Super Guardian

Chapter 7: Too Tired for This

Chapter 7: Too Tired for This

Super Guardian by LittleLYTA

Zack wiped his face with the towel after his shower, tossed it onto the chair, and dropped onto his bed with a quiet grunt.

His body was sore in that good way. Like he had worked, hunted, moved—actually done something.

He pulled up the system screen again, half-expecting another boring message.

Instead, a new window popped up, bigger and louder than before.

A sharp ding echoed in his head.

[New Daily Quest Received]

[Beginner Body Training – Day 1]

Must be completed before 12:00 AM. Resets daily.

Failure to complete will result in punishment.

100 Pushups

100 Situps

Run 3km

[Reward: +1 Extra Mod Point]

Zack blinked.

He checked the top corner of the screen.

[12:00 AM]

He let out a slow, confused breath.

“...You’re kidding, right?”

The quest had just started, and he technically had the whole day to finish it.

But still—100 pushups? Situps? Running 3 kilometers?

He let his head fall back against the pillow and stared at the ceiling.

“What is this? A spirit hunting system or a free trial for a fitness app?”

He turned on his side, dragging the blanket over his legs.

“What kind of system gives you homework at midnight?”

There was no timer. No countdown. But that one line kept glowing softly on the screen:

Failure to complete will result in punishment.

Zack didn’t like the sound of that. Not even a little.

But he was too full, too tired, and honestly too lazy to think about it right now. His arms were still a bit sore from climbing the tree, and his legs ached from the long walk home.

“I’ll do it later… way later.”

He yawned, rolled onto his back, and let his body sink into the old mattress.

The blanket was thin. The room was cold. The light buzzed above his head. But he was used to all of that by now.

And sleep came quickly.

The dream came faster.

Too fast.

He was five years old again.

Too small to understand what war was.

Too scared to move.

Too slow to do anything but stand there.

The house shook with each blast. Windows shattered. Red lights flashed across the walls. Alarms wailed in the distance, mixed with gunfire and screams.

Zack stood frozen in the hallway, hugging a pillow to his chest.

Then—

they came.

The Lytaians.

Their weapons glowed with a soft red light, humming like they were alive. They didn’t speak. They didn’t hesitate. They moved like death itself.

He saw them through the smoke, stepping over broken furniture and burned walls.

His mother was in front of him.

Her arms spread wide.

“Stay behind me,” she’d said.

And then his father came crashing through the door, weapon drawn.

He shouted something Zack couldn’t remember—something brave.

He fired first.

They fired back.

One hit. Then another.

Blood hit the wall.

His mom dropped first.

Then his dad.

Both still reaching for him.

And Zack—

He just stood there.

No scream.

No sound.

Just a five-year-old boy, staring at the end of everything.

Zack opened his eyes slowly.

His head still felt heavy, and his chest felt tight. For a second, he didn’t even want to move.

That dream had hit him hard.

Seeing his parents like that again—the screaming, the smoke, the Lytaians—it had felt too real.

But now?

He was awake.

He blinked at the dusty ceiling and let out a slow breath.

> “Ugh. Morning…”

His stomach growled.

Loud.

He sat up with a groan and dragged himself into the kitchen, opening every cabinet and drawer he could find. Even checked behind the rice jar just in case something had fallen there.

Nothing.

Fridge? Empty.

Table? Just old bills.

> “You’ve got to be kidding me…”

His stomach growled again, louder this time. Like it was yelling at him for not feeding it.

Then—ding!

A glowing message appeared in front of him.

---

[Reminder: Beginner Body Training – Day 1]

100 Pushups

100 Situps

Run 3km

Failure to complete will result in punishment.

---

Zack stared at the message like it was the dumbest thing he’d ever seen.

> “I can’t even get breakfast, and you want me to do pushups?”

He waved his hand, and the screen disappeared.

> “We’ll talk later, fitness app.”

He shuffled toward the bathroom and turned the knob on the faucet.

Nothing.

Not a single drop.

> “Right. Forgot. No water either…”

He stared at the dry sink for a few seconds, then turned and walked back to his room without saying a word.

As soon as he sat down, the power went out.

Click.

The fan stopped spinning.

The lights went off.

Even the tiny red light on the fridge died.

Zack sat in the dark.

Still sweaty. Still hungry. Still tired.

> “Fantastic.”

He lit a small battery lamp, the only working one left, and sat at his desk in front of his old school PC—a beat-up computer with missing keys, a scratched screen, and a battery that lasted about as long as a blink.

But somehow, it still worked.

He powered it on, and the fan inside made this weak wheezing noise like it was trying to breathe. The screen flickered to life, and the keyboard lit up—well, half of it.

He started typing with the working keys.

> “Blue crystal… system hack… rare item… Holy Domain…”

Most of the results were garbage. Old rumors. Broken links. Weird posts from shady forums.

A few articles mentioned similar crystals. But none matched what Zack had found.

Still… it was something.

He kept clicking through tabs, reading what he could, saving anything interesting. He was just starting to feel like he was on to something when the screen flickered again.

> “No. No no no, not now—”

Battery low.

Then—click.

The screen went black.

Zack sat there, hands on the keyboard, staring at the reflection of his tired face.

> “It was fully charged…”

He looked at the wall clock.

> “That only lasted 20 minutes…”

He leaned back, let out a deep sigh, and closed his eyes.

> “No food. No water. No power. No clue what the hell I’m doing.”

And then—

A loud voice shouted from outside.

> “I know someone’s in there!”

Zack’s eyes shot open.

That voice.

The landlord.

> “You think locking the front door’s gonna keep me from noticing?! You climbed through the back window again, didn’t you?!”

Zack stayed still, holding his breath like that would somehow help.

> “You better come out and talk, or I’m calling security! You owe three months! THREE!”

Zack didn’t move.

The house was quiet.

But the yelling kept going.

> “Don’t play dumb! I’ll be back tomorrow—and I’m bringing someone to open that door for real!”

The voice started fading as the landlord stomped down the stairs, still grumbling.

Zack sat in the dark.

Hungry.

Sweaty.

Alone.