Chapter 13

Ethan was still seated on his VIP bed, staring at the glowing screen in front of him. 

His heart was still racing, and his hands were slightly sweaty as he looked at the system attributes that had appeared.

 It felt unreal, like a dream. He could hardly believe this was happening to him. If anyone had told him he would be getting a system or something like this in the real world  he wouldn't have believed it.

At that moment the memories of his hard time at the university started flooding back

Those years when he had been bullied and mocked, feeling so small and powerless in the eyes of Many no one treats him like he even exists. They all look for every little opportunity to step on him because he wouldn't be able to do anything. 

"But now, now.. everything is different"

He clenched his fists as the thought of everything he had passed through started flooding in. 

"If only I had been stronger back then, if only I could stand up for myself and not allow anyone to step on me then, maybe things might have been different. Maybe I  could have fought back, maybe I could have stood up for himself instead of always being pushed around like a slave"

Ethan said to himself as his  eyes were fixated on the Strength attribute.

"This is the answer to all my problems now. Strength! is what I  need now, it's what I had always needed and lacks in school"

without even thinking twice His finger hovered over the screen, he hesitated for just a second before he pressed down and assigned ten points to his Strength attributes. 

"Ten points... that should make a difference"

He muttered to himself, his voice trembling with a mix of hope and anxiety as he awaits what is going to change after adding the Ten point to the strength attribute.

Immediately the system attributes pop out.

[Strength— 10

Speed— 0

Body (Charmness): 0

Intelligent— 0]

However as soon as he did it, a thought crossed his mind. 

Shouldn't have given that much to Strength? There were other attributes that mattered too.

 His eyes wandered to the Body attribute, labeled 

"Charmness."

Ethan had always been indifferent about how he looked. 

He never really cared about being attractive or cool. In fact, he had never considered having a girlfriend because, deep down, he never thought he deserved one. No cute girl in the university would even want him anywhere. But now, with this chance, something inside him stirred.

The idea of looking cool, of being noticed, even admired, began to appeal to him in a way it never had before but his mind was still on his strength.

After assigning the ten points to Strength and the system had confirmed it, Ethan was curious. 

He needed to know if it made any difference, like if his body had changed. 

He stood up, feeling a little more confident than before, and punched the air twice.

"That feels... the same, nothing changed"

he said, frowning slightly. 

"Maybe it's just me, I can't notice anything."

He glanced around his VIP room, searching for something to test his new strength on. 

At that moment his eyes landed on his bed. It wasn't particularly heavy, just a simple, lightweight frame. He bent down and lifted it up a few inches. Again, it felt... normal like he was using his normal strength to lift up the bed frame.

"This can't be right"

 Ethan muttered, his frustration started growing. 

"It should feel different... shouldn't it?, I shouldn't be feeling the weight this much"

At that moment Doubt began to creep into his mind.

"Maybe I had made a mistake. Maybe I should have tried doing all the attributes Simultaneously and not adding this much point on Strength."

 He let go of the bed frame and sat back down on the bed.

His thoughts started racing even more. 

"Should I just give up now and divide the remaining points on the rest attribute? Or should I push forward and add the remaining points to strength?"

However his mind flashed back again to all those times he had been bullied, all those times he had wished he could just be stronger, just for a moment. 

He couldn't give up now.

"I need to feel the difference, to see it in action, only then I will be able to understand how the attribute works"

After a moment of intense thinking, Ethan made a decision. 

" I will add another five points to Strength. "

His finger hovered over the screen once more before he tapped the button.

[Strength— 15

Speed— 0

Body (Charmness): 0

Intelligent— 0]

As soon as the points were added, he felt it. A rush of energy flowed through him.

 His muscles at that moment tightened, and his body felt denser, more powerful.

His chest seemed to puff out a little, his arms felt more solid than before. 

He flexed them, and a  small, satisfied smile formed on his lips.

"This is more like it, it works"

he said to himself, his voice filled with newfound confidence. 

"No one is going to push me around now with this, I can fight for myself."

However with his excited face he remembered there were still five points left. 

Ethan's eyes drifted back to the Body attribute. The idea of "Charmness"

 Still seemed odd to him, but he couldn't deny the curiosity gnawing at him. 

"What if I became more than just strong? What if I can look good too, like a celebrity? People might start to notice me in a different way."

"Why not do it"

He thought aloud, a hint of a smile tugging at the corners of his mouth. "It wouldn't be that bad to give it a try."

With a slight shrug, he invested the remaining five points in Body.

[Strength— 10

Speed— 0

Body (Charm) 5

Intelligent— 0]

As soon as he did, he felt a strange sensation wash over him, like a soft, warm glow from within. It wasn't uncomfortable, just... different. He quickly walked over to the mirror on his wall and stared at his reflection.

"Nothing. I  looked exactly the same. The same unruly hair, the same tired eyes. No sudden transformation into a movie star, no cool aura radiating from me"

The disappointment hit him like a wave knowing the point wasn't enough. 

"Seriously?"

 He said, shaking his head in disbelief. 

"What was I expecting? A miracle with just five point"

He sighed deeply, the frustration bubbling up inside him. 

He had made the same mistake twice. But then, a thought struck him. 

"Maybe I was just being too hard on myself. Maybe the changes was little. I  have some old photos of me stored on his phone—maybe comparing them to how I look now would show some difference."

He smiled.

"Yeah, that's it"

 Ethan said, nodding to himself as he grabbed his phone.

 "Maybe I'm just not seeing it because it's too early to notice."

He opened the photo gallery, anticipation building up inside him. As he scrolled through the pictures, looking for something recent, his excitement began to wane. 

"My last photo was... was... was... three years ago"

Ethan gasped, his eyes widening in shock. 

"How could it be this long?"