Ch 4: Adoption for real

Horas had a nightmare where he had transmigrated into his novel and then been made to take a test from hell. He was so thankful when he woke up that silent tears streamed down his face.

‘Finally, the nightmare is over. I need to see what time it is.’

Horas turned to his side, waiting to see a familiar pillow and his phone. But something was different about his surroundings.

No, nor something! Everything was different about his surroundings and Horas raised his arm to rub his eyes. And then he noticed it - his arm was small and thin like a kid’s. There was also a shiny metallic spot in the middle of it.

He quickly touched the shiny spot and it opened up to show a gaming system-like panel.

[[[Initiating boot-up system installation. Scanning initials.

User name: Horas Spencer, 5 years 6 months old

Lvl 1

Stats:

Strength: 1/10

Stamina: 3/10

Luck: 5/10

Mana: 1/10

Intelligence 7/10

Speed 2/10

Additional Skills: None]]]

Horas opened his mouth to shout but something in him was causing him to feel sleepy and incapable of shouting. It was for good reasons as well since Horas noticed the man sitting at his side a little too late.

It seemed like the man at his side was busy sleeping so he did not disturb him for now. He recognized the man as the devil who was responsible for Horas being in the hospital.

“The doctor said you pushed yourself too hard so you should rest and get something to eat. There is a protein bar on your side table you can munch on until real food comes in.”

Horas looked at his side to find a chocolate bar waiting for him. Still, he did not reach out to take the offered food and he watched the man in front of him carefully to see what would happen next.

Horas might not have remembered ever writing a character such as Mark, but that did not mean he did not recognize people like him.

Mark was likely using Horas for his research and Horas would not allow himself to fall victim to the man. He would not touch the chocolate bar no matter how hungry he got.

“Hoh, not reaching for chocolate? I thought kids like you liked chocolate. Or, are you being cautious since you do not know me as well as you should? You are a smart kid-”

Horas dodged Mark’s hand when it came out to pet him. He was not taking any chances today and especially not with this man in front of him.

“What the—...Hey, I saved your life, kid. Cut me some slack and put your guard down.”

Mark sounded tired and resigned as he watched Horas put his guard up. Horas knew that look so he tried to relax a little.

At the same time, the doctor finally entered the room. No one could have guessed that the female in front of them was a doctor if not for her clothing.

First of all, she was muscular and wild-looking. Next, she had a lot of body muscles and looked as if she could snap you into two without even trying. She was someone Horas had made up on a whim but had liked enough to keep around.

She was Sarah Mills, also known as Lady Heals. She was the resident healer of the Esper’s academy and also a key component of the MC’s future party.

Or, she had been before she had been killed in a raid battle while saving the MC. In other words, she had been a cannon fodder character Horas knew to stay clear of.

[[[Scanning Character.

Name: Sarah Mills.

Code Name: Lady Heals.

Affiliation: Esper’s academy]]]

“Hey Mark, let the little guy breathe a little. Can’t you see that you are scaring him? Sorry, little guy but this guy here is a little insensitive when it comes to people.”

Lady Heals smacked Mark on the back and the impact sound made it seem like it hurt. Mark even winches as a result of being smacked.

Horas felt his body flinch even when he knew there was no reason to. He was not the one being hurt.

“Sarah, what the hell? Can’t you see that you are the one scaring the kid, not me? Your buffon-like build can make anyone cry.”

Mark complained as he tried to rub his back. He was hurt and now would have a bruise.

He did not notice the tick mark on Sarah’s forehead as she cracked her hands together. Nor did he see the other smack coming his way before it made contact with his back.

“Shut up, you jerk. If you don’t have anything nice to say then don’t say anything. Anyway, kid, there is no need for you to be scared of me. I’m not a scary lady.”

Sarah Mills tried to savage her reputation but it was of no use. Or, it would have been of no use had the kid she was trying to convince been anyone other than Horas.

Horas might look like a kid but he was an adult and also the creator of this world. He knew Sarah’s character better than anyone else. She was a good person under all her ‘macho-charms’.

“I’m really hungry. Can I get something to eat?”

Horas was not a shy kid so he asked for food right away. Sarah looked a little taken aback before a grin broke free on her face.

“Sure kid, I will feed you well. Hey Mark, help me get some food for the kid.”

Horas watched as mark complained but he did push himself to stand up. It was weird to be treated in such a manner but he was not disappointed in the least.

If this was to be his new reality, then Horas wanted to be as prepared as he could. Since he knew the future, he wanted to save himself as much hassle as he could.

‘First thing first, I need to get stronger. I made the second lead have limitless potential to keep up with the main lead but I never developed him. I cannot make the same mistake again.’

…………..

“So, the kid finally fell asleep, huh? So, care to tell me what is going on here? Why do we suddenly have a kid in our school now? He is not seriously going to become a student, right?”

Sarah Mills asked as soon as she noticed that the kid had dozed off. It had been only about a matter of time since she had used sedatives in his drip. The kid needed nutrition and sleep the most.

She did not know what kind of childhood this kid had, but it had been an unfortunate one for sure. The kid had too many supplements and suppressants in his body to delay his progress.

It was almost as if someone was desperate to stop the kid from growing. And it would have a lot of impact on his future development.

“I don’t know what the principal was thinking either when she brought the kid in. But the kid did get fitted with a system so he has no choice but to enroll and become a Hunter now. The world would not leave the kid alone otherwise.”

In this new world, there were only two ways to survive - you either ally yourself with a guild and become a ‘good guy’ or you joined the dark side and become a ‘villain’.

Both had the same goal - to conquer the dungeons and make sure the earth was safe. But both sides had different reasons for doing so.

The only way to access one’s abilities was through the technology called a ‘system’ and it had taken humans a lot of time to figure out how to make use of it.

“I feel sorry for the kid and I don’t think he will survive for long. Do you have a plan as his new guardian?”

Sarah asked as she looked at the kid. Unlike these creepy, unfeeling people in front of her, she had a lot of feelings about a kid being here.

“Hmm, I think I will keep the kid in my labs and train him in stamina and endurance for two years before allowing him to join the regular crew. I have a feeling the kid’s smart enough to help me out behind the scenes.”

Mark replied with a relatively flat tone. His eyes were calculating as he looked at the kid in front of him.

He got a smack in the back of his head for his effort. It did not hurt much but it did strike his consciousness a little.

‘Right, this is no time for me to be joking around. I need to pay attention to the kid I accidentally took in and will have to raise now.’

“You know what Mark, I don’t think you know what you are doing with your life right now. You are making me feel bad for the kid now.”

Sarah did sound sorry when she said that and Mark felt his forehead tick in irritation. But then he looked at the kid in front of him and Mark’s anger drained away slowly. And then the reality of his situation hit him.

At age of 21, Mark had become a dad and he was not even married. God, his life was turning all the wrong turns nowadays.

'I knew I should not have come to my job today. I should have listened to my friend's advise.'