Name: Noah
Lifespan: 18/76
Strength: 1.2+
Endurance: 1.1+
Spirit: 1.2
Charm: 1.3+
Unused Attribute Points: 0.4
Talent 1: [Endless Growth] — No upper limit, no bottleneck. Keep training, and you'll keep getting stronger!
Talent 2: [Strength Bonus] — Gain an additional 0.1 attribute point for every improvement in an attribute.
The attribute panel in front of Noah was simple, with no unnecessary explanations. His gaze rested on the 0.4 unused attribute points. But instead of using them right away, he decided to wait.
After all, it made sense to reserve them for later when improving his stats would be tougher. Right now, he wanted to test out this "Endless Growth" talent.
"I remember reading in my past life that you can become stronger just by exercising…" Noah mused, glancing at the clock on the wall. It was already 8:19 AM, and his class started in half an hour.
His school was about two kilometers away, and if he walked like usual, he'd definitely be late.
"Why not run to school? Running counts as exercise, right?" Noah thought for a moment before grabbing his bag and heading out the door, making a split-second decision.
As he sprinted into the cool morning air, the breeze hitting his face cleared his mind. He watched people rushing to their destinations and thought to himself, "If I'm going to exercise, I might as well go all out."
With that thought, Noah suddenly picked up his pace. Passersby stared in surprise as he zoomed by, running at full speed toward school like a gust of wind.
Two kilometers wasn't a problem for Noah, who was in decent physical shape. He could normally jog that distance in just over ten minutes without breaking a sweat. But running at full speed was a whole different challenge.
In the first 400 meters, the adrenaline kicked in, making him feel confident. It was exhilarating, and he didn't feel any discomfort. But Noah knew better than to trust that early rush—it was his brain tricking him while his body still had energy to burn. The real pain would come later.
At around 700 meters, his breathing started to become uneven, and his legs felt heavier with each step. Sweat began pouring as his body heated up.
By the time he hit 1,500 meters, his heart pounded in his chest like it was ready to burst. Every muscle in his body screamed in agony as if they were on fire. His breath became ragged, and pain shot through his lungs. Still, he pushed through, his mind locked on one goal: reaching school before the bell.
Nine minutes later, Noah staggered through the school gates, his body drenched in sweat. His classmates and teacher stared in shock as he collapsed into a chair in the front row, barely making it before the bell rang.
"Did… did you run all the way here?" The teacher asked, eyebrows raised as she took in Noah's disheveled appearance.
Breathing heavily, Noah nodded, "Yeah… something like that."
"Well, go sit down then," the teacher said, still baffled. Noah dragged himself to his seat, feeling the stares of his classmates on him.
Beside him, a skinny blonde boy with a curious look leaned over and whispered, "Noah, did you really sprint all the way here? What's gotten into you?" It was Peter Parker, the same chatty classmate who had always sat next to him.
Looking at Peter, Noah suddenly remembered—this guy was Spider-Man in the making, though he hadn't been bitten by the spider yet.
"Yeah, something like that," Noah replied, still catching his breath, while Peter continued to ask questions in hushed tones.
Meanwhile, Noah discreetly opened his attribute panel. Thankfully, no one else could see it, as it didn't reflect in mirrors or other surfaces. Only he had access to this secret power.
And there it was—several new lines of text had appeared under the description column:
Description:
You completed a run of 2,024 meters, with an average pace of 4 minutes 42 seconds per kilometer.
Physical energy depleted by 74%. Endurance limit increased by 2.2%, repeated 65 times. Endurance increased by 0.1.Strength decreased by 43%. Strength limit increased by 2.7%, repeated 193 times. Strength increased by 0.1.Willpower consumed by 46%. Willpower limit increased by 4.3%, repeated 356 times. Spirit increased by 0.1.
Reading this, Noah's eyes lit up. The system was clearly guiding him, detailing exactly how his stats improved through running. If he repeated these exercises enough, all his physical attributes could increase.
And this was just from running. What if he tried push-ups? Sit-ups? Squats? The possibilities seemed endless.
But as exciting as this discovery was, Noah couldn't help but think, "Only 0.1 after over 300 reps? At this rate, it'll take ages to reach someone like the Hulk's strength."
He knew he had to be quick, time was of the essence.
Feeling his energy return slightly, Noah stood up abruptly. "Teacher, I'm feeling a bit dizzy. Can I go to the infirmary?" he asked, raising his hand.
The teacher, still processing the earlier sprint, nodded hesitantly. "Peter, why don't you take him to the infirmary?"
"No, it's fine. I can go by myself," Noah insisted, giving Peter a reassuring smile.
Before anyone could argue, Noah dashed out of the classroom, leaving his classmates in stunned silence.
The whole class was speechless. Did he just… skip class without even trying to hide it?
______________________________________________________________________________________
So, this is my first time doing this. I hope you guys can help me improve by providing your feedback, and some stones would be nice. (づ ◕‿◕ )づ
Testing to see if this will be good. If this reaches more than 1k views, I will upload more chapters!