"Cough... cough..."
The warm, bright sunlight streaming into the room barely managed to awaken a certain consciousness that had sunk into darkness.
"Ugh... hmm, I'm so dizzy, and I have a bit of a headache..."
Alistair semi-opened his eyes and rolled over in bed, feeling utterly devoid of strength. This was almost impossible for Alistair, who possessed the Horse Talisman, unless the thing that caused this condition contained a 'mystery' greater than that of the Horse Talisman, or a means to suppress its ability. But even so, what the hell caused this? Alistair didn't remember provoking any big shots. If it was Lady Hachishaku, she wouldn't have left him here.
Alistair tried to sit up but felt weak all over. After managing to prop up half his body, he fell back down weakly.
"What happened last night?"
Alistair looked up at the ceiling in confusion, trying hard to recall the events of last night. But now, his mind felt like a confused mess, filled with a dizzy, chaotic sensation.
Thud~ (Onomatopoeia)
Alistair turned, lying on his side, his hand hitting the bed and making a slight sound.
Knock-knock!
"Nao-chan, it's eight o'clock. Are you going to clock in for attendance today?"
A knock came from Alistair's door, accompanied by a pleasant female voice. Clearly, it could only be Chiaki.
"Nao-chan~"
Finding no response from Alistair, Chiaki assumed he was still asleep. She waited a moment, then called again. The volume wasn't loud. If Alistair was sound asleep, he wouldn't answer. If he was mostly awake, he would usually give some kind of response by now. This was similar to before: if Alistair was awake but didn't want to go, he would mumble a few words to express his thoughts.
"Well, it looks like he's not awake. But I should check, I feel like something's not right."
Chiaki had intended to leave, but she felt she had forgotten something and was uneasy. She muttered a few words and opened the door.
Click~
Chiaki opened Alistair's door and immediately saw him lying on his side in bed, and she sharply noticed something unusual about him.
Nao-chan is stark naked?
Chiaki immediately noticed Alistair's bare lower half. And unlike usual, Alistair's 'battleship cannon' wasn't pointing proudly towards the sky; it showed no sign of awakening at all, lying completely limp. This was unbelievable. Alistair used to be able to go half the night with her and be fine. Why was he like this now?
Moreover, Alistair's current weakness was far too obvious. Normally, Alistair wouldn't be this exhausted even if he did 'handicrafts' all night. Furthermore, Alistair didn't need to do 'handicrafts'; she was right there at home, and Alistair could always seek her out. Therefore, given Alistair's personality, he couldn't have become like this from 'handicrafts.' Is he sick?
Chiaki walked to Alistair's bedside and gently placed her hand on his forehead, but felt no anomaly. She immediately found this strange. Alistair didn't seem sick, so why did he look so 'drained'?
"Chiaki? Don't worry, I'm fine. I'm just a little too tired. Just let me rest for a day."
Alistair felt a hand on his forehead. He opened his eyes with difficulty, recognized Chiaki, and noticed the worry on her face. He waved his hand, assuring her not to worry, saying he was just suffering from over-exhaustion.
"Are you really okay? Should I take you to the hospital?"
Chiaki looked at Alistair's exhausted appearance. Since there were no other obvious symptoms, most of her worry dissipated, but she was still a little uneasy and wanted to take Alistair to the hospital.
"I'm fine. If you're really worried, come check on me at noon. If I haven't recovered much, then you can take me to the hospital."
Alistair said helplessly. Since it was his sister's good intention, he couldn't keep her constantly worried, so he complied a little. Besides, if Alistair couldn't recover on his own and the Horse Talisman was suppressed, going to the hospital wouldn't be meaningful. Alistair had a feeling that his condition couldn't be removed by ordinary physical intervention and could only recover on its own. And Alistair didn't know any powerful individuals who could help.
"Alright, then. You rest well, and I'll come back to check on you at noon."
Chiaki stroked Alistair's face, instructing him.
"...."
Alistair nodded, indicating he understood.
I hope nothing serious happens.
Chiaki sighed, thinking this, then turned and walked to the door, preparing to leave, but suddenly stopped.
Did we have a pet?
Chiaki turned around, looking at Alistair's room. She felt a sense of incongruity, like something was missing, but she couldn't recall what it was. It seemed... Alistair's room had a pet, but she had no recollection of it.
Is it because I want a pet?
Chiaki began to doubt herself. Maybe she only imagined Alistair having a pet because she herself wanted one.
"It must be an illusion..."
Chiaki muttered softly, then turned and left the room, went downstairs, grabbed her school bag, and prepared to leave.
"What the hell did I run into last night? I still feel like something's wrong."
Alistair muttered to himself, feeling frustrated. This situation made him uneasy, but he had no solutions, much like facing Lady Hachishaku—he was filled with a sense of powerlessness.
When a person faces extreme fear, they often generate immense anger. Alistair only feeling a bit annoyed was already a good display of mental fortitude, given he was just an ordinary otaku before. Even after being traumatized once, it didn't mean Alistair instantly became incredibly ruthless.
God knows how those xianxia protagonists in online novels immediately gain superb mental fortitude after transmigration. Alistair hadn't even taken a 'first blood' yet. He had only hit people, but never contemplated murder, mainly because no one had expressed murderous intent towards him.
This screwed-up world.
Alistair lamented. He had never craved great power this much. He had always lived in relative ease. Even after being targeted in the Demi-Human District, once he knew Lady Hachishaku could only operate there, Alistair relaxed again. In the Human District, Alistair didn't believe anything could threaten him. He wasn't even too afraid of that unknown religious group, as they likely relied on strange artifacts.
Those artifacts probably had a prerequisite for spiritual power, or soul strength. Otherwise, if they could just recruit anyone, why would they develop so secretly? So, Alistair wasn't too scared. But the current situation was most likely caused by some entity with a higher 'mystery' level, or someone with incredibly powerful means. This was tough. Either way, it meant an entity he had no ability to fight back against.
It's really annoying.
If only his mind felt tired but his body was normal, that would be fine, because the other party's 'mystery' wouldn't be greater than his Horse Talisman, or they would be relying on some item. But the ability to suppress the Horse Talisman suggests the opponent has artifacts for that purpose, or, more seriously, possesses systematic supernatural knowledge that allows for targeted attacks.
At this point, I may have to use my last resort...
Grandpa! Come save your grandson!
Alistair felt his body recover slightly. He quickly reached for his phone, lit up the screen, and planned to contact his grandfather.
However, Alistair noticed an unfamiliar app on his phone. The app icon... was a pink heart shape that looked both normal and slightly bizarre...