Henry jolted awake in a panic, the feeling of pain from his injuries still fresh on his mind. " My arm!" And as he held his arm, he was surprised to find that it had no injuries.
The sunlight made Henry's vision blurry, so he wasn't sure where he was. " System? What happened to me?" He was confused as the last thing he remembered was being beaten up by Marcos.
-' Host was made unconscious for the duration of the cautionary plan, your body is now completely recovered.' Henry sighed as he thought that the system's answer was too vague, but, a pungent smell assaulted his nose.
He looked down to see where the smell was coming from and jumped in fright as he noticed that he was laying on a pile of bodies. -" Marcos?" Henry became even more surprised as he recognized the bodies. " What the hell happened?"
He hadn't just recognized Marcos, but, his companion and the three members of the group that arrived later. Henry felt his stomach churn as he observed the decaying corpses and tried his best not to puke.
He quickly climbed out from the pit he was in, and smiled as he looked down. " Serves you right! That's what you get for robbing me!" henry was happy that his enemies ended up worse than him, but, this happiness was short-lived as tears began to pour out of his eyes.
He sat down on the floor sobbing, the feeling of being at death's door terrified Henry. " Thank you System, I-I-I thought that I was going to die." He calmed down after a few minutes and got up.
-" I was too careless... I should have stayed silent for longer." Henry was disappointed with himself, he knew that he was being too open with all the treasures he got, yet, never even tried to hide them. " It just took two days for someone to come looking for me, but, I won't waste this new chance! No more messing up!" Henry's eyes shone with resolve, he was blessed with a second chance, so he would try his best this time.
Previously Henry was too engrossed in the power that the system gave him to realize all his mistakes.
-" Let's think about this first..." Henry looked at the bodies on the pit with disgusted eyes. " Every treasure counts right?" Henry went down the pit again and began to search the bodies.
To his surprise, he only found treasures in the three unknown men's bodies. " Marcos was likely broke after our bet, but, his friend looked strong, so he had to have a few items." Henry sighed as he decided to go through all the items that he found.
-' Lamp of Frost - Medium Grade - Third Level Human Realm Artifact - A Lamp that holds ice energy.'
-' Shadow Strike - Low Grade - Third Level Human Realm Artifact - A Sword that contains dark energy, enemies wounded by this blade may fall ill.'
-' Hatred's Mask - Low Grade - Second Level Human Realm Artifact - A Mask that causes the people that look at it to be enraged.'
-' Life's Feather - Low Grade - Second Level Human Realm Artifact - A Feather that boosts the recovery and healing type spells.'
Henry was amazed by the number of treasures, but, he soon noticed that some of the items he was wearing were missing. " 'Wolpertinger Fur Boots, Beamcloth Shirt, and the Amulet of Affluence all are missing..." Henry sighed as he finally remembered about his lost sword." I lost a Star Tainted Sword too, a high grade one no less..."
Henry's eyes widened as he opened his system. " My items! System, What happened to them?" Henry was baffled to find the system inventory almost empty, with only the Star Tainted Sword and a few herbs remaining.
-' The system lacked the energy to complete the cautionary plan, so treasures had to be sacrificed for energy.'
-" What is this cautionary plan?" Henry was disappointed, he barely had any profit even with all the third level treasures he got from the bodies.
-" The Cautionary Analysis is a hidden feature that only activates when the Host is in extreme danger, this feature has a 3 years cooldown.'
-" T-Three years?" Henry's mouth dropped as he realized that he had used quite the trump card. " Well, a bunch of treasures for my life isn't that big of a deal." He knew that most of the items he had lost were herbs that he could easily gather again.
Henry climbed the pit again, and began to look for a place to clean himself, he picked every herb that he found on his way to the nearest river. He was unsure if he should return to the city so soon, as he didn't know who his enemies were.
" I know why Marcos wanted to kill me, but, what about the other group?" Henry thought about his enemies while cleaning his body. " Maybe someone else who saw the Sword? But who killed the second group?" Henry felt that the situation was too suspicious. " I should stay out of sight for now..."
After finishing his bath, Henry decided to plan his next steps. " I had used the furnace on the day of the attacks, so three days passed since then." Henry saw that the Furnace cooldown was halfway completed. " If Makayla learns about what happened to me she will surely be worried." He wanted to return to the city and talk to her, but, he knew that this would only bring more danger. " I need to visit the city and get provisions." Henry took a set of clothes he found on one of the spatial rings and wore it, he choose a hooded robe as he feared that he would be recognized in the streets.
Henry was tense as he walked through the streets, each step he took made him even more paranoid that someone would recognize him. He breathed in relief as he finally reached the street he lived, but, he froze as he approached his store.
-" In the Memory of Henry Flint?" Henry's eyes widened as he read the small plaque under his portrait. " Do they think that I'm dead?" Henry was shocked to learn about his supposed death, his mind could only think about his sister.
Henry swallowed as he ran to the only place he thought that his burial could happen. He never expected to be declared dead, but, the more he thought, the more sense it made, after all, he was missing for three days now.
It didn't take too long for Henry to reach the cemetery where his parents were buried, and in the distance, he already could see a small group near his parent's graves.
Henry was emotional a he saw Makayla crying next to his grave, she looked a bit skinnier and frail now. " Poor Makayla... She must be going through so much right now." Henry wanted to go over and hug her, but he held back.
Henry looked over the group at his funeral and was surprised to find that even Abel was present. " Abel, Alden, Jonathan, and even Elizabeth showed up?" Henry smiled as he saw most of his neighbors too. " Looks like I'm not that bad of a person after all." Henry was content with the size of his funeral, he always thought that the only person that would mourn his death was Makayla.
-" Just wait for a bit! When I'm stronger I will give you all a good surprise." Henry lowered his head as tears poured from his eyes again.
He knew that this was an opportunity for him, after all, he didn't have to worry about his enemy now. -" I just need to make sure that Makayla is looked after..." Henry still had plenty of money left, so he just needed to find a way to give it to her.
Henry left the cemetery and headed straight to his shop again, he waited until he was sure that no one was looking and tried to enter it, but, he found out that his key didn't open the door any longer.
-" Did they change the locks?" Henry grinned as he tried to push open the door again. " What I do now?" Henry felt that he was out of options. " Should I go meet someone?" He didn't know who to trust as he was even suspicious of the Whitelocks
He had just turned around to leave when he meet a familiar face. " Hey, boy..." Henry held the kid by the hand and stopped him, he couldn't believe how lucky he was to find the young boy again.
-" S-S-Sir?" The boy trembled in fear as the man stopped him. " May I help you with something?"
-" Yes, I have something for you to do." Henry laughed as he took off his hood. and showed his face.
The kid's eyes widened in surprise, he had been looking for this man every day. " Sir! Y-Y-Your herbs..." The boy was tearing up as he mustered the strength to speak. " I had to sell the herbs you forgot, I'm sorry... I looked for you to return then, but, I never found you, and my father's health got worse.
-" I Don't care about the herbs, but, I need your help with something." Henry was surprised by the boy's honesty. " I will even pay you." Henry was sure that he had found someone perfect for the task.