A Stupid Mistake

(NEW) [(F-Tier) Basic Phantom Skill Set]

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- [(F-Tier) Phantom Punch] ⓘ (LEVEL 1)

[Phantom Punch is a deceptive striking technique that utilizes high-speed movement to create a temporary afterimage of the punch. For a split second, the opponent perceives a false attack trajectory, misdirecting their focus, while the real strike lands from an unexpected angle.]

[Attack: 10]

[Requirements: 10 Agility, 5 Strength]

[Cost: 5 Energy]

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- [(F-Tier) Phantom Shift] ⓘ (LEVEL 1)

[Phantom Shift is an advanced footwork technique that allows the user to momentarily displace their image, leaving behind an afterimage in their previous position. This skill creates the illusion of movement in one direction while the user swiftly shifts elsewhere, making it highly effective for dodging attacks and setting up counterattacks.]

[Requirements: 10 Agility, 5 Stamina]

[Cost: 10 Energy]

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- [(F-Tier) Phantom Kick] ⓘ (LEVEL 1)

[Phantom Kick is a high-speed kicking technique designed to mislead opponents by creating an illusory afterimage of the kick. The opponent perceives an incoming strike at a false location, making it difficult to anticipate or block the real attack. This move is particularly effective in breaking an opponent's guard and countering reactive defenses.]

[Attack: 10]

[Requirements: 10 Agility, 5 Strength]

[Cost: 5 Energy]

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[Warning! The current Phantom Skills will fail if your opponent has a perception above 10]

Mako was blown away by how cool the moves he had just learned sounded, but he could not test them out until he arrived home.

"Here you go, Mako, compliments of the chef!" Gary said as he placed a big plate filled with salty and spicy fries alongside a giant triple-deluxe burger.

Mako rubbed his hands together as his mouth was already watering while looking at what he could only describe as a piece of heaven. He had worked out quite hard today and was ready to have a well-deserved feast.

Wasting no time, Mako dug in, while Gary wiped his hands with a clean towel and proceeded to sit opposite Mako.

"So I heard that there was this event about showing your collection of old vintage games, and I am thinking about attending." Gary resumed his normal conversation with Mako while he stuffed his face with delicious food.

'Today really is the best day ever!' Mako screamed in joy within his thoughts as he continued spending time with Gary.

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[6:07 PM]

After Mako finished his burger, he walked back to his house. At this point, more customers started arriving at the store, mostly to grab a bite to eat, as no one was very interested in old games anymore. This kept Gary busy.

Honestly, Mako was relieved to get out of there for a couple of reasons. Not that he hated his time with Gary or anything, but it was just that he was itching to try out these new moves, and also that he would have lost his mind if he lost to Gary for the twenty-third time.

"I guess me beating Big Bro Gary was either a fluke, or he let me win." Mako realized as he went over all his losses.

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Mako finally made his way back to his home and immediately rushed into his backyard to try out the phantom skills.

Mako started with a quick warm-up, doing a few jumping jacks before throwing a series of light punches in the air to loosen his muscles.

Once he felt ready, he planted his feet firmly in the dirt. His gaze locked onto the tree in front of him, determination burning in his eyes. Taking a deep breath, he pulled his fist back and launched it forward with full force, shouting...

"Phantom Punch!"

*CRACK!*

For a brief moment, there was silence. Then—

"AAAAAARRRGGHHHHHH!"

A piercing scream echoed through the forest as Mako immediately clutched his wrist, his face contorted in agony. His hand was a mess, bent at an unnatural angle with blood dripping from his knuckles. Pain pulsed through his entire arm as he instinctively blew on his hand, as if that would somehow ease the agony.

Suddenly, a series of notifications appeared before his eyes.

[-65 HP]

[The user has sustained a metacarpal fracture.]

[Bone misalignment detected: Offset by 45 degrees.]

[Emergency Healing activated.]

[Warning: Emergency Healing requires 45 Energy. The user will experience extreme fatigue post-recovery.]

[Estimated recovery time: 6 hours.]

Mako barely registered the messages. The pain was too overwhelming, clouding his thoughts. His breathing was ragged as he slowly lowered himself onto the ground, resting his back against the very tree he had just punched.

His eyelids suddenly grew very heavy. Each breath became deeper, slower. Within minutes, exhaustion overcame him, and he drifted into unconsciousness.

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*DING!*

[75% completion in recovery]

Mako's eyes slowly opened as he saw the moon shining down on him. It took a couple of seconds before Mako realized he was still lying down next to the tree.

"Uhhh...." Mako groaned as he slowly sat up, only to notice that his hand had completely stopped bleeding and looked a lot better than before.

After getting back to his senses, Mako realized what an utter idiot he was for punching a tree without any warning or practice.

*DING!*

[Alert! Energy levels Dangerously Low!]

[Replenish Energy Levels Immediately!]

All of a sudden, Mako had the worst kind of stomach ache imaginable. One that would happen when one is incredibly hungry, like they could gobble an entire table's worth of food.

"Idiot... idiot... idiot... idiot..." Mako continuously muttered to himself as he slowly got up and made his way to his kitchen.

Once he arrived, he gobbled up everything that he set his eyes on as if he were a wolf who had been hungry for several days.

Apples, leftover pasta, raw asparagus... Nothing was safe. After about twenty minutes of his eating frenzy, Mako sat down on his kitchen floor and went over what had happened.

[Energy: 46/50]

"Why didn't the Phantom Punch work?" Mako said as he was beyond confused.

He decided to re-read the description of Phantom Punch again to see whether he had missed something.

- [(F-Tier) Phantom Punch] ⓘ (LEVEL 1)

[Phantom Punch is a deceptive striking technique that utilizes high-speed movement to create a temporary afterimage of the punch. For a split second, the opponent perceives a false attack trajectory, misdirecting their focus, while the real strike lands from an unexpected angle.]

[Attack: 10]

[Requirements: 10 Agility, 5 Strength]

[Cost: 5 Energy]

When Mako re-read the text, he just wanted to facepalm so hard that his hand would go through his skull.

He didn't have the requirements to actually use the skill, so he ended up punching the tree like an idiot.

'Open System Interface' Mako commanded.

[User: Mako Grey]

[Health: 76/100] ⓘ (+1)

[Energy: 46/50] ⓘ (+1)

[EXP: 150/200] ⓘ

[Level 2] ⓘ

[Strength: 2] ⓘ (+1)

[Agility: 3] ⓘ (+1)

[Perception: 2] ⓘ (+1)

[Intelligence: 5] ⓘ (+1)

[Mentality: 2] ⓘ (+1)

[Stamina: 4] ⓘ (+1)

[Charisma: Locked] ⓘ

[Fortitude: Locked] ⓘ

[Attribute Points: 5] ⓘ

Mako's current Agility and Strength were too low to execute any of the Phantom techniques. Even though he had five unspent attribute points, it still wouldn't be enough to meet the requirements.

As he reviewed his stats again, something caught his eye: both his Energy and Health bars also had the small (+1) symbol next to them. That didn't make any sense. How could he gain more Health or Energy without doing anything?

'There has to be a reason for this,' Mako thought. 'Why would Great-Grandfather add a feature if it didn't mean anything?'

After a moment of internal debate, he decided to test it out. He had attribute points to spare, and even if this experiment didn't work, he could always earn more.

With that in mind, Mako allocated two points to Energy and two points to Health, eager to see what would happen.

[Health: 77/120] ⓘ (+1)

[Energy: 46/150] ⓘ (+1)

"WHAT IN THE WORLD!?" Mako shouted out loud as he was dumbfounded by the increase in his energy and health. His Health had increased in intervals of ten while his Energy increased in intervals of fifty.

Now that he grasped how to cast skills and the crucial role of his Health and Energy bars, Mako realized just how far behind he was compared to his classmates. He still had a long way to go before he could even call himself a decent fighter, and he'd need a lot more attribute points to get there.

More importantly, he now understood the risks of letting those bars drop too low. The exhaustion and pain he had felt with only five energy points remaining was so brutal, and he could only imagine how much worse it would be if his Health or Energy bars ever hit zero.

And that was something he had no intention of finding out anytime soon.

[76% completion in recovery]

"Well, I guess I will have to rest a bit more until this heals," Mako said as he laid down on his sofa.

He began thinking how great it was that the system could now heal him if he was injured, and he wouldn't have to waste money on healing pills anymore.

Mako reached to the side of the sofa to check the time and calculate how long he had been knocked out again as it looked like passing out was the new norm for Mako.

[10:46 PM]

*PANIC*

"Sir Derek is gonna kill me!" Mako shouted as he got up from the sofa and ran to his bedroom to change into clean clothes.

His hand still hurt him, but it was not to the point of hindering his movements anymore.

Mako quickly left his home and headed to the bakery, hoping he could arrive before his shift started. He had already missed work yesterday because he had been knocked out in the secret basement for twelve hours, and if he arrived late today, he would definitely be fired.

After several minutes of constant full-speed running, Mako finally arrived in front of the bakery, so out of breath that he thought his lungs would jump out of his chest.

He checked the time on his watch, and it was only a few minutes past eleven, which meant that, although he was indeed late, he made it in the nick of time before Sir Derek would become really angry.

Explaining to him why he didn't come to work yesterday was whole other battle.

After taking a deep breath, Mako entered through the back door as quietly as possible to avoid alerting anyone.

"MISTER MAKO GREY!" A loud voice was heard from across the room as soon as Mako stepped inside the bakery.

'Ah, s***!' Mako thought as he turned around to face his boss.

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Author's Note: Hey guys! Universal Power System is one of my favorite projects, and I hope you enjoy reading it as much as I have enjoyed writing it. This is my very first work, so expect some amateur writing and a few slips. However, I always try to learn and correct myself so I can create a more coherent narrative. I hope you guys enjoy it. Don't forget to check out my other works!

Come say hi to me on Discord: https://discord.gg/TvjkrdnbE2