Invincible Evolution System

Chapter 3

Orion hit the floor with a grunt, his toothbrush bouncing once before rolling pitifully across the cold wooden boards. His arms screamed with fiery pain as he struggled to push himself back up, bloodshot eyes glaring at nothing in particular. "This system is the absolute worst!" he screamed internally. His thoughts were a boiling mix of outrage and desperation. "What kind of garbage system forces push-ups just to earn a single measly point in Perception?" His veins bulged under the strain of each rep, a fiery heat coursing through his limbs as if his body was trying to burn away the humiliation. The Idle Evolution System, as it was mockingly named, gleefully dangled stat increases in front of him like a carrot on a stick, demanding physical suffering in return. "I swear to every deity listening," he growled, sweat dripping from his nose onto the floorboards, "one day, I'm going to program some goddamn emotional trauma into you. Just you wait, system. Just. You. Wait." The system, of course, offered no response. It didn't need to. Its smugness radiated in silence, unbothered by his threats. Twenty minutes later, after air-humping the floor with the fury of a man betrayed by his own destiny, Orion collapsed. His chest heaved as he gulped in air, and sweat slicked his body like he'd just crawled out of a river. His limbs twitched, a reminder that even lying still was now painful. Ding! The system's notification chimed brightly, at odds with the utter misery in his chest. [Side Quest Completed: +1 Perception Point Earned. Congratulations! Your suffering has paid off!] Orion glared at the words floating before him. If murderous intent could be digitized, the system would've disintegrated on the spot. Still, a part of him knew better than to fully despise the gain. As the Perception point sunk into his stats, the world around him shifted subtly but unmistakably. The morning birds outside sounded sharper, every chirp perfectly distinct from the next. The hum of distant car engines became a symphony of mechanical chaos. Even the air carried a strange clarity—a sharper sense of the space around him.

And then, there was a sound far more... distinct. Orion froze, his enhanced senses locking onto the faintest trail of what could only be described as a sultry, feminine moan. He squinted at the wall. "Moaning? This early in the morning?" His curiosity surged, mingled with suspicion. It wasn't every day you encountered such brazen noises before breakfast.

Driven by both concern and an unhealthy dose of morbid curiosity, he stood. His legs wobbled but held firm as he followed the sound down the hall, eventually stopping in front of a familiar door. Maya's door. Her door was cracked open just enough to offer a glimpse inside. Orion stopped. This was a line. No matter how ridiculous the situation might be, he wasn't the kind of guy to peep. He'd never live it down. Besides, Maya was his stepsister, and the mere thought made his stomach churn with awkwardness.