CH49:A DAY AT THE HOSPITAL

[9:00 AM]

[26 days until the next full moon]

The system notification marked the start of yet another day for young Dezhong Prince, the son of an ex-Police Chief and also a member of a gang that allegedly worked with the police. Although he slept peacefully throughout the night, Dezhong woke up feeling tired, exhausted, and extremely uncomfortable.

He sat on his bed and felt how wet and smelly it was, so he did what was necessary. While in his underwear, Dezhong did a little bit of cleaning, dusting, and arranging of his apartment. Being that it used to be only him and his dad, the house wouldn't get as messy, and he enjoyed doing it since it helped calm his nerves.

[Daily Quests.]

[Consume two kilograms of raw meat daily.]

[Work on your overall physical strengths and capabilities. This can be done through running, jogging, or lifting weights.]

[Additional Quest: Improve your body's adaptability to its werewolf genes. For now, perfect your night vision. Once perfected, another aspect to focus on will be given.]

"Might as well pay dad a visit. It's not like I have anything to do." Dezhong finished with the laundry and rushed to his room so he could get a new pair of clothes. As he did so, he happened to pass by his mirror and noticed how his body had changed.

"Oh wow!! Check me out." He smiled while flexing in nothing but his underwear. His chocolate-toned body was slightly more muscular than it originally was, something he suspected to be a result of his werewolf ability. "The fruits of my labor are starting to show, hehe." He laughed while flexing some more. With his hands raised and bulging, he noticed something developing on his left chest. He moved closer to the mirror and saw a black V-shaped spot on the top of his left pec.

"What the hell is this? I've never heard birthmarks before....."

*CLICK*

Dezhong heard clicking sounds coming from his window and saw Blake and Luke laughing with their transparent phones in their hands. The two kept taking countless photos as Luke mimicked Dezhong's poses.

"Haha, very funny guys." Dezhong smiled in embarrassment while putting on some clothes. He opened the door for his friends and led them downstairs to his dining table for three.

"Alright team," Blake immediately got down to business as he placed a sheet of light brown paper on the table. On it were scribbles, ink blots, and drawings that he made over the last couple of days. "Here is what I've been able to find so far. One, the police are now on the Gorilla's arses more than before. Mane has some serious beef with the Gorillas if I'm correct. What does this mean for us in the lower ranks?" He asked while looking at Dezhong. "It means our movements are going to be seriously observed by everyone. More police equal more patrols equals more people watching us like hawks."

"Two. Because of this, we're starting to feel the strain on us lower-ranked Gorillas. I mean, just look at us." Blake and Luke lifted their shirts, showing midsections that were extremely toned but red with bruises and bumps. "Kenny's been having us train our heads off. I mean, the results are magical," He flexed his muscles in mockery of Dezhong, "but what we and the others are going to use them for are not. At least we have the police and possibly the dragons after us, so I can work a way around that for us to…"

"Actually," Dezhong interrupted. "We have much bigger problems than that. Not only are the police and supposedly dragons after the Gorillas, there are three more gangs that are practically going to start a gang war."

Dezhong explained his first mission to Blake and Luke and watched as their expressions turned sour, especially Blake's. With new obstacles in their path, they needed to figure out how to work under those conditions and still plan their heist effectively.

"Well, this is saddening," Blake sighed with his hands on his face.

"No sh*t," Luke cursed, slamming his hand on the table. "Couldn't there have been another way for us to get that pass?"

"Yes," Blake smiled sarcastically. "We could have walked up to Kong and asked nicely, and maybe he wouldn't crush us with his heavy hands and kill us."

After a moment of silence, Blake pulled out a pencil and started to write on his paper. Minutes later, after sticking his tongue out and smiling a lot, Blake slammed his pencil on the ground and started muttering out his new plan. "New Plan!! Dezhong, it's obvious you've been working out. You need to keep it up, and maybe Kong will trust you with keeping his daughter safe. While doing so, I need you to find out as much information as you can from her. It doesn't matter what it is. At this point, we'll need everything we can get."

"Luke and I will remain in the lower ranks, and if anything happens, we'll let you know. Lastly, gain his daughter's trust and ask about the previous mutant competition fights. The more you know, the better for us."

With their plan in place, the boys remained a little longer and went over what happened in their week and what they expected to happen next. With a war waiting to happen, they tried to hype each other up and prepare themselves mentally and physically.

[12:00 PM]

[Quests Complete: 1/3]

As soon as Blake and Luke left, Dezhong completed his first daily quest by consuming two kilos of raw meat. It surprisingly became easier for him to chew, and he could feel his body reacting with raw energy as soon as he took a bite.

With that out of the way, Dezhong decided to spend some time at the hospital and check on his father. With no money of his own, Dezhong chose to run to the hospital, which was twenty minutes away by vehicle. Thanks to his werewolf attributes, he not only got there faster than the average athlete but also managed to complete a quest and boost up his speed stat.

[Quests Complete: 2/3]

Speed: 2

Dezhong arrived at the hospital and was greeted by armed policemen guarding the main entrance and the corridors leading to Chief Prince's hospital room. Each unit was covered in head-to-toe armor and carried a twelve-inch-long handgun with a barrel thick enough to release a paralysing blast of energy to whomever they found fit.

As soon as they saw Dezhong, they nodded in respect, for each of these men and women were personally trained by Chief Prince and were more loyal to him than they ever would be to Mane.

"Hey, Dad," Dezhong said, standing at a distance and looking at his father's armless body with tubes coming from his mouth and bandages wrapped around his ears. His shoulder stubs were blacker than his skin and had cracks showing where the energy escaped into his body, rendering him unconscious as soon as the operation was complete. "I'm glad to see you're still fighting. I went to your office. You won't believe what they've done to it. I'm still waiting for you to get up and take back control of the police cause this city will crash with this bum of a chief. Please wake up."

The boy stood next to his father's bed and held back lots of tears for he didn't want to look weak in front of his father's trainees. As he sat on the bedside, he was able to get a better view of what the cracks looked like. There were deep enough for him to hide his pinkie finger and they thinned out at around the bottom of his neck and the top of his pecks. When he touched them, a small green spark jumped to his finger and his father's body jerked a little, followed by him taking in a deep breath.

'I wonder how I can fix this?' He thought while looking at his old arms which were worn out and void of crystals. The only other set he knew of was back at his home but if he wanted them to be of use to his father, he'd have to get a pair of identical intermediate tiered crystals.

'Looks like I've got my new side quest.' He smirked with his fists clenched. After spending the whole day at the hospital, Dezhong had a few words with his father's doctor before he headed out of the hospital room.

"Sir!!" The two guards saluted at Dezhong without adding anything else. The boy replied with a salute of his own while glancing at his father one more time before he left. However, as he did so, he also saw the other officers lying on beds with little to no activity coming from them. Like Chief Prince, these officers were probably deafened as well and were most likely never going to hear again.

'I'll find a way of helping all of you.'

With that said, Dezhong hopped over to the forest to complete his last quest and eventually received Experience points for doing so.

[+150 EXP]

[Level Up]

[Level 6: 75/85]

+1 Stat point added.

When he completed them, he snuck out of the forest and returned to his home. When he arrived at the doorstep, he found a white envelope with a letter inside it which read, "Dear Dezhong Prince. We understand the situation you're in and offer our deepest condolences. However, it isn't advisable for a child of your calibur to stay alone. If you have or know anyone legally old enough to care for you, please inform them to do so before the city's Child Welfare Organisation finds you a home until your father's recovery is complete."

'I knew this would happen,' He said, having thought about this a while ago. 'I could call Dheng Zhao but my brother's not the caretaker type. Perhaps I'll send him a letter and tell him what happened to Dad. He'll understand.'

Dezhong ended his day by writing a detailed letter to his older brother about their father's condition. When he was finished, he mailed to the military and hoped that it would reach him sooner or later. 'See you son, brother.'