So, I may have underestimated just how difficult burpees actually were. Well, it's not that burpees were a high level exercise or anything, but I was just shit at them. And, after doing the hundredth or so repetition, I found that – to my dawning horror – I couldn't even move my damn limbs anymore. So, I fell and curled up on the floor, panting and covered in sweat, damn-near paralyzed because my arms, shoulders, and legs were too tired. What did I learn?

Well, I probably should've done the exercise in sets with some breaks in between, instead of doing the full hundred in one exhausting go. And now, I was paying the price for being an idiot. At the very least, the floor was pretty comfortable and the heater was on; so, I wouldn't freeze to death even without a blanket. Tsk, I just wish I could've stretched a little more before falling. My muscles were going to be sore as shit tomorrow. All said and done, however, it was totally worth it as I brought up my physical stats.

STR – 5(+4)
DEX – 4(+4)
VIT – 6(+3)

Holy shit, that was a +2 to every single stat. If I kept this up, I'd be reaching hundreds or so within less than two months. Now, I was pretty weak compared to my friends, but I couldn't imagine that the gap between us – stat wise – was anything crazy. If I had a STR of 5, then someone like Ben probably had 10, maybe 12. If I could maintain this sort of progress every single day, then I'll be inhumanly strong before the end of the month! Maybe. Not quite sure just yet. Progress eventually slowed down. That was how things usually were, unless I ramped up my training as well. And, at some point, I'd be doing DBZ levels of nonsense training just to get buy, like doing push ups or pull ups with like 500 kilograms' worth of weights.

I eventually drifted off to sleep right there on the floor, exhaustion dragging me into a deep slumber.

When I woke up, the first thing I noticed was that the expected muscle soreness was nowhere to be found. I blinked a few times, sitting up and rubbing my eyes. I stretched my arms and moved my legs. There was no stiffness, no pain, not even the slightest bit of fatigue from the previous night's exertion. Shit, I got back down and did one burpee in one second far easier than I did yesterday. It wasn't effortless, of course, but I felt that I could now do several more without my arms turning into wet spaghetti.

I felt… incredible. More than that, I felt stronger, faster, and more alert than I ever had before.

I stood up and stretched again, marveling at the ease with which my body moved. Every joint, every muscle, responded with a smoothness and efficiency that was almost surreal. It was like my body had been completely rejuvenated overnight. This wasn't just a good night's sleep; this was something else entirely. I mean, it probably wasn't superhuman by any means, but a nerd who never exercised suddenly gaining twice the amount of strength he used to have was bound to feel a world of difference and that was exactly what I felt. Is this what average fit people felt all the time?

I walked over to the mirror and took a good look at myself. My muscles, which had been more or less average before, were now far more defined. I could see the outlines of my abs, my biceps looked more prominent, and my legs had a noticeable increase in muscle tone. I wasn't ripped or jacked or anything like that, but I knew myself well enough and I knew that the difference was freaking staggering. Sure, most people would look at me and think that my physique was pretty average and I'd agree. But it was like I had undergone months of intense training in a single night.

"Damn," I muttered to myself, flexing a bit just to see how it felt. My physical transformation was real, and it was happening fast. And it hadn't even been a week since I received the System. I felt fucking giddy, honestly, excited as shit.

I checked my status screen again. Yep.

STR – 9
DEX – 8
VIT – 8

This was insane. If sleeping could quite literally rejuvenate my whole body, then my potential for growth was almost limitless. I could push myself to the absolute limit every single day, knowing that I'd wake up the next morning completely recovered and ready to go again. I suppose I should've expected this, somewhat, seeing as a lot of video games, especially RPGs, actually had the same mechanic, wherein the player character would sleep a full six or eight hours and wake up with a full health bar.

In my case, it made my muscles heal faster. Sleep was a very important mechanic to this whole thing, it seemed, just as I figured.

A surge of excitement rushed through me. I was on the path to becoming something more than human, and it wasn't just a distant dream anymore. It was happening right now, and I could feel it with every fiber of my being. I had the power to become stronger, faster, and more resilient than anyone around me, a genuine superhuman. And I knew that I could become even greater. I'd read my fair share of Gamer stories and they all ended the same way: godhood.

By accumulating enough items and blessings and magical shit, I'd eventually reach a level of a god.

But, that would be a very long time from now.

With a renewed sense of purpose, I started planning my day. More training was definitely on the agenda, but I also needed to think about my next steps. My parents really didn't care too much if I roamed the streets of Portland at night, seeing as it was probably the safest city in America. The only reason I didn't do that was because I didn't want to. Something told me, however, that I'd probably have to start walking around actually doing things in order to fulfill any of the Hidden Quests.

Maybe, if I stopped a mugging or saved someone on the cusp of death? No idea. But Hidden Quests would definitely be beyond the simple Daily Quests.

But for now, it was time to put my newfound strength to the test. I had a hundred burpees to beat, and this time, I wasn't going to be an idiot about it. Sets and breaks were the way to go. I was ready to push myself harder than ever before, and with this kind of progress, nothing could stop me.

I got down and started my routine, already feeling the difference. Each burpee felt more controlled, more powerful. I did fifteen in a row before feeling any sort of burn. My movements were fluid, my stamina heightened. Hell yeah. I decided to do five more, bringing the reps up to a total of twenty, before I decided to stop and rest. I wasn't tired, but I didn't want to push myself to exhaustion again – or... did I? See, one thing that I just thought of was the possibility that the System rewarded dangerous and painfully exhausting exercises, like the one I'd just done last night. Maybe, just maybe, it wouldn't reward me for playing it safe.

I wasn't sure.

But, there was a way to figure it out. I could play it safe today and go full hardcore tomorrow and compare the results. I had time, after all. I turned to the clock. It was 4:00 am in the morning, two hours before jogging with mom. After resting for thirty seconds, I did another twenty, which was a bit harder than the first twenty reps had been, but not so much that I had to stop midway. I rested for another thirty seconds and that was pretty much how things went from there. Each set became harder than the last, but I kept my resting time to only thirty seconds each time.

The whole thing took me an hour and that was only because of the last two sets, during which my limbs were practically spaghetti. Overall, I was able to finish the whole thing without falling to the floor from pure exhaustion. In fact, I felt mostly okay. Sure, I was tired and fatigued as shit, but not freakishly so. I brought up my stats again.

STR – 9(+1)
DEX – 8(+1)
VIT – 8(+1)

Interesting. The results were definitely lower. So, effort and exhaustion definitely counted. However, one advantage, I realized, to a more balanced approached, was that I could probably do another one hundred burpees at least two more times over the course of the day. Sure, it'll hurt and burn like hell, but I could do it. The last one would have to be two hours or so before I slept so that I could just sleep on the floor if necessary. I had classes to day, but there was a three-hour gap between Chemistry and Physics, which was just enough time for me to exercise. So, if I played my cards right and paced myself, I could increase all my stats my three points just before I slept. Not bad.

And I could challenge Terry for another bout of armwrestling for that extra +1 to my STR stat.

After a quick shower, I mixed up a protein shake, which I placed in the fridge, and prepped some breakfast. My body felt like it was running on high-octane fuel. Every movement was effortless, every breath came easily. The giddiness from my newfound strength kept me in high spirits. I could get used to this.

By the time my mom was ready for our morning jog, I was practically bouncing on my toes.

"You're awfully chipper today," she remarked, tying her shoelaces. Mom looked tired, I noted, dark bags under her eyes. Unusual. She was always well-rested. Mom made it a point to always sleep eight hours a day. Something was wrong here. But, I also knew her well enough to know that she wouldn't tell me what was bothering her, no matter how much I asked. At the very least, I knew it wasn't related to dad, because these two never fought.

"Just feeling good," I replied, giving her a grin. "Ready to go?"

We set off at a brisk pace. The cool morning air filled my lungs, invigorating me further. I could feel the power in my legs with every stride. Our usual route felt almost too easy now, and I had to consciously hold myself back to keep pace with her. Almost. It was still pretty hard and, after noticing the fact that I wasn't tiring out as quickly as before, mom decided it was a good idea to extend our running route, adding another hour's worth of movement, which – again – wasn't nearly as hard as it should've been.

"You're really pushing it today," Mom said, slightly out of breath as we reached the halfway mark. "New training regimen?"

"Something like that," I said, keeping my breathing steady, even as my heart pounded in my chest, like freaking war drums. This was already way better than yesterday, however. Sure, I felt like I was five seconds away from a damn heart attack, but I felt good, nonetheless. "Just trying to improve a bit."

She gave me a knowing smile. "Well, it's working, honey. You look great."

Our run took us into an alleyway that was close to where mom's salon was. And, as we did, we passed by the most beautiful woman I've ever seen in my entire life – raven-black hair, deep gold eyes, a highly-trained and developed form, with generous bosoms and wide hips, all of it tightly held by a white shirt that looked a little tight, and a pair of jeans. She glanced at me for a moment and her eyes narrowed. Mom didn't notice her at all. The woman passed us by and disappeared

That was... odd. Something about her didn't feel right.

Eh, whatever. I checked my stats as soon as we got home and smiled. Hell yeah.

STR – 9(+1)
DEX – 8(+1)
VIT – 8(+2)

Helena Stolas raised a brow as she passed by a peculiar human with a peculiar presence.

Was that a Sacred Gear? She wondered, before shrugging. Unlike many of her kin, Helena was not at all interested in collecting Sacred Gear Users for some dastardly Peerage. Though, for the benefit of information, she'd keep an eye on the boy and see which one he possessed. She might not be interested in a Peerage, but someone in the Underworld would surely pay quite a bit of money for a powerful Sacred Gear user.