptly, as usual.
[The Host expended considerable energy making use of his skills the previous night, the consequences of which resulted in your exhaustion.] It replied curtly, and Mike frowned.
’But I still had a bunch of energy left over after using my ability.’ He said with confusion.
[Host misunderstood, the energy expended wasn’t the energy that supports Host’s ability, it was mental energy which supports the usage of the specific skill known as Predator’s Foresight.] Hearing this, Mike blinked, perplexed
The system seemed to notice his confusion and further explained.
[Different skills require different resources to activate. It is also only active skills that require energy like this to function. Regardless, depending on the type of skill, the resources needed to maintain them can differ, and in this case, you expended a considerable amount of mental energy to use that skill.] Hearing this, Mike blinked, then frowned.
’I don’t understand.’ He admitted.
Luckily, the system didn’t seem keen on making him feel dumb as it simply explained.
[Think of it like this, Host. If you ran for a long time and read for a long time, you may get tired from both, but will the tiredness be the same?] It posed a question, and Mike answered in a heartbeat.
’No.’
[The same applies to your skills. Currently, the two active skills you have, Predator’s Foresight and Primal Awareness. Both skills are perception-based in nature, and thus require mental energy to keep up. Due to your liberal use of them yesterday, you expended quite a bit of mental energy, leading to your current state.] It explained, and a look of understanding dawned on Mike’s face.
’I see.’ He grabbed the ripped-up packs he got the meat from and disposed of them as he kept on asking.
’So why isn’t there some sort of meter or indication for how much energy I have left? I recall you saying that you manifested in this way due to it being something I was familiar with. Games usually have bars to indicate energy, no?’ He asked curiously.
[Such a thing would have been pointless.] It replied frankly.
’Why?’
[Host’s instincts are potent, but they are the most potent when it comes to your own body. If you focused a bit, you could get an accurate feeling of how much of a specific resource you have. You just never did, which—again—led to this situation.] It continued to explain.
Mike blinked. He hadn’t thought about that.
He briefly turned his attention inward and focused on himself. Specifically, his mental energy.
Immediately, he got a feeling. There was no specific number, but he felt like it was a bit over half full.
’Interesting.’ Mike thought, finding the small trick neat.
’That’s pretty cool. Oh yeah, so I’m curious. I understand how sleeping could help me restore mental energy, but why was I so hungry?’ He posed another question, as he found it odd that he needed food for a mental issue.
[Lupines can regain their energy in a variety of ways, but the most common are by sleeping, absorbing energy from cores, and eating. You would have slept until you fully recovered, but your hunger made you wake up. Lupines don’t process nutrients like most entities. You have a powerful digestive system that’s attuned to not just supplying you with energy physically when you eat. It can supply mental energy or the energy that powers your ability. The same concept applies to cores. Sleep is also a popular option, it’s just slow.] It clarified.
’Oh? So my body is way more efficient when it comes to restoring energy?’ He asked.
[To summarize, yes.] The system confirmed.
Mike nodded.
His ears then picked up movement from outside his door, and he immediately knew who it was by the familiar scent.
A knock sounded, and Mike hopped off where he was sitting and walked to the door before promptly opening it.
"Hey Theresa!" Mike said with a small smile and looked up at Theresa who had a bit of a grim expression on her face. However, her expression faltered when she saw him.
"Wh-Where is your shirt?" She asked and quickly averted her gaze, and Mike saw her ears turn red.
"Oh. Well, I didn’t really bother putting one on when I slept so..." He scratched his head.
"I could put one on if you want." He offered, and Mike thought he caught the faintest edge of panic amidts her embarrassment.
"Uh, there’s no need!" She said a bit quickly, and Mike shot her a strange look, making her force a cough.
"A-Anyway, I need to talk to you about something." She took a deep breath and regained her composure.
"Do you know what happened on the forums recently?" At this, Mike blinked.
"What’s a forum?" He asked earnestly, and Theresa’s eyes widened.
"You- What?!"