ch19- Hidden Power

Out of the twenty girls who used Awakening Stones, none had particularly lucky results. Among the twelve who successfully awakened, all had N-rank potential, and without exception, their attributes dropped to F-minus level. However, two girls stood out with noteworthy skills.

One of them was Sarah, who awakened a skill called "Vine Bind." It was a ranged control ability, useful in many scenarios, making it a highly practical skill. 

The other was Emma, Tina's deskmate and Jake's girlfriend, who awakened "Frost Arrow." Similar to Tina's fiery skill, but with opposite elements, it could deal 50 points of damage with strong piercing power, making it another impressive ability. 

Alex and his friends speculated that Emma's "Frost Arrow" might have the destructive power of a firearm, making both these skills an unexpected bonus.

Just then, a school-wide announcement interrupted their thoughts: "Attention, the cafeteria is now serving lunch. Please queue up in an orderly fashion for your meals." The message repeated three times, snapping everyone out of their discussion. It was already noon, meaning about four hours had passed since the monsters first appeared.

Though the intense battle and disturbing scenes had left Alex and his friends with little appetite, the physical toll of combat, combined with their earlier nausea, now had them feeling hungry. Deciding to grab a quick bite, the whole class headed toward the cafeteria.

When they arrived, they found hundreds of students already waiting in line. The crowded room was filled with the stench of sweat and mixed odors, making the environment unbearable. After only ten minutes, Alex and the others decided to leave, unable to stand it any longer.

Jake, who had been unusually talkative today, despite being quiet in class before, suddenly suggested, "Let's go check in with that guide. I'm curious to see how much progress we've made on the task." 

Alex and the others agreed, and the class began heading towards the field where the guide, Quinn, usually stayed. As they walked, they chatted, but it quickly became clear that the gruesome battles had killed the appetite of many, not just their group. 

Surprisingly, there weren't many people gathered around Quinn this time, likely because the initial excitement had worn off. The students approached Quinn easily, who greeted them warmly.

"It seems like you have something on your minds. Do you have a question for me?" Quinn asked in a friendly tone.

The girls whispered excitedly, speculating if Quinn could read minds. Alex, speaking for the group, got straight to the point, "Yes, you mentioned earlier that energy potions were necessary after awakening. Can you explain how to use them?"

Quinn glanced around the group knowingly before nodding. "Ah, I see some of you have already used the Awakening Stones, haven't you?"

Without waiting for confirmation, Quinn continued explaining. "After using an Awakening Stone, whether you awaken with N-rank or R-rank potential, your attributes will usually drop to F-minus. That's your natural baseline."

"However, after awakening, your attributes will begin to gradually increase. Normally, it takes about a day for one attribute to fully rise from F-minus to F. So, for someone with N-rank potential, it takes five days for all their attributes to reach F level. For those with R-rank potential, it takes longer."

"But you can speed up this process by using energy potions," Quinn continued. "There are different grades of potions. To accelerate your attribute increase from F-minus to F, all you need is one F-grade energy potion per day."

Hearing this, Alex and his friends finally understood the purpose of the energy potions they had been collecting. Alex pulled out two bottles of F-grade energy potion and handed them to Sarah and Emma. "Go ahead and try these," he said, curious to see the effects.

The rest of the class watched intently as Sarah and Emma hesitantly took the potions. "Are you sure this is safe?" Sarah asked nervously, her face scrunched up in doubt.

Quinn chuckled softly, "Of course, it's perfectly safe. Energy potions are one of the most versatile consumables. Not only do they restore your energy, but they also provide a small amount of nourishment. Right now, the F-grade potions you have are worth 300 points each."

"What?!" Sarah and Emma were shocked, immediately trying to hand the potions back to Alex, but he refused with a grin. "Come on, just drink it. Consider this your reward for being our test subjects."

Sarah glared at Alex but eventually relented, saying, "Fine, I'll take it as a loan." Tina, seeing Emma's hesitation, took out her own energy potion and handed it to her friend. "Here, rich girl, you owe me nothing. Use this instead," she said, returning Alex's potion to him.

Alex smirked, shaking his head as he watched the girls finally drink the potions. Everyone was curious to see what would happen next.

The potions looked unpleasant. The liquid inside the glass vial was a dark, murky red with a strong, fishy smell. It was hard to imagine something that smelled that bad could taste even remotely good.

Surprisingly, both girls looked puzzled after taking a sip. Sarah smacked her lips, saying, "It's weird, but not that bad. Kind of like a strange energy drink." Emma nodded in agreement, leaving Alex and the others curious about trying it themselves.

"Do you feel anything different?" Ethan asked, getting to the point.

Sarah checked her status screen, her eyes widening in amazement. "It worked! My spirit attribute just went from F-minus to F!"

The effectiveness of the potion was shocking, and everyone realized just how valuable these energy potions truly were.

Excited by the results, Jake eagerly asked Quinn, "So, what if we take five potions at once? Could we boost all our attributes to F, or even higher?"