Levi finally saw the panel glowing in his mind.
His thoughts were still foggy from sleep.
*Is this… a cheat?* His brain was just waking up.
*Did the system activate while I was sleeping?*
Before he could figure it out, Don Quixote—still in his makeshift armor—marched straight out of the basement.
Levi had no choice but to follow.
He remembered something he’d heard once: waking a sleepwalker by force could mess with their head, maybe even cause real damage.
Since this guy was his only guardian, his only family here, and the roof over his head, Levi decided playing along was safer.
They stepped out into the empty alley.
It was deep night.
The street was dead quiet except for distant sirens and the occasional crack of gunfire somewhere in Brooklyn—the worst neighborhood in New York.
Levi walked a step behind the armored figure and finally spoke.
“Uncle… Sir Knight.
Where exactly are we going?”
“We’re hunting goblins, my squire,” Don Quixote declared loudly.
“Goblins are cunning creatures.
They hide deep in the forests.
We must be very, very careful if we want to find them.”
*If there were actual goblins in New York,* Levi thought, *I’d rather run into a succubus or an elf.
Or Santa.
Someone I could farm gold from.*
Don Quixote suddenly shouted and pointed ahead.
“There!
That filthy, stinking goblin!
The ringleader terrorizing the villagers!”
Levi followed his gaze.
It was a trash can.
Before he could say anything, Don Quixote shoved him forward.
“Go, squire.
As my attendant, I trust you can handle one lone goblin.”
Levi pointed at himself.
“Me?
But… you’re the knight.
I didn’t sign up to protect any village.”
“You are the knight’s squire,” Don Quixote said, and slapped Levi on the head with a gauntleted hand.
The metal rang against his skull.
“A single stray goblin is beneath a true knight.”
Levi’s head was still buzzing.
He didn’t catch the rest.
*Fine.
As long as it’s not a person.*
He walked over to the trash can, glanced back at Don Quixote, then kicked it hard.
Once.
Twice.
He kept hitting it until he finally knocked the whole thing over.
“Excellent work, squire,” Don Quixote said, eyes still closed as he stared at the fallen can.
“We have defeated this foul goblin.”
“So… is the quest done?”
Don Quixote stood silent for a long moment, thinking.
“We’ve slain this one,” Levi pushed.
“If we leave its body here, maybe the other goblins will think twice before messing with the village again.”
Don Quixote’s eyes moved behind his lids.
“You speak wisely, squire Levi.
Its corpse will serve as a warning.”
“Good.
So what now?”
“Now we return to report our victory,” Don Quixote announced.
“The knight must tell the village chief that one more wretched goblin has been destroyed.”
Levi waited until Don Quixote turned away, then quickly righted the trash can and shoved the spilled garbage back inside.
He jogged to catch up.
*Maybe I can influence him with words,* Levi thought.
*Might shorten these sleepwalking episodes.*
They walked back the same way they came.
Don Quixote still in full armor.
Inside the basement, Levi watched as the man—eyes shut—methodically stripped off the armor, stacked it in the corner, changed into pajamas, and crawled into his section.
Ten seconds later he was snoring like a chainsaw.
Right then the system spoke again.
[Quest: Assist the knight in clearing goblins — Complete]
[Reward: System panel unlocked.
Attribute points +0.1]
[Your knight is highly satisfied with you.
Bonus reward: Gold coins +1]
Something heavy dropped into Levi’s right pocket.
His heart slammed against his ribs.
He rushed into the bathroom, locked the door, and reached into his pocket with shaking fingers.
Cold, hard metal.
He pulled it out.
A gold coin sat in his palm, catching the light.
Intricate patterns covered both sides—designs he had never seen before.
It felt real.
Heavy.
Maybe five grams.
Levi sucked in a sharp breath.
*If this is actual gold… it’s worth a few hundred dollars easy.*
He shoved the coin back in his pocket and focused on the panel glowing behind his eyes.
A translucent screen appeared.
[Name: Levi]
[Age: 17]
[Strength: 0.8]
[Spirit: 1.0]
[Agility: 0.9]
[Constitution: 0.8]
[Skills: None]
[Equipment: None]
[Assignable Attribute Points: 0.1]
[Skill Draws Available: 1]
*(Reference: Average values for a healthy 20-year-old adult are 1.0 across the board)*
*Figures.
Typical Chinese high-school senior stats.*
Levi accepted the system without much shock.
He studied his numbers.
Strength and Constitution were weak.
Agility was a little better but still below average.
Only his Spirit sat at normal adult level.
He pulled the gold coin out again and turned it over in his fingers.
The strange patterns proved this wasn’t his imagination.
He couldn’t picture something he’d never seen.
Time to test the points.
He glanced at the snoring lump that was Don Quixote, then dropped to the floor in his own section and started doing push-ups.
His body hated every second of it.
By the eighth rep his arms were shaking and his chest burned.
He barely finished ten before he collapsed, breathing hard, hands covered in basement dust.
*Yeah.
0.8 Constitution and Strength is exactly as pathetic as it feels.*
He stood up, wiped his hands, and took a breath.
“System… add the point.”
[Constitution 0.8] → [Constitution 0.9]!