BXBX NOVEL Chapter 28 Hidden Danger (2)
Was he aggressive with someone? Ethan didn\'t think so. Besides Damian and Mia. But were they involved in this? And more importantly, could he really trust the boss\'s words?
His fear of these people and losing Sam seemed real. What should he do now? Ethan groaned, from the corner of his eyes he saw Izora covering her ears and her body trembling as more tears fell down her face. She was truly scared. And honestly, he also was. Who wouldn\'t be scared of the unknown?
He took a deep breath and slowly stepped forward, towards the door. He had a few pocket knives with him, one dagger and a gun. One of those people was standing just outside, as if completely lifeless.
He had divine sense so he adjusted his trajectory and pointed the gun at a position that went straight for the person\'s head. But could he really press the trigger?
If he pressed the trigger, the other person would die. He might again go to jail. He might again lose his loved ones. But if he didn\'t he might also die here. Maybe he wouldn\'t, maybe he would… He felt like he was going crazy. Was there no other way?
He could immobilize them, he thought. But the boss\' words still lingered in his head. They were monsters. The only way to stop them was to kill them.
Color drained from his face. He had experienced this before, killing someone that is. It was accidental, but he paid a lot of price for it. Ethan\'s hand started to tremble.
[Stress: 62/100]
The dark figure on the opposite side of the gate seemed to be peering at his soul, slowly digging out his black memories. He had suffered a lot and also made many people suffer.
With a new chance at life, he should have striven to improve. But he didn\'t. He was still trash. Ethan\'s gaze became blank.
Why was he struggling like this? He should just let go.
[Stress: 100/100]
At that moment, Nyx\'s voice rang in his head. [Ethan Hunt! You still haven\'t apologized to Sasha. Don\'t be a fucking coward!!!]
Ethan broke out of stupor. "Yes… I-I have to call her."
[Stress: 95/100]
His decision perplexed her. But maybe it could improve his condition. Nyx was a bit surprised by how vulnerable Ethan was. He seemed to be confident in everything. Though he had hinted that he had a troubled past, still he seemed to be improving.
Nyx was speechless. The reason she couldn\'t figure out this was because Ethan didn\'t accept his weak side. His coping mechanism was dangerous for not only him but all parties involved.
Fortunately, he had given her the permission to use special points so now she could get some calming pills for him. Still she waited for him to call Sasha.
With his left hand, Ethan dialed Sasha\'s number. Earlier when he was hiding outside, he had called her a few times but she was always busy. He wanted to warn her and tell her to stay safe.
It rang for half a minute, but she didn\'t pick it up.
He dialed again… she still didn\'t pick it up.
[Stress: 100/100]
"Sasha, you are also going to leave me?" His lips trembled.
His memories started to resurface, a pain pierced through his head.
Third time… still no response. Ethan\'s eyes became blood red. He felt his chest stiffen, it was suffocating.
[Stress: 150/100]
Nyx was highly alarmed. Stress level of a hundred was the upper cap for a reason. If prolonged for a long period of time it could lead to many physical and health issues.
At this level, the body\'s stress response was activated, leading to an increase in heart rate, blood pressure, and the release of stress hormones. This could cause symptoms such as anxiety, panic attacks, headaches, muscle tension, and difficulty sleeping.
And prolonged periods of stress could result in depression, extreme fatigue, suicidal thoughts and much more. As a result, the Remnant Will having control of Ethan\'s stress was really concerning to her.
Because they were on the same level as both of them were born from Ethan Chase\'s subconsciousness, she didn\'t have much say in its actions, of course the same went for it. So she was always looking for an excuse to keep it in check and finally she had one.
But now Ethan Hunt\'s stress level was more than a hundred! Theoretically, at this unimaginable point, his stress response would be overloaded and getting a heart attack would not even be the worst case.
But besides a few issues, Ethan\'s condition wasn\'t that severe. How was that possible? Nyx couldn\'t understand it. But she didn\'t do anything about it as she sensed many obsidian fragments moving. Nyx instinctively stopped, still she was really worried about his state.
Ethan muttered, "If you don\'t pick it then…"
He glanced at the gun. His hand was no longer trembling. He had made a horrifying decision.
The call rang… seconds turned into a minute. Sasha still didn\'t respond.
[Stress: 200/100]
Ethan closed his eyes and exhaled, ignoring the immense pain throughout his body. "I made a mistake, yes… not just one mistake but many mistakes. But I don\'t want to lose anyone. Not this time. Never in the future."
[Stress: 300/100]
Ethan opened his eyes and a red glint passed through it. He placed his mobile nearby and held the dagger with his left hand and the gun with his right.
Nyx: [!!!]
[Hidden ability Berserk activated.]
[Martial Genius activated.]
『Health: x 3』
『Arcane Points: x 3』
『Strength: x 3』
『Agility: x 3』
『Health RR: x 3』
『Arcane RR: x 3』
Without hesitation, Ethan pointed the gun at the door and pulled the trigger.
The deafening bang that followed marked the beginning of his legend.
***
It should be clear by now that Ethan doesn\'t check the status much. So I\'ll be adding the status at the end of every chapter with an additional info: current state (this is only for readers. It will show his current state of mind or his physical state.) This is for you all to see his progress and the result of his every action (numerically).
⠀⠀⠀:
⠀⠀⠀⠀[Name: Ethan Chase] | [Title: Heir ] | [Level: 20]
⠀⠀⠀⠀[Current State: Critical]
⠀⠀⠀⠀『Health: (100/100) [x 3]』
⠀⠀⠀⠀『Arcane Points: (70/70) [x 3]』
⠀⠀⠀⠀『Stress: (300/100)』
⠀⠀⠀⠀『Charm: (100/100)』
⠀⠀⠀⠀『Special Points: 510』
⠀⠀⠀⠀『Fragments of Obsidian used: (115/??)』
⠀⠀⠀⠀[Stats:]
⠀⠀⠀⠀『Strength: 12.5 (+17.5) [x 3]』|『Agility: 6 [x 3]』|『S. Stamina: 16 (+20) 』
⠀⠀⠀⠀『Health RR: 2 [x 3]』|『 Arcane RR: 50 (x5) [x 3]』|『IQ: 125 』
I want to point out one important thing here with an example. The calculation in \'Arcane RR: 50 (x5) [x 3]\' will be 50 x 5 + 50 x 3 which is 400. Similarly, in \'Strength: 12.5 (+17.5) [x 3]\' it will be 12.5 x 3 + 12.5 + 17.5 which is 67.5.
Now back to the story. ^^