Lucien slept until the afternoon of the next day.
When he woke up, he felt refreshed. Yesterday’s exhaustion had been completely washed away. However, the events of the previous day quickly flashed through his mind.
Mai was dead...
His hand traced the bed. This was where she normally slept, and by now, his fingers would have touched her.
But alas...
"Well... I wonder how the shelter is doing," Lucien muttered as he stood up.
His body felt full of energy.
Walking to the window, he looked down. The shelter was alive,everyone was working.
Daemon had probably gone to the base of the Half-Step One-Star Zombie they killed, and as for Jeff, he and the soldiers were helping the people as the shelter expanded and rebuilt.
For now, Lucien was barely needed. For a while, they could relax.
The burden, the constant threat of imminent danger was gone.
Now, it was just expansion... expansion... and more expansion.
"System, show me my stats," Lucien called out.
Host: Lucien
Rank: Beginner-Level Awakener (Limit) [Can Break Through]
Strength: 50
Speed: 50
Stamina: 50
---
Territory Status
Territory Name: Lucien Shelter (Small City)
Territory Level: Basic Settlement
Population: 12,530
Controlled Area: 50 km²
Structural Integrity: Good
Defense Rating: Medium
---
Followers
Loyal Followers: 12,530
Awakeners Under Command: 30
Semi-Awakeners: 1,500
Total Combat Personnel: 1,530
---
Ability: All Must Bow (Available)
Skills: Eyes of Desire, Appraisal
Luck: 75 (Increasing – Killed the heroine)
Sexual Points: 30,000 SP
Seeing his stats made Lucien smile.
This was proof of his hard work but more than that, it showed how far he had come.
From a normal human... to the leader of a city, commanding thousands.
There was a sense of accomplishment that was hard to describe.
"It’s time to break through. After all, strength is still the most important," Lucien said.
Of course, he didn’t let the power get to his head. He knew everything he had built was only possible because he was strong enough.
If he wasn’t... he would have been doomed.
And this world was still entirely new to them. They were in the dark.
They didn’t know what truly awaited them.
More than anything, Lucien wanted to see what lay beyond the city. He wanted to explore the outside world and meet other Awakeners, to compare strength.
Lucien sat cross-legged on the bed and closed his eyes.
"System, start the breakthrough," he said.
(Ding! Breakthrough started.)
The system hummed.
At first... Lucien felt nothing.
For a few seconds, he even thought the system had exaggerated. After all, he was already at the limit of the Beginner-Level Awakener realm.
His body was strong.
Or... had the system malfunctioned?
"Arghh!!"
Pain.
Intense, overwhelming pain flooded every fiber of his body as he trembled violently.
His eyes turned red as he collapsed onto the ground.
Creak...
Crack...
He felt his bones breaking and reforming.
His muscles tore apart as his blood surged like a boiling river.
His veins expanded and contracted violently.
The process continued for minutes, as Lucien’s body became drenched in cold sweat.
Just when it felt like it would never end...
The pain gradually faded.
"Huff... huff... huff..."
Lucien took heavy, ragged breaths as he lay on the ground.
Now he understood.
The system hadn’t been lying.
The feeling of your body being torn apart...
Was anything but normal.
He had felt death call out to him again and again.
But he endured.
And now...
The breakthrough was complete.
He had become a One-Star Awakener.
(Ding! Quest Completed)
Breakthrough to One-Star Awakener:
• Kill a Half-Step One-Star Zombie
(These zombies are at the peak of evolution, one step away from the One-Star realm. They often control entire cities.)
Reward: 10,000 SP
(Completed)
---
(Ding...)
Host: Lucien
Rank: One-Star Awakener (Low Level)
Strength: 100
Speed: 100
Stamina: 100
---
Territory Status
Territory Name: Lucien Shelter (Small City)
Territory Level: Basic Settlement
Population: 12,530
Controlled Area: 50 km
Structural Integrity: Good
Defense Rating: Medium
---
Followers
Loyal Followers: 12,530
Awakeners Under Command: 30
Semi-Awakeners: 1,500
Total Combat Personnel: 1,530
---
Ability: All Must Bow (Available)
Skills: Eyes of Desire, Appraisal
Luck: 80 (Increasing – Killed the heroine)
Sexual Points: 40,000
His stats...
They didn’t just increase slightly.
They doubled.
A sense of fear gripped him.
Even the Half-Step One-Star Zombie they had struggled against didn’t have a single stat reaching 100.
But now...
All of his stats were 100.
Was this what a One-Star Awakener truly was?
If that zombie had broken through...
They wouldn’t have stood a chance.
Lucien stood up and walked back to the window.
Now, his vision stretched kilometers ahead.
And strangely...
People seemed slower.
Like reality itself had a slight delay.
His body felt light...too light.
His speed... his jumping power...
They had increased drastically.
But the most noticeable change was his strength.
He couldn’t wait to test it.
Lucien carefully picked out his clothes and put them on.
Then he walked toward the door.
He was cautious.
He didn’t yet understand the extent of his strength.
What if he broke the doorknob?
Slowly, he twisted it...
And pulled.
Creak
Bam!
The door flew open violently.
It nearly ripped off its hinges.
Thankfully, the shelter was noisy, so the sound was drowned out.
Lucien stared at the almost-destroyed door.
He tried to close it—this time using even less strength.
As he shut the door, he glanced back.
On the bed lay torn clothes.
His wardrobe needed urgent replacement.
---
Lucien calmly walked outside, greeting everyone as they cheered and thanked him.
Their faces were filled with smiles.
Their hearts overflowed with joy as they carried out their tasks.
Finally, Lucien spotted the person he was looking for.
Jeff.
"Hey, leader."
"Did you sleep well?" Jeff asked, wiping sweat from his forehead.
"Yeah... it was refreshing," Lucien replied with a slight chuckle.
Then Lucien looked around for a moment and lowered his voice.
"Jeff, I need your help—not just you, but a few of the strongest Awakeners."
"Oh..." Jeff was surprised. Why was their leader whispering? He could have just asked openly. In fact, no one in the shelter would hesitate to help Lucien.
"Meet me at the training ground," Lucien said.
Jeff nodded.
"Yes, Leader."
Well... it didn’t matter. He would understand soon enough.
Right now, the training ground was the most vacant place, since everyone was focused on rebuilding. It was also large enough, so Lucien didn’t have to worry about breaking or destroying anything.
Lucien didn’t have to wait long.
Jeff arrived shortly after, accompanied by three other Awakeners.
"We’re here, Leader. What do you need our help with?" Jeff asked.
As for the Awakeners, they were glad to be of use.
To them—and to everyone in the shelter—Lucien wasn’t just a leader. He was their savior. He had given them their current strength.
He had turned them from normal humans into Awakeners.
They were grateful.
More than that...
They were devoted to him.
"I just broke through to the next realm, so I need help getting used to my strength," Lucien said.
The four of them froze, their eyes widening in shock.
Broke through...?
To the next realm?
Did that mean their leader had reached that level?
The zombie they feared the most had only been half a step into that realm...
Yet Lucien had already surpassed it.
Lucien... was a One-Star Awakener.
"Boss... we’ll gladly help," Jeff replied.
The others chuckled in agreement.
Of course they would.
Not only did they want to help Lucien
They were also curious.
Just how strong...
Was a One-Star Awakener?