Aiden have found himself in a situation to save a damsel in distress? His blood started to
pump faster as he dashed through the alley. Immediately, he noticed three young men
surrounding a helpless young girl in a corner of the alley. Each had hair dyed a different
color and wore matching black vests.
A young girl who seemed to be about the same age as Aiden reminded him of Viola. Her
pretty face was complimented by her fair skin as she wore a white school uniform that
accentuated her innocence. Being as pretty as Viola, it was no wonder these hooligans
had their eyes on her.
Her face was filled with nothing but fear as she called out for help and her voice grew
more hoarse and desperate with each shout. Please! Someone please help me! The girl
called, her pale like a frightened rabbit. She seemed delicate and fragile, as if she would
break with a single touch.
Please don't hurt me, she begged. I'm just trying to get home from work. Beautiful, don't
be scared.
We just want to invite you over for a drink, one of the boys said. Another followed with,
that's right, we're all good and honest citizens. They were all laughing as they moved
closer to her.
The three hooligans wore obscene smiles on their faces as their eyes seemingly
indicated their desire to devour the girl whole. How could she believe their words? At this
point, she could only shout for help, hoping that her voice would reach someone. A clear
cough echoed through the alley and the three bullies, shocked by the unexpected
appearance of someone, quickly turned around.
However, when they saw that the newcomer was just a thin and weak student, the three
of them immediately felt reassured and smiled mockingly. One of the boys taunted
Aiden, you stinkin' brat, shouldn't you be at home studying? Do you actually want to play
the hero tonight? Another laughed and followed with, look at how weak he is, he hasn't
even hit puberty yet, do you really want to take us on? The three delinquents laughed
maniacally, dismissing Aiden as a threat. The flame of hope that had just ignited in the
girl's eyes extinguished in that instant, and her face grew ashen.
It looked like she wouldn't be escaping these monsters after all. On the other hand,
Aiden, confident in the power of his strengthening system, remained rather calm as he
declared, mark my words, I really will save the girl today. If you bastards know what's
good for you, then you better bolt before you regret it.
Wow, dude's got guts for his age. The three hooligans were shocked at first, but soon
revealed a vicious expression, and one of them said, alright, we'll teach you not to
meddle in other people's business. After their threat, the three hooligans pulled out a
sharp, metallic object that reflected the moonlight from its shining surface.
They each grasped a pocket knife firmly in their hand. God damn it, Aiden cursed to
himself. He had originally wanted to make use of the system to see if he could awaken
other abilities, but who would have thought that these guys were actually carrying
weapons on them? His brave front had backfired on him.
Finding himself in such a dire situation, Aiden could not help but retreat. Aw, now you're
afraid? Too late, one of the boys taunted. Get him, shouted another.
The three of them instantly charged towards Aiden. The cold gleam of the knives in their
hands reflected their thirst for blood. Aiden, in his moment of panic, tried finding
something, anything that he could use in the alley to defend himself.
Scattered on the ground around him were pieces of stones, discarded bottles, glass jars,
and other rubbish. Forget it, I'll just use whatever I pick up, he thought. Aiden picked up
a random stone from the ground and threw it at the three hooligans with his utmost
strength.
Throwing ability, plus one. Current progress, one out of ten. Current level, beginner.
Unfortunately, the stone passed from between the two hooligans, missing its target.
Despite his missed attempt, Aiden's expression gradually relaxed as the corner of his
mouth hooked up into a strange smile. There it was, the sliver of hope he needed.
Try and dodge another one of my flying stones. Aiden
adjusted his center of gravity and stomped his feet on the ground as he threw another
rock.
Ding! Throwing ability, plus one. Current progress, two out of ten. With each step back,
Aiden fought the three hooligans by throwing the small stones toward them.
Each throw was stronger and more accurate than the last. At first, the accuracy of his
throws was completely off the mark, and when he accidentally hit one of the few
hooligans, it didn't really hurt them. Instead, it seemed to make them angrier and more
impatient.
But when he threw his eleventh one, everything changed. Ding! Throwing ability, plus
one. Current progress, eleven out of a hundred.
Current level, proficient. That familiar feeling welled up in his mind once again. His
intuition told him that he would definitely hit his target in the next throw, and it would be painful too.
With that thought in mind, he flung the stone in his hand with great force, and it flew
towards the hooligan like a dart. Unlike his previous attempts, the speed of stone was
clearly twice as fast. With a loud-sounding collision, the stone struck one of the hooligans
in the eye.
Critical hit. Throwing ability, plus two. Current progress, thirteen out of a hundred.
The boy yelled. A gut-wrenching screech reverberated through the long, dark alley. The
injured hooligan collapsed to the ground, covering his wounded right eye as blood flowed
out between his fingers.
It was obvious that Aiden's enhanced attack had injured the hooligan's eye. My eyes!
The boy kept yelling. Quick, said another boy.
Catch him! I will personally dig out his eyes! Despite their initial shock, the other two
hooligans boiled with rage, to think that the kid had managed to hurt one of them even
though they outnumbered him. With that, the remaining two hooligans turned towards
Aiden with their knives up, ready to strike. But Aiden was no longer the weak boy he had
been before.
He did not need to run. Instead, he smiled confidently, and threw a stone at each of
them at lightning speed. The stones flew straight at them, and then the two miserable
shrieks rang out once again in the dark alley.
The faces of the remaining two hoodlums twisted as they held onto their crotches in
agonizing pain, dropping to their knees. With near-perfect accuracy, the two stones that
Aiden flung had hit them squarely in their weakest place. Ding! Critical hit.
Throwing ability, plus five. Current progress, eighteen out of a hundred. If the stones had
landed elsewhere, they might still have a chance to fight against Aiden.
However, no man could endure the agony of getting hit in the No-No Square. In less than
two minutes, all three lackeys had lost their spirits to fight and were wailing like babies
on the ground. The girl, who stood backed into a corner, gaped in response,
dumbfounded as if she had looked into the eyes of Medusa.
Having been captivated by Aiden's bravery and ability, she had completely forgotten
about escaping during the fight. What just happened? How did this thin and weak-looking
youth take down those three hooligans with mere stones? As her initial panic subsided,
her mind was submerged in calm and relief. She now felt that even if there were another
ten hooligans in the alley, it would not be a big deal, not with this boy around.
From afar, the youth seemed to be emitting the certain light of hope that excited her.
Meanwhile, Aiden was too immersed in himself to be exhilarated. Ever since he was
young, he had never had the guts to stand up for himself, much less other people.
Even when he was bullied, he did not dare retaliate. He just pushed his grievances deep
inside. This was the first time Aiden fought back and defended himself.
Furthermore, he had even saved someone's life. His sense of accomplishment and
satisfaction was simply too much for him to handle and process all at once. Saving a
damsel in distress, your affinity with the particular female student has increased.
Flirting Skill, plus 5. Current Progress, 6 out of 10. Huh? In that instant, the system's
voice immediately caught Aiden's attention. As he glanced at the girl he saved, whose
name was still unknown to him, his eyes glittered with amazement.