My System Doesn't Give Power

Matilda stared at Zac, who was sleeping peacefully on the floor of the exit hall, and a slow smile spread across her face.

At first glance, the smile appeared gentle, almost affectionate. Yet something beneath it carried an unmistakable promise of violence.

The students noticed it immediately, and despite their exhaustion, they quietly moved farther away, eager to see what would happen next.

Marty glanced at Zac and thought silently. "He is so dead."

Matilda walked toward him without making a sound and stopped directly in front of his sleeping body.

Zac remained blissfully unaware. His head rested on a small pillow, and a blanket covered his body as he slept peacefully like a newborn.

Matilda raised her hand and snapped her fingers.

A vine suddenly sprouted from the floor. At its tip was a thick, needle-like thorn. Before anyone could understand what she was planning, the vine shot forward and stabbed Zac directly in the butt.

"Aaahhh!"

With a loud scream, Zac launched himself off the floor.

"Who the fuck..." Before he could finish, he noticed the students surrounding him. Then his gaze landed on Matilda, who stood in front of him wearing the same murderous smile.

The hall was completely silent, but several students were visibly struggling not to laugh.

Zac slowly reached behind himself and rubbed his injured backside. "Did I miss something?"

"Welcome back to the real world, Mr. Delencore," Matilda said. "I hope you had a wonderful dream."

Zac continued rubbing his butt with a wounded expression. "Sorry. I was sleeping inside the prison realm when the teleportation happened."

"I can see that." Matilda looked him up and down. "How ironic, isn’t it? One of all the strange and dangerous places in the world, a realm the academy uses to punish students somehow became your personal bedchamber."

Zac glanced at the others. "I was exhausted."

"There is no need to explain. Watching you sleep through dimensional transportation has already told me enough."

Matilda turned away from him and walked back to the front of the students. "All of you did well."

Her gaze moved across their uniforms, which were now torn, filthy, and covered in damage. Several students had burn marks, scratches, and dried blood staining their clothes.

Worse than that was the black filth expelled from their bodies while opening their meridians. The combined stench filling the hall was powerful enough to make even Matilda’s face twist.

"It’s obvious that all of you are exhausted, so I’ll give you the rest of the day off. Return home and rest properly."

She looked over the group. "We’ll discuss everything else in class tomorrow. Don’t be late."

Matilda turned and started walking toward the exit; just before leaving, she stopped and glanced back. "More importantly, take a very long bath before resting."

She lightly covered her nose with one hand. "I don’t want my classroom smelling like a public toilet tomorrow."

A few students discreetly moved away from one another, each pretending the smell was coming from somebody else.

Matilda then left the hall. Once she was gone, the students also began leaving in small groups.

Marty waited for Zac near the entrance. The moment Zac joined him, Marty looked at him with amusement. "Dude, how did you manage to sleep through teleportation?"

Zac let out a long yawn. "I was exhausted to the core."

The two of them began walking through the academy toward the residential area. "For the entire week, I was almost constantly meditating and opening meridians," Zac continued. "After that, I spent most of my time wandering around the realm without getting any proper rest."

Marty looked at him strangely. "When did you open your final meridian?"

"Two days ago."

"And how long were you wandering around?"

"Until a few hours ago."

Marty stared at him. "You do realize you could’ve used that time to get some proper rest, right? Why were you wandering around aimlessly?"

"Spirit of exploration."

"Yeah, no kidding." Marty shook his head. "Still, you must’ve been seriously exhausted. You didn’t even wake up when everyone started appearing."

"I only meant to take a short nap. I didn’t expect it to become a public performance."

After a moment, Zac turned toward Marty. "So, what happened to you inside the realm?"

Marty immediately began recounting everything.

He explained how he had been teleported directly beside a terrifying horned beast and started running the moment he sensed its pressure. He then told Zac about meeting Daniel, Adrian, and Shobin, finding the Mend Stem Sprigs, and everything else they had done throughout the week.

By the time he finished, they were already nearing the student residential area.

Zac glanced at him. "So you still have one meridian left?"

"Yeah." Marty stretched his arms. "I should be able to open it today, or tomorrow at the latest. Now that I have the sprigs, it’ll be much easier."

Zac nodded. "Just don’t rush it. Take your time."

"See you tomorrow, Zac." Marty waved before heading toward his house.

"Yeah. See you." Zac continued toward his own home. When he reached the door, his eyes automatically landed on the number fixed above it.

69.

Zac stared at it for a moment before shaking his head. "Every time I see that number, it gives me a strange, awkward feeling."

[That is only because your mind is filled with strange and awkward things.]

Zac unlocked the door. "Hey, I’m a perfectly healthy young man, Miss Prime. These things are bound to happen."

[Of course. Blame biology for your lack of maturity.]

"Whatever." Zac stepped inside and closed the door behind him.

Suddenly remembering something, Zac asked, "System, why didn’t you wake me when the teleportation started? If you had, I wouldn’t have become a joke in front of the whole class."

[Because I didn’t want to.]

[You were resting after exhausting yourself, and I didn’t want to disturb you.]

"Really? How very thoughtful of you."

[Do you know the three mantras of life?]

Zac stopped walking. "If this is another philosophical lesson, count me out. I’m too exhausted for it."

As always, the system ignored him and continued.

[Eat well, sleep well, and live long.]

Zac sighed and headed toward the bathroom.

While removing his clothes, he asked, "Those three things might work for an ordinary human, but in an era where variants reign supreme, I don’t think that’s enough to thrive."

He stepped beneath the shower.

Warm water poured over his body, washing away the dried sweat, blood, and black impurities still clinging to his skin after opening his meridians.

[That is because you only see the boundary and fail to notice what lies beyond it.]

[’Eat well’ does not simply mean consuming food. It means taking in everything that improves and sustains you.]

[Food strengthens your body, knowledge strengthens your mind, training strengthens your abilities, while experience sharpens your judgment.]

[Anything that helps you become better than you were yesterday falls under eating well.]

"Does that mean reading a book counts as eating?"

[Metaphorically, yes.]

"What about stealing someone else’s knowledge?"

[That would be eating from another person’s plate.]

A faint smile appeared on Zac’s face.

"Continue."

[The second mantra is sleep well.]

"I already understand that one. Sleep without getting stabbed in the butt."

[Will you stop with the jokes? They do nothing except annoy me.]

"Hey, I’m good at jokes."

[Only you would say that.]

The system continued before Zac could defend himself.

[Sleeping well is not limited to closing your eyes. It includes anything that allows your body and mind to relax, recover, and regain stability.]

[Spending peaceful time with family, speaking with trusted friends, enjoying something you love, meditating, or simply resting without fear all fall under sleeping well.]

"And what about the third one?" Zac stepped out of the shower and began drying his hair and body with a towel.

[Live long.]

The system said nothing else.

Zac waited for a moment. "That’s it?"

[That’s it.]

"There’s no hidden meaning behind this one?"

[If you eat well and sleep well, living long becomes considerably easier. The third mantra requires no decoration.]

"Hm." Zac wrapped the towel around his waist and looked at his reflection in the mirror.

After admiring himself for a moment, he said, "I didn’t know such simple words could carry that much meaning."

[Everything possesses a deeper meaning when viewed from the correct perspective.]

"Yeah, yeah. Very profound." Zac changed into clean clothes and walked straight toward his bed.

[Are you not going to practise the Heart Sword technique or circulate Mana through your meridians?]

"Tomorrow. I’m tired." He dropped onto the bed. "We’ll do it tomorrow."

[Tomorrow. The anthem of failure.]

But before the system could continue, Zac was already asleep.

***

The next morning, Zac woke up earlier than usual.

His body felt completely rejuvenated, without the slightest trace of yesterday’s exhaustion. He closed his eyes and sensed the Mana flowing freely through all twelve meridians, while even his breathing felt lighter than before.

After eating a ready-made breakfast, he prepared himself and left the house, heading straight toward the classroom.

However, as Zac approached the path leading to the academic building, he noticed a familiar figure standing alone by the roadside.

Hip-length white hair flowed gently behind her. Ocean-blue eyes rested beneath an angelic face carrying its usual cold, deadpan expression, while her striking figure made her impossible to overlook.

Zac glanced at her once. "What is she doing here?"

[Maybe she’s waiting for someone.]

"I can clearly see that. My question is, who?"

[Why do you even care?]

Zac paused briefly. "That’s right. Why do I care?"

He continued walking without acknowledging her. But just as he passed, Sabrina spoke.

"Wait."