My Bugged System Made Me Too OP!-Chapter 12: Break through!
Chapter 12:
He felt the faint shudders traveling through the person holding him, followed by soft, barely contained sobs against his shoulder.
His throat tightened instantly, and his voice cracked as he whispered,
"...Mom..."
She slowly pulled back from the hug and looked up at him, her hands still gripping his arms as if afraid he would disappear if she let go.
Her long black hair spilled over her shoulders messily, and her pitch-black eyes glistened with worry.
A few wrinkles marked her face, signs of stress and years of hardship, but she still looked beautiful, her features gentle and warm despite their situation.
Her voice trembled as she spoke, "Where have you been...? Coming back this late, and why are you in different clothes?"
Noah swallowed hard and forced himself to smile lightly, though guilt weighed heavily in his chest. "Ohh... uhh... I was at Emily’s place..."
He almost cursed himself for how nervous that sounded, so he quickly continued before she could ask anything further.
"You don’t have to worry, Mum... what of Lia?"
His mother’s expression softened a little—just a little—as she glanced toward the small room on the left. "She fell asleep long ago... she got tired of waiting for you."
Noah opened his mouth to respond, but his mother’s brows knitted together again, and she seemed ready to press him with more questions.
But before she could speak—
Noah quickly rushed toward his room, almost tripping over a loose floorboard in his panic. "Don’t worry— I’m okay! Really!"
His mother blinked, startled by his sudden retreat.
Noah didn’t stop moving until he reached his room, shutting the door behind him gently.
His breath trembled as he leaned against the wooden surface, staring at the dim, cramped space around him—the small bed, the broken table, the faint moonlight seeping through the window.
Only then did he finally let out a long, shaky exhale.
His chest still felt tight as he remembered the look in his mother’s eyes.
Noah dragged a hand down his face slowly.
How was he even supposed to explain any of this?
His lips parted slightly, but no words came.
What would he even say?
That he had been ambushed?
That he had been beaten to death and eventually buried?
His throat tightened again at the mere thought.
He could already imagine her losing it if he explained even a little bit of what happened to her.
She would at least try to get back against Lloyd by demanding justice for what he did to him.
And that... that would only make everything worse.
After all, Lloyd wasn’t just some random academy student.
He was the Count’s son.
His father had power and influence, and as for them, they were barely scarping by.
Their house looked like it could collapse during the next heavy storm.
His mother worked herself thin just to keep food on the table.
They didn’t have any money, talkless of connections that could help their case.
To make things worse, he was already known as the trash of the academy who was barely regarded by anyone.
Noah swallowed.
If he had at least shown some exceptional talent... then not even Lloyd would be able to toy with him so easily.
But that wasn’t the case.
A faint crease formed between his brows and he hissed, his jaw clenching in annoyance.
He balled his hands into fists so tight that his knuckles turned pale.
’Don’t worry, mum...’ he thought. ’They won’t get away with this, count’s son of not, I’ll make sure of that.’
He pushed himself off the door at last and walked toward his bed.
Each step creaked softly against the uneven floorboards.
The small mattress sagged in the middle as he sat down, the old frame groaning faintly under his weight.
He leaned forward slightly, resting his elbows on his knees.
A low exhale slipped from his lips.
The room felt smaller somehow, and even quieter than usual, but his thoughts were loud.
"System," he muttered.
Immediately, a series of notifications blinked across his vision.
[Daily Quest: Jog for 5 minutes (5/5)]
[Status: Completed]
[Reward Granted: 20EXP]
[Daily Quest: Jog for 5 minutes (5/5)]
[Status: Completed]
[Reward Granted: 20EXP]
Noah blinked.
Before he could react, another appeared.
[Daily Quest: Jog for 5 minutes (5/5)]
[Status: Completed]
[Reward Granted: 20EXP]
[Daily...]
[Daily...]
Noah’s confusion only lasted for a split second before his eyes began to shine.
His lips parted slightly.
He hadn’t just jogged casually.
He had sprinted from Emily’s house... then slowed into a steady jog... and kept moving all the way here without stopping.
And he didn’t just complete the quest once, but had completed it five times!
The corner of his mouth lifted slowly, almost disbelieving.
Each one brought him twenty experience points, and with all five added together, he just got over a hundred EXP!
His heart began to pound—not from fear this time, but from rising excitement.
Soon enough, the tabs vanished and in their place, a single, larger notification appeared.
It hovered directly before his eyes.
[You have reached the 100EXP requirement to level up]
[Would you like to level up?]
[Yes / No]
For a brief second, the world seemed to grow quieter.
Even the faint creaking of the house faded from his awareness.
Level up.
The words felt unreal.
His pulse thudded loudly in his ears.
He swallowed slowly, staring at the options.
Would he like to level up?
Was that even a question?
He had struggled for years.
Years.
And now—
The answer was right there in front of him.
’Yes,’ he thought without hesitation.
The moment the word formed in his mind, the notification reacted.
The panel shimmered brightly, then dissolved in a brief flash.
Another appeared immediately.
[Congratulations! You have levelled up!]
[You’re now level 1!]
[Rank: Apprentice Magus (low) >> Apprentice Magus (mid)]
Noah’s eyes widened.
For a split second, nothing happened.
Then—
Something inside him shifted.
It felt like something deep within his chest had cracked open.
Like a sealed door had finally been forced apart after years of pressure.
A sudden rush of energy surged outward from his core.
