The System's Hold Over Me

Frizz arrived at home with a few bandages around his face. "It's better if you stop drinking," Weng, his older brother, remarked as he plopped down on the couch.

Frizz remained silent, not bothering to respond to his older brother's suggestion. His little brother, Ryan, passed by wearing a school uniform. Not even bothering to greet his two older brothers since he was in a hurry. Frizz walked to his room upstairs and then lied on the bed.

"System."

[System]

Name: New Name

Level: 7

Experience: 20/150

Health: 36/36 (+8) [DL+2] [PP+6]

Mana: 33/33 (+2) [DL+2]

Fatigue: 50/100 (somewhat exhausted)

Class: None

Physical Prowess = [somewhat exceptional human] 

Magical Prowess = [average human]

Mental Prowess = [below average human]

Telekinetic Prowess = [novice]

Perks: [In Good Faith], [Daily Life], [Enraged], [Reckless Approach], [Gluttonous Approach], [Telekinesis], [Alcoholic Advantage], [Peak Physicality], [Force Field], [Weakening Strikes]

Talents: None

"Ah crap, I really need to sleep. I'm exhausted." Frizz mulled as he rubbed his eyes. He slightly felt guilty seeing his former classmate and close friend from before in an injured state. He felt like he had to do something. (If my system wouldn't give me any quests about it then I will handle it.)

A soft, familiar chime rang.

[System]

New Objectives: Provide Justice for Mill

Rewards: [Tag] perk.

"Now you're being useful?" Frizz scoffed but ultimately accepted. He thought that he'd have to scour social media, looking for that almost-bald man. He stood up from his bed and opened his window to look outside; there in the distance was the objective marker along with the lines leading to the objective.

"I can barely see the objective marker," he mused as he rubbed his chin. He changed his clothes, now wearing a hoodie.

"Dad, I am going away for a while!" (Oh yeah, should I eat to activate that glutton perk?) Frizz considered it for a moment. (Not enough time. I probably don't need it.)

"We just arrived," his father shouted from another room. "Where are you going?"

"To work. I had one too many absences lately. Besides, I am fine now." Frizz shouted back near the entrance.

"Oh, okay. Be safe!" His father relents.

"Be right back," Frizz lied; he wasn't heading to work. He walked towards a bus stop. While waiting for the bus, he closed his eyes and recited a prayer.

[System]

[Daily life] active.

"My reckless approach is unreliable; I regret picking that one. I should make sure to actually turn it off this time." Frizz hailed the incoming bus and nodded at the driver as he entered.

One hour later...

"Stupid traffic," Frizz muttered. What should have been a thirty-minute trip had turned into an hour of travel through car-clogged streets. He finally got off the bus and began walking, en route to his destination, branching off from the main roads.

"This is why I hate cars, always clogging up the goddamned streets." He muttered to himself as he continued to follow the glowing lines on the ground.

Twelve minutes later...

"I see... That apartment, huh?"

As Frizz neared the apartment complex, his thoughts wandered to the almost-bald drunk that confronted them at the bar. (Would it be charged for assault if I suddenly attacked him?)

Frizz stopped in front of the building and scanned the area. There were several groups of young people outside. (Students, most likely.) He thought. The noise of their chatter faded as he ascended the stairs. He focused all his senses and formed a fist.

"Second floor," he muttered under his breath as he panted; he never stopped walking ever since he arrived in the city. He was about to lean against the railings to look down, but a voice broke through his thoughts.

"So it really is you..."

Frizz looked to his right; standing before him, framed by the dim light of the hallway, was the man he'd been hunting—the almost-bald man who brought his friends to gang up on Frizz and Mill. Recognition turned to surprise, then rage. His eyes narrowed as he walked forward. The man smirked and pulled out a small knife from his pocket.

"You think that scares me?" Frizz scoffed.

"I saw you arrive; you must be really dumb to come here alone. F****t," the almost-bald man smugly declared as he took a defensive stance. "My friends are on their way," the man said, his confidence rising. "Don't think you can take me down. I was drunk that night, but I know karate."

(A bluff? Hmm...) Frizz's lips curled into a sneer. "Karate? That won't help against someone like me, idiot."

Without warning, Frizz charged, his fist drawn back for a devastating punch. The almost-bald man shouted as he lunged, managing to slice Frizz in his face. Frizz stopped for a moment to check his face but grinned when he saw that there was no damage. The man slightly faltered, stunned to see his target barely react to the cut.

"What?" he stammered. He was sure he had sliced him; the slice connected. He glanced at his knife (it's sharp!). The man observed.

"No damage," Frizz growled.

Frizz lashed out with a punch aimed at the man's stomach, but the man twisted away at the last moment. A sharp elbow strike connected on the side of Frizz's head; the strike hit, but it felt like there was something blocking it. The man's confidence wavered as he realized the strike had no effect.

Frizz seized his wrist, wrenching the knife free. "You're out of tricks," he said, his grip unyielding. The man grunted, kicking at Frizz's side in desperation, but his blows were ineffective. Frizz cocks his head to headbutt the man, but with a sudden burst of movement, the man grabs Frizz's hoodie and throws him over their shoulder. Frizz hit the ground with a dull thud.

Frizz lied on the floor with a shocked face; for a second, the world had turned upside down. "That was a shoulder throw, right?" He indifferently remarked as he stood up.

"But you'll have to do better than that." Frizz aimed a punch at the chest but hit the forearm instead.

Irritated, Frizz roared. "DIDN'T YOU HEAR ME? DO BETTER!"

[System]

[Enrage] is active!

The man was put off by the shout. (What is with this guy? That shoulder throw should've hurt a lot!) The man thought as he took several steps back, his breathing labored. His stance shifted, hands raised in a karate guard. His left hand is on his left hip, and his right hand is in front of him.

"Come on," he taunted, though his voice betrayed his exhaustion.

Frizz sighed. "This is a waste of time."

Frizz, without a second thought, darted forward again. The man saw an opportunity and extended a kick that hit Frizz's temple with his shoes. (A brawler, no fighting skills whatsoever.) The almost-bald man confidently thought to himself, assured of his victory.

Frizz recoiled and staggered, taking a few steps back. "No damage," he declared.

The almost-bald man was wide open, and Frizz responded with a series of rapid punches: one to the stomach, another to the chest, and a final strike on the chest again that sent the man sprawling to the floor.

"You done yet?" Frizz asked, planting a foot on the man's chest. Slightly putting weight on it. The man squirmed; he tried to shove him off, but Frizz didn't budge and instead added more weight.

Before Frizz could make his next move, two more men rushed up the stairs. "Hey!" one of them shouted, charging. He raised his hand, and the potted plants lining the balcony shot forward while spinning. They smashed into the newcomers, who collapsed in groaning heaps.

Frizz pulled out his phone, dialing quickly. "Yeah, hello, this is Frizz. The one at the hospital," he said. "I've got the guy who attacked Mill and me. He's at the red-roofed apartment complex just outside the city. Maybon Street."

"Yes, the one behind the fried chicken restaurant," Frizz confirmed as he quickly ended the call.

The almost-bald man panted as he lied down on the floor; his strength was almost gone. Frizz gave him one last dismissive glance. "You're lucky I'm calling the cops and not finishing this myself."

[System]

Objective Completed.

Received [Tag].

Displaying descriptions: The perk-user can tag a target by sight; tagging a target will highlight them, but only visible to the perk-user for six seconds.

"Cool, nice," Frizz stated, confusing the man, as for him he was looking at two trash bins. With that, Frizz descended the stairs, brushing past the curious onlookers gathered below. He didn't stop to look back as he disappeared into the oncoming crowds.

Unbeknownst to Frizz, someone was observing him from a distance.

"You're right, Hei, this guy really is one of us," a tall figure said on the phone as he lit up the cigarette in his mouth with a flick of his finger. *spark*

The other person on the phone paused for a moment, then asked. "His level?"

"Level?" The figure spat on the ground. "Most likely below fifteen."